Chapter XIV: The Revelation

"Well," Squall began. "We have to get them out of here."

Quistis shook Selphie's shoulder, trying to wake her up. But the girl didn't even stir. She shook her shoulder rougher and still got no reaction. Sighing, she scooped Selphie into her arms and secured her head in the crook of her neck before standing up slowly.

"I'll go first," she said, turning to the two boys watching her. "You guys carry Seifer."

"Why don't I carry Selph and you two carry him?" offered Zell, looking hopeful to the motionless body in her arms.

"It's okay, she's very light," declined Quistis, walking away. "Hurry up. The soldiers will come soon."

Zell pouted. "That's not what I mean…" He scoffed when Squall nudged him and gestured to the fainted blond. "Yeah, yeah. Damn it, you do realize he's unbelievably heavy, right?"

"Sadly, I know," Squall stated, crouching down, taking one of Seifer's arms. He circled it to his neck. "Hurry up, Zell."

The other teen complied with a huff. Together, they circled Seifer's arms around their shoulders and supported him before getting up.

"Ready?" whispered Squall. "One, two, three!" They almost fell down from his weight as they struggled to stand. The boys plopped down on their knees.

"What the fricking Hyne!" wailed Zell, he couldn't believe how heavy this man was. "One, two, three!"

Squall grunted as they stood up. How Seifer could become this heavy? He never ate much, he exercised more than anyone, and he carried his big gunblade anywhere…

Zell panted as they managed to get up straight. Squall ogled Hyperion on Seifer's hips. "Zell, take his gunblade."

"What?" Zell asked between his set of short breaths.

"It's okay, leave him to me. Take off his gunblade."

Zell circled his arm to Seifer's hips, unlocking the gunblade holster. He grabbed the gunblade and moved away from Seifer. Squall expected to fall down, but Seifer's weight decreased. Zell looked down to Hyperion in his arms.

"Whoa! This was the cause? He carried a weapon this heavy?"

Squall moved Seifer to his back and bent down, securing his knees in the loop of his arms before standing up straight. Now, this kind of weight, he could manage.

"Hurry up," he said, striding out of the station as fast as he could with a man on his back.

Zell dragged Hyperion on the floor, creating screeching sounds as they left.

Rinoa was waiting for them. When they entered the pub, her face shone in happiness at seeing Seifer. Squall spotted Quistis sit on the corner with Selphie unconscious on her lap. Her head leaned on Quistis's shoulder.

"Seifer!" whispered Rinoa, walking to Squall's side and checking her ex-boyfriend's condition gently. "Is he okay? I saw the TV and I—"

"He's fine," Squall said.

"They found our base," informed Rinoa, a bit taken aback. "It's completely destroyed."

"And everyone else?" asked Zell.

"They're fine. They're good at escaping." She looked at all of them, but her eyes fixed to Quistis longer than necessary. "We have to stay away from Timber for a while. Is there a safe place you can take me? This is an order, an order from your client, remember?"

Squall shifted, securing Seifer on his back for a more comfortable position. He didn't want to take the Timber Owl princess anywhere. He had enough trouble as it was. The trouble meant a blond on his back and another blond dragging the gunblade and fidgeting nervously in his trail.

"...Alright." Great, what did he just agree on? He just loved to add more trouble, didn't he?

"I have a friend, she agreed to take all of us into her home," continued Rinoa, satisfied with Squall's answer. "We just have to stay in her home until it was safe to leave this place."

Quistis stood up, already scooping Selphie in her arms. She didn't say anything. The group watched her as she strode to the door.

Sensing the questioning glances, she turned around and said, "Well? What are you waiting for, Captain? Come on."

Squall blinked in surprise.

Zell tilted his head. "Captain?" he said. "Whoa. Instructor is calling you Captain, Squall?"

The leader frowned. That was weird. It wasn't wrong, but Trepe calling him Captain was… unexpected. He was thinking she would call him Squall or at least introducing herself to Rinoa, but Quistis looked ready to storm off without them.

The group left the pub, following Rinoa as she pointed in various directions and exclaiming: "This way!" or "Right here!" until they stopped in front of a house next to Timber Maniacs.

"This is it." Rinoa opened the door without hesitation.

Everyone followed her walking inside. The inside of the house was small, but looked cosy. There was a stairwell leading up to the second floor to the left and the living room was also the dining area, with a square table placed in the centre of the room, draped with green tablecloth and surrounded by several chairs. The kitchen was in the corner of the room, with one big sofa placed beside the fridge.

A woman sat on it, she smiled and waved to them, standing up as Rinoa walked to her.

"I'll let you know if anything changes," she said. "Till then, make yourself at home."

"Thanks, chief." Rinoa looked at Squall's group. "Everyone, meet Chief. She's the leader of the 'Forest Fox'. Almost everyone's a resistance member in this town," she explained with prideful tone. "But right now, we're the only ones that are really active. Let's stay here for a while."

"I still don't get it," Zell muttered. "What did Seifer come here for?"

Squall glanced at Quistis, but the blond woman kept her eyes at the window looking outside. She didn't answer the question for Zell, who also looked at her and expected her to answer.

"I think..." Rinoa murmured, "He came to help us, the 'Forest Owls'. I talked about it a lot with him. So please... don't think too badly of him."

"We can ask him when he wakes up," said Squall.

"Anybody in here!" echoed a voice from the outside.

Squall's eyes widened. Rinoa, the only one who didn't hold anything, leaned to the wall beside the door and grasp her projectile weapon. She pointed her arms to the door, ready to shoot anything coming through right now.

The Chief answered to the voice, "What is this! I have two small children in here. Don't do anything to frighten them!"

Just as everyone was thinking how to fight another battle with people and heavy items in their hands, a teenage girl strode down the stairs.

She whispered to them, "Upstairs... Hurry!"

Rinoa ran to her moving team, turning her eyes to the door where Chief was standing. "Will she be ok?" she asked.

"She'll be fine." The girl waved her hand. "The legend goes... that my mother took down many soldiers with her strength, cooking, and beauty."

"Err… beauty?" Zell bit his lip before he said anything else. "Yeah, uh, right."

-x-

"Quistis," Squall called after they had all found a spot to lounge.

They had walked upstairs and the Chief's daughter showed them a room where they could settle in. Quistis gently lay Selphie in the bed while Squall carelessly threw Seifer next to her. Zell set Hyperion next to the bed then lumbered to the corner and sat down, dragging his knees up and hugging it. He didn't look as cheerful as usual, no swatting flies or as he said 'shadow boxing' at all. Rinoa sat on the only available chair, while Quistis leaned on the window frame, arms crossed. Squall leaned on the wall near the bed, thinking about what had happened. He had waited, but the only conscious person who knew what it was all about didn't say a word.

"Can you explain what actually happened?"

Quistis didn't look at him, but she replied, "He was so angry when he found out it was only the three of you dispatched to Timber. 'What! They might end up fighting the whole Galbadian force! And all they dispatch are three rookie SeeD members! Damn it! I'm going to Timber!' I never would have guessed he was serious about it."

Squall rolled his eyes. He's always serious, he thought. You should know that by now...

"What do you think happened now?" asked Rinoa, concerned.

"The president of Galbadia and the sorceress joined forces," Quistis stated. "If things didn't work out, we will get executed for attempted murder of a President."

"What?" cried Rinoa, standing up. "No! I mean… We can't—" she stuttered, looking at Squall. "Is that true? All of us will be hunted down? I… don't know it will be like this! I mean… surely this kind of misunderstanding can be cleared, right?"

"No, it won't," answered Quistis. Rinoa glared at her. "I don't think it will be solved."

"You can't say that!"

Think what you want. Squall leaned his head back. Reality isn't so kind. Everything doesn't work out the way you want it to. That's why...

"As long as you don't get your hopes up, you can take anything..." he said, "you feel less pain. Anyway, whatever wish you have is none of my business."

Rinoa narrowed her eyes and pointed at him. "You're mean. MEANY!"

Squall raised his brow. What's with her...?

Before he had a chance to retort, he heard a grunt. Squall noticed that Seifer was conscious at last.

"What…" Seifer sat up, groaning. He almost fell down as Rinoa lunged at him. "What happened?"

Zell glanced at him from his womb position, saying nothing. He drew his knees tighter to his chest and set his chin on it. As if it was more than a coincidence, Selphie stirred up soon after. She wobbled slightly as she tried to stand up.

"…Guys? Oww… what happened?"

Quistis studied them. "How are you, Selphie?"

"Fine…" Selphie replied, still wobbly. "I think." She looked around. "Where are we?"

When she noticed Seifer in Rinoa's arms, her eyes grew darker, but no one noticed. Seifer, however, feeling sparks ran through his body and several jolts of pain.

"Ow! Ow!" he cried, pushing Rinoa away. "What are you doing?" He pulled his coat sleeves up, looking at an angry red mark circling his arms. "Rin!"

"What?" Rinoa gasped. "It's not me!"

Surprised, Selphie looked away. She didn't do it. She didn't do anything. She didn't—

O-oh, Quistis was looking at her.

The instructor shrugged and decided not to say anything about it.

"We're in hiding," said Squall. "Can you tell us what you did back then in the TV Station? How did you stop that woman?"

"I didn't," said Selphie. "Ifrit and Diablos did. I don't know what they did."

"Can you ask them?"

No, said Ifrit in Selphie's mind. Tired, we're sleeping. Sorry.

Selphie sighed. "They went to sleep. Or so they say." She looked at Quistis. "Instructor? You're the smartest. You must know what happened!"

That didn't amaze Quistis. "Do I?"

"Yeah!" Selphie nodded. "After all, you blessed us!"

"Blessed them?" Rinoa whirled towards Quistis. "Blessed them in what?" She glared at Quistis. "What did you do to them? To Seif?"

Quistis didn't seem fazed by her glare. "Did I? Blessed them?" she murmured, looking up. "Yes, I think I did."

Squall raised his brow. What happened? This wasn't the usual instructor. She always took the chance to be the first who explained and happy when someone wanted to listen.

"Are you hiding something, Instructor?" he asked.

"I don't think so," answered Quistis. "I don't understand much of it anyway."

"Well, tell us what you know!" shouted Rinoa.

Quistis stared at her. "…I'm sorry, what was that?"

Squall blinked. Did she just?

Rinoa glared at the calm instructor.

"Oh!" Selphie said, "I'm sorry, instructor! She mean, please tell us if you have any guess about what happened."

Seifer raised his brow and met Quistis's gaze. Squall looked at him and Quistis, wondering about their strange eye contacts. Rinoa and Selphie noticed this as well. They stared at them back and forth.

"Seifer," Quistis began. "You know who the woman is, don't you?"

Seifer leaned his head to the head of the bed as everyone stared at him. He purposely clasped his hands against the back of his head in slow motion before responding, "Yes."

"Who is she?" Quistis inquired as if it was a rhetorical question. "I think some of you know who she is as well."

Huh? Seifer wondered. Anyone else here knows Matron?

"She's a sorceress," Squall replied.

Oh, that. Seifer looked at Selphie who nodded. Zell shrugged in silence, following his team.

"Sorceress?" whispered Rinoa. "As in, the sorceress?"

"What Selphie did," Quistis explained, "was stopping the ritual process that will bond you with her."

"Bond?" Seifer sat up straight. "I don't get it."

"Oh!" Selphie said. "Bond as in… bonding! It's the Knight-Sorceress ritual!"

Squall frowned. Where did I hear that before? It's not in Garden lesson…

"You remember, don't you, Squall?" Selphie told him in amazement. "It's in your book! The Folklore Tale, Son of Magic!"

"Wait!" Seifer said. "Son of what?"

Selphie turned to him. "Son of Magic?"

"Wait…" Squall joined in. "You mean… she wants Seifer as her Knight?" Someone wanted Seifer to be her Knight? This Seifer?

"Are you saying because she stopped it," rumbled Seifer. "I am now…" He pointed at Selphie. "Her Knight?"

"Quite the reverse," answered Quistis, crossing her arms. "SeeD Selphie Tilmitt actually has the lowest magical capabilities any Garden has ever seen. She will never be able to be a sorceress, even when all females in Gaia lose their magic capabilities."

Everyone stared at Selphie, who bowed her head so low and let out a defeated sigh. "You don't have to say it like that."

"The reverse, as in…" Rinoa whipped her head to Seifer. "OH MY HYNE! Seifer! You can do magic without Guardian Force!"

"Yeah, so?"

"No!" Zell finally piped in. He stood up and shook his head. "No! Selphie is not this conceited bastard's knight!"

"My what!"

"I'm a knight?" Selphie cried. "Nooo! I'll never get married!" she bawled, throwing herself to the bed, crying out loud. Everyone stared at her wide eyed.

"What are you crying about, you foal!" barked Seifer, punching the bed in aggression. "I'm a sorceress! I'm the one who supposed to cry!"

Rinoa clamped her hand to her mouth, stopping herself from chuckling. Quistis let a smirk formed on her lips. Squall looked away, but not before Seifer spotted amused look passing his face. The only one who hadn't looked amused was Zell, who looked ready to kill him.

"This is a joke, right?" Zell turned to Quistis, shooting her a pleading look. "Tell me this is a joke. Please, instructor."

"I'm the one who supposed to say that," growled Seifer.

"It couldn't be!" Zell pointed at him. "This is him we're talking about! This is the man who tried to make us go to jail!"

"I'm not the one who said we're all from Garden, Wuss," retorted Seifer, angry with the accusation. Zell was taken aback. His face scrunched up and he bit his lip, staring down to the floor.

"Alright, stop it." Squall raised his hand. "What should we do now, instructor?" He narrowed his eyes when he realized Quistis refused to look at him.

"Nothing."

"What do you mean nothing?" Seifer stood up. "There has to be something!"

"I mean nothing as nothing," countered Quistis. "The bonding stays 'till death. Unless you're trying to kill her now, which might end up as we kill you instead… nothing could be done. You two will have to stick together from now on."

"NO!" shouted Zell and Seifer at the same time.

"Why is that?" asked Squall, in need to clarify the matter. If there was anything that could prove fatal for the group in his command, that included Selphie and Seifer at this point, he felt it was in his right to know.

"Without a Sorceress, a Knight is worthless," informed Quistis, letting out what she had read in an intriguing book a long time ago. "Without Knight, a Sorceress will lose her sanity."

"His!" Seifer fixed her words. "His! I'm a he!"

"I'm not sure about that anymore," murmured Zell, eyes shifting away when Seifer glared at him.

"There is no proven point," Squall debated, "in any kind of formal books I've read, that a man can be a sorceress."

"That's because I'm not!" Seifer interjected.

"I think you will be called Sorcerer," placated Rinoa. "I never heard there is anyone before you."

"Indeed," Quistis agreed. "That's why I've said I don't understand it more than all of you."

At that moment, the Forest Fox leader showed up at the door.

"The Galbadian forces are withdrawing," she declared. "Only the soldiers normally stationed here will stick around. If you're going to leave town, now's your chance. You know how persistent those soldiers can be."

After looking around, Squall was the first to say, "Let's move on. We'll talk later."

-x-

The strangely made team of six people piled up in the living room. Seifer looked weary and tired with Selphie beside him, happily hopped to her feet, almost bouncing like she always did if not for Seifer's warning glare. She pouted and swayed instead. His hand gripped her shoulder, silently ordering the girl to stand still. Zell caught a glimpse of this, but he stayed scrunched up beside Rinoa. The girl took a peek on Squall's face every now and then. Quistis stood the farthest, behind Seifer and Selphie. She waited for Squall to say anything, but he just crossed his arms and looked to his side.

"Any thoughts on where to go, Captain?" she finally queried him.

We have to get out of here first... thought Squall.

"Getting out of here is only the first step," she said.

"What do you mean?" he questioned, surprised that she knew he was thinking about it.

"Garden Code, Article 8, line 7," declared her, waiting for Squall to memorize.

8:7... In the event that returning to the assigned Garden is not possible, report to the nearest Garden... He murmured, "Head for the nearest Garden..."

Quistis nodded. "From here, that would be Galbadia Garden."

Rinoa decided to throw in, "We can take the train from here and get off at a station called East Academy."

"From there, we have to go through the forest west of the station to get to Galbadia Garden," Quistis said. "I've been there several times. We should be okay."

"All right then... We'll escape from Timber and head to Galbadia Garden," agreed Squall, ready to walk out.

The Forest Fox leader who had been listening at their conversation, smiled at him.

"You be careful, now. Take this with you." She handed Squall several curative vials. Squall nodded thank you to her as the rest of the team made their way out.

Outside, Selphie paced side by side with Seifer. The man blatantly ignored her, but he didn't push her away or ran off when she began to chat with her arms waving in the air. At least it was an okay start.

Squall walked side by side with Quistis, but the trip to the train station was surprisingly dull. Quistis didn't say a word, her eyes fixed forward, never even once glancing at him. Zell and Rinoa in front of them even had a better, livelier conversation than their Captain. Squall was feeling slightly uneasy with Quistis' behaviour. Something was very wrong. She usually called him out and talked first. This was…

This didn't feel right.

He let out a sigh of relief as they reached the station. Quistis strode away, leaving him. Squall stood dumbfounded, looking at his instructor.

Did he do something that made her act this way? He couldn't find anything from his behaviour that caused her to disregard him.

"Rinoa, Squall!" The two turned their head to an old man calling them. "It's me!"

"Zone!" Rinoa cried with relief.

Well… Squall was astonished with Zone's appearance. If there was nothing else they're good at, at least they can hide and change their appearance. It's something better than nothing.

"You need to go to East Academy, right? There's no more tickets left," Zone said when the group rounding him. "Ey-ey-ey! How come your team has grown almost twice since the last time I saw you?"

How come you know we're going to the East Academy? Squall wondered.

"Super-Duper-Mega-Bummer!" Selphie bowed her head low. Seifer frowned to the girl.

"We'll do whatever it takes to get on that train," Squall said. He needed to bring his unique group out of this place as soon as possible. The soldiers would come again sooner or later.

"You won't have to do that. Look here!" Zone said, pulling out several tickets. "I have everyone's ticket right here! One for you, three for you SeeD people. Here, I'll give them to the leader. And the last one is for me..."

Zone looked at Quistis and Seifer who hadn't got a ticket. He walked over and gave Quistis the remaining one. "Go on. Take it."

"I can't take that! It's yours!" she said, but he insisted.

"Ouch!" Zone shoved the ticket in her hand and ran to a corner, clutching his stomach. "Ouuuuuuuch! My stomach hurts! Ouch! Just get going! The train is leaving!"

"Thank you," Quistis whispered.

"What about me?" Seifer bellowed feeling ignored. "How come Quistis gets it but not me?" He made a move to unsheathe his Hyperion. Selphie and Rinoa grasped his arms.

"Zone..." Rinoa said as calmly as she could muster while clutching the enraged Seifer. "We're going to see each other again, ok? No matter what, you have to survive. We have to liberate Timber together, remember?"

"I know, I know," Zone said. "I'll go hide in a bathroom or something. Now get going."

"Oh! Wait, man!" Zell pulled something out from his pocket. "Here… I thought you'll need this more than me!"

"Oh! Cool! Girls Next Door!" Zone shouted in happiness. Zell turned to see Selphie and Quistis staring at him in disbelieving look. Rinoa looked amused. "Thanks, man! I owe you one! I'll get you one of this if we meet again!"

"Aah, no, it's fine actually…" Zell said with a grimace. He wondered how he looked like to the girls now.

Seifer struggled away from Rinoa and Selphie, shouting to Zone as the man ran away, "You! You know who I am, Zone! Damn you! Why did you give her a ticket instead of me?"

"Sorry!" offered the man, already running far away from him. "Bye, Seif!"

"Damn it!" Seifer turned to Quistis. Sighing, he said, "I guess I have to do something else."

"Like what?" she inquired, crossing her arms.

"I don't know. Got any suggestion?"

Squall listened to the conversation with perked up ears. This was very weird. Seifer asked Quistis on suggestion?

Thinking, Quistis put her index finger against her lips. Then, she said, "I'll go with you in the cargo. There must be one."

"You what?" Seifer asked in disbelief, looking at Quistis as she turned around and handed her ticket to Squall.

"I'm going with him, Captain," Quistis said. "I don't need this."

Squall stared at her. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Instructor?" Zell asked. "You choose to go in a cargo with this man instead of us?"

"Yes, I do," Quistis answered.

"I don't think it was a good idea," Squall said, feeling uncomfortable with how easy she chose to be with Seifer than his team. "You have a ticket, you'll use it."

"No," Quistis said just as fast. "I don't have to."

"But Zone gave this to you!" Rinoa supported Squall. "If you don't need it, why did he have to sacrifice his way out of here?"

"I didn't ask him to," Quistis said. "I am thankful, but I didn't ask him to do that." With that, she turned and walked to Seifer.

"You sure about that?" Seifer questioned softly. "They don't seem happy."

"I'm your Captain," Quistis said. "I am responsible for you, Seifer."

"Ah," he said in disappointment. "I thought you really care."

"I do," Quistis said making the blond man form a smile. "When the train came in, we'll distract the guards and climb in. Okay?"

Squall stared at the pair as they chatted a few feet away from him. There was an uneasy feeling stuck in his throat, and yet he couldn't place it.

-This train is bound for Dollet, stopping at East Academy. This is the last train for today. Please hurry on board-

The team looked up after they heard the loudspeaker.

"The last train..." Squall said. "Let me double check... Get off at East Academy and go through the forest, west of the station. Galbadia Garden is located up ahead... Is that correct?" he asked, looking around.

All his three remaining members gaped at him, no one answered back. He glanced at Quistis's direction, but she disappeared from the station.

If she was there, she would say: "Indeed. Glad we have a leader with a good memory."

Noticing this, Zell said, "Uh, yeah! That's right! Glad we have a leader with a good memory!"

"He's smart," Selphie said with a nod from Rinoa. "He didn't need our answer, Zell."

"I think it's a rhetorical question," Rinoa said. "Isn't that a rhetorical question, Squall?"

Sighing, Squall motioned everyone to get on-board.

-This train, bound for East Academy, will depart shortly—

Meanwhile, the instructor climbed into the cargo area, Seifer followed behind. "You know, you don't have to hit the guard that hard," she said, sitting on the corner.

"You said hit him," Seifer said. "So I did."

He sat next to her, grimacing when the dusts flying up from the floor he just threw his bottom at.

Looking around him, he pouted and bawled, "Why do we're the one who has to sit in here? Why do they're the one who get the tickets? Damn that angsty Puberty Boy and stupid Chicken Wuss! Damn that spoiled Princess and cheery foal!"

Quistis chuckled. "That cheery foal is now your Knight, oh Dear Sorceress Almasy," she chastised him with an amused smile.

He shot her a withered glare.

To be continued…