ACT TWO:FOLDED AND TORN
1.
She sneaked a glance at him a little curiously, all the while very much confused at that smile he had been wearing ever since he entered the room—late—and settled on the only empty chair available, the one right next to Headmaster Cid. He looked as grim as always—for he would never give anything away in his facial expression unless he willed it—but she had known Squall for years, and she had always known what a Squall smile looks like.
He must have received some loving news from his Rinoa. Yes, that must be it. She couldn't think of anything else that could make him smile so. Though a little pang is felt, she still was happy for him, her brother.
So now they were trapped in the middle of a serious discussion, which is actually a staff meeting for her—for goodness sakes—birthday, and at the same time, incoming departure. Although she had fervently wished that they just have the former as a secret. Which they all have agreed upon.
"Instructor—and Officer—Trepe, your papers have already been approved by the Galbaldian government. They've even expressed their utmost excitement to have you as their Balamb Coordinator. They will officially anoint you during the said party's night and you will be working for them two weeks after that. They have reported to have already prepared the accommodations."
The woman was obviously flustered but she nonetheless smiled. "Th-thank you, Headmaster."
"Don't thank me. You've worked hard enough for this position. And since this party will be two months from now, you shall undergo extensive trainings with Commander Leonhart—" a slight glance to the man here "—and some more trainings on protocol by the previous Balamb Protocol Officer. I also suggest that you start stating your goodbyes to your…Trepies."
Quistis was still so much overwhelmed by it all that she was not able to sneak a glance at the now-frowning Squall at the very mention of the Trepies and her departure. They still stood up anyway to signal the end of their meeting when Cid had called Quistis back again after everyone had gone out of the room.
"Oh…and Trepe…the Galbaldian government would also wish to meet us for some other confidential matters."
She only nodded and smiled. When she opened the door though, she saw Squall leaning against the wall across her, looking his usual self. She simply nodded at him in recognition and walked on her way.
"Trepe." The voice commanded an audience with her. She turned around and tilted her head inquisitively as he merely turned on his heel and walked towards her, never losing eye contact.
"Follow me." Again, the voice commanded obedience. Though shocked, she still didn't move. Squall has already walked ahead of her, showing her that he was dead serious.
But of all the things in the world, she never expected for their little exodus to end up in the training room with Squall ungraciously tossing her a pile of clothing. She caught it up a little distractedly and stared…at her very own battle suit?
Not comprehending it all, she looked up at him again only to find him having that peculiar smile plastered on his lips.
"Your training starts now."
2.
When she walked, he followed three feet behind. When she lectured, he sat behind like her classes were some kind of everyday evaluation. When she tried looking for complicated alleyways or stayed in rooms for hours on end, she still managed to see him standing outside, leaning on the wall across her.
In just a matter of days, he had managed to make his red cards—paper squares representing warning, danger and eventual suspension—as symbols of abject fear, the kind which is akin to terrorism. Too bad that his red card recipients were all males, and were all Trepies.
She at last had seen red and had finally tongue-lashed at her bodyguard for his harassing ways, especially when he just unnervingly snatched the letter a student of hers was about to give when the poor kid was finally able to meet her in the hallway.
"What were you doing, Squall! Stop that or I'll report this now!"
The kid had scampered off when another card was forced against him, courtesy to this hardworking SeeD Commander of theirs. "Your letter of complaint would still pass through me anyway."
"Oh, Hyne, Squall, they're only poor kids! Now get your red card from him and give me my letter back!"
"They are misguided children, Trepe."
"I don't care—misguided? Misguided! How misguided is the act of simply giving letters?"
"They're love letters. Even you know that. Your Trepies are obviously obsessed. They need help or they'll soon break the barriers of student-teacher ethics—"
"ARE YOU TELLING ME THAT I AM PROMOTING UNETHICAL RELATIONSHIPS!"
Another patient sigh. He never sighed. Never. What's wrong with him?
"Don't put words into my mouth, Trepe. I'm simply doing my job."
"The hell you do," she muttered frustratingly while she pointedly ignored her self-proclaimed bodyguard and stomped onwards, all the while grumbling to herself.
"All the poor thing did was to give me a memento. A token of friendship! Can't a student even thank his teacher—"
"—see? You even said his—" he was obviously catching on.
"—properly through a letter? Oh, yeah right," she added a little more bitterly, "you wouldn't know anyway. You obviously can't understand people who'd just miss me terribly when I'm gone—"
She was stopped short with her grumblings when a firm hand had tapped—rather, grasped—her shoulders, while the other one was handing her the letter confiscated a while ago. The cause of it all. She turned around and met Squall's cryptic smile once again, his eyes not giving anything away as always.
"That is because I don't need to, Trepe."
3.
He looked at his partner behind him and instantly glared at her. Especially when she glanced at him with that feigned innocent look in her eyes. Somehow this two-hour routine of theirs has pissed him a lot.
He looked at his own foot impressions on the deepening snow and sighed, wondering when they could ever find this new Guardian Force before they would die out in extreme cold. And looking behind to see your partner not thinking about that would never help cool a temper in boiling point despite their snowy state. She instead was casting GF spells—courtesy of Shiva's Diamond Dust—to simply cover their tracks. And she didn't seem to consider stopping her act before all her AP is used up. (A/N: is it called AP too? I seem to forget.)
He finally stopped, turned and glared at the present crucial matter who is now again stopped short in casting another spell. She merely arched an eyebrow at him.
"Well, what?"
"You're wasting your AP on using a lot of GF spells when you very well know the downside."
"Well, you're welcome, buddy, especially that I've been doing this in trying to bait this new Guardian Force of ours besides watching our backs and tracks. And I do know how to restore my AP, Commander."
"You'd lose a lot of memories on that."
"Look who's talking about memories." She instantly arched her eyebrows—she is starting to make this a habit of hers—with a challenge stinging in her closed lips. A challenge the Griever-wielder simply wished to ignore.
"What you've cast is enough. We need enough of our strengths in capturing this Guardian Force than on covering tracks. And judging from your intellect, Instructor and Officer, I doubt that you could never think of another way in solving the matter."
He heard her angry silence but again chose to ignore it. They were like this for a few more minutes when…
Swish. Swish. Sweep. Swish. Swish.
He stopped and turned and would've glared at it all if not for the sudden jolt of pain he'd felt shooting right through his leg. Looking down, he realized that his partner had indeed somewhat…improvised on her covering-track technique.
"Oops. Sorry. Must've warned you not to get in the way."
He turned back again and silently cursed. She was using her whip to sweep up the snow and bury their foot impressions for good. Ingenious, if she'd only manage not to hit anything else…
WHACK!
Swipe! Another leg hurt. He turned around so easily he would've slipped, the glare increasing in an eruptive iota.
"What now? I warned you to stay out of the way!"
Guardian Force. He badly needed to get the Guardian Force now. Heck, where in Hyne's name is this Guardian Force?
4.
She had finally showered, yes. And changed into a clean over-sized shirt and shorts, yes. Wiped away her make up, yes. And still not in the best of moods, very much—yes.
Because she'd finally decided to eat after getting famished from her dreadful dinner party only to discover that someone had knocked on her door in this very early hour of the day. She fervently hoped on her lucky stars that instead of some unplanned emergency, it would just be Marsha, her personal caretaker—as assigned by their hostess—and a tray of some food. She smiled, as she made way for the door, remembering one time when she was shamelessly woken from her unplanned sleep by the lady simply because she had missed her dinner.
No such luck. It was the last person she had ever wanted to see right now. She banged the door shut. Or tried to, if not for that disgusting foot placed right between the door and the frame. She could see by the glare in his eyes that he was not amused by what she had painfully done.
"Did it hurt?" she asked a little too sarcastically for his comfort. He didn't answer but instead chose to make for his way inside her room. She tightly held the door between his foot and the frame. He glared again.
"Let me in, Trepe. I'm not in the mood here."
"Oh, really? Well, your room then is way over there, Commander."
When he made a way for his entrance again, she suddenly realized that Squall, for being what he is, could very well just destroy the door if he wanted to. But not right now. She instantly realized why. Besides from trying to get inside, he was also trying to balance himself so that the tray he'd been holding won't end up a victim from the gravitational pull of the earth. She sighed.
"Give me the tray and I promise to eat it inside."
"No."
"Commander—"
"No."
"You know very well that you couldn't get inside my room, Sir."
He smiled his very rare smiles. "They also knew that you're already my wife."
Another very frustrated sigh.
"Commander—"
"Besides, I wanted to make sure you'd eat everything in your plate. Marsha has been complaining about your countless trays of untouched food already. They thought you were pregnant."
"What! But—"
"We both know that's impossible but they don't. So either this me in or swallow our disgrace. I still do have a reputation to protect, too."
She clumped her mouth shut, her eyes crimson red from rage as she very grudgingly let her husband in. she had noticed though that the plate of fruit he's bringing was carefully prepared and sliced, and after the glass of juice, the glass of milk and a plate of cheese—her ultimate favorite—was a rose with its buds waiting to bloom.
She silently smiled. Obnoxious as he was, he still took pains for her dinner. She instantly forgave him for the demanding tones and the insults.
5.
She was smiling blissfully at the view before her. Expanse of clear crystal blues...meeting the horizon onward. And a quite handsome guy beside her, known not only for his mischievous ways when he was still a student, but most importantly is his sudden decision on atoning one's self. She sat herself down beside Seifer and smiled up at him.
"Hey, how are you doing?"
"I'm good." He stared hard at her. "You look better."
"Thank you. I've been...hopeful these days."
She was answered by a snort, which she only received with a smile. She still couldn't believe it—though she had seen the evidence clearly in her eyes now—that Seifer has changed a lot.
"I'm happy for you. But I still would want to know when you would be ready for the training."
"Tomorrow morning sounds fine. Of course, Matron has been very good to me, but well..."
"You're bored," she finished, which Seifer only asserted with a chuckle.
"I gather that Squall is also with you."
A very patient and tired sigh. "Yes."
For a moment, Seifer looked amused at her expression. "You're not happy about it."
"He's a paranoid freak whose main mission right now is to always watch my back. A direct order from Cid," Quistis hastily interjected to prevent any unlikely thoughts from Seifer. But the guy didn't show any malice; in fact, he only slightly scowled.
"I wouldn't take this against you, Quisty, but he's been good to Rinoa, right?"
A shocked expression there. "But, of course! He loved her so much, Seifer! And why would you even take it against me?"
"Nothing," he answered cryptically, still not leaving his scowl.
"Now, Seifer, really, a year has passed already! Do you still honestly think that I'm fawning over him? I've completely exacted my feelings to that of sisterly—heck, even call it motherly—love, Seifer."
"I know. It's not you I'm worried about. I'm worried about me."
Now she was suddenly sent to outer space. "Huh?"
And in an instant, Seifer had looked at her with that pleading look in his eyes.
"Trepe, were you sent here to help me cope or to help me go further under?"
"Seifer, what are you thinking? You're still my friend! Of course I'm here to help!"
"Then will you promise to help me?"
"Why, yes."
"Promise?"
He sounded more desperate this time. "Of course, Seifer. You have my word for it."
It happened so fast that she hadn't realized after a moment that she was already encased in Seifer's arms. Even his action felt...desperate.
"Please, Quisty, help me cope. Let me love you Quisty, please. Please..."
Neither of them knew that a shadow was lurking behind them, with a very agonized look plastered on his face.