Disclaimer: I don't own FF8 or any of it's characters. I only own Shiloh,
Akira and Terra.
A/N: Oh... my... God! Thank you all sooooo much for the excellent reviews!! I never thought this fic would have so many readers, because it was just a spur of the moment thing I started and I decided to post it. And to those of you who put this fic on your favorites list (you know who you are) thank you too!! Well, Akira is no longer that sweet innocent little eleven year old anymore. She's now older, and keep in mind, she's SEIFER'S daughter... ^_~ Enjoy!
Akira entered the smoke filled kitchen as she immediatly went into a fit of coughs. "Dad?!"
"Over here..." She stumbled further into the kitchen and found the table. She made her way around it and walked into Seifer.
"Dad, what are you doing?!" she exclaimed as she opened the window to let the smoke float out. Soon, the room began to clear. "You wanna burn the house down?"
"I was making breakfast," he defended himself. Akira immediatly began laughing as she saw Seifer with an apron on and a charred spatula in his right hand.
"Dad, you look like a dork," she stated with a smile. "What's with the apron? You look much better in the trenchcoat."
"Excuse me if I don't want grease all over my clothes 'Kira." He smiled and began to untie the apron from around his waist. He threw the spatula away; it was useless now. "What are you doing up this early? Usually you sleep until noon."
"I know, but I wanted to go to..." She stopped talking as she sat at the table, biting her lip.
Seifer looked suspicious. "Go... where?"
She shook her head, her golden hair falling into her pretty face. "Nowhere. I was um... gonna go to... uh... a store." She almost visibly winced as she awaited her father's response.
"I see... So tell me," Seifer sat down, a smile on his face, but it wasn't a happy one. It was a sarcastic smile. "Where were you *really* gonna go?"
"It's the truth Dad! Why do you always have to interrogate me whenever I'm going somewhere?!"
"Because most of the time, you're lying Akira Almasy. I don't feel like I can trust you anymore. You're always going out and I see you talking with people you never told me about. What's going on anymore?"
"Dad... I know it's hard being a single parent and all, but... you need to lay off. I mean, I'm seventeen years old for Hyne's sake. I'm out of school now, and I need to start making a life for myself." She stood up and made her way to the door. "I'll be back before dinner."
(A/N: I know a seventeen year old would still be in school, but in the Final Fantasy world, let's just say that thirteen years of school aren't required, 'kay? ^^)
~*~*~*~
Akira carefully trekked through the weedy field that she had gone through so many times without anyone knowing. She almost tripped as her boots got caught in the high, ankle-strangling grass, but eventually she reached her destination. She sat on the giant boulder that acted as a borderline for her. She'd never walked past it once, although many times she had been tempted to. Out in front of her was the huge structure known as Balamb Garden. She wanted to go there so badly. Her mind told her Seifer would no doubt ground her until the next Sorceress War, but her heart said she belonged there.
"I'm turning eighteen tomorrow," she said to herself. "Why won't he just let me at least visit that place?" She laid back on the boulder and looked up at the sky, sighing. "And why won't he ever talk about Mom? Everytime I ask about her, he says it isn't important and changes the subject..."
The soft crunching of footsteps sounded from behind her and she sat up to turn around. She almost expected Seifer to be standing there, arms crossed and a disappointed look in those emerald eyes. Instead, she saw a boy her age. He had wild russet hair and icy blue eyes. He was handsome, that was certain. "Who are you?" she asked indifferently.
"I'm Shiloh. And you are?" Akira wouldn't have known it, but Shiloh was an almost exact replica of his father Squall.
"Akira." She glanced at the object Shiloh held in his hand and realized it was a large sword. "Whoa, where'd you get that?" she asked excitedly as she slid off the rock.
"Oh this?" Shiloh lifted the sword and swung it a few times proudly. "It was my Dad's, but now that I'm a student at Balamb Garden, he gave it to me."
Akira's green eyes widened. "You... you go to Balamb Garden??"
Shiloh raised an eyebrow. "Yeah... Why are you so surprised?"
Akira frowned and sat down. "My dad's against me going there for some reason. He won't let me."
"That's weird. My dad says it's an honor to go there. He was even a SeeD."
"Your dad was a SeeD? Oh man, that's awesome! I just can't undestand it though... Dad was never at Balamb Garden before, but... he won't let *me* go. How does he know it's so awful if he's never been there?"
"Um, Akira? You're losing me here," Shiloh said.
"Oh, sorry. I was just... thinking out loud."
"But your dad thinks Balamb Garden's awful? It's like, the best place ever! You get to train all day, and meet new people..." He noticed the half-jealous, half-saddened look on Akira's face and stopped. "Oh, sorry."
"Well that's it! I'm going to Balamb Garden if it's the last thing I do, and whether he likes it or not! He can't tell me what to do."
"Well, I think there may be a slight problem with your plan of rebellion," Shiloh said.
"What?"
"A parent has to sign for you. You can't just go there, unless of course you're an orphan. But there's no way to even *pretend* you were orphaned so..."
"Don't worry, I'll figure something out."
~*~*~*~
"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear 'Kira, happy birthday to you!" Seifer howled as he brought the homemade cake to the table. It was extremely lopsided, and the two of them couldn't help but laugh.
"Dad, give my eardrums a break and uh... next time you make a cake, ask someone to help, okay?" Akira asked with a smile.
Seifer grinned back. "Okay, okay. Come on, blow the candles out and make a wish."
Akira took a deep breath and closed her eyes, blowing out all eighteen candles in one shot. "Wanna know what I wished for Dad?" she asked as he began cutting the cake.
"Aren't you supposed to keep wishes secrets or else they won't come true?"
"Not in this case," Akira told him. She built up all the nerve she had and just blurted it out: "Dad, I wanna go to Balamb Garden." Seifer set down the knife and sighed.
"Absolutely not," he barked. "I told you time and time again Akira, you're not enrolling in that place."
"But you never even went there Dad, how do you know?"
"Akira..." He knew he couldn't keep it from her anymore. She'd just keep asking and asking until eventually she'd find out on her own, and she'd hate him for it. "There's something I have to tell you." Seifer was just about to tell his daughter that he *did* go to Balamb Garden, and that he'd turned against everyone there and almost destroyed it. He was about to tell her that he was a culprit in the Sorceress War involving Edea, Adel, and Ultimecia. He was about to tell her that he'd been exiled from Garden. He was going to tell her about Terra, her mother and how she'd been conceived during a one night stand. But then the phone rang.
"I'll get it," Akira said throwing Seifer a glare. "Hello?"
"Is... is this the Almasy residence?" came a woman's voice.
"Uh, yeah it is. Who's calling?"
"Akira? Oh Hyne, is that you?" The woman sounded overwhelmed with joy.
"Who is this?" Akira repeated, now annoyed that the caller hadn't identified herself.
"You don't know me?" the woman asked. "Oh, of course you don't know me. You haven't seen me since you were two weeks old... I feel just terrible."
Akira was intrigued. Seifer came over to her. "Who is it?" he whispered. She hushed him with her free hand. "Akira..."
"Quiet Dad!" she muttered.
The woman heard her. "Your father's there too?"
"Yeah, he's here. How do you know him? Who *are* you?"
"This is Terra... your mother."
Akira's heart skipped a beat and she gasped quietly. "My... My mother?" she whispered.
"I wanted to call you and tell you happy birthday. You're eighteen now and I'm sure you're very beautiful Akira."
All of a sudden, Seifer grabbed the phone. "Terra, what the hell do you think you're doing calling here?!"
"Seifer? Listen, I only wanted to tell her happy birthday. She's *my* daughter too, you know."
"You didn't care about her then and you don't care about her now! Don't *ever* call here again!" And he slammed the phone down hard.
"Why didn't you let me talk to her? Where's she been? And why are you mad at her?" Akira had too many questions for Seifer to answer at once.
"Akira... I want to tell you something, but you have to promise not to get mad at me, all right?"
"I don't know. I should be mad at you for keeping something about my own mother from me, period."
"I know, I know sweetheart. Just... just listen. Your mother and I... we didn't know each other. We only spent one night together, and it was wrong. Not... not to have you Akira, but..."
"Wait a second... What are you trying to say? That... That you picked up a hooker and then she got pregnant?? And poof! There I was?!"
"Your mother was no such thing young lady."
"Oh so you were just two ships that passed in the night. I got it," Akira said sourly.
"But it was never a mistake to have you. Never. If I had the chance to do it all over again, I'd do the same thing."
Akira scoffed. "Don't you mean the same person?"
"Don't you dare take that tone with me Akira. You have a major attitude adjustment to be made and I want it made immediatly."
She sarcastically saluted him. "Yes sir."
I have to admit, I really really liked this chapter. I tried to put quite a bit of drama in it, so I hope I did okay. Once again, thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. Don't forget to review this chapter too! Bai!!
A/N: Oh... my... God! Thank you all sooooo much for the excellent reviews!! I never thought this fic would have so many readers, because it was just a spur of the moment thing I started and I decided to post it. And to those of you who put this fic on your favorites list (you know who you are) thank you too!! Well, Akira is no longer that sweet innocent little eleven year old anymore. She's now older, and keep in mind, she's SEIFER'S daughter... ^_~ Enjoy!
Akira entered the smoke filled kitchen as she immediatly went into a fit of coughs. "Dad?!"
"Over here..." She stumbled further into the kitchen and found the table. She made her way around it and walked into Seifer.
"Dad, what are you doing?!" she exclaimed as she opened the window to let the smoke float out. Soon, the room began to clear. "You wanna burn the house down?"
"I was making breakfast," he defended himself. Akira immediatly began laughing as she saw Seifer with an apron on and a charred spatula in his right hand.
"Dad, you look like a dork," she stated with a smile. "What's with the apron? You look much better in the trenchcoat."
"Excuse me if I don't want grease all over my clothes 'Kira." He smiled and began to untie the apron from around his waist. He threw the spatula away; it was useless now. "What are you doing up this early? Usually you sleep until noon."
"I know, but I wanted to go to..." She stopped talking as she sat at the table, biting her lip.
Seifer looked suspicious. "Go... where?"
She shook her head, her golden hair falling into her pretty face. "Nowhere. I was um... gonna go to... uh... a store." She almost visibly winced as she awaited her father's response.
"I see... So tell me," Seifer sat down, a smile on his face, but it wasn't a happy one. It was a sarcastic smile. "Where were you *really* gonna go?"
"It's the truth Dad! Why do you always have to interrogate me whenever I'm going somewhere?!"
"Because most of the time, you're lying Akira Almasy. I don't feel like I can trust you anymore. You're always going out and I see you talking with people you never told me about. What's going on anymore?"
"Dad... I know it's hard being a single parent and all, but... you need to lay off. I mean, I'm seventeen years old for Hyne's sake. I'm out of school now, and I need to start making a life for myself." She stood up and made her way to the door. "I'll be back before dinner."
(A/N: I know a seventeen year old would still be in school, but in the Final Fantasy world, let's just say that thirteen years of school aren't required, 'kay? ^^)
~*~*~*~
Akira carefully trekked through the weedy field that she had gone through so many times without anyone knowing. She almost tripped as her boots got caught in the high, ankle-strangling grass, but eventually she reached her destination. She sat on the giant boulder that acted as a borderline for her. She'd never walked past it once, although many times she had been tempted to. Out in front of her was the huge structure known as Balamb Garden. She wanted to go there so badly. Her mind told her Seifer would no doubt ground her until the next Sorceress War, but her heart said she belonged there.
"I'm turning eighteen tomorrow," she said to herself. "Why won't he just let me at least visit that place?" She laid back on the boulder and looked up at the sky, sighing. "And why won't he ever talk about Mom? Everytime I ask about her, he says it isn't important and changes the subject..."
The soft crunching of footsteps sounded from behind her and she sat up to turn around. She almost expected Seifer to be standing there, arms crossed and a disappointed look in those emerald eyes. Instead, she saw a boy her age. He had wild russet hair and icy blue eyes. He was handsome, that was certain. "Who are you?" she asked indifferently.
"I'm Shiloh. And you are?" Akira wouldn't have known it, but Shiloh was an almost exact replica of his father Squall.
"Akira." She glanced at the object Shiloh held in his hand and realized it was a large sword. "Whoa, where'd you get that?" she asked excitedly as she slid off the rock.
"Oh this?" Shiloh lifted the sword and swung it a few times proudly. "It was my Dad's, but now that I'm a student at Balamb Garden, he gave it to me."
Akira's green eyes widened. "You... you go to Balamb Garden??"
Shiloh raised an eyebrow. "Yeah... Why are you so surprised?"
Akira frowned and sat down. "My dad's against me going there for some reason. He won't let me."
"That's weird. My dad says it's an honor to go there. He was even a SeeD."
"Your dad was a SeeD? Oh man, that's awesome! I just can't undestand it though... Dad was never at Balamb Garden before, but... he won't let *me* go. How does he know it's so awful if he's never been there?"
"Um, Akira? You're losing me here," Shiloh said.
"Oh, sorry. I was just... thinking out loud."
"But your dad thinks Balamb Garden's awful? It's like, the best place ever! You get to train all day, and meet new people..." He noticed the half-jealous, half-saddened look on Akira's face and stopped. "Oh, sorry."
"Well that's it! I'm going to Balamb Garden if it's the last thing I do, and whether he likes it or not! He can't tell me what to do."
"Well, I think there may be a slight problem with your plan of rebellion," Shiloh said.
"What?"
"A parent has to sign for you. You can't just go there, unless of course you're an orphan. But there's no way to even *pretend* you were orphaned so..."
"Don't worry, I'll figure something out."
~*~*~*~
"Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear 'Kira, happy birthday to you!" Seifer howled as he brought the homemade cake to the table. It was extremely lopsided, and the two of them couldn't help but laugh.
"Dad, give my eardrums a break and uh... next time you make a cake, ask someone to help, okay?" Akira asked with a smile.
Seifer grinned back. "Okay, okay. Come on, blow the candles out and make a wish."
Akira took a deep breath and closed her eyes, blowing out all eighteen candles in one shot. "Wanna know what I wished for Dad?" she asked as he began cutting the cake.
"Aren't you supposed to keep wishes secrets or else they won't come true?"
"Not in this case," Akira told him. She built up all the nerve she had and just blurted it out: "Dad, I wanna go to Balamb Garden." Seifer set down the knife and sighed.
"Absolutely not," he barked. "I told you time and time again Akira, you're not enrolling in that place."
"But you never even went there Dad, how do you know?"
"Akira..." He knew he couldn't keep it from her anymore. She'd just keep asking and asking until eventually she'd find out on her own, and she'd hate him for it. "There's something I have to tell you." Seifer was just about to tell his daughter that he *did* go to Balamb Garden, and that he'd turned against everyone there and almost destroyed it. He was about to tell her that he was a culprit in the Sorceress War involving Edea, Adel, and Ultimecia. He was about to tell her that he'd been exiled from Garden. He was going to tell her about Terra, her mother and how she'd been conceived during a one night stand. But then the phone rang.
"I'll get it," Akira said throwing Seifer a glare. "Hello?"
"Is... is this the Almasy residence?" came a woman's voice.
"Uh, yeah it is. Who's calling?"
"Akira? Oh Hyne, is that you?" The woman sounded overwhelmed with joy.
"Who is this?" Akira repeated, now annoyed that the caller hadn't identified herself.
"You don't know me?" the woman asked. "Oh, of course you don't know me. You haven't seen me since you were two weeks old... I feel just terrible."
Akira was intrigued. Seifer came over to her. "Who is it?" he whispered. She hushed him with her free hand. "Akira..."
"Quiet Dad!" she muttered.
The woman heard her. "Your father's there too?"
"Yeah, he's here. How do you know him? Who *are* you?"
"This is Terra... your mother."
Akira's heart skipped a beat and she gasped quietly. "My... My mother?" she whispered.
"I wanted to call you and tell you happy birthday. You're eighteen now and I'm sure you're very beautiful Akira."
All of a sudden, Seifer grabbed the phone. "Terra, what the hell do you think you're doing calling here?!"
"Seifer? Listen, I only wanted to tell her happy birthday. She's *my* daughter too, you know."
"You didn't care about her then and you don't care about her now! Don't *ever* call here again!" And he slammed the phone down hard.
"Why didn't you let me talk to her? Where's she been? And why are you mad at her?" Akira had too many questions for Seifer to answer at once.
"Akira... I want to tell you something, but you have to promise not to get mad at me, all right?"
"I don't know. I should be mad at you for keeping something about my own mother from me, period."
"I know, I know sweetheart. Just... just listen. Your mother and I... we didn't know each other. We only spent one night together, and it was wrong. Not... not to have you Akira, but..."
"Wait a second... What are you trying to say? That... That you picked up a hooker and then she got pregnant?? And poof! There I was?!"
"Your mother was no such thing young lady."
"Oh so you were just two ships that passed in the night. I got it," Akira said sourly.
"But it was never a mistake to have you. Never. If I had the chance to do it all over again, I'd do the same thing."
Akira scoffed. "Don't you mean the same person?"
"Don't you dare take that tone with me Akira. You have a major attitude adjustment to be made and I want it made immediatly."
She sarcastically saluted him. "Yes sir."
I have to admit, I really really liked this chapter. I tried to put quite a bit of drama in it, so I hope I did okay. Once again, thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. Don't forget to review this chapter too! Bai!!