New Seed

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8 February 2015

This is a FFVIII fic by klepto_maniac0. I own no concepts and no characters except the ones you've never heard of, which means they're ones I've made. I freely admit I will take liberties with the FFVIII canon because this is an alternate universe fic. That's why some details are different, some events are ignored, and some people don't exist or act in a different capacity. Ain't fanfic fun?

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In her own rooms, Quistis sighed. And like Seifer, she was not alone.

"What's wrong, Qu?" Xu asked her. They were drinking tea and going over paperwork, Xu looking over supplies and Quistis grades. Xu's room was bigger but Quistis's had the better view, which was why they often went to her room to 'study'.

"Oh... Nothing."

"If I didn't know better, I'd say you were in love."

Quistis stared, stunned that Xu would pick those words above all others, but in the next second Xu muttered as she crossed out something on her documents and Quistis realized that Xu had been joking. She hadn't even been looking at Quistis when she'd spoken.

"Well, I'm not," said Quistis, panic nevertheless fluttering in her veins.

"Yeah, I know. You'd tell me, right?"

"Right," said Quistis, wincing inside. She had no idea how Xu would react to the news. Was there news? She and Seifer hadn't had any alone time for a week and there was simply no opportunity to even pass along drawings since the paper quizzes were an anomaly. He didn't need any further instruction, either. Quistis had wracked her brains every night and come up flat. And to make things worse, she had another submission due in about a week. She was determined not to include anything she did with Seifer in future episodes, but a lot of readers were specifically asking for more Bad Teacher. Damn her talent!

"I'm bored," said Quistis suddenly, making Xu look up. "Let's take out a car and go shopping."

"What?" Xu put down her pencil, sounding incredulous but delighted. "You wanna skip out on work to go shopping?"

"It's not like the paperwork will sprout legs and run away."

"True, true..." Xu stood up, grinning. "Yeah, let's go. Ooh, we should take out the motorcycles!"

"No, not the motorcycles!"

"Why not?"

"They're loud!"

"And awesome! Come on!"

"I'd rather take a car," said Quistis. "It's easier to talk in one of those."

"True..." Xu tilted her head. "You wanna talk about something?"

"Well...yes."

"Hmm... Okay. Car it is. Let me go get changed."

Half an hour later they were driving down to Balamb. Technically they were not supposed to use Garden vehicles for frivolous outings but when Quistis Trepe the Prodigy and Xu the First SeeD wanted a vehicle, nobody asked why. Clearly they were ladies on a mission, as even casually dressed they were both prepared for battle. It was only prudent.

"I can't wait until you're old enough to drink," said Xu to Quistis as they rolled out. "There's a really nice little bar by the train station that has dueling pianos. It's a lot of fun. So what do you want to get today?"

"I don't know. I just need a change of pace."

"Oh? How big a change?" Xu's eyes gleamed. "You wanna cut your hair?"

"No!" Quistis clapped her hands over her head.

"But you'd look so cute with some layers!" Xu said. "Come on! Just put a little volume in there. Guys would be eating out of your hand."

"I only want one guy, and I don't want him eating out of my hand," thought Quistis. Which made her smirk suddenly.

"Actually... That lace lingerie set turned out to be really comfortable."

"I know, right?" Xu said excitedly. "So, Olena's?"

"Olena's."

Being a tourist town, Balamb was split in an interesting way; there was the town proper, where people lived and children went to school, and there was also the tourist section which was filled with higher-end shops and restaurants, all of which were run by locals. Olena's was a lady's boutique that featured delicate underthings from around the world and while Xu had originally had to drag shy little Quistis inside, it had now become one of their favorite places to go. Xu always bought something while Quistis typically window-shopped or rifled through the sale rack. Today Quistis went right over with Xu to the fancy lacy underthings, the sight of which no longer made her blush. This was research.

"Hmm..." said Xu as Quistis started to pick things out.

"What?" Quistis asked her.

"You're picking all matching sets."

"Yes? So?"

"Well..." Xu grinned. "Typically... Ladies only wear matching sets when they want to show them off."

"Or I just like my things to match," said Quistis evenly, trying not to blush.

"Yeah, yeah. But that's a boring reason. Is there someone I don't know about?"

"No."

"You said that way too fast."

"And you're...fishing."

Xu clapped her hands in delight. She was nearly thirty but sometimes she acted like a girl younger than Quistis's age. "I knew it! You have been smiling and sighing like a figure in a play for the past month. Who is he? Or her? I don't judge."

"I'm not telling you anything!" Said Quistis, thinking, "You do too judge. You hate Seifer."

"Pleeeeease?"

"No."

"I'll buy all your lingerie if you tell me."

Quistis wavered but said, "No." Besides, Xu might want her money back if she knew who Quistis planned on wearing the lingerie for.

"Come on..." Xu put on her best puppydog face, which made Quistis laugh and shake her head. "Pleeease? Pleeeeeeease?"

"No!"

"I'll tell you one of my secrets!" And before Quistis could reject the deal, Xu whispered, "I hooked up with an out-of-towner. SeeD from Trabia. His name is—"

"Alton Brenner," said Quistis, annoyed. As Xu blinked, she said, "I went on a mission with him once."

"Oh." Xu was nonplussed, but she wasn't an Ace for nothing. "Wait, how did you find out Brenner was in town? And that I hooked up with him? He was only in for a resupply."

"Uh..." Damn it. Quistis sighed and decided to tell the truth. "Because I saw you two together."

"How? We were only in the..." Xu's eyes got round. "That means..." Xu gasped. "How much did you see?"

"Nothing," said Quistis, eyeing Xu's rapid mood shifts with amusement. "I heard it."

"We weren't that loud, were we?"

"No... But loud enough."

"Oh Hyne," Xu pressed her hands to her face, shaking her head. "Oops. Well, if it's any consolation, we got interrupted by Seifer. And then a bunch of Grats."

Quistis started laughing, more at the memory of Seifer's special brand of humor than at Xu's particular misfortune, but Xu rolled her eyes and said, "That little jackass sure knows how to twatblock."

"Xu, why do you hate him so much?" Quistis asked.

"Who, Seifer? Isn't it obvious?" When Quistis shook her head, Xu sighed. "He's arrogant, off-putting, skates by on his looks, and he has all that wasted potential that he just thinks he is too good to develop."

"What?"

"You only see him in the classroom. I have to deal with him on the practice grounds, and let me tell you, he is all about the fancy flourishes and the style without actually paying attention to the technique." Xu huffed as she began looking at bras and panties for herself. "The problem is that for the longest time hewas the best gunblade user at Balamb Garden. And then we sent him off to that workshop for a month and his head got even bigger, remember?"

"I remember," sighed Quistis. Seifer had returned from G-Garden right at the start of her Instructorship and he had been quite the handful, disrupting class to talk about his travels in an insultingly casual way until Quistis had cut his feet out from under some of his more fanciful embellishments. He did enjoy the spotlight perhaps a bit too much.

"Anyway, while he was gone, Squall kept on working on his technique, so when Seifer comes back, he suddenly finds out he's not the big swinging dick anymore. Doesn't matter how many neat combinations he can do if he can't remember to pull the fucking trigger with every strike! Otherwise he might as well be using a sword."

Quistis thought back to Seifer's GF test in the Lightning Forest. It was true that he wasn't exactly consistent about maximizing his gunblade's potential...

"And then," said Xu, gathering steam. "He has the gall to keep going on about when he becomes a SeeD, when he can't obey orders and keeps thinking he knows better than anyone else! We are the elite mercenary force of the entire world and he wants to run around like a, a, a... A cowboy! Or a bounty hunter." Xu huffed again. "He's just so unprofessional. Anyway, that's why I hate him. Right now, anyway. If he ever cleans up he'll be pretty good, but I don't see that happening any time soon."

Quistis couldn't fault Xu's assessment. She'd thought much of the same about Seifer over the past several months, but now her own thoughts were tempered by what she knew. Seifer was arrogant, sure, but that confidence allowed him to stride fearlessly into student conflicts and get them resolved; he was too proud to get embarrassed by what people might think of him. And he did have trouble obeying orders, but Quistis thought that was because he was very intuitive in battle, able to read an opponent's moves like she could read books. His scores were always perfect on tactics and strategy exams, even if he consistently struggled with procedure. Seifer actually reminded her of lightning, powerful and intimidating but also very versatile.

"Very versatile," she thought, her mind hazing a bit as she remembered the way his mouth had moved over her most sensitive parts in the truck. How she wanted to feel that again!

Quistis bought three sets of matching lace bralettes and panties while Xu apparently bought as much underwear as she could fit into her arms, and after that they went to the bath store to sniff shampoos since they were both running low. Quistis's favorite nectarine-scented shampoo got an update with notes of white tea and neroli, which the shopgirl swore would make any man extra affectionate. Xu elbowed her, eyebrows waggling outrageously, as Quistis bought two bottles and all but stuck her fingers in her ears when Quistis insisted it was because of the smell, not supposed aphrodesiac qualities.

Though if this scent did work, she was going to be back for more.

They went to the New Balamb Hotel, a fancy establishment that did not boast ocean views from all around, and made a dinner of appetizers at the bar. Xu drank, which meant Quistis would drive back, and knowing this, Xu drank until she was good and tipsy. Fortunately everyone in town knew most SeeDs by sight, so there was no real reason to chide Xu for supposed unprofessionalism. Unless one wanted to take her to task for gossip, which always bubbled out of her like a fountain when the booze was in her.

"So I heard that Squall got a crush on Seifer."

Quistis choked on her juice cocktail. "What?"

"Apparently Squall tried to stick a love letter in his pocket."

"When did this happen?"

"Earlier today." Xu laughed. "Professor Dawning told me about it. Apparently he was in the elevator when it happened and then Squall got so embarrassed that he ran like a little girl."

If Squall was learning his preferences at this age, no wonder he had been so quiet. Quistis fully understood about how some people struggled with what they liked, especially if they didn't have good support networks. And Squall was famously alone. Her heart hurt a little for him.

"At least I have friends on the Internet..."

"How did Seifer react?" Quistis asked as she sipped her juice.

"Oh, he was a complete homophobe about it. But isn't that hilarious?"

"It is pretty funny," said Quistis, mentally reviewing Squall and Seifer's interactions over the past year. She'd always assumed that Squall ignored Seifer because their personalities clashed, but maybe it was a case of opposites attracting? Or one opposite being attracted to another, at least. Quistis couldn't exactly blame Squall, considering how her own feelings had managed to change over time.

"You're sighing again," said Xu, making Quistis sit up. "Come on. Tell me what's going on. Did I guess wrong? Is it a girl?"

"I don't see why you're insisting I'm in love."

"Well you haven't offered an alternate explanation."

Quistis swirled her drink. Xu was a very good friend. When Quistis had taken her first SeeD test at fifteen, Xu had been the only one on the deciding council who had stuck up for her and even filed the paperwork to make sure Quistis could attend. Of course, Xu was biased in favor of smart young girls, until then having been the youngest SeeD to graduate at 17. Everyone except Xu had been shocked when Quistis had passed at 15 and since then they'd stuck together, two extraordinary ladies in a typically male-dominated field. And more than work united them; they liked the same movies, were annoyed by the same things, and liked spending time together out of work too. One of their very first bonding experiences had been dramatically reading the backs of romance novels in the store until they got chased out by two red-faced women who were just trying to shop.

Romance novels...

"Well..." Quistis leaned her head toward Xu. "I have a side business. And I'm running out of ideas."

"Oh?" Xu's brows rose.

"You can't tell anyone."

"Of course not! What is it?"

So very quietly Quistis began to explain about her side hobby, though she deliberately left out the Bad Teacher episodes. Xu's eyes got rounder and rounder until she had a 5-week-old kitten's stunned stare.

"Oh holy Hyne," Xu whispered, giggling. "You have to let me look sometime."

"If you insist, but I need ideas."

Xu suddenly slapped the table. "Let's go to the strip club!"

"No!" Quistis gasped.

"Why not? Got a problem with strippers?"

"I do not, but I have no desire to see naked women."

"What? No. We'd go to the male strip club."

"No!" Quistis exclaimed, even more aghast.

"Why not?"

"Because... Because no!" Quistis blushed.

Xu laughed so loudly that people looked at them strangely, which made Quistis hide her face. "How can you be shy about that?" Xu asked, managing to whisper that question.

"Well, it's different when it's real life!"

"Yeah, which is why real life is better."

A month ago, Quistis would have disagreed. On paper, onscreen, every variable could be controlled, which appealed to her need for discretion and safety. On the other hand, she unconsciously shivered at the memory of hot leatherclad palms on her face and the feel of warm lips on her neck. Quistis sighed again.

"Hey," said Xu, making Quistis blink. The older woman touched her shoulder. "Look. I know it's hard right now, because you're young. And honestly, I don't even know if you want to find someone. But if you do, he or she is out there. Give it time, okay?"

Quistis laughed and patted Xu's hand. "I'll be fine, thank you. But I still don't want to go to the strip club."

"Can we go to the special store then?"

"The special store?"

"Oh yes," said Xu, starting to grin. "The 'special' store."

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Seifer usually left his door open in case someone wanted to talk to him in a Disciplinary Committee capacity, but his reputation was such that most people just slid notes under the door rather than talk to him face to face about their concerns. So when Fujin came to visit, she was not particularly surprised to find Seifer alone. He was doing something on his computer that apparently required so much concentration that when she knocked, he jumped and swore. Rapid clicking ensued. Fujin was pretty sure he hadn't been doing anything really inappropriate since his door had been open, but one never knew with boys.

"What's up?" He asked her.

"LOVE LETTER?"

"It wasn't a love letter," said Seifer, but his cheeks were starting to turn pink. "He's just a doofus who wanted to give me my test back."

Considering that 'doofus' was probably one of the mildest insults that Seifer had ever levelled at Squall Leonhart, Fujin immediately sensed something was up. She turned on her best gimlet stare and pointed it at Seifer, who squirmed immediately.

"I hate it when you do that," he muttered.

"TELL."

"There's nothing to tell!"

Fujin pointed at him. "SECRETIVE."

She saw him start to sweat. "No I'm not."

Time to turn up the heat. Fujin closed the door and, making eye contact with Seifer, locked it. Seifer leaned back in his chair, eyes widening.

"What are you doing?" He asked as she approached, her gaze narrowed and determined. "Why did you lock the door?"

"TALK," said Fujin severely.

"About what?"

It was hard to form long sentences without her throat locking up; for years Fujin had been effectively mute after a nearly fatal dog bite had made speaking painful. Only Raijin and Seifer actually listened when she spoke, which was why she ran with them no matter what. She trusted them and they trusted her, which was why secrets were no good. Fujin didn't care about the little secrets, like where Raijin hid his porn stash (over his closet door, flat to the wall with an elastic net). But Seifer had been acting weird for a while and she was done with it.

And when in doubt, it was best to act.

"YOU KNOW WHAT," she said, crossing the room to get to his side. Seifer tried to turn off his monitor discreetly but Fujin intercepted his hand and looked at the screen. It looked like he was making a mix CD. "WHAT?"

"Go away!" Seifer yanked his hand out of her grasp, his fair face turning red. Seifer didn't blush often, but when he did, he turned into a tomato. It was hilarious. Fujin laughed as Seifer covered the screen with his hands.

"CRUSH?"

"No!" Then he paused. "Actually..."

"OH?"

"...You remember Rinoa, right?"

It took Fujin a minute to place the name. She'd never met the girl, but Seifer had talked to her and Raijin about her fairly often after his return from Galbadia. "EX-GIRLFRIEND."

"Yeah. Well... She's coming around in about a week."

"OH?"

Slowly Seifer uncovered the computer screen, resettling his coat. "It ended okay, but... You know. I'm nervous. She's a really cool girl."

Fujin tilted her head, studying him. She couldn't detect anything off and if an old flame was about to visit, that would definitely explain why he had been weird. But why hadn't he just told them? Fujin knew she would like to meet the girl that had turned Seifer's head upside-down for a month.

Fujin looked at the computer screen again and while Seifer blushed, he didn't lunge for the monitor again. She read over his track selections and referenced them against what she recognized. It was Seifer's music so there wasn't anything that exactly schmoopy, but this was definitely a softer, gooier side of Seifer than Fujin had previously been aware of.

And he knew that too. He was probably really embarrassed.

"LOVE?"

"I don't think so," said Seifer, shaking his head. "I mean... Maybe at the time." He smiled, nostalgia softening his face. Before Fujin could fully register her surprise, his expression resettled into more familiar lines and he waved at Fujin in annoyance, saying, "Now will you get out and let me work?"

Fujin laughed and left the room. After all, she would need time of her own to prepare to meet this girl. It wasn't just any girl who was good enough for Seifer, and Fujin knew that Raijin felt the same way. Rinoa had better watch out.

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a/n: I go to the 'special' store when I'm bored. I don't necessarily buy anything, but it is nice to see what's new and talk specs with the employees.

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