Disclaimer: (See Part I.)
A/N: Chayn is a character that I made up; I own nothing else but the plot of this story.
-.-.-.-.-
The end of the week approached rather quickly, considering that Zell and Irvine thought that it would never arrive when they had received the list of tasks on Monday. On Saturday around noon, Irvine completed his last task and Zell didn't have to help Seifer until then next day, so they were free to take some time off. They had been waiting for some down time all week.
"Now that you're off, and I don't have to do anything 'til tomorrow, how about we go get some hotdogs? I'm starved!" Zell put a hand on his grumbling stomach.
"Yeah, we can do that, but first, I think we should find our classmates and find out what homework we missed," said Irvine. "Especially you... No offense."
Zell shrugged. "Maybe some of them will be in the cafeteria," he suggested hopefully.
"I don't think so," said Irvine. "The ones who actually copy down the homework from the board are the ones who spend hours and hours in the library."
Zell's shoulders dropped. "But I'm hungry!" he complained.
"It'll only take a mintue to go to the library, don't be such a sissy." Irvine walked in the direction of the library.
"Hey! I'm not a sissy!" Zell objected and followed Irvine.
-.-.-.-.-
Zell was surprised when it turned out that Irvine had been right about the intelligent students spending a lot of time in the library. They walked up to a Trepe Groupie and tapped her on the shoulder.
"Excuse me," said Irvine, "do you have this weeks homework for second period?"
"Just a sec," said the girl. She scribbled something down in her notes before flipping through her panner to where she had written down the homework. She wrote it down on a separate piece of paper and handed it to Irvine. "Oh, hey Irvine," she exclaimed, having looked up from her books for the first time to see who was talking to her. "Were you and Zell expelled?"
"If we were expelled, would I be here asking you for the homework?" asked Irvine.
"I guess not," she replied. "Well, good luck with the homework. I'll be here the rest of the afternoon if you need any help with it." She smiled sweetly. "I have to finish this report for my last period class on the affects of GF's on a users memories."
Irvine thanked the Trepe Groupie and turned back to Zell. "Told you I could it here."
Zell nodded looking impressed. "Now can we go get some hotdogs?"
"In a minute. Come over here." Irvine pulled Zell over to the side of the library so that they could talk in private.
" 'Sup?" asked Zell.
"I just wanted to tell you about that dream I had earlier. It's been on my mind constantly and I just want you to know now so that I will stop forgetting to tell you about it."
Zell stomach growled again, but he tried to ignore it. "Okay, tell me now."
Irvine nodded, looking a little distraught. He told Zell all about his dream and about his suspicion of Chayn, and then waited for Zell's response.
"I told ya you should go see a psychic," Zell said all knowingly, not frightened in the least by the dream that Irvine assumed to be prophetic. "I think you're reading way too much into that dream, man."
"Maybe, but either way, you shouldn't be alone with Chayn. I don't trust him."
Zell looked to the side and chuckled to himself before looking back at Irvine's serious face. "Listen, there's nothing wrong with Chayn, he's just a friendly SeeD-in-training. You've got absolutely nothing against him."
"Good afternoon, Zell... Irvine." Chayn seemed to come up to them out of no where.
Irvine jumped away from the younger boy with fright that he might suck out their souls or put a curse on them if they got too close.
"Hey Chayn. What are you doing here?" asked Zell.
"I am doing some research on an ancient fungi for Dr. Kadowaki," Chayn explained.
'Yeah right,' thought Irvine. 'More like learning how to concoct an evil curse.'
Chayn glanced at Irvine and smiled innocently.
'Don't gimme that look,' thought Irvine, and gave him an 'I'm-on-to-you' glare.
"Well, it was nice to see you both. Don't forget, Zell, that I need to speak with you some time," Chayn reminded before going to a book shelf and pulling out a rather large hard cover that Irvine hoped would crush the puny kid.
Zell and Irvine left the library and made their way to the cafeteria.
"What's with you, Irv? You're all jumpy. Are you really that scared that something is gonna happen?"
Irvine tried to speak calmly. "Haven't you noticed that Chayn seems to pop up out of thin air a lot? Doesn't that strike you as a little odd?"
"Well, he does kinda sneak up on people, but that's 'cause he's so quiet that people don't hear him coming," Zell reasoned, but reasoning was beyond Irvine.
"I think he's into black magic or something, and he's gonna put a curse on me any day now if he hasn't already." Irvine looked around with shifty eyes.
"Irvine, that's just nonsense. Now why can't you just leave the kid alone?" They turned to go into the crowded cafeteria. "Is it 'cause you're jealous that he wants to talk to me and not you?"
"No!" Irvine objected in a childish manner.
"Then just forget about that dream and move on," Zell instructed.
Irvine promised not to say anything more about Chayn and the possibility of him preforming black magic, but that didn't mean that he would stop thinking about it.
-.-.-.-.-
"Hey you two!" sung the familiar voice of Quistis. "I see you are both studying like good boys."
Irvine and Zell looked up from the table where they sat in the library trying to catch up on a lot of the homework that they had missed.
"I heard that you two went on a double date with Rinoa and Squall," Quistis crossed her arms in front of her and pouted. I wish I would have gone. That would have been so cute to see you two!"
Zell's face went red and he thought, 'Rinoa and her big, stupid mouth.' He looked back down at his homework and tried to concentrate hard on memorizing where all of the cities and villages were located on the world map.
"Yeah, maybe next time we feel like becoming a spectacle," replied Irvine.
Quistis looked hurt. "I was only saying... Oh nevermind." She walked away from them feeling slightly flustered.
Irvine looked to Zell. "Hey, we should do something again soon. Maybe next weekend, assuming that we get caught up on all this homework."
Zell nodded his head. "Yeah, sure," he replied half-heartedly, but Irvine didn't take notice.
"Great." Irvine closed his text book and began to back up his belonging.
"Where are you going?" asked Zell.
"I'm going to report to Headmaster Cid now that I have finished all of my community service." He stood up. "I'll catch ya later."
Irvine left, leaving Zell to let his mind wandered from his homework to thought of Irvine. Why was the taller boy getting on his nerves all of a sudden? Maybe it was the fact that he had spent so much time with him out and about all week completing their tasks.
He wasn't sure why he was feeling this way, but he felt as if he was being held back from being his true self becuase of Irvine. Like he couldn't say what was really on his mind when Irvine was around. It wasn't that Irvine was shooting him down everytime that he opened his mouth, he wasn't, but he was getting so uptight and protective of Zell ever since he had had that dream. Zell felt like as if he were being strangled.
Zell blinked back to reality. He had to study the map. Dollet, Balamb, Fisherman's Horizon, Cactuar Island... That's where Seifer had been. Seifer had changed quite a bit since the last time Zell had talk to him, or rather, the last time that he had made fun of Zell. That had been months ago. Zell wondered what was becoming of the world. Maybe helping Seifer the next day wouldn't be as bad as he had thought it would be.
-.-.-.-.-
"No, Raijin, I said to put the microphone on the left side of the stage," Seifer shouted across the room.
Raijin looked up. "This is the left side of the stage!"
"IDIOT!" Fujin picked up the microphone and carried it to the other side of the stage.
Zell walked into the Quad where he had preiously helped Selphie set up for her Pupu Campaign.
"There you are!" Seifer exclaimed upon seeing Zell, hoping that he would be more competent that Raijin. "Cid told me that you would be here to help."
"Yep," Zell replied unenthusiastically. "What can I do?"
"Why so glum, chum?" Seifer asked in a totally uncharacteristical way.
"Huh?" responded Zell in a surprised tone.
"What's the matter? Aren't you excited to be here? I'm going to give a lecture on the Cactuars of Cactuar Island to the students who are interested," Seifer explained. "If I do a good job, Cid said that he might consider hiring me as a substitute instructor!"
'Seifer has definitely changed,' thought Zell, observing his eerie 'happy-go-lucky' outlook on life. Selphie must have really been having an impact on him. "That's good."
"Good? It's great! Becoming an instructor has become my new passion in life!" Seifer proclaimed to the world.
"Wish I had a passion," Zell mumbled.
Seifer put a hand on Zell's shoulder. "You're in luck today, my friend, because today your passion is to be a Cactuar." He held up a Cactuar mascot costume for Zell.
"Wonderful..." Zell rolled his eyes sarcastically.
"Isn't it?" asked Seifer. He looked to the stage to see how Rajin was doing. "No, Raijin, I don't want the screen to go there, it has to go on the right!" He pointed to the right.
"This is the right!" Raijin shouted back to him.
Fujin walked over to Raijin and rolled the screen to the other side of the stage. "HOPELESS!"
Zell took his Cactuar and walked to the other side of the room to change. Just what he had always wanted... to be a Cactuar.
"Hey Zell," Seifer called to his back, "don't go '1000 Needles' on anyone, okay?"
-.-.-.-.-
End of Part XIII.