Night fell, and for some the day was ending.
"You don't like her do you?"
Squall looked away from the balcony in the apartment he and Rinoa shared. The young woman was staring at him intently, and he couldn't help but answer truthfully. "No."
Squall took a moment to marvel at his life. If he had told himself eight years ago that he'd be here he would have laughed in their face. No, let's be honest. I wouldn't have said a thing. I would have stood there silently until they went away, or I found someplace else to be. After spending his childhood looking at the world through a thick coating of emotional armour the last few years had been like a new life. He still had a ways to go, and sometimes he could feel the old ways slipping back, the desire to return to being an emotionless cipher and merely letting the world rush over and past him. But the desire became less and less with every passing day, and he knew there was only one real reason for that. Rinoa.
Rinoa sighed and fell back onto the twin bed. "Not a good sign in a teacher Squall, hating your first batch of students!"
Squall shook his head. "I don't hate her. It's just…"
"She reminds you of him." Rinoa sat up and walked over to Squall. Before he could protest she had rested her arms on his shoulders and was staring deeply into his eyes. "She reminds you of Seifer."
"…Yes."
The thought remained unsaid between them. Love never dies. You can kill it, maybe, but it never dies on its own. He rescued you before you ever met me, back when you were a freedom fighter and he was a dashing young mercenary. And I think even after all he did you were never able to bring yourself to hate him completely.
"Seifer is… Seifer's in the past." Rinoa's smile wavered for a second before returning full force and dragging a change of subject with it. "But that isn't the problem now is it! You have to figure out what to do with your little protégé."
Squall gaped. "She isn't my pro- she isn't!"
Rinoa laughed. God I love her. "Of course not, a young SeeD-in-training with a mysterious past-" She put her fingers to his lips as he opened his mouth to complain "-a mysterious past, and a bone to pick with authority."
"My past isn't mysterious. And I never had that big a bone to pick with authority."
"You never punched Quistis out I'll give you that one. Or at least if you did she never told us about it."
Squall looked thoughtful. "You know what I think?"
"What?"
Before she could react Squall scooped Rinoa up with both hands and threw her onto the bed. He stood over her and smiled. "I think this problem can wait until tomorrow."
Night fell, and for some it brought no rest.
Quistis lay back in the chair with her eyes closed, a book unread in her lap. Ever since her abrupt desert trek she had had trouble sleeping. Just a new year, she told herself. It'll get better soon. A new year, a new generation to train, a new cadre of young people to tutor, memorise, cajole and, eventually, send out into the world as mercenaries, diplomats and (Hyne willing) peacemakers.
The other person entered the room silently; the only sign of their coming the wind wafting faintly across Quistis' cheek as they moved behind her. She felt arms encircle her from behind and brought her hands up to meet them.
"Still can't sleep?"
The SeeD instructor smiled, eyes still closed. "I could try, but there's someone keeping me awake."
A light kiss on the cheek. "I won't stay long."
Quistis could feel the heat rising inside her as the tension between the two stretched out. We play this little game like it has meaning. Could ever have any meaning. "Are you sure?" Stay.
The arms fell away from her and she felt the presence recede. "Some other night."
Don't go. But she couldn't say it. Knew that if she did their illusion would shatter as they had to face the realities of their position. As the other person vanished into the night the young woman was left alone again.
Quistis stood up and walked over to the window. She could see waves undulating just beyond her vision. Nida must be taking us out over the oceans. Quistis loved the sea, the endless calm and starry night you just didn't get near the towns of the mainlands. She could watch it for hours. She felt like she could become lost in it. She sighed. Papers to grade, assignments to decide, paperwork to be filed. Her mind wandered back to her visitor and she took comfort from the memories, and the the thought of memories to come.
Always another night.
Night fell, and for some the day was just beginning
Laguna Loire, President of Esthar, looked out of the giant windows that the dawn sun, and sighed. He turned to look at the others in the room with him. "Well?"
Kiros shrugged and tugged on the collar of his immaculate uniform. Laguna had always teased him about that. We're not in the military anymore pal. We quit. We're in charge of a military, in fact. To which the tall black man had always replied: One of us quit, maybe. "We knew this was coming eventually. What were we going to do about it, ignore it until it went away?"
Laguna noticed that the lines on his old friend's face had deepened over the last decade. Decade? I'm getting old. He thought back over the path that had led him here. Never thought I'd end up in a place like this. He caught himself before he could become lost in reverie, and looked over at the other person in the room.
"Vhat do you vhant me to say?" The small man in the elaborate costume adjusted the ruffle around his neck. "Vhe are making significant progress, and ze theories are ready to be put to ze test. Genius hass alzays been ze target of lesser intellect."
Kiros rolled his eyes and Laguna had to stifle a laugh. He always enjoyed how other people reacted to Odine. Some people's eyes glazed over and they zoned out. Others tried to keep up with the manic ramblings of the scientist-savant and became slightly crazy themselves. Kiros treated him like a precocious child, and Odine on his part treated Kiros like one of the idiotic jackbooted thugs Kiros always feared he would one day before. Laguna was just waiting for one of them to start sighing.
He watched as the small scientist grew steadily more agitated as he talked, until eventually he had no choice but to interrupt. "Professor this isn't exactly a problem of lesser intellects." It's a damn big war machine getting bigger every year, and it's pointed right at us."
Odine shrugged. "Zhen send out zher troops."
Kiros really did sigh this time. "We can't exactly knock their country over and say 'gee kids we couldn't help but notice these damn great guns you have cocked in our general direction, put 'em away'."
" Vhy not?"
Laguna watched in bemusement as the two men argued behind him. He turned to look out over the city. Esthar was just waking up to a new morning. Laguna looked down to see the sun shining through the towers of the city and smiled. More than that, he looked out at what the city represented. The greatest marvel in the world, a future free of superstition, under our own control. Who knows where it could take us.
Laguna wasn't a mean-spirited man, but he couldn't help the thoughts from rising into his head.
Galbadia. Don't you ever learn?
Night fell, but some did not sleep at all.
The woman sat on the shores of Olesia, and waited.
The fact that the seaside was in the middle of the city wasn't worth remarking upon. The city lived and breathed during the day, and tore itself apart during the night, to wake the next morning nothing like it had been. Tomorrow the beach would be in a different place. She would still find it.
The waves lapped against her feet, and froze and crystallised as they touched her flesh. Shiva had always liked the seafront. There was no wind in this place unless she wished it, and on this night the sea was perfectly calm, a perfect mirror that reflected the city that bordered it and the stars above it.
Idly she stroked the furry green creature that rested millimetres above her lap. Carbuncle stirred as the ice-woman sighed, and curled tighter upon himself as the cold breath washed over him. Shiva was annoyed.
She watched as the newcomer walked over the beach towards her, and noted the hesitancy in her stride and posture. Shiva was not naturally a cruel person, but she still exhibited some of the nature of what she was and she couldn't help the thoughts that came as she watched the other woman approach.
Weak.
Siren paused on the beachfront and looked out into the ocean. Even though Guardians could change the world as they saw fit (only to a small degree; the City was and would always be the City), it was impolite to recklessly alter another Guardian's personal space. "It's beautiful."
Shiva wouldn't be swayed. "You have to stop this, sister." She stood, brushing Carbuncle off her lap as she did so. The small Guardian awoke and caught himself before he hit the ground. With a small squeak of reproach towards Shiva for disturbing his rest he flew off, back into the winding dream of the city.
Siren tried to meet her 'sister's' gaze but found herself staring out at the ocean instead. Even though they had known each other for so long now, other Guardians had trouble with Shiva's stare. Her eyes were an incredible deep blue, but it was the blue of a glacier, and when she wanted it, utterly without warmth.
Shiva cut the younger (but that meant nothing in this place) woman off before she could begin to speak. "We have dark times ahead and we cannot be compromised by division. We have been given our instruction and we will all carry it out. All of us." She glanced over at Siren and sighed when she noticed how scared the Guardian looked. So different from out in the World. But then we all are. "There'll be another time for personal feeling."
Siren opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. Shiva wanted to reach out to the young woman and tell her everything will be all right, but before she could find the words or the strength, Siren had turned away and was walking back along the beach, away from her.
Shiva looked out at the sea and cursed her own nature. But we were never given a choice. We are what we are.
She watched the sea until the sun came up.
Night fell, but night means nothing to those who have never known the day
Faster, faster. The light is so close they can feel it. Anxious and panicked, they turn towards the one in whom all their hopes are lain.
On his/her/it's part the one knows it can only be patient. Without any real sense of time he/she/it has no impatience. But their brothers/sisters only know that the light is so close now, and can do nothing but pester and implore for the answer, the only answer that matters:
How much longer?
And then there is a voice, from above. They can feel it reaching down to them below the earth, soothing and imploring patience. Their great work is already in place and now those who have been strong enough to break through and walk beneath the light have all the hopes of their siblings resting upon them.
But still they demand: faster.
And dawn comes, eventually, for all.
Apologies for spelling in grammar, this one was bashed out pretty late at night.