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DISCLAIMER: don't own Final Fantasy 8, that belongs to Square Enix, and all it's people... whom I must thank for making the FF games.

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Fujin lay propped up by a mossy tree stump in the middle of a small clearing near the Balamb Ocean. Seifer, Rajin and her had decided to take a camping trip after a hard week being the Disciplinary Commitee at Balamb Garden. Rajin had gone to find ever elusive firewood, especially now since it was beginning to get twilight and the sound of bite bugs filled the air, daring anyone unarmed to tresspass in this magical place. Seifer had wanted to train in Ifrit's Fire Caves, but the Garden Staff wouldn't let him, so instead he had trudged off in pursuit of T-Rexaurs and Fastiolochans on the beach and in the woods. She had just rolled her eyes and made camp, enjoying the peaceful uneventful nature of the middle of the wood, spending hours simply writing and drawing in her journal, and taking walks with an antsy Rajin. He didn't like standing still, it was almost like he was itching to do something so they took sporratic walks defeating any monsters that came their way. Rajin was now rich with booty from many bite bug battles, and had enough to open a chain of mini-marts of monster bits. Fujin chuckled to herself at the mental image of Rajin in a yellow vest saying, "Thanks, ya know... come again! I MEAN it, ya know!" smiling happily, she began to draw the scene on an empty page until the sun began hinting to the shadows as if to say, sleep now my beauteous Earth, slumber before another dawn. Sighing, she coloured in Rajin's hair as a shadow melted over her with a single chuckle.

"Try making the counter a bit bigger, the little wimp buying monster bits isn't cowardly enough" Seifer said, flumping down his own storehouse load of valuable treasures beside their tent.

"DAY?" Fujin asked, shifting her book closed as the light faded as Seifer began piling up the firewood Rajin had dumped earlier into the fire pit Fujin had made,

"Good. Got a couple T-Rexaurs, took me a while" Seifer said, blowing a fire spell at the neatly stacked pile of wood. As he rose back up, he flinched slightly, rolling his shoulders and giving his neck a crack, rubbing it with a calloused hand.

"SOAR?" Fujin asked, getting up and placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, got clipped pretty good by a dino claw. It's not bad though"

"OFF"

"Huh?"

"COAT"

"Fu, it's not that..."

"NOW!" Fujin shouted, grabbing Seifer's greatcoat by the scruff and ripping off his body. Clucking her tongue, she went into her pack and got out a cloth and a potion, he had done it again, took his greatcoat off when he was fighting, and was bleeding from some fairly significant wounds. Seifer sat down, back against the fire, he knew the drill, they did this every time they went camping, sometimes Rajin would be there, sometimes he would go "sniffing for night truffles" as he called it, which basically meant walking a perimeter around their campground and fighting off any potential trouble: bite bugs, caterchipillars, random squirrels and moths so Seifer and Fujin could be alone. Heck, he had been waiting for them to get together ever since they became a posse. Seifer chuckled thinking of good ole' Rajin, dumb as a post, but strong and loyal as a really really big thing as he so adequately called it, then winced as Fujin applied some of the potion with the cloth. Fujin noticed in the firelight that Seifer had ripped his shirt, big surprise, she thought, but then again, having Seifer Almasy take his shirt off would be no easy task... for anyone other than her, of course.

"SHIRT"

"Why?"

"RIPPED"

"It's not that bad, Fu, really... that stuff stings"

"CURA?"

"Magic tickles" he whispered, making Fujin think of a little boy toeing dirt.

"UP" Fujin commanded, putting down the potion and cloth and yanking Seifer's shirt up and over his body before tossing it aside, right into the pile of wood Rajin had stumbled in with.

"Woa! Getting a little early for that, ya know... I'll go truffle hunting if ya want... gee... can take a hint, ya know..."

Slightly embarassed, Seifer said, "No, it's alright, Fujin's just healing my back."

"Well in that case, I gotta bite from a giant bug back there..." before Rajin could finish his sentence, Fujin cast Cura on him, healing his wounds,

"Hehee... hey warn me, ya know... that tickles... heh" Rajin said giddily, plopping down by the fire and opening his pack, getting the food ready for cooking. Rajin half expected Zell to come popping out from the middle of a tree or something, 'cause Rajin had packed hot dogs, Zell's favourite, and some other little extras he knew the posse was fond of. One thing about Rajin, he was a darn good cook in his own right and Fujin and Seifer let him go crazy when it came to making meals. He liked the freedom he had with them, plus, it kept him busy while the two love birds did their thing. Silence bubbled through the fireflies and rummaging Rajin, as Fujin carefully and methodically washed Seifer's upper back with the rest of the potion, finishing off by lovingly, smoothly caressing his shoulders and collarbone with the damp cloth. Leaving the cloth on Seifer's shoulder, Fujin went back into her pack and took out a sewing kit, taking his ripped shirt in her hands and getting out the right colour thread, she had plenty on hand. Turning to look at her, Seifer put a hand on hers, arresting her movement,

"Leave it. It's not cold" he said, grabbing his greatcoat and slipping it on over his muscles. Fujin loved that coat, it smelled so thoroughly like Seifer, slightly musky with a hint of the ocean and it was hardy and strong, but gentle and soft on the inside lining just like Seifer. Seifer caught Fujin staring at him and his coat, and cocked his head, shifting his eyes to the ground and the fire, for all his huff and attitude, he got embarassed by the smallest things. Fujin giggled silently, not much of a giggle, but enough for the two men to look at her, Rajin with a warm smile, Seifer filling his lungs and letting it slowly drain out in a sigh, shifting his body to the stump Fujin had leant on earlier. Crawling, Fujin came up to Seifer, leaning over and curling into his chest, letting him pick her up and drape an arm around her shoulder while she brought her knees up to her chest. Seifer began playing with Fujin's hair with the fingers of the arm slumped on her shoulder, leaning his own head down to her own as they waited for Rajin to finish dinner. Humming and sporratically breaking into song, Rajin went about his happy work, which consisted of stabbing smokies with sticks and setting them near enough to the fire to cook without going up in a flaming smokie fire and getting out buns while singing the "I've got buns" happy song.

Everything was perfect. After a fine smokie and bun with s'mores meal, Rajin brought out Seifer's guitar Fujin had bought him and frequently "borrowed" when the temptation hit, passing it to Seifer as he untangled his fingers from her hair and leant into a more beneficial guitar playing position. Strumming it a little, Seifer grimaced at the out of tune chord, handing it to Fujin to tune, who quickly plucked the strings to tune then handed it back to him. Seifer began tuning out a beautiful lullaby, closing his eyes as he played, allowing the music to emanate freely from his fingertips. It was Fujin's turn to sigh as she tucked her arm underneath her head and laid watching the fire. Time suspended for the three friends as Seifer played one song after another, morphing naturally from each one like pieces of a puzzle. Eventually Fujin stifled a yawn, curling up like a comfortable cat beside Seifer, leaning on the edge of his greatcoat. Seifer finished his song, put the guitar back in it's case and leant over to the young woman who shared so much, wrapping a firm, stable arm around her, dragging her up to put her head in his lap, kissing her forehead as she yawned.

"Looks like time to turn in, ya know... you take Fuu inside the tent, I'll finish up here, ya know" Rajin said, following the pattern they always used when Rajin made sure Seifer and Fujin had alone time... even if it was from inside a tent. Seifer smiled, picking up Fujin's accomodating body and walking the few strides before ducking then into the open tent. Fujin stepped down, wiping her eye as Seifer zipped the tent shut, leaving one hand to bring Fujin close. Nobody knew how much Rajin loved those guys. He didn't even think they knew how much he cared about them. Fact was, they were a posse, a family, and no matter what happened, Rajin would always be there to bail them out, protect them, or just lighten their moods. Putting all their equipment in the secondary mini tent, Rajin flopped down beside the fire and propped his head up with this arms, watching the stars. He would go in once Seifer and Fujin were asleep, it couldn't hurt to give them a few minutes alone, besides, the chemistry between those two was liable to blow if they didn't get some semblance of privacy, Hyne knows privacy is not a word in the Balamb Garden dictionary. He could hear them inside the tent, nothing over the top, he knew he could trust them not to do anything drastic, and a smile crept onto his face as he thought of Seifer and Fujin's first kiss. It made him chuckle as he remembered the day, they had been training together in Balamb Garden and Seifer being who he was wouldn't heal himself after battle, saying some mumbo jumbo about being tough enough... but Fujin just stared him down, slapping him in the chest, watching his eyes go momentarily wide as he fought the pain. Rolling her eye, she marched them into the Infirmary, yanked a first aide kit from the shelf and ordered Seifer to strip his coat and shirt. Dr. Kadowaki had stood there beside Rajin smirking, as Fujin poured some of a potion onto some gauze, wiping his chest, unaware that the motion was tickling Seifer to the point where he cracked and laughed, grabbing Fujin's hands and moving them to the side,

"Put those away" he joked, leaving Fujin to look confused as he let go of her hands,

"That tickles" he said, eliciting an acknowledgement from Fujin as she smirked, poured more potion onto the cloth and attacking his abs with the medicinal equipment. Seifer had yelped, snatching her hands again, as gravity would have it, leaving them to tumble back onto the medical bed, Fujin kneeling on top, only being held up by Seifer's grip on her hands. They laughed, Fujin smiled, Rajin remembered Seifer's face when Fujin smiled, he was intantly in love, proving it by bringing her hands down and kissing her on the cheek, staring at her surprised blush. She had gotten up clumsily, flattening out her jacket, looking around to Dr. Kadowaki pouring over a random file and Rajin pretending to put on a band-aide. She turned back to Seifer, who sat nervously uncomfortable on the edge of the cot, shifting his gase from her cheek to the floor. Suddenly, she leaned in, wrenched his chin up to look at her and kissed him, placing her hand on his shoulder as he went stiff then relaxed, placing his hand on her neck and other free hand, entwining their fingers. It had been a fairly lengthy kiss, sweet, innocent, but passionate, until Seifer pulled away running his hand from her neck to wipe her flushed cheeks with his thumb. Fujin stepped away, fumbled with the medical supplies as Seifer put his shirt and coat back on, until he came behind her, placed his hands on her shoulders and she dropped the roll of medi-tape. Dr. Kadowaki piped up saying she could take care of the kit, telling Seifer and Fujin to relax from the training and subtly mentioning that the Quad was a nice quiet undisturbed place. Rajin couldn't stop smiling that day, and once Seifer and Fujin walked to go talk... or rather word their way through what happened, Rajin shouted joyously, leaping in the air triumphantly, knocking over two lower classmen and spending the next couple minutes appologizing, picking them up [literally] and offering to buy them ice-cream sundaes in the caf, to which they naturally accepted, and the three practically skipped off on the yellow brick road to frozen desserts.

Lying on the grass, Rajin smiled, laughing softly as he dared glance to the tent, and the couple inside.

Seifer and Fujin had shared a long, passionate kiss, and laid out their sleeping bags so they doubled up into more of a bed, Fujin beginning to plump up her pillow when Seifer let his jacket slip off his muscular skin and pool at his feet, next to the boots they had stripped off previously, tumbling into a tight summer sault landing his head on Fujin's pillow. Jolting softly, Fujin put her hands on either side of Seifer's shoulders, as he wound his arms around her and brought her snuggly down around him, pressing their lips together tenderly. Sighing into his mouth, Fujin's hands trailed to Seifer's hair as she rolled them over to put Seifer on top. Careful not to crush her, Seifer knelt on his elbows and knees, breaking the kiss and lifting up to look at Fujin. Wiping some random silver hair from her face with the backs of his fingers, Seifer smiled down on her, lifting off the eye patch and kissing each of her eyelids as his fingers brushed against her cheeks.

"I love you" he whispered, so content with just looking at her, as she laced her arms around his neck, planting a kiss on his lips saying non-verbally that she loved him too. She never said much, but people don't need words to communicate. Cradling her in his arms, Seifer shimmied under the sleeping bag bed, bringing her with him and lifting the other opened sleeping bag to blanket them snuggly, as their arms intertwined, cradling each other. Fujin leant up, kissed Seifer on the cheek, and nestled her head more comfortably into his chest. Kissing her hair, Seifer whispered a peaceful goodnight as they closed their eyes and sank into a perfect sleep.

Rajin followed in later, smiling at his friends as he zipped up his own sleeping bag and went to sleep watching the fireflies glow outside their tent. It really was a perfect night, wonder what tommorrow'd bring.

fin