(Disclaimer: As a work of fanfiction, the creation of this piece does not imply ownership of the Final Fantasy franchise, its characters, or any affiliated intellectual property.)
One of the library committee members looked up at the girl trudging through the door, arms full of small, colorful bags.
"All right! The snacks are here! This meeting of the Library Committee can officially start."
The other girl dumped the bags of snacks onto the table with a sigh. "The snacks are here," she repeated. "Not Emmy. The snacks."
"Aw, Em, I'm sorry. You know I didn't mean it that way."
"I guess. But you sounded an awful lot like … him."
"Still no luck, huh?"
"Oh, Rosalie, I don't know what to do! I've specially selected and set aside books that I think he'll like, and just yesterday, I stood in line all morning to buy him those hot dogs he loves." Another sigh. "I thought that after I spoke to him at the hotel last year, he'd finally understand how I feel."
"Does he at least thank you for what you do?"
"Yes. He's very appreciative, he just doesn't seem to understand why I do those things for him."
Rosalie reached across the table and patted Emmy's hand. "Well, Zell has always been a little dense."
"Dense as a sack full of steel orbs," the third committee member piped up. Rosalie glared at her and she shrugged. "It's the truth."
"Maybe to him, you're just another schoolmate," Rosalie suggested. "A very friendly one, but not particularly outstanding."
"Gee, thanks a lot," Emmy groused. "I thought friends were supposed to boost a person's ego, not tear it down."
"That's not what I meant. Again. I just meant that you don't do anything that makes him sit up and take notice."
"You could always hike up your skirt," the third committee member proposed, flipping her long ponytail.
"You're not helping, Tessa."
Emmy looked down and tugged at the hem of her skirt. "I don't think these things can get much shorter," she muttered.
"You don't have to do anything like that," Rosalie said. "That'll just get every boy's attention, and you only want Zell's. So, you need to do something specifically designed to catch his eye."
"Like what?"
"Let's see, what does Zell like?"
"Food. And fighting."
"Food fight!" Tessa shouted, lobbing a potato chip toward Emmy.
Emmy brushed it aside. "He's also very responsible with library materials. He always returns them on time and he never creases the spines."
"The guy's a regular boy scout."
"He is, isn't he?" Rosalie said. "He's really serious about following the rules."
"Except for T-Boards."
"Everyone has their weak spot." Rosalie brought her hand to her chin. "You know, Emmy, maybe if you were a bit more vocal about enforcing the library rules when he's around –"
"And more visible."
" – then he'd have no choice but to notice you."
"Vocal? Visible?" Emmy looked from one friend to the other. "What do you two expect me to do? I can't just yell at patrons for overdue books."
"No, but you can lecture them," Rosalie said.
"Sternly and loudly," Tessa added, reaching for another bag of chips.
"I'm not sure about this," said Emmy, shifting in her seat.
"Try it." Tessa munched a handful of chips. "Give it a week. If it doesn't get results, then you can go back to being a doormat."
•·•·•·•·•
Emmy frowned at the monitor in front of her. A due date a month ago, a sizable fine, an impatient student on the other side of the desk. She turned to him with a weak smile. "I-I'm sorry to tell you this, but this book you just returned is overdue."
"Yeah, I know."
"S-s-so, there's going to be a fine."
"No, there's not. I can't afford to pay, and I need this new book to study for an exam." The student leaned across the desk and gave her the saddest expression he could manage. "I have to pass this exam! If I fail, they'll kick me out of Garden, and I have nowhere else to go. You wouldn't want me to fail, to become homeless, over a teensy-tiny little fine … would you?"
"Well, I guess we could –" A red-and-black jacket caught Emmy's eye. She watched Zell stride to the bookcase, full of purpose, saw him bend to look at the lower shelves and squint at the titles on the spines. She took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and faced the smirking student again.
"Yes, I would," she said loudly. "I am not your mother, I'm not responsible for your behavior. You chose to keep a book a month past its due date, and I cannot let you check out any more material until you pay the fine. 500 Gil, please."
"What? This is an outrage! I don't have that kinda cash on me." He fished through his pockets. "What would you say to 300 Gil and a promise I won't return this book late?"
"500 Gil."
"Aw, come on! You can't be serious!"
"500 Gil."
The student groaned and shoved the book at her. "You know what, forget it! I'll just copy off my friend's test anyway. He's smart enough." He stormed out of the library.
"Ugh, I hate people like that," Zell said, walking up to the desk. "Always breaking the rules, and acting so proud of it!"
"Oh! Z-Zell! How are you doing today?" Emmy felt the blush creeping into her cheeks. Zell didn't seem to notice.
"I'm always good," he replied, smiling. "By the way, it's about time one of you ladies got tough with people like that guy. Good job!" He slid a book and his ID card across the desk to her. "Maybe one of these days, you can do the same to whoever still has Goodbye Pupurun. Man, at this rate, I'll never be able to finish that series!"
Emmy managed to keep her hands steady as she processed Zell's items, and even waved to him as he left. Good job. He'd noticed her! Rosalie and Tessa emerged from the shelves near the back of the library and gave her thumbs-up. Maybe they were right. Maybe there were benefits to being assertive.
Maybe she wouldn't have to be just "Library Girl" anymore.
Maybe she could be the Library Enforcer.
•·•·•·•·•
Emmy clutched an envelope in one hand, a printout from the library's computer and a stack of citation tickets in the other, and stalked down the second-floor hallway. Whispers and stares followed her as she made her way to the classroom at the end of the hall.
"There she goes."
"She's a real stickler for the rules."
"I heard she even handed out a citation for talking too loudly in the library."
"She didn't!"
"She did. Mark got one and ended up having to clean the library for three days straight."
"Who is she, anyway? I don't remember seeing her here before."
Emmy zeroed in on her target. "Student number 51602, Katherine?" she asked.
"It's Katie," the girl replied, rolling her eyes. "And what do you want?"
"Katherine, I've come to inform you that you are in direct noncompliance with the Balamb Garden Code of Conduct, Article 10, Section 23, the prompt return of borrowed materials. I've come to remedy that situation or secure proper recompense."
"What?"
"Your library book's overdue. Return it or pay up."
"Yeah, how about neither?" When Emmy glared at her, Katie put on her sweetest smile. "I lost the book. And since I'm still a lowly little cadet, there's not much money you can take from me."
Emmy frowned and began scribbling Katie's name onto a ticket.
"What are you doing?" Katie asked.
"I'm issuing you a citation for the improper handling of Garden property."
"Oh please, like this is the worst I have done."
"I don't care what else you've done, Miss 51602. Failure to address this issue and provide Balamb Garden sufficient compensation for the item you've lost will result in the termination of your library privileges."
"Like I'm really gonna miss those. I'm not a nerd."
"All library privileges, including remote access." Emmy tore off the ticket and handed it to Katie. "Good luck preparing your term paper."
Katie blanched, and Emmy wanted so badly to smile at the sight, but maintained her stony expression as she turned and walked toward the elevator.
"Wait!" Katie came running up from behind. "I lied. I still have the book. It's in my dorm … somewhere. Come with me, and I'll get it for you right now!"
•·•·•·•·•
"Man, I had no idea the library had this many books!" Zell said, looking at the shelves now crowded with long-lost items. "I guess people were really lax about returning them." He walked to the desk. "So, um, Emmy, right? I suppose we should all thank you for getting these books back. I know it's nice to be nice, but sometimes you've gotta get rough and bring the hammer down on these delinquents. You've really turned over a new leaf." He grinned. "Get it? Leaf? Books? You know, pages?"
"I get it," Emmy said, scrolling through the library's catalog on her computer. Several months since her attitude adjustment, Zell didn't seem so important anymore. She'd finally gotten his attention, but in the process, she'd discovered just how much work there was to do to keep the library fully stocked and running smoothly.
She scrolled to the bottom of the catalog. All items were accounted for. Well, all except one.
Goodbye Pupurun.
Emmy glared at the title, still highlighted in red, and gritted her teeth when she scrolled over to the name of the student who'd checked it out last.
Raijin.
It was most inconvenient that Raijin was no longer a student at Balamb Garden. She couldn't threaten him with suspended privileges or expulsion. She could, however, collect the money for the book and purchase a new copy. If only she could find him.
She'd dipped into her own savings last month and hired an investigator from Balamb to track him down. By the time her money ran out, all she'd learned was that he was traveling with Fujin and Seifer – surprise, surprise – and that they'd last been seen camping out in the forest near Dollet. She looked past Zell to a map on the wall, squinting at the area where the investigator told her Raijin had last been spotted. If he and his friends were traveling on foot, they couldn't have gotten far in a week.
She closed out of the catalog and turned to Zell, taking his book and ID. He smiled at her.
"You know, I never realized you were such an amazing girl," he said. "You were always so quiet, you kinda blended into the background. But you've got the heart of a fighter, and I like that! Hey, so I was wondering, on your next day off, how about we head into Balamb, maybe do a little fishing, or just relax on the beach? I can take you by my house, and Ma can cook us a nice lunch. How about it?"
She smiled back. "That sounds lovely, Zell, but I'm afraid I'll have to pass."
"Oh."
"I've made other plans already."
"Yeah, I guess you've become pretty popular with the guys lately."
Emmy giggled. "No, it's not that. I have … an errand to run. Near Dollet. But maybe after all that's taken care of … if you still want to …"
"Of course! See ya!"
Emmy watched him lope out the door, then pulled up the catalog again. Raijin.
It's time to pay.
- END -