FF01

by ksveela

Noblesse Oblige Batsu tousai

4. 4

"Yo! Quisty!"

Quistis looked up tiredly from her heavy bag, which she'd dropped to the ground for the sixth time since entering Garden. She was immeasurably glad to be away from her adopted family and their overbearing perfection, and she hoped Garden wouldn't have any of the same jerks from her old school who liked to bully her for being clever. 'I guess it's not...to...' Her eyes widened as she recognised the boy who'd called her name. "Zell?"

Zell was still the same obnoxiously bouncy kid that he'd been at four, when he left, but seeing him warmed Quistis' heart and she managed the first smile in what felt like years as he ran forward and wrapped her in a hug. "It's good to see you again," he said against her shoulder.

Quistis tightened her arms around him. "Oh, Zell... I've missed you so much!"

Zell laughed a bit and pulled back, running a quick hand across too-bright eyes. "Me too, Quis. Here, let me take your bag..." He leaned down and hefted it without a glimpse of the struggle Quistis had with it and she huffed, making him laugh. "How many rocks did you put in here?" he wondered teasingly. "Come on, dorms are this way."

"There aren't any rocks," Quistis muttered. "I didn't know you were at Garden."

"Not just me," Zell replied, grinning. "Squall and Seifer are here, too."

"Oh dear." Quistis sighed while Zell laughed again. "Seifer's not being too much of a brat, is he?"

Zell shook his head. "A little bit, but he's grown up a lot. He still calls me names, and he likes pissing people off, but he's a little better. All that time with Squall around helped, I think."

"What about Squall? Is he still quiet and prone to go off on his own for hours on end?" Quistis wondered, looking with some trepidation towards the crowds they were approaching.

"A bit, yeah." Zell chuckled a bit nervously. "But he's... I dunno, Quis. You'll have to see him to believe it. He's a genius."

Quistis raised a disbelieving eyebrow. "Squall? He's smart, sure, but he's no genius," she insisted. But a part of her remembered the tone he would sometimes speak in, when he spoke, and how much more mature he'd sounded. How he sometimes used words that even Quistis had to look up late at night, bothered by not knowing something.

"Aww... You found a girlfriend finally, Dincht?" a nasty voice wondered from just behind the two friends.

The two kids turned to find a burly teenager smirking down at them. "Oh, go away, O'Neil," Zell replied, scowling at one of the bullies of Garden. There weren't a lot of them, but with the first class of SeeDs graduating and many of the older kids having been looked over, they had started coming out of the woodwork and taking it out on the younger cadets. It didn't help that Squall and Seifer were practically the apples of Cid's eyes and the SeeD age limit was being bent for them. The bullies wouldn't dare cross the two advanced students, but Zell, Fujin and Raijin were all game, so far as the bullies were concerned.

O'Neil's smile faded a bit, taking on a dark cast that had Zell dropping Quistis' bag and getting between her and the bully with fists raised. "Aw, that's so cute," O'Neil cooed. "Her knight in dull armour."

"Is there a problem?" a new voice asked, a note of warning slicing right through the tension.

O'Neil paled as he turned to see Squall and Seifer standing behind him, sweaty from the Training Centre. "No, no problem at all. Dincht and I were just having a little heart-to-heart."

Squall nodded slowly, eyes cold. "Sure you were. O'Neil, keep your 'heart-to-heart's away from our friends or I'll send you to Kadowaki in pieces. Clear?"

"Yeah, clear," O'Neil breathed.

"And if I catch you again, I'll just forget to send you to Kadowaki at all," Seifer added cheerfully, eyes sharp with murderous intent. "Now, scram."

O'Neil turned and fled past Zell and Quistis, not sparing another glance for the two kids. Quistis just sort of blinked disbelievingly at the two gunbladers, but Zell grinned and called, "Squall! Seifer! Guess who I found?" He stepped to the side, revealing Quistis.

"Quisty!" Seifer exclaimed, eyes lighting with mischief as he stepped forward to hug her. "My favourite not-quite sis–"

Squall grabbed Pistol's sheath and pulled Seifer back. "Go take a shower before you hug her, you ass. Hi, Quisty."

Quistis shook her head. "Squall, Seifer. You two look..." She shook her head again. "Good. What's with the, uhm..." She motioned to her own nose.

"Training accident," the three boys chorused.

Zell grinned. "They won't give a more descriptive reason, but they did it to each other. Kadowaki couldn't heal it properly 'cause it's too close to their eyes. Somethin' like that."

"Exactly like that, Chicken-Head," Seifer retorted. "Hey, Squally, I think he's getting smarter!"

"Imagine that," Squall replied drily as he stepped forward to pick up Quistis' dropped bag, showing as much difficulty with it as Zell had. "What room are you in?"

"Oh! One thirty-three."

"That's right next to Fuu," Seifer said as Squall took the lead and they all fell in behind him. "Squall and I are one oh four, and the Chicken-Head is sharing with Rai in one twenty-eight."

"Rai and Fuu are our other friends," Zell explained for Quistis' benefit. "Seifer and Squall met them before I got here and they're all really close. Rai's from Balamb, though, so I knew him before Garden."

"You ended up in Balamb?" Quistis asked, eyes bright with the chance to learn more about her quasi-siblings. "I ended up in Dollet. What about you two, Squall? Seifer?"

Seifer shrugged. "We never got adopted. We came straight to Garden three years ago."

Quistis drooped a bit. "Oh. I'm sorry."

"Here we are," Squall interrupted, stopping in front of an open room. "Boys aren't allowed in the girls' rooms and vice versa," he added when Quistis looked curious about why he was standing outside still.

"Not that Seifer ever listens to that rule," Zell added with a grin.

"I only do it 'cause it ticks Andrea off," Seifer defended. "I dunno why Fuu's still rooming with that bitch..."

A dark head popped out of the room they were standing in front of and zeroed in on Quistis. "You must be my new roommate!" she called, stepping past Squall without really seeing him and holding out a hand to shake. "I'm Xu Han."

"Quistis Trepe," Quistis replied, taking the offered hand with a small smile.

Xu flashed her a smile, then took note of the others standing around. She shot Seifer a disgusted look, which he returned with a grin, then turned and smiled at Squall. "Hey, Squall. Are you going to start tutoring again this year?"

Squall shrugged. "Maybe? It depends on what sort of schedule they set us up on, assuming they ever tell us." He traded tiredly amused looks with Seifer before looking back at the older girl. "You're still having trouble with Survival?"

Xu nodded. "And Weaponry. Guns and throwing knives I can handle fine, but I can't figure out swords or hand-to-hand to save my life."

Squall considered that for a moment. "Seifer and I are in the Training Centre every weekend before lunch. If you join us, I can help you with swords. Hand-to-hand isn't really my forte, though. Hey, Zell?"

Zell perked up, always happy when Squall referred to his hand-to-hand skills, especially since Squall was the one who suggested he take it up. "Yeah?"

"He's the best hand-to-hand combatant I know," Squall told Xu as the girl considered the blond standing easily next to Seifer.

Xu smiled. "You're in Material Sciences with me, aren't you?"

Zell grimaced at the reminder of his worst class. He'd have completely failed out of it if Squall hadn't taken time out of his evenings twice a week to tutor him. "Yeah, that's me."

"Do you have anything after that class?"

Zell took a moment to mentally consider his schedule for the new year. "On Thursdays, yeah, but I'm free on Tuesdays, if you wanna go from class to the Training Centre?"

"That would be great!" Xu decided, her whole expression brightening. She paused for a moment, realising something, then asked, "What sort of reimbursement do you want? I pay Squall five gil an hour..."

Zell waved that off, not comfortable asking for money when it involved something he liked doing anyway. And, unlike Squall, he had parents who sent him money every other week, so funds had never been a problem for him. "Maybe you could help me a bit in Material Sciences? I'm really bad with it, and I can't keep dependin' on Squall to help me out, not if he's gonna be gone all the time next year."

Xu nodded. "Sure thing." She looked back at Squall. "You'll let me know?"

"Of course," Squall promised, finally setting the bag he'd been holding down. "We'll leave you and Quisty to make friends."

Xu looked momentarily surprised as she turned to her new roommate. "You know each other from before Garden?"

"We were at an orphanage together," Zell agreed as he offered Quistis a half-hug. "Feel free to join us for dinner, Quis. You too, Xu. The more, the merrier, right?" He grinned.

"Hyne save me from Chicken-Heads," Seifer muttered, rolling his eyes. "See ya, Quisty, Han. Come on, Squally."

Squall offered a brief wave as he followed his roommate back down the hall to their room. Zell followed after them at an easy pace, leaving the two girls to get to know one another.

Quistis carefully picked her bag back up and followed Xu into their room. "Squall tutors people?" she wondered.

Xu nodded. "Yeah. He's been doing it since before I got here, and when I was having a hard time in Survival, a couple of the upper years pointed me towards him. He couldn't do any tutoring last year, though, 'cause he was in the accelerated SeeD programme. Still is, technically, but he couldn't graduate with the others last month 'cause he wasn't old enough, so they're trying to figure out what to do with him, Almasy, and Sung Liew for the year until they can take the exam again."

"I thought you couldn't graduate to SeeD until you're fifteen?"

"Normally, sure," Xu agreed. "This is your bedroom, by the way. But, well, they really need the money SeeDs are supposed to generate through their missions, so they set up an accelerated programme for the best of the best and made the cut-off age ten. Almasy and Liew failed the exam for one reason or another, and Squall's not old enough until this year. Poor planning on the Headmaster's part, but I suppose he didn't really think it through." She shrugged. "Rumour has it Squall was still tutoring Zell, Natsuki, and Nakai last year, even though he was really busy, so he'd probably tutor you too, even if he's busy. Assuming that's what you're worried about?"

Quistis shook her head. "No, not really. It's just..." She frowned a bit. "Squall never seemed really smart when we were kids. He kept to himself a lot, especially after Sis left, so maybe he was just hiding it. I dunno."

Xu shrugged again. "He was already known as the smartest person in Garden by the time I got here, so I don't know how it was when they all first arrived. Maybe he just had a natural talent that wasn't obvious until he got here? I suppose you could ask him. Or Almasy. Those two are, like, the absolute best of friends. You almost never see one of them without the other, and they even chose to specialise in the same weapons."

Quistis sighed and turned her attention to unpacking her things. Knowing Seifer, pulling stories of the past out of him would be like pulling teeth, especially if he and Squall were as close as Xu said they were. And wasn't that an odd thought? Squall and Seifer had never seemed like friend material. 'But, then again, I suppose you'd become close to anyone if you're stuck in a new place together. Poor Squall and Seifer. It's not fair that we left them behind. But... I suppose it's okay. They seem to like it here, and they've made some good friends, from the sounds of things...'

-0-

"This is getting ridiculous," Seifer commented as he and Squall started towards the infirmary. One of the lower years who Squall tutored had come to tell them about a fight between Zell, Quistis, Xu, and one of the upper years who had developed a mean streak concerning the two advanced cadets. "We can't protect them when our class schedules are so different, and beating the fuckers to a pulp after the fact doesn't seem to make them stop."

Squall sighed. "Never mind that getting their names is a chore and a half. I know it's a matter of pride, but we can't help if they won't let us."

"Picking on our friends is just messed up, anyway," Seifer muttered, cracking his knuckles. "What do they think it's going to accomplish?"

Squall shook his head and stepped through the door as it slid open. "Doc Kadowaki."

Kadowaki shook her head. "Cadet Dincht has a broken arm, so I'm keeping him overnight, but Cadets Han and Trepe are free to go."

"Did they say who it was?" Seifer asked, steel in his voice.

"No. And stop giving me more work! Can't you kids solve things peacefully for once?"

Squall ignored the good doctor and his roommate as he poked his head into the room their friends usually ended up in. "Good afternoon," he said drily.

"There ain't nothin' good 'bout this afternoon," Zell spat, waving his left arm around angrily, the right one in a sling against his chest. "Look at me, man! I'm broken!"

"You'll heal." Squall turned to Quistis and Xu while Zell fumed. "What happened?"

"It was just a little fight," Quistis said, holding her head up primly. The effect was ruined by the fading bruise around her right eye and the healing split on her bottom lip.

"Come on, Quisty, just tell us who it was," Seifer tried, coming up and standing at Squall's side with a grim smile.

"When has beating them up made any difference?" Xu wondered tiredly. She didn't usually get caught in the cross-fire, since she wasn't particularly close to Squall and her dislike of Seifer was well-known, but it still happened from time-to-time, and she was tired of finding her roommate covered in bruises, as well. "It's a mercenary school, Almasy. These idiots don't care if they get a little beat up."

"I never said anything about 'beating them up'," Seifer replied, eyes flashing with murder. "I was thinking more 'slice them up'."

"We're not killing cadets," Squall muttered, though it was hard for him to stop himself from going out and doing exactly what Seifer was suggesting. He didn't like finding his friends in this state, but killing those that attacked them was not a good way to make SeeD. 'If only Cid hadn't dismissed Security last year when we ran out of money...'

"I know that look," Zell said, watching as Squall's eyes narrowed, ideas dancing silently behind the sharp blue-grey gaze.

Seifer leaned forward so he could see Squall's expression, then asked, "What've you got, Squally? A way to make the fuckers pay?"

"Something like that," Squall agreed faintly, still thinking. "There wasn't a bullying problem before last winter."

Seifer shrugged. "Well, yeah, Security kept an eye on things and broke fights up."

Squall nodded and turned. "Come on, we're going to see Cid."

"Huh? Wha–? Squall!" Seifer hurried after his roommate as Squall stalked towards the door. "You gotta tell me what you're thinking if you want me on the same page."

Quistis and Xu offered quick goodbyes to Zell before hurrying after the two gunbladers, curious about what Squall had in mind.

Squall was determinedly silent until they were in the lift and he'd punched in the code for the administrative floor. "We don't have the money for a security force, and the instructors and faculty don't have the ability to hand out any punishments other than some extra homework or a note in a student's file. Security could put a student on probation or get them kicked out, and that, more than the possibility of getting smacked with a baton, was what kept everyone in line."

Seifer's eyes narrowed as he caught on. "You want to make a student-run security force with the same abilities to punish wrong-doers?"

"Yes."

"But who would lead it? And not abuse the position?" Quistis asked as the lift doors opened. Both she and Xu paused for a moment, never having been on the third floor before and uncertain if they were allowed.

"Come on," Seifer ordered, grabbing Quistis' arm and pulling her out onto the blue carpet. Xu hurried to follow and they all fell in around Squall as he stepped towards Cid's secretary.

The secretary smiled pleasantly. "Hello, cadets. Do you have a meeting scheduled?"

"No," Squall replied drily. "If you'd please let the Headmaster know Cadets Leonhart and Almasy are here, I'm sure he'll see us."

"One moment," the secretary agreed before standing and slipping into Cid's office.

"Who would lead it?" Quistis repeated, touching Squall's arm.

"Seifer and myself," Squall replied. "We can sort out what will happen next year over the spring holiday."

The door of the office opened again and the secretary smiled out at them. "The Headmaster will see you, cadets."

Squall and Seifer led the way in, Quistis and Xu uncertainly bringing up the back. "Hello, boys," the Headmaster called with a smile as the door closed behind the four students.

Quistis' eyes widened in surprise as she recognised the smile of the man behind the desk. 'Uncle Cid!' She'd never actually seen the Headmaster before, and it hadn't even crossed her mind that the man was her quasi-uncle, especially since neither Squall nor Seifer referred to him as such. Though, she supposed she knew, now, why they'd never used the man's title of 'Headmaster' like they should have.

"We have a proposition for you," Seifer offered, falling comfortably into one of the chairs in front of Cid's desk while Squall sat in the one next to him.

Cid was distracted by the two girls still standing uncertainly near the door. "Quistis, it's good to see you again. Have a seat, both of you. Please."

"It's good to see you too, Uncle Cid," Quistis whispered as she led the way over to the other two chairs and sunk into one. Next to her, Xu stared with wide eyes at her roommate as she took her own seat.

"Cid," Squall interrupted, a note of impatience in his voice.

Cid sighed and turned fond eyes on his two favourite students. "This has to do with the bullying?" he wondered, a sad note in his voice. He'd noticed the faint bruising around Quistis' eye and the rip in the shoulder of Xu's uniform. "I've already told you that I can't hire more Security staff or give the instructors and faculty the power to expel the students." There was too much chance that the faculty, specifically, would wrongfully punish students for minor infractions just because they could. The faculty were under NORG's control, anyway, as were most of the instructors, and giving the greedy Shumi control over the students was a very bad idea.

"We know that," Seifer replied, shaking his head. "Squall suggested a student-run group headed by him and myself. We could keep tabs on those students who bully their peers and bring ideas for punishment to you. Final decision is your call, like it was for Security, but we'd have the power to give warnings and they'd have the knowledge that we're reporting to you."

Cid considered that. He knew Squall and Seifer were a force to be feared among cadets and SeeDs alike, but they could only do so much as students, and this wasn't the first time one or both boys had come to him about the bullying problem. They hadn't always had the names of the culprits, though, and for all that Cid was the Headmaster, NORG could still veto him kicking out any student whose parents were a financial backer, especially if it was only student complaints. But he hadn't been able to veto Security's reports, and if Cid could set this new group up the same way...

He pulled a couple forms out of his drawer, smile grim. "What do you want to call your group?"

Both boys smirked while the two girls looked up in surprise. "The Disciplinary Committee," Squall said with certainty.

Cid nodded and scrawled that in the blank line for an official school club. "You two as the leaders... Do you know who will be in your group?"

Squall and Seifer traded looks, then both looked over at the two girls. "I'm in," Quistis replied to the unasked question, Xu nodding next to her.

"Quistis Trepe, Xu Han, Zell Dincht, Raijin Nakai, and Fujin Natsuki," Squall said.

"You sure the others will want to?" Seifer asked quietly.

"Yes."

Seifer nodded and leaned back in his chair. "We can figure out next year's leadership next year, and we'll let you know if we get any other members."

Cid nodded as he finished filling out the form and slid it across the desk with a pen while he started on a second copy. "Squall, Seifer, sign that to acknowledge you're aware of Garden policy concerning the conduct expected of official clubs. It's your job to keep your club members in line, but they don't have to read over those rules themselves."

Both boys nodded as they read over the form together and signed. When Cid was done with the second copy, they signed that as well, then passed both forms back for Cid to sign. One form was theirs to keep, the other would be filed in Cid's office.

"I'll make the official announcement during the evening meal. You might have some trouble with the faculty, but tell them to come to me about it," Cid offered as he turned to file his copy.

"When is a good time to come by and let you know about any trouble students?" Seifer asked as Squall folded their copy of the form and slipped it into a pocket. They had a safe-box in their room they could leave it in once they got down there.

"How about a meeting over lunch on Fridays?" Cid suggested. "And if you have a desperate problem, just come up and see me like you usually do." He shot the two boys a look of fond exasperation.

"Thank you, Cid," Squall said, standing.

Cid smiled and pulled over the papers he'd been reading through when the group came in, leaving the four students to see themselves out.

"I'll go see if I can't find Fuu and Rai," Seifer suggested as they headed towards the lift. "We can meet up in the infirmary to discuss everything with the Chicken-Head."

Squall nodded.

-0-

"I feel dirty," Jordan Farrar said as he jumped off the train. "I haven't even done anything yet."

"Don't talk about it in the city unless you want a riot on our hands," Squall muttered as he and Seifer stepped away from the train and the door clicked shut behind him. "Timber's unsteady enough without us making things worse."

Seifer grunted and checked his watch. "We've got a good five hours before we need to be in position. Anything good to do in this town?"

"Most people don't stay long enough to write travel books about it," Jordan replied, motioning for them to move away from the platform.

"We could raid the Timber Maniacs building for anything good to read," Squall suggested, schooling his expression to look more like an excited child out in a new city for the first time. He also absently reached back to check that his backpack was securely closed. Gunblades were too obvious and large for a covert mission like this exam, which meant both he and Seifer were carrying alternative weapons, including some guns and a collapsible sword. Any of those weapons getting seen would immediately cast suspicion on them. And Squall was paranoid.

Seifer snorted. "Seriously? Do you ever think about anything but reading?"

"You actually expect me to tell you and chance Matron finding out about my naughty, naughty thoughts?" Squall replied as a couple townies gave the three boys distrustful looks.

Jordan rolled his eyes, taking on the role of older child taking his two charges out for a stroll like it was a second nature. "You do not have naughty thoughts, kid. Now, if Matron were to find out what I thought about all day..."

"Girls," Seifer and Squall chorused.

Jordan shot them a scowl over his shoulder. "Brats."

They did end up going to the Timber Maniacs building and shifting through the stacks of back issues, and the chief editor was happy to waste an hour or so of their time talking about the 'old days'. By the time they walked back out the front door, they only had two hours left to wait.

"There was a pet shop," Seifer offered around a yawn, "over by where we disembarked, wasn't there?"

"I think so, yeah." Jordan shrugged, glancing up as another team of exam students passed by, but otherwise not making any motions towards them. "Matron doesn't allow pets, though."

"Rai's startin' a bug collection," Seifer offered. "I thought I'd check and see what they've got."

"His roommate must love that," Jordan muttered, taking the lead in heading back towards the station.

"Some things were thrown," Squall agreed with an uncharacteristic smile. "Zell's not too bad about it, though. As long as Rai keeps his bugs on his bed and away from Zell's, they should be okay."

"Zell is a braver man than I," Jordan declared, stopping just out of range of the pet shop front door and motioning the younger two boys forward. "If it's all the same, I'll stay out here. Allergic to dogs. Don't cause any trouble, or Matron'll have my head."

"We're absolute angels," Seifer informed the teenager as he held the door open for Squall.

Jordan snorted in response and wandered over towards the novelty shop next door to see what they had to offer.

The pet shop didn't have any bug containers, but Jordan was told about a nice restaurant near the TV Station's main entrance that stayed open fairly late, so the three boys made their way over there and settled in with a light meal to make derisive comments about the Galbadian patrols – much to the Timber natives' pleasure – and wait until twenty-one hundred.

Ten minutes 'til, Jordan paid their bill and they made their way towards the Station. Night had fallen, lending them a bit of extra cover, and their presence in the city for the past five hours kept anyone from looking at them particularly distrustfully.

As soon as the doors of the TV Station had closed behind them, all three cadets moved quickly to shift their weapons into more accessible locations. The backpacks were dropped next to the entrance and they all waited until Seifer motioned that it was time before they moved deeper into the building, all three alert for the faintest sounds of other people.

They met up with one of the other teams near the stairs and after a quick conversation completely in the SeeD sign language, it was agreed that the other team would take the second floor while the three boys would take the third. The last team was taking the back alley entrance, which started them on the fourth floor. The first group that found the Timber-based army was supposed to send out the alarm and engage the enemy while the other two groups hurried to assist. With a confirmation of twenty members, there weren't enough normal SeeDs to handle this mission, so the exam had been moved up a month. Nine was a much more reasonable number than six, after all.

As luck would have it, the group was on the third floor and Seifer and Squall left Jordan behind to send the alarm while they slipped carefully forward, their age lending them an extra element of surprise.

"Hey, who let kids in?" one of them said as the two boys appeared in a doorway, their stock of guns and knives just subtle enough to not raise any immediate alarm bells.

"I guess they musta wandered in on their own," another replied, standing and moving towards the boys. "You two lost?"

"I dunno," Seifer said with an innocent look in his eyes even as he drew one of his guns behind his back, "this the New Timber Army?"

"Hey, yeah! But we don't accept kids," the man said with a laugh.

"We're not here to apply," Squall said coldly. "We're here to exterminate you. Do us a favour and don't fight back." Then he was dashing forward with his collapsible blade out and sliding through the nearest man's stomach like butter. Behind him, Seifer and Jordan both started firing while the other two teams stormed the other entrances to the room, effectively trapping the army where they stood.

Within ten minutes, the twenty would-be soldiers lay dead and the nine cadets were walking around, ensuring they were properly dead. Once certain their job had been done, they all retreated back towards their entrance points. They'd all brought a change of clothing to avoid any questions about blood stains and the weapons were hidden away again before they moved back out into the city.

Seifer let out a convincing yawn and slumped slightly, hanging onto Jordan's arm. "I don' wanna go back, yet," he mumbled.

"Matron's gonna have my head for letting you stay out as long as we have," Jordan complained. " 'One more sight' my ass."

"Bad word," Squall pointed out quietly. "You're gonna get your mouth washed out."

Jordan reached out and grabbed the younger boy as he started drifting further away. "Just don't tell Matron and she'll never know."

" 'M not a tat-tale."

Jordan rolled his eyes, secretly amused to see Balamb Garden's two best students acting like kids for the first time he'd ever seen. Of course, the image of Squall disembowelling a man without hesitation while Seifer fired grimly on another soldier would probably stay with him until the day he died; kids or not, Squall Leonhart and Seifer Almasy were dangerous people to cross.

They managed to catch the last train to Balamb just before it left the station. One of the other teams was already aboard, and the last team would be travelling by car to a small fishing town north of Horizon Bridge, where a boat awaited to take them back to Balamb.

The trip by train was a good seven hours, and also practically empty. The two cadet groups shuffled together in the middle of the empty car and traded notes before all sitting back and catching some rest while they could, cycling which of them was awake and alert to any potential danger, though they doubted there would be any trouble.

By the time they got back to Garden, it was five in the morning and the sun had yet to rise. All the same, Cid was awaiting them by the parking lot entrance, looking as exhausted as the nine students – the team who had travelled by boat had joined them in town – but generally pleased to find them all in one piece. "I've got breakfast in my office," he offered them, receiving tired smiles in response.

The debrief went about how one might expect, with the students talking around their breakfast or having to hurriedly swallow to say their part. The only person who had faltered was fifteen-year-old Angela King, a member of the team who came through the back entrance. She'd got sick in the pub on their way to the station, which had held them up a bit, making her team six minutes late to their post.

Considering that she'd still performed admirably in the battle and hadn't actually slacked in any of her duties, Cid allowed her to graduate to SeeD with all eight other cadets. "After all," Cid said to her grateful smile, "we all get a little sick sometimes. It's only human."

Once the food was gone, they were all dismissed, Cid adding, "Seifer, Squall, could you two stay behind a minute?"

The two boys remained in their chairs, offering faint nods to those who looked back at them in concern. Both of them had been expecting a meeting about the future of the Disciplinary Committee since they'd received their orders the night previous, and getting it out of the way now was no more troublesome than waiting until they'd slept some. Probably less troublesome, really, since they wouldn't have to make the trek back up to the third floor once they'd awoken.

"This is about the DC?" Squall asked as the doors clicked shut.

Cid nodded. "Yes. You can both remain in advisory positions, but there's every chance you'll be out of Garden more than you're in, considering your ranks."

Squall and Seifer had both been given a rank of twenty, which was two ranks above the next highest SeeD. No one had debated the high ranking, not after the two boys had run the Disciplinary Committee for the past year and considering their kill counts in the Training Centre, which were higher separate than any other two students combined. The rest of the exam students had been made rank ten, while King had graciously accepted a rank nine.

Squall and Seifer traded looks, having spent the year observing the DC members and debating who would be best to fill their shoes. "October Ricaforte," Squall announced, looking back towards the Headmaster. "He's planning to take the exam next year, so it will probably only be for this coming year, but we both think he's the most prepared for a position of authority. Maybe Quistis or Xu, once October graduates, but they're just not ready yet."

Cid nodded and leaned forward to change the club form. "Does Cadet Ricaforte know you're giving him the position?"

"We talked about it before we left yesterday morning," Seifer agreed. "He's mostly okay with it, though I think he's a little nervous about having lunch with you, Cid." He grinned.

Cid chuckled and nodded. "I'll break him in slowly, then." He signed his name on both forms, then set them to one side. "Ask him to come up and see me sometime in the coming days to read over and sign the paperwork."

Both boys nodded and stood. "We'll make sure he comes," Seifer promised.

"Also, look out for your first missions in the next few days," Cid added as the boys turned towards the door.

"So soon?" Squall wondered, looking back at the Headmaster with a faint frown. "We still need to move into our new rooms. I mean, it's not like we have all that much stuff, but if we're finalising the DC change at the same time..."

Cid sighed. "I know, but I need you two out there as soon as possible. There's rioting in Deling, again, and the President is seeing assassins hidden in every shadow. Our numbers are too thin as it is, and being as young and unassuming as you two are, you're our best covert operatives. I need you in Galbadia."

"Does that mean we'll be working together?" Seifer asked, unable to completely mask the excitement in his voice.

Cid smiled a bit at that. "Almost certainly."

"Yes!" Seifer grinned and draped an arm across Squall's shoulders in the way he was so fond of doing when he was excited or up to no good. "And Squally thought you'd have us on opposite continents or something."

"I'm sure that'll happen in the future," Cid agreed, laughing as Seifer's smile drooped. "But not for quite some years yet, unless things suddenly change. Alright, go on, boys. I'm sure your friends are staked out around the lift." As they turned back towards the door, he added, "I'll try to give you a couple of days to move into your new rooms, but don't expect any more than three."

"Three will have to do," Squall decided. "Thanks, Cid."

As soon as the lift doors opened on the bottom floor, the two new SeeD found themselves wading through their closest friends, waving away shouts of congratulation and offers of a party.

"Really," Seifer insisted, "we're both dead tired. We're gonna go crash for a couple hours. Maybe we can have a party for lunch?"

"I'll order us the entire stock of cafeteria hot dogs!" Zell shouted, elated.

"Maybe someone else can handle the food," Squall suggested drily.

"What's wrong with hot dogs?"

"Nothing, if you've got a chocobo's ass on your head."

"Would you leave my hair out of this?!"

Laughing, the friends separated to go to bed or breakfast, depending.

"When are we telling them we're leaving in a few days?" Seifer wondered as they entered their room.

"Not until tomorrow," Squall muttered, dropping his bag of weapons next to the table and starting towards his bedroom. "I don't want to ruin their fun quite so soon."

Seifer chuckled and dropped his own bag on his way to his room. "Yeah, whatever. Good night, Squally. See you in six hours or so."

Squall let out a groan and let his door fall closed in response, making Seifer laugh again.