Also one thousand.
The bell rang one last time and the students spilled out into the sunshine.
"Free, free," Pence said, and plopped down on the grass, swinging his messenger bag so it lay in his lap. "And who woulda thought, we'd still be like this now?"
Olette clobbered him over the head and rested on his shoulder. "Quiet, Pence. Just enjoy the last moments of having to look at this school, to look at school in general. Where do you wanna go after this?"
"I'm going to work in the ice cream shop, of course. I'll learn how to make sea salt ice cream," he twirled a curl of her hair behind her ear. "And give it to Hayner and you for less munny. But I still gotta make a living, you know?"
"Yeah," she said. "Think I'll go to the dressmakers'. Hayner?"
The last of the three of them was staring off into the distance. "I have to go," he said, standing up, his fists clenching.
"Hayner?" Olette asked. "Hayner!"
Pence placed his hand over hers and jerked his head toward the doors of the school, swinging slowly open. "He's got something to do, Olette. Something final."
"I should have guessed."
Fuu dragged Rai along, forcing him to sit down in front of Olette and Pence.
"Why we gotta be here, Fuu?" Rai asked, scratching his head. "I don't wanna be here."
"Shut up. Stay away. From them."
"Hey Fuu," Pence said, reaching out for her hand and holding on tight, "Promise you won't go running after either of them if they start fighting again?"
"Promise. They will. Settle. Or else."
Olette shivered.
Somehow, as Hayner ran, his pride swelled in his chest, until he came to a stop at the bottom of the stairs, his breath coming evenly. He looked up at Seifer, who glared down, with his arms crossed.
"This is it, Seifer," Hayner said. "You won't bully anyone around anymore, after this."
"I'm still the head of the Twilight Town Disciplinary Committee, boy," Seifer said. "No matter what, I'll always be around."
"You can be the head of as many things you like, but I won't listen to you and the Town won't, either."
"How dare you -"
"Take me on. Right now, right here. If you win, I'll listen to you. If you lose, I'll forget everything I ever learned to respect about you."
"Fine. I always have Struggle bats with me -"
"-No. You. Me. Fists. Now. We're no longer part of the school. Fighting won't get us suspended or expelled. Let's go - or are you a 'fraidy-cat?"
"You'll be sorry, boy."
"...We'll see."
Twilight Town, the break of dusk, eternally; the lights are on, or off, depending on the time of day. Now the schoolhouse lights flicker on, dully, the white of them dappling across Hayner's face, looking upward. Shadow plays in patterns as the trees around them rustle, across Seifer's face and his long white jacket, the scar on his face dull red.
Seifer descends, until he is face to face with Hayner, and they stare at each other, pushing, grappling, every fight they've ever had (lost in the Struggles, ten to one Seifer has won) with the verbal (Hayner wins the battle of wits, every time) and they are.
"Fight me," Hayner says, and grits his teeth and his fists. He will no longer throw the first punch because this isn't about him. Behind his mind's eye Pence and Olette are sitting on the grass, free of Seifer, and he will go to join them on the days where rainclouds bring his Town true night. In the fat droplets he will count the stars in the gaps between the clouds, the ease of long days after days after days of true peace. He will go on the train with Olette and Pence, and visit the other suburbs of Twilight Town, and meet new people, and do new things. Maybe he will even pluck up the courage to visit the ghost in the haunted house out the edge of town.
Seifer glares at him, looks away.
"...I can't do this," Seifer says. "...You haven't done anything wrong."
That's it?
Seifer slides away from him, turns around and takes a step away. And another. Hayner stares at the doors of the school, feeling utterly, absolutely, cheated.
"No, Seifer," he says, and his voice is louder. "I've never done anything wrong! It's always, always been YOU!"
He whirls and he's suddenly angry, he pushes Seifer, the back of him, to the ground. Seifer twists until he falls without hurting himself, kicking up at Hayner.
"For assaulting a member of the Disciplinary Committee," Seifer says, and his face is alight with delight, "You shall be punished!" Seifer lunges and Hayner swings and the world explodes in tolerable pain. They are rolling around each other, kicking and punching and biting, and Hayner deliberately rakes his fingers along Seifer's scar. Seifer elbows him in the stomach and they are fighting, fighting the way Hayner has always wanted to do.
Hayner gets his hands together and double-fists Seifer's stomach, pushing himself away from Seifer and rolling to his feet. He grins toothily and spits a clump of blood onto the grass. "Had enough, Seifer?"
Seifer spits out a loose tooth and pulls himself to his feet. "I think, you've been disciplined enough...this time, you bloody delinquent."
"Glad to have won," Hayner gloats.
"Later, loser," Seifer says, and begins to limp off. Three steps away from Hayner, Seifer looks back, and smiles. It's genuine, the first genuine smile instead of a smirk, that Hayner has seen on him, ever.
Hayner wonders if they'll ever stop fighting - but then again, life would be damn boring without a rival.
...And besides. Who else would watch the watchers, guard the guardians? He wouldn't want Seifer to go off mad on power. He owes his rival too much for that.