~Chapter six~
Fureya settled in to class easily and into her new dorm just as easily. After
changing dorms, she found her new dorm mate was Amelia Kinneas, the daughter
of Selphie and Irvine, more past friends of her father.
The bubbly youth proved to be a pleasant companion, full of cheer even if her
eyes were shadowed with darkness.
"Amelia?" Fureya inquired softly as she came into the dorm to find the thin girl
staring at the ceiling with stricken eyes. "What's wrong?" Amelia turned her
shadowed green eyes to Fureya and smiled wryly.
"Just thinking about the upcoming exams." She lied softly and flicked open a work
book for effect. "See, studying." She murmured. Fureya sighed softly, seeing
through her lie but deciding not to push it.
Sitting down, she opened a book up and started to read, bored.
After flicking through a couple of pages, she put the book down in exasperation.
"I'm going for a walk." She said to an unresponsive Amelia before walking out.
Striding down the hallway she tugged on the hem of the uniform skirt, wishing she
were still wearing the male uniform.
At the entrance of the Garden, she noticed a lone male figure staring out over the
plains in the direction of the sea. He was wearing a male SeeD uniform, but a close
look revealed instead of the usual gold lining, it was scarlet. Fureya grinned and
stood next to him, following his gaze across the plains with her own grey gaze.
"If Headmistress Trepe catches you with that uniform, full SeeD or not, she'll have
you scrub weapons for a week." She murmured, her grey eyes flicking across to
him. The man smiled wolfishly, his soft hazel eyes gleaming with mischief.
"What's wrong with my uniform?" He teased, knowing full well the answer. Fureya
bit her lip, sensing that she was being teased.
"The red striping." She pointed out softly, looking the guy over.
He was taller than she was with a crop of ebony hair that hung over his gleaming
hazel eyes.
"My uniform meets protocol for my particular division." He said wickedly. "But
you've probably never heard of it. That information isn't available to just anyone."
He taunted, looking through his lashes at the girl. Fureya stared at him icily, her
lips twisting into a wry grin.
"My father was the previous commander of this Garden and he never mentioned
any SeeD members that would wear red striped uniforms." The guy shrugged and
smiled at her.
"I don't know who your father is, but Headmistress Trepe only just became aware
of our existence." He looked her over and turned back to look over the plains.
"If your division is so top secret, why exactly are you at Balamb?" Fureya
enquired, still studying him closely.
"You'll find out soon enough." He said cheerfully and walked back into the Garden,
whistling as he went. Fureya watched him go and sighed grumpily. She was never
a fan of being kept in the dark.
~*~
"Will!" Fureya called, pounding on his dorm door. "Are you there?" After a few
prolonged seconds, the door slid open to reveal an impatient looking Willard.
"What is it?" He demanded impatiently. Fureya raised a surprised eyebrow; it
wasn't like Will to be so testy.
"I just wanted to know if you knew anything about the SeeD with the red striped
uniforms?" She asked tentatively. He shook his head and glanced over his
shoulder.
"Don't know anything." He said shortly. "Now if you'll excuse me." He punched the
button that signalled for the door to slide shut.
"No wait!" Called Fureya as she stuck her hand through the doorframe, the motion
senses kicked in and the door opened wide again. Willard sighed and rubbed his
face.
"What is it Fureya?" He said in exasperation.
"What's wrong?" She demanded and pushed her way into the room. "I'm not
leaving til you tell me what's made you so testy." She growled stubbornly.
"Fureya, please come back later." He said forcefully. Fureya opened her mouth to
reply when a female with tousled hair stepped out of Willard's sleeping quarters.
"I'll come back later." She said in a soft musical voice, her eyes unsure as she
stared at Fureya. Fureya's eyes widened as she realized what was going on.
"No." She said in a flat tone. "I'll go." Her heart twisted painfully as she fled from
the room. Willard watched her go, not understanding the emotion that had crossed
her bland face.
Her sensible black shoes slapped the cold floor of the dorm hallway as she ran
away from Willard. She reached her dorm, but paused and walked away with out
going in. She couldn't be alone in there, Amelia would probably be there and
Fureya wanted to be alone.
She walked on, not knowing where she was going. She was confused, confused as
to why her eyes burnt with unshed tears and confused as to why her heart was
twisted painfully.
She ended up walking down past the classrooms and outside to the small ledge.
She sat down in a corner and hugged her knees to her chest as she stared up at
the cerulean blue sky.
Fureya knew she wasn't embarrassed that she'd walked in on them. She couldn't
be jealous, could she? They were just friends after all.
No, a little voice in her head said. Your not just friends, you look at him with a
woman's eyes. Clouded with those feelings, you couldn't stand the sight and the
thought of him being with someone else. You ran away to pretend it never
happened.
Fureya shook her head in defeat as she rested her chin on her knees.
"Things were never this hard before." She mumbled to herself.
"Talking to yourself?" A scornful voice interrupted, startling Fureya out of her
thoughts. She looked up to see Keladryie Almasy leaning over the solid wall that
kept people from falling. Fureya grinned wolfishly and shrugged, not in the mood to
pick a fight.
"It's a Heartily trait. My mother did it a lot I'm told." Her voice was slightly
saddened as she spoke of her deceased mother, but it would always be. Keladryie
glanced back at her.
"From what I've heard, Rinoa was a good person." She admitted softly. "My Father
took her leaving him personal, but I think it worked out better in the end. My
dislike is for your father, not your mother." Fureya regarded Keladryie in a new
light and stood up, leaning against the barrier next to her.
"You know." Fureya said cheerfully. "Your not too bad for an Almasy." Keladryie
rolled her eyes, but not unkindly.
"You could be worse considering you're a Leonhart." She replied a little hesitantly.
Fureya picked up on the hesitation and laughed softly.
"I'm not asking you to forget everything and for us to leave here the best of
friends. I'm just saying all this animosity between us is not necessary." Fureya
pointed out quietly. "Plus, if Almasy's and Leonharts started to get friendly, others
would believe the world has turned on its ears and has gone insane." She joked,
drawing a soft laugh out of Keladryie.
"Your right." She admitted and held out her hand. "Truce?"
"Truce." Fureya grinned and shook Keladryie's hand.
~*~
They were in history class the next day, Fureya was sitting next to Amelia and
Keladryie was next to Vivienne. Willard was sitting by himself; Fureya had been
avoiding him since the day before.
"Guardian Forces used to be partners to SeeD members, each Cadet was given
Quezacotl the lightning bird and Shiva the ice maiden before they were sent to the
fire caverns north of here to obtain Ifrit the fire hell-demon. That task was
required of all Cadets that wished to take the SeeD exams. Headmistress Trepe
outlawed the practise of Guardian Forces ten years ago after it was proven that
the use of them degraded the users memory. You see, the Guardian Force was
stored in a section of your brain and prolonged use made you lose parts of your
memory. Of course, it wasn't the actual Guardian Force that resided in your mind,
but the power of them. There was only ever one Shiva, but she would lay a hand
on your forehead and grant you to power to summon her power. But it is no more,
so the Guardian Forces now have scattered across the world doing their own
thing." Instructor Whippet droned on, although the information was interesting, his
tone of voice made it tedious. There was a rap on the door, a forewarning as it
slid open.
Quistis Trepe stood in the doorway, a masculine figure behind her.
"Instructor Whippet." She said pleasantly. "My apologies for interrupting your
class." Whippet nodded forgivingly, allowing the headmistress to continue. "I just
need to see-"
"Quistis, I have no time for your long winded speeches." A gruff voice interrupted,
causing Fureya's heart to sink; she knew that voice very well. Quistis sighed
exasperated and stepped aside to admit Squall Leonhart into the room.
"Fureya Julia Leonhart." He thundered, his grey eyes stormy and his features taut
as Fureya got to her feet. Keladryie stared at the man in disdain as Fureya walked
to the front of the class.
"To my office, if you both please." Quistis's tone was soft but iron firm.
As the door shut behind the departing figures, Instructor Whippet turned to the
class.
"And that was former Headmaster Leonhart. He saved this very garden against
many enemies such as Norg, Sorceress Edea and her knight and from Galbadia
Garden." He stated clearly before launching into a very long-winded speech about
the antics of a younger Squall.
~*~
Quistis regarded the silent father and daughter pair as they stood in her office,
glaring at each other.
"Squall." She started. "Fureya is eighteen and an adult, you can't take her from
here without her permission or unless she has been expelled." Squall shot her a
look and shrugged.
"Then expel her." He snapped. Quistis grimaced and shook her head.
"As the headmistress of this facility, I have a duty to train capable youths into
extremely capable fighters. I have no reason to expel her, she is an adept student
and an even better fighter." She said firmly. Squall turned to face Quistis fully and
raised an eyebrow.
"And as Fureya's godmother? What do you recommend then?" He growled, his
temper growing as his patience ran out.
"I recommend she stay here where she is happy. She has friends and people who
treat her as an equal here." Squall stared at her long and hard.
"I thought you were my friend, Quistis." He said in a deadly soft tone. Quistis
flinched and squared her shoulders.
"Then maybe you should start treating me like a friend then." She stated curtly.
"The thing is unless Fureya wishes to go home with you, she will stay here."
Squall turned to Fureya who'd watched the exchange silently.
"Why do you want me back in Deling City?" She said soberly, her eyes studying his
face. "You ignore me constantly and don't let me do what I love to do the most, I
love to fight. You know I can beat Kaddar hands down." Squall nodded and sighed.
"You are a spitting image of your mother." He blurted out. "I wanted to keep you
safe from the world. Being a SeeD would never be easy for you, you are the
daughter of a sorceress and many think you are a sorceress." He smiled wistfully.
"But you have Rinny's spirit. You want to fight the majority and prove everyone
wrong. I'm sorry for the way I treated you." He looked at Quistis and offered her a
sincere apologetic smile. "You too Quistis. I'm really sorry."
"It's okay Dad." Fureya said softly. Squall reached out and hugged his daughter,
his fingers brushing across her short raven locks.
"You loved your hair." He murmured softly. "If you want to stay here, I don't
mind."
Fureya looked up at him and grinned.
"Headmistress." She said, turning to face Quistis. "I was wondering if I could go
home for a week. I'll keep up my studies and be back in time to recap what I did
miss before the SeeD exams, I just think me and Dad need some time together."
Quistis nodded.
"Fine by me."
Fureya settled in to class easily and into her new dorm just as easily. After
changing dorms, she found her new dorm mate was Amelia Kinneas, the daughter
of Selphie and Irvine, more past friends of her father.
The bubbly youth proved to be a pleasant companion, full of cheer even if her
eyes were shadowed with darkness.
"Amelia?" Fureya inquired softly as she came into the dorm to find the thin girl
staring at the ceiling with stricken eyes. "What's wrong?" Amelia turned her
shadowed green eyes to Fureya and smiled wryly.
"Just thinking about the upcoming exams." She lied softly and flicked open a work
book for effect. "See, studying." She murmured. Fureya sighed softly, seeing
through her lie but deciding not to push it.
Sitting down, she opened a book up and started to read, bored.
After flicking through a couple of pages, she put the book down in exasperation.
"I'm going for a walk." She said to an unresponsive Amelia before walking out.
Striding down the hallway she tugged on the hem of the uniform skirt, wishing she
were still wearing the male uniform.
At the entrance of the Garden, she noticed a lone male figure staring out over the
plains in the direction of the sea. He was wearing a male SeeD uniform, but a close
look revealed instead of the usual gold lining, it was scarlet. Fureya grinned and
stood next to him, following his gaze across the plains with her own grey gaze.
"If Headmistress Trepe catches you with that uniform, full SeeD or not, she'll have
you scrub weapons for a week." She murmured, her grey eyes flicking across to
him. The man smiled wolfishly, his soft hazel eyes gleaming with mischief.
"What's wrong with my uniform?" He teased, knowing full well the answer. Fureya
bit her lip, sensing that she was being teased.
"The red striping." She pointed out softly, looking the guy over.
He was taller than she was with a crop of ebony hair that hung over his gleaming
hazel eyes.
"My uniform meets protocol for my particular division." He said wickedly. "But
you've probably never heard of it. That information isn't available to just anyone."
He taunted, looking through his lashes at the girl. Fureya stared at him icily, her
lips twisting into a wry grin.
"My father was the previous commander of this Garden and he never mentioned
any SeeD members that would wear red striped uniforms." The guy shrugged and
smiled at her.
"I don't know who your father is, but Headmistress Trepe only just became aware
of our existence." He looked her over and turned back to look over the plains.
"If your division is so top secret, why exactly are you at Balamb?" Fureya
enquired, still studying him closely.
"You'll find out soon enough." He said cheerfully and walked back into the Garden,
whistling as he went. Fureya watched him go and sighed grumpily. She was never
a fan of being kept in the dark.
~*~
"Will!" Fureya called, pounding on his dorm door. "Are you there?" After a few
prolonged seconds, the door slid open to reveal an impatient looking Willard.
"What is it?" He demanded impatiently. Fureya raised a surprised eyebrow; it
wasn't like Will to be so testy.
"I just wanted to know if you knew anything about the SeeD with the red striped
uniforms?" She asked tentatively. He shook his head and glanced over his
shoulder.
"Don't know anything." He said shortly. "Now if you'll excuse me." He punched the
button that signalled for the door to slide shut.
"No wait!" Called Fureya as she stuck her hand through the doorframe, the motion
senses kicked in and the door opened wide again. Willard sighed and rubbed his
face.
"What is it Fureya?" He said in exasperation.
"What's wrong?" She demanded and pushed her way into the room. "I'm not
leaving til you tell me what's made you so testy." She growled stubbornly.
"Fureya, please come back later." He said forcefully. Fureya opened her mouth to
reply when a female with tousled hair stepped out of Willard's sleeping quarters.
"I'll come back later." She said in a soft musical voice, her eyes unsure as she
stared at Fureya. Fureya's eyes widened as she realized what was going on.
"No." She said in a flat tone. "I'll go." Her heart twisted painfully as she fled from
the room. Willard watched her go, not understanding the emotion that had crossed
her bland face.
Her sensible black shoes slapped the cold floor of the dorm hallway as she ran
away from Willard. She reached her dorm, but paused and walked away with out
going in. She couldn't be alone in there, Amelia would probably be there and
Fureya wanted to be alone.
She walked on, not knowing where she was going. She was confused, confused as
to why her eyes burnt with unshed tears and confused as to why her heart was
twisted painfully.
She ended up walking down past the classrooms and outside to the small ledge.
She sat down in a corner and hugged her knees to her chest as she stared up at
the cerulean blue sky.
Fureya knew she wasn't embarrassed that she'd walked in on them. She couldn't
be jealous, could she? They were just friends after all.
No, a little voice in her head said. Your not just friends, you look at him with a
woman's eyes. Clouded with those feelings, you couldn't stand the sight and the
thought of him being with someone else. You ran away to pretend it never
happened.
Fureya shook her head in defeat as she rested her chin on her knees.
"Things were never this hard before." She mumbled to herself.
"Talking to yourself?" A scornful voice interrupted, startling Fureya out of her
thoughts. She looked up to see Keladryie Almasy leaning over the solid wall that
kept people from falling. Fureya grinned wolfishly and shrugged, not in the mood to
pick a fight.
"It's a Heartily trait. My mother did it a lot I'm told." Her voice was slightly
saddened as she spoke of her deceased mother, but it would always be. Keladryie
glanced back at her.
"From what I've heard, Rinoa was a good person." She admitted softly. "My Father
took her leaving him personal, but I think it worked out better in the end. My
dislike is for your father, not your mother." Fureya regarded Keladryie in a new
light and stood up, leaning against the barrier next to her.
"You know." Fureya said cheerfully. "Your not too bad for an Almasy." Keladryie
rolled her eyes, but not unkindly.
"You could be worse considering you're a Leonhart." She replied a little hesitantly.
Fureya picked up on the hesitation and laughed softly.
"I'm not asking you to forget everything and for us to leave here the best of
friends. I'm just saying all this animosity between us is not necessary." Fureya
pointed out quietly. "Plus, if Almasy's and Leonharts started to get friendly, others
would believe the world has turned on its ears and has gone insane." She joked,
drawing a soft laugh out of Keladryie.
"Your right." She admitted and held out her hand. "Truce?"
"Truce." Fureya grinned and shook Keladryie's hand.
~*~
They were in history class the next day, Fureya was sitting next to Amelia and
Keladryie was next to Vivienne. Willard was sitting by himself; Fureya had been
avoiding him since the day before.
"Guardian Forces used to be partners to SeeD members, each Cadet was given
Quezacotl the lightning bird and Shiva the ice maiden before they were sent to the
fire caverns north of here to obtain Ifrit the fire hell-demon. That task was
required of all Cadets that wished to take the SeeD exams. Headmistress Trepe
outlawed the practise of Guardian Forces ten years ago after it was proven that
the use of them degraded the users memory. You see, the Guardian Force was
stored in a section of your brain and prolonged use made you lose parts of your
memory. Of course, it wasn't the actual Guardian Force that resided in your mind,
but the power of them. There was only ever one Shiva, but she would lay a hand
on your forehead and grant you to power to summon her power. But it is no more,
so the Guardian Forces now have scattered across the world doing their own
thing." Instructor Whippet droned on, although the information was interesting, his
tone of voice made it tedious. There was a rap on the door, a forewarning as it
slid open.
Quistis Trepe stood in the doorway, a masculine figure behind her.
"Instructor Whippet." She said pleasantly. "My apologies for interrupting your
class." Whippet nodded forgivingly, allowing the headmistress to continue. "I just
need to see-"
"Quistis, I have no time for your long winded speeches." A gruff voice interrupted,
causing Fureya's heart to sink; she knew that voice very well. Quistis sighed
exasperated and stepped aside to admit Squall Leonhart into the room.
"Fureya Julia Leonhart." He thundered, his grey eyes stormy and his features taut
as Fureya got to her feet. Keladryie stared at the man in disdain as Fureya walked
to the front of the class.
"To my office, if you both please." Quistis's tone was soft but iron firm.
As the door shut behind the departing figures, Instructor Whippet turned to the
class.
"And that was former Headmaster Leonhart. He saved this very garden against
many enemies such as Norg, Sorceress Edea and her knight and from Galbadia
Garden." He stated clearly before launching into a very long-winded speech about
the antics of a younger Squall.
~*~
Quistis regarded the silent father and daughter pair as they stood in her office,
glaring at each other.
"Squall." She started. "Fureya is eighteen and an adult, you can't take her from
here without her permission or unless she has been expelled." Squall shot her a
look and shrugged.
"Then expel her." He snapped. Quistis grimaced and shook her head.
"As the headmistress of this facility, I have a duty to train capable youths into
extremely capable fighters. I have no reason to expel her, she is an adept student
and an even better fighter." She said firmly. Squall turned to face Quistis fully and
raised an eyebrow.
"And as Fureya's godmother? What do you recommend then?" He growled, his
temper growing as his patience ran out.
"I recommend she stay here where she is happy. She has friends and people who
treat her as an equal here." Squall stared at her long and hard.
"I thought you were my friend, Quistis." He said in a deadly soft tone. Quistis
flinched and squared her shoulders.
"Then maybe you should start treating me like a friend then." She stated curtly.
"The thing is unless Fureya wishes to go home with you, she will stay here."
Squall turned to Fureya who'd watched the exchange silently.
"Why do you want me back in Deling City?" She said soberly, her eyes studying his
face. "You ignore me constantly and don't let me do what I love to do the most, I
love to fight. You know I can beat Kaddar hands down." Squall nodded and sighed.
"You are a spitting image of your mother." He blurted out. "I wanted to keep you
safe from the world. Being a SeeD would never be easy for you, you are the
daughter of a sorceress and many think you are a sorceress." He smiled wistfully.
"But you have Rinny's spirit. You want to fight the majority and prove everyone
wrong. I'm sorry for the way I treated you." He looked at Quistis and offered her a
sincere apologetic smile. "You too Quistis. I'm really sorry."
"It's okay Dad." Fureya said softly. Squall reached out and hugged his daughter,
his fingers brushing across her short raven locks.
"You loved your hair." He murmured softly. "If you want to stay here, I don't
mind."
Fureya looked up at him and grinned.
"Headmistress." She said, turning to face Quistis. "I was wondering if I could go
home for a week. I'll keep up my studies and be back in time to recap what I did
miss before the SeeD exams, I just think me and Dad need some time together."
Quistis nodded.
"Fine by me."