~Quistis~

I stand on the left side of the cockpit, staring out at the clouds whizzing by and try to tune the couple behind me out. There's only so much planning one can do before it becomes painfully obvious you are the third wheel. I sigh, thinking of how long I have been in this position for. Selphie releases a particularly high pitched giggle as Irvine pokes his fingers between her ribs, tickling the pilot until she threatens his life. Sighing again, I turn and leave the room, hoping to find some peace to ponder in. Where might Zell and Squall have gone, I wonder, scanning the hallway for either of them. Perhaps they were training somewhere, I believe I heard Squall say something about that before we left.

Walking through Ragnarok, I fail to see the two men anywhere. The only place left to search would be the quarters, I think before tapping a finger on my lower lip. If that's the case, they wouldn't be training since there wouldn't be enough room. So, maybe they were coming up with their own plans? I nod, deciding I wanted to join the two in planning what our next move was in Esthar. At least these two wouldn't go on and on about shopping and eating spots. Walking up to Squall's door, I lightly tap my knuckles before pressing the button to open the door.

"Knock knock," I announce, but quickly hush when I see Zell crouching down at the foot of the bed and Squall standing beside him. Both men turn to face my entrance, and peering beside Zell's turned torso I notice he is placing Lionheart back into its case. Squall's face has a glimmer of a smile on it, but as soon as I notice it, it disappears, now turning his gaze downward to Zell. Zell flashes his typical smirk before standing up from the case, punching his fist into his palm.

"We there Quisty?" Zell asks, assuming I am there to retrieve the two of them. I shake my head, pressing my glasses back up on my nose before pointing to Lionheart.

"Were you just using Lionheart?" I question, eyeing the two men suspiciously. Nobody in the history of Squall and his gunblades has ever been allowed to touch any of the man's weapons, especially not Lionheart. It is an unspoken rule almost, one he only had to glare out through his threatening eyes. Am I wrong? Zell chuckles, Squall shaking his head and smacking the blonde's shoulder from behind him.

"Cleaning it actually; Zell lost a bet," the brunette explains, dropping his hand from Zell's shoulder and taking a few steps over towards the table. I nod in understanding, but I can't help but notice the interesting atmosphere in here. Did I interrupt something? Or are these residual feelings of being the third wheel from earlier? Zell watches Squall go towards the table before turning his eyes back to mine, crooking a brow at me.

"What's up?" he asks, now wondering why I have come to the quarters. I shrug before crossing my arms in front of me and explain.

"I didn't know if you two were off training so I looked for you, but I didn't find you so I thought you might be planning what to do when we get to Esthar. Any ideas?" Both men glance at one another before shaking their heads. Neither of them have planned anything beyond meeting with Laguna. Which reminds me; I glance at Squall and ask, "Does the president know we are coming?" Squall shakes his head once again, internally rolling his eyes at himself for forgetting to call ahead. I remember his phone was dead this morning. Perhaps that led to the reason it slipped his mind. Something about this room and these two just feels like I am intruding, so I hold my hand up to Squall to stop his fretting.

"I'll call him now. A small warning of our arrival is better than none, right?" Before the two can answer me, I am already leaving the room, the door swishing shut behind me. Another sigh slips out past my lips, realizing I truly am the third wheel, or fifth wheel if we are all together. Probably because I spend all of my time with my previous students, and who would be interested in dating their instructor? I frown, thinking how that actually would be a common interest. Pinching the bridge of my nose, a habit I picked up from Squall, I shuffle towards the nearest couch and make my phone call.

Kiros sounds glad when I tell him we'll be arriving soon, mentioning the president could use with some good news today before getting off the phone with me. With that done and everyone else occupied, I decide to lie down on the couch, removing my glasses and placing them on the table beside me. I'll nap before my thoughts get the best of me. The mundane hum of the surroundings seems to work as a lullaby, easing me into sleep within seconds.

~Laguna~

Worry spreads across my face as I watch my little girl sleep on the couch in my office, her hand lightly gripping my own. What the hell is happening now to make her lose sleep? What evil presence refuses to leave her alone? Questions pile up in my mind, squashing out any other thoughts I might come up with and consuming my focus.

"Sir," A familiar voice catches my ear as the man walks into the room. His arms are tucked behind his back and a curious smile appears on his face. I frown at the man, finding his happiness to be ill placed given what Ellone is going through. He ignores my dirty look and continues to smile as he walks all the way over to my side, bending down to whisper in my ear so as to not disturb Ell.

"I just received word that Squall will be here soon. Just enough time for you to get to the entrance to greet him, in fact." The timing can't be any better. I sigh and grip Kiros's hand as he helps me stand up once again. Gently, I release Ellone's fingers, keeping quiet to let her continue her nap, before turning and leaving with Kiros as my guide. Once out the door I inform the two guards to wait inside and keep an eye on my daughter while I am gone, the two saluting and entering the room to follow my orders. At least when she wakes up she will be greeted by her brother instead of just my old mug. Kiros and I make it to the end of the hall, finding the hovering elevator and taking our seats.

"Why the sudden visit?" I question my advisor as the elevator starts its descent. Kiros shakes his head and looks at me.

"She didn't say, just that they were on their way here and would be here very soon." I nod, wondering if Squall may be able to shed some light on what is going on with Ellone. The elevator stops and lands at the entrance of the palace. I peer out the glass doorway to see the masses of Estharians out and about, visiting and socializing without a care in the world. The buildings spread out as far as the eye can see, showing the true vastness of Esthar and all of its beauty. From the outside though, the city doesn't exist, making it the safest place in the world for Ellone to be. My heart swells with a bit of love for being the leader of this fine place, wishing I was able to keep Squall here safely hidden away as well. I can't be too upset with the company I have, and I understand the headmaster's responsibilities. Kiros and I are walking along the pathways, deciding to be out among everyone instead of holed up in the elevator network leading to the entrance to Esthar.

"Will we still meet them at the entrance you think?" I ask, wondering if taking the long way would eat up too much time. Kiros shrugs, not really knowing the exact time of their arrival. A couple of people come up to us, discussing some repairs with Kiros before wishing us a good rest of our day. I draw in a deep breath, drinking in the leisurely atmosphere.

"I love this city," I inform my advisor, only for the millionth time I'm sure. I have ever since ending up here, our lives finally calming down enough for us to just exist, to take things day by day like normal people. It was amazing then, and still amazes me to this day. Kiros mumbles something as a response, but the two of us finally make our way to the entrance to the city, a familiar group of kids standing at the top of the stairs glancing all around.

I refrain from screaming at them to get their attention, remembering I am in public and the president. Presidents do not scream. That is about the best I could do at containing my excitement to see Squall though. My legs bounce up the stairs as quickly as possible before I crush the cringing brunette against my chest in the tightest hug I could manage. He keeps it brief though, against my will, pulling away from me while holding each of my shoulders with stiff arms to keep me back. My face splits into a smile, greeting the others by name before turning my attention back to Squall.

"Glad to have you all here. It's been too long." The girls gave me a quick hug one by one, Irvine tilting his hat in greeting and Zell offering a handshake. After the greetings are all finished, I clap my arm around Squall's shoulders and start leading him down the stairs towards a waving Kiros, who is shaking his head at my antics. It doesn't matter how long you've known me, you'll never get used to me, I laugh to myself.

"Squall, I'm really glad you're here. Something's going on with your sister," I begin, but the boy nods at my words.

"I know. Something's going on with me as well. I planned on discussing it with everyone once we're all together. Sis is here, right?" he asks, glancing around to make sure he didn't miss the shy girl standing off in a corner somewhere.

"Yes she is back at the palace. She needed to rest after last night," I explain. Squall's eyes widen with worry but I shake my head to ease his mind. "She's fine, just napping. I'll let her explain when you see her. She'll be so excited you're here." I squeeze his shoulder before dropping my arm, knowing he hates all things related to physical contact, but at least we have gotten to a point where we can compromise. It has taken an awfully long time to get here, but here we are. Given Squall's urgency to speak to us all, we opt out of walking back to the palace, taking the elevators straight back to the palace entrance. As we start to take our seats on the elevator to enter the palace, a voice behind the group calls out to us.

"Chicken-wuss?" An instinctive twitch hitches Zell's eyebrow as he turns while balling his fists up in a challenging stance. The others turn as well to see one of my long-term visitors, Seifer Almasy. Right, I probably should've mentioned that to Squall at some point. Oops.