Chapter Six: Masterminds
By PasifikStar
Author's Note: Thank you for all the reviews! It's really appreciated. I hope you guys like the story so far. I'm glad you think it's funny and light hearted. That's what I was going for. ^_^ And much love to the reviewer who pointed out that Quistis was wearing a gothic lolita dress!!
* All Standard Disclaimers Apply: I do not own Final Fantasy or it's characters.
"Seifer..." Rinoa said in a dead pan voice as she sat on a chair before the stage. The cast, except for Seifer, was up on the stage. He was standing at the foot of the stairs. "You have to get up on it for us to begin rehearsal."
The tall blond shot her a glare. He put one foot on the first step and suddenly felt a pain on his back side and froze in his spot. "Umm...I think he's having those pains again, ya know..." Raijin said from where he was standing by the wings of the stage.
Rinoa took a deep breath and shook her head. "Seifer, those pains are psychological," she insisted. "Dr. Kadowaki says you're fine and that your ribs are healing well. So stop being such a drama king and get on the stage!"
"Don't blame me for this!" Seifer growled as he gripped the railing and took another step up. "Blame the cowboy! It's his fault!"
"I told you, it was an accident!" Irvine sighed in his defense for the billionth time. He was sitting on one of the chairs next to Rinoa and Selphie.
"You're just jealous of my talent..." Seifer mumbled as he took the final step on to the stage. He took a deep breath and began to walk towards center stage. *Be professional. You have a reputation to live up to. You are SEIFER ALMASY. You are THE MAN,* He ran his hand through his hair and tilted it back slightly, earning him a few sighs from the female observers in the lawn below. *Oh yeah...you're hot.*
*Oh Hyne, he's so full of it...* Quistis said as she rolled her eyes.
"Let's get this started!" Rinoa said. "Selphie, my megaphone, please."
"Here you go!" Selphie said, handing Rinoa a large white megaphone with a red handle.
Rinoa lifted it up to her mouth and looked over the neatly bound, but worn out script on her lap. "Okay! Will all the actors not in the first scene, vacate the stage! Stand in your designated spots!" She put the megaphone down and pointed to the stage. Selphie nodded and hopped off her smaller director's chair to scurry up the steps to the stage. "Selphie will tell you where to stand! As soon as everyone is in their marked space, we'll begin!"
Selphie began running around on the stage as Rinoa looked over the script. She looked over at Irvine, who was given a well prepared notebook with pre-printed images of the backgrounds so that he could write notes. "All set!" Selphie yelled from the stage.
"Excellent!" Rinoa said. Selphie stood on the wings. "Action!"
Seifer began to walk on stage and recite his lines. He had the words as well as the body motions down. Selphie was going over the next scene with the next set of actors. Behind her, far down the lawn and hidden within the shadows of the hallway stood a lone man. His cold blue eyes watched the people on stage with scrutiny.
"Squall! How's the play going!?" Immediately, the dark haired commander jumped, hitting the large column he was partially hidden behind with his hand as he turned. He winced as he grabbed the injured hand and rubbed it.
Standing before him was Headmaster Cid, who was smiling from ear to ear. "It's going very well, sir!" *Oh, HYNE!! That hurt!!!!*
"Excellent! I've been hearing great things about from Edea," Cid told him casually as he looked over at the stage. "The stage is excellent. Irvine did a wonderful job."
"His background painting and a building skills are excellent, sir," Squall said sternly as he put his throbbing hand down at his side. *Maybe I should go to the infirmary?*
"I have to admit, I was a bit shocked when I found out that Rinoa had chosen Seifer and Quistis to be the leading rolls. I was sure that she would've chosen you and herself for those parts." Cid admitted thoughtfully.
*Yeah, I was pretty shocked myself...* Squall mentally agreed as he nodded. *Did I break any bones? No...it feels numb. Wait...* he looked down at his injured left hand. *That's not a good thing...*
"Rinoa had just sent over the cost records as of the time being, including the rental prices and such," Cid said, impressed with Rinoa's work. "She says that they might break even thanks to the sponsors. We have to thank your father."
*This day just keeps getting worse and worse...* Squall thought. "Yes, sir."
"Well, I'll leave you to your duties!" Cid said. He pointed over to the small crowd that was watching. "I think I'll go watch and wait for Edea's part."
"Of course, sir," Squall nodded and watched as the man walked down the steps of the hallway and into the quad area. As soon as he was far enough away, Squall whirled around and began to run towards the infirmary. *Hyne, I hope it's not broken...*
Rinoa looked over her shoulder just in time to watch Squall running, clutching his hand like an injured baby and snickered. *Poor baby...* She turned back to the group in front of her. "Great job! Next time, don't pause so long!"
"Great job everyone!" Rinoa shouted. "Don't forget! Next week, we'll be doing quick exhibition skits at the front of the Garden to promote our play! Please see Selphie for your costumes!"
"One line, please!" Selphie shouted from where she was standing with Irvine and Zell and a large rack of costumes.
Rinoa turned back to close her script and put it in her bag when Quistis approached her. "Rinoa, have you seen Seifer?"
The brunette struggled to keep herself from smiling broadly. She failed. "Don't tell me you miss him already!" Rinoa sighed with a wide smile.
Quistis turned bright read and shook her head. "No!" she gasped. "I do not! It's just..."
"Just...?" Rinoa urged calmly.
"He has to pick up his costume and he's not here!" Quistis lied quickly. "How irritating of him to cause so much trouble!"
Rinoa raised an eyebrow and studied Quistis' face. "Quisty..." she mumbled. "...How did you notice he was gone so fast? We barely ended rehearsal."
If it was possible, it happened. Quistis' face reddened another shade. "I...uh..."
Rinoa snickered. "Okay, I have no idea where he went," she sighed. "Just go get your costume from Selphie. If you want, I'll go look for him with you. I need to find Squall, myself."
"It's not like that!" Quistis exclaimed defensively as she walked towards Selphie. *Ugh! What is up with them lately!? I am not at all attracted to that arrogant, stubborn, self absorbed, incredibly good looking man!* She took one more step and froze. *No...I just did not call him that...*
"Quistis, here's your costume!" Selphie said. She was holding out a black zipped bag. "All three costumes are in there. That's why it's so thick. Zell," she said as she looked at the tattooed blond standing next to her. "Mark her down."
"Gotcha!" Zell said. He was holding open a plastic, three ring binder with a stack of paper and marked off Quistis' name.
"Selphie, Quistis and I are going to look for Seifer and Squall," Rinoa said as she walked up behind Selphie and the two young men on either side of her. "Thanks for your help tonight."
"No problem!" Selphie said. "Are we still getting together later?" she asked innocently.
Rinoa nodded. "Yep...we still have more to..." Rinoa thought for a moment. "Plan."
Selphie giggled and nodded. "Oh yeah! We're not anywhere NEAR finished yet."
Quistis looked from Rinoa to Selphie and back and narrowed her eyes. She could've sworn that they had already said that they were finished with all the preparations for the play. She sighed and shook her head. *I probably just missed something...*
"Okay, Quistis, let's go!" Rinoa said with a warm smile as she slung her black canvas bag over her shoulder. Quistis looked towards her and nodded as she started to walk over to Rinoa. "Do you want to drop the costumes at your room first?"
"Yeah...they're going to get heavy..."
The room was dark with one dimly lit light bulb hanging from the ceiling over a frail looking square, white wooden table. Two brown wooden chairs were placed across from each other. The door opened, letting in bright white light from the hall way as a tall young man walked in.
He turned to closed the door behind him, checking over his shoulders once more to make sure he was not being followed. Assured that he was not, he closed the door and seated himself across from the figure in the chair across from him. Two hands were placed on the table as a body leaned forward and icy blue eyes met stubborn green ones.
"560 gil per day or 100 gil an hour," the blue eyed, brown haired young man said. "I think it's best to go per hour."
"Was that the cheapest you could get them?" the green eyed blond asked, unsure if he should trust the brunette.
"White ones are more expensive then regular yellow ones, obviously." the brunette answered.
"Fine. Book them."
"And the other arrangements?"
"Complete," the blond replied. "I contacted some people. The costumes will be ready."
"How much?"
"150 gil per suit."
"Do-able. When do you need the money?"
"It's already paid. You owe me 150 gil."
The brunette frowned. "How'd you know I would agree?"
"Because I know that you want to go all out for this," the blond smirked. "I know how you think."
The brunette scoffed. "My plans don't seem so different from your own endeavors."
"Men to stupid things when they're in love."
"So you're in love now?"
"I was talking about you."
"Right."
The green eyed man rolled his eyes. "I'll pay you after it's over."
"Same here," the blue eyed man agreed. "You're dismissed."
The tall blond stood up and smirked as he headed for the door. He opened the door and looked around the hall way before stepping out. Inside the room, the brunette pulled a small black case from his pocket and opened it. The glimmering crystal looked back at him from it's place within it's gold confines.
He looked it over, silently pleased with how it came back from the jewelry repair store. He couldn't see the part where it had been broken and it looked as good as new.
"Seifer, have you seen Squall?" a voice asked outside the door. Within the room, the brunette froze. He recognized the voice immediately.
"No, I haven't seen him all day." he heard Seifer say casually. Outside, Rinoa crossed her arms over her chest and let out a heavy sigh.
"Where can he be...?" Rinoa mumbled. "Okay, I'll see you guys later!" The sound of her foot steps as she ran off echoed in the hall way as she left Seifer alone with someone else.
"Where were you!?" an annoyed female voice asked. "You didn't pick up your costume!"
"I had Raijin get it for me," Seifer answered coolly. "What's the matter? Miss me?"
"No!" Quistis hissed. "I just wanted to know if you still want to practice or not."
"Well..." Seifer said, sounding amused. "Since we'll be practicing the full play on stage practically every night from now on, I don't think we'll need any more time to practice...ALONE."
"I thought as much." Quistis sighed.
"Do I detect a hint of disappointment, my dear princess?" Seifer asked in his usual 'I'm better than you' voice.
"Not as much as I can see the disappointment in your eyes," Quistis replied casually. "Besides," she smiled sinisterly. "This way we aren't alone and you can no longer 'catch me off guard'."
"You're right..." Seifer said. "That is...disappointing."
There was a period of silence and Squall, who was still inside the room, wondered what was going on. Outside, Quistis and Seifer were staring each other down. "Well," Quistis said sternly. "It's late. And I have a class tomorrow. Good evening to you, Seifer."
"Oh, don't act so high and mighty-"
"Of course not, that's YOUR department." Quistis smirked. Seifer shot her an annoyed glare.
"I WAS going to offer to walk you to your room, but now I can see I'm not wanted." he grumbled.
"Good," Quistis said, highly amused. "It's about time you realized that."
Squall smirked as he stood by the door. When he heard their foot steps leave, he counted to fifty before opening the door and casually walking out. "There you are!" a voice said loudly.
"Rinoa!" he gasped as he whirled around. He slammed his hand against the side of the door. "AGH!"
"Squall!" Rinoa exclaimed as she quickly walked over to him. He was studying his hand and suppressing the swear words that wanted to come out. "Oh, Hyne..." she sighed. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to surprise you!"
"It's fine..." he mumbled as she took his hand gingerly in both of hers. *It's the same hand...you'd think I'd learn...*
"Oh..." She frowned and brought his hand up to her lips, giving it a soft kiss on the palm before she looked up at him with large chocolate brown eyes. Squall's eyes were diverted as his cheeks showed a hint of red. "Does that make it better?"
*Actually it does...* Squall thought to himself. "Whatever."
She merely giggled and put her arms around his neck. "I'm sorry...I feel like I'm neglecting you."
"You're busy."
"But I shouldn't be too busy for you," she asserted. "We haven't done anything together in a while. You're busy with work and I'm too wrapped up in the play."
*...anything together in a while...?* Squall's eyes rose to meet hers. "You're right..." He grabbed her hand with his uninjured one and headed towards his room. "It's been WAY too long."
"I thought so, too," Rinoa sighed. "So I was thinking we can go out to dinner tomorrow night in town! Just the two of us!"
"Dinner?" Squall spat out, obviously disappointed. Rinoa raised an eyebrow and pulled him back to a stop.
"What did you think I was talking about?" she asked questioningly.
Squall opened his mouth, but no words came out. He merely shrugged. "Dinner?"
"Or dessert?" she asked suspiciously. Squall looked down, embarrassed.
"...Dessert..."
"I thought so," she sighed tiredly. She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "Good night, Squall."
"Good night..." he mumbled, disappointed as she walked towards the elevators.
She pressed the up button. "Don't forget!" she said as the doors opened and she stepped in. "Tomorrow night!"
"Tomorrow night...got it..." he sighed as he gave her a weak smile.
Rinoa giggled as the doors began to close. "For dinner AND dessert!" The doors closed, hiding Rinoa. Squall looked up, just in time to see her smile as the doors closed. He smirked.
"Do you think she suspects us?" Rinoa asked as she sat on her bed. Selphie shook her head from side to side from where she was sitting on Rinoa's chair.
"I don't think so," Selphie said. She frowned slightly and rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "But she DID give us a weird look earlier..."
"Other than that, she doesn't seem to suspect a thing," Rinoa agreed. "Anyway, how are we progressing?"
Selphie opened her binder and flipped past the play, past the sketches of the back ground scenes, past the schedules, stages plans and records. "Here we are..." she said, putting the binder of her lap and exposing a page within a plastic sheet protector. "Stage one...cast Seifer and Quistis as leads. Stage two... private practices encouraged. Stage three...initiate incidents to bring them closer together. We're currently at stage three."
"Well, can't we just pass over that stage?" Rinoa asked. "I mean...they've had plenty of time together after the accident."
"True...but does that count?" Selphie asked.
Rinoa thought for a moment and nodded. "I think it does! I mean, Quistis visited Seifer every day...for HOURS at a time."
Selphie grinned. "Yeah...didn't she even miss a class because of that?"
"She missed her Introduction to Guardian Forces class because she claimed she 'lost track of time'," Rinoa grinned. "AND I heard that Seifer's present was well taken."
Selphie then turned to the other person in the room with a bright smile. "Thanks for the help again, Fujin!" Selphie smiled widely. "We wouldn't know what the heck is going on without you!"
"No problem," Fujin assured them. She was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall as Angelo sat next to her, her head on her lap being petted. "Fun."
"Things seem to be progressing smoothly," Rinoa smiled. "Let's move on to the forth stage?"
"The forth stage is kind of weird...wouldn't it be technically up to them now?" Selphie asked. "I mean we have it listed here as 'make them fall in love'. We can't really MAKE them."
"I know," Rinoa sighed. *Unfortunately...* "But at least we can push them in that direction."
"Date?" Fujin suggested.
"Oh!! That's right! They haven't BEEN on one yet!" Selphie said with an energetic smile. Slowly, it left her face and she frowned. "But wait...they'd never go for that..."
"We can't just make them go to a restaurant and then ditch them..." Rinoa agreed. "They'd KNOW for sure what we were up to."
"Anniversary party?" Fujin added.
"Hyne, Fujin, you're a genius!" Rinoa agreed, sitting up straight and grabbing her planner. She looked through her schedule. "Friday is Cid and Edea's anniversary party! All the SeeDs are invited...and I'm sure they'll want you guys there, too, right, Fujin?"
"Affirmative," Fujin nodded. "Received invitation."
"Excellent..." Rinoa mumbled deviously as she circled the date on her planner. "Now...Quistis has her dress ready, so she'll definitely be there. Fujin, you're in charge of making sure Seifer's there."
"Affirmative."
"Okay, here's what we'll do," Rinoa said, smiling almost maniacally with glee. "We'll make them dance together! Nothing spells love like a slow dance!"
Selphie and Fujin exchanged knowing glances as Rinoa spoke. "Um...I don't know if that'll work-"
"Oh, it'll work!" Rinoa assured them. "I'll MAKE it work!"
Dinner had gone well. They ate at a quaint little restaurant owned by a Galbadian couple who had moved to Balamb several years earlier. Sitting in a candle lit booth in a secluded corner of the restaurant gave the couple enough time to soak each other in.
Then Rinoa had insisted on watching the latest comedy that had been released a week earlier and dragged Squall along with her. While it has been pleasant, Squall had found that Rinoa wasn't paying attention to him as much as he would've liked. Rather, she spent most of the time, laughing on the edge of her seat.
On the drive back to the Garden, all she could talk about was the movie and how she enjoyed it. She had also made him stop by a grocery store so she could pick up dessert. Ice cream, hot fudge, and whipped cream. Even a few cherries and some plastic bowls and plastic spoons.
The moment she had said she was up for ice cream that night, Squall's idea of dessert vanished. Vanished until he found his bathtub lined with candles and filled with bubbles and hot water. "Why don't you go in?" she told him with a warm smile. "I'll go prepare your ice cream."
Filled with anticipation, Squall tore off his clothes and practically dove into the bath tub, expecting Rinoa to join him. Instead, she walked in with the plastic bowls filled with ice cream and toppings and a spoon stabbed into them. She handed him one and turned to walk away. "Wait a second!" he gasped. "Aren't you going to join me!?"
"Join you?" Rinoa asked, as if the thought never even crossed her mind. "No, why?"
"I thought that...but...the romantic setting...the tub...the candles..."
She gave him a questioning look. "I'm not going to join you," she said in a dead pan voice. She shook her head as she turned around and walked out of the bathroom. "Really, Squall...what do you take me for...?"
Squall stared out the bathroom door as Rinoa exited. There was the sound of something falling into the tub and Squall turned. He hadn't realized that the hand that had been holding the ice cream had tilted. Now, is ice cream was melting in the hot water and bubbles.
"Rinoa!" he shouted. "My ice cream fell!! It's in the water!!"
"I'm not falling for that, Squall!" a voice said from his bedroom.
"I'M SERIOUS!!"
"Right..."
Squall leaned his head back against the side of the tub. *This...isn't...fair...* He let out a tired sigh and got up. He grabbed the towel that had been laid out for him and wrapped it around his waist as he blew out the candles and began to drain the tub.
"Hey, why aren't you in the tub?" a frowning voice said behind him. Squall turned around and saw Rinoa eating her ice cream. "I worked hard on that!"
"My ice cream fell in it," he mumbled. "It defeats the purpose of coming out of a bathtub clean."
Rinoa rolled her eyes. "Fine...I'll go make you another ice cream."
"I don't WANT ice cream!" Squall exclaimed.
"Then what do you want?" Rinoa said. "Should we have gotten pie?"
"The only thing I want is-"
"Angelo!" Rinoa gasped suddenly, her eyes widening. Squall stared at her in disbelief. "Oh, no! I forgot to feed her this evening before we left! I'm sorry, I have to go!"
She turned and put her ice cream on the bathroom counter as she ran out of the room. Squall narrowed his eyes and looked up at the ceiling. "Hyne, you REALLY hate me, don't you?"
"Seifer, stop moving!" Quistis frowned as she rubbed the ointment over Seifer's bare back. He was laying on his stomach on his bed, his arms folded under his chin as he relished the feeling of Quistis' hands on his back.
"I'm not comfortable," Seifer grumbled. "These beds are horrible, you know that."
"Beggars can't be picky," she scolded as she lifted her hands off of his back and closed the ointment jar. "There...all set for tonight. How does it feel?"
"Same as always," Seifer shrugged. He rolled over on his back. Quistis was sitting at the edge of the bed, reading the directions on the side of the jar. Grinning, he put his arms around her waist and pulled her down next to him. "Come on...admit it!"
Quistis let out a low growl and tried to push him away half heartedly. His head was right next to hers as his arm and upper body laid slightly across hers. "Let me go, Seifer." she hissed, flushing slightly as she lifted her hand to adjust her glasses.
"Not until you admit it."
"Admit WHAT?" Quistis growled as she turned her head and glared at him viciously.
"That you like this," he grinned. Quistis continued to glare at him. "What? You think you'll get in trouble for having teacher-student relations?"
"You're NOT my student."
"Then we don't have a problem, do we?" Seifer said. He leaned over and kissed Quistis gently on the lips, something she found kind of strange coming from someone like him, but stranger still that she enjoyed it.
"Seifer..." she growled, pushing him away more. "You'll...you'll hurt your back." she tried to explain as his fingers crept towards her neck and lifted up the silver chain around her neck.
"You always wear this?"
"It's a nice necklace..." she trailed off.
"It looks strange on you without a pendent on it," he told her as he pulled away slightly. Quistis nodded. It did look a bit strange. It was such a thin chain, after all. "Here."
She turned her head and found a small white box in her face. Her eyes went wide as she looked at it. "What is it?"
Seifer rolled his eyes. "It's a box."
"What's IN the box?"
"Air. Just open the damn thing." he told her in a gruff voice as he sat up next to her.
Quistis took the box from his hand and sat up on the bed. She looked at him reluctantly as she opened the box. Sapphire eyes went wide as they met a tear shaped sapphire stone pendent. "Oh, Hyne..." she whispered breathlessly.
Seifer grinned, knowing that was a sign of praise. "I figured it'd would match your eyes..." *Okay, Fujin said it would match your eyes and Raijin suggested the pendent. But let's just pretend they didn't.*
"Seifer, you didn't have to..." Quistis said with a sad look on her face. She turned to look at him. "Why?"
"I saw it and it reminded me of you," he shrugged casually. *Actually, I went shopping for hours first, but when I saw it, it did remind me of you...and Squall's jeweler was the one who suggested it to me.*
"I don't deserve this!"
"What the hell are you talking about?" Seifer frowned. "Of course you do!"
"WHY are you giving it to me?" Quistis asked.
Seifer struggled to keep the blood from rushing to his face. *Ugh...don't make me say it...*
"Seifer?" Quistis asked, her voice slightly demanding.
*Just SHOW her.* his mind ordered. Seifer closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he leaned forward, cupping Quistis' pale face in his left hand and kissing her on the lips.
Quistis felt her heart pounding in her chest as the warmth crept over her body, slowing filling her with joy and excitement as his arms wrapped around her. She closed her eyes and leaned forward, drawn into the moment.
The pendent was forgotten as it's box fell from her hands on to her lap as they reached behind his neck and held him close to her. She could feel the muscles of his back against her finger tips as bare flesh sent sparks where they met hers. A soft hand gently swept away some of her bangs before he pulled away, slowly.
"I...I don't know if I'm ready for this..." she whispered quietly.
"Take all the time that you need," he told her reassuringly. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Thank you."
He smirked. "Anytime," he said. He looked around his messy room nervously as Quistis closed the box and clutched it tightly in her hand. "Thank you..." he mumbled. "For helping me with the medicine...and checking up on me at the infirmary..."
She smiled slightly and looked back at him. "Well...you ARE my hero," She looked at the box. "How much did this cost?" She asked as she turned it upside down.
Seifer frowned and shot he an annoyed look. "I didn't leave the price tag on!"
"Well it happened last time." Quistis retorted.
"That was RAIJIN not me!" he send defensively.
"Oh, so you didn't WANT to get me a present. Raijin and Fujin made you." Quistis smirked.
"Yes. That's it!" Seifer announced. Quistis frowned. *I should've told her that earlier.*
"Your kiss said otherwise."
"Maybe you want to try it again just to make sure." he challenged.
"Nice try."
"It wasn't a try."
Quistis merely laughed and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you, Seifer," she sighed. "I'll see you tomorrow."
Seifer nodded and gave her an amused smile. "You play a hard game, woman," he said as he stood up to walk her to the door. "Tomorrow at the rehearsal," he kissed her forehead slightly as she stood in front of him. "Good night, my princess."
She lifted her hand to give him a wave good-bye as his door slid open. She walked out, still clutching the box in her hand. She heard the door slid closed and she finally allowed herself to blush. "Good night, my knight."
"You look REALLY happy," Selphie said as she sat next to Quistis in the lounge in the library. She smiled widely. "Did you have a good night last night?"
"Actually, yes," Quistis said casually. "I finished reading Rinoa's final edited draft of her new book."
Selphie's smile dropped immediately as a shocked looked entered her face. "No! I haven't even gotten it yet! RIN!!!" she gasped as she turned to look at the brunette laying on the couch across from them.
Rinoa turned her head to her left to look over at Selphie and Quistis from where she was laying. Her head was resting on Squall's lap as he slumped back down against the couch, still not happy with the night before's turn of events. "I only have one edited copy, Selphie," Rinoa assured her. "Quistis is supposed to give you the copy after she was done."
"How come she got it first?" Selphie pouted as she crossed her arms over her chest.
"Because she reads that fastest, next to Zell's girlfriend-"
"She's already read it, too!?" Selphie gasped in shock. "No fair!"
"I got it three days ago," Rinoa sighed. "Zell's girlfriend finished it within a day, then she gave it to Quistis, and now you'll get it."
"I'm next after you, by the way," Zell piped from where he was seated helping Irvine set up the slide projector. "Irvine, are you sure you want to do this again?"
"Quistis is here this time," Irvine asserted. "I'm sure SHE'LL get it."
"Okay..." Zell sighed. He took the clicker and Irvine stood to the side, laser pointer in hand.
"All right," Irvine said. "This time I have included Rinoa's newest book...or the draft I read of it, 'Dark Knight' into my presentation."
"Irvine, what the hell is this about?" Squall grumbled from his seat. Rinoa had crawled up to sit next to him and get a better view of the presentation.
"Ahem...Squall, please hold all questions until the presentation is complete," Irvine said, using a professional tone. Squall rolled his eyes. "Thank you. The first slide is the main idea - Rinoa's characters are based on US. Zell, slide two!"
Zell nodded and pressed the button. The screen was blank. "Um...is that supposed to be there?" he asked.
Irvine twitched slightly. "Press the FORWARD button...not the BACKWARD button..." Zell nodded and pressed the button again. It was another blank screen. "The OTHER button, Zell."
"Right, right..." Zell chuckled. He pressed the other button until it came to the slide Irvine wanted.
"Here we have the names once more...let's look at the names shall we? Stephanie Timlit? Selphie Tilmit? Casey Erept? Quisty Trepe? Noa Carilly? RINOA Heartilly?" Irvine said. "Slide three."
"Right." Zell pressed the button and the previous screen popped up.
"You know what, why don't you just give ME the clicker?" Selphie said as she reached over and took it from Zell.
Irvine was rubbing his forehead, frustrated. "Okay...then we have Dall. His name has four letters. Zell's name has four letters. Maverick Loadem. Does that scream cliched cowboy or not? Zephyr? SEIFER? I mean, come on! That one's so obvious!"
"So...basically you're saying that Stephanie is based on Selphie, Noa is based on Rinoa, Dall is based on Zell, Zephyr on Seifer, Maverick on you, and Casey on me?" Quistis asked.
"THANK YOU!" Irvine sighed. "Not to mention that the new character, Leon, is based on Squall." he added.
"Rinoa?" Quistis asked. "Did you base these characters off of us?"
A smile drew on her face. "Of course."
"Ah-hah!" Irvine shouted triumphantly as he pointed at her. "I KNEW it!"
"If Irvine just asked, I could've told him that." His face fell as he looked at her dumbfoundedly.
"You're kidding me."
"You asked everyone but Rinoa," Selphie giggled. "The AUTHOR."
Irvine's eyes went wide. "You all KNEW!?" he accused. "You all KNEW and you let me carry on with this!?"
"Yes." Quistis nodded, completely unfazed.
"WHY?" Irvine gasped.
Rinoa struggled to keep her laughter inside. "Because...I'm sorry, Irvine," she snickered. "It was just so funny!"
He just stared at them. "You are all horrible people."
"If it's any consolation," Rinoa said. "I'll give you a free copy of 'Dark Knight', signed and everything."
"You think a BOOK will make up for this humiliation?" Irvine snapped, slightly offended. "I went through hours of work to prepare this slide presentation. Not to mention spent 35 gil on having the slides made!"
"You'll be the first to get it without waiting in line." Rinoa added.
"..." Irvine stared at her. "I want two."
"Deal."
Squall laid down on his bed, shirtless and wearing loose, drawstring cotton pants as he opened the book to the dog eared page he had marked to save his space. He began to read the second to last chapter of Julia Loire's forth book. There was knock on his door and he frowned.
"What?" he grumbled, not taking his eyes of the page.
"Squall, I left something there, can I come in?" Rinoa said from behind the door.
"Go ahead!" Squall shouted in reply. *These books are addicting...I can't believe Noa actually went out with Zephyr...what the hell was she thinking?*
The door slid open and Rinoa walked in. Squall was on his back, reading the book that was propped up on his chest. She raised an eyebrow and walked towards him. "Enjoying the book?"
"Yeah," He nodded, completely forgetting about Irvine's earlier presentation, of which the cowboy had made them sit through it's entirety. He had also forgotten that Rinoa was the writer. "You know, I think that Leon would be a good match for Noa."
"Really?" Rinoa asked, smiling slightly as she sat next to him on the of his bed. "Why?"
"I don't know," he shrugged, his eyes not leaving the page. "They seem to fit well together. They're contrast each other, but...it's just a gut feeling. Too bad nothing really happens between them in 'Dark Knight'."
"Well...they only had once dance," Rinoa smirked. "I think they had good chemistry. Do you have a favorite character?"
"Yeah," Squall said. "Noa."
Rinoa beamed a smile. "Why?" she asked, knowingly.
Squall closed the book and looked at her. He put it on the shelf by his bed and put his arms around her waist, pulling her down against him. "Because she reminds me of you."
"Raijin, thanks for letting me borrow this book," Seifer said as he handed the hard cover copy of the latest of Julia Loire's novels back to Raijin. He was standing in the door way. "I don't know why my copy hasn't come in yet."
"No problem, ya know," Raijin told him. "What did you think of this one?"
"It's good, but my favorite is still Emerald Kiss," Seifer shrugged. "This one focused too much on Stephanie and Maverick for my taste."
Raijin nodded and laughed. "I agree! But Dall and Maverick are funny."
Seifer snorted. "They're idiots," he stated. "Anyway, thanks again."
"Hey, Seifer," Raijin said. "Fujin wanted to know if you were going to go to the anniversary party with us."
"Oh THAT..." Seifer grumbled. He had completely forgotten about it. "I'll think about it."
"She says to hurry because she has to RSVP." Raijin explained.
Seifer nodded as he turned around and headed back up the hall to his room. "All right. I'll tell her tomorrow then. Good night!"
"Good night!" Raijin said. He walked back into his room and the door closed. Seifer continued to walk and turned the corner when he saw Quistis walking towards him, holding the same book he had just given back to Raijin.
"Hey," he said. He lifted his chin towards her. "You read that?"
"My favorite series," Quistis admitted. She paused and raised an eyebrow. "Do you read Loire's books?"
"If you're talking about Laguna Loire's Estharian President, hell no. If you're talking about Julia Loire's Gothic Crystal series, yes." Seifer shrugged casually.
"Really?" Quistis said.
"You never saw those books in my room?" Seifer asked. "My copy of that one got lost in the mail."
Quistis narrowed her eyes slightly and thought for a moment.
Three months earlier...
Selphie ran into the library holding a large box behind her. "Quisty!" she gasped as she placed the box on the coffee table in front of Quistis. "I found the books! And look they gave us a free one!"
"Selphie, are you sure that one's free?" Quistis asked, raising an eyebrow. Selphie nodded.
"Yeah! POSITIVE!"
"Oh, really?" Quistis said. *I knew I should've checked that order form...*
"'Night, princess." Seifer said casually as he walked past her.
"Hey, wait!" Quistis said.
Seifer stopped and smirked as he turned around. "What? Did I hear you just ask me to wait?"
She narrowed her eyes. "I just wanted to know...um..." She diverted her eyes. *Know WHAT?* "Uh..." She looked back up at Seifer, who stood there, casually waiting for her to come up with an excuse. Or answer. Whichever one. "Do you have a favorite character?" she asked, lifting up the book. *Do you have a favorite CHARACTER?* she thought to herself lamely. *Oh, Hyne...*
"What do you think?" he retorted.
"Let me guess..." Quistis sighed. "Zephyr?"
"Zephyr?" Seifer said, looking surprised. "Why would I like that smart ass?"
*Okay, I didn't expect that...* Quistis thought, surprised. "Then who?"
"Casey," Seifer said as he looked at her as her eyes widened. "She's strong, intelligent, and disciplined. I respect that."
"Are you...serious...?" *Okay, he HAS to be joking.*
Seifer grinned. "Of course...besides," he said as he reached over and brushed some of her blond hair away from her face. "I have a thing for blondes." He threw her a superior smirk as he turned and walked away.
Quistis stood in the hall way, her face heating up slightly. "What a coincidence..." she whispered as she continued to walk in the opposite direction. "So do I."
Next Time: Shall We Dance? Rinoa begins a disastrous attempt at getting Quistis and Seifer to dance at Cid and Edea's party. Selphie begins the last leg of publicity, revealing the promo shots to the garden creating a force to be reckoned with in the Garden - FANGIRLS.