Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VIII, VII, X and VI.
Hope you guys will enjoy this one. :3
Naturally, at lunch break, Rinoa asked Yuna to fill her up about many things, from school policies, to the education system and most importantly, what happened at their class that morning.
Yuna replied with a soft laugh. "Take it easy, Rinoa. One question at a time please!"
She explained how they will be classmates in all their subjects for the rest of their lives in this school, except with the elective subjects every semester where they get to choose one course they wanted to take.
"What did you take? Mine's Visual Arts." Yuna excitedly told Rinoa.
"Oh, mine's Psychology." Rinoa, who wasn't exactly good with arts, suddenly felt regret for taking that class instead of Arts so she could stay with Yuna at all times, at least for this semester. She felt like she needs alot of time to adjust with her new life around here, and it seemed pretty impossible now without Yuna, who instantly detected sadness in Rinoa's voice. She gave Rinoa a comforting rub at the back. "It's gonna be fine! Electives happen only a few times a week. You'll be alright."
She also found out that everyone was entitled to follow dress codes, school regulations and all, though not everyone followed it. Most personnels just let them pass, though there were some, especially when terribly messed with, implement some punishments which often involved working for the school under a certain number of hours. Rinoa reckoned that Yuna was definitely not one of those people, judging by how she especially follows the dress code for girls: perfect skirt length, blouse completely buttoned up, and for the main part which most girls don't exactly follow, she wore the ribbon, tied around her collar.
Rinoa didn't feel like eating that lunch break. She wasn't exactly hungry. As a matter of fact, her stomach was filled with butterflies. For some reason, everyone else around her (except Yuna) intimidated her, for the most part that no one else welcomed her. Well, except for her Homeroom professor who did not even introduce her to the class, rather talked to her in private after the lessons. Rinoa simply accepted this as his more "formal" way to greet newcomers. She tried to convince herself that she'll eventually get used to this new school, no matter how everything was practically giving her a major 'culture shock'.
She was sitting at the table they picked, playing with her mashed potato, while waiting for Yuna who let Rinoa buy her lunch first. She was kind of taking long, Rinoa thought. Sitting alone at their table made her very uncomfortable when every table around her were filled with five people at the very least. She looked up and searched among the crowd for Yuna and saw her finally holding a tray with foods, though not approaching her table she shares with Rinoa. Instead, she seemed to be in deep conversation with another two girls. Yuna then turned around to Rinoa's direction, while the other two followed. Rinoa noticed how the shorter one with dirty blonde hair, tied up in a messy but fashionable way, waved cheerfully at her, while the taller one with gray hair gelled upwards simply took a quick glance at her. She figured that they may be Yuna's friends, and was half hoping they'll join in. To Rinoa's delight, they seem like they will.
Yuna put her tray down and raised her hand, as if showing something to Rinoa. "By the way, I forgot to tell you, I have some people I hang out with alot. This is my cousin Rikku," she pointed at the blonde one, "and this is our friend Paine." then to the taller one.
"Nice to meet you!" Rikku excitedly said and instantly sat down next to Rinoa. She responded with a light laugh. "It's very nice to meet you too."
"Pleasure." Paine nodded who also sat down. Rinoa, sensing coldness in her face could only smile and nod at her. Yuna sat down beside Paine and clamped her hands across the table, as if discussing something intently with Rinoa.
"Now, ask us away. What else do you want to know?"
Rinoa stopped playing with her mashed potato and finally dropped her spoon. "Well, I've been meaning to ask about that incident this morning at our room. Who was that guy with spiky blonde hair?" Rinoa asked with much curiosity, even waving her hands above her head to emphasize the spiky part. She forgot though that she wasn't talking to just Yuna, two other people were watching her. This caused Rikku to laugh.
"Yeah, his head is so spiky it can be lethal to anyone who gets near him." Rikku mimicked the gesture Rinoa made. This made her laugh with Rikku.
"Well, that was Cloud Strife." Yuna said after giggling with them. She then turned to Paine. "Is he here?"
"No, the other one's here." Paine stoically answered while looking past her friends. The other one?, Rinoa asked herself.
"Anyway, I guess you can just get a good look at him later when we get back. You see, Cloud Strife is pretty much the most respected person in our section. He's kind of our class leader."
"But, don't we have a class representative?" Rinoa questioned as she remembered some guy with flat brown hair and glasses was called "the class president" by most teachers.
"Class presidents are just for classes, dealing with class order and all..." Rikku replied for Yuna.
"Cloud is a different kind of leader. He's like the 'real' leader when it comes to dealing problems with the other section, which most people find more important than school."
The "other section part" confused Rinoa. "Problems with the other section?"
"Well..." Yuna never wanted to talk about it, but she knew it's one of the first things Rinoa should be aware about in this school, or their section for that matter. "...you see, we're rivals with the other section, 3-A. Whenever there are school competitions, we would always try to beat them, while they do the same. It doesn't matter if we get 3rd place, as long as they get 4th." Rinoa was surprised about what she got herself into with that section, and even Yuna felt sorry about it. "The sad part is, no one has ever dared to make friends with the other section. Even if they tried to, they'll end up overwhelmed with the existing competition and hate each other.
"That's where Cloud comes in. When problem arises with 3-A, he'll go and settle it with their leader."
"They have a leader too?" Rinoa's eyes widened with the more incoming complications about the two sections.
"Yeah, well, they practically started this whole rivalry thing." Rikku said.
"Who's their leader?" Rinoa asked innocently.
"Squall Leonhart." Paine plainly replied, though her deep voice scared Rinoa a bit.
Yuna turned around, as if searching for someone. Then, she faced Rinoa. "See that table at the far end? You should see a tall guy with brown hair and scar on his face." Rinoa searched and instantly found him. It wasn't hard to find him, people were trying to avoid him as if he carried some deadly virus. There was only one guy sitting with him, who seems to be as tall as he is, with long, brown, wavy hair tied in a ponytail.
"That's Squall Leonhart." Yuna pointed out. Rinoa could tell he's dangerous, with the looks of him. He always frowns, like he's always angry at something. But even Rinoa wasn't sure if that's just how he normally looks. Either way, he kind of scared her.
"Cloud and Squall have been rivals since their first year here." Paine explained. "They used to be classmates at 1-A where they excelled in almost everything. At first, they didn't seem to care, even when people around them started to compare the two. They never said anything about it and went on, though it was noticeable how they act as if the other doesn't exist. It's either they refuse to interact, or competitiveness was starting to grow, but they never showed. It was during the National Kendo Tournament when their rivalry really started." Paine paused for a while and shook her head, as if remembering how this made her disappointed. "Of course, as everyone has expected, the tournament went down on those two during the finals. It was clear from the very start how important this tournament was to both of them, and they would do anything to win. It was a draw in the end, and no matter how many tie breakers they did, it would always end up to a draw. Technically, they both won the tournament, but it was clearly not enough for them. Ever since then, the competition beween them became too obvious, trying to beat each other in everything, from basketball games, to projects, even exams. From there, they decided to settle things themselves and agreed on a fight." Paine looked down. "It was bad, I was there, they used swords in their duel. Still, in the end, even if they both ended up in the hospital to have those cuts and bleeding treated, neither of them won." Though Paine seems affected by the story, her stoic voice did not change.
There was a long pause. It went as bad as that, and they ended up almost killing each other. It isn't the typical rivalry Rinoa has encountered in movies or in her everyday life when she was a kid. It was the only time she experienced such competition, but it was just between her group of friends and some other kids who would always try and win most of the games they play. But it was long done, and she was already good friends with them. Besides, it didn't get worse than running to their mommies while crying that someone just cheated on them.
Rinoa awkwardly broke the silence among them, but she felt like she had to ask. "How did you know all about this?"
Paine looked up to her. "I used to be in 1-A." She turned away. "I thought I understood what they were going through and I tried to help them. But there's just no way getting in between them. When they fought each other, I made sure I was there. Not to watch the fight, but to aid them in case anything happens. When I saw them finally fall down to the ground, bleeding, I quickly brought them to a nearby hospital."
Rikku then continued for her. "The school knew they had to separate the two after that incident, but it also meant that the class will have to divide as well, because they began taking sides. They couldn't make the two work out, they knew they can't do anything about it."
"Thus, Section A and B." Yuna sighed.
"After that incident, I decided to transfer sections, anywhere except those two. I ended up in Section D." Paine, back to her stoic self, plainly said.
"And that's where she met me!" Rikku cheerfully pointed her thumb towards her chest.
Yuna giggled. "When I came over here at Deling from Besaid Island, I was placed at 2-B and got that same shock you're having now. Thankfully Rikku's here, who happens to be with Paine, who explained everything to me."
Rinoa too was grateful that she found Yuna as her first friend, who, with all sincerity, helped her to know everything so she won't fall too far behind. With these complications existing in her school, Rinoa surely needs to easily cope up. Though there is still something she needs to know.
"How does the settling things between sections work?" Rinoa asked.
"Well, Cloud has his own gang, Squall has his. They work like they have to fight for their own sections when problems arise between us, no matter how small it is. For example, two weeks ago was their last fight, and the reason was, someone from Squall's section practically harrassed one girl from our class. It was both their fault actually, that girl has always worn really really short skirts, so it was only expected that she will be grabbed." Yuna rolled her eyes while smiling from its absurdity.
"Section A and Section B work like packs." Paine sternly said. "Section A has Squall as the pack leader, while Section B called Cloud their 'Alpha'. Though both did not recognize themselves as those, they partake their roles seriously. However, it is debatable if they're doing it for their sections' sake, or for their rivalry."
Rinoa, who never wished for a commotion like this to exist, hoped she could understand better. This whole rivalry thing still confused her. Why did it have to exist in the first place? Couldn't they just accept that they're simply that good with most things and be proud of it? Maybe that was the problem, there was too much pride it bore stubborness. And then, came arrogance.
"Anyway," Rikku clapped her hands together that made Rinoa jumped. "now it's our turn to ask you questions!"
The rest of the lunch break was practically Rinoa's moment to tell them her whole story, about Winhill, how her mother got sick and died (which Yuna empathized with her and told Rinoa that she too lost her mom in a plane crash), and she also told them about her Dad.
"General Caraway is your father?!" Rikku shouted, surprised.
Rinoa could've sworn everyone around them froze and stared at her. She bent her head down, thanking Hyne she has long hair to hide her blushing face.
"Hey, quiet down!" Yuna hissed at Rikku, who covered her mouth with her hands. Paine slapped herself on the forehead while shaking her head and mumbled something like "Crap Rikku..."
"Oh poopie... sorry..." Rikku scratched the back of her head.
Rinoa took a glance around them and was relieved that everyone was back to the way they were. "It's fine." She smiled at Rikku.
Fifteen minutes before the lunch break ends, the four friends decided to head to their classrooms. As they went out of the cafeteria, Rinoa took another glance at the table where she saw their rival section's leader, Squall. He was bent forward, resting with his bended elbows on the table. He still had that frown on his face.
Then, he looked up at Rinoa. His expression didn't change a bit, even after their eyes met. Rinoa, who didn't know how to react, even when his deadly look scared her, kept looking in his blue, angry eyes. Squall followed her stare, only for a moment, and looked away. He figured that she belongs in Cloud's section when he saw her came in with that Besaid girl. He knew she was a newbie, he never saw her around before, though, he thought, he shouldn't care. But something about that moment amused him. Usually, when he felt someone staring at him and, at rare ocassions like this, he stares back, people from Cloud's section (or any other section for that matter) would jump, gasp and look away. In some cases with the wimpy ones, they run away, as if his stare can kill them. But this new girl, her eyes did not tell him she's scared of him, rather... well, even he can't describe in one word. As if there was sadness. As if there was sympathy. As if there was comfort. It was like how a mother would calm an angry son down who just got out to fight someone else until he becomes tranquil again. Also, this time, it was he who looked away.
Whatever. It doesn't matter to him anymore.
Unlike the newcomer and her friends, Squall waited with Irvine until the bell rang to tell him that lunch break is over. He took his bag, swung it to his back, and headed to his class.
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