A/N: Well, what do you know, another chapter. I'm not doing so badly on this after all. Still, being back in school and having limited access to a computer without someone hovering over my shoulder and making me paranoid means even if I do write a chapter it may be a while later that I actually type it up and upload it. Thanks for the reviews CONSTRUCTIVE CRITISIM IS WORSHIPED.

DISCLAIMER: (Lawyers hover over shoulder), FFVIII belongs to Squaresoft as do the characters, evil lawyers, go pester someone else.

THE CORRUPTION OF POWER

CHAPTER 3 – A Well Scheduled Scheme

"Ugh." Zell groaned.

It had been yet another hard day working on the restoration of Trabia Garden. It had, again, been bitter cold and if that wasn't enough he was far from used to working in a large duffel jacket. He now ached from lifting bricks, he ached from having to manoeuvre around the feathers in his jacket and he ached from the lack of the feeling of holding someone in his arms. Okay, no offence to Roary, but a stuffed Torma, just didn't feel the same. "Mmm."

And it really didn't help much that Irvine was giving a now semi-unclothed Selphie a neck-rub and that she was making the strangest noises.

Sighing, the blond pulled back his jacket and clambered into his sleeping bag. Hopefully the area was sheltered enough that he could do without the uncomfortable feeling of having that jacket around him to keep him warm. "Oh, that feels good."

Now if only the wind was so strong that the noise it made was strong enough to drown out the noise that Selphie was making, but not so strong something would collapse or the area get colder.

#The Next Day#

They'd had donations and numerous volunteers, and as part of the 'Service and Teamwork' sector of the curriculum Balamb, Galbadia and Esthar Gardens had sent numerous would-be SeeDs and qualified SeeDs to aid the progress of the restoration. But now the donations were decreasing to a small trickle and the motivation to work was quickly draining. About three classrooms and six halls of residence had been built. Some of the teaching had resumed, and for training and experience pupils would fight the monsters on the Snow Fields, but always with two qualified SeeDs. Of course for the few who were arrogant enough to go out anyway, Zell had bitterly argued that day, '"If they were stupid enough to go out on their own like that whether or not they got killed, they would never make SeeDs."'

As much as she loved helping people, as much as she enjoyed being with her Trabian friends, Irvine's massages only did so much and even she was getting sick and tiered of this place and the endless rubble. "Urg, I need a vacation." She moaned more to herself than anyone else."

With a nod Irvine agreed wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

That morning their request was answered. Squall had called on the PHS asking whether or not any of them had seen Rinoa. Selphie had told him that when she announced that the Summer Concert wouldn't go through, there was more than enough volunteers form the SeeD candidates to organise everything themselves, and that if anyone would have seen the dark-haired girl, it would be one of them. Selphie reassured Squall that she would ask around and solve the mystery of the disappearing Sorceress.

Yet another week passed and Selphie had a little more to do with searching and a few more excuses to disappear for unknown amounts of time with a certain cowboy but none of Squall's contacts had seen the girl. Selphie and the rest of the 'Orphanage Gang' (which included Rinoa, though obviously not for this voyage, and excluded Seifer, unofficially), as she had name them, literally leapt at the idea of searching the globe for Squall's ex. The hyper teen made sure that everyone packed lots of emergency supplies and the following day, after everyone had reassembled at Balamb Garden, they set about boarding the Ragnarock.

No-one really questioned the fact that it was Selphie, the permanently sugar-high teen who requested an unnecessary amount of back-up supplies.

~*~

The first stop was the orphanage, Edea and Cid didn't have a PHS, nor did Rinoa, she usually used the ones on site, and after the incidents of the two years past the married couple had wanted to stay shied away from the rest of society. They still feared retaliation from those who protested against Edea's rule under Ultimecia's rule.

Unfortunately a very 'unexpected' error occurred in the Ragnarock's gravitational stabiliser over the southern continent desert. Although Edea and Cid themselves wanted to be far from any major establishment after the events two years ago they had insisted that all the Gardens and any form of transport they used have PHS communications. This meant that if in trouble a team or Garden would be able to call upon help. However, this was costly and time consuming and very 'inconveniently' the Ragnarock still hadn't been installed with this mode of communication, and 'unfortunately' Squall's PHS, the only one the group had bothered to bring with them, battery had run out. How inconvenient, oh yea her plan was going perfectly.

The ginger girl had sabotaged the gravity stabiliser so that after flicking a certain combination of switches the system became distorted, really quite complex, but nothing that would require a lot of work in fixing. Flicking the combination of switches could be dangerous at a high altitude, but Selphie was known for flying dangerously low. When she flicked the combination of switches the Ragnarock barely clipped a cliff. The Ragnarock crashed on the sand above it and stopped without any disastrous consequences. The show was dramatic enough that no one questioned the sincerity of it.

After recovering the short teen reported the problem to Squall and the others. The leader himself had no desire to fix anything and Irvine specialised in women so logically, he didn't have a clue about anything else apart from his sniper rifle. As for Zell, everytime he got close to solving the problem someone would 'conveniently' insult hi, which involved name calling, running around a bit and Zell conveniently loosing his trail of thought regarding fixing the Gravity Stabiliser.

Eventually Squall decided that Zell's attempts weren't getting anywhere so they'd walk their way to Edea and Cids. After all Cid had designed the Gardens, surly he'd have enough supplies and know-how to sort out the Ragnarock.

So gathering all the supplies that they could carry Squall, Quistis, Zell, Selphie and Irvine along with Seifer, Fujin and Rajin set out for the Kramers.

Despite their rivalry Squall, with heaps of persuasion from Quistis, Selphie and Rinoa had decided to readmit Seifer into Balamb Garden on the condition that he passed the next SeeD test. Fighting had been his life and so Seifer worked in the few months he had to prepare. He had successfully managed to handle a dangerous herd of monsters threatening to trample Itixe and slowly, very slowly was managing to gain a more respectable position in the Garden. He was currently a teaching assistant under Instructor Trepe, which he resented, but he knew that Squall didn't like the idea of readmitting Seifer and that Squall wanted to keep an eye on him.

Alas being constantly monitored by the group Seifer had even got to the point where he could tolerate the they and they appeared to tolerate him. Except for Squall, he was a slightly different matter.

Selphie had invited him on this stupid escapade and cryptically hinted at…something. She also informed him that he could bring Fujin and Rajin along. She knew that Seifer didn't feel comfortable around the rest of the group, especially without Rinoa to protect him (not that he needed her to protect him), and she intended to do something about it.