Of Destiny and Fate
Summary: Can one small, seemingly insignificant event change the course of true love as well as the course of history? Will Rinoa still end up in the arms of Squall? Or will there be another?
Disclaimer: I don't own FF8 or any of the characters. They're all the property of Squaresoft, the lucky people.
"It's over."
I stepped off the boat, sighing with relief as I crossed the threshold, setting my feet back onto dry land where they belonged. It was finally over. Everything that I had done since the age of six, when I first came to Garden, had been mere preparation for the events of today. My mind had been racked with worry and doubt when I woke up this morning. Everything had seemed to depend upon today. And now? Now I could do nothing but wait.
"Squall." Glancing around, I easily discover the source of the call.
"Yes, Instructor Trepe?" I groaned, inwardly. The last thing I wanted to do was to discuss the outcome of the exam with my teacher, al least until I had received my results.
"Squall, can I have a word?" she asked, ushering me to one side. I knew that this was not a request, it was an order, and whilst I was still a cadet, I had no choice but to comply. "Squall, that was a very impressive performance," she said, flashing me a smile, which I duly ignored.
"Thank you, Instructor," was the only reply she received.
"I'm serious. You're one of the best students I've ever had the pleasure of teaching."
I hate the flattery that she constantly forces upon me. I just can't stand everybody having such high hopes of me. How disappointed would they all be in me if I failed?
"If that's all you wanted to tell me, may I please leave now?" I was quickly tiring of this. So often in life, people seem to drift off in conversations instead of getting straight to the point. I sensed that this was exactly what Quistis was doing now.
"Actually, I wanted to ask about Seifer." She hushed her voice slightly at this, making it clear that she wanted to keep this conversation private.
"What about him?" I tensed up as I realised the anger that had showed itself in my voice. It wasn't deliberate, it was just a natural reaction for me upon hearing that name. Seifer and I have been rivals for as long as we can both remember, and even hearing his name sometimes provokes my anger to boil up inside me. Added to this was the fact that Seifer was placed as my squad leader during the exam. He was the last person I wanted to be taking orders from during my final exam, and it certainly made for an uncomfortable journey to Dollet.
"I wanted to discuss his leadership during the exam with you. Between you and me, I expected him to be a little more impulsive than he was. He seemed to follow our orders to the letter, which I thought was very unusual for him."
"He's not stupid."
"That's debateable," she snorted in reply. "Now, please. Was there any time during which he appeared to question authority?" I knew that I had no choice but to answer.
"If you must know, he was considering disobeying orders and following a group of Galbadian soldiers up to the communication tower, but, like I said, he's not stupid. He knew he'd have failed if he left the town square, so he stayed put." Quistis nodded in understanding. I knew that she had been afraid that Seifer would do this. She made it quite clear that she didn't want him to follow orders during the exam, as this would give her no alternative but to pass him. "Is that all?" I demanded. I wanted to get back to Garden as quickly as possible.
"Yes. Dismissed."
I walked across the harbour towards the car that would take my squad back to Garden, dreading the fact that I would have to spend another journey with Seifer and Zell. Not that I really have any problem with Zell. I mean, he can get a little hyperactive at times, but I guess he's not a bad person underneath. He just takes Seifer's remarks to heart and always starts an argument with him, and believe me, I don't want to have to listen to that now.
I grabbed the door handle to the car, and tried to open it, but I found it slipping from my grasp as the car began to move steadily away.
"Hey, puberty boy," I heard Seifer scream from the driver's seat. "Looks like you're walking."
Great, this is just what I need. Well, at least I don't have to ride back Seifer so I guess it could be worse.
"Did that jerk just do what I think he did?" Zell walked up behind me and tapped me on the shoulder. I didn't even dignify that with a reply. "Oh, well. I guess we're walking back then. Wanna walk with us, Selph?" Zell seemed to have taken quite a shine to Selphie already. I can see why though, they're both so alike that they seem to get along really well. The journey back with these two hyperactive souls could be quite a test for me.
"Perhaps even more so than the exam," I thought to myself as I set out on the long trek back to Garden.
I tried as hard as I possibly could to maintain my cool, emotionless exterior, with mixed results. None of the other cadets seemed to notice that it was nothing more than a façade, but at the same time, it only served to heighten my sense of nervousness. My only comfort was the fact that everybody else was noticeably feeling exactly the same way. There were countless students pacing the length of the hallway incessantly, whilst others were content to bite their fingernails as they waited, apprehensively, for their results. Even Seifer seemed to be showing some signs of the pressure getting to him, his usual cockiness having obviously abandoned him.
Just as I thought that I couldn't stand the waiting for another second, a member of the Garden Faculty emerged from the elevator. I, and the other students, waited, with baited breath, for him to begin the announcement.
"Dincht, Tilmitt, Almasy…"
There was an immeasurably long pause before the final name was revealed.
"…Leonhart."
It was me. I've actually passed. I let myself breathe a huge sigh of relief. Suddenly, everything that I had gone through for the last few years of my life was worth it. Every early morning, every cut, every bruise was worthwhile.
My head was still reeling when I entered the Headmaster's office. The entire conversation that ensued seemed so surreal. I had dreamt of this moment for so long, but now that I was actually here, I had no idea how to react.
"It's about time we had a gunblade specialist," the Headmaster told me. "And to think, this year, we have two of you that have passed."
That's right. Seifer, he passed. I guess Quistis really did have no choice. I could tell by the way that the Headmaster gave him a stern warning about his behaviour, that he was none too happy about Seifer becoming a SeeD. This warning, however, was cut short by the Garden Faculty member, who quickly ushered Headmaster Cid out of his office, saying that he had important business to attend to.
"We passed," Selphie shouted at the top of her voice, as soon as the door closed behind the two men.
"Yeah. I can't wait for the party tonight," added Zell. It seemed to me as if these two could never be serious about anything, even if they tried.
"It's just a shame that the party will be well after your bed time, chicken wuss. I guess you won't be able to go," Seifer teased.
"Take that back," screamed Zell, making a dash for Seifer. I put my hand firmly on his shoulder, stopping him in his tracks. This was not the time, nor the place for this. To my astonishment, Seifer didn't follow this up with a snide remark about me. He merely nodded towards me as he headed for the door.
"See you later, Squall." That was the last reaction I had expected from him. I'd been fully prepared for insults and put downs, they don't even get to me anymore, but this? Civility…from Seifer? That really was unexpected.
"I can't believe that guy," Zell began to mutter as soon as Seifer was safely out of earshot. In my opinion, Zell lets Seifer get to him far too easily. He will always lose it over the chicken wuss comment, no matter how many times he's heard it before. The best policy for dealing with Seifer is just to ignore him. And I've had plenty of practice at that.
"Hey, just ignore him," Selphie advised. "Forget about him altogether, and go and get ready for the party."
"Yeah, good idea. Come on man," he said, motioning towards me.
"I'm not going," I replied. I couldn't imagine anything worse than having to go to the graduation ball. I detest parties.
"Oh, yes you are," Selphie told me, her eyes twinkling evilly. "Follow me." Unwillingly, I found myself dragged from the Headmaster's office. I really didn't want to know where she was taking me.
Well, it could be worse. Sure, Selphie had dragged me back to my dorm, waited whilst I changed into uniform and then forced me to go to the party, but things could be much, much worse. She could be trying to force me to socialise with complete strangers, instead of letting me stay propped up against the wall with a glass of champagne, about as far away from the dance floor as I can possibly manage to be. I silently prayed that I would be ignored for the rest of the night, as I was quite content to be where I was, free from any company. Everybody else seemed so at home here, and I clearly was not. I sighed, hoping that rest of the night would pass quickly and uneventfully.
It was then that I noticed something, a feeling if you like. It was almost as if I was being watched. I glanced up, trying to find the source of my discomfort, and sure enough, I saw her.
I didn't mean to keep staring, but, no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't take my eyes off her. Why was she looking at me? Was it even me that she was looking at? Maybe she was looking for someone else.
That thought was quickly dispelled as she began to walk over towards me. I managed to tear my gaze away from her, not wanting her to think that I had been watching her too.
"You're the best looking guy here. Dance with me?"
Did she really just say that? I don't even know her. I've never seen her before in my life. I'd remember if I had.
"Let me guess, you'll only dance with someone you like?" she teased.
Am I that obvious?
"I can't dance," I replied, trying not to let any emotion seep into my voice. Maybe there was a part of me, albeit a small one, that wanted to say yes. There was definitely something about her, and there was no way to be sure that I would ever see her again. As usual, however, my rational side won the battle. What was the point in dancing with her anyway? She definitely didn't live at Garden, so the dance would be the last I'd ever see of her. Not to mention the fact that I would make a complete fool of myself, as I haven't danced for years.
"You'll be fine," she said, leading me out into the middle of the dance floor.
"No I won't"
Despite all of my common sense, I found myself dancing with her…badly. I knew that I couldn't pick it up again after all these years, I haven't even danced once since basic training. What did she expect of me? I did warn her.
To my surprise, however, she merely laughed as I constantly stepped on her feet. Slowly, however, I found myself adjusting to the rhythm and the tempo. Or at least, I thought I was. As we both went careering into the couple dancing next to us, I decided that that was enough. There was no way, I was going along with this.
I started to leave, but found myself pulled back by a sharp tugging on my arm. She wasn't about to let me leave without a fight.
Even though I knew that I could easily walk away if I wanted to, something made me consider yielding to her. I guess it wasn't all that bad.
In that one moment of weakness, she forced me back into the centre of the floor, gently holding my hand in readiness for the next section of the music to start.
It was then that she smiled at me.
Not a small, forced smile, but one that affected me deep down, and I knew I couldn't leave.
I hardly noticed a thing as we both began to move in time with the music, my feet no longer having a life of their own. She smiled once again, seeing that I was now moving more freely than before, and probably not embarrassing her as much either.
"Hey, puberty boy," a voice growled from behind me. There was only one person it could be.
"Seifer?" she gasped. "I didn't know you'd be here."
"Well, I am," he replied, fixing me with an evil stare. "So you can stop hanging round with this loser." She seemed about to protest when Seifer snaked his arm around her shoulders and led her away. "Come on, there's someone I need you to meet," he told her with a hint of anger in his voice.
The last I saw of her was when she turned around as she was being led away.
"Sorry," she mouthed.
It was then that it hit me.
I never even knew her name.