Operation: Mariposa

by Scarlet Fever

Seifer/Squall slash! Rated M for Graphic language, violence, sexual content and drug/alcohol use. What do you do when your whole world turns against you? Been a while since I posted a fic on here! Work In Progress!

10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"Okay, here's one. Would you rather be a werewolf or a vampire?" Quistis asked breathlessly as they continued on a steep climb along a path within the Almaj Mountain chain. Seifer, as usual, was in the lead, and today she was bringing up the rear. They were making inane conversation to pass the time, and to try and forget how sore their feet and legs were, and all the scratches on their hands from the sharp rocks that just seemed to ignore gloves, and cut right through them. "Squall, you don't have to answer since I know you're going to say vampire." They'd been travelling through the unforgiving, jagged Almaj terrain for four or five days. They'd heard the sound of Garden airships, but there were plenty of nooks and crannies to keep themselves concealed while their enemies passed overhead.

They were also finding out that Garden and any army operatives they were hiring weren't their only problem. The Centran weather was harsh and arid. The days got quite hot, and the nights were frigid. The air was getting thinner as they climbed higher into the peaks, and the animals and monsters were all very dangerous. But, Squall and Quistis fed off Seifer's calm and collected demeanour. He acted as if they were strolling through a historic Dollet promenade, displaying his wealth of knowledge about Centra's terrain and life forms. Or, showing off a little. He couldn't help it. But, the other two appreciated the distraction, and the things they learned were rather interesting, and Quistis loved anything educational. As for Squall, he would have enjoyed listening to Seifer read the phone book. But, on the other hand, he was kind of like a slave driver. He wouldn't let them slow down, and frowned on taking breaks.

"What?" Squall looked over his shoulder. "How do you know?"

Seifer also looked back, him and Quistis sharing a look before they both started laughing.

"...Whatever," Squall muttered poutishly. Though, he couldn't really deny it. He would totally choose to be a vampire.

"What about you?" Quistis asked of Seifer.

"Werewolf," The blonde answered after only a very small pause.

"What?" Squall demanded, voice sharp in surprise.

Seifer raised an eyebrow and regarded him with a look that melted Squall into his boots and sent blood rushing to his genitals. "What, you're mad?" He asked laughingly.

"I figured you would choose vampire."

"I'd miss the sun too much. You'd be more in tune with nature as a werewolf, instead of at odds with it. You'd be less of a monster."

"But, you'd lose your consciousness every full moon," Squall pointed out. "And, vampires seem much more romantic. That's why I figured you'd choose to be one."

"Oh dear Hyne, you are mad!" Seifer exclaimed, looking over his shoulder as he chuckled. Though, of course he didn't slow their pace.

"That's so sweet!" Quistis exclaimed, her enthusiasm making her chest hurt a little. They were pretty high up, so oxygen was harder to come by.

"Am not," Squall pouted. "And, shut up."

"You're upset because you think you should have known what Seifer would say. Soooo cute!" The look on Squall's face made her laugh even harder than she already was. Not just because of how irritated he was, but because of the blush in his cheeks that screamed 'yes, that's true', even if he wanted to deny it to his deathbed.

Squall remained silent, maybe because his ego was stung because Quistis's teasing was a little close to the mark. Seifer seemed far more internally thoughtful about such a superficial question, and Squall noticed a muscle twitching in the other man's jaw.

"So, you wouldn't want to be a were-lion?"

"That wasn't an option in your choice."

"Oh Squall, you have no imagination. I guess it's a good thing I find that attractive in you. Good, but pathetic and disturbing, too." He was teasing, of course, but Squall could still hear a distracted note in his voice.

"Holy Hyne!" Quistis hissed, leaping back when some big giant thing flew near her face, making some sort of horrific noise between a click and a buzz. "What the hell was that?!"

"Centran Junebug. They aren't poisonous, but it hurts like hell if they bite you, and their legs have sharp grippers."

"Yeah, I'm getting that..." Quistis grit through clenched teeth, the giant beetle-like creature having landed on her shoulder. "Ow, ow, ow. Dammit!" She slapped at the thing, and it made a sickening crunch under her heavy glove. "Gross." She flicked it to the ground, groaning in frustration. "Gods, I am never going to forgive Garden for this."

"You have to," Seifer responded, still seeming distracted. He was looking up to the sky, and sniffed the air a few times.

"Says who?" The former Instructor grumped. "After what Xu's done to us? How they all believed lies about so readily?"

"Yeah, really. Fuck them," Squall chimed in.

"You have to forgive them," repeated Seifer, like there was no room for argument.

"And, why exactly must I?" She asked, minding her footing when they reached a section of the path where the rocks were loose.

"Because Garden's reputation has to be saved so they can be strong in the future. If two of the most prominent SeeD are cleared of false charges that were brought to them by Garden, and they don't forgive it as the act of one person, they Garden will never recover. You think people would send their kids there?"

"I wouldn't send my kids there right about now."

"What would happen in the future, then?" Seifer asked tightly. "Who would be strong enough to stave off Ultimecia?"

Quistis and Squall both stopped in their tracks, mouths parted with a lack of reply.

"Without SeeD, Ultimecia would be able to rise to power faster than she does in the future we saw. She'd have no opposition, and Time Compression would happen. Everything would die"

"I guess... I never really thought of that," Quistis said, kind of embarrassed. "It's hard to wrap your head around it as not having actually happened yet, even though it kind of did. I guess I forgot."

"Wish I could too," was Seifer's quiet reply, just loud enough that they could hear it over the wind. He said nothing more after that. What did he need to say, honestly? His body language remained stiff and distracted for a long enough time that Squall couldn't really not notice it anymore, even if he was a master of ignoring other people's problems. But, never with Quistis. Never with Seifer.

"You okay?" Squall asked quietly, reaching out with one gloved hand to touch Seifer's arm. He let his fingers hover for the sake of physical contact. In this situation, it's not like they got much time to act like the couple they actually were, even though it didn't seem 'official' yet. It's not like they could just slip off and have sex and leave Quistis all by herself in this hostile environment. They knew she wouldn't have minded if they disappeared together for ten or fifteen minutes, but it just never occurred to them.

"Hmm?" He looked down into Squall's eyes. It still made his knees weak, even after all these years, to get lost in that sea of cold blue. Like warm, tropical waters locked under a layer of protective ice. "Yeah, yeah. Just internalizing." Seifer stroked Squall's cheekbone, then his lower lip. "You must be rubbing off on me." He gave Squall a quick, gentle kiss on the mouth. Before he could go back to the front of their single-file march, Squall tightly wrapped his hand around Seifer's wrist, and brought him back in for a second kiss.

Seifer gave a grin that was so quintessentially Almasy before they separated themselves from each other. "Maybe I'm just wondering what life as a were-tonberry would be like. Probably better than some were-rooster, like that Chicken Wuss would totally be."

"Bitch about him all you want, but we know you haven't written him off," Quistis murmured, still smiling serenely after watching Seifer and Squall share a quiet intimate kiss. It wasn't a smile of sexual gratification, but of joy at seeing normalcy. At seeing a semblance of happiness in this cold, lonely and unforgiving environment. Both men had been so miserable over the past couple of years, that it was nice to see them smile, even for a moment. "You didn't let Odin kill him."

Seifer was saved from answering from a scent he was picking up. But, knowing what it was didn't really constitute being 'saved', depending on how you looked at it. His pace slowed until he was completely stopped. Though, he kind of would have rather stood here and faced down what he was smelling rather than answer Quistis's question about Zell.

"Seifer, what's...?" Quistis began to ask, but snapped her mouth shut when Seifer cut a hand through the air to silence her.

"Don't call magic. Don't call your GF. Don't go for your weapons."

"Why?" Squall whispered. Seifer was staring straight ahead, and then he could feel an earthquake. The surprise of the ground shaking caused him to reach out for Seifer and grip his shoulder. But, his lover seemed unphased.

The shaking stopped, then happened again. Stopped, happened again. Squall and Quistis slowly realized it was in a pattern, and when they saw a large frame crest the mountain path ahead of them, they knew it had been a ruby dragon's footsteps.

"Oh, shit..." Quistis trailed off, instinctively charging a blizzard spell in her palm. The highly intelligent reptile sensed it, and let out a piercing, angry growl.

"No magic," Seifer hissed, looking over his shoulder at her. He was standing in front of them to shield the smaller two with his larger body, to make them seem smaller. It's not like the dragon would think they were just one person if Seifer hid Squall and Quistis - they were too smart for that, but they would look less threatening. Seifer briefly closed his eyes in panic when he saw a second figure crest the hill. A baby. This massive dragon was a cow, and she had her baby with her. Not good. She'd be extra angry, and she took up the whole path, wings scraping against the sides of the mountains, so they couldn't just sneak past. And, she would have smelled them long before Seifer smelled her.

"Keep your hands away from your weapons," Seifer warned. "No sudden movements."

If Seifer was panicked, it was nothing to the way Quistis and Squall were feeling. They'd had to battle ruby dragons before. It wasn't fun, and the few times they did, they'd barely escaped with their lives. But, those dragons had all been alone. The fact this one had a baby would mean she'd be extra mean.

The calf tried to dart in front of its mother by slipping under her wing, but she flapped it out to prevent her inquisitive young from going to investigate the tiny creatures in their path. Her baby didn't yet know the dangers of humans, their frail size hiding their cruelty. But, the one in the front, shielding the other two

How many of these things had Quistis faced down in her life as a SeeD? And, here she was still with cold sweat trickling down her back. Her hand was desperate to reach for her whip, and to feel the warmth of blue magic in her palm. Seifer was shepherding her and Squall against his back with all the air of someone who knew what he was doing, but she could feel the tenseness in his arms. He must have been in this situation several times before without drawing a weapon against such a powerful, dangerous animal, and wasn't ever hurt. She could hear the two men sharply intake their breath when the large cow lowered her head, like she was trying to get a better look at them. But, her gaze didn't waver from Seifer, who was staring right back, sweat soaking his back.

One of the great, red leathery wings folded up against her body, and she inclined her head to them in a gesture of acceptance. Seifer stood frozen with Squall and Quistis pressed to his back. "Come on," he whispered to them, slowly shuffling around the dragon. Her body was still so big that they almost brushed against her. They never put their back to the dragon as they sidestepped past. The calf shuffled towards them, and Seifer tensed when it came even closer. Even though it was a baby, it was already bigger than a full-grown Chocobo. It had its head lowered, and slowly craned its neck out towards Seifer, acting like a dog that wanted to be petted. It kind of lunged itself forward and nudged the blonde in what it probably meant as a playful caress, but would leave Seifer with a darkly bruised ribcage.

Seifer awkwardly petted the baby dragon's head, where its black horns were only just starting to grow in. It would take decades to get the full head of powerful black horns like its mother. The pat seemed to satisfy it, and it clumsily jogged over to its mother, who was continuing along the mountain path. The three humans were left to stare in shock as she kept walking, grumbling at her calf to keep moving. It gave a playful bellow at them before leaping away, flapping its wings and trying to fly even though it didn't know how.

"Ummm... what?" Quistis asked, befuddled.

"Are you hurt?" Squall whispered into Seifer's ear when the taller man bowled over, holding his ribs.

"Nah." He righted himself again, stroking his stomach. "It just winded me, but I didn't want to show it hurt in front of them. They would have known." He waved off Squall's question, but the look of concern in his wintery eyes made Seifer kind of want to milk it, just so Squall would look at him like that for a little while longer.

"It never gets easy to face down one of those," Quistis murmured, peering at Seifer intently with her best Instructor face on. "Do you know what just happened?"

Seifer shook his head, slowly turning around and starting to continue walking. He looked over his shoulder once more. "It's happened a couple times before, though. With ruby dragons, and once with a hexadragon. Me and Raijin stumbled upon a bull ruby sleeping once. I thought for sure he would rip our heads off just for inconveniencing him, but he just kind of looked at me and went back to sleep. And, nesting mothers are even more bad-tempered than bulls. She should have obliterated us back there."

"I think she would have, if it had just been me and Squall."

"Yeah, but... I don't know what that means." Seifer fell into an internal, thoughtful silence which was contagious to the other two. Keeping single file, they kept marching along the lonely mountain path, each step bringing them closer to Esthar.

---

"Come in!" Xu barked when there was a knock on her new office door. She'd set up shop in the Headmaster's quarters, and come to realize that there was a lot of work to be done before she could actually get to running Garden. Cid had been highly disorganized about paperwork, which wasn't a surprise at all. More like a rage-inducing fact. Xu would have killed him right then and there if she hadn't done so already. She was expecting to see Astor or Luchia, or even Zell, so it was a big surprise when it was Nida's head that poked in.

"Is it okay if I come in?"

"Nida! Yeah... sure..." She trailed off quietly, gesturing for him to enter. She hadn't seen him since she'd issued Operation: Mariposa, and thought he might feel mutinous about trying to kill the object of his affections. "Do you want to sit down?"

"I just came to drop off this finalized report, looking into Seifer's recent activities in Dollet. It's pretty thin, just to warn you."

"Oh, great." Xu reached out and took the folder from him. His lips were pursed, and he looked pensive. Conflicted. "You okay?" Hyne, he was so beautiful

"Oh... well, no. But, you know that. It's not like this thing is easy, you know?"

"No, I know that."

"I guess it's just hard to admit that maybe I don't know Quistis as well as I thought," Nida admitted, completely pained to even say the words. "And, I know it must have been hard to give the order. For Mariposa, I mean." He shuffled his feet. "Anyway, I just wanted you to know that. I'll keep you posted if I dig up anything else about Seifer."

"Yeah, sure..." She watched as he left, mystified. Was Nida's opinion of Quistis really starting to sour? Xu's heart quickened at the idea. She didn't let herself get her hopes up that his affection for Quistis might be waning, but she really wanted to. She wanted to let herself feel that giddy joy, to feel her heart try and soar out of her chest. But, no... she wouldn't go after him. She wouldn't press him. She'd let him come to her in time.

But... what if... what if this was all some plot? Xu wasn't stupid. She knew that Irvine was suspicious. As his partner, would Nida agree with him? Would he use Xu's feelings as a way to try and get closer to her?

Xu picked up the phone and paged Luchia to her office.

"Yes?" The cold woman asked when she came in.

"I need you to keep an eye on Nida. Particularly his interactions with Irvine."

"And, I'll be looking for what, exactly?"

"Just do it," Xu answered waspishly, leaning back in her new chair. It already felt like it'd belonged to her for years. "But... keep your distance about it, alright?"

"Fine."

Though she did have her doubts, Xu felt good as she leaned back in the chair again, spinning it around so she could look out the large picture windows over the calm, clear ocean. For the first time in the longest time, she didn't feel overshadowed by Squall, or by Quistis. Quistis wasn't getting everything that Xu strived for. For once, everything was working out in Xu's favour.

---

"Can't we stop for a little while?" Squall asked testily. They were still in the Almaj, probably at the highest altitude they'd reached yet. Air was hard to come by, and they hadn't seen fresh water in days, except for the cold, icy drizzle they'd been pelted with for days.

"We just stopped," Seifer muttered, still pressing on. They were all hungry and tired, and were extra cranky. They were snapping at each other over nothing, and Quistis hadn't spoken to them in hours after some stupid blow-up.

Squall muttered bitterly under his breath. His clothes were soaked, and the only time Seifer would let them stop was to have a quick nibble every three or four hours, and to change their socks if they got wet.

"What was that?" Seifer hissed over his shoulder. The fur that lined the hook of his parka was matted and laced with ice from the hail.

"Nothing," Squall mumbled.

"Yeah, you've been muttering about nothing all day. So, either let me actually fucking hear it, or shut up."

"We aren't allowed to rest. We aren't allowed to complain," Quistis replied in a sarcastic sing-song tone. "No magic to warm ourselves."

"If you want Garden to sense the magical discharge, be my guest."

Quistis childishly mimicked him, then slipped on an icy patch of loose rocks. She fell to her hands and knees, cursing. She felt a hand wrap around her upper arm, and she shook it off angrily. "I don't need help!" She spat, wiping her glasses again. She let out a string of vicious curses and just put the spectacles away. It was a complete lost cause in this snowy rain.

"...Whatever," Squall muttered. "We shouldn't have fucking come here."

"What?" Seifer asked, slowing his hectic walking pace to a stop. He spun around and looked at Squall. "What was that?"

"Nothing."

"No, it wasn't fucking 'nothing', Squall. Just say it."

"We should have gone to Trabia. Look at us! We're fucking lost in the mountains."

"We aren't lost."

"Do you have any fucking idea where we're going? Or, how we're actually supposed to cross the Kashkabald without being seen?" Squall demanded, lashing out in his weariness. "Or, did you just lead us here without thinking of the consequences, like you always do? Did you just trust Odin because he fucked you?"

Seifer glared at the other man. "You were the one who came to me for help, Squall."

"Maybe I shouldn't have."

"Okay. Go home, then. Let Garden fucking kill you for all I care. I ruined my life to come help you, and all I get is shit, and you mooning over Rinoa. 'Is she hurt?', 'what if I seriously hurt her?' I'm getting sick of it."

"I could have killed her! Like you have any compassion for anyone but yourself!"

"Fuck off, Squall. Go to Trabia, then. Go back to Garden and to your Sorceress, then." Seifer turned his back and kept walking along the path, angrily pulling out his gunblade for the first time that day.

Squall just crossed his arms and looked away, stubbornly staying where he was even though Seifer obviously wasn't going to stop and wait. Quistis just trudged along, not bothering to move out of the way when she passed Squall, so she banged shoulders with him.

"Fuck off," Squall hissed at her.

"Why don't you both shut up?!" She demanded angrily. "You think you're the only two here? I have to listen to your stupid spats too, you know?" She stomped along, cracking some ice off her mittens, then off her whip, ice shards flying against the rock walls around them.

Squall really was tempted to turn around and just go home. He turned around, away from Seifer and Quistis, and just started walking in the direction they'd come. He slipped a few times because the ground was getting so precarious with hail, but he didn't want to turn around out of hurt pride. Fuck them. Fuck Seifer. These two were really his best friends? This was really the man he'd chosen to be with? He was a fucking bastard, and Quistis was an uppity know-it-all.

Squall slowed his angry pace and stopped, looking over a bluff through the clouds. The black South Centra Sea was far, far below, and he was completely alone. He couldn't just turn and go back. He had to keep going to Esthar, because there was nowhere else to go. So, what choice did he have? He turned around and started walking eastward again. He didn't hurry to catch up to Seifer and Quistis, and by the amount of time it took him to get them in his sights, they hadn't stopped for him, either. Squall hoisted Lionheart on his shoulders, and kept a distance from the two of them, wanting to internalize for a while.

Seifer may not have stopped his relentless pace towards Esthar, but Squall caught him look over his shoulder a couple of times. So, he was checking, but hadn't stopped, hadn't gone back to make sure Squall was okay. Again he was filled with tired, angry bitterness. This whole situation was shit. He glared death lasers into Seifer and Quistis's backs. They made really good scapegoats since he couldn't exactly rip Xu's face off from here.

Seifer and Quistis's moods weren't much better. Quistis was mad at both of them for constantly fighting around her. Mad at Xu. Mad at herself. She was so sore and hungry and tired and just hated everything right now. Seifer was being a big bully, and Squall was acting like a petulant princess. But, at least they still had each other. What did she have? A big, fat nothing! She could have been happy with Nida. He was pretty much throwing himself at her, but she had to be all noble and self-sacrificing and afraid. Just like always. Stupid and blind, too. She cracked her whip, ice building on it once more. How could Xu have done this to her?!

She was too busy bullying herself and fuming about Xu, that she didn't notice Seifer had stopped in front of her, so she banged into his back, which felt like a brick wall right about now. God, she needed rest and food. Clean, dry clothes would be nice, too. And, she missed her knitting, dammit!

"What the fuck?" Quistis exclaimed angrily. "You couldn't say you were going to stop?" She rubbed her shoulder, where it'd made contact with Seifer's spine.

"You hear that?" He asked, rather dreamily. He had his head cocked towards the source of the noise. He started walking slowly towards the sound, but didn't draw Hyperion. It wasn't necessary. There was a jutting of rock from the mountain face, and it created a small cave, where the noise was coming from. Seifer was pretty certain he knew what it was, since they made such a distinct sound, but he didn't want to let himself believe that he was about to lay eyes on them, in the wild.

"Hear what?" Squall asked sourly.

"Shh!" Seifer hissed, creeping up to the cave. It was too small for the three of them to enter, but they could crouch at the mouth to look inside. He couldn't help but put a hand over his mouth in surprise, his heart feeling light as air when he saw a family of moogles. Actually living in the wild! They were so, so endangered that this was a once in a lifetime thing. And, not only one moogle, but three adults and babies. The babies were young enough that they hadn't even grown their trademark red pom-poms. The females nipples were enlarged and dark against her snowy fur, so they were young enough to still be nursing.

"Oh my God!" Quistis whispered, touching her fingers to her lips and smiling for the first time that day. Actually, she hadn't smiled that wide in a long, long time. She looked over to Squall in happy surprise. He had the exact same kind of look on his face, all his surly tension melting away.

The adult moogles were staring at the humans, faces full of wariness. Humans were the reason that there were so few moogles in the world. They'd been hunted to virtual extinction for their fur and wings, which humans thought had medicinal and aphrodisiacal properties. Moogles were very skilled magically, but these humans seemed okay. The small, furry white creatures could read auras quite well, and sensed no ill will.

"Hello, kupo!" The youngest looking adult greeted. Probably a juvenile. His pom-pom was smaller than the other two.

Seifer smiled, and had to cover his shaking mouth. He felt on the verge of tears, and when the babies looked at them, he couldn't help but laugh. There was just something about seeing a moogle in person that could send even the most hard-hearted person into transports of delight, and make them act like a ten year old girl.

"They're the cutest things I've ever seen!" Quistis whispered, practically bouncing on the spot.

Squall lowered himself to the cold, wet ground, sitting cross-legged but not feeling the chill. The young adult came slowly flying over to him, purple wings beating quickly to carry his heavy, fluffy body. Squall reached out and touched the moogle's forehead, then ripped his mitten off so he could feel the fur under his bare fingertips. It was softer than anything he'd ever felt in his life. The moogle gave its typical whistling peep noise, and came closer so Squall could keep petting him. "Kupo!" He exclaimed, seeming to enjoy the attention, eyes sliding shut.

Meanwhile, Seifer had pulled out a pen and paper, trying to shield it from the slushy snow. He was writing furiously, and even pulled out his phone so he could take a couple of pictures. The female seemed quite interested in the phone, and came over to him so she could examine it. The smell of her washed any bad feelings out of Seifer, and he just breathed it in like he was meditating. He didn't even realize that he was actually crying from sheer delight.

"What's your name, kupo?" The moogle Squall was petting asked in a Centran dialect.

"Squall. This is Quisty, and Seifer."

"Nice to meet you, kupo! I've never seen humans before. I'm Serino."

"Nice to meet you, too."

"Where are you going?"

"Esthar."

"Is it far, kupo?"

"Yeah."

"Sounds fun!" The moogle peeped and smiled, and Squall's heart broke in a million pieces. He looked over and saw that Seifer was looking at him rather than the moogles. The look in the other man's eyes warmed his soul more than even this soft white fur and the sweet, nutty scent coming from it.

"We should go," Seifer said quietly, rising to his feet. He said with total regret. He wouldn't have minded sitting there forever with the moogles.

"Awww," Quistis murmured with disappointment. "Okay." She groaned as she pulled her sore body to full height.

"Goodbye Serino." Squall waved and followed the other two humans, looking back to see the moogles waving at them. Even the babies.

The three of them fell into silence as they marched along. But, it was a far calmer, more serene silence than the ones they'd been sharing for the first part of the day. Seeing the moogles had calmed them, and the anger and crankiness seeped from their bodies.

Because of the bad weather and low cloud cover, it got much darker much faster. They hadn't said anything to each other in hours, not since seeing the moogles, so it was kind of shocking when Seifer said "stop." His voice seemed as loud as a gunshot. They were in front of an alcove-like shape of rocks, and there were actually conifer trees here. The reason he said to stop though wasn't because of the rare sight of trees in the mountains, but because Bahamut told him to. It was the first time in days that his GF had spoken in his head, and the dragon hadn't been summoned once since Winhill. That much magic would be impossible to hide.

"Wait... Diablos is saying 'stop'!" Quistis exclaimed, squinting her eyes as she listened to her GF within her head. Shiva was also telling Squall the same. "It's an environmental shield," Quistis murmured. She was more tuned magically than either man, so could feel it. The way the rocks and trees were created a natural shield to cloak the use of magic from any outsiders, and all three GF were mentally requesting to be separated from their masters.

"This would be a good place to stop. We can stand watch while you rest," Bahamut murmured quietly, though they could still feel his ethereal voice rumbling through the ground and vibrating their bones.

Quistis sighed in relief as she practically crawled into the alcove. She started picking up some rocks and made a circle for a fire. She didn't need wood, since she could actually use magic for it. Too many nights they'd have to suffer the cold with no fire, so it was nice. Diablos perched himself above the alcove to watch, his wings acting like an umbrella.

"Hey," Quistis said quietly as she nudged Squall's shoulder with her own. "Sorry I snapped at you guys."

"No apology needed," Seifer murmured, looking out to Bahamut. "We were all tired and cranky, and lost our tempers. Not to mention dirty. And sore. Hungry, cold, wet, angry, frustrated. Scared."

"Me too," was Squall's less than verbose reply. "I'm sorry, I mean," he clarified. Rinoa had once accused him of always saying 'me too' instead of using the more emotionally charged, important words like 'I'm sorry', or especially 'I love you'.

"I know." She put her arm around his shoulder and brought him in for a hug. One that Squall didn't shy away from. It felt good to feel her arms around him, to know that she was there beside him, and she hadn't turned her back on him. He could feel her lips press to the top of his head, and it felt so comforting.

"What, I don't get a hug?" Seifer asked, mock-hurt lacing his voice.

Without breaking apart, Squall and Quistis opened up the embrace so it became a three-person hug. Quistis loved being hugged by Seifer since he was so strong and so much bigger than her. It felt like how a child feels being hugged by their father or a much elder brother. Like they were safe and protected, and nothing bad would happen to them in those arms. And, she knew it wasn't like Squall minded being so close to Seifer. She could feel his body melt just a little bit against her side.

"So, when does the orgy start?" Seifer asked, giving Quistis a wink.

"You know, I really wouldn't mind..." She trailed off, slyly looking over at Squall, pretending to be all coquettish. The look returned to her was one of complete distaste.

Seifer shook his head as he broke away from the other two. "Seriously, no sense of humour."

Quistis found herself getting strangely teary-eyed as she looked at the other two. Really, they were the only two people in the world to her right now. They hadn't seen another person in about a week, maybe longer. They'd lost all sense of time, and may as well have been on another planet. Even Esthar, the destination that they had their minds solely focused on, seemed like some sort of distant memory. She and Squall had the entire world against them. Every person they'd come to know and care about was now their enemy. And, Seifer had thrown himself in with them, ruining whatever life he'd come to create for himself. But, maybe he was saving himself, too? Maybe he wanted to get away from a life he was miserable in. He hadn't been happy in a long time, and it all didn't have to do with Squall. He'd felt trapped into becoming an assassin and working for the Solar System. Trapped by his own self-esteem issues, or trapped by whatever horrible emotional baggage Ultimecia left him with. And, this was a way to connect with his fake life as a naturalist, a life he seemed to like better than his real one. When he told them about the landscape and about animals and monsters in the area, there had been a confidence and ease about him that Quistis hadn't seen in a really long time. And, now he was also something he'd strived for, but hadn't been able to reach - a hero. Quistis and Squall would be dead if it weren't for Seifer, they knew that. Or, they would have just given up hope since they both were rather defeatist. But, Seifer had saved them, and he wouldn't let them give up. Ever.

"Quisty?" Squall asked quietly, touching her shoulder. She looked somewhat upset, and there were a couple of tears strolling down her cheek.

"Hmm?" She looked over at him dreamily, but the look in her eyes wasn't sad.

Squall looked into her eyes, and had a moment of perfect clarity and understanding. He'd only ever shared that kind of moment with Seifer, so it was jolting to actually feel it with someone else. That she felt the same things about Seifer that he did, but not with the same sexual context. And, that they really did feel all alone. Apart from the lack of food, water and shelter, Squall almost didn't want to go back to the real world. Staying with the two of them would have suited him just fine.

Seifer, standing at the mouth of the cave under the umbrella of Diablos's wings, didn't notice how intent and lovingly Squall and Quistis were looking at him. He had his own intent staring to do. But, it was at the large slate blue dragon perched on a rock, looking up at the sky thoughtfully.

"Bahamut?"

The dragon turned his head, and regarded his master serenely. "You wish to know about what happened with that ruby cow earlier this week, and about our connection," he answered knowingly.

Squall and Quistis were drawn out of their reverie, and came to stand beside Seifer. Quistis looked at Bahamut with all the studiousness of a Garden Instructor. Squall looked at Seifer instead, and saw eagerness to maybe find out something about his early and unknown life, and maybe even apprehension, tightening his jaw. He reached out and touched Seifer's hand. The other man didn't look over, but his fingers did twine with Squall's, and squeezed his hand tight.

"It's because of your mother. I see you know nothing of her."

"I don't even know what she looked like, or what her name was. Matron didn't know, either."

"She looked very much like you in the face. She was also very tall, like you. And, you have her eyes. Completely identical. You have your father's hair, nose and paler skin tone, though."

"You knew Seifer's parents?" Quistis asked, intrigued. She noticed that Shiva and Diablos were also looking over, just as interested.

"Looked, as in past tense?" Seifer asked stiffly. He squeezed Squall's hand just a little tighter.

"Yes. I lost the feel of her when she was taken prisoner by Azabaashe. Adel wasn't known to leave prisoners alive."

"Azabaashe..." Squall murmured. "Adel's Knight..."

"Yes, her fifth and final Knight. She had a penchant for killing them off when she got too paranoid that they would overthrow her."

"Wh... why did Adel want her?"

"Because of her powers. Your mother was known as La Draconia, the Queen of the Dragoon tribe of Trabia. You're one of the last. The Dragoons were very small in numbers, so only a few children are left of the bloodline, and even fewer after Adel had them hunted down."

"I've never heard of such a tribe," Seifer murmured. He lowered himself onto a boulder, his legs feeling like jelly. But, he still kept Squall's hand tight in his own.

"Few have. They were killed off, like many other small tribes of people with extraordinary gifts that Adel craved, and even feared. I believe your Blue Magic is from one such tribe," Bahamut noted, eyes sliding to Quistis. "The dragoons didn't flaunt their powers. I say that Dinara was a Queen, but it was in title only. She was looked up to by the villagers in their only remaining settlement as a 'mayor' of sorts. But, they were a quiet people who lived off the land and wanted to be left alone," Bahamut said with fondness. He actually seemed sad to be telling this story. Like he missed them.

"Dinara..." Seifer whispered. The first time he'd heard his mother's name.

"Yes. Dinara von Munster. Almasy was your father's surname."

"Adel would have wanted a Dragoon's power," Squall guessed. "She looked the way she did because of all the magical experiments she'd done on herself. Taking powers from other Sorceresses, from GF study, from powerful monsters. To be able to talk to and command dragons would have been irresistible to her."

"Yes, that's true."

"Oh, Squall!" Quistis exclaimed proudly. "You always were the best student in my history classes."

"She experimented on my parents?"

"Just your mother. Your father was not a Dragoon. He was a lunar scholar in Esthar. That's how he met your mother. They went to university together. Along with Azabaashe. And, I can only assume experiments were done on her. Once Dinara was taken to Esthar, I lost mental contact with her. It wasn't surprising, and not just because she was La Draconia. Azabaashe had made no secret that he was in love with her, and it enraged him that a 'Queen' would have chosen a scientist as her husband, instead of the royalty that Azabaashe saw himself as, particularly when he became Adel's Knight."

"And, you were her... GF?" Quistis asked, putting a finger to her chin.

"No. I recall when I met the two of you the first time," he said to Squall and Quistis, black eyes drilling into them. "How I told you I wasn't a GF. That's true, and yet it isn't. I'm a dragon spirit, and I came to your mother as a GF would come to you now, under her command. But, only Dragoons could call me. But, when Dinara was taken, so was I. The floating laboratory you found me in was created to harness my powers into the form of a Guardian Force. So, I suppose I became one through their science. And, then they used my trapped powers to dig up that monstrosity that was beneath the earth."

"Ultima Weapon," Squall explained when Seifer's brow furrowed in confusion.

"How did I get to Centra if I was born in Trabia?"

"Your father. Adel and Azabaashe attacked Wolf Haven, the village where you were born. Dinara knew that Adel would kill you, and your brother and sisters, if she found you, so she sent Petr away."

"I had siblings?!"

Bahamut nodded.

"Where are they?"

"Dead."

Seifer felt like he was going to throw up. To find out he had an entire family. Sisters, a brother, a mother and father, and that they were all dead and gone. Hunted and killed by Adel. A creature that he'd served. That he almost brought back from her hibernation. Had Ultimecia...?

"Yes," Bahamut said suddenly, reading Seifer's mind. "Ultimecia knew of your family's connection with Adel when she commanded you to try and free her. I'm sure she thought it quite funny."

Seifer's hand constricted painfully around Squall's.

"How did they die...?"

"I know not of your father. I didn't have a psychic connection with him. Your youngest sister was just an infant at the time, and died of exposure. Your mother was eight months pregnant at the time of her capture, so I lost connection with your brother when I lost her. Your two older sisters were captured by the Estharian soldiers that were hunting you. I know your father did what he could to save them, but one non-magical man not trained as a soldier against an entire army, especially Adel's army..." Bahamut's wings came up in his version of a shrug. "I'm sure he fought with his last breath to get you to safety. Centra was under Galbadian rule, and to bring you to Edea would have been the safest place for you from Adel."

Seifer had to start panting to gain enough air to breathe. His eyes stung, and his whole body was heavy with the effort to process all this information.

"How did Azabaashe die?" Quistis asked. "The history records have been rather vague about that."

"Because nothing is known. He vanished. Adel probably killed him," Bahamut replied, eyes not wavering from his master. Or, rather the only surviving remnant of his true master. "She wasn't shy about that."

Seifer looked up, looking at Bahamut through a thick veil of unshed tears. "What... what were they like?"

"Your father was very quiet, and rather shy. But, he was warm and kind with those close to him. He was also brilliant. These were all qualities your mother liked in him. She was..." Bahamut trailed off, seemingly overcome. His affection for this human was evident. "She was a hero, pure and simple. Dinara was strong willed, a brilliant soldier, and fiercely loyal to those she loved. She was enrolled in the Estharian army for a term, before she became pregnant with her first child. Anke. She was much admired in Esthar, especially by other women. Estharian women were very prim and proper and meant to live quiet lives of child-rearing, something encouraged by Adel so they could breed a possible successor. But, Dinara was none of these things. I think they lived vicariously through her. Dinara's name, I'm certain, was stripped from Estharian records by Adel, but if you bring up the name Dinara von Munster, or say La Draconia, they'll have stories." Bahamut gave Seifer an inscrutable look. "I see a lot of her in you."

Seifer slowly rose to his feet, Squall's hand dropping from his own. "How could you?" He asked bitterly, going out into the cold, snowy rain. "You just described a hero. Everything that I could want to be, but what am I? A coward and a murderer." He pulled a bow he'd made in the Chocobo forest in order to quietly catch food without the use of magic off his back, and started walking towards the woods.

"You're wrong," Bahamut called after, correcting him as he pulled a couple bent and beaten up arrows from a small quiver. They were saving each one, not daring leave them behind in case they needed them, or in case they were found by Garden pursuers. "There are people who see you as a hero. These two do, even if you don't see it in yourself."

Squall and Quistis both immediately blushed, but Seifer didn't turn around. He kept walking and disappeared into the small, sparse forest.

"Wow..." Quistis murmured after some long, silent minutes. "That was a pretty amazing story." She looked to the trees. "Kinda makes me jealous."

Squall crossed his arms and stared intently at the trees.

"How you have your father back, and Seifer's now just learned about where he came from. I still don't have that. I have no idea who my parents were. Are they still alive? Did they die in the war? Were they collateral damage, or is there a story like that behind my family lines? About how I can use Blue Magic?" She wondered in a rush of words. "And, I wonder why you're still standing here, and haven't gone after him."

"What?"

"Oh, please." Quistis rolled her eyes. "You're a dumbass." She stood and went out of the cave. "Here, give me your canteen." She pointed to Seifer's discarded pack. "His, too. I'm going to go see if I can find some water."

"Perhaps I can help," Shiva offered. "May I?" She asked of Squall. She couldn't leave her master alone unless he gave her permission to do so.

"It's fine," he huffed, making a beeline after Seifer through the thin forest.

It wasn't exactly hard to find him through the thin tree cover. He was sitting on a dead, fallen tree, his head in one hand, bend and bloodstained arrow dangling from the other, dead pheasant at his feet. Squall sat down beside him, not bothering to ask if he was okay. The answer was written in the tear tracks on his cheeks.

"Where's Quisty?"

"Went to find water."

"Alone?" Seifer asked. Even through his emotional turmoil, he sounded disapproving.

"Shiva's with her. You didn't know," Squall murmured after a beat, resting his chin on Seifer's shoulder. He was referring to helping Adel, even though she'd killed his family.

"I should have!" Seifer hissed. "I should have known better, for any reason. The woman he talked about would be so ashamed that I'm all that's left of her."

"She wouldn't!" Squall exclaimed heatedly. "You're more than you give yourself credit for. Than anyone gives you credit for. Bahamut may as well have been describing you."

"Come off it," the blonde scoffed angrily, standing up.

"I'm serious!" Squall stood too, not letting his boyfriend turn away from him. It came to the point where Squall had to get him against a tree trunk to get him to not look away. "Quisty says the kids at the Orphanage worship the ground you walk on because of the tonberrys. Raijin and Fujin would follow you to the ends of the earth. Odin has pledged himself to serving you. You're the only reason me and Quisty are still alive. You saved us! You're our hero," he added more quietly. "And, anyone who could survive Ultimecia the way you did... Your mother would be very proud of you. And, even if you hadn't done anything special, she still would have been proud of you because she's your mother."

Seifer bit his lip and looked down into Squall's face. How he was at his most beautiful when he was so naked and honest with his emotions. How truly he believed what he'd just said. "I always thought my parents just didn't want me."

Squall wrapped his arms tightly around Seifer's torso, and felt the other man slump in his arms under the weight of his emotions. Squall could feel his heart beating fast, even through the thickness of his parka.

"I wish I could have met her, just once," Seifer whispered into the side of Squall's neck, voice shaking.

Squall tilted his head so their cheeks were pressed flush together. "I know," he whispered back.

Seifer pulled away just enough to look into Squall's eyes, knowing that the other man meant those two words more than nearly anyone else could have. He knew exactly how Seifer felt right now. He touched Squall's stubbly cheek. When coming into the trees to find something to eat, he'd thought he'd want to be alone to process all he'd just learned. But, he really, really didn't. In truth, hearing about a family that had only been an intangible idea to him made Seifer feel even more alone than he already did. It made him feel like there was this gaping hole inside him where a family should have been. When they'd just been a concept, no personalities or names, he didn't miss them. But, now he knew of this remarkable sounding woman, and he'd never get the chance to meet her. Ever.

Squall looked into Seifer's eyes, more familiar to him than sometimes even his own, and he felt a swoop in his stomach. The look in Seifer's absinthe eyes was one that Squall knew too well, and he wished that he'd never felt it, and that Seifer didn't have to go through the realization that you'd never meet this woman that so many people had wonderful stories about. Squall loved hearing Laguna's stories about Raine, but at the same time they hurt so fucking bad. Squall didn't want that pain for Seifer. He hugged Seifer tighter, resting his cheek against his collarbone.

Seifer craned his neck and nudged Squall's nose with his own, tilting his face upwards so Seifer could catch his mouth in a kiss. He felt so lonely right now, and just really wanted to feel like he was a part of someone else. He wanted to feel like there was still something good in his life right now. Or, maybe he just wanted to kiss Squall just to kiss him. Because it felt good, because Squall was his, and because Seifer loved him. Squall's mouth opened against his, and was warm and balmy compared to the cold damp of the environment that was seeping into their bones.

Squall could feel the urgency in Seifer's mouth, and in the way his hands were stroking up and down Squall's chest, trying to work their way past the layers of thick clothing encasing his body. It would have been perfectly understandable for Seifer to have an ulterior motive for this escalating sexual contact, but Squall knew that he didn't. It wasn't about just finding out about a mother he'd never known. It wasn't about them fighting earlier and making up for it. It wasn't about being isolated in this harsh location, cut away from the rest of the world. It was just because Seifer wanted him, and knowing that Squall wanted him just as much. Maybe even more. Squall was pushed up against a tree as Seifer tore off his gloves and pushed bare fingers up under Squall's coat and sweater, tongue brooking deeper passage into his mouth.

There was haste in their touches as Squall broke the kiss long enough to turn himself around. With his back pressed flush to Seifer's chest, hips slowly grinding back against the taller man's pelvis, Squall craned his neck so they could continue kissing. They couldn't leave Quistis alone for too long, not even for this. Not even to have sex with Seifer for the first time as lovers. Real and actual lovers. No cheating and lying and sneaking around. No intoxication. This would actually be the first time Squall would have sex with Seifer while he was sober. And, he wanted it so fucking bad. To have Seifer and not have any part of it be shared with booze or cocaine.

It was too cold to completely undress, so Seifer only undid their pants as much as he needed to, hand still worming its way up underneath Squall's shirt. Because they hadn't been able to eat properly, Squall's ribs were getting more pronounced. He found one of Squall's nipples, and started stroking it with his thumb, grinning into the dark-haired man's mouth when Squall made a small, masculine noise of pleasure that Seifer found totally irresistible. He found everything about Squall irresistible. Even, and especially, the flawed parts of him. It's something that he'd actually missed in Ivan (or Odin). A lack of flaws and human weakness. He loved those frailties in Squall in a way he could never accept or love his own flaws.

Squall was pressed against the nearest, stunted tree. The bark was cold and wet against his front - the complete opposite of the warmth radiating from Seifer against his back. He used the tree, and Seifer's body, for support when one of the other man's fingers slipped inside him. He knew he wouldn't have been able to stand if it weren't for them. He had to bite his lip hard to prevent a loud moan. Though they were in a magic shield area, they were far from out of danger, and Garden operatives were always on the watch. He couldn't risk being caught just for loud sex. Seifer's breath was so warm against the side of his cold, wet neck, and his gloved fingers clawed into the tree bark when a second finger pressed into him, the cold tips finding his prostate and stroking. Squall's legs nearly gave out, and he reached back and gripped Seifer's shoulders so he wouldn't fall over.

Seifer unceremoniously spit into his palm and coated his erection. It was the only lubricant they had. He supposed they were lucky Squall was a tad masochistic like that. The saliva was making his erection like an icicle, so he really really wanted it inside Squall's body and all that delicious tight heat. He coated himself with another layer of spit, then slowly started to push into the other man's body. He could hear Squall holding back noise, and pressed in deeper and harder because he knew they were strangled noises of pleasure, not pain. He was having a hard time keeping back his own involuntary noises of lust. How could he not want to scream, to shout and moan as loud as his body was able?

Seifer's thrusts into him started out slowly and gently. Squall knew that the other man was concerned about hurting him because of the lack of lubricant. But, his lust got the best of him, and his hips started working harder and faster, Seifer's erection like a piston within him. Rubbing the inner walls of his rectum, hitting his prostate over and over again, pleasure sparking through his whole body. Their bodies as one, nothing between them. And, that's when Squall realized that there really was nothing between them. Seifer wasn't wearing a condom. It was skin against skin, Seifer's naked cock within his body. The realization, the idea of that much intimacy made Squall's whole body feel like he was laying in a tropical ray of sunlight. To him, it was warm and balmy and heavenly, not this cold, dreary dank that was getting colder by the minute. Knowing that Seifer would be coming right into his body instead of into some piece of latex brought Squall closer and closer to orgasm. He tried not to think that he'd already experienced bare backing with another man. A guy he didn't even remember. No name, no face, no intercourse. Just a case of VD, and a lot of shame and humiliation. Nothing like this. How could he even be thinking about that now?! At a time like this, when Seifer's hand was around his own erection, when Seifer's other arm was holding him tight and close, when their panting and their heartbeats were in perfect unison. When he was in the arms of the person he loved more than anyone else, and even though he was falsely accused of murder by those once claiming to be friends, he'd never felt more whole, complete and happy.

As usual, Seifer's thoughts were on the same wavelength as Squall's. Of course he'd realized he wasn't wearing a condom. How could he not with all that tight heat enveloping him in a way he'd never experienced before? The thought didn't scare him. It's not like he wanted a harem of other men. He only wanted this man. He'd only ever wanted this man. The arm that was around Squall's waist moved up so it was now around his shoulders. He wanted to touch that perfect, sensual mouth - where all those wonderfully masculine, sexual noises were dripping from. He was now thrusting so hard into Squall that the smaller man's feet were nearly being lifted off the ground. Squall started sucking on his fingers, biting down whenever a loud moan or grunt tried to escape him. When Seifer felt the constriction of Squall's rectal muscles around him, shuddering with the beginnings of orgasm, Seifer's own body reacted with a thunderous wave of euphoria that rocked his whole frame. He buried his face in the nape of Squall's neck, and had to bite down on his damp, cold skin to keep a scream in check. He was biting down hard enough that he tasted the hot, metallic tang of blood.

Squall was holding onto the tree trunk tightly, because it was the only thing keeping him from sliding to the icy, rocky ground. He reluctantly relinquished Seifer's fingers from his mouth when it fell to around his shoulders, both men breathing heavily in time with each other. Seifer looked at the bite mark he'd left on Squall's snowy flesh, little red wells of blood slowly showing up in the shape of his front teeth. He licked the blood, and kissed away the sting. Squall smiled and traded his grip on the tree for a backwards reach for Seifer, holding the taller man tight against his back. For just a few moments they stayed like this, only a brief enjoyment of the afterglow.

When they pulled apart to get dressed was when Squall felt colder. Because he wasn't in Seifer's arms anymore. Because he had to come back down to earth and face horrible reality. He could feel a trickle of semen in his inner thigh, and wiped it away before zipping up his pants. His own semen was now freezing against the stunted tree. He turned around to see Seifer zipping up his coat and putting his mittens back on. Squall ran his fingers across the back of his neck to see if there was more blood.

"Sorry," Seifer apologized.

"Don't be," Squall answered with a grin. "Not even bleeding anymore." He then put on his own gloves, saying "wait" when Seifer turned away. He caught the taller man's wrist in a tight grip, and pulled him forward for a bone-crushing hug. He pressed his cheek to the hollow of Seifer's throat, and hoped that his arms could convey what his mouth had such trouble saying. Why, why, why couldn't he say 'I love you' when he felt it so strongly?! What was he afraid of? The desire to say it and the violence of how strongly he felt it brought tears to his eyes, but still he was unable. He hated himself for it.

Seifer put his mittened hand under Squall's chin, and tilted his head up so their eyes could meet. Even Squall had never seen that kind of serene smile on Seifer's lips before. The beauty of it struck him dumb.

Seifer stroked Squall's hair and cheek, bringing his forehead down so they were touching, scars a perfect match. "I love you too," he whispered.

Squall was sure there was also a look on his face that nobody, ever, would have seen before. Not even Seifer. It was so typically Seifer, the way he'd just said 'I know you love me, even though you can't say it'. So intuitive, and utterly and painfully romantic. Squall kissed Seifer fiercely, not caring that the slushy precipitation had now fully turned to a cold and miserable rain. "I love you," he uttered between kisses. "I love you," Squall repeated, over and over against Seifer's mouth. Now that it had finally fallen from him, he couldn't seem to stop saying it.

"Finally, eh?" He joked. He'd known for a while that Squall was in love with him, even when he didn't want to know it because Squall had been so fucked from his addictions. But, it still made him light-headed to finally hear it. Squall's arms wrapped tighter around his waist, and their kisses turned into a long, close hug. They knew they should get back to Quistis, but Shiva was with her, and they just wanted a few more minutes before their reality came crashing back down on their shoulders. Just a few more minutes...

Quistis didn't need evidence to be certain that Squall and Seifer had slipped away to have sex while she collected fresh water, but she got evidence in the most unexpected of ways. Shiva, essentially being frozen water made in the form of a woman, could detect water, and found a small pool of clean rainwater. As Quistis filled the canteens, and watched a few small birds and rodents visit the watering hole to drink, she noticed a change in Squall's GF's countenance. She got this dreamy, faraway look in her eyes, and almost looked like she was... sweating a little. Like the way beads of water would appear on a bottle of soda or beer.

"You okay?" Quistis asked as they started to head back to the cave, Shiva's feet floating just above the ground, leaving a slick trail of black ice behind her.

Shiva let out a hitched breath, the beads of water vanishing back into her glossy body. She appeared back to normal, but the dreamy look still hung on her face. Quistis's teacher's mind worked, and it dawned on her in a slow, amazed smile as they came back to camp. Since Shiva was connected psychically to Squall, she would feel the strongest of his emotions. Was this how GF reacted if junctioned when their masters had an orgasm? Did Shiva just have one, too?! The thought made her giggle.

"Hush," Shiva chided gently, knowing exactly what her master's dearest friend was thinking.

"Amazing. Hey, guys!" She called to her companions when she saw them coming back as well. Seifer had a dead pheasant in his hand, his other linked with Squall's. "Did you know that GF have orgasms when their masters do?"

Shiva stiffened and looked both haughty and embarrassed. But, it was nothing compared to how red Squall's face got. He immediately looked down at his boots.

"Oh, please!" She exclaimed cheerfully. "You think I didn't know what was going to happen?" She asked with a roll of her eyes. "Here." She held up their canteens, then put them among their packs once more. "Found some water. Looks like you found some food too. Among other things"

"Shut up," Squall said tensely, though he did give Seifer a sidelong look that brought colour to his cheeks again for completely different reasons.

"You shouldn't be embarrassed, Squall. Not with me."

Squall looked up at her, and gave her a lopsided grin, knowing she was right. This was Quisty. His best friend. He didn't need to be shy with her. Especially not with what they were currently going through.

Quistis started the fire magically, then looked up to where Diablos was perched over the cave's mouth. Shiva floated up so she could sit beside him. "Hey, Diablos? So... do you feel it when I have sex, too?"

Diablos craned his head to peer in the cave at his mistress. "You would actually have to have sexual relations for me to react one way or another."

"Pffffttt!" Seifer stifled a laugh, but it came out anyway. "Oh man!" It mingled with the rare and musical sound of Squall's laughter.

"I think he just dissed you."

Quistis made her face to be mock-outrage, though she couldn't keep the twinkle of laughter out of her eyes. "You should never say 'dissed', Squall. You sound like an old man trying to be cool."

This made Seifer laugh even harder. It immediately died when his connection with Bahamut made him feel what caused the dragon's head to suddenly rear up from its relaxed position, resting on his front paws. Bahamut sniffed the air, and looked towards the mountain path. Shiva floated down from her perch, sensing it too. Diablos stayed where he was, but lowered his wings to shield the cave mouth and hide the humans from view.

"It's not human..." Diablos's voice trailed off, but his wings stayed in their protective position. "Faerie..." The demon murmured. The wings muffled noise, but the three of them heard a distant, muffled, yet very distinct peeping chirp.

"A moogle..." Seifer trailed off.

"It's only one being," Bahamut's voice echoed, and the wings slowly raised, but Quistis still felt the tenseness in her connection with the demon.

The peeping grew louder, and they heard a voice say "hello, kupo! Did the three humans come this way?"

The three of them crawled to the cave mouth, and saw a moogle hovering mid-air in front of Shiva, speaking to her in the unflappable cheery nature that moogles had.

"It's Serino..." Squall trailed off. How would he ever forget the name of the first moogle he'd ever touched?

"Kupo!" Serino waved and floated towards them. Diablos started to lower his wings and glared at the little furry creature, but Quistis waved her hand, and he obeyed.

"What are you doing here?" Seifer asked in wonder.

"Esthar sounds fun! I want to come along, kupo!"

"Wh... what? Why?" Squall asked.

"I must leave my family to see the world," Serino answered, coming further into the cave and shaking himself like a dog or cat would. His fur got very puffy and made him look twice his normal size. "To find more moogles, kupo. I would have left a couple years from now, but this way I won't get lost, and won't have to travel alone, kupo!"

"But..." Quistis trailed off. "It's very dangerous."

"I'm not afraid of danger, kupo! We survive most heartily if we stay away from humans."

"But we're humans," Seifer pointed out.

"Bad humans," corrected Serino, landing on a rock. His wings were very tired from following the humans at top flight speed. He pulled a walnut from his pouch and hit it against the rock to break it open. "You're not bad humans," he said, munching on his snack. The gesture was so adorable that the urge to cuddle him was nearly overwhelming to the humans.

"We're being chased by bad humans," Quistis said. "That's why we're out here. We're in hiding."

"Travelling is always dangerous," Serino said gravely. The seriousness of his voice flew in the face of his cutesy appearance. "But, I am of breeding age soon. It must be done." His paws lowered from his mouth. "You... don't wish me to travel with you?"

"It's not that!" Quistis exclaimed. "We're just... surprised, is all."

"I'm not as delicate as I look," Serino pointed out, again sounding very sagely and serious. "I can take care of myself. Your monsters sensed it." He gave a sly look to Diablos.

"Monsters?!" Diablos exclaimed angrily, snaking his body so his torso was partly in the cave. His eyes burned into the moogle. "What did you call me, puffball?"

Serino puffed himself up and stared back, unafraid. The look in his button-black eyes was one of hostility, surprising on a moogle's face.

"Hey, hey!" Quistis exclaimed, shaking her head at the demon. He grumped and went back to sitting straight-backed above the cave mouth.

"We'd love the company," Squall said, meaning it.

Serino smiled widely and went back to eating his nut. After eating, he was obviously tired from trying to catch up to the humans, so he curled up into a small, furry white ball and went to sleep, peeping and saying "goodnight, kupo."

"It would be nice if tomorrow, we found a bathtub..." Quistis murmured. She then kissed both Seifer and Squall goodnight, a habit they'd gotten into just after the Chocobo forest that seemed completely natural now, before laying on the ground. She was also very tired, and knowing the GF were watching over them helped to put her into a deep sleep. Squall also laid down, reaching out so he could hold Seifer's hand. Quistis curled up against his back and wrapped her arms around his waist. They took to sleeping in a huddle now for warmth and comfort, like kittens or puppies. Seifer joined them, but Squall felt the tenseness in his body. He kissed underneath Seifer's earlobe and whispered "I love you" again. He felt Seifer smile and heard him say "I love you too", but then he became distracted again. The last thing that Squall saw before he fell asleep was Seifer looking out the mouth of the cave, staring at Bahamut with a distant, sad look on his face.

---

Rinoa was walking around Garden like a ghost. She knew she must have looked somewhat ghastly or scary to the others. She was drawn and pale with purple circles under her eyes, which seemed to be constantly red-rimmed. Her magic was lighting her skin, making her eyes look like black holes against the snow white canvas of her face. She was also losing weight from depression, which only added to the wraithly aspect of her. The surface wound Squall had left her with was nearly healed, a stark white scar against her chest and shoulder. But, the deeper wounds weren't so quick to close.

Her anger about the way she and Squall ended had seeped out of her, and now she was only numb. She didn't know what to feel, and felt like she was on the moon. Conversations around her were just white noise. And, she found that her biggest regret had shifted from the subject of her former boyfriend to that of her former friend. And, how much she missed Quistis and that feeling like she actually had a sister. Selphie was a wonderful friend, but somehow it just wasn't the same. She didn't feel that same soul connection.

There were pinpricks in Rinoa's fog at times. And, those times were when she saw Xu walking the halls. How everyone took her word for it that Squall, Quistis and Seifer were dangerous murderers, that they needed to be put down. It had become common fact that their former friends and comrades were now deadly enemies. Each day they were fugitives just added to the tension and hatred. The air in Garden was a festering wound because of it. Everyone believed it. Except for Irvine. Whenever Rinoa saw him, she would see the way he would look at Xu. Nobody else seemed to notice, but Rinoa saw it in his eyes. That coldness, the cogs of his brain working underneath the veil of false understanding.

And, Rinoa subconsciously found herself prowling the administration halls like a ghost, purposely looking for Xu. She wanted those moments of clarity, where Xu's voice didn't sound like white noise, but like she was speaking through a window, far away yet audible. And, today the clarity came back when she saw Xu coming towards her, nose buried in some papers, speaking to Luchia without even looking at her.

"Xu?" Rinoa called meekly. Her voice had become scratchy, like wind and shadows. It was the first thing she'd said in days.

Xu looked up, as surprised that Rinoa spoke as the Sorceress was herself. "Rinoa?!" She asked, mouth splitting into a bemused smile. "Yes?"

"Have you heard anything? About Quistis?"

"Not yet." The smile vanished. "Don't worry, Rinoa. We'll find Squall and he'll be brought to justice for what he did to you. For what they did to the Headmaster." Xu put a friendly hand on Rinoa's shoulder, and it was like she'd broken the surface of water after being under. Everything came into focus, centralized around the point on her shoulder where Xu's bare hand touched her own exposed skin not covered by the white tank dress she wore.

Xu gave Rinoa a thin smile, the kind you give a mentally slow child or a senile senior citizen. Pitiable, condescending. Xu must have thought Rinoa had lost her mental capacities. Luchia's stony expression didn't change one bit. They continued on, all business-like, leaving Rinoa standing there with her lips parted. True, she did look simple, feeble. A moron. But, inside... she'd never felt more in touch.

Alex?

Yes, Rinoa. You're right.

She asked of her Guardian Force. Because she was a Sorceress, she could keep Alexander in constant junction, and it made them extremely close, like the great judgement machine was a part of her own soul. Alexander's voice was the sexless, calm and emotionless drone of a robot, but it was the most comforting voice in the world to Rinoa right now.

Rinoa put a hand to her lips, magic getting brighter under her skin from the distress. But, it actually made her look more human and brought colour to her face. She looked around the hallway as if she'd never seen it before. She looked at the doors around her, and started slowly walking down the hall, peering at them, her heart racing.

I'm such a fool,

she chided herself hatefully, taking care to walk slowly, and appear like she was still in her ghostly fog. She flung out some of Alexander's magic into the room she desired, not wanting to draw attention to who she was looking for. But, it was empty. Alexander found their signature and pointed his mistress in the proper direction. She followed the feeling to the quad, where she found him. Irvine was standing near the fountain, watching some female cadets who were standing across the way, giggling and whispering to each other. He cocked his head, not trying to hide he was staring, when one bent over to pick up a book she'd dropped.

"You're not even trying to hide that you're a cad," Rinoa murmured, voice still raspy.

Irvine looked over, surprised that she was talking to him. She hadn't really talked to anyone since Winhill.

She put a hand on his arm, a gesture that would have appeared coquettish to anyone walking past. "Pretend you're flirting with me."

"I don't gotta pretend, sweetheart." He leaned in, invading her personal space, but his eyes were all seriousness. Rinoa asking him to flirt meant that something was wrong.

"She's lying," Rinoa whispered when Irvine leaned in and caught a lock of her hair between his fingers, slyly tugging and stroking it.

"I know," Irvine said quietly, knowing exactly whom Rinoa meant.

"So... what...?"

"Shhh," he cooed, his fingers moving from her hair and stroking her sunken cheek. "If Xu finds out you're questioning her, what do you think will happen?"

"She would... ruin me. Just... oh, Hyne. Just like she ruined Quisty and Squall." Her lips trembled.

"Or, she'd kill you."

"No..."

He didn't reply, eyes veiled.

Selphie

, Alexander's voice warned in Rinoa's ear. "Selphie..." She said to Irvine.

"OhmygodIrvine!" Selphie exclaimed in a rush. Rinoa looked over her shoulder and saw the small brunette staring at them with disapproval dripping all over her, her fists on her hips. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"What?" He asked, so completely innocently that it made Rinoa chuckle. The first time in a long time. Even before she and Squall broke up. It made her realize that she hadn't been happy in quite a while.

"Rinoa... oh wow, you laughed!" Selphie exclaimed, eyes shining. "It's nice to see! Especially because you look so pretty when you do it."

"Thanks," Rinoa said quietly. Irvine's finger was still stroking her cheek.

"Not much to smile over right about now though, right?" Selphie shook her head, and crossed her arms across the chest of her custom made Doomtrain t-shirt, like she was cold. "With what's been going on."

"Yes..." Rinoa answered sadly, starting to realize that she and Selphie meant that agreement from two completely different sides.

"You can stop touching her face now, Irvine." There was a note of jealousy in Selphie's voice that would never completely go away, no matter how long she and Irvine were broken up for.

"All right." His hand slid down from Rinoa's cheek, making a trail down the side of her body, dangerously close to her breast, then traced the curve of her waist, coming to rest just over the swell of her behind.

"Irvine!!"

Irvine winked at Rinoa in a way that seemed flirty, but had deeper context that she understood clearly. She watched as Selphie stormed after his long strides, voice trilling behind him. "Irvine! What do you think you're doing? You're just trying to make me jealous, aren't you? Aren't you?! And, you know that Rinoa's in a tough situation right now. You're just taking advantage of her, and..."

Rinoa sighed as her voice disappeared. Selphie was right. She really was in a difficult situation, but now she was only just realizing what that actually meant...

---

"Kupppoooo..." Serino mused, hovering mid-air and examining a pile of old, eroded boulders. They had descended out of the Almaj, and were at the Shalmal Pass that connected the Talle and the Almaj mountains that made up Centra's southern spine. "There's definitely something behind here, kupo." His wings were beating rapidly to keep himself hovering. He touched the rocks, and a few pebbles dislodged, falling down to the ocean. The waves crashed against the rock, sometimes high enough that the spray hit Serino, who would sputter and shake his fur in a way that made Squall, Quistis and Seifer have to suppress giggles and smiles.

"Odin did say there were old, buried mines around here," Seifer remembered. The Talle range loomed ahead of them, lower and more eroded than the newer Almaj peaks. There were less places to hide there, but it's not like Seifer wanted to descend into some unknown caverns. Caves and old mines were so dangerous. Poisonous underground gases, bad footing and mostly complete darkness, monsters and animals forgotten by civilization, breeding and mutating for years "He must have thought we should use them..."

Squall had to bite back a '...whatever', like he usually did whenever Seifer mentioned Odin.

Quistis noticed Seifer's reserve. "Seifer, I really think we should." She watched as Serino flew closer to the rocks, sniffing at them. He started doing some magic that Quistis didn't understand. Faerie magic, since Serino pointed out that's what moogles were. "Garden ships are everywhere." Even now, they could see the small, dark dots of Garden boats in the water, searching and waiting. They felt very exposed here, hidden only by the jagged boulders they were hiding behind, and the spray of the high waves.

"I don't smell any gases, kupo. And, my spells didn't pick up anything, but that's only the entrance. Mog knows what's further in. But, my magic can't move these rocks."

"There's no footing for us to pull them out by hand," Squall observed. It was a sheer drop down to the unfriendly ocean, and all the jagged rocks down there, just waiting to break all their bones.

"Well..." Quistis put a hand to her chin, mind working quickly. "We could summon a GF to go in and check."

"No fucking way," Seifer said quickly. "Those boats will pick up on that much magic."

"It would take them a few hours to get over here, and the only have that one aircraft. It's harder to pinpoint magic location from the air, and when you're in motion. The boats would have to actually pinpoint us, then sent the message. Diablos could fly through the mine to see if it was safe, and then put the rocks back in place. Once we're underground, they wouldn't be able to trace magic."

"But what about the signature left behind out here?" Squall asked.

"Kupopo?" Serino peeped, looking up at his humans quizzically. Water dripped from his pom-pom. "That's what you're worried about? I can't move these rocks, but I can mask his magical signatures, kupo!"

"You can?" Squall asked in wonder. His hand was rubbing up and down Seifer's back, and stiffened when they heard the distant sound of Garden's zeppelin circling.

"Of course, kupo. It's how we hide ourselves from the bad humans."

"Could you hide Diablos's magic, though?" Seifer asked. Quistis's demon was the logical choice. He could just turn into bats, and use sonar to quickly navigate through the cave. "It's a lot more powerful, and not faerie."

"Yes, it is." Serino shook his head and chuckled, a musical noise. "Demons are faeries, too. Just bad ones."

Quistis felt Diablos grumble inside her.

"All right," Seifer conceded. Serino flew up from the rocks and landed on Seifer's shoulder for a rest, his favourite place to sit. Seifer had the biggest shoulders of the three of them, but Serino also liked to talk to the tallest human about nature, animals and monsters. The human was quite knowledgeable, and Serino was fascinated about his connection with dragons.

"Ready?" Quistis asked of the moogle.

Serino was munching on a fig to regain some strength. He patted the top of Seifer's head distractedly. The three of them almost looked at Serino like he was their pet, but maybe Serino thought of the humans as his pets. "Yes, kupo."

"One. Two. Three." Quistis called Diablos, and felt a warm magic flow over her as Diablos came out. He kept himself small so he couldn't be seen by the ships.

"Bad faerie my ass," the demon grumbled, but his magic did fall in perfect tune with the moogle's. After all, the little furball was right. Their magic was born from the same place. He started muttering under his breath in an old faerie language. It sounded like a spell to human ears, but he was really complaining about Serino, which the moogle understood perfectly and ignored. Diablos didn't need incantations to work magic, not after all these millennia of existence. Diablos carefully moved the rocks because an explosion would draw attention. Once the rubble was gone, it left a black hole in the rock face.

"You going to be okay?" Quistis asked of her GF.

The demon looked up at her and gave her a burning glare before he turned to bats and streamed inside.

Seifer chuckled. "I think he just said 'bitch, please'."

"Shut up, you."

They waited tensely for Diablos to come back, eyes never leaving the small ships on the water. Instinctively, Quistis reached out and took Squall's right hand, squeezing tight. He squeezed back, his other hand firmly pressed against the small of Seifer's back. He could feel the reassurance of Seifer's hand resting on his thigh, and Squall briefly leaned into him, eyes never leaving the boats. They could again hear the sound of the Garden airship in the distance, getting louder. All three tensed, Serino's small peeps and chants never wavering.

But, Serino's chants couldn't protect against gravity. The rocks that Diablos had moved were staying put, but the surrounding rocks weren't stable, and all the motion and magic, or just maybe the fact that it would have happened anyway even if no humans were present, caused some to slip, falling into the ocean below and making a grand splash. More followed, until there was a small landslide, big and small rocks plunking into the water with loud, big splashes that the boats were sure to notice.

"Shit!" Seifer hissed, wrenching his hand from Squall's, reaching for Hyperion. Serino continued to chant, but his peeps and chirps were getting quicker and more nervous. Quistis already had her whip out, fingers itching to cast magic. She was also mentally urging Diablos to hurry. The sound of the zeppelin was getting louder over the racket the landslide was making. But, they were certain all that noise wasn't as loud as their heartbeats and blood rushing in their ears.

"C'mon Diablos..." She urged.

"Come on!" Seifer exclaimed, grabbing Squall's wrist. "We don't have any more time." He pulled Squall towards the mouth of the old mines. Serino flew in first, Seifer jumping quickly after him. "Come on!" He shouted to the other two.

"Hurry, Quisty..." Squall gave her a look before jumping in after his lover. Quistis had to remain behind so Diablos could find his way back to the entrance in order to move the rocks again. The tiny dots on the water were starting to get bigger, and now quite resembled ships. The zeppelin's engine was deafening in her ears. She could feel Diablos getting closer

"Quisty!" She heard Squall's voice urge desperately from within the cavern. Wind from the airship was picking up Quistis's hair, and Squall's pleas were being drowned out.

"Not yet," she ground out.

"Quisty!" He called again. "Hurry!"

"Not yet!" She shouted back. Diablos was so close closer, closer. Then, bats came flying out of the mouth, and Quistis tumbled into the cave with them rolling around her limbs. The rocks immediately shifted back into place, and both Serino and Diablos's voices chimed together to use faerie glamour to mask the entrance. When everything was sealed, all the noise from outside was blocked completely, leaving them in a heavy silence etched only with panting.

The gloom was lit by a few dim light sources - Seifer holding a fire spell in his hand, Shiva's skin glowing cold and blue, and Serino's pom-pom like a little hanging lantern. Diablos's body slowly came back together, and he helped right his mistress, who'd landed in a heap on the unforgiving stone ground.

"You're supposed to be the master of gravity!" Squall spat out angrily, pointing an accusing finger at the demon. "They could have caught us!"

Diablos's wings were slumped, but he disregarded Squall's angry words. "Forgive me," he murmured to Quistis. "I failed you."

"You could have gotten us killed!" Squall shouted, lunging for Diablos. Quistis threw herself between them, arms splayed out to protect her Summon.

"Stop." She said it so firmly and tensely, glaring down her best friend. Squall cursed under his breath and backed up, punching the stone walls of the mine instead. She turned back to Diablos, anger gone. "You don't need forgiveness," she murmured, touching one of the demon's scaly hands. When a GF and a human had such a high compatibility, there was great loyalty and friendship. It was a relationship that was hard to describe. It was parasitic, and yet it was like the GF was a part of their master's soul. "We asked a lot of you."

"What about the caves?" Seifer asked of the demon, holding his palm high so he could examine their situation. Bahamut became a pocket-sized dragon and flew high above their heads to aid Seifer's eyes. "What about the air supply?" Here there was oxygen, though it was hot and stale.

"There is air, but not a tremendous amount. Some flows in from various crevices where the mines are close to the surface."

"Squall, relax," Seifer chided at the other man, who was silently fuming and holding the hilt of Lionheart so tightly the creak of his leather gloves could be heard. "Toxic gases?"

"Some sulphides that can mostly be avoided. The mines snake into several paths with many exits on the other side of the mountains, emptying into the desert."

"Garden will know we're in here," Quistis muttered. "But, if there are a lot of openings, it will divide their forces..."

"There are a few hidden exits," Diablos noted, staying close to Quistis, wings still slumped with shame. "A couple exit into well-concealed mountain trails in the foothills. It would be a good hiding place where you could regroup, and survey where your enemies are."

"I do sense fresh water," Shiva noted. "And... life."

"Yes. There are creatures living down here," Diablos stated. "Strange ones."

"The glamour will keep them from finding the proper opening to the mine," Serino said hopefully. "They won't know how to get in, kupo." The light from his pom-pom made his white fur glow.

"All right then. GF out, I think." He said it so simply, like they were taking an afternoon stroll. But, Squall could see the stiffness in his shoulders, and when he looked over his shoulder and saw Squall looking at him, his smirk was tight at the edges. He was nervous.

Serino came to rest on Seifer's shoulder, magic depleting his energy. Shiva and Diablos took the head of the group, the demon leading them single-file down a declining path. Seifer walked next, holding fire in one hand, Hyperion in the other. Squall walked behind him, both hands holding Lionheart, still occasionally glaring at the dim shape of Diablos's wings. His body seemed to fade into the darkness around them, only the red visible and looking quite hellish. Quistis called up some fire in both hands, the flames licking around her arms, Bahamut's wings beating wind against her back.

"Maybe we'll see some tonberrys down here," Quistis said to Seifer, trying to break some of the nervous tension.

"I hope so," Seifer replied as he looked over his shoulder at her, grinning. Despite his nerves, the idea of a new race of tonberrys excited him greatly.

"They'd probably be mutants," Squall muttered.

"Tonberrys, kupo?" Serino looked at Seifer. His aura glimmered with excitement at the mention. "You like them?"

"You sound surprised."

"Most humans are afraid of them, though I don't know why, kupo."

"You've met tonberrys?" Seifer asked, eyebrows raising.

"Of course. Lots of times." Serino was surprised by Seifer's surprise. "Moogles and tonberrys have a long history of trading together."

"You do?" Seifer's pace had slowed to a crawl in his excitement. "But... I never saw any moogles when I studied them in the Centra ruins."

"Sometimes they travel to us, kupo. Or, maybe you were just there at the wrong time of year. We don't go during breeding season. And, we don't travel much to the Centra ruins. The Forbiddens..." Serino shuddered. "Those tonberrys go to neutral ground to trade goods."

"What kind of goods?" Quistis asked, also interested.

"Fruits, mostly. They live in caves and dark places where fruit doesn't really grow all that well. And, we get things like roots and mushrooms in return. Handicrafts, too. They make sturdy tools, and they like our talismans and flower wreaths."

"How do you communicate?" Seifer asked eagerly, wishing he had a tape recorder to permanently capture Serino's lyrical voice.

"They talk to us telepathically, kupo."

"Amazing..."

Squall narrowed his eyes in the gloom so he could see Seifer's profile better as the tall blonde spoke to the moogle on his shoulder. The way his face lit up at the mention of tonberrys, and his genuine interest in their trade habits and other equally mundane issues. Now, he was asking about what kinds of flowers tonberrys liked in potpourri. How genuinely happy he seemed learned about them, how his lips curled up in a big smile as Serino spoke to him. Squall didn't have all that much interest in tonberrys, aside from thinking they were kinda cute in an odd sort of way. He would have much rather picked a cat or moogle, but Seifer's choice between moogle and tonberry might not have been as easy. But, Squall did find Seifer's enthusiasm for them interesting. His pure, light-hearted glee made him even more beautiful that it made Squall's heart ache. He felt so lucky that Seifer had taken him back, that he didn't deserve it after all the shit Squall'd put him through.

Seifer sensed the gaze burning into his upper back and profile, and looked over his shoulder to catch Squall's eyes. He looked so pensive and thoughtful and completely lost in his own head. Like really having the old Squall back. Most of Seifer's memories of the current evolution of their relationship were of the drunken, powder-snorting wreck that had cruelly taken Squall's place and just happened to look like the man that Seifer had always harboured a deep, and sometimes irrational and unwanted, love and respect for. But, now he really was Squall again. And, he really was Seifer's Squall. They shared a long look. The very small tugging of the left corner of Squall's prefect mouth into a semblance of a smile may as well have been a sun for all the warmth it poured through Seifer's body, and how it seemed to brighten the dark mine into something more like a sunny Balamb beach.

Squall started lengthening his stride just enough so he could walk beside Seifer. At first, he was just content with walking, but he wanted more quickly, and relinquished one hand on Lionheart's hilt, looping his arm through the arm that Seifer held a fire spell in. They didn't say anything, but didn't need to. Quistis smiled behind them as she watched the exchange, but it was just a little tight around the edges. She wasn't alone when she was with Squall and Seifer, and wouldn't have traded them for anyone or anything, but it did make her think of what she'd lost because of Xu. Not just Nida. Garden. Respectability. Freedom. Rinoa... Seifer and Squall were her best, dearest friends - even 'friends' was such a horrible word to describe the close connection they now had - but, it wasn't the same as having a girlfriend. A girlfriend who was like the sister she'd never had, or never known. All because of Xu. Well, maybe Rinoa's mistrust had something to do with it, too. But, Quistis still couldn't wrap her brain around why Xu would do this. Seifer's explanations, given from personal experience with his jealousy of Squall, made sense, but they still didn't fill Quistis's void of confusion. She should have been furious, and she was, but her anger was far less than her hurt. The sheer pain of the betrayal.

Quistis had to snap herself back to reality when she nearly walked straight into a huge, rusted steel chain hanging from the ceiling. She held up her hands so the fire could illuminate it. It must have been used when this place was a working mine. "What do you think they were mining for here?" She wondered.

"Silver and amber," Seifer answered almost immediately, and with surety.

"How'd you know that so quickly?" She wondered, walking around the chain. It was far too heavy to push out of the way.

"I... you know, I ain't got a clue..." Seifer trailed off, mystified.

"Perhaps you know this because of your connection with Odin," Bahamut murmured from behind Quistis. She was still raising her fiery hands to inspect where the chain was attached to.

Squall got an ugly pinprick of sourness in his otherwise content mood.

"Yeah, maybe..." Seifer murmured. He then looked over at Squall, feeling his lover squeezing his bicep a little too roughly. He stifled a groan.

"What?" Squall asked defensively, angrily. Though, he didn't pull his arm away from Seifer's touch. "If you're allowed to be jealous of Rinoa, I can be jealous of him."

Quistis knew that Seifer was right, because in the higher part of the walls, there were a few flashes, like arteries going through the rocks. Veins of precious metal that hadn't been able to get taken out. It was probably the Lunar Cry that halted production here. She admired the way the light gently reflected off the silver, then gasped, the flames sputtering in her fists. Diablos immediately reared up, hissing.

"What?" Squall demanded, both hands once more holding his gunblade. Seifer charged the fire spell in his hand, so now the flames burned blue. The sound of him cocking Hyperion echoed in the cavern.

"Something's moving up there..." Quistis trailed off. She fired a small ball of pure white electricity upwards. It exploded like a firework, and shadows started scattering like spiders, crawling all over the walls and ceiling. The GF launched themselves upwards to protect their masters from whatever it was.

"I think you should run, kupo..."

"He's right," Diablos agreed. His body exploded into bats, and became like an awning over top of the humans. Hundreds and hundreds of wings beat around them, blocking out all sound.

"What's going on?" Quistis demanded of her demon.

Mutated Forbidden

, his voice answered in her mind over the screeching of the bats. We need to get to a chokepoint, or you'll be overrun.

"Kukupopoooo..." Serino moaned. Forbidden, like wraiths and zombies, were undead creatures and their auras were like poison to a moogle. It was sapping his magical energy, and not letting him aid his new human friends. All Serino could do was hold onto Seifer's neck for dear life as they ran under the cloud cover of bats. The bevy led them down winding, smoothed out corridors of rock until they came to a thin vein, where the Forbidden would have to come single file from either direction.

Diablos's bats flew back together and congealed into his true form, which stayed close to Quistis.

"They'll come from this way in greater numbers," Squall gestured to the path they'd just run with his weapon. "Seifer and I will take this side. Quisty, you take the other." They had no problem leaving one side completely up to her. Her accuracy with blue and junctioned magic was deadly, and she could snipe from a further distance. And, Squall knew Diablos would fight fiercely by her side. Not only to protect his mistress, but to make up for messing up earlier.

"Go with Quisty," Seifer told the moogle. "She'll be more stationary."

"Ku-kupo..." Serino chattered. His eyes were wide and afraid. He nervously patted the side of Seifer's neck, and then flew over to Quistis, burrowing into her rucksack so only his head was visible under the flap.

They could hear the echo of the mutated Forbidden coming closer. It sounded heinous, and sent chills down their spines. These creatures didn't move like the Forbidden in the Centra Ruins. They were insectile, and moved at great speed, and were able to climb the walls in ways that defied gravity. Quistis, Diablos and Shiva acted as snipers, using magic to fling the Forbidden off the ceilings.

Quistis couldn't help the screech that came from her mouth when one of the Forbidden came into the light. An animated skeleton that reeked of rot and must, empty skeletal sockets burning with hellish malevolence. They were like rotting half human, half spider... things, smelling so bad that Quistis had to fight back vomit. Pus and black, noxious blood splashed against the walls, and when some flecked onto Quistis's cheek, it stung like boiling water.

Seifer and Squall were also experiencing the poisonous feel of their blood. It didn't exactly burn, but it was uncomfortable on their skin, like a sunburn. Like something that shouldn't have existed in the real world. It wasn't long before their gunblades were coated in the dark blood, and they were ankle-deep in severed limbs and dead creatures. As they fought, they tried not to look into creature's faces. Forbidden's burning, blank eye sockets were disgusting, and it seemed all that much worse with these mutants, who had four lined up on their faces like a spider would. The stench from all the body parts piling up was starting to get unbearable.

Squall had to duck to avoid one mutant from decapitating him. He could hear the loud whoosh of Hyperion flying above his head to cut down the creature. He and Seifer had mostly fought against each other in their lives. Not only out of anger and some sense of rivalry, but because they were the only gunblade students at the time, and needed someone to spar against. But, fighting alongside him seemed just as natural. He arced Lionheart over his head as one of the Forbidden leapt towards him from the side wall. Stinking, stinging blood rained down on him. He had to slam his eyes shut when droplets sprayed in them. He gasped as his eyes burned, and then he felt a sharp, hot pain rip across his neck. He immediately felt his own blood pouring into his parka, feeling like his whole shoulder had suddenly been lit on fire.

Seifer's heart leapt in his throat when he saw one of the Forbidden leap out from its dismembered kin at their feet, missing a few legs but still able to move. Its claws sliced into Squall's neck, and in the limited light, Seifer could see the pale flesh of Squall's neck suddenly go black from the blood spray. "Squall!" He shouted as the other man let out a small, surprised gasp of pain before collapsing into a heap like a marionette with its strings cut. "Squall!" He slashed and sliced through anything that tried to get in between him and Squall's crumpled form. "Quisty, help!" He screamed over all the noise of the shrieking Forbidden mixed with the high pitched sound of magic. "SQUALL!"

"They won't fucking stop!" Quistis screamed back, drenched in sweat from all the magic she was casting. She didn't know how many more spells she had in her, and Diablos wasn't going to last much longer. He was acting as her shield, and had taken quite a beating so far. She could hear the fucking things within the walls, and some of them were starting to show small hairline fractures. More Forbidden were trying to bust through to get to them.

Squall was practically buried in dead, crunched Forbidden, and even more were coming. "Squall! Answer me, goddammit!" Seifer shouted angrily. He slipped on a pool of rancid Forbidden goop, and was slammed into by one of the things, which snapped at his face with broken, skeletal teeth. Its breath was horrid, and Seifer would have had to swallow back vomit if his mind wasn't only on Squall. He'd been hit in the neck. What if his jugular...? "SQUALL!" He bellowed, falling backwards into the littered corpses, bones crunching under his weight. He tried to lift his arm to slash at the thing on top of him with Hyperion, but it used one of its legs to stab into his forearm, pinning it down. The claw went right through into a corpse underneath them. The wound burned like hell, but Seifer didn't care.

Suddenly, the shaft was filled with icy air, cold like they'd just dived into a Trabian lake. Quistis flung her arms up to cover her face, expecting this to be some sort of massive magical attack, but the wind blew around her, bitingly cold but harmless. However, the Forbidden didn't seem to think so, and when the wind blasted into them, they started screaming so loudly and horribly that she had to clamp her hands over her ears. She'd never heard such a brutal noise in her entire life. Even the already fallen creatures were affected, their corpses turning into dust. "What the?" She looked to Diablos, but he didn't seem as surprised. He was looking beyond her, to the mouth of the shaft where they'd first come in.

Seifer coughed as he got a mouthful of ashes as the Forbidden on top of him turned to dust before his eyes. But, he immediately half-crawled, half-ran to Squall, whose face was parchment white. But, he was still alive, eyes still open. Squall had dug into the wound and was pinching his vein shut to keep the blood in his body. Seifer loved him for his quick thinking. It was the only thing that'd saved his life.

"Seifer..." Squall ground out, spitting up some blood.

"Move your hand on three, baby. One. Two... three." Seifer immediately dipped his fingers into the wound when Squall's hand was out of the way. Blood squirted out fast and hard for the brief moment that the vein wasn't pinched. He looked into Squall's eyes deeply, not wavering. Not looking at the wound. Only looking at him. He was so concentrated on the other man that he didn't care that Odin was now in the mineshaft with them, striding forward. His heavy footsteps echoed loudly and brought up clouds of Forbidden dust. Shiva and Diablos lowered their heads in respect for this much more powerful GF, but Bahamut did not. He eyed Odin with an air of the hostility GF felt for one another when they were strongly linked with their master, and another tried to butt in.

"Odin..." Quistis trailed off, panting as she jogged to Seifer and Squall. She saw that Seifer's arm was dripping blood, so she grabbed his elbow.

"Never mind that," he snapped at her. "Help me." He was flowing cure magic into the wound to fuse the torn vein back together. He was no doctor, so it wouldn't be perfect, and he needed Quistis's help. She covered Seifer's hand with her own, doubling the amount of healing magic going into Squall's body. Because it'd been from a Forbidden, the wound smoked when cure magic hit it. Squall groaned in pain, writhing under their hands. Seifer moved his body so he was straddling Squall and pinning him down. All his moving was making it harder to heal him. "It's okay, kitten. We're almost done."

Quistis and Seifer poured a curaga spell into the wound, and Squall let out a scream. "FUUUUCCCKKKK!" His curse echoed in the cavern. Serino flew out of Quistis's pack to help, though he was still weakened. Even though the Forbidden were gone, Odin's presence was sapping the moogle's life-bound magic. All he could really do was use his pom-pom as a light to aid Seifer and Quistis.

Quistis didn't like the way that the edges of Squall's wound looked like they were poisoned and festering. Seifer continued to use cure magic to purge the toxins, and she ripped up the torn sleeve of the blonde's jacket to examine his own wound. It was a deep black puncture that smelled bad and already looked like it was going gangrene. She covered it with her palm and blasted it with cure magic. "Holy fucking Hyne!" He swore, but she didn't let up, even when he tried to jerk his arm away from her instinctively.

"No!" Seifer shouted when his hand was grabbed by Odin's ice cold metal gauntlet and pulled off Squall's neck. The touch was so cold that it burned. He tried to wrench his hand out of Odin's, but it may as well have been caught in a bear trap.

Odin ignored as Seifer cursed him out, and put his free hand on the ragged, blackening wound. It still smoked from the useless cure magic mingling with the Forbidden toxins. Squall gasped at the cold touch, screaming when unearthly magic pulsated into his skin.

"What are you doing to him?!" Seifer shouted in Odin's masked face, eyes blazing angrily.

"Stop it!" Quistis demanded, tears coming to her eyes at the awful noises coming from Squall. It sounded like Odin was killing him.

"If you kill him..." Seifer threatened.

"You'll what?" Odin asked blankly, Squall still screaming under his touch. The screams petered off into gasps, coughs and sputters. Odin lifted his hand as Squall wheezed. The ragged wound was swollen and ugly looking, but it was closed. Odin then yanked Seifer closer to him, so hard that the tall man fell against his steel chest plate. The hand that had clamped onto Squall now clapped over the festering, rotting puncture in Seifer's arm. The pain was brutal, so cold that it was boiling hot. Seifer couldn't help the scream that came out of him. He tried to struggle away, cursing Odin to the bowels of hell. But, Odin was far, far too strong for him, so he had to endure it, tears streaming down his face.

Odin pulled away after only a few moments. His wound had been much smaller than Squall's. It was swollen and an angry red, but looked healed. The undead swordsman traced a tear track on Seifer's dirty face with one metallic finger, a loving gesture. He then stood, his body dissolving like the Forbidden had only a few dangerous minutes ago. Pitch black ash swirled with the Forbidden remains, and then vanished into nothingness.

With Odin gone, Serino's magic came flowing back into him. He stroked Squall's blood-soaked, sweaty hair as he used magic to lull his pain.

"You okay?" Seifer asked, cupping Squall's face as the other man tried to sit up. He felt Quistis put her arms around his shoulders and hold on for dear life. "Just lay back."

"No," Squall muttered stubbornly. His voice was raspy, like an old man who'd smoked his entire life. He felt like he'd swallowed a circular saw. The nutty, sweet smell of Serino's fur calmed his adrenaline.

"Squall, you would have died," Quistis stated in her Instructor Trepe voice.

"No," he muttered again. "Help me up," he demanded of Seifer. He kept looking into his lover's face, into those perfect cat-green eyes. "We need to keep moving. They might come back."

"Here. At least drink something." Quistis held out her canteen to him.

He took it and drank greedily, only breaking Seifer's eye contact enough to get it open. He gave it back to her, and tried to take a few steps forward, but his legs were really shaky from the blood loss.

"Sit down," Quistis commanded.

"He's right," Seifer said grimly, putting one arm around Squall's waist as he picked up Hyperion with his free hand. "They might come back, and Garden might have found a way in by now."

"But..." She began.

"Quisty, no." Squall's voice was quiet and weary, but he kept his gunblade out, leaning into Seifer's warm side. It was a relief compared to the cold that still prickled his skin from Odin's touch. He supposed he would have to thank Odin for saving his life, even though he didn't really want to, stupid and jealous as it was. And, it had really hurt, dammit.

"Fine. Whatever." She threw her hands up in frustration. She then caught Squall in a tight hug. "You just better not ever, ever scare me like that again," she said into his hair.

He held her back, not saying anything.

"Okay..." She trailed off, wiping tears from her cheeks when she broke the hug. She gave Squall a brave smile as she cupped the side of his pale face. "We better keep moving." She was all business again, not falling apart, her bravery unflappable. He loved her even more for it.

"I'm glad you're okay, kupo. You'll let me know if the pain starts to come back, right? Kupo?"

Squall nodded, and Serino happily peeped before flying over to Quistis. He sat on top of her rucksack, putting his paws on the top of her head to hold on as she started walking.

Before they started moving, Seifer caught Squall under the chin with one finger, tilting his face up. He peered into Squall's eyes to see if he really was lucid.

"I'm okay," Squall ground out impatiently.

"Alright then," Seifer murmured. "C'mere," he then whispered, cocking his head so he could kiss his lover. It was only meant to be a quick peck, lips to lips, but Squall could have died, and he tasted so good. His lips were trembling just a tiny bit against Seifer's, and the taste of his own blood was still within his mouth when Seifer's tongue couldn't help but seek passage inside. Squall's return kiss was fierce and strong enough to probably bruise Seifer's lips. And, it was then that Seifer realized it wasn't Squall's lips that were trembling. It was his own. Hyne, to be back in that stunted forest...

"No time for smoochie-face, kupo!" Serino called, peeping impatiently. They broke apart with a loud sucking sound, Serino's voice surprising them since they'd forgotten they weren't alone, and in a dark, musty and dangerous mine.

"Can you walk alone?" Seifer asked huskily. He would have liked to have held Squall forever, but both hands free in a place like this was equally as desirable.

"Don't!" Squall rasped out, holding Seifer tighter against him. "Don't leave me." Now that the adrenaline had drained from him, it'd left behind the delayed fear. The relief. The joy at feeling Seifer pressed to him, very real and very alive.

"I won't," Seifer whispered, starting them forward.

"You promise?" Squall whispered, words rattling in his aching throat. His tone was dreamy and faraway because of Serino's magic.

"I promise," Seifer vowed quietly.

---

Xu rolled her hips, bobbing her pelvis up and down on Zell's erection. They were in her office chair, and she was straddling his hips, eyes slammed shut as she moaned and wailed and made a big production about how much she was enjoying having sex with him. The sheen of sweat on her brow was because underneath her tightly closed lids, she was thinking of Nida. The way she was seeing more of him lately. The way he would give her sad, shy little smiles when they passed in the halls. The way his affection for her seemed to be wavering. Xu couldn't even say her name anymore. Not even mentally.

Zell had his face buried in her breasts, thrusting up hard into her, his arms tight. Well, at least he could give her a good fucking, Xu had to give him that much. It was the only plus she could really take from this whole debacle. She was really starting to despise Zell. The way he was always calling her, being all nosy and needy and asking her a bunch of questions all the time. Wondering why she was always so distant. Wondering how she felt about the whole... thing with her. And, he soooo wasn't Nida. But, she needed him on her side, so she'd muster her inner strength and let him inside her. She just had to make sure he kept thinking with his dick.

Zell was oblivious to Xu's lack of interest in him. Zell wasn't always the most observant man, but Xu also was a very good actress. But, since he was about to come, he wasn't thinking about anything other than that. About her breasts and pert little nipples and warm, wet vagina. He moaned her name over and over as he ejaculated into her. She was on the pill, so the sex was even better. Xu did that on purpose. Most men would do anything to not have to wear a condom.

"I guess we finally got some time together, huh?" Zell murmured into her breasts, lavishly brushing his tongue across one nipple.

"Mmm, yeah. I'm so sorry about that," she cooed, stroking his hair. The spikes had fallen down into flatter, mussed style that was actually quite attractive. She supposed he wasn't so bad in the afterglow. He was a lot calmer, and less prone to saying something completely moronic. "Being Headmaster takes up a lot of time."

"You're doing a really great job, you know?" Zell complimented, stroking her sides, tracing the curves of her hips and buttocks. "You're amazing."

"Mmm, thanks..." She trailed off dreamily, eyes closed and imagining it was Nida who'd just said it to her. Every day, it became a firmer and firmer dream, until she could actually see it happening, instead of just wishing it could. Luchia hadn't come up with any evidence that Nida's hesitation about Squall and her wasn't a lie. It really did seem genuine. He and Irvine were getting testier with each other, and Nida was prone to sitting alone in the library or quad, staring morosely out the window.

"Do you want to go to dinner?" Zell asked hopefully, stroking her back with his strong hands.

Oh dear God, no!

Her mind screamed. "Yeah, sounds nice..." she said aloud, trying not to sound ill.

"Great!" He exclaimed, beaming. He playfully slapped her ass, then groaned when there was a brisk knock on Xu's office door. "Who the hell is that?"

Xu climbed out of his lap, ignoring the semen that was dribbling down her inner thigh as the person knocked again, much louder this time. "Coming!" She exclaimed impatiently. Oh Hyne, what if it was Nida? She so did not want him to find her here, in the afterglow with Zell. "Coming!" She shouted angrily when they started knocking again. She threw Zell's pants at him, waiting until he at least had them pulled to his hips before opening the door.

Astor strode in, and seemed completely nonplussed at seeing Zell sweaty and half-naked, trying to hastily put his loudly printed shirt on. "There was a sighting."

"Where?" Xu demanded, finishing fastening the buttons on her dark green blouse. Her heart leapt with excitement. After nearly a month of just trying to guess

"The Shalmal Pass."

"So he was taking them through Centra. I knew Seifer wouldn't go to Trabia," she hissed victoriously under her breath. "And?!" She asked her lieutenant impatiently.

"The trail went cold. They appear to have gone underground."

"What? Hyne the whore..." She cursed in blasphemy. "But, they'll have to come out sometime" She trailed off coldly. "All right, Astor. I'll put together a small team for you to take to the Kashkabald. Give me a couple hours." Xu already knew she would be bringing Irvine for sure. She didn't want to let him out of her sights, and she wanted to test his loyalty. If he was going to try and betray her for them, he could die with them, too.

"Of course." He nodded to her and left, not even acknowledging that Zell was in the room.

"They got to the Shalmal Pass already...?" Zell asked in disbelief. It was almost a month, but considering the terrain and distance they'd had to travel on foot, it was damned impressive. "And, they just disappeared? Hmmm..."

"They obviously didn't just disappear," Xu snapped.

Zell was stung by her tone. "I know..."

Inside, Xu was rolling her eyes and fantasizing about popping Zell's head off like a cork. "I'm sorry," she falsely placated. "It's just this whole situation... it's not easy."

"I know," he repeated. "Really, I do."

She heard something in his tone that she didn't like. If they were close to catching Seifer, Squall and... her, then that would mean putting them down wouldn't be far behind. "I know this is hard, baby." She draped her arms over his hard, thick shoulders. "But, we'll finally be able to have justice for Headmaster Cid. He was such a kind man. And, Rinoa too. Look what Squall did to her!"

Zell's icy blue eyes hardened. Ah, that did it. So much loyalty to Rinoa. Xu didn't get it. Such a spineless, powerless Sorceress. Tying herself up in knots, wasting away all for Squall Leonhart. What was so goddamn special about him, anyway? What did he have that would have made him a better Headmaster than Xu? Why did everyone always have to make such a big fuss about Squall Leonhart?!

"Xu...?" Zell asked. He could see that she was doing some deep inner thinking, and these thoughts were distressing her. It made her black eyes blaze.

"What?" She snapped. "Oh... Zell, I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologize. This is harder on you than on anyone, having to order this. Quistis was your best friend, after all. Hyne, you must feel so betrayed by her..." He reached up and stroked a lock of hair off her forehead.

"Yeah... Listen, I need to get going on this lead. I guess that means we'll have to skip dinner." Xu hoped that her relief didn't show in her voice.

"Oh, yeah that's cool." He leaned in to kiss her, and after a few moments, there was another knock at the door.

"I told Astor to come back in a couple of hours..." She muttered impatiently against Zell's mouth. "Could you excuse me, sweetie?"

"Sure. I, ummm..." He trailed off. He was on the verge of telling Xu that he loved her, but something inside just didn't want to cross that barrier yet. Something deep in Zell's soul that told him it wouldn't be a wise idea. A lot of the times he didn't bother listening to his inner voice of reason, but this time... it seemed appropriate. "I'll see you later, 'kay?"

She nodded, already back in Headmaster mode.

Zell opened the door to leave. "Oh!" He exclaimed in surprise. "Hey, Nida!" He greeted, lightly punching the other man in the shoulder in passing.

"Hi," Nida ground out, rubbing the spot where Zell'd punched him. A light punch meant something different from Zell Dincht than it did from most other people.

"Nida...!" Xu breathed out. She instinctively raised her hand to smooth out her hair.

"Hi, Xu." He gently closed the door behind him. "Look, I heard that there was a sighting in Centra. It's true, right?"

She nodded slowly. "Yeah. In the Shalmal Pass."

"So... I guess this will be it, huh? It's not like they can run from Garden forever." His tone was clipped, reserved.

"I know you must be broken up over this, Nida." She quickly went to him and touched his arm. Any excuse to feel his body heat so close to her own. "You don't have to worry. I won't send you to Centra. I know it'll be tough for you..."

"I want to go," was his cool reply. Each word was spoken tightly.

"You do?" She peered into his eyes, which seemed quite a few degrees frostier than they normally were.

"I need to look in her eyes and see why." He spoke each word carefully. "Why she would conspire to kill a man who'd loved her like she was his daughter. Why she killed Evan. Why... why I was stupid enough to believe in her."

Xu blinked heavily a few times, dumbfounded. "You...? You've changed your mind, Nida?" His name came out soft and breathy on her lips. The way she would whisper it in her dreams of making love with him.

"More like opened my eyes," he corrected blankly, gazing into her face for a long, silent moment.

"Nida..." She breathed again, stepping closer to him. He just continued to stare at her, not pushing her away, not stepping back like he'd always done in the past. Just standing there, looking so handsome, smelling so inviting. The distaste of her last sexual encounter, only moments before, was washing away. Inside her heart was beating loudly. She was sure Nida could hear it. Could he see the blush rushing to her cheeks? Could he feel how much she wanted him?

She couldn't resist anymore, and stepped closer so now she was pressed against him. Again, he stood stationary. Hyne, he wasn't pulling away! She leaned into him, and pressed the lightest of kisses against his lips. She kept her eyes closed. She couldn't bear to see rejection in his eyes, not at a moment like this. She gasped, and her legs gave out from under her when she felt him return the kiss. His mouth was warm and strong, and his arms were the only thing holding her up. She made a small mewling noise of desperate desire, clinging to his undone SeeD jacket. Nida kissed her back fiercely, holding her as tight as he could against him. They slowly slid to the floor together, clothes beginning to be peeled away from increasingly sweaty flesh. Through the picture window, the afternoon sun was dark orange, the light reflecting off the butterfly shadowboxes, the dead and trapped insects looking down on the second sexual encounter to happen in the office that afternoon.

---

"I sense water ahead," Shiva noted, feet hovering just above the uneven ground. There were rusted old trolley tracks that were making it hard to walk in the dim light. The humans all had badly bruised knees and torn pants from tripping on it. "Though... only a small amount," she added apologetically.

They'd been moving through the mine for what seemed like an eternity. It was slow going because of the bad light, but also because Squall was still getting over his injury. For the first little while, he'd had to stop almost hourly to throw up. His vomit was black and unnatural, purging the awful Forbidden toxins from his system. And, Seifer knew how horrible it tasted coming back up, because he'd also needed to stop several times to puke. But, his injury had been so small compared to Squall's that he'd been cleansed after only a couple of days. Today was the first day that Squall hadn't had to stop more than once. He was extremely pale and dehydrated, so Shiva's promise of fresh water was like music to their ears.

"Thank God," Quistis muttered, exhausted. If there was water around, she could only hope that there would be more air. There was enough oxygen to breathe, but it was like they were in high altitude. Always struggling for breath, constantly sapped and tired. She was walking beside Squall today, keeping an arm around his waist, even though he seemed a lot stronger today. The redness at his throat had receded a little, too. He looked wan and thin, and was in desperate need of a shave and shower, but she was sure that she looked just as ghoulish. Quistis hadn't seen her own reflection in a long time, but all she had to do was look at Squall and Seifer to guess what the mirror Quistis would look like. Brutal with a capital Yikes.

"Here." Seifer pressed his canteen into Squall's hand, seeing that he was drooping against Quistis.

"Kupo..." Serino trailed off in protest. Seifer had been splitting his own water ration between himself, Squall and the moogle.

"He needs it," Seifer ground out, looking sidelong at Serino on his shoulder. "Take it, Squall."

"What about you?" Squall whispered. His throat still burned, and talking was agony.

"Take it," Seifer urged again, his voice patient and loving. A tone of voice that Squall felt privileged he was one of the choice few who got to hear it.

Squall nodded. Even small words like 'thanks' hurt his parched throat. He took a couple small sips of the tepid water, feeling Seifer's lips press against his sweaty temple. Quistis wanted to offer her own water to the woefully dehydrated Squall, but Seifer had refused to allow it, point-blank and rather rudely. He said that she was their best magic user, and needed the strength. Squall had agreed, silencing her protests with icy glares that were eerily similar to his Guardian Force.

Shiva came floating back, her shimmering face impassive. "There is a small trickle of water coming in from outside. It's clean, but small." She started leading her master and his companions to the water source. She felt guilty she couldn't help Squall further. She was made of frozen water, but magical water held no sustenance, and couldn't be drunk.

"Oh, thank Hyne!" Quistis breathed when she saw the tiny 'waterfall' coming from the ceiling. It dripped down the stones, and while it had flecks of mineral and dust in it, the water source wasn't contaminated. Dust particles were nothing compared to their thirst.

"We must be near the mountain's edge," Bahamut observed, looking up at the clear, starry sky through the fissure above them. The humans and Serino stood under the meagre trickle with their mouths open, unabashedly drinking down every drop. They also held up their canteens to fill them.

"No human signatures," Diablos commented, letting his wings shrink down, the rest of the bulk becoming bats that flew up into the crevice, but stayed within the mine to mask the magic output. The bats flew back down, reforming his massive wings. "The desert is not far."

Squall hesitated, face slowly pulling away from the water trickle. Kashkabald... they still hadn't figured out how to get through the desert. There was no cover. Xu and the rest of Garden were probably waiting for them there. Rinoa was probably waiting, armed with all her anger and sorcery... Deep down, Squall wondered if Seifer already had a plan, and just wasn't telling them. The idea made him feel nauseous in a way that had nothing to do with the Forbidden's toxins.

"Kukupooo kupo!" Serino exclaimed in shock when there was a vibrating buzzing sound beside him. He was near Seifer's hip, filling his own small water skin. "There's a bee in your pants, kupo!" He peered at Seifer's left hip pocket, and when it buzzed again, he peeped and jumped back. He floated forward again, poking his paw at whatever it was. "There it is again, kupo!"

"Huh?" Seifer looked down, and felt the vibration against his hip. Maybe there really was some kind of crazy mutant mine bee in there. "Oh!" He exclaimed quietly. "My phone..." He'd completely forgotten about his cell phone.

"You think it's Xu?" Quistis breathed. She waited on pins and needles to hear the buzzing again, but nothing came.

"Xu? Quisty, please. I wouldn't give her air if she was in a jug, let alone my phone number." He pulled out his phone. There were a lot of old messages, but this one must have just gotten through because they were so near to the surface, and close to Kashkabald. Centra's cellular service was terrible, but the Kashkabald was often used by Esthar for military training, so he could now get a signal. "Text message," he murmured, opening it.

Quistis and Squall looked at Seifer's face carefully. The way a muscle jumped in his jaw told them he didn't particularly like what it said, or who it was from. Seifer snapped his phone shut and let out a long breath, turning his attention back to drinking down as much water as he could.

"SEIFER!" Quistis exclaimed so forcefully that it would have made Fujin proud.

"It's from Sol. 'I'm in the area. We need to talk'," Seifer recited, that muscle in his jaw now twitching like a small heart.

"How would he know?" Quistis asked. "Or she?"

"Do you have some kind of tracking chip in you?" Squall asked. "If you got a message, we'd be back in satellite range."

"Sol is SeeD!" Quistis hissed impatiently. They'd now all completely forgotten about the water.

"Who's Sol, kupo?" Serino asked. "Kind of a funny name."

"My boss," Seifer answered darkly. His eyes narrowed, irises darkening with deep, quick thinking. "And, he's also an assassin, so he ain't someone we want to be seeing right now."

"Ku... kupo...?" Serino looked at Seifer, shocked. "Assassin, kupo?" He shook his head, dumbfounded. "If you work for an assassin, then you...?" He twittered in disbelief. "But, your aura, kupo!" Serino flew up and away from Seifer, wringing his paws in front of him.

"Oh, fuck me!" He hissed, starting to quickly search his pockets. A line was appearing between his brows and crinkling his scar. Squall knew it was from dismay at Serino's reaction.

"Faerie sight is never wrong, kupo..." The moogle murmured, more talking to himself. "How long were you a hired killer?" Serino asked. His musical voice sounded so serious. "Surely a couple of weeks, kupo."

"More like a couple of years." Seifer pulled out what he was looking for - his wallet. This line of conversation wasn't a place he wanted to go.

Serino was in a state of personal crisis, but relaxed when he saw the slight change in the tallest human's aura - the layer of shame. So, his faerie sight was still working. Serino was so distressed because he should have seen in a human's aura if they killed people for such a low reason as money. He could see death in the humans, but it was the veil of death that came with a warrior. When they'd described Garden to him, a military force, that aura made perfect sense. So, it was a deep shock to find out that being a killer didn't show in Seifer's aura.

"Dammit." Seifer pulled out the false library cards he kept. There were microchips inside them to work in the swipe locks of the Solar System's safe houses.

"But... he couldn't have found your location and come here that fast just from those chips," Quistis pointed out logically. "Sol is SeeD. At least, we're pretty certain."

"What do you think he wants?" Squall rasped darkly.

"Or she!" Quistis corrected.

Seifer sighed and fixed her with an annoyed glare. "Whatever! Sol could have turned us in when we stayed in the Timber safe house. Garden also has no love for the Solar System."

"Xu was making it her personal mission to find them, and put a stop to them," Quistis murmured. "Well, she's just full of personal missions!" She added savagely.

"What are we deciding?" Squall asked.

"What else can we decide?" Seifer asked rhetorically. He looked at Serino, his brow creasing. The moogle was looking down, twitting under his breath, knotting his paws rapidly. He looked up briefly when he sensed eyes on him, but looked away again. It hurt Seifer's feelings. "Sol's coming whether we want to speak with him or not."

All of the Guardian Forces suddenly froze up, Diablos hissing loudly.

Continue forward

, a voice urged. It was coming from everywhere, slithering and sliding through the air and over their skin.

We mean you no harm.

"What was that?" Seifer asked, looking all around for the source of the voice.

"Look at the water!" Quistis exclaimed. The small trickle had started to flow more strongly. In the thin stream, she thought she could see a glimmer of scales passing through it, then nothing. "Leviathan..."

"Who junctions Leviathan?" Seifer asked, his grip tight on Hyperion.

"Lots of SeeD," Quistis said with a shrug.

"Leviathan spoke the truth," Shiva murmured. She and the snake god shared a bond, both of the same element. "I can feel his essence down this way." Her glass-like arm gestured to the tunnel, sloping upwards. It swirled around the edge of the large cavern like caramel swirled in an ice cream cone, emptying into the fissure above.

"Fuck," Seifer hissed under his breath, starting to trudge forward. As if he had a choice.

"I sense a human ahead," Diablos noted as they ascended. "Just one, along with Leviathan."

"At least there'll be no ambush," Seifer said cheerfully. "Except of course that we're all tired, suffering from dehydration and malnutrition, and are hurt. And, Sol will be fresh as a daisy, and not to mention a trained SeeD and leader of an international assassin cell."

"But, no pressure, right?" Quistis sniped sarcastically. She was already starting to charge magic into her hands, ready to be flung out at a moment's notice.

They stepped out into the fissure, GF first. Fire magic in Quistis's fist illuminated the night, Serino clutching her neck tightly. Seifer was also carrying fire in his closed fist, Hyperion held out before him. "Over here, Jupiter," a voice said from the darkness. A familiar one. The orange light in his hand flickered and extinguished in shock when they came fully out of the fissure. Sol was waiting for them, sitting on an eroded boulder. Leviathan was in a small rain pool of water, where the drip had gone into the mines. The serpent was shrunk down, so looked vaguely like some kind of inflatable toy found in a child's wading pool. Sol raised his hands to show he was unarmed. At least, not with any weapon they could see. They looked so tired and dirty. But, still alive. "How can you still look so gorgeous, covered in dirt and bruises?" He asked, the question directed at all three of them.

"You're Sol...?" Seifer asked in disbelief.

He made a gun with his index finger and thumb, hitting the brim of his cowboy hat so his eyes showed in the dark. With a flirtatious wink and a tone of lofty surprise, Irvine asked "Why do you seem so surprised?"