[[I haven't updated in a long time.

I have been suffering life-altering events, otherwise known as research for my writing. I hope you enjoy this work.]]

"Ssst! Hey! Over on!"

They'd rather have used silent signals to call to eachother. It made things easier. But stealthing around in the dark in a group that was split up did not work without words. If only they had personal communications systems...

The group duck-walked their way over to the voice.

"Look at this! Must be meant for the generals! Heh...then again, you get this stuff normally, right?"

A slap was heard in the dark, and the voice decided to be a little less sarcastic.

The boxed food items, mostly fresh fruit and rare pastries [Rare for the fact that they weren't stale], were passed around to the waiting hands.

Another of the voices ordered them to move out. The covert operation was almost completed, and not a single problem had aroused.

Why does luck never hold?

The first one reached the door, and looked to see if it were safe to leave. Before his head had finished turning to the right, a pair of hands had grabbed him. It was a large, rather burly man.

"I had a feeling that we were going to have an infestation in the kitchen tonight."

The others froze where they were. Caught!

"All right, you little rats! Get out here now! Make me come find you, and your leaders will only recognize you by your dogtags!"

Lucky for the stealth raiders, there were four entrances to the kitchens. They split up and headed for the other three.

As they left, the frightened sounds of their captured compatriot could be heard. One of the raiders paused, feeling guilt at leaving him behind. He might be executed for this, for all they know.

"Come on! You of all people should be the least bit inclined to go back there and help him," another said, trying to spur him on.

No. He knew what loyalty meant. Be loyal to your brothers. And all soldiers in this country, no matter what markings they wore, were brothers.

Besides, he had nothing important to lose.

He dropped his items, and ran to the burly man. He managed to free the captured boy, but only at the cost of his own freedom.

"You have nothing to say," Dirandau said coldly.

Truth be told, Migueru had plenty to say. He wanted to protest. He had never spoken out against anyone above him to their face without support of another, but this time he wanted to. He wanted to tell his captain - his friend - how wrong this treatment was. It wasn't right, and it wasn't fair. He was in a state of hell.

"You have nothing to say, because I won't let you say it. I won't let you explain away your betrayal. Why were you so kind to me before? Because you thought it would get you something?" Dirandau asked, his words full of hurt.

"No, sir."

"Then why is it that, after such good and loyal service, you turn on me the moment you lose rank?"

"I am frustrated with the situation, sir."

Dirandau glared at him and struck him to the ground.

"As if I'm not? I didn't want this either. I fought for you, Migueru. I fought for you so that this wouldn't happen. It wasn't my doing. I didn't hurt you, so why are you betraying me?"

"I..I didn't betray you...."

"You embarrassed me...and you hurt the team. You stole something. You dishonorably took something that wasn't yours. Worse, it belonged to higher ranking officers. How can they trust a bunch of petty thieves to work for them? You wear a blue uniform, part of a matching set of 14. They all look alike. They stand for high quality and dedication to service...until someone screws up. Then they are merely clothes worn by lowlife ruffians. And they will mean nothing more than that if we continue like this."

Migueru stood back up, and stared ahead. He was stubborn. When he didn't believe in something, it showed. He was passionate and loud. Much like Dirandau.

"As I recall, sir," he said slowly, "it won't ever matter how anyone holds the Dragonslayers in their opinions, as there is no way in hell your men are ever going to be commissioned to do any actual work. Because Folken doesn't want them to."

The words were meant to cut, and they did their job well. Dirandau took one of his gloves off, and clamped his mouth down on it. He feared breaking his teeth otherwise.

Lately, he had been thinking half-seriously about really kicking Migueru out. But, then...oh, how happy that would make Folken! To know that he had succeeded in driving the two of them completely apart.

"Migueru, you-"

At that moment there was a knock on the door. Dirandau's gaze shifted towards the door in a surreal manner. He did not like being interrupted when he was so angry. That always meant he'd have to put on a face of propriety.

"....yes? Who is it?" Dirandau asked.

"Gatty, sir. I have a pressing matter to discuss with you."

Dirandau's face scrunched up. He let out a raw growl.

"Damn it, when I ask you a question, you will answer what I have asked you and only that! I did not ask you why you were here!!"

Gatty grit his teeth.

"Sir, I apologize, sir."

Dirandau rapped his fingers against the desk for a few minutes, deep in angst-filled thought.

Dirandau put his glove back on, took a deep breath, and calmed himself.

"Your point is well taken, Migueru."

He wrote something on a paper, and then stood up. He approached Migueru, glaring at him ominously.

"But you know as well as everyone else that I don't care what situation we're in. We will do things correctly, as they should be done. You are what you are. You are what we tell you, and you will meet any expectations set before you. Understood?"

"....yes, sir."

"I have counted you as a good friend, Migueru. Why you have decided to make me change that, I'll never know. But there is no changing it now. You have stepped too far in the wrong direction."

"Wait! If you'll just-"

"Silence. You wish to be treated in the manner you act. I will treat you no different than you deserve. And you don't deserve my respect anymore."

What Migueru lost at that moment was far worse than anything Folken could have taken away from him.

"From now on, your job is to redeem yourself from your past failures, as a soldier and a man. You will spend every waking moment devising new ways to help Gatty excell at -his- job."

"Sir, please...I...Dirandau, please don't ask me to..."

But Dirandau was relentless.

"Don't you ever dare to ask for pity from me again, Migueru. You lost the job, got that? YOU. I didn't think so, but it's obvious now. You don't care about me, and you don't care about your duties. You have abandoned both. And that was obvious to others. I suppose I didn't notice, because I wanted to think I could have at least one person to stand by me through anything..."

He sounded cold and jaded, but his eyes betrayed his true feelings. He was not angry as a leader. He was hurt as a friend.

"You are incapable of carrying out the position of second in command. That job requires absolute loyalty. I can't trust you, and so I can't trust anyone. So I may as well take anyone else who comes along. It doesn't matter who, because they're all the same. And I can't stand to work with you. Understood?"

Luckily for Migueru, Dirandau wasn't wanting or waiting for a response to the question. Migueru understood the situation too well, and it would have killed him to admit it.

"Let me make this clear. I can neither trust you, nor can I depend on you for anything. I can never do that. Never."

This all seemed like some kind of nightmare. It couldn't be real. Or maybe it would all end if Dirandau thought that Migueru understood how hurt he was, and that Migueru was broken up about it. He broke from his status of attention.

"Dirandau...I...I can't live like this."

It was a plea. In most respects, it was a plea for forgiveness. But deep down, it was a plea for Dirandau to employ his skills as an executioner. Life was too hard, and they had barely begun. Migueru didn't want it anymore if he had to give up the relationship that was helping him endure it.

Dirandau stared him dead in the eyes.

"You have a sword. If you can't live this way, then take care of the problem yourself."

Dirandau held his arm out towards the door.

"You are dismissed."

He waited a moment for the Migueru to leave. But Migueru was far too distraught. He kept thinking that somehow this was not happening.

"Go!!!"

Gatty heard a dull thud against the door, which momentarily opened and allowed Migueru passage through it.

'What do you do with your free time?'

Migueru was once asked that during a survey. It took him a long time to think of an answer. After all, he didn't see free time very often.

"I drink," he had replied.

"Is that all?" questioned the surveyor. "What do you do after that?"

"I drink more."

The surveyor hadn't been the least bit unnerved. Every last one of these people, from age 3 to 60, was a drunkard.

He held a bottle of alcohol, and leaned his head against one of his shoulders. He had been sitting there for three days now.

This was the standard mode of behavior for the useless.

His life was officially over.

"Hey, you!" a voice called from the hall. "Get out here. I need your help with some scheduling."

Migueru snarled at the voice.

"What the fuck is wrong with you? I left notes for you in the office!"

"Yes, but you forgot to leave a translation for your handwriting. I'm an administrator, not a code breaker."

"Grrrrraaaah!!!"

Migueru placed his bottle gently on the ground, not wanting to break something containing so precious a supplement as alcohol. He then ran after that idiot, intending to give him the beating of a lifetime....and instead receiving it.

The two sat in the office later, across the room from eachother. They stared, hoping to figure out something of the other by just looking.

"Have you got a clue what you're doing?" Migueru asked.

"A clue? I've got the whole map. You just made some smudges on it, that's all."

Migueru's eyes twitched and fluttered as they rolled to the back of his head.

"I can't believe he's got you fucking around with my paperwork. I take it you're not going to leave this place the way I keep it."

Gatty smiled.

"Of course not," he said. "I couldn't do that and be efficient, now could I?"

Migueru glared at the floor. He wasn't that bad at his job. He didn't deserve this! He'd lost his pride and his good relationship with Dilandau. Now some weeping, wailing admin clerk was going to come into his office, change things around that didn't need to be changed, and be praised for improving the Dragonslayers program. Migueru would be forgotten, or hated if he was remembered.

Pushing all that aside, he began a proper turnover of the job for Gatty. He told him everything he knew, showed him where everything was. He made sure there was no possible way Gatty could screw up on the job. He asked if Gatty understood completely, and Gatty replied with a yes.

"Perfect," Migueru thought, smirking. "Now that you know the job, lets see if you can handle it under pressure..."

It was nearing a special time. At this time each day, Dirandau would come in and ask for some important reports on the progress of their training.

Dirandau walked into the room holding the same commanding presence he always held.

"Sir," Migueru broke in before Dirandau could say anything. "I have finished the office passdown of Dragonslayer Second."

"Very well," said Dirandau in reply.

"Do you understand everything that goes on in this office?"

"Yes, sir," replied Gatty, a new bit of confidence having been instilled in him.

Dirandau's eyes narrowed.

"You understand everything...?"

"Yes, sir," Gatty replied again, his new confidence now a bit tattered.

"Then why do you not have the papers I need already in your hand?"

Gatty hesitated. "What papers, sir?"

Miguel had neglected to mention the Dragonslayer's training schedule, which was posted in the training hall. Had he done that, Gatty would have gone there to see what was happening.

Miguel had also neglected to mention what paperwork is needed for different types of training.

And now he neglected to do anything but enjoy his handiwork.

Every muscle in Dirandau's body stiffened. He had a slacker on his hands? This man wasn't going to learn his job properly, and tell Dirandau that everything was going fine when it was falling apart?

"I don't think so," he thought.

Gatty received a short lecture, after which Dirandau went to Folken's quarters to attempt Gatty's removal once again. When Dirandau was gone, Gatty began a discussion with Migueru.

"What was that all about?" Gatty asked.

Migueru lifted his eyes to the ceiling, attempting to mask a smirk.

"I did the turn-over. By rights, you should be able to figure it out yourself."

"You didn't tell me everything, you bastard! Damn you. You led me on, and now I've got an even worse reputation with him. Can't you get over yourself for a moment?"

"No," Migueru replied as he headed out the door to resume his previous activity.

Gatty rushed at Migueru, thoroughly fed up with his actions and his attitude. He forced Migueru to the ground, and gave him a decent beating. He then left for an area of social gathering. Dirandau had said he didn't want to see Gatty there when he got back, so he figured he might as well go somewhere he liked.

Migueru pretended to be half-dead from the punishment. As soon as Gatty turned a corner, Migueru hopped up and followed him.

The place Gatty had gone was known as the corners, thus named because it was at the intersection of multiple corridors. It had been made spacious, so as to allow ample opportunity for passage in times of emergency. There was no furniture to speak of, nor . Mostly, people lounged about the floor or leaned against walls. They made friendships, wasted time, and, most importantly, vented a good deal of their permanent frustration.

Gatty sat down in a corner space and began to re-read one of those sword-fighting manuals he'd studied. He intended to correct every damned error in there, and turn it over to the proper authorities. It wasn't right that such a thing be around to delude the unknowledgeable.

After he got through the first chapter, he looked up to find himself in a good deal of company. Some of his old acquaintances had noticed him and gathered round him. He stared at them, words unavailable.

"Well, well...looks like you didn't get killed by the paperwork you bury yourself in, after all."

Gatty smiled a bit.

"No, no. I've been transferred to another group. We're always busy..."

He looked nervously at one of them. A young girl he didn't know. Her stares made him uncomfortable. The others continued their banter, unaware of his discomfort.

"That's an interesting uniform you've got there," said one.

Another chuckled. "Yeah. We almost mistook you for a soldier!"

That one shook his head. They all disliked soldiers, and had respect for Gatty. They wouldn't want him to be one.

"Oh...eh...yeah....heh..."

His friends continued to talk in their usual manner. They were all sardonic and bitter. Their love of irony kept them in good spirits and mental health.

They were so focused they didn't even notice the girl walk up to Gatty and sit down. She began whispering in his ear. After he looked over at her, shocked at a proposition, she pulled him towards her and kissed him full on the lips.

Gatty blushed a deep red, and his friends' topic of discussion now turned to Gatty's present romantic affairs. They giggled and laughed as this strange girl snuggled up close to a surprise-stricken Gatty, who whispered obscene things to him to see what kind of faces he'd make. She thought he was adorable. He thought she was insane.

But then, sometimes the insane are lovable. After a time, he began to smile at her.

There was much giggling as the two flirted back and forth. It was a fun little game, one Gatty was not unknown to play. The girl eventually got up and began running towards a passageway entrance. Gatty chased after her. She crashed into someone who was standing in her way, which caused Gatty to stop abruptly and fall backwards.

The stranger looked down at Gatty, a very angry look upon his face. They knew eachother...

"H..hi...." Gatty's words were awkward. What could he possibly say?

The stranger continued to stare at him in silence, hurt and angry. Gatty stood up.

"Look, I...um.."

He smiled.

"How have you been?" he asked with an amiable tone.

The stranger turned away with a despairing "Hmph." Gatty cringed. This was delicate..how to handle it?

"Listen, I know you loved me..."

The stranger was near in tears.

"I lo...I thought I loved you too. I just..it woudln't have worked out. We grew apart..."

The stranger turned back on him, a very angry look on his face.

"You grew apart from me! You..you have no feelings, do you? You don't care about anyone, you just go about your way, finding people to devour as you go. I..."

The stranger wanted to say that he hated Gatty, but he didn't.

"I just...I just wanted a proper goodbye. That's all..."

The stranger pushed Gatty up against a wall, and gave him a kiss to be remembered. When the stranger left him, Gatty had a very satisfied drunken look on his face. Oh, how he had needed something like that!

he walked in the direction of that strange girl, hoping to find her later. He brushed past someone. In his absent-minded state, he didn't recall who it was, and merely apologized while continuing on his way.

The forgotten figure smiled broadly.

"Heh....heheh....heheheheeh....!"

Migueru couldn't help laughing. The forgotten are not powerless, after all.

[[[Okay, I don't really feel like talking much about me right now, but here's the situation.

I've had loads of personal trials and am just now getting over them.

I had lost internet connection for quite some time (seems like a year.)

I was going to give up on this fic, because I felt I couldn't get back into the spirit of it.

But, I persevered and here it is.

(Hehe...perhps that will make the fact taht this chapter is so short be less important...)

I don't really think I'll update "Inconvenient Situation" much to some readers dismay.

It feels like a good ending to me [and if you were to ever experience something like that, you wouldn't be so inclined to relive it so often.]

I'm starting up a new fic which should be finished soon (Don't believe me about my timeframes. Let experience be your guide.)

It doesn't have a name yet, but it will be about Folken's experiences in Zaibach, starting from the first few days he gets there.

I've been delving a lot into Folken's character, so I felt I should do this. I haven't read much of Folken fanfic [I may try, but as it is, I am using all my sleeping time to do things for my own edification and replenishment, and it gets too difficult to try much...]]]

Okay. Until later, thanks for the kind reviews.]]