Disclaimer: I don't own the characters, I do not own the places. I don't own anything related to FFVIII, all I own is the plot.
- Chapter five: Meeting an Old Friend -
They walked down from the boarding plank and onto the beach.
"Hey! Squall! Guys! What a coincidence!"
The four of them looked at where the shout had come form.
"Rajin?" Zell asked confused. "What are you doing here?"
Selphie chuckled. "Zell, we're here to guard Fujin."
"…We are?"
"…Don't tell me you didn't know." Selphie sighed.
Squall looked from the argument to Quistis. She was strangely quiet. She felt his stare and gave him a smile to shake off his worry.
"Well, come on. Fu's not to know, so tell her that…her dad thought it'd be a nice idea to invite you all."
"Why would he have done that?" Selphie asked.
"To…err…keep Seifer happy." Rajin said quickly. "Look, Cid sent you because he thought it would benefit the mission. It would have been easier if he had sent others, but he didn't so this is how we'll make do."
Squall nodded slowly. "Right…so…we're here, but we're not. Is that it?"
"Be invisible to both Fujin and Seifer. It's best if he doesn't know about you either. If they do find out, you guys were invited by her father, okay? If Seifer knows but Fujin doesn't, then there will be problems. He has a hard time hiding anything from her. We all do. All I want is for this wedding to go smoothly."
"But why can't we go up to Fujin and say we were invited by her dad right away?" Selphie wondered.
"To be honest…I don't think she'd be too pleased. She's been wanting to sever with all her ties with Garden except me and Seifer. I think it has something to do with wedding jitters. But I also think that she'd be furious because she didn't personally invite you and she wants everything to go her way." Rajin said.
He waited a moment before speaking again to let everything sink in.
"Well, let's get going. I arranged some rooms for you at the hotel. I suppose you'll have to share rooms, they don't have too many of them and there are a few guests staying there already. The party's soon, ya."
Zell looked up, raising an eyebrow. "Err…we have to share?"
"I'm sharing with Quisty!" Selphie said immediately. "I don't want to share with a boy who leaves his dirty clothes all over the floor."
"Hey! Who says I do?"
"Please Zell. All boys do. Do you want to tell me you're the exception on the rule?" she replied with just enough sneer to silence Zell.
Quistis couldn't help smiling. She looked at Squall, but her smile faded again slightly as she saw his serious frown.
"Very well." he said. "Guys, I want one last briefing before the party. Rajin, thank you for calling in SeeD. We'll do our best."
He saluted.
"Thanks Squall. I'll leave it in your hands." Rajin saluted too and left them in front of the hotel.
Selphie went in and walked up to the desk. The others followed her silently. Quistis wondered why Squall was so silent. Was there something he didn't tell them?
"Here, our keys." Selphie said.
"We've got one with a balcony." she whispered to Quistis with a giggle.
"Listen up everyone. I want all of you to focus. That means no subtle whispering when I'm talking, Selphie." Squall said warningly.
Selphie blushed. "Sorry Squall."
"The party is tonight." he continued. "We'll change into our party attire but take your weapons with you. We have…" he checked his watch. "Two hours and thirty-two minutes exactly to get there, so I want each and everyone of you down her in one and a half hour. Rajin will send a man to take us up to the house where we will be allowed to check out the perimeter. Any questions?"
He looked around, but no hand rose.
"Good. Dismissed."
Quistis found herself saluting automatically, as did Zell and Selphie. Immediately an air of discomfort settled around them. Selphie tried to laugh it off but sounded like a frightened moomba in a lightning storm.
Quistis was the first of them to break away from the group and made her way up the stairs. She found her suitcase had been brought up and it was waiting at her door.
'Darn.' she thought.
"Selphie! You've got out key!" she shouted down the corridor.
"Coming!" a muffled voice sounded back.
Selphie ran up the stairs hastily, pressing the key into Quistis' hands. She opened the door and carried her suitcase inside, throwing it down on the nearest bed.
"Woohoo! Look at that beautiful view!" Selphie exclaimed as she opened the balcony doors. "You can see the ocean!"
"Yeah, perhaps we can see Balamb on a clear day." Zell's teasing voice sounded next to her.
Selphie jumped back, clasping one hand to her heart.
"Zell?" she asked incredulously. "What- Hey! How com you guys have a balcony too! That's not fair…"
Zell laughed.
Inside, Quistis had started to unpack. Taking a brush, she started to comb her hair. Travelling always made her hair a mess. It became a little bird's nest the moment she got onboard any kind of vehicle.
Selphie had closed the doors to the balcony and had now started to unpack her dress. It was long and elegant and made out of smooth yellow satin. She laid it out on the bed and produced two long gloves of the same material from her bag.
Quistis unpacked her own dress. It was black and simple, with little red roses embroidered on the bodice and along the bottom of the skirt.
"Quistis? Could you zip me up?" Selphie's voice came from the bathroom.
"Sure. Just a second. Then you can help me too."
She undressed quickly and stepped inside her dress, pulling it up over her waist. She got her arms through the short sleeves and made her way into the bathroom. Selphie was waiting in front of a full length mirror.
"You look beautiful Quisty!" she piped.
Quistis blushed. She didn't really think of herself as a beautiful person. She had always envied Selphie's slender figure. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't obtain such a tiny waist.
When Quistis had zipped her up, Selphie clasped a thin chain around her waist. It was a thin kind of belt with emerald beads every so often. The chain hung downwards down the front of her skirt, dividing it into smaller surfaces.
"Don't we look fab." Selphie asked beamingly as she zipped Quistis' dress up.
Quistis nodded vaguely. "Yes. We do."
"Quistis…I think it's best if you try to stay hidden tonight. Don't come out into the hall if you don't have to."
"…I…"
"It's best if you don't see him."
"Yes. I know. I'll try and stay away from the hall. If anything goes wrong I'll send Squall in head first, okay?"
Selphie giggled.
"The big softie. You know he'd give his life for any one of us, even though he'll never admit it. But now he's been mentioned…don't you think he's being a bit…weird?" she asked. "I mean, he was talking so seriously today. So superior. He really acted as a commander today and you don't see that happen very often."
Quistis shrugged.
"Perhaps he feels extra responsibility today because we're working for other Garden students." She said as she slipped her gun down her boot. "Come on, Squall's waiting."
They left the room and walked down the stairs. Zell and Squall were waiting in the foyer. They were dressed in sleek black trousers, a white dress shirt and a black jacket.
"The proper gentlemen." Selphie whispered softly.
Quistis snorted. Seeing Zell dressed like this was really strange.
"Oh man." he sighed. "This thing is like a straightjacket. You can't move in this thing."
"Don't complain, you big baby." Selphie said as she took his arm. "You look really cute. Doesn't he, Quisty?"
"Cute wasn't the word I was looking for…" she muttered.
Squall chuckled and offered her his arm. "Shall we?"
The four of them walked outside and were greeted by a guard. As they walked up to the big house at the top of the hill, Quistis felt more and more hesitation grow inside her. She halted and bit her lip. Squall looked at her.
"Quistis…you know you have to. I understand it's hard but if you don't do this now then you'll never get over it."
He hugged her. "Come on, I know you can do this."
She nodded. "I'm sorry Squall. I know I had promised you I would not let this get to me…I guess it's just a little harder then I expected. Sorry. I'll focus. I'm alright now."
"You sure?"
She nodded. "Yes…Now let's go. Selphie and Zell are already half a block ahead of us."
She took Squall's arm again and walked on, the determination on her face masking her fear.
"Sir, the guests area arriving. Lady Fujin is asking for you."
"I'll be right there."
Seifer stared into the mirror above his washbasin. The thought of all those guests made him nervous. He splashed water in his face. Feeling refreshed, he dried his face with a towel.
He took a deep breath and followed the guard outside. He made his way down the stairs and joined Fujin at the side of her father's chair.
She was wearing a long, midnight blue dress and a pair of small glittery gloves. He had to admit that she looked beautiful. Her face was serious and happy at the same time. Seifer forced himself to look happy too.
For Fujin. For their marriage.
Hey everyone!
Well, the room-hunting didn't go well…I guess I'll just have to keep on looking, even though it's tiring me out of my mind. And since I have nothing else to do for a while because school is OVER, I am kinda bored at home. So I decided to post another update!
Dark Angels: You have to wait that long for the results? That's inhuman! I get my results the 16th of June, the day before my birthday. So if they're bad then my birthday's gonna suck too ;) Glad you liked the update. Squall is acting sweet isn't he…I think it might be a little ooc, but hey! It's a fanfic, so I'm allowed to write him like that ;)
Matron Raenee: Glad you liked the fourth chapter! I hope this one was okay too. I know not a lot happened in it, but I can definitely promise that there's going to happen a lot in the next one nn This one is mainly to build up tension and to annoy eager reader ;) Nah, not to annoy anyone. That wouldn't be fair, would it? I hope to see you at the next chapter!
PRODIGIOUS TECHIE: I know what it's like when you can't log on. Sometimes when I want to post an update, it won't allow me on and that really annoys me. But after a day everything is fine and I can update. So I know how annoying internet can be :)
JadeAlmasy: nn well this certainly was a quick update! I hope to find a place soon, too. It's so tiring to have to do that same ritual ever time. But I think I may be in luck! I got a message today for one of those interviews on June the 9th, on the same student housing address as another interview, same day, only a little earlier. And the latter interview is for two rooms! So…perhaps my room worries will finally be over!
Firess Ifrit Devil: haha, I know all about addicting games :D I had that for a while too, but nowadays I'm more addicted to writing. Though I must admit that that's going a little slow the last few days. When I needed to study, I had inspiration enough. But now that I've got all the time in the world, I can't think of anything really good. Annoying, isn't it…anyway, they'll meet in the seventh chapter and a lot will happen in the next one too! See you there!
Thank you all again for reviewing, I'll see you guys soon!
love, Raven55