Chapter 1
It was still the early hours of morning when the sleek, black automobile slid into Balamb Garden's parking sector. The small flags bearing Garden's official seal at the front of the bonnet gently settled against their poles. The underground garage was lit by a series of luminescent strip bulbs that cast strong stark shadows in the corners. The engine of the luxurious looking car finally powered down, and the small whine of the cooling modules could be heard. Then for a few brief moments, there was silence again. It was too early for any activity in this remote corner of the Garden structure, the driver knew, but still he wanted to make sure there was absolutely no one around before he got out of the car.
Pushing back a strand of maple hair, he paused as his eyes drifted over the lot. Eventually satisfied that no living soul was present, he settled back into the plush leather drivers chair, and raised his hands to his face, rubbing his tired eyes gently. It had been a long drive back, not so much distance wise, he had made the drive from Balamb town many times. The past few days however, had exhausted him to the point of collapse, and he had sorely needed to return here as soon as possible. Sighing out quietly, he reached over to the glove compartment and clicked the lock open. Inside the automatic light came on, and in its glow he could see the small parcel that had been expertly bound in bright red paper and silver ribbon. Smiling slightly, he retrieved the box and flipped the compartment shut again.
He hated when his mind drifted, moreso when he was too tired to regain his focus, but at the moment, alone, in a desolute parking lot, he allowed himself the freedom to wonder at the past few years. So much had changed, and he knew it. Sometimes, he knew it all too well. The slight ache in his body that came with strenuous activity that he swore had never been there until recently was a painful remainder that he was getting old.
Well, older, anyway, he reassured himself, catching his reflection in the rear view mirror. He paused again, lost in his own gaze, until he broke away, and gathering a briefcase sitting on the passenger seat, he opened the driver side door and lifted himself out.
After all, life begins at 50...or was it 40? He thought slightly amused at his own mental ramblings. Shutting the door and locking the car, he was on his way towards the sliding glass doors that opened up for him on his approach. He looked back at the car briefly, a small smile on his face.
Besides, I couldn't have driven that when I was 17, he reminded himself. Passing through the doors, he made his way up the long grey corridor. Slightly humming to himself, and swinging the case gently as he walked. As he entered the main foyer of the Garden, he was still awed by the sight of the gleaming glass towers and beautiful aquatic landscaping. He had had many opportunities to remodle the Garden since his promotion as Headmaster, and was glad that the only changes he had made were the new elevators. In his eyes, it was still the Garden of his youth, the Garden that Cid and Edea had built. He was proud to have kept it in their vision, and only hoped it would remain that way long after his departure from command.
Thinking of the couple brought a slight pang of loss to his mind, and he remembered how beautiful the funeral had been. They had stayed together right up until the end, and passed on in relative peace, surrounded by family, his own included. He remembered how Rinoa had wept soflty into the arm of his uniform on that day, and how even Zell had remained quiet and morose for a time after the funeral. But, they had all cherished their moments with the two, and none held any regrets, so as unhappy as it had been, everyone knew that they could not have asked for more.
His boots steady click on the stone floor eventually tugged him back to reality, and he realised that he had walked further than he had realised, and was standing outside his door. Burying his hand in his pocket, he found his keycard, and, holding it to the sensor, the door slid open. He stepped into the beautiful apartment, and glanced around. It was too early for either his wife or his daughter to be up, and so he kicked off his shoes and padded over to open plan kitchen. Flipping the coffee maker on, he noticed that there was a half eaten take out pizza in the fridge, and a half empty ice cream container on top of that. Smiling to himself, he turned back to the percolator and as it filled the glass jar with black, steaming coffee, he retrieved a mug from the shelf. As he poured, he breathed in deep the aroma of Galbadia's finest ground beans, and looked over his home. The living quarters he had been designated was the Headmaster's official residency, and was very luxurious. It was an open plan design, with the kitchen and breakfast bar set in the bottom left corner of the suite. The far wall was composed of sliding glass doors, that led out onto a blacony, facing the sea. Rinoa loved that view, and had always enjoyed sitting out on the wicker furniture, reading or writing letters. In the center of the space was a large living area, seperated from the rest of the suite by a single step down. A large flatscreen monitor and white leather sofas were placed inside it. There were lots of plants, and along the clean white walls, a few pictures in silver frames hung. Even from here, he could see the distinct group portrait they had had taken over twentyfive years ago. Selphie's smile was the most distinct, as she grasped Irvine's neck, and hugged him tightly. Zell's thumbs up pose dominated the majority of the right hand side, and Quistis' beautiful features offset his wild grin, as she stood next to him, arm around his waist. In the center, almost slightly seperated from the others were Rinoa and himself. As his eyes locked on his own image, he noticed the scar, that infamous mark, and involuntarily found himself stroking the spot on his own forehead. Time had faded it gently, and it though it was still visible, it held nothing for him now, nothing for him except a distant reminder of an old foe, and older regrets.
His gaze slightly glazed over, and he paused to sift through memories of his greatest rival. They had been bitter enemies, long before he had fallen in love with Rinoa, the eventual marriage only serving to fan the flames of the other's hatred towards him. His rival had always claimed that he had stolen Rinoa away, and that his treachery was unforgivable. The others had tried to soothe the hatred that had been consuming him, but eventually, he had left Garden for good, and had done so only after destroying all the relationships he had managed to build after the last Sorceress War.
It had been a bitter loss to Rinoa, especially. Not because she loved him now, but she had remembered when she had loved him, and was heartbroken at the self destructiom he had brought about. That had been years ago, however, and with time, everyone had moved on.
He heard one of the doors open at the back of the house, and heard two distinct set of footsteps bearing down on him from behind the kitchen wall. He turned to face the source of the sound, and there she was, radient in all the ways someone could be. Long raven hair that had refused to grey even slightly, and dark chocolate eyes. Her smile was apparent on her face, and he smiled back, as feelings of incredible happiness washed over him. He moved to her, and embraced her, stroking the back of her hair, leaning into her.
"Rinoa...I missed you so much." he whispered, and heard her contentedly sigh, gripping him tighter. She pulled back from him, and kissed him gently on the lips.
"I missed you too, I'm so glad you're back." her voice was a balm to him, and he relaxed into her embrace again, smiling.
A slight coughing caught his attention, and he looked up to see a girl in her late teens standing by the counter. She was much the same as her mother, with long black hair, though it was slightly cropped at the fringe, with different lengthed segments falling over her left eye and cheek. The back was bunched into two pigtails, and they were short enough to jut out at an angle from the base of her neck. She looked slightly embarressed, and crossed her arms over her pink pyjama top.
His face lit up at the sight of her, and she eventually caught his expression and smiled back, hopping into his arms. She hugged him tightly, and Rinoa completed the family reunion by slipping under his right arm, hugging both him and his daughter. They stayed like this for a moment, before he pulled back, and, reaching into his pocket, pulled out the small box he had taken from the glove compartment of his car.
"Happy nineteenth birthday Aeira, I'm sorry I was a little late." he said, barely able to surpress a smile. She delicately untied the ribbon and lifted the paper away. As she opened the lid, her eyes lit up, and she hastily pulled out a key attatched to a black leather keyfob, sporting a metal medallion. She whooped loudly as she grabbed her father's chest tightly in another embrace, and with a hasty thanks, ran toward her room, chattering excitedly. He felt Rinoa's look, and he turned to see her slightly disapproving eye.
"I thought she could do with some kind of transport of her own, after all, she has her licence, and she's responsible enough..." he trailed off under her cynincal gaze. Eventually, after a moment, she smiled and placed a kiss on his cheek, as she floated around him to the coffee pot. He lightly touched where she had kissed him, and turned to face her.
"Fair enough," she said as she poured the liquid into a mug, her back to him, "but one of these days you are going to regret it, when you realise that this means she is now out from under your watchful eye." she chuckled.
"No one is ever out from under that..." he said, and she turned to find him gazing at her dressing gown clad form. He winked suggestively, and she blushed a furious shade of red, before regaining herself, picking up her coffee and nonchalantly walked back towards the bedroom door.
"Are you coming?" she asked from the doorway, feigning disinterest. He grinned broadly at this, and throwing his uniform jacket over the barstool, moved toward her, grabbing her by the waist, and kissing her as they walked back through the door.
She laughed a little, more out of happiness than anything else.
"I can see how much you missed me now, Seifer!" she breathed, as she flicked the door closed.