Author's Note:

Thank you SO much for your lovely reviews!

sulou: Haha... I might try writing angsty stuff later on. XD

Beautiful Songstress: Awww, thank you so much! I shall try to update soon.

Lionhearted316: Thank you!!! Quiefers and SquallxSeifer stories are some of my all time favorites. Yay! I'm glad the characterization is halfway decent hehe.

Hyperangel08: Thanks!! Hehe... Squall really doesn't seem like the cooking type does he... muahaha...

And as always, thank you, Angry Angel, for your fun fun comments!!! XD

...And just in case no one advised you... I. do. not. own. FINAL FANTASY! Doesn't that just completely suck?! XD


Chapter Nine: Assimilation

Matron embraced Seifer tightly. "It's so good to have you home."

Seifer returned the hug. Part of him still knew that this was once the woman who had been possessed by the sorceress, Ultimecia, but the other part of him still remembered her as the woman who had helped to raise him, and that part easily overruled the other.

"Matron," Quistis began. "I'd like to propose an emergency meeting of the Balamb counsel. I think this matter has been postponed much too long, wouldn't you agree?"

Matron released Seifer and nodded in reply. "You're absolutely right. I'll call Cid right away. I'm sure he can gather everyone in less than half an hour. In the meantime, make yourselves comfortable." She eagerly rushed to the phone in the adjacent room.

Fujin and Rajin settled themselves on the couch and decided to explore Balamb's cable selections. Fujin quickly grabbed the remote and began to flip through the channels.

"BORING. BORING. LAME. PERFECT." She stopped at channel 56 and smiled triumphantly.

"What's this show? I don't think I've ever seen it, ya know?" Rajin asked, scratching his head.

"IRON CHEF." Fujin replied. "WATCH." She commanded. Soon she and Rajin were glued to the screen while the French cooking expert and a challenger faced off in a timed cooking battle.

This of course gave Seifer an idea. "Hey, Chef Leonhart. You need any help with my welcome home cake?" Seifer's trademark smirk was firmly in place, and it made Squall's stomach turn.

"I can manage." He replied icily. "And it's not for you."

"Aww... I'm crushed, Squall." Seifer replied, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye. "Does this mean you don't love me anymore?" Squall gave him one of his best deathglares before returning to the kitchen, which only egged Seifer on. "Awww, c'mon! I was just about to tell you about my romantic dream!"

Quistis sighed. Gee... This seems oddly familiar...

Squall remained silent. He eyed the remaining eggs. I wonder how many I could shove up his nose...

Seifer just shrugged. "Fine, then. I'll just share my romantic dream with someone else." He ambled over to Quistis, dramatically grasping his hand to his chest. "I'm devastated!"

A smirk spread across Quistis's face as she crossed her arms. "I was thinking something more along the lines of 'disturbed,' but okay, 'devastated' works, too."

Seifer stared deep into her cerulean eyes and Quistis felt almost lost in his emerald stare for a moment. "Just for that, I won't share my romantic dream with you, either." He said softly with a playful smirk.

Quistis's heartbeat momentarily quickened and she could feel her face growing warmer. She blinked a couple of times, snapping herself back to reality. "Tch, how romantic could one of your dreams be?" She replied sarcastically.

"Heh... Wouldn't you like to know..." He replied whispering close to her ear. His breath tickled the side of her neck and she shivered, although nearly unnoticeably. Seifer, of course, took note of this. He grinned inwardly. Iiiinteresting... While his curiosity urged him to test this newfound information further, he decided against it for the time being. After all, he still had barely begun to reunite himself with his lifelong rival.

"I think I'll go check on Mister Easybake." He announced quietly as he turned towards the kitchen. Quistis just shook her head. Fujin and Rajin were so immersed they never even heard him. Seifer snuck up to the doorway and watched as Squall glanced from one ingredient to another. The taller man surmised that the brunette had absolutely no idea what to do. The would-be cake maker simply stared at the small bags of sugar and flour before him.

A twisted grin curled on Seifer face. "Don't eat us!" Seifer chirped. For a moment, Squall twitched with slight surprise, then he turned and glared at the intruder, eyes flaming. "I see you're making progress." Seifer quipped. "Little advice, though. Generally speaking, staring at the ingredients won't turn them into cake. You actually have to get your dainty little hands dirty."

"Since when did you become the next Betty Crocker?" Squall replied cooly.

"Since I studied under Dollet's wise and benevolent goddess of cooking," Seifer replied matter-of-factly. "Now scoot over, and let a professional show you how it's done."

Ordinarily, Squall would have objected to this idea, but since he was utterly lost and still wanted to surprise Rinoa, he decided to let his blonde-haired rival help.

"Now first of all, crack the eggs in a separate bowl and only put one in at a time. That way, if you get a bad one, it won't ruin the whole cake." Seifer demonstrated by taking one of the eggs and tapping it gently on the side of a small bowl. He gently cracked the egg with one hand and easily removed its contents into the bowl. Then he tossed the empty shells into a nearby bag. "All right... Have at it." He took another egg and handed it to the silent brunette.

Squall took the egg and followed the same routine. His movements were less graceful, but the result was still the same. He couldn't help but grin slightly at his success.

"Not bad." Seifer said.

Little did either of them know they were silently being watched from the other room.

"My boys are actually getting along! If only I knew where Cid put that camera..." Matron whispered.

"It could just be mass hallucination." Quistis replied.

"AFFIRMATIVE." Fujin said, nodding.

"It's like spotting Bigfoot, ya know?" Rajin added.

Just then, the phone rang, drawing everyone's attention.

"That should be Cid," Matron explained as she went to answer it.

Meanwhile, Seifer and Squall had turned and noticed their small audience.

"C'mon, guys," Seifer began. "I know we're irresistible, but really, must you stare? We're not meat, y'know." He turned to the shorter brunette beside him. "It's the curse of being cute, eh, Squallito?"

Squall just kept his eyes fixed on the eggs as he put them in with the rest of the ingredients in the mixing bowl. "...whatever." He mumbled.

"See? You embarrassed him." Seifer replied, shaking his head. Squall responded with a sideways glare. Seifer was thoroughly enjoying himself now. However, his comical mood was soon cut short.

Matron returned from the other room. "They've assembled. They're ready to hear your testimony." She said in a serious tone.

Seifer washed his hands and joined the others in the next room. "Well, I guess it's now or never." He threw a small glance towards Squall. "Wish me luck, Baker Boy."

Squall looked up for a moment and nodded solemnly. As much as Seifer drove him crazy sometimes, he didn't want to see him branded as a conscious murderer for the rest of his life. As much as he hated to admit it, part of him had missed the unceasing banter between the two when the blonde ex-knight had disappeared. "Good luck."

"You'll be readmitted, ya know." Rajin added.

"DON'T WORRY." Fujin said, nodding.

Seifer was beginning to feel nervous. Sure, he had known that coming back to Balamb would entail a sentencing by the Balamb counsel, but the whole gravity of the situation hadn't really become clear in his mind until this moment. Their decision would decide whether he remained a criminal in the eyes of Gaia or would be allowed the chance to become a SeeD. After all of the hard times he had given them as well as other members of the garden, he wasn't entirely sure their decision would be a favorable one.

His quickening heartbeat stabilized a little when he felt a slender hand grasp his own. "I'll be right beside you." Quistis said softly. "Just as I should've been before." She looked into his eyes and could now see a glint of confidence meshing its way back into his verdant gaze.

Seifer gave her a small smile as he squeezed her hand. "Let's go."

With that, Matron, Quistis and Seifer made their way towards the assembly room.

As they walked, groups of people stopped and stared wide-eyed at the three. Seifer could hear their surprised whispers.

"Is that Seifer Almasy?"

"It is! It's him! Why is he back?"

"What if he tries to kill us all?!"

"Tch, don't be stupid. Look, Instructor Trepe is with him. Maybe she captured him?"

Quistis glanced over and noticed Seifer's hardened expression. "Ignore them." She whispered and gave his hand a gentle squeeze. Seifer nodded slightly in reply.

Just up ahead, a massive group of Trepies was forming. Quistis groaned inwardly as she neared them.

"INSTRUCTOR TREPE! We're so glad you're back! Give that rogue a taste of your whip!"

Quistis fought back a smirk. Heh... That sounds kinda dirty... She mentally slapped herself. Quistis, you really are a dork. She mentally slapped herself yet again. When will you learn to stop talking to yourself in third person?

Seifer had a different thought entirely. Come see Quistis and her amazing side show of freaks! And don't miss the biggest freak of them all, Seifer Almasy!

"INSTRUCTOR TREPE! Please be careful! Don't let him out of your sight for a moment! He might try to hurt you again! You shouldn't be standing so close to him, either! Why are you holding his hand? We don't think you should do that..."

By this time, a vein in the middle of Quistis's forehead was throbbing so violently, she could not stand it any longer. "WILL YOU ALL KINDLY SHUT UP?! THIS IS NONE OF YOUR CONCERN!" The Trepies stared at her with utter disbelief. "NOW GO FINISH YOUR HOMEWORK!" She ordered. The group at once dispersed in all directions. She sighed happily. "I've always wanted to do that." She said quietly.

Her happy mood quickly soured when she noticed a few female students eyeing Seifer. She listened intently to their whispers.

"Wow... Seifer's still hotter than ever."

"I don't care if he is a murderer. Look at that body..."

I called it... Quistis thought miserably. She glanced at Seifer out of the corner of her eye and noticed his eyes scanning the crowd. He's probably taking note of his new possible girlfriends... She couldn't have been more wrong.

Where'd those Trepies go? Seifer thought as his eyes searched the horizon. I want names and restraining orders! How dare they treat Quistis like that. They'd better be glad there's not a list anymore...

The three continued on and a minute or so later, they arrived at their destination.

"Try to relax," Matron said as she knocked on the doors. "Don't let them scare you, either. They're just pompous old windbags." She added with a smile.

An hour passed. The counsel members had drudged up every account of Seifer's misbehavior they could possibly find. The cases ranged from a complaint of him tugging on a certain library girl's pigtail when he was first enrolled, to the most recent events under Ultimecia's guidance. Seifer groaned inwardly at the complaints Quistis herself had issued when she had first become his instructor.

Damn, I was an idiot. He mentally sulked to himself. ...I only did it so she'd notice me instead of that scrawny excuse for a- Hyne... I was the "Puberty Boy"... Gee, don't I feel smart...

Quistis on the other hand was feeling kind of bad for issuing those complaints in the first place. Nothing he did was really that bad... I shouldn't have overreacted... She stood up and raised a hand. "May I retract those?" She asked.

"No Miss Trepe, you may not. Please take a seat." One of the members replied.

Quistis reluctantly sat down while Seifer smiled at her. "Thanks for trying." He whispered. She nodded and smiled silently back.

Cid rose from his seat and addressed the assembly. "We will review the evidence and return with our decision." The rest of the members followed him into a small nearby room.

Meanwhile, Matron, Seifer and Quistis would have to wait patiently for their return.

Seifer turned and looked Quistis in the eyes. He could see them swirling with slight apprehension. "Quistis," he began softly. "Whatever happens, I just want you to know that I appreciate this. I don't think I would've ever done this on my own."

"I'm glad to help." Quistis replied. Seifer nodded stiffly in reply. Quistis hated to see him so distraught. She would have loved nothing more than to wrap her arms around him and protect him from anything that might try to take him away from her, but she knew that was completely out of the question. She gently intertwined her fingers with his.

Seifer smiled faintly at their hands. Although part of him was still rather nervous, another part of him would've loved nothing more than to grab her hands, trail gentle kisses up her arm and bury his head in the luscious-looking crook of her neck. He rubbed the side of her hand gently with his thumb and gazed anxiously at the closed doors of the small room.

Please, Cid. Matron thought as she clasped her hands to her heart. Make them listen. Make them understand. You did it for me, I know you can do it again.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, each one of them with their eyes fixed upon the small room. A little while later, the opening lock echoed across the room and the counsel members emerged. The three eyed Cid's face, but none of them could make out any emotion.

As soon as all of the members were seated, Cid cleared his throat and began to speak. "We have finally reached a decision."