Chapter Two: Grown
Her eyes were closed. He did not know what color they would be when they opened, as he had not been part of the team that had created her physical body. Rather, he had been in charge of something far more important-her capabilities. For days, for months, for two years they had strived, and despite all doubts they had completed the project in an amazingly short amount of time. Zane felt a surge of pride, as did the rest of his fellows.
She floated, suspended in place and time, in a glass cylinder of bluish- purple liquid. Her head was smooth and hairless, her features comely and youthful. Her nose was pert, her eyes slanted, giving her face an exotic cast. Her limbs were slender and shapely, her long arms crossed over her chest as she slept in her unnatural animation, just waiting to be awakened.
To Zane's eyes, she was perfect.
The ultimate weapon.
*** Many miles away, in Balamb Garden, the heroes who had brought about the end of the Second Sorceress War-with the noticeable absence of Squall-sat at the cafeteria together. Rinoa had recently returned from her trip, and now she showered her friends with presents. An excited Selphie got a seashell necklace, which she received with glee and a hyper, "Gee, thank you soooooooooo much!" Irvine got 30 AP Ammo, which Rinoa had managed to get after refining a Tonberry card she had won from a guy in the pub. Zell got the most recent issue of the Combat King series, and he yelled, "Yeah, baby!" as he had kinda wanted it for a long time but never had the chance to buy it. Quistis got a new dress which Rinoa insisted she would look gorgeous in. The petite once-again-an-instructor accepted it with polite thanks but inwardly swore that she would never wear it.
"So, is Mister-Silent-and Grouchy going to be joining us?" Rinoa asked, swinging back and forth slowly on the bench. The group gave a few noncommittal shrugs and replies, except for Zell, who grunted something through a mouthful of hot dog. Selphie disgustedly wiped the pieces of food which had landed on her and lectured Zell on keeping his mouth shut while eating.
"Yes, he is," an unexpected voice interjected into the sudden silence. Five heads simultaneously swung around to see Squall walking slowly in their direction. Rinoa squealed happily at the rare sight of her boyfriend away from work for once and flung her arms around his neck. He brushed her off with an embarrassed, "Rinoa, this is a public place!" and sat down, careful to sit as far away from Zell as possible.
"Yo, dude, it's great to have you here!" Zell exclaimed happily as he finished his last hot dog, to his regret. "What do they do to you in your office, anyway?" Squall ignored the clearly rhetorical question and focused his attention on Rinoa instead. "Xu insisted I take the afternoon off because she heard that you were coming back today," he explained.
"Xu is such a life-saver!" Selphie said with a bright smile. "I don't know how you stand it. If I were you, I'd have died of boredom. I'll rather arrange the Garden Festival any day!"
Squall rolled his eyes. "Under normal circumstances, I'd rather not. However, compared to what I face everyday, I'd take the Garden Festival hands down."
Selphie glowered at the commander. "Are you implying that MY festival is boring?!!!!" she said ominously. Quistis and Irvine exchanged glances of amusement. Apparently the hapless commander was unaware of how fiercely protective Selphie could be of her job.
"I didn't say that, Selphie," Squall said calmly-an amazing feat, considering the fact that not even Seifer could keep his cool in the face of that 'Selphy-like' storm. "I just meant that it was a job I'd normally prefer not to handle since you're doing such exellent work already."
Slightly mollified, Selphie let down on her glare while Irvine clapped. "Impressive, my man!" he congratulated Squall with a wink. Quistis and Rinoa laughed heartily in response.
"Ohhhh, yes," Rinoa uttered, suddenly rememberibg. "I almost forgot, Squall, I've got something for you." She plunged one hand into the knapsack she was holding and fished around until she came upon the desired item. "Ah- ha!" she said in triumph and pulled it out for everyone to see.
Pause.
"What the hell is that?" Squall demanded at last.
"Yeah, it looks cool, doesn't it?" Rinoa said cheerfully, setting the object on the table. At first glance, it looked like any normal rock you'd pick up from the Centra plains. But when you looked closer, the light split up in the shards of dusty quartz in it in a rainbow pattern. In the very center of the rock was embedded a strange substance of some kind none of them had ever seen before. It was a metallic silver, streaked with blue and gray. "I thought it kinds of resembles you, Squall, when we first met. You seemed like a shallow you-give-the-orders-and-I'll-do-it sort of person. But when you look closer.you're not like other guys.you had a lot of layers to you."
"Very touching, Rinoa. And true too!" Quistis said with a smile.
"Awwwwwwwwww," Selphie cooed at the flushing commander.
"Whatever," he muttered, falling back into his customary response. He reached out and took hold of the rock. It was heavier than he had expected, and he tucked it into a pocket in his black SeeD trousers. "Thanks," he said sincerely, which was not a customary response.
"Did you hear that?" Irvine pretended to be shocked. "The commander says thanks! Everybody! Get the cameras and tape recorders! This momentous event must be recorded!"
"Ha ha," was Squall's sarcastic response. Selphie giggled at the look on his face.
"D'you have any plans for the evening?" Rinoa asked Squall hopefully The commander was about to answer when his cell phone rang. Casting the black- haired girl an apologetic glance, Squall answered it, keeping his replies short and terse.
"I guess this kind of answers the question," Irvine commented dryly.
"Irvy!!!" Selphie reprimanded her boyfriend, shocked at his tactless remark.
"Hey, sorry, people," the sniper said defensively, holding up his hands. "I'm just stating a fact."
"You and me, Irvy, we're gonna have a long talk later," Selphie said with a meaningful glance at Irvine. He groaned in response, but of course he would listen. Despite his flirting and sweet talk with other pretty girls, he was aware that Selph was the one for him.
Squall concluded his conversation and stood up, his face impassive once more. "What's up?" Rinoa asked worriedly. They knew now by now that he usually wore this expression only when he was concerned. Squall shook his head, indicating that it was HSS-Highly Secret Stuff. "I'm sorry, but I have to go now. See you." He started to rise, but Rinoa seized hold of him first and kissed him. This time, Squall did not protest, and when the Sorceress released him he smiled at her before spinning away and marching towards the elevator.
"This must be bad news," Selphie said, watching the commander's retreating figure.
"We'll know sooner or later, anyway," Zell pointed out. "If it's bad, they'll send us. We're the highest ranking SeeDs in Garden."
"Guess so." Selphie said slowly.
At that moment, their conversation was interrupted by Faine, one of Selphie's best friends. "Hi, Selph, how're you doing?" She turned to regard all five of them. "Guess what? They're doing a rerun of "Goodbye Pupurun' at Balamb! Wanna watch?"
"Cool!" Selphie said instantly. "Wait for me, Faine!" She scrambled out of her chair and raced off towards her dorm. Irvine watched her with fond amusement.
"Huh? What's so great about this movie?" Rinoa asked Quistis, puzzled.
"Didn't you watch it in Deling City? It was this really famous movie that was shown about twenty years ago. Everyone's crazy about it. There's even a copy of the book in our library-or rather, there used to be. Fujin's got it and she hasn't returned it since she borrowed it three years ago. There's a waiting list on that book as long as the Deling railway."
"Sounds good. I think I'll go too, if Selph doesn't mind."
"I'm sure she won't mind."
The previous topic was forgotten as the excitement of going to Balamb overtook the earlier mood. Zell, with his date Kelly, a pigtailed librarian, also agreed to come. Irvine went too, of course, since Selphie was going. Faine brought along Nida, her brother, who piloted Balamb Garden. Quistis was a little reluctant at first, but the others soon persuaded her. The eight piled into Irvine's flashy sports car and Nida's black sedan and off they went.
Please read and review, okay??? (smiles hopefully) PLEASE FEEL FREE TO FLAME IF YOU THINK I'M A LOUSY WRITER!!!
Her eyes were closed. He did not know what color they would be when they opened, as he had not been part of the team that had created her physical body. Rather, he had been in charge of something far more important-her capabilities. For days, for months, for two years they had strived, and despite all doubts they had completed the project in an amazingly short amount of time. Zane felt a surge of pride, as did the rest of his fellows.
She floated, suspended in place and time, in a glass cylinder of bluish- purple liquid. Her head was smooth and hairless, her features comely and youthful. Her nose was pert, her eyes slanted, giving her face an exotic cast. Her limbs were slender and shapely, her long arms crossed over her chest as she slept in her unnatural animation, just waiting to be awakened.
To Zane's eyes, she was perfect.
The ultimate weapon.
*** Many miles away, in Balamb Garden, the heroes who had brought about the end of the Second Sorceress War-with the noticeable absence of Squall-sat at the cafeteria together. Rinoa had recently returned from her trip, and now she showered her friends with presents. An excited Selphie got a seashell necklace, which she received with glee and a hyper, "Gee, thank you soooooooooo much!" Irvine got 30 AP Ammo, which Rinoa had managed to get after refining a Tonberry card she had won from a guy in the pub. Zell got the most recent issue of the Combat King series, and he yelled, "Yeah, baby!" as he had kinda wanted it for a long time but never had the chance to buy it. Quistis got a new dress which Rinoa insisted she would look gorgeous in. The petite once-again-an-instructor accepted it with polite thanks but inwardly swore that she would never wear it.
"So, is Mister-Silent-and Grouchy going to be joining us?" Rinoa asked, swinging back and forth slowly on the bench. The group gave a few noncommittal shrugs and replies, except for Zell, who grunted something through a mouthful of hot dog. Selphie disgustedly wiped the pieces of food which had landed on her and lectured Zell on keeping his mouth shut while eating.
"Yes, he is," an unexpected voice interjected into the sudden silence. Five heads simultaneously swung around to see Squall walking slowly in their direction. Rinoa squealed happily at the rare sight of her boyfriend away from work for once and flung her arms around his neck. He brushed her off with an embarrassed, "Rinoa, this is a public place!" and sat down, careful to sit as far away from Zell as possible.
"Yo, dude, it's great to have you here!" Zell exclaimed happily as he finished his last hot dog, to his regret. "What do they do to you in your office, anyway?" Squall ignored the clearly rhetorical question and focused his attention on Rinoa instead. "Xu insisted I take the afternoon off because she heard that you were coming back today," he explained.
"Xu is such a life-saver!" Selphie said with a bright smile. "I don't know how you stand it. If I were you, I'd have died of boredom. I'll rather arrange the Garden Festival any day!"
Squall rolled his eyes. "Under normal circumstances, I'd rather not. However, compared to what I face everyday, I'd take the Garden Festival hands down."
Selphie glowered at the commander. "Are you implying that MY festival is boring?!!!!" she said ominously. Quistis and Irvine exchanged glances of amusement. Apparently the hapless commander was unaware of how fiercely protective Selphie could be of her job.
"I didn't say that, Selphie," Squall said calmly-an amazing feat, considering the fact that not even Seifer could keep his cool in the face of that 'Selphy-like' storm. "I just meant that it was a job I'd normally prefer not to handle since you're doing such exellent work already."
Slightly mollified, Selphie let down on her glare while Irvine clapped. "Impressive, my man!" he congratulated Squall with a wink. Quistis and Rinoa laughed heartily in response.
"Ohhhh, yes," Rinoa uttered, suddenly rememberibg. "I almost forgot, Squall, I've got something for you." She plunged one hand into the knapsack she was holding and fished around until she came upon the desired item. "Ah- ha!" she said in triumph and pulled it out for everyone to see.
Pause.
"What the hell is that?" Squall demanded at last.
"Yeah, it looks cool, doesn't it?" Rinoa said cheerfully, setting the object on the table. At first glance, it looked like any normal rock you'd pick up from the Centra plains. But when you looked closer, the light split up in the shards of dusty quartz in it in a rainbow pattern. In the very center of the rock was embedded a strange substance of some kind none of them had ever seen before. It was a metallic silver, streaked with blue and gray. "I thought it kinds of resembles you, Squall, when we first met. You seemed like a shallow you-give-the-orders-and-I'll-do-it sort of person. But when you look closer.you're not like other guys.you had a lot of layers to you."
"Very touching, Rinoa. And true too!" Quistis said with a smile.
"Awwwwwwwwww," Selphie cooed at the flushing commander.
"Whatever," he muttered, falling back into his customary response. He reached out and took hold of the rock. It was heavier than he had expected, and he tucked it into a pocket in his black SeeD trousers. "Thanks," he said sincerely, which was not a customary response.
"Did you hear that?" Irvine pretended to be shocked. "The commander says thanks! Everybody! Get the cameras and tape recorders! This momentous event must be recorded!"
"Ha ha," was Squall's sarcastic response. Selphie giggled at the look on his face.
"D'you have any plans for the evening?" Rinoa asked Squall hopefully The commander was about to answer when his cell phone rang. Casting the black- haired girl an apologetic glance, Squall answered it, keeping his replies short and terse.
"I guess this kind of answers the question," Irvine commented dryly.
"Irvy!!!" Selphie reprimanded her boyfriend, shocked at his tactless remark.
"Hey, sorry, people," the sniper said defensively, holding up his hands. "I'm just stating a fact."
"You and me, Irvy, we're gonna have a long talk later," Selphie said with a meaningful glance at Irvine. He groaned in response, but of course he would listen. Despite his flirting and sweet talk with other pretty girls, he was aware that Selph was the one for him.
Squall concluded his conversation and stood up, his face impassive once more. "What's up?" Rinoa asked worriedly. They knew now by now that he usually wore this expression only when he was concerned. Squall shook his head, indicating that it was HSS-Highly Secret Stuff. "I'm sorry, but I have to go now. See you." He started to rise, but Rinoa seized hold of him first and kissed him. This time, Squall did not protest, and when the Sorceress released him he smiled at her before spinning away and marching towards the elevator.
"This must be bad news," Selphie said, watching the commander's retreating figure.
"We'll know sooner or later, anyway," Zell pointed out. "If it's bad, they'll send us. We're the highest ranking SeeDs in Garden."
"Guess so." Selphie said slowly.
At that moment, their conversation was interrupted by Faine, one of Selphie's best friends. "Hi, Selph, how're you doing?" She turned to regard all five of them. "Guess what? They're doing a rerun of "Goodbye Pupurun' at Balamb! Wanna watch?"
"Cool!" Selphie said instantly. "Wait for me, Faine!" She scrambled out of her chair and raced off towards her dorm. Irvine watched her with fond amusement.
"Huh? What's so great about this movie?" Rinoa asked Quistis, puzzled.
"Didn't you watch it in Deling City? It was this really famous movie that was shown about twenty years ago. Everyone's crazy about it. There's even a copy of the book in our library-or rather, there used to be. Fujin's got it and she hasn't returned it since she borrowed it three years ago. There's a waiting list on that book as long as the Deling railway."
"Sounds good. I think I'll go too, if Selph doesn't mind."
"I'm sure she won't mind."
The previous topic was forgotten as the excitement of going to Balamb overtook the earlier mood. Zell, with his date Kelly, a pigtailed librarian, also agreed to come. Irvine went too, of course, since Selphie was going. Faine brought along Nida, her brother, who piloted Balamb Garden. Quistis was a little reluctant at first, but the others soon persuaded her. The eight piled into Irvine's flashy sports car and Nida's black sedan and off they went.
Please read and review, okay??? (smiles hopefully) PLEASE FEEL FREE TO FLAME IF YOU THINK I'M A LOUSY WRITER!!!