Hey, hey, hey! I'm back again! I should be able to get a few chapters posted very soon because, well for one, I know what I'm doing, and two, I'm getting into this. I've been a little behind because I've been addicted to a certain game that I bought a few weeks ago. I got Dragon Quest and it's addicting, really addicting. (BTW… The FF XII demo is AWESOME!) And then, after I finished that game, I got Kingdom Hearts II and couldn't walk away from it, but now I'm back. Okay, go for it.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything that has to do with the Final Fantasy Series. I promise. If I did, there would be some, ahem, additions. (Evil Smile)
Chapter Fourteen"What Are Hotdogs?"
The sun beat against his neck, causing extreme discomfort, not to mention disrupting his perfect dream. He really didn't want to open his eyes. No, he was quite content with staring at the inside of his eyelids until he fell back asleep. He was not ready to get up yet. Not after yesterday's episode. He wanted to lie here in his standard-issue SeeD bed forever or at least until everything went back to normal: like when Squall returned. Things were crazy at this place without Squall. He was what kept this place together, like that really important piece of the machine that kept everything in order. Without that little piece, the machine wouldn't work, naturally. Good thing it was only one week that he would be gone. If it were to be any longer than that, Quistis might blow the whole garden up. Granted, she was a great leader, but you really couldn't leave her in charge for too long before she lost it completely. Quistis didn't have the best ability of dealing with stress.
So now there were three good reasons why he just wanted to stay in bed for the rest of the week:
1. The place was in total chaos without Squall,
2. He wanted to finish his perfect dream, and
3. Quistis was probably going to blow the place to smithereens before Squall got back.
Now, unless he was mistaken, those were really good reasons to stay in bed. He rolled over, trying to get out of the sun's rays, but that didn't work. They were still beating down on him and causing that extreme discomfort on him.
…Wait. Something wasn't right. Now, he wasn't too bright as people would sometimes state (mainly Squall when he had done something totally stupid), but he could definitely tell when something wasn't right. It was one of those sixth sense things he had picked up on their big adventure chasing Ultimecia halfway through Time.
Zell suddenly felt a sharp pain in his side and groaned. Now that was surprising. He grabbed his sides and rolled over, expecting to bury his face in his soft, fluffy pillow, but that didn't happen. Instead, he got his face buried in something else, something harder, much harder. It also tasted really bad, too. It tasted like….
Dirt.
Zell sat up and opened his eyes. The sun was blinding and he had to wait for his eyes to adjust, but he was pretty damn sure that he wasn't where he was supposed to be. Did he fall asleep in the Training Center again, or was this some cadet's sick little joke? Oh, he'd teach them all a lesson!
When he was finally able to view his surroundings, he found that he wasn't at Garden at all. In fact, he had no idea where he was…
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"Okay, so what have we found?" Xu asked, sitting down at the table in the Conference Room where Quistis had taken Aeris.
"All the Trepies are saying that they haven't seen Quistis. None of them know where she is, and Dr. Kadowaki said that the last time she saw Quistis, she was talking to a strange woman wearing pink several days ago. If she was the last person to see Quistis, then we've really got a problem." Selphie answered. Rikku nodded at her side.
"And that Zell guy? No one has seen him since yesterday at lunch. The girl in the library said that last time she saw him, he was feeling really dizzy and sick. She sent him to Dr. Whatever her name is." Rikku reported. She was beginning to like this place. It was strange and new to her, but it was still pretty cool.
"But Dr. Kadowaki never saw him. She said that she was in the Infirmary all day yesterday, and he never came in." Irvine put in, walking into the room and finding a chair.
"Okay. This is bad. I spent the last two hours calling every place in Winhill and the surrounding areas, but no one has seen any sign of Squall or Rinoa. They just vanished, and Quistis and Zell are gone, too. How can four people just disappear?" Xu sighed, resting her chin on her hands.
"No idea, but, Xu, we have got to find them! What if something were to happen to Garden? Right now we are incredibly vulnerable! Half of the top team is gone! If someone were to attack us, we'd be in deep trouble!" Selphie exclaimed, panicking.
"Calm down. It's not that bad." Irvine said to Selphie before turning to Xu. "Has Laguna heard from any of them?"
"Nope. I called him a while ago, and he hasn't heard from any of them. He didn't even know that Squall was on vacation. So, he couldn't help us." Xu answered. She looked so worried. "So, now we have to figure out what to do. Anyone have any suggestions?"
"We should assemble another team to be on duty at all times just in case." Irvine spoke up. He lifted his cowboy hat and scratched his head; something he did when he was nervous.
"And I think we should try to locate Squall, Rinny, Quistis, and Zell." Selphie added, nodding in agreement to Irvine.
"I don't think that's gonna work." Rikku spoke up suddenly, thinking out loud.
"What? Why not?" The other three asked simultaneously.
"Well, isn't funny how when all of them suddenly disappear, I show up? What if somehow that's connected? I mean, if it is, then they may not even be on this planet. For all we know, they could be at my home or some other world completely!" Rikku tried to explain, shaking her golden locks.
"You know, she has a point. If Rikku really is from another planet, then maybe somehow Squall and Rinny ended up on another planet, too! We definitely have to consider it a possibility at any rate!" Selphie agreed, jumping up suddenly.
"But- but that's absurd! There can't be other planets! It's just not rational!" Xu exclaimed, protesting this idea. Xu was the kind of person who needed proof for everything, and proof was the one thing that they had very little of at the moment.
"How do you explain Rikku being here, then?" Selphie demanded.
"A cruel prank? Amnesia? Denial? Any of those could be perfectly good explanations for this." Xu folded her arms over her chest and stared at Selphie, unwilling to believe that it was possible that Rikku could have come from a different planet.
"This is not a cruel prank and I do not have amnesia! I know exactly who I am and where I come from!" Rikku insisted. She just wanted Xu to believe her and believe the possibility that this could be real. Other worlds do exist.
"That could easily be explained as denial." Xu pointed out. She had a valid argument there.
"I am not in denial! I swear! Please, believe me!" Rikku begged.
"Xu! Stop it! Rikku can't be from our world! She looks way too different, her name is really strange, and I think she's telling the truth! We need to stop wasting time arguing about this and concentrate on the problem at hand! Half our team is missing! I think that overpowers arguing about whether or not Rikku is from another planet or not! It's not like she's a threat or anything!" Selphie exclaimed, losing her patience. She was worried about her friends and didn't think that they needed any of this useless drama. It wasn't going to help them to find Squall, Rinoa, Quistis, or Zell standing here arguing. They were in a lot of trouble here and had a lot of things to do. And the major one at hand was to make sure the garden doesn't know that the leaders and the top defense was missing.
"You're right. I'm sorry. It's just that I'm so worried about everyone and I'm afraid that something bad is going to happen. You just can't take too many chances." Xu said quietly, bowing her head slightly like she was ashamed.
"That's okay. I understand. But believe me, I am no threat. I'm here to help 'cause I'm your Friendly Neighborhood Gullwing!" Rikku grinned, standing tall with her hands on her hips. The others looked at her strangely.
"Whaaaat?" Selphie asked with a very confused expression.
Rikku blushed, "Oh, nothing. Sorry! He, he!"
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"Wake up, my dear. You have been asleep for such a long time." Seymour said with a small smile as he sat next to Quistis, running fingers through her hair, pretending that he cared. She moaned and brought her hands up to her face. Her head was still spinning, and it felt like it was going to explode.
"Ugh…Where am I?" She whispered, finally opening her eyes and seeing him for the first time. His facial features were still distorted to the point that she still thought she was dreaming or hallucinating. His skin looked as if it were uneven or severely scarred by something tragic. He smiled at her and she wanted to wince.
"You are safe now. Have no fear. You will come to no harm while you are beneath my wing." He said to her kindly. "You are in a place called the Between Mansion. No one can hurt you here."
"How did I get here? What about the others? Is Garden safe?" She sat up suddenly as Seymour removed himself from her bed, standing. He walked a few steps away and kept his back to her.
"You were brought here after your home was attacked. I do not know what has become of the others or this Garden that you speak of. All that is important is that you are safe now. That is what matters." He was paying close attention to the words he spoke to her. He had a plan for her and needed to earn her trust.
"My home was attacked? Oh, no! What happened? Who did this? I need to get back there!" She exclaimed, trying to get up but found that she couldn't move her legs. Panic began to fill her as her thoughts raced with a thousand questions. She certainly hoped that he had all the answers and that he could help her.
"Yes, attacked, my dear. It was horrible. They destroyed everything. All that remains, I believe is ruins. There is nothing left. I saw it with my own eyes the destruction that they caused to that beautiful, peaceful world, and I offer my condolences." He bowed his head to her and displayed a look that showed concern and sorry.
"Who did this?" She demanded, holding back tears.
"My enemy. A group known throughout the worlds as the Challengers."
"Then they are my enemy, as well." She growled.
Seymour smiled and held out his hand to her, "Then the enemy of my enemy is my friend."
She took his hand, seeing no other alternative. "Yes."
"Good. I can help. I assume that you want revenge for what was done to your home. They took everything important, including several individuals. I fear for their safety. I tried to save them but I was stopped. My power is useless against them alone. But I can help you." And you can help me.
"Thank you so much. I owe you so much." She smiled, gripping his hand tightly.
"You owe me nothing. I only do what I can to help." He pulled her gently to her feet. "Come with me. I have some things to show you regarding our new enemy." She nodded quickly and he led her out of the room.
Step one complete. He now had her complete trust. That had been almost too easy.
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"Oh, shoot! Lost them again!" The cloaked figure said with disgust. They turned to their companion, shielded in the shadows. "This is your fault, you know."
"Yes, of course. It's my fault that you were the one that had to stop for a detour. Forgive me. I'm so sorry." The other said sarcastically.
"Don't get smart with me! I hired you. So you are under my control." The first person snapped.
"Oh, forgive me, Master. I forgot." The employee growled.
"Enough of this. We must find them. If you would stop stalling, we wouldn't be in this position." The boss waved away the last comment said by the other and searched their surroundings.
"Whatever."
"They must have gone to the city. Where else could they have gone off to?"
The other said nothing.
"Well, then, if you're not going to give any input, let's go, shall we?"
"Whatever you say, boss."
"Good."
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Zell tried to spit out all the nasty dirt taste he had in his mouth. He still had no idea where he was, and he was so confused that he could hear the others chewing him out already for being so careless. Oh, he was in some much trouble! He'd really done it this time! Somehow he'd gotten himself so lost in place that he had never even seen before, and he was willing to bet that he was nowhere near Garden or any other place for that matter.
"Yuck!" He exclaimed. He definitely needed something to drink and fast. Maybe there was someplace around here that sold drinks. He could really go for a Curiel right about now. Yeah, that would take care of the nasty dirt taste real fast. He concluded that he most definitely needed to find a place where he could buy a drink. Luckily, he had his wallet on him.
He stood and looked around. He was in a little town that looked a bit old with a grand castle in the middle. He seemed to be in the town square where all kinds of shops surrounded him. The people, the few that he even saw, ignored him and each went about his or her business, which didn't bother him one bit in the least. He could navigate this place easily enough. Plus, it was best that he kept to himself just in case he was where he wasn't supposed to be.
He eventually decided to go down a little alley to the left and that turned out to be a good decision. He found a bar in the alley and went in with no thought to it. The little bar was quiet and just as hot as the outside. An older man stood behind the bar and acknowledged him as he came in. There weren't many others in the place except for an old man with a beard to his ankles and a young woman who had to be in her twenties with red hair and a different outfit. She was talking with the bartender and looked at him as he walked over.
"Hey, there." She said, smiling and looking him over.
Zell gulped nervously, "Hi."
"What can I get ya son?" The bartender asked.
"Do you have Curiel?" Zell asked.
"Sure do, my boy." He filled a tall glass with the stuff and handed it to Zell, who downed it all in one gulp. He immediately felt better and handed the bartender his money. The man looked at the few coins curiously.
"Huh. These are funny looking things, sir? Are you foreign?"
"I'm beginning to think so." Zell muttered. He shifted his glance nervously to the door and could feel the woman's gaze on him, all over him. "It's real, though."
"I believe ya, sir."
"Thanks for the drink. I needed that." He pushed away from bar and headed to the door. The other two said nothing to him as he left. He needed to find someone, anyone, who could tell him where he was or how he could get home.
Coming out of the bar, he heard yelling and wasn't paying attention as someone ran right into him.
"Hey!" he exclaimed.
"I-I-I'm so s-s-sorry." A little voice said to him and he looked down to see a tiny creature with a big hat, sitting on the ground, making no attempt to get up.
"Hey, are you okay?" Zell asked, getting down to his level.
"Yeah, I think. I'm sorry." He looked up and startled Zell when he saw his eyes. There was no visible face but two large yellow eyes.
"That's okay. Hey, can you tell me what this place is?" Zell asked him, finally remembering what he had to do.
"Well, the town's called Alexandria, if that's what you mean." The little creature answered him.
"Yeah, that's it!" Zell nodded.
"Wow, everybody's heard of Alexandria. You're not from here, are you?"
"No, I'm not. Do you think you could show me around? I gotta find out how to get back home." Zell wondered aloud.
"Sure! By the way, my name's Vivi! And I can take you up to the castle! Zidane will know what to do!" Vivi said excitedly.
"That's great, Vivi! Thanks! And I'm Zell!" He held out his hand and the two shook, finally making a greeting. Zell then helped Vivi to his feet. The little creature pointed in the direction that Zell hadn't ventured to quite yet. "We need to go that way to get to the castle. Come on!" Vivi exclaimed and ran ahead, calling to Zell to follow him, for which he had no choice.
"Hey, Vivi! Wait up!" He called when the little creature ran too far out of sight. He continued through back streets up to the giant castle that stood before him ahead. Vivi had disappeared and he saw neither hide nor hair of the little guy, so he kept going, hoping that he would eventually run into him. And he did eventually. Vivi was waiting for him at a small dock in front of the castle.
"We have to ride the boat to the castle." He pushed his hat up as it kept falling down into his eyes. "Zidane and Dagger are there, too. They should know what to do." He nodded and led Zell into the boat. He felt a little oversized but overlooked it.
The boat ride did not last long at all and soon; they were standing in front of that enormous castle that had been visible from the town. Zell was immediately hit by bad memories of Ultimecia as he looked at the great castle. Short flashbacks hit him of the experience of Ultimecia and he had to violently shake his head to get them to go away.
Vivi watched Zell with curiosity. He had never seen anyone like him before. He was certainly taller than Zidane or Steiner. And that marking on his face was awfully strange as well.
"So this is the castle of Alexandria?" Zell asked Vivi. The little creature nodded. "So who are we looking for exactly?"
"Queen Garnet or Sir Zidane." The boat captain answered for him as Vivi began walking off again. "You can find them in the study or the Royal Room most likely." The man stepped back into the boat and pushed away.
"Thanks." Zell waved to him and then ran after Vivi who had disappeared yet again. He groaned, already sick of running. He found Vivi again in front of the obvious entrance of the castle with a man clad in metal and a woman with an eye patch.
"Halt, stranger! What is your motive for coming to the castle at such a tragic time?" The man demanded. Zell looked at him and then to Vivi.
"Mister Steiner, he's with me. We're here to see Zidane! Zell needs help getting back home!" Vivi announced to the overprotective man, who was obviously a castle guard or someone with a lofty position.
"Master Vivi, we cannot allow anyone who is foreign into the castle at this time." Steiner shook his head, forbidding Zell's entrance.
"But…" Zell started and was interrupted.
"I'm sorry, but there can be no entrance of strangers until the Queen is found. The entire castle is on lockdown until her royal majesty is located." The woman with Steiner interrupted him. "Unless of course, you know the whereabouts of her royal majesty." She looked at him carefully. He did look like he had anything to hide, but still, every precaution had to be taken.
"Of course not! Do I look like a terrorist to you?" Zell demanded, almost losing his temper. Where was the rest of the gang when he needed them? This was so ridiculous.
"Well, you do look odd, I must admit. But I do not think you could manage to be a terrorist." The woman replied. She the corners of her mouth turned up into the forms of a smile at Zell's reaction.
Zell really didn't want to stand here and argue with these two all day. He needed to get back home. What if the Garden was attacked while he was gone? Who would be there to help protect it? There were too many little cadets, and Squall was still on vacation. "Listen, if you're not going to help me, then I'll find someone else who can. All I want to do is go home. I didn't know that was so much of a crime." He scoffed, turning on his heel and marching away from them.
Vivi looked from Steiner to Beatrix then to Zell. "Zell! Wait!" He ran to him, almost tripping as he strained to catch up. "They'll help! They'll help!" He grabbed Zell by the arm and pulled him back. Zell was a great deal stronger than Vivi, but he allowed the little guy to pull him back.
Steiner looked to Beatrix. "We will?" He frowned as she nodded and opened the door for the two of them, allowing them to pass through.
"Thank you." Zell nodded to her, and she returned the gesture.
"How do you know he is not a terrorist?" Steiner demanded as the door was shut behind them.
Beatrix smiled, "Something tells me he just isn't."
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"Wow." Zell finally managed to say after a few minutes of standing inside the castle of Alexandria, staring at his new surroundings. He had actually never been inside a real, nice castle that wasn't set in ruins, and he was amazed.
Vivi watched Zell briefly before taking off down the corridor to look for Zidane. He was sure that Zidane could help. Zidane could do anything. Vivi left Zell standing there and disappeared from sight. It actually took Zell a few minutes to realize that Vivi had gone. It was just too easy to misplace that little guy, even as particular as he was.
"Vivi?" Zell called down the long corridor. Where had he gone off to? And how was he supposed to keep up with the little guy? He was just so tiny! He reminded him of Dr. Odine.
Zell's eyes lit up. That was it! Dr. Odine! He took off down a corridor, hoping that Vivi would be down that way somewhere. He had a plan. It was a brilliant plan that might just get him back home. He smiled to himself as he traveled down the well-lit, decorated corridor. He was glad that the interior looked better than the outside. At least he didn't have to remember the inside of Ultimecia's castle or make comparisons. That was a relief. That was something he definitely wanted to leave locked away in the back of his mind, where it would get lost and forgotten.
"Vivi!" He called again. His voice echoed throughout the corridor, but there was no answer from Vivi. He began to consider that maybe he had gone down the wrong way.
"Vivi?" he called again, beginning to feel a little nervous. Again, there was no answer. He began to panic, a feeling he didn't like at all.
"Vivi not here. He out searching for Zidane. But I can help. You must eat more. You too thin." A voice spoke from right beside him, making him jump out of his skin. He turned around to face whoever it was, but he was not prepared for what he saw.
"AHH!" He yelled and jumped back in shock.
"YAHH!" The creature that spoke screeched and did the same.
Zell was facing a creature that he had no idea what it was. Honestly. It was huge fat huge, and ugly with a face like a demented troll. It was holding a gigantic fork and had its tongue swinging around outside its mouth in a most unpleasant fashion.
"Ugh!" Zell cringed as goose bumps spread across his body. It was repulsing, whatever it was.
"You have problem?" The thing suddenly demanded, obviously haven taken offense to Zell's reaction.
"No, uh, no, of course not. But who are you?" He wanted to ask what are you? Yet, he thought against the idea. He didn't want to offend the freak anymore than he had to.
"I Quina! I in search for many different foods." Quina stepped closer to the appalled Zell and sniffed him, much to Zell's continued disgust. "You smell different. You have food for Quina?"
"No!" Zell exclaimed. He tried to get around the hideous thing to find Vivi, but it kept getting in his way. "Do you mind? I have to find Vivi!" He didn't really mean to be rude, but that thing was awful!
Quina leaned forward to sniff at Zell again and then stand straight to grin at him, which repulsed Zell even more than he already was. "No! You must show Quina new foods!"
"Listen…uh, Quina. I can't help you with your food thing. I really need to find Vivi." He tried again to get around Quina again, but still the thing wouldn't let him. He growled in aggravation while Quina continued to give him that dazed, happy, disgusting look that made him want to seriously hurl.
"Quina tell you already! Vivi looking for Zidane. Now, bring Quina new foods!" Quina demanded of Zell, who was on the verge of losing his temper, which he really didn't want to do.
"And I already told you! I can't help you with your food problem!" With that, he turned and attempted to go the way he came to find Vivi, but he was stopped. Quina grabbed him and carried him down the corridor where he had wanted to go in the first place.
"Quina not take no for answer. You show Quina. You see! It be fun!" Quina grinned and carried the unwilling Zell down to what Zell figured would be a kitchen.
Oh great. He groaned at his wonderful luck.
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Balamb Garden was now on a full alert with top-notch SeeDs stationed at every entrance and monitoring the entire area. No one had been told that Quistis and Zell were missing. Xu had also decided to disclose the information that Squall and Rinoa weren't where they were supposed to be. Xu didn't want to run the risk of sending the entire Garden into chaos.
"I still feel like we're not safe enough." Xu said sadly, sitting in Squall's office with Selphie, Irvine, and Rikku. It was almost six in the evening, and they were all still clueless. No word had been received of Quistis' or Zell's or Squall and Rinoa's whereabouts, and they all knew that there was a big chance that none would be received at all.
"Well, we only have a select few individuals and half of our top team is missing!" Selphie complained. She dropped her head into her hands as she sat curled up in the chair in front of Squall's desk. Could this week get any worse?
"Selphie, it's more than half, believe me. There are only two of us here! We're missing four. I'd say that's more than half." Irvine said to her, fiddling with the brim of his cowboy hat and feeling like he was going to crack. What were they going to do if Garden was attacked? They would be in so much trouble if that happened. So much trouble!
"Shut it, Irvine! You're not making the situation any better!" Selphie snapped, shaking her head. Irvine only shrugged and didn't say anything else.
"Do you think that maybe they were kidnapped?" Rikku asked from a leather couch next to the door. She had been silent for most of this little meeting, unsure if she was even welcome in it, but where else would she go or do?
"That could be a possibility, but that still doesn't explain how you got here or where you're from." Xu answered, sighing heavily.
"Well, maybe I'm here by some sort of freak accident, and maybe these people that are missing were kidnapped. Does this place have any enemies?" Rikku asked, ignoring Xu's attitude that she didn't believe that Rikku was from another planet.
"Only those who think killing for money is wrong." Selphie followed Xu and sighed.
"But even if they were kidnapped, that doesn't understand why any enemy would kidnap Zell. I mean, he wasn't really all that important. I can see why someone would kidnap Squall. He's the commander and the one who calls the shots. He's dangerous. And so is Rinoa. She could be labeled as threat since she's a sorceress, while Quistis was just a fill-in. At any rate, she's still a leader and a potential threat to whomever we may be dealing with, but what about Zell? All he ever did was eat hotdogs and punch the air. He really served no purpose." Irvine thought out loud, much to the shock of Selphie and Xu.
"He did to serve a purpose!" Selphie exclaimed, glaring at him with disgust. "He was a member or our team, and a good person! That's purpose enough!" She glared at Irvine who just shrugged and said nothing.
"Hey! I'm being serious here!" Rikku exclaimed, jumping up between those two to keep them from lashing out at each other. Well, mainly Selphie lashing at Irvine. "I really think that you should contact any enemy to make sure they don't have them locked up somewhere."
"Rikku, not to put down your idea, and I know you're trying to help, but if we called our enemies and asked them if they had our missing people, do really think they're going to tell us if they're holding them as hostages?" Xu demanded. Rikku blushed and shrugged. As Xu stated, she was just trying to help.
"Well… they might make a demand if we say that we know they're holding them, can't we?" She asked. Rikku just wanted to help, to make everything better so she could go home.
"I don't think that's going to work. I'm sorry." Xu shook her head sadly. "I'm not sure what should be done, but we need to have a plan soon. I'm afraid for Garden's safety. Without our top team, we're extremely vulnerable. We may have to call on the help of the other Gardens."
"Or we could do something on our own." Selphie grinned. They all guessed that she was forming a brilliant plan.
"Okay, spill it. What are you coming up with?" Irvine demanded.
"Well, Xu, you go ahead and concentrate on Garden's safety. If you have to call the other Gardens, that's fine. Do whatever. But I think Irvine, Rikku, and I should check out Winhill just to make sure that Squall and Rinny didn't leave anything behind that could help us, and I also think we should check out the Galbadian Military Head Quarters. Maybe there's something there." Selphie suggested.
Xu's jaw dropped in shock. "What? You mean, like, break into the government building at Deling City? That's absurd! You can't!" Xu exclaimed.
"What other choice do we have? I mean, we can't go calling up the President of Galbadia and asking him 'Uh, excuse me, but do you happen to have our leader and friends in your possession?' Do you have any idea how stupid that would sound?" Selphie demanded. Irvine nodded in agreement, but Rikku displayed a look of irritation.
"I know that, but what if they truly aren't holding them hostage, and you go and infiltrate the city? Not only would that anger the Galbadian Military, but it might also initiate an attack on Garden, which we don't need in this vulnerable state!" Xu countered. She was against doing anything that would put those at Garden in danger. And they did that and found nothing and escaped unharmed, the wrath of Squall would be even worse if he found out that she had authorized something so risky and stupid.
"Well, we can't just sit around here and wait for something to happen? What if Squall and the others are in danger? What if their on the high road to an afterlife?" Selphie demanded, standing and facing Xu with a determined resolve.
"Squall pretty much stays in danger, Selphie. You know that. I think, of all people, he's very accustomed to the high road of an afterlife." Irvine laughed at his little joke, only to receive dirty looks from both Selphie and Xu. They decided not to say anything pertaining to that just yet.
"I'm sorry, Selphie, but I can't let you do that. I can't let you put everyone in danger without thinking this through." Xu shook her head.
Selphie looked to Xu in shock and thought she was going to explode. "What else are we going to do? We're vulnerable without a leader, not to mention with over half of our top team missing! How can you even begin to think rationally now, at a time like this?" She demanded, losing what little cool she had left.
Xu turned her back on the enraged girl for a moment or two before returning to face her. "Fine. Do whatever you want, but please, think this through and, even though your mind is probably already made up, be careful and try not to get caught, okay? I think Galbadia is still sore that you blew up their military base." She sighed before saluting them all and leaving the room.
Rikku was confused and looked to Selphie. "You blew up a military base?" She asked in disbelief.
"Tee-hee!" Selphie giggled, blushing.
"We'll fill you in on the story later, sweet cheeks. Right now, we need to get ready." Irvine assured her, ushering the two ladies out the door.
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Zell sighed in complete misery. He had been sitting in the kitchen of this crazy castle for what felt like an hour, watching Quina eat "new and exotic" foods that he had never even seen before. He felt like hurling and running out of there screaming like a little child. Quina had almost forced him to cook things that Quina had apparently never tasted before, and it was all simple things that Zell could get in the Cafeteria. And yet, Quina couldn't get enough of it and kept asking for more and more! Zell was so irritated and hot. Normally, he wouldn't mind spending half the day in a kitchen, but this was far from what he enjoyed doing.
"Quina likes! Quina likes!" Quina exclaimed, pointing at what Zell had just made, which just happened to be simple Mac and Cheese. Zell sighed in irritation and plopped down at the tiny wooden table across from Quina.
The door opened and Zell jumped at the sudden noise of the door slamming against the wall. He thought he was going to have a heart attack when he saw it was only Vivi.
"Zidane is not here. And neither is Garnet. No one has seen them in days. I do not understand." Vivi said sadly. He wobbled over to Zidane and Quina. He shook like he was laughing. "I see Quina got you to make something new." There was amusement in his voice.
"Yeah. Now what are we going to do, Vivi?" Zell asked, taking his attention away from Quina.
"If Zidane and Garnet are in trouble we have to go help them! That's what Zidane would do for me and everyone else! He would never leave anyone behind in trouble!" Vivi exclaimed, mind made up.
"So, we're going to find them?" Zell asked with almost a hint of excitement. He hadn't been on an adventure in a long time, unless you count the one of Quistis trying to run the Garden without Squall.
"Yeah!" Vivi jumped up and down a few times.
"Booyah!"
Quina stopped eating and looked to Vivi. "Vivi take Quina along, too, right?" Quina asked. Vivi nodded and Quina jumped off the chair to the floor. "Quina eat many more new foods!"
"Yeah! Wow!" Zell said suddenly, feeling his own stomach growl. "I could really go for a hotdog right now." He sighed.
Vivi and Quina both looked at him curiously.
"What?" He asked.
"What is a hotdog?" Vivi asked innocently.
Zell's jaw dropped in complete, utter surprise and he thought he was going to collapse.
A/N: Yes, that's right! Before you die of a heart attack, it really is an update from me. I'm so sorry it's taken me this long. I have concluded that I am too easily amused. After beating Kingdom Hearts II, my mom's friend and Avon lady gave me a new game to spend endless hours playing idly: Tales of Symphonia. And let me tell you, I have been addicted to that game for the past week! I have played it for sixty- two hours and eight minutes and I'm almost at the end. It's an awesome game and my mom has told me several times that I am so weird and have no life, but hey! She plays Free Cell for hours on end! Isn't that the same thing? Isn't it? Isn't it! I'm going to go ask her… Later Days!