Author's Notes: For Vignette 6, I decided to use some prompts from my Bingo Cards for Places and Balamb Garden Network as well as Guardian Forces for Sample Card #2: "Training Center" and "The Fire Cavern" and "It's fun, and safe too" and "…One more minute…" and "Holy Judgment."

Vignette 6: The Orphanage

Zell, Seifer, and Irvine.

The way that Rinoa had repeated the boys' names after Squall, with a look of the most intense focus and determination, had been nothing short of adorable, so terribly adorable that Squall had nearly let out a chuckle, and unfortunately Rinoa had noticed the beginnings of that chuckle in the slight tremble of his lip, and she had taken his reaction the wrong way by assuming that he had been making fun of her, when no, no, no—he was simply admiring the girl, intrigued by her sweet spirit, captivated by those pretty eyes.

Alas, adorable just isn't in the vocabulary of a 10-year-old boy!

Squall feels compelled to explain himself to Rinoa—and he somehow has to accomplish this without actually uttering the word adorable—though he knows that it will be hard to find a private moment now that Selphie has taken charge of the afternoon's events…

"Welcome, everybody!" enthuses Selphie as she gathers her friends around the living room. "Today we have a very special guest with us. RINOA HEARTILLY, COME ON UP!" She motions to Rinoa to step onto the dais.

Rinoa looks surprised by the attention but happily accepts the spotlight.

"Hi!" she greets the room with eager, flushed cheeks. "My name is Rinoa and I go to True North Academy, but I was homeschooled all of my life before the fifth grade. The kids at my school aren't the nicest so I guess you guys are my first real friends. Thanks for letting me hang out with you!"

Quistis clutches her heart. "This is really touching!"

Seifer says, "Oh, dang…"

Zell nods. "I know how that feels."

"We all do," affirms Irvine, "so we hope you'll feel right at home, Rinoa!"

Squall feels even guiltier than before. When Rinoa had repeated after him with that adorable (argh!) expression of hers—Zell, Seifer, and Irvine—maybe it was more than an attempt to memorize names. Maybe to Rinoa, each name represents a glimmer of hope. A boy or a girl to call her very own friend. Opportunities to make warm memories for the rest of her life.

"That was a beautiful introduction!" gushes Selphie as she hops from foot to foot. "Thank you, Rinoa."

Rinoa giggles nervously and steps down from the dais.

"Alright, everybody! Welcome to…" Selphie snaps her fingers and a vertical banner unfurls itself from the wall behind her. "THE TRAINING CENTER." The banner states the same in shiny letters. "Rinoa, The Training Center is what we call our game days! We have them once a month and there's usually a prize for the winning team."

"Tell us what today's prize is," demands Seifer.

"Shouldn't we be more interested in what the game is?" hesitates Quistis. "Last month's game was rather, ah…"

"Dangerous?" finishes Zell with a huge grin.

"Dangerous?" echoes Rinoa worriedly.

"The game was called The Fire Cavern," says Seifer without fear. "We had to survive an obstacle course with Bombs and Red Bats."

Rinoa's face pales. "There were m-monsters?"

"No," corrects Squall as he scowls at Seifer. "The 'monsters' were all fake. The Bombs were red dodgeballs and the Red Bats were made out of play-doh and hung from the ceiling."

"The Red Bats would drop on you at random," comments Quistis with a shudder. "Quite an unpleasant feeling, even if they weren't real."

Irvine laughs. "'It's fun, and safe too.' Isn't that what you told us, Sefie?"

"Selphie has interesting definitions of 'fun' and 'safe,'" Zell informs Rinoa. "We were lucky there wasn't real fire involved."

"Guys, you know I'd never be that crazy!" insists Selphie with a pout. "Anyway, today's game is called…" She sweeps an arm around the living room. "THE CASTLE! As you know, these twelve paintings have always been here, but there's a thirteenth painting that Matron let me borrow from the attic. The objective is to figure out the name of the thirteenth painting."

"So is the name a composite of the other paintings' names?" asks Quistis.

"Bingo!" confirms Selphie. "And if you look closely enough, there's a hint somewhere in this room!"

"Whoa," says Zell. "That sounds kinda hard…"

"Prize?" says Seifer impatiently.

"For today's prize, I'll let Squally choose." Selphie winks at him as if sharing a secret. "What'll it be, friend? Spaceship dinner for two, outdoor concert for two, or ballroom dancing lessons for two?"

Squall feels his cheeks grow hot. The prizes sound decidedly romantic. "I…uh…"

Irvine interrupts, "Do we have to be chaperoned?"

"Obviously, Irvy," answers Selphie wisely. "We're only 10- and 11-year-olds! But I'll probably just ask Xu to take the winners to wherever they please."

Xu is in the ninth grade and occasionally babysits for the gang. Squall sometimes asks her for help on his homework.

Quistis raises a hand. "Teammates?"

"Quisty, you'll be with Zell. Seifer, you'll be with Irvine. And Squall, you'll be with Rinoa!"

Seifer crosses his arms in displeasure. "Why can't I be with Quisty?"

"Don't worry, Seifer. If you and Irvy win, you don't have to have a spaceship dinner together. Each of you can bring whoever you want!"

"Oh." Seifer seems relieved. "Okay, that sounds better."

"Some friend you are!" says Irvine in mock hurt.

"So that's essentially two prizes," says Quistis.

"Yup, and you'd better enjoy it!" Selphie gives them all a threatening smile. "I saved up a LOT of allowance money for these prizes."

Zell rubs his hands eagerly. "Let's get this game started! Quisty and I are gonna kick everybody's butts!"

Seifer scoffs. "We'll see about that."

"Twenty minutes on the clock," announces Selphie. "On your mark, get set, GO!"

Pockets of fierce whispers charge around the living room as the friends observe the paintings and privately discuss their guesses.

Squall appoints Rinoa as his scribe. She writes down each name on a notepad in her adorable (argh!) handwriting.

"Squall," she whispers to him after they study the twelfth painting. "Where do you think the hint is?"

"I'm still trying to figure that out," he whispers back, "but I have a hunch that the hint isn't another picture. Maybe…words? Or even numbers. Something we wouldn't expect."

Rinoa nods. "Great thought!"

There is something beautiful and sad and noble about the thirteenth painting. There is a cloudy beach with plants and flowers and pillars but the landscape is devoid of the warmth of people—where have they all gone?

"VIVIDARIUM," muses Rinoa. "The plants and flowers make it seem like a Garden, but the other translations don't make a whole lot of sense…"

Squall sighs, if only because he is getting way too invested in this mind puzzle. "Yeah, we could really use the hint…"

"Oh," says Rinoa with a frown. "I think your clock needs new batteries."

Squall glances at the old clock on the wall. He sees that its hands are stuck.

"Rinoa!" His eyes widen in understanding. "You've found the hint!"

"I have?" she says in disbelief.

"Let's turn away from the clock," he suggests, "so that nobody notices we're looking at it…"

They turn away, crouch on the ground, and review the notepad in a top secret huddle.

"The clock hands are stuck on the Roman numerals VIII, IIII, and VI. If we consider them to be the letters V and I, then—" He carefully underlines the corresponding letters in VIVIDARIUM, INTERVIGILIUM, and VIATOR. "There's our composite."

Rinoa's mouth drops open. "Squall, that's really impressive! You're so, so smart!"

Squall feels butterflies in his stomach. "I mean, I don't know if that's the right answer—"

"I'm sure it is!"

"I couldn't have come up with this idea without you."

Rinoa beams.

"…One more minute…" Selphie calls out.

The whispers grow louder with the added pressure of time and the desire for the prize.

At the end of the minute, Selphie blows a whistle. "Time's up!"

Quisty and Zell present their theory of IUDICIUM and IGNUS and INANDANTIA because the earth looks like it is slowly rebuilding itself from Hyne's Holy Judgment of Fire and Flood.

Seifer and Irvine choose VENUS and INAUDAX. They weave a rich tale of Love and Cowardice in an era of clashing loyalties and broken ties, the climax of which takes place at the abandoned site of the beach-monument-garden.

Squall and Rinoa aren't sure what to say other than their actual guess: Garden, Sleep, Messenger.

Selphie applauds enthusiastically. "SQUALL AND RINOA WIN!"

"What!?" Seifer looks a bit outraged. "What the heck does that painting have to do with a sleepy messenger?"

"Fascinating," remarks Quistis. "I'd love to hear the story behind the name."

"Matron will tell us one day," says Selphie wistfully. "She says it's a special story…" She quickly goes back to her grinning self. "Okay, now for the fun part! Squall and Rinoa, which prize will you choose!?"

Rinoa looks elated at the team victory. "Ballroom dancing lessons, please!"

Squall hesitates before answering, "Outdoor concert…?"

"You don't sound so sure," says Selphie in amusement. "Here, I'll help you decide. Who would you like to take to the concert?"

"Well…" All eyes are on him. "Do I have to decide now?"

Selphie nods seriously. "You have to decide now or you forfeit the prize!"

Squall gulps. "Okay, fine." He turns to Rinoa, his heart beating fast. "Rinoa, will you go to the concert with me?"

"Only if you say yes to ballroom dancing with me," replies Rinoa with a tiny curtsy.

The room immediately breaks out in a teasing chorus:

"OoOoOoOoO!"