Irvine lay in bed as the garden sped towards Timber. He couldn't get the flying cow out of his head. It had to have been the heat. He had a sinking feeling he was concentrating on the cow to get Selphie out of his mind. After leaving Winhill Squall had pulled him aside and told him he wouldn't be allowed to go into Timber. It seems he needed his rest. They, Squall and Rinoa, were taking Quistis instead. That was fine with him. As he left the command office Rinoa had been waiting for him in the elevator. He got an earful from her about Selphie. Seems Rinoa disagreed with Squalls idea of rest, so she arranged a date of sorts for them. They were to hang out at Mandy Beach. Zell would be close by something about a creepy lake he wanted to revisit, so they should be safe. He asked if Squall knew, she got mad. Said of course, but he didn't want to make it a command so she told him.

So here he was, laying in bed, all of these thoughts running in the background to his failure in Winhill. "Damn cow" he muttered. He was still there sleeping when he felt the Garden shift and stop. Two seconds later Nida came on over the loudspeaker announcing that they had made their destination and calling out Squalls orders. He sighed before grabbing his gun from under the bunk and swinging his long legs to the floor. Bending down slightly he checked his appearance in the mirror by the door, straightening his hair and vest ever so slightly, he tilted his cowboy hat to the just perfect angle before heading out.

He smiled as he saw a flash of yellow in front of him. Selphie. She was turning cartwheels down the hallway when she disappeared with a leap he could only assume was over a staircase. He quickened his pace upon hearing a loud thump. He got there just in time to see her spring up and run towards the exit. He chuckled as he made his way down the stairs, his gun butt sliding down the rail beside him. She was the only person he met who could take a leap off of two stories, land on her bottom, then get up like nothing had happened. It made his heart pound every time, though he wasn't exactly sure why.

He slowly, purposefully made his way to the entrance, ensuring he would be the last to arrive. It all worked as planned. He stopped in the shadows of the entrance, watching the scene before him. Quistis had a clipboard and seemed to be reading some kind of checklist out to Squall, who was turned slightly away from her and trying to sneakily stare at Rinoa, who was with the other two members of their circle. The two girls were practicing their handstands while Zell tried to shadowbox their swinging feet. He laughed as Selphie managed to swing her weapon while balancing one handed. It caught around Zell's supporting foot just as he swung a kick at one of Rinoa's feet. She pulled a little too hard and Zell went over, knocking her off balance and into Rinoa. The three crumpled together on the pavement. Squall was over in a flash, picking up a laughing Rinoa while asking if the other two are okay. Quistis just sighed at the interruption. It was then he decided to make an appearance, throwing his gun over his shoulder and laughing while taking long strides. He grabbed Selphie's hand and she came up in a dance move, twirling before dipping back in front of him. He smoothly caught her, and then balanced her upright again so she could twirl away. Zell frowned, asking why no one helped him up as Squall bent down in front of Rinoa, trying his best to get her to hold still so he could clean up her scraped knees.

They all came to order in a few minutes and gathered around Squall. A look passed between him and Rinoa which Irvine strived to understand.

"Okay everyone. I, Rinoa, and Quistis will be heading into Timber to check the general state of the town. Garden is on Orange Alert until we get back. You three are free to roam the area around Garden as reconnaissance or stay here as you choose. Keep your communication devices open. That's all. Move out."

He laughed as Squall turned, gave Rinoa's hand a pull and began walking towards the exit. Quistis looked a little put out, but trotted behind anyways going back to her list. Before they were out of view he saw Squall snatch the clipboard out of her hands and toss it a good 100 meters away, causing the three left to crack up all over again. Zell was the first one to speak up.

"Well, guys. I have a lake spirit to see, so later." With a wave he headed out as well, leaving Irvine and Selphie in awkward silence. Selphie broke it first.

"Rinoa wanted for us to head to the beach. She says it has some monsters so no one goes there anymore. I wouldn't mind drawing some more water magic, so do you want to or not?"

He looked at her a little surprised at her bluntness before smiling. "Sure, Selph, let's go."

He was surprised again when they reached the exit and she took his arm. She hummed a little as they made their way across the plain to the beach. It really was a nice spot once they got there. They both managed to max out the amount of water they could hold as they played in the surf. Nearly the whole day passed before Squalls voice came in on their communicators giving the code to head back to Garden. They shook the water off as best they could and trudged up to dry land to replace their shoes. It was as they were leaving the beach, when he turned back for one more look, that he saw it. Not a cow this time, but some weird head statue.

"AAAHHH!!!!!" He let out a girly scream and began firing. Selphie slightly ahead of him turned back just in time to see a speck in the sky.

"Irvine, it's just a bird. What's wrong?"

"It wasn't a bird, it was some kind of flying thing and it was carrying a head!"

"What! No, it was a bird. See there's one right there carrying a fish. Let's head back."

He failed to notice her concerned glances during the walk back as he muttered about "damned flying cows and heads" the entire way. At the entrance it barely even registered when she walked straight to Squall, grabbing an elbow and forcing him down to her level. Looks were exchanged between the party before Zell returned. Quistis murmured something to the martial artist as he took his place beside her. His eyes widened, and then he looked to Squall, who nodded confirmation. Irvine only came back to himself as he was being led down the corridors of Garden.

"Where are we going?"

"To Dr. Kadowaki's" It was Zell who answered, his hand firm and steadily guiding Irving by the shoulder.