Chapter 7
As they stepped onto the balcony entrance of the Garden Zell fell to his knees and he kissed the ground. "Oh it feels soooo good to be home! I'm never going to sleep in the raining mud again." They all just looked at him. The Squad felt the same as Zell; they just had too much dignity in them to kiss the ground. Once they were in the hallway that led to the elevator Squall stopped, "Like I said before I want to deal with Cid by myself, I will tell you everything he tells me but I have to talk to him by myself." As they saluted in silence Squall entered the elevator and watched them as he rose up into the third floor. He walked out of the elevator and into Cid's office. He nearly lost his temper when he entered and saw Cid quietly sitting at his desk signing some document. Then he looked up. "Well hello Squall what brings you here?" Squall lost it. "What the hell do you mean what brings me here?! I'm lucky to be here at all! My squad and I have just spent two days in the freezing mud and rain and no one knew we were missing?" Cid stood up and walked over to squall. Their conversation was long and loud, but when it was over at least Squall had his questions answered. In nutshell Cid knew they had been missing but couldn't do anything about it. With all the other SeeD's out looking for Dameon and on top of that, being stuck at FH with no real forms of transportation there was no way to send someone out to look for them. Then he added, "I wasn't really all that worried about you and your squad anyway, after all you did save the world. I didn't think a little walk in the rain would be much of a problem for you." Not much happened after that. Squall let Cid know what let to the squad being left in the rain and went to find his squad after a brief discussion on where they should go next in order to find Dameon. Even though finding Dameon was their first priority they had just come home after two days in the rain, they needed their rest.
Squall went straight to his room to lie down for a sec. He knew he should go find his team and let them know what cid had told him but at the moment he didn't know where they were. As he entered his room he threw his leather jacket onto a near by chair and proceeded to lie down. Rinoa had just finished taking a long shower and sat next to him. He told her everything that he and Cid had discussed plus their plans on finding Dameon, all that was left was finding the others but that could wait. They had just gotten home after all; they hadn't even had anything to eat. Ok well Zell did. But the others were still settling in. Selphie was fast asleep, Irvine was getting some cold medicine from Dr. Kadowaki, Zell decided to eat some hotdogs and then head over to the training center. However Quistis was in her old classroom with the lights out, sitting in her chair thinking about the battle that lay ahead of them. A few days had gone by. They had left F.H. and were heading out to meet with the two other gardens. The way Squall figured it they would need all the help they could get if they were going to take on a Dragon that could control all the monsters on the planet.
Early the next morning they were all at their usual breakfast table in the cafeteria. Squall explained what they would be doing in the next few days. "So once back up arrives I we'll pull all the troops together, find Dameon and do whatever we have to stop him once and for all." When he finished they all sat back in their seats to finish their breakfast. Zell swallowed hard and opened his mouth, "How long until this is all underway?" Squall raised his head. "Two days, I asked Cid if we could have a few days off to get cleaned up and rested. So you don't' have to go to any classes or if you don't want to. Quistis all the students you're tutoring have been made aware of our little break and will continue lessons with you after this matter is finished." To witch Quistis replied, "Thank you Squall." And finished the rest of her food. "What do we do till then?" Asked Selphie. "Well, we rest. We all had it kind of rough out there. I figure we could all take this time to enjoy what we have, tie up lose ends and make sure we're ready for what ever happens next." They stared silently at the ground, none of them wanted to think about it but they knew that taking on Dameon wasn't going to be as easy as Squall depicted. Zell and Quistis had already had a close brush with death, if it weren't for Zell one of them would be dead right now. As for the rest well… they had already seen what Dameon was capable of. The streets and coliseum literally covered in bodies and the stench they left still haunted them. Zell stood up and excused himself from the table, "I think I'll go for a walk." Everyone just looked at him. Rinoa called out, "hey Zell you didn't finish your hotdogs." He waved one hand and answered back, "You guys can have them, I don't feel like having hotdogs right now." They looked on in a scared awe. Since when did Zell not finish his hotdogs? "He must really have a lot on his mind." Squall mumbled to himself.
Zell headed for the balcony entrance; for once he did had a lot to think about. Once he was there he found a nice corner and made himself comfortable. With this legs crossed and his arms around his sides he began to think about the last few days. So what am I suppose to do now? Rather, how do I know what to do so I don't fail them? If only there was some sort of sign." Just as he finished his thought Rinoa walked through the door, "Um Zell, mind if I come out there and join you?" She had totally caught him off guard, and he didn't really know what to say. "What? Oh um I don't know, wait what am I saying? Of course you can um… I was just…" "Yeah I can guess what you were doing." Zell turned his head away, "Yeah stupid answer I know. So what did you come up here for." She sat down next to him, "I just wanted to see if you were ok. You wanna talk about it? I bet you'll feel better if you do." He looked at her then at the blue sky above them. "Sure I guess. What do you want to know?" "Well…" She started, "Why don't you tell me what's wrong. I've never seen you so full of thoughts that you won't finish a hotdog. It's kinda like what your best known for, eating hotdogs I mean. But what I want to know is what is it that's bothering you so much?" He uncrossed his legs, put his hands behind his head and let out another sigh. "I guess what's bothering me is the fact that everyone has a part to play in all this, every one knows what their doing and most of all doing exactly what they should be. But I don't. I don't know what I'm doing, where I'm headed or even if I'm doing the right things anymore. And I know that most people don't really know any of that stuff either but what really gets me is that every one at the big fight that's coming has a part to play. Something big that will either save other people or that will help define who they are." Rinoa looked at him with sympathy in her eyes. "It's ok not to know that. We just do the best we can because it's all that can be asked of us." Zell looked straight at her. "But that's just it. Behind every good leader is a woman just as strong to back him up, that's what you'll do. Quistis is the strong levelheaded person that makes sure we have a way out of any situation. Irvine is the one that will buckle under pressure, and you know he will. But is too lucky to end up hurting anyone. Selphie is the lighthearted one that lets the wind guide us to our battlefield and flies us out. Squall is the one that will lead us, fight the good fight and eventually save the day. But what will I do? What good am I? If anything I'll most likely end up another faceless SeeD that dies in battle ya'know. And it's not even weather I die or not, in the end I'll just end up as extra baggage on the ride there and back."
Rinoa tilted her head and wiped her hair away from her face. She thought hard for a second so she could chose her words carefully. "Listen to me closely, none of us know what will happen in the next few days. But one thing is certain you have to figure out what your part will be just like the rest of us. But you also need to have more faith in yourself, you never know. However I am certain that what you do will most certainly be great. Just remember there is nothing you could do that would let us down." Zell started to smile; it felt good to hear those words from some one he could trust. She started to get up and leave when Zell called out to her. "Hey thanks I mean it ya'know, Squall is lucky to have someone like you. If he ever forgets that, just let me know and I'll make sure my foot reminds him, ya'know."
End Of Chapter 7
As they stepped onto the balcony entrance of the Garden Zell fell to his knees and he kissed the ground. "Oh it feels soooo good to be home! I'm never going to sleep in the raining mud again." They all just looked at him. The Squad felt the same as Zell; they just had too much dignity in them to kiss the ground. Once they were in the hallway that led to the elevator Squall stopped, "Like I said before I want to deal with Cid by myself, I will tell you everything he tells me but I have to talk to him by myself." As they saluted in silence Squall entered the elevator and watched them as he rose up into the third floor. He walked out of the elevator and into Cid's office. He nearly lost his temper when he entered and saw Cid quietly sitting at his desk signing some document. Then he looked up. "Well hello Squall what brings you here?" Squall lost it. "What the hell do you mean what brings me here?! I'm lucky to be here at all! My squad and I have just spent two days in the freezing mud and rain and no one knew we were missing?" Cid stood up and walked over to squall. Their conversation was long and loud, but when it was over at least Squall had his questions answered. In nutshell Cid knew they had been missing but couldn't do anything about it. With all the other SeeD's out looking for Dameon and on top of that, being stuck at FH with no real forms of transportation there was no way to send someone out to look for them. Then he added, "I wasn't really all that worried about you and your squad anyway, after all you did save the world. I didn't think a little walk in the rain would be much of a problem for you." Not much happened after that. Squall let Cid know what let to the squad being left in the rain and went to find his squad after a brief discussion on where they should go next in order to find Dameon. Even though finding Dameon was their first priority they had just come home after two days in the rain, they needed their rest.
Squall went straight to his room to lie down for a sec. He knew he should go find his team and let them know what cid had told him but at the moment he didn't know where they were. As he entered his room he threw his leather jacket onto a near by chair and proceeded to lie down. Rinoa had just finished taking a long shower and sat next to him. He told her everything that he and Cid had discussed plus their plans on finding Dameon, all that was left was finding the others but that could wait. They had just gotten home after all; they hadn't even had anything to eat. Ok well Zell did. But the others were still settling in. Selphie was fast asleep, Irvine was getting some cold medicine from Dr. Kadowaki, Zell decided to eat some hotdogs and then head over to the training center. However Quistis was in her old classroom with the lights out, sitting in her chair thinking about the battle that lay ahead of them. A few days had gone by. They had left F.H. and were heading out to meet with the two other gardens. The way Squall figured it they would need all the help they could get if they were going to take on a Dragon that could control all the monsters on the planet.
Early the next morning they were all at their usual breakfast table in the cafeteria. Squall explained what they would be doing in the next few days. "So once back up arrives I we'll pull all the troops together, find Dameon and do whatever we have to stop him once and for all." When he finished they all sat back in their seats to finish their breakfast. Zell swallowed hard and opened his mouth, "How long until this is all underway?" Squall raised his head. "Two days, I asked Cid if we could have a few days off to get cleaned up and rested. So you don't' have to go to any classes or if you don't want to. Quistis all the students you're tutoring have been made aware of our little break and will continue lessons with you after this matter is finished." To witch Quistis replied, "Thank you Squall." And finished the rest of her food. "What do we do till then?" Asked Selphie. "Well, we rest. We all had it kind of rough out there. I figure we could all take this time to enjoy what we have, tie up lose ends and make sure we're ready for what ever happens next." They stared silently at the ground, none of them wanted to think about it but they knew that taking on Dameon wasn't going to be as easy as Squall depicted. Zell and Quistis had already had a close brush with death, if it weren't for Zell one of them would be dead right now. As for the rest well… they had already seen what Dameon was capable of. The streets and coliseum literally covered in bodies and the stench they left still haunted them. Zell stood up and excused himself from the table, "I think I'll go for a walk." Everyone just looked at him. Rinoa called out, "hey Zell you didn't finish your hotdogs." He waved one hand and answered back, "You guys can have them, I don't feel like having hotdogs right now." They looked on in a scared awe. Since when did Zell not finish his hotdogs? "He must really have a lot on his mind." Squall mumbled to himself.
Zell headed for the balcony entrance; for once he did had a lot to think about. Once he was there he found a nice corner and made himself comfortable. With this legs crossed and his arms around his sides he began to think about the last few days. So what am I suppose to do now? Rather, how do I know what to do so I don't fail them? If only there was some sort of sign." Just as he finished his thought Rinoa walked through the door, "Um Zell, mind if I come out there and join you?" She had totally caught him off guard, and he didn't really know what to say. "What? Oh um I don't know, wait what am I saying? Of course you can um… I was just…" "Yeah I can guess what you were doing." Zell turned his head away, "Yeah stupid answer I know. So what did you come up here for." She sat down next to him, "I just wanted to see if you were ok. You wanna talk about it? I bet you'll feel better if you do." He looked at her then at the blue sky above them. "Sure I guess. What do you want to know?" "Well…" She started, "Why don't you tell me what's wrong. I've never seen you so full of thoughts that you won't finish a hotdog. It's kinda like what your best known for, eating hotdogs I mean. But what I want to know is what is it that's bothering you so much?" He uncrossed his legs, put his hands behind his head and let out another sigh. "I guess what's bothering me is the fact that everyone has a part to play in all this, every one knows what their doing and most of all doing exactly what they should be. But I don't. I don't know what I'm doing, where I'm headed or even if I'm doing the right things anymore. And I know that most people don't really know any of that stuff either but what really gets me is that every one at the big fight that's coming has a part to play. Something big that will either save other people or that will help define who they are." Rinoa looked at him with sympathy in her eyes. "It's ok not to know that. We just do the best we can because it's all that can be asked of us." Zell looked straight at her. "But that's just it. Behind every good leader is a woman just as strong to back him up, that's what you'll do. Quistis is the strong levelheaded person that makes sure we have a way out of any situation. Irvine is the one that will buckle under pressure, and you know he will. But is too lucky to end up hurting anyone. Selphie is the lighthearted one that lets the wind guide us to our battlefield and flies us out. Squall is the one that will lead us, fight the good fight and eventually save the day. But what will I do? What good am I? If anything I'll most likely end up another faceless SeeD that dies in battle ya'know. And it's not even weather I die or not, in the end I'll just end up as extra baggage on the ride there and back."
Rinoa tilted her head and wiped her hair away from her face. She thought hard for a second so she could chose her words carefully. "Listen to me closely, none of us know what will happen in the next few days. But one thing is certain you have to figure out what your part will be just like the rest of us. But you also need to have more faith in yourself, you never know. However I am certain that what you do will most certainly be great. Just remember there is nothing you could do that would let us down." Zell started to smile; it felt good to hear those words from some one he could trust. She started to get up and leave when Zell called out to her. "Hey thanks I mean it ya'know, Squall is lucky to have someone like you. If he ever forgets that, just let me know and I'll make sure my foot reminds him, ya'know."
End Of Chapter 7
