Title: Downfall

Author: Rageful Fairy

Rating: R

Disclaimer: I do not claim ownership of Final Fantasy 8.

Warnings: Yaoi and Shounen-ai content for later. Violent content for now ...

and content in general for every chapter.

Pairing: Seifer x Squall [In a little while.]

Summary: When similar scars connect two people in many more ways than imaginable. [Seifer x Squall]

Author's Notes: I was listening to TRUSTCompany's "Downfall" while I came up with the idea for this fic. I know this whole beginning of the game thing has been done a thousand times over, but it was appropriate! You'll see why... later...

*03/02/04: Oh, yes, I just changed the chapter-format from .doc to .html because the .doc keeps on messin' everything up making things all hard to read in my opinion. No text changes. Nope!

[ [ [ DOWNFALL ] ] ]

[ [ [ FIRST OF MANY PARTS ] ] ]

[ [ [ AND HE BROUGHT YOU DOWN ] ] ]

Two men spar in an open training area outside of Balamb Garden. Obviously, these were students of the Garden giving this match all they could give. A gaze of nothing but absolute rivalry were shown in both pairs of eyes-in the shining, determined and fierce gaze of the blue-eyed man, and in the vicious gaze of the emerald-eyed man. Their strength was nothing but evident, as you could hear the stainless steel gunblades meet with thunderous clashes.

Speaking of thunderous, thunder began to sound in the air and the rain started to pour over the two young men, drenching them both. They still continued on... not showing any signs weakening from the cooling rain slapping against their skin and their clothing. The clouding darkness above them did not distract them, either. They just... fought.

Disgruntled grunts of exhaustion and frustration also began to emerge from the battling men. Seifer, cocky, cocky Seifer. He had so much pride to lose if he did not emerge victorious from this grueling duel. Squall... the Ice Prince himself, had a reputation to uphold. Even though that his reputation was not on his mind right then, he could not be proved inferior to Seifer. He just would not have it.

The two determined gunblade specialists took another swing, gunblades clashing once again with a tremendous impact. The impact was so great that the shorter man had stumbled backwards. Now Seifer, always known to play dirty, used the slight weakness in Squall's defense to his own advantage. His called upon a blazing Fira spell and sent it flaming toward Squall. The sight of the Fira was beautiful, despite the danger it imposed. The Fira spell seemed to defy the known fact that fire cannot be maintained under the influence of water, but it had... and it packed a powerful punch.

Squall already felt his defeat, as he stumbled to stand once again into a firm composed stance. As Squall was pulling himself into balance, Seifer charged toward Squall with his Hyperion held behind his head and it was obvious to tell what Seifer's next actions were to be.

Carelessly, Seifer grew a triumphant look upon him once he followed through with his final swing of his gunblade, sending the powerful slash in the direction of Squall's forehead. Seifer did not cut deep, for he knew he'd be in deep shit if he'd killed his training partner. In an almost immediate retaliation, Squall sliced through Seifer's forehead, too. Similar scars were formed on the two's foreheads... and they were both bleeding scarlet from their forehead. Squall, from this, fell back... and would not rise.

Seifer was the victor. He crouched down next to Squall and gave him a look of triumph and cockiness. He felt no sympathy for the Ice Prince, and he felt that he shouldn't, either. "Tough luck, Squally boy...," Seifer cockily said to Squall's unmoving body, laying his own gunblade diagonally across Squall's chest. "You can get up now."

Squall remained still. He made no movement, except for his stomach rising up and down slowly from a calm breathing. Seifer eyed him suspiciously. "Leonhart, don't toy with me. Let's go before Instructor Bitchy-Quisty gets pissed at us both." Seifer realized that Squall had no intentions on getting up any time soon, and he sighed. "Damn, I'm NOT carrying you back to Garden. Kadowaki will have a fit and Quistis will just bitch at ME... so you better get the hell up." Seifer stared at him for about a minute and a half.

"I'm carrying you back to Garden, ain't I? Leonhart, you owe me for this shit. I'm not your little bitch!" Seifer lifted up the shorter boy with a disgusted look on his face. Sqaull layed across his arms, as if the two had just been wed, and Seifer realized just that. That made his look of disgust even more sour.

And the rain fell as Seifer walked his way back to Garden. Scarlet stained raindrops fell from both of their faces, creating a crimson trail behind them.

This is only the beginning of Seifer and Squall's saga. And what an action filled, heart-stealing, breathtaking saga it will be...

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Seifer's a bitch to characterize. He really is! Grrrr...