Alright, an update! does the special Taryn Dance

Ok, the usuals apply: I own nothing but I would own Seifer if I could. I own all my doodlies of him, though, so that's close enough. Anyway, all you should probably go reread the first chapter seeing how long it's been… But yeah. Here's the next installment….

Road to Absolution

Chapter 2: Animosity

The entire school was brought to a shocked silence as the two rivals exchanged stares. Squall Leonhart couldn't believe that he was looking directly into the eyes of the man he had hoped to never see again. And yet here he was, watching the crowd as if daring them to make any sort of move against him. Squall wondered what was going through the young man's mind.

The silence was deafening for Seifer as he tried to make eye contact with everybody in the room. If he could intimidate one of them—one, at least—then maybe, just maybe, they would stop staring. Suddenly, a girl at the podium spoke up. He recognized this girl. Why, she was none other than the Messenger Girl, the frighteningly hyper Selphie Tilmitt.

"Seifer? What are you doing here?"

Seifer opened his mouth to speak, but found that no words would come out. It was one of the rare times that Seifer actually felt helpless in his entire life; as though his entire future rested on the mere decisions of the people surrounding him. Yet he could find no words, no explanation for his sudden return. What was he to say, anyway?

"I—I have come to speak to Cid," he finally managed to huff loudly, sending a glare to some unpleasant underlings that were staring at him unreligiously. They slightly cowered from him and began whispering excitedly. Seifer's glare then found two very familiar faces hurdling themselves towards the front of the stage: Raijin and Fujin. The two looked almost panicked as they watched Seifer and Seifer watched them. It had been forever and a day in his eyes since he had last seen them, and he missed the two more than he would ever admit and they would ever realize. He would have called to them, but Quistis Trepe's voice brought Seifer out of the slight reverie.

"SeeD does not allow just anybody to speak to the Headmaster, Seifer. You must provide a valid reason, as he is very busy." The cold tone of the instructor was new to Seifer, as even when he had been rude to her, she had always maintained a sarcastic, amused tone around him. Now her voice was cold as steel, and her pale blue eyes reflected this ice as coldly as Squall's. Seifer suddenly noticed the coldness that permeated from all the onlookers eyes as they rested upon him, and he ironically only found solstice in a few pair, namely those of the caring Rinoa whom he had once come to love, and from Selphie, whom Seifer had always understood was kindhearted and forgiving to most. Maybe, if he could reach her, the same forgiveness would seep into the veins of those from whom he needed the forgiveness most, namely the Commander himself and from Cid.

"Then I need to talk to a few of you. Privately," Seifer responded to Quistis's question, causing the tall blonde to hesitate a moment.

"Maybe you should be waitin' for the ceremony to end, then." Seifer couldn't help but sneer at this next familiar voice, belonging namely to the man whom Seifer had merely dubbed the cowboy-wannabe. If he remembered correctly, the man's name was Irvine, but Chicken-Wuss and Puberty-Boy had proven that Seifer didn't have to know real names. Seifer's sneer only made the cowboy glare in return, fingering the rifle hanging loosely at his side.

Seifer's hand also automatically went to his weapon, but he quickly withdrew it, knowing that any duel at this point would ruin the chances he was quickly destroying. He instead clenched his fist and took a seat on the stage as the ceremony proceeded. It was a long and drawn-out ceremony (just as Seifer had always remembered it to be) and was hard to stay awake for, but what was to come after, Seifer knew was well worth the wait.

"Now, Seifer, why have you come back here?" Even after she had been given time to settle down, Quistis's voice was still cold and Seifer again found himself at a loss for words. He swallowed quickly, hoping that the words he wanted to say were the words that came out, and that the worst wouldn't happen. Not that it was too bad to start, but at this point, Seifer really couldn't handle being denied the home that he so desperately longed to return to.

"I want to return. To Garden." Seifer stated boldly after a few seconds, "I wish to make amends with Balamb Garden and return as a practicing student."

Somehow, Zell actually managed to choke on the air as Seifer made his comment, and the blonde snickered as the other gasped for air. Squall's face remained unamused as Rinoa tried to help Zell, and his gaze remained on Seifer.

"What makes you think Garden is even willing to accept you back?" Zell cried after a few moments of choking. Seifer shrugged his shoulders, unsure of what to say.

"I think we should let him back."

The voice had seem so sure of itself that Seifer almost doubted it to come from the tiny girl standing next to the cowboy. It seemed that none of the others believed it either, as everybody turned to give Selphie rather incredulous looks. Squall crossed his arms and continued to stare, as if imploring Selphie to offer an explanation.

"Well, I think everybody deserves a second chance," Selphie stole a glance at Seifer, "And that even though he inflicted immeasurable pain upon many—" (for which everybody nodded in agreement)—"I think he has suffered almost as much as we all have. Seifer, have you changed?"

Seifer's mouth was firmly shut and he gritted his teeth, both in irritation for the reminder of his past actions and for the pain that Selphie so accurately described, but he managed to nod quickly. Zell let out a frustrated grunt in response, crossing his arms much like Squall.

Finally, the silent leader spoke. "Seifer, for what reasons do you think you deserve to return?"

Seifer's first thought was actually to show Squall his superior junctioning and weapons skills, but then again decided that it would not be so effective in winning the group's affection. "I—I can prove my worth, if you let me try—" Seifer hesitated and looked away before finishing the sentence—"Please, just give me a chance."

He couldn't bring himself to look at the faces that the others were offering in response. He didn't want to know what they were thinking, what they were feeling. He couldn't handle the rejection that he was almost certain would come at this point. He had nothing to offer; no proof, no consolation, nothing that they could accept as a valid excuse to be accepted.

But he had completely underestimated Selphie's belief in a second chance. He had completely ignored the forgiveness that had passed through her face, briefly through the faces of a few others. He had completely missed the pathetic look shared between the group of six begging his acceptance. He almost completely missed the Balamb Commander addressing him.

"We shall leave it up to the Headmaster. If he so chooses to accept you, then consider yourself temporarily off the hook." Seifer had turned around at this point, ready to leave. He flung himself back around to face the small group and had to force himself to not fly into the arms of the nearest person (which, ironically, would have been either Zell or Squall) and to calmly follow the retreating Quistis to the Headmaster's office.

Wow. Two years. Over two years.

God, what has school done to me!

But that's ok, I'm starting anew! I officially have more time now that IB (search International Baccalaureate Programme, if you're curious) no longer controls my life, so hopefully this will be continued moreso than it has… Wait, it already is!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I actually enjoyed returning to this story—but I'm not updating until I get reviews! . !

Anyway, stay tuned for the next chapter, Road to Absolution, Chapter 3: Second Chances!

Oh, and of course, the teaser line:

"'I couldn't very well just leave you to rot, could I? I'm going to help you get readjusted.' He wouldn't have chosen her if given a chance, but at this point he was just grateful for the acceptance, even if it were temporary."

Hmm, somebody's helping somebody out. But you can probably guess, seeing the… uh… summary and category… ;

Taryn Eithne