"Squall… Squall! Squall, wake up!" Selphie said, shaking Squall impatiently. Squall groaned and shook his head, had he fallen asleep? "Finally! We're back in Timber." Selphie announced. Squall yawned and stretched his arms. Selphie took a few steps back as he slowly got to his feet.
"…How long have I been asleep?" Squall asked, glancing around the strategy room. Selphie shrugged.
"You fell asleep in the middle of the debriefing for the TV Station announcement… Zell and I took the liberty of checking out our contract. Squall, it says we are to follow their orders until Timber achieves independence…" Selphie said, frowning.
"Are you serious?" she nodded. "That's pretty vague… What if Timber doesn't achieve independence?" Selphie shook her head.
"I dunno… Anyway, come on… We've got to go infiltrate a TV station…" Selphie turned and walked out of the room briskly, as Squall followed sluggishly behind.
(I'm still sleepy... Jeez, I haven't been this tired since I was a kid… Must be all the action I've been getting lately, the spells do take a lot of energy…) he thought as the door slid shut behind him.
"Hello sir! How are you feeling? Better?" Watts asked cheerfully as Squall stepped out of the strategy room. Squall raised an eyebrow at Watts.
"…Um… yeah… whatever…" Squall answered. Behind him, he heard a soft giggle. Squall turned around and there was Rinoa, with her hand over her mouth, trying not to laugh. "What's so funny?" he asked, annoyed. Squall didn't like it when people laughed at him.
"…Nothing," she replied.
("Whatever…" Just like Selphie said he would…) "Did Selphie fill you in on the plan?" Rinoa inquired, suddenly becoming serious. Squall shook his head.
"…Not yet."
"Okay… Well, I'll give you the run down on the way there, okay?" Squall shrugged.
"…Whatever…"
***
Quistis Trepe ran headlong through the streets of Timber.
(How that boy got out of his holding cell, I'll never know…) she thought, sliding to a halt.
(…Now where was that damn TV Station again?) She looked around quickly, seeing a small pub; maybe they knew how to get to the TV station.
"I'm gonna kill Seifer when I get my hands on him," Quistis murmured under her breath, pushing the door to the bar open. "…Um… Excuse me?" she said, trying to attract the bartender's attention.
"…Hmm? Yes? Can I help you, young woman?" the bartender answered, looking up from his drink list. Quistis walked closer to him.
"…Um… I was wondering if you knew the shortest way to the TV Station?" Quistis asked, hopefully. The man thought for a second.
"The TV Station? Well, usually the trains are the shortest way, but none of them are running right now… Hmm… Well, if you go through the back door of this pub and into the alley behind, you should get there. It'll take a while, but you'll get there nonetheless," Quistis nodded.
"Thank you very much, sir…" Quistis stated, and turned to leave.
"Hey!" Quistis turned again. "It's that door," the man said, pointing to the rear. Quistis smiled and walked to the door. Sitting in front of it, was a somewhat inebriated man.
"Um… can I get through here?" Quistis asked politely. The man glanced up at her and smiled.
"Hell, fer a purty *hic* …face like yours, sure…" the man slowly stood up and moved to the side. Quistis nodded her thanks and went through the door. After she had gone through, the man sat back down in front of the door, and ordered another drink.
Quistis ran through the alleyway behind the pub, stopping only once at a draw point to junction a few more spells.
(When I get my hands on him…) she thought running up a large staircase at the end of the alley. She stopped at the top of the staircase and tried to catch her breath. Ahead, she saw the TV Station, and a small figure running toward it… Seifer.
"I'm-gonna-kill-him… I'm-gonna-kill-him… I'm-gonna-kill-him…" Quistis chanted under her breath as she sprinted after him. "Seifer Almasy! Get your skinny carcass back here!" she shouted.
(Why is he always this difficult?!?) Quistis thought angrily as she ran up another stairwell. At the top of the stairwell was a large video screen crackling with static.
(What the hell is Deling doing?) She quickly glanced over the city of Timber before running up the next set of stairs, into the TV Station.
***
"Whoa, that TV is huge!" Zell exclaimed as they mounted the staircase.
"Weird... What's that noise?" Rinoa asked, shaking her head.
"That noise is broadcast over all of the radio frequencies… They have to do something about it before they can broadcast," Squall answered.
"I was kinda wondering about that myself," Zell admitted, glancing at Rinoa. The sound of footsteps resounded on the stairwell behind them. Squall turned to see Watts running up the stairs.
"The President is in the studio at the moment, sir. There are too many guards right now, so we won't be able to take the place, sir!" he panted, trying to catch his breath. Rinoa looked at Squall.
"So we can't just storm in there... We've gotta come up with a Plan B now! …If the President leaves, the guards will probably leave too… That's when we can do OUR broadcast… It might not be as influential as theirs, but it's better than nothing at all, right? We don't stand a chance if we take them head on, do we?" Squall shrugged.
"Don't worry about us… We'll fight the enemy based on your decision, that's our job," he answered.
"Yeah, you tell us to move, we move," Zell added. "Even if it's a losing battle..." Rinoa stared at the two SeeDs, shaking her head slowly.
"Sad... Act on my decision? It's your job? …Oh, how easy life it must be, to just follow orders..." Rinoa sighed. Squall moved away from her.
"Call it whatever you want... All we want is for you to accomplish your goal using our help… I find it hard to believe that you're actually going to, however…" Rinoa's mouth dropped open as she stared at Squall incredulously. Zell turned his eyes nervously toward the ground. Squall only leaned on the scaffolding guardrail and stared out at the city of Timber.
"W-What did you say!?" she began, shaking with rage. "If you have something to say to me then just say it!" Squall shrugged. "You started it. The least you can do is finish it. Come on hotshot. What's on your mind?" she asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Squall closed his eyes.
(I'm so friggin' tired… Why did I have to open my big mouth…? I could have gotten dismissed for the day to go sleep… I'm an idiot…).
"...Just forget it." Rinoa crossed her arms.
"...No… I'd like to hear this…"
"…"
"Alright then, this is an order… An order from your client!" Squall sighed.
(There is no way I'm gonna get out of this one, I might as well tell her…) Squall opened his eyes and turned to Rinoa.
"You asked for it… Tell me, how serious are you...? Truly...? …The three of you sit down on the floor to plan out your strategy? …On top of that, you can't make a decision without our opinion on it, right?" Squall took a deep breath and continued. "How do you think we feel? Working for such an organisation?" Zell took a step closer to Squall.
"Back off, man… That's hard enough…" he whispered. Squall sighed and turned back to the city.
(I guess that's enough…) Squall thought, closing his eyes again.
"...I'm sorry. I got a little carried away…" Rinoa bit her lip and turned away.
"You know... This was just a big mistake… I thought everything would be great once SeeD got here. I guess this isn't going to be that easy." Rinoa pushed the tears away from her eyes; she was not going to give Squall the satisfaction of having made her cry. "You're hired… You're not one of us." She stopped, unable to continue. After a moment of silence, she sighed, "…Um, let's see...We'll cancel the plan and disperse for the time being… Okay?" Rinoa then turned to leave, but stopped, looking back at Squall, "You probably think this is all a game to us... Well, it's not! …We're serious," she glared at him. "…So serious... it hurts." Then she turned around quickly and ran down the stairs, bumping into Selphie along the way.
"…What's with her?" Selphie asked Squall and Zell as she reached the top of the staircase.
"…Let's go…" Squall said, ignoring Selphie's question. Just as they turned to leave the screen behind them stopped crackling and the picture cleared. A man walked in front of the camera to a podium with microphones attached to it.
"People of the world… Can you hear me? …Can you see me? …This is amazing, ladies and gentlemen this is no recording, this is an actual live broadcast straight from Timber! …Excuse me, I seem to have lost myself… Ladies and gentlemen, may I present the Galbadian President-for-Life, Vinzer Deling…"
The man took a step to the side and another man, whom Squall recognised as President Deling, walked to the podium.
"Hello ladies and gentlemen… I, Vinzer Deling, Galbadian President-for-life, have a proposal of peace to make to the world… There are, unfortunately a few small problems between Galbadia and some other countries that need to be resolved first."
Squall heard a noise, which the President chose to ignore, coming from somewhere behind the camera.
"I am planning to hold a meeting with all of the leaders of the world to decide how to resolve these problems… Now, I will introduce to you the ambassador who will be handling these negotiations, the Sorceress-"
(…Sorceress?!) Suddenly, Seifer ran into the camera frame and stabbed a Galbadian soldier who was protecting the President. The three SeeDs watched, horrified as the camera fell over and Seifer took the President hostage.
"Shit! …What are we gonna do?" Zell asked agitatedly. Squall shrugged.
"We can't interfere… It's not part of our mission…" he answered, moving to go.
"Hey, wait! Isn't that Instructor Trepe?" Selphie exclaimed, pointing at the screen. Squall whirled around and saw the blonde woman run into view and stop in front of Seifer.
"Don't provoke him! …Seifer, just put the gunblade down and come with me…"
Quistis moved toward the fallen camera.
"Timber team! Can you hear me? Come here right now! You have permission!"
The three SeeDs glanced at each other and ran up the last set of stairs.
***
"We need to restrain him!" Quistis shouted at the soldier around her. They all ran off quickly, looking for something that might hold the teenager. Squall came up behind Quistis and stared at Seifer passively.
"…Do you honestly think you're going to get away with this?" Squall asked Seifer. Seifer scowled.
"So, what should we do with him?" he inquired, smiling maliciously at the President. Squall blinked.
(…That's right… Rinoa and him… They know each other… Is that why he's here?)
"…Hey, I get it… You're Rinoa's-" Zell started.
"Shut the hell up, chicken-wuss!" Seifer snarled. Quistis turned to Squall.
"He broke out of the restraining room this morning, and hurt a fair amount of people in the process-"she began.
"You fucking dumb-ass!" Zell interjected.
"Zell… Shut-up…" Squall whispered. Zell ignored Squall and continued.
"Instructor? You're here to take this idiot back to Garden, right?"
"ZELL!" Squall exclaimed. The President smiled calmly.
"Ah… I see, you're all from Garden? Well, rest assured that if anything happens to me, Galbadia will not hesitate in blowing you off of the map…" he said. Zell's mouth dropped open as he realised what he had just done.
Seifer rolled his eyes and started walking backward with the President.
"Great going fuckhead… Why don't you, the Instructor, and Mr. Squad Leader here clean up the mess…" Seifer backed slowly through a door to his right and disappeared. Quistis moaned and rolled her eyes, running quickly after Seifer. Squall and Selphie glared at Zell for a second and then followed her into the next room.
As they entered the room, they found Quistis frozen on the ground in front of the door. In front of Quistis on a small platform was Seifer and a woman. Seifer turned toward them and raised his gunblade, as if he was waving goodbye. Squall started to run forward, but the woman stretched her arm in his direction and he fell backward as the full force of a Stop spell hit him. To the woman's surprise, Squall stood up; the spell had only knocked him back.
"Seifer! What are you doing?" Squall shouted trying to get past the frozen Quistis and onto the platform. The woman stared coldly at Squall and gestured for Seifer to follow her as she walked toward the back of the platform. Squall reached the platform in time to see the two people walk through the wall at the back of the stage.
(…Matron?) Squall thought, raising his hand to the wall. It was solid.
"Dispel!" Selphie commanded.
"Who was that?" Quistis asked as she came back into consciousness. Squall turned slowly and saw Quistis, Zell and Selphie staring at him.
"How'd they do that?" Selphie asked quietly, her green eyes widening.
"…I don't know…" Squall whispered, staring back at Selphie. Squall glanced back at the wall.
(…Was that Matron?) He thought. (No… it couldn't have been…) Squall shook his head and looked at the group. Behind them, Rinoa unexpectedly appeared. "Let's get outta here…" Squall ordered, stepping off of the platform.
***
"Next stop, East Academy Station… East Academy Station…" the voice on the train intercom stated. The three of the five teenagers felt queasy as the train slowed down.
"…Should we wake him up?" Rinoa whispered to Quistis. Quistis shrugged.
"Might as well, he's only been out for about fifteen minutes anyway…" she whispered back.
"He did this in the middle of our TV station strategy meeting too… It's like he's had all his energy just drained out…" Quistis frowned, it wasn't like Squall to fall asleep in the middle of a meeting, especially one that determined whether or not he got paid. Quistis walked slowly across the unstable train car to the sleeping form of Squall Leonhart. The moment they had entered the train, he had handed the ticket to Selphie, who took it and opened the door into the cabins, and then had sat down with his back against the wall. Rinoa hadn't noticed that he had fallen asleep until a little while ago. Quistis leaned over cautiously as the train came to a stop.
"…Squall… Wake up…" she said softly, shaking him. Squall groaned and rolled his head forward. "…Come on Squall… We're there, we have to get off now…" Quistis glanced at Rinoa who had opened the door leading to the cabins. She was gesturing for Selphie to come.
"…Squall get up!" She said a bit louder. Squall slowly opened his eyes and looked sleepily at Quistis. She straightened back up again, towering over him. "…Come on, Zell it's time to go…" Squall blinked a few times and shook the cobwebs out of his head.
(…I need some sleep…) he thought, yawning. Quistis walked to the door leading off of the train and stopped. She waited as Zell, Selphie and Rinoa all passed her. Squall stood up unsteadily and walked off the train as well, with Quistis taking up the rear.
"Where is Galbadia Garden?" Selphie asked, looking around the countryside for anything big enough to be a school.
"Galbadia Garden is on the other side of that forest," Quistis said, pointing eastward to a large wooded area in between two cliffs. "Let's go."
The three SeeDs and Rinoa followed Quistis as she ran quickly toward the forest. She stopped at the edge of the wood, waiting for everyone to catch up. Squall was lagging far behind, he wasn't even bothering to try and run.
"Hurry up Squall!" She shouted as Selphie, Rinoa and Zell all passed her and headed into the forest. Squall ignored Quistis's calls and kept going at his own pace.
(…That dream. It was after the dream that I started to get tired… Why would a dream make me tired? I'm only this tired when I've cast either big spells or a large number of spells in a short amount of time. Hmm…) Squall passed Quistis silently, his thoughts were elsewhere.
"Get a move on Leonhart!" she ordered. Quistis glared at him as he walked by, but Squall didn't seem to notice. She rolled her eyes toward the sky and sighed, walking into the forest behind him.
Squall looked around the entrance into the forest. It seemed familiar somehow. He glanced at Rinoa and Selphie, who were standing on the path, talking. Zell was sitting on the ground off to the side.
"Um… I was thinking... There might be some big trouble with the Galbadian government..." Selphie said suddenly, looking at Squall and Quistis. "What if they catch us and then broadcast it to the whole world...!?" She stared at the ground silently, knitting her brow, worriedly. Zell stood up.
"Whatever happens, happens! Let's just keep going… I-I'm anxious about Balamb Garden… I-If anything happens to it, it's going to be all my fault. I'm the dumbass who said we were all from Garden," Zell turned to Squall. "D'you think President Deling will get even with us by attacking Garden?" Squall shrugged.
"...He might…" he answered, detachedly. Zell came up next to Squall and looked him in the eyes.
"B-B-But, there are a whole bunch of SeeDs at Balamb Garden!" Zell grabbed Squall's arm. "They wouldn't lose to the Galbadian army, would they?" Squall pulled his arm roughly out of Zell's grip.
"Depends on how big the army is..." Zell's shoulder's dropped. He stared numbly at the ground. Squall crossed his arms and looked away. Rinoa snorted angrily and took a few steps toward Squall.
"Oh, aren't you just a great leader... Do you enjoy acting heartless to your comrades?" she said. Squall rolled his eyes.
(...Not again…)
"Zell wants your support right now!"
(I knew she was gonna say that...) "Any kind of encouragement would have made..."
(That's just to make you feel like everything is okay… Am I the only one who understands that? …No, I'm sure Seifer...) "Don't you ever think or worry about the emotions of your friends!?"
(I don't have any friends… Relying on others will only let you down in the end...)
"Don't you understand!?" she demanded. Squall sighed.
(...Whatever...) Rinoa crossed her arms impatiently, waiting for an answer.
"Are you even listening to me, Squall?" Suddenly, Squall could hear a high-pitched squeal, gradually getting louder.
(...What the!? ...This sensation...) he thought, putting his hand to his head and moaning. Rinoa watched as Squall crumpled to the ground in front of her. She gasped silently and turned around in time to see Quistis fall to the ground as well. Selphie closed her eyes and put her hand to her forehead.
"M-Me, too..." she said, and passed out. Rinoa turned in a circle frantically and looked at Zell, who had resumed his place on the ground.
"What just happened!?" she asked, panicking. Zell shrugged.
"The 'dream world'," He answered.
***
"Kiros, you sure this is the place?" Ward asked uncertainly, glancing at the mountains.
"Positive," he answered. Ward shrugged.
"If you say so… I just don't wanna be patrolling the wrong place… Like last time," he added, turning to Laguna. Laguna stared at the terrain and scratched his head.
(Ah!! My head hurts again…) He shook his head and blinked (Not again…).
"Uh… Sorry guys... This ain't the place..." he said turning around. Kiros crossed his arms.
"Is too... Let's go, commander…" Laguna turned back around and pulled out a map. He glanced from the map to the terrain and back again.
"?" Laguna stared at the piece of paper for a second and then turned it right side up. He glanced at it again and shook his head. "Um… I brought the wrong map." Kiros rolled his eyes. Ward snickered silently.
"Why am I not surprised?" Kiros said. Laguna put the map away and stared down the mountainside, toward the large construction site at the bottom.
"I have a bad feeling about this..." Laguna declared, frowning.
(…Ack!! My head hurts soooo much!!) Laguna closed his eyes for a second.
"…Famous last words…" Ward whispered to Kiros, who snorted.
"Well, we are on duty... Let's go check things out," Laguna said, opening his eyes and taking a few steps forward, "But seriously, I have a really BAAAD feeling...! Somethin' just isn't right here! …You know what they say... The unaware always happens..." Kiros raised an eyebrow.
"You mean... 'the unexpected always happens', right?"
"Whatever… Now, stop your yappin' and make sure you got all your stuff..." Laguna ordered, gesturing for them to follow. Behind Kiros and Ward a tree caught on fire. Laguna walked down the side of the hill, not even noticing. The two other men glanced at each other, then at the tree and followed Laguna cautiously down the hill. "But really guys... This place gives me the creeps." The three men walked toward the large construction site at the bottom of the hill and stopped. It looked like a giant crystal pillar, there was a lot of debris and dust around, like it was being excavated or something. "...Hey…" Laguna said, looking ahead. There was a soldier coming toward them. "Looks like we've got company… Esthar soldiers… Still wearin' them flashy uniforms." Kiros and Ward turned around and saw two more soldiers come in behind them.
"Um… Laguna!!!" Ward started. Laguna waved his hand at Ward, causing one of the Estharian soldiers to turn red and explode. Kiros and Ward took a step closer to Laguna.
"Don't be such a wimp!" he said, turning around. "What the...!?"
"Wasn't our mission just to patrol...?" Kiros mumbled nervously. Ward sighed.
"Why does it have to be like this?" he said, dropping his shoulders. Laguna fidgeted tensely as he checked his machine gun for ammo.
(…Why the hell did I have to get a migraine right now and right here of all places!!) Kiros pulled out his knives and Ward took his trebuchet off of his back and aimed it carefully at the soldier in front of him. Laguna turned to the other soldier and pulled the trigger. The Estharian fell to the ground, dead. Laguna turned and saw Kiros run forward and thrust one of his knives into the stomach of the other soldier.
"Um… Wasn't there three of them?" Laguna asked, puzzled.
"There's more coming!" Ward exclaimed, backing up. Kiros turned to Laguna.
"This way!" Laguna shouted at them and ran into the crystal pillar. They got to the end of the metal grating that served as a walkway inside of the pillar and found a ladder. He turned and looked back at Kiros and Ward, then at the five Estharian soldiers behind them, trying to ignore the pain in his head.
"…Let's go!" he exclaimed, swinging his leg over the top of the ladder. They reached the bottom of the scaffolding and found another metal walkway. Laguna looked back up the ladder then to the entryway at the end of the grating. "Come on!!" he ordered, running toward the doorway. The doorway was made out of ice, as was the rest of the strange structure. Kiros and Ward followed Laguna warily into the foreign object. They wound their way through the ice caves. After what seemed like hours of running, they exited the cave, and found themselves on a steep cliff side. Laguna glanced over the edge, then turned around. Behind them, four Estharian soldiers blocked the exit.
"Awww, man! …Don't tell me we have to..." Kiros smacked his forehead.
"Of all the worst possible..." Kiros began.
"...Predicaments?" Ward finished. The three soldiers looked at each other and shrugged. Laguna pulled out his machine gun again and fired rapidly at the four Estharians. Kiros and Ward waited until Laguna was finished before going in to make sure the soldiers were dead. Three of the four soldiers fell under the machine gun's fire. The last soldier, who had black on his uniform that indicated he was an officer, held his blade at arm's length and ran at Kiros. Laguna watched helplessly as Kiros and then Ward fell to the ground. Laguna pointed his machine gun at the officer and pulled the trigger.
He was out of ammo.
Laguna's eyes widened as he realised that he was probably going to die. The Estharian soldier turned slowly to Laguna and stood, staring at him for a moment. Laguna took a few steps back and swallowed. The other soldier ran toward him, raising his blade above his head. Laguna closed his eyes and put his arms over his head, trying to fend off the attack. Suddenly, Laguna felt a surge of pain shoot through his body. It was the most pain he had ever felt in his life. It was if his skeleton was being ripped out of his body and put back in the wrong way. He opened his eyes and screamed.
It was Ultima.
The bright light cleared and Laguna sat on the ground, breathing heavily. The soldier was no where to be seen. Even the bodies of the other three soldiers were gone. Laguna just sat on the ground for a few minutes and stared at his hands. He slowly stood up and walked uneasily to Kiros and Ward.
"Are you guys okay?" he asked hoarsely. Kiros opened his eyes slowly.
"…I think so… What happened?" Laguna shook his head.
"…I dunno…" Laguna helped Kiros up. Kiros turned his head to Ward.
"…Ward?" The big man slowly moved his head, acknowledging that he was still alive. They helped Ward stand up and then pulled themselves to the cliff side. Laguna leaned over the side a little, still holdin onto Kiros and Ward.
"Look, the ocean...We're saved! We can escape to Galbadia!!!"
"Ggghh...rrrhhh..." Ward growled. Laguna turned his face to Ward.
"What'd you say?"
"I think... his throat... got injured... He must've lost...his voice," Kiros answered.
"It...wa...fu...you..." Ward tried. Laguna stared at him incredulously.
"Are you swearing at me? …You'd better not be or I'm gonna let you escape on your own…"
"It... was... fun... you... guys... La... guna... Ki... ros... It... was... fun..." Ward said again. His voice cracking. Laguna smiled.
"Hey, check it out… A boat! …We're gettin' on!"
"A... ship... They'd normally...call...it..." Kiros said, smiling weakly. Laguna rolled his eyes.
"Boat, ship, whatever... We're going back to Galbadia!" Laguna helped Kiros and Ward to the edge of the cliff and pushed them off. He watched them fall down the side of the cliff and land in the water. "Ack!! My head!!" Laguna exclaimed, closing his eyes. He felt extremely nauseous. Suddenly, Laguna lost his footing and slid off the side of the cliff. "Oh... shi...!" Laguna shouted, hitting his head on the side of the cliff.
***
Squall groaned and lifted himself slowly off the ground. He opened his eyes and saw Quistis, Zell, Selphie and Rinoa all staring at him.
(…Man… Not again… I'm so frickin' tired…) he thought closing his eyes.
"Was it the 'dream world'?" Zell asked quietly. Squall opened his eyes again and nodded.
"Well, you guys have obviously done that before," Quistis said, looking around. The others nodded. "What is it?" she asked.
"We don't know," Zell answered. Quistis furrowed her brow.
"Well, we better get a move on… Any idea how long we've been out?" she asked.
"About an hour…" Rinoa replied. Squall slowly pulled himself to his feet and leaned unsteadily against a tree, his whole body hurt. The others started walking again.
"How do you think Sir Laguna did that anyway?" Selphie piped up, trying to make conversation.
"Do what?" Zell asked, confused. Quistis looked back at Squall, who was lagging behind again.
"…He cast an Ultima spell…" Quistis answered, looking forward again.
"Whoa! He had an Ultima junctioned??" Zell said, his mouth dropping open. Quistis shrugged.
"…I think Squall would know that…" she answered. Zell looked back at Squall, who was walking slowly behind them, thinking.
(…They can't be dreams. It wouldn't hurt me when Laguna gets attacked if it were. It's real, somehow. Maybe, if I can feel his pain, he can feel mine?) Squall slowed to a stopped and leaned uneasily against a tree. The others continued ahead, not noticing.
(I'm so tired… You can only run on adrenaline for so long… I… just… want… to… sleep…) he thought, slowly closing his eyes.
"Squall!" He opened them again abruptly. "Squall, come on!!" Selphie shouted. Squall pushed himself off of the tree and walked slowly, trying to catch up.
***
"Wow… This place is huge!!" Selphie exclaimed as they approached the front gate of Galbadia Garden. "Not as big as Balamb, though…"
"Actually, I think they're both about the same size…" Quistis commented. They all stopped at the front gate and waited for Squall to catch up.
"What do you think is wrong with him?" Rinoa asked quietly. Selphie and Zell shrugged and turned to Quistis. She knew Squall the best out of anyone. Quistis shook her head.
"I honestly don't know… He's never been like this as far as I can remember," she said. Squall came slowly up behind them. Quistis turned to him. "I'm going to go talk to the Headmaster here, him and I know each other and I've been here a few times… You guys should go to the reception area, it's on the second floor." They all nodded in agreement and Quistis walked into the Garden, leaving them behind. The three remaining people turned and looked at Squall. Squall sighed and followed Quistis.
"…Come on," he said quietly.
***
Quistis walked into the reception area and saw everyone sitting silently around the room. Zell on one couch, Selphie looking out the window, Rinoa standing in the back and Squall sitting on the other couch, obviously trying to stay awake.
(Why is he so tired…?) Quistis wondered.
"Everyone…" They all turned toward Quistis, except for Squall. "Balamb Garden is safe," she began, glancing at Zell. Zell closed his eyes and sighed in relief. "The attack on the President was classified as an independent action. There was an official announcement from Galbadia saying that Balamb Garden is not being held responsible." Zell opened his eyes.
"So, Seifer's taking all the heat?" Zell asked. Quistis bit her lip.
"The trial is already over, and the sentence has been carried out..." she replied softly. Squall opened his eyes and looked at Quistis. Rinoa took a few steps forward.
"H-He was executed?" she queried. "...Of course he was. He attacked President Deling..." She turned her head away, trying not to cry. "…He sacrificed himself for the 'Forest Owls'..."
"Hey, you're a militant resistance faction, right? You had to have been prepared for something like this... I'm sure Seifer was ready too..." Quistis tried. "Don't think of it as Seifer sacrificing himself…" Quistis sighed and sat down on the couch, next to Squall. "I'm sorry. I guess that isn't much solace." Silence fell on the room.
"…You really hated Seifer, didn't you, Zell?" Selphie asked quietly. Squall glanced at Quistis and stood up. He walked to the window and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms and looked at Selphie. Selphie glanced back at him.
(Squall… What's the matter with you? You look so… So pale, so… tired) she thought as she brought her attention back to Zell.
"Yeah… But he was from Garden. He was… one of us. I mean, I didn't like the guy, but executed?" Zell sighed.
"I don't really have any good memories of him," Quistis said, putting her opinion in. "I've seen some troubled kids, but Seifer was beyond troubled… Still, he wasn't really a bad guy."
"I... really liked him," Rinoa whispered, sitting down where Squall had been. "He was always so confident, so smart... Just talking to him made me feel like I could take on the world..."
"Was he your boyfriend?" Selphie asked. Rinoa shook her head.
"I'm not sure… I-I think I was in love with him… I wonder if he felt the same way?"
"Do you still like him?" Quistis asked.
"If I didn't, I wouldn't talk about it... It was sort of a summer-fling…"
(I liked him... He wasn't really a bad guy... We've known each other for a long time…) Squall thought. (Seifer... They're all talking about you in the past tense… You've become a memory…) Squall felt his heart jump in his throat.
(Will... Will they talk about me like this if I die? …Squall had this and that and was this and that... Using the past tense, saying whatever? …Is this what death is all about? ...No… I don't want it to be like this!!!) Squall stood up straight and walked across the room. Quistis's eyes followed him. He didn't look well.
"What's wrong, Squall?" she asked.
"I won't have it!" Squall barked at her. Everyone looked at him in surprise.
"W-What?" Zell sputtered. Squall glared at everyone.
"I'm not having anyone talk about me in past tense!" he exclaimed and ran out of the room.
"Squall!!" Selphie shouted running toward the door.
"Leave him be Selphie…" Quistis said. Selphie stopped at the door and glanced back at the other three. Rinoa stood up and walked to the door, stopping next to Selphie.
"…Let's go Selphie… I don't think he should be left alone in the state that he's in…" Rinoa said quietly. Selphie nodded and they both left the room.
***
Squall ran. His body was screaming for him to stop, for him to slow down, to sleep. He ignored the pleas and ran down the hallway toward the main courtyard. Squall slid to a stop and hit a guardrail. He held on tightly, squeezing his eyes shut. The world was spinning and there was nothing Squall could do about it. He was breathing heavily, trying to catch his breath. The adrenaline was quickly draining out of his system and Squall could feel exhaustion creeping up to replace it. Behind him, he heard a noise.
"…Squall?" It sounded like Rinoa's voice. Squall turned around slowly and saw Selphie and Rinoa watching him with very worried expressions. "…Squall… What's the matter? …Are you alright?" she asked. Squall didn't have time to answer before the world went dark.
***
Author's Note: Disclaimer stuff… yeah, yeah… screw it, whatever… *sigh* Cuddles her Squall action figure… I'll soon have a Laguna so you won't be alone on my shelf anymore! *blinks* Oh, that camera was still on? Oops…^_~ R&R
-Rhyein