Kadowaki wiped her hands on her coat as she leaned back, shaking her head. Glancing up at Xu, who was stiitng tensely on the edge of one of the beds, she repeated the gesture. "I can't understand it," she said.

"What?" Xu asked, concern evident on her face. Squall, sitting on a stool nearby, also glanced up--although his face was a good deal less expressive.

"The tests I ran," Kadowaki explained. "You said that she cast a Triple, three Reflects, and three Death spells, correct?"

"As far as we can tell," Squall responded.

"And no Guardian Forces?"

"There was no evidence of it."

Kadowaki sighed. "Usually, paramagic dampens certain parts of the nervous and hormonal systems," she said. "Especially a spell like Death. Summoning a GF can throw both into overdrive--although by the time you're able to successfully summon a high-level GF your body's usually developed a tolerance to the effects. In the tests I ran, though, there were unusually high amounts of certain chemicals in her body. Adrenaline, for one."

Xu's face softened, and her voice dropped. "It's no wonder she was scared, poor thing--"

"That's not it," Kadowaki said. "It wasn't just adrenaline. And I said unusually high--perhaps the word I was looking for was drastically high. It's the endorphins in particular--they're equivalent to the sort of thing you might find if a beginning SeeD summoned a fully-Boosted Eden. It's not right."

Xu thought for a moment. "What does that mean?" she asked.

"I can't make heads or tails of it," Kadowaki said. "But it's not natural. It's as if she got an actual euphoric rush out of trying to kill herself."

"She wasn't taking anything?"

"Nothing. Tests came back conclusive on that one."

Xu shook her head. "I can see what you mean. It doesn't seem like it makes much sense. Is there anything I can do?"

Kadowaki considered for a moment. "Just be on call. She'll need someone familiar when she wakes up."

Xu stood smoothly, nodding. It was clear that she wasn't as calm as the tranquil appearance she put across. "I'll stop by from time to time, too," she said. "Please, call me immediately if you find anything."

Kadowaki forced a smile. "I'm sure everything will be alright," she said. Xu bowed slightly and walked out of the room.

Squall fidgeted in his seat for a moment, finally looking up. "...Doctor," he asked hesitantly.

"Yes?"

"Is there any way someone could get enough strength in their upper body alone to cut through an adamantine-alloy door in one swing?" Squall asked.

Kadowaki scrutinized him for a moment, noting the troubled look on the SeeD's face. "I don't know," she said. "I suppose that it would depend on what kind of alloy, and what kind of sword. It seems like it would be difficult, though. Why?"

Squall shook his head. "When Selphie... found her, we couldn't get through the door. A student came by, and cut through the door in one strike. She disappeared just afterward."

Kadowaki shrugged. "I have no idea," she said. "My only guess is that it would take quite a bit of training."

Squall didn't look satisfied, but he stood up anyway. "Thanks," he said, moving for the door."

"Squall?" Kadowaki's voice stopped him. "You'll be on call too, right? If we need you?"

She could practically see him wincing away from the subject. "...sure," he said, wasting no time in disappearing out the door.

~


"What?"

The Records Manger sighed. "You've been pardoned," he repeated. "Balamb issued a pardon for you two days after the SeeD force returned from the campaign. No one can legally press charges."

Seifer shook his head in disbelief. "Why?" he asked. "Are there any records on that?"

The man shrugged. "The government didn't release a statement. I can't answer that."

"Can you refer us to someone who does know?" Seifer's lawyer interjected smoothly. "Is there anyone in the government who might be willing to see us?"

"Don't ask me. I don't know how things are worked out over there, I just manage the records. You could try, but they usually aren't too receptive."

Seifer's lawyer stood up, and Seifer followed suit. "Thank you," she said, motioning Seifer out the door. "You've been very helpful."

The Records Manager grunted and went back to his work. Seifer and his lawyer stepped outside, and the lawyer crossed her arms. "Well," she said. "Do you want to look into the government?"

Seifer considered for a moment. "Yeah," he said. "I want to figure out what's going on in the other countries, too."

The lawyer nodded. "It'll be quite a bit of work," she warned.

"I don't care!" Seifer snapped. "I just want to know what's going on."

The lawyer shrugged. "If that's what you want, Mr. Almasy," she responded. "Let's get to it."