[RP] Balamb Garden

[Dincht]

The sun was shining brightly. The leaves had never been so green. The wind had never been so crisp.

The world was finally rid of threat.

Hearing the wind's whispers, people all over the world celebrated.

***

Far away from other civilizations, Esthar, with technology as high as its giant buildings, had sent many research teams to the Tear's Point. It was a place full of mysteries that were waiting to be solved. Since the Lunar Cry many questions question marks were raised.

The researchers were tasked with trying to find how the monsters that inhabited the moon - lived and bred. These beasts had caused havock across the world once, and it wasn't a risk President Laguna was willing to take again. Although the threats of Adel and Ultemicia had been neutralised, there was no way of knowing what could cause the next disaster.

"What the hell is the point of us being here?" One researcher growled.

"The Lunar Cry has been and gone. It's not gonna happen again, so why does the President want us here?"

The researcher was clearly disgruntled at being made to spend his days at Tears Point. As far as people were concerned, the events of the past were exactly that; the past.

"Will you relax? This is fascinating. Besides, even if we spend years here and only find one thing, that could be the one thing which saves all of our asses in the future.
I lost my sister during the Lunar Cry - I won't lose anyone else. Shut up and get back to work."

The two researchers didn't share the same cynical view. Not everyone was convinced that the Lunar Cry would never happen again - or perhaps something similar.
"What the hell is this..." The previously careless worker had stumbled across something of interest, scribed on one of the giant blocks surrounding Tears point.


"I can't make this out. They're just symbols. *Sigh* I think we need Odine..."


*** Later that day ***

"I understand. Please appreciate the involvement my SeeD's had with this issue previously. Perhaps it would be best to give them the choice as to whether they should get involved; rather than force the issue upon them."

"Fine. I'll be in touch to discuss the result."
There was a click as the phone disconnected. Headmaster Cid dropped into his seat with an almighty sigh. He closed his eyes and smacked his hands down onto his lap.

"I was hoping that we had seen the end of this nonsense. Why is Laguna insisting on covering old ground?" Cid muttered to himself.

He gingerly arose from his plush, padded seat and pressed down the intercom button:

"This is Headmaster Cid. Would Squall, Rinoa, Zell, Quistis, Selphie and Irvine - Please report to my office, ASAP. That is all."

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Zell Dincht
Balamb Garden - Lecture Room


​

The sun beamed through the windows of the lecture room Zell had just finished teaching in. It bounced off of the pristine surfaces and back into the room, lighting it up spectacularly. Zell leant back in his chair, legs up on the desk, boyishly throwing a rubber ball in the air time and time again. The time immediately after each of his classes seemed to be the only free time he had nowadays. He didn't mind though; this was heaven.

As the minutes ticked by, Zell couldn't help but drift off into an unavoidable daydream

*I bet if I was real sneaky, I could fit in a quick nap. Heh, throwing this ball around is making me tired.*


Having a quick, shifty look around, Zell weighed up his options before deciding to sleep on the job. With the coast clear, he slowly closed his eyes, leant back on the chair even further, and developed a wry smile across his already smug face. He breathed in deeply and tried to unwind, not that the day had been particularly taxing. Just as he began to drift off, the loud crackle of the intercom destroyed Zell's comfort.

"Holy Crap!"

Zell flapped his arms wildly as he tried to retain his balance. The unwelcome interruption to his sleep from the intercom had startled Zell, tilting his chair backwards to the point of no return.

The static from the intercom began to clear

"This is Headmaster Cid. Squall, Rinoa, Zell - Please report to my office, ASAP. That is all."

Zell brushed himself down and lept to his feet. Brushing the remaining dust off of his legs, he glared at the intercom and sighed with disappointment.

"Well, there goes any chance for a bit of shut-eye. Headmaster Cid sounded stressed, too. I better get over to his office."

He ran out of the room and into the hallway, weaving through students and staff member alike. His shoes scuffed the beautifully cleaned floors on his surge through, prompting angry cleaners to yell obscenities at him as his bolted past them. It made Zell howl with laughter to hear the names he was being called, but he knew what Cid said to Zell would be ten times worse if he was late.

Headmaster Cid's office had proven to be further away than expected as Zell began to puff and wheeze. He hunched over and placed his hands onto his knees, drawing his breath at the same time.

"See...Now this is why..I need my T-Board back....PHEW!"

He wiped the beads of sweat from his brow and continued on towards the elevator. Desperate to ignore the alluring smell of the hotdogs emanating from the cafeteria, Zell put his fingers in his ears and began to sing to himself.

"La la lalala, woo! I can't smell you hotdogs!"

Zell was an instructor because of his experience and technical ability, not his intelligence. He couldn't master his senses of smell and sound, let alone anything on an intellectual level.

Eventually Zell made it to the elevator, very proud of the time he had made the treck in. He pressed the shiny chrome button and leant against the railings, whilst tapping his foot impatiently. He looked around him and saw no one else.

"I'm either first or last..."
​

 

[Subtle-sounds]

Mercy Kodashi - Grassy area near to cafeteria and training room

Her blonde hair swaying gently in the breeze, was caught up over her glasses everynow and then, not very often did this happen, but often enough to be annoying. She closed the book she had been reading and told herself that the library would be a better place to go, not to mention that they have air conditioning in there. Something blurred past just inside her field of vision.

Mercy looked over at the impatient instructor. Zell his name was, if she remembered correctly, She looked away and up to the beautiful open sky above her, she wished it would rain soon, not because she wanted to ruin everyones day but because if the plants she was looking after didnt get enough water they would die. also a little rain and we would have a beautiful rainbow. She smiled to herself as she got up from the grass Picking up her bag she headed over to the library.

She was intent of finishing that chapter of her book before the next lesson began
Selphie Tillmitt - Library courtyard

Selphie heard the intercom but hadnt immediately started off towards the headmasters office. Thats the thing about selphie, she does things at her pace, when she is good and ready, but you can be sure that when it counts shes ready before you are. This was one of those occasions, she had already hit the elevator upwards to the 3rd floor. She had headed out into the beautifully furnished room outside the elevators where she awaited the arrival of the others. It had been a while since they had all been called together like this.

She thought back to the events surrounding their adventures three years ago, they had had so much fun back then, admittedly it had come with heartache, but most of it was still fun, its where Selphie had managed to gain the trust of her guardian force "Brothers" after all. She sat day dreaming about times gone by as she waited for the others to turn up.

 

[Sir Fratley]

Seifer Almasy

​

Seifer was sitting on a bench nearby the elevator. He had spent most of the morning making rounds. Thankfully, even with the new students, there were very few problems. He watched Zell practically panting and bent over like he ran a marathon. "Some things never change." Seifer spoke as he stood up. "Chickenwusses are always late for meetings, never get hotdogs and have practically nothing for stamina. How Squall puts up with you is beyond me." Seifer chided as he crossed his arms over his chest. Razzing on Zell was one thing about Seifer that would probably never change. For as strong as Zell was with his fists, the kid was certainly lacking in many other areas.

Rajin and Fujin were out and about the other areas of the garden. Rajin was still about as buff and as dull as a surfer-boy, while Fujin still could only speak in short phrases, most times single words. Some of the newer students were still settling into their new rooms, while students who have graduated to the next semester have advanced to the upper dorm rooms. Even though he was no SeeD, Seifer was still Squall's equal in terms of skill and strength. These days, he was much less of a selfish bastard, though he still had his bad side.
​

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Robert Maisu

​

Robert heard the headmaster call out for three of the famous SeeD members over the intercom. Inside his new dorm room, he and his Wooly Freya were busy putting away his clothing and uniforms. He had already completed his first trial or getting his own Guardian Force, Sekhmet, from the cave of trials. He was also given a second GF, Phoenix, for being the top of his previous semester class. "Sounds urgent. Something must be going on. But you and I probably won't be involved in it, right Freya?" he spoke as he turned to his Wooly companion as she was closing the dresser drawer. "Baa!" Freya bleated out with a nod.

Robert smiled and petted the back of her head. "Well, let's get down to the library. I need to find a few books and get a head start on this semester's classes." Robert spoke before taking a pen and a packet of flash cards for him to take notes on and quiz himself on. So far no one really minded Freya's presence, except that Seifer guy who gave him a reaming about having a monster before the headmaster intervened on Robert's behalf. If anything, a lot of the girls found his Wooly friend to be quite cute. A natural chick-magnet some might say. With everything he needed in hand, Robert and Freya made their way out from the dorm room and began to head down to the library.

 

[Noblesse Oblige]

Bianca was sitting in the far end of the cafeteria twirling a hot dog in one hand when the announcement was heard. Although she had been in the Garden for well over 8 years now, she couldn't help but look up to the SeeDs, especially those who helped take down the Sorceresses three years ago. Her Gun-katana was leaning between her legs, and as soon as she finished eating she was going to work off the calories in the training room. All that was left for her was the SeeD Field Exam, and soon she could join the ranks of the mercenary organization.

Bianca stop twirling her tube of meat byproduct in her hand and began to take a huge bite into it, looking at the time. "Where is that girl anyway?" Bianca thought as she continued eating her lunch. She knew that her friend Sera was supposed to help her train, but what good would it be if she didn't show up to do just that?

 

[Rorolina Frixell]

Sera Koshi

Heading towards the Catheteria to meet Bianca Sera found herself running late from preparing in their room, ignoring the Intercom since it didn't relate to her she almost bumped into a charging Zell in the circular walkway surrounding the elevator seperating the several classrooms and Headmaster's office. Sidestepping to avoid him walking into her it was clear to her how much of a hurry he was, she also made a mental note never to turn out like that if she made it into SeeD. Chuckling lightly she then remembered her plans with Bianca and continued on her way before she had a temper tantrum on her hands.

Walking into the Catheteria Sera scanned the seats for Bianca, with her white hair being like a giant arrow pointing at her among all the other students she wasn't too difficult to find. Approaching her casually she snuck up behind her, placing both arms on her head before looking down over her "Did you miss me?"

 

[Dincht]

Zell Dincht
1st Floor Hallway - Balamb Garden
​

"Chickenwusses are always late for meetings, never get hotdogs and have practically nothing for stamina. How Squall puts up with you is beyond me."

Zell took a deep breath and looked up at the sky - Seifer always knew how to push his buttons. They had never seen eye to eye, and it was hard to see how they ever would. Zell respected him as a fighter, but had little time for him as a companion.


"Don't you have any SeeD exams to fail, Seifer?" Exclaimed Zell, arrogantly.


Expecting a witty retort, Zell stepped into the elevator, not prepared to get into yet another war of words with Seifer. He pressed the button for Floor 3 and childishly waved at Seifer as the doors closed. The elevator slowly ascended towards Headmaster Cid's office as thought's started to run through Zell's head. Had he screwed up a class? Did someone see him sleeping between lectures? He didn't know. Eventually it dawned on him that it couldn't have been a personal reason, as Rinoa and Squall were called upon, too.
As the cogs began to slow, the elevator came to an eventual stop on Floor 3. Zell walked out and into the gloriously decorated room, laced with gold and silver.
He started to walk towards the back of the room before hesitating.

"Maybe it's best if I wait for Squall and Rinoa..."

He took a seat and puffed out his cheeks. Zell may had come along way both professionally and personally, but Headmaster Cid still commanded a lot of respect; Zell didn't want to just storm into his office. Whilst Zell was glad to be sat down, out of the classroom, he couldn't help but wonder why Headmaster Cid needed the 3 members of SeeD. Yes, they were all experienced members - even for the their young ages - but they hadn't worked as a close unit since the events of 3 years ago. They were still close friends, it was impossible not to be after what they went through, but each of them operated separately. This must be something important from Cid, and that make Zell uneasy.

​

 

[Subtle-sounds]

Selphie Tillmitt - Headmasters office waiting room

She heard the noises before she had come round from her daydreams, The pacing back and forth, that familiar voice muttering under its breath to itself. It immediately reminded her of someone she knew, it took her a few seconds to realise who the voice belonged to, Zell! It looked like zell was so agitated and worked up that he hadnt noticed her sitting there. She stretched out yawning before she said anything else "Hi zell, its been a while huh?" she said with a big smile on her face, she jogged over to him and held out her arms for a friendly handshake, which she knew zell enjoyed giving out as much as he did recieving them "How have you been?"

She smiled politely whilst continuing to hold out her hand. She looked out over both of zell shoulders to scan the room whilst waiting for him to react. "Squall and rinoa not here yet?" she said non-chalantly "well it looks like weve beaten them for a change huh?"

Mercy Kodashi - outside training facility.

Mercy had just got to the training facility when she noticed that she had left her shoes untied. She began tying them but she heard some shouts from the training room. She stood up and ran in the direction of the shouts, dumping her bag in the changing rooms before drawing her chakrams. Intent on finding out where the shouts had come from she leapt into the live training area and ran into trouble very quickly. Some young student had got themselves caught up fighting some Grats. She leapt in to lend a hand and managed to finish them off with the help of the younger student who had just lost their nerve nothing else. She smiled as she and the younger student headed back out. They said good bye at the exit and mercy went back into the facility for her back, sheathing her chakrams onto her belt as she did so

 

[Noblesse Oblige]

Just when she thought that Sera wasn't going to come, Bianca felt two elbows rest on her head. Just from that she obviously knew who it was.

"Did you miss me?"

"Sera get off of me." Bianca said moving her head to get her off of her head. As the Potential SeeD stood up she looked a little flustered but smiled a bit. "I'm just glad you're here though. We've gotta go out to train." She said, her hands on her hips and looking proud as ever, something that she likes to call her 'hero look'. She smiled and took up her gun-katana. "Don't want to forget this." She said before going jogging towards the training center.

 

[Thief of Hearts Joker]

Squall Leonhart & Kallen Akaurasu

Squall and Kallen are inside the Training Grounds, Kallen had asked Squall to help her train with her Gunblade and Spell Fusion. Since she didn't have anything to do she wanted to get as much training in before the Test as she could.

"We're going up against a stronger monster this time Kallen... Don't drop your guard..." Squall said as a T-Rexaur approached the two fighters.

"Yessir.." She spoke back.

They both ready their swords.

"Right, here we go.. We don't have Sleep or Blind so watch your back.." Squall spoke out before running forward.

Squall stopped in front of the large monster and swung his blade down slashing into the T-Rexaurs leg stopping midway, he pulls the trigger and the explosion damages the leg and launches Squall back some.

"Get Back!!" She rose her voice to him.

Kallens body glowed with a white aura, her left hand glowed blue and her right hand glowed sky blue she thrust her left hand forward first. "Water!!" A Massive ball of water appeared and swallowed the T-Rexaur, before the water ball lifted up she thrusted her right hand forward. "Blizzard!!" Blizzard froze the ball of water solid.

"Kallen, now!!" Squall yelled out.

"Right!!" She replied.

Kallen swung her arm to her back and grabbed her GN Gunblade swinging it around the blade went up and locked into sword mode. The Two gunbladers run towards the Ice ball and jump into the Air they both slash downwards into a cross slash, When they land the ball of ice shatters and the T-Rexaur is defeated.

Squall walks over to Kallen who was panting and out of breath from the spell combination.

"Your getting better but... You put too much effort into your magic fusing... If that didn't work out you would have been too weak to kill it." He spoke to her as she caught her breath.

Before the two could speak more the intercom buzzed.

"This is Headmaster Cid. Squall, Rinoa, Zell - Please report to my office, ASAP. That is all."

"Looks like we'll have to continue this discussion at a later date, Keep practicing with your Spell Fusion and try to get used to the ability." He told Kallen before walking off.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Squall Leonhart

Squall walked Kallen out of the Training Area and left her behind as soon as they reached the hallway, other students were around so she would be ok.

He thought to himself as to what Cid could want calling himself, Zell, and Rinoa, it wouldn't be good if he called on all of us in such short notice, He reached the Elevator and saw the Seifer was close by, He didn't have time to have a fight with him so he just ran past him, going up the staircase and walking inside the elevator. He pressed the Button for floor three and the elevator slowly moved up.

"...I wonder what's going on.. We don't get called together normally.." He was lost in thought as always. The elevator stopped and dinged the doors opened and as he walked inside he noticed Zell and a Familiar face talking to each other.

"..Is that.. Selphie..?" He thought to himself, he walked over to the two and spoke up.

"It's been awhile since we've been called on like this.." He spoke to the two.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kallen Akaurasu

Squall ran off as soon as he and herself reached the hallway that lead back to the Gardens facilities, Kallen waved goodbye to her tutor as he ran off to see Headmaster Cid. Kallen noticed other students around her but she wasn't very social so she decided to walk over to the wall and sat down the rest.

"Damn... I still can't use my GFs abilities to their full potential..." She spoke to herself

She looked around, the Training area was empty most of the time but today it seemed like more people were around, she sighed and decided to rest for awhile longer.


((OOC: If someone wants to start up a convo with Kallen feel free and sorry for the loooong post lol))

 

[Gaige]

Quistis's shoes tapped a steady rhythm upon the cobblestones of one of Balamb Garden's many paths. For her at least, classes had ended for the day, and she was relieved for the break. She could barely find a few seconds to herself these days, never mind a few hours before she had to go to one of her extra classes. Perhaps she would find the time to catch a few hours of sleep beforehand.

Tapping the pommel of her whip with her left hand out of habit, she glanced around at the students who were also free of classes for the day. Some had gathered at tables and were chatting amongst themselves. Others lounged in the grassy areas with cards lying around them, clearly playing a few games of Triple Triad; the games popularity hadn't faltered at all in the last few years.

A few people stared at her but she was somewhat used to it. She had been told a year ago that a group of people named "Trepies" had become her fanclub; whether official or not she had no clue. These people apparently more or less worshiped her. Whether she was intimidated or flattered by this she didn't know. So long as they weren't too obsessive and let her actually get her sleep.

And then the announcement came over the intercom announcement system, causing Quistis to deflate mentally, although she kept her straight posture and neutral expression in the physical world. So much for sleep.

Folding her arms, she did a one hundred and eighty degree turn and made her way back to the class area. Spying Seifer teasing Zell, she shot a disapproving glare at him. "Perhaps it would be better if you left the commentary to the headmaster, Almasy," she told him with a sigh, before continuing onwards.

She took the elevator up to the principal's office without breaking stride. As the elevator whirled up to the office, she checked herself over, combing out any stray locks of hair, making sure her glasses weren't misted up, smoothing out her SeeD uniform. Ah, she looked much more professional now.

As she entered the waiting room, she caught sight of Selphie, Zell and Squall already there and shot them a small, though warm smile. "It's been a while," she said, adjusting her glasses. It was true; with how busy she had been instructing lately, she hadn't seen her old companions in some time. It felt almost nostalgic to see three of them gathered like this. Taking a seat, she crossed her legs elegantly and stared out of a nearby window, head reclining gently on the couch as she dangled her left foot over her right knee, waiting for admittance into the office.

 

[Saga]

{Not sure if you wanted Irvine present or not but he's not missing an opportunity to reunite }

IRVINE KINNEAS

A small chuckle escaped Irvine's lips as the gunshot echoed around the Training Area and the slender girl found herself bowled off her feet by the recoil. He probably should have warned her about that before handing his precious Exeter to his newest gunner recruit. The little red-head blinked away the tears that had formed in the corners of her eyes, holding out the hefty rifle to her trainer. Irvine took the gun and patted the girl on the head before lightly wiping away her tears. "Don't worry, little lady. The gun you decide upon won't kick you in the chest like my gal here. We'll look at something more lightweight and elegant, eh?"

The girl nodded, rising to her feet and rubbing at her ribcage gingerly. She was going to end up with a bruise, she knew it. Before she could say anything in response, the intercom rang out and Irvine's attention was snapped away from her lightly freckled face. "Sounds intriguing..." he murmured before giving his female companion a cheeky smile. "We should meet up for lunch tomorrow or something, discuss arms... or whatever you'd like," he added as an afterthought, before turning on his heel and leaving the girl where she stood.

Riding the elevator up, Exeter tapped a steady beat against his thigh. Impatience had gotten the best of him lately. Ignoring Seifer completely, Irvine strode towards the waiting room and entered without announcing himself. He lifted his gun so she rested on his shoulder and gave Squall a respectful tilt of his hat. He threw Quistis a sly wink before grinning at Selphie and Rinoa. It had been a while since they had all been in the same place at the same time. Finally, his eyes drifted to Zell. Giving the guy a little thumbs up, he leant back against a wall and waited.

He wasn't entirely sure he was meant to be here, but hell, he wouldn't miss this reunion for the world.

 

[Dincht]

{Absolutely, we just didn't have an Irvine at the time the RP was posted }

Zell Dincht
Headmaster Cid's office


Seeing his friends back together in the same room put Zell's mind at ease. He was around familiar faces, and these faces in particular gave him the confidence to take on anything.

Each one of them meant a lot to Zell, in different ways. Selphie and Irvine, maybe because they were similar people, same personalities, same sense of humour. Rinoa was like a sister to him after everything they had been through, and Quistis was the like the other sister. The slightly bossy, but caring one. And then there was Squall; the Enigma of the group. Zell always had a hunch that Squall liked him more than he would care to admit, Zell on the other hand never hid his admiration of Squall from anyone. They were very close friends now, even if Squall wouldn't admit it.

Zell sprung up from his seat with his usual level of enthusiasm and energy and began to spar with the air. It was his go-to habit when nerves came into play. Even Zell, who wasn't the most perceptive of people, could tell that there was a bit of tension in the room.

"Just like old times, huh! I wonder what Headmaster Cid wants?"

With that comment he immediately looked in Squall's direction, as if he knew the answer. Again, force of habit. Before anybody had a chance to answer his open question, the sound of footsteps could be heard echoing around the giant room. The footsteps were slow and had a feel of authority to them. Zell knew who's they were.


(I had typed up a part for Headmaster Cid and then I realised that Rinoa isn't here yet )

 

[Paddy McGee]

Kaine McIvory, Rank one SeeD.
Location: Training Centre.
__________________________


+Shallow breathing, crunching gravel. These were the signs of a soldier hard at work. Well, hard at training. His Ash-cinder like hair was easily noticeable, even from a mile away, and while fighting a giant-ass dinosaur, it’d be hard to miss ol’ Greyhaired Kaine. That Greatsword of his was gripped firmly in his gauntlet-clad left hand, while his right shoulder dripped crimson liquid- He had been tagged by the T-Rexaur’s claw earlier, but the reptile hadn’t escaped unscathed- Kaine had caught his left eye brilliantly and blinded it. They now stood roughly sixty metres away from each other, leering at one another with pure killing intent. With a smirk- a smug smirk with just a hint of sadism- the Grey-Haired Soldier spoke, swinging that Great-sword parallel with slight stress. Either he had one powerful arm, or something strange was afoot with him+

“Tough bugger, aren’t ya?! ”

+The T-Rexsaur roared in furious anger, pissed by this human’s progressive bragging. It then began its charge, running at the Grey-haired teen swiftly, its jaw held forward. This was perfect, fantastic for Kaine. He began his own charge, his stride only covering a fourth of the dinosaurs. Yet, his left hand was pulled across his chest, its edge pointed towards the T-Rexaur. With the switch of a button, Kaine was now ready to end this bullshit. The T-Rexaur was ready for dinner. Its body reached Kaine and the Reptiles jaw opened wide, its head shot straight down at him- eagerly hoping to catch the human in it‘s mouth.+

+And Kaine's plan was put into play. The T-Rexaur’s working right eye shut closed for only a few seconds, five at most. The worst mistake it had ever made. Kaine used the time to dodge the attack by twisting body to the right, and then he struck. He pierced the closed socket with the tip of his blade. By doing so, he robbed the animal of its sight- Now for the life! With his speedy hop, he got onto the head of the beast as it jerked back it head in pain. He struggled to hold on, but did so with vigorous willpower, and as the T-rexaur body was perpendicular to the ground, Kaine slid down its back, cutting deeply into the body, down the spine. With a leap backwards from its back, he pulled his blade out from flesh and flipped backwards, missing the tail by inches. With a heavy landing-, one not expected by an Olympic athlete- he gathered some breath. The job was not finished. +
　
+The Reptile whimpered in agony, the King of lizards had been cut from its crown! It lay on the ground, paralysed from the slice of it’s spine. Its lungs still just barely functioning. Kaine walked- strangely downtrodden- and stood up on the head yet again, this time plunging deeply into the centre of the brainstem, then pulling back out swiftly. Its life was ended.+

“You fought well. Drew real blood from me for the first time in months. Definitely, you‘ll be remembered.”

+Exclaimed Kaine, allowing the fierce Dinosaur a place in his mental hall of fame. By now, he had already stepped down from the head and begun to walk away- only turning to praise his enemy. His sword had been swung, placed into the shoddy steel and leather sheath upon his back. He’d better get that arm checked out- cure would only stop him bleeding out, not seal the wound up permanently. And so, he strolled towards the entrance of the training centre, headed for the infirmary. Then, the Headmaster’s voice rung out. +


"This is Headmaster Cid. Squall, Rinoa, Zell - Please report to my office, ASAP. That is all."

+With a slight ‘humph‘, he continued striding towards the exit. +


“Cid’s golden gang, chosen again… Some day, it’s gonna be ‘Kaine McIvory’ ringing out in these halls…”

 

[Yaoi Master Gavin]

Alexander's fingers traced the slightly raised center band on the bangle at his wrist; even after all these years, the metal never really shone. It became a habit of minor entertainment about a year after he had come to Balamb Garden when he was bored for whatever reason. By this point it was something to keep his hands from being too idle. And unfortunately idle was exactly how things were.

He had finished his last mission about a month ago, and ahead of schedule at that. The monsters at the Great Salt Lake had been getting riled, some beginning to venture down into the city. Esthar was still contending with the massive influx of monsters that the Lunar Cry had brought down; with so many of their soldiers slain by it the events around it, it was near impossible to control the population increase at the time. So the monsters that had escaped had begun breeding so there was a still a nasty number of them meaning Esthar couldn't spare the troops to investigate themselves. As such SeeD had been called in to take care of it for them, Alex once again the leader of the mission.

That brought a slight scowl to his lips. The Headmaster knew how much he hated being the leader yet still Cid put him in charge. It turned out that a nest of Chimera were pushing out the native monsters. They were soon dealt with by Alex's team though, the two he had been assigned to work with seemed rather...green considering the possibilities of the mission; it could have been Malboros they were dealing with and where would those two be then? Still the job was done without a hitch and Alex sent the other two back on their own, spending a bit of the allotted mission time in Esthar and walking back on his own, taking the reopened trains from Esthar through FH to Timber before going to Balamb. Filing an official mission report with the Headmaster only a week prior, he was once again bored. The monsters in the Training Center and even the surrounding areas were the same as they had always been so there was no longer any real challenge; it had become just another way to keep in shape and occupy his mind while waiting for the next mission.

As it was, he was sitting on the bough of a tree near the midpoint of the Training Center. Azrael hung from his waist, the dark red metal hard to distinguish from the bark of the tree. From this vantage point, he could see much of the goings on of the Training Center, especially the main ring. Several fights were going on; Alex suspected that a SeeD exam was upcoming. It seemed that the T-Rexaurs had been proliferating; several fights were against one of them. The one to his right was against a grey haired boy that Alex didn't recognize, though his skills seemed to be on par with a SeeD; either he had just attained it or he was ranked too low for the missions that Alex found himself going on. The more interesting one was the one to his left; that one had sent his heart fluttering, his cheeks flushed, and his mind raging.

There, Squall and some other student were going over battle maneuvers, seemingly testing out something new seeing as this girl was exhausted afterwards. He honestly couldn't help himself when it came to Squall, couldn't help feeling jealous that this girl had his crush's attention and he didn't. But he didn't really have the right to be; it was his own damn fault that he couldn't muster the courage to ask Squall out or even really do anything together. What good was being able to face down a Malboro's Bad Breath when he couldn't talk to the guy he secretly loved?

His fist pounded the side of the tree in frustration, several vines and some of the tree's inedible fruit dropped down. No sooner had he done it than the intercom crackled to life.

"This is Headmaster Cid. Squall, Rinoa, Zell - Please report to my office, ASAP. That is all."

Alex's body calmed down as Squall left the nameless girl at the entrance to answer the Headmaster's summons glad to see him leave her behind without anything special. Below, the fruit splattered on the ground just a short distance away from the grey haired boy that had finished his fight. Looked down at the sound, he saw the vines drape the remains like a garland. He sighed, knowing that that would give away his position and undoubtedly bring him unwanted attention.

 

[Rorolina Frixell]

Waiting for Bianca to lead the way Sera held her Naginata against her back and walked after her, taking strides to keep up with Bianca's jogging. Reaching the training center Sera moved in front of Bianca and while walking towards the middle of the opening area she listened out for any monsters, or indeed people. When Bianca arrived next to her Sera walked through the right door and began walking across the wooden path, expecting a monster to want to ambush people on a choke point like this. "Be careful now Bianca, I wouldn't want anything nasty to gobble you up now" Hearing a dull roar up ahead Sera was hoping a T Rexaur had appeared, raising her hand to neck level she began to charge it with Thunder magic and waited for it to make an appearance.

 

[Noblesse Oblige]

"Be careful now Bianca, I wouldn't want anything nasty to gobble you up now"

"Oh please, do you think I'm that much of an easy target?" Bianca said smiling as she heard Sera make a comment. Of course what was behind her confirmed Sera's suspicions, as a lumbering T-Rexaur began making its way behind her. Turning around to see her new opponent, Bianca drew her Gun-Katana and used her gun mode as Sera began charging for a Thunder spell. "Darn it, I hate it when you're right." She said as the giant Dinosaur looked to try and gobble her up as Sera said. Bianca fired off a couple rounds from her weapon, moving to chamber another round as she began to charge up for a Blizzard spell. Even though she looked like she was annoyed at the truth, in reality Bianca was really having a lot of fun.

 

[Subtle-sounds]

Mercy Kodashi - Training facility

Mercy stood still when she saw squall running past her, He nearly bowled her over but didnt take the slightest bit of notice to that fact. Understandably the headmaster had called him but, it was a little rude to say the least. She saw the quiet girl Kallen, it seemed like she had been training with squall, so she decided to ask her about how squall was as a person, having only seen fleeting glimpses and having heard the stories from three years ago mercy had only the slightest opinion on him, and she was sure it was wrong. "Hey Kallen" She said walking up to her, "So you train with squall huh? Whats he like in person? is he that much of a mindless knob when hes training?" She didnt really know where her anger came from, he only nearly knocked her over, maybe it was jealousy on her part.

"Sorry, i meant to ask what hes like in a polite way i didnt mean anything by that" she said trying to backpeddle what she had just said, hoping she didnt offend the girl so that she would reply to mercy's questions. She stood waiting for the girls reply one way or the other. She saw two other people walk past her, one shouting about a t-rexaur gobbling someone up, it was obviously a joke but the two of them still drew her attention none-the-less

Selphie tillmitt - Headmaster cids office

She was happy that nearly everyone was back togehter, it was good to see irvine, even if she wasnt sure why he was here, he was still a great guy, his sense of humour was hilarious and he was a real livewire to have around the place. She couldnt help but laugh gently as Zell stood and began his usual sparring with oxygen, Sometimes Selphie swore he was actually trying to knock the oxygen atoms out of the sky, with the power of those punches, that had been more than proven when he got them out of that desert jail almost by himself.

Those were the good old days, back when they were younger, and much more optimistic, Selphie was still optimistic but she wasnt as sure about everyone else's views on the matter. She did a quick head count of everyone that was here. 'me, zell, irvine, quistis, squall...' She suddenly realised something "Hey, does anyone know where rinoa is?"

 

[Thief of Hearts Joker]

Kallen Akaurasu

Kallen was still resting after the the strain from the Spell Fusion, while she was looking around she noticed another student coming over to her.

"Hey Kallen" She said walking up to her, "So you train with squall huh? Whats he like in person? is he that much of a mindless knob when hes training?"

"Hi, You're uhmm... Mercy right? I think we have classes together.." Kallen decided to stand up almost falling for a moment she recovers and looks at Mercy.

"And Squall? He's a Nice guy but it's hell trying to get him to open up, took me like a month to crack that shell of his open.. He's not really a knob in combat, he tends to think ahead and always keeps his combat partners strengths and weaknesses in his mind, if it wasn't for him that T-Rexaur we fought might of made me his next meal.." She spoke rubbing her forehead off.


"Sorry, i meant to ask what hes like in a polite way i didnt mean anything by that"

Kallen had giggled to that. "Oh don't worry, He is a Blockhead outside of combat sometimes, I honestly don't know how he kept the Garden in shape" She Giggled again

Kallen offered her hand out to Mercy. "Well anyways, it's nice to meet you Mercy, I'm sure we'll work together at some point so let's become friends." He smiled while offering her hand.

 

[Paddy McGee]

+If there was a prize for the most alert or paranoid fellow, Kaine was definitely within the top three. He jumped at just about anything. Animal noises, squeaky floors, you name it. And so, when the fruit smashed against ground- displaying its fleshy innards- he hopped back into a startled position, standing by for another launch of attacks. His uninjured limb gripped the hilt of Spitfire tightly, as he scanned for some other, small enemy. He found none, strangely- though the roar of yet another T-Rexaur ripped through the air, waking a flock of birds that had made the training centre a home. +


+What he did find was something much more interesting- a covered humanoid figure. He could barely make out its features- some reddish colour around what would be waist height, but that could just be blood…or the trees discolour. Nevertheless, Kaine stepped forward. His arm could wait a little while. The crimson blood stained his shirt, but the majority of the bleed had begun clotting itself. To help it along, Kaine pull a potion out and poured the blue contents over said wound. This clotted the wound somewhat better. It would last. +


+Crunch, Crunch… The sound of dead, dried plant life echoed under his footfall, as he drew closer to the figure. The heartbeat lessened in intensity, helping with the cure of that nasty wound. But, Kaine was completely disinterested by that, at the current time- the figure proved metal more attractive to his magnetic, inquisitive nature. It was definitely human from this distance. Kaine relaxed, allowing his good arm to relax by his side, while he increased his pace. Time for a little socialising. After he cleared his throat out -quite loudly-, Kaine called out to the figure ahead, attempting to throw in something witty. +


“Yo, Peepin’ Tom! How’s the bark? Ruff I bet!!!”


+Stupid puns, idiotic jokes… They were not this guy’s strong point. He was pretty silly at times, overdramatic tendencies… and a sleight of hand so wicked, many a student had fallen to his trap. His eyes focused on that of the figure- more and more features revealing themselves with every step- now Kaine was within twenty feet of the tree, and male figure.+

 

[Dincht]

Headmaster Cid
Headmaster Cid's Office

Cid emerged slowly from around the corner of his office, having previously been admiring the lush scenery from his panoramic window. He approached the group of SeeD's and couldn't help but let a large grin emerge on his face.

"Well, it certainly has been a long time since I saw you all together. Please, at ease."

Over time, Cid had began to see these former students as family - children almost. While he may have been a figure of authority to them, he never acted that way. His eyes gently scanned the group. Not much had changed in their faces over the past few years. They were all still very youthful, but now they had that edge of experience to them.
He could sense their anxiousness as the seconds ticked by. There was no sign of Rinoa, but he could not afford to wait.

"I imagine you are all wondering why I've brought you here. I can see it on your faces. Allow me to explain. Since the unfolding of events several years ago, President Laguna, of Esthar, thought it would be wise to investigate the causes of that catastrophic time. This involved a plan to investigate all area's associated with the Lunar Cry - mainly Tears Point. Recently scientists from Esthar have stumbled across some...thought provoking information. I am not entirely sure what this information is as Laguna keeps his cards quite firmly to his chest."

He drew his breath and let out a large sigh,

"Which is where you all become involved. President Laguna has requested that you all visit him in Esthar, ASAP. Being that this is not strictly a matter of SeeD importance, I was initially sceptical. However, after time I realised. This is not a request for SeeD, this is a request for each of you, personally, due to your previous involvement and experience in this matter."

Wandering slowly around to behind his desk, Cid pulled out his luxurious chair, and sat down.

"There is one further detail, of course. While this may not be a SeeD affair, I see no reason why some younger candidates should not benefit from the experience of shadowing you. It will an invaluable experience for them, and who better to learn from, after all? Thoughts?"