Epilogue

The epilogue to Chicken Wuss. I've had this part in my head for a while,

but never saw a good opportunity to insert it until now. In fact, why the hell not just make it a chapter, right? So here we go. This'll be short, unless it's long.



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He walked along the freshly cut grass; his eyes on his feet, heading up the small hill. He caught glimpses of the large stones that he passed as he walked. Before long he was standing in front of one of those large stones. The large stone was carved into an upright rectangle and was ever so lightly weathered. The stone was almost 6 years old now.

He squatted down in front of it and traced the letters carved on it. It read, simply:

"Zell T. Dincht

2673-2691

We loved you dearly"

It seemed like only yesterday, the day he had walked in to find Zell, bloody and no longer alive. And the note, the note that had made him depressed himself. Zell had praised him for making his life a living hell, saying that he was right for doing it because he was the only one who knew what he actually was. Seifer hated himself severely for being that way all those years ago.



Seifer had changed dramatically. He was always a good person, helped other people, no longer fought or owned a gunblade. He had recently gotten married. Six months ago. He was settling down. Seifer had run away from Garden to Winhill and found it to be a peaceful, quiet town. Just what he needed to get over what he felt. He had picked up writing and it became his passion. He frequently sent articles to Timber Maniacs, but never saw any published. Seifer and his new wife were considering moving to Timber so he could start a career in writing.

Seifer hadn't heard much about what had happened with the others. Occasionally he received a letter from Rinoa and she would update him briefly.

Squall and Rinoa had stayed together. About three years after Zell's death, Rinoa became pregnant with his child. She gave birth to a baby girl who they named Piper. Rinoa said that they hadn't thought any about marriage themselves, but still were prepared to raise Piper together. In the next letter Seifer would get, Rinoa would announce that Squall had asked her to marry her, and she accepted.

Irvine and Selphie didn't stick together. They broke up and Selphie moved back to Timber after the repairs were complete. Irvine moved back to Galbadia. That was about four years ago. Two years ago, Irvine had been out drinking all night and fell asleep in his hotel room and never woke up. He was found dead the next morning. The cause of death was alcohol poisoning. Seifer hadn't gone to the funeral. He hadn't gone to Zell's either. He hated funerals. He really wanted to get over that.

Quistis was missing. She was just gone not long after Seifer left, and no one had seen her, anywhere. She wasn't presumed dead, just missing. Seifer assumed she ran away too, probably due to the events that at that time were recent. It was understandable. Seifer had let people know where he was though. He wrote to Rinoa, she being the only one he had really related to at Garden, besides Fujin and Raijin. He couldn't rely on them to write back.

According to Rinoa's letters, Fujin gave up the yelling thing and started talking normally. Raijin still did his 'ya know' thing. Last he'd heard of them, they had started hiring more people to fill the disciplinary committee.

Seifer placed the small rose he had picked up on the way in front of Zell's tombstone. He stood up fully and looked down at it. He still couldn't believe it. He came out here once a year to do exactly what he was doing now, and still none of it seemed real. Zell's body was under his feet that very second, and he still couldn't accept it.

He rested his hand on the top of the tombstone and rubbed the top of it. He really wished he could have apologized to Zell. He would have done things so differently if he'd known what was going to happen. How did he let it get to that point, where he made a man take his own life? Did he really need to do that so much?

Seifer ran a hand over his face and sniffed. Because of him, a life was taken that had so much going for it. If he hadn't spent so much time fussing over Zell being in his dorm, and if he had accepted what his friends were telling him earlier, Zell might have still been alive. Seifer knew that he definitely would have stuck up for Zell after that point, and that he would be his friend. He would have been there for him; a shoulder to cry on if he ever felt the way he was that day.

Seifer wiped the tears that had started down his face.

"What are you doing here?"

Seifer turned his head to see a man standing twenty feet behind him. He looked somewhat familiar. His form, the way he held himself. He had short hair underneath the hat he wore. He had on a black long sleeved shirt and beige pants.

"Did you hear me? I asked what you were doing here, Seifer."

That voice

"I'm visiting an old friend," Seifer replied, turning back to the grave. He heard the man approach him and was surprised when he grabbed his shoulder. He spun Seifer around.

"How dare you call yourself Zell's friend," the man said. He took off his hat. He unveiled a face Seifer had almost completely forgotten, and a scar mirrored to his.

"Squall."

"Yeah. How could you call yourself his friend? You made his life miserable." Squall looked furious.

"Congratulations," Seifer said.

"For what?"

"On having Piper. I never got to say that. I always wanted to. Is she here? Is Rinoa here too?" Seifer looked behind Squall and didn't see them.

"They're in the car. I saw you from there and told them to wait."

A moment of silence passed, and then,"I didn't consider myself Zell's friend six years ago, but I know that now I would have. Do you know why I went to see Zell?" Seifer asked.

"I never could figure that outwhy?"

"I was going to go apologize to him. For being an asshole. And for making his life miserable. It was too late though."

"Why? That's not like you."

"It is now. I've changed, Squall. I turned my life around. I don't fight; I don't even have my weapon anymore. I'm a writer. I'm a husband."

"You? Married? I never thought that could be."

"Well look at you, father to a three year old girl. Who'd have thought that the lone-wolf commander would be a father? Maybe one day you'll get married. Being married is wonderful. I've been married for six months to a woman named Lina. She's amazing. She's beautiful, smart, funny, and she's my best friend."

"You really have changed." Squall looked back towards his car. "Wouldwould you like to meet Piper? And see Rinoa again?"

Seifer smiled, "I'd love to."

Squall began walking down the hill and Seifer caught up to him and said, "Oh, Squall, by the way?"

"Yeah?"

Seifer offered him his hand. "It's good to see you again."

Squall stared briefly at his hand, and then shook it. "It is." Squall shook his hand harder and smiled at him, and Seifer smiled back, and they walked toward the car.

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The End.

No more, ever. That's the end of Chicken Wuss, forever.

Unless you want me to do something about the whole new setting I've mindlessly created