Chapter 1-A Reunion of Sorts

The world seemed to be one of perpetual peace at that time.

Galbadia, with a new President, Isaac Young, settled its disputes with other nations and made attempts to make amends. It had become a tourist attraction lately and attracted people the world over with flashy neon signs and sleek, brightly painted cars.

Trabia, the only nation that had not fully recovered from the Sorceress War, was still happy. You could see groups huddling together near fires, telling far-fetched stories to one another, while listeners gasped in amazement, in the white snowy lands coated with peace. During the day, smiles remained on people's faces as they worked hard in the gray wreckage of snow-topped Trabia Garden.

Balamb Garden was very peaceful, and no government missions were coming in, as wars had all ended in the chaos following the Time Compression. The only missions were those from civilians needing protection from monsters and such. Cid traveled to the orphanage and gave up his position as Headmaster to Squall. Some people never forgave Cid for running away, but many remained faithful to him. All of the people in Garden, though, welcomed Squall as the next Headmaster, along with the appointed Advisor and Garden Master, Quistis, Chief of SeeD operations Zell, physician Rinoa who took over after Dr. Kadowaki retired of old age, and Garden Festival Planner, Selphie. Fujin and Raijin set off to search for Seifer, who had vanished after the war, and Irvine refused to take a position, saying, "I'm only in it for the ladies," as he walked off with Selphie. Xu worked with Quistis to guide Squall as Advisor, and, all in all, everyone was happy.

In the haste to recover from the Time Compression, all nations had to work together and forget conflicts. A few skirmishes broke out in the midst of the confusion, but there were very few casualties. In the end, Dr. Odine harnessed the Sorceress Ultimecia's power, which had been transferred to Rinoa through Edea, to control Ellone and use the same methods that spawned the Time Compression to end it. Ellone was slightly shaky, yet remained strong and let the process take place. It is a frightening thing, losing yourself, even if for a short time, but she persevered. The Time Compression was defeated, and so,everyone went to his or her original times through the result that Dr. Odine predicted.

Seifer sat in an empty room in Esthar, reflecting on the past. He looked at the red crosses on his cloak with disgust. Everything he had done, everything… it was all for a false dream. Edea and Adel were servants of Ultimecia, the one who was responsible for killing thousands and almost destroying everything… He was an outcast, a traitor…

("Damn… What have I done? How will I return to the life I once lived? All this was for my greatest dream, but in the end it was for nothing.")

He had contemplated like that for many days, knowing that no one would trust him. Perhaps he could return to Garden, but... what would become of him there, who would befriend him? All that Seifer could do was sit and wait for something to happen.

Suddenly, that something happened. A strange man burst into the house, closely followed by another unsettlingly familiar man. He was wearing a black leather vest with a white fur collar over a white T-shirt, black pants with three jauntily angled belts, black boots, and a necklace laden with a lion. He wielded a gunblade and used it expertly, shooting the man down where he stood. His face was intense, brown eyes shining with a mysterious red glint. The thing that scared Seifer the most and confirmed his fears was the scar across his forehead… That scar, which he had given him two years ago… It was Squall!

"Y-You! But… How?!"

Squall turned around bemusedly, and then stopped suddenly, looking him over, making sure that this was really him. "You're…Seifer? What're you doing here?"

Seifer sank down in his chair. "Dammit, I didn't know what I was doing… I just wanted to follow my dream, but… Where'd it all go wrong? Why'd everything turn out like this?"

Squall was surprised to hear something like this from Seifer. "Everything that happens to you is a result of your actions. If you want everything to turn out better, do things differently. That's all."

Seifer was enraged at those remarks, yet still reacted coolly to them. "Hehehe…You haven't changed a bit. Squall, I think you're the one who needs to do things differently. Always putting others down while pretending that you're the only justice…"

"What?" asked Squall, humored by Seifer's reaction. "That's how everyone in this world thinks. They believe that their opinions matter more than others' matter, and, well, that they are right and others are wrong. That's just the way people think."

"You're delusional…" remarked Seifer. Squall's remarks were full of hot air, Seifer believed. They were slightly true, yet Squall always had a depressing view like that. It was his terrible past that made him like that, losing his sister, always feeling separate from others…

Squall muttered passively, "Whatever…"

Squall walked toward the man lying on the ground, wearing black clothing and a strange silver ring.

"Solomon's ring... Glad we have it back," Squall muttered to himself as he started to walk away. Seifer was starting to feel annoyed with the way he was being ignored when Squall turned around and said, "By the way, Cid said before he left Garden, 'If you ever see Seifer, tell him I'm waiting for him at the orphanage.'"

"Wait a minute... Cid left Garden? Who's the Headmaster now? It'd better not be Trepe..."

Squall laughed. "No, Quistis isn't the Headmaster. It's even worse."

Seifer laughed impassively. "You always were the favorite, the way you just got your jobs done and never questioned orders...I was different. I made my plans in the best interest of SeeD, but here I am now, an outcast.

"Hehe… You go on with whatever you were doing, and I'll meet Cid later…" Seifer said.

Squall walked out of the house, looked around, and ran off after some mission. Seifer kept on staring out of the room, lost in thought about what Cid might need him for. Everything had changed… Everything. He finally got up, walking out of the house to get a ride by airplane to the old orphanage…

Esthar had undergone lots of change since the battle. Technology had been improved, and a "golden age" had begun. The streets seemed to be paved of turquoise, and everyone walked around with a busy, yet satisfied look on their faces. Seifer walked to a colossal building from which tremendous airplanes flew in and out constantly. He stepped in, once again lost in thought with daydreams of something amazing happening, when he walked into someone. "Hey! Watch where you're going!" a middle-aged lady said. Seifer started to snap at her, thought better of it, and continued to go on. He once again stared at the glory of the Esthar National Airport. The building's splendor often left people speechless. Thick blue glass covered the walls and the floors were made of zealous blue tile. Gold rails lined aisles into the airport and toward the airplanes. The sheer variety of people was astounding as well. People of all races walked to and from the place, all basking in the glory of the city, built on bridges above the barren earth of Esthar. A security guard stopped Seifer, speaking in a stern voice, "It costs 7500 Gil to board this plane. We aren't offering first-class seats on this plane; it's all coach."

Seifer said, "Aah, I forgot. I don't have a single Gil on me. I'll find a way out of this place, still."

The guard spoke gruffly, "Well then, move on! This isn't a show here!"

Seifer stepped away slowly, in a fashion as if he was doing the guard a favor. Truth be told, when Seifer referred to Squall as "acting like you're the only justice," he could have easily been referring to himself. Seifer leaned back against a wall, arms crossed, head down, plotting a daring rush into a plane, when he heard a distant shout.

"Yo, Seifer! Ya hear me? It's Raijin, ya know? Fujin's wit' me! C'mere!"

Seifer looked toward the source of the noise and saw Fujin and Raijin. Fujin was staring at Seifer passively, like usual, with one hand on her hip, while enthusiastic Raijin was hopping and waving. Fujin kicked Raijin in his shin and he dropped down, cringing. Seifer burst out laughing and walked toward the odd pair.

"SEIFER. YOU LEFT, WHY?"

"I just had some… Things I needed to sort out. I think I'm ready to get out of here, though."

Raijin sat down, depressed, and said, "We don't have any cash, ya know? An' by the looks of it, you don' either."

Seifer just stood, with a grin floating around his face. Raijin knew what that meant, and said quickly, "Ya got a plan!"

Seifer replied, "Yep. We can't afford a plane trip, so we'll just have to negotiate… Fujin, you'll pretend that you're hurt, and I'll get the guard. When he comes, you trip him with your staff, Raijin, and we all go onto the plane. I'll take it from there. Now, the next flight from this section leaves this evening at five o'clock, and now it's… Quarter 'til noon, so we still have some time. How about catching up at a café here? I know the owner, so it'll be free."

They walked quickly to a shabby looking café, dogged by Raijin yelling, "C'mon, guys, I'm starvin', ya know?!" as Fujin kicked him viciously. Soon enough they were there, though the few minutes of walking seemed like hours with the perpetual bantering. They reached it, and noticed that it was wooden, unlike most of the city. They walked in and were quickly intercepted by a shady looking man with dark sunglasses and a black coat.

"Ah, Seifer…" the man said with a snaky voice, "I'm glad it's you." He suddenly diverted his attention to Fujin and Raijin. "Who are they?"

"They're the old friends I told you about. Now, what did you want me for?"

"Well…"

And there's CHAPTER 1! I hope you enjoyed this and I hope to have the next chapter up within the next week! Review please, criticism and compliments are welcome!