Zidane was stupid for several reasons. The first and foremost was he let his feelings for Squall come out. Maybe not full-blown exposure, but enough to trigger Squall's memory and risk everything. Second, he should have known better than to think he could hide anything from Squall to begin with. Maybe he was overreacting, but Zidane couldn't bear to tell Squall the truth about them for all it could do, could mean. If it was just the Ultimecia thing he'd cave on that… but not what Squall wanted to know.

Third reason? Zidane escaped to the stupidest place.

Best part, he hadn't realized his error until Squall came striding in, and he was left looking up from the floor caught red-handed having a somewhat emotional moment in the middle of Squall's living room. Squall had a surprised and amused look on his face, like a part of him didn't think he'd find Zidane here while the other part knew the blond would do something this silly.

"Look…" Zidane started.

Squall instead shrugged off his jacket, threw it on the ground and went to the couch. "I'll play you for it."

"Er… what?"

The mercenary pulled out his Triple Triad deck, shuffling it. "Sudden death, Balamb rules. I win, you tell me everything. You win, I won't ask about it again."

"A game?" Zidane wanted to feel insulted. Their relationship was not to be gambled on a game… but how could he be mad, when Squall didn't know? "What're the Balamb rules?"

"Closed, random, plus, and same." Squall shuffled his deck again. "Remember what I taught you."

Zidane frowned, but he dug out his own deck he had been beefing up since then, sitting on the floor across from Squall. He also shuffled them twice, and as he did Squall set up the game board on the coffee table between them. They drew five cards each at random, holding them up so the other could not see, and Squall pulled out a Gil. He flicked it into the air, calling 'heads' before Zidane could speak; it clinked on the board, tails up.

The blond snorted in victory, then glanced at his cards. According to Quistis, who was supposed to be one of the best Triple Triad players in the Garden, his 'Guardian Force' deck was pretty good, the five now in his hand giving him hope. Squall's deck was much bigger, and he could only hope he kept all the crappy cards in it and drew them.

At the same time, Zidane half-hoped he'd win.

Zidane carefully set his Doomtrain card in the upper right corner of the board, and Squall actually smirked at him. "Playing safe?" Squall asked. "Is what you're hiding that bad?"

"Might be," Zidane replied. Was Squall going to trash-talk the entire game?

Squall placed a card under Zidane's—ironically enough, it had Squall's picture on it. Zidane chuckled; he had heard of custom cards the Balamb student body had made in honor of Squall's promotion, but the top 'A' did nothing to Doomtrain's bottom 'A,' and all Zidane saw was a waste of a move.

"Playing recklessly?" Zidane taunted as he triumphantly placed a Bahamut card under the Squall card, flipping the Squall card so its blue shaded side indicated he won it.

"No," Squall put down another card in the middle of the board, watching Zidane's reaction.

The blond couldn't help but frown at the custom-made Rinoa card, the frown deepening when it flipped the Squall card back to red. "Where'd that come from?"

"Her father," Squall replied. "Your move."

"I know," Zidane snapped. Why was he carrying her card in his deck? Did her father give it to him as approval or something?

The blond calmed himself—he was going to win, and random bouts of jealousy were counter-productive to the prize. He placed a Sacred card above the Rinoa, flipping it and the Squall card. Squall made a small 'hmm' sort of sound, staring at his deck, and then the board.

He placed a custom Zell card next to Sacred in the upper left corner, making Zidane smirk. "Now who's playing safe?" the thief asked.

"You still are."

Zidane scoffed. He was winning seven to three, and with a cheeky grin he placed Alexander in the bottom left corner.

"I win," Squall said without even placing a card. Zidane frowned.

"My seven to your three." Zidane protested. "And unless you got some ultimate card, Alexander's 'A' and nine stand strong."

"No… my eight to your two."

"What?"

Under the Rinoa card—why hadn't Zidane realized that bottom number was a damn two?—Squall set down a custom Selphie card. The top 'A' trumped the two of the Rinoa card, as did the right eight beat the left six of Zidane's Bahamut card. With a groan, Zidane watched as every card except for his Alexander turn red.

Forlornly he placed the Minotaur card in the last place, and it did nothing. Squall revealed his final card—go figure, another custom card, this time Quistis—and the mercenary actually smiled.

"Triple Triad," he announced triumphantly.

Zidane glared at the game board. "Cheat," he muttered. "Custom cards!"

"Balamb rules state nothing against custom cards." Zidane wanted so badly to argue that point; custom cards were custom cards either way one looked at it! But Squall cut him off, "So," he leaned back on the couch, tilting his head. "Let's hear it."

"Maybe it's better if you don't know?" Zidane tried, a bit red-faced at the fact he lost. The irony of having a loaded deck used against him, something he was fairly sure as a thief he used before, was not helping his pride.

Squall leaned forward a bit, arms tucked under his chest and resting on his thighs. "Zidane, either I'm going to remember on my own in due time, or you tell me now."

Zidane bit the inside of his cheek, frustration setting in. Now would be a great time for the Garden to hit turbulence, or for Nida to call for Squall, but he had a vague idea he wasn't that lucky. And Zidane… didn't want to lie again.

So instead, he went for the alternate truth. "I don't know if it's for sure," Zidane began. "But that other sorceress I mentioned? Ultimecia? She is of your world… she was your obstacle."

Squall frowned severely at this. "And why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I was sent here to deal with her… me. I didn't want you to try to go off and find her… or get hurt. I didn't say so because I wanted to protect you… I think that's my mission. Protect you from her." Zidane looked at the floor.

"That can't be what you're hiding," Squall frowned at the bowed head. "That's not worth all your cattiness."

Zidane cringed. He was being catty? "Squall, please…"

"I think it's my right to know," Zidane heard Squall stand, and he looked up to watch Squall walk around the table to him, kneeling down so they were almost eye to eye. "If I did something painful to you, say so! I may not remember right away, but damn, let me at least apologize!"

Zidane gaped at him. Where did Squall get these crazy ideas? "Y-you didn't… hurt me or anything."

"Then what?" Squall growled, growing frustrated. "Every time something comes up and you have to cling to me, you push away as if I burned you. You lie to me, claiming to protect me. You're in obvious pain at times and it's only with me. So what the hell?"

Did Squall really notice all of that? And feel this guilty? Zidane's tail drooped, his own being filling with guilt; why didn't he realize his actions would affect Squall?

"It's… what you don't remember," Zidane muttered.

"So tell me, let me remember."

Zidane chuckled; it was a sad, sad sound. "Squall, it isn't worth remembering." And damn did it hurt to say that. Zidane honestly felt like he was going to cry over such a statement.

Squall sighed, letting the frustration bleed out of him. "If it isn't, why does it bother you so much?"

"Hell if I know," Zidane muttered. "I wanna tell you, Squall. But, it's kinda like fighting… weigh the pros and cons. More cons than pros. Not worth it."

Squall frowned deeply. "Listen, you…"

The bell of the intercom silenced him, and a moment later, Nida and Selphie's panicked voices filled the Garden, "Squall, Squall!"

"What the…" Squall got up, not liking how they both sounded. He went to his discarded jacket, snatching it up. "Well, c'mon."

Zidane blinked at him, and Squall waited for him at the door. Realizing he wasn't going to get off the hook, the thief sullenly followed him out. Stupid Triple Triad bullshit Balamb rules crap…

Selphie wasn't on the bridge when Zidane and Squall went up the lift, and Nida immediately handed Squall a pair of binoculars. "Squall, take a look."

Squall put the machinery to his eyes, frowning deeply. Apparently, Garden turbo was fast enough to get them to the remains of Centra rather quickly, and as they approached the first spot of land, resting in a forest was none other than Galbadia Garden.

As Squall lowered the binoculars, he handed them to Zidane, who looked through them himself as Nida said, "What do you think?"

Squall frowned. They were still a few miles out, but even without binoculars he could see the enemy Garden in the distance. If they didn't see them yet, then Squall had to take the advantage. He shrugged slightly, holding a hand out and shaking his head.

"The battle is inevitable," Squall said, taking the binoculars from Zidane to hand back to Nida.

Nida nodded as he put the thing away. "The sorceress is with them, huh? So this is going to be the final battle?"

Zidane and Squall shared a look. Not really, Zidane was thinking. Ultimecia is going to show up, eventually…

Squall turned back to Nida. "I hope so."

"When you're ready with yours orders, Commander." Nida said, flicking the mic on.

Squall put his hand to his head, thinking furiously. He couldn't give out too many or it'd cause chaos, but the orders were his responsibility regardless. There were the obvious… and maybe that's all he should stick to.

"This is Squall speaking. This is an emergency, so listen carefully, everyone—we are going to battle against Galbadia Garden in roughly three hours. First and Second Class Sabers, assemble in the parking lot." Squall paused, then went on, "Those with MG Ranks Three or above, head for the second floor deck and await instructions; be sure to warm up. The enemy will probably come aboard, therefore, if your student ID number is even, report to the quad. If it is odd, report to the front gate. If your ID ends with an eight, take care of the junior classmen. That is all."

When the mic cut off, Squall turned to Nida. "Proceed at fifty percent speed. We hit them as soon as possible, sooner than the three hours I gave."

Nida nodded, and as Squall turned, Zidane spoke up, "Uh… I don't have a student number or rank or class…"

"You're with me," Squall said. At Zidane's look, the commanding mercenary went on, "For your protection."

"What the hell is that…"

Voices below interrupted Zidane, and Squall stepped onto the lift. When it started to move, Zidane quickly jumped onto it as well; below awaited all of Squall's friends, minus Rinoa and Zell.

Quistis saluted. "What do you want us to do?"

"Drop formalities," Squall snapped, then sighed. "I want you guys to help me lead the others. When Zell gets here, we'll divide into two teams."

Selphie frowned. "Zell… umm, I think he's taking a nap…"

"Oh… oh, yeah." Quistis shared a side-long glance with Selphie, and Irvine smirked at the lost look Squall sported.

"What are you guys talking about?"

"Nothing," Quistis crossed her arms. "Our little secret."

Squall scowled. We don't have time for this! "I'm going to check the quad. Quistis, you and Zidane will come with me. Selphie, find Zell. You guys work together and lead the team at the front gate. Irvine, find Rinoa and keep her safe—this isn't her fight."

Irvine was going to protest but Squall turned and headed for the elevator, Zidane and Quistis hurrying after him. Although he wanted to go right for the quad, Squall stopped by the second floor to check on preparations. In the hallway immediately after the elevator stopped, Squall approached the group of students there.

"What are you doing?" Squall demanded, and the students snapped a salute. "What's your status?"

"Indirect magic operative, level two, sir," the first spoke.

"You're first class MG. Report to the deck immediately!" Squall ordered. As the student rushed off, he turned to the others. "What about you three?"

"Fire Platoon, level three trainee, sir!"

"Fire Platoon, level one trainee, sir!"

"Rescue Team A, medic, sir!"

Squall looked them over, then jerked his head toward the two of the Fire Platoon. "You two head for the deck. Medic, report to the defense team."

All three saluted again with a 'yes, sir!' and headed off to their appropriate stations. Satisfied, Squall went back to the elevator where his companions waited; Zidane couldn't help but deeply admire Squall's military leadership, seeing the inspiration on the students' faces giving him the adrenaline to be pumped up to fight.

When the elevator reached the first floor, the doors opened to reveal the forward defense personnel all assembled and ready. As Squall descended down the stairs, the defense team burst into cheers at his arrival, morale high. Zidane hoped it stayed this way.

Squall didn't spend much time there, checking the situation over briefly before sprinting for the quad. Once there, Squall headed down the stairs toward the open area, finding Zell ordering students.

"We gotta win, no matter what!" Zell encouraged. He heard steps approaching, and turning around, a wide grin split his face. "S'up, Squall! I got this place covered."

Squall looked over him critically. "I thought you were sleeping?"

Zell went a little pale. "Oh…! Yeah, y-your announcement woke me up. Since my ID is even, I came here… but hey, c'mere a sec…"

Zell took Squall aside from everyone, and Zidane watched them muttered to each other. After what seemed like a light argument, Squall brought his hands together. Zidane felt his heart freeze when he pulled off his ring, handing it to Zell.

Zell grasped it in his hand and pumped his fist in the air. "Yeah! Thanks man! I didn't think you were gonna give it to me. Rinoa is gonna be so happy!"

"Rinoa?"

"Alright, Squall!" Zell clapped him on the back. "Leave this place to me!"

Squall frowned when he noticed the dark look on Zidane's face, but before he could question either Zell or Zidane, Selphie ran up to them, followed by Rinoa herself. What timing.

"Guys, I'm gonna fight, too!" Rinoa declared. "I don't wanna just hide. I know I can fight… I want to fight alongside you all! I'm gonna prove to myself I can do it… that I belong with you guys." She looked at Squall.

Squall paused, seeing her resolve. He nodded to her. "Take care of yourself. I'm going back to the bridge—Quistis, report to the front gate. If you see Irvine, tell him the same. Zidane, you're with me. Zell and Selphie…" he looked at everyone. "I'm counting on you. Everyone, good luck."

As Squall and Zidane headed for the exit, they could hear Zell excitedly exclaim, "Time to get it ON!"

By the time Squall and Zidane made it to the bridge, the Balamb students and faculty had all gotten into position well within the time limit Squall had in mind. A good thing too, for once he reached the bridge and Nida pointed, they had reached land… and Galbadia had noticed them. The red Garden was on a fast course straight toward them, and Squall didn't need the binoculars to see Seifer's distinct form standing on Galbadia's outer courtyard.

Nida heard Squall's light growl, "Seifer is in charge over there," the pilot said. "They're heading right for us!"

"Just keep going," Squall ordered.

As the Gardens approached one another, Zidane stepped forward a few steps, eyes wide. "Look!"

Several rows of Galbadian soldiers riding motorcycles launched themselves off Galbadia Garden, landing on Balamb. Zidane raced to the edge, looking down to watch in horror as some veered over and went right into the open quad. He hoped everyone was going to be all right…

"We're gonna crash!" Nida cried out.

Squall stepped up next to him, shouting, "Go right!"

Nida threw all of his body weight into the steering fin, flinging it to the right. The entire Garden shook as it grazed Galbadia Garden, and Squall grabbed the mic.

"The enemy Garden is right by us!" he called into it. "Quad team! Watch out!"

He had placed responsibility on Zell and the others; he could only hope they and the students there could fend the enemy off. Again the Garden trembled violently as they were slammed into again, Zidane nearly vaulting over the edge. He shoved himself away from it and Squall grabbed him by the upper arm.

"I'm heading down!" Squall called to Nida. He pulled Zidane along with him, rushing toward the elevator. At some point, Squall released Zidane's arm to grab him by the hand, as if to ensure the thief stayed with him.

If not for the current crisis, Zidane would admit to being practically gleeful. As it was, he could only let Squall drag him to the elevator. Once there, it was the brunette who did not let go, making Zidane stare at their linked hands. It lasted for a minute, or however long it was for the elevator to reach the bottom floor, and once the doors opened Squall was running out, dragging the blond with him.

Xu called out from somewhere, "Squall! They're coming in from the front gate!"

Zidane heard the roars of engines and battle cries of students and soldiers, could smell the blood already. As he and Squall raced toward the gate, he saw Zell and Selphie gunning right for them—why were they here? Did the quad fall?

Zell shouted something, but Squall ignored him, going for the front gate. The pair stopped at the reception counter, and finally Squall let his hand go just as Zell and Selphie caught up to them. Squall whirled around and glared at Zell.

"What are you—"

"Rinoa's in trouble!" Zell shouted at him, despite only being a couple feet away.

"She's gonna fall off the Garden!" Selphie wailed.

Squall lost his glare, eyes widening. …Damn!

The intercom boomed before he could reply, "Squall, listen up! The enemy is attacking the classroom—the junior classmen are there. We have to do something fast!"

Squall looked up, then whirled back around as Zidane gasped. Galbadia Garden filled the view from the front gate, rushing at them with the intent to ram them again. He grasped Squall's arm more out of reflex than anything.

Xu ran up to them. "The enemy's heading this way!" she reported.

Zell actually shoved Zidane aside to properly yell right into Squall's face, "Squall, did you hear me?"

Squall grabbed Zell by the collar. "YEAH! I fucking heard you!" he shoved the boxer away. "But she's not the only one in danger, if you can't tell!"

Irvine had joined them at some pointed, follow by Quistis. They were supposed to be commanding the team, what the hell were they doing here? "Didn't think you were so heartless, Squall," Irvine admonished. "Rinoa is gonna die! Don't you realize that?"

Squall couldn't believe this. "You know what else, Irvine? Everyone in this Garden is gonna die if all I do is—"

"Enough!" Zidane shouted, catching everyone's attention. "Squall's right—he's the commander, he can't take care of the individual, he has to command everyone!"

He turned to Squall and crossed his arms. "Squall, you do what you gotta do. Leave Rinoa to me."

"Zidane…" Squall, however, knew he didn't have time to argue. "All right, do whatever it takes. Selphie and Zell! Go with Xu—Irvine and Quistis, we're going to the classroom."

Orders confirmed, Zidane took off toward the quad just as Galbadia slammed into the front gate. Everyone rocked on their feet for several seconds, but for once Zidane kept his balance well, sprinting off before the rest could resume their own treks.

He passed by students running everywhere, some chasing enemies, some being chased, some carrying injured comrades. As Zidane ran he drew his daggers, lowering his upper body down and holding the daggers far behind him, increasing his speed as adrenaline pumped through him. A soldier on a bike went straight for him, and at the last second Zidane jumped into the air and spun like a top. His daggers met the unprotected neck of the soldier, knocking him off the bike and sending the machine to the ground. Once he landed Zidane was in full sprint again.

When he jumped down the stairs of the quad the Garden was hit again, vaulting Zidane headfirst into a wall. His skull cracked against the wall and he fell down with the groan, seeing stars as yet another hit from the other Garden impacted. He could hear screams, most of them sounding young. The students were losing…

Zidane shook it off. Once he got Rinoa out of the way he could help the rest. But he said he'd help her so Squall could do his duty…

The thief staggered to his feet, and glancing around he saw nothing of immediate help. He headed for the outermost area of the quad, and seeing where the floor had broken, he knelt down carefully and looked. There, hanging for dear life, was Rinoa.

"Rinoa!" Zidane called. She looked up, fearfully. How she managed to hold on despite all these hits, Zidane didn't know.

"Zidane!" she wailed.

It was risky, but he had no other choice. There was no rope readily available, and he couldn't leave; who knew if she had the strength to cling there anymore? He gripped his daggers and carefully began to slide down, ignoring Rinoa's protesting cry.

Half way down he buried his daggers into the crumbling wall, sinking them in deep. When he stopped, he let one go and lowered himself down slowly, the holding arm's bicep straining already. He wasn't physically all that strong, but he had no other choice.

He held his hand out to her. "C'mon, Rinoa," Zidane encouraged.

She swallowed, afraid, but raised her left hand out. Both strained to reach and hang on, and before Rinoa's nerves failed her to snatch her hand back, Zidane grabbed her by the wrist, although the cloth bracers nearly made his grip slip.

Rinoa grabbed onto his forearm with both hands, and Zidane hissed at the sudden drop of her weight on his shoulder nearly popped it out of its socket, and he almost let go of the dagger. Grimacing, as his strength was already starting to fail, Zidane looked down at her.

"I'm gonna try to lift you!" He yelled down. "Climb up and grabbed the other dagger!"

Rinoa nodded and Zidane took a deep breath. He suddenly heard Squall's voice in the distance, as if he were on the intercom, but now was not the time to worry about that. He strained to get his elbow to bend, and when it finally did, he had to strain harder to lift his arm. Rinoa planted her feet against the wall, trying to push up as she could. It was slow going, but thanks to her half-climbing, he was able to pull her up close to the dagger handle. The one he hung off of was starting to shaking, the motion beginning to pull it out of the wall.

Just before Rinoa started to reach for the other dagger, Balamb suddenly veered. She lost her foot and swung with the momentum, and Zidane couldn't help but let his arm snap back into a straight position. Both cried out, Rinoa hanging on for dear life and Zidane trying to not let go.

Balamb rammed into Galbadia and the cloth bracer made Zidane's grip slip from Rinoa's wrist to her hand. He squeezed tightly, trying to use the rough surface of his gloves to his advantage, and Rinoa couldn't regain her footing as the Gardens grinded against each other. Each swing of her body made her hand slowly slip from Zidane's.

"No!" Zidane cried, trying to keep hold. He couldn't let go, couldn't let her die! It didn't matter if she was trying to be with Squall, or he was jealous of her, or anything! Cosmos! Please! For Squall's sake, don't let me let her go!

The Gardens shook again, and Zidane's dagger jerked halfway out of its sheath in the wall. It jarred them, the sudden sensation of Rinoa's weight dropping pulling her hand from Zidane's. He screamed in denial, watching as Rinoa plummeted.

By some stroke of luck, a green machine thing flew directly under her. Zidane caught a blur of Squall's brown hair directing the machine down toward safety, and a sigh of relief escaped him. Quickly Zidane raised his now free hand toward the more stable dagger, then realized it was closed tightly in a fist around something.

Opening his hand, Zidane stared as Squall's ring rested serenely in his palm.

At the entrance of Galbadia Garden, after escaping the intense and insane battlefield, Squall and Rinoa paused to catch their breaths. With a wide smile, she went to him with half the mind to hug him.

"Squall…!" she just stood a foot away from him instead. "Thank you."

"It was, ah…" Squall sighed, feeling a bit embarrassed by the look she was giving him. "Don't worry about it. It was my job… we're still under contract. And… I just happened to find you. That's all. So don't worry about it." He paused a moment. "Besides… it seemed like Zidane was what helped you." Is he okay…? He could climb with those daggers, but…

Rinoa giggled, loving how more open he was now, and how cute he looked while embarrassed. "He did. And… You know something, I couldn't afford to fall off that cliff and die." She started to raise her hand as she spoke, "I have something very…"

Her eyes widened at her empty finger, and she frantically searched her pockets. It didn't take Squall long to figure out what was wrong, and he put his hand on his hip in his usual scolding stance, but he did offer a small smile. "Don't worry about it," he said, making her freeze. "It's… just a ring. A life is more important than a ring."

Rinoa blushed a bit. "Thank you… and I'm sorry."

"Go on ahead," he motioned to the entrance. "The others are inside… I'm going to wait for Zidane."

Rinoa hadn't even taken two steps toward him to protest when a voice called out, "Wait no more, for I have arrived!"

Both looked to the nearest tree as Zidane jumped down from the branches, landing neatly between the two. He was grinning as he faced Squall, crossing his arms and tilting his head in a confident manner.

"Man, you're cold," he said to the mercenary. "Whisk off with the damsel I'm trying to save and leave me hanging… literally!"

Rinoa made a small sound, and Squall couldn't help but actually smile at him. It was so… Zidane-like of him to come out of nowhere after such a harrowing event and just mouth off. "Since it was so easy, you're obviously doing it wrong."

"Aw, man!" Zidane dropped his arms and bent over slightly like a kicked puppy. "That's cold. Well, I think I'll take my damsel now!"

"Zidane!" Rinoa cried, rolling her eyes. "I was going to thank you, but I think you deserve it to be postponed!" with that, she whirled on her heels and headed inside, leaving the two alone.

After ensuring she was gone, Zidane straightened. "In all seriousness, your timing is incredible." He sighed. "I nearly failed and she almost died… I'm sorry."

"It's all right," Squall muttered. "You did your best, I can't ask for more than that…"

"However…" Zidane coughed, digging into his pocket and pulling out the ring, holding it out to him. "I believe this belongs to you. Rinoa was wearing it, but when she slipped out of my hand, this was what was left behind. Figured I'd hold on to it."

Squall stared at it then looked back up to him. "That's my favorite ring… so you better give it back. For the meantime, hold on to it for me."

Zidane blinked. "Y-you sure?"

"Yeah…" Squall glanced at the ground. "I trust you with it."

When Zidane smiled and made the move to put it in his pocket, Squall reached into his own back pocket, unhooking the wallet chain and handing it to him. It was slim enough to serve as a necklace, and Zidane threaded the chain through the ring.

When Zidane put the necklace on and the ring thumped against his chest, Squall saw a flash of a similar scene. Of Zidane proudly displaying the ring on the chain to… to Bartz. Of how they…

"I've let you have it before…" Squall muttered, making Zidane freeze in the action of tucking it safely under his shirt. "You and Bartz… kept asking for it, and asking for it. I finally gave in."

"Griever," Zidane muttered, looking to the ground. "Griever the lion… right?"

Squall paused, then nodded. Now was not the time. "Later. Let's meet with the others."

Zidane looked up and nodded as well, falling in step behind Squall. He was thankful Squall didn't press for details… they had a hard battle coming up, after all. Inside Galbadia, the group had already displayed their relief for Rinoa, and Squall walked ahead of them a bit before turning to face them all. Zidane's smile encouraged him to say what was on his mind, and Squall took a breath before he threw his arm out, a physical show of him tossing his doubts.

"Forget about the past! She's our enemy now; don't think twice for a second. There's no way we can fight her like that. I, for one, can't." everyone nodded, and Squall went on, "She chose to fight and become our enemy. We choose to fight back… hell, we have no choice!"

He paused, and sighed. "We've come this far… I guess there's no need for me to say anything."

"We're still listening," Rinoa said, walking up to him. "We want to know how you feel, Squall."

Squall crossed his arms and glanced away for a few moments, then looked back at them. "I'll tell you later… after we all get out of this. Let's go. Zidane, Rinoa, you come with me. Irvine, Quistis, Selphie, and Zell you go down that hall," he pointed.

Everyone nodded. "If you find the sorceress, wait for the rest of us," Squall said. "Galbadia is round, we'll get to you eventually."

Zidane and Rinoa went to Squall's side, and they took off down the right hallway. Immediately to the right was a set of stairs—Squall drew his gunblade and slowly walked up, leading the way. Two flights up, he saw none other than Raijin and Fujin waiting, but as he and his group approached, neither lifted their weapons or even took any sort of aggressive movement.

When close enough to speak, Raijin threw his hands in the air in surrender. "Let's just go. Let's get it over with, ya know?"

Zidane mentally groaned—if only he could never listen to Raijin speak again…

Fujin nodded and looked to Squall. "REQUEST."

Raijin elaborated when Squall looked confused, "We're leavin' Seifer up to you now, ya know? We don't know what's going on anymore, ya know? We just want the old Seifer back, ya know?"

Fujin looked distraught and Squall crossed his arms. After a moment, Squall nodded, "All right."

Both looked relieved, and Fujin even stooped over a bit. "FATIGUED…"

The two let them pass through, Raijin going to the steps to sit down heavily. Squall didn't give them another glance, heading down another hallway. Randomly he took a side door, revealing what seemed to be a cadet dorm, a single student inside.

The boy cried out and held his arms up. "Please don't kill me!" he cried. "I'm not your enemy! Those bastards stormed in during class and just took over the place… most of the students were kicked out."

Squall frowned. "What happened to the faculty?"

The student lowered his arms. "T-the sorceress threatened to kill the junior classmen, so they listened to her… got out with the students. You came to fight her, right? Here!" he dug around in his pocket, holding out a card. "It'll open some of the locked doors. They're holding two other students hostage elsewhere, and they have card keys too."

"Why not just take their card keys and let them go?" Rinoa asked.

The boy winced. "Dunno, and I don't think I wanna know."

Squall took the key from him. "We'll deal with the sorceress. You lay low."

"Don't gotta tell me twice," the student responded.

The trio was forced to run around the entire Garden, more than once bumping into the other group. They revealed they, too, had a key card, and Squall resolved to continue the search together. The Garden was surprisingly empty, very few soldiers left for defense—the Galbadians must have been arrogant enough to believe Balamb couldn't board.

Entering the lower level of the main lobby, the snarling of a dog and the snap of what seemed like a whip echoed. Squall halted the group, staring at the large three-headed beast that stood freely in the center. It was the Guardian Force, Cerberus.

Quistis blinked. "I didn't think G-Garden used GF."

Zidane stared at the beast, wondering how anyone could cram that into their brain. In any case, he stood by Squall, replying to Quistis with a, "Ahh… let's just take it."

The beast must have overheard. "Pretty confidant!" it cried out to them. "Let's see what you can do."

"Look what you did…" Squall muttered as Cerberus ran for them.

Zidane gave a cheeky grin in response—not like he had time to say anything before Cerberus flung a spell. If the sorceress didn't know they were here, now she did!

Cerberus was a challenge, but with all of them working together, it wasn't too bad of a fight. Selphie earned the right to junction him, although Zidane couldn't tell what exactly she did to do it. All he could see was her holding the claw he left behind and closing her eyes… and the claw disappearing.

But hey, whatever worked, right?

The group moved on, scouring the Garden for the sorceress, if the fight with Cerberus hadn't made her flee. They took the hallway to the right, and the group split up to look in all the rooms. Zidane proved to be the triumphant one, revealing a female student.

She whirled around, relief on her face. "Balamb?"

"Yup," Zidane smiled, careful to keep his tail from her sight; didn't want to shock her. "Got a key for me?"

She nodded, handing him the card. "The sorceress' room is at the top floor… back toward the lobby, take the left and go upstairs for the elevator."

"Will do." Zidane took the card, giving her an assuring smile.

Outside in the hall he met up with the others, sharing what the woman told him. Squall took the card, staring at it pensively before looking at them all.

"Zidane, Rinoa and I will go up there," he said, and before the protests started, he went on, "If it's the headmaster's room, underneath is the auditorium. She may escape there, as you know we'll tangle with Seifer. If she does, it's up to you four."

"And if she doesn't?" Quistis demanded.

"You can follow us twenty minutes after we go," Squall replied.

Quistis looked put off, but Irvine, for once, backed up Squall. "He's right, we gotta make sure she doesn't escape. Cover all bases, Quisty."

The blond woman frowned. "Fine. You guys be careful."

"Naturally," Zidane answered, smiling. The four went off toward the auditorium as Squall's group headed for the elevator.

Unlocking it with the key, the three boarded, and as it slowly went up none had anything to say. If this was the final battle, what was left to say? Zidane wanted something to come to mind, but nothing did. All he could do was waiting apprehensively with Squall and Rinoa, hands gripping his daggers. As the elevator slowed, approaching its stop, he lifted one hand to press against his chest, feeling the ring there.

For a moment, it felt as if Zidane's crystal reacted to the ring, and he gasped.

The sound was overlapped by the hiss of the elevator doors opening, and cautiously Squall and the others disembarked. Straight ahead, a man in a trench waited on the steps leading to the sorceress, who was reclining behind sheer curtains in what seemed to be hammock. The three approached, weapons drawn, and the man—Zidane guessed he was the infamous Seifer—waved his gunblade to them.

"Oh, you guys shouldn't have," Seifer sneered at he stared Squall down. Zidane noticed he sported a similar scar to Squall, just flipped. "I was gonna come visit you at my old home."

Squall scowled. "Shut up."

The traitor held his arms open in wonder, "Did you guys come to fight Matron? After all that she's done for us?"

His eyes fell on Rinoa, who cringed. "Rinoa, what are you doing here?" Seifer asked, sounding hurt. "You're gonna fight me, too? Come on, remember a year ago we…"

"Stop it!" Rinoa protested.

Seifer looked to Zidane, and before he could voice anything, Squall snapped at him, "It's too late, Seifer. You can't mess with us." He drew his gunblade, holding it with both hands in a battle ready position. "To us, you're just another enemy like one of those monsters."

Seifer laughed. "You're comparing me to one of them? I ain't no monster, I'm the sorceress' knight. And look at you…" he paced to the side a bit, using his gunblade to point at the ceiling, supposedly at Balamb Garden. "Attacking like a swarm."

He turned a bit, pointing the black weapon at Squall. "You guys are the monsters," he sneered.

Tired of his talking, Zidane jumped in front of Squall and used his daggers to throw aside the weapon. Seifer snarled, swinging the weapon down at Zidane, who managed to cross his daggers above his head to parry.

Seifer pulled the trigger of his gunblade, the force of the blast temporarily blinding the thief. With a cry Zidane dropped to the ground and rolled away just as Squall charged in. Steel clanged hard against steel as their gunblades met—Rinoa rushed to Zidane's side, an Esuna already casting.

As Zidane's vision cleared, he heard the grueling duel between the two gunblade wielders. He could hear Rinoa furiously drawing from Seifer's reserves, absorbing his magic into her own pools and, in some cases, casting the stolen magic and trying to get him away from Squall. It didn't work—Seifer avoided the spells, often trying to place Squall in the way of them. Rinoa ceased offensive casting when she realized his dirty tactic, instead beginning to focus on keeping Squall healed.

Zidane rushed into the melee, crossing his wrists and impacting Seifer hard in the side. They both rolled with the momentum of the attack, Zidane pulling his arms apart to have the tips of his daggers carve an 'x' into Seifer's chest. He spun one dagger, tugging free Seifer's item pouch and launching it into the air; before Seifer recovered to throw him off, the thief jumped after the pouch, catching it as he back flipped safely away.

Zidane dropped to his knees as Squall ran by him, gunblade leveled with Seifer's head as the trench-coat wearing man got back to his feet. Zidane wanted to help more, but as he watched the battle proceed, he lost the drive. By the look on Squall's face, this was his battle... another trial he must gave.

Instead, as Rinoa kept Squall healthy, Zidane turned his eyes to the still resting sorceress. She was defenseless with Seifer tied up…

Flipping his daggers into a reverse grip, Zidane pushed off the floor in an aerial charge past Rinoa, who couldn't help but whirl around and gape as he went right for the sorceress. Just before Zidane crossed the threshold of the curtains, Edea's eyes snapped open and a barrier stopped the thief cold. He was suspended in the air, and no matter how he struggled, he couldn't get free.

"Zidane!" Squall must have turned to see.

"Don't look away from me, Squall! Now kneel before me!"

Squall turned just as he was engulfed in flames, and before he could recover from their burns Seifer was coming at him. Edea didn't move or even lift herself, but Zidane found himself being turned to face the fight, watching just as Seifer's frenzied, whirlwhind attack impacted Squall. Rinoa frantically tried to cast cures, but the magical augmentation Seifer had with the attack was faster than she was, the tornado of slices and magic lifting Squall off his feet. Seifer ended the combo with a back flip kick, launching Squall higher into the air and letting him land hard on his arm. Zidane heard the sick snap of bone and Squall couldn't resist yelling in pain.

Rinoa raced to his side, but Seifer intercepted her. She used her mounted pinwheel as a shield, but unless she gained ground, all she could do was block. She should have kept casting! And why did Zidane go after the damn sorceress?

As Rinoa tried to fend off Seifer with some close-range spells, Zidane was still suspended by the barrier, staring in horror as Squall didn't get up. Watching blood pool around Squall, soaking the white fur of his jacket, soaking into his hair… shouldn't the others be coming? Hasn't it been twenty minutes?

Squall… Zidane felt something building within him, a force of rage and anger boiling. He could feel his crystal reacting to it, as well. "Squall!" ah, so he could speak. "Get up! Squall!"

Squall didn't move, and Zidane screamed. He closed his eyes tightly, screaming at the top of his lungs, and whatever it was that was building in him snapped—the barrier shattered, forcing Edea to lurch herself to her feet. Shards of magic fell to the ground, dissipating harmlessly as Zidane landed in a crouch, enveloped in a bright pinkish light.

When the light faded, his body still glowed with an ethereal aura, his hair spiked and his clothes gone, now clad in what seemed to be fur. That fur was bristling, like an enraged animal, and when Zidane opened his eyes, they too were glowing with malevolence.

He screamed, fangs in his mouth, and when he charged at Seifer the gunblade wielder couldn't resist the urge to cry out in fear at the animalistic thing rushing at him. Rinoa had her arms over her head while blocking Seifer's onslought so she didn't see what was going on, but she could hear Zidane's hisses and grunts, the slashes of his daggers cutting into Seifer and batting aside his blade. She only heard Seifer's footsteps trying to retreat, indicating Zidane was performing his aerial tricks, and she shuddered, afraid to look and see what that powerful pulse she felt from Zidane looked like.

When she finally looked, Seifer was on the ground, either out cold or dead she couldn't tell. Zidane stood over him, and Rinoa took a step back at his feral appearance. When he looked at her, saw how afraid she was, Zidane lost some of the rage in his eyes.

As quick as he turned, a flash of light and Zidane was back to normal. Rinoa stared for a few seconds, but when Zidane looked to Squall, she immediately forgot the bizarre thing she witnessed, seeming to fly to Squall's side and casting every rank of cure she had in her reserves.

Edea glared at Seifer's body (corpse? Not even Zidane could tell if he killed the man or not) and in a silky, dark voice muttered, "Worthless child."

Zidane rushed to guard Rinoa and the still-healing Squall, daggers ready and his body in a half-crouch. Edea crossed her arms over her chest, the ground darkening at her feet. She began to sink down, the magic vanishing when she did. Slowly Zidane relaxed, staring at where she was.

The auditorium is below. Zidane recalled. He turned and knelt on the other side of Squall, noticing with satisfaction his arm seemed to be set and he no longer was bleeding profusely.

Squall's head lolled to the side toward Zidane, and when he opened his eyes, Zidane's relieved smile was the first thing he saw. "Zi…" he looked toward where the sorceress was and he bolted up out of Rinoa's arms. "Where…!"

"Down below," Zidane reported, and he knew better than to insist they wait. "Let's go."

"But…" Rinoa tried, but Squall was already gunning for the elevator.

Her eyes met Zidane's, and although he knew she was thinking something else, he still took the stab, "Just gotta know when to shush and let him do his thing." With that, Zidane followed.

Rinoa frowned, shortly following after them to the elevator. What the heck was that supposed to mean?

Author's Note: This is what happens when I have insomnia =3 I write a whole chapter (without checking over it, so sorry for mistakes, I'll fix 'em after I get some sleep) and tadaaa. I guess it helps I'm following a game, so therefore, I can't really be 'stuck'—I just follow the next game event! Haha. *cheats*

After some sleep: I fixed some of the typos in all of the chapters, although I proooobably didn't get them all. Sorry for so many in this one, haha ;_; Author fails at proof-reading, I'm sorry. But review replies!

xJuneii – Thanks! =D I feel like I'm getting better at the battle-writing, it gets fun after a while! XD Zidane will always be a womanizer to me, even if he's, ahem, homosexual for Squall. Rinoa wasn't bad, just some parts of the game involving her (like the Garden vs Garden thing—everyone wants Squall to be the leader, so he does, but then they freak out over Rinoa instead of, I dunno, everyone else in danger? Seemed so… awkward and not cool lol) did feel very forced and… kinda retarded I'm sad to say ;_; And about Zidane's hair, those loose strands not in the ponytail that frame his face aren't really that short, so he has hair fluffing around him anyway XD But I see your point, he'd be snazzy with it tied. Zidane is a thief, he's always hiding something haha! And yes, the poor seamstress, she's so underappreciated.

Wingsong5555 – B-but cliffhangers are so awesome! They make you come back to read more! *secret revealed!* But I hope you'll stay even after chapter 5~? Hehe. =) It's so… Zidane for him to do a little sneak attack—great minds think alike, ne? And have hope! As these boys will learn, hope is a wonderful thing. XD

Thanks to everyone for reading! =) See you in chapter 6!

Oh, and for anyone wondering, the chapter titles correspond to the fic title, which is a song from Vocaloid, although I'm not always gonna go 'in order'. "Magnet", if you translate it, totally fits these two, I think! There's several different translations, but the message is the same. =) It's so romantic~

Gawd these chapters need to quit being so dialogue heavy. I'll get back to actual proper storytelling in the next chapter... hope you're all ready for a surprise!