FIC: Noblesse Oblige ~ FFVIII ~ Seifer/Squall ~ Chapter Seven

[batsutousai]

Title: Noblesse Oblige
Fandom: Final Fantasy VIII
Author: Batsutousai/batsutousai
Beta: Shara Lunison/tsuki_no_suzu & Shivani/grazhir
Chapters: 7 of 19
Rating: M
Pairings: Seifer/Squall, Irvine/Selphie, Zell/Xu, Quistis/OMC, Fujin/Raijin
Warnings: AU, major canon-buggery, OoC Squall, OC drug use
Summary: No one thought to warn Squall against touching his younger self, and he leaves a part of himself behind when he returns to Time Compression.

A/N: This chapter is unusually long and covers all of the mission mentioned at the end of last chapter.

There are some original characters in this chapter who partake in recreational drug use. It's near the end of the chapter, so if that bothers you, skip the scene. (I'll be nice and mark it. For once.)
I think it's more humorous than disturbing, and it's not an addictive drug, but to each their own.

-0-0-0-
Lie Under the Night
-0-0-0-

"Hey, genius–"

"Please stop referring to me as that," Squall muttered as he poked his head out of the back of the boat. "I'm not a genius."

Seifer rolled his eyes, used to Squall's refusal. "Do you know where the orphanage was down here? I know there was a lighthouse, but I don't know where, exactly, on the continent–"

Squall appeared at his shoulder and pointed at the spot on the map. "The Cape of Good Hope."

"Huh. Why don't we make a stop–?"

"It's out of the way and there are ten scientists that need us to find them," Squall interrupted before Seifer could talk him into visiting their childhood home. He wanted to go, too, but they had a duty...

"Maybe they crossed to that side and they're hiding out in the building," Seifer suggested. "It would be the safest place to wait for rescue, not to mention the most comfortable. We could save ourselves months of looking."

Squall sighed. "I hate you," he informed the blond before returning to the small cot they'd set up under the awning on deck. There was space under the deck for the entire scientist team and themselves, but rather than traverse the underbelly of the sturdy ship when they were better off staying in shouting range, they'd set up a small one-person room that they rested in when it wasn't their turn at the controls.

Seifer took Squall's irritated comment as his agreement, so turned them towards the Cape, completely bypassing the impact crater. It would take them another few days to reach the orphanage, having to go around the crater, but it was worth it.

-0-

"I knew this would be a wasted trip," Squall said as they finished checking the last bedroom for any signs of inhabitants.

"Not a complete waste. Look, I think I found one of Chicken-Head's cars." Seifer held up a bright blue vehicle that was rusting on the back bumper.

"That one belonged to Lonny," Squall corrected before stepping past Seifer to head back to the boat.

Seifer tossed the car over his shoulder and grabbed for Squall's arm. "Hey! How do you remember stuff like that, anyway?"

Squall sighed and gave the blond a tired look. "I told Shiva not to take any of my memories of this place."

"Then what did she take?" Seifer demanded. " 'Cause I'm here to tell you, there wasn't a hell of a lot else, back then. I mean, the more I want to forget, the more I can remember about this place, but those memories are really fuzzy."

"It doesn't matter," Squall insisted, pulling away.

"It does," Seifer insisted, getting a better grip on Squall's arm and refusing to let go. "Come on, Squally. What have you been hiding all these years?"

"Nothing," Squall insisted.

"It's something," Seifer insisted right back. "You remember things with the clarity of someone who never had a GF in your head, you could read and write as well as Matron by the age of five, everything they ever threw at us at Garden you mastered without any trouble... You insist you're not a genius, but you clearly are... And then there's that journal of yours!" He shook Squall's arm. "Damnit, Squall! Stop fucking hiding things from me!"

Squall stared at Seifer in surprise for a few minutes before reaching up to try and pry Seifer's hand off his arm, only for the grip to tighten. "This has really been bothering you," he murmured, letting the hand on his arm be.

Seifer took a deep breath, almost as surprised by his outburst as Squall had been. "You're my best friend," he said, looking away, "sometimes... my only friend, I think."

"You'd have friends without me."

"No." Seifer snorted. "People can't stand me. They only put up with me because of you."

Remembering the Seifer in his memories, Squall thought he might have something there. But still... "Rai and Fuu aren't sticking around because of me; they like you for you."

"You don't know that."

Squall opened his mouth to insist that, yes, he knew that Fujin and Raijin would be there without Squall, but then he realised that would admit to his memories. 'I can't burden Seifer with this,' he reminded himself, mouth snapping shut. 'This is my cross to bear, and sharing it...'

What was so wrong with sharing memories?

Seifer let go and started past Squall, seeing the way the other boy had opened his mouth, then stopped himself. "Forget it," he hissed, furious with himself for being so pathetic when Squall was never going to tell him anything.

"I...told you about the Ghost," Squall started, swallowing against a knot in his throat, uncertain if it came from watching Seifer turn away from him in anger or from sharing his secret.

Seifer froze. 'The ghost? ...The one with the scar, I remember.'

Squall looked past Seifer towards the outside of the orphanage, where he'd met his future self. "A few days after that, I started... I don't know. I knew things. Like, you dared me to eat off the berry vine out back and I knew how to tell which ones were okay to eat. I could read books like I'd been doing it all my life, and I understood what all the words meant.

"And then..." Squall leaned back against the wall while Seifer turned to look at him, eyes wide, but not disbelieving. "Then the memories started coming. I remembered years of studying at Garden and fighting a war against a Sorceress from the future, who was possessing Sorceresses of the present to do her bidding. I remembered... almost dying, and getting lost in the darkness of time. I remembered seeing myself, as a child, running off to find Sis for the umpteenth time, as if that time would be different than all the others.

"The Ghost... he was me, see. And his scar–" Squall reached up to trace the line between his eyes, "–was given to him by Seifer – by you – the day before his SeeD exam. And he gave that Seifer a mirror scar. That Squall, that me, would always trace his scar when something irritated him or he was tired, and I sort of picked up the habit. And then you gave me my scar, and it... I like having it. I'm sorry that I hurt you, but–"

Seifer took two quick steps forward and pulled Squall into a hug, mind reeling with everything his friend had said and just needing a moment of silence to sort out his thoughts. He was surprised to find Squall slumping against him, pressing his face against Seifer's shoulder. 'Squall,' he thought, tightening his arms around the other boy, 'how long have you been keeping this to yourself? How long have you been hiding all these secrets from everyone and keeping on like they're not wearing on you? How long have you been telling yourself you have to bear this on your own?'

"Please, please, please...don't leave me," Squall whispered.

"I won't," Seifer promised. "I'm not leaving you, you idiot. Not now, not ever."

Squall swallowed and took a moment to gather himself before pulling back. "We should be looking for those scientists," he said, eyes flickering up towards Seifer's face and finding only a thoughtful expression there. 'He believes me? He doesn't think I'm crazy? He didn't...he said he wouldn't leave.'

"Yeah, we should," Seifer agreed and they turned together to head back to the boat. Just outside the main door of the orphanage, Seifer said, "Thanks. For telling me."

Squall nodded and they continued on in silence, the younger boy taking the boat controls and giving Seifer the chance to consider what he'd learned.

-0-

"Hey, Squally, we're here," Seifer said, touching the younger boy's shoulder.

Squall's eyes snapped opened and he looked for a moment like he was seconds from gutting Seifer, but then he relaxed and rubbed a hand over his eyes. "Inside the crater, or out?" he asked.

"Outside. Near the Ruins, since you marked them on the map. You okay?"

Squall shrugged as he sat up. "It's nothing."

Seifer considered that for a moment, then said, "Squall, please don't lie to me."

The brunet froze, in the act of strapping Revolver to his belt. "I'm not..." He determinedly continued attaching his favoured weapon. "It was just a dream, from the Ghost. I get them pretty often."

"What about?" Seifer wondered. "Garden?"

Squall sighed and grabbed some travel rations for himself, which he dropped in the small pouch he kept potions and the such in. "The Ghost and the other Seifer were... rivals, really. Enemies, during the war. They sparred a lot. It was just a dream of one of those many matches." He looked up at the other boy. "Why?"

"I'm curious," Seifer admitted. "You have these memories of another life and that's kinda cool. It's like... a shot of our future, what it could be."

"Could have been," Squall corrected, motioning for Seifer to precede him out. "You never made SeeD in that world."

Seifer winced. "No wonder you weren't surprised when I screwed it up," he muttered.

Squall snorted. "I don't need memories of another you to know you have a problem with authority, Seifer."

Seifer conceded that point and they worked in silence to get the boat moored. Once the boat was secured, they started off in the general direction of the Centra Ruins, interested in both seeing if there were any signs of the scientist team and collecting the GFs Squall had said were there.

After a good thirty minutes of walking and occasionally slaughtering a monster or two, Squall asked, "Do you want to become a Sorceress Knight?"

Seifer looked up in surprise. "Huh? Yeah, sure. I mean, I suppose being SeeD is sort of the opposite, since they were created to stop Sorceresses, right?"

Squall nodded. "Yes. To stop Ultimecia, specifically, but stopping any Sorceress gone mad with power is important. We don't need another Adel on our hands."

"Ultimecia?" Seifer repeated, frowning both at the unfamiliar name and the way it caused a chill to go down his spine.

"The Sorceress from the future," Squall explained. "She possessed – will possess – Matron."

"Why Matron?" Seifer demanded, frowning.

"She's a Sorceress. And she received Ultimecia's powers upon her death."

Seifer mouthed that sentence a couple times before shaking his head. "There is a very good chance we're going to be here for months; start at the beginning."

"The beginning?" Squall murmured, watching the horizon for danger. "I don't remember some parts – Shiva took them from me at my request – but I'll tell you what I remember."

"I can accept that."

-0-

Squall had, indeed, started at the very beginning, going from his earliest memories from the other Squall – the 'Ghost', he'd insisted on calling him – and being as clear about things as he could. It took him about two weeks to get through everything, what with fighting monsters – especially Odin and the Tonberries – and sleeping cutting into the story time. Seifer was in turns amused at the stories of their time together in Garden and sad for the the other Squall and Seifer who hadn't enjoyed the friendship he had with his Squall.

He thought that 'the Ghost' sounded pretty lonely, and when he mentioned that to Squall, the younger boy said, "He was. The really sad thing is, though... He didn't think he was lonely. He thought he was just fine like that, without anyone getting close to him."

The other Seifer's fall from grace was a rather pathetic tale, Seifer thought. Failing at the exam three times, then running into the arms of the first person willing to accept him was just sad. Even if that person wore Matron's face. Agreeing to bomb the only real home he'd ever had didn't really sound like him, no matter how ticked off at Cid he was, but Squall had no insight into his possible motives, especially since a lot of that time period was hazy from Shiva's memory-thieving.

"I know I asked her to take those memories for a reason," Squall said with a helpless shrug, "and I know they were bad – I'm pretty sure they gave me nightmares – but I don't know what happened during them."

"If it was important, she'd let you have the memory back, though, right?" Seifer asked.

"Yeah. And I wrote everything down in my journal, anyway."

"Which is why you never let anyone near the thing." Seifer rolled his eyes. "So, since you're telling me everything, can I read it now?"

"No." Squall shot him a dark look.

Seifer sighed, resigned to either stealing the damn thing and chancing disembowelment, or making do with whatever Squall told him. "So, racing against missiles? Tell me they missed."

The story of Garden being able to move was too awesome for words, finding out that Squall had been made SeeD Commander explained a lot of Cid's actions towards the youngest SeeD over the years, and the concert Selphie put together was so her, it was hysterical. Hearing about the ruins of Trabia Garden made Seifer's chest tight, especially since he'd quite liked the small Garden, even if it was too pastel for his tastes. Equally troubling was Squall's descriptions of Irvine finally reminding everyone of their shared history.

"That's why you wanted photos," Seifer realised. "You knew we were all going to forget because of the GFs and Irvy would be the only one who remembered. And maybe you, considering your journal."

Squall nodded. "Zell told me, when I asked him about it at one point, that he liked to stare at his photo at night, before bed, so he would be able to recognise all of us on sight and never miss a moment. Quis told me that photo was her lifeline at her new house; sort of a promise that we were all still out there, so she had something to keep striving towards. I know I took comfort in my copy."

"Me too," Seifer admitted. "I know I joked back then about losing it, but after Zell was really gone, that picture became kind of important. And then Quis and Selph and Irvy all left and that was the only thing I had left of them." He sighed and stared up at the stars above their camp for the night for a long moment before saying, "You know, when we get back, we should see about taking another photo of all of us. With Fuu and Rai and Xu, too."

"Yeah, we should," Squall agreed with a faint smile.

Squall's description of the battle between Galbadia Garden and Balamb Garden was so emotionless and factual that Seifer wondered if he wasn't hiding something about it. Then he stumbled through the mention of what had happened to the non-Garden girl they'd picked up, and Seifer thought he might understand what his friend's problem was.

"The Ghost, he really liked this girl, Rinoa, didn't he?"

Squall shrugged, clearly uncomfortable. "I don't know. I'm not even sure he knew. He was still trying to learn to open up to people again and then she went into a coma. His emotions during that time are a complete jumble of nonsense that I can't even begin to untangle, and I'd like to think I'm at least a little less emotionally stunted than he was."

Seifer laughed. "You have your moments," he commented, "but, yeah, I think you're probably better than him. You tend to say more than 'whatever', at least."

"Whatever," Squall replied, rolling his eyes.

Seifer caught sight of the glint of humour in the too-blue eyes and chuckled. "So, the Ghost came to the conclusion that he really loved this chick for some reason or another and moped around for a few days while he should have been helping sort the Gardens out."

Squall snorted. "Basically. By the time he got his head out of his ass, Galbadia Garden had been sorted and they were en route to FH, since Matron wanted to head for Esthar. Uhm, somewhere in there they caught up with the White SeeD and found out Sis had jumped to an Esthar ship, and he thought she would be able to help him, so..."

"Off to Esthar he went?"

"With Rinoa on his back."

"Oh, sweet Hyne."

Squall snorted. When he'd first started sorting through the memories as a kid, he'd had a vague notion that the Ghost's actions had been romantic and knightly, but seven years and a dose of reality gave him a similar opinion to Seifer.

Descriptions of Esthar made Seifer grin and vaguely consider looking into demanding a long holiday for a trip. The trip into space sounded cool, Adel being alive not so cool, and the whole death defying rescue of Rinoa made Seifer laugh, especially when Squall wryly described the cuddling in the cockpit.

"The poor Ghost. I get the sense Miss Rinoa was well aware of what she wanted and perfectly willing to use his emotions against him to get it," Seifer commented once he'd stopped laughing.

"It's certainly possible," Squall agreed drily, slowing the boat a bit as they came to a tricky patch. They'd ended up deciding to take the boat through the inside of the crater and look for the scientists' boat to narrow down the area they'd likely be in, rather than hiking the crater on foot. It was a little faster, but parts of the crater weren't particularly deep, so navigating it was proving a bit tricky.

Squall made Seifer laugh even harder when he described, in a drily amused tone, the series of events surrounding Rinoa's failed sealing and how they basically stole the impressive Estharian ship the Ghost and Rinoa had picked up in space. When Squall started describing the meeting with the Estharian President, Seifer asked, "Laguna Loire? Why does that name sound important?"

"He's the one Sis kept sending us visions of," Squall replied with a shrug. After a brief moment, he added, "And, according to the people of Winhill, he's my father."

Seifer's eyes lit at the reminder of a brief conversation they'd had during one of the few times they'd both been in Garden last year. Seifer had been forced to drag practically every word out of Squall's mouth – which was more than any of their other friends had managed, according to Raijin – but he learned the basics of Squall's tragic family story, including that he and Big Sis Elle were actually adopted siblings and distant cousins, his mother had died a few months after childbirth from an illness that she'd caught while pregnant, and Squall's father had vanished at one point and never returned.

"Don't you want to get to know him, then?" Seifer asked cautiously.

Squall shrugged. "I don't need a father, especially one who might very well try to dictate my actions because I'm only twelve."

Seifer sighed. "I suppose. Still... You've got a real dad out there, Squally; that's more than the rest of us can say."

"I know." Squall leaned a little further over the edge of the boat, watching the bottom of the crater for any areas too high for them to chance. "And maybe I'll try and contact him in the future, but not right now."

Seifer decided that was the best he was going to get out of his friend. "So, how did Laguna's insane plan pan out?"

Squall went on to describe their trip through the Lunatic Pandora, including the other Seifer's defeat of Odin – which made Seifer grin quite smugly – and their battle with Adel. Descriptions of Time Compression were confusing, at best, and while Squall was easily able to describe the body-strewn beach outside the orphanage and the outside of Ultimecia's castle, he had only hazy memories of the inside, and no memories at all of their battle with the uber bitch herself.

"I know they reached and fought her," Squall added quietly. "And I know they beat her, because I remember Matron receiving her powers when we were kids, but something must have happened during that battle that didn't sit well with me and Shiva took it. I have vague memories of an all-encompassing darkness and this crushing sense of being completely alone, then seeing myself at four running by, looking for Sis again. I sort of know what Ultimecia looks like, but only after we defeated her."

"If you passed her on the street, you'd know her, though, right?" Seifer asked.

Squall grimaced. "Yeah. If not by her appearance, by her aura; that was one thing that followed her from body to body. The Ghost didn't notice it around Rinoa until she was properly possessed and moving around, though, and he didn't think to associate it with Matron's possession until after Rinoa was freed again. At any rate, yes, I will know her if I see her again, even if she's in a stolen body."

Seifer nodded, then narrowed his eyes as he spotted what looked suspiciously like a boat. "Squall."

The brunet looked up from the controls of their craft and followed Seifer's line of sight to the thing that had caught his attention. "Huh."

"Huh?" Seifer looked back at his friend with a strange look. "What is 'huh'?"

Squall snorted. "That's the White SeeD ship. I told you they like to dock in Centra sometimes."

"So Matron and Sis Elle are on there?"

"Probably." Squall shot the blond a sharp look. "Scientists, Seifer."

"Another set of eyes, Squally," Seifer returned.

"They don't react well to strangers," Squall pointed out, but he was already turning them towards the long white ship.

"We're just kids; why would they fear us?" Seifer asked in his most innocent voice.

"Hm." Squall switched gears to slow down a notch as the other ship turned a bit, a line of SeeDs dressed in white and carrying weapons in their hands coming into view along the railing. "I'd say they're telling us to back off."

"They know Cid, right?" Seifer asked, tensing as he eyed the line of potential enemies.

"He's as much their caretaker and leader as he is ours," Squall agreed.

Seifer nodded and cupped his hands around his mouth to shout, "Ahoy, White SeeDs! We bring tidings from Cid Kramer!"

"No, we don't," Squall muttered.

"Shut up."

A woman slipped between a couple of SeeDs, much to their displeasure – there were some frantic hand motions as they tried to get her to step back. Both boys recognised Matron and Seifer immediately started waving, a grin blooming across his face. The woman turned to say something to the line of SeeDs and they all slowly slipped their weapons away, though they remained tense.

Once the boats were in range to allow for boarding, Matron said, "Seifer, Squall, it's good to see you again," from her position at the railing of the larger ship.

"It's good to see you too, Matron," Seifer agreed as Squall brought their little craft to a complete stop.

Matron smiled, though there was concern in her eyes. "What are you two boys doing down here? You didn't run away, did you?"

"We're on a SeeD mission to find a team of scientists that went missing a little over a month ago," Squall said as he joined Seifer at their own railing.

"You're too young to be going on SeeD missions, kids," one of the White SeeDs said with a patronising smile.

Seifer snarled and reached for where Pistol was slung across his back. "Why don't you say that to my blade, you pomp–"

"Children, behave," Matron ordered and both subsided, though they continued to shoot glares at each other when Matron wasn't looking. She looked down at Seifer and Squall with a touch of sadness in her eyes, taking in the hard lines to their faces under their tans and the darkness in their eyes. "I thought Cid and I agreed that the starting age for SeeDs would be fifteen."

"Garden was a bit strapped for gil, so Cid started an accelerated programme to graduate those of us who were excelling in the basic courses," Squall explained evenly. "Seifer and I were both advanced enough to get into the programme, in spite of our age. We've been SeeDs for two years now." When Matron looked all the more sad, he hurried to say, "It's not so bad, really. Cid gives us the easier assignments." Which was a blatant lie, but anything to ease Matron's pain.

"I'd just rather you boys were in classes with your friends, not out being paid to handle other people's business," Matron said, still sad.

"Matron?" a young woman's voice said from just out of sight and Squall stiffened in recognition.

Matron smiled and motioned the young woman forward. "We have some guests you might like to see, Elle."

"Sis?" Seifer breathed as Ellone stepped up to the edge of the railing.

Ellone's eyes widened, then her face broke out into a smile. "Squall! Seifer!" She looked hopefully at Matron. "Can I go down?"

"Definitely not," the SeeD who had mocked the boys said, scowling.

"We'll come up there," Squall said before Ellone could just jump down. It wouldn't be the first time she jumped ships against the orders of someone else.

"I'll go find the ladder..." one of the younger White SeeDs said, turning away from the railing.

"Don't bother," Seifer called, balancing on the railing of their boat and jumping to catch the edge of the White SeeDs' ship. Squall hopped up onto the railing himself and caught the hand Seifer was holding down to him, using it to lever himself up high enough to grab the edge of the large ship himself. Then they both vaulted over the edge of the railing, landing easily on the deck.

Everyone just sort of stared for a moment before Ellone shouted, "Cool!" and dove forward to hug them both.

"I want to learn how to do that," one of the White SeeDs muttered, then grunted as someone else elbowed him.

Ellone pulled back with a wide smile. "It's good to see you two again!" Her smile faltered a bit and she reached up to touch the scars on both boys' faces. "Where are these from?"

"Training accident," the two chorused in the same dry tone they always used.

"It was a while ago," Seifer added with a smile. Then his eyes took on a glint that sent warning bells ringing in Squall's mind and he commented, "I guess this means Irvy was right about the pirate theory."

Matron laughed. "After a fashion," she agreed. "How about we all go down and enjoy some lunch?"

Seifer's eyes lit. "Lunch? As in real food? As in, not Ration Packs One and Three?"

"They're not that bad," Squall insisted.

"You're a freak," Seifer informed him.

"Seifer, don't call Squall a freak," Matron ordered.

"Yes, real food," Ellone interrupted, smiling between the two boys.

Seifer dropped an arm around Ellone's shoulders. "Lead the way, oh favourite older sister of mine."

Ellone giggled and obediently directed Seifer towards the stairs down into the main part of the ship, the White SeeDs around them slowly heading in the same direction.

Squall fell in next to Matron as she followed Ellone and Seifer, saying, "I'm glad to see you well, Matron."

Matron smiled and ran a light hand through Squall's mess of hair. "As I am to see you doing well, Squall. Even if you are a SeeD before your time."

"It's really not that bad," Squall promised. "Seifer and I go out on missions together every once in a while, and when we're apart, we're with some other SeeDs who are friends. And Quis, Zell, Selph, and some of our other friends are all back at Balamb Garden for when we're home." He shrugged. "And for our first mission, we stayed with the Gustafsons in Deling and they've sort of adopted us."

Matron's smile brightened at that. "Do you like Chris and Greg?"

Squall grimaced faintly. "Christal's a bit overbearing, sometimes, but they're nice enough. We trade letters with them, and we'll stop by when we're in Deling, even if we're just changing trains. Seifer usually ends up partnered with October, whose parents also live in Deling, so it always turns into a party and overnight sleepover, from what October tells me. Though, considering how Seifer always gets sick on trains, I suppose it's as much to make the adults happy as it is to put off the inevitable."

Matron laughed at that. "At least you're getting to see the world," she decided. "And you're having fun while doing so, from the sounds of it."

Squall nodded. "Yeah. One of my missions landed me in Winhill and I got to hear all about my birth mother, and Seifer ended up at Trabia Garden for a bit, where Selph was until she transferred to be with the rest of us. We do more than go out and kill monsters that are invading towns."

"I still don't like the idea of you skipping so much of your time as students," Matron murmured as they took seats at the large table in the underbelly of the ship. A couple of curious children were standing at one end, uncertain, and Matron waved them over. "It's okay, children. This is Squall and Seifer. They're friends."

Seifer grinned at the kids while Squall tried a faint smile, hoping he looked friendly enough. Since the kids slipped in around the table, including one next to him, he figured he'd managed well enough. He turned to the boy who'd climbed in next to him and tried his smile again. "Hello."

The boy watched him with big eyes for a long minute before reaching up and touching Squall's scar. "Ouchy," he said.

On the other side of the table, Seifer snorted into his hand and very firmly looked away from the sharp look Squall shot him.

"It doesn't hurt anymore," Squall promised the little boy once he'd dealt with Seifer.

The boy considered that for a moment, then nodded and turned his attention to Revolver, which Squall had set next to his chair before sitting down. "Big sword."

"Gunblade," Squall corrected.

The SeeD who had mocked them out on deck sat next to the boy at Squall's side and said, "Quite a big weapon for such a small guy. I assume it's just decorative."

Across the table, Seifer tensed and shot the White SeeD a heated look, but the elder SeeD was distracted by the blank stare Squall was pinning him with, his smug smile lagging under the empty grey eyes. Finally, after a good five minutes of staring, Squall said, "Only as decorative as your little sword, considering how little damage it must do." Then he smiled, though his eyes had sharpened with icy promise.

The White SeeD narrowed his eyes. "Do you have any idea who you're talking to, boy?" he hissed.

"Beau!" Matron exclaimed.

"Beau Owens, twenty-four years of age, SeeD Rank fifteen. Captain of Sorceress Edea's White SeeDs. Previously a lieutenant of the Galbadian navy before being hired on by Cid Kramer to protect Ellone Loire," Squall recited, having hacked the Garden database years ago and looked up the White SeeDs for the hell of it. "Both of your parents are deceased, and you have a younger sister, Lauren 'Wizzy' Owens, who resides in your apartment in Dollet Town and attends the public high school."

Beau blinked a few times in disbelief. Around them, everyone else was watching the two with wide eyes.

Seifer burst out laughing.

"There is no way you could know all that," Beau hissed, pointing a shaking hand at Squall.

"He hacks databases in his free time," Seifer informed their angry 'host' before looking at Squall. "I thought you were sticking to the Galbadian databases, though."

Squall shrugged. "I was bored and looking for a challenge."

"Oh dear," Matron said while Ellone started giggling.

"How challenging was it?" Seifer wondered, entirely too amused by watching his best friend take the arrogant White SeeD down a couple pegs. Of course, now that he knew that Squall had experience with Estharian technology, his ease with other computer systems made a lot more sense.

Squall considered that for a moment. "Moderately more challenging than Galbadia's system. It's a bit better, now that Galbadia Garden is working to update their security, but I can still get into the system in under an hour."

"I will report you," Beau spat, one hand grabbing for his sword.

"No weapons at the table!" Matron snapped, and Beau's hand withdrew from his sword. Squall and Seifer, who had both reached for hidden knives, slowly removed their hands from the hilts.

"Cid knows I hacked the Garden database," Squall replied calmly. "He's asked me to do so a couple of times since I made SeeD, to let them know where they could improve their security. So, please, report me. While you're at it, you can report yourself for insubordination towards your superiors."

"What superiors?" Beau spat. "All I see are couple of boys just out of diapers! Don't make me laugh!"

"Squall has a SeeD Rank of twenty-three," Seifer said, smiling none-too-nicely. "And I'm Rank twenty-two."

A stunned silence followed that announcement, everyone looking between the two boys in disbelief.

Squall shot Beau a blank look, then held out his hand over the boy at his side's head. "Perhaps we got off on the wrong foot; I'm SeeD Squall Leonhart and that's SeeD Seifer Almasy. We both specialise in covert operations and short-range weaponry."

Beau stared at the boy for a long minute, taking in the hard edge to his gaze and the warning of ice glinting in quicksilver eyes. He took the offered hand. "SeeD Beau Owens, Captain of Sorceress Edea's SeeDs. I specialise in short- and mid-range weaponry."

Squall nodded and withdrew his hand. "We're here searching for a ship of scientists that vanished a little over a month ago; I don't suppose you've seen another ship in or around the crater?"

Beau frowned in thought and turned his eyes to look over his people. "Nicholas, didn't you report another ship last week up near the northern inner beach of the crater?"

"Huh?" The young SeeD – no older than fifteen, by Squall's estimates – scratched the back of his head. "Oh, yeah. They look like they took a beating against the rock rise up there, though. Doubt there are any survivors."

Squall considered his mental map of the Centra crater. "If they were near the beach, some of them could have been ashore during the damage or jumped ship and swam." He glanced at Seifer.

The blond nodded. "Only thing we can do is check it out. If nothing else, we can report back about their deaths."

Squall turned back to Beau. "Thank you, Captain; you may well have just saved us a month of searching."

"Certainly," Beau replied and they all turned their attention to lunch and topics of lighter things, such as the fish the children had spent the afternoon watching a few days ago over the edge of the ship.

Once lunch was over, they retired up to the deck to trade their goodbyes.

"Can't you stay around for a couple days?" Ellone pleaded.

"Sorry, Sis," Seifer replied with true regret. "We've got a job to do; no time for visiting. Next time you're in Balamb, though, you should stop in and see everyone. No promise that Squally or I will be there, but Selph, Quis, and Chick– ah, Zell will."

"Seifer, stop calling Zell names," Matron ordered, though her fond smile belied her stern tone.

"Sorry, Matron."

Squall rolled his eyes and turned back to Beau. "I don't know when you'll be touching land again, but we're willing to take any messages or letters back with us. Assuming this is the ship we're looking for and we can confirm the death or survival of the scientists, we should be back in Balamb within three weeks."

The Captain frowned a bit and looked towards where a number of his people were watching over the group of children they had aboard. "We're not intending to make landfall again for another five months or so, so your offer is appreciated. But I'm uncertain that anyone has anything they want to send out right this moment."

Squall shrugged and offered, "We'll probably be in the crater for at least another four days or so, getting to the ship and collecting any survivors or empirical proof of their deaths."

Beau nodded his understanding. "I'll let my crew know." He hesitated for a brief moment, then held out a hand for Squall to take. "I'm sorry we got off on the wrong foot."

Squall clasped the hand. "I'm used to people underestimating me."

Beau snorted at that. "That's one way to put it." He stepped back and offered Seifer a nod. "SeeD Almasy."

The blond boy considered him for a moment before nodding back. "Captain Owens." Then he turned to Squall. "Come on, Squally."

Squall shared hugs with Matron and Ellone, then jumped down with Seifer to their own boat and left the blond to take his turn at the controls.

"That was nice," Seifer commented once they were under way.

"Seeing them again? Yes, it was," Squall agreed, taking up his position at the rail to watch for tricky patches.

They continued on in silence for another five hours or so before breaking for supper.

"Hey, Squall?" Seifer asked once he'd finished his rations.

"Hm?"

"What are you going to do about Ultimecia?"

Squall considered that for a moment, playing with a bottle of water. "Nothing," he finally said.

"No–!" Seifer shot Squall a disbelieving look.

"For now," Squall amended. "Until she makes herself known in this time frame, there's nothing I can do."

"But once she's here?"

"Play it by ear." Squall shrugged. "Find Sis and have her send Ultimecia back to the young Adel to create Time Compression. Take her on again and defeat her."

"Not alone, you won't," Seifer insisted.

Squall blinked once in surprise, then offered his best friend a small smile. "I know."

Seifer nodded and jumped to his feet. "Good. We've got a few more hours of daylight." He held down a hand to help Squall up, which the younger boy took. "Let's find these idiots and go home."

"Sounds good," Squall agreed, moving to take his turn at the controls.

-0-
DRUGGIES AHOY
-0-

"What the fuck are they doing?" Seifer wondered, staring at where the group of scientists they'd come to rescue were... Actually, Seifer wasn't sure what they were doing. Three of them seemed to think they were a train, while another two were zooming around like the fighter jets of old Centra, making gun noises at each other. The last three were just sort of sitting in the middle of the field, nakedly giggling to themselves. (Thankfully, the two female scientists had retained their clothing and were a part of the 'train'.)

Squall leaned down and pulled out a mushroom. He scowled when the bottom of it bruised, then tossed it to one side. "Psilocybin," he spat.

"In Common, please," Seifer requested, blinking as both 'fighter jets' converged on the 'train' and the lot of them fell into a giggling heap.

"They're high off of mushrooms," Squall muttered, disgusted. "Fucking Hyne, and these are supposed to be the brightest people of our time?"

"You can get high off mushrooms?" Seifer wondered, looking down at the field that was covered in... mushrooms, actually. A field of mushrooms.

Squall was surprised out of his disgust and he turned to his friend. "Yes? Don't you remember... Oh." He rubbed at his scar while Seifer gave him an odd look. "Right, they didn't introduce that class until later. This is probably why." He shot an irritated look towards the scientists, then looked back at Seifer. "When the Ghost was thirteen or so, Garden added a required class to the curriculum that explained the dangers of certain mushrooms. You know how, in Survival, we had a section on how to differentiate between wild berries or mushrooms that were edible and those that would make you sick?"

"Yeah, sure."

"This is sort of the same thing, except these mushrooms naturally contain a psychedelic drug called psilocybin. In small doses, especially if the mushroom is fresh, it's not really a problem, but these idiots have probably been living off these mushrooms for days." He scowled towards the scientists again.

Seifer glanced towards the group and grimaced. "How long before they start dropping dead from overdose?"

"They probably won't," Squall allowed. "Psilocybin isn't all that toxic, considering, and this particular species of mushroom is generally safe for consumption, so they should be okay. It's also not addictive, so we shouldn't have to worry about weaning them off the mushrooms." He sighed. "They could have picked a worse drug to get high on."

"Right. So, now what? Drag them to our ship and lock them in the hold? And what happened to the other two scientists and the crew?"

"I expect we'll learn the answers to those questions once they're sober," Squall replied drily. "For now, yes, let's lock them in the hold. If you have to knock them around a bit to get them moving, go for it. They'd probably benefit from the bad trip."

Seifer snorted and they started the long, tedious process of leading a line of high adults who were constantly distracted by anything remotely shiny into their ship and down into the hold. Water was forced on each of them, as well as some rations. Blankets were handed to the three naked scientists – which one decided to wear as a toga and the other two tied together to play tug-of-war with – then the boys returned to the deck and Squall dragged over a heavy line of rope to keep the door down closed.

"How long until they're sober?" Seifer asked as he popped open a bottle of water for himself.

"Effects can last up to six hours after ingestion," Squall stated. "We can check on them every two hours or so and see if any of them are starting to come around. Until then, we can probably try getting aboard their ship and seeing what we can find."

"Might as well," Seifer agreed.

They managed to bring their boat next to the damaged ship without too much trouble. Since it was listing slightly, half buried in the bottom of the crater, they were able to climb aboard without their acrobat act from the White SeeD ship. They'd traded their gunblades for torches, a couple crowbars, and a line of rope that they tied between their waists and a sturdy part of the railing on the damaged ship, in case of any accidents.

They found their answers to what happened to the crew, at least, in the cabin.

"Well, fuck," Seifer said, looking at the line of blood splatters rising from behind the heavy desk, which had come unattached from the floor and slammed two people against a wall with enough force to kill them. The last person had been impaled next to the door with a stake of wood from where the desk used to reside.

Squall calmly tugged the desk away from the two bodies just enough to see who they were. "Captain and first mate. Don't come over here, Seifer," he added as the older boy moved to join him.

Seifer stopped in the middle of the room and considered his options for a moment before turning away from the desk; if Squall said no, it was probably with good reason. "That's the three crew members, but we've still got two missing scientists."

"Let's check out the hold, then," Squall suggested quietly.

The hold was almost completely filled with water, a giant hole in one side explaining why the ship was listing. One of their missing scientists was floating in the water, long dead, but the other was still unaccounted for.

"Either he went out that hole when it happened, or the other scientists will hopefully know," Seifer said as they untied their lines and jumped back to their own boat.

Squall nodded and glanced at Revolver for a moment before shaking his head and starting towards the door to the hold. "I'll go see if any of them have regained their senses yet."

Seifer snorted. "Good luck."

Squall sighed and ducked through the door and started down the stairs. About halfway down, he stopped and brought up a hand to rub at his eyes. 'Oh, for fuck's sake.'

In the back of his mind, Shiva giggled at him.

Squall opened his eyes again and looked at where the two female scientists were in the process of making out, hands under each other's shirts, while the males were all cheering them on. He rubbed at his eyes again, calling, "Innocent eyes, here!"

There was a startled silence from the scientists, then one of them mumbled, "Who let da kid in?"

"Ignore 'im," another insisted.

Squall grabbed for the handgun he wore at the small of his back on one of his many belts and loudly clicked off the safety. "This is only going to hurt a little," he promised as they all turned back to him with confused looks.

"Squall, no!" Seifer shouted, shoving past the door and hurrying down the stairs. "We can't kill them."

"I wasn't going to," Squall said, watching the group of worried adults with a dark gleam to his eyes. "Just hurt them a bit, help sober them up."

Seifer grabbed the gun and snapped the safety back into place. He shoved the gun into the back of his own trousers before forcefully turning the younger boy on the stairs and starting to lead him back up. "I think it's your nap time. Come on."

Incidentally, Squall's actions did exactly what he'd wanted: The scientists spent the rest of the time under the effects of the mushrooms shivering in terror and not having an ounce of fun.

-0-
EVERYONE'S SOBER AGAIN
-0-

According to the scientists, the missing man had been on the ship during the storm, so he'd probably been washed out the hole and drowned at sea. There had been a great deal of disbelief that a couple of kids had been sent to save them, as well as a shouting match between Seifer and the scientists about allowing them back onto their ship to put their crew and fellow scientist to rest. Squall dispelled all further arguments by describing, in graphic detail, the way the one crew member had been pinned to the wall. (The scientists apparently decided arguing with a psychopath – what they called Squall when they thought the two SeeDs weren't listening – was not a wise choice.)

The scientists' ship was set afire where it rested, acting as a sort funeral pyre. It was the only concession the boys were willing to make for the scientists, especially when three of them were running around in sheets.

Before they left the crater, they were hailed by the White SeeD ship and slowed to a stop to let them come abreast.

One of the scientists was topside, watching the two boys suspiciously, when the larger ship came into sight, and he looked distinctly worried when the boys seemed to see nothing wrong with this obvious danger. "Are you selling us to them?" he demanded.

"Oh, can it, old man," Seifer snapped, tired of dealing with the scientists already. If they all made it back to Balamb without someone dying, it would be a miracle.

Beau was at the railing as the two boats settled next to each other. "Good morning, gentlemen. I see you found your objective. One of them, at least."

"The other seven are in the hold," Seifer replied drily. "Want any scientists?"

The scientist on deck let out a horrified sound and scuttled back under the awning to stare with distrustful eyes at the blond boy.

Beau snorted. "No, thank you." He glanced towards Squall, who stood next to the controls. "I have letters, if you're still willing to take them back with you."

"Certainly," Squall agreed.

"Ah, and one other thing?" Beau grimaced slightly. "One of our kids wants to train at Balamb."

"Well, of course the kid does," Seifer agreed sagely. "Balamb Garden is way cooler than your boat."

"I am going to respectfully ignore you, SeeD Almasy," Beau informed the blond, making Seifer laugh. "Will you take her?" he asked Squall.

Squall glanced towards the skittish scientist. "Can you fools behave yourselves if we bring a child aboard?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" the scientist snapped.

"Uh, when we found you, you were pretending you were a fighter jet in a mushroom field," Seifer reminded the man, taking pleasure in watching him turn red with embarrassment. "And three of your fellows had completely lost their clothing. Which reminds me–" he turned towards Beau, who was watching on with a look of confused amusement, "–I don't suppose you've got any clothing for three men about his size, do you?"

"We might," Beau allowed. "Is there a reason your... guests were acting so... unprofessional?"

Squall sighed. "They ate some psychedelic mushrooms. Which reminds me, you might want to avoid letting your orphans out on the northern beach. Unless you want them hallucinating for six hours."

"I'll keep that in mind," Beau agreed, turning away from the railing. "Maria! Could you see if Michael is willing to donate a few changes of clothing to a worthy cause?"

"How many is a few?" the young woman in question called back.

"At least three. Oh, and tell Matron she can send Roxy up." He turned back towards the smaller ship with a faint smile. "I'm going to go hunt down our ladder."

Squall waved him off, turning back to their scientist. "You might want to let the others know we're taking aboard a young girl, and that we might have clothing for your three friends."

"How do I know you won't lock us down in the hold again?" the scientist demanded.

"The only latrine is down there," Seifer snapped. "We'd have to come down eventually."

"You could always piss over the side," the scientist replied.

Seifer pulled his handgun from his belt and flipped off the safety before pointing it at the scientist. "I could shoot you in the face, too."

"We're not shooting the scientists," Squall said, though he didn't move to make Seifer put the weapon away.

The scientist decided he was better off in the hold and ran for it.

A bright laugh sounded from above them and the two boys looked up to find Ellone watching them from the edge of the railing. "That wasn't very nice, Seifer," she told him.

"What mushrooms are you eating to think I'm nice?" Seifer shot back as he reset the safety and slipped the gun away.

"You're nice when it suits you," Ellone replied.

Beau appeared at the railing and dropped a rope ladder over the edge to Seifer and Squall's boat. "You can go down until we're ready to leave," he told the young woman.

"Thank you, Beau," Ellone said and slipped carefully over the railing and down the ladder. Once she was steady on the new boat, she jumped over and hugged Seifer, who was closer, then moved over to hug Squall. Once that was done, she pulled out Matron's old camera and said, "I borrowed this to take pictures of us together. Matron said you took pictures before Zell left, right?"

"We did," Squall agreed while Seifer's whole face lit up. "But we're going to need another person to take the pictures."

"Oh..." Ellone frowned a bit, then looked up towards Beau. "Come down here and take our pictures!"

Beau sighed, but obediently jumped down and took the camera. Ellone got between the two boys and slipped her arms through theirs. "Smile," Beau called. Seifer and Ellone shot big grins towards the camera, while Squall managed pretty good smile, considering he didn't smile often.

After four pictures, Ellone retrieved the camera and held out two of the developing photos to Seifer and Squall. "Guard them well," she ordered in a mock serious voice.

"You have our word," Seifer agreed, just as mockingly serious. "We'll protect these photos with our lives."

Squall rolled his eyes, but his voice was grateful when he said, "Thanks, Sis."

Ellone smiled at him and leaned forward to hug him. "You're welcome, Squall."

The girl that would be accompanying them back to Balamb, Roxanne Elliot, was only six and had to be brought down the ladder on Beau's back, which she thoroughly enjoyed. The pack of letters was handed over with a pile of clothing for the scientists, then hugs were exchanged all around from Ellone and she preceded Beau back up the ladder.

"Thank you again, SeeD Leonhart," Beau said as he shook Squall's hand. "SeeD Almasy."

"It's our pleasure, Captain Owens," Squall replied. "I hope we meet again."

"I'm sure we will." Beau nodded once to Seifer, who nodded back, then turned to little Roxanne, who had attached herself to Squall's free hand. "Be good, Roxy."

"I will," she assured him, smiling. "Bye-bye, Bu-Bu."

"Bye-bye, Roxy," Beau replied with a smile, ignoring Seifer's snicker at the nickname. Then he returned to his own ship and pulled up the ladder. "Away!" he shouted to whoever was manning the bridge and their ship's motors started.

Since Squall had his hands full with Roxanne, Seifer took the controls of their boat and started them towards the northern mouth of the crater. "And away we go," he murmured.

-0-0-0-

-0-0-0-

A/N: I know the information about psilocybin might be a bit wrong in places, but this was what I could find on the web without alerting the local police – or whatever XD – so this is what I wrote. Any discrepancies can be attributed to the differences between our world and this one. Magic, for one.

Next chapter should include their return to Garden – I decided this chapter was too long for it – and then probably a bit of a time jump. Roxy will probably show up again – she's about to spend a little over a week with Squall and Seifer as her new best friends, she's not going to suddenly forget about them when she gets tossed into Garden by herself.
What is it with these recurring OCs, anyway? Beh.

~Bats ^.^x
Chapters:
1 - Touch of Memory ||| 2 - No One Here to Save
3 - Burn Up the Tracks
4 - Orphans and Widows ||| 5 - Close the Last Window ||| 6 - Melodies of Life
7 - Lie Under the Night ||| 8 - Not Invincible ||| 9 - Don't Want the World
10 - Dance With the Enemy ||| 11 - Everything I Have in This World ||| 12 - Running Out of Days
13 - Wake Up and Fight ||| 14 - Crimson Sky ||| 15 - Heroes Waiting
16 - Light in My Eyes ||| 17 - Lying Next to a Ghost ||| 18 - Living For Today
19 - Some Things Are That Simple

..