The gunmetal grey clouds above Balamb Garden were suddenly pierced by a flood of sunlight which illuminated a group of eight warriors. The eight people in question were lazily lounging on a patch of grass, and seemed to welcome the sunlight.
A man with short-cropped blond hair sat with his back against a wall with a girl of about eighteen resting her head in his lap and dozing, her short chestnut ponytail undone.
A little further off, another couple was lounging in the grass: A raven-haired girl was tickling a medium-height man with wild brown locks under the nose with a blade of grass, causing him to make a face which turned into a grin when he opened his eyes and saw her mischievous expression.
A tiny woman in a ridiculously short yellow dress was wearing the black Cowboy hat which belonged to the ponytailed man sitting next to her. He was about to playfully nibble her ear, provoking a small giggle from her.
The other two warriors both sat seperately, the blue-eyed blonde woman sitting as if in profound meditation, and the tattooed blond youth lying on his stomach, plucking grass and chewing some of the blades. It was a rare picture of complete peace in the Garden, when no particular hazardous missions were handed out to the eight elites.
Suddenly, one of the near-by loudspeakers crackled and a male voice announced, "The following SeeDs please report to Headmaster Cid: Commander Squall Leonhart, Quistis Trepe, Irvine Kinneas, Rinoa Heartlily, Selphie Tilmitt, Zell Dincht, Seifer Almasy and Alia Elholme!"
The group of warriors stirred, some of them grumbling about the interruption. They were mildly curious about the fact that Seifer and Alia had been specifically called to attend the meeting as well, however. The small woman in the yellow dress handed the hat back to her ponytailed companion while the other two couples rose up and stretched. The lone blonde's eyes snapped open and she swung herself up on her hands, briefly carrying her whole body weight on them. The tattooed man plucked a last blade of grass, chewed on it, then spat it out. The tall blond man who had been sitting with his back against the wall had to rouse the girl who had fallen asleep in his lap. After so many years at the Garden, all of them had learned to sleep through the loudspeaker. The girl grumbled and tied up her ponytail with the hairtie she had around her wrist.
The group of SeeDs made their way to headmaster Cid's office, only to be surprised by a figure already standing there, her back turned to them. From what Alia could see, she had short chestnut hair in a style remarkably similar to Squall's, and she was wearing a pair of very light cargo pants off-set by little bits of orange, as well as a simple white tank.
When her fellow SeeDs stopped to stare at the stranger, Alia stopped as well to see their faces. Most of them wore an expression that seemed to be recognition mixed with disbelief. Even Selphie was silent. Seifer didn't look very happy about what he saw, but that wasn't unusual, since most people who knew him still despised him.
Finally, Quistis made her way to the newcomer, causing her to turn around. Alia saw Quistis's eyes widen, and her usually calm features overcome with a strange sort of emotion. The stranger, however, gave her a friendly smile, the kind that you only give to a close friend.
"Hello, Quistie," the stranger said in a clear, fairly deep voice. "Good to see you again."
To Alia's surprise, Quistis threw her arms around the newcomer and hugged her tightly. The newcomer returned the gesture, then drew away from the blonde to get a good look at her.
"You haven't changed much," she observed.
Quistis still remained silent, as if she didn't trust her voice. However, several emotions were crossing her face in as many heartbeats. The other SeeDs covered the last few meters to the brunette in a run. Only Seifer and Alia followed more slowly. Alia turned to the blond man inquisitively.
"Do you know her?" she asked him.
Seifer nodded grimly.
"Ooh, yeah. An old... classmate of ours, you could say. She decided to... disappear about two and a half years ago."
Alia turned to look at the newcomer, in time to watch her greet the group. She was just nodding at Squall, a barely noticable movement. Rinoa received a mischievous grin, probably induced by the fact that taciturn Squall actually had his arm around her. Alia realised that the short-haired brunette towered several inches over her half brother. Selphie traded delighted grins with the stranger, and Irvine was greeted with a little smirk. One of those few who are immune to him, Alia reflected. She walked over while the SeeDs finally started talking in loud excited voices, and Alia caught a glimpse of the newcomer playfully wrestling with Zell. Quite an amusing sight, since she towered five or six inches over the tattooed SeeD.
When Alia and Seifer joined the group, the stranger was explaining her sudden disappearance and reappearence.
"I had a bit of... family business to attend to. Quite urgently, may I add. And headmaster Cid contacted me the other day, wanting another back-up SeeD."
The group gasped at the former bit of information. Selphie pointed at her short locks, which were offset by a few strands of brilliant white at the front.
"Is that why your hair...?"
"Uh-huh," the stranger affirmed. "It got rather annoying to be mistaken for someone else all the time."
She turned her attention to Alia and Seifer, and her smile evaporated to be replaced by a look of mingled curiosity and criticism.
"Now there's an unexpected sight. Long time, no see, Soap-man."
Seifer gave her a dirty look.
"I think the feeling is mutual, Bardok."
Quistis laid her hand on the girl's shoulder.
"It's okay. He's one of us now."
The stranger raised an eyebrow, then shrugged and turned to Alia, her look of curiosity still in place. Before she could say anything, Squall walked up in front of her.
"My half-sister, Alia," he explained.
The newcomer eyed Alia curiously.
"From Raine's side?" she guessed.
Squall nodded.
Suddenly, the stranger extended a long-fingered but strong hand out for Alia to shake.
"I'm Iris," she said bluntly.
"What happened to `Juniko'?" Zell asked behind her.
Alia blinked and shook the hand, which was much larger than her own. In fact, the whole person was much larger than she was. She was only an inch shorter than Seifer, though Alia suspected the thick-soled slippers contributed to that fact. Now close up, she also realised that Iris's eyes were a vivid amber.
Iris shrugged. "Turns out Juniko was just a variation on a sort of registration name. I'm trying to get used to my real name now."
"Not gonna happen," Zell crowed, probably still partly due to the surprise of seeing the tall woman. "You're always gonna be Juniko to me!"
"Wanna bet?"
Suddenly, the lithe brunette had caught Zell in a headlock, threatening to give him a massive noogie.
"What's my name? The answer better be the right one, or I'll seriously mess up you hair."
"Juniko," Zell wheezed stubbornly.
He had to pay with his complicated spiked hairdo for that. When Iris was done with him, his blond locks were sticking out as if they were trying to resemble a compass. Zell finger-combed his hair into the chin-length curtain it really was, apparently quite unruffled.
Alia couldn't help it. The general happy atmosphere was contagious. She found herself grinning too. Only Seifer didn't seem so delighted about Iris's appearance.
In the middle of the reunion, headmaster Cid poked his head out of his office, mildly surprised by what he saw.
"I see you have already been reunited an acquainted," he said drily. "May I ask you lot to come in?"
The group of SeeDs made their way into the office, preparing for a long and probably boring conference.