Squall checked his clock again. Rinoa normally brought his lunch by 1300. She was never this late. Blowing hair out of his face, he signed a few more documents, initialed a peace treaty, and checked the time again. 1422. Where the hell is she? I don't want to go into the cafeteria today, it's always packed. But I'm getting very hungry. Hell.

"Sir! We've got a problem!" A panicked voice from the intercom shattered the blessed silence. His secretary appreciated the fact that Squall would mind his business in his office, so she very rarely ever tried to interrupt him. Interruptions led to more work. More work meant less time to paint her nails or chat with her boyfriend. Today was different.

"What is it? If it's the Estharian council again, tell them I've just reviewed their settlement with the Dollet Dukedom, and I just need Xu to finalize. We're almost finished. Tell them I'm out of the office. Make something up."

"No sir! It's her again!"

Her who? Not the Sorceress? She's finished. Oh Hyne! Rinoa! Taking his gunblade from its sheath, Squall opened the door to find his secretary hiding under her desk. "Fran! Get Xu and Quistis. Tell them to set up a defensive shield and order a mandatory lockdown of Garden. Move!" He started to run down the hall, hoping that they could find the threat before lives were lost. "Sir! It's too late! She's already here! She's in the Quad, but nobody can catch her! Xu is down there already, and Quistis can't be found."

We're too late then. I hope everyone is junctioned. It's going to be a hell of a fight.

Squall, already on his way, gave Fran a quick nod. Pressing the elevator button, he began a standard check of his weapon. Military discipline prevented him from allowing the blade to lose its killer edge, but he never went into a fight without a preliminary inspection. Satisfied that the gunblade was ready for battle, he descended to the first floor, noting the panicked students fleeing the Quad. Smoke was rising from a vending machine, a small tree was burning, and faint trail of some red substance could be seen leading to a row of benches. Is that blood? Looks too bright. Rinoa, I hope you're okay. This has to be a nightmare. I can't lose you; I just can't go through that again. Pushing through the masses, Squall saw a familiar brown hat. Irvine! Thank Hyne! Now we have a chance. Wait. Where are his clothes? And what is that spinning thing on that bench? Is that…? "Shit." Sheathing his weapon, he tapped Irvine on the shoulder.

"Now Darlin', we can't leave our room, I told you that already. These fine folks don't like it when you drink that coffee. They get a little nervous. Let's go back and finish what we started." Irvine, standing naked (Well, mostly naked. He was still wearing his hat and boots.) in front of the rotating form of his girlfriend, greeted Squall with a sheepish grin and a lazy salute. "Howdy there, sir. Looks like we got a little problem. We had the camcorder on, the slushee machine was set to Cheery Cherry, and she was wearing that cute little cheerleader outfit. Then, she started jabbering about chasing birds and finding the meaning of life. So, next thing I know, we're here in the Quad and an alarm is ringing." Squall clenched his teeth, uncomfortable in the presence of a nude cowboy and a seemingly coffee-demon possessed Selphie. "Slushee Machine? Camcorder? Cheery Cherry? That would explain the trail of red sludge. What the hell are you talking about? And couldn't you have at least put on a pair of pants before you followed her?"

"Pants?" Irvine looked down at himself. Then he looked farther down. "Oh yeah…I sometimes forget about those. That girl is a wildcat once she gets started." Squall raised his hand for silence. He was not interested in hearing the sexual exploits of two of his finest SeeDs. "Get her out of here before Xu finds her. And for the love of Hyne, put on some pants. I don't want to go through the paperwork for Kablooey part two. And I sure as hell don't want to be here when Xu sees you in that outfit."

--

"I can't believe you guys are hungry already. Seriously. That's kind of gross." Rinoa had only driven three miles outside of Balamb city limits before Zell had asked her to turn back to get a pizza and a milkshake. She noticed that a white van turned along with them. Hmm. Tourists. Typical. They get lost, and then follow someone local back into town.

"But Rinoa, we lost what we had eaten in that alley back there, so it's not like we actually ate anything. Makes perfect sense." Zell turned to his adversary/buddy in the back seat with a look of triumph. "Don't you think so, Zone? Zone?" Zone merely grunted a reply. His attention was focused on the blonde seated closely next to him. Besides that, he didn't want to risk eating anything else for a few more hours.

Quistis was looking over Zone's shoulder at his photo collection while he explained how light and shadow, time and weather, subject choice and various conditions, could all affect composition. She was increasingly impressed by his sincerity and enthusiasm. "Now this one, I had to wait twenty minutes for the water to splash just right. And this one, the birds flew into the sunlight, so I had to wait until they circled round again. And this one, ooh, better not show you these." He tried to hit the power button, but Quistis was too fast for him. She snatched the camera and began flipping through his photos for Girl Next Door. Frowning, she was surprised to see that they weren't as bad as she expected. True, the girls were naked, and some were in ridiculously skimpy costumes, but the skills of master photographer Zone were evident in every shot.

"I, umm, I didn't mean for you to see these. They aren't my best work. I really hope you don't take them the wrong way." Quistis turned her sapphire eyes to Zone, noticing how nervous he could get when faced with a difficult situation. It was almost cute. "Nonsense. Just because I am not particularly enamored of your choice of subject matter, doesn't mean that I can't still be impressed with your skills. Take this one for example. I don't care for her umm, her diamond thong very much, but I can see what you were telling me about illumination versus shadow. It's very, umm. It's… Well. I won't say that it dazzles the eye, but it is certainly very sparkly." Quistis next pointed to a tall girl with long black hair and glossy crimson lips. "And here. She is obviously pouting a bit too much, and her lipstick is not at all right for her complexion, but you've shot her so it isn't quite as glaring." Smiling at the shocked expression on Zone's face, she handed his camera back with a wink. "I promise you. I'm not quite the vengeful harpy Irvine and the rest would have you believe. It's simply been a maddening few days. I don't care if you and Irvine video the entire Garden naked, I simply do not wish to be dismissed because of it. Please try to understand." She finished her plea with a long sigh. "Now. Show me the rest of your photographs. I want to see the Great Battle for Mount Muffin again…you know, before it erupted. All over Madame Cee's back alley." She smiled again as Zone burst into laughter, causing Rinoa to look in the rearview mirror.

"What is so funny? And why are you two being so secretive? Hmm?" And why the hell is that van still behind us?

"Yeah…and who brought muffins? You better not even begin to think I didn't hear you talking about food. I'm wasting away up here and you want to be greedy. Are you two in with the cafeteria ladies? Wait until I tell Selphie." Zell spun around to angrily point at Quistis and Zone. "We're watching, you know. I thought you were on our side. This hurts Instructor Q. I can't believe you'd betray us like this."

She regarded her former student's hurt countenance with a mixture of sympathy and amusement. "Oh, have no fear, Zell. My loyalty to your cause is interminable. I merely stated that I regret being unable to consume a blackberry muffin before we were banished from Madame Cee's." Zell looked to Rinoa for a translation.

"She said she was still with you guys. She just didn't get a muffin before we left."

"Oh. Good then." Reassured, Zell faced forward again, fiddling with the radio. "But I'm still watching you, Zone. I don't trust you Timber folks mixing with cafeteria types."

Zone began to reply, but froze when he suddenly felt movement and warm breath against his neck. Whispering in his ear, Quistis said, "I think it would be better to let him win the next time you guys have an eating contest. Zell is rather sensitive. I don't know if his pride will recover without a rematch. Perhaps you could suggest one once we get in Garden." Watching Zell closely, she returned to her side of the seat and started twirling her hair around her fingers. She missed the yearning look Zone gave her as she pulled from his side.

Rinoa, seeing the merged shadows quickly separate in the mirror, shifted gears as she pulled the car into the garage. She was aching to ask Quistis what she had said to Zone, but she was also beginning to wonder why that rusted van had followed them from town. Odd. I've never seen that vehicle in the Garden garage. Wait. Why is it going by after following us all this way? "Hey Zone? Do you know anybody that drives an older model white van with Timber plates? And a cardboard window? One just passed us, but it followed us all the way from the Emporium."

"What?" The change in Zone's voice drew the attention of everyone in the car. Hyne. Fat Moe has me now. I've seen that van at his warehouse. Damn. Where do I go now? "Rin, I need to get back to your room and get my stuff. I have to go."

--

"Good work boys. Keep an eye on him."

"You don't want us to blow his brains out?" Mick tried to hide the disappointment in his voice, but he had long looked forward to popping this guy and claiming his cash.

"No. And never question me again." The faulty connection in the line could not conceal the malice in Fat Moe's tone. "I simply want him observed for now. I need to have a word with my good friend before I sever my relationship with him. I've wanted to see this flying Garden for some time now. Perhaps now is my chance to see this wonder for myself. Just don't let him out of your sight. I'll keep in touch." Mick sighed as the connection was lost.

"Well, what do we do now?" Benny was pacing along the side of the road as Mick spoke with their boss. Being slightly more patient than Mick, he wondered if he should have been the one to call Moe.

"What the hell have we been doing? We bloody damn wait some more. Moe said he'd come down himself to have a talk with this Zone. I wish he'd get here quick. I want my money."

--

Moe set the receiver down with a soft click. He shifted his ponderous weight from his rear to his feet as he stood from his desk and stretched. A series of satisfying cracks made their way down the length of his spine. Finally getting some results from those idiots. It's a shame about Zone though. I always liked that kid. Smart as hell and one good head for business. He made me hell of a lot of money. I wish he had never stolen it from me. Oh well. Sucks to be him.

Pressing a button on his intercom, he yelled for his assistant. "Marvin! Get my luggage ready. We're taking a little trip to see an old friend. Oh, and pack a bathing suit for me. They have nice beaches in Balamb."

Marvin, a thin, balding man with large glasses, was almost asleep as the intercom blasted into his ear. "Ye-yes sir." Jumping at the noise, he finished his calculations and turned off his lamp. I hope the people in that town are blind. I sure wouldn't want to see Moe in a Speedo. They'll mistake him for a whale and try to send him back to sea. Snorting and wheezing in a sad impersonation of laughter, Marvin shuffled down the hell to fetch some clothes for his boss.