Disclaimer: I like cheese and final fantasy. I own neither.

~*Chapter 21*~

"You nervous?" Irvine looked sideways at his bride, idly chewing a piece of grass. She squinted back at him, shielding her eyes from the sun from her position beside him. His long legs stretched out far beyond her own tiny limbs and she stroked Angelo; they were pet sitting as a favour to Squall, he was taking Rinoa somewhere or another.

"Nah, I just want to get it over with. I'm looking forward to Trabia." She grinned impishly. The newlyweds had decided to book their honeymoon at Selphie's former home, favouring the lure of the piste to the charms of the beach.

"Well, after tomorrow we've got a whole month to ourselves. I intend to fully take advantage of you, I mean it." He grinned wickedly at her and she giggled.

"Is that all you think about Irvy?"

He responded with a throaty growl, pouncing on her and pinning her to the ground. Angelo bounded about, barking excitedly at the scene unfolding. Irvine tickled her on her weak spot; her ribs, showing no mercy. When she begged him to stop in between breathless fits of laughter he relented, replacing the fingers with lips, kissing her urgently.

Neither noticed the stealthy approach of a petite, smiling brunette followed sulkily by a tall, frowning blond. While the brown haired woman watched the lovers patiently, waiting for an appropriate moment to interrupt, the green-eyed youth swung the flat of his blade against Irvine's rear end. Hard. Irvine yelped, scrambling off of Selphie while rubbing his backside to meet the smirk of Seifer and the warm smile of Ellone. Selphie blushed, jumping to her feet before brushing herself off and offering Elle a sheepish grin.

"Seifer, apologise to Irvine. There was no need for that." Elle wagged a finger at the sullen youth, who responded with a grin.

"Ah, c'mon Elle! If I hadn't done that, we'd have been waiting for hours, and we'd have seen a bit more of Irvine than I would personally be comfortable with."

Elle's peals of laughter flowed across the plains before she turned to the couple. "Congratulations! I knew from the moment I met you both that this was on the cards! I'm so sorry I wasn't here but…"

"It's ok Elle. We know. And you were here with us in spirit." Selphie grasped Elle's hand and squeezed it in understanding.

Irvine narrowed his eyes at Seifer, mirroring Angelo's own unease with the youth. "What're you doing here?"

Seifer puffed up his chest, faking bravado. "Quistis said I should talk to you. Something about the Sorceress Edea and an orphanage? Any idea what she was prattling on about cowboy, messenger girl?"

Selphie sighed at his arrogance and focused her attentions on calming Angelo. Irvine smirked and folded his arms. "Sure I'll tell ya bud. Maybe then you'll stop being such an asshole to your friends."

Seifer clenched his fist, opened his mouth to spit angry words at Irvine, but was stopped by the calming hand of Ellone. He couldn't figure out why she had this effect on him.

"Stop. That is enough. Irvine, why don't you tell him of his past? I can show him while you talk."

Irvine nodded and she turned to address Seifer. "Seifer? Lie down here, close your eyes. Think of one time or place where you felt truly happy, completely safe." She placed cool hands on his forehead; it seemed as if an energy was flowing through her fingertips into his mind. He soon found himself on a barren plane; the only other soul there was Elle, standing out against the murky brown sky.

"Ellone? Where are we?" He called into the darkness, his voice seeming to be swallowed by the depths and peaks of his surroundings.

"We're on the temporal plane; it's a gateway to the past. From here, I can show any moment in your life that has already been lived and experienced. We're going to see your childhood Seifer."

He crossed his arms and stared at the mud below his feet sullenly, "Tch. Fine."

A smile played about her lips and she closed her eyes, concentrating on her task. A bright light enveloped the two and he found himself at the orphanage in Centra.

He heard Irvine's voice break into his mind. "When we were kid's we were at an orphanage; all of us were. We grew up as a family until we went to different places, met different people."

Small children began to appear in front of the amazed Seifer, interacting as they emerged from nowhere.

Irvine continued, "Me and Sefie were there of course. Squall, Zell, Quisty and Ellone, we all called her Sis. You were there too Seif."

The young Seifer teased a crying Zell, "Chicken wuss! Go run tell matron!" The older boy looked at his younger self and passed a hand through the image.

"Ellone?"

She shook her head, gesturing for him to listen to Irvine.

"Matron was our mother at the orphanage. She and Headmaster Cid were our parents. Matron is Edea. When we were travelling through time compression, Squall saw what happened, what made Edea turn from our mother into a power hungry harpy. We must've only been about five or so…Ultimecia travelled through time to pass on her powers before she died after her defeat at our hands.

Matron took those powers so they would not taint any of her children. She sacrificed her life for us. She knew that Ultimecia would inhabit her body, control her. That's why she and Cid founded Garden. Squall had told her during time compression that SeeD and Garden had defeated the sorceress Ultimecia, she knew from that what she had to do.

Anyway, the reason you don't remember any of this is because of the GF's. They give us power, but they space they inhabit in our minds pushes out our memories. We all keep journals. When the GF's let you wield their power again; maybe you should think about doing the same, just a suggestion bud. There's no way we can recover those memories, it's the price we have to pay for the strength we owe to them."

Seifer heard him sigh. He couldn't connect the voice of the self-confident man in his head with the gawky boy in front of him. He was, as always, chasing a giggling girl Seifer identified as Selphie from her wide jade eyes, and a nonchalant blonde he assumed was Quistis. He watched his younger self poke Squall in the ribs, the smiling brown haired girl who had been present previously had vanished and Squall's happiness had vanished with her.

"Hey Squall! Yoo know why Sis went away? Cause she hated yoo! Everyone hates yoo!" Seifer heard the child laugh cruelly before knocking the smaller, pale Squall to the ground.

"Yoo're lying Seifer. She loves me and I love her and one day my daddy'll come and he'll be mad that yoo're nasty to me." He said the words quietly and with conviction.

The blonde boy turned with a twisted grin, "Nuh uh. Who'd love yoo? Yoo're weird!"

"Shut up Seifer! We all like Squall! It's yoo that no one likes! Meanie!" A high-pitched squeak came from the tiny Zell who was shaking with rage. He put his arm around Squall who shrugged it off.

"Stay out of it chicken wuss, or yoo'll be next!" Seifer yelled at the smaller child.

Zell backed down and Squall padded over to Seifer silently, thumb in mouth. He stopped, two inches from Seifer's face, standing on his tiptoes until he was nose to nose with the taller boy.

"…Whatever." Squall turned on his heel and left an astonished child Seifer in his wake, the adult Seifer was grinning in amusement.

"So Squall did have some spunk! I can't believe I didn't beat that look off his face!"

He turned to Ellone who was watching him with interest. She stood slowly and took his hand. Surprised at himself, he let her lead him down the rocky path to the beach. He watched the scene unfold as all the children from the orphanage trooped down with matron to watch fireworks burn across the night sky, a soot-faced, smiling Cid setting up the barbecue.

The young Seifer walked across to a morose Squall who was watching the waves lap against the shore. "Whacha doin' Squall?"

"Watchin' the waves. Why? Yoo gonna hit me again?"

"Nah, I ain't gonna hit ya and I was just wondering why yoo're here alone. Seems pretty boring to me. Why aren't yoo ever happy?" The boy sighed taking a seat by Squall, Edea and Cid exchanged looks of relief.

"Everyone left me and nobody loves me. Just like yoo said." Squall sniffled, rubbing his nose.

"I didn't mean that. I don't love yoo, but I do like ya, everyone does. We're a family, see? Stop being such a cry baby, yoo need to toughen up! I can show ya, if ya want."

"Really?"

Both Seifer's nodded, "Really."

The two boys ran laughing back to the rest of the children, who greeted both boys return with glee, enveloping them with the love and exuberance only children can offer. Seifer groaned as the familiar white light engulfed him once more and he felt his head spin. He opened his eyes to see Ellone cradling his limp body. He grinned at her and touched her cheek with a gloved hand.

"Elle? Irvine? Thanks." He got to his feet without another word and sauntered off in the direction of the Garden, whistling.

Irvine looked at Ellone, puzzled. "That's a sight I never thought I'd see; a happy Seifer? I gotta go get my eyes checked."

Ellone patted his shoulder; "He's coming round. It'll take some time, but that bond we all had has already started to resurface. Thank you for letting me help, Irvy."

He grinned at her and squeezed Selphie tightly, "Thank you! I don't think he'd have listened without your intervention."

Ellone's smile turned to a slight frown as she checked her watch, "Is that the time? I have to go guy's; I'll meet you back at Garden." She rushed off, leaving Irvine and Selphie staring at each other. She raised an eyebrow.

"What?" Irvine was perturbed by the look.

"Shall we carry on from where we left off?"

His face broke into a grin, "Sound's good, Mrs. Kinneas."

He leaned in for a kiss and was distracted by a poking at his crotch, "Selphie, really! Can't you control yourself around me? Manhandling me like a common hussy, you ought to be ashamed of yourself! Can't say I blame you though…"

The confusion was apparent in her eyes as she drew back from her husband, "What are you talking about?"

He looked at his crotch to find an impatient Angelo nosing at him, eager to get back to Garden and see Rinoa. He coloured and kissed Selphie hastily on the cheek, patting Angelo at the same time to calm the whining dog.

"Sorry hon. We'd better get her back to Rinoa, before she bites me somewhere very unpleasant."

Selphie's laugh tinkled across the plane's as they started the long walk home, Angelo rushing ahead and looking back impatiently at the two slow humans.

~*~*~

The youth swung the blade expertly, catching his master out for once. The laughter he dreaded spewed forth again and the boy struggled to keep the grimace from his face.

"Is it time master?"

The cloaked figure nodded sagely, "It is time. Tomorrow shall be the day of reckoning. Tomorrow, you shall be worthy."