"Green Evil"

Disclaimer: OK, before we get the ball rolling…FF8 does not belong to me. Origin, Nikola, Jaira…all of them do, however. So does the storyline. But that's it…

Nature's finest green is gold

Her hardest hue to hold

Her early leaf's a flower

But only so an hour

Then leaf subsides to leaf

So Eden sank to grief

So dawn goes down to day

Nothing gold can stay.

"C'mon girl! Kick, punch…block!!"

This is just an example of another training session from Zell Dincht. I tried desperately to follow his metronome, but for the third time I fell on the gravel. Zell sighed and helped me up.

"Origin, with skills like that, I'm surprised you made SeeD."

I brushed some silver hair off my damp forehead. "Aw, be quiet. I'm trying as hard as I could here." Zell rolled his eyes. "Fine, you want to see my moves? Right now!" Almost instantly my fists were up--I wanted and needed more training.

"Maybe next time." Zell smiled. "If I don't get you home, Rinoa's gonna go stir-crazy."

I looked at Zell and grinned. He was best friends with my mother, Rinoa Heartilly/Leonhart. My mom, dad, and him helped save the planet about nineteen years ago with three other people I now know as two aunts and an uncle. But now, my father--Commander Squall Leonhart--is dead. Sometimes I wondered if Zell ever took his place, but in my heart I knew he didn't. He just came to live with my mom, my sisters, and me after my dad died. Nikola was only three at that time--Jaira was two, and my mom was pregnant with me, so I couldn't tell you a thing about the great man that was my father. Yes, I have seen pictures of him…he looks so much like Nikola. Jaira is an exact copy of mom…and I'm just a crazy hybrid between them both. I guess that's why people mistake me for Zell's daughter, because since I don't really look like either of my two biological parents, they assume Zell is my dad. Although he's cool as a friend, I don't think he'd be a good father. But that's just my opinion. Maybe he would be good at it…I don't know. Who am I to judge?

"My mom goes stir-crazy with anything anymore. You should know that." My gloves, Zell's hand me downs (his Ehergiez), were sliding off my hands. I pulled them up a bit. "Whether it be Nikola talking about Aidan or Jaira over practicing for SeeD or me training with you in my spare time…I couldn't tell ya what made her that way."

Zell laughed. "Rinoa was always like that. It's just that she's a bit overwhelmed with everything, that's all."

I grinned and made my way towards the car. "Well, I think you could do a bit more to help out too, Zell."

"Like what?" He rubbed my head. "I already take care of your training. That's difficult enough, from what I saw right now."

"Are you implying that I'm terrible when it comes to fighting?" I asked, giggling.

"All I'm sayin is that you need lots more practice." Zell hopped in the driver's seat of the car.

I sat in the passenger seat. "You know…I think I have a great idea of how you can help out!"

"Really?"

"Yeah…" I grinned. "You should marry my mom. Then you would be just like family! It would be so great!" Zell suddenly fell silent and looked away from me. I could feel my face turn red-hot. "Oh…I'm sorry. Guess I shouldn't have said that…"

Zell didn't look at me. "No, that's all right. That just never came to mind." He stared out in front. "I could never be the man your father was."

"But…you're just like my dad. I couldn't imagine a better person to take the job."

"Imagine the guy you always see in the pictures." Zell sighed, then started up the car.

I sat back in my seat. Oh…I really shouldn't have said that. I'm such a dummy! But…I wonder what was so great about my dad that Zell can't be…hmm… The car jumped to a start, then rolled onto the road. There was nothing I could think of to fix what I said, so I just stayed silent on the ride home. Zell looked like he wanted to open his mouth and say something, but he never did.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Nikola was sitting outside with Aidan when we arrived in Balamb. He had an oh-so-obvious crush on my big sister. I liked him a lot…it was his brother, Justice, that was the problem child. Justice was a year younger than me, but he was hyper and flirty at the same time…and it didn't really equal up to much.

"Hey Origin," Aidan said as I walked up to the two of them. His soft brown eyes smiled at me. I could feel my cheeks turn pink. Nikola smiled in my direction, but gave me a look that said "Get out of here. Now." So, being the considerate sister I am, I excused myself and walked into the kitchen.

"Origin!" Jaira yelled when she saw me. "How's my favorite baby sister?" She grinned. Her light blonde hair was frizzy from the little bit of humidity in the air. I rolled my eyes at Jaira and sat down at the table. Although I got along better with her than Nikola, she was so much louder and spontaneous--like me. I didn't mind though, because she always could control herself when she needed to. "How was your day with Uncle Zell?"

Both of my sisters called him "Uncle" Zell, because they still had a vague memory of my dad and weren't used to calling him Zell. "I had an all right time…" I trailed off and ran my fingers through my hair.

"All right? Usually you love your training." Jaira then leaned and whispered into my ear, "Hey, did you see Aidan and Nikola outside? It's sooo obvious that he really likes her…" She then erupted into giggles, because the two of them walked into the door. "Heyyy!"

"Hi," Nikola and Aidan replied at the same time. I looked at Jaira, then began to laugh. "What?" They asked again, simultaneously.

"Blondes," I said, giggling. (Although my sister had brown hair, it was light enough to be blonde.) Nikola frowned at me. "Sorry…so, what's up?"

"Nothing much. Aidan was just telling me about SeeD exams." Nikola sat next to me at the table and traced her fingers on the wood surface. "Justice still didn't make it."

"Obviously." I sighed. "He's way too immature." Aidan looked at me and smiled, shaking his head.

Jaira looked at Nikola. "Hey, where's mom?"

"I don't know. She said she was going down to the train station. I couldn't think of a reason why she would go." Nikola sighed. "Mom's been really uptight lately."

"You know, Nikola…I should go." Aidan looked at her and ran a hand through his blonde hair. "I have stuff to do. And I'm sure you do, too."

"Yeah…" Nikola sighed. "I'll see you around, OK?" Aidan nodded and kissed her on the cheek, then walked through the door. As soon as he left, we all erupted into squeals and giggles. "Ahh! He kissed me!" My sister was grinning ear-to-ear. She was so in love with Aidan it was ridiculous.

"You two are sooo cute together!" Jaira said. "Don't you think, Origin?"

"Uh-huh." I said with a little less enthusiasm. I always liked Aidan…and he always liked Nikola. He knew I liked him, but…oh well. Hopefully, there were more fish in the sea. "Adorable."

Suddenly, my mom and Zell came walking in the door. "Hey, girls." She said and put her things down. "Guess what?"

"What?" The three of us said.

"Your Aunt Ellone is coming to visit with your cousin!" Mom smiled.

I looked at her in disbelief. "I never knew we had a cousin!"

"Really?" I guess mom forgot. "I think you'll like him. His name is Kanotsu. He's a top ranking SeeD in Balamb Garden. You probably saw him and never recognized him. He's adopted, you know."

"Adopted?" Jaira asked. "Like, not a blood relative?"

"No duh." Nikola said. Then, she said, "Uncle Zell, is there a reason why you're so quiet?"

"Nah. Just thinking." He glanced over at my mom with his bright blue eyes, then back to the floor.

"'Bout what?" Jaira asked. She was always so nosy.

"Nothing all that important." Zell looked at me. "Hey, kid…wanna go for a walk?"

"Sure!" I jumped up out of my seat. Jaira immediately followed me. "Jaira…you comin?"

"If Uncle Zell lets me." She smiled at him, and he motioned for her to follow. The three of us walked into the early evening air. The sun was setting on the horizon, and it gave the city a warm orangey glow.

"Wow…" I said, gazing out at the ocean. "So pretty…"

"Yeah. I remember watchin the sunset with your mom, your dad, and everyone else when I was your age." Zell smiled to himself. "I miss it."

"You mean Selphie, Irvine, Seifer, Quistis, and Aunt Ellone?" Jaira asked.

"Not Ellone. She didn't go to Balamb Garden…so we didn't see her often. Neither did Irvine, but he transferred from Galbadia."

"Oh." Jaira poked me in the shoulder. "Hey, is that one of your crowd?"

"Huh?" I looked out in front of me. "Oh…Kiran." She was Quistis's and Seifer's daughter, and definitely not one of my crowd. Kiran was probably the meanest person I had ever met. I could never figure out why she was like that. Maybe because her dad died alongside my dad (and she was alive when it happened)…that was probably it. Something like that can't do much good for a person. However, I did admire her fighting skills…I guess I'd give her that much.

Her black eyes saw right through my amethyst ones as she walked past me. "How mean can you possibly get?" I said out loud after she was gone.

"I don't know. She's like, the queen of evil." Jaira giggled a little.

"You don't mean that's Quisty's girl?" Zell asked.

"Yeah. You didn't know that? She never liked me. I can't figure that out." I said softly. "Her brother, Yoshiro, is really nice, though."

"Well…I wouldn't have known that was Quisty's and Seifer's daughter in a thousand years. She certainly doesn't look or act like either of them." Zell paused. "Maybe like Seifer did a long time ago…"

Jaira giggled. "It's funny how Kiran and Yoshiro are so different. Kiran is like, a demon from hell…when Yoshiro is practically a saint or something." I laughed. "Yoshiro's really really cute, too." She winked at me. "I think he's got his eye on you."

"No!" I shook my head. "No way. Yoshiro doesn't like me. He's eighteen. There's probably so many girls he can choose from. He doesn't like me."

"Hey, ya never know." Jaira smiled, then looked at her watch. "Oh! I forgot! I have homework!" She started to run back home. "See ya!"

I watched my older sister run away. "So…" Zell looked at me. "You think Yoshiro likes me?"

Zell laughed. "I don't know. I haven't ever really seen their kids in a long time. I'm only close to you and your sisters anymore."

"Oh." I smiled. "You never really go for walks anymore." I said after a pause. "What's up?"

"Well…I just wanted to talk to you about what you said today." I froze. "What? I'm not taking it seriously, if that's what you're thinkin. I just wanted to clear up anything that you were thinking…I could never marry Rin--um, your mom. We're just friends." He fell silent.

I thought this was a good opportunity to ask him what was on my mind ever since we came home, so I asked, "Um…Zell? Could you tell me about my dad?"

He stopped walking. "Squall?" I could tell he was very uneasy when it came to my dad. "He was…um, a good guy."

"A good guy? There's gotta be more than that…?" I walked over to a nearby bench and sat down. "I mean…he's my dad."

Zell sat next to me. "I know…but there ain't much I can say that's already been said. He was commander of Balamb Garden…kinda quiet. Kept to himself a lot. It feels like just yesterday he met Rinoa and totally changed. I mean…it was practically overnight." Zell gazed up at the sky.

"But how was he like…like, after Ultimecia?"

"Different. A lot more open. And him and Rinoa were never apart. When Nikola and Jaira came along, you couldn't find a happier guy around."

"Oh."

"And I remember the day Rinoa found out she was having you." Zell laughed to himself. "Squall was bouncing off the walls like…like Jaira. I never saw him like that." He shook his head. "Then…only, probably a month or two after you were definite…Squall and Seifer Almasy went out on a SeeD mission and never came back." I shut my eyes…I didn't want to hear that. "Rinoa and Quistis were both a wreck after that. It wasn't good for Rinoa, though, cause she was pregnant. And Quistis already had her two. I offered to help Quisty and your mom, but your mom was the only one who wanted it. Quistis said she could handle it…and she did. Quisty's tough, let me tell you. But Rinoa had two and one on the way…so she needed a helping hand. I had nowhere to go--except for Garden--so I moved in with you four."

"…oh." I repeated.

"Yeah…" Zell stood up. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm not in the mood to really be hanging around here. I'm headin' back."

"I'll stay here for a while." I looked up at Zell and smiled. "See ya."

He started to walk back, but I could sense him standing there and watching me for a moment. I didn't turn around though, and he walked away soon enough. Sometimes, Zell was so convincing I thought he was my father. But, deep in my heart I knew that the blood coursing through my veins was genuine Leonhart. The wind picked up a bit, and I sighed. Suddenly, I heard soft crying and feet from behind me. I whirled around.

"Justice?" I asked, staring into a boy's green eyes that were captivating, but so sad. "Are you all right?"

"Does it look like it?" He replied, rubbing a tear off his pale cheek.

"No." I said flatly, embarrassed. Justice sat down next to me. "What in Hyne happened to you?"

"Mom and Dad came to visit." Justice said. My uncle and aunt, Selphie and Irvine, never got married. Plus, as they were getting older, their relationship began to fall apart. That was one of the reasons Aidan and Justice went to live in Balamb Garden--so they didn't have to listen to their parent's constant bickering. I guess they just had two completely different personalities that just didn't mix after knowing each other for such a long time. "At first, it was fine. But then they just start complaining over nothing and it's just so…painful."

I stared at the ground. Selphie and Irvine were never that close to me, although I've heard wonderful stories about them. Justice wiped away another tear. "Don't worry, Justice." He buried his face in his hands. "You know…maybe you should try talking to them."

"You think I didn't try that?" Justice asked. The orangey haze made his skin glow, despite his red coloring from crying. "You think they listen?"

Poor Justice. He never cries. This had to be bad. I put my arm around his shoulders. "Don't cry. Hey, you can stay at my house for a while if you want to."

He sniffled softly…I wasn't used to seeing him so vulnerable. "All right…maybe for a while. If you and your mom don't mind."

"I don't mind." Then, I remembered something. "Yeah, my cousin's comin over, too. Maybe you two can hang out or something."

"OK." Justice seemed to brighten up a little bit. "I'll have to call Aidan though…"

"That's no problem." I stood up. "Come on. It'll take like, five minutes to walk to my house."

Justice stood up. "Thanks, Origin. You're all right…" Then he added, "for a girl."

"Excuse me? " I glared at him playfully.

He held up his hands. "Nothing, nothing." Then, he started off in a run for my house, me quick on his heels. His mood seemed to change on a whim.

Immature, maybe…but a real nice guy.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

OK, OK…before I'm massacred with flames…yeah, I had to kill Squall and Seifer. ::dodges random rotten produce:: I'm sorry! I love them! Seifer is sexy! LoL But I had to…just wait, okies?

"Nothing Gold Can Stay" is by Robert Frost…he's a really good poet.