=========================================================================
ANNOUNCEMENT: The last chapter was harsh. It took me a while to write, and was painful to do, and this is the fallout chapter, for all those wondering, chapter 13 was the last of the horror and war, it gets lighter from here on up.
Kjata - Hey, at least you found it! Thank you. I try to keep her as close to the character as I can, otherwise it ends up annoying me. Well, I'll be keeping an eye out for more reviews? [crosses fingers in hopefulness]
Perfect Soldier 01 - let me tell you, I was worried. My fingers were twitching on the keys as I put the finishing touches, I thought I might have gone too far. I love Rajin and Laguna. Probably the reason I love FF8 so much is because of the richness of the characters. I'll make it up to you, the ending I mean... what do you want to see?
=========================================================================
'How do you know when something is at its end? What finishes a story? Is it the final battle, the last giving of strength, or does the 'ever after' matter? What happens to the people after the story is concluded? Where is the beggar now? I sit and watch him descending from the box, each limb and joint creaking and groaning as he steps down, moves the box aside, picking up the one belonging he has: a book. He carries a book with him, though I have never seen inside I know what's in it, we wrote it, it is the story of our lives, but we cannot read the pages we havn't lived yet. Stretching tall to the sun, the beggar reaches forward, grabs the lover's hand, he smiles, the wrinkles and scars dotting his face dancing as he puts his arm around me, leading me away from the street corner. And it hits me, maybe he is not a beggar at all? Beggars have to lack something, he lacks nothing. So we walk into the sea of people content, to where we go, I do not know, for I have never been. But it will be good.'
- Nobus Ordo Saeclorum
The transport was scheduled to land in two minutes, and Seifer couldn't wait. Just seeing Fujin wound up in bandages, fighting for her life, was intoxicating with rage, and pain. It's my fault, if I hadn't followed my own stupid desires Fujin would be safe. Seifer thought, catching sight of her parted lips, as the medics continued on stabilizing her condition. He was still weak, the shaking from after the shock wore off hadn't ceased, in truth: he was pale, almost as white as Fujin, and hid a few major gashes and wounds from the medics. Of course the medics had asked if he was in need of attention, but he refused, even when blood threatened to cough its way out of his mouth, even when something in his ribcage snapped and popped when he was thrown down by the take off of the craft, even... it didn't matter, they needed to concentrate on Fujin. Seifer bit back the pain as the small copter descended to the landing pad of the small medical centre, the few Medics rushing Fujin out of the vehicle as Seifer ran, wincing with every stride. He looked around, it was heavily guarded. No wonder the President sent them here: anywhere else and Fujin would be linched in her sleep. Seifer reminded himself to thank the President... what was happening to him? How far? How far had he fallen? It seemed a life time ago that he was praised as a hero on the float in Edea's Parade. A HERO. The sea of faces ebbed and flowed for HIM, they shouted exhaultations for HIM and Fujin and Rajin just stood in the middle of it all, Rajin had wanted to get a good spot, see the show, Fujin just kept silent, steady, she didn't move. Somehow it steadied him, jolted his mind back to where it should lie, seeing her on the gurney completely broken, a package of blood IV'd into her veins to keep her alive, bandages on almost all of her seeable body, hair red with crusted blood... what had he reduced them to?
Rajin was going to prison, probably be given the death sentence for HIM, Fujin could have died, the pain she must have felt was unbearable, and Seifer... here he was rushing through doors of some Hyne-forsaken hospital broken, bleeding, and completely white from shaking so hard. He was a wreck. This was what he was fighting for, this. The love of his life being rushed to emergency surgery, his best friend gonna likely die for opening his big mouth, and he was left trying to hold his stomach together as he overheard the surgeon swearing over how saving Fujin's life would take more than a miracle. As the door to the OR closed, and Seifer couldn't see Fujin anymore he stopped running, scanning the room for something... but there was nothing there. Before he knew it, a high pitched whine filled the air, and the room began to spin, flooding him with enough pain and swirling colours he thought his brain would explode. In the preceeding moments, memories and futures began opening up to him, his entire life, and the lives of Fujin and Rajin flooding him like an exploded dam. Seifer found himself shouting one thing: "Squall, hurry!" as Time Compression fell on the world, and Seifer, the great and feared Sorceress Knight was curled into a ball on the floor as helpless as a babe.
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"Daddy no! Stop Daddy!" Fujin shrieked, as her father flung her by the throat onto her bed, whip flying and striking the girl across the face. Fujin's little eye went wide, as she saw the reflection of men, rival gang members shatter the window opposite her and her father. She thought for one brief moment she could see a glimmer of pity and anger on one of the attackers faces as he threw a bomb at them, the room and small house bursting into flames. Seifer saw Fujin being flung through the wall by the blast, debris and chunks of the whip beating her down one last time. As the dust setted, one of the mobsters run over, whisper something in her ear, picking her up and carrying her out of the house. As the scene faded, Seifer could hear the words coming through a light breeze,
"I'll take care of ya, kid"
=========================================================================
"Rajin! C'mere boy!" the mobster shouted, placing the small child Fujin on the couch in their front room. A boy came rushing out, tripping on the leg of a chair, and grabbing his shin as he stumbled to his father,
"I'm comin' ya know! Who's that ya know?" he said, rubbing his shin. His father bent down and placed a hand on his son's shoulder,
"This is... your new sister. Take good care of her okay? She'll be your responsibility, make sure she's safe, she's been through a lot."
=========================================================================
"Almasy, Seifer" the Instructor droned, saying the name on the top of the list,
"Present... Sir" the young teen said with a sneer.
"Where have you been all week? You've skipped all your classes, I want answers!"
"Training Center"
"Report to the Headmaster at once!"
"Sure thing, teach."
=========================================================================
"Seifer, this is Rajin and Fujin, they are new here at Garden, and I was wondering if you could show them around?"
"Is that all? You want me to babysit a couple a newbies?"
"Hey, we don't need ya, ya know... We can find things ourselves, ya know,"
"What's with the eye patch? Got a complex?"
"RAGE!"
"Fujin... she don't like comments about her eye, ya know. Don't try anything, either, ya know, or you'll be answering to my fist, ya know."
"Hmm... well I see, Seifer you could possibly get along with these two quite well, in fact, I may be looking at the new Disciplinary Committee if you're all interested."
"Yeah, I can stand you. C'mon, I'll show you the Training Center"
"Fuu? Whaddaya say, ya know?"
"AFFIRMATIVE"
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"Fujin... I can't... I'm no artist... it's yours"
=========================================================================
"SEIFER!!!"
"Fujin" Seifer saw himself fade as he picked up Fujin's body from the detention room, their entire lives flashing before his eyes. Everything went dark as one face, a woman with grey hair, and tatoos on the sides of her face came into view laughing, heckling him and his puny attempts at control, it was Ultimecia. Seifer felt sick as she was about to swallow him up, but then: light. The window from his room back in Galbadia Garden came into view, and he could see Squall and his friends strike a finishing blow as Ultimecia's face cringed, and was gone, everything fading as Time Compression faded, as the world was saved. By someone else. Seifer noticed the light above him and thought for a minute that he was back in Galbadia Garden, that it had all been a dream, until his vision de-fogged and he found himself curled on the floor looking at a florescent light that echoed over him from the ceiling of the Estharian medical center. He felt himself being lifted up, looking over to see Laguna Loire and a couple of medics bringing him to a gurney. Before he could say anything, the doctor he had heard speak about Fujin came out, rushing, swears on his breath as he hit an alarm, barking over the intercom for a specialist. Shaking the weakness out of his head, Seifer managed to fight the hands laying him down and got up,
"What's happening? Why do they need... How's Fujin? What's wrong? SOMEONE TELL ME! FUJIN!" he screamed, leaping despite the pain induced grogginess of his head towards the door where he could barely see the doctor rush back with a specialist on his heels. He could feel two sets of strong arms, Laguna and Kiros, pulling him back, away from the door, but he was like a madman, he had to know what was going on, so he struggled, screaming her name, asking questions as Kiros and Laguna dragged him into an empty, isolated room.
"What the hell are they doing to Fujin!?" Seifer spat, reeling into the bed that stood in the centre of the room. Laguna put his arms up defensively,
"They're just trying to save her... she lost a lot of blood"
"No f**k!" Seifer said, trying to get back up, wincing as his rib snapped again.
"You need help"
"No! Fujin needs help!"
"She's being stabilized, you have to worry about..."
"Fujin! What're they doing to Fujin!?" Seifer shouted, panting with the effort. Laguna muttered something under his breath, almost an exsasperation, as he cast a curaga on the younger man, watching the blonde jerk momentarily as the magic coursed through his body like electricity.
"Settle down, Seifer! I've got the nurses to tell me when they know anything. Right now they've called in a pre-natal specialist to see what he can do"
"Pre-Natal!? What the hell?"
"She's pregnant, Seifer. They can stabilize her easily, but the child... there was some damage, deep... they're trying to save it"
Seifer sat stunned, the shaking returning to his body as his mind wrapped itself around the information that Fujin was pregnant. Breathing became sparser for him as his head swam, thinking of the implications, the when.
"Hyne... Oh my Hyne. . . Why didn't she tell me? What the hell went through her head? Why did she fight? How did I not notice?"
"She loves you, Seifer"
"How could she... why didn't she..." Seifer began shaking his head, his body quaking beneath him, and Laguna managed to catch him as he collapsed off the bed and onto the cold hospital floor.
"They're trying their best, but... the surgeon didn't know... she was hit in the stomach hard, and ... the Lieutenant... Seifer? Seifer listen to me" Laguna mumbled, taking Seifer's shoulders and shaking them as the blonde's colour paled further, backhanding him in the face, Laguna got him to look him in the eyes,
"Keep yourself together! She needs you! Rajin knew it, that's why he offered himself, so you could be with her." Seifer's eyes dialated slightly, before he snapped his head back, and looked the President of Esthar in the eyes.
"Did he win?"
"Who?"
"Squall, he beat her, right?"
"... Yes."
Seifer let out a sickening yell, one Laguna remembered as his own when news of Raine's death had come to him, Laguna saw the tears start to fall from Seifer's eyes, cascades running deep, Seifer's soul bleeding them out, as the young man collapsed into Laguna. Quietly, Laguna took the boy, same age as Squall, in his arms, hugging him as he sobbed, billows of anguish and pain streaming out of his eyes and mouth. Seifer couldn't move, he just kept crying like a baby, until Laguna stood them both up and sat Seifer down on the bed. Tossing Seifer a box of tissues, he knelt beside the young man, looking straight into his green, tortured eyes,
"I can't promise the child will be saved, but I can promise that Fujin will make it out of this, and you have to be there for that. Pull yourself together, I'll go check on their progress and get you something to drink." Laguna began walking out of the room, as Seifer looked up, calling back to him,
"How did you know... what to do? What I need?"
"I lost my wife when she gave birth to our son. I was battling Adel at the time, I know what it's like to lose someone so precious. Rest up, Fujin will be okay, but she is going to need you at full strength. I'll be back later, stay here."
Seifer watched the man leave, the door closed, fell back on the cot and crumpled himself into the fetal position as he prayed that everything would be alright. Oh Hyne, that everything would be alright.
ANNOUNCEMENT: The last chapter was harsh. It took me a while to write, and was painful to do, and this is the fallout chapter, for all those wondering, chapter 13 was the last of the horror and war, it gets lighter from here on up.
Kjata - Hey, at least you found it! Thank you. I try to keep her as close to the character as I can, otherwise it ends up annoying me. Well, I'll be keeping an eye out for more reviews? [crosses fingers in hopefulness]
Perfect Soldier 01 - let me tell you, I was worried. My fingers were twitching on the keys as I put the finishing touches, I thought I might have gone too far. I love Rajin and Laguna. Probably the reason I love FF8 so much is because of the richness of the characters. I'll make it up to you, the ending I mean... what do you want to see?
=========================================================================
'How do you know when something is at its end? What finishes a story? Is it the final battle, the last giving of strength, or does the 'ever after' matter? What happens to the people after the story is concluded? Where is the beggar now? I sit and watch him descending from the box, each limb and joint creaking and groaning as he steps down, moves the box aside, picking up the one belonging he has: a book. He carries a book with him, though I have never seen inside I know what's in it, we wrote it, it is the story of our lives, but we cannot read the pages we havn't lived yet. Stretching tall to the sun, the beggar reaches forward, grabs the lover's hand, he smiles, the wrinkles and scars dotting his face dancing as he puts his arm around me, leading me away from the street corner. And it hits me, maybe he is not a beggar at all? Beggars have to lack something, he lacks nothing. So we walk into the sea of people content, to where we go, I do not know, for I have never been. But it will be good.'
- Nobus Ordo Saeclorum
The transport was scheduled to land in two minutes, and Seifer couldn't wait. Just seeing Fujin wound up in bandages, fighting for her life, was intoxicating with rage, and pain. It's my fault, if I hadn't followed my own stupid desires Fujin would be safe. Seifer thought, catching sight of her parted lips, as the medics continued on stabilizing her condition. He was still weak, the shaking from after the shock wore off hadn't ceased, in truth: he was pale, almost as white as Fujin, and hid a few major gashes and wounds from the medics. Of course the medics had asked if he was in need of attention, but he refused, even when blood threatened to cough its way out of his mouth, even when something in his ribcage snapped and popped when he was thrown down by the take off of the craft, even... it didn't matter, they needed to concentrate on Fujin. Seifer bit back the pain as the small copter descended to the landing pad of the small medical centre, the few Medics rushing Fujin out of the vehicle as Seifer ran, wincing with every stride. He looked around, it was heavily guarded. No wonder the President sent them here: anywhere else and Fujin would be linched in her sleep. Seifer reminded himself to thank the President... what was happening to him? How far? How far had he fallen? It seemed a life time ago that he was praised as a hero on the float in Edea's Parade. A HERO. The sea of faces ebbed and flowed for HIM, they shouted exhaultations for HIM and Fujin and Rajin just stood in the middle of it all, Rajin had wanted to get a good spot, see the show, Fujin just kept silent, steady, she didn't move. Somehow it steadied him, jolted his mind back to where it should lie, seeing her on the gurney completely broken, a package of blood IV'd into her veins to keep her alive, bandages on almost all of her seeable body, hair red with crusted blood... what had he reduced them to?
Rajin was going to prison, probably be given the death sentence for HIM, Fujin could have died, the pain she must have felt was unbearable, and Seifer... here he was rushing through doors of some Hyne-forsaken hospital broken, bleeding, and completely white from shaking so hard. He was a wreck. This was what he was fighting for, this. The love of his life being rushed to emergency surgery, his best friend gonna likely die for opening his big mouth, and he was left trying to hold his stomach together as he overheard the surgeon swearing over how saving Fujin's life would take more than a miracle. As the door to the OR closed, and Seifer couldn't see Fujin anymore he stopped running, scanning the room for something... but there was nothing there. Before he knew it, a high pitched whine filled the air, and the room began to spin, flooding him with enough pain and swirling colours he thought his brain would explode. In the preceeding moments, memories and futures began opening up to him, his entire life, and the lives of Fujin and Rajin flooding him like an exploded dam. Seifer found himself shouting one thing: "Squall, hurry!" as Time Compression fell on the world, and Seifer, the great and feared Sorceress Knight was curled into a ball on the floor as helpless as a babe.
=========================================================================
"Daddy no! Stop Daddy!" Fujin shrieked, as her father flung her by the throat onto her bed, whip flying and striking the girl across the face. Fujin's little eye went wide, as she saw the reflection of men, rival gang members shatter the window opposite her and her father. She thought for one brief moment she could see a glimmer of pity and anger on one of the attackers faces as he threw a bomb at them, the room and small house bursting into flames. Seifer saw Fujin being flung through the wall by the blast, debris and chunks of the whip beating her down one last time. As the dust setted, one of the mobsters run over, whisper something in her ear, picking her up and carrying her out of the house. As the scene faded, Seifer could hear the words coming through a light breeze,
"I'll take care of ya, kid"
=========================================================================
"Rajin! C'mere boy!" the mobster shouted, placing the small child Fujin on the couch in their front room. A boy came rushing out, tripping on the leg of a chair, and grabbing his shin as he stumbled to his father,
"I'm comin' ya know! Who's that ya know?" he said, rubbing his shin. His father bent down and placed a hand on his son's shoulder,
"This is... your new sister. Take good care of her okay? She'll be your responsibility, make sure she's safe, she's been through a lot."
=========================================================================
"Almasy, Seifer" the Instructor droned, saying the name on the top of the list,
"Present... Sir" the young teen said with a sneer.
"Where have you been all week? You've skipped all your classes, I want answers!"
"Training Center"
"Report to the Headmaster at once!"
"Sure thing, teach."
=========================================================================
"Seifer, this is Rajin and Fujin, they are new here at Garden, and I was wondering if you could show them around?"
"Is that all? You want me to babysit a couple a newbies?"
"Hey, we don't need ya, ya know... We can find things ourselves, ya know,"
"What's with the eye patch? Got a complex?"
"RAGE!"
"Fujin... she don't like comments about her eye, ya know. Don't try anything, either, ya know, or you'll be answering to my fist, ya know."
"Hmm... well I see, Seifer you could possibly get along with these two quite well, in fact, I may be looking at the new Disciplinary Committee if you're all interested."
"Yeah, I can stand you. C'mon, I'll show you the Training Center"
"Fuu? Whaddaya say, ya know?"
"AFFIRMATIVE"
=========================================================================
"Fujin... I can't... I'm no artist... it's yours"
=========================================================================
"SEIFER!!!"
"Fujin" Seifer saw himself fade as he picked up Fujin's body from the detention room, their entire lives flashing before his eyes. Everything went dark as one face, a woman with grey hair, and tatoos on the sides of her face came into view laughing, heckling him and his puny attempts at control, it was Ultimecia. Seifer felt sick as she was about to swallow him up, but then: light. The window from his room back in Galbadia Garden came into view, and he could see Squall and his friends strike a finishing blow as Ultimecia's face cringed, and was gone, everything fading as Time Compression faded, as the world was saved. By someone else. Seifer noticed the light above him and thought for a minute that he was back in Galbadia Garden, that it had all been a dream, until his vision de-fogged and he found himself curled on the floor looking at a florescent light that echoed over him from the ceiling of the Estharian medical center. He felt himself being lifted up, looking over to see Laguna Loire and a couple of medics bringing him to a gurney. Before he could say anything, the doctor he had heard speak about Fujin came out, rushing, swears on his breath as he hit an alarm, barking over the intercom for a specialist. Shaking the weakness out of his head, Seifer managed to fight the hands laying him down and got up,
"What's happening? Why do they need... How's Fujin? What's wrong? SOMEONE TELL ME! FUJIN!" he screamed, leaping despite the pain induced grogginess of his head towards the door where he could barely see the doctor rush back with a specialist on his heels. He could feel two sets of strong arms, Laguna and Kiros, pulling him back, away from the door, but he was like a madman, he had to know what was going on, so he struggled, screaming her name, asking questions as Kiros and Laguna dragged him into an empty, isolated room.
"What the hell are they doing to Fujin!?" Seifer spat, reeling into the bed that stood in the centre of the room. Laguna put his arms up defensively,
"They're just trying to save her... she lost a lot of blood"
"No f**k!" Seifer said, trying to get back up, wincing as his rib snapped again.
"You need help"
"No! Fujin needs help!"
"She's being stabilized, you have to worry about..."
"Fujin! What're they doing to Fujin!?" Seifer shouted, panting with the effort. Laguna muttered something under his breath, almost an exsasperation, as he cast a curaga on the younger man, watching the blonde jerk momentarily as the magic coursed through his body like electricity.
"Settle down, Seifer! I've got the nurses to tell me when they know anything. Right now they've called in a pre-natal specialist to see what he can do"
"Pre-Natal!? What the hell?"
"She's pregnant, Seifer. They can stabilize her easily, but the child... there was some damage, deep... they're trying to save it"
Seifer sat stunned, the shaking returning to his body as his mind wrapped itself around the information that Fujin was pregnant. Breathing became sparser for him as his head swam, thinking of the implications, the when.
"Hyne... Oh my Hyne. . . Why didn't she tell me? What the hell went through her head? Why did she fight? How did I not notice?"
"She loves you, Seifer"
"How could she... why didn't she..." Seifer began shaking his head, his body quaking beneath him, and Laguna managed to catch him as he collapsed off the bed and onto the cold hospital floor.
"They're trying their best, but... the surgeon didn't know... she was hit in the stomach hard, and ... the Lieutenant... Seifer? Seifer listen to me" Laguna mumbled, taking Seifer's shoulders and shaking them as the blonde's colour paled further, backhanding him in the face, Laguna got him to look him in the eyes,
"Keep yourself together! She needs you! Rajin knew it, that's why he offered himself, so you could be with her." Seifer's eyes dialated slightly, before he snapped his head back, and looked the President of Esthar in the eyes.
"Did he win?"
"Who?"
"Squall, he beat her, right?"
"... Yes."
Seifer let out a sickening yell, one Laguna remembered as his own when news of Raine's death had come to him, Laguna saw the tears start to fall from Seifer's eyes, cascades running deep, Seifer's soul bleeding them out, as the young man collapsed into Laguna. Quietly, Laguna took the boy, same age as Squall, in his arms, hugging him as he sobbed, billows of anguish and pain streaming out of his eyes and mouth. Seifer couldn't move, he just kept crying like a baby, until Laguna stood them both up and sat Seifer down on the bed. Tossing Seifer a box of tissues, he knelt beside the young man, looking straight into his green, tortured eyes,
"I can't promise the child will be saved, but I can promise that Fujin will make it out of this, and you have to be there for that. Pull yourself together, I'll go check on their progress and get you something to drink." Laguna began walking out of the room, as Seifer looked up, calling back to him,
"How did you know... what to do? What I need?"
"I lost my wife when she gave birth to our son. I was battling Adel at the time, I know what it's like to lose someone so precious. Rest up, Fujin will be okay, but she is going to need you at full strength. I'll be back later, stay here."
Seifer watched the man leave, the door closed, fell back on the cot and crumpled himself into the fetal position as he prayed that everything would be alright. Oh Hyne, that everything would be alright.