Wah! The last chapter! *sniff* It seems like I just started this story yesterday…They grow up so fast! Thank you for putting up with the update lag; once again, real life got in the way (this time in the form of midterms and papers); I wrote an extra long chapter again to try and make up for it. Oh, I wanted to mention, if the intro song to this story is "The City is at War" by Cobra Starship, the ending theme is definitely "The Way the War Was Won" by Your Vegas (iTunes search, etc. if you're curious).

Thank you so much to everyone who stuck by the story from the start and to those who stumbled across it later! Also, more thanks go out to: xHanako, becauseimthefavorite, Jellicle-Wishes, ChaosGarden, Nekotsubasa, doomshuriken, RealityInABottle, Love-in-the-Stars, Trempush, BlackCatHikari, nearcreature, Shinimegami7, Aindel S. Druida, Anonymous, xacilia, suberXxXduperXxXfun machine, Becca86, LoneBoy7, Dragi, ramen-is-my-goddess, Little Wolf Vamp Hearts Yaoi, ooXloveXoo582, TwlightMystery, Clockwork Phoenix, Bane-Dane, chibi heishi, vampirezombieduck, CloudedMirror89, Arid Tundra, ALovelyVampire, , and MadeInHolland!! People have been asking if I have a sequel/new story in the works and all I can say is…maybe~! Anyway, as soon as I start up a new story, you can expect an Author's note at the end of this story to direct you to it, or just keep your eyes open if you're interested. Anyway, thanks very much dudes! You guys are the best!

O

Chapter 21

As he stepped out of the jeep, the brown sand crunching under his boots, Squall felt an overwhelming sense of déjà-vu and his heart sunk a little more. After nearly thirty-six hours of travel by train, taxi, plane, and bus, he was back in the last place he wanted to be, aside from prison of course. But maybe this was still worse.

The SeeD bunker looked exactly the same as when he had left it about a month and a half ago. The air was still warm and dry, a shock after having spent so long in Traverse Town where winter was settling in. In fact, if he didn't know better, it felt like he had only left yesterday. It was a sickening feeling. Slinging his duffle bag over his shoulder, Squall nodded a quick thanks back to the soldier who had picked him up in the city and began to walk towards the concrete building. After spending so much time out of his uniform, it felt a little weird wearing it again. Luckily he had finally gotten it cleaned a few days ago so he hadn't gotten more than the usual strange looks while coming here. However, he would've loved to see the look on Seifer's face when the man saw that his blood had still been on Squall's shirt.

Just as Squall was about to reach the bunker's heavy metal door, it was pushed open to reveal none other than the man he had just been thinking about, a smug look on the other's face, "I was beginning to wonder if you had gotten lost on the way here, Leonhart."

Squall rolled his eyes as his face fell down into a scowl. He had forgotten; while he was away Seifer had been promoted. That meant that the man was now his superior officer.

Could his life get any worse?

"The plane's layovers were extended. Blame the airports."

Seifer's condescending look didn't fade; if anything, it seemed to spread further across his face, "That wouldn't be nearly as fun. And I expect more respect from you in the future, soldier. I want to hear those 'Yes, sir!'s. Understood?"

Squall wasn't amused but he was too jet-lagged to put up an argument right now. Besides, as much as he hated to admit it, Seifer was right. "Yes sir…"

He didn't think that Seifer's smirk could grow anymore self-satisfied. "Good. I suspect you know the policy for returners, right?"

Narrowing his eyes, Squall crossed his arms over his chest, "I'm afraid I don't, sir." It wasn't often that a SeeD returned to active duty after leaving the field; after taking a break they were usually unable, and usually unwilling, to keep up with the harsh demands that SeeD required.

"Well, I did some research, and it looks like protocol says that returners have to go through a short retraining period. Isn't that something?" Squall grit his teeth. Newly recruited SeeD members were always brought in from the military but they had to go through about a month's worth of supplementary training before they were put out on the field. That training had been hell and to think that he had to go back through it…

Trying to keep his voice even, Squall ground out, "With all due respect…I think that I'm in good enough shape to go right back out into the field."

"Too bad protocol doesn't agree." Seifer smirked, "You'll train with the new recruits until I decide that you're ready for it. That being said, you're to report out to the training area behind the bunker at O-four-hundred tomorrow. If I were you, I'd get some sleep while I still could."

Rolling his eyes, Squall shouldered his way past Seifer and into the building. It felt good to be out of the sun, even though that meant stepping back into this concrete box. "And where's my new bunk? Down with the recruits?"

Seifer shook his head as he closed the door behind the brunette, "You're back in your old bunk." Squall was surprised. His old bunk was situated with some of the other higher ranking SeeD; the fact that they hadn't found anyone else to fill it while he was away spoke to the amount of men they must have lost in the raid Seifer had told him about weeks ago. Perhaps mistaking his expression, Seifer sneered back, "Don't be getting any ideas about how the next few weeks are going to go though. Just because you're sleeping with us doesn't mean you're going to get out of the training exercises."

"Didn't even cross my mind. Now, unless you have something else to say…?"

Seifer snorted and waved his hand, "You're dismissed. You weren't gone that long so you had better remember where everything is."

Squall only gave him a small nod before turning his back to the man and heading back down an all too familiar corridor. The same concrete floor, gray walls, bare lightbulbs hanging from the ceiling…He hated the way his feet moved automatically, hated the smell, hated the way the air tasted, but…at the same time…the familiarity was almost…comforting. This was the environment where the person he had become belonged. As disturbing a thought as it was, he almost felt more at home here than he had in Traverse Town with Sora.

With these thoughts in mind he trudged into the dormitory and dropped his duffle bag down at the foot of his bunk before letting his body fall onto the mattress. He let out a muffled grunt at the impact; the bedding was worse than he had remembered, that had been like belly-flopping onto a hardwood floor. Nevertheless, his exhaustion won out and, trying to block out the suffocating smells and sounds, forced sleep to come. Seifer hadn't been lying earlier. He was going to need every second of sleep that he could take in.

OoOoOo

Squall started awake as something heavy landed on back, knocking the air out of him. Thrashing around, he heard a soft thump as whatever it was rolled off onto the ground and opened his eyes only to be hit in the face with a blinding beam of light.

As his eyes flew shut again, a voice much too energized for the early morning hour filled his ears, "Hey there, Leon! This is your wake-up call! Good to see you again by the way!"

"Ugh…Zell?" The beam of light moved away to point at the wall behind him and Squall risked opening his eyes again, his suspicions confirmed. The voice had indeed belonged to his friend. Running a hand over his face, Squall slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position, his voice still gruff from sleep, "What the hell was that for…?"

Zell grinned, the tattoo on his face shifting as the corners of his mouth turned up, "Just be glad it was me, Almasy would've done worse than throw your duffle bag on ya, man."

Glancing down, Squall confirmed that the heavy thing that landed on him had been his duffle bag after all. Weird, he didn't remember it being that heavy. But that's not what really surprised him about the situation, "No, I mean, what are you doing up?"

"Ah, yeah," Zell let out an exasperated sigh, "I got stuck with early morning sentry duty. I just got back from patrolling the perimeter. I guess the good news is that it's all clear for you and the newbies to get your morning exercise!"

Squall groaned as he ran his fingers through his hair. He had forgotten about that. A quiet laugh escaped Zell at his expression, "It's hilarious, imagining you back in training. Just put up with it and get through it real quick, okay? I don't think Seifer will keep you there too long, he needs all the experience he can get out in the field. Seriously, it will be good to have you back again."

Snorting, Squall slowly stood up, "Unfortunately I can't say it's good to be back…though it's good to see you again with all your body parts still in tact."

Zell's smirk grew drier as he reached out to straighten Squall's uniform which the brunette had ended up sleeping in, "Yeah, by luck alone. Now," the blonde stepped back and, seeming to approve, clapped Squall on the shoulder, "get out there and show those rookies how we do things around here!"

"Whatever…"

His friend didn't seem put off by his lack of enthusiasm, simply crawling up into his own bunk with a small wave as Squall dragged himself out of the room. At least he didn't have to change. He should probably have taken a shower but, then again, it would be better to save his shower time until after the training. He was going to need it.

The rooms and corridors were relatively quiet as he walked through them, although a few men were already up and wandering to the mess hall, probably those who, like Zell, had just gotten off night duty. Because their bunker was technically located within enemy territory, they always had guards posted and soldiers on duty, ready to defend against a surprise attack. A few of the men nodded to him, recognizing his face from before and Squall nodded back in return, not feeling up to talking at the moment.

Reaching the door leading to the back "field", he shoved the heavy slab of metal open and peered around. It really shouldn't have been called a field as there was no grass over the area, just a leveled area made up of sand, just like everything else for as far as the eye could see. The good thing about it was that during the day, the bunker cast a shadow over about half of the space which provided some relief from the broiling sunlight. Not that that mattered now since the sun wasn't even up yet.

There were about a dozen other men outside, undoubtedly the new recruits. That was actually a bigger number than usual but it made sense, seeing as their unit had a few empty positions to fill. He had just fallen in line with the rest of them when the door he had just passed through once again flew open to reveal one of the ranking officers, undoubtedly the man who was going to run them through their paces that morning. The man only gave Squall a quick once-over before ordering the group as a whole to take a lap around the bunker. Seifer must have told the officer about him then, though the thought didn't bother him much as he began to jog off with the others. He had figured that Seifer would take the chance to come humiliate him so seeing another soldier as their training officer was a bit of a relief.

After a few hours of intensive training however, that relief had given way to annoyance. The group had just been granted a five minute break for water to make sure that no one passed out from dehydration. It was only ten in the morning and already Squall could feel his uniform becoming soaked in sweat. Leaning against the concrete wall in a sliver of shade, Squall glared at the training officer's back as he gulped down mouthfuls of lukewarm water. At first he had been fine with the training, it wasprotocol after all, but he was quickly realizing how much it bothered him to be receiving orders along with all of the other newcomers. He had worked hard to get to the point where he was able to be the one giving orders, not following them, and finding himself in such a demoted position was just…irritating. Especially after the freedom he had grown accustomed to with Zexion and Riku.

His brooding was interrupted as the door to the bunker opened again and the last person he wanted to see at that moment stepped out into the sunlight. Their eyes immediately locked and Seifer smirked before the expression was quickly hidden away as the blonde man turned towards the trainer, "Thompson, what the hell are the rookies sitting for?"

The officer, Thompson, spun on his heels and gave a quick salute, "Water break, sir. They'll be back on their feet in two minutes."

"Nevermind that. Go get some breakfast or something and let me whip them into shape."

"Yes, sir."

Squall no longer bothered to hide his glare as Thompson disappeared back into the bunker to leave them alone with Seifer, the blonde crossing his arms as he caught the look. "What, you want to go in too?"

Taking another gulp of water, Squall answered in a growl, "Yeah, breakfast would be nice."

He really didn't like the look that had just come into Seifer's eyes. It reminded him of that spark of excitement that Riku had gotten in his own eyes just before he shot someone. "Alright then, line up, all of you. Once more exercise and you can go in to get some food." The new recruits were only too happy to obey but to say that Squall was suspicious would be an understatement. Even so, he dropped his canteen and rose to his feet, not wanting to give Seifer an excuse to give him extra time for insubordination. "Now, get down on the ground and show me some push-ups."

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Squall dropped down and obeyed, he and the others falling into a natural rhythm. He had been expecting something a little more dramatic than the basic push-up…unless…

Squall scowled down at the sand underneath him before raising his head to look up at Seifer even as he continued with the exercise, "How many do you want, Almasy?"

He swore that he saw Seifer fight down a grin and he instantly felt sorry for the new recruits. Whatever Seifer said next wasn't going to be good. "That's for you to decide." Looking at the group as a whole, Seifer's chin tilted up in an arrogant challenge, "The lot of you are going to do push-ups until one of you gives up. So impress me, show me what kind of men SeeD is bringing in these days."

Gritting his teeth as the other's answered back with a well-trained chorus of "Yes, sir!", Squall simply turned his eyes back to the ground, beginning to try and control the strain in his arms. There was no telling how long they were going to be at this; Seifer had played a dirty card. Every man who came into SeeD was proud of his physical abilities and not one of them would willingly be the first to give up. All he knew was that it couldn't be him. He would never allow Almasy that sort of satisfaction.

The minutes stretched into half an hour and then an hour and then two and three hours, Squall's forearms starting to ache. He had lost count long ago of the number of push-ups he had done, it didn't even matter anymore. They had kept up the same pace through stubbornness alone and, now that the sun was overhead and beating down on them with its full strength, he could hear some of the other men beginning to pant from the exertion. He could feel sweat rolling down his back and forehead, the fabric of his uniform beginning to stick to his damp skin. As the minutes continued to tick by, Squall was glad that he had taken that last sip of water. Whether or not any of them wanted to stop, pretty soon one of them would be forced to after suffering heat stroke.

Seifer had long since retreated into the shade of the bunker, calmly watching them as he leaned backed against the concrete wall. Squall could feel the man's eyes on him but that only pushed him harder. If Almasy thought this would bring him down than the man was going to be disappointed. He had been a SeeD too long to not remember how to block out the physical pain and just continue the motion, over and over, letting his mind drift just enough so that he wasn't focused on the way his arms were starting to shake just a little every time he pushed his body back up.

The others though weren't as prepared as he was and, as Squall had predicted, one of them finally just didn't have enough water in his body to continue to function, having lost too much to sweat. As the man collapsed, he could feel rather than hear a wave of relief shudder through the rest of them as they permitted themselves to stop.

Pushing himself up once more, Squall rolled back into a sitting position and looked towards the man who had fallen only to find that Seifer was already at the soldier's side with a canteen. After he had slapped the man awake and forced some water down his throat, Seifer turned to the rest of the them with a small frown, "Alright, like I promised, you guys can go ahead and take a break for some food." He had barely finished his sentence before everyone but Squall was on their feet and shuffling towards the bunker, "Just be back here in half an hour! You've got three more hours of training afterwards!"

Squall watched as he received some shaky salutes in response before Seifer walked over to him as Squall stood, "Leonhart, you did better than I thought."

Blinking at what he thought what might have been a compliment, Squall looked straight at the blonde, "Thanks, I think. Although I'm not sure what you were expecting."

Seifer shrugged, "You were off duty for almost six weeks, most would have fallen out of practice."

The comment brought a small smile to Squall's lips. There was no way that he would've fallen out of practice with what he had gone through; if anything, he was in better shape than ever. "I managed to keep in shape."

"We'll see about that. But maybe Dincht was right…If I'm feeling particularly generous maybe I'll get you out of retraining early."

This time Squall really did roll his eyes, "Thanks so much, sir."

"Stop being so goddamn sarcastic, Leon, and get into practice of treating me as your superior officer. Should I remind you that the time you spend getting retrained doesn't count towards fulfilling your contract with SeeD?" Squall instantly sobered up. Seifer was right; the longer he spent in training, the longer it would be until he could go home again.

"Maybe I should get lunch then so I can make it back here on time—"

Seifer cut him off and Squall looked up to see that amusement had once again crossed over the man's face. "Before you go running off, you'll have to make a quick stop."

Squall narrowed his eyes, "Where?"

"The infirmary." Squall gave the man a look and Seifer only smirked again before reaching up and tugging on a strand of Squall's hair that had grown out to a little past his shoulders. "You need a haircut, so you'll need to go where they have a good pair of scissors. The way you are, I doubt the helmet will fit on top of your head."

Swatting Seifer's hand away, Squall scowled but didn't protest too much. He knew his hair should have been trimmed two months ago, he had just always put it off. "Fine, but I get an extra half hour on break."

"I don't think so. If you can't manage it, you'll have to go without food until dinner." He would probably have to eat while he got someone to cut his hair then…hopefully the doctors weren't too busy right now that one of them wouldn't be able to play barber for a few minutes.

Luckily, the infirmirary was empty and the doctor was in a good enough mood to humor such a request. Even better, what the SeeD doctor lacked in artistry he made up for in speed. Within moments Squall felt inches beginning to be cut off and he only had to wait about ten minutes for the man to announce that he was done. Standing up as he was dismissed, he glanced at a small mirror that had been leaned up against the wall; his hair was short again, except for the bangs which the man had left long. It looked almost exactly like the style he had two years ago, "Thanks. Looks good."

"I do what I can. Now, they probably have you on a ridiculously short lunch break, so try to get a little food in your stomach, okay? Maybe some protein. You'll need it."

Happy that he would actually have time to get some lunch after all, Squall obeyed, his head feeling strangely less weighted down as he walked to the mess hall. He had just barely made it inside when he heard a voice calling his name from across the room. It was Dincht. Not even his friend was going to distract him from food right now though, and he snatched up a plate and loaded it up with food from the cafeteria-like set-up before walking over to the tattooed SeeD.

As he finally made it over to the table, Zell patted the chair beside him, the man sitting at the end of a long table meant to hold half the SeeD unit at a time. "Hey, look at you, Leon! You look like a little kid again! After getting used to your hair, I hardly recognize you!"

Squall shook his head at Zell's grin as he began to ungracefully inhale his lunch. Elegance could go screw itself, he was starving. "Is that a compliment?"

"Sure, let's say so. Anyway, how's training going?"

Squall paused only long enough to shoot Zell a glare, "Almasy just spent the last four hours 'training' us, how do you think it's going?"

A laugh escaped the other SeeD, "That good, huh? Sounds about right. But listen," Zell's face grew almost serious and he scooted his chair closer, "I just got wind that some bigger missions are in the works. I'll bet Seifer'll pull you out soon."

"I don't know, I think he has too much fun watching me suffer…"

"Yeah, but he needs you more. Not that he'll ever admit to it. Anyway, I'm taking a group out on recon tonight, so when I get back in a few days I should be able to tell you more about it."

Squall perked up at this. Reconnaissance could either be a very boring job or a very dangerous one, depending on how close you got to the enemy and what you actually found. "You going close to enemy camps?"

"That's the plan. Oh, right, you were gone. We found a possible hideout of theirs about fifteen miles southwest of here, so we're heading out on foot to check the place out. If everything goes right, we shouldn't be spotted so, no problem. Except for that I have to carry out like half my body weight in water, which sucks." Squall nodded, knowing that the man probably wasn't exaggerating that much. Water was heavy, and when you were walking all day, or even all night, through the desert without any cover you needed a lot of it. It was almost unheard of for a SeeD to go through less than two gallons a day while on duty. The weight of the water you needed plus all your gear, including your armor and weapons added up, which of course only made you work harder and made you thirstier.

"Be careful."

Zell just gave him a small wink, "Come on, I wouldn't go out on Recon! You just worry about getting yourself through training. If Seifer keeps you on for more than a week, I'll be surprised."

Squall scoffed a little as he leaned back in his seat, having finished his food, "You'd better be right…I might go crazy otherwise."

Grinning, Zell gave him a hearty slap on the back, "Ha, well, try to keep your sanity for a little longer; we're going to need you soon!"

Squall just nodded, once again hoping that Dincht was right.

And, after five more days passed, it turned out he was.

Zell had made it back, having safely completed his mission, and he, Seifer, and a few more of the higher ups in their unit disappeared behind a pair of closed doors before calling for Squall to join them where the situation was explained to him in detail. Apparently while he had been away the enemy combatants had grown in number and in bravery, shown by the way that they launched a raid on the actual SeeD bunker all those weeks ago. The military was beginning to worry that they were losing control of the region and were thus asking the SeeD to step up their game to take some of the pressure off of the official troops. It would have almost been insulting except that was the reason the SeeD had been brought in in the first place. They had been trained to do what ordinary soldiers could not, and that included going in ahead of the frontline. Luckily, or unluckily depending on how you looked at it, they needed every experienced SeeD that they could get their hands on to lead smaller groups out for the initial round of assignments: more recon, probably small skirmishes, that sort of thing.

Seifer started him out slow at first, partnering him up with Dincht or sending him out on smaller, less risky, missions but Squall didn't mind too much. After all, he did need to warm back up and it was strange, initially, being in charge of a group again. As he spoke to the other SeeD through the headset installed in his helmet, his visor down and shading his eyes from the strength of the sun's rays, he would be reminded of working with Riku and Zexion and for a moment it would feel wrong to be barking out orders into the microphone.

It all came back easily though; just like riding a bike, you never really could forget how to act. It had been drilled so thoroughly into Squall's head that he didn't think that he would ever be rid of it. Those around him, including Almasy, realized this and within a month he was back in his old positions like he hadn't ever left. It felt good, but at the same time, having reestablished his rank alongside Zell and now just below Seifer, he was now going into some of the most dangerous areas.

The hours turned to days, the days to weeks, and Squall could barely manage to remember to eat no less have time to think about things back in Traverse Town. During the first month, he had sent out two letters to Sora but now, whenever he had a second to think and his thoughts drifted to his brother, he could only be thankful that Cloud had volunteered to watch over the teen. There was no way that he could have managed to take care of Sora from here; with slow post and no reliable phone or internet, communicating with the outside world was nearly impossible.

Of course, at the same time, that is what allowed the SeeDs to stay sane. Even thinking about anything deeper than what you were going to have for dinner was discouraged, as Squall was reminded as he let the lifestyle swallow him up again. Think about anything else and you started thinking about home, and what you were doing, and soon enough you would just…lose it. Like what had happened to him when he had gotten the letter about his parents' accident; any reminder of the real world and you just wouldn't be able to keep going. Not with everything that they did and saw each day. Squall had readjusted himself to the taste of sweat, the smell of gunpowder, and the sight of human blood spilling across the sand. That was the new normal. That had to be the new normal.

The good news was that the days seemed pass by faster than Squall could blink. The bad news was that every day the missions grew more hazardous as the tensions continued to mount between the SeeD and their enemies. Eventually, the day came when the tension finally snapped and it was decided that they needed to act before the fight came to them.

Sitting down around a rickety table, Seifer ran his fingers through his hair as Zell and Squall took the two empty seats, the three having gathered early in the morning in an unofficial meeting. A short silence settled between them, probably due to the fact that Zell was still shaking off his exhaustion. The poor man had just gotten back to the bunker around two in the morning and had gotten all of three hours of sleep. Seeing that no one else was going to start up the conversation, Seifer leaned back in his chair, "Alright, so I just got word back from the Lieutenant General."

Squall heard him begin to trail off and frowned, "And?"

"It looks like we're going to launch a raid against the enemy's northeastern HQ."

"By ourselves?"

"Yeah."

Squall let out a long breath of air. After a long period of feeling the enemy out, they had narrowed their centers of activity down to a few locations, one of the big ones happening to be their headquarters to the northeast of the SeeD bunker. It used to be a small village but the enemy had completely gutted it and turned it into a stronghold, filled with ammunition, supplies, and land mines. Basically, it was going to be a nightmare to raid, especially to do so with the SeeD's limited resources. If they were lucky, they'd be able to round up enough all-terrain vehicles to get the whole unit out there without anyone having to make what would be a two-day hike.

As if finally realizing what Seifer had just said, Zell's eyes popped open, "What, are you serious?"

Neither Squall nor Seifer could stop a small smirk from slipping across their lips as Seifer crossed his arms, "Little slow on the uptake there, Dincht. And yeah I'm serious, why the hell would I joke about something like that?"

Zell frowned, "It wouldn't surprise me, you have a dark sense of humor." The man let out a large sigh, "Man, this is exactly the type of stunt I should've expected…right when we were going to be able to get out of here too…"

"Huh?"

Turning to Squall, Zell's lit back up in a soft grin, "We've only got three weeks left until our contracts are up."

Squall blinked. Had time really passed that quickly? Then a thought hit him, "You guys are on the two year contract too…Why haven't you left yet? You should have been done three weeks ago."

Seifer remained silent and finally Zell spoke up, that same grin on his face, "We came into this together, and the three of us are going out of it together. Remember, when we just got into the SeeD?" Squall tried, but for the life of him all that came back of that early time were blurs. "We agreed that we'd all take that plane flight out of this hellhole, together. So we're sticking to it."

As Zell's words sunk in, Squall's eyes widened. They were staying on an extra six weeks for him. They both were. They were putting their lives on the line for some stupid promise they had made to each other as recruits.

Before Squall could get pulled in too deep by his emotions, Seifer quickly waved it off as he glanced away, "Don't think too much of it. As the commanding officer, I have to stay on until this shit is over with. I guess that just makes Dincht an idiot."

He knew very well that Seifer was just trying to save face. He could have left three weeks ago with plenty of time for a new commander to take over his role. But Squall wasn't about to argue the point; he owed him that much, "Still, thanks. I feel better going in with you guys watching my back."

Rolling his eyes, Seifer sat up, "Watch your own back, Leon, I'll be running out in front of you. Anyway, we're taking off tomorrow as soon as we get the gear packed up. Just cross your fingers we have enough humvees or else you guys will be sharing a seat for the trip."

Squall scowled as he pushed himself to his feet. He had things to get done before tomorrow; they all did. "I'd rather sit on the roof."

"Watch what you wish for, Leonhart. And Dincht, for the love of god, get to bed early today. You need to be alert tomorrow."

Zell saluted cheekily, "Yes, sir!"

As it turned out, everyone in the bunker went to bed early that night, except for the four men on guard duty who would be staying at the base the next day. It was the first time that Squall could remember that nearly every single bunk was filled, only serving to emphasize the extent of the assault they were about to launch. It would certainly be the biggest foray their SeeD unit had ever been a part of. For once Squall didn't pass out as soon as his back hit the mattress but stayed awake for a while, staring up at the bunk above his where Seifer was sleeping, Zell laying out like a light in the bunk next to his head. If something was going to happen to him, to any of them, it was going to happen tomorrow. And as much as it scared him, he had come to terms with it. After all, there were only three weeks left until he could see Sora, his house, Cloud again, and stay for good. That alone would be enough to carry him through whatever hell that awaited him.

The day after started up deceivingly enough like any other day, all of the soldiers out helping to load up the trucks as the sun started to show over the barren horizon. They had managed to get one of their spare humvees working so everyone was just barely able to get their own seat, which was a blessing since Squall really hadn't wanted to ride with Zell on his lap the whole way. That was something he'd only tolerate from one person: Sora, and still only for short distances. The idea of doing so over the bumpy sand dunes while simultaneously in full battle gear with your rifle in your hands was not appealing.

Even with the vehicle packed full of guns, ammunition, supplies, and human bodies, the ride was nearly silent, the small curses slipping past Seifer's lips as he drove them over particularly rough patches the only noise to pierce the quiet. Squall was riding in the passenger's seat, Zell sitting directly behind him, both men gripping tightly at the handles bolted above the humvee's doors to keep themselves balanced. Since there were no roads where they were going, their pace was painstakingly slow, their powerful vehicles barely managing the rough terrain as their tires kicked up a storm of dust in their wake. Nevertheless they had the windows opened wide, the wind their only reliable air-conditioning.

They had left early enough that they arrived at their location, about half a mile away from the enemy's camp, by mid-morning, the sun not quite at its hottest but high enough in the sky to cast a shimmering haze over the sand. As soon as he shifted into park, Seifer had jumped from the car and began shouting orders as the rest of their caravan caught up and men began to pile out. Squall knew that every second counted now; the sand storm they had kicked up would have caught the attention of even the laziest look-out and they had to act fast to not give their opponents time to prepare their defenses.

Squall pulled on his helmet, flipping on his radio as he watched Zell do the same, the other man giving him a thumbs up as Seifer focused on getting his troops into some sort of formation. "—Good lucky, buddy!—"

Squall answered with a stiff nod just as Seifer met up with them, the blonde flipping down his visor, his icy blue eyes still visible through the plastic, "—Let's move out! Keep an eye out, we'll be in range in a few hundred feet.—"

Looking up as they began to walk, Squall could make out the silhouette of the village up ahead and flipped the safety off of his rifle. Zell was a few feet to his left, Seifer on his right, as the three of them led the SeeD at a quick march knowing that there was nowhere to hide, no shelter, between them and the village should they start receiving fire. A few tense minutes passed as they all strained their eyes, looking for anything, any sign of life. From this distance, the village looked peaceful but Squall knew that it wouldn't be long before—there! "Second roof to the left, RPG!"

"—Hit the ground!—" The sharp order from Seifer came nearly at the same instant there was a blast in the distance, a small puff of smoke clouding up around the figure Squall had seen at the roof as the discharge sent a grenade shooting out towards them. Throwing himself to the sand, Seifer's static-shadowed voice rang in his ears before, before he could even take a breath, an explosion suddenly seeming to erupt from the sand two meters in front of where he was laying. "—On your feet! Remember, there's not one civilian among them and we're not taking P.O.W.s, so let's move!—"

Gritting his teeth, Squall pushed himself up, Zell close on his heels, and followed Seifer as he led the charge, the other SeeD running after them. There was another explosion to his far right, but Squall ignored it, his focus set on the village. They were only hundreds of feet away now and he could see figures beginning to emerge from around the corners of buildings and from behind low rock walls, not one hand without a gun in its hold. And he kept running forward, his breath echoing heavily in his helmet.

The next few moments meshed into one single chaotic flurry of motions, gunfire, and screams having finally stepped within accurate rifle range. The SeeD mercilessly began to exchange round for round, trying desperately to rush forward to secure any sort of defensible position, anything to duck down behind, to catch their breath, to take a moment to aim.

Squall lost track of everyone else as he vaulted over a short rock wall and slammed the butt of his rifle down into a man crouched there with his finger on the trigger of his semi-automatic. A spatter of blood hit his visor but he didn't give himself time to think, wouldn't let himself think, couldn't think; he was running purely on instinct and training now. It was about surviving to take your next breath.

Whipping his head up, he shot down a man just in time to avoid taking a round to the chest, deafened by the sound of gunfire erupting around him and people yelling over the headset. Seifer, Zell, "to your right", "around the corner", "behind you!", that tense fear of death filling their voices.

Squall heard more screams behind him and spotted a SeeD pushing further ahead into the village and chased after him, firing at another man, then another, and another. To his left, a SeeD kicked down the door to a dilapidated house and charged inside, only to be blasted out a second later, dead before he hit the ground as another enemy poured out from inside, Squall gunning him down before the other could do the same to him.

Hearing Zell's voice again, Squall's eyes darted around wildly before they finally landed on a familiar figure crouching down behind an empty cart. Able to recognize his friend simply by his shape and behavior, Squall ran to his side, Zell giving him a tight-lipped smile, "You okay?"

Squall nodded then jumped as another person ran up to them, his gun lowering only once he had identified Seifer, the man's voice clearer over the headset than through the air, "—You two, just who I wanted to see! I'm going in further, you with me?—"

Squall and Zell's answer was simultaneous: "Yes, sir!"

"—Alright then, let's go—"

Leaving the safety of their small barricade, Squall and Zell quickly took up their positions, flanking Seifer on either side as they all began to storm forwards. Back in the open, gunfire once again filled Squall's senses. Most of the other members of SeeD were behind them but there were one or two who had rushed again, their identities nearly impossible to determine inside the chaos. Looking closer, Squall realized that one of the men was wounded and running back towards them through a town square, a sitting-duck as he stumbled through the open area.

Without any hesitation, Squall gave a small nod to Seifer before running towards his injured comrade, doing his best to take out any enemies he saw on the way. They were hiding behind buildings and fences, shooting through windows and from rooftops; he was sure he was missing a few but, knowing that Seifer and Zell were probably right behind him he knew that they would to take care of the stragglers for him.

As he got closer to the wounded man Squall was able to see blood dripping down his arm. The soldier would need immediate medical attention; the field medic was probably back towards the outskirts of the village, but hopefully wouldn't be too difficult to find. Now only a few yards away, Squall could just see the man's pained face through his tinted visor. And he was only able to understand what happened next by seeing the panic in the other's eyes as the soldier took one more step forward.

As soon as the man set his foot down, the sand underneath his boot compressed and suddenly Squall's vision was blasted apart by a huge explosion. The wave of energy slammed into him and sent him flying back, losing track of which way was up as he tumbled through the air, a scorching heat ripping through his body as he blacked out.

When he could finally see again, Squall was lying on his back staring straight up at the sky, the blue color covered by a haze of dust and gunpowder. His hearing returned just as sand kicked up beside him and, a second later, Seifer and Zell were hanging over him, their faces ashen. Their voices sounded strange in his ears, a slight ringing to them…it was hard to focus on their words.

"Dicht, get his helmet off!"

Squall blinked as Zell wrestled with the straps on his helmet and was about to reach up to help when he was hit with a searing pain as soon as he moved his arms. Sucking in a dry breath, his chest heaved as he tried to even comprehend what had happened. His whole lower body felt as if it had been lit on fire and that someone was trying to pull his guts straight out of his body. The wounded soldier, he had stepped forward…land mine. It had been a land mine.

Letting out a stifled gasp as Zell finally worked his helmet off, Squall tilted his head but before he could see anything Seifer put a firm hand on his chest to hold him, "Don't look down, Leon!"

Drawing in another shaky breath, Squall grit his teeth. He could feel Seifer's palm trembling through the man's glove. If it was that bad…"My legs…?"

Glancing back up, Seifer shook his head, "You're legs are, there, but that's not what I'm worried about."

A breath of air passed through Squall's lips as he leaned his head back onto the sand. He had heard of one too many soldiers loosing their legs in this sort of thing. He had probably only been saved because he hadn't been the one to hit the mine. The other man…was probably dead. Feeling something welling up inside his throat, Squall coughed, wincing as he just barely felt something trickle down his chin. It was blood, "Wha—what 's it?"

The pain overwhelmed him and he nearly blacked out again, coming back just in time to see Zell's panicked face wince although Squall missed the sharp glare Seifer sent the other soldier, "Ah, I don't think I should—"

"Zell…!"

"Alright! Uh, imagine, imagine that there was a piece of shrapnel the size of, of your hand, embedded in your stomach. It'd be something like th—"

He was interrupted by a sharp bark from Seifer, "--Dincht, shut up, get your ass in gear, and find a medic!"

"Yes sir!"

More sand flew into the air as Zell sprang to his feet and ran off as another cough escaped passed Squall's lips, more blood seeming to bubble up in his throat every time he breathed. Despite all of his SeeD training to block out pain, the agony was becoming so great that he felt himself going back under, the edge of his vision beginning to grow hazy. He just barely heard Seifer's voice, even the sounds of the surrounding melee growing distant, "Shit…I can't tell how deep it is. It's gonna have to stay in until we get some help over here or you'll just bleed out."

Squall hoped Seifer hadn't been expecting a reply because he wasn't going to get one. Breathing was enough of a challenge so talking was out of the question. In fact, keeping his eyes open was becoming a problem too. He shuddered as a cold wave swept through him, the feeling strange after spending so many months being burned by sunlight.

The action caught Seifer's attention and one of the man's hands moved up from Squall's stomach to slap lightly at his cheek, "Hey, don't you go under on me."

If Squall had any energy left he would have smirked at that. He was straining ever fiber in his being to stay awake, to stay focused, to stay alive, but every second he could feel himself drifting further and further.

The sound of gunfire had stopped all together but he was sure it wasn't because the fight had ended. He was shutting down, he could feel it as a haze began to seep over his eyes.

Sora…what about Sora? Would he be alright? Would he be able to keep the house…?

Through the fog there was a flash of gold and blue above him and he sensed someone leaning over him, blocking out the sky and he tried to suck in a breath, "…Cloud…?"

He felt a sigh, the air hot against his chilled skin as it brushed against his cheek before dry lips closed over his. The kiss was harsh and tasted like his own blood, but it kept him from tumbling over the edge. Pulling away slightly, the lips swept across his as murmured words slipped through them, just barely reaching his ears, "Stay with us, Leon…! The medic's on his way."

How was Cloud here…? Why--…? He just couldn't, couldn't think anymore. Leaning his head back, Squall finally closed his eyes. Maybe if he fell asleep he wouldn't feel the pain anymore…

"….Cloud."

"Cloud…wake up!"

Letting out a small moan, Cloud gripped the pillow he had pulled to his chest before forcing an eye open, only to find Sora standing over him, the teen's face alight with poorly concealed excitement. Frowning, Cloud closed his eyes again and pulled the pillow up to cover his face, "Ugh…what time's it?"

"Seven!"

Cloud let the pillow drop from his face in favor of sending Sora a soft glare, the look ruined somewhat by his bed-head and pajamas. "This had better be good…"

Sora nodded enthusiastically and, seeing that he now had Cloud's attention, climbed up onto the bed next to the detective. Seeing his excitement, Cloud's frown fell away and he scooted over to make more room for the brunette as Sora pulled a newspaper out from behind his back and spread it out over the bedsheets.

He had been coming to the Leonhart household every weekend, just like he had promised, for a little over four months now, and he had grown pretty fond of the kid. Since Sora was only fifteen Cloud felt a different sort of brotherly bond forming between them than the one he had with Roxas, who was only two years younger than him. He could see why Leon was so attached. Nevertheless, getting woken up at seven the morning after you left work at ten at night with a two hour commute on top of that wasn't good.

When he had first started coming over, he had slept out on the couch but after a while it had been Sora who first broached the question of if he wanted to sleep on one of the beds. More specifically, the teen had hesitantly asked if he wanted to stay in his late parents' room. Cloud had known that it was a sensitive issue but eventually, after a few more stays, he had taken the boy up on the offer. And the situation hadn't been as awkward as Cloud had feared. Besides, that meant that Sora could get up early on Saturday mornings and watch TV or play video games without having to bother Cloud with the noise.

So far they had gotten along pretty well. Sora was pretty self-sufficient and, like Cloud had thought, very strong-willed and seemed to manage fine on his own during the week. His health hadn't relapsed either, which was good. The most Cloud had to do was take the teen to the hospital to get a refill on his medication. In fact, the biggest trouble they had was whenever Riku tried to stop by. Knowing that Leon wouldn't be happy about that and, with his new protective streak, none too happy about it himself, Cloud had promptly threatened to arrest him for trespassing. He was pretty sure that Riku came over during the week though…he just tried not to think about what went on when he wasn't there. Luckily, Sora's personality and behaviors hadn't changed so nothing too bad could have happened.

Cloud's attention was called back as Sora flipped through the pages of the newspaper before pointing down at a story, "Look! Look what's in the paper!"

Narrowing his eyes, Cloud sat up and leaned over so that he could see the page better. Sora's finger was pointing down at a medium-sized black and white picture, some men in uniform, "Something about the military?"

"No, the SeeD! Look, it's Squall!'

Now much more interested, Cloud lunged forward and snatched up the page. Bringing it closer, Cloud realized that, yes, it was actually a pixilated picture of Leon. He had cut his hair so he hadn't realized at first. There were two other men beside him, one with short blonde hair and a stern expression, the only one looking at the camera, and the other another blonde with a strange tattoo on his face. Huh, it seemed like they wouldn't have let that kind of person into the military. Then again, it was SeeD, so mercenaries probably had different standards. His eyes swooped down to the caption: Com. Seifer Almasy of SeeD to lead surge into enemy territory. "Did you read the story?"

Sora nodded again, "Yeah, it sounded like they were going to be entering into some pretty heavy fighting. It didn't mention Squall anywhere…do you think he'll be okay?"

Gazing into Leon's face, even through a photo, gave Cloud an immediate sense of relief. No one had heard from him in well over two months now; not even his profile on the police database had any new information. Just knowing that he had been alive whenever this picture had been taken… "He's lasted this long, I'm sure he'll be fine." Looking down at the photo again, a grin lit Cloud's face. "Can you pass me my cell phone from the side table?"

Reaching over, Sora looked up at him curiously as he flipped the cell open, "Who're you calling?"

"Roxas, I want him to see this." His brother had been telling him for weeks now that he probably should start accepting that Leon had been killed, or injured, or captured, or something equally bad. Roxas had always been a bit of a pessimist, or, as he liked to say, a realist. There was no way Cloud was going to let this opportunity to rub it in his face go by.

Dialing, he pulled the phone up to his ear, the newspaper laid out in his lap as he waited for his brother to pick up. Finally a sleepy voice came over the line, "Hello…?"

"Hey, it's me. Listen, go grab the newspaper. Wait," Cloud's face fell, "you don't get the paper do you?"

"No…but hold on a sec, I think Axel gets the Sunday paper…"

Straightening up, Cloud's brow furrowed, "Why does it matter what paper Axel gets? Wait a minute, are you at his house?" The silence on the other end of the line spoke volumes. Since when were they back together? Last he knew, Roxas was still giving Axel the cold shoulder, "That's new."

"Yeah well, just…whatever, anyway, what am I getting the stupid paper for?"

"Just open it up to," Cloud glanced up at the newspaper in his hands, "page six." Had they really put this story all the way back on page six? This was front page material, and not just because it was about Leon.

He heard the sound of paper rustling for a minute before he heard a muffled exclamation from Roxas's end, suddenly sounding wide awake, "Holy crap!"

That was a better reaction than he had been expecting, "Are you really that surprised that Leon's still alive?"

"What about Leon? Oh, he's that other guy, isn't he."

"Wait, what were you talking about then?"

"The guy in front! I know him! His name is Seifer and he's the biggest asshole in the city! He used to use me and Hayer for punching bags when we used to go to Struggle matches! Figures he's in SeeD."

Cloud's eyes narrowed, "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Huh? Oh, uh, nothing! Just, anyway, I gotta call Hayner about this. Talk to you later!"

Hearing a dial tone, Cloud pulled the phone away from his ear, "Well that went differently than planned…"

Sora glanced back up, a small shine of concern in his eyes, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, Rox just recognized this other guy from the picture. Apparently he's from Twilight Town." The look of concern didn't fade away though as Sora turned back to look at the photograph. Cloud watched him for a moment then let out a small sigh, "Try not to worry about it…I'm sure Leon will be just fine."

Sliding back into consciousness, Squall blinked his eyes open only to be blinded by a bright white light. Eyes quickly falling shut again, he tried to figure out what was going on. He was…laying down, not on sand but on something softer. A cot maybe. His uniform was off…and he could feel an IV needle tapped to his arm, pumping who knew what into his veins. The last thing he remembered…being blasted by that land mine. Almasy and Dincht had been there…and Cloud? That couldn't be right.

Slowly opening his eyes this time to allow his vision time to adjust to the light, Squall looked down to find that he was indeed laying down on a cot, inside the SeeD infirmary at that. It looked like they had been able to get him back in time after all. All his body parts were still there and, he cautiously tried to wiggle his feet and hands, and they were all working. Most of the bottom half of his body was wrapped up tightly in bandages though, the thin blanket lying on top of him pulled up as if someone had just been checking his wrappings. Maybe that's what had woken him up.

Glancing to the right, Squall noticed that nearly all of the beds were full and spotted the head doctor sitting at his cramped desk in the corner, looking exhausted. He was just about to speak when he felt a hand on his shoulder and whipped around so fast it made him dizzy, a soft, tired laugh filling the air as the hand patted his arm, "Easy there, don't throw yourself off the bed."

Zell was sitting in a chair just to his left, of course the direction he hadn't looked in. Frowning, Squall leaned back onto the small pillow, "What happened?"

"Are you really gonna listen this time or are you just going to fall asleep again?"

"What?"

Zell grinned, though Squall noticed that it wasn't as bright as usual, "It's been about five days now since we brought you in and you've been drifting in and out for a while now, ever since the doc lowered your pain meds to a sane level."

Squall glanced down at his arm and the IV stuck into it, "Pain meds…?" They had to be pretty strong; he couldn't feel anything except for a dull pounding throughout his whole body and the beginnings of a migraine.

"Yeah, you're pretty dosed up right now so don't be too worried if you feel like your brains functioning a little slower than usual."

Nodding, Squall waited a minute before looking over at his friend, his brows furrowed, "What happened?"

"At the raid?" Squall nodded again and Zell let out a sigh and leaned back in his chair, "Let's see…after you went down and I came back with the medic, we carried you back to one of the humvees that he was using as a sort of field hospital. I went back to help out and between me, a severely ticked-off Seifer, and the rest of the guys, we finished up the job. By that time though, the medic had sent back a car load of the injured who needed emergency attention, you included. By the time the rest of us got back to base, you were sitting right here. For the first forty-eight hours they said that you might not make it but it looked like you managed to pull through." Zell winked at him, "I never doubted you though. You're too stubborn to go out so easily."

"Thanks for your confidence…"

"Anyway, the doc said you're still in a danger zone, though the fact that you're, like, cognizant and stuff is a good sign. Take it easy for the next few days, alright?"

Squall's lips quirked up into a strained smile, "I don't think I'm going anywhere…"

"Right."

A long silence fell between them, the only sound the noise of the doctor's pen scratching across paper from across the room and the soft hum of machines measuring heart rates and pumping air into the broken bodies laying out around him.

Finally, Zell spoke up again, his voice softer this time, "Hey, you officially owe me one favor. Remember? From right before you left that first time?" Squall paused for a moment then nodded and Zell's smile reappeared, "Then get better, okay? After all, we all need to fly out of here together, and I don't think Seifer's going to wait much longer."

Squall frowned again, "…How much time until my contract's up?"

"You have about two weeks left, just long enough to heal up enough to get on a plane. That is, as long as your body can keep up with it all."

"It'll keep up…" No matter how damaged he still was, he needed to go home. He needed to see Sora and everyone else—Cloud—again. There was no way he was missing that flight, even if he had to crawl across the tarmac on his hands and knees to get there.

oOoOo

It turned out that him crawling wasn't necessary after all. Through sheer willpower, the doctor's care, and Zell's support, Squall was able not only to stand, but to walk to the shower, rinse himself off, and pull on his uniform on the morning they were scheduled to be driven into town. It might not have seemed like a large accomplishment, but to Squall, who had been trapped on his back on that stupid cot for over a week, it felt like he was flying. Someone had even taken the time to have his uniform cleaned and mended for him, although he suspected that he had been given an entirely new pair of pants. He had seen his legs when the doctor was treating him; they weren't that bad, mostly second and some light third degree burns, but he knew that his pant legs must have been charred away.

The bad side of his mobility though was that he was no longer hooked up to the IV and the really powerful pain medication, so his stomach had been aching. Apparently there had been a good deal of internal damage done when the piece of shrapnel stabbed into him, but the doctor said that he had been able to patch everything up well enough that he shouldn't suffer from any conditions brought on by complications.

Seifer and Zell seemed just as eager to leave as he did and after being formally dismissed from duty, all three loaded up their SeeD-issue duffle bags into a jeep, climbed in, and were driven all the way to the airport. Sitting in the back seat with Zell, Squall couldn't help but be struck by how different it felt from when he had walked all the way back to the city by himself so many months ago when he had deserted. This felt better. He felt proud.

The flight itself felt short this time around. Of course, Squall had been asleep for most of it, Seifer complaining nonstop about how he used his shoulder for a pillow when he finally woke up. By then, they only had half an hour left in their flight so not even Seifer's griping could spoil his mood. Zell seemed to be of a similar opinion and talked nonstop about everything he was going to do as soon as he got back home. The man was taking a transfer flight out to Balamb so he still had a while before he would be able to get there. They promised to keep in touch but Squall still felt a little wistful at the thought of the two of them separating again. He was a good friend and over the past few months Squall had become accustomed to his company. As for Seifer, well, Seifer, as he had learned earlier lived in Twilight Town, so Squall was sure that they'd run into each other more than he would have liked. Sure, they were friends but too much time together and they'd be at each other's throats.

When the plane landed, Squall waved goodbye to them, Zell running off through the airport terminal to catch his next flight while Seifer headed for the bus station. Squall would have followed him but he had managed to remember Cloud's advice and instead made his way towards the pick-up area where cars and taxis were waiting to take travelers home.

Sure enough, as soon as he stepped out, he was greeted with a recognizable face, though not the one he was expecting.

Chuckling, Cloud pushed himself up from where he was leaning back against a rental car and slowly walked over to him, "Surprised to see me?"

Squall frowned and slid his duffle bag off of his shoulder, "I thought you said that my probation officer would be waiting to pick me up."

"That's right, and he is." When Squall only blinked back at him, Cloud heaved a small sigh, a flash of annoyance crossing his face as if remembering something distasteful, "After all those damn court cases were finally over with, our department underwent some major restructuring. Axel was let back in and we were able to regain our partnership but with everything still so jumbled up and with Riku and Zexion running around unmonitored we had to make some fast decisions. And since our department's staff wasn't that large to begin with, we graciously volunteered our time. Besides, you guys need someone watching you who knows how to handle you…"

"So…what? You were assigned to me?"

"Axel was given Riku, Roxas has to watch Zexion, and, yeah, I got you."

"Is it legal for Roxas to watch Zexion?"

"That's right, you haven't heard. After all that, Roxas decided it was time that he become a full-blown police officer so he's a beat cop now. And admittedly it might be a little above his skill level but we figured that out of all three of you Zexion would give us the least trouble."

Squall smirked. He wasn't so sure about that, but whatever. "I guess I'll take that as a compliment."

Cloud smirked back before Squall saw the man's eyes drifting down at his uniform. Straightening up, Squall couldn't help but point it out, "Like something you see?"

Chin bouncing back up, Cloud blushed for only half a second, just long enough for Squall to catch it, before a smug expression crossed over his face, "You look pretty sharp, I'll give you that. But you know what would really complete the outfit?" Squall narrowed his eyes in confusion and Cloud's smug look grew as he pulled something out of his jacket pocket, "A GPS tracking device." Stepping closer, Cloud knelt down in front of him and pulled up his pant leg, quickly snapping a heavy band around his ankle just above his boots. Damn it, he hadn't seen that coming. Noting Squall's expression as he stood back up, Cloud flicked his army cap with that self-satisfied look still on his face, "Welcome to probation."

Scowling, Squall shook his leg, his irritation mounting as the tracker added a strange weight to his foot, "What the hell is this?"

"So I can know where you're going. By the way, cut it off and you'll have ten squad cars on your ass in minutes. It's even waterproof so you have no excuse to need it taken off." Walking back over to the car, Cloud went around to the driver's side door and opened it up, "Now get in the car, convict, or I'll take back my surprise."

"What surprise?"

"Get over here and find out."

Too curious to resist, Squall walked over as Cloud slid into the driver's seat and opened the passenger door only to find a pair of familiar wide blue eyes, not even having time to take a breath before two smaller hands reached out and tugged him inside, "Squall, I missed you!"

As Sora threw himself at his older brother, Squall climbed fully into the passenger seat and closed the door before turning his attention to the grinning teen, "Sora!" Smiling as the teen gave him a tight hug, Squall ignored the soreness in his body and returned the gesture. Just from holding him, he could tell that Sora was healthier than when he had left, "I missed you too."

"Alright, seatbelts on. The faster we all get home, the better, right?"

Glaring at the detective, Squall nevertheless released his brother and turned around to sit properly in his seat, maneuvering the seatbelt into its proper place underneath his duffle bag which he had sitting on his lap. "You can't let me spend a few more seconds with the one person actually happy to see me back?"

Cloud shot him a glance as he turned the car on and pulled away from the curb, an annoyed frown on his face, "What, you think I'm not happy to see you in one piece?"

Squall shrugged. Admittedly the man had given him a look over but that had been right before he had slapped a tracking device onto his ankle. Not a terribly welcoming reception after five months, especially after the way they had separated. But maybe Squall had just been reading too much into that...

As they came to a still at a stop sign, Squall's looked up as Cloud's voice snapped through the car, a deep scowl on his face, "Sora, turn around."

"Don't tell Sora what to do. I-umph!"

He was silenced as Cloud grabbed his uniform by the collar and the man's mouth suddenly closed over his, a soft smile slipping across Squall's face as soon as the shock wore off. As Cloud's lips parted, he closed his eyes and allowed himself to enjoy the moment as their kiss deepened, neither being gentle with the other. Maybe it wasn't such a bad homecoming after all.

Finally pulling away, Cloud turned to look straight back at the road as if to try and hide the heavy flush on his face as he accelerated again. Watching the blonde, Squall shook his head after a moment, "And you're supposed to be my probation officer?"

"Shut up! It's just," Cloud heaved a sigh, "it's just going to be really…complicated."

"It doesn't have to be—"

Squall was interrupted by a voice from the backseat, "—Can I look now?"

"Yes, Sora, you can look, and, yes, Leon, it does. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

Cloud's clipped tone left no room for disagreement so Squall decided to leave it alone. For now. He wasn't quite sure what was going to happen next but whatever it was, he was sure that life wasn't going to get boring any time soon.