Tifa's Story

Squall was sitting alone on a cliff overlooking the seas, some distance away from the castle which had been converted into their campsite. He had deliberately picked a spot further away so as to avoid being dragged into Bartz, Laguna, Zidane and Vaan's noisy conversations and he was pleased at his own success in sneaking out without the rowdy group realizing it.

The sun was setting, creating a beautiful gradient of red and orange on the vast cloudless sky. The sound of waves beating rhythmically on the rocks below was calming and the gentle sea breeze was soothing. For a moment, Squall seemed to forget that he was trapped in this war-ravaged world.

"Squall?" A gentle voice called out to him. He turned to see Tifa Lockhart walking up the steep slopes towards him. Tifa had changed her appearance. She had cut off half of her long dark brown hair, now extending only up to her back compared to before when it extended all the way to her legs. She had also ditched her skimpy white tank top and mini skirt in favor of a black leather top and a black skirt with a longer hem at the back completed with biker shorts and boots.

As though she could feel Squall's focus on her sudden change in appearance, Tifa gave him a smile and shyly said, "I thought I'd try something new. They say that when people cut their hair, their mood can change along with it. I'd like to try that."

"Looks good," Squall said. Tifa smiled even wider, her cheeks reddening as she did. A short phrase like that meant a lot coming from Squall.

"Can I join you?" Tifa asked.

"Sure." Squall replied and Tifa sat herself down beside Squall.

The two sat there in silence for a long while, admiring the sunset. Time seemed to stand still in that moment. After what seemed like ages, Tifa hesitantly broke the silence, "Squall… I'd like to thank you… for saving me back there." She paused, waiting to see Squall's reaction. But when Squall gave no response, she continued, "And I'm sorry… if I ever made you angry."

Again there was silence. Tifa felt so nervous and disappointed that she felt she wanted to run away as far as possible and hide herself from Squall. As she got up to return to the campsite, she heard him say, "Tifa… Don't sweat it. I apologize too… for being so harsh on you Next time… we'll work together." And he turned to look at the sun setting against the watery horizon again. But Tifa could swear that at that very moment, Squall's face had a tinge of pink on it…

It's probably just the sun… she thought, smiling to herself as she walked back towards the campsite.

…

Vaan's Story

Meanwhile, Vaan, Laguna, Bartz and Zidane were playing on the beach some distance away from the cliff where Squall was sitting. They sat on the warm sand, listlessly playing with the sand and several twigs and seaweed which were washed up on the shore. All of them were having fun, cracking jokes, teasing the airheaded Laguna, mimicking voices of the other Warriors, chatting on girls among many other stuff.

Suddenly, Vaan asked them an unexpected question, "Hey guys… Just asking really, but what dreams do you have?"

The other three all gave him confused looks. Bartz and Zidane both scratched their chins and rolled their eyes as their minds search for answers. Laguna, on the other hand, scratched his head and replied, "Well, I had a dream last night about being so hungry that I had to hunt down a moogle to eat. It was really scary and-"

"No, no!" Vaan interrupted him, "What I meant was more along the lines of, what would you like to do after you get home?" Laguna gave him an I-finally-got-it-look and began scratching his head once more for an answer.

After a moment of consideration, Zidane finally spoke up, "For me, I'd like to be part of an acting troupe. It's kinda romantic isn't it? Moving from place to place, acting out famous or original scenes, living many people's lives, meeting new girls…" The others chuckled at his answer. No matter what Zidane intends on doing, he is never going to leave out the factor of girls.

"Girls cramp me up," Laguna said sheepishly, "Not that I don't like them but I need time to get used to one. For me, I'd like to be a journalist. People have lots of untold stories that are inspirational, romantic, or just simply interesting."

"As for me," Bartz piped in, "I'd like to be a travelling comedian; a mimic artist. I wanna cheer people up. Give them a reason to laugh. This war… it brought down everybody's spirits. When it all ends, I want everybody to be able to smile. Who knows, Zidane, if our travels brought us together, we can do a joint venture!" Zidane gave a thumbs-up sign at the idea. The thought of being able to work together with your best friend, no matter how futile that hope is, is still a wonderful feeling.

"What about you, Vaan?" Zidane asked, turning back to Vaan.

"Well, for me," Vaan said, "I want to be a sky pirate!" When the others gave him confused stares, he continued, "I could never remember anything about my past but an image of a clear blue sky filled with many different kinds of airships. It's the only image that keeps reappearing in my dreams. Someday, I'd like to have an airship of my own. I'll search the horizons for unspeakable treasures!"

In a war-torn land, those words may be nothing more than empty talk. But the meanings they held for each of them gave them a newfound determination. Enjoying the rest of the sunset, they continued with their mindless chatter, wondering what would be for dinner.

…

Onion Knight's Story

In one secluded corner of the campsite, the little Onion Knight sat alone, staring blankly at his tiny sword. Unbeknownst to him, Cecil had taken notice of the gloomy stance that he had been taking the whole day despite his isolation from the rest of the group.

"What's the matter?" Cecil asked in a friendly tone as he approached the boy.

"Cecil…" the Onion Knight barely looked up to acknowledge Cecil's presence. He poked his sword onto the ground repeatedly and as he murmured something that did not manage to escape his mouth. As the ground became more and more deformed, he finally spoke up, "Do you see me as just a kid? Tell me honestly."

Cecil took a deep breath before saying, "You were thinking about Lightning's words, I see… Well, the thing with people like Kain and Lightning, they don't always show their emotions or intentions. It's easy to misunderstand them. But since they're our allies, let's just trust them."

"But," the Onion Knight protested, "How can you do that so easily, even after circumstances prove otherwise?"

Cecil gave him a weak smile and said, "If I couldn't, Kain wouldn't be my best friend. I trust him and therefore trust Lightning." Onion Knight was startled by Cecil's answer. It was so simple and yet unfathomable to him. Upon seeing his reaction, Cecil continued saying, "It'll clear up eventually. You know… you don't have to be in such a hurry to grow up. There are some childish traits that even we as adults should hold on to. To be able to trust someone close to you no matter the circumstances is one of them."

The Onion Knight was dumbfounded by those words. While he cannot immediately accept it, he knew that there was a ring of truth in those words. Maybe, he was thinking too much after all. None of the others worry as much as he does. Resolving to take Cecil's advice to wait until things clear up by themselves, he turned to Cecil and said, "Thank you, Cecil. Guess I'll go join the hunting group for our dinner."

…

Warrior of Light's Story

The Warrior of Light sat with Prishe on the outskirts of the castle. He was filling her in on his plans thus far. It felt as though a load had been lifted off his back as he did. Prishe was probably the only one he could truly trust. And the secrets of the plan that he had kept from her all these while tormented him. After all, Prishe had been the one who saved him back when he first appeared in this world.

She not only saved him. She guided him. Even until now, she was a special figure to him. Now that his plans are coming into fruition, the Warrior of Light finally decided that sooner or later, he, Kain and Golbez would have to come clean to every one of their allies and work together. Before having to break the news to the rest of the group, the Warrior had decided to tell Prishe everything he knew first.

Prishe listened intently to his story. Save for a few outbursts of shock, she did not question him at all. At the end of the story, Prishe slowly said, "So that means… we have a fair chance of ending this war now, don't we?"

"I strong believe it," the Warrior of Light said confidently.

"It's not fair!" Prishe suddenly exclaimed. Why do YOU and Kain get to do everything!? Haven't I told you before that you shouldn't bear too much burden on one shoulder!? What are all of us here in this campsite doing? We wait! While Kain, Lightning, Cloud and Terra are risking their lives for us! How do you feel everyone feels if they knew?"

Her sudden outburst gave the Warrior of Light a fair shock. He stammered as he tried to explain to her, "It's… It's not that we don't trust you. If too many people caught wind of the plan, they'll fail to act naturally. And that will attract the enemies' attention."

Prishe pouted at his explanation. Crossing her arms, she kept a rebellious quiet stance for several minutes until she grudgingly said, "No more second chances for you, Mr. McWarrior! And you owe me hamburger steak!"

Seeing that her 'normal' appetite was back, the Warrior of Light can't help but give an amused smile, which Prishe returned. But no sooner had Prishe finally smiled back than a commotion was heard from within the castle courtyards.

They promptly hastened to the campsite to investigate the cause of the commotion, only to find that Kain, Lightning, Terra and Cloud had returned… along with Golbez.