~

Three o'clock struck on Irvine's wristwatch. He raised his arm to inspect it, then unclasped the leather band and threw it upon his bed.

He took a moment to stand and stretch, and took a glance out his apartment window. Xann Avenue was invisible in the night's darkness. The only light for miles was coming from his apartment building; streetlights had long become a thing of the past.

Not much of a view, he thought. Actually, I think I prefer it like this.

He adjusted his white muscle-shirt, and sat back upon the torn carpet on the floor. A laptop computer was filling the room with a lazy blue glow; it hurt his eyes if he looked at it too long. But it was the only light in the room; the bulb that hung from the ceiling was shattered apart.

The computer was connected to Garden's information center. It displayed a tasteful Garden logo, and a nostalgic image of Balamb Garden's courtyard as the background image. Irvine tapped at a few keys, and a log-out screen thanked him for his inquiry.

He shut the laptop tiredly. Strange, he scratched at his wavy hair. I'd never expect Balamb Garden to be disconnected to the database. They're normally pretty good about staying online. Bummer, too. If anybody could get me some much-needed info, it'd be Cid.

So now I'm really stuck. The only way back into Nebria is still that jumper. And I've spent too much time out of the picture for my taste. Hyne knows what could've happened to them by now. I need to get in gear, and fast.

His door creaked open, and he rolled to his side to see who the intruder was. Devon, the black-haired boy with the shriveled arm, crept into his room and let the hallway light flood in.

"Hey kid, what's up?" he waved.

Devon shrugged. "Couldn't sleep. Can I come in?"

"Yeah, sure. Shut the door," Irvine said.

Devon closed the door and sat down beside the computer. "There iskinda something on my mind, though."

"Okay, shoot, I'm all ears."

"WellTamya said some things today, on the way home from the parkI don't think I was supposed to hear, but I did."

Irvine recalled the event. Tamya had found it difficult to leave the subject of Garden alone. While Devon ran ahead with friends, she spent the walk home in a pointed conversation against the concept of Garden. Irvine politely listened and offered little rebuttal, in hopes of salvaging the day. But apparently, it didn't take much to upset Tamya on Garden issues. She did not speak with him for the rest of the day.

"Aw, don't sweat it, kid." Irvine shrugged and smiled. "Guess it's just a touchy subject, you know?"

"Guess so..." Devon trailed off quietly, and shifted his position on the floor. "Butthat's not really what I wanted to say."

"Oh? What's up?"

Devon sat quietly for a moment, but gave a resolute face, and took a deep breath. "You're from Garden, aren't you?"

Irvine had always been a master at hiding his emotions. His expression remained as it always was; cool and wry, and none of his surprise had the pleasure of escaping him. He set a hand on his belted waist, and another scratched his chin. "You think I'm a mercenary?"

"Oh, don't take offense or anything!" Devon quickly blurted. "It's just that...well, my parents worked for Garden, and I remember them using your name a time or two. That's all."

A smirk left Irvine's throat. "So I'm a Garden soldier, eh? Huh! Don't that beat all. Now, is that a good thing, or a bad thing?"

"Oh, good I guess, from what I can remember. My mom and dad never really, you know, told me what went on. But I always thought it was kinda weird. Didn't really make sense to me."

"Tell you what," said Irvine. "I've spent years looking through a telescopic glass at images of war. Lots of times, it was because of Garden. I don't really know what to make of it either. But I think you hit the nail on the head. It don't make sense at all."

Devon nodded. "So...didn't mean to insult-cha, or anything."

"Don't worry about it," Irvine laughed. He reached into his pocket, and retrieved a plastic currency card. "Here kid," he said. "I'm not sticking around for much longer, so I want you to give this to your friend, okay?"

"Sure," Devon took the card. "What's it for?"

"It'll get her back home, at the least. Do you need one?"

Devon shook his head. "Aw, no. I can't go anywhere. Gotta help with the recovery around here! And I have a nice place to stay at the hospital, too."

"Suit yourself," shrugged Irvine with another chuckle. "The free money's on the table, though."

"Thanks. You gotta leave so soon, though? Tamya'll wanna say goodbye, you know."

Irvine shook his head. "I'm not so big on goodbyes, kid."

~

A/N: Just a short one for the time being. The next few chapters are already in the works, and are huge in terms of story development. I'm taking extra care to make sure they come out perfect...but it shouldn't be much longer..