FFVIII – Avenir

Part One - Revenir

Why does life decide to bite you in the ass whenever you want to relax? Isn't my life already screwed up without the added pressure of having so many responsibilities?

These were the thoughts of Squall Leonhart when he woke up to the familiar voice of Xu on the intercom on the dresser in his dorm one summer morning. He felt slightly queasy at first; Balamb Garden must have taken to the skies again.

"Squall! You better get yourself to Cid's office on the double!" Xu called. Although Squall couldn't see Xu's face, he knew she looked indignant, a look she frequently wore.

"Yeah, yeah…" Squall said groggily as he took a moment to shake his head. What time was it?

6:45 a.m. What the hell did Xu want now?

"Squall! Did you hear me? Get over here now!" Xu cried. Squall rolled his eyes. Xu had a short fuse, but she was alright.

"Hurry up and get over here. Xu out." The intercom clicked to indicate that Xu had turned hers off. Squall blinked, still unable to decipher what just happened in the past two minutes of his morning.

He turned and looked around his new dormitory. Squall had just moved in about two weeks ago. Cid had this room made especially for Squall because of his position of SeeD commander. It had a small sunken living area with a couch and a small television, a mini kitchenette (which he rarely used), and his queen-sized bed in his relatively large bedroom. The bathroom was located beside the living room across from the kitchenette, complete with shower, bathtub, toilet and sink.

Squall took a quick shower and got dressed. Clad in his regular clothing; a black jacket and black pants with a white t-shirt, he strolled to the kitchenette to get himself a couple of crackers before leaving. The intercom clicked once again and Squall rolled his eyes.

"Holy crap, Squall! Get you ass over here NOW!"

"Shut up, Xu, I'm coming!" Squall cried. He dashed out of the room and took the shortest route possible to the Headmaster's office, being careful not to crash into the other students along the way.

Once Squall entered Headmaster Cid Kramer's office, he was immediately harassed by Xu. Xu's short brown hair swayed as she marched over to Squall, ready to reprimand him for his apparent "tardiness."

"Squall, where the hell…"

"Xu, please," called the voice of the Headmaster. Cid Kramer was a jolly man with a pleasant, yet plump, round face with glasses resting on his nose. He put a hand on Xu's shoulder and Xu sat down. Cid gestured for Squall to sit down.

Sitting down beside Squall were his friends: the ever-hyper Selphie Tilmitt, the ex-instructor Quistis Trepe, and the rambunctious Zell Dincht. Behind Squall, standing up, was sharpshooter Irvine Kinneas, a former student of Galbadia Garden who transferred to Balamb Garden about a month ago. Beside Irvine was the ever-pretty Sorceress Rinoa Heartilly, Squall's girlfriend. She beamed at Squall and bent down to give him a quick peck on the cheek.

From the corner of his eye Squall saw Zell squirm and grinned. Zell had never really gotten used to the concept that two of his very close friends were actually going out.

Cid continued on. "Well, now that we're all here, we can begin. I need you to do this mission, a SeeD mission, yes," (He glanced at Irvine and Rinoa, the only two non-SeeDs in the room) "but something I need you in particular to do.

"Three months ago, you fought the Sorceress Ultemecia and brought her to her demise. You overcame obstacles, such as the control of my wife, Edea, and her threat to the world under Ultemecia's spell. You defeated Seifer Almasy, the Sorceress' Knight, and a threat to this very planet.

"I'm going to be blunt. I need you to find Seifer Almasy."

Quistis' eyes widened, and Zell punched the arm of the chair he was sitting in.

"Why?" Squall wondered aloud.

"We have just gotten wind of a new Sorceress threatening our world." Cid said simply. Rinoa closed her eyes and Selphie covered her mouth. "I don't know about you, but I don't want Seifer to become her knight again. He's done enough damage already now. There are people all around the world looking for him. We need to keep him here."

"Another Sorceress?" Rinoa whispered. Tears were brimming in her eyes.

Cid nodded. "Yes. We need to keep Seifer here. Knowing him, he'll want to be her knight. And I'm being serious, Zell." He glared at Zell, who snickered at the thought that Seifer would want to be another sorceress' knight. To Zell, it sounded pathetic.

"Bring him to Garden as soon as you find him. We're flying over Dollet right now, and you can start you search there. If you need to, we can fly over Fisherman's Horizon, and you can pick up the Ragnarok and fly to other parts of the world to continue your search."

"When do we start?" Selphie asked.

"Tomorrow at 0800 hours. Dismissed." Cid gestured them to leave. Xu stood up and opened the door.

As Squall exited the Headmaster's office, Xu growled at him. "Better not be late this time, Leonhart."

Cid could hear her. "Xu! Settle down!"

Xu groaned and Squall smirked. Xu and Squall never fancied one another for some unfathomable reason.

The tears that welled up in Rinoa's eyes finally flowed down her cheeks when she reached her Balamb apartment. She flopped herself on her bed and cried.

Another Sorceress? Not again… I don't want it to be a repeat of what happened with Adel. I don't… want to be junctioned by anyone anymore.

She remembered what happened three months ago. She too had been under the spell of Ultemecia. She freed the dreaded Sorceress Adel and Adel used her to try and kill Squall and her friends. She cried at the mere thought.

No wonder I'd never make it in a SeeD exam… I'm… too weak…

She heard the front door close. Must be Quistis, she thought. But she didn't dare go greet her.

Rinoa and Quistis decided to become roommates in an apartment after Rinoa decided to leave her father's mansion and start to get her own life, and when Quistis lost her job as a Balamb Garden instructor due to lack of a stern demeanour. The two decided to share a place to cut down on the cost of rent, especially for Quistis' sake, for she was left with nothing after she lost her job. Now, she's a SeeD mercenary. She gets hired to take on SeeD missions when others can't.

"Rinoa?" Quistis stuck her head into Rinoa's room. "You here?"

Rinoa nodded. She wiped the tears from her eyes and gave the blonde a watery smile. "Just thinking about the other sorceress, that's all." And she burst into tears.

Quistis sat Rinoa onto her bed and put an arm around her. "You're strong, Rinoa. You're stronger than you were before. Edea's teaching you how to control your sorceress powers, and you're doing exceptionally well."

"I.. I won't let them… junction me anymore." Rinoa's resolve could not be swayed. She punched the bed. "Not like last time!"

"They won't. You're strong." Quistis smiled. "Now, let's get something to eat. We have to start the search for Seifer first thing tomorrow, you know?"

To Seifer Almasy, life was a game. You run around like a moron and don't get caught or you could be dead. You put your life on the line to try and save your own ass.

"Peters! Open the damn door!"

Seifer sighed. It probably was Mr. Lorne. Again. He turned the doorway and stared right into the angry face of an old man with wiry gray hair and glasses resting on his crooked nose.

"Hello, Mr. Lorne. Whaddya want now?"

"You've missed work for the past two goddamn days! What the hell're you doin'?" Lorne spat.

Seifer blinked. Damn, he thought. I need a good alibi…

"Well?" Mr. Lorne prodded Seifer. "I ain't got all day, unlike you. Is flippin' burgers to strenuous for ya? Dumbass," He added after an afterthought.

To help pay the rent for his crammed one-bedroom apartment, Mr. Lorne, the landlord, decided to give Seifer – I mean, Daniel – a job at his fast-food restaurant downtown.

"Daniel Peters, you miss one more day, an' your ass will be fired faster than you could flip a Jumbo Patty!" He spat at Seifer. Mr. Lorne turned around and stomped off his a huff, muttering and cursing to himself.

Seifer groaned. Life sucks, he told himself. What the hell have I gotten myself into?

"Alright, you bastards! Get a move on!"

"Yes, sir!"

Twenty, no, thirty of them marched down the heart of the immense and scientifically advanced city. Several of them were carrying various items.

"Bust the door down! Get in there!" said the captain.

Pieces of wood and debris scattered everywhere as a lesser soldier kicked the door to the lab open. A few soldiers coughed, and pulled out guns. The guns pointed to an old man, carrying similar items to the ones the soldiers had.

"Wh-what do you want with me?" cried the old man.

"Shut up! Give us everything you have!" shouted the soldier. The gun he was holding was so close to the old man's back, it almost touched. Shivers went down the old man's spine.

The old man shook his head in fear. "These items are my hard work! I won't give them to you for your selfish desires!" He clutched the items tighter and gave a defiant stare to the captain of the soldiers.

"If you value your life," the captain prodded the old man's back with his gun, "you'll hand over those items."

"I value my life," replied the trembling old man, "but I value these items more." He spat out the last words so coldly, it even gave the captain goosebumps.

The captain soon regained his composure. "It's hopeless!" he cried, giving the man a death stare.

As soon as those words were said, the soldiers pulled their triggers. The old man wore a face of triumph. He jerked this way and that, as the bullets impacted him. Finally, he fell to the ground and a pool of blood surrounded the new corpse.

The soldiers grinned and took the items from the old man's arms. None showed any guilt, any remorse. Nothing.

"The old man resisted," muttered the captain. "No one messes with Galbadia."

PART ONE – END

Aka's note: OH MY GOD. oO;; I can't believe I wrote this. It took me weeks to figure something out. xP Hopefully you can figure out who just died if you're a Final Fantasy diehard like me. For all the others, stay tuned for Chaper Two, named "Chercher"

BTW: "Revenir" means "to return" in French. "Avenir" means "future" in French. Just thought I'd let you know )