So here it is 48's story while the class is on vacation. I need some help in deciding which pairing should I do though. NinexSice or NinexQueen. I liked NinexSice because of the novel but I think the game hints more on NinexQueen (with Quon in the background).


'Guuuyssssss!' Cater excitedly called out to the class who were seated in the lounge of the airship. 'You can see Concordia already~!'

Hurriedly, her classmates rushed towards the deck to view the scenery. Concordia, unlike Rubrum, was located at the top of the highest mountains of Oriens. With the clouds partly covering the towns and cities, the whole country looked as though it was built in the sky. Dragons soared freely above Concordia, with and without riders. The people of Concordia are well known for their mysterious ability to communicate with dragons and dragons could in fact be considered citizens of Concordia.

'It's beautiful!' Deuce whispered. Ace gripped her hand tightly, smiling as he too savored the magical scenery.

Eight smirked at the couple and found his eyes darting reflexively to the redheaded girl standing at the front of the deck. He recalled the incident several months ago which had been the pivotal point in their relationship…

'I'll catch you!' Eight had shouted from the bottom of the balcony. Unfortunately, he had failed miserably at catching the jumping Cater. That was embarrassing, Eight bitterly thought as he picked himself up from the ground.

'Are you all right?' he asked as he extended a hand to help Cater up.

Cater groaned a little but said, 'Yeah, I think so.'

'Sorry about that,' Eight apologized, his face blushing, 'you probably could have landed on your own without my help.'

Cater looked at him thoughtfully before smiling cheerfully as usual, 'Yep probably. But I'm glad you made an effort to help me. Ah! Sorry, Eight! I gotta hurry! There's that test I have to rush to!' And before Eight could process what she had said, the energetic girl had disappeared round a corner.

A few days later, Cater had approached Eight with a bright smile plastered on her face. 'I did it! That test I was late to the other day? I passed it! Heh, I knew I could do it even though I was late.' She said as she clenched her fist victoriously.

'Wow! Congrats!' Eight congratulated her. He was silently glad that Cater had taken the trouble to inform him.

'You know, I'd like to apologize too about landing on you the other day,' Cater said, 'And since I just passed my test, let me treat you to a meal!'

The two visited a cozy café in Acuvi and chatted the whole afternoon. Eight truly enjoyed Cater's company. She was a lively and cheerful girl and she told a whole load of funny stories. By the end of the afternoon, Eight had finally confessed to her.

'Cater, I really like you. Will you be my girlfriend?' Eight said as he felt his whole face, up to even his ears, burning fervently. His heartbeat seemed to have tripled in rate as he eyed the surprised Cater. Cater herself turned as red as her hair and after a momentary silence, she firmly nodded.

They had kept their relationship secret even up until the trip to avoid their classmates' teasing. Besides, the hectic schedule of the examinations had forbidden them to do anything more than go on walks, meals or study sessions together around the school.

This is my chance to go on a memorable date, Eight thought as the capital of Concordia, Mahamayuri, came into sight.

The gorgeous city of Mahamayuri looked like an enchanted castle atop the clouds from afar. Dragons circled the skies, adding to the ethereal quality. As their airship landed at Mahamayuri, they were greeted by a beautiful lady with blue hair.

'Welcome, Class 0,' she said serenely. Like all citizens of Concordia, she was physically shorter than any of the members of Class 0. However, her grace and dignified appearance had prevented her presence from becoming diminished. 'My name is Claes Celestia Misca Sancest, knight of Concordia. Master Khalia of Rubrum has informed our Queen of your stay and it shall be my honor to be your guide here.'

Deuce smiled at her and said, 'Please, there's no need for the formalities.'

'Yeah, we can all be friends, yo!' Nine exclaimed.

Celestia could not resist the urge to smile at his antics.

They were taken to a beautiful inn which overlooked the valleys beyond Mahamayuri. From the balconies of their rooms, they truly felt like they lived in sky. The girls could not contain their excitement and squealed with glee as they happily took pictures of the mythical scenery. The boys laughed at them but joined in the enthusiasm anyway.

After a short break of washing up, unpacking and resting, the excited class decided to take an evening stroll nearby the inn. There happened to be a bazaar being held a few blocks away and they took the chance to visit it. Cater, Nine, Jack and Cinque immediately cheered at the sight of the bazaar and hoarded on as much food as they could carry.

While walking around the bazaar, Eight chanced upon a pretty pendant made out of blue crystalline rock carved out in the shape of an apple and quickly purchased it along with a silvery chain. He had remembered Cater's favorite fruit, as well as the memories of them plucking apples off a tree when they were young. Pleased with his find, Eight rejoined the group while suppressing his excitement at giving the necklace to Cater.

They retired to the inn early that night for the journey had worn them out. As they walked, the whole class chatted animatedly about all the things that they have bought at the bazaar. Trey talked about a book about dragons he had found; Ace found a pack of cards with Concordian patterns on the back; Seven has gotten herself a pretty bracelet while Sice boasted of her new dragons' hide boots. Eight, however, was silently looking for the chance to talk to Cater alone.

When his attempts failed, Eight returned to the boys' room disappointed. But, that night, as he remembered the necklace buried safe in his pocket, he fell asleep with a smile.

During the days that followed, Class 0 had toured round Mahamayuri, visited a few villages outside and even rode on dragons. Their first dragon flying experience happened three days after they have arrived in Concordia. Having went to every nook and corner of Mahamayuri, they decided on touring the nearby villages. Celestia had then arranged for dragons to be their main mode of transportation for those visits.

'Considering the mountainous terrain of Concordia, it's far more practical to use dragons as compared to chocobos,' she explained.

Six dragons were quickly arranged to be brought near the inn. 'Don't worry about steering, they know the way. Just don't let go of the reins.' Celestia instructed as she helped them get on board the dragons, pair by pair.

Ace and Deuce automatically climbed one together. Watching them snuggle comfortably on top of the dragon made Eight somewhat jealous that his relationship with Cater was still kept a secret. While he watched Jack and Seven climb on another dragon, he felt his hand being pulled by someone.

'Let's get on one!' Cater said excitedly. Pleasantly surprised, Eight turned a shade of pink as he let Cater drag him away.

Cater sat behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist, making Eight turn a shade of red darker. He was silently grateful that their classmates were busy watching Queen voice her insecurity at having Nine for a partner.

As the dragons took off to the skies, Eight finally found that private time with Cater that he had been longing for. The clouds around them and the distance between each dragon gave them privacy from their friends.

'This is soo cool!' Cater squealed, closing her eyes as she let the cool air brush against her face.

'Hey Cater,' Eight began, 'I was wondering… If it's okay to let the others know that we're… umm… dating?'

Cater grinned at Eight's awkward request. 'You must be jealous of Ace and Deuce~'

'No- it's not that…' Eight stuttered, 'It's just… there's nothing to hide or be ashamed of, is there?'

'Nope,' Cater agreed, 'I don't really mind them knowing. It's just that I don't know how to break the news either. "Hey look, I'm dating someone right now," or "Do you know that Eight and I are…" It just feels weird, considering we knew each other for so long.'

Eight grinned back this time. 'It's not really a problem is it?'

Back on the ground, Eight held his hand out for Cater as she got off the dragon. He did not release it even as they walked; prompting Cater's and his own face to turn a deep shade of red. But to their absolute amazement, none of their classmates mentioned anything about it. Some of them grinned at the shy couple but no teasing or questions came.

They toured the rustic village of Roshana together, and until lunchtime came, their hands were still firmly interlocked. The class chose a simple outdoor diner for lunch and it was when they were seated that Sice made a comment about them.

'So how long has it been?' Sice casually asked, smirking as she took a piece of bread. Cater's face seemed to blend in with her hair while Sice enjoyed the reaction she got from her simple question.

'Quite some time…' Eight softly muttered.

'You know you didn't have to ask, Sice!' Jack burst out guffawing.

'It was waaayyy before the exams, right~?' Cinque chirped happily.

'Wait!' Eight suddenly bolted upright, 'you guys knew!?'

'It was quite obvious,' Seven said, giggling softly, 'Machina and Rem saw you two at the café in Acuvi, Naghi saw you at Couple Road and there is always someone saying that he or she saw you two holding hands around the school.'

This time, Eight and Cater's faces turned so red that steam seemed to be coming out from their ears.

'There was no need to hide it, you know,' King chuckled in his deep voice.

'Awwww~ you guys should've said something!' Cater groaned exasperatedly, causing the whole class to burst out laughing.

That night, Eight and Cater shared the private time they had longed for. Seated on the flat rooftops of the inn, they stared at the beautiful night scenery. Being above the clouds, the view of the starry horizon was unblocked and the moon shone brightly above them. They sat in silence for a long while, hands clenched at the side, enjoying the moment.

'Hey, Eight,' Cater softly said, 'I… I think I never gave you a proper answer…' Eight looked at her perplexedly as she drew a deep breath before continuing, 'I never really told you how I felt… I… What I want to say is… that I really… like you too.'

If it was even remotely possible, Eight's heart would have jumped out of his throat. It was beating so furiously that Eight thought he might get a heart attack soon. It took him a few seconds to calm himself down and look straight at Cater to say, 'Th… Thank you, Cater.'

Cater smiled happily at his reaction and without warning, wrapped her arms around his neck and said, 'Let's stay like this forever!'

The closeness of their faces made Eight's heart pump even more rapidly. It took Cater a few seconds later to realize the same, and yet both of them remained silent, staring at each other. Inch by inch, their lips drew closer…

They were barely an inch apart when a loud thump was heard. Shocked, they quickly turned around to see Nine crumpled on the floor and Jack, behind him, raising both his hands in surrender.

'Sorry!' Jack said as he grinned sheepishly.

'What the hell!? You pushed me too hard!' Nine complained loudly, massaging his forehead.

Once Eight has recovered from his shock, he shouted angrily at the intruding pair, 'what are you guys doing!?'

'Sorry! Didn't mean to! Was passing by!' Jack quickly said before running off, not even bothering to wait for Nine.

Cater caught hold of Nine who was still seated on the ground whilst Eight ran after Jack. It did not take too long before the fastest runner in the class caught up with the guilty prankster. Pinned down on the floor, Jack writhed, 'Okay, okay! I give up! Sorry about disturbing you back there.'

'Say that ten more times,' Eight said as he grinned victoriously.

'Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry… Wait how many times was that?' Jack asked, but he too cannot contain his laughter and the two friends collapsed on the ground laughing.

'What exactly are you two doing?' Seven asked as she and the rest of their classmates arrived to investigate the source of the commotion. Nine and Cater had arrived as well with Nine now massaging his cheek which was apparently pinched by Cater.

'It's nothing~' Jack cheerfully said, 'just some nighttime joke~'

The rest of the class looked bewildered but decided that there was no point in pursuing the issue in the middle of the night. Slowly, they all returned to their rooms. When Jack, Nine, Eight and Cater were left alone, Nine began complaining to Cater.

'Whaddyapinchmefor?' He asked, still massaging his cheek.

'Serves you right~' Cater said with her hands on her hips, satisfied with her little masterpiece on Nine's cheek.

'Well we're gonna leave you two to continue that thing just now~' Jack said as he dragged Nine by the arm, and the two soon disappeared into their rooms.

When the two were left alone, they quickly blushed again before stammering, 'Maybe it's not such a good time…', '…Maybe tomorrow…', '…let's go to bed…'

And when they finally caught each other's eyes, they cannot help smiling exasperatedly at their classmates' antics. Silently thankful at the peace they finally got, Cater let Eight take her hand as they walked down the corridor to their rooms together.