Perspective

Author's Note: This chapter takes place post-game and after the events in my Long Shadows Before Dawn fic.

"Isn't this great, Squall? The two of us here, in the wilderness, braving the elements together. No Palace guard, no SeeD missions to think about. Just us, these woods, and that great big sky above us. I'm telling ya, it doesn't get much better than this."

"…Laguna, did you make sure to pack your own tent?"

Laguna let out a sigh and glanced over at his son. He had thought that this camping trip would be a good way to spend quality time with Squall, but now he was starting to re-think that idea.

It had started a couple of weeks ago. Kiros and Ward had told Laguna that he needed to take a vacation, and Squall had managed to eke out some free time between SeeD missions and administrative duties at Balamb Garden. They had decided to spend a weekend together with Squall having no suggestions about what to do with their time. A camping trip had simply been the first thing that popped into Laguna's mind.

Of course, it wasn't quite as simple as that. Laguna had to practically beg his security detail…and Kiros in particular…to let him go without a huge armed guard. It took almost two hours of whining, but Laguna finally managed to pull it off.

Not that Laguna was sure that he had been entirely successful. He squinted at the trees in front of him for the fifth time in the last two hours. He was fairly certain that Kiros was out there somewhere, keeping an eye on things as usual. Sure, Laguna wouldn't see him and knew that it was a point of pride for Kiros that he wouldn't spot him for the whole weekend. Still, he was also confident that Kiros wouldn't intrude on their privacy and was secretly grateful that neither he nor Squall would have to worry about pesky monsters or random criminals ruining their weekend.

"Of course I remembered," Laguna finally answered. "…I think…yeah, I'm sure I did…at least, I'm sure I remembered the food. And the tent. Yeah, and the tent too."

Squall shook his head in exasperation which Laguna couldn't really blame him for. Squall was always so organized, so meticulous in how he planned every detail of his life. Laguna saw nothing inherently wrong with that as it seemed to work for Squall. Still, Laguna also figured that some spontaneity would be good for Squall once in a while which was another reason why he had chosen a camping trip. What could be more spontaneous that nature?

"Um, suppose, now just suppose, I didn't bring the tent," Laguna said. "I just want you to know that I don't snore. At least, that's what Kiros said when we were out on patrol together."

Later that night, the two of them were roasting some hot dogs over a campfire. Squall had set up the one tent the two of them would have to share while Laguna had gathered the firewood.

They had spent most of the day hiking down to the main river that ran through the heart of the forest. Once they found it, Laguna wished that he had thought of bringing some fishing poles, but Squall surprised him by pulling out a pair of compact poles from his knapsack. They made plans to go fishing early tomorrow morning although Squall had one stipulation.

"I get to cook the fish," he said. "After what you did to Irvine and Zell the last time you made your Balamb fish, there is no way I am going to allow you near a fish I plan on eating."

At the time, Laguna had made a comment about how Squall wasn't very adventurous, but had readily agreed to the condition. Laguna smiled a little as he watched his hot dog roast, but was suddenly concerned when he caught the somber expression on Squall's face.

"Squall? Is something wrong?"

Squall looked down at the stick in his hands. "Dad…do you really think that? That I'm not adventurous?"

Laguna inwardly kicked himself. He didn't want to ruin the mood of the rest of the weekend, so he'd have to answer that one carefully.

"Well…if you mean you do stuff just for fun or off the cuff, then no, you're not, really," he said. "But that's ok. There's other ways to be adventurous like wanting to try new things or discover new places. And I know you've done that stuff before."

Laguna leaned forward while plucking the hot dog off his stick and plopping it onto a bun. "There's nothing wrong with having your own way of doing things. That's what make it interesting….having all us see things differently."

Squall nodded, a trace of a smile on his face as he put his own hot dog together. "Is Kiros going to join us at some point?"

"Nah, let's let him think he's outsmarted us. I'm sure he brought his own food. Oh hey, if you're done, let's put out this fire. The sky is going to be really pretty tonight. I'm sure of it."

The smile grew on Squall's lips."Sure, Dad. Let's just finish dinner first."