Notes - Yes, see I actually am serious about finishing this! ^_^ The song Bend Me, Shape Me by American Breed is actually what inspired me to write this chapter tonight. So here we go!
The hallway light was unusually bright that morning, Seifer observed unhappily. He didn't get a proper night's rest, with Quistis on his mind and a song stuck in his head. He had been humming the blasted tune for hours on end.
"Bend me, shape me, any way you want me...long as you love me, it's all right...oh for Hyne's sake," Seifer stopped dead in his tracks, looking down and realizing that he had put on his vest both backwards and inside out. Thankfully, it was still early and students had not poured from their rooms and littered the hall yet. He yanked the cloth over his head, and put it on again. The right way.
Quistis wasn't having much better luck. Her alarm clock hadn't gone off, and she depended on schedule so much; the whole day was set off course for her. No time to take a shower. She could not find a matching pair of socks, and eventually settled for a faded pink left sock, and a turquoise right with white stripes. Her hair was shaggy, not to be tamed by any brush. She tried to tug it up into her clip anyway.
The results were disastrous. The clip clung to her hair at a weird angle, and refused to be pulled out. Messy tangles stuck out everywhere. Heaving a very frustrated sigh, Quistis gave up and packed her bag. Instead of the neatly folded outfits she usually prided herself on, various articles of clothing were tossed in, doomed to wrinkles. She didn't bother to protect her toiletries with plastic baggies.
"Bend me, shape me, any way you want me...you got the power to turn on the light..." Seifer sang under his breath as he knocked loudly on the door. He heard a loud thump from inside.
"...Fall out of bed, Instructor?"
"Just a second!" Quistis' exasperated voice traveled through the door, ignoring the comment. She wrestled once more with her hair in front of the mirror, and lost. "Okay. You can come in now."
Seifer waltzed inside, giving a small yelp when he caught sight of her. Her eyes shrank to dangerous slits, and he brought a fist to his mouth to hide a smile. He gave a fake cough, trying to make the act look good.
"You know, Quistis...the disciplinary committee keeps a good set of hedge clippers for its misguided victims...would you like to borrow them?"
"Sure. I'd love to shove them right up your-"
"Feisty this morning aren't we?" Seifer didn't miss a beat.
"Yeah, whatever..." Quistis shook her head, shouldering her bag. "Let's just get going."
"But of course," Seifer grinned, turning around to open the door for her. Quistis' gaze wandered down, and she forced herself to choke back a guffaw.
"Seifer...I think your pants are on backwards."
***
Zell leaned casually against the Ragnarok, waiting for Quistis and Seifer to show up. Tapping his foot in a Zell-rhythm, his thoughts wandered towards his girlfriend. Abby had been kind of ticked off at the fact he had just gotten back, and was now leaving again. She had stood with her hands on her hips, normally soft eyes flashing, a few strands of hair falling around her face when they escaped her pigtail.
Zell was just as reluctant to leave her, but he had already accepted the mission, and a SeeD doesn't go back on his or her word. Shaking his head with a wistful smile, he thought of past meetings with her, all the signs she gave that he was too dense to notice. The way a flush would always creep up her neck when he looked at her, her adorable stutter. The Mega-Phoenix she gave him when the Garden was in turmoil. They never ended up needing it, but the item stayed safe in Zell's pocket.
...Once this mission was over, he'd be staying at Garden for a while, Zell decided firmly.
"Why so down, C-W?" Seifer drawled, tearing Zell from his reverie.
"No reason, man," Zell grinned. He pointed to an invisible watch on his wrist. "Took you guys long enough, though...Quistis, did you do something different with your hair?" he said after a brief pause, sounding puzzled.
Seifer couldn't hold back his howl of mirth. Quistis huffed, storming into the Ragnarok with her head held high. Seifer doubled over and held his sides, laughter slowing down but breath still coming in exaggerated gasps. Zell gave him a weird look. Once he got a hold on himself, Seifer straightened up and clapped Zell on the shoulder.
"Damn, I needed that laugh. Thanks." And with that, he too disappeared into the Ragnarok. Zell, once again left in the dark, heaved a sigh and followed them.
A few months earlier, Squall had the inside of the spaceship redesigned. He added a room with three twin size beds, and a badly needed bathroom. Hyne knew all those long trips during the Sorceress War were extremely difficult without a toilet. They constantly had to make pit stops, and Squall didn't want a repeat of Irvine's Island Closest to Hell incident.
Quistis had already chosen the middle bed, and Seifer noticed that she had successfully separated the clip from her golden masses of hair. She was now struggling with running a brush through it. Seifer decided not to make another snide comment, and contented himself with watching the fight. He lounged on the left bed, propping his head up with a hand. In the end, Quistis emerged as the victor, every chunk of her hair tamed and straight and glossy.
She turned to toss a triumphant glance at him from over her shoulder, taken slightly aback at the way he was looking at her. There was no superior sneer, or annoying smirk, his lips just calmly pursed together. His eyes were not tumultuous, and they weren't mocking. They were...they were something. She couldn't pin a finger on it. Whatever it was, it was foreign, and she wasn't entirely sure she disliked it.
Zell, oblivious of any silent exchange between them, pressed the take off button. A course set to Esthar on auto-pilot, he was slightly grateful that Selphie wasn't there to fly it. Not that she was a bad pilot, but having her in the driver's seat always made Zell a little bit...cautious. He collapsed onto the last remaining bed, the springs creaking quietly under his weight.
"Well...night guys!" Zell offered, kicking his shoes off and pulling a blanket to his shoulders. Quistis followed suit. Seifer was the last to remove his boots, a song still playing off his lips.
"Bend me shape me...any way you want me..."
The hallway light was unusually bright that morning, Seifer observed unhappily. He didn't get a proper night's rest, with Quistis on his mind and a song stuck in his head. He had been humming the blasted tune for hours on end.
"Bend me, shape me, any way you want me...long as you love me, it's all right...oh for Hyne's sake," Seifer stopped dead in his tracks, looking down and realizing that he had put on his vest both backwards and inside out. Thankfully, it was still early and students had not poured from their rooms and littered the hall yet. He yanked the cloth over his head, and put it on again. The right way.
Quistis wasn't having much better luck. Her alarm clock hadn't gone off, and she depended on schedule so much; the whole day was set off course for her. No time to take a shower. She could not find a matching pair of socks, and eventually settled for a faded pink left sock, and a turquoise right with white stripes. Her hair was shaggy, not to be tamed by any brush. She tried to tug it up into her clip anyway.
The results were disastrous. The clip clung to her hair at a weird angle, and refused to be pulled out. Messy tangles stuck out everywhere. Heaving a very frustrated sigh, Quistis gave up and packed her bag. Instead of the neatly folded outfits she usually prided herself on, various articles of clothing were tossed in, doomed to wrinkles. She didn't bother to protect her toiletries with plastic baggies.
"Bend me, shape me, any way you want me...you got the power to turn on the light..." Seifer sang under his breath as he knocked loudly on the door. He heard a loud thump from inside.
"...Fall out of bed, Instructor?"
"Just a second!" Quistis' exasperated voice traveled through the door, ignoring the comment. She wrestled once more with her hair in front of the mirror, and lost. "Okay. You can come in now."
Seifer waltzed inside, giving a small yelp when he caught sight of her. Her eyes shrank to dangerous slits, and he brought a fist to his mouth to hide a smile. He gave a fake cough, trying to make the act look good.
"You know, Quistis...the disciplinary committee keeps a good set of hedge clippers for its misguided victims...would you like to borrow them?"
"Sure. I'd love to shove them right up your-"
"Feisty this morning aren't we?" Seifer didn't miss a beat.
"Yeah, whatever..." Quistis shook her head, shouldering her bag. "Let's just get going."
"But of course," Seifer grinned, turning around to open the door for her. Quistis' gaze wandered down, and she forced herself to choke back a guffaw.
"Seifer...I think your pants are on backwards."
***
Zell leaned casually against the Ragnarok, waiting for Quistis and Seifer to show up. Tapping his foot in a Zell-rhythm, his thoughts wandered towards his girlfriend. Abby had been kind of ticked off at the fact he had just gotten back, and was now leaving again. She had stood with her hands on her hips, normally soft eyes flashing, a few strands of hair falling around her face when they escaped her pigtail.
Zell was just as reluctant to leave her, but he had already accepted the mission, and a SeeD doesn't go back on his or her word. Shaking his head with a wistful smile, he thought of past meetings with her, all the signs she gave that he was too dense to notice. The way a flush would always creep up her neck when he looked at her, her adorable stutter. The Mega-Phoenix she gave him when the Garden was in turmoil. They never ended up needing it, but the item stayed safe in Zell's pocket.
...Once this mission was over, he'd be staying at Garden for a while, Zell decided firmly.
"Why so down, C-W?" Seifer drawled, tearing Zell from his reverie.
"No reason, man," Zell grinned. He pointed to an invisible watch on his wrist. "Took you guys long enough, though...Quistis, did you do something different with your hair?" he said after a brief pause, sounding puzzled.
Seifer couldn't hold back his howl of mirth. Quistis huffed, storming into the Ragnarok with her head held high. Seifer doubled over and held his sides, laughter slowing down but breath still coming in exaggerated gasps. Zell gave him a weird look. Once he got a hold on himself, Seifer straightened up and clapped Zell on the shoulder.
"Damn, I needed that laugh. Thanks." And with that, he too disappeared into the Ragnarok. Zell, once again left in the dark, heaved a sigh and followed them.
A few months earlier, Squall had the inside of the spaceship redesigned. He added a room with three twin size beds, and a badly needed bathroom. Hyne knew all those long trips during the Sorceress War were extremely difficult without a toilet. They constantly had to make pit stops, and Squall didn't want a repeat of Irvine's Island Closest to Hell incident.
Quistis had already chosen the middle bed, and Seifer noticed that she had successfully separated the clip from her golden masses of hair. She was now struggling with running a brush through it. Seifer decided not to make another snide comment, and contented himself with watching the fight. He lounged on the left bed, propping his head up with a hand. In the end, Quistis emerged as the victor, every chunk of her hair tamed and straight and glossy.
She turned to toss a triumphant glance at him from over her shoulder, taken slightly aback at the way he was looking at her. There was no superior sneer, or annoying smirk, his lips just calmly pursed together. His eyes were not tumultuous, and they weren't mocking. They were...they were something. She couldn't pin a finger on it. Whatever it was, it was foreign, and she wasn't entirely sure she disliked it.
Zell, oblivious of any silent exchange between them, pressed the take off button. A course set to Esthar on auto-pilot, he was slightly grateful that Selphie wasn't there to fly it. Not that she was a bad pilot, but having her in the driver's seat always made Zell a little bit...cautious. He collapsed onto the last remaining bed, the springs creaking quietly under his weight.
"Well...night guys!" Zell offered, kicking his shoes off and pulling a blanket to his shoulders. Quistis followed suit. Seifer was the last to remove his boots, a song still playing off his lips.
"Bend me shape me...any way you want me..."