Chapter Eight: How We Persevered

As I gazed into the angelic face of Fujin Kazeno, all of my exhaustion, worries, and negative feelings swirled down the drain, and were replaced with the warm feeling that knows no other description except for LOVE. I smiled joyfully as I held my precious Fujin in my arms, and even though we didn't talk much, I think that words were unnecessary at this point. We were together at last, having survived the worst of what fate and life could throw at us, and so verbal contact was unneeded.

I also didn't care that we were receiving stares from several of the diners. We were both on our feet, holding each other softly, our foreheads touching and our mouths locked in smiles, and we both stood out like red on white paper. But who cares?!?! This was the woman I loved, the woman that I was willing to put my faith and my trust on, my girlfriend, and I honestly didn't care what anyone else had to say about it.

"Get a room," snorted Seifer, taking a sip at his coffee. Neither Fujin nor myself paid any attention; we just continued to embrace, our breaths tickling each other's necks slightly as we cherished the long-overdue reunion.

At long last, I really did sit down, but chose to go to a booth instead of a barstool, where I had been originally. That way, I could speak with Fujin in a more proper setting. Together we chose a booth that gave us decent privacy, and though I wasn't that hungry, I ordered breakfast anyway. After the server left, I began our reunion conversation with a very typical question.

"Where have you been all this time, Fujin?" She rolled her eye, sighed, and shook her head slowly.

"LONG STORY."

"I've got time," I shrugged. "They won't be needing me back at the Garden for some time. Besides, today's my day off. So come on! Tell me where the heck you've been!" She smiled that same mysterious smile of hers, shrugged, and took a deep breath.

"DIFFICULT TO EXPLAIN," she began. "JOURNEY… MANY PATHS. STRANGE SIGHTS." She paused for awhile, to think of her next words, and in that time our drinks came. Suddenly, the voice she had had before faded, and what came in its place was something so quiet and hoarse that I had to rub my ears a little just to make sure that I wasn't hearing things.

"I'm not so sure where to begin," she sighed in a gravelly voice. "It's been so crazy that I've barely had time to think about things."

"…Fujin…?" She smiled and gazed up at me, her single crimson eye glowing gently.

"Let's just say that it's been a long road for the three of us," she said. "…And to explain where I've been, let's just say… everywhere, okay?" I quietly swallowed a bit of my drink and nodded my head. Fine, okay. If Fujin wanted to keep that part of her life a secret (even from me), then I guess I had to respect it. It wasn't like it was vital information anyway; I was just curious.

"YOU?" she said suddenly in her "normal" voice. I paused in brief confusion, but decided to shove off my questions for the time being. I told her what had happened since she left (or as close to that point as I could guess): I told her about the NORG revolts, and how I flew the Garden (only crashing once, but that wasn't my fault), and then I told about Rinoa, and Commander Squall, and the hunt for Ellone, and the fight against Adel and Ultimecia, and…… Ugh, it was too much information.

To put things into perspective, we had already finished eating our meals by the time I was through with my story. Seifer and Raijin were antsy and impatient, and wanted to leave the restaurant as soon as possible. Fujin, as politely as a woman could, turned around and told them (more liked barked at them) to wait. She then turned towards me and smiled sweetly--HA!!

I still may need time to get used to all this, I thought to myself.

"LEAVING," said Fujin, pointing to herself. She then pointed to me, and asked if I was coming with her. Hm, well, let's see. What should I say? Stay in a Garden where I'm bored and lonely, or go with a beautiful young lady that I love very much? Hang out in Balamb with nothing to do, or be near my girlfriend? Wander around, or walk by Fujin's side. Oh, the decisions!!!

Of course I was coming with her.

"Of course I'm coming with you!" I exclaimed, and she smiled simply as I joined them. However, Seifer and Raijin wanted to go out to the ocean and fish a little, and I still had things to do at the Garden (blech!!). Fujin was briefly caught between her posse and her boyfriend, and although it seemed as if she still wanted to spend time with Seifer, he urged her onto a different path.

"You go and be with your man, Fu," waved Seifer as we walked outside. "You've been spending way too much time with this group of losers, anyway."

"Hey!!"

"Sorry, Raij. I meant myself." He smiled blankly, leaving Raijin to scratch his head in confusion. Fujin also looked puzzled, but when Seifer nearly forced her to leave at gunblade point, she could only smile and shrug.

"INSIST?"

"Yes!" stated Seifer. "Now go on, get outta here! I don't wanna see you back for the rest of the day." Fujin grinned at her friend's rare display of kindness, bowed, and slowly slinked off to join me. I gave Seifer and Raijin a pasty smile and attempted to wave at them in thanks. Uh, okay…

"Interesting family you've got there," I muttered as I helped Fujin inside my car. She shrugged.

"NOT BAD PEOPLE. SIMILAR TO OTHER GUYS."

"…Yeah right," I blurted quietly, and Fujin tilted her head in search of an explanation to my words. I saved myself by saying that it was "nothing", and started the car before the silvery-haired woman could question me further. But Fujin was the kind of girl who let things drop, at least when asked, and in no-time at all she was laying back in the seat and letting the breeze from the window blast at her hair. The enraptured smile she had on was dreadfully contagious and had a powerful beauty behind it, and I couldn't help but love her more and more as we drove back to the Garden.

…Although maybe that wasn't the brightest idea I've had.

Taking Fujin back to the Garden was something quite unwise of me to do. I was mostly unaware of the situation, but it seemed as if Fujin, along with the rest of her posse, had earned quite a nasty reputation while they were away. From what I heard later, Seifer had been mostly responsible for steamrolling Ultimecia's progress, as well as Adel's, and his madness and hunger for power had carried him into insanity, which led to him very-nearly lighting the fuse that would incinerate the world into nothingness. So, yeah, not a whole lot of people thought well of him--not that they ever really did.

Fujin and Raijin were also now very unpopular, but luckily (for me and her), they were saints compared to Seifer. From the whispered rumors I would later hear, Fujin and Raijin had been responsible for Balamb Town's previous occupation, which nearly cost the city its existence. They were also in league with the whole Galbadian organization, as well as the events that happened around Lunatic Pandora, and some even claimed that they had been behind the bombing of Trabia (which was obviously untrue).

But I didn't know any of this, which was my disadvantage. I just thought that taking Fujin back to the Garden, even for a little while, would've been okay. Huh, shows what I know! No sooner had I parked my car and helped her out were we already being attacked. A small group of young students, about 15 years old on average, crowded around us and began assaulting us with whatever they could: their kicks, their hands, their words, even sticks and rocks.

"What're you doing here with her!!!!?" they demanded. "Get away! She's a monster!"

"INGRATES!!!" snarled Fujin, scaring a few of them away with her loud voice. But more of them came to attack us, and it was only by the strength of my backside were we able to escape their assault.

"Get that freak outta here!!" they shouted. "She's a demon! Nida, what're you doin' hangin' around a witch like that?! Yeah, she's no different from Adel or Ultimecia! Freak! She nearly caused the apocalypse!"

"Just ignore them!" I shouted, shielding Fujin's body as we made our way into the Garden. My girlfriend was understandably enraged, and I daresay that if I had not been there, a violent scene would've ensued and I'm almost certain somebody would've lost a limb. But thankfully, I was able to guide--or should I say, pull--Fujin away and into the Garden--which also was not a smart thing to do.

As soon as she emerged into the main lobby, a small crowd of people gasped in horror at what I had brought in. A disturbing thought ran through my head: what if a few of those people thought that I was bringing this "killer" in for arrest? I eliminated that idea quickly, and once again played bodyguard as I forced Fujin away from the squall. She snarled and cursed at the people, poor angel, and though I loved her dearly, I advised her to kindly shut up.

"You're not making things any better!" I hissed. "Fujin, if you fight back, then you'll only bring more excuses for them to attack you!"

"WHAT THEN?" she asked, demanding to know how else she should approach the situation. "LAY STILL, ABSORB DAMAGE, SMILE?! RIDICULOUS!!"

"Look, I don't know what's going on!" I said. "I have no idea why these people aren't treating you well! Maybe it really does have something to do with Seifer, but the point is that I don't know! Now come on! I need to get you somewhere safe!"

"SAFE WITH YOU!!" she growled, her face dark with anger. Her grip on my wrist was painfully tight, and I daresay that she looked mad enough to bite through steel--but I could also tell that most of her volcanic rage was not hatred at all, but love: pure, passionate, fiery love. What she had said proved it.

"NIDA, PROTECT!" she resumed, jabbing at the air with her finger. "NIDA, LIVE DREAM OF KNIGHT! LADY IN DANGER, PROTECT! SAFE WITH YOU, UNDERSTAND?!" I stared back at her, into that dark, volcanic face, and quietly looked at her with love. I was tempted to kneel down on the floor and beg for forgiveness, but instead I leaned forward and drew her into a hug--and from the feel of her body, she needed one desperately.

"…Don't worry, Dulcinea," I whispered to her. "Your knight shall always be here to safeguard you… And… that's why I wanna get you somewhere safe."

"SAFE WITH YOU," she said again, squeezing me as she hissed that last word. The meaning behind her actions wasn't lost to me; I understood what she meant, very well. I smiled again and gave her nose a kiss, and openly admitted that she was right.

"Yeah… if a Lady can't feel safe around her Knight, then she can't feel safe anywhere… Sorry, I'm such a numbskull."

"SMART, TO ADMIT IT," she said, tapping my nose with her finger. I grinned a little and kissed her again, and took her by the hand as we left for my room. We had been driving for some time now, and even though we had really just eaten breakfast, I do believe that our digestive systems were working overtime. I was now feeling hungry as a hog, and from the muted grumbling I heard from Fujin's stomach, she was too. Therefore, since we were both nearly emaciated with hunger (not really), I decided that it'd be best to take my work to the cafeteria.

And screw anyone who didn't like the fact that Fujin was back!

My inner bravado carried us all the way from my room to the cafeteria, where we were met with a sudden curtain of silence. Before I came in, I could plainly hear the usual lunchroom commotion bubbling up, but as I walked in with Fujin clasping my arm, the din became dead and the entire cafeteria became eerily quiet. I could actually hear my rubber-soled shoes walking on the ceramic tiles of the cafeteria, as well as the gentle hum from kitchen equipment. Even the children and the jocks and the gossipers were quiet; heck, even the lunch ladies were quiet. It seemed as if all of creation became still as Fujin reentered the cafeteria.

I tried to act as casual as possible, and with my shoes quietly clapping against the floor, I took Fujin to the lunch line, which was conveniently (albeit suspiciously) short. In fact, there was nobody there at all, which would've been a real miracle in any other situation. Awkwardly, I went up to the lunch lady and ordered two full-course meals and drinks. She stared blankly at us for a few seconds, then slowly, turned her head and shouted to the workers behind her.

"……Two Number Threes and Two sodas!" Her voice carried to the very ends of the cafeteria, and as it bounced across the room, the conversations and the actions reluctantly started up again, and once again, the cafeteria was alive with activity--though I had to admit, everyone still acted like they were walking on glass, and poor Fujin looked disgusted enough to spew. I didn't dare ask her what the problem was; that would've been a waste of breath.

"…What're you thinking, precious?" I asked her. Not even the most flattering name in the world would've relieved her of her foul mood.

"UNWANTED," she hissed gravelly. "SHOULDN'T STAY."

"Don't worry about it, precious," I assured her with a squeeze of her hand. "I'm here to protect you, remember?" Not even that did much good, but at least her dark face lightened a little, though not by much. Fujin was forever glowering back at anyone that dared to lay their eyes on her, and although I'd normally attest their stares to her… abnormal appearance, today was different.

I suddenly felt the urge to whisper my love to her, and when I did, she gave me a sad smile.

"I KNOW," she whispered. "THANKS. TOO GOOD TO ME."

"Hey, you're a sweet and wonderful woman," I smiled. "You deserve it." Her smile grew a fraction, and just then our food came, and as carefully as we dared, we each snaked our way through the masses and found us a table. I wryly noted that Fujin seemed to inherit Moses' powers just then. Either that, or the river of people in our way parted under some other "unknown" circumstance. It was almost funny.

Every single eye in the entire cafeteria followed us as we made our way to an empty table. I almost feared that there would be some idiots there that would deny us access, but thankfully Fujin's icy-hot eye dissuaded anyone from acting foolishly. Together we sat down, although there were still enough people staring at us, and even though the food was good, I couldn't help but dine in discomfort.

Okay, let me get a few things straight. Not a whole lot of people know me, and even though I'm a SeeD and the top Garden pilot and a master Triple Triad player (thank you very much!), I guess I still had a little bit of obscurity clinging onto me. Well, to be honest, there really isn't anything too special about me, except for what I mentioned, so I guess it's okay that not a whole lot of people noticed me.

But those that did recognize me must've been surprised out of their minds. They had known that Fujin and I were an item before, but I guess they assumed that I would end the relationship after the Sorceress War. After all, she was a "traitor", a "freak", a "monster", etc., and why I was still with her was a mystery. I guess it didn't make sense to any of them--plus, for those who didn't know me, seeing Fujin there in the Garden was almost sacrilege.

The hissed whispers that I overheard made even me enraged, and I couldn't dare imagine how Fujin felt. Just looking at her gave me a pretty good idea of how she was feeling, and I couldn't help but feel sad as I saw her angry face. Poor girl was enraged enough to melt rocks with her stare. Suddenly, as if we weren't suffering enough, I felt somebody tap me on the shoulder.

"Hey! What're you doin' with that traitorous witch?!" they hissed. "Don't you know that she helped out that crazy Seifer guy? And that she's also responsible for Galbadia attacking us!"

"For real!" hissed the person sitting next to them. "I heard she helped blow up Trabia! I had friends there, man!"

"You know she's in cahoots with the witches!" snorted the first person. "I'll bet she'n Rinoa are conspiring to destroy us all! You're crazy, man!"

"Now wait a second!" I barked. "I don't know what's going on, but--"

"Obviously not!" they snorted, and that was the straw that broke this SeeD's back. I suddenly bolted out of my chair, and shouted out to everyone in the cafeteria.

"Now listen up everyone!!!!" I screamed. "I'm getting sick and tired with the way you're treating Fujin! The only thing you people can talk about is… is… is how she's evil and wicked and nasty, and… it's sickening that you can't worry about something else, like your own frickin' problems!

"Now I don't claim perfection, and I know that Fujin has made mistakes in her past, but if any of you has problems with her, then you can take them straight to me! Don't be whispering or muttering behind anyone's back! Come to me if you've got any problems!" With my spirits still hot, I turned towards Fujin and gave her a loving glare.

"…I love this woman!" I declared. "I, Nida Evan Franks, am in love with Fujin Hyuna Kazeno! I am in love with this wonderful woman! I have placed all of my faith and all of my trust in her! I have dedicated time and personal desires for her happiness, and I've suffered because of her recent departure! I know that I love Fujin from the bottom of my heart, and if you morons can't accept that, then… then… screw the whole lot of you!!!!!"

I took several breaths to regain my wind from the passionate speech, and with my face a little flustered, I demanded to know if there was anyone still brave enough to challenge my declaration. I scanned over the entire cafeteria, from front to back, and found nobody willing to step forward. After a good minute or two of looking around, I finally sat back down in my seat and grunted in irritation.

"I tell ya, sometimes I get so pissed off at other people…" My mutterings went unheard; as I looked up to see Fujin's reaction, my own foul mood was washed away as I gazed into her amazed face. There was more light and warmth and love radiating from that beautiful face than I thought possible, and the cold and curt woman whom everyone now feared was shedding silent tears of joy. Her mouth was beyond the point of smiling; it was heavenly, and the girl couldn't speak if she wanted to, at least for awhile.

"Nida…" She whispered my name, too happy to do anything else, and I took her hands into my own. I began to kiss her knuckles delicately, the same knuckles I knew that had beaten many a dangerous enemy, and smiled.

"I meant every word," I said as I kissed her. She grinned and blushed, and suddenly stood up with my mouth still attached to her hand. She pulled me up to her, and together we passionately locked lips in a public facility, and I honestly didn't care who was watching or who was aghast with horror. I loved this woman, and I wasn't embarrassed to let everyone know it. Okay, so it was a little showy, but who cares? The point was, we were together again, and we wouldn't let anything else separate us from that day forward.