The Heat –

Chapter 2: Surprise!

Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to any of these characters. They all belong to Squaresoft. Enjoy!

She began to stir as she stared to regain consciousness. Her eyes flew right open, immediately regretting it as a wave of pain and heat followed soon after. She blinked a couple of times, trying to adjust to the slim light that seemed to be causing such a great effect on her. She frowned as she looked around her. She didn't know where the hell was she or what have happened. As she turned to the window, memories flashed back. Snowstorm, coldness, getting lost…fainting. She shuttered then, wondering what in Hyne's name have she gotten herself into.

As she got off the soft and warm bed, she felt her temperature rising. Placing her fragile hand on her forehead, she felt a fever coming. Great, she was getting sick in a place she didn't even recognized. She wondered who the housekeeper was. The room she was in was surprisingly well decorated. Her bed was amusingly clean and so were the walls. Next to the bed was a bureau. It was made out of real wood at frankly, looked quite expensive. She turned to her left as she saw something very familiar on top of a chair…it was her clothes. The clothes she was wearing before this whole fainting business came about. She felt a sting of red flush on her cheeks. Instantly, she pulled the cotton sheets that were covering her off. She watched in terror as she found herself wearing a large, black shirt. What was even scarier was the fact that this shirt was way too long to belong to a woman. She shuttered. What the hell was going on?

Impulsively, she got off the bed to find whoever was responsible for what happened. Hopefully, he will have the answers to all of her questions. Oh, she will give him a piece of her mind once she sees him! She stumbled at bit as she found herself in the need to hold something, anything as her weak body almost stumbled to the floor. She got a hold of the wall as she sighed heavily in and out, in and out. Every movement she made seemed to be getting her weaker and weaker by the second. She had a hard time keeping her eyes opened for Hyne's sake!

She tried looking for her Save the Queen but found herself cursing at her misfortune. Since it was a pleasure trip after all, she had forgotten her weapon back at the Garden. Guess she had to defend herself with her own hands if she needed to. Slowly, she walked towards the door and placing her petite hands on the cold knob, she opened the door with a caution that would of made anyone who didn't know her think she was about to spy on someone.

As she made her way out the room, her sapphire eyes snapped wide opened in amazement. The place was beautiful in every sense of the word. It wasn't very fancy but it was decorated beautifully. She saw a small, framed picture just above the chimney. Curious, she walked towards it, still hugging herself to the wall afraid of falling. What she saw in that picture was something that took her breath away as it seemed to have frozen her body. It was a picture of her, Squall, Selphie, Zell, Irvine and Seifer when they were in the orphanage. They looked so happy back then. Well, almost everyone. Squall was standing all the way on the edge of the picture without a hint of smile in his beautiful face and Seifer…well, same old Seifer. He had a smirk on his face as he teased Zell placing two fingers like rabbit's ear for the picture. Edea was in the middle of all of them. With a warm motherly smile as she watched over all her children. She smiled then, that it until she heard a rich voice from behind. A voice she hasn't heard in two whole years.

"Finally awake, Instructor"

She shivered then. The mere thought of him made the last string of her hair rise. Why was she with him? What have happened to him after all this years? She couldn't help but wonder as he made his way towards her. Quistis was so caught up in thoughts, that she didn't noticed that Seifer was right in front of her. He waved her hands in front of her eyes as she jumped as a sudden reaction.

"What is it instructor, are you sleeping in another world?" he laughed. She hated his mockery. She hated the way he always seems to tease her just in the right moments. She hated the way he always worn that stupid smirk. That smirk that burned her thoughts and made her blood boil. All in all, she plainly hated him.  

"Seifer…"

"Yes?"

She swore to Hyne, if she had the strength, she would have smacked the living hell out of him. Apparently, Seifer seemed a bit annoyed at her silent accusations. He could tell by the way her eyes burned right through his skin that she hasn't forgiven him. She hasn't forgotten after two years of his sudden disappearance, after the fight with Ultimecia, and even after they learned that he was brainwashed to do what he did. Deceptively, she didn't cared, like he bet the rest of the gang didn't either. He wanted to tell her how sorry he was. He wanted to scream for her to understand, but his pride was way stronger than what he felt for his childhood's friends and in his eyes, they were the ones who had to forgive him without much apologizing coming from him. 

"Why do you have our childhood picture?"

"Huh?" he was taken aback when Quistis asked that question. Why did he have that picture? He didn't quite understand. Probably it was meant as a remembrance that he had friends before his life changed. Before he became the Sorceress' lapdog and an incredible threat and enemy to the garden he practically grew on. He thought for a while, sighted and simply answered:

"I don't know"

"Oh," was all she managed to say. She was expecting more, but why did she? This was Seifer after all. The same Seifer who have betrayed them to join the Sorceress side. The very one who put their lives in danger and the whole world's. She felt a stain of pain waving through her body as her knees weakened. She took a quick hold of the red chair near her as she tried her best not to fall. Seifer at seeing this, tried to helped her, but all thoughts of this was washed away as she pushed him aside in defiance.   

"What the hell am I doing here? What have you done to me?"

"I found you underneath a tree almost solid as a rock. You were lucky I was nearby to save your sorry ass or you would of died frozen."

"I would have preferred that than being here with you! And why do you care, anyways? Is not like is the first time you wanted us to die! What, got a dream all of the sudden were the devil warned you to be good or you were going to hell!? Well!" she wondered madly. His eyes were returning back to his usual self as his hands clenched into fists. He swore to Hyne that if she wasn't a woman or if she wouldn't be this weak, he would of shut that mouth of hers in an instance.

"I was only trying to help, god dammed! Why is it that every time I try to do something good to amend my past, someone always have to come screwing it up? Eh? Why is it that everyone accuses me of almost trying to kill them knowing that I was under mind control?! Tell me Ms. Trepe! How come all my all friends hates he know!? Why can't they listen to reason? Why do they always jump to my throat without giving me a chance to explain? Why, god dammit, why?!"

She blinked a couple of time as she tried to swallow everything Seifer has said. For some reason, she felt her fever rising even more and she stared to sweat uncontrollably. Her knees began to shake as her body began to feel heavy and tired. Her head seamed like it was at the border of exploding and she couldn't take it. Her body was about to give in, and she knew it well…too well. But she didn't want to give in. Who knows what Seifer would do to her if she fainted.

"Because…" she tried to answer. Seifer waited patiently for her to respond as he crossed his arms and tapped his left foot annoyingly.

"Because…" and before any of them knew it, she fainted.

An: Well, like I promised, here is the second chapter. Like I said before, I'm really sorry for such long waiting. Thanks for your reviews everyone ^-^