My new FF8 story, chappy title is a translation from "For Fruits Basket" from Fruits Basket



Chappy 1- Your smile breaks through clouds of grey

The rain fell hard upon the hood of the Jeep. The driver's blood pumped quicker and was ready to speed even more. His will to get back to the Garden quickly encouraged his need for speed. The passenger stared blankly out of the window, ignoring the continous bumps the car jumped over. A gunblade was propped beside his legs and the man was leaning on it for comfort. The blue eyes that were given to him at birth gazed at the driver in anger. The driver's eyebrows slanted in a look of frustration and anger.

"C'mon Seifer, we should've been there by now. We've been driving for hours." The man in the backseat said. The driver's mouth grinded its pearly whites and grunted. Seifer's head bent to get a better view of the blurry road ahead of him. He knew if he went as fast as he usually does down this path he'll crash into one of the surrounding trees, destroying his new vehicle.

"Ya know, I really just don't want to be a speed demon down this road. Besides, I'm still in the company of a high ranking SeeD that would send my ass to jail if I speed down this road much less any road." He said in an irritated voice.

Irvine sunk back in his seat with a sigh. Squall's eyes stared blankly on the road. His hands were tempted to turn on the radio, but common sense kicked in that all he would get is static from the rain. The ride back to the Garden was a quiet one indeed, Seifer and Squall weren't ones to talk much and Irvine didn't even bother to try to start a conversation. Seifer grunted once more in discouragement.

"Why did it have to rain so hard? Why did it have to rain at all?!" He shouted at the road and pounded his fists on the steering wheel. Squall sat back, shook his head, and clamped his hand against his forehead.

"Why can't you just shut up?" Squall said. Seifer glared at Squall. His mouth wanted to shout back at the smart ass, but he dared not piss Squall off, or he's going straight to jail.

Seifer was lucky. After the Sorceress War, he was given probation for his crimes. He pleaded insanity and had Squall be appointed as his probation officer. Seifer was on probation and house arrested at the Garden and could not leave without Squall for five years. Even if Squall was at least nice enough to help him, it wasn't going to change anything between them. Squall and Seifer fought each other weekly with their gunblades, but sometimes a shouting/smart remarks contest was made instead. In the end both fell and it was a tie each time.

Seifer's blue eyes spotted what he was looking for. The giant wooden sign was painted with flourescent letters that said:

BALAMB GARDEN ---- 3 MILES

"We're practically there boys." Seifer teased the other two, but his attempts to piss them off was ignored by both. The Garden was approaching sight and Seifer was pleased with the brightly shining lights that flickered in the distance. He knew that he wouldn't have to be frustrated with the car and the rain very soon. Squall opened his sleepy eyes to see the grand sight that he lived in. Irvine snored and turned over to fall onto the seat with a loud thud.

But something unusual was in the middle of the road. A red hooded girl stood and did not move as the car approached her. Seifer pounded his large boot down on the brakes, hoping he wouldn't hurt the innocent girl. The girl's hood lifted in the air. Through the fog of the falling rain and the droplet landing on Seifer's windshield, he saw a pair of bright blue eyes staring at him. The eyes were penetrating and glared at Seifer. His car instantly stopped inches away from the girl.

"What in the world." Seifer said. He looked over at Squall, whose eyes were open, but his chest did not show signs of breathing, nor was he moving one bit. He looked behind him and saw Irvine not moving either, as if both were frozen in time. Seifer stared out the window. The once falling droplets stopped in their track. Seifer was bewildered at the sight. Seifer took off his safety belt and got out of the car cautiously. The strange girl followed every movement he made.

"What's going on?" Seifer asked. The girl stared blankly at the man who stood above her. She looked at the age of eighteen, but short for her age. Her red hooded cloak covered her face, but her odd blue eyes were seen clearly. Seifer bent down to check and see if the girl was alright.

"Are you alright?" Seifer asked in the calmest voice he could possibly maintain. The girl nodded. A tear fell from her hidden face. Seifer gently put his gloved hands on her shoulders. He smiled.

"Be careful, this road can be kind of dangerous, besides, its raining and you wouldn't want to catch something nasty from this weather. Be safe kid." Seifer smiled and let the girl go. She turned and left as another tear fell from the hidden face. She slowly left from the road and disappeared into the wilderness of the forest.

"Wait! Take this!" The girl turned and stared at Seifer. He ran to her and held out a small dagger. She took it from his grasp.

"I don't want you going out there defenseless." Seifer was kind enough to give the girl a Hi-potion and a Phoenix Down as well as an antidote. He smiled once again as the girl placed the new item in the pocket of her cloak.

"Be careful out there." The girl left. Her eyes dimmed and her face was then completely hidden. Seifer watched as the strange girl left his sight. The rain suddenly continued to drop on top of his head. Squall banged on the window.

"Get back in the damn car Seifer!" He shouted. Seifer came back to reality and ran back to the Jeep. He sat in his seat staring back out on the road before turning it back on. Squall looked at the man in confusion.

Irvine sat up and looked at Seifer too.

"What the hell Seifer? Start the car." Seifer blinked his eyes once more and turned on the Jeep. He looked once more at the spot where the girl had entered the forest and saw nothing. He finally arrived at the Garden parkway and parked the car. Irvine hopped right out of the car and ran to the entrance of the Garden before becoming completely wet. Squall waited for Seifer to exit the car who still sat blankly staring out at the concrete wall. Squall slapped Seifer.

"What is wrong with you?" Seifer turned his head. His eyes were wide and his face was pale. Squall's eyebrows arched. He leaned over and put his hand on Seifer's shoulders. Seifer's head fell into his hand. He rubbed his face with his hand and turned his head to face Squall. Squall's eyes were full of concern for Seifer. Seifer blinked and exited the vehicle. He opened the trunk of the car and grabbed his gunblade. Squall walked over to Seifer and both briskly walked to the entrance to escape the rain.