Why do people depend on each other?

In the end, you're on your own.

— Squall Leonhart

"Raddie! Raddie!"

He immediately shot up, grabbing his gunblade and swinging it hard.

CLASH!

He lost grip of his sword, something he never expected even in his sleep. Fear opened his eyes wide, only to realize it was Acma standing in front of him, visibly scared. Her palm faced upward, indicating that she had used Telekinesis to defend herself.

"Hyne! You nearly cut my neck!"

"Oh gosh... Are you alright? I'm so sorry."

He hastily stood up, about to retrieve his sword, which was now stuck inches from the hut's pillar, made from half of a pipe tree. But she signaled him to sit back. With ease, she moved his Twin Lance in front of him using Telekinesis. Her power seemed stronger than it had been months ago.

He set the sword aside as Acma filled him in on the details while he had been sleeping.

"Sorry to wake you this early, but Abuela says she can sense the Four-Soul Jewel awakening again. You should get ready to meet Hercus at the front gate in twenty minutes."

"I see." Raddie nodded and yawned. "Can she detect its movement?"

"For a short while. She was fortunate to be standing at the orb at the time. Then it disappeared, probably it had found a host."

The sun hadn't come up yet. Looking at his damp SeeD uniform, he couldn't hide his disappointment at having to wear it wet in Winter Island's sub-zero weather.

"Here, wear this instead." Acma took out new clothes from drawers that smelled fresh. "Happy belated birthday!"

My birthday? She remembered. What else had she remembered?

"Thank you," he said reluctantly, pulling on the garment made of leather and fiber, adorned with tribal patterns. "I don't know what to say. This must have taken you days…"

"Well," she smiled awkwardly, "I actually indeed forgot your birthday. It was Casi's idea to make you a better outfit for cold weather. I just realized yesterday… I'm sorry. With three GFs junctioned to me, my brain is foggy all the time."

"Oh, no. Don't worry. I'm not big on birthdays…"

"Even so, turning seventeen is a big deal. You can officially drink in Balamb…"

He wanted to say he'd never drink again. Hilde's betrayal that led to Acma's suffering haunted him every single day. But he decided to keep his mouth shut to avoid bringing up unwanted memories.

"What's that?" she suddenly asked.

"Huh?"

"Something on your mind?" She smiled gently.

"Ah, no," he shook his head. "It's beautiful. Thank you again…"

She rolled her eyes a bit before turning her back to give him some privacy.

"I get it. Raddie is a grown-up now. He doesn't say what's really on his mind anymore…" she teased lightly.

"What? Are you mocking me for having few thoughts of my own?" he chuckled as he pulled on the new battle wear.

"Not at all. It's a good sign… Although," she sighed, "you tend to trust people too readily, Raddie. You provide way more information than necessary."

"I didn't—"

"I'm not accusing you of anything," she interrupted quickly. "You're friendly and likable. It's your superpower. I just… I've noticed that I've started to feel comfortable here too. After everything they've done to us, it scares me. I thought I was the paranoid one. Anyway, everyone lies, Raddie. Even you just lied to me. Over clothes? Come on, I know I have limited artistic skills…"

"No, it's really beautiful, and it fits me nicely. Look!"

"Aye aye," she chuckled, but her tone turned somber again. "My point is, I know you well enough to notice these things. But see, it's just the two of us; we can only depend on each other. Don't trust everyone here, not even Hercus. I can't go with you, even though I really want to. Always have a backup plan, partner."

"Like what?" he frowned.

He was too familiar with how she often suggested something seemingly out of the blue, but in fact, she had long planned to bring it up.

She took out her junction device.

"Take Quezacotl with you. But don't tell anyone."

"What? No!"

"I'll be fine!" She stepped closer and shoved the junction device into his right hand. "I can wield magic without a junction. Aczyma and Hilde are with me; they can handle both offense and defense well. They'll let no one touch me."

No one? Aczyma had been with her the whole time, but the dark GF could only appear when her HP was low.

"No!" he said firmly, pushing the junction device back to her. "I have Pumpkin…"

"He's a young GF! Listen to me," she insisted. "You've seen what even a small fragment of the Four-Soul Jewel could do to a low-level monster. Abuela said this last piece is the biggest. If you fail and don't come back... what do you think these people will do to me once Hilde leaves my body?"

He looked into her eyes, trying to read her thoughts. He wanted to say he would die for her, but if his death didn't guarantee her safety, then what was the point?

Sensing he no longer resisted, she carefully equipped the junction device to his right arm, hiding it under his loose sleeve.

"Trust me. I'll be fine here. I'm a magic sponge and one of the magic wells is right here in this village. Whatever tries to kill me has to get past a Hyne's descendant with the rare skill Telekinesis unlocked first."

He looked at her attentively as she adjusted his junction to boost his stats, he couldn't help but recall a cheesy line that came to his mind.

"Why do people depend on each other?"

"What?" she asked, surprised.

"In the end, you're on your own."

These are Commander Leonhart's words from when he was a seventeen-year-old loner. The Commander refused to acknowledge that he had said them, blaming the imaginative reporters of Timber Maniacs for framing him as socially awkward—though no one could deny it, at least before Sorceress Rinoa came into the picture. Regardless, Raddie had kept this quote on his desktop's idle screen for years during his mildly rebellious teenage years.

They stared at each other in the stillness of the night for a good ten seconds before bursting into laughters.

"Urgh… Do you know Senior Seifer used to call Commander Leonhart 'puberty boy'?" she asked.

"That might be one of the rare occasions when that piece of art is not wrong."

Acma laughed harder, but then her expression suddenly darkened.

"I miss Zyma..."

"Yeah?"

"I don't know why I'm telling you this, but... I keep wondering what he would do. If this were his mission, what would he have done differently?" she stammered. "I've always thought... you know, given my stats... I could never, you know, be less than his equal..."

"Like when fighting?"

"Um… well, many other aspects, but um… yeah, for example, fighting."

"Oh, yeah. How could you compare yourself to him? Senior Zyma can fuck anything moving... Um, I mean monsters, not... um..."

There he went again. Fuck. Why did he use that word? So inappropriate. So insensitive. He paused to observe her, who also displayed shock at his first vulgar language. Spending months with tribal folks had certainly changed him in some ways.

Bad.

Very bad ways.

"Please don't tell on me," he grinned awkwardly.

To his relief, she chuckled and laughed with him. "Lucky you, I'm no longer in the Disciplinary Committee. But I agree, he'd totally eff them over, but…" she pointed her index finger upward, "… not before mugging them for their last potions…"

"Oh, yeah. And he wouldn't forget their fangs, if any."

"Claws, too. Death Claws' wine extract was quite the hype."

"And scales."

"And tails."

She chuckled. "When nothing else is left, he'd finish them off nicely."

"If not from the front, then from the back. Um…" he clarified when he saw her frown. "He called it 'Backstab'. I've never seen him do it, though. It's like he never had to…"

"Right. Front and back. He's a good... um..."

"Yes. Although I can't believe we have this conversation, Acma Appropriate!"

They giggled a little more before Hercus' signal outside interrupted them.

"Anyway, you did great." Raddie placed both hands on her small shoulders. "We're alive. We're getting stronger every day. And we are SeeDs, remember? We didn't choose this career for a peaceful life. What we do here matters, regardless of what happened. I see a future in every child's face like Casi. Just stay focused on your path—no, it's our path. You and me. Stay alive. Move forward. Rinse and repeat. Can you do that for me, partner?"

She looked away, smiled to suppress tears, then met his gaze again. "Raddie, I'm very proud of you. Go, keep it up!"