XI: When SeeDs Bear Fruit

Amy leaned up against the wall, her arms crossed in anticipation. The faculty had informed her to wait until a decision was made on who had passed the SeeD test or not. Irvine, as always, was crouching on the floor with his rifle resting on his shoulder; Quistis was standing between Amy and Irvine, an unreadable look in her face. So far, they had all been waiting about ten minutes.

A few more agonizing minutes passed before Xu came in and announced who had passed.

"Kinneas… Irvine Kinneas… your entire team has qualified."

"Yeee-haw!!" The cowboy whooped in excitement, and stood up so fast that he fumbled his rifle. Quistis smiled politely, but nearly let out a scream as Irvine tackled her and locked his lips onto hers. Amy giggled, and considered the romantic show worth the wait; Xu, on the other hand, tried not to stare.

"Erm, right. Uh, Madon Djodan, you have passed…"

"Yesss!!!"

"…and so has Sukizara Uibitsi, and Ralph Higgins."

"Sweet!"

"Also," continued Xu, "I am pleased to announce that Quistis now has her instructor license back!"

"Aw, no way!" squealed Irvine. He grinned wildly at Quistis, who breathed out a sigh of relief.

"That's great," she said. "Thanks, Xu." Xu snapped off a salute and Irvine kissed her again.

"Instructor Grate was pleased with the way you handled the situation," explained Xu. "You kept your head and fought like a true leader. You'd make a great General someday, my friend." Quistis Trepe smiled and blushed just slightly, and was so happy she didn't mind the rough noogies Irvine was giving her.

"Land sakes, professor!" he declared. "I guess we'll have to discontinue our little relationship!"

"Maybe," she said with an intriguing smile. She patted his cheek and kept a bright smile. Xu sighed, and returned to the business of declaring new SeeDs.

"Okay… let's see, we have… Dale Schemer, Obadiah Jones, Marianna Maraii, Amy Mizuno…"

Yes! Mentally, Amy cheered as Xu called out her name, and was so happy that she barely caught the rest of the woman's speech. Both Irvine and Quistis congratulated their friend, and even those who did not become SeeDs applauded.

"Now," resumed Xu, "report to Headmaster Cid's office for decoration. Then… well, ah, the usual speech and celebratory party."

"All right!" yelped Irvine. "We're gonna rock!"

"Steady, desperado," muttered Quistis. "You'll have plenty of time for revelry later." In a lower voice, she fingered her whip and hissed seductively, "(Much later.)"

"Hoboy, hoboy, hoboy…" Irvine's face grew red, and the charming lad beamed with excitement. The SeeDs all assembled and went to Headmaster Cid's office. Amy, who was still on Cloud Nine, tried to take things as they came to her, one at a time.

After the decoration ceremony and obligatory class speech (Amy was especially applauded by her classmates; Irvine made a show, as usual, and Quistis kept things straight and true), there was the matter of the SeeD ball to attend. Amy's SeeD uniform made her look a hundred times more sophisticated and strong, but going to the ball would be difficult. Even with her current popularity, she doubted she would dance much.

As she arrived, there were already several people standing around, socializing with their individual circle of friends. So far, Amy couldn't see anyone she recognized. Sighing sadly, she decided to take a brief walk around and see who she could find.

"Amy!" A loud voice suddenly called out to her, and a tall well-built man rushed forward. He was almost unrecognizable in a suit and tie.

"…Raijin? Is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me, ya know?" he replied. "I didn't get SeeD, if that's what you're thinking. I'm just here for the party, ya know?"

"Oh. Where's Xu?"

"Ehh, we broke up," muttered the big guy. "Now I'm all heartbroken, ya know? Got nobody to write poems to, ya know?" Amy smiled and couldn't help but giggle.

"Sorry. Would you care to dance with me?"

"Ha, I would, but I think I'd step on your feet, ya know? I'm like Frankenstein's monster when it comes to dancing, ya know?" Amy's smile increased, and in an unusual move, she pulled on Raijin's shoulder and let him out onto the dance floor.

"Don't worry," she assured him. "I can't dance either."

"So we're even!" he blurted. Amy smiled, and tried recalling the dance steps that Lita had taught her. The waltz with Raijin failed miserably, but the two of them probably had more fun tripping and slipping over each other than the actual dancers.

"Whoo… sorry," whistled Raijin. "I'm a fighter, not a dancer. But hey, you're awful nice, dancin' with your 'big bro', ya know?" Amy smiled and nodded her head in agreement. Suddenly, a sharp squealing sound broke her concentration, and Amy turned around to see Selphie more or less dragging Zell with her.

"Hey, Amy!" she exclaimed. "Wow, you look really cute! …RAIJIN! Holy shish-ka-bob, you're cute too!!" Raijin stuttered and smiled weakly as his face turned to the color of an apple.

"Ah, well, thanks…" Humming daintily, Selphie trotted over to where he was and grabbed his arm.

"Hey, Amy, you mind if I steal your date?"

"Only if I can steal yours!" she exclaimed. Selphie's bright face grew much brighter.

"Oooooooh, hey, that's nice! Sure, take him! He's all yours!" Smiling impishly, Selphie waved at her friends before sneaking away with Raijin. Amy laughed out loud, and turned to Zell, who was somewhere in-between having a good time and having a bad time.

"Not much of a dancer?" she said.

"Huh? Oh, uh, not really," muttered Zell. He smiled weakly, and scratched his head. "Dumb old Selphie… hey, did you know that she planned on this?"

"What, the party?"

"Nah. She wanted to swap dates with you. She figured you'd have a nice guy out here dancing with you, and she was so intent to get me out here she had to drag me out. Huh, I would've gone if she asked me nicely!" Amy chuckled softly, and extended her hand.

"Well, regardless, would you care to dance with me?"

"Erm…" Say YES, Zell! screamed the young man's mind. Dude! Say yes! She's asking you to dance! Moron! Come on! Yes yes yes yes yes yes--

"Eh, sure!" he smiled. Amy mirrored his smile, and the two awkwardly held each other in a waltzing position. The song itself was about halfway over, so Amy and Zell still had plenty of time for themselves.

Slowly but surely, both of them got the hang of dancing to the three-beat tune. Amy proved a better dancer than she thought, and Zell… Well, apparently, Zell was a stark liar. He danced very well, to the surprise of some of the other girls out on the floor. Even Quistis, who was chatting with Xu and a few others, craned her head to look.

The song ended too soon, and Amy laughed out loud as she applauded. Zell smiled and scratched his neck, and complimented his shorter friend.

"Hey, you're pretty good!" he said. "Oh, uh, sorry about all that. You might not believe it, but I took lessons once we beat Ultimecia."

"Ulti-who?"

"Never mind," he winked. "Hey, uh…… well, uh… Do you want to, uh… well, uh…"

"Yes?" Amy smiled and tilted her head to the side, eager to hear what Zell had to say. It was clear that whatever it was, the topic was difficult.

"Would you… like to, uh… well… be my date for the evening?"

"Sure!" smiled Amy. Zell swallowed and did a double-take.

"Whoa, really?" A pause. "ALL RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHT!!!!! …………I mean, uh…" He stammered, rubbed his neck in embarrassment, and smiled weakly. "Uh, thanks." Amy grinned, and punched his jaw playfully as she took his hand.

The two spent awhile chatting, but before they could dive into deeper topics, a slow song began to play. Amy touched Zell's hand, and asked politely to dance to this new tune. His face turned red; it was obvious he wanted to. Smiling, Amy plucked Zell from his chair, and the two of them journeyed to the dance floor once again.

As the song began, Amy held Zell gently, and the well-built boy hugged her close. Ice Warrior or not, she was a special young lady, and blessed was the man who she gave her affections to. Amy sighed, the passionate words of the song echoing through her head as she danced…

Oh, darling! Please believe me! I'll never do you no harm!

Believe me when I tell you, I'll never do you no harm!

Oh, darling! If you leave me, I'll never make it alone!

Believe me when I beg you, don't ever leave me alone!

When you told me you didn't need me anymore, well you know I nearly fell down, and crie-ie-ied.

When you told me you didn't need me anymore, well you know I nearly fell down, and die-ie-ie-ied…

Oh, darling! If you leave me, I'll never make it alone!!

Believe me when I tell you, I'll never do you no harm! (Believe me, darling!)

When you told me you didn't need me anymore, well you know I nearly fell down and crie-ie-ied.

When you told me you didn't need me anymore, well you know I nearly fell down and die-ie-ie-ied!

Oh, darling! Please believe me! I'll never let you down! (Oh, believe me, darling!)

Believe me when I tell you, I'll never do you no harm!!

As Amy and Zell danced, they distinctly saw several other couples taking advantage of the slow song. Irvine and Quistis were holding each other close, the former whispering words of love and encouragement in the instructor's ear. He smiled and waved as he saw Amy and Zell dancing. She had to admit that he looked much more civilized without the overcoat and hat.

Selphie and Raijin were starting to become a good couple. The two, normally spunky and loud, were actually fairing quite well during the slow song, and Amy could have sworn she saw her petite friend kiss her "big brother's" cheek. Raijin's counterpart, Fujin, was holding onto her boyfriend Nida gently, her head nestled comfortably on his shoulder. Amy had to admit that, while strange, the two made a very good couple.

Along with the SeeDs, there was also Seifer there, gazing in awe at the festivities. He had accepted a few dance proposals from several girls, and even Selphie asked him once. Amy felt bad that the fellow amnesiac didn't have a date, so she excused herself from Zell briefly to attend to him (once the slow song was over, of course).

"Hello," she greeted. "You may not know me, but I'm a SeeD in this school now. My name is Amy Mizuno."

"…Oh, you're the one people are saying is the Ice Warrior, right?" pointed Seifer. Amy smiled blandly and nodded her head.

"I assure you that I'm not." He shrugged, and tilted his head to the side.

"So," he sighed, "I hear you have amnesia like I do. It's funny that you've gotten this far without a memory, and I'm just clinging on as it is."

"Give it time," said Amy gently as she sat down next to him. "You know, Seifer, there are people here that are saying they don't want you to regain your old memories. I don't know why they'd say such a thing, but it must have something to do with your past." Seifer shrugged, and rested his arms behind his seat.

"Heh… To be able to forget one's own past… Do you know how badly some people might want that?" A pause.

"No."

"I can imagine," he smiled. "To be able to forget past sins, past mistakes, past events that we wish we could change… To erase regret and longing from our histories… Ha! It sounds like a nice gift to me!"

"But… wouldn't you also lose your more precious memories?" she asked. "The time spent with family and friends? Your first kiss? Your first trip to the beach, or a song you liked? Aren't these things too important to lose?"

"True," he said. "But… from what Fuj and Raij tell me, I didn't have too many fond memories growing up. The two of them, and you too from what I've heard, are the only good things in my life. Everything else was trash." He sighed, and slouched in his chair.

"Que sara, eh?" Amy shrugged, and placed a supporting hand over Seifer's.

"Seifer… I, too, heard that we were good friends in the past. It may seem a little silly, but do you think we could start over? Both of us have fresh slabs to dedicate the rest of our lives to. Let's not start things off by writing down a lot of depression."

"Eh, you're right," he smirked. "Shoot, from what I heard, you were always right! Ha! Good to have you back, Ames! It's been too long since the four of us were together!" Grinning wildly, Seifer bolded out of his chair and glared happily at his friend. "Come on, you lumpy little girl! Show your 'big bro' how well you can dance!" Amy chuckled, and accepted Seifer's offer.

"Son of a gun," sighed Zell, watching his "date" dance with a former enemy. "That Seifer really is a whole nother' person. You'd hardly believe he was once a pain in the butt!"

"Amnesia does that sort of thing," shrugged Xu. "I guess it's all for the better. He does seem a lot nicer now, and much more polite. If he doesn't receive a sudden trauma to his brain and get his memories back, I think he'll be all right. He certainly is becoming popular with the ladies!"

"Yeah…" Zell snorted, and drank the rest of the glass of wine. "Hey, Xu…"

"Don't, Zell," she sighed. "I'm… well… And besides, don't you…?"

"Forget it," he shrugged. "Crap… seems like I'm only attracted to smart girls. First Gwendolyn, then Quisty, then Amy, now you? What's wrong with me?" Smiling tightly, Xu stood up and placed her hands on her hips.

"There's nothing wrong at all," she said. "You just have good taste. Though I will admit that this taste might have gone sour when we dated. Huh, it seems I'm always attracted to the strong guys. Who knows, I might go hound Seifer after this?" Zell made a disgusted face, and waved her away with his hands.

"Ugh, I still don't like that guy… But I guess that's unfair of me, huh?" She nodded her head, and placed a hand on his cheek.

"Go to Amy, Zell," she smiled. "I think you two might be good together. Me? I'm probably too old for you, and besides, I've got a hundred responsibilities to attend to. Sure, Amy's bucking for top position in her class, but I genuinely think she likes you." Zell smiled feebly and shrugged.

"Yeah, well… she's dancing with Seifer now." Xu sighed in irritation, and left Zell to go about her business.

"Excuses, excuses…" He snorted, and smiled lightly as he saw Amy "give" Seifer to a taller, more well-built woman, and decided he had had enough of this party. Without anybody knowing it, Zell left the ballroom and made a beeline straight for the training center. He needed time to think.

Closing comments: The song "Oh, Darling!" is not my property. It was written and sung by somebody with talents far above and beyond my own. Oh, and I don't know the name of the library girl with pigtails (who does?), so I just made one up.