Author's note: to Greyon Hell : Well Seifer's my absolute fav character of all time, so I'm doing my best to honor him and keep him as seiferish as I can :)
to shadow-seraph : You can always count on me for fanfics, I don't think I'm ever gonna stop writing 'em! :) As long as there's readers, I'll be writing... Actually I'm trying to come up with a way to make a living out of fanfics...
to Firefly-dreams : Yeah, it bugged me how damn long it takes in the game to finally see the Captain and I thought well hey, two smart guys can find him faster than that :)
Much much thanks to all reviewers and don't you stop it, because it'll quite surely annihilate my inspiration. Please do r&r also my other active story It's Been A While.
-Squall's POV-
"We thought you died," I say.
Roos shrugs. "The Sorceress wouldn't let me go so easily. I'm a good Knight to her, and she appreciates that."
Seifer snorts. "Knight? You're nothing but a lapdog, Essayah."
"Have you forgotten that /you/ wanted to be a SeeD too, Roos?" I ask. "A SeeD, who's supposed to fight evil Sorceresses, not serve them."
He stands up, furious. "I'm am not a SeeD! I never was! Stop insulting the Sorceress's Knight with such a humiliation!"
I foresee a fight coming, just around the corner...
"Humiliation?" Seifer asks, disbelief and amusement fighting over the main part in his voice. "Then why were you in Garden?"
"I didn't know better back then," Roos says, sitting back down. "But now I do, and I've found my true purpose in life. So, what exactly are you two little lovebirds doing here? Shouldn't you be saving the world or fucking each other's brains out?"
"Believe me, I'd much rather be doing either one, but unfortunately, we were sent here to try and negotiate with you," Seifer says. "Which, I see, appears to be impossible considering your current state."
Roos stands up. "My /state/?"
Seifer shrugs. "Yeah, well, you know, under the Sorceress's power. No own will, you're just a... puppet."
The corner has now been left behind and the battle is more than ready to begin. One hypnotized man is no match to me and Seifer and it doesn't take long until he's laying on the floor, panting but, to our surprise, laughing.
"What's so funny, lapdog?" Seifer asks, lowering his Hyperion.
"You SeeDs..." He raises himself to rest on his elbows. "You SeeDs think you're sooo tough, don't you? You think you're feared and respected, but you ain't nothing but overpaid brats with mediocre fighting skills."
I take a step forward before Seifer shuts him up for good. "Seifer. We can't kill him."
"And why's that?"
"He's our friend."
Seifer glances at the half-dead boy on the floor behind me and snorts. "Was."
"Seifer, he is not all that sane right now."
"When was he?"
"Se---"
"Alright, alright," Seifer says and backs up, but keeps Hyperion in a firm grip. "We won't put the traitor outta his misery."
Roos laughs again. "I'm not the miserable one here, oh Mighty Almasy. Just look at yourselves once the Sorceress carries out her plans."
"That really didn't go exactly as planned," I mumble to Seifer as we exit Balamb.
"I know, we let him live."
I stop. "What's with the sudden urge to plunge steel into his heart?"
Seifer turns to me. "I don't like traitors."
I sigh. "I told you, he cannot control his own mind. "
"GUYYYYYYS!!"
We turn to see Zell running from the direction of Garden.
"Guys, Cid wants to talk to you! Right now!"
"'bout what?" Seifer asks.
"He said he's gotta tell us something 'bout the Sorceress, something really important," Zell says, catching his breath.
Seifer shrugs. "Let's not keep the man waiting then," he says and starts walking towards Garden.
Zell and I glance at each other.
"What's with him?"
I shrug. "Dunno, really."
"So how'd it go with the Captain?"
"The Captain is Roos."
"WHAT?!"
I nodd. "He didn't die at the Parade after all."
"Did he say anything 'bout what's the Sorceress planning?"
I shake my head. "Just that it'll be devastating."
He looks at Seifer's small figure down the road, then back at me. "Figured. Let's get to Garden, then."