Chapter Six
Quistis saw Irvine walking away from the Quad. It was obvious he had gone there to talk to Selphie, and by the look on his face, it was obvious she had completely shot him down. He probably didn't feel like talking at that moment, but she felt he should know.
"Can I talk to you for a moment?" Quistis approached Irvine.
"Fine." Irvine sighed. Quistis wanted to talk to him in privacy, and considered asking him to talk in her dorm room, but then realized to whom she was talking to and reconsidered.
"Let's go to the Library." Quistis walked ahead of Irvine unable to say anything. But Irvine was her friend, and if he was down, she felt she should try to cheer him up.
"So, how's Selphie?" Quistis tried to back into the subject of how Irvine and Selphie were handling their divorce.
Irvine sighed again. "She still hates me." Quistis wasn't sure if she should say anything, but Irvine was able to fill the silence, "I guess I don't blame her. I didn't become unfaithful on purpose, though! Shouldn't that count for something?" Quistis was still unsure of what to say, all she knew was that she didn't want to take sides. Selphie was as much her friend as Irvine was.
"She's not even giving me a chance to make it up to her. What do I have to do to prove that I'm sorry?"
"I don't know." Quistis admitted. By the time the conversation had ended, Quistis and Irvine had arrived at the Library. Irvine followed Quistis behind the many shelves of books to one of the tables in the back of the Library that was secluded from everyone else. Memories came back to Irvine of all the girls he had brought back here. It was a nice place to come to get away from everyone else and...talk, or at least that was how it always started...
"What's up?" Irvine sat down at the table and Quistis sat opposite him. How should she start?
"Last night I went with Squall, Zell, and Cid to the Training Center at night."
"At night?" Irvine interrupted, "Wasn't that banned after those kids died there?"
"Yes, it was outlawed," Quistis admitted, "But that's not my point. Anyway, things were going good. Squall had taught Cid how to junction with a GF, and his next lesson was for Cid to take damage."
"Take damage?" Irvine interrupted again, "Did he think that was smart? I mean, isn't Cid a little fragile to take damage right now?" Quistis gave him an annoyed look and Irvine decided to shut up.
"Like I was saying, Cid was going to take damage from a Grat when all of a sudden it was attacked by a Firaga spell."
"Who cast the spell?"
"We don't know." The words hung in the air for a moment, giving Irvine time to let them sink in.
How could they not know who cast the spell? Someone had to cast it. Irvine thought.
"Any idea what happened?"
"None." came Quistis' reply, "But when Squall saw what happened, he got angry."
Irvine looked right at Quistis, "He's hiding something." Quistis smiled. She wasn't the only one who understood Squall.
"If only we could find out what..." Quistis thought out loud.
"Let's go ask Rinoa!" Irvine suggested, "She'll probably know what's going on!"
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"And you don't know who cast the Firaga spell?" Selphie asked.
"Nope." Zell replied. Rinoa sat there in silence. She felt that she should tell them about Levi. Especially since Cid told Squall that Levi was a sorcerer. She felt like she should tell them, and yet something held her back. She wasn't sure what it was, but she wasn't ready to tell them.
"Just ask Quistis," Zell pointed, "She was there too." Rinoa looked to where Zell was pointing to see Quistis and Irvine coming towards them. She saw Selphie squirm a little at the sight of Irvine coming towards her, but she didn't move.
"Rinoa, we want to talk to you." Quistis walked up to her. This bold statement surprised Rinoa, but she didn't respond. Zell and Selphie shifted their gaze to Rinoa. She looked at each one, their eyes all the asking the same question: "What's going on?"
"I guess I have some things to tell you..." Rinoa admitted.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Squall sat in the Quad all his friends staring at him.
"Why didn't you tell us?" Selphie asked the question. Everyone had looked at her, but all the stares were restored back on Squall, burning little holes in him.
"Because..." was all Squall could say. He wasn't sure. Maybe because he didn't want to believe it himself. Maybe because he was slightly ashamed that his son had made an imaginary friend.
"That doesn't matter now." Rinoa came to his rescue, "What matters is what we do. How should we handle this?"
"Do we know anything else about Levi?" Irvine asked.
"Nothing." Squall replied.
"Are we even sure that Levi is there?" everyone looked at Zell. He continued, "I mean, what if Levi isn't real?"
"Then where did the Firaga spell come from?" Silence was the only answer but the silence was suddenly broken. A scream ripped through the entire Garden. It made everyone in the Quad jump, and with a quick glance around, the six people rushed out of the Quad, looking for the source of the scream.
Another scream shattered the silence, different from the first, and Squall realized that it had come from the second floor hall above the main hallway of Balamb Garden. He ran to the elevator, everyone right behind him. The six crammed into the elevator and rode it up to the second floor. As the elevator doors opened, a young girl screamed again, and Squall recognized it as the second scream. But who had cried out first? People from the classroom on the second floor had come to investigate the screams.
Quistis saw blood on the floor. "Get back to class!" she screamed. She wouldn't have any of the students see the gory scene.
The first thing Rinoa saw was the blood, and then she saw her son lying on the ground.
"No!" she cried and raced to Cid. She picked him up looking for a wound of any kind. She couldn't find any. She started to cry with joy that her son was safe. The next thing she noticed was the other body on the ground. The long black hair and the long black dress were soaked in blood. She was face down, but everyone knew who she was.
Edea lay there face down, a hole through her chest.
Quistis saw Irvine walking away from the Quad. It was obvious he had gone there to talk to Selphie, and by the look on his face, it was obvious she had completely shot him down. He probably didn't feel like talking at that moment, but she felt he should know.
"Can I talk to you for a moment?" Quistis approached Irvine.
"Fine." Irvine sighed. Quistis wanted to talk to him in privacy, and considered asking him to talk in her dorm room, but then realized to whom she was talking to and reconsidered.
"Let's go to the Library." Quistis walked ahead of Irvine unable to say anything. But Irvine was her friend, and if he was down, she felt she should try to cheer him up.
"So, how's Selphie?" Quistis tried to back into the subject of how Irvine and Selphie were handling their divorce.
Irvine sighed again. "She still hates me." Quistis wasn't sure if she should say anything, but Irvine was able to fill the silence, "I guess I don't blame her. I didn't become unfaithful on purpose, though! Shouldn't that count for something?" Quistis was still unsure of what to say, all she knew was that she didn't want to take sides. Selphie was as much her friend as Irvine was.
"She's not even giving me a chance to make it up to her. What do I have to do to prove that I'm sorry?"
"I don't know." Quistis admitted. By the time the conversation had ended, Quistis and Irvine had arrived at the Library. Irvine followed Quistis behind the many shelves of books to one of the tables in the back of the Library that was secluded from everyone else. Memories came back to Irvine of all the girls he had brought back here. It was a nice place to come to get away from everyone else and...talk, or at least that was how it always started...
"What's up?" Irvine sat down at the table and Quistis sat opposite him. How should she start?
"Last night I went with Squall, Zell, and Cid to the Training Center at night."
"At night?" Irvine interrupted, "Wasn't that banned after those kids died there?"
"Yes, it was outlawed," Quistis admitted, "But that's not my point. Anyway, things were going good. Squall had taught Cid how to junction with a GF, and his next lesson was for Cid to take damage."
"Take damage?" Irvine interrupted again, "Did he think that was smart? I mean, isn't Cid a little fragile to take damage right now?" Quistis gave him an annoyed look and Irvine decided to shut up.
"Like I was saying, Cid was going to take damage from a Grat when all of a sudden it was attacked by a Firaga spell."
"Who cast the spell?"
"We don't know." The words hung in the air for a moment, giving Irvine time to let them sink in.
How could they not know who cast the spell? Someone had to cast it. Irvine thought.
"Any idea what happened?"
"None." came Quistis' reply, "But when Squall saw what happened, he got angry."
Irvine looked right at Quistis, "He's hiding something." Quistis smiled. She wasn't the only one who understood Squall.
"If only we could find out what..." Quistis thought out loud.
"Let's go ask Rinoa!" Irvine suggested, "She'll probably know what's going on!"
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"And you don't know who cast the Firaga spell?" Selphie asked.
"Nope." Zell replied. Rinoa sat there in silence. She felt that she should tell them about Levi. Especially since Cid told Squall that Levi was a sorcerer. She felt like she should tell them, and yet something held her back. She wasn't sure what it was, but she wasn't ready to tell them.
"Just ask Quistis," Zell pointed, "She was there too." Rinoa looked to where Zell was pointing to see Quistis and Irvine coming towards them. She saw Selphie squirm a little at the sight of Irvine coming towards her, but she didn't move.
"Rinoa, we want to talk to you." Quistis walked up to her. This bold statement surprised Rinoa, but she didn't respond. Zell and Selphie shifted their gaze to Rinoa. She looked at each one, their eyes all the asking the same question: "What's going on?"
"I guess I have some things to tell you..." Rinoa admitted.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Squall sat in the Quad all his friends staring at him.
"Why didn't you tell us?" Selphie asked the question. Everyone had looked at her, but all the stares were restored back on Squall, burning little holes in him.
"Because..." was all Squall could say. He wasn't sure. Maybe because he didn't want to believe it himself. Maybe because he was slightly ashamed that his son had made an imaginary friend.
"That doesn't matter now." Rinoa came to his rescue, "What matters is what we do. How should we handle this?"
"Do we know anything else about Levi?" Irvine asked.
"Nothing." Squall replied.
"Are we even sure that Levi is there?" everyone looked at Zell. He continued, "I mean, what if Levi isn't real?"
"Then where did the Firaga spell come from?" Silence was the only answer but the silence was suddenly broken. A scream ripped through the entire Garden. It made everyone in the Quad jump, and with a quick glance around, the six people rushed out of the Quad, looking for the source of the scream.
Another scream shattered the silence, different from the first, and Squall realized that it had come from the second floor hall above the main hallway of Balamb Garden. He ran to the elevator, everyone right behind him. The six crammed into the elevator and rode it up to the second floor. As the elevator doors opened, a young girl screamed again, and Squall recognized it as the second scream. But who had cried out first? People from the classroom on the second floor had come to investigate the screams.
Quistis saw blood on the floor. "Get back to class!" she screamed. She wouldn't have any of the students see the gory scene.
The first thing Rinoa saw was the blood, and then she saw her son lying on the ground.
"No!" she cried and raced to Cid. She picked him up looking for a wound of any kind. She couldn't find any. She started to cry with joy that her son was safe. The next thing she noticed was the other body on the ground. The long black hair and the long black dress were soaked in blood. She was face down, but everyone knew who she was.
Edea lay there face down, a hole through her chest.