A cool breeze drifted through the window. Squall woke with a groan. Tossing in the bed he pawed feebly at his forehead.
"Rinoa…. Rinoa…. Stop, get your hands off of Matron….." Quistis said in a mocking tone as she crossed her hands over her lap. She stood up from the stool that she was sitting on, leaning in for a better look at Squall's wound. "Wow, you were talking gibberish in your sleep, Squall. Seifer must have really hit you hard. Then again, I'd punish him…. But it looks like you gave as good as you got!" Quistis continued, winking at Squall.
"Where's Rinoa? Tell me! Is she okay?" Squall demanded, frantic. Dr. Kadowaki and Quistis shared worried glances.
"Wow, Squall. You spoke more than two words to me, for once!" Quisitis said in a teasing tone, "Should have asked Seifer to smack you on the head a long time ago..."
Squall threw a sharp look at Quistis. She recoiled, biting her lip.
"Okay, doctor, this student has an important exam today… Is he up for it?" Quistis turned to the doctor, her knee-high leather boots clicking on the linoleum floor.
"Emmmmm physically, yeah… Mentally…. I'm not sure!" Dr. Kadowaki said, flipping the sheet on a chart that dangled from the end of Squall's bed.
"It was all a dream…." Squall muttered to himself, slumping back into the bed. A damn good dream, he thought to himself. Rinoa…
"Take it easy next time, you hear?" Dr. Kadowaki shouted as she held out her right hand and pointed her index finger into Squall's face. "Looks like your eyes are focusing. You should be fine. Say your name for me?"
"Squall." he answered sarcastically, "Squall Leonhart. SeeD at Balamb Garden."
"Woah," Qusitis butted in, "Getting a bit ahead of yourself there. You're not a SeeD yet!"
"Why don't you take it easy in training?" Dr. Kadowaki questioned, leaning over and pointing into Squall's face once more, "Next time you might not be so lucky. If not you, maybe Seifer might not be lucky….. I don't want to be making a habit of this!"
"Tell that to Seifer." Squall answered, "I said we should fight to first blood, he used magic!" His head starting to throb, Squall forced the palm of his left hand to his forehead in an attempt to ease the pulsating ache.
"That Seifer..." Dr. Kadowaki said, a worried expression on her face as she cupped her chin, "Won't listen to anyone….."
"I can look after myself," Squall said, climbing up from the bed and stumbling to his feet. Quistis offered a hand but he threw her a scowl, Quistis responded with a grin.
"You want to be cool, huh?" Dr. Kadowaki shouted, throwing her hands into the air and sighing, "Well, don't get hurt in the process!" Her voice followed them down the hall.
Rinoa, a dream….. Oh well. Life is better this way. Having a girl like Rinoa would be a nightmare, anyway, Squall thought to himself…. She'd probably just leave as well. They all say they'll stay, that they love you. That you're important. But they all leave.
A wise man once said that there is nothing better for self-improvement, advancement or one's own ego than being humbled; whether that humbling comes in the form of being outsmarted, out-witted, or simply beaten physically. Squall didn't agree with this belief, and as he stepped from the doors of the infirmary and made his way along the promenade to the central core of Balamb Garden he felt angry and depressed. Reality had finally sunk in, he was a failure – he had been beaten by a cheater, but he was still beaten. He should have expected cheating and dishonesty. He was training to be an elite mercenary, to go and fight wars and resolve conflicts. He would be naive to believe that every enemy that he'd encounter would possess some degree of chivalry.
No, war is not honourable. When two warriors meet one must live and one must die, the manner in which your enemy dies is irrelevant - dead men tell no tales, living men do; living men can twist the tale to suit themselves or their own view of themselves.
Raising his right hand to his forehead, half in an attempt to soothe his throbbing brow, and half in an attempt to shield his eyes from the sun Squall imagined that the great multitude of students relaxing in the sun along the manicured lawns of garden's west face were all watching him. He could imagine them all forming into a circle, their eyes set on him as they accused him of being a second-rate warrior, a loser – his heart skipped a beat. In reality, only one set of eyes were fixed on Squall - those of Quistis Trepe, who was waiting for him a few feet ahead on the promenade.
"Squall, is there something on your mind?" Quistis questioned, honestly worried as she stepped forward for a better look at her student. His fists were clenched, his eyes full of fire and hatred, and he was mumbling slightly. Mumbling the same word, over-and-over again – Rinoa.
Squall walked past Quistis and she skipped forward trying to match his speed. As he was just about to open his mouth to speak she interrupted him.
"Let me guess," She said as she stopped and crossed her arms, "Not Really!" She continued, mimicking his deep voice. Squall grunted and started walking with a brisker pace, unclenching his fists. Quistis cocked her head back and laughed. Squall's blood boiled. Turning quickly he locked his eyes on his instructor.
"What's so funny!…. Why does it feel like we've had this conversation before!?" He demanded, swinging his right arm through the air. He was intimidating, but Quistis was not afraid, she found his theatrics cute.
"Oh, nothing's funny," She answered briskly. "I'm just happy, honestly. I think I'm finally starting to understand my student a little, that's all."
"I'm more complex than you think," Squall answered in a sarcastic tone as he placed his right hand on his hip.
"Oh yeah, you have dream girlfriends…. Is she cute?," Quistis demanded as she stepped forward, "Tell me more about you. Help me a little, just dangle one string from the twine-ball so that I might start to unravel it myself."
Squall turned to walk away, "It's none of your..." but before he could say the last word Quistis shouted out a single word - "BUSINESS." As Squall walked on Quistis disappeared into a throng of students. He could hear her laughing to herself. He could picture the smug look on her face. He didn't need her, he thought as he rounded the main staircase and called the elevator, he didn't need anyone to mock him, to criticize him, or belittle him. And he certainly didn't need anyone to feign interest, to try to wiggle themselves close to him - because they all leave, all of them, sooner or later. The time spent socializing and having fun was far better spent conditioning his mind and honing his skills anyway.
Squall entered the classroom, all eyes set on him as he shuffled towards his desk at the far end of the room. Miranda and Brianna – two of the nosiest girls at Balamb started whispering among themselves as a male student, Jett, leaned forward, trying to get a better view of Squall's wound. Squall locked eyes with Jett and scowled, causing Jett to recoil. Seifer raised his right hand and imitated the shape of a gun, "Pow" he whispered as he began laughing, Squall ignored him and took his seat.
Quistis entered, the room fell silent. She climbed into her red leather chair at the head of the classroom as she tightened her fist, raised it to her mouth and coughed - a very delicate, feminine gesture.
"Good morning, class. Let's start with today's schedule," Quistis said as she ruffled some papers on her desk, "Now, I know that there have been some rumours floating around about the field exam for SeeD candidates. I have the authority to inform you that the rumours are true. The exams will be taking place this evening," A large gasp rose from the front row. "The field exam is only open to those who passed last week's written exam. Those who failed the exam, or who are not participating for personal reasons are to remain behind in the study. Those taking part in the exam have free time until 1600 hours this evening, where you will meet me in the main hall and I will announce the team assignments" Quistis continued as she rose from her desk and crossed her arms."Oh, and Seifer, do NOT injure your partner during training!"
Seifer pulled the black leather glove off of his right hand and raised his hand into the air, exposing a small blister. "Oh, but poor me, I was injured, too. Have you no concern for me, dear instructor?" Seifer said in a mocking tone. He lowered his hand and smirked.
Two girls at the front of the class giggled, one of them blushing slightly. Quistis grinned, "Class dismissed," she said. Seifer sprung from his seat. He dropped a slip of paper on Squall's desk and made for the door, knocking Jett back into his seat.
Seifer had plans, and nobody would get in his way. Squall was the last to rise from his seat, making his way to the front of the classroom he saw that Quistis' eyes were set on him once again.
"You haven't been to the Fire Cavern yet, have you, Squall?" she questioned as she stepped in front of the door, blocking the exit. Squall didn't answer, he simply shrugged his head. He had already been….In dreamland. He had planned on going but his morning had not gone as expected, to say the least.
"You won't be able to take part in today's SeeD exam if you don't pass this prerequisite. Do you have a good excuse?" He did have a pretty good excuse – he had spent the better part of the morning fighting for his life, and when he had been not fighting he had been laying in a semi-conscious state in the infirmary. But he didn't believe in using excuses. Excuses were for weak men, for cowards and for losers – and he was neither. So, he simply shook his head again. Quistis smiled slightly, she had a chance for the second time today to get closer to Squall, though this time she would be alone with him. She saw her opening, and she decided to take it. "Fine," she said, cupping her chin with her right hand and blushing slightly, "I'll go with you. Now let's get going, I'll be down at the front gate, don't keep me waiting." Before Squall could say another word Quistis had disappeared through the door, leaving him alone.
Seifer was waiting at the main gate for Rinoa. As she mounted the plinth and turned for the main steps he strolled towards her. She closed in for a hug, but he stepped back and she clumsily stumbled forward, feeling pretty silly.
"It's been a while," Rinoa said, blushing.
"Wow, you don't look well," Seifer said as he crossed his arms across his chest, "Yeah, you look sick," he continued. Rinoa tried to hold back a tear. "Now let's get going," Seifer said as he turned on his heels and started strolling towards the main hub of Balamb Garden, "I have work to do. Some of the students have been bold boys and girls."
Squall opened the slip of paper that Seifer had left for him – You can have Rinoa, this time… I don't need her; Seifer!' Squall crumpled the note up, trembling. Whatever was happening was far beyond his understanding – his mission now was to report to the Fire Cavern, and that was the only thing that mattered to him.
Approaching the elevator Seifer gestured for Rinoa to enter first. "You need a special key to get to the headmaster's office, luckily for you they trust me enough to give me the key," Seifer said as he grinned.
"Wow," Rinoa said, honestly surprised, "They trust you that much!? What does the key look like?"
"Oh, It's black, dirty and a size nine," Seifer said, holding back a chuckle.
"I don't follow you," Rinoa said, cocking her head to the left and smiling. Seifer drew back and kicked the control panel of the elevator with all of his force. The elevator took off. "Oh... I understand now," Rinoa sighed.
The note on Cid's door read: 'Gone Fishin'!'.
"Hard luck, Seifer said as he made for the elevator, seems you'll have to wait for the party to meet the old man."
"Seifer?" Rinoa shouted as Seifer entered the elevator, "Have you achieved your dream yet... Your romantic dream?" The elevator door clicked closed, obscuring his words. Rinoa was heartbroken. Her brave knight had changed, been replaced by a cold, self-centered ass. All of her memories of tender walks by the bay, and nights spent by the pier at Balamb were all the more dear to her now, as she knew those events would never be repeated.