So anyways, most people who know me on Facebook know that I spend most of my time in the clouds concocting little stories... So I figured that for a change, I'd put something on this page and let others read it! now it's to be noted that I physically only own the characters of Cait, Eli & Jacob... Plus a few others, but anyway... This IS a work of fiction, and it is to be taken as such...
CHAPTER ONE: OVERTURE.
Balamb GARDEN was the pride and joy of Edea and Cid Kramer. Built around an old fashioned mobile shelter, when the Galbadians fired missiles on the comparatively little military academy, it was only able to survive due to the quick thinking of its then headmaster. A year had passed since the then new headmistress decommissioned the GARDEN, removed its motility capabilities, and slowly everything was returning to normal.
Students bustled through the halls, attended long winded lectures and trained for the chance to become one of the world's elite; SeeD. The academy ran like clockwork, and with the installation of a dual leadership system, students thrived under the tuition.
As a lecture regarding the first sorceress war of nearly twenty years ago came to its end, a dark haired, dark eyed girl's stomach began to rumble in its haste for nutrients. Caitlin White turned her attention to the derisive organ in annoyance as she bundled her laptop into her arms and hoisted her bag over her shoulder, muttering at it quietly to wait just an hour more. Several students glanced at her as they took the stairs boisterously; giggling under their breaths as they realized that it was in fact the formerly ditzy girl who was- AGAIN- talking to herself. A straggler within the group stared at Cait too long and she set and dark look down at the girl, who promptly squeaked timidly and quickened her pace to meet up with her friends.
A satisfied smirk crossed over her pale face as she made her own way down the stairs, grimacing as pain lanced through her left foot, as it did on most days. "I think there's a potion in my room..." she said to herself quietly as she exited the second floor hall and made her way for the new staircase that would lead her almost directly to her dormitory.
"Student 301-285-43: Caitlin White?" Cait turned quickly, thick ponytail whacking her lightly in the face as she peered at the dark haired man leaning against the wall. She squirmed unconsciously as he gave her the once over through his bangs contemptuously.
"Yes Nida?" she asked him, resting her free hand on the edge of her hip, transferring almost all of her weight onto her right foot. She didn't like to stand for too long, with the way she constantly shifted and changed her stance because of her bum foot, people often felt uncomfortable talking to her for extended periods of time.
She thanked any God above that Nida was a succinct man, who got straight to the meat of it.
"Commander Leonhart requires your presence in his office in one hour in relation to a potential mission. He did not disclose the nature of the mission, but asked me to let you know that it might be something you'd enjoy." He bowed his head slightly, as he did to most female SeeDs, and Cait felt a strange sense of pity for him. Ever since he had lost control of the GARDEN's movement, he had been a shell of a man, lost and drifting constantly. She thanked him and he left without another word.
"An hour, huh?" she muttered, peering down at her uniform and smiling thinly, "screw my essay, I'm gettin' me some grub!"
~Interval Song~ (cue the trumpets and shit!)
Cait arrived at her dormitory in a little over five minutes, allowing the door to close with a click as she reached down to unzip her knee high flats. They did nothing for her feet orthopedically, but she liked them for the conformability and swelling room. She tossed the unceremoniously to the other side of the room, where they landed with a thud beside her seven foot spear, Obelisk. She smiled at the artfully crafted weapon, purchased last August by her twin brother's Eli and Jacob as a seventeenth birthday present. It was more of a replacement for her old weapon, the fire engine-red Partisan, which she lost during the GARDEN War. Their names were carved into the handle, to remind her of who she was fighting for. She turned her attention to the GARDEN issue phone, which sat on her little desk, piled high with papers and letters, blinking away happily. Her smile grew into a grin as she limped to it and pressed the message play button. She listened to the electronic voice deliver it's spiel, and sat as her brothers' voice came over the speaker.
"Caitie!" they said in unison as only they could, and Cait could feel the happiness even from over the phone.
"I know you're still in class," Jacob continued, the elder by all of seven minutes- a fact he lorded over Cait when she was making the decision to join the military system, "But Eli insisted that we leave a message anyway, just to let you know that Nana took a fall this morning." Cait felt her stomach drop; her Nana was the toughest person she knew, the lady who raised the three of them after their parents were both taken victim to the first War.
"She's okay of course," Eli interjected, voice crackly on the memory card, "just a bruise, but they thought she'd broken her hip. You know how Nana is though, she's still telling them that she needs to go home- that there's nothing wrong with her." He laughed and Cait knew she must have been all right; Eli was her clear favourite, they had bonded over the ten years the four of them had been considered a legal family.
"But even so, she'll be in hospital for the next week or so. If you're not sent off on some mission- and what are the chances of that, considering you told us how dead the mercenary business was last week- you should come and visit her. She'd love to see you." Cait's thin eyebrows rose skeptically, "seriously Caitie, she said so herself."
"Yeah, sure," she told the voice, reaching for her GARDEN blazer and pulling the zipper as the message continued. She laughed as Eli reminded Jacob about the cacophony of drugs their grandmother was on to keep the pain at bay, and smiled when they signed off together in perfect unison. As she pulled on an orange hooded jumper, she declared that when she got back from her meeting with Leonhart and a quick dinner that she would ring her twins and maybe even talk to her Nana.
~Interval Song~
Thoughts of her potential new mission made Cait's pulse race as she entered the elevator with four other students, who departed on the second floor. She hummed along with the music absently as the machine continued its ascent, curiosity her most dominant trait at the time.
"Commander Squall Leonhart and Headmistress Quistis Trepe's office: have a pleasant day," the computerized female said kindly as the doors opened.
"Thanks!" Cait chirped at it as she walked out of the elevator. The blonde receptionist gave Cait a familiar smile as she activated the intercom.
"Miss White for you sir," she said, tapping her fingers against the machine as she awaited an answer. It came after a high-pitched squeak that made Cait cover her ears tentatively.
"Megyn, Squall's gone off for a bathroom break," a cheery, all too bubbly female replied, "Caitie can come in though, considering she's LATE!" Cait laughed aloud as the door swung open to allow her access.
"I'm not late," she told the short haired brunette who occupied Squall's high backed leather chair. "I'm the only other sucker here, and they're not busted up like I am." She added, jabbing a long finger at the girl, who began to munch carelessly on a chocolate as Cait entered, feeling the door close behind her with a swish.
Squall's office never ceased to amaze her; it was all dark wood and leathers, with a window along the entire length of the northern wall, so that he always had a good view of the distant beaches and closer forests. She knew of the little door on the western edge, that lead off to a small bathroom and not so small entertainment system; it was also the thoroughfare to Quistis' airy office. Cait took a seat in one of the smaller chairs, across from Selphie Tilmitt, who pulled a partially melted chocolate from the pocket of her short yellow overalls and tossed it to her friend, who caught it easily and sat it on her lap.
"We're busted up too," she argued in a defiant tone as she flipped her forever short hair from her green eyes, "...but then I suppose any of us were category one, and were handled pretty quickly. You should ask Squall to move you name up the list some." Cait shook her head, knowing that the little woman would do anything for anyone, especially her friends.
The pair chatted for several minutes- or rather, Selphie talked while Cait listened, nodding when appropriate and only replying when Selphie asked her an actually question. The smaller's tirade about the treatment of her pygmy chocobo was ended as the door swished open. The pair turned to the door and waved at Irvine Kinneas, who entered with his usual swagger, as if it were normal for him to adjust EVERYTHING he was wearing and then grin at the pair like he was surveying a delicious meal. Cait set her face in a half hearted glare as he crossed to plunk himself in the seat next to her, his midnight blue eyes looking at her questioningly.
"That's all I get?" he asked in his thinly veiled Galbadian accent, "I come bearing gifts and all I get is a wave?" the pair shrugged in unison as Cait reached over to muss up his auburn fauxhawk.
"I'm sure you did cowboy," Selphie teased as he stared at Cait indignantly, reaching up to straighten his exceptionally short hair. He reached into his pocket obediently and pulled a squashed sandwich from its depths. Cait and Selphie looked at each other and grimaced.
"All right, all right, fine!" he conceded, head drooping, "I didn't bring ya anythin', but can ya blame me for tryin'?" Cait plucked the sandwich from the sharpshooters hand as he looked at Selphie pleadingly. She turned it over in her hands, tilting her head to one side as she examined it.
"You can keep it," she decided, tossing it back into his lap indifferently. He snatched it up and poked his tongue out at her.
Cait had met the so-called 'Children of Fate' 3 months after the War had ended. Rehabilitation was a very rare but arduous thing, and one evening she found herself alone, at the mercy of a vicious T-rexaur.
Of course, that was until...
The door swished open again, and this time only Cait turned at the stocky, vibrant blonde strolled into the room. Although it seemed that stormed would have been a better term; Zell Dincht's blue eyes were downcast as he swept the room, allowing a tiny smile for his friends before he swore loudly, pushing his sweater sleeves up past his elbows. "Leonhart called me up here- from my DINNER- and now he's not even here?" the silence was answer enough for him, as he swore again and punched the door less than gently.
"You can have some of Irvine's sandwich," Selphie suggested, a devious smirk playing on her face. The red-head nodded his agreement, offering his blonde friend the sandwich. Cait alone remained horrified, trying to get Zell's ever-wandering attention without waving her arms wildly.
The hungry teen took the sandwich lightning fast with one hand as he scratched his tattooed arm with the other. The tattoo was nothing fancy; just more tribal swirls that curled around the muscles of his upper and left forearm. Deftly he unwrapped the food and stuffed half of it into his mouth. The trio watched him chew thoughtfully for a moment before turning a delicate shade of green. Instinct must have taken over because Cait watched in surprise as he spat the half-chewed piece of food back into its wrapper, sheer horror etched into his face. He turned his attention to Irvine and spoke hoarsely;
"How long has that been sitting in your god-damn pocket?" Irvine raised a long finger to his chin, tapping the bone pensively, eyes narrowed. He turned to Zell and shrugged. "GOD DAMMIT IRVINE ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME!" the sentence broke off in an angry scream as the blonde launched at the gunman, whose eyes widened in shock as their bodies connected with a thud, sending them directly into the path of Cait, whose chair plummeted to the ground as she stared at her two friends from the edge of the desk.
"I suppose that warrants a point for quick thinking."
Cait and Selphie turned their heads to glance at Squall Leonhart, who was watching his two friends wrestle on the ground in annoyance. Cait nodded once, reaching for a pen and making a small stroke on a piece of paper in her hoodie pocket.
"He started it," Zell offered as an explanation a moment later, after Selphie had beaten him thoroughly over the head for his rudeness and he had taken residence in the same seat as Cait. He looked at his friend, who sighed tiredly, just as Squall did, making him and Selphie giggle, like the alike pair often did. "Stupid Irvine..." he added, glaring at him darkly. Cait watched Irvine, who was staring at Squall, pointedly ignoring Zell.
"So Squall," Cait began, wiping the mocking look from her eyes as her SeeD instincts took over, "Nida told me you had a good mission for me?" Squall shook his head, brown hair falling into his dark eyes.
"You fluctuate like mad..." he mumbled under his breath, "but your right, there IS a new mission that's just been approved. Rather, it's a mission for the five of us; Kiros Seagil of the presidential guard in Esthar called me approximately two and a half hours ago, requesting elite SeeD for bodyguard duty."
"Bodyguard?" Irvine asked from his post against the wall. He looked at Squall curiously, eyebrows knotted together above his eyes, "for who?"
"Who do you think, dork?" Selphie called, folding her arms in his direction, "Sir Laguna needs a hand! ... Right Squall?" the peppy brunette let loose a squeal of delight when Squall nodded. Cait stared at her, knowing full aware that Selphie had something a kin to a school girl crush on Esthar's president, although after hearing about him from Squall and Zell, she could only surmise that it was because the pair were so similar; a pair of giant goofballs. But, she thought, scratching the side of her head, if he was a world leader, why would he need SeeDs to defend him. She posed the question to Squall who shrugged.
"I suppose the president figures his own soldiers are unable to work as effectively as we can. Evidently the five of us are being dispatched, and the intent is to leave tomorrow morning. We'll be travelling by car most of the way, so Cait, if you have a need for some more medication for your motion sickness, stock up." She nodded twice, mentally making a note of it. She had suffered from crippling motion sickness for as long as she could remember, and found a mixture of medication and para-magic was the only sufficient cure.
"Squall," Selphie began in a little voice, "are you sure you're okay with this?"
"Yes." The coldness in the Gunblader's voice indicated otherwise, even Cait could tell and it was enough to turn the deserts cold. Selphie looked down at her little hands in an unspoken apology.
"Sorry Selphie," he told her, raising a hand as affirmation, "I suppose I'm just a little tired." Selphie nodded, looking back at her commander, grinning brilliantly. Squall managed to return the smile faintly, "I trust you'll all be there by 0800 tomorrow morning, right?" there was a collective nod throughout the room, "excellent; dismissed."
When Cait parted with Zell and Irvine before her dormitory door, she crossed to her little bed and sat on it for a long minute. She stared up at the pale yellow wall absently, eyes coming to focus on the bright red hue of a chakram. It hung against the wall with nails and brought a wave of immense sadness to Cait's chest. She squeezed her eyes closed, curling into herself; the weapon was a reminder- a memorial- for her late best friend. The GARDEN war took the cheerful brunette from right under her nose, at the pinnacle of the battle with Galbadia- with Seifer Almasy. A feral, irrational growl slipped past her pursed lips as she stood in a single movement, moving to her phone and dialing her brothers'. They were the voices of reason, they could help he through the vicious spells of rage whenever the war came back to the forefront of her mind. She heard Jacob's calm voice and sighed. Quickly she explained she was travelling to Esthar, and he laughed saying he should have known she would be called out just when something happened. "Sorry Jake," she finished, raking her fingers through her dark hair, "but at least on the bright side, if we go to Esthar, Rinoa won't follow, and I might actually be able to relax for a change." Jacob laughed lightly and said his farewells. Just as Cait got off the phone, her stomach growled violently, reminding her painfully that it had been hours since she had last eaten. "Dammit, all right, we're going!"