That night felt like it was dabbled in magic. The endless waltz, the stars shining across the sky, and the majestic moon showing herself in full pride over the glass dome.
But for Selphie, that night was over.

She tripped on her feet and managed to stumble towards a table, throwing herself at the nearest chair.

' Oh heyyy, Quisty.' her speech was a bit slurred and it was obvious she already had had one too many drinks.

Quistis frowned and stood up.

' Ookay missy, party's over for you. Come on, I'll take you to your room.'

' It's okay Quistis, I'll handle it.' Irvine stated, standing behind Selphie.

Normally, Quistis would be worried about leaving a drunken Selphie to Irvine's care, but their friend seemed to have a rather serious look in his eyes this time. She nodded in agreement.

' Come on Selphie. Can you stand?' he asked, to which the short brunette attempted to stand on her feet. He lowered himself so that she could be able to grip his coat, and with that, he rounded her waist with one arm and started walking away.

' Ahh Selphie, why did you have to go and get yourself drunk?...' Irvine worriedly expressed his concern for her.

' I actually *hic* had no idea I'd get this buzzed so fast *hic* teehee~' Her fingers crawled along his back in an innocent attempt to get a better grip, but the cowboy couldn't help but notice how much more easy for Selphie it was to touch him, now that she was tipsy. Unconsciously, he further hunched forward, to the point that his chin touched her cheek. His nose brushed against her hair at every step. It smelled of... apples. How appropriate, the sharpshooter thought to himself.
The main hall was deserted; Irvine knew Selphie would be thankful for that later. Luckily, very few people had seen the state she was in... bumping and tripping into things. Not that she didn't do that while she was sober... adorably so.
They finally reached the dorm module of the Garden. It was originally built on the ground floor, so where grass and study benches should be, there was only sea.

' Selphie, look.'

The Garden floated smoothly over the open sea, with no land in sight. It was a breathtaking sight: the deep blue ocean and the reflection of the full moon upon it.
The petite girl leaned against the makeshift balcony and took a deep breath of the sea breeze; she closed her eyes and lingered there, as the cool air caressed her features.
Irvine had released her from his grasp, but kept standing close and facing her.
For moments, he could see the little Selphie he knew when they were kids, running down the beach, her hair a tangled mess, giggling as she stepped backwards, clumsy feet earning her a mouth full of sand. He'd helped her up then, and he'd help her up now, and anytime… physically or spiritually. She was so different from the other girls; she knew the meaning of loss and managed to go on being the same person. The cowboy couldn't help but to find her amazing – he wanted her to know how admirable he thought she was. He found his hand placed over hers before his mind could say anything against it. Her fingers were cold; his palm, burning hot.
Selphie didn't knew if it was the alcohol, or the beautiful view, but she felt completely alright with him holding her hand like that, for once not thinking about whether it had second intentions or not. More, she turned to look in his eyes and smiled with all the confidence that extra champagne glass had given her. Though, this was no ordinary Selphie smile, which would be followed by a hearty giggle or an amiable curtsy, oh no; this smile let her feelings and desires shine through, and it met a pair of eyes that glinted in dark blue hue, reflecting the color of the crispy waves.
Slowly but surely, he held her tiny hand in his and drew it closer. So sure was he that she would back off, that the thought of what to do next ever crossed his mind.
Closer. The seconds dragged on and every fraction of them seemed like minutes.
Closer. Her hand now almost touched his shoulder.
Then it happened. Selphie flung herself against Irvine's chest in one fluid movement, her arms coiling around his waist. Her cheek felt the cold fabric of his shirt at first, but underneath it his skin burned. Why did she do it? It didn't occur to her to think about the reason. The only thing on her mind was how warm and how comfortable she was in his arms, like she'd done it a thousand times before.

' Sefie…' was all Irvine's dry throat could muster before his heart demanded he returned the hug. His hands ran across her back and tightened the whole of her torso against him. It was an overwhelming desire to shield, to protect, to keep her away from the pain she had to endure.

Hyne knows Quistis would shoot him dead if they say them both clinging to one another right there and then, thinking he was trying to take advantage of her; but he didn't care, because deep down he had this unshakeable conviction that he didn't want any of that for Selphie. With Selphie.

Reluctantly, he held her shoulders and pulled away gently.

' Selphie, you should go sleep.' He said in a hoarse voice.

Her hands slowly retreated, resting over his stomach.

' G'night, Irvy.' She tilted her head in a cutesy manner and backed away a couple of steps before turning around and entering her dorm, closing the door behind her.

Irvine's knees faltered and his back glided against the wall until he was crouching on the floor. He was grateful he had his hat to cover up his somber expression.

The sun had already been up for a while before Selphie came to her senses, after having passed out in her bed due to her binge drinking the night before. Her mouth was pasty, eyelids weighed a ton, body refusing to move even though she wasn't sleeping anymore. The clothes that she hadn't bothered to take off felt glued to her skin and she wasn't sure how she'd managed to pull her boots off before crawling under the covers. Lingering in bed for what felt like hours, her mind started to revive bits and pieces of the past, picking episodes at random: the moving garden, the return to the orphanage, time spent in prison, Trabia Garden in ruins... she felt a pang of sadness and guilt. That could have been her. At this very moment, everyone there was working hard to rebuild, and what was she doing? Getting drunk and sleeping in.

Selphie rolled on her back and opened her eyes. They were stingy and it took few tries and coaxing rubs to keep them open. She thought about what she'd seen in their brief visit to Trabia Garden. It felt so unfair that she'd came through unscathed while the place where she grew up and her childhood friends had suffered such a horrible fate; it was a terrible burden on her at times. There was no doubt in her mind that she had to go back and help in any way she could, now that everything was back to normal. Well, almost normal. At least there were no more threats.

Then her mind recalled much more recent events, and her thoughts drifted to Irvine and how he'd carried her through the hallways. Her chest swelled and a warm feeling spread across as she relived the hug they had shared, temporarily blocking out her worries like the booze had done, and she found the feeling to be quite nice and nothing like she'd ever felt before. Irvine had always been a friend, much like Zell and Squall, but his touch felt... different. She wanted it, she'd wanted it for a while but never allowed herself to admit it until last night.

She had felt like a damsel being rescued by a romantic cowboy (and wondered, was this what Rinoa felt with Squall?), having been brought to safety with a pretty view as a background while Irvine drew her closer. The alcohol had hindered her concerns, but it'd been her own desire that made her embrace him. The whole episode felt to her as if taken from a movie or a fairy tale and she blushed, embarrassed with her own cheesy thoughts.

A knock on the door prevented her from further daydreaming.
'Selph! Wake up Selph, it's me, Rinoa.'
'Come in, it's open.'
'Oh dear, still in bed? Come on!' Rinoa tugged on her friend's arm. 'Get ready, let's go grab some lunch.'
'And Quistis?'
'She's busy with Garden stuff. GO!'
Selphie stretched with a loud yawn and headed to the bathroom.
'Sooo... I heard you left the party with Irvine!...' Rinoa's tone was suggestive and facetious.
'Yup.'
'Aaand?'
'Hey Rin...' Selphie poked her head out the bathroom door, '...did you feel like a princess when Squall rescued you in space?'
'A... princess? Hey, where did that come from?'
'Nevermind!' the petite girl disappeared again. 'I'm gonna take a quick shower.'
'Did something happen?' Rinoa tried to shout over the sound of running shower water.
No response. For some unknown reason, Selphie didn't feel like sharing what had happened. Her friend would definitely tease her, and then she'd want to know more details.
(Do you have feelings for him? Did he say anything? Why didn't you kiss him? Do you think you can trust him? Aww, you guys would be so cute together.)
Selphie cringed. Just thinking about the how's and why's made her feel extremely embarrassed, let alone start thinking of a relationship. Her rosy, pillow-creased cheeks turned into a deeper shade of red and she stuck her head directly under the warm jet of water, wanting it to wash away her thoughts. A relationship had to be the least of her worries for the sake of Trabia Garden, and she just knew that Rinoa wouldn't listen to her plans if she knew there was something going on on a more personal level.

'I'm going to ask for a leave from SeeD.'
'What for?' Rinoa asked, forking her salad.
'I wanna go to Trabia and help out. I feel terrible for doing nothing.' Selphie explained after taking a bite off her sandwich.
'Aww, c'mon Selph, don't be so hard on yourself! There were bigger things you had to take part in, you know, like stopping Ultimecia from destroying the rest of the world.' the raven-haired girl chuckled.
'Well, we're all back now! Why aren't we there yet? Which brings me to my point, wanna join me?' Selphie beamed.
'I dunno, Selph... I mean, I would love to go with you and help, I just don't know if Edea will approve.'
'Oh... I'd forgotten all about that stuff.' she slumped back in her seat. 'I'm gonna have a word with Cid. Right now! Sorry Rin, I can't wait any longer!' Selphie had jumped off the chair as soon as she'd sat on it, which made Rinoa laugh.
'It's okay, just make sure to call me as soon as you hear from him!'
'Of course!'

Selphie bounced on her feet while she waited for the elevator.
Ding!
She took a big step forward and tripped herself, balancing rather ungracefully on the tips of her toes to avoid both bumping into the person coming out of the elevator and falling on the floor.
'Woooah!'
The man held her shoulders. It was a familiar touch. Selphie's head jolted up and she was met with a pair of familiar blue eyes. They sparkled and wrinkled like their owner was making a bad attempt to hold back the laughter.
'Irvine! Thanks.'
'Hey Selph! Do you always throw yourself like that at boys? Careful, some of them are jerks.' he finally laughed.
Selphie punched his stomach a little harder than necessary, which made him release the grasp he still had on her.
'Like you!'
'Ow! Not sure what hurt more, the punch or that comment.'
'Outta the way' she grinned 'I need to go see Cid.'
'Oh yeah? What're you going to ask him?'
'I need a leave of absence, I wanna go to Trabia and help rebuild.'
'Huh...' her words sunk into him and he took a few seconds to catch up. 'Good luck with that. I just got back from his office. Wanted to report back to Galbadia but the old man says nobody's going anywhere. Some shit about needing "all hands on deck". Someone needs to tell him a hovering building is -not- a ship!' Irvine cackled.
'What? He can't do that! And... you can't do that!'
'Of course he can. And what do you mean I can't?'
'Because you have to go with me! Everyone has to go!' Selphie gestured vigorously to make her point.
'Selphie...' he sighed inwardly, choosing his words carefully. 'I would help you if I could. Even if Cid gave us permission to go, I want to go to Galbadia just as much as you want to go to Trabia. It might not have been hit with missiles, but "hurricane" Seifer tore the place down. Plus, I'm not a SeeD so right now I don't even know my status.' He took one look at the girl's disappointed face. 'Hey, you wanna go for a walk?'
'But... Cid...!' Selphie tried to argue but was met by a shaking head from the cowboy.
'You're really gonna have to have better than that to convince him. Come on, let's have some ice-cream in Balamb.'