Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VIII.

A/N: Phew, well, I had this idea while reading Three Minutes Too Fast by cerespallas (great fic, read it) because, in her fic, she has the GFs talk sometimes, and that got me thinking about their individual characters and everything, and then I started planning, and then I got into it and I planned for like 5-6 hours, and here's the result! Sadly, I don't expect that this will get very popular =( Prove me wrong? Reviews are love! Anyway, let's give this a go! Hope you like!

P.S.: A few things to know about this story. One: The chapters won't be too long each, because every chapter is told from a different point of view. Sometimes a chapter will only be one scene. It also helps me if I want to continue this to have short chapters, so I can just do 'em whenever =P. Two: This all has a kinda loose-weaved storyline in it somewhere, but mostly it's a bunch of drabbles about these different characters and drama and friendships and inner struggles. Just having fun =) Anyway!

Guardian Force Garden

Chapter One

-Quezacotl-

I'd been with Winhill Garden since its foundation, and honestly, it's hard to remember where I had been before it. I hadn't had much in my life, nothing truly worth remembering, but I always remembered the lightning. Brilliant flashes of light dancing across my eyes, piercing through wet darkness, and the resounding thunder, like a low roar, as if daring anyone to take it on. Storms were where I always felt at home, and the fairly unpredictable weather of Winhill was perfect for me.

The Garden stood not too far from the town – about halfway between Winhill itself and the old Desert Prison – and looked, I guess, as normal as any of the other Gardens. A huge dome-shaped building the color of the surrounding forests, sandy desert colors creeping up here and there. The roof would dip in, then come out and dip in again to create layers where the various floors were, looking kind of like a honeycomb, and the top curved backwards into a structure that resembled a shark's fin. It wasn't much – it didn't have the technology of Esthar's Garden, and the Festivals could never be on par with that of Trabia; we used more traditional methods or combat than Galbadia, and we didn't have any legendary SeeDs like Balamb – but it was great, and it was home.

Well, I guess I can't really say 'great' without cringing a bit. Never been a good liar.

Let's backtrack, so you can really see what I see.

At eighteen, I'm still a Cadet in the Garden with a roomie and all. Ifrit sleeps on the other side of the room, and has a thing for waking up at 7am to go work out, when classes don't even begin until 9am, and when I wake up I cannot get back to sleep, so I lay awake for at least an hour before finally sitting up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes and standing, turning my alarm off early. Silly that I still set it, since every morning is the same.

But today… My mornings got a wake-up call.

I went through the routine, washing my blond hair and letting it dry how it would, blinking tiredly at my mirror, staring into my own green eyes as I brushed my teeth, washed my face, put on whatever I'd laid out and pushed myself through the door. I had to check in with Minotaur to see if he had anything for me to do before I went to my classes.

The central hallway was hexagonal, shaping around the elevator and spiral staircase in the middle of the building. The dorms let out immediately to the central hall, and I lugged myself down the few steps, tossing my head up so I didn't run into anyone.

And stopped still.

Before me stood a woman, a few inches shorter than me perhaps, with long red hair tied up in a black silken bow at the back of her head. My eyes traveled her up and down at least six times – she wore black shoes, black thigh-high tights underneath a wispy brown skirt, with a cream-colored blouse resting above. She turned, and I saw she carried a clipboard and was tapping the cap of a pen against her lips, looking around her like she was searching for something.

Her eyes, wide with curiosity and confusion, were shaded a fiery red-orange, and her lips colored to match the deep scarlet of her hair. The milky color of her skin was of such a contrast that it nearly made her look like she was engulfed in flames, like some sort of goddess in a vision. Hyne, I'd never seen someone like her before.

I had to know her.

"Excuse me," I started, putting on my perfect smile that had welcomed many a troubled guest or new student.

She turned fully toward me and blinked, then smiled, looking slightly relieved. "Hello," she said in a sigh.

"Seems like you're looking for something."

"I am," she replied, holding her clipboard for me to see, then seemed to catch herself. "Oh, sorry; I'm Phoenix."

She held out her hand, and I took it, unable to miss the healing warmth that seeped from her touch. "Quezacotl," I choked out. "Que for short."

Grinning at the nickname, she leaned in close to show me what she'd written. "I scribbled down some things they told me on the phone… I'm the new Nurse, and your Infirmary is so hard to find!"

Her words were lost to me along with my ability to breathe at the scent of her perfume. "Y-Yeah, things can be confusing around here your first few days. It gets easier, though. Do you want me show you how to get there?"

Another brightening smile lit up her face. "That'd be wonderful; thank you."

We'd only begun to walk down the hall before a voice called after us. "Miss Phoenix! You've arrived!"

Phoenix turned around to see Pandemona, the office aid, jogging toward us, papers in her hands. She smiled when she reached us and stopped, trying to let her heavy breathing show. "Miss Phoenix, my name's Pandemona," she introduced, shaking Phoenix's hand. "The Headmaster would like to see you as soon as possible, and then you can get situated."

"Of course," Phoenix said, then looked over her shoulder at me. "Looks like I'll have to take a rain check on that tour, Que."

I waved my hand and started to say it was fine, but Pandemona cut me off. "You were showing her around? Oh, well, Minotaur can arrange for something after the meeting. The only person who knows this place better than Quezacotl is the Headmaster himself!" she assured Phoenix, then tossed a smile my way. "I'll have her back before you know it."

"No rush," I reassured, and with one last grin from Phoenix, the two were rushing down the hall for the elevator.

A little insight on Pandemona – she was five foot seven with purple hair and purple eyes, and still a Cadet at age twenty-one. The reason? She'd never been much of a fighter. The rank Cadet was really only a formality when it came to her – she had more of a job than the rest of us. She worked with Minotaur in Headmaster Odin's office, keeping everything running at top speed. She was the face of the Garden when Headmaster Odin was too busy, while Minotaur took a more backstage angle and kept records and sent people on errands and things like that.

And guess who was number one errand boy? Yours truly.

Well, if Headmaster Odin was having a meeting, then Minotaur was definitely occupied. I guess errands will have to wait 'till later, then, I thought, and resumed plodding along the hall toward the classrooms.

But Hyne… If Pandemona really did set something up with Phoenix, even if it was something as simple as a tour, I'd owe her big time.

Come off it, the more rational side of me said. How old is she…? Twenty-four? Twenty-five? Out of your league by a long shot.

I grimaced. It was true. What chance did I have? And why was I getting so worked up over this, anyway? I'd only known her for, what, two minutes?

"Hey, Que!"

The voice made my stomach plummet. Tonberry.

The Cadet was a five foot four demon with teal hair to her hips and red eyes. She walked up to me in that walk that she had, something that would've been a saunter if it wasn't so model-esque. Demon as she was, it was hard not to look twice.

She stood on the rise of the walkway until her eyes were level with mine and appeared to be searching for something. Finally, she smirked. "You like her."

I blinked, and stepped away. "W-What? Who?"

Tonberry rolled her eyes and stepped back down, staying close to me. "That woman you were talking to; Phoenix, is it? The new Nurse we're supposed to get?"

I furrowed my brow. "How do you know about her? I hadn't heard anything…"

"I know about all the new competition before they even come into the game," she stated, raising an eyebrow.

"Competition?"

Her smirk returned and she came up close to me, her hand on my shoulder and her eyes staring into mine. "But she's hardly any competition, right? Not between us."

Lips so close, and I could feel the heat from her body. "There is no us, Berry," I retorted, stepping away again and turning to face the classrooms. "I'm going to be late for class."

"Suit yourself," she sang, stepping backwards and onto the rise once again, walking heel-to-toe along it. "But remember: I'm always watching."

My eyes narrowed and I shook my head, as if to shake off her warning. I forced my legs to carry me forward and left her behind.

That girl… She had issues that most couldn't even speak of. How many people was she sleeping with now? And at sixteen? And now she was trying to add me to the list. I huffed, insulted that she would think me so weak.

The classroom door slid open, and already I could feel the normalcy beginning to creep up again and envelop me in lethargy. Shiva and Ifrit were at our usual table, and next to Shiva sat Siren, a newer addition to our group.

Ifrit looked awake and refreshed, his red eyes shining and his red hair slightly damp from sweat. He had the beginnings of a tan, and I wondered if he'd started running outside lately instead of just on treadmills.

Shiva looked her average self: blue hair down her back and big blue eyes, her skin an icy pale. Beside her, Siren had her blonde hair in a braid and bangs framing her soft face and dark green eyes. She seemed sweet, but I hadn't spent much time with her, mostly because I didn't understand the way she communicates. See, she's mute, and speaks through gestures and facial expression and sometimes by moving her lips in the shapes of words. Shiva is the best at figuring it out, and can carry out a conversation almost flawlessly, but Ifrit and I are still learning.

My friends greeted me like any other day, and Instructor Alexander began his lesson the same way he always had. Only I knew the significance of this particular morning. Today, I met Phoenix.