Questions and Answers

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"I wish chicken wuss was here. I'm feeling way too domestic."

"Just read the card, Seifer," Quistis Trepe snapped, making Rinoa grin. Squall's dorm room had unofficially become the Game Room for their group, and she could already hear him cracking his knuckles in frustration as Irvine accidentally spilled some ranch dip on his impeccably kept floor.

"Sorry Squall, I overdipped my chip," the cowboy apologized and sat back down at Selphie's side, and Squall barely blinked. She reached a hand to pat his shoulder while they waited for Seifer to continue Questions and Answers.

The blond man held up the card in irritation. "Alright, alright. Rinoa and Squall…Entertainment. What actor famously left the Galbadian theater scene to run a fish and chip shop in Balamb?"

"Oh, this one's too easy!" Selphie cried, "Why did we get the chemistry question?"

"Because we landed on a green space, not a pink one, Sef," Irvine teased, squeezing his girl's hand. Rinoa took her eyes from the happy couple to frown at her partner. Much as she loved him, Squall was quite possibly the worst person to be matched up with for Questions and Answers. The game was equal parts pop culture and random trivia, and his mind was devoid of such "useless" knowledge. She was doing most of the legwork for their team while he moped. Socializing was still very new to Squall Leonhart, and Couples Game Night was only agreed to with the caveat that everyone had to leave his room by 10 o'clock. It was already 9:30, and Squall was checking the clock every other second.

She looked to him for an answer, and his expression was entirely blank. Useless! If Questions and Answers had categories like "Complaining" or "Battle Strategy," then they'd have the game won already. But no. "Squall, you don't have any idea?" she moaned.

Rinoa saw his eyes flit quickly over to the clock on the wall and back to hers in a nanosecond. "Jordan Fanto?" he replied, his voice sounding as bored as he looked.

"Is that your answer?" Seifer asked impatiently, tapping the question card on his hand.

"I don't know," Squall answered, the same enthusiasm evident. It took all the strength she had not to shove him.

"Jordan Fanto is a tournament level Triple Triad player, Squall. So no, Seifer, he is not our answer," she snarled, only looking at her partner, who continued to regard her with what she called his "Whatever" face. Seifer chortled, and she heard Quistis tell him to settle down under her breath. Selphie and Irvine were too busy tickling each other to care, and Rinoa had to look away from Squall to think. "Just give me a moment since I have to have the brain power of TWO people."

Seifer snickered again and gave Quistis a smile. "We don't have all night. Some people have more important things to do," her ex-boyfriend remarked. Quistis groaned in embarrassment, and Rinoa shut her eyes to concentrate. As far as she was concerned, inviting the perverted mind of Seifer Almasy to Game Night was a bad idea. For once, Squall was right. But she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing that. She listened to the sound of tickling and giggling and could almost feel the dull eyes from the "Whatever" face gaping at her.

Eureka! "Daven Ridgeley!"

Seifer raised his eyebrows. "Heartilly comes through in the clutch! Nice!" She sighed in relief and took a small pink wedge and added it to her and Squall's game piece. It was their first wedge compared to four for Selphie and Irvine and three for Seifer and Quistis.

Quistis smiled at Squall. "And your contribution is duly noted, Commander. Jordan Fanto was an…interesting guess."

Squall smirked. "I'm just here for moral support." Rinoa rolled her eyes and kept her Industrial Strength Squall-Poking Elbow to herself. Selphie and Irvine took their turn, and she read them a sport question. While the two of them made kissy faces and googly eyes at each other, their unconventional but successful strategy, Rinoa watched her boyfriend's eyes. "Whatever" face was morphing into "Must Kill Kinneas" face, Squall's eyes aimed like a laser beam at the dollop of ranch dip that still lay on his carpet.

She could just see the little hamster running in the wheel that was Squall's brain. He was probably wondering what permanent damage the dip would do to his rug, and he was probably mentally listing the different stain removal supplies he had at his disposal. From the way his face continued to sink into a downright evil sneer, Rinoa imagined that Squall was also wondering if those supplies would get Irvine's blood out of the carpet as well.

"Fourteen points!" Selphie and Irvine chanted together excitedly, and Rinoa looked back at the card.

"You're absolutely right!" she replied cheerfully, and the victorious couple decided to make out a bit at their success. Seifer's eyes could probably not roll back in his head any further than they already were.

"Are we done yet? Can't we just let them win so they can go sex each other already?" Seifer complained, and Quistis smacked his arm.

Irvine broke away from his girl to smile that swoon-inducing smile he was so damn good at. "Now now, Quisty. You don't have to crack the whip every time Seifer opens his trap…"

Quistis glared. "Oh yeah, that joke hasn't gotten old yet!"

Irvine made a whip cracking noise, and a handful of question cards found their way from Quistis' hand to Irvine's face. "Not again," she heard Squall mumble beside her.

Irvine and Selphie raised stacks of cards in their own hands, but Seifer held up his hands in protest. "No way, not a chance, kids. I'm calling it a night. Cards aren't my weapon of choice. I fight to maim and wound. Example, Squall's face," he teased, gesturing to the scar on her boyfriend's forehead.

"Whatever," he replied, to the surprise of no one. "At least yours got infected." Rinoa suppressed a smile at the rivalry rearing its ugly, but amusing head once again. Seifer laughed and dragged Quistis to her feet.

"Good night," Quistis called as Seifer tugged her out of Squall's room. Selphie and Irvine dropped their cards in disappointment. They soon shuffled out as well.

She sighed and moved over to Squall's drawers, pulling out the bottom one to reveal a disturbing array of cleaning supplies. "You get the game, I'll tackle the dip," she offered.

He nodded and began gathering the cards, putting them in some order she would never understand. She snapped up a foam carpet cleaner and a few paper towels and got to work. He put everything back in the box and laid back on his bed with a sigh. "No food next time, alright Rin?"

She smiled and continued to rub the stain from the rug. "You mean there's going to be a next time?" He groaned, and she knew she'd caught him. "Next time we'll have to have Zell and the library girl…"

"Lia."

"That's right, Lia. We'll have them come instead of Seifer and Quisty. Seifer has a smutty mind, and all I can do is think of my boyfriend in filthy ways," she reasoned and stood up, dropping the soiled towels in the garbage. She opened the drawer and moved to put the carpet cleaner back, but he was behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek.

"Keep it alphabetical, please."

She turned around and hopped up to sit on the desk. She handed him the cleaner to put back himself and sighed. "You alphabetize your cleaning supplies?"

"I am a man of mystery, Rinoa. Don't try and change me." He simply dropped the cleaner into the drawer instead of putting it in order and slammed it shut with his foot. He put his hands on either side of her and stared into her eyes. "So let me see if I follow…we shouldn't invite Seifer because he makes you think dirty thoughts…about me? That's just wrong."

"I am a woman of mystery, Squall," she whispered back as seductively as she could muster and tugged him to her by the collar of his shirt. "Don't try and change me."

He kissed her then, and she felt totally and completely loved. She came up for air and winked. "But Jordan Fanto? That was the best you could do? Really?" He silenced her with another kiss, and she knew she'd never want another partner for Questions and Answers.