Iron Will
Disclaimer time again: I do not own any of the characters from Final Fantasy 8 or the
events, monsters, GF's or Garden. Square does. However, I own my own character, Vira Eronwil, and
any other character that was not in the game. And the plot to this story. I do this for no profit
just for my own entertainment and the entertainment of others. That said, enjoy my first FF8 fic
ever! :D
by Eve
Chapter 1: Journey Begins
Vira Eronwil sat on the side of a wall near Galbadia Garden's entrance. Alone, as she
always was. Vira was always alone. Other than nessesary interaction with her classmates and
fellow SeeDs, she just spent all her time alone. Watching the clouds. That day the sun beamed
down with soft, docile light. Warming her inside and out, without being harmful. It was the
perfect day. Birds nearby sang their enchanting melody repeatedly, the warm breeze would gently
push against Vira's face. She never thought much about the pefect kind of day, but when it was
there and she was experiencing how wonderful it was, there was no way for her to deny it.
Passing students would stare at her in amazement, never understanding how someone could wear all
black, no matter what time of year it was. Vira's long leather jacket hung down to her knees and
was always on her person along with her black tube shirt and leather pants and boots. All black.
Some students were afraid of her, associating her with what Death would look like if it was a
girl. Vira didn't care. She didn't care about anyone. If they thought she was Death, who was she
to deny? As a SeeD, she would have to kill people in the line of work. In that way, she was
Death. The bringer of death on all her enemies. Vira never thought about what other people
thought of her, and never cared for their opinions. She was a loner, always had been,and she
always believed she'd be that way until the day she died. Vira stared down at her weapon of
choice, Kamablades, and watched them glisten in the gentle sunlight. They were a small, two
handed version of the Gunblade, needing years of intense training to master. Train was all Vira
did. Day in and day out, unless she was out watching the day go by. Her training was excellent,
while her actual studies were in shambles. Not that she cared. It didn't get her anywhere. She
just went through it with the least amount of energy possible. It got her by. It always did.
People would let her off because she was the hardest working SeeD while training. There, Vira
sat, watching the world go by, never wanting to be a part of it.
Without warning Irvine Kinneas ran up to Vira with his self-assured ladies' man stride.
Vira hated that. She knew he had a girlfriend of his own, Selphie something or other, but hated
that he'd still act like he was some hot cowboy every girl would swoon over. Her face turned to
a disgusted frown at that thought as Irvine continued to bound up to her in a happy manner.
"Hey, Vira. Guess what?" He asked, grinning from ear to ear.
Vira sat silent for a few seconds, thinking of an adaquite reply to him. "I'm not in the
mood for games, Kinneas. Just tell me what it is."
Irvine looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, almost like her manner was something he
had seen before. He quickly shook it off and replied, "Okay, if you say so. Balamb Garden has
asked for new transfers from Galbadia since you know how full we've been here lately."
There was no denying how jam packed Galbadia Garden had been in recent months. He was
right there. Some people were going to need to be moved. Why Irvine hadn't been in Balamb Garden
after all that war a while ago, Vira would never understand. "Yeah. I know. Is there a point to
this?"
"Sure is." Irvine adjusted his cowboy hat, one he always wore. "Headmaster Cid asked
personally for you to be transfered. He said that they needed someone with your battle knowledge
there. For training of their students, I mean."
"Fine. I'll go pack then. " Vira jumped from her sitting position back unto the path to
the interior of Galbadia Garden and began walking to her dorm.
"Wait! Wait!" Irvine ran after her, trying to make her realize she hadn't heard the whole
story. "There's more!"
Vira turned around and looked at Irvine dead-panly, not really caring what the rest was.
She was told to move by the head of Balamb Garden himself. It was an honor and to be moved to the
most prestigious Garden was even better. The little pleasure she actually took out of life.
Whatever else it was that Irvine had to say, she wasn't interested. Still, she stood and asked
him, "What is it, Kinneas?"
"They asked me to come along too. Since I know so many of them from there anyway. They
wanna bring in students slowly so you and me will be the first to leave. Tomorrow. Then they'll
send out more students as the day passes."
Without expression Vira replied, "Yay. So, the orders are that you and me set out for
Balamb Garden tomorrow? Where's it at now? Balamb? What time do we leave?"
Being bombarded by all these questions momentarily threw Irvine off into confusion, but
he quickly recovered. "Yeah. They've moved back to where it originally was. We leave tomorrow
morning at 9."
"All right. See you then." Vira then turned back towards her dorm room to get packed. Not
that she had much to pack, but it was at least proper for her to say goodbye to the place in a
good fashion.
"You'll like it! I promise! It'll be different for ya! Who knows? You might finally talk
more and stop being so damned reclusive!" Irvine called after her, now standing alone with the
gentle breeze moving his pony tail in different directions, each strand obeying a differnt
breeze. It wasn't that he disliked Vira, this was Irvine Kinneas. The self appointed ladies' man.
He loved all women, no matter how rude they could be to him. Of course, he loved Selphie Tilmitt
the most, always having a special place in his heart reserved for her since childhood. He would
always love Selphie more than any other woman in the world, and never intended to stray too far
from that path. Irvine knew that the way Vira spoke to him reminded him of someone else he knew,
but for now he didn't want to think about it. He was going to have to go back to his dorm and
pack, get ready for a long journey ahead of them to Balamb. He shook his head slowly. He knew
this would be a long journey for him. Especially with Vira Eronwil.
The next morning proved to be just as beautiful as the day before, the sun shining
happily down on all who were under it. Ten minutes before departure time, Vira sat with her small
bag of possessions at the front gate. A gentle morning breeze moved through Vira's dark brown
hair, making it wave up and down in a soothing pattern. Vira breathed out an exasperated sigh.
Irvine had ten minutes to show up or she would leave without him.
-I will not wait for some ladies' man cowboy when there's a train on schedule. I won't
wait for anyone if I have somewhere to go. For his sake he had better show up.-
Vira sat in the same spot she always did, but instead of watching the expansive blue
sky above, she kept her eyes fixed on the front entrance for any sign of Irvine. Her eyes darted
to every person who exited the Garden, checking their faces. None of them were Irvine. She cursed
at Irvine inwardly, noting to herself that there were only five minutes left for him to show up.
In another minute, Vira began to slouch, bored with this little waiting game.
-How much crap does that guy have? Doesn't he know we're on a schedule here?-
Taking that cue, Irvine strode confidently out of the Galbadia Garden's main entrance,
a suitcase in one had, and his gun that he always kept by his side in the other. When he reached
Vira, he tipped his hat slightly as a greeting and grinned at her in his usual manner. "Good
morning, Vira. Ready to go?"
She leapt off her sitting pearch and picked up her small bag. Without looking at him she
answered, "We have five minutes. Let's go. We'll have to walk through the woods to get to the
train station."
"I'll take that as a yes then." Irvine said while he began walking next to her. "Y'know,
you remind me of someone I know."
"Oh." Vira replied, obviously uninterested.
"Yeah, I've known him for a long time. But I didn't get to know him really well until
recently. He used to act just like you....still does from what I've heard." Irvine went on as
the two walked towards the woods.
Vira quickened her pace when the wooded entrance appeared, stepping lightly over the
branches and upturned roots. Her training making her fast and agile were really showing now.
"Uh-huh." She breathed out.
-Why is he even bothering to tell me this? What is the point?-
"You're gonna meet him as soon as we get to Balamb Garden. I'm sure you're gonna get
along real well with him." Irvine still continued, jumping over the branches that Vira had
just navigated over.
"...whatever." answered Vira, not paying attention anymore. Irvine's little story about
some friend of his she should get along with wasn't something she needed to hear. Making friends
wasn't on her agenda.
This reaction from Vira sent Irvine into a spasm of laughter while he still tried to
navigate over the branches and roots. Vira jerked to a stop and turned to look at Irvine's
little laughing attack. "That is exactly what my friend says." He managed to say through bursts
of laughter.
Shrugging this off, Vira turned back and continued to make her way through the woods.
Soon getting over his attack, Irvine followed. He now knew that adding Vira to Balamb Garden
was something that would prove very interesting, for everyone. Another Squall. That's just what
they needed. And this time it was a girl. What a riot he would have, seeing everyone realize
that Squall wasn't the only reserved person out there. Except that she was like Squall without
one key component that made him able to deal with. Rinoa. Vira had no one while Squall had
Rinoa. Inwardly, Irvine shrugged this off. Oh well. It wasn't his problem. To him it would still
be funny to see the reaction on everyone's faces when they meet her.
Without speaking another word to each other, the two finally made it to the train
station, boarding as soon as they got on. The conductor glanced at them briefly, an expression
of anger on it that the two were almost late. Irvine tipped his hat at the man apologetically
as he ran, Vira just ignoring him completely. Finally, the two sat down, in the SeeD's private
car. Irvine still marveling, even after all this time he had experienced it, at how wonderful
the SeeD car really was. On the sofa, Vira just sat, cleaning her Kamagunblades carefully. Sun
reflected off the blades brightly, almost blinding Irvine's sight. He shook his head in awe of
how different the weapon was from his and looked at Vira's face. It was fixed in complete
concentration on her task at hand.
"I've never seen anyone use the Kamagunblades before. They're even more rare than the
Gunblade. Where'd you get them?" Irvine finally asked, trying to start up a conversation again.
Cleaning of the brilliant blades continued, Vira never even looking up at Irvine for a
second. "I've had them for as long as I can remember. I guess they were a gift from my parents."
Irvine leaned back, putting his feat up on the table near by. "Where are your parents?"
"Beats me." Vira answered, her eyes never straying from her Kamagunblades. "Never knew
who they were. Not even their names. All I know is who I am, my necklace, and these blades. I
don't intend on dwelling on it much either. I can't remember too much of my childhood. I suggest
we drop the subject."
Silence came over the cabin, Irvine knowing that he should not go any farther with that
line of questioning. Instead of bothering Vira from her cleaning, Irvine decided to look out the
window. Hey, it was better than nothing. They had already passed through Timber and were just at
the entrance of the underwater tunnel. Soon, all the bright light from the sun turned into shades
of green and blue, as the train entered the underwater tunnel. Irvine caught glimpses of fish,
seen through the glass of the encasement of the tunnel.
-We'll be there soon. Heheh, soon I'm gonna be laughing at everyone's face when they get
a load of Vira. And I'll get to see Selphie again. Odin, it's been...a month since my last visit.
How can she stand it? So much time away from me and all. I don't even know how I handle it.-
A sound of rustling and moving made Irvine turn away from his thoughts and look at Vira.
She was grabbing her bag, throwing it over her shoulder, grabbing her Kamagunblades when the bag
was in a comfortable position. "What are you doin'?"
"We're almost there." She replied.
"How do you know? You've never been there." Irvine asked.
Vira pointed a free finger from holding one of her Kamagunblades up at the ceiling. "The
conductor announced it a minute ago. You weren't paying attention."
"Oh. Right." Irvine sheepishly smiled while he picked up his bags.
The train hissed and coughed, finally coming to a stop in Balamb Station. The two SeeDs
stepped off the platform, mist and smoke rising around them. Vira glanced around the station,
noting to herself at how small it was compared to Deling City, but was more interested in
reaching Balamb Garden. In front of them, other passangers hurried past, seeming more like busy
bees than people. Vira looked at Irvine, waiting for him to look back at her. Sensing someone
was watching him, Irvine turned to her.
"What is it?" He asked.
"Where do we go from here?" Vira inquired.
"Oh, oh." He lunged his free hand into a pocket in his long coat, fishing around for
something. After several seconds of searching through the deep reseces of his pocket, he produced
a small piece of paper. Irvine read it carefully to himself and then folded it back into his
pocket. "A Garden car should meet us at the exit of Balamb. Someone should be there to meet us."
"Who?" Vira had already began walking towards the exit of the town, her pace seeming
almost faster than the busy bees around her.
"Not sure. It'll be probably some SeeD, though." Irvine answered, now trying to keep up
with Vira's long stride.
Zell Dincht stood at the outskirts of Balamb, his home, leaning against the hood of a
Garden car temporarily lended to him by Headmaster Cid. Cid had told him that he needed to drive
out to Balamb and pick up Irvine, no problem. However, Cid told him that Irvine would be brining
a guest. Some powerful SeeD from Galbadia Garden. He had failed to mention the person's name,
but that didn't matter to Zell. He was going to meet them anyway, and he would become aquainted
then. He had heard that Galbadia Garden was now too full of students and they'd be sending more
transfers. Zell just hoped he wouldn't have to pick them all up. So there he was, leaning against
the car, staring down the street, waiting for Irvine and this other SeeD to show up. Zell looked
at his watch casually, noting to himself that the train must have arrived at Balamb Station only
a few minutes ago. Irvine and the other SeeD should be arriving momentarily. Again, Zell looked
down the steet, an observer to the lives going on around him. All the busy people going to their
jobs and families. Finally some well deserved peace to his hometown.
-It was about time things went back to normal around here. After all that Ultimecia shit,
it's good to see everything the way it was before. Ma's doin' good, everyone here is doin' good.
A nice time for relaxation, and beautiful weather with it. Oh, hey, finally. There's Irvine.
Wait a minute...that can't be Squall next to him. Squall's back at Garden. Oh, man, it's a girl.-
He had finally spotted his friend and his travelling companion. And at first glance, Vira
really had looked like Squall to Zell. However, as soon as he looked for another second, he
noticed that the hair was longer, her body curving in feminine lines. Not to mention her jacket
was longer, white fur topping her boots and she carried the strange Kamagunblades in her hands.
A shining necklace hung from her neck, gangling and reflecting off the sun's bright light. The
sun shone on the girl's hair, giving it a beautiful deep chocolate look. A living sea of rich
cocoa. Except, her face, it was chisled in a serious look. One of deep concentration as the girl
strode confidently down the street. She didn't walk as if she was some type of show-off, just
in the manner that she was all business, no pleasure. Her face looked like it hadn't smiled in
ages, maybe never at all. It brought Zell's face down a little to see a girl with such a
beautiful, fair complextion, have only the face of a warrior that never had seen happiness. In
an instand, Zell thought of how Squall was before he met Rinoa. All the hard looks he had given
him before loosening up a little. How little he ever talked. Every bit of this was reflected in
the body language, and stern face of this young female SeeD. Still, Zell could not help but
notice how beautiful she was, even without smiling. Before they even reached him, Zell was
already imagining how pretty she would look if she smiled, and made it his intent to try to see
if he couldn't make her smile. Even just once. Just before the two reached Zell and the car, he
pushed himself from the car's hood, swiped his hand on his pants, and extended it out to shake
the girl when they reached him.
Irvine saw his friend reach out and saw this as a greeting. Immediately, he took Zell's
hand and shook it vigorously, bellowing, "Good gawd it's good to see you again, Zell. It's been
too long. How's Sefie? She doin' good?"
Taken aback by this sudden gesture, Zell hestantly replied, "Yeah, it's good to see you
again, Irvine. Selphie's doin' good. She's all excited about you coming finally. But, hey,
Selphie's always really excited about something."
His friend laughed at this remark, shaking his head knowingly. "Yeah, Sefie's like that.
Hey, that's why I love her." Irvine adjusted his bag on his shoulder, with one hand, now holding
his shotgun in the other.
Zell stared at Irvine, expecting him to introduce him to the grim looking girl standing
beside him. Instead, Irvine just stood fixing his bag. Impatiently, Zell finally asked, "So,
who's the girl?"
"Oh, yeah." Irvine already began grinning roguishly, anticipating Zell's reaction. "This
is Vira Eronwil. Vira, this is Zell Dincht."
Again, Zell outstretched his hand in a friendly manner. Nothing in return. Vira stared
at the hand for a second and then at Zell. "Hello."
Nervously, Zell retracted his hand, while Irvine grinned at the reaction. He elbowed his
friend in the side lightly, "Remind you of anyone?"
"Let's not talk about it here, Irvine. I know how much you just enjoyed that. Real
funny." Frowning at this, Zell cracked his knuckles at Irvine menacingly.
"Can we get to Balamb Garden now? I don't want to make Headmaster Cid angry on my first
day here. Bad impression on my part." Vira interjected.
Still grinning, Irvine threw his back into the back seat of the car and jumped in. "Yeah.
I didn't know Zell here was going to pick us up. I figured it'd be someone else."
Vira looked in Irvine's direction and then looked at the car. "...whatever." She
announced, climbing into the car's front seat. She put her bag and Kamagunblades under her feet,
and stared at the windshield, waiting for Zell to get in the car.
Zell himself was left alone outside the car, amazed at this girl. Quickly shaking it
out of him, he climbed into the driver's seat and drove off.
The inside of the car was brightly colored in sea foam green apholstry. It smelled of
vinyl and wax, making Irvine open the window for some fresh air. While driving, Zell would try
to take quick glances at this new girl. Vira looking out at the winding road ahead of them.
"So, Vira, where you originally from?" Zell broke the ice with that one question.
"Deling City, as far as I know." She answered, without any emotion.
Zell nodded a little. "Our friend Rinoa's from Deling City. Daughter of General Caraway.
You ever meet him?"
"No."
"Oh..." He began to trail off, trying to think of another question. His eyes then quickly
glanced at her weapons. The blades themselves radiating with power and mystery. Zell turned his
attention back to the road. "Those weapons of your's...they're the Kamagunblades, right?"
"Yes."
"I haven't seen anyone use them before. Are they hard to manage?" Zell asked.
Vira shrugged her shoulders. "I wouldn't really know. I've used them all my life so
I don't know if anything else is difficult to use. It's like a gunblade, but smaller and two
handed, I guess. If that is what you mean."
Zell nodded again, still not wanting to give up the conversation. "You got any friends
back at Galbadia Garden?"
"No."
"How long have you known Irvine?"
Upon hearing his name, Irvine leaned towards the front seat and looked at Zell. "We don't
really know each other that much. The most time I've spent with her is coming here to see you
guys."
"I have been told that I am to train students here, because of my extensive battle
knowledge. Unless, Kinneas' information is faulty." Vira commented.
"Hey, my information ain't faulty. Not to my knowledge. I just told you what they told
me." Irvine said defensively.
"Uh-huh." replied Vira.
Over the horizon a beacon of shining light appeared, soon taking form until it resembled
the famous Balamb Garden. Place called home to many students and SeeD members alike. The gates
at the front radiated with brilliance much like the gates of heaven might appear as. Grass around
the gates were more emerald and lush than any Vira had ever seen. Beauty and light seemed to come
out of every angle of the institution. Truly this was a prestigious honor to be asked to join
such a divine looking place. Zell drove into the small tunnel next to the gates, pale yellow
lights now surrounding the small car. Slowing down, the car moved into it's appointed parking
space. Zell quickly unbuckled his seatbelt and turned towards his two compatriots. "We're here."
Author's comments: So what does everyone think so far? The next chapter will involve Vira meeting
the rest of the gang and things will start to pick up. Any suggestions are welcome to let me know
how I'm doing. :) No flames please. I would appreciate a R&R. :)
Disclaimer time again: I do not own any of the characters from Final Fantasy 8 or the
events, monsters, GF's or Garden. Square does. However, I own my own character, Vira Eronwil, and
any other character that was not in the game. And the plot to this story. I do this for no profit
just for my own entertainment and the entertainment of others. That said, enjoy my first FF8 fic
ever! :D
by Eve
Chapter 1: Journey Begins
Vira Eronwil sat on the side of a wall near Galbadia Garden's entrance. Alone, as she
always was. Vira was always alone. Other than nessesary interaction with her classmates and
fellow SeeDs, she just spent all her time alone. Watching the clouds. That day the sun beamed
down with soft, docile light. Warming her inside and out, without being harmful. It was the
perfect day. Birds nearby sang their enchanting melody repeatedly, the warm breeze would gently
push against Vira's face. She never thought much about the pefect kind of day, but when it was
there and she was experiencing how wonderful it was, there was no way for her to deny it.
Passing students would stare at her in amazement, never understanding how someone could wear all
black, no matter what time of year it was. Vira's long leather jacket hung down to her knees and
was always on her person along with her black tube shirt and leather pants and boots. All black.
Some students were afraid of her, associating her with what Death would look like if it was a
girl. Vira didn't care. She didn't care about anyone. If they thought she was Death, who was she
to deny? As a SeeD, she would have to kill people in the line of work. In that way, she was
Death. The bringer of death on all her enemies. Vira never thought about what other people
thought of her, and never cared for their opinions. She was a loner, always had been,and she
always believed she'd be that way until the day she died. Vira stared down at her weapon of
choice, Kamablades, and watched them glisten in the gentle sunlight. They were a small, two
handed version of the Gunblade, needing years of intense training to master. Train was all Vira
did. Day in and day out, unless she was out watching the day go by. Her training was excellent,
while her actual studies were in shambles. Not that she cared. It didn't get her anywhere. She
just went through it with the least amount of energy possible. It got her by. It always did.
People would let her off because she was the hardest working SeeD while training. There, Vira
sat, watching the world go by, never wanting to be a part of it.
Without warning Irvine Kinneas ran up to Vira with his self-assured ladies' man stride.
Vira hated that. She knew he had a girlfriend of his own, Selphie something or other, but hated
that he'd still act like he was some hot cowboy every girl would swoon over. Her face turned to
a disgusted frown at that thought as Irvine continued to bound up to her in a happy manner.
"Hey, Vira. Guess what?" He asked, grinning from ear to ear.
Vira sat silent for a few seconds, thinking of an adaquite reply to him. "I'm not in the
mood for games, Kinneas. Just tell me what it is."
Irvine looked at her thoughtfully for a moment, almost like her manner was something he
had seen before. He quickly shook it off and replied, "Okay, if you say so. Balamb Garden has
asked for new transfers from Galbadia since you know how full we've been here lately."
There was no denying how jam packed Galbadia Garden had been in recent months. He was
right there. Some people were going to need to be moved. Why Irvine hadn't been in Balamb Garden
after all that war a while ago, Vira would never understand. "Yeah. I know. Is there a point to
this?"
"Sure is." Irvine adjusted his cowboy hat, one he always wore. "Headmaster Cid asked
personally for you to be transfered. He said that they needed someone with your battle knowledge
there. For training of their students, I mean."
"Fine. I'll go pack then. " Vira jumped from her sitting position back unto the path to
the interior of Galbadia Garden and began walking to her dorm.
"Wait! Wait!" Irvine ran after her, trying to make her realize she hadn't heard the whole
story. "There's more!"
Vira turned around and looked at Irvine dead-panly, not really caring what the rest was.
She was told to move by the head of Balamb Garden himself. It was an honor and to be moved to the
most prestigious Garden was even better. The little pleasure she actually took out of life.
Whatever else it was that Irvine had to say, she wasn't interested. Still, she stood and asked
him, "What is it, Kinneas?"
"They asked me to come along too. Since I know so many of them from there anyway. They
wanna bring in students slowly so you and me will be the first to leave. Tomorrow. Then they'll
send out more students as the day passes."
Without expression Vira replied, "Yay. So, the orders are that you and me set out for
Balamb Garden tomorrow? Where's it at now? Balamb? What time do we leave?"
Being bombarded by all these questions momentarily threw Irvine off into confusion, but
he quickly recovered. "Yeah. They've moved back to where it originally was. We leave tomorrow
morning at 9."
"All right. See you then." Vira then turned back towards her dorm room to get packed. Not
that she had much to pack, but it was at least proper for her to say goodbye to the place in a
good fashion.
"You'll like it! I promise! It'll be different for ya! Who knows? You might finally talk
more and stop being so damned reclusive!" Irvine called after her, now standing alone with the
gentle breeze moving his pony tail in different directions, each strand obeying a differnt
breeze. It wasn't that he disliked Vira, this was Irvine Kinneas. The self appointed ladies' man.
He loved all women, no matter how rude they could be to him. Of course, he loved Selphie Tilmitt
the most, always having a special place in his heart reserved for her since childhood. He would
always love Selphie more than any other woman in the world, and never intended to stray too far
from that path. Irvine knew that the way Vira spoke to him reminded him of someone else he knew,
but for now he didn't want to think about it. He was going to have to go back to his dorm and
pack, get ready for a long journey ahead of them to Balamb. He shook his head slowly. He knew
this would be a long journey for him. Especially with Vira Eronwil.
The next morning proved to be just as beautiful as the day before, the sun shining
happily down on all who were under it. Ten minutes before departure time, Vira sat with her small
bag of possessions at the front gate. A gentle morning breeze moved through Vira's dark brown
hair, making it wave up and down in a soothing pattern. Vira breathed out an exasperated sigh.
Irvine had ten minutes to show up or she would leave without him.
-I will not wait for some ladies' man cowboy when there's a train on schedule. I won't
wait for anyone if I have somewhere to go. For his sake he had better show up.-
Vira sat in the same spot she always did, but instead of watching the expansive blue
sky above, she kept her eyes fixed on the front entrance for any sign of Irvine. Her eyes darted
to every person who exited the Garden, checking their faces. None of them were Irvine. She cursed
at Irvine inwardly, noting to herself that there were only five minutes left for him to show up.
In another minute, Vira began to slouch, bored with this little waiting game.
-How much crap does that guy have? Doesn't he know we're on a schedule here?-
Taking that cue, Irvine strode confidently out of the Galbadia Garden's main entrance,
a suitcase in one had, and his gun that he always kept by his side in the other. When he reached
Vira, he tipped his hat slightly as a greeting and grinned at her in his usual manner. "Good
morning, Vira. Ready to go?"
She leapt off her sitting pearch and picked up her small bag. Without looking at him she
answered, "We have five minutes. Let's go. We'll have to walk through the woods to get to the
train station."
"I'll take that as a yes then." Irvine said while he began walking next to her. "Y'know,
you remind me of someone I know."
"Oh." Vira replied, obviously uninterested.
"Yeah, I've known him for a long time. But I didn't get to know him really well until
recently. He used to act just like you....still does from what I've heard." Irvine went on as
the two walked towards the woods.
Vira quickened her pace when the wooded entrance appeared, stepping lightly over the
branches and upturned roots. Her training making her fast and agile were really showing now.
"Uh-huh." She breathed out.
-Why is he even bothering to tell me this? What is the point?-
"You're gonna meet him as soon as we get to Balamb Garden. I'm sure you're gonna get
along real well with him." Irvine still continued, jumping over the branches that Vira had
just navigated over.
"...whatever." answered Vira, not paying attention anymore. Irvine's little story about
some friend of his she should get along with wasn't something she needed to hear. Making friends
wasn't on her agenda.
This reaction from Vira sent Irvine into a spasm of laughter while he still tried to
navigate over the branches and roots. Vira jerked to a stop and turned to look at Irvine's
little laughing attack. "That is exactly what my friend says." He managed to say through bursts
of laughter.
Shrugging this off, Vira turned back and continued to make her way through the woods.
Soon getting over his attack, Irvine followed. He now knew that adding Vira to Balamb Garden
was something that would prove very interesting, for everyone. Another Squall. That's just what
they needed. And this time it was a girl. What a riot he would have, seeing everyone realize
that Squall wasn't the only reserved person out there. Except that she was like Squall without
one key component that made him able to deal with. Rinoa. Vira had no one while Squall had
Rinoa. Inwardly, Irvine shrugged this off. Oh well. It wasn't his problem. To him it would still
be funny to see the reaction on everyone's faces when they meet her.
Without speaking another word to each other, the two finally made it to the train
station, boarding as soon as they got on. The conductor glanced at them briefly, an expression
of anger on it that the two were almost late. Irvine tipped his hat at the man apologetically
as he ran, Vira just ignoring him completely. Finally, the two sat down, in the SeeD's private
car. Irvine still marveling, even after all this time he had experienced it, at how wonderful
the SeeD car really was. On the sofa, Vira just sat, cleaning her Kamagunblades carefully. Sun
reflected off the blades brightly, almost blinding Irvine's sight. He shook his head in awe of
how different the weapon was from his and looked at Vira's face. It was fixed in complete
concentration on her task at hand.
"I've never seen anyone use the Kamagunblades before. They're even more rare than the
Gunblade. Where'd you get them?" Irvine finally asked, trying to start up a conversation again.
Cleaning of the brilliant blades continued, Vira never even looking up at Irvine for a
second. "I've had them for as long as I can remember. I guess they were a gift from my parents."
Irvine leaned back, putting his feat up on the table near by. "Where are your parents?"
"Beats me." Vira answered, her eyes never straying from her Kamagunblades. "Never knew
who they were. Not even their names. All I know is who I am, my necklace, and these blades. I
don't intend on dwelling on it much either. I can't remember too much of my childhood. I suggest
we drop the subject."
Silence came over the cabin, Irvine knowing that he should not go any farther with that
line of questioning. Instead of bothering Vira from her cleaning, Irvine decided to look out the
window. Hey, it was better than nothing. They had already passed through Timber and were just at
the entrance of the underwater tunnel. Soon, all the bright light from the sun turned into shades
of green and blue, as the train entered the underwater tunnel. Irvine caught glimpses of fish,
seen through the glass of the encasement of the tunnel.
-We'll be there soon. Heheh, soon I'm gonna be laughing at everyone's face when they get
a load of Vira. And I'll get to see Selphie again. Odin, it's been...a month since my last visit.
How can she stand it? So much time away from me and all. I don't even know how I handle it.-
A sound of rustling and moving made Irvine turn away from his thoughts and look at Vira.
She was grabbing her bag, throwing it over her shoulder, grabbing her Kamagunblades when the bag
was in a comfortable position. "What are you doin'?"
"We're almost there." She replied.
"How do you know? You've never been there." Irvine asked.
Vira pointed a free finger from holding one of her Kamagunblades up at the ceiling. "The
conductor announced it a minute ago. You weren't paying attention."
"Oh. Right." Irvine sheepishly smiled while he picked up his bags.
The train hissed and coughed, finally coming to a stop in Balamb Station. The two SeeDs
stepped off the platform, mist and smoke rising around them. Vira glanced around the station,
noting to herself at how small it was compared to Deling City, but was more interested in
reaching Balamb Garden. In front of them, other passangers hurried past, seeming more like busy
bees than people. Vira looked at Irvine, waiting for him to look back at her. Sensing someone
was watching him, Irvine turned to her.
"What is it?" He asked.
"Where do we go from here?" Vira inquired.
"Oh, oh." He lunged his free hand into a pocket in his long coat, fishing around for
something. After several seconds of searching through the deep reseces of his pocket, he produced
a small piece of paper. Irvine read it carefully to himself and then folded it back into his
pocket. "A Garden car should meet us at the exit of Balamb. Someone should be there to meet us."
"Who?" Vira had already began walking towards the exit of the town, her pace seeming
almost faster than the busy bees around her.
"Not sure. It'll be probably some SeeD, though." Irvine answered, now trying to keep up
with Vira's long stride.
Zell Dincht stood at the outskirts of Balamb, his home, leaning against the hood of a
Garden car temporarily lended to him by Headmaster Cid. Cid had told him that he needed to drive
out to Balamb and pick up Irvine, no problem. However, Cid told him that Irvine would be brining
a guest. Some powerful SeeD from Galbadia Garden. He had failed to mention the person's name,
but that didn't matter to Zell. He was going to meet them anyway, and he would become aquainted
then. He had heard that Galbadia Garden was now too full of students and they'd be sending more
transfers. Zell just hoped he wouldn't have to pick them all up. So there he was, leaning against
the car, staring down the street, waiting for Irvine and this other SeeD to show up. Zell looked
at his watch casually, noting to himself that the train must have arrived at Balamb Station only
a few minutes ago. Irvine and the other SeeD should be arriving momentarily. Again, Zell looked
down the steet, an observer to the lives going on around him. All the busy people going to their
jobs and families. Finally some well deserved peace to his hometown.
-It was about time things went back to normal around here. After all that Ultimecia shit,
it's good to see everything the way it was before. Ma's doin' good, everyone here is doin' good.
A nice time for relaxation, and beautiful weather with it. Oh, hey, finally. There's Irvine.
Wait a minute...that can't be Squall next to him. Squall's back at Garden. Oh, man, it's a girl.-
He had finally spotted his friend and his travelling companion. And at first glance, Vira
really had looked like Squall to Zell. However, as soon as he looked for another second, he
noticed that the hair was longer, her body curving in feminine lines. Not to mention her jacket
was longer, white fur topping her boots and she carried the strange Kamagunblades in her hands.
A shining necklace hung from her neck, gangling and reflecting off the sun's bright light. The
sun shone on the girl's hair, giving it a beautiful deep chocolate look. A living sea of rich
cocoa. Except, her face, it was chisled in a serious look. One of deep concentration as the girl
strode confidently down the street. She didn't walk as if she was some type of show-off, just
in the manner that she was all business, no pleasure. Her face looked like it hadn't smiled in
ages, maybe never at all. It brought Zell's face down a little to see a girl with such a
beautiful, fair complextion, have only the face of a warrior that never had seen happiness. In
an instand, Zell thought of how Squall was before he met Rinoa. All the hard looks he had given
him before loosening up a little. How little he ever talked. Every bit of this was reflected in
the body language, and stern face of this young female SeeD. Still, Zell could not help but
notice how beautiful she was, even without smiling. Before they even reached him, Zell was
already imagining how pretty she would look if she smiled, and made it his intent to try to see
if he couldn't make her smile. Even just once. Just before the two reached Zell and the car, he
pushed himself from the car's hood, swiped his hand on his pants, and extended it out to shake
the girl when they reached him.
Irvine saw his friend reach out and saw this as a greeting. Immediately, he took Zell's
hand and shook it vigorously, bellowing, "Good gawd it's good to see you again, Zell. It's been
too long. How's Sefie? She doin' good?"
Taken aback by this sudden gesture, Zell hestantly replied, "Yeah, it's good to see you
again, Irvine. Selphie's doin' good. She's all excited about you coming finally. But, hey,
Selphie's always really excited about something."
His friend laughed at this remark, shaking his head knowingly. "Yeah, Sefie's like that.
Hey, that's why I love her." Irvine adjusted his bag on his shoulder, with one hand, now holding
his shotgun in the other.
Zell stared at Irvine, expecting him to introduce him to the grim looking girl standing
beside him. Instead, Irvine just stood fixing his bag. Impatiently, Zell finally asked, "So,
who's the girl?"
"Oh, yeah." Irvine already began grinning roguishly, anticipating Zell's reaction. "This
is Vira Eronwil. Vira, this is Zell Dincht."
Again, Zell outstretched his hand in a friendly manner. Nothing in return. Vira stared
at the hand for a second and then at Zell. "Hello."
Nervously, Zell retracted his hand, while Irvine grinned at the reaction. He elbowed his
friend in the side lightly, "Remind you of anyone?"
"Let's not talk about it here, Irvine. I know how much you just enjoyed that. Real
funny." Frowning at this, Zell cracked his knuckles at Irvine menacingly.
"Can we get to Balamb Garden now? I don't want to make Headmaster Cid angry on my first
day here. Bad impression on my part." Vira interjected.
Still grinning, Irvine threw his back into the back seat of the car and jumped in. "Yeah.
I didn't know Zell here was going to pick us up. I figured it'd be someone else."
Vira looked in Irvine's direction and then looked at the car. "...whatever." She
announced, climbing into the car's front seat. She put her bag and Kamagunblades under her feet,
and stared at the windshield, waiting for Zell to get in the car.
Zell himself was left alone outside the car, amazed at this girl. Quickly shaking it
out of him, he climbed into the driver's seat and drove off.
The inside of the car was brightly colored in sea foam green apholstry. It smelled of
vinyl and wax, making Irvine open the window for some fresh air. While driving, Zell would try
to take quick glances at this new girl. Vira looking out at the winding road ahead of them.
"So, Vira, where you originally from?" Zell broke the ice with that one question.
"Deling City, as far as I know." She answered, without any emotion.
Zell nodded a little. "Our friend Rinoa's from Deling City. Daughter of General Caraway.
You ever meet him?"
"No."
"Oh..." He began to trail off, trying to think of another question. His eyes then quickly
glanced at her weapons. The blades themselves radiating with power and mystery. Zell turned his
attention back to the road. "Those weapons of your's...they're the Kamagunblades, right?"
"Yes."
"I haven't seen anyone use them before. Are they hard to manage?" Zell asked.
Vira shrugged her shoulders. "I wouldn't really know. I've used them all my life so
I don't know if anything else is difficult to use. It's like a gunblade, but smaller and two
handed, I guess. If that is what you mean."
Zell nodded again, still not wanting to give up the conversation. "You got any friends
back at Galbadia Garden?"
"No."
"How long have you known Irvine?"
Upon hearing his name, Irvine leaned towards the front seat and looked at Zell. "We don't
really know each other that much. The most time I've spent with her is coming here to see you
guys."
"I have been told that I am to train students here, because of my extensive battle
knowledge. Unless, Kinneas' information is faulty." Vira commented.
"Hey, my information ain't faulty. Not to my knowledge. I just told you what they told
me." Irvine said defensively.
"Uh-huh." replied Vira.
Over the horizon a beacon of shining light appeared, soon taking form until it resembled
the famous Balamb Garden. Place called home to many students and SeeD members alike. The gates
at the front radiated with brilliance much like the gates of heaven might appear as. Grass around
the gates were more emerald and lush than any Vira had ever seen. Beauty and light seemed to come
out of every angle of the institution. Truly this was a prestigious honor to be asked to join
such a divine looking place. Zell drove into the small tunnel next to the gates, pale yellow
lights now surrounding the small car. Slowing down, the car moved into it's appointed parking
space. Zell quickly unbuckled his seatbelt and turned towards his two compatriots. "We're here."
Author's comments: So what does everyone think so far? The next chapter will involve Vira meeting
the rest of the gang and things will start to pick up. Any suggestions are welcome to let me know
how I'm doing. :) No flames please. I would appreciate a R&R. :)