Chocobo's Forest
Disclaimer: Really? Do you honestly think I own this? I don't own FF8, the characters, the settings, the chocobos, etc, Square does. I only own a copy of the game, a bunch of other games, a ton of movies and books, some pets, and my crazy mind. I don't even own a PC, this is my dad's. In this story, I own the names of the Chocobos and any changes from the actual game. So, no sueing for using the characters! this is only for fun, and to hopefully get some people to laugh.
Warnings: Some language, Chocobos, Chicobos, and the Chocoboy, maybe some OOC-ness, and a lot of crazy randomness and/or random craziness
A/N: Just a little fic I thought of. I wanted to write something from the Chocobo's POV, and this is the result. I know Squall is the one who catches them in the game, but I wanted to do something different. And the names were just off the top of my head. Finally, this takes place before they remember the Orphanage, but only just. I love Chocobos! So cute and lovable! Ok, onto the fic, before I loose my mind (again).
I looked on as the four Chicobos chased each other and the Chocoboy around the clearing in the wintery forest. A few other Chocobos were in the trees a bit deeper in the forest, but close enough to keep an eye on the Chicobos. I watched, amused, as the little yellow birds tripped Chocoboy as they chased him, then ran over him. The other Chocobos 'kweh'ed in amusement, but I stayed silent, the diligent watcher. The sound of crunching snow alerted me to something approaching our forest.
"Kweh!" I squawk out in warning before jumping into the trees. The Chicobos follow my lead, leaving the boy on his face on the forest floor alone.
"Hey! Where're you going?" the kid asks as he gets up. He looks up at me in a hurt way. I just shift a bit before preening my wing feathers. "Tch, fine." He turns away, looking deeper into my forest. I keep an eye on the Chicobos, making sure they don't fall out of the trees, while also watching the path that leads out to the snow fields to make sure nothing intruded, whether monster, man, or pet.
There is a building not too far away that is filled with others like Chocoboy, but he prefers to stay in the various forests with us Chocobos. The people in the building often come into my forest, trying to take my Chicobos. I chase them off, but they always come back. That brunet girl in the yellow clothes (I think she's called Selphie) is especially determined, but she's also kind. When she does get a Chicobo, she treats it with kindness sparking in her eyes. And she never tries to keep one.
I utter a soft 'kweh' to Chocoboy as three humans walk into the forest. I see the kind brunet girl, but her companions are unfamiliar to me. One is a blonde boy in shorts and a t-shirt with his hair spiked up in the front and a look of awe and excitement on his face. The other is a brunet boy in black clothes. He looks annoyed as the girl drags him into the forest.
"C'mon Squall! You have to see the Chicobos!" the girl says, a big smile on her face. Chocoboy turns around in surprise at the intruders.
"Selphie, we have things that need to get done first," the brunet boy (Squall, I think) replies. "We can come back after we deal with the sorceress." Selphie just drags the annoyed guy further into the forest.
"Squall, you need to chill man!" the blonde says, putting his arms behind his head. "It wouldn't do us any good to go against the sorceress if you are put in the infirmary for overworking yourself."
"Exactly!" Selphie exclaims, finally releasing Squall's arm. He gives the blonde an annoyed look.
"Zell, we have to find out how to stop her," he says.
"CHOCOBOY! Hey!" Selphie shouts, cutting the argument short. She runs up to the kid and gives him a big hug, which Chocoboy returns, a huge smile on his face.
"Selphie, quiet! You're gonna scare the Chicobos! But, I didn't expect to see you here again," the kid says. "Not since you told me you were transferring to Balamb Garden. Then the missiles came and hit Trabia Garden, and no one's been out to visit me."
"Well, we came 'cause of the missiles! I had to make sure Trabia was alright. It's pretty beat up, and many people died, but many are helping get it back on its feet!" Selphie said after releasing Chocoboy. "Oh! I almost forgot! Chocoboy, these are my fellow SeeDs, friends, and team members. Zell is the one with the tattoo on his face. Squall is the quiet one. He's also Commander of SeeD! Squall, Zell, meet Chocoboy, the watcher of this forest."
I snort at that. He's more of a companion. I'm the watcher.
"Actually, I'm just a companion. The Chocobos are the watchers," Chocoboy voices my thoughts.
"Hey!" Zell says. Squall crosses his arms and nods at Chocoboy.
"Not to seem rude, but I'm gonna have to ask two of you to leave. The Chicobos get nervous if there's too many people in the forest."
"I'll show you guys how it's done, and you can wait in the other parts of the forest so the Chicobos will come down, kay?" Selphie says. Zell nods and trots further from the clearing with Squall following. Turning to Chocoboy, the hyper girl says "Still got my ChocoWhis!"
"Alright. Want me to explain how it works, since it's been so long?" Chocoboy asks.
"Nope! I remember!" the girl assures him. She then goes about the clearing, calling down Chicobos and giving them Gysahl Greens before calling down another Chicobo, causing some of the other Chicobos go return to the trees. Only one Chicobo was left on the ground soon, which got me worried. I knew Selphie wouldn't hurt him, but still, there were two complete strangers still in the forest, watching. With a loud "Kweh!" I jumped out of the tree I was roosting in and stood next to the lone Chicobo.
"Hey there, Ella! How're you doing, big girl?" Selphie said gently as she walked closer to me. I watched as she reached out and patted the Chicobo's head before reaching up and patting my neck. I was less wary around the girl than the others, knowing how she treats the Chicobos. The other two were new comers, so I didn't know what to expect.
"Kweh," I said softly. Selphie smiled before waving her friends in while I watched them warily. The blonde one was running over, and I stiffened, ready to attack if he threatened my Chicobo.
"Zell, calmly walk in, or this Chocobo'll run your ass over quicker than the X-ATM092," Selphie said sternly as the blonde ran into the clearing. Zell stopped quickly, gulping and eyeing me as warily as I was watching him. He waited until Squall had walked ahead before walking forward. I snorted softly at that.
Squall was calm as when he first walked into the forest. He looked at Selphie, who was bouncing by my side, then at me. I stared back, uttering a soft "Kweh?"
"Squall, just get your stoic ass over here!" Selphie whined. The brunet raised an eyebrow at the girl, who huffed while crossing her arms. When Squall didn't hurry up, Selphie stomped a foot in frustration and glared at him. I nudged her head a bit with my beak, which made her stumble to the left just a bit. She glared at me half-heartedly before she grinned and threw her arms around my neck. Zell decided it was safe enough and walked over, passing Squall. Once in front of me, he stopped, shifting nervously.
"Kweh?" I cooed softly. Selphie let go of my neck (but kept one hand touching my neck, petting my feathers) and smiled brightly at the blonde.
"Go ahead and pat her, Zell. I don't think she'll attack you, since Chubbo over there isn't in any danger," Selphie urged, jabbing her thumb at the lone Chicobo. Zell patted my neck as the Chicobo fluffed his feathers up, crying out indignantly. Selphie and Chocoboy laughed, the younger falling on his back. Squall rolled his eyes and rubbed his head, and Zell looked between the other occupants of the clearing in confusion. He looked at me, probably hoping for an explanation. I just shifted my wings in a motion vaguely like a human shrugging.
Once the two laughing fools regained composure, Selphie looked at Chocoboy. "Hey, Chocoboy. Do you know if there are two other Chocobos in the forest? We have three others back at the Garden that need rides as well." Zell looked at Selphie like she'd just grown a second head.
"But, wouldn't that mean we need five more Chocobos?" he asked.
"No, silly! We'll pair up! Irvine will ride with me, Squall will ride with Rinoa, and Quistis'll ride with you!"
"Why do I have to ride with Quistis?" Zell complained.
"Whatever. We'll let them decide once we get back," Squall said. He sounded annoyed.
"So, are there two more Chocobos in here?" Selphie asked. Chocoboy thought for a moment.
"I think so… Ella?" Chocoboy looked at me. "Are Lei and Lilac still here?"
"Kweh!" I answered, nodding. I heard Zell whisper to Selphie "He named the Chocobos?" Selphie started giggling uncontrollably again.
"Could you find them?" the kid asked me again.
"Hey! I thought you said you could catch us a Chocobo whenever we needed one!" Selphie cried.
"Oh, fine! You owe me 1200, though!" Chocoboy said. He cleared his throat, then did this whole routine. Within moments, two other Chocobos joined me, Lei (a Chocobo with darker colored feathers than most Chocobos) on my right and Lilac (a Chocobo with lavender-tinted feathers) on my left.
"There you go, two more Chocobos! Now fork over the Gil!" Selphie looked at Squall, who sighed and gave the kid 1200 Gil.
"So, I get Ella!" Selphie cried. She quickly climbed onto my back, then hugged my neck tightly.
"Lei's the one on Ella's right, Lilac's the one on the left," Chocoboy informed the others.
"I want… hey!" Zell cried as Squall got on Lei's back. "Oh, fine. Whatever." The blonde walked over to Lilac and patted her cheek before jumping onto her back.
"You two ready? Alright, follow my lead!" Selphie ordered. Squall gave her a look, which Selphie replied "Hey, I know how to ride these birds. I don't think either one of you have ridden one before." Selphie shifted a bit, then grabbed a handful of feathers in each of her hands. "Alright Ella, let's go." I started off out of the forest, Lei and Lilac following. I stopped at the Chicobo for a moment, nudging him and cooing, telling him to wait in the trees until I get back.
"Kweh!" he cried before jumping into the trees with his nest-mates. Satisfied, I exited the forest at Selphie's urging. After walking a short way, she told me to stop, which caused the others to stop.
Selphie turned me around so I was facing the other two riders and grinned. "Welcome to Instructor Tilmitt's Chocobo Riding Class! Chocobos, make sure all items, weapons, and personal belongings are strapped to your riders tightly. People, make sure your shoes, hats, shirts, etcetera are on properly! Do not try to loosen your weapons! Chocobos scare off monsters, so you won't have to worry about getting into any battles. All set?" At the nods from both Chocobos and their riders, Selphie continued.
"To move the Chocobo, tap its side with your heels, but not too soft, or it won't feel it. Also, don't tap it too hard, or it'll either try to get you off, or it'll start running around like a startled T-Rexaur. To stop a Chocobo, pull back on its neck feathers a bit, again not too hard, nor too soft. It won't forgive you if you pull out its feathers."
Selphie demonstrated that, and I moved forward until the girl stopped me. She made Zell and Squall try both before moving on
"To make a Chocobo run, tap its sides twice while leaning forward. To slow a Chocobo down, lean back slightly while pulling its feathers." She demonstrated that before again making the other two (less experienced) riders try. "To turn, lean to the side you want to turn, but not far enough that you'll fall off. Though, most Chocobos won't let you fall. And finally, to back a Chocobo up you do the same as if you were slowing it down. The only time you may need to do this is if you are in a really tight mountain pass and it's been blocked by a rock slide or something." Selphie demonstrated the last two and made the other two try.
"Alright, you both pass Instructor Tilmitt's Chocobo Riding Class with flying colors! Remember, treat your Chocobo with care, and it'll do the same for you. That's why Ella and I are such good friends!" She hugged me and I cooed happily. "Alright, let's get our friends!"
Squall and Zell shared a look before following Selphie and I. My rider, being the hyper girl she is, urged me to a full sprint, whooping and hollering in excitement. Squall, I noticed as I looked back, had Lei at a quick walk (almost trotting), and Zell was trying to make the lavender-tinted Chocobo obey his orders to speed up. I 'Kweh'ed my amusement out loudly before looking ahead and running faster.
"WA-HOO!" Selphie shouted, letting go of my feathers momentarily.
"Selphie! Slow down and help me!" Zell called out.
"Nope!" she shouted over her shoulder, giggling as Zell argued. After a few moments, the pleading stopped, so I slowed and looked behind me to see Squall helping the blonde. Selphie pulled me to a stop and waited until the other two members of her team joined us before urging me to the same quick walk as Lei, who took the lead. I guess Squall is the leader.
"So, how long would it take to get to Trabia Garden?" Squall asked. He didn't turn his head away from the terrain in front of us.
"Um… At this pace? About 45 minutes. At a full sprint we can be there in 15 or so," Selphie replied. Squall nodded.
"How can you get the bird to obey you?" Zell whined. I looked, as did Selphie, and saw that the blonde had crossed his arms and was pouting. Lilac was just following Lei. I gave my purple-colored friend an amused look.
"Zell, you have to respect her before she'll do anything you want her to," Selphie told the pouting blonde. "Try actually using her name, and giving her Gysahl Greens." Zell sighed. Before he did anything, Selphie urged me to a run, passing Lei and Squall in the process. I felt Selphie twist to face the others for a moment before huddling against my neck, wrapping her arms around me.
"SELPHIE! DON'T JUST LEAVE ME! LILAC ISN'T LISTENING TO ME!" Zell shouted. My small brunette rider just giggled into my neck feathers, leaving her team in the snowy dust as I sprinted away.
A/N: So? what do you think? Just some random crap. I have a Sequal started, if you all want to read it. Tell me how it was. This is my first attempt at a Chocobo's POV, as well as humor, so nice is appreciated. ^.^
Risika Kiisu Fenrir
