The GC Fairy Tales

by Esse

Includes Goldilocks, Three Little Kitte—err—SeeDs, yeah, that's it..., and Balamb Town Musicians. Excessive ingesting of grat; read at your own peril.

2. Three Little Kitte, err, SeeDs

Disclaimer: If'n they were mine, I wouldn't be needin' a disclaimer, now would I? Everything that belongs t' Square, belongs t' Square. Everything that belongs to Robin Bailey, belongs t' Mr. Bailey. Whatever's left, I guess, is mine…

Notes: Unhappy being limited to fairy tales, Esse decided to start picking on poor, defenseless nursery rhymes. Which one should be obvious. Esse also tossed in more Enchanterreferences than any sane person ought. Anyone who can pick them all out will win… eh… my ever-lasting amusement? This takes place in the Guidance Councillor universe; I'll actually finish it someday, and everything will become clear ^_~

Warnings: This is all Maiji's fault. Totally. I take no responsibility for my actions. =P~

FF Notes: Written early 2000. First posted to calicodragon 2/27/2001. Minor formatting changes to comply with FF. Minor corrections. Shounen ai.

.oO0Oo.
Three Little Kitte—err—SeeDs,
yeah, that's it...
.oO0Oo.

Zell wasn't in the best of moods. That morning Raijin, whose day it was to cook, had presented for breakfast a splintery selection of various trees' bark. It seemed that, due to extreme over-hunting grat had become scarce, and the large man had needed to improvise in order to make any sort of meal at all. The blonde boy had then gone to get dressed for the day, only to discover that Nida had done his laundry. Consequently, his favorite black tee shirt, along with the rest of his wardrobe, was now two sizes too small. He'd ended up having to wear Raijin's red 'Winhill is for Lovers' muscle-tee; it draped ludicrously on Zell's paltrier frame. To top off his already crummy morning, Squall had called him, arbitrarily canceling his vacation time and ordering Zell to report to his room to receive instructions on a priority assignment.

His lower lip sticking out in a childish pout, he headed for the Garden Commander's quarters. Reaching the door, he banged against it noisily, not caring that he making a spectacle of himself. "Yo, I'm here! Open up ya bums. I'm hungry, I'm cranky, and I'm bored…" He increased the tempo of his knocking, rattling the door in its frame. "Tch, fine then, you won't answer, I'm going into Timber t' do some shopping."

The door swung inward, and Irvine looked at the small blonde curiously. "While you're there, maybe you should buy yourself some new clothes."

Blushing the same shade of red as his 'Lovers' shirt, Zell pushed past Irvine and entered the front room. "Ha ha. What is this, pick on Dincht day? Yo Seifer," he hailed the tall blonde man seated in the plush recliner by the window.

Seifer looked up from his knitting and waved his needles in greeting. "Chicken-wuss."

Wrinkling his nose cutely, Zell chose to ignore the insult. He looked towards the food preparation area, and spotted Squall sitting at the table, a large, cluttered assortment of equipment in front of him. "Well, I'm here, what's this hush-hush, top secret, FYEO, drag-me-from-my-day's-plans mission about anyway, baby?"

Irvine chuckled, and placed a wide headband, replete with furry cat ears, securely on Zell's head. "Glad you asked. Cid wanted us to test out some equipment Xu's been working on. The ears not only work in a surveillance capacity, picking up suspicious sounds, but also operate as a communications device, tracking system, GPS, and perform a few other neat tricks that we're not classified to know."

At the table, Squall looked up from the device he was working on. "Then there's these." He tossed a long, slender, and above all, furry object over to the lavender-eyed man.

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot." Irvine smiled charmingly, holding out his arm to display the new gadget. "This is the antenna for the system. It too is multi-purpose. Its micro-robotics allow it a full range of movement, and this patch here," he pointed it out, a small square less than an inch in diameter, "picks up bio-electric signals directly from your spinal cord, allowing you to take over motor control of the contraption should the need arise. It's supposed to help with agility, and act as a counterbalance during gymnastic maneuvers."

"It's a cat tail," Zell snapped, fuming, "just like these," he patted his head gingerly, "are cat ears. You've gotta be kidding me."

"I wish it were a joke," Squall answered, standing up and putting on his own gear. "Xu has a warped sense of humor. She pitched some extravagant presentation to Cid, and he fell for it. The field-test is the result of his direct order. And he specifically requested the three of us," he pointed at Zell and Irvine, "to carry it out. So, we go out, be good, obedient little SeeDs, and finish this mockery of an assignment as soon as possible."

"Aw man!" Chastened, Zell took the fuzzy white tail out of Irvine's hand and proceeded to put it on. Conscientiously, the scarred, chestnut-haired man came over and helped him apply the more delicate wiring.

*'Okay now, lesson number one: the ears respond to sub-vocalizations only'* Squall told the group, his lips barely moving. Zell heard his voice as a quiet echo directly in his ear. *'Check to make sure you have the communication connections working properly.'*

*'Mine seem to be fine'* the longhaired man replied confidently.

*'This is totally beyond bizarre'* Zell offered, faintly reassured that he got no feedback from his own transmission. *'We look like mumbling nitwits…but, I hafta admit, the system seems to work.'* Picking up on his approval, the long, furry tail began to twitch. *'Whoa!'*

Irvine tried stifling his laughter, causing it to be transmitted over the communications channel. *'Pretty good, Zell. Squall tried for a half-hour this morning, but couldn't get his tail to move. Looks like you're a natural.'*

The small blonde boy grinned proudly, and swung his new appendage around. He was pleasantly surprised by its natural movements; he'd been expecting the motion to be jerky at best. Concentrating, he curled it into a question mark, then let it drop naturally downwards. *'Heh, just call me the cat's meow.'*

The two laughing boys were astonished to learn that Squall's disapproving "…" came across their receivers as a series of sharp clicks.

*'We should get going.'* The hazel-eyed man readjusted his ears carefully. *'We're suppose to engage in battle with whatever comes along; if the encounter lasts less than 10 minutes, we're to seek out another skirmish, until our accumulated fight time totals 15 minutes. Take precautions; don't put the equipment at risk. Xu will skin us alive if we damage her koneko accouterments.'*

*'Koneko? She actually went ahead and called these getups koneko outfits?'* Although he had spent most of the morning joking about the new peripherals, even Irvine was having a difficult time digesting Xu's name for her creations.

*'Like I said, she has a really warped sense of humor.'* Going to the corner to collect his gunblade, Squall nearly tripped over his uncooperative tail. *'Do you have any idea how long it took me to convince Headmaster Cid not to call us the Kitty Corps?'* Picking up Lionheart, he swung it around gracefully, and using an arcane secret only known to those who use overly-large, sharply-pointed blades, secreted it about his person.

Being a non-armed combatant, Zell wanted terribly to learn the secret. His own theory was based on the belief that Squall had exceptionally oversized, inter-dimensional pockets hidden inside his pants. After all, late one night when Rinoa had imbibed a bit too much sparkling apple cider, she'd described what else her boyfriend had hidden in his pants, and that didn't show at all, either.

He had yet another theory that explained all of the superfluous belts…

*'Well, we better be going'* Irvine said, resting his shotgun over his shoulder. *'Like you said, sooner out, sooner done.'* He walked over to the door, and opened it.

"Later Seifer," Zell called out, throwing him a casual salute, which was mimicked by his tail.

"Wait a second," the tall blonde commanded, getting up from his recliner. "I've got presents for ya; just finished up the last pair." He stalked towards the trio of cat-boys waiting suspiciously by the door.

One thought ran uneasily through all their minds. ~Seifer doesn't give presents.~

Smirking, his lips almost twisted into a real smile, the ruddy blonde youth held out three pairs of multi-colored — somethings. "See? I've knitted you mittens. Blue for Squall, green for Irvine, and red for the Chicken." He thrust his creations into the other boys' hands, beaming with delight. "Go ahead, put them on."

"Umm, we appreciate the gesture Almasy, but we already have gloves." Irvine held out his hands so the other man could see.

Seifer's grin dimmed, and his pale-blue eyes narrowed dangerously. "Put on the mittens; I'm not gonna tell ya again."

Heaving a long-suffering sigh, Squall pulled the fluffy blue mittens on over his black leather gloves (which were in actuality made from low-grade vinyl, a secret only Rinoa, and thus Zell and several others, knew). "They, ah, look great, Seifer."

The tall blonde's smile returned, frightening in its intensity. "I'm glad you like them. I made them the exact color blue as all the lint on your jacket."

Quietly, Irvine slipped his mittens over his dark-brown, fingerless gloves. "Yeah," he said, flexing his hands inside the virulently green yarn, "they're really nice."

Staring down at the red mittens clutched in his fist, Zell queried his teammates. *'What's going on? This is stupid! I'm not gonna put these stupid things on.'*

*'Yes you are'* Squall replied, his jaw tense. *'Seifer's not quite back to his old self; there's still some trauma left over from when Rinoa turned him into a Moomba. Just humor him, or he's liable to go berserk.'*

*'I told Squall he shoulda been left in the infirmary until his urge to bat things around subsided, but nooooo….'* the lavender-eyed man added.

Zell blinked, glancing uneasily over to Seifer, who was in turn staring avidly at the smaller blonde, waiting. *'Lighten up Irvine. I'm the one that convinced Squall to let him out; he looked so lonesome…'* He looked back down at the bright red hand-wear. *'The mittens are too small. There's no way I'll be able to fit them on over my gloves.'*

*'Then take off your dueling gloves!'* Squall barked. *'If you thought Seifer was nasty under the control of Ultimecia, you don't want to see him throw a temper tantrum. We haven't been able to replace all of the stuff he broke last time, and then he pouted about it for days'*

The petite blonde boy frowned, and started removing his gloves. *'I've gotta bad feeling about this. We're about to go out and fight monsters, and I'm supposed t' leave my only weapons behind?'* Mobile lips puckered into a moue of distaste as he put on the mittens. *'And why is my pair the only one with pom-poms?'*

*'Best guess? I think Seifer likes you!'*

*'Shut up, Irvine! It's just because of your stupid class…'* Zell flushed in embarrassment, and tucked his dueling gloves into one of his shorts' pockets.

*'Stop chattering'* Squall ordered. *'Now, thank Seifer for the mittens, then we can get out of here.'*

Curling his fingers inside the scratchy yarn cloth, Zell patted the fluffy ball on his right hand. It didn't budge. He looked up at Seifer, who was eagerly awaiting his verdict. "Thanks man." His tail brushed the taller man's leg bashfully. "These are, like, really neat…" The smaller blonde grabbed his wayward tail and pulled it back. "Warm, and fuzzy…"

"Heh." Seifer patted Zell fondly on the head, then returned to his chair. "I knew you'd appreciate 'em. It was hard, deciding what color to use. Squall's were already blue, and black is just so depressing."

"Red's perfect." The petite youth edged towards the door, where his two companions had already escaped. "I've — gotta be going now; the mission, and all. You take care, okay?" Zell didn't want to admit it, but he was slightly worried over Seifer's behavior. He wondered if Rinoa's counter-spell had been entirely effective.

"Sure thing. I've just started work on a scarf to match your mittens. It should be finished by the time you get back." He waved the younger man out the door. "Take care!"

"Y-yeah…" Losing his courage, Zell bolted from the room. *'Guys, I think we should get him looked at. Something's really wrong.'* The door to the Commander's quarters swooshed shut.

Seifer tossed his knitting needles to the floor, and began laughing uproariously. ~Oh, that was too much. I never thought they'd fall for it!~ Brushing stray bits of lint off his vest, he headed towards the table. ~Irvine's not the only one that can hoodwink the gullible. Now, on to step two…~

.oO0Oo.

Bouncing nervously, Zell scanned the nearby terrain. His ears twitched, trying to pick up any indication that a monster might be within range. His tail, currently possessing a mind of its own, was drawing picturesque 8's in the air. *'Something isn't right. We've been out here for two hours now, and haven't found anything larger than a mouse. Either Raijin's been through here recently huntin' for dinner, or something else has eaten the local wildlife.'*

Kicking idly at the tip of his gunblade, Squall was tempted to concur. *'There hasn't even been an Anacondaur… This place is usually crawling with them.'*

Tipping his wide-brimmed hat back, Irvine looked up from where he was sprawled lazily against a large granite rock. *'Normally, I wouldn't complain about the peace and quiet, but I've got a date with Selphie tonight. You know how long it takes me to get ready.'*

*'No, not really. You always get thrown out of the showers. None of us know how long you'd stay in there if you weren't driven off.'* Craning his head, Zell peered suspiciously into the neighboring grove of trees. *'Did something just move in there?'*

*'Quit being so jumpy. If anything was close, our ears would pick it up.'* The longhaired man pulled his hat over his eyes, and leaned his head back against his hands. *'It wouldn't do you any harm to spend a little more time on yourself.'*

*'What's wrong with the way I look?'* Zell asked indignantly, his tail lashing behind him furiously. He caught a glimpse of it from the corner of his eye. *'Wait, don't answer that…'*

Squall's choked laughter sounded in their receivers.

*'Whatever you say, koneko.'* Irvine crossed his legs, and smirked. *'My lips are sealed — unlike Squall's, who's proving he has a sense of humor after all. Now, if you're done pestering me, I think I'll nap until something interesting shows up.'*

*'I know I saw something moving in those trees'* Zell mused, ears perked forward. He took a step towards the woods, then halted in astonishment, his mouth dropping open in shock. *'Eh, Irvine'* he called out faintly, *'I sorta think you might want to reconsider that nap…'*

*'Why? It's a beautiful day, not too hot, not too cold'* the lavender-eyed man sang dreamily. *'The birds are singing, the crickets are chirping…'*

*'And the ruby dragons have learned how to sneak up on their prey without making a sound!'* Azure eyes gone huge, Zell ran back to the group. *'Dammit Irvine, get up, it's coming straight towards us!'*

The lanky young man scrambled to his feet in disbelief. *'Nothing that large could sneak up on us, Dincht, not without…'* He found himself looking at a huge, glossy-red dragon, running at full-speed directly at him. *'Squall! We've got company! Zell wasn't kidding.'*

*'I see it.'* The chestnut-haired man drew his gunblade, and moved to the front of the group, his ears laid flat against his head. *'Get ready to back me up.'* Taking a steadying breath, he lunged forward, and smacked the rampaging dragon along the side of its neck. Lionheart's blade skittered across the scaled surface and glanced off, causing no damage.

Irvine took careful aim with his shotgun, and fired. The reverberation of the shot echoed about the clearing. The ammo, which was normally enough to shred anything unlucky enough to be in its path, bounced harmlessly off the dragon's glittering hide.

The dragon blinked its huge golden eyes, and stumbled to a stop. Zell took this as his cue, and darted in, throwing a punch at the dragon's nose. The blonde's focus narrowed as his fist descended, covered not in his normal Ehrgeiz gloves, but the cheery red mittens Seifer had given to him that morning. ~Oh man, I'm dead! Guess this is it, baby.~

The tableau froze, with Zell's fist resting lightly on the dragon's nose. His hand had never reached its destination; the large, fluffy pom-pom had gotten in the way. The young man paled, yet still ventured a hesitant smile. "Nice dragon, pretty dragon…" His tail was stretched out behind him, the bristling fur making it appear double its normal width. *'Help?'*

A deep, rumbling sound began, then the dragon hissed. Zell's eyebrows shot upwards in surprise as his ears' communications sputtered with static, then murmured to him, *'Why hello there, gorgeous!'*

*'Okay guys, that is like, so not funny! Stop makin' fun of me, and come save me.'* The small blonde continued grinning sickly at the dragon.

*'I — I don't know what's going on'* Squall ventured a pace forward, *'We didn't say anything, Zell. We both heard it, though.'*

At the same time, another voice came through. *'Who do you need saved from, sweetie?'*

*'Look, I don't know who you are'* Zell quavered, his nerves shot, *'But if you're anywhere close by, there's this really big ruby dragon about to eat me…'*

*'Really?'* The dragon snaked its head about sinuously. *'I don't see anything… but don't worry. I'll protect you!'*

*'You don't see anything?'* The blonde boy trembled. *'How hard are you looking?'*

*'Umm, Zell'* Irvine ventured, reloading his gun with pulse ammo. *'I think you're talking to the dragon.'*

*'What do you mean, 'talking to the dragon'? How could I possibly be…'* Zell's smile melted. *'Remind me to thank Xu when we get back, okay? Or, if I don't make it out of this alive, thank her for me, 'kay?'* Trembling with tension, he slowly pulled his hand away from the dragon's nose. *'I know this is gonna sound stupid, but could the person who's been talkin' to me blink their eyes?'*

Snuffling in reptilian mirth, the dragon winked coquettishly. *'Sure can, sweetie. Now, who do I need to save you from?'*

*'I guess — no one.'* Zell shook his hands, trying to gesture the other two men back. *'Unless — are you going t' eat me?'*

*'Me? Heavens no! I just wanted a little taste.'* With no more warning than that, the dragon whipped out its tongue and licked the tattooed boy up his side, from his knee to the tip of his ear. *'You're just too adorable, sweetie.'* It rolled one of its large golden eyes, taking in Zell's 'Lovers' tee. *'What do you say? I'll fly us to Winhill, just the two of us. It'll be so romantic.'*

Pulling his slimy short leg away from his body, Zell made a face. *'Eww! You slobbered all over me.'* With no further thought, he pulled off his denim shorts, and after wiping off his arm and neck, tossed them to the side. *'Look, it's a kind offer…erm…'* He wondered how he should address the dragon. Sir didn't seem to cover the situation.

*'I'm Chuck.'* If a lipless reptile could smile, Chuck was doing it then. And if a lizard wasn't capable of ogling, Chuck was doing a fair impression of it.

*'Pleased t' meet cha, I'm Zell.'* For the first time in his life, the young man was glad his mother had made him read 'Dealing with Dragons'. *'It'd be fun goin' with ya, but we've only just met. We don't know a thing about one another…'*

*'You're wearing red. I just love a guy in red.'* Chuck gently prodded the boy with his nose. *'That's enough for me.'*

*'We're also two different species…'* Zell trailed off, a puzzled look on his face. *'That is, unless you're another of Rinoa's accidents.'*

The ruby dragon cocked its head, confused. *'Who's Rinoa?'*

*'It's not important,'* the azure-eyed boy hurried on. *'Then there's the fact that, well, I'm kinda already seeing somebody right now…'* Irvine hastily bit his hand to keep from laughing, and the corner of Squall's mouth quirked. *'...so you see, things really couldn't work out between us. Perhaps, if we'd met sooner…'* Zell faked a sigh, and his tail drooped.

*'I understand'* Chuck said sadly. *'I hope your boyfriend knows how lucky he is.'* The dragon ducked his head, and its scales blushed violet. *'Would you mind giving me something to remember you by?'*

His own cheeks scarlet, Zell tore off his mittens. *'Will these do? I could tie them around one of your claws'* he offered.

*'Ooh'* the dragon peered closely at them. *'They're red! And all fluffy and soft!'* He extended his foreleg, and the blonde youth carefully knotted the mittens around the longest talon. Chuck lifted his leg, and examined his newest bangle. *'Thank you so much! The hens back home are going to be so jealous.'* He put his foot back down. *'I guess this is good-bye, then.'*

*'Yeah. It was a pleasure meeting you, Chuck.'* Feeling a tad more confidant, he patted the dragon lightly on the nose. *'Maybe I'll see ya around.'*

*'You can count on it, sweetie!'* Winking one last time, the dragon turned around, and left as silently as it had come.

Squall approached the now solitary Zell and clasped him on his shoulder. *'You handled that well. We're lucky Xu built a translator into the ears. Otherwise, I think you would have fainted dead away when Chuck licked you.'*

*'Dragon smooches'* Irvine quipped, his ears flitting constantly. *'Unbelievable. You attract the weirdest sorts, Zell.'*

The petite blonde picked his soggy shorts up off the ground. The baggy 'Lovers' shirt easily covered his juggling shumi boxers. *'Tell me about it. Why does everyone automatically assume I have a boyfriend? Did someone stick a 'Property of Seifer Almasy' sign on my back when I wasn't looking?'*

*'Something like that'* Squall hedged. *'I think the koneko equipment's gotten enough of a workout today. Let's head back to the Garden.'*

The two older youths began leaving the clearing. Zell folded his arms crossly, and tapped one foot against the ground. *'Whadda ya mean, 'something like that'? I don't even like Seifer!'* Gritting his teeth, he trudged angrily behind.

.oO0Oo.

The three SeeDs entered the Commander's quarters later that afternoon, after a brief stop by a handy trash bin out in the lobby, where the two older boys had enthusiastically tossed away their mittens. Squall pulled out his Hello Kitty keychain and nimbly unlocked the door. *'Now, we all agree on our story in case Seifer asks about the mittens, right?'*

*'Yeah yeah, Chuck took mine, and yours had to be unraveled to form a rope to save a poor lady who'd fallen off the edge of a cliff.'* Zell favored the other two men with a dubious look. *'Do you think he's gonna buy it? I mean, it's such a flimsy excuse — and besides, Rinoa already did that.'*

*'Well, but Seifer wasn't at Balamb Garden when it happened.'* Irvine tried explaining.

*'No, but he was looking at my pitiful rescue attempts through a pair of binoculars and laughing his ass off.'*

*'You do have a point, but it's too late to come up with a new story.'* Squall opened the door to the room and stepped inside. *'Hopefully, Seifer won't even notice; just keep smiling, and…'* the scarred, hazel-eyed man sniffed the air appreciatively. *'What smells so good?'*

Seifer, who'd been standing by the window, welcomed back the three young men. "So, how did the trial go on the koneko units? Cid's been calling here every hour, askin' if you'd gotten back yet."

"It went fine," Irvine muttered vaguely, trying to place the delicious aroma that filled the room. "Ah, it smells like berries in here…" Which was, indeed, a curious thing for the room to smell like. Its customary odor was that of over-boiled grat. It made for a pleasant change.

The tall blonde man smiled wickedly, and gestured to the table, where, nestled in amongst broken pieces of electronic equipment, there rested a cake holder. "I thought I'd treat ya guys t' something special. Since we were practically next door to Timber, I thought I'd run into the bakery and see what they had. What you're all smelling is their 'World Famous' blueberry cheesecake. Guaranteed to satisfy even the most demanding sweet tooth."

"Blueberry cheesecake?" Zell ran up to the table, and started to lift the lid off of the cake holder. When he saw what was hidden underneath, he let out a squeal of excitement. "It is blueberry cheesecake! Where do you guys keep the plates?"

"Ah ah ah," Seifer admonished, taking the frosted glass lid out of Zell's hands and placing it to the side. "No cheesecake until you show me your mittens. That's the rule; no exceptions."

Ears slumped, the three young, tailed men looked woefully at one another. "About that," the longhaired, suave-talking youth tried justifying their lack of mittens. "Squall and I, we had to sacrifice ours, to save a gal that had fallen off a cliff. We used the yarn to make a rope, and pulled her back up to safety—"

"You threw them in a dumpster," the scarred blonde accused, while pulling a knife out from a drawer. "I'm not that stupid. I had Fujin watching for ya, and had her report in t' me. She told me what ya did. Which means, no cheesecake for you until you come back with your mittens. Have fun digging through all that garbage." He cut himself a large piece of the cheesecake, and placed it onto a paper plate. "You'd better hope there's some left by the time you get back."

"But… but, I can't get mine back," Zell wailed mournfully. "I gave mine to a ruby dragon." His stomach gurgled in sympathy; both were desperate for the sweet laid out on the table.

"Is that the best excuse you could come up with? Not even that the dragon took them? Ya just gave them away?" Seifer started snickering. "I don't know what you did with your mittens; Fujin didn't see ya toss them. If you want some of this," he waved a fork full of cheesecake enticingly in front of the smaller man, "you'd better at least come up with something I can believe."

Squall, who'd been on his way out the door, cleared his throat. "Zell, I think someone wants to see you." He pointed at the large window.

The petite, spiky-haired blonde turned around, coming eye to eye with a sleekly muscular red dragon, who was peering curiously into the room. *'Chuck! What are you doin' here?'*

*'Just came to see where you lived, sweetie. And I wanted to check out the guy that snatched you away from me. I want to make sure he's good enough for you, dearest. Is he in?'* The dragon exhaled softly, and gazed at the young man adoringly.

"Seifer!" Zell squeaked. He hadn't expected the lovelorn dragon to track him down. When Chuck had said he'd see him later, Zell had assumed it to be a figure of speech. He wondered what the headmaster would say about his monsterish visitor.

The scarred blonde approached the window, his eyes fixed on a snarl of red tied around one of the dragon's claws. ~Well I'll be… The Chicken was telling the truth.~ Apprehensively, he reached for his gunblade. "Yeah Zell?"

"I'd like ya t' meet Chuck. He's kinda curious about you." The petite blonde boy gestured towards the taller man. *'Chuck, this is Seifer.'*

Chuck glared at the scarred youth. *'Why, he's just a puny little thing. Are you sure you wouldn't be happier coming home with me? Momma would just love having company over.'*

*'I'm sorry. My home is here; all my friends, my job, I can't just leave them behind.'*

Seifer watched as the dragon and Zell stared at each other. He didn't like the look in the dragon's eyes; soft, and caring, and full of worship. It was starting to get him mad. No one had the right to look at Zell that way; the tall blonde had already thrashed several SeeD cadets who had dared. Lips curled in a sneer, he marched up to the window and threw his arm about the smaller boy, tossing the reptile a challenging look. "Pleased t' meet ya, Chuck."

The ruby dragon blinked, then hissed. *'My, he is a possessive one, isn't he?'*

*'Uh, yeah'* Zell squirmed, uncomfortable. "Eh, Seifer, could ya maybe ease up a bit? You're squeezin' me t' death."

"Not until lover-boy here leaves," the older man whispered back.

*'Chuck? Would you mind if we finished talkin' some other time? We're kinda busy right now…'* Zell prayed the dragon would accept his excuse.

*'Sure thing, sweetie!'* The dragon nodded graciously. *'I should be heading home anyway. It's a long flight back to the Centra continent. Feel free to drop by whenever you happen to be in the neighborhood.'*

*'I'll keep it in mind'* the azure-eyed boy reassured, as the dragon neatly twisted itself about and started flying away. *Take care.'*

"What was that all about?" Seifer snapped, releasing his hold on the younger man.

"Chuck has a bit of a crush on Zell." Squall idly toyed with one of his belts. "We ran into him on our patrol today. He wouldn't leave until Zell gave him the mittens."

Seifer rubbed the bridge of his nose. "Okay. It almost makes sense in some warped fashion." He walked back to the table, and picked up his plate. "The Chicken-wuss can have his share of the cheesecake." He grinned as the hyper blonde whooped in delight. "You two, on the other hand," he stabbed his fork in Squall and Irvine's direction, "have trash t' be digging through. Unless," he offered smugly, "you have a girl with a yarn rope t' introduce me to."

"That's not fair," the lavender-eyed youth complained.

"Deal with it." Seifer lifted another bite of cheesecake to his mouth and chewed it with relish. "The longer you take, the less chance there'll be any left by the time you get back."

*'Let's go'* Squall commanded, casting one last longing glance at the cheesecake. The two men hurried out the door.

"Woohoo!" Zell burbled, bouncing with excitement. "Where's my piece?" He sat down at the table, and gazed hungrily at the blueberry-covered dessert. "It looks delicious."

"It is," the tall blonde agreed, lifting up another forkful. He steered the utensil towards Zell's face. "You wanna taste?" Obediently the younger man opened his mouth, allowing Seifer to feed him the bite. He pulled back his arm, and watched the petite boy chew. "So? What do ya think?"

Zell licked his lips fastidiously, and slumped down into his chair. "Heavenly," he murmured, his eyes opened to the barest of slits. "More?" he begged shamelessly.

The scarred blonde chuckled, and scooped up another bite. "What should we do tonight? It'll be hours before those idiots get back. The truck's already been by to pick up the garbage. They'd have to go to the Timber Dump to stand any chance of finding their mittens." He watched avidly as the tattooed boy licked the fork clean.

"I dunno; I'm already having a good time," Zell said thoughtfully, tugging at his 'Winhill is for Lovers' tee, his ears relaxed. "I still need t' go clothes shopping; Nida ruined just about everything I own."

The taller man fed his companion another piece of cake. "That's an understatement. You're not even wearing pants." Seifer leered, his pale-blue eyes afire with mirth. "Although I must say, the juggling shumi's are almost unbearably cute on you."

The petite blonde closed his eyes completely and moaned. "Aw man, I'd entirely forgotten about that." He pulled off the worse-for-wear 'Lovers' shirt and crumpled it into a ball. "Do you have anything I could borrow?"

"Yeah, if you don't mind it all being too big. You're a shrimp, Chicken." Seifer got up and began rummaging around in the back room. He returned carrying a small pile of clothes. "What did happen to your shorts?"

"You don't want to know," Zell warned him, struggling to get the fresh pair of pants on over his tail. "Trust me, you don't want to know."

The End
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