Disclaimer: I own nothing. Except for the really old laptop I'm typing this on.

Author's Note: Here's the much delayed second chapter. Since I didn't mention anything earlier, I'd like to admit that I wrote each chapter with a particular character in mind. The last one was Quistis, this one is Selphie, and the next will be Rinoa. On with the story!

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Balmab Garden

Main Hall

2:47 PM

Three girls were walking down the steps from the elevator to the main hall on the first floor of Balamb Garden. Among them was a tall blonde wearing a crisp and professional SeeD uniform, a short brunette with a bob wearing a yellow sundress, and a slightly taller brunette wearing blue jeans, a black t-shirt and an infamous black leather jacket with a baby snow lion fur collar. And one of them seemed to be angry about something.

"Stupid Zell!" The shortest girl in the sundress suddenly exclaimed, startling a group of cadets lost in conversation nearby.

"Oh, don't start that again, Selphie." The other brunette sighed, trying to avoid the stares of onlookers as they walked.

The three had just gotten out of a meeting with Cid, Squall, Irvine and Zell, involving which areas to distribute the abundant funds the Garden had appropriated since that whole 'saving the world' thing, which the newspapers dubbed "The Ultimecia Affair." Naturally, Selphie had suggested that the Garden Festival was a worthy investment, but Zell immediately dashed her hopes of booking a real, live, 'hey-I-actually-know-how-to-play-guitar' band, when he pointed out the horrible quality of the cafeteria food. While Selphie valued decent food as much as the next person, she felt the Garden Festival was much more important than having non-soybean pattie hamburgers every-other Tuesday, and said so.

Of course, this set off a huge argument between the two, which included such flavorful words as "mass-recruiting cultist", "hot-dog loving freak" and the much gasped over, "boring prom-night wannabe." Unfortunately, poor Selphie ended up losing the argument when Zell came to the uncharacteristically logical conclusion that, in the end, the Cafeteria's budget was more important than the Garden Festival's, since while everyone may not attend the Festival, everyone did have to eat everyday. And so it was decided that the Festival would get a 5% raise in it's budget, while the Cafeteria's budget would receive a staggering 40% increase.

Selphie was so furious you could practically see the rage emanating off of her body.

"He's lucky I'm such a sweet person, or he'd be in traction right now, eating applesauce through a straw..." Selphie muttered, glaring at a cadet who had the audacity to smile at her as they passed him.

Quistis rolled her eyes. "You already sent him to the Medi-Wing once. I think you scarred the poor boy for life."

Selphie snorted. "Whatever. That one time he deserved it. Besides, it was an accident."

"Selphie, you hit him in the head with a waffle iron." Quistis replied skeptically, nodding to one of her students as he headed for the library.

"It was an accident!"

Rinoa grinned. "Twelve times?"

"Look, he shouldn't have said my waffles tasted like regurgitated mashed potatoes. It was karma." Selphie huffed, nearly knocking over a cadet as they walked past the library.

Quistis shook her head. "Sure. If karma means violent revenge by screaming girl with kitchen appliance."

"Pfft. You guys are making way too big a deal of that. He hardly even showed any bruising." Selphie frowned as a junior cadet jogged past them. "No running in the halls!"

"Yeah. Bandages have a way of covering things like that." Quistis smirked. "Irvine called him mummy-boy for weeks."

"Yes, but he suddenly stopped after realizing Exeter had been......tweaked." Selphie couldn't help but smile at the memory.

Rinoa stopped them in front of the walkway to the training center. "Hey, remember this?" She put on a horrified expression. "Mah hair, mah beautiful, beautiful hair!"

All three of them laughed as they continued walking. Rinoa's Irvine impressions always cracked everyone up. She had his accent down so well, the first time he'd heard her do it, he'd blushed up to his ears in embarrassment.

"Yeah, it was a miracle Irvine didn't have his hat on that day. Imagine how furious he would have been if he got that pink gunk on his precious." Selphie snickered.

Quistis frowned. "Zell really is smarter than we give him due credit. To this day I have no idea how he got Exeter to reverse fire like that. I thought it couldn't be done with such a high-caliber gun." She glanced at Selphie as they passed the parking garage. "And I'm pretty sure that 'pink gunk' was hair dye."

"Yeah, Zell's the one who made a copy of Squall's ring for me. He's good with stuff like that. He told me he used to volunteer at that mechanic's place in Balamb Town before he came to Garden." Rinoa supplied, gazing at the ring she now wore on her right hand.

"Really? I never knew that. No wonder they're always so frien-" Selphie suddenly froze and looked at Quistis. "Did you say hair dye?!"

Quistis raised an eyebrow. "Yes... but just that overnight, one wash Halloween stuff. He said he didn't want to traumatize Irvine. What did you think it was?"

Selphie inhaled through her nostrils angrily. "Irvine told me it was paint! That jerk!"

"Who, Zell?" Rinoa asked, confused.

"No, Irvine! He said that the gunk was paint, and that the water pressure in his shower was really low, so he asked me if he could use mine for a while until the paint completely washed out!" Selphie's fists were clenched, and as they traveled the walkway to the SeeD Dormitories, several other SeeD's moved out of the way. Selphie's rare but devastating fits of rage were well documented in the SeeD circles.

"...And? Did you let him?" Rinoa carefully asked, sharing a secretive glance with Quistis over Selphie's head.

Selphie blushed. "Yes. But not before threatening to shave him bald if he was lying to me."

"As if you would." Quistis commented, too casually.

Selphie looked at her strangely. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"You fawn over Irvine's hair. You'd sooner cut off a limb than you would his 'gorgeous long locks', as you once called them." Quistis replied, grinning.

Selphie raised her chin indignantly. "So? He's got pretty hair. Doesn't mean he can get away with lying to me."

As they neared Selphie's room, Quistis tapped a finger against her cheek. "True. But everyone knows you love him too much to actually injure him. Permanently, at least."

"I do not!" Selphie practically yelled, causing an instructor leaning on the wall and several students he was chatting with to glare at her.

"Is that so?" Quistis asked, sending an apologetic smile to her colleage and his students.

"Rinoa! You believe me, don't you?!" Selphie pleaded, wishing for the life of her she could stop blushing.

Rinoa grinned evilly at her. "Sorry Selph, the jig is up. The rest of us were waiting for Quistis' confirmation before we mocked you. Let the mocking begin!" She joked, rubbing her hands together.

Selphie shook her head in defeat. "Ugh. You two are delusional."

"It's not just us. Squall knew way before I did. He's the one who brought it to my attention." Rinoa said earnestly.

Quistis stared at her watch, in an attempt to ignore the gaze of the Trepie that walked past them from his dorm. "Face it Selphie, you and Irvine have liked eachother for a long time. We can all see it."

"Zell isn't in this little Selphie\Irvine love cult, is he?" Selphie asked suspiciously, reaching for her keycard in her purse.

"Actually, Zell's been trying to get you two together. Who do you think lowered Irvine's water pressure?" Quistis explained, waving to Xu as she left the Dormitories.

"What! You mean the whole thing was planned!? Did Irvine know about this?!" Selphie exclaimed, as she slid her card and began to open her door.

"Of course not. It was all Zell. The dye, the water pressure. He knew Irvine would ask to use your shower, but he didn't plan on Irvine lying to you about the paint. That was just a happy coincidence." Quistis frowned at her. "And we prefer to call it 'The Church of Selvine', I'll have you know. Our organization is not a cult, it is an alternative life path preference, so there." Quistis' expression was solemn.

Complete silence settled over the three for a moment as they stood in the doorway to Selphie's room.

Rinoa broke the silence as she shook her head. "You think way too much, Quistis. Sometimes your wit frightens me."

"Stupid Zell!" Selphie growled, as she allowed the other two girls into her room.

"Oh, don't start that again, Selphie" Rinoa sighed, just as the door closed.

Well, that's it for Chapter 2. Next chapter, be prepared to see a Wild West Angelo, The Great Laguna Debate, and a guest appearance by Irvine himself! R&R if you like!