Once again, I own nothing! Except a lot of cheap ramen noodles and a nice
computer ^_^ Square owns all characters and places from Final Fantasy
Eight.
Chapter Two: Back in Balamb
The school was busy today, buzzing with rumor. The students darted from class to class with excitement on their faces and twinkles in their eyes. Was it true? Was another one coming to teach? Even the headmaster looked a little less irritated than usual, and the students who noticed him standing from his vantage point in the third floor window all had to admit one thing. For the first time since he had taken over the school, Headmaster Leonhart looked almost…excited.
He stood at the large full-length window from the third floor and watched the entrance as she walked in, and he couldn't help but cock an eyebrow at her new image. Donned in tight black jeans and wearing a pale yellow, skin-tight shirt, she looked so much older than he remembered. Though the baseball cap on her head did add an image of childishness. Where in the name of Hyne did she find that thing? It had to be at least five or six years old by now. Then again, he remembered helping her move one time to a larger dorm, and that was when everyone had discovered Selphie was a bit of a pack rat. She had this uncanny knack for saving everything and anything.
He watched as she strolled up the main hallway and paused at the directory to take a quick look around. The students in the halls were all chatting and pointing at her, some of the boys making faces and oogling the new instructor, and he could understand why. She looked so much more mature, so much older, like a lady. And she seemed to be enjoying the attention actually, grinning and winking at half the students as they walked by. But when her gaze finally trailed upward to the large window, she dropped her bag and a huge smile lit her face. All Squall could see was a blur of black and yellew clothing sprinting to the elevator, and a small cluster of kids gathering around her suitcase. He couldn't help but grin. Apparently looks could still be deceiving after all this time. He shook his head and took off his jacket and flung it onto a chair, closing his eyes to enjoy those last few moments of silence. And once the headmaster had gotten his fill, he headed out into his office lobby and stood in front of the elevator door, hands shoved into the pockets of his pants. When the elevator let out it's tell tale "ping" noise, he braced for impact as though he was in the middle of a war.
The doors were barely open when she shot out, wrapping her arms around Squall and smiling so hard he could have sworn her face was going to split. Though, it would have been easier to ponder that thought had he been able to breathe. Selphie sighed contentedly as she hugged the life out of her friend. "Squall! Hyne it's so good to see you!" He couldn't help but grin despite the lack of air getting to his lungs. "Selph," he managed in a tight voice, "Can I breathe please?" She jumped back with an apologetic smile. "Sorry. God, look at you!" she said with a smirk. "You look terrific." And she meant it. He had finally grown out of his lankiness and now his limbs were tight and sculpted. The only thing that hadn't changed about him was that face, endlessly boyish and sad, only enhanced more by those cold bluish gray eyes that never seemed to smile. He raked a nervous hand through his hair and cleared his throat. He had never been good with compliments, giving or taking. "You, uh, you look…different," ha managed. Selphie tilted her head to one side curiously. "Different? Is that supposed to be a compliment?" He rubbed his neck where she had held him in the death grip and sighed. "Take it for what it's worth." She never really did understand him, after all…
"I'll do that," she said following him into his office with a smile. "Wow, I don't remember this office being so…nice." Squall shrugged, sitting casually on the edge of his large desk. "I had some new furniture bought. I always hated the stuff Cid had in here. Always made it look so old fashioned." Selphie inwardly giggled at his taste in furniture. Lots of oak with dark leather, blue curtains, a lot like Laguna's office. It was scary, really, just how alike the two of them could be. If Squall would just listen or look once in awhile, he may just see that. "It's nice," said Selphie as she walked to the large window and leaned forward, pressing her hands against the glass. "I forgot," she said wistfully, "how pretty the school was. I'm glad to see you've kept it in good shape." Squall shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets and focusing his attention to a small clique of older students guarding Selphie's suitcase. "Not like I was gonna let the place go to hell," he said matter-of-factly. The tone of his voice gave him away, and she braced for the question she had hoped wouldn't come.
"You talked to Rin lately?" he asked, his voice dark and his eyes turning stoney-gray. Selphie shrugged, shaking her head and trying to focus on the students below her. "No, not in almost a year. Though you'd think she'd call once in a while." She eyes Squall for a moment, his expression never changing. What had he expected? Yeah, she admitted she was wrong Squall. She admitted she walked away from the best thing she had ever found. She admitted she had played him for a sucker. Not likely. " Look, Squall, Rinoa…she wasn't really…right when she chose to leave you. You have to remember that." Squall said nothing, just kept his stormy eyes on the students. Selphie sighed. "But the school looks great." Squall nodded, almost grateful for the change of topics. "Yeah," he said slowly, "I've tried hard to keep the place looking like it used to." Selphie moved from her spot in the window with a lazy yawn and unceremoniously plopped herself down in one of the deep chairs in front of his desk.
"So," she said with a grin as he turned and moved to lean on is desk in front of her casually, arms folded. "How's life as Headmaster?" He shrugged. Selphie shot him a puzzled look as she lifted her sneakered feet onto his desk. "Aren't you happy? You've got complete control over this tub!" Squall looked almost disgusted at the idea that she could be so excited by that prospect, but bit his tongue. "It's been rough, Selphie." His gaze squarely met hers as he did what he did best-dished out a cold dose of reality. "There's been no one to re calculate the finances since NORG was taken care of, no one to organize extracirricular activities, no one to help organize the influx of new students…" Selphie grinned, if only to counter his frown. "So that's why you asked me back." Squall met her gaze with a rare grin. "You were the top of your classes in math, so I knew the financing would be no problem. And with Balamb Garden's infamous Festival Queen back, I'm pretty sure that'll solve our issues with the extraciricular events." Selphie beamed up at him. "You do care!"
Squall smirked and shrugged on his jacket. "I've got class in ten minutes. You're welcome to attend, if you really want to." Selphie thought on it for a moment. "What's the class?" she asked carefully. "Weaponry and Defense," he said, grabbing Lionhart from it's case on the wall. Selphie stuck out her tongue. "I think not, Headmaster. I'm nice and clean and I plan on keeping it that way for today." Squall nodded, opening the door for her. "You've got one of the guest dorms on the outside ring of the halls, so you should be pretty comfortable. But you may want to go save your belongings from that group of students downstairs before you go check it out." Selphie shot up with a panicked expression. "EEP! My stuff!" She shot out the door and skidded to a hault in front of the elevator, her sneakers skidding slightly as she turned back to Squall. "Hey,": she said looking unusually serious for an instant, "it meant a lot that you asked me to come back." Squall smiled as he shut his office doors and walked over to her just as the door opened. "I know you'll do your best. You better get going." Selphie tilted her head to one side in a gesture of questioning. "Aren't you going down too?" Squall shook his head and wandered over to one of the shelving units in the lobby, sifting through a few papers. "No, I've got to take care of one thing first. You go on, I'll visit you in the dorms later." Selphie nodded and headed into the elevator, hitting one of the buttons and with that she was gone, leaving Squall in his once again quiet lobby.
He sighed deeply. She never changed, Selphie. Always upbeat and optimistic, always…well…that was why they all loved her after all. He held up his gunblade for a moment, looking at his reflection in the slick metal with a curious expression. A lot had changed in five years, even for him. But having Selphie back was almost, he had to admit, like finding a security blanket after going through hell and needing a good night's rest. The young man in the reflection seemed to glow in the sheen of the blade. I guess she was right, I haven't changed all that much. He sheathed the blade with a small frown. "Neither have my feelings," he said to the quiet room. He called the elevator back up and in silence headed down to teach his second class of the day.
Chapter Two: Back in Balamb
The school was busy today, buzzing with rumor. The students darted from class to class with excitement on their faces and twinkles in their eyes. Was it true? Was another one coming to teach? Even the headmaster looked a little less irritated than usual, and the students who noticed him standing from his vantage point in the third floor window all had to admit one thing. For the first time since he had taken over the school, Headmaster Leonhart looked almost…excited.
He stood at the large full-length window from the third floor and watched the entrance as she walked in, and he couldn't help but cock an eyebrow at her new image. Donned in tight black jeans and wearing a pale yellow, skin-tight shirt, she looked so much older than he remembered. Though the baseball cap on her head did add an image of childishness. Where in the name of Hyne did she find that thing? It had to be at least five or six years old by now. Then again, he remembered helping her move one time to a larger dorm, and that was when everyone had discovered Selphie was a bit of a pack rat. She had this uncanny knack for saving everything and anything.
He watched as she strolled up the main hallway and paused at the directory to take a quick look around. The students in the halls were all chatting and pointing at her, some of the boys making faces and oogling the new instructor, and he could understand why. She looked so much more mature, so much older, like a lady. And she seemed to be enjoying the attention actually, grinning and winking at half the students as they walked by. But when her gaze finally trailed upward to the large window, she dropped her bag and a huge smile lit her face. All Squall could see was a blur of black and yellew clothing sprinting to the elevator, and a small cluster of kids gathering around her suitcase. He couldn't help but grin. Apparently looks could still be deceiving after all this time. He shook his head and took off his jacket and flung it onto a chair, closing his eyes to enjoy those last few moments of silence. And once the headmaster had gotten his fill, he headed out into his office lobby and stood in front of the elevator door, hands shoved into the pockets of his pants. When the elevator let out it's tell tale "ping" noise, he braced for impact as though he was in the middle of a war.
The doors were barely open when she shot out, wrapping her arms around Squall and smiling so hard he could have sworn her face was going to split. Though, it would have been easier to ponder that thought had he been able to breathe. Selphie sighed contentedly as she hugged the life out of her friend. "Squall! Hyne it's so good to see you!" He couldn't help but grin despite the lack of air getting to his lungs. "Selph," he managed in a tight voice, "Can I breathe please?" She jumped back with an apologetic smile. "Sorry. God, look at you!" she said with a smirk. "You look terrific." And she meant it. He had finally grown out of his lankiness and now his limbs were tight and sculpted. The only thing that hadn't changed about him was that face, endlessly boyish and sad, only enhanced more by those cold bluish gray eyes that never seemed to smile. He raked a nervous hand through his hair and cleared his throat. He had never been good with compliments, giving or taking. "You, uh, you look…different," ha managed. Selphie tilted her head to one side curiously. "Different? Is that supposed to be a compliment?" He rubbed his neck where she had held him in the death grip and sighed. "Take it for what it's worth." She never really did understand him, after all…
"I'll do that," she said following him into his office with a smile. "Wow, I don't remember this office being so…nice." Squall shrugged, sitting casually on the edge of his large desk. "I had some new furniture bought. I always hated the stuff Cid had in here. Always made it look so old fashioned." Selphie inwardly giggled at his taste in furniture. Lots of oak with dark leather, blue curtains, a lot like Laguna's office. It was scary, really, just how alike the two of them could be. If Squall would just listen or look once in awhile, he may just see that. "It's nice," said Selphie as she walked to the large window and leaned forward, pressing her hands against the glass. "I forgot," she said wistfully, "how pretty the school was. I'm glad to see you've kept it in good shape." Squall shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets and focusing his attention to a small clique of older students guarding Selphie's suitcase. "Not like I was gonna let the place go to hell," he said matter-of-factly. The tone of his voice gave him away, and she braced for the question she had hoped wouldn't come.
"You talked to Rin lately?" he asked, his voice dark and his eyes turning stoney-gray. Selphie shrugged, shaking her head and trying to focus on the students below her. "No, not in almost a year. Though you'd think she'd call once in a while." She eyes Squall for a moment, his expression never changing. What had he expected? Yeah, she admitted she was wrong Squall. She admitted she walked away from the best thing she had ever found. She admitted she had played him for a sucker. Not likely. " Look, Squall, Rinoa…she wasn't really…right when she chose to leave you. You have to remember that." Squall said nothing, just kept his stormy eyes on the students. Selphie sighed. "But the school looks great." Squall nodded, almost grateful for the change of topics. "Yeah," he said slowly, "I've tried hard to keep the place looking like it used to." Selphie moved from her spot in the window with a lazy yawn and unceremoniously plopped herself down in one of the deep chairs in front of his desk.
"So," she said with a grin as he turned and moved to lean on is desk in front of her casually, arms folded. "How's life as Headmaster?" He shrugged. Selphie shot him a puzzled look as she lifted her sneakered feet onto his desk. "Aren't you happy? You've got complete control over this tub!" Squall looked almost disgusted at the idea that she could be so excited by that prospect, but bit his tongue. "It's been rough, Selphie." His gaze squarely met hers as he did what he did best-dished out a cold dose of reality. "There's been no one to re calculate the finances since NORG was taken care of, no one to organize extracirricular activities, no one to help organize the influx of new students…" Selphie grinned, if only to counter his frown. "So that's why you asked me back." Squall met her gaze with a rare grin. "You were the top of your classes in math, so I knew the financing would be no problem. And with Balamb Garden's infamous Festival Queen back, I'm pretty sure that'll solve our issues with the extraciricular events." Selphie beamed up at him. "You do care!"
Squall smirked and shrugged on his jacket. "I've got class in ten minutes. You're welcome to attend, if you really want to." Selphie thought on it for a moment. "What's the class?" she asked carefully. "Weaponry and Defense," he said, grabbing Lionhart from it's case on the wall. Selphie stuck out her tongue. "I think not, Headmaster. I'm nice and clean and I plan on keeping it that way for today." Squall nodded, opening the door for her. "You've got one of the guest dorms on the outside ring of the halls, so you should be pretty comfortable. But you may want to go save your belongings from that group of students downstairs before you go check it out." Selphie shot up with a panicked expression. "EEP! My stuff!" She shot out the door and skidded to a hault in front of the elevator, her sneakers skidding slightly as she turned back to Squall. "Hey,": she said looking unusually serious for an instant, "it meant a lot that you asked me to come back." Squall smiled as he shut his office doors and walked over to her just as the door opened. "I know you'll do your best. You better get going." Selphie tilted her head to one side in a gesture of questioning. "Aren't you going down too?" Squall shook his head and wandered over to one of the shelving units in the lobby, sifting through a few papers. "No, I've got to take care of one thing first. You go on, I'll visit you in the dorms later." Selphie nodded and headed into the elevator, hitting one of the buttons and with that she was gone, leaving Squall in his once again quiet lobby.
He sighed deeply. She never changed, Selphie. Always upbeat and optimistic, always…well…that was why they all loved her after all. He held up his gunblade for a moment, looking at his reflection in the slick metal with a curious expression. A lot had changed in five years, even for him. But having Selphie back was almost, he had to admit, like finding a security blanket after going through hell and needing a good night's rest. The young man in the reflection seemed to glow in the sheen of the blade. I guess she was right, I haven't changed all that much. He sheathed the blade with a small frown. "Neither have my feelings," he said to the quiet room. He called the elevator back up and in silence headed down to teach his second class of the day.