Disclaimer – I don't own Final Fantasy VIII. Too bad for me, huh?
A/N – It's Emcey; I'm baaaaack... so, last Tuesday I was alone in the house – my parents were at work and my younger sister was still in classes at the local high school – and I tripped somewhere in between the middle and top of the stairs. I don't really remember what happened 'cause it's all a blur, but the next thing I knew it was an hour later, I was lying at the base of the stairs, and Rabbit was licking my nose and looking worried. I had my cell phone on me and it was undamaged by my fall, which was lucky for me. I broke my left arm but I also broke my right index finger. My right knee also got banged up pretty badly, so it's all swollen and I can't walk on it very well just yet. I've spent the past week in a sort of haze where I've been asleep more than I've been awake. Sadly, I haven't done any work on chapter 13 and I don't think Kit has done much without me. As it was, I hadn't actually finished the last couple of pages of this chapter before I fell, so I worked on finishing that first before even considering moving on to the next chapter.
Typing is a bit of a pain since I have to poke at the key's with my unbroken fingers. Until my finger heals, I'll be cutting back on the typing, which unfortunately means longer periods between updates. Kit absolutely refuses to write the chapters without me, which is pretty sweet of her. She wants the story to remain a joint venture. I'd really like to thank everyone who was worried about me; I appreciate the sentiment and I hope to heal quickly.
That being said, we're upping the story rating to M. I'm not sure if we'll be brave enough to write a complete sex scene for the guys (neither of us have written one before)... but they certainly can't keep their hands off each other. ^_~
Chapter Twelve
"Galbadia Garden may be gone, but we're going to run into them again," Squall observed morosely, staring out at the setting sun without really seeing the gorgeous scene of reds and oranges that splayed across the sky. "We'll have to fight them then."
"And we'll get right on contingency plans for defending Garden from attacks... tomorrow. Squall..." Seifer buried his face against the crook of the brunet's neck for a moment, tightening his hold around Squall's waist. They were sitting together on the docks, Squall's back pressed up against Seifer's chest. "I should tell you about Minion... about how the Sorceress must have gotten to her."
"You were avoiding the topic of her throughout dinner," Squall observed. His hands slid down and wrapped around Seifer's hands comfortingly. "I know she's your friend. When you first brought her up in Deling, I thought..." he trailed off uncertainly.
"You were jealous!" Seifer laughed as he watched Squall scowl.
"I wasn't jealous."
"Sure..." Seifer drawled and kissed the side of Squall's jaw. "I met her two summers ago, not long after she got kicked out of Galbadia Garden. She'd been eligible for the SeeD exam for the first time that year, but she'd been denied her transfer request. When she went to find out why, her requests for information were repeatedly denied. Eventually she confronted the Headmaster about it; Martine told her that he didn't want to let a freak like her have a chance at getting into SeeD."
"A freak... because she's a Blue Witch?"
"No... because she's a lesbian. Martine's gonna blow a fuse when he learns that Balamb Garden's new Commander has a boyfriend," the words slipped out before Seifer could rethink them. Squall's hands tightened their grip. "Anyway... Minion tried going over Martine's head by reporting to Kraemer what was happening to her. She wasn't fast enough, though, and Martine threw her out. Once she wasn't a cadet anymore, Kraemer was more inclined to listen to Martine over Minion.
"Just another reason I can't stand Headmaster Kraemer. For someone who was supposed to be looking after the students of Garden, he's done a really crap job."
"So I'm learning." Tilting his head to the side in order to see Seifer's face better, Squall mused, "Minion had cause to hate SeeD for what happened to her. That's how you think the Sorceress is maintaining control over her."
"The Sorceress hates SeeD and not just because we tried to assassinate her. She must have been able to use their mutual dislike to create a bond or something using magic." Seifer shuddered, remembering how out of control he'd been as Ultimecia's Knight. When he'd been her Knight, he'd gotten angrier and angrier at SeeD and Squall, unable to control his emotions or reign anything in. The only moments of calm he'd had came from when Ultimecia's concentration had been on someone else and Seifer could take a few moments to breathe, his fingers rubbing soothingly against the scar he'd received from Squall. But what did Minion have to distract her mind from Ultimecia's control?
"There's something else that's bothering you, isn't there?"
"It's not so much SeeD that Minion hated as it was the people in charge." Seifer paused and then asked, "sound familiar?"
"She sounds a little like you," Squall admitted.
Seifer pressed his face against Squall's neck again. "If I hadn't passed the recent SeeD exam... I could have easily been targeted as a potential Knight by this Sorceress." I would have been her Knight, his mind corrected.
"I'd be stuck dealing with a lovestruck Rinoa all on my own," Squall muttered in horror.
Laughter bubbled out of Seifer unbidden. "That's what your taking away from this conversation?"
"It's a rather terrifying idea," Squall protested. "She's like a terrier; she doesn't let go or give up without a fight, except it's guys she latches onto, not squeaky toys."
"She's not as bad as she used to be," Seifer told him. "But, yeah... she's clingy as hell." Closing his eyes, Seifer listened to the sound of the ocean trying to lull him to sleep. He was warm and comfortable with his senses taking in the presence of Squall.
Whoever it was that had sent him back in time – whatever their intentions had been – Seifer felt immensely grateful that he had this now. He'd never felt so happy or content or... complete before.
"You are my boyfriend, aren't you?" Squall muttered, not really asking.
Sleepily, Seifer opened his eyes and nodded. "We've even been on an official date now."
Twisting in Seifer's arms, Squall pressed a kiss against his mouth. Before Seifer could really kiss back, Squall had already pulled away from his face and snuggled against Seifer's chest again. "Huh... I never really thought I'd be interested enough in someone to date them. Now I can't get enough of you. Where'd that come from?" he mumbled, probably not really intending to say any of it aloud.
"So this is where you two lovebirds have been hiding." Zell's annoyed voice effectively ruined the moment. Looking up at the tattooed blonde, Seifer and Squall both glared at him. Swallowing nervously, Zell took a step back. "Quistis thinks we should head back to Garden now and report everything that's happened. We've been looking everywhere for you two."
"Fine," Squall told him, sliding forward a little and then standing up.
Seifer waited a few seconds, taking the time to ogle Squall's ass, before rising as well. "So, do you think Xu and Irvine have managed to accidentally blow up Garden yet?" Seifer asked innocently, eliciting an amused snicker from Squall.
"I'm sure that they haven't destroyed it... but Selphie is another story entirely." Squall paused and then added, "we're going to Trabia Garden tomorrow to check on things there. I'm sure she'll want to find out if her friends made it."
"Yeah..." Seifer's mirth evaporated at the thought of just how many people were likely dead at the destroyed Garden... how many children had been killed when the academy had been bombarded by the bombs...
Squall's hand slid into Seifer's and tightened. Looking quizzically over at the brunet, Seifer saw puzzled concern on Squall's face. Smiling reassuringly at Squall, Seifer threaded his fingers through Squall's and squeezed back.
Flopping onto the empty bed, Seifer kicked off his shoes and lay there, willing his irritation to leave him. There were only eighteen people in the Security division (not counting himself or Irvine) and out of that eighteen, there was exactly one who was making herself notably useful. After revealing to his department that Galbadia Garden was airborne and a threat, Jade Emrys – a girl who was beautiful in the same manner as Rinoa, though their height and facial features were different – had immediately started brainstorming possible ways to maintain base security should Galbadia Garden attack. She was the only one out of eighteen to do so.
He'd only spent an hour-and-a-half in his office with his subordinates (save for the ones who were patrolling Garden's perimeter and halls), but it was enough to give Seifer a horrible headache that was more like a borderline migraine. Afterwards, Seifer had retreated to Squall's room... which was empty save for himself. Squall was obviously still at hard at work.
Curling up on himself, Seifer closed his eyes and took a deep breath, inhaling Squall's scent on the sheets and pillows. Almost instantaneously, the pain in his skull began to lessen. Drifting off into that place between being asleep and being awake, Seifer dozed until he felt the bed dip beside him.
Looking up, Seifer's eyes took in the sight of Squall hovering over him. It didn't last long, however; the moment Squall realized that Seifer was staring up at him, the brunet leaned down over him, drawing Seifer into a passionate, needy kiss.
Seifer reached up, pushing Squall's jacket off of him and running his hands lightly over Squall's arms. "Squall..." Seifer was cut off by Squall kissing his way down his neck, pausing only to pull his shirt up over his head, but leaving Seifer's arms tangled in the material over his head. "Nnh..." Bucking his hips at the feeling of Squall latching his mouth onto a nipple and teasing it with his teeth and tongue, Seifer moaned and struggled to free his hands, desperate to turn the tables and wring a few delicious sounds from Squall's mouth. But there was also something else...
Finally managing to pull his trapped arms free, Seifer grabbed onto Squall and rolled them over. He pinned Squall against the bed and said... "what's wrong?"
"Wha..."
"Squall, you've got this look in your eyes that says that something is wrong and so you're trying to put it out of your mind for a while... by having sex with me. While I certainly don't object to having sex with you, I'd like to think I can be useful for more than that." Seifer pressed his hips against Squall's and added, "you woke me up, so we'll definitely be getting back to the sex here in a minute, but first..." he bit back a moan as Squall squirmed underneath him, "tell me what's wrong," he finished breathlessly.
"Xu knows about us. She... thinks that we're going to screw things up with one another and then screw up our jobs because of it." Squall closed his eyes and took slow, deep breaths as he tried to calm down enough to think clearly for the conversation that was clearly going to ensue.
"Xu wants us to break up for the job, huh?"
"Yeah..."
"Well, we'll just have to prove her wrong, then. She'll see, eventually, that we're capable of keeping our relationship and our jobs separate. Until then... she'll just have to keep her nose out of our business." Lowering his face as he spoke until his mouth was even with Squall's face, Seifer began to lick and nibble at the edges of Squall's ear and reveled in the feeling of Squall writhing beneath him, a low whimper emanating from the shorter man's throat.
Squall's hands ran up and down Seifer's bare chest and then pushed him, flipping them back over again so that Squall was, once more, on top. "That's all you've got to say about that? She..."
"Doesn't exactly have the authority to tell us who we can and cannot be romantically involved in." Seifer's breath hitched as Squall grabbed the hem of his own shirt and pulled it off, tossing it aside before pressing himself against against Seifer and returning his attention to Seifer's nipples. "Fuck..." Seifer tried to collect his thoughts, but damn if Squall wasn't making that utterly impossible... "Sh-she... nnhh... Squall..." the brunet had switched his from one pink nub to the next, his nimble fingers tweaking the one already slick with saliva. "Ah..."
Squall hummed in amusement and moved his face away despite Seifer's dizzy protests. "What she said upset me. It used to be that all we did was fight... because we're both so stubborn. But then... you also looked out for me, didn't you?"
"Huh?" Seifer panted for breath, his brain trying to catch up.
"You distracted me with sparring when I'd get overstressed. You'd drag me to the cafeteria when I'd forget about a meal..." Squall said leadingly.
"You've always been important to me," Seifer responded honestly, wanting to get back to the part where Squall did things with his mouth that drove all thoughts from his mind. He'd completely forgotten why he'd thought conversing would be a better idea than going straight to the sex. "You've always made me a little crazy, too."
"Whether we're fighting..." Squall ran his fingertips lightly over Seifer's scar and his eyes flickered shut at the feeling. The next thing he knew, Squall's voice had lowered to the level of a seductive whisper from somewhere near his ear, "or fucking... or talking... I feel the most alive when I'm with you. So I think you're right. We're going to prove her wrong."
They didn't really talk much after that...
While Squall was busy sending off a few scouting parties to search for information on the movements of Galbadia Garden and hunt for additional Guardian Forces for possible use in the upcoming battle against the Sorceress, Xu decided to pay Seifer a little visit.
"Almasy?" she asked, walking into his office.
He'd been working on emergency plans that would, with any luck, keep the students safe during an attack from another Garden, and Seifer was particularly unhappy that Xu was the one interrupting him. "Huh... come to tell me that I shouldn't be dating my commanding officer?"
Xu scowled as the door shut behind her. "So, I see Squall shared what I told him last night."
"Yeah, he did. I'm just wondering where you got the impression that the relationship between Squall and myself was any of your business." Seifer's hands curled into fists, but he stayed seated.
Even though she hadn't been invited to take a seat, Xu settled into a chair anyway. "As Headmistress and one of the two highest ranking SeeD in this Garden, I have to ensure that no one compromises the functionality of this facility. What happens when your relationship inevitably comes to an end? The two of you are the sort of people where this thing between you could only end explosively. As Security Chief and Commander... it's bound to affect your ability to work with him negatively, and vice versa."
"Wow... you have no sense of romance whatsoever, Xu," Seifer cocked his head to the side and offered her a smirk. "Why are you so certain things will end between us at all? Because we're so young or because we're both so damn stubborn?"
"Perhaps because when you two first hooked up you got those scars." Xu gave him a cold look. "Scarring up your lover isn't the greatest way to start a relationship, after all."
"Oh... is that what it is?" Seifer laughed and shook his head. "What happened was unintentional. We were both... distracted. Honestly, Xu... you don't know the story of what happened and I have no intention of explaining it to you. I get that you're worried about Garden, and maybe even about Squall, but this really is none of your business. We're not going to automatically side with each other on Garden issues just because we're together and we're not going to go up in flames, either."
"Do you love him?"
"I'm getting there." Seifer shrugged, amused by Xu's rather stunned expression in response to his honesty. "Go back to work, Xu. I'm sure you have more important things to do than interrogate me about my intentions towards our intrepid Commander."
"Does he know you still call him things like that?" Xu asked, rising uncertainly from her chair.
"I'm sure he prefers it to Ice Princess and all those other names I've called him throughout the years," Seifer drawled, smirking.
"I still don't think you two will last," Xu sighed, shaking her head. "I'm being realistic; the two of you have been at odds far too long for this to be anything more than lust. I think you're just confusing it for something more. Perhaps, Seifer, you're too much of a romantic."
"Think what you like, Xu. It won't change a thing." Seifer watched, torn between anger at her presumption and amusement at her inability to see, as Xu walked out of his office. Looking down at his plans, Seifer let out a soft growl. His concentration was shot now; he wanted to go kill things, but the training center was still far too close to empty for him to be able to blow off steam reliably.
Maybe he could convince Squall to take an early lunch and they could do something much more pleasurable than fighting...
Lunch was neither early, nor did it come with a nooner, much to Seifer's dismay. In fact, Seifer was forced to take a late lunch just to be able to have lunch with Squall at all. The upside to all this, however, was that by then they'd landed just outside of Trabia Garden and, as soon as they were done eating, the two of them joined Selphie, Irvine, Zell, and Quistis in order to head into the other Garden and see what they could do to help.
"Looks pretty bad," Squall said as they walked up to the main gate.
"Once again, you are the master of understatement," Seifer responded, feeling rather shocked by the destruction he saw. Trabia Garden's halo was lopsided and broken, at least two thirds of the second and third floors had collapsed, and the air still had a somewhat acrid scent to it. "Damn... this place was almost flattened."
"From the look of it, a few of the missiles were flying too low and detonated against the surrounding mountains," Irvine observed. "I guess that means it could have been worse... not that this isn't..."
"Shocking?" filled in Quistis.
"'Shocking' describes it perfectly," Zell muttered.
Hands clenched into fists, Selphie made her way up to the gate and kicked it, hard. The metal rattled, but didn't budge. "It's locked. I'm gonna climb over and see who I can find."
"Be careful," Squall told her. "We'll be right behind you."
Once they were all on the other side of the gate, they split up into groups of two to wander around the compound. Seifer had every intention of going with Squall... right up until Selphie latched onto his arm like a little leech. "I want to hang out with you for a bit," she declared. "Squall, I'm stealing Seifer for a little while."
"What if I don't want to be stolen?" Seifer complained, trying to shake her off. Selphie just clung that much more fiercely.
"Too bad," she told him.
"Whatever," Squall responded, an amused smirk touching his lips. "Have fun." His voice was definitely mocking now.
Seifer growled. Dammit...
"We'll meet up at the quad... or what's left of it, in an hour. Understood?" Squall waited for everyone to respond and then sent them off.
Selphie squealed joyfully and tugged Seifer off in a seemingly random direction. He could have just stood their and let her pull ineffectively at his arm, but... he was a little curious as to why she'd picked him instead of Irvine. Though, Seifer thought he knew the answer already.
"So... why me and not Irvine?"
"You feel like a big brother to me," Selphie told him, releasing his arm and smiling up at him. "I've got feelings for Irvine that are of the romantic sort but... my home went kablooey. I might cry. I'd rather my brother saw me break down in tears than my love interest. Besides... I wanna see if I can trip you up into saying something about you and Squall."
"Thought so," Seifer laughed and ruffled her hair. "So... big brother Seifer, huh? You do realize this makes Fujin your sister?"
"Yep!" Selphie bounced happily. "She's soooo cool. Do you think she could teach me to be as cool as her?"
"Sorry, Coppercurls. No one can be as cool as Fujin. It's an unwritten rule of the posse."
"Awww..." Selphie sighed and then perked up. "Oh, I know her! Come on, Seifer!" The redheaded SeeD raced over to a cadet who'd been shifting some of the debris. "Alice!"
"Huh..." the cadet, a tall, willowy girl with large, luminous blue eyes. She saw Selphie and waved, a smile lighting up her face. "Selphie!" She pulled the shorter girl into a hug. "Hey! It's so good to see you."
"Likewise, Alice. The cute, blonde guy behind me is Seifer." Seifer waved and Alice laughed, waving back while she continued to hug Selphie. After a few moments, however, Selphie pulled away, her face growing uncharacteristically somber. "What happened when the missiles hit?"
Seifer could barely stand to hear the answer. There had been four classes in session at the time of the attack and nearly all the students in the classes had been killed. Everyone in the dorms, training area, and first floor areas had survived, but the top floor had been obliterated; nearly all the high ranking members of the Garden were dead.
Just as she'd feared, Selphie did cry. Seifer let the girl sob softly as he rubbed her shoulder without saying a word. In the face of so much loss, there wasn't much that could be said that didn't sound horrifyingly trite. Eventually, though, she got a hold of herself and filled in Alice on what had been happening with the Sorceress. She got Seifer to help explain the things she was a little fuzzy on and they were both very careful to make it clear that Minion had nothing to do with the missile attacks and was most definitely being controlled through some sort of magic.
"We're going to want to join your Garden," Alice said quietly, yet confidently. "There's no way we can avenge our losses unless we're allowed to transfer to Balamb Garden immediately."
"You'll have to take that up with our Commander and Headmistress," Seifer told her. "Get together with the rest of the survivors, send a representative back with us when we return to Garden, and I'm sure Xu and Squall will hear you guys out."
"I suppose that'll have to do for now," Alice agreed reluctantly.
"Selphie, we should head for the quad now." Seifer gestured for her to lead the way and followed her out of the ruins into an area filled with several mostly intact basketball courts.
"Anxious to be back with your boyfriend?" Selphie teased.
"More like I'm anxious to get him alone in a room with a bed," Seifer joked back, following the girl closer to where the others had congregated.
"Oh... sounds hot and heavy, huh?"
"Nice alliteration," Seifer told her, smirking.
"Oh, come on, spill! Spill!" Selphie pouted as her hair got ruffled.
Squall, Zell, Irvine, and Quistis were all already there. Zell and Irvine were playing basketball, but the cracks in the court were making things more than a little difficult. Squall seemed lost in thought, perched atop a short section of broken wall, while Quistis was leaning against a taller section of wall, her arms crossed and eyes closed.
"Sorry to keep you waiting! Thanks so much for coming all the way out here, everyone." Selphie grinned and tackled-glomped Irvine. "There were a lot of deaths... most everyone who survived is going to want to come with us when we leave so that they can help us fight the Sorceress. We Trabians... deserve to have a chance at revenge!"
"I agree," Squall told her. "But that's something I have to get Xu to agree on. I'll talk to her about it when we return to our Garden.
"All this destruction..." Irvine hugged Selphie close. "It reminds me of the Summer before I was adopted. There was a fire at Orphanage; some freak lightning strike set the roof ablaze. Afterwards, the place looked a little like this, with bits and pieces of our home everywhere except where they ought to have been."
"Yeah... that was the year we were sent to Balamb Garden," Seifer recalled. "If you hadn't been adopted, you'd have come with us."
"Us?" Zell echoed. "Who else was at that place with you two?"
"I was," Squall spoke up. "But the only person I really remember from there is Seifer. Everyone else is just sort of... fuzzy." He shrugged. "It was a long time ago."
"Yeah... but I remember pretty clearly," Irvine told him. "There was this one girl there... she was really special to me. She was my best friend; a crazy little redheaded girl I called 'Sefie.'"
"W-was that orphanage... a stone house?" Selphie asked, still hugging Irvine tightly.
"You guessed it," Irvine responded, idly petting her hair.
"I called you Irvy," Selphie said suddenly. "I was Sefie and you were Irvy. How could I have forgotten? I cried for weeks when I was taken away from you." She looked genuinely appalled at herself.
"Hey, don't worry about it, Selphie," Irvine kissed her forehead. "Like Squall said, it was a long time ago. But... the four of us weren't the only ones there."
"Wasn't it by the ocean... with a lighthouse at the end of the beach?" Quistis filled in slowly, her eyes open now, but distant.
"Oh, yeah! The lighthouse..." Selphie grinned. "The stairs were dangerous and we weren't supposed to go inside, but we'd dare each other to go up to the top all the time."
"How long have the two of you known we were there with you?" Quistis demanded, looking sharply from Seifer to Irvine.
Seifer wandered over and settled onto the wall beside Squall. "I've still got an album full of pictures from Orphanage and I don't use GFs half as much as most people at Balamb do. So when I'd forget something because of the Guardian Forces, I could make myself remember later. But the rest of you... after the first few times I got someone to remember and they'd forget a few days later, I gave up on keeping you guys in the loop about Orphanage. I just... didn't see the point of wasting my time."
"No one else seemed to remember when Seifer and I brought up Orphanage in Galbadia," Irvine added. "I figured there was a reason for that, so I dropped the subject. But... I didn't want us to stay the only ones who remembered. I didn't realize you remembered some of Orphanage, though, Squall."
"As I said, most of it's fuzzy."
"All you really remember is your boyfriend," Selphie added, giggling.
"Selphie, try to remember that I can control your paycheck," Squall grumbled, his face growing a little flushed looking.
"Uh... did we set off fireworks on the beach?" Zell asked hesitantly.
"Yeah, but you tattled on us, Chicken-wuss," Seifer complained.
"Stop calling me that!"
"Then stop wearing your hair like the rear-end of a chocobo!"
Irvine and Selphie burst into helpless laughter and even Quistis had to hide a smile behind her hand. Squall snorted in amusement as Zell fumed.
"My hair does not look like a chocobo," Zell grumbled and the froze. "Wait, but how can I remember this. I have a family in Balamb. I wasn't adopted... was I?"
"You were there, though," Quistis insisted. "You told on us, like Seifer said. We all got into so much trouble..."
"It was worth it," Selphie interjected. "Totally worth it. The fireworks were so awesome to watch."
"You were adopted the year before Irvine was, Dincht," Seifer said, taking pity on Zell's lost expression. "Selphie was the first one to be adopted and Quistis was the third. Squall and I never were; we wound up going straight into Garden."
"There was someone else there with us, too," Squall told them. "She was older than us. We called her Sis, but her name was Ellone."
"Ellone... that girl the Galbadian Army is looking for?" Quistis asked.
Irvine nodded. "She treated us all like we were her little siblings, but Squall... was the one we all thought was really related to her."
"I don't know if she is related to me... but she disappeared one night. I waited for her to come back, but she never did." Squall shrugged absently. "I was never alone, though. Someone would never leave me be," he gave Seifer a pointed look. The blonde gunblader just smiled innocently.
"Ellone's the one who's been taking us to the Dream World to see Laguna, right?" Selphie asked.
"Yeah. She hasn't done it since she left Balamb Garden," Seifer said.
Squall bumped his shoulder lightly against Seifer's. "Hopefully she listened to what you told her."
"What did you tell her?" Quistis asked, suddenly hungry for information about her missing 'Sis.'
"Just that she potentially puts everyone in danger when she sends people to the Dream World. Whatever she wants to accomplish... it isn't worth the price she might wind up paying if someone dies because she left us unable to defend ourselves." Seifer shrugged. "She didn't seem to be listening, however, so I doubt she's stopped for good."
"She said she wanted to change the past, but she didn't say why," Squall added. "I hope she fails; in changing her past, she'd change our pasts as well. We wouldn't be the people we are today; we'd be strangers."
"When you put it like that... then even though she was part of our orphanage gang, I don't want to help her out," Zell sighed sadly. "I like the way my life has gone so far. I like the person that I am."
"But why did we all forget about Orphanage?" Selphie asked. "I had loads of fun at Trabia, but the rest of you? Can Guardian Forces really cause so much memory loss?"
"Things didn't work out too well at my new home, so I came to Garden when I was ten. That's when I first noticed Seifer and Squall again; you two were always fighting."
"Training, not fighting," they chorused, giving her equally annoyed looks. Seifer added, "you always tried to stop us and just got in the way."
"Always looked more like plain old fighting than actual training. But... if you two insist it was 'training' then I'm sure that's exactly what it was." She smirked as they continued to glower at her.
"I've read a few studies on GFs," Irvine told them. "It makes a place inside our brain since it's made out of energy. But the leading theory on them right now is that their energy can cause interruptions in the memory centers of the host's brain, leading to memory loss. It isn't believed to be permanent memory loss, and being able to remember with prompting certainly lends credence to the theory."
"I thought that was just a rumor being spread by critics of the GFs." Quistis frowned and shook her head. "That's what the Shumi staff always said, anyway."
"They always got upset when I'd argue that point with them," Seifer said. "Trust me; the GFs were what kept you guys from remembering Orphanage. It was made pretty obvious to me what was happening."
Zell paled. "So, if we keep relying on the GFs, we won't be able to remember a lot of things?"
"There's no way Headmaster Cid would allow such a dangerous thing!" Quistis denied.
"Just like Kraemer would never allow a Garden wide riot to break out or avoid giving straight answers to the question of whether or not the Sorceress is actually his missing wife, Edea Kraemer?" Seifer asked. "Just like he'd never let NORG corrupt Garden policy or allow money to become the leading factor in choosing missions? Wake up, Quistis. Kraemer isn't the saintly old man you seem determined to believe he is."
"Well, he isn't the screw up you think he is either," Quistis shot back. "Besides... Selphie's first experience with a GF was when she came to Balamb Garden. Right, Selphie?"
"About that... I have a confession to make! When I was 12, I went on an outdoor training session. I found a GF inside one of the monsters I defeated... I junctioned that GF for a while. So I have experience with GF, too. But...but, it's really weird! I can't remember the name of that GF!"
"Then... it must be the GF's fault," Quistis finally conceded. "What should we do?"
"Nothing," Squall told her.
Outraged, Zell snapped, "what do you mean nothing!"
Squall pinned Zell with an intense stare as he told the tattooed blonde, "what do you want to do? You wanna stop using GF now? As long as we continue fighting, we're indebted to the powers of the GF. If there's a price I have to pay for that, I'll gladly pay it."
"I know!" Selphie bounced, "let's all keep a diary! That way we'll always have something to trigger our lost memories. Or we could have photo albums like Seifer's."
"Are you sure that's what you want!" Zell demanded. Then, calming down and actually thinking about it, he said, "maybe...that's for the best. Yeah... I don't care if I forget about my childhood. What's important to me now is having the power to protect my parents in Balamb. They adopted me. There's no way I'm letting go of that power!"
Quistis spoke up again, asking "do you all remember Matron?"
"She always wore black..." Zell offered after a long moment.
"She was very kind with long black hair," Quistis continued. "I really admired her. She seemed quiet and sad at times... but always so strong. I wanted to be just like her one day."
"Yeah, but the lady I remember resembles... the Sorceress."
"Matron was Kraemer's wife, Edea. She's been missing for about a year now," Seifer told them. "She is the Sorceress, in all likelihood, but Kraemer won't admit anything. I didn't remember her until after what NORG said in the basement... but afterwards it wasn't hard to put two and two together." It was a complete lie, but the others didn't need to know that.
"But why is she...?" Zell trailed off hesitantly.
"Why? You're wondering why Matron would take over a country, or fire missiles and whatnot?" Irvine shrugged and hugged Selphie even more tightly. "At this point, we probably wouldn't comprehend it even if we talked about it."
"SeeD and Garden were all Matron's idea, weren't they?" Seifer asked, directing his question at Irvine.
The cowboy nodded. "Yeah. The organization known as SeeD was begun in order to fight Sorceresses in the future who go mad with power. I think that maybe she was creating a fail-safe, in case she was consumed by her powers like Adel supposedly was."
"No, Adel lost her Knight and the bond between them snapped. That's what sent her off the deep end," Seifer corrected. "Something else must have happened to Matron."
"Well, whatever happened to her, she's become the very enemy that she wanted us trained to fight," Irvine finished.
"That's so strange, though..." Squall mused. "When I was being tortured at D-District," Seifer slid his hand over and took hold of Squall's at that point, "the person interrogating me didn't have the first idea as to what Garden's purpose was. He said that the Sorceress wanted to know the answer. But if Matron is the Sorceress, then why doesn't she already know?"
"Maybe we're still missing information," Seifer offered.
"So we're going to fight Matron..." Zell shuddered. "Can we really do that?"
"We don't have a choice. Nothing in life can prepare us to fight against a friend or someone we care about," Seifer told him. "But we have to make ourselves do it anyway, because if we don't... they'll continue down a path that, when we knew them, they'd have never chosen on their own. We have to stop Matron for the sake of who she was – the kind woman who cared for us. Matron would never have wanted to become this Sorceress."
"Seifer's right," Selphie agreed. "We have to stop Matron for her sake and, as people who care for her, we're the only ones who can do that without taking away all her dignity."
"Then let's do it together." Zell sounded the way he had as a kid when he'd be on the verge of tears, but his eyes were most definitely dry. "We can't run from her for the rest of our lives, after all." Quistis nodded, also looking rather depressed by the way the conversation had turned.
"Look! Look!" Selphie waved her right hand towards the sky as snow started to fall. "A gift from the faeries!"
"Yo, you wanna go check out Edea's orphanage?" Zell then proceeded to lean his head back and stick out his tongue in an attempt to catch some of the snow.
Irvine snickered in amusement, but said, "we might find a clue if we do."
"Nice rhyme," Seifer drawled. "Do you really think we'd find something at Orphanage that would explain why Matron's trying to conquer the planet?"
"Probably not, but it'd be nice to see the place again."
"Even if we do find out the truth about the past, it won't change the present," Squall warned them. "I'd like to see the place, too, though. I don't know what we'll find when we get there, but... let's head for the Orphanage."
A/N - Well, there you have it... the crazy "We all lived at the same orphanage!" scene has been written without a trace of Rinoa. Next up, the battle of the Gardens. It'll probably be posted somewhere around three weeks from now. I'm sleepy again... so... bye.