Disclaimer: I, sadly, do not own any of the Final Fantasy VIII characters or anything associated with them.
Chapter One:
Orphans and Video Games
She tip-toed quietly across the room and out the door, taking care not to wake anyone in the house on her way downstairs. It was an unusually dark night in the sleepy little town of Ellisville, Mississippi, caused by the menacing looking clouds that imprisoned the beams of the moon in their seemingly never-ending thickness. She stopped midway down the steps as she could have sworn she heard a noise above her, her breath catching in her throat as her imagination ran rapidly through all of the possible sources of the noise. She prayed that it was only one of the other orphans getting up to use the bathroom, and not one of the caretakers. If Mrs. Raney caught her out of bed after hours again, it would be like Hell on Earth. That woman had an impossible knack for knowing when one of her charges was out of bed. It was a knack that Anna, who had turned seventeen a month earlier, had learned to circumvent. Anna was extremely careful of how and when she would escape the confines of her shared and crowded bedroom, and sneak downstairs for a small amount of private time.
This private time was mainly spent playing Final Fantasy VIII, muted of course, so as not to wake anyone. The other charges had control of the television during the day, seeing as the older children either had work to do to keep the house in order or, in the case of Anna and her friend Mark, a job to go to everyday. Mark and Anna were the two oldest orphans still living in the house, as most kids moved out on their own at seventeen, and Mrs. Raney had already warned them both once that if she ever caught either of them out of bed after hours again, it would be the streets for them. Oh, she is a cruel woman, Anna thought as she silently took up her sneaking down the stairs once more, being careful to skip the last step that creaked. She stuck her head around into the opening of the living room door and checked that no one was currently in the room who would tattle on her.
Anna expertly navigated around the furniture in the room and upon approaching the T.V., effortlessly found the power button, pressed it and watched the screen come to life while quickly pressing the volume down button. "You really like to push your luck with old Raney, don't you?" Anna jumped at the whispered words, thinking she had been caught by a tattler, but then her senses came back to her. They wouldn't be whispering if they were going to tattle, she thought, and turned around to find that it was Mark that had spoken. She grinned and replied, "You're one to talk. How did you know I was going to be here?"
"It was a good guess," he said. "You're always here at this time of night. I've been watching you play Final Fantasy VIII for a month now."
"A month?" she questioned. "How could I not have noticed you there for a month, and why haven't you come forward sooner."
"I didn't want to admit to anyone that I was getting interested in that game. It's not looked well upon by the "educators" at the college. And you and I both know that I'm prone to talk about anything I'm interested in."
"I knew it! I knew you liked the game. And you called it childish."
"O.K., it's not childish, but it's not exactly something an adult would appreciate either."
"Well that's because adults have lost their most important senses."
"And those are?"
Anna smiled and replied, "Their sense of imagination, love, and of course, their sense of humor. So, you wanna join me?"
Mark quietly chuckled, "Alright. Let's get started. You beat the game last night, right?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Well, how bout you let me play?"
Oh, Hyne. He's hooked on it, she thought, then said, "Sure, but remember we have to be quiet. That means you can't get upset if you lose a battle."
"Oh, come on, McKenzie, you know I don't get upset bout stuff like that."
"Whatever, Latham. And don't you start calling me by my last name, too."
"Whatever."
He is so like Squall.
She turned on the game console just as the rain that the weather man had promised began to fall. She sat quietly as the opening scene of Squall and Seifer's fight played before both their eyes. Lightning began to strike outside, illuminating the dark room they occupied. She knew the scene well, having watched it hundreds of times throughout her teenage years spent at the damned orphanage. She hated being an orphan, but it somehow allowed her to connect with the characters of the game and she was sure that that was how Mark felt. There was always something about the Orphanage Gang that just made them feel at home. Anna guessed it was the simple fact that they, too, did not know who their parents were. She was roused from her thoughts as a flash of lightning struck just outside the window just as the opening scene ended and turned to white.
Author's Note
Ok, guys. Let me know what you think. If you like it so far, I'll write more. If you don't like it, I'll still write more. LOL. Please Read & Review. This is my first fic, so be nice.
