AN: Thankie to Drake and catsMarch5 – I dunno when everythings gonna go dark – I kinda lost the original mood somewhat, but I do have a plot glomps plot daemon and I do intend sniggers to keep to it...kinda...uh, yeah ;;
Warnings: Xu bashing whistles innocently (')o(')
Book Two of the Sorcerer Arc Death's Angel Chapter Two Trust
If Kylari had moved fast – albeit after two years of letting them hold their breath in anticipation – then Squall moved equally fast, if not faster. By the time the survivors, and Seifer, reached the shore – where Squall had said they would be picked up – two light cruisers (1) and a sleek new troop carrier were waiting.
Most of the Trabians gaped at the carrier, but Seifer guessed Squall had commandeered it from Galbadia Garden's new fleet – currently engaged in war games just off the Eldbeak Peninsular. Quite how he had commandeered it, Seifer wasn't sure.
The journey back lasted long enough for Seifer to begin brooding. In the past two years since he had learnt the truth about Squall and become his knight, the same two years since Kylari had revealed herself – and her intentions, if not her motives – they had managed to discover nothing about the sorceress.
Every avenue of enquiry – obscure as of necessity – had turned up nothing. It seemed that no sooner had Kylari appeared, threatening Squall, and nearly sending himself insane, than she had disappeared. Of course, as their experiences with Ultemecia's possession of Edea had shown, appearances could be deceiving. They had speculated... but it was possible to speculate until caterchipillars learned to fly, and still not grasp reality.
Easy Seifer. Squall's voice in his mind snapped Seifer out of his introspective moment, and into awareness of the fact that the cruiser was moored in Balamb harbour.
"Mister Almasy, Sir!" Seifer spun around at the sudden noise, reflexively drawing Hyperion as he turned...
Senior Cadet Cora Demare, of the former Trabia Garden, felt the blood drain from her face. She blinked several times in nervous shock, only refraining from swallowing because of the feather-light touch of Hyperion's razor-sharp edge, warning that to swallow would be to commit suicide... Shit, she hadn't realised he was so fast...
"Who dared you to try and creep up on Seifer Almasy?"
I should never have taken up the dare – this is a stupid way to die! Cora thought, jumping as someone spoke behind her, and fully expecting to hit the deck needing medical attention. Damn. He really is fast. Hyperion was, fortunately, gone. It had been sheathed so quickly that Cora might have doubted it had ever been at her throat – except for the spots of blood that decorated her fingers after she put her hand to her neck.
Not wanting to turn her back on Seifer, but also wanting to see who had nearly gotten her to decapitate herself on Hyperion's edge, Cora turned sideways...and let out a soft 'eep' of surprise and consternation.
This was bad – very bad. Caught in a small room between Seifer Almasy and Commander Leonhart – a pair legendary for their spontaneous duels. It didn't matter that – according to rumour – they hadn't fought since the end of the war against Ultemecia, or even – according to gossip – that the two were acting almost...friendly... It didn't matter...
"Cadet?"
Uh oh, what was the question? Cora thought desperately, trying to recall the words that had made her jump in the first instance. Fortunately her mouth seemed to remember without her, speaking up without conscious thought.
"One of the Balamb Cadets, Commander Sir!" She paused. "Don't know their name." There was a barely audible sound of acknowledgement, more a change in the silence than anything.
"Well, as you've discovered, it's not a good idea to creep up on Seifer – or on any veteran of the war."
"Oi, Leonhart! I am here you know." Seifer sounded pissed off, and Cora – rumour and gossip be damned – wisely took a step away from him, incidentally leaving the path between the two fighters clear. Squall, however, ignored Seifer's comment.
"You might want to advise the other Trabian Cadets, on my behalf, against accepting such dares. Dismissed." Cora scurried out through the door, feeling as if a death sentence had just been repealed.
"I could almost think this whole thing was planned..." The words – festering in his thoughts – were out before he could stop them. Squall's expression hardened, but Seifer felt the hurt the brunette was hiding. "I didn't mean that! Squall...?" But his sorcerer was turning away. "Dammit Squall!"
"I thought you'd begun to trust me over the last two years..." Squall muttered sadly.
"And I thought you'd learnt to let me finish what I'm saying." Seifer snapped back. It wasn't his fault that what he said always sounded wrong, or could be misinterpreted, unless someone heard him out. He was a fighter, not a diplomat. The brunette stopped in the doorway.
"Finish it then." Seifer stepped up behind him, folding his arms around the smaller man's waist, and resting his chin on Squall's shoulder. He firmly resisted the brunette's attempts to discretely shrug him off.
"Stop being paranoid." The blond muttered. "I reckon...Selphie..." his voice threatened to break as his mind reminded him harshly of the fact that Selphie was dead, and wouldn't be writing any more secrets in her diaries. "I reckon she knew you had a crush on me before you did. And if she knew, so does everyone else." It was scary how easily the past tense came to his lips, and dangerous ground around Squall if the incident in Galbadia Garden had been faithfully recorded.
"Yes, but they don't remember." Squall pointed out. He stopped trying to prise himself free though. "Now, finish what you were saying."
"Yes Sir!" Seifer knew his sorcerer well enough to know that, despite being said in the brunette's 'teasing' voice – i.e. with a temperature a full half degree above absolute zero – he was painfully serious. He could feel the tension in the body he was holding, Squall just waiting for the hurt he had come to assume was inevitable in his life.
"I could almost have thought this was planned..." he began again. "Except that there's no way even you could have gotten both the SeeD exam and the rank evaluations to be held on such short notice."
Squall forced himself to relax, and heard a sigh of relief from the blond behind him.
"Well, now that's cleared up..." he decided, finally managing to wriggle free of his knight's protective embrace, "I need you to organise the survivors." Seifer groaned. Wasn't that supposed to be Squall or Quistis's job? "I want as many in Balamb Garden as possible." The brunette continued. "The rest will have to go to Galbadia, which means I have to inform Martine of the situation." Well, that explained why Squall couldn't do it. He had the unenviable task of deciding who needed to know what, and making sure that they knew it.
"What about Xu?" Squall felt Seifer flinch as a wave of cold fury almost visibly rolled from him at the mention of Xu's name. It was somewhat of a taboo to mention her in his vicinity ever since the busty brunette – nicknamed the 'bitch queen' by Zell, of all people – had vetoed Seifer's return to Garden as a full, albeit honorary, SeeD. Shortly after the blond had returned, Xu had handed in a request to transfer to Galbadia. It seemed to have been prompted by several things. Firstly she had made the mistake of attempting to go over his head – contacting Cid in an effort to get Seifer's return to Garden vetoed. That had earned her not one, but two reprimands, one official and the other unofficial. The final straw – or one of many final straws – had been Cid's firm insistence that she would not be getting the position of headmistress.
"I'll let Martine deal with her."
"Shouldn't Quis be the one vetting newcomers?" Seifer queried. Squall shook his head.
"You're faster, and you're also better at picking out the best. Besides, as you well know, Quistis and Zell are both on a covert mission."
Squall turned in time to see Seifer nod and walk away – heading for the harbour and the large group of traumatised cadets and SeeDs. All he had to do now was erase that morning's call to Trabia...
AN: ahhh, cute SxS :) Only a little angst in this chapter, and not too much darkness :) Trust me when I say it'll get worse, just don't ask me when – my angst/darkness daemon tends to pounce without warning
(1) – think the cruisers from the SeeD exam in the game, but with a little less armour, and a sleeker shape i.e. speed. In my mind light cruisers are the SeeD navy equivalent of scouts/light cavalry – they're there to hit and run, escort slower ships, transport infantry etc.
Oh yeah, and if people are getting confused as regards who's speaking when, let me know and I'll start sticking in POV headings :) – you should be able to figure it out from what's said tho