( a/n: I dunno what to say...uhm...hey, this story won't be all drama and angst, as you saw in chapter 5, so don't be frightened! It'll be back to the pair's antics...yet with a twist...as you will soon see...)

***

Chapter Six: Enter the Lion and Seifer's Taste in Women's Fashion!

***

It had been five straight minutes she had been screaming, but finally she awoke to darkness. She didn't know how long she had been asleep but it obviously was not long enough, her lids drooped and she had a migraine headache. Slowly and painfully, she pushed herself up and saw Seifer sleeping in the top right corner of the room. Well, he certainly hadn't been bothered by her shouts!

She brushed back some of her hair, then held a strand and examined it. The chestnut lock was dry and limp, as opposed to its usual bounce and shine. She would die with terrible hair. She probably looked a mess too. In a sudden, unexplainable rage, she walked up to Seifer and kicked him in the ribs.

" It's not my fault!" were the first words to leave her mouth as he rolled over with a perturbed expression.

" Whaa..." the pain suddenly reached his foggy mind that had been harboured with sleep and he clutched his side while giving his wife a look that would turn death on its heels. " You stupid bitch! Why the hell did you have to do that?"

" Talk to me with respect!" Selphie demanded, giving him another kick. This time he grabbed her bare foot before contact and she fell gracelessly on her back. The wind had been knocked out of her momentarily, giving Seifer the chance to stand up and gently press a foot down on her collarbone. He didn't have shoes either, thankfully.

" Why did you kick me?" he asked, in a calm and collected voice; a sharp contrast to his frequent outbursts of fury.

" I needed to talk to you..."

" So you kicked me?"

" You wouldn't have listened!" Selphie protested, now squirming to get up. Geez, the man must weigh a ton! she thought, glad that he wasn't exerting the entire pressure of his weight onto her.

" I'm listening."

Those green eyes were making it hard for her to remember what she had meant to say and all the same, it was fuelling her anger. Just what did this man think of himself, anyway? The world did not revolve around him for one thing, and she had every right not to tell him about the mission!

" Seifer, as your higher authority, I feel that you have no say in whether or not I am to tell you about certain missions; that is for me to judge and decide for your own welfare..." Oh great, now what? She really didn't have any idea why Cid felt that Seifer was undeserving of the mission, yet sending him on it anyway without any knowledge. Were the Wendigos a ploy of some sort? Selphie groaned and covered her face. "Y'know, I really don't know. We're gonna die, no one will come, and I'm sick of this stupid SeeD conduct!"

Seifer removed his foot and held out a hand for Selphie to take. Pulling her to her feet, he gave her a half smile.

" You're not off the hook yet, Ms.Leader," he said, green eyes glinting. " I'll find out eventually what's going on, and whether you're telling the truth or not."

Selphie couldn't help herself; despite the increasing pain in her chest (courtesy of Seifer), and her feet hurting (cold floor+ bare feet= bad combination), and of course not forgetting the raging, burning, throbbing leg that had been harbouring a bullet momentarily, Selphie hugged him. Her arms locked around him so tightly that she hoped air was still available for him. His hand stroked her hair and another wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

" Touching. Really."

They broke apart and faced their maker, who was accompanied by two people dressed in the same ridiculous garb as other Esthar patrons. Selphie wondered if a last battle should be executed, but as always, Seifer acted before her thought was finished. He kicked one of the men, then stroke another in the face. Selphie could feel the adrenaline rush into her and she joined him in demolishing the men. Fights had always excited her and one thing that she admired about Seifer was that he always battled hard core: no rules, no exceptions. Now she knew why Seifer had never become SeeD up until now: it was beneath him. He was the real thing, what the world was afraid of. What Garden was afraid of. A fighter that could not be stopped.

Selphie herself was a bit like Seifer. Her attack skills gained her right to become SeeD, although some of her more extreme suggestions scared off others. What was so wrong about wanting to blow things up to smithereens? The job would be done faster and no one would be able to point the blame on SeeD. But she always followed the rules.

She turned her thoughts back onto the arising battle and high kicked one of the men in the jaw. It made a satisfying crack and he toppled over onto Seifer, who drove his knee into the man's stomach. She was ready to hit someone else when an arm grabbed her around her neck and pulled her against them self so tightly that she gagged.

" Enough."

That stupid Salman! Now he was someone that she doubted anyone would have problems with blowing up. Into smithereens. Small, microscopic smithereens, which she would jump on and perhaps feed to Angelo. Salman began to drag her up, her heels banging against the wooden stairs. Slivers were embedded in her heels by the time they finished climbing the first set of stairs, so despite how aggravated she was, a tiny bit of a cheer went through her when she saw an elevator.

Salman didn't loosen his grip on her when they entered, and waited for when Seifer came in a short while after, each arm held by one of Salman's lackeys. The silence was unnerving as the elevator climbed the floors and they reached the top in what seemed like hours, although it was only seconds.

A rough shove almost caused Selphie to fall onto the tarmac but she steadied herself by flailing her arms out. Seifer barely budged when he was pushed and he gave Selphie a near disgusted look.

'Well, what was I supposed to do?' Selphie wanted to ask him, but she decided there were other matters at hand. Such as their deaths. Where in the world was the SeeD recruit? Selphie looked around. They were standing on the roof of whatever building they were held in; from the plateaus and plains she could see, they were most likely in Dollet.

" We must make this quick," one of the men said to Salman, sounding a lot like the Garden Faculty from Balamb. " I've heard that two more SeeDs have been sent to guard the President."

" I expect double," Salman coolly replied, his eyes never moving from watching Selphie and Seifer. " Killing SeeD is risky."

" Yes, of course."

Selphie noticed a flicker in Salman's eyes...Was it hesitation? She wanted to find out if so but Salman held the back of her head when he pushed her forward. Seifer was behind them, his face turning red from resisting the urge to pulverize the men restraining him. Selphie didn't know why it mattered now; she would be pushed no matter what. So close to death...

Her chest clenched when she looked over the ledge. There was a road, many, many feet below her. Nothing more. This was one fall that she would not get back up from.

" It's been fun...I guess...with you Seifer, I mean," Selphie said, keeping her voice firm. There was no way these guys were going to get the better of her. So what if she died? At least it would be with a smile on her face! " You're not so bad."

" Don't talk like a loser," Seifer snapped in reaction to her words. " You're like a cold. Try to get rid of it, and it keeps on comin' back."

Selphie giggled and blinked back her tears.

" Yeah, same to you."

Without warning, she felt Salman push her over the ledge and she was too startled to give out a cry. Instead, she wrapped her arms around herself despite the force of gravity and closed her eyes tightly.

" Float!"

Then she stopped. Selphie's eyes burst open and she was suspended about 25 feet from the ground. Although her legs were shaking uncontrollably, she stood up and looked up to see Seifer, Salman and the men looking down on her, perturbed. Then she saw one of the men yell something and she felt her legs give way as the 'Float' spell she was under diminished beneath her. It was only a matter of time now that she became splattered remains.

Or so she thought. A black flash went by her and then she was in the arms of someone in leather. The familiar fur collar tickled her nose and she accidentally sneezed into the man's chest.

" Bless you."

" Likewise!"

Squall Leonhart, to her rescue. Selphie had to admit that she had dreamt about this moment for a long time. A silly fantasy really, based on Squall (mega hunk) saving her from some unnatural disaster. It was a bit embarrassing now that her fantasy was reality; did Squall think of her as incompetent of handling a mission due to today?

" Are you guys all right?"

Selphie, having been broken out of her never ending thoughts once more, looked up to see that they were hanging from a rope suspended from a machine that was manufactured specifically for Galbadia Garden. Zell was piloting it quite well and seemed very relieved that Selphie was alive.

" I'm taking you guys up so that we can save the dumbass," Zell said, sending smoke from the machine into the two SeeDs' face as he fixed the gears so that the machine would go straight up. " You still gonna go with Cid's plan, Squall?"

" Yeah..."

" Okay then, hold tight!"

Squall's grip around Selphie's waist tightened and he gave her a half smile before fixing his attention back on their destination. Selphie felt a strange bolt run through her but she made sure that her mind was on the mission. Besides, Squall had Rinoa. He was only being friendly; after all, she was one of his closet friends who almost died if not for that wonderful chip being found.

In record time they reached the roof of the building and Squall let Selphie down softly. She looked around and saw Seifer giving Squall a deadly glare, but then his eyes shifted to Selphie and his expression softened.

" Squall; make sure nothing happens to Seifer," Selphie found herself saying. Squall raised a brow but nodded as he pulled out his gunblade from its sheath. He halfway circled the men before attacking the front man, Salman. His silver blade sliced him across the bicep as Salman raised his arm to block the other man's hits and blood flowed freely down his arm, dripping down to his fingertips.

Salman showed no sign of pain and instead knelt down and tripped Squall, who fell hard to the floor. His gunblade escaped his grip and slid not far from where Selphie was standing.

" Selphie, I got somethin' for ya!"

Selphie craned her head upward to see Zell throwing down a nunchaku. Leaping up, she caught it and swung it around a few times. It was a Shooting Star unfortunately; quite primitive in comparison to her Strange Vision, which was most likely in the possession of Salman or some Estharians who hired him. For a moment she mourned the loss of her beloved weapon, not to mention the magic she had gained from countless battles.

" Selphie, what are you doing?" Zell shouted from above. Selphie wanted to shout back at him to shut up and help them himself instead of hovering like a sort of perky insect but she knew that if the machine he was on was seized, the amount it cost would come out of their pay checks. She took in a deep breath and limped to where Squall's gunblade was. The Lionheart glinted, as if winking at her, and she couldn't help but to wonder why she had chosen a simple nunchaku when she could have had that.

Kneeling down on her good leg, she picked up the gunblade and glanced quickly at Squall and Salman. The assassin was too occupied with attempting to kill Squall that he didn't care to notice what Selphie was doing. He fired a couple of Firaga spells on the SeeD Commander, who flinched and cast 'Reflect' on himself. Salman was enraged; he tackled Squall and locked his hands around his throat.

" Give me the gunblade."

Selphie snapped her eyes away from the duelling pair to lay them on Seifer, who was bruised yet free from the hold of the other two men. Selphie struggled to look over Seifer's shoulder to where their bodies may be, but she barely managed to get her forehead past.

" They're somewhere back there," Seifer said, reading Selphie's mind and moving to the side. She saw the bodies sprawled, unconscious, but still alive. Unless Seifer snapped their necks.

" Did you...?"

" Kill them?" He laughed. " Wish I could have. Damn bastards. No, they're just knocked out. Didn't take much...So, you gonna save the Commander, or what?"

" I'm not giving you his gunblade!" Selphie said, glancing at Squall whose face was red. His hands were frantically clawing at Salman's wrists. She gasped, letting go of Squall's gunblade completely and walking as fast as her injured leg would allow her to where they were. She swung her Shooting Star and hit Salman in the back of the head, but it only made him let go of his grip long enough to cast a 'Flare' magic onto her. Due to her Junctioning being removed, the damage was great and she was thrown back, attempting to catch her breath. Her head was pounding and her heart rate had increased; she felt rage and power. Her Limit Break had come. She began to frantically search through her 'Slot' for something powerful enough to save them or her 'Full Cure' magic.

Seifer, meanwhile, had taken the Leonhart and had swung it at Salman's back. The grip on Squall's neck was removed and now Salman's attention was on Seifer. Seifer accepted the magic attacks head on, most likely so that his Limit Break could also be achieved. But Squall's gunblade didn't seem to be cooperating with him. The design relied on force rather than skill, something that Seifer, surprisingly, lacked. He was too slow for Salman when using the Lionheart, giving Salman the chance to emit an 'Ultima' that blasted at all three of them. Selphie lost her spot in the 'Slot' and now was so weak she could barely skim her mind over the magic.

Blizzaga. Water. Fire (3 times). Esuna. Esuna (2 times). Thundaga. Ultima.

She lingered on the same magic that had just been cast onto them. At this rate, she would never find 'Full Cure' or 'Rapture'. Coming across 'The End' was completely out of the question. She had only used that magic three times during her life and it was frowned upon when used on humans.

Ultima.

She staggered up and held onto her nunchaku tightly. Then she held the weapon high above her head with both hands and concentrated on the magic, 'Ultima'. Her magic was undoubtedly stronger than her enemy's; Salman fell down when the last traces of green magic brushed across the floor and into the sky, like a diminishing fog. But he had not been defeated before unleashing his own Limit Break. Vines broke through the cement roof and wrapped themselves around Selphie's body. The thorns cut through her skin and the harder she struggled, the more the thorns embedded themselves into her.

Squall stared at Salman's unmoving body and then got up while rubbing his neck. He walked to where Selphie was and touched one of the thick vines.

" You should stop struggling," he said, pricking his thumb on a thorn. The vine seemed to be absorbing the blood from his cut. " It's drinking your blood."

" WHAT?!"

There was no way in hell she was going to bleed to death because of a plant. A part of her wanted to squirm and kick at the dark green ropes around her but she remained deathly still. The vines suddenly unravelled themselves from around her and she tried not to fall, but failed. Luckily, Squall caught her but his touch was causing her cuts to burn.

" Squall, I think I can stand up on my own..." Selphie protested but Squall refused to let go of her. In her ear he whispered, " Your dress..."

Selphie pushed herself away enough to see that the dress lay in awkward shreds, much like Seifer's shirt. No longer did the top pieces offer certain parts of her body coverage. She quickly crossed her arms over her partially exposed chest and glowered at Squall.

" You didn't look, did you?" she demanded.

" No, I--"

" Listen, I hate to break up the reunion, but can we get going?" Seifer broke in. He tossed the gunblade at Squall's feet and began walking to the elevator, but paused halfway. " And you're welcome for cutting the vines, Timlett."

***

Squall. That was the name of the President's son.

He couldn't die yet. Not with this information at hand.

***

Selphie had fainted from her massive blood loss and when she had awoken, she was lying on a bed inside of the hotel in Dollet. The room was illuminated by a lamp and the sky outside, she assumed, was dark. She shivered suddenly and looked down to see she was wearing what looked like Squall's white tank, which barely reached her thighs. Her leg had been bandaged expertly but under examination, a large cut from the thorns onto her stomach still remained.

She sighed, craning her head back and closing her eyes. Never did she want to hear the word 'mission' again...well, at least for two months. All that she wanted now was to be back in her dorm room, sleeping painlessly.

" You're awake."

Her eyes opened to see Squall who was shirtless, thanks to her. He had a lean frame, not at all like the well developed abs Seifer had. Almost fragile he seemed, far from his age as well. It was difficult to believe that this man had led the battle against Ultimecia and was Commander of SeeD.

Selphie decided to sit up but her body refused to answer to her. Instead, a horrible bolt travelled through both arms and the cut on her stomach burned. She wanted to throw up.

" I'm guessing that the poison hadn't worn off yet," Squall said, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. In his hand was a simple cloth, which she assumed was white before the blood stains seeped through. He didn't look at her as he busied himself with pouring a liquid onto the fabric but he seemed agitated.

" Is something wrong?" Selphie asked. She coughed, a bit disturbed by the hoarseness of her voice. It sounded almost like she had been scraping her vocal chords against granite.

Squall sighed and hung his head down, shoulders slumped. Did something horrible happen to Zell or Seifer? Did Cid discharge her? Possibly Laguna was dead...but god forbid that ever happened! He regained his posture and turned fully to face Selphie.

" Selph...Uhm...just to warn you, I am going to have to lift up your shirt--"

" Have you lost your mind?!" Selphie shrieked, making a mental note to slap Squall when the paralysis wore off of her.

" Listen, it's not that big of a deal...I'm not going to molest you or anything!" Squall protested. " I need to clean that cut of yours! I thought that Seifer had cleaned it enough when he had given you a bath but--"

" Seifer did WHAT?"

" Selphie, you have to stop screaming."

Selphie growled and changed the mental note to destroy both Squall and Seifer.

" Okay...I am calm," she whispered after taking in a few deep, very deep, breaths. " Now tell me, why did Seifer give me a bath?"

" You were bloody, unconscious and infected with poison. I had agreed to bathe you but..." Squall reached for Selphie's left hand and placed his thumb over her ring. "...Seifer disagreed."

" So you gave in?"

" He's your husband, right?" Squall asked, his eyes on Selphie's. " Even though it was a forced marriage, it's official."

" ...But why couldn't a girl clean me?" Selphie whined.

" And have her tell the entire city of Dollet that there are SeeDs here?" Squall asked, seemingly more offended than Selphie. " Maybe I should have brought Quistis..."

" Yeah, maybe! And maybe you should --oww!"

Without listening to her protests, Squall lifted the shirt and pressed the cloth to Selphie's bare stomach. Oh, how she was going to hurt that man... Without realizing it, her arm lifted up and smacked Squall on the head.

" It's working," Squall muttered, withdrawing his hand and pulling back down the shirt. Selphie noticed the slightest shade of red tinted on the lion's cheeks...was he thinking of Rinoa? If she had seen what had happened, Selphie knew the girl would have thrown a fit. She had become so aggressively possessive that no girl would dare to even look at Squall. Not that she blamed her, Squall now was friendly and kind, on top of being a complete babe! Selphie had heard that all the girls in Garden were head over heel in love with Squall, but his personality repelled them. Now he was honey to their bee.

She had also heard that Seifer was someone that the girls thought to be a catch. They liked his bad ass attitude and it was rumoured that every girl in Balamb Garden their age had gone out with him...or made out, it was all the same to them. Every girl except for Xu and Quistis. Selphie unexpectedly felt the same possessive rage as Rinoa had been harbouring for the past year. What would happen when they went back to Garden? Would Seifer be up to his antics again? Well, there was no chance that he would settle with a steady girlfriend. Rinoa had even admitted that Seifer told her off when it came to commitment.

" But I'm his wife!" Selphie cried out.

" Uh...yes, Selphie..." Squall patted her hand and lifted the blanket so that it covered her entirely. " Maybe you need some sleep..."

" No!" She threw off the covers and stared at Squall menacingly. " Where is he?"

" He went to go buy clothes for you," Squall said, edging away from her. " Are you feeling alright?"

" You sent Seifer to buy clothes for me?" Selphie could see her emerging from Seifer's selected wardrobe for her appearing as some sort of hooker. Fish net stockings, tight leather -no, pleather- skirts and a tube top. A fashion tragedy! " Are you an idiot?" She seized Squall's shoulders and shook him, glad that her strength had returned.

" Hey, Selphie, I don't normally say this but...is there something you want to talk about?" Squall attempted to pry Selphie's hands off of him, but she had locked a death grip.

" All I do is pass out for a couple hours and this happens! I can't let--huh?" She let go of Squall's shoulders and scrutinized him for a few minutes before breaking into a grin. " Squall! You're becoming more human -I mean, uh...yeah, human."

Squall frowned and was about to say 'Whatever' but Selphie covered his mouth.

" Squall, I need you to listen carefully. I think I'm in love with--"

" Is that Seifer's?" Squall cut in. Selphie was about to give Squall a good punch in the face but her breath fell short when Squall grazed his fingers across the necklace around Selphie's neck. Seifer's necklace.

" Yeah...I can't believe you never noticed it sooner, heh, heh..."

" Seifer wouldn't let me get near you," Squall said, seeming entranced by her neck, his fingers now tracing the thick chain. Occasionally he would lightly touch her skin and Selphie would flinch -from what, she was not sure.

" Do you love him?" he whispered, glancing up and catching Selphie's eyes.

" I..." He was getting so close. His thumb moved up and rubbed against her jaw line and then he leaned in ...

" Hey, Commander, y'think a guy could leave his wife for a few hours with the Commander of SeeD!" Seifer sauntered in and immediately Squall leisurely moved away from Selphie, acting as if nothing had taken place. Selphie's heart was beating so fast that she felt that she was on the brink of a heart attack. Seifer didn't seem to think anything was wrong and dropped a yellow bag at the foot of the bed. Selphie scrambled up and grabbed it to see if the bag read 'Sluts 'R Us'. Instead in silver writing was ' Lotus Leaves'. She sighed thankfully and held the bag close to her.

" Did you drug her or somethin'?" Seifer asked Squall. He leaned against the door and didn't look very happy, not that he ever did, the man had serious emotional issues, but still...

" No. Hurry up and get dressed, Selphie, I want my shirt back."

At this, Seifer snorted and took his hands out of the jean pockets they were in. He looked awkward in his black hoodie and jeans, but it was an improvement from the trench coat and blue shirt with the white cross on it. Too bad the look was only temporary; by the time they were back in Garden, he would be wearing his heinous clothing once more.

Speaking of clothing...

Selphie dug her hand into the bag and pulled out a midnight blue dress made of a jean material. At the bottom of the bag was a pair of boots and ...a bra.

" Uhh...Seifer?" She held up the black undergarment. " How did you know my size?"

He grinned and Squall shook his head, holding his hand to his forehead as if suffering from a headache.

" Selphie, you don't want to know..." Squall said. " Now get dressed before you realize how he found out."

Selphie walked to the bathroom unwillingly and slammed the door behind her. While slipping into the dress, she noticed the remains of her black gown in the trashcan and she shivered. Seifer and Squall had...undressed her...washed her...clothed her... Any normal girl would have killed them on the spot but she didn't feel that way. From her perspective, they were cleansing her wounds, and looking after her as a brother would to a sister. Well, Squall did at least. She couldn't speak for Seifer.

Finished dressing, Selphie examined herself. Seifer actually did have a decent taste in women's clothing. More than decent. The dress was with long sleeves but hung from the edges of her shoulders, leaving them bare. A zipper was fashioned in the middle of the dress, which reached down to her navel and the skirt ended mid thigh. He had even gotten a strapless bra, knowing the fashion of the dress. The brown boots were a nice touch too, reaching slightly above her calf.

" Woah, Seifer picked that out for you?" Zell asked when she had emerged. He was wearing his usual skater shorts and jacket, but his right leg was bandaged up to the knee.

" I have taste, unlike some people, Chicken Wuss," Seifer said, running his eyes over Zell's clothes. Zell began to tremble and Squall told Seifer to back off.

" Selphie, are you alright now?" Squall asked.

" My leg kinda hurts, but it's nothing."

Obviously Squall didn't think so; he cast a 'Curaga' spell onto Selphie before sighing and examining every one of the SeeDs.

" Quistis will be waiting at the port for us. We'll take a boat to Garden from there and Cid will tell us the next step."

" Next?" Selphie's eyes widened. " How long was I out for?"

" Never mind that, let's just get back to Garden. Then we'll talk."

" Okay!" Selphie, though, had no intention of backing down. She would eventually corner Squall and find out what was happening. Maybe he knew about why Cid had assigned this mission to her...although now it seemed like Zell and Squall would be accompanying her and Seifer.

" Hey, Selphie."

She turned to Seifer, who looked pleased with his handiwork.

" You look great."

" Thanks!" Selphie turned on her heels, showing off her new outfit. " But it seems to be missing something..."

Her eyes scanned the room, then fell on Squall's belts. He had so many...it would be doubtful he would mind giving one to her.

" Squall?"

" What?"

" can I borrow one of your belts?" Squall looked at her as if she had asked to jump out of a hundred story building. " Oh, c'mon, it's just a belt!"

" ...No."

" Please?"

" No."

" Pleeeease?"'

" Just give her a damn belt, Leonhart!" Seifer shouted. Selphie's whining was enough to make him bang his head on the wall repeatedly. " I don't know why you have so many, anyway!"

" Yeah, you got some paranoia of your pants fallin' down or somethin'?" Zell asked, crossing his arms.

" No," Squall said defensively. " I just...like them..."

" Maybe girls always glomp him and try to steal his pants!" Selphie offered.

" Maybe he thinks it makes him look cool." Seifer smirked.

" Okay, enough!" Squall pulled off a belt, one with the silver studs along the length of strap. He handed it to Selphie, who hung it around her waist. Now her look was complete. Squall agreed. " It actually looks good. Okay, let's go."

Zell left first, followed by Squall who was pulling on his shirt while walking out. Selphie was about to tag behind when Seifer blocked the doorway.

" We have to go!" Selphie cried out. " What's the hold up?"

Seifer grabbed her wrist and leaned in to Selphie, as if about to kiss her. But instead, he whispered in her ear so closely that his lips brushed against her skin.

" You may keep secrets from me, Selphie, but I have some of my own. Think about that, will ya?"

And as he left, Selphie threw her boot at his back, but it only made him laugh thus making her aggravated. She would never understand Seifer Almasy.

***

(a/n: Woah, I should be doing my English homework...but it's so boring! Ahh, I despise English 20 I.B.! I have so much homework now that I've dedicated myself to the hell of Full I.B. Review to motivate me to do my homework so that I can write!)