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FantasySquare 1st Birthday Fanfic
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Happy Birthday, FantasySquare! The first year of many to come.
Here's my contribution to the celebrations and surprises, doing
what i do best, FanFics, of course.
This is my first attempt at a humour-driven story. Dont expect
a lot of action and high-tension. Just a few laughs, hopefully.
This fic is dedicated to Tim, the man who made FS.
Tim, Cheers to you.
Keeping with that theme of couples , this fanfic is basically
all about the groups
relationships with one another, in a slightly comic manner.
This is a particularly charming tale, a one-off. And although
it
is part of the series of FFVIII stories i have been writing, it
doesnt rely on the continuity of previous stories. They are only
referenced here. Enjoy, and long live FantasySquare!
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"There Is A Season...."
By Darren "Edge" Shier
Cid looked out the window down to the ballroom full of SeeDs
below.
"Is it my imagination," he began, as Edea busied herself
by putting
on his bowtie, "-Or do the SeeD graduates get younger every
year?"
"Hmmm" mused Edea. "Perhaps we're just getting
older?"
Cid almost frowned. "We're not as young as we used to be."
"Well your neck certainly is not" grunted Edea, trying
to tie the
infernal collar.
"My neck is the same size it was when we first met."
he defied.
"Sure it is, dear."
Cid sighed again.
"What's wrong, honey?"
"Thats just it." he said. "All this talk of `honey`
and `dear`. We
sound like a long-married couple."
Edea slid up behind him, her hands coming to rest on his shoulders.
"Cid, We ARE a long-married couple." she whispered,
smiling.
Their gaze followed down to the ballroom.
A year ago, a young SeeD had glanced across the room and met a
young
girl and the rest was entirely boy-meets-girl.
Cid looked at all the other young couples. Smiling, laughing and
holding hands.
"I was never that young." said Cid, lost in Nostalgia.
"No." said Edea, hugging him. "We were younger."
"What is the matter?" she continued. "Your age
getting to you?"
"You know i've always been comfortable with my age."
he laughed. "I have no
qualms about being 40."
He paused. "Wow. 40." He looked at her, grinning. "So
that makes you...."
"Ah!" she interjected, putting a finger over his lips,
shushing him.
"-Still younger than you." she finished.
Cid smiled and held her close. "I hope you dont start to
believe i'm
too old for some things." he suggested, grinning.
She flashed a smile back. "Things?" she parroted, pseudo-innocently,
knowing
full-well what he was referring to.
As they kissed, their hands began to move around one anothers
bodies. Cid
picked Edea up in his arms as they made their way towards the
door.
"Everyone's expecting us." Edea laughed.
Cid turned the handle, locking the door. "So we're a little
late."
"Maybe we might end up VERY late." she laughed, as she
fell onto him...
* * * * * * *
"They're late." said Zell.
Quistis looked up at the clock. "You're right." she
agreed. "Maybe they're
doing something and dont want to be disturbed."
Zells eyes moved from the clock to the window of Cids office that
looked
down into the hall. He noticed that the shutters and blinds had
been closed.
"Yeah." he said. "Probably important Garden stuff,
huh?"
"You might not think it, Zell," began Quistis, putting
down her drink. "But
it's very tough at the top. It's not all paperwork and chain-of-command.
Real
important stuff tends to come up at the last minute and you have
to put off
a lot of other things to do it. Even if it is the Garden festival."
"Really?"
"Yes. Cid's probably very busy, no doubt relentlessly pounding
away on
something that demands his complete attention."
"Oh right. Ok then."
They were sitting at a table right next to the dancefloor. It
was the Garden
festival, and seeing as neither of them had been able to find
a date for the
event, they had decided to accompany each other.
This was more than just the Garden festival, though. This was
two ceremonies
in one. Several cadets were graduating too, including Irvine.
So Selphie
had taken it upon herself to merge the two.
So long story, short, the entire Balamb Garden was one giant PAR-TAAAYYY!!!
"You look real nice." Zell said, clearly meaning it.
Quistis almost turned a deep shade of pink. "Why, thank you
Zell."
"You dont look so bad yourself." she replied.
"You think so?"
"Yeah, you look good in a SeeD uniform."
Zell always seemed to wear his SeeD uniform to just about every
formal
occasion the team was invited to, even when the others had decided
to be a
bit more fashionably liberal.
Tonight, for example, Quistis was wearing a "stunning low-cut
off-the-shoulder
number in an elegant mixture of velvet and satin that resulted
in a fabulous
red and black look that no man could ignore" as Selphie had
so jokingly put
it. But it seemed to do the trick. She almost had to be careful
not to step
on Zells tongue when they met in the hall.
* * * * * *
Squall lay on the bed in Rinoa's quarters, lost in thought. Rinoa's
quarters
were actually the V.I.P guest room, but she had been allowed permanent
residence there. The only other set of quarters in Garden belonged
to Cid,
and he did'nt always use them, spending a lot of time in Centra
with Edea.
He had been waiting on Rinoa to pick the right dress for what
seemed like
two ice-ages by now. For a girl who would look good in a sack,
Rinoa seemed
very picky about what she wore.
So Squall had waited for her, and now he was lying on her bed,
staring up
at the ceiling. He'd let his mind wander and it did'nt come back.
He had allowed himself to think about a few things that he had
left at the back
of his mind for months. Like where Seifer was, for one thing.
But unconfirmed
rumours had said that poor Seifer had apparently frozen to death
somewhere
deep in the Bika Snowfields. But Squall knew to trust his instincts.
And his
gut had told him that he was gonna see Seifer again. As friend
or foe, the jury
was still out.
And then he remembered the man called Cloud. Squall often got
headaches thinking
about that particular capade of his life. Squall had fought a
battle for the fate
of the universe with this man at his side, and it all still seemed
too unbelievable
to be true. But it was true, and he was the only guy who remembered
it. He'd write
a book on his experiences if he thought anybody would believe
him. "It sounds
like a fantasy story." Rinoa would say if he told her. And
she'd be right, it does
sound like a fantasy, Squall thought, a great and Final Fantasy.
"Got it!" said Rinoa, stepping out from behind the curtain.
She done a little twirl
and a dance that was oddly similar to Selphie's.
"Whaddya think?"
It basically every teenage girls little black dress. But the designer
definately
must have been suffering from a severe shortage of material.
Squall was definately suffering from a severe shortage of mental
capacity as he
stared at her.
"Yo, Squall! Snap out of it!" she said. "You're
gonna lose that jaw if you dont
pick it up. Do you honestly want your tombstone to read "Died
In A Puddle Of His
Own Drool."?"
"Very funny."
Squall had snapped back into trademark aloof-mode.
"...Whatever." he said. "Come on, we're late."
Rinoa smiled as she closed the door behind them. She had the unique
gift of being
able to read Squall like a book. "He likes it." she
said to herself.
* * * * * * *
"I dont like it."
"What do you mean?" yelled Selphie. "Whats not
to like?
"I dunno." offered Irvine, fidgeting. "I'm used
to civvies. I've never really had to dress
formally."
"Did'nt you ever go to any formal dinners or functions or
parties?"
Irvine frowned. "I was a loner. Us snipers are like that.
The only time i ever got invited to
parties was usually to put a bullet in the brainbase of the guest-of-honour."
He went all quiet as he began to remember less happier times in
his life.
"Hey." said Selphie, bringing him out of it. "Whassamatta?"
"Huh?"
She began to do her little trademark dance from one foot to the
other. She looked at him, with a naughty smile on her face. "Don't
you like a girl in uniform, Irv?"
"Huh?!?!" he said, barely believing she'd said that,
then began to flare a bright red.
They were in Selphie's quarters, getting ready for Irvine to finally
graduate to SeeD. This meant finally having to put on the formal
SeeD uniform, something Selphie always loved wearing.
It took all it could to stop Irvine saying "You really get
off on this uniform stuff" and winding up with his foot in
his mouth. Yet again.
Irvine looked at Selphie. There was simply no denying it - The
girl was cute with a capital "CUTE". He could'nt put
it down to any one thing. Her green eyes were one thing. The haircut
was another. And of course, he reminded himself, dont forget that
sexy little dance that she always done whenever she won a battle.
He probably said it best when he had drunkenly said it to the
robo-bartender in FH one night.
"I know she'sh like, you know, all Missie-cutie-innocentie-yellowdresswearin-maidenly-type
and she looks like she would'na hurta fly, knowwahimean? But she'sh
also tuff, y'know? She'sh got this thingy...thingy...wassname....aroma?
aura? quantity? QUALITY! Thash it! She'sh got this quality about
her. She looks all shweeet an innocent but she'sh also reel tuff
too, knowwaimean?
She'sh a SeeD. She outranks me, and she'sh a big-time tuff soldier,
but she looksh sso innocent and virginal....did i say virgin?
Yeah, im sure i did. Yeah, i did. Know sumtin? I betcha Sefie
IS a virgin."
The entire converstion was entirely lost and completely wasted
on the robo-bartender. It was purely constructed to dispense drinks.
The art of drunken conversation was not on its itenery. All it
could do was simply pour the guy in hat yet another drink and
move on down the bar to where two other very un-sober individuals
were busy trying to get to grips with a great difference of philosophical
opinion. One claiming that your house is what you live in, but
your home is where you live. The other feverently believed that
your home is what you live in, but your house is where you live.
Later on the philosophy would change to "To pee or not to
pee, that is the question". But by that time, Irvine had
long gone home.
"Anyway," began Selphie, hugging him. "I think
that you look so cute in a uniform."
"If you say so, Sefie." he replied, looking at their
reflection in the mirror. They really were
a cute couple. Ok, so they may not have had the epic love story
that was Squall and Rinoa. This was more boy-meets-girl, not boy-crosses-Time-Compression-and-saves-the-universe-for-girl.
Before, it had just been a normal teenage relationship. Zell had
put in his mouth when he told Rinoa "I give 'em a month.
Two at tops."
But now it was love. It had all been that whole incident with
Gehenna and Trate. Selphie had nearly been taken from him forever.
He never wanted to lose her again. He had realised how Squall
must have felt in those horrible moments when Rinoa had drifted
out into deep space.
Now Selphie was alive and well, and the infamous serial-dater
of Galbadia Garden had found true love. As for Selphie, her life
had become a walking cliche`. Flowers smelled nicer, birds sang
sweeter, love songs were understood with more clarity now. She'd
even taken to wearing flowers in her hair. The whole thing was
very, very... Nauseating, as Squall had put it. Selphie could'nt
really be blamed for feeling good. Like everyone else who had
ever had a near-
death-experience, she had developed a newfound respect for life.
Trate had almost put a bloody end to her wonderful smile, but
now she was shining brighter than ever.
They looked at themselves in the mirror. She was wondering if
the female SeeD unifoms skirt had been made this short on purpose
by military officials who would do better to keep their minds
off such matters.
Irvine was'ent allowed to wear his hat with the uniform. Regulations.
The ponytail-bandd had to go too. He was completely unrecognisable
as Irvine Kinneas if you stood behind him. Now his hair looked
dreadfully similar to Laguna's.
"I dont like it." he repeated.
* * * * * *
Zell looked at the empty glass and frowned. "I guess it's
true" he thought. "You'll never find any answers at
the bottom of a glass. Well, unless somebody asks you what the
bottom of an empty glass looks like, obviously"
He looked over at the dancefloor and sighed.
Nida was dancing with Quistis. Quistis was dancing with Nida.
Quistis and Nida were dancing. Together. The two of them were
dancing and they were dancing together. POO! Nida had just walked
over and asked her to dance, _Asked_HER!!. Asked her as if she
was just some normal girl. And she had said "Yes" and
they had got up and they had begun to dance and now they were
dancing and
smiling and laughing and having fun and I'm not and now i'm sad
and my head hurts...
"What the seven hells is wrong with me?!?!" he mentally
shouted to himself. "I can fight
WEAPONS, T-Rexaurs and Sorceresses and then go home and not need
a change of underpants. I'm the guy who stiched the dreaded Sorceress
Ultimecia a headbutt and punched her lights out. I'm able to face
down genocidal Sorceresses and evil GF's from the future, make
a smart-ass comment and knock them into the middle of next tuesday.
But when it comes to asking the beautiful and gorgeous Quistis
Estelle Trepe up to dance, he was a (altogether now) CHICKEN-WUSS!!!
"Hi, Zell." said Squall, sitting down and tearing Zell
away from his self-analysis.
"...Hey, Squall." the SeeD helloed, barely audible.
"Huh?" said Squall. "Thats it? Just `Hey`?? Whatever
happened to `S'UP SQUALL??!!!!`. You've definately been hanging
around me too much."
Zell looked at him. "Whats with you? You're not usually so
talkative yourself."
"I'm in a good mood for once." explained Squall. "Enjoy
it while it lasts."
"Squall..." Zell began. "Have you ever liked a
girl but never had the courage to ask her out?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, i've you ever been really attracted to a girl and
wanted to ask her out but just could not simply do it?"
Squall developed the look he always had when thinking hard. He
studied the question and replied with a great big fat;
"No." he answred.
"Huh?!??!"
"You heard me."
"What never?"
"No, Never."
"What NEVER??"
"Hardly Ever."
"Then i guess i came to the wrong guy for advice."
"Hey!" exclaimed Squall, remembering. "You know
who you should talk to?"
"Who?"
"Nida. He'll give you some real good advice on how to ask
girls to dance. He knows what-" Squall stopped when he realised
Zell was scowling. "Okay, bad advice on my part. But it's
your own fault. Look who you asked for advice on girls. Maybe
you should talk to Irvine."
"No way!"
"Why not?"
"Because Irvine talks to Selphie and Selphie talks to Rinoa
and Rinoa talks to Quistis and i can never let her know about
this!"
"Oooooh." said Squall, grinning as he began to realise
a few things about his war buddy. "So it's Quistis you're
in love with?"
"Tell anyone and you're a dead man." Zell threatened.
Irvine sat down and greeted them. "Hi dudes, whats up?"
"Zell here's in love with Quistis." Squall told him
with absolutely no tact whatsoever.
"You're kidding!" Irvine laughed.
"You're dead." Zell growled.
"Relax, Zell." calmed Irvine. "I already knew.
We both did. We were just winding you up,
thats all."
Zell sat wide-eyed. "You know?!?! Who else knows?"
"Ummm," said Irvine, thinking. "Me, Squall you
know, Sefie, Rinoa, Edea and i think Xu knows."
Zell slumped forward and began to softly thump his head on the
table.
"Hi." he said, sitting up. "My name is Zell `Read-Me-Like-A-Book`
Dincht."
Irvine and Squall exchanged rolled eyes. It was clear Zell had
woman problems.
And look who he was turning to for help...
"Come on, guys" he pleaded. "You two have girlfriends.
Help me."
* * * * *
"Help you?" repeated Rinoa.
"Why?" asked Selphie.
"Because-" began Quistis. "It's Nida. He's boring
and he wont leave me alone. I think i finally figured out his
limit break. He must bore his victims to death."
"Just to play devils advocate." said Rinoa. "But
Nida cant really be all that bad. You could do a lot worse."
Her mind cast back to Zone and his nudie magazines. "A LOT
worse." she echoed.
They were in the womens toilets, the three friends all having
taken a trip to the bathroom collectively, in that uniquely female
way. This usually seemed to involve absolutely no biological funtions
at all, and was merely an opportunity to "re-load".
The contents of Selphie's bag had seen to it that they had plenty
of "ammunition". It seemed that she had stuck to the
SeeD regulation to "never enter into a situation unarmed"
a little too seriously. A bit of lipstick here, a varnished fingernail
there, and they were ready to re-join the party.
Or rather, they would have been, were it not for Quistis pleading
them to get rid of Nida
somehow. He was waiting by the doors for her.
"Why did you dance with him in the first place?" inquired
Selphie
"Because i was trying to make Z-.....somebody else jealous
so they'd get a reaction. But all he did was sit and frown at
his drink. Even when i laughed with Nida, all Z-...That guy did
was still look bored."
She sighed. "Maybe he just does'nt like me?"
Selphie and Rinoa already knew perfectly well who "he"
was. But that did'nt stop them asking;
"He who?"
Quistis opened her mouth, about to say his name. Then paused,
and her finger came up, wagging.
"Nice try." she said, and she was grinning. "Instructor
Trepe lets on about the guy she likes then next thing you know
the entire Garden has put preassure on the pair of us. I dont
think so, Selph. Look, just come on, help me get rid of Nida.
Please???"
Rinoa sighed. "Okay, okay." and she began to walk out
the door and up to Nida.
"I probably should'nt be doing this" she thought. "It's
probably against the rules for
Sorceresses, but..."
"Hi, Nida." she greeted.
"Sorceress Rinoa." he replied, saluting.
"Are you enjoying yourself?"
"Yes, very much so, especially with Quistis."
"Are you sure, Nida? You look a little tired."
"Ummm, i'm not, Sorceress Rinoa. It's only 2100 hours."
"Look at me." she ordered. "You're feeling incredibly
tired. Come to think of it, you have'nt felt this tired in your
entire life."
She grinned with success when she saw Nida begin to yawn loudly.
"You're probably gonna want to go back to the dorms and sleep
now, huh?"
"..uh-huh.." he agreed, dozily.
"I'll tell Quistis you had to leave. Now you go off to your
dorm and sleep for a day. No, wait, two days."
Nida mumbled something and began the long stagger back to his
bed.
"Coast is clear." stated Rinoa as Quistis and Selphie
emerged.
"Great!" said Selphie, enthusiastically. "Now where
do you think the boys are? We gotta go and find them and then..."
"And then?"
"And the we PAAAHHH-TAAAAYY!!!!!"
"Actually, not quite" announced Quistis, stealing Selphie's
thunder.
"Huh?"
"Remember, this is'ent just the Garden Festival. This is
also graduation night. The new SeeDs have to make a graduation
speech to all the classes."
Selphie's mouth gaped in horror. "Let me get this right."
she said. "Irvine, Our Irvine, has to make a speech?!!?"
"Is that bad?" asked Rinoa.
"Hello!!" cried Selphie "We're talkin' IRVINE KINNEAS
here! My boyfriend? The guy has huge problems with preassure!
We'll be lucky if he does'nt have a godsdamned fit on stage!!"
"The graduation is in less than half an hour." said
Quistis.
"Well, we have to find the guys." replied Rinoa.
"Better see if we can find Cid or Edea too." said Selphie.
"I have'nt seen them all night."
"Right, lets do it." stated Quistis. "Rinoa, you
go that way and see if you can find the guys. Selphie, you go
that way. I'll go this way and see if i can find Cid or Matron."
* * * * * *
Rinoa found Squall on the 2F balcony. He was just lying back and
staring up at the sky with a curious smile upon his face. "Hi,
Rinoa." he said, before she could say "Hi" herself.
"Knew i'd find you out here." she said. "What are
you doing?"
He looked at her and then back up to the stars. Her gaze followed.
"Did you ever really just spend a night just watching the
stars?" he asked.
"Wish i could say i had." she answered. "But..."
"They're really something." he said. "What do you
believe, Rinoa?"
"The beliefs about stars?"
"Yes."
"Well, there's the story that each one of the lights in the
night sky is actually the spirits
of the ones we loved, watching over us as we sleep."
"Thats a childrens tale."
"Yeah, i know. But it's one my mom told me, and i like it."
She sidled up to him and lay on top of him, in his arms as they
never turned their eyes away from the stars.
"What do you remember of your mom?" he asked her honestly.
"She was...very beautiful...and sad. She loved me very much.
She had this smile she'd always have when she looked at me. She
was happy, but a little sad at the same time. I think i reminded
her of something she lost. Something that was taken from her.
I overheard her saying something to my dad about me once. I dont
remember it all, but something about loving me twice as much as
any mother should love one child, not being able to share her
love with two. I still dont know what she meant by that."
"Maybe she wanted to have a second child but never got to."
"Maybe." agreed Rinoa. She turned her head back to meet
his. "Why do you want to know about my mother?"
"I dont know. Maybe it's because i have no memories of mine.
But i like what you said. Maybe two of those little lights really
are Raine....and Julia."
Their eyes returned to the sky and they smiled.
"Of course," said Rinoa "Zell told me that the
Esthar scientists have proved that stars are really gigantic balls
of gas, burning billions of miles away."
"With Zell," Squall began. "Everything is a bad
case of gas."
They began to laugh, even though it was'ent very nice. But just
the fact that Squall could
laugh and smile and open his heart every now and then was worth
enjoyment.
"You've changed." said Rinoa. "For the better.
Much better. You smile sometimes. You're able to enjoy yourself
with others sometimes too. You're even able to open your heart
every now and then. Is it because of me?"
"Yes." said Squall, looking into her eyes. "You've
helped me to open up more. I've travelled the world, but you've
shown me one i love more. It's my world with you in it."
She turned herself around and hugged him tight.
"Somebody told me once..." Squall said "not to
always be cold and distant. He told me to open my heart once in
a while."
Squall cast his eyes back up to the night sky. Two of those lights
could have been Raine and Julia. But he was sure, no, he knew,
that one of those lights just might be Cloud.
"I love you, Squall." whispered Rinoa.
They silently decided to just stay there. So they'd be a little
late?
Maybe they might end up very late...
* * * * *
Irvine was found in "the secret area". That little place
just beyond the training centre.
Mostly, it was used by couples for making out, also where couples
went whenever one of them uttered those four dreaded words; "We
have to talk."
But Irvine did'nt come here to talk. Not to anyone. Not even to
Selphie. He just sat, propped up against the low wall and enjoyed
the silence.
He'd reached into his pocket and took out The Picture. It was
the only link to his infancy
and the family he'd never had. They'd all been sent to Edea's
orphanage while they were still infants. Irvine, Squall, Zell,
Selphie, Seifer and Quistis. All sent to Edea before any of them
could even talk. Squall's reasons for this were obvious. As for
the others, they were all the sons and daughters of parents who'd
died in the 1st Sorceress War. But Irvine was the only one who
had any link to his birth family. It was in that photograph. Edea
had explained it to him when he was 8 years old. They had all
asked where they came from, and Edea had taken them down to the
beach one night, where they all made a campfire, and she explained
it to all of them, exept Ellone, who was old enough to know that
Laguna had placed her there temporarily.
Edea had just finished explaining to Squall about how she had
been passing through a small town once, where she was asked by
the people to take the baby Squall with her back to Centra.
It turned out the mother had died in childbirth. When she'd asked
about the father, they said that it seemed unlikely he was ever
coming back...
So, young Irvine had asked where he was from. So Edea had related
the story that one day, a female Galbadian soldier arrived at
the orphanage one day. She said she had orders to take the infant
to an orphanage. She just handed Edea the bundle and left. Edea
took the child into the house where the other babies were and
unwrapped the bundle. The baby was a male. Wrapped up with him
was a recent photograph. It was of two babies. One was the male
in front of her. On the back was scribbled a sentence. "Irvine
and...." the other name was smudged from wetness by the rain.
That was the picture Irvine was holding now. Crumpled by time,
and a little wrinkled and worn. But there was no denying it. One
was him and the other was his sister.
He looked up at the sky. "Who are you?" he whispered.
"Where are you?"
Selphie appeared at the entrance. "I'm right here."
She clambored over and hunkered down in front of him. "What
are you doing?"
"Just thinking." he said, a strange smile on his face.
"I let my mind wander and it did'nt
come back."
Selphie began to titter at this little joke. Irvine could always
make her laugh at any time.
"You know you have to give a speech tonight?"
"Why i'm here." he said. "I just wanted to clear
my head on a few issues."
"Like what?"
"Just some stuff. Life and all that."
"Your sister?"
"That too. She used to be what kept me going."
"Used to? Why? What keeps you going now?"
His head turned up to face hers and he looked right into her emerald-green
eyes. "You do."
She hugged him.
"Remember after Gehenna brought me back to life?" she
said.
"Vividly. I was sure i lost you forever."
"And after i came back, my mind shut down and i was asleep
for days."
"Yeah."
"Thing is, i remember everything you told me while i was
asleep."
"The doctors said you might."
"I remember you saying you were in love with me. And then
you sang to me."
Irvine began to blush. So much for clearing his head.
Selphie leaned over and kissed him, long and hard.
When it was over, the two were practically breathless.
"What was that for?" asked Irvine, almost gasping.
"You deserved it." she replied, grinning.
She took his hand in hers and pulled him up.
"Lets go make you a SeeD." she said.
And they went.
* * * * * *
Zell and Quistis practially collided with each other in the hallway,
outside Cids office.
"Quisty." he said, getting up. "I've been looking
all over for you."
He lifted her back onto her feet. "Really?" she said.
"Why?"
"Well," he began, looking like someone who was trying
to remember a speech. "I was jus wondering if you...that
is, would you...or have you, uh-um-oh man...."
Quistis's heart began to do hula-hoops. Was this really it? Was
he going to ask her?
"I was wondering if you'd seen Cid or Matron." he eventually
blurted out, shattering his hope as well as hers.
Oh well.
"Well, i was just going to check Cid's office." Quistis
said, dejectedly. She rattled the handle.
"Huh." she observed. "It's locked."
"Want me to BREAK-It-DOWN!!?!?!?!" Zell roared.
"Uh, no, dummy. It's a lot easier when you do this."
she said, knocking on the door.
"Uh....just a minute!" came Edea's voice from inside.
"Knew it." said Quistis. "They had to be here."
Minutes later, the lock turned and a very flustered Cid and Edea
emerged. Quistis would later notice that Edea seemed to be in
some serious need of a hairbrush.
"Sir." said Quistis, saluting. "And Matron. It's
time for the graduation ceremony."
"Oh, right, yes." said Cid. "Lead on, Instructor."
And the four of them walked on over quietly to the ballroom.
"Um, Headmaster." coughed Zell. "Hoist the flag."
Cid was confused for a moment, unfamiliar with Zells slang and
terminology. "Oh!" he said, realising it, then promptly
zipped his fly.
* * * * * *
"And so," concluded Cid, standing on the podium. "As
i have said before, SeeD are the soldiers of the future. To these
new soldiers here today, we give them the future."
And the audience applauded as the new Seeds were called up one
by one and made to give a their speech. Cid recited the names
continually, until only Irvine was left, staring at Selphie in
the crowd, nervously.
"Irvine Nathaniel Kinneas!" was the final name Cid called,
as the young soldier took the long walk up to the podium, shook
hands with Cid, and stared nervously into the crowd.
He began to mumble nervously, eventually becoming audible.
"When i first came here, my Garden and this Garden were at
war. When it came down to it, i chose to side with this Garden.
I still think about how different my life would be today if i
did'nt choose to stay here. But to this day, i don't regret my
choice. I've been exiled from Galbadia for life. But all i could
ever want in life, i found none of it in Galbadia..."
He looked directly at Selphie.
"...i found it here. And right here, is where i'm going to
stay."
The crowd cheered and hollered as the new SeeDs took their ranks.
Selphie ran up from the crowd and jumped into Irvine's arms, who
practically lifted her off her feet.
And so the celebrations continued long into the night, not stopping
until well after 0300 hours.
Quistis had accepted Zells offer to walk her back to her dorms.
"This was a really wonderful night, was'nt it?" she
said.
"Totally." agreed Zell.
"Especially Irvine and Selphie. They're so cute together,
dont you think?"
Zell nodded.
"Sometimes i wish i could find someone i could be as close
to as Selphie and Irvine are."
Zell did'nt know a lot about girls, but even he could take a hint.
Even though he did'nt say a thing until they got to Quistis's
quarters.
"Well," she said. "This is it."
"Yup."
He was almost about to go completely chicken-wuss and just not
say it, when something possessed him to
just come on out and say it. To hell with it.
"You, know, Quisty, i was wondering, if it's alright by you...do
you think i
could ask you out sometime? Thatis, if its okay with you?"
Quistis smiled and opened the door. Before entering, she turned
to face him.
"I'd like that." she said, sweetly.
Zell was practically floating on Cloud #9. "Well," said
he. "I may just do that."
"Bye Zell."
"Night, Quisty."
She closed the door and sagged her back up to it. "Night,
Zelly-baby." she whispered to herself, smiling.
All was quiet and peaceful in Garden that night.
Wheter you were a newly graduated SeeD and Trabian warrior who
had just found true love...
Wheter you were a young guy and girl confused over your feelings
for each other...
Wheter you were a SeeD and a Sorceress who spent the night looking
up at romantic stars...
....You could be sure of one thing.
Here and now, this was your time. For life, for live, for future.
If you're young and you know what love is,
Then these truely are the days of your lives....
One thing you could be sure of, the stars were definately watching
down on them tonight...
"Turn, Turn, Turn." by The Byrds.
To Everything ,Turn, Turn, Turn
There is a season ,Turn, Turn, Turn
And a time for every purpose, under Heaven
A time to be born, a time to die
A time to plant, a time to reap
A time to kill, a time to heal
A time to laugh, a time to weep
To Everything ,Turn, Turn, Turn
There is a season, Turn, Turn, Turn
And a time for every purpose, under Heaven
A time to build up,a time to break down
A time to dance, a time to mourn
A time to cast away stones, a time to gather stones together
To Everything, Turn, Turn, Turn
There is a season, Turn, Turn, Turn
And a time for every purpose, under Heaven
A time of love, a time of hate
A time of war, a time of peace
A time you may embrace, a time to refrain from embracing
To Everything, Turn, Turn, Turn
There is a season, Turn, Turn, Turn
And a time for every purpose, under Heaven
A time to gain, a time to lose
A time to rend, a time to sew
A time to love, a time to hate
A time for peace, I swear it's not too late
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