Sowing the SeeDs : Part 7

a fanfic by His lordship Chaos <hislordshipchaos@hotmail.com>
with Greenbeans <gbeans@tyrlen.org>
edited by Helen Fong <iriachan@yahoo.com>
based on the world of Final Fantasy 8
created by Square Electronic Arts L.L.C. <www.squaresoft.com>


- Quistis -

     "The Fire Cavern test?!" Eugene had to bite down on his tongue to keep 
from shouting it across the corridor. Granted the hallway was deserted, but 
there might have been others in the various rooms they passed who could have 
heard it. That still didn't hide the surprise (and disbelief) in his voice.
     He looked to Kei, who was walking alongside him. Only a day had passed 
since their discussion in the Library and already Kei's role in Quistis' 
upbringing was making him edgy.
     Kei nodded as if it was a perfectly sensible idea. "It's not like she 
won't be doing it eventually. I can get the two of you off campus, and from 
there we can test Quistis in the cavern."
     "I know we're tryin' to push her into the best that she can be," Eugene 
admitted, glancing over his shoulder with newfound paranoia. "But this sounds a 
little extreme even for her. She's only twelve, Kei."
     If she was concerned about anyone hearing their conversation, Kei didn't 
show it. She seemed perfectly calm as she simply replied, "I know that."
     "Kei, *I* haven't even taken the Fire Cavern test yet! I'll be doing that 
in about three weeks along with all my other graduation exams."
     A wry grin appeared on Kei's face. "Then you should be grateful I'm 
showing you what you're up against." 
     Eugene was still leery, having been around Quistis for quite some time 
now. She had yet to be given her own Quezelcoatl and Shiva GFs, and he doubted 
she would be able to use them properly against something as powerful as Ifrit. 
But Kei insisted that, regardless of Quistis' knowledge of GF use, it could be 
a profound growing experience.
     After all, Ifrit wasn't technically a monster and would back down if it 
saw she was not a threat to it. Not to mention there was one SeeD and one 
near-graduation SeeD cadet who would be close by. Kei also argued regarding how 
many things at Quistis' age were done just for the challenge, and not for 
succeeding.
     "You have a taste for dramatics," Eugene sighed, conceding to Kei's idea. 
"Brashness certainly reflects your personality."
     The two agreed that Kei would take care of the arrangements, including 
Skye. Eugene personally doubted that Skye would be a problem, given her usual 
disposition. Kei could probably just say 'I'm taking Quistis out for some 
training' and Skye would only shrug in acknowledgement.
     Once the initial details were etched out, the two parted company in the 
Quad. Kei added she would pay him a visit at the usual time and place (the 
Library just before it closed) the next day. All Eugene had to do was brace 
himself and hope Kei knew what she was talking about.


     Quistis couldn't help but confess her own anxious curiosity to Eugene as 
they stood in one of the back corners of the Parking Garage. It was after 
lights out, and Eugene had unexpectedly brought her here about ten minutes 
before she would be considered breaking the rules. Rebelling like this was a 
unique thrill, but it was severely muzzled by the fact that she didn't know 
what they were doing or why. Eugene was the one in the lead; all she could do 
was follow.
     "Try to not make so much noise," Eugene said, his hands folded over his 
chest as he leaned against the wall. There, his tall stature was partially 
masked by the shadows. If either of them ran the risk of being spotted, it was 
him. Then again, Quistis' nervous fidgeting was liable to get some curious hall 
monitor coming their way to investigate what all the noise was about.
     Quistis nodded and tried not to shuffle about so much.
     All her pent-up excitement and energy had to be channeled somehow; it 
seemed wrong for her to have to keep it suppressed like this. She marveled at 
how calm Eugene was--though, in reality, Eugene was sweating bullets.
     "But what happens if the night patrol finds us?" Quistis asked.
     Eugene continued to scan the immediate area from where he stood. His 
battle parasol was in its harness and hanging down his back; Quistis had yet to 
ask him why he had it in the first place. He kept his voice to a low whisper as 
he answered, "Actually, Quistis, I'm counting on that."
     Abruptly the sound of slow, deliberate footsteps echoed across the 
deserted garage. With most of the main lights turned off the figure looked 
absolutely menacing as it drew closer, parts of it shifting in and out of the 
light.
     Quistis squeaked, and instinctively moved behind Eugene. However Eugene 
seemed strangely calm. "I see you cleared the garage as promised," Eugene 
remarked, nodding to Kei as she finally emerged from the shadows.
     "I'm a familiar face around here," Kei replied. "All I had to do was offer 
to make the rounds in the garage, and the patroller was happy to let me." She 
glanced down at Quistis, who was still hiding behind Eugene. "We'll have to 
skip the introductions until we're outside. There's a five minute window, and 
after that it'll be a lot harder to get out unnoticed."
     Eugene nodded and nudged Quistis out in front of him.
     Kei took the lead while Eugene took the rear.
     That left Quistis in the middle again, one or the other ensuring she would 
duck down when they ducked, or ran when they ran. To Quistis it felt strange 
doing this. Balamb Garden was designed to keep people from sneaking in, not 
sneaking out. Everyone who was in the Garden wanted to be there. Then again, it 
was fun to pretend like she was an actual SeeD, on a mission full of danger and 
intrigue.
     The rush Quistis felt was so unlike what she felt whenever she went with 
the guys into the Training Centre. This was something completely new, and she 
was enjoying it. What an adventure it was to get off the grounds after dark! 
Quistis did her best to mimic Eugene and Kei's movements as they slipped 
through the shadows and silently dashed across open areas. The hardest part was 
not to giggle or squeak in excitement when they had to stay quiet the entire 
time.
     After what felt like only two or three minutes (amazing how time was 
accelerated courtesy of adrenaline), they were outside of Balamb Garden and out 
of sight from any sentries, Eugene eased up.
     "Well, I think it's safe to finally say something outside of a hushed 
breath," he sighed, the worst of the tension (for now) leaving his system. It 
was a good thing Kei was escorting them; as a SeeD she could make up anything 
she wanted and very few would argue. She made for a very convenient contingency 
plan.
     "Quistis, meet SeeD Kei," he said, gesturing to Kei. "Since I'll be 
graduating soon, she'll be around to help you out. As a SeeD, Kei has a lot of 
pull around the Garden. She can give you a hand when we cadets have reached our 
limits."
     Quistis didn't know what to say apart from a meek, 'Thank you' as she 
shook Kei's hand. Kei had a firm, powerful grip, and Quistis bit her lip to try 
and stop from showing just how crushed her own hand was.
     Eugene gestured for Kei to say whatever else she wanted. His job was more 
providing a basis for introductions; from there, Kei would have to decide what 
she wanted to share with Quistis.
     "I'm also Xu's cousin," Kei added. The surprise on Quistis' face mirrored 
that on Eugene's. Of all the things for Kei to say, he hadn't expected that. 
"She spoke very highly of you," Kei continued. "I expect that in time I will be 
able to say the same, as well."
     Quistis nodded, and the group moved further from the Garden's outer 
perimeter.
     An apparently abandoned jeep was awaiting them just beyond the outskirts 
of the area. Kei pulled out the keys from one of her pockets. "It's easier to 
walk out of Balamb than drive," she stated. Besides, she had the jeep signed 
out for two full days, and since she was a SeeD no questions would be asked 
about what she did with it--unless she came back with only a few melted pieces 
of what used to be said jeep.
     "I assume you brought her rante?" Eugene asked Kei.
     The SeeD nodded. "It's in the back of the jeep. Did you make sure she 
brought her gloves?"
     Now it was Eugene's turn to nod. "She also brought along her spells. How 
effective they'll be against a GF has yet to be seen."
     Quistis looked from one to the other, the uneasy feeling creeping into her 
system that this all had something to do with her. Once they all piled into the 
jeep and drove off, Quistis dared to ask where they were going. "To the Fire 
Cavern," Kei answered. "You're going to be tested, Quistis."
     Any otherwise cool composure Quistis had managed to hold was lost. A look 
of unparalleled shock mirrored in her widening eyes. To enter the cave was one 
of final tests for a graduating cadet! She wasn't even close to being that. Her 
face showed her thoughts well enough: what were Kei and Eugene thinking?!
     She looked to Eugene, as if he might suddenly start laughing and tell her 
it was all a joke. But he was just as serious as Kei was. He was too tense for 
this to merely be a gag.
     "Consider this a test of your abilities, cadet Quistis," Kei said. "While 
your credentials are impressive, they are merely paper. If you succeed in the 
cavern, you will receive your GF--but that doesn't mean you graduate. Not yet, 
any ways."
     Quistis still didn't seem thrilled with the prospect.
     But Kei looked straight at her. "I'll watch your back. Trust me," she 
said, her voice indicating how much she meant every word.
     Eugene tried to remain cool and looked up at the sky. A bump in the road 
jostled his head, but he still kept his eyes fixated on the stars.
     He just hoped Quistis actually survived this and had the chance to 
graduate, period.


     A blast of intense heat caused Quistis to back away from the cavernous maw 
of the cave to gasp for breath. Intellectually she knew that it was a *fire* 
cavern, but that did little to prepare one for the heat. Eugene gave her a 
sympathetic smile as Kei fished something from the pack that was slung across 
her back. She handed each of them a water flask to fasten to their belts. 
They'd need to maintain their fluids while battling in the cavern.
     Eugene had to resist the urge to take Quistis back as he stared into the 
gaping hole in the earth. The scorched earth and crimson steam belching out 
from the entrance made it appear to be a gateway into hell itself. No wonder 
cadets were kept away from it until they were tested. Eugene scowled; he didn't 
have the slightest idea what awaited them in the underground. Breaking curfew 
and leaving the Garden unauthorized was one thing. But in here Quistis could 
get seriously hurt--or even killed. His eyes glanced over to Kei, who 
definitely looked determined for them to go through with this.
     "Out of frying pan and into the fire cavern," Eugene muttered to himself, 
unable to smile at his own half-hearted joke.
     Once everyone was ready, Kei led the way. Quistis' eyes traced along the 
cavern's walls with intense curiosity. She would have to look up the history of 
the cave and when it was formed when she returned to the Garden. With a gloved 
hand she reached out to touch a nearby rock.
     The rock suddenly moved.
     Quistis let out a startled squeak as she withdrew. Glowing eyes followed 
her, then the wings of the Buel that was resting along the wall spread. It gave 
a squawk of protest for being disturbed before taking to the air. A pair of Red 
Bats that had been hanging from the cavern's ceiling swooped down to assist 
their comrade.
     "The Buel uses low level element magic that you can draw from it. The bats 
are nothing more than a pest, so focus your attention on the ugly one," Kei 
advised.
     Ugly didn't begin to describe it in Quistis' opinion. Its head was at the 
center of its body with a pair of beady eyes and a pointed muzzle. Two pairs of 
three wings rotated behind it in opposite directions to keep it in the air. She 
wouldn't be surprised if there was magic behind its ability to fly. How it was 
keeping in the air didn't seem to be physically possible considering its wing 
configuration.
     Such thoughts were promptly knocked from her mind as a Red Bat dived at 
her, trying to rake across her face. Quistis guarded her head with her arms. 
Having it get caught in her hair was inviting disaster.
     The Red Bat hissed and ascended.
     As Kei had told her, Quistis ignored it. Her grip around the rante ber 
gangedug tightened as she saw the Buel charge, letting loose a high-pitched 
screech as it attacked. In the midst of the crimson hues and choking steam, the 
thing looked almost like a demon screaming towards her.
     From where he stood far behind Quistis, parasol ready to be deployed and 
deflect the Buel's attack, Eugene clenched his jaw. Kei on the other hand 
hadn't even bothered to unsheathe her katana.
     Suddenly Quistis glared at the attacking Buel and tried to give a shout 
that would rival its own battle cry. With a rapid motion she raised her rante 
and twirled the weapon before yanking down hard to bring the chain whip 
smashing into the ground. The speared end didn't slash the Buel, but it did 
club the creature right in the face. With a yelp the Buel's flight faltered and 
it crashed onto the cavern floor. In a vain attempt to rise it fluttered its 
wings and let out a pitiful whine. It wasn't going anywhere.
     The ease of her victory greatly surprised Quistis. She stepped forward, 
appraising the fallen Buel.
     "Take whatever you can from it," Kei stated, startling the young cadet out 
of her reverie. "And then move on. We don't have time to stand around." She 
turned to Eugene. "Stop being so damned intense; you'd think you were her 
brother or something."
     Eugene delivered a solemn gaze to Kei before he turned and walked over to 
Quistis. "In many ways, I am."
     They moved through the rest of the fire cavern at a good pace. It wasn't 
anywhere near as swift as a graduating SeeD would want, but naturally Quistis 
wasn't a graduating SeeD. About a half-hour later, Quistis found herself 
getting dizzy from all the heat. Her body was sweating profusely, making her 
entire uniform one damp unpleasant mess to walk around in. Her water bottle was 
empty, but Eugene had switched his full bottle with hers.
     On the positive side, all her training with fighting Grats had made Buels 
barely even a challenge for her--once she learned their fighting techniques. 
Soon no airborne creature had a chance to get beyond the outer range of her 
rante.
     After what seemed to be an exhausting eternity they reached the final 
chamber of the cavern. Somewhere on the other side, Ifrit awaited them.
     Kei called Quistis back, and gave the cadet a small polished stone. 
Quistis recognized it as GF Shiva's stone; Xu had one just like it. "You'll 
want to use this against Ifrit," Kei told her. "Summoning a GF is a lot like 
casting a spell: you need to concentrate."
     Quistis felt Shiva stir, a warm flux in the temperature of the stone. 
Shiva had sensed the changing of hands, but was too groggy to take notice since 
she had yet to be called upon. On the other hand, when she was handed the stone 
of Quezelcoatl, the GF took notice of its new owner. Quistis sensed a curious 
probing before Quezelcoatl decided it liked her.
     It appeared that the two Guardian Forces would co-operate with Quistis in 
fighting Ifrit. But that didn't make Eugene feel any easier. And the glare Kei 
gave him was enough to make him not press the issue. With that sort of look in 
Kei's eyes, Ifrit would be a more preferable adversary to fight against.
     They crossed into the final cavern.
     The stalagmites and stalactites were longer here and the high ceiling made 
the cavern seem almost hospitable. However, the heat generated from this 
chamber seemed to be what warmed the entire Fire Cavern. Only a third of this 
underground room was solid rock to stand on; the rest was one enormous pool of 
molten flames. There was some kind of lava pit in front of them, bubbling and 
churning scarlet and orange liquids all mixing together. The intense heat from 
the pit was staggering, the air almost too hot to breathe. Quistis had to pause 
and take a long drink from her water flask.
     Once she satisfied her thirst, her curiosity got the best of her. Quistis 
ventured forward to peer over the edge of the bubbling pit. Not exactly sure 
when or where Ifrit would be appearing from, Eugene started moving to a 
flanking position parallel to where Quistis stood. He glanced down at the fiery 
lake, and suddenly realized with a chill (despite the resident heat) how the 
Guardian Force would be making his appearance.
     "Don't get too close to the edge," Kei cautioned them both.
     Eugene glanced back at Kei, his parasol resting on his shoulder. He nodded 
and kept his distance from Quistis.
     Quistis, on the other hand, looked at them both in confusion. "Where's 
Ifrit?" she asked.
     She got her answer a few seconds later as the entire Fire Cavern seemed to 
rumble. Stones came loose from the ceiling and plummeted to the ground below. 
Both Quistis and Eugene leapt back from the edge of the flaming lake as the 
stones splashed down, spraying the molten liquid in all directions.
     "So," rumbled a voice. "You are here to challenge me, are you?"
     The flames crackling atop the surface of the molten lake burned even 
fiercer than before, doubling in numbers. The intense shudders of the Fire 
Cavern continued as the lava started to bubble violently. The lake swelled, 
pouring down in blurry cascades of liquid inferno. Steam flooded the area, 
driving the SeeD cadets further from the edge.
     And then out from beneath the surface of the fiery lake emerged Ifrit. 
Ifrit looked every bit an infernal demon. Its immense body resembled something 
out of a horror story: tall and muscular, long talons twitching on each hand, 
with a sloping head that resembled a dragon. A pair of horns corkscrewed out 
from the back of Ifrit's crimson head.
     Quistis felt her throat go dry as she tilted her head up and up and then 
up again, gaping in newfound terror at the sheer size of the GF. How could she 
possibly be expected to defeat something this monstrously huge with her tiny 
chain whip?!
     Ifrit scanned the trio, its growling breath echoing across the cavern. The 
low guttural sounds escaping its throat made it seem even more daunting. The GF 
was seeing who was the one chosen to fight against it. One look at Kei and 
Ifrit could sense she had already fought and defeated it before. The GF didn't 
even give her a second glance, now appraising Quistis and Eugene.
     "Very well," it stated, glaring at Eugene. "I accept your challenge."
     Eugene was startled by its acceptance of a challenge he was certain he 
hadn't made. "Wh-What? I ain't your challenger!" he shouted back, vehemently 
shaking his head. Given a few weeks, definitely.
     Ifrit leaned back, surprised. It turned to Kei with a quizzical 
expression; Kei simply pointed over to a paralyzed Quistis. The rogue GF almost 
seemed to do a double-take as it appraised the trembling adolescent in front of 
it. It looked back at Kei as if to silently ask 'Are you sure about this?'
     Kei nodded.
     With what sounded like a conceding sigh, Ifrit turned to Quistis. Its jaws 
opened to unleash a ferocious bellow, which shook the roof of the cavern. That 
more than anything else snapped Quistis back to attention, and she raced across 
the cavern to give herself more room to fight.
     Ifrit watched her move before letting loose with an explosive barrage of 
fireballs. Quistis' agility was put to the test as the GF hammered her 
relentlessly, the young cadet dodging the flaming balls as they struck the 
rocky terrain and erupted. The flames always died out quickly, but left in 
their place a small crater of scorched earth.
     At one point during the battle Quistis was singed by a blast from the 
fire. She cried out, the pain shooting through her arm unexpected and unwanted. 
Eugene stepped forward to defend her, but Kei glared at him so fiercely that 
even a rampant T-Rexaur would have shrunk back into a corner and complied.
     Quistis winced as she had to dive roll out of the path of yet another 
fireball, the uneven ground feeling harsh against her shoulder. She came out of 
her roll in a crouch, and saw an opening as Ifrit momentarily lost sight of her 
behind a burning fireball. Her fingers curled around Shiva's GF stone.
     It had been a long time since she had 'held' Shiva in her hand. At the 
time, Shiva seemed rather thrilled with all the petting it was receiving. As 
she closed her eyes and focused on calling upon Shiva, Quistis silently prayed 
that the GF would remember her.
     Shiva definitely recognized Quistis.
     The icy GF exploded from the stone in Quistis' hand, revealing herself to 
a startled Ifrit. Her whitened body was a stark contrast to the sunset hues of 
the Fire Cavern. But when Shiva just hovered there in the air and looked back, 
Quistis realized to her horror that she didn't know how to command a GF to 
perform a spell.
     Ifrit saw her hesitation, then unleashed a second wave--this one directed 
at Shiva. Shiva screamed as her body was pelted with her opposing element, 
trying to shield her face.
     Quistis' eyes widened as she saw the beating Shiva was taking, utterly 
helpless to say or do anything to intervene. She didn't know if a GF could be 
killed like a human, but she didn't want it to happen. Somewhere amidst the 
tears, anger and magic, Ifrit became a T-Rexaur in Quistis' eyes.
     With a cry mixed of rage, fear and desperation, Quistis projected 
everything she had towards her GF. Whatever managed to explode from somewhere 
deep within her channeled itself right into Shiva. The GF's body shimmered 
before she held out her hands and leveled a cyclone of wind, snow and ice at 
Ifrit. The attack was enough to send Ifrit stumbling back, reeling slightly 
from the impact.
     Kei straightened up as she witnessed the burst of magic from Quistis. This 
was something she had never seen happen so quickly before. If humans could bond 
tightly with their GFs in a moment's time, Quistis looked to have done so with 
Shiva.
     Shiva pummeled Ifrit with a second wave of Diamond Dust.  The fire 
elemental roared with outrage, as though to shatter the icy case surrounding 
him with his voice alone.
     Quistis then summoned Quezelcoatl, and tried to repeat how she had given 
Shiva the command to attack. It worked, Quezelcoatl reacting instantly and 
throttling Ifrit with a Thunder Storm. She then alternated between the two, 
just as relentless as Ifrit had been at the start of the fight.
     Ifrit had no chance to attack when it had to direct all its efforts 
towards defending itself from Shiva and Quezelcoatl's spells. Soon its strength 
wore out, and Ifrit admitted its defeat.
     The air temperature in the Fire Cavern dropped considerably, a refreshing 
draft flooding the area and racing past Eugene and Kei. Satisfied with their 
near flawless victory, Shiva and Quezelcoatl returned to their stones. Quistis 
tightly gripped the stones, feeling each GF tingle her skin in celebration.
     But the battle had been won at a cost.
     Quistis dropped to her knees, and then collapsed on the ground. Kei and 
Eugene raced to her side, Eugene actually sliding across the loose dirt and 
rocks the last couple meters. He cradled her unconscious form in his arms, 
looking up at Kei.
     "Heat stroke," he said. "She's exhausted."
     "I don't blame her," Kei replied. "We should take her outside and make 
sure she's all right. I'd prefer not to have Doctor Kadowaki ask me 
questions I'm not about to answer."
     Eugene bit his lip about saying this wouldn't have happened if they hadn't 
taken Quistis here in the first place. But truth be told, he was still in awe 
of having witnessed her defeat of Ifrit. The thrill and experience Quistis 
gained made his protests after the fact a moot point.
     Both he and Kei knew it.
     "Not many cadets have given me so much trouble," Ifrit rumbled, licking 
its wounds. It stared directly at Kei, and Kei simply crossed her arms over her 
chest. Something unspoken was shared between the two; Eugene had a healthy 
suspicion that Kei was one of those 'troublesome' cadets Ifrit had mentioned.
     Ifrit reached out and flicked something across the cavern. Kei's arm 
snapped forward and snatched the item out from the air. It was Ifrit's stone.
     "She has proven herself more than worthy of calling upon me," Ifrit 
stated, its body starting to sink back into the molten lake. "When she awakens, 
give that to her."
     Kei pocketed the Ifrit stone, and then gently removed Quezelcoatl and 
Shiva from Quistis' hands. The two GFs pouted upon their removal.
     "I'd say this was well worth the risk, don't you?" she asked Eugene.
     Eugene smiled wearily and nodded, though his own mind was preoccupied with 
something else. What he didn't like was how well Quistis had managed to command 
her GF even on a first-time basis. That wasn't the concern though, but again 
she was displaying some sort of incredible magic... and yet her training with 
Jessie still needed work. Why?
     He puzzled over that as he hoisted Quistis onto his back and carried out 
her out of the Fire Cavern. Kei brought up the rear, toting everyone's weapons. 
When the fresh, cold air of the night struck their faces, it was a very 
welcomed sensation.


     Quistis spent the next few days 'sick' in bed.
     Well... technically she was sick, Eugene reflected. She had lost a lot of 
fluids and was both physically and mentally exhausted. But he would have never 
dreamed of such a tiny thing utterly trouncing Ifrit. What a precedent she had 
set--even if they couldn't tell the other cadets about it.
     Doctor Kadowaki called it a nasty flu bug and had Quistis placed in the 
Infirmary. Quistis was put on an IV line until her body had replenished its 
fluids. For most of her time in recovery, Quistis was pretty groggy; yet 
whenever she was awake, she was smiling for some mysterious reason.
     "I don't care what the Doctor says," Jessie stated as he and Eugene kept 
vigil outside the Infirmary. "I've faked sick plenty of times to know my 
symptoms, and that is no flu virus." He turned to Eugene. "What's the story?"
     Eugene sighed, sticking his hands into his pockets. He turned his head 
away from Jessie and looked down the corridor. "You wouldn't believe me even if 
I told you," he answered.
     Doctor Kadowaki had demanded the same thing from him, and that was the 
answer he had given her. It definitely risked his graduating as a SeeD--had Kei 
not intervened. He had no idea what she told the Doctor, but the hammer had yet 
to fall on him.
     It looked like he was in the clear.
     Now he just had to worry about his own battle with Ifrit.


     Kei disappeared during the month of July, and for half of August. Quistis 
had managed to piece something together about Kei being asked to escort someone 
to the Anshin clan. As much as she wanted to see where Xu had grown up, she 
knew she had other obligations.
     The battle and victory against Ifrit had done wonders for her 
self-confidence. Jessie and LeVar both noticed something different about her, 
namely that Quistis was getting a little more aggressive in her work. The shy, 
reluctant passivity was being slowly eaten away and replaced with the maturity 
gained only by a profound experience.
     Eugene never did tell them what said experience was. And he made it a 
point that Quistis should never tell anyone else about it. She understood; more 
than only her would get in trouble for such a dangerous violation of Garden 
rules. He did add, though, that she could continue to work with Ifrit inside 
the Training Centre.
     He became her sole partner inside the Centre as much as he could afford to 
during his last two months, watching her get more proficient at summoning Ifrit 
and having the GF incinerate a pesky Grat. When Kei returned, he left the 
duties with her.
     Quistis had a number of questions to ask Kei about life in the Anshin 
clan; Xu had never really said much of anything about them. Kei proved to be 
even more tight-lipped. No love was lost between Kei and her abandoned 
heritage.
     Breaking up Squall and Seifer fights also became one of her regular 
duties.  It was either happy coincidence or bad luck that she ran across them 
more often than not when they scuffled.  Privately she wondered about their 
chances at graduation with the number of reprimands that must be on their 
records.  Only time will tell with that pair.
     Time wasn't on her side at it swiftly came for Eugene to take his exams.
     Quistis had to race from one of her classes over to where the potential 
graduates were taking their written exam. Eugene walked out about twenty 
minutes later, and got a passing grade. His field test came two days later.
     During the interim, Quistis helped him pack up his things in his dorm 
room. "I'm going to miss seeing you around every day," he said to her as he 
removed some mementos from home and carefully placed them into a duffel bag. 
"You're the sister I never had."
     That surprised Quistis a little. The way Eugene behaved around her made it 
seem like she reminded him of a little sister. "Don't you have one?"
     "Nope," Eugene said, shaking his head. "I got two brothers: one younger 
and one older. They're all tending the family farm. I got nominated for the 
glory road; most the gil I'll be earning will go to support the farm. Machinery 
costs a lot these days."
     Quistis nodded, saddened all the more that he'd be leaving soon. But she 
had been through the same ordeal with Xu and made it out alive. This time it 
was different, though. Quistis felt a lot older than from what she had been 
almost nine months ago. And the changes had been all for the better.
     Eugene grinned as he paused to watch Quistis carefully fold some of his 
clothes up. It was an odd feeling, leaving a legacy like her behind. But now 
more than ever he felt certain Quistis would graduate a SeeD. With any luck, 
their paths would cross again in the future.


     Eugene paid her one final visit after the private graduation ceremony was 
held. Quistis was busy crushing Jessie at a game of Triple Triad in his and 
LeVar's dorm, with LeVar sprawled out on his bunk reading up for a report due 
in a few days.
     When Eugene strolled in unannounced, he was in a SeeD uniform and looked 
every bit the part.
     "I'll be damned," Jessie laughed as he stood up and patted Eugene on the 
shoulder. "You made it after all!"
     "Top of the class, no less," Eugene added, the pride in his voice unable 
to be hidden. "I was Squad Leader, and got the best field grade of them all."
     LeVar rolled out from his bunk and carefully stepped over the Triple Triad 
game. "It's going to be different with you not around anymore," he said, 
extending his hand. The two friends shook. "Who's going to help me keep Jessie 
in line?"
     "I don't know," Eugene admitted. "Maybe you should ask Quistis."
     Quistis' head snapped to attention as she stood alongside LeVar, waiting 
for her turn to say good-bye. She wrapped her arms around Eugene's thick chest, 
warmly hugging him as best as she could.  "I'll never forget you," she said.
     Eugene hugged her, though tried not to crush her in his grip. "I'll miss 
ya too," he admitted, smiling fondly. He abruptly paused and glanced over at 
Jessie and LeVar, who were both grinning like Cheshire cats up to no good.
     "Awwww!" the two chorused, giving a wistful sigh.
     Eugene huffed, "The first time you two work together, and it's to mock me. 
There is no justice."
     Quistis had to giggle at that.
     "So what's the first mission?" Jessie asked, tossing an issue of Weapons 
Monthly off his desk to clear a place to sit.
     "I leave for Centra this afternoon," Eugene replied, finding a corner of 
the bunk bed to lean against. "At least I think it's the Centra Ruins. 
Something about a missing person. I don't know; they haven't given us much 
information about it."
     "Or else they've told you everything and you're not allowed to share," 
LeVar countered.
     Eugene just shrugged. "That too."


     As the summer faded into fall, things changed in a gradual and subtle way 
for Quistis. Even with Eugene gone, Jessie and LeVar were busy keeping her a 
part of Garden life. Jessie was starting to make good on his word and introduce 
Quistis to a variety of his friends. These people treated her differently from 
when they had talked to her after Sean's death. Everyone seemed more sincere 
and friendly. A number of them invited Quistis to join them in their activities 
when she had some free time. Offers and challenges for Triple Triad abounded, 
as rumour of Quistis' growing skill at the game spread.
     And more than one female cadet fawned over how Jessie was being so 
selfless in being a surrogate big brother for her. Jessie played it for all he 
could, and managed to get a few nightly rendezvous in the process too.
     Much to Doctor Kadowaki's relief (not to mention Cid's), Quistis was 
making a lot of progress in her therapy sessions. Ripples from her duel against 
Ifrit had boosted the young cadet's self-confidence considerably, and much of 
the grief she had suffered in the wake of Sean's death was gone. It wasn't that 
Quistis had forgotten or suppressed the pain. Most importantly, she had learned 
to cope with it and move on.
     Quistis never really seemed to realize any of this, moving through her 
classes and training as any other cadet would have. On October fourth she 
celebrated her 13th birthday. Kei, LeVar and Jessie had hosted a surprise party 
in the Cafeteria about an hour before it closed. While there hadn't been that 
many presents to give to her, it was the laughter and friendship that Quistis 
appreciated the most.
     She was aware of how much a 'household' name she was becoming among her 
peers--but thanks to the earlier efforts from Sean and his friends, virtually 
all of the talk about her was incredibly positive.
     Trepie support was on the rise, and Jessie had made it his mission to get 
to know each female supporter personally. LeVar just rolled his eyes--though he 
admittedly had more contact with the ladies, who would always ask him how 
Quistis was doing.
     "At this rate, you might get a date before you graduate," Jessie once 
ribbed him. "Maybe the Fire Cavern will freeze over after all."
     "If that becomes the case," LeVar retorted, "I'll have Ifrit drive the 
zamboni machine and run you down."
     LeVar paused in his studies as he thought about a rather cute red-haired 
female cadet whom he had met thanks to Quistis' growing notoriety. His thoughts 
returned to his homework, and he started paging through the small stacks of 
books sprawled out on the table. Across from him, Quistis was doing her own 
research on a subject their study group had been assigned for a military 
history class.
     He watched Quistis from the corner of his eye as she squinted at the book 
on the desk. She paused in her reading to massage the bridge of her nose before 
getting back to it.
     "Headache?" he asked with modest sympathy.
     She nodded without looking up from her studies.
     "Do you get them often?" LeVar knew the answer, but kept it to himself. He 
had noticed this starting to happen more frequently to Quistis, but decided not 
to press the issue until Quistis brought it up. Now seemed like a good time to 
test out his suspicions.
     She shrugged. "Only when I'm studying. Maybe I'm thinking too hard?" She 
favored him with a small lopsided smile.
     He closed the book he was reading then walked over to the desk she was at 
and closed her book after marking the page. "Or perhaps it's something else. 
Let's go see Doctor Kadowaki."
     Confusion colored her face as she looked back at her book reluctantly. 
"I'm not sick. Why would I need to see the Doctor?"
     "Trust me."
     He picked up her books with his own and then gently guided her out of the 
Library.


     Jessie spun around in his chair and gave a wolf whistle as Quistis 
hesitantly entered the dorm room. "Not bad at all," he remarked, nodding his 
approval.
     "Are you sure?" Quistis asked, wrinkling her brow as she tried to get used 
to seeing the world through a pair of wire-rimmed glasses. LeVar's insistence 
that she see Doctor Kadowaki had result in the diagnosis that she was in need 
of glasses. Now Quistis would have to use them when she was studying, but not 
out in the field.
     "Reading glasses aren't just for old ladies," LeVar stated, nudging 
Quistis further into the room. "If anything, they give you an air of class and 
sophistication."
     Jessie drew a blank look before finally replying, "What he said. 
Seriously, Quistis, those glasses actually make you look really... pretty."
     Pretty.
     Skye had said the same thing upon seeing Quistis with her new glasses. 
Quistis wasn't sure how to interpret that; in the past, everyone described her 
petite appearance as being cute. Cute like a baby, or a puppy dog. Pretty was a 
descriptive word she had yet to grow accustomed to.
     Not that she was entirely objecting to it.
     After being praised by Jessie for a few more minutes, she had to excuse 
herself to get to a training session with her rante ber gangedug.
     "See you at the Cafeteria later tonight," LeVar said, waving to her as she 
left.
     Jessie's grin started to fade when Quistis closed the door behind herself. 
"So... you noticed it too?" he inquired solemnly.
     LeVar nodded. "Yeah."
     The two guys looked around the room, expecting the other to give a 
suggestion first. LeVar seemed to find something fascinating amidst the piles 
of books on his desk. Jessie took to counting the dots on the ceiling tiles.
     "We need to do something," LeVar said finally.
     Jessie tipped his head back, putting distance between himself and his 
roommate. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
     "For Quistis' sake, it has to be done."
     "I know that," Jessie replied, growing more agitated. "But I just don't 
think I'm the guy to do it. This is out of our league."
     "What about Kei?"
     Jessie almost laughed out loud. "Forget it! I'd rather face this thing 
alone than risk giving Kei a reason to kick my ass. I know Eugene told us she'd 
make a valuable contact, but even still," he pointed to LeVar. "You've talked 
with her more than I have; you know her better!"
     At this rate, they were going to be stuck at an impasse. By the time they 
came up with a solution, odds were it would already be too late to handle the 
situation properly. Or at least as properly as they could try.
     LeVar held out a gil. "Heads, I speak with Kei. Tails it's your duty."
     "Ha! You've already lost," Jessie laughed confidently. "I've never lost a 
coin toss, and we both know it."


     Kei was waiting for Jessie when he entered the Library just before closing 
time the next evening. She briefly looked him over before getting down to 
business. "I don't usually meet with you," she stated. "What happened to your 
friend?"
     Jessie shrugged, hands shoved deep into his pockets. "LeVar's with Quistis 
in their study group and I lost the coin toss. Look, Eugene told us that if we 
needed certain things regarding Quistis, we should come to you."
     Jessie seemed incredibly nervous around Kei, which was warranted in a 
sense. Usually LeVar was the one to make contact with Kei. Besides that Kei had 
quite the 'queen bitch' reputation if you got on her bad side. But Kei could 
sense there was something else that was making him agitated.
     "And what is it?" she asked.
     Jessie's eyes snapped back to fixate on her, and then he looked away to 
some of the books as if they were more interesting. After a little hemming and 
stuttering, he managed to sputter out an, "Um..."
     "Well?" Kei pressed, quite ready to smack him in order to get the answer.
     "She's getting breasts, okay?" Jessie hissed, his face turning a shade of 
red. "There, I said it. You happy now?"
     For once, Kei was caught by surprise.
     She could only blink at the cadet in front of her.
     Jessie was still visibly uncomfortable about the whole matter, but pressed 
on regardless. "Look, Quistis is going to need some kind of bra, and the only 
experience I have is in taking them off--and that's bloody hard to do as it 
is!"
     Kei suppressed the urge to really smack Jessie, but he had a disturbingly 
valid point. Quistis was on the verge of puberty, and her body would start 
going through a lot of physical changes. She was already starting a noticeable 
growth spurt. Guaranteed the men she hung out with wouldn't know the first 
thing about how to handle this. Jessie's flustered state only served to further 
prove the point.
     Now it looked like she was getting stuck with the 'job' of guiding Quistis 
into womanhood.
     "So why come to me?" Kei asked. "Why not go to Skye? She is Quistis' 
roommate after all."
     "Because I'm having a hard enough time with you as it is," Jessie said, 
getting more exasperated with the entire discussion as time went on. "I know 
you a little better thanks to Eugene, but I've barely even talked to Skye. At 
least with you, I relatively know where I stand."
     And currently it felt like it was in deep shit.
     Against her better wishes, Kei agreed to quietly take care of the matter. 
A very relieved Jessie bowed slightly to her and then quickly left the Library.
     Kei shook her head, wondering what she had gotten herself into. Xu would 
be better equipped to handle things like this. Hell, even as a child Kei had to 
be physically forced into the traditional female dress of the Anshin (cohesion 
wasn't nearly enough). And she never went for the dress styles that were common 
in this part of the world. In fact, she was so set against the idea that she'd 
rather walk around naked first.


     "C'mon Quistis, we're going to town." Kei tried to sound enthused by the 
prospect, but it came out forced. She'd rather spend the day fighting Grats 
barehanded than take Quistis to Balamb for a shopping trip, but it had to be 
done.
     Quistis didn't argue the unannounced trip. She had been looking for 
something to do. She was ahead in her studies and had planned on wasting the 
rest day away by playing Triple Triad. It was strange for Kei to seek her out. 
Her curiosity was piqued as to what prompted it.
     As it turned out, Kei had signed a jeep out for their excursion. Quistis 
enjoyed the ride, letting the wind play with her hair. The best part about this 
was knowing that she didn't have to worry about wearing her glasses; they would 
only get in the way.
     Kei glanced over to the pre-teen sitting next to her. Now that it was 
brought to her attention, she could see the subtle curves beginning to 
distinguish themselves from the shapelessness of childhood. Quistis would be 
beautiful once she matured, there was no doubt of that in Kei's mind. She 
couldn't mess today up, not if she was going to show the girl the joys of being 
a woman... at least, that's the impression Xu gave.
     It took her by surprise when Quistis readily agreed to go to Balamb with 
her alone. Had a bond between them formed after their Fire Cavern adventure? 
No, at best Kei was a shallow replacement for her cousin. If anything, Quistis 
was extending some of the trust she granted Xu to her.
     Such a trusting child...
     "What are we doing today?" Quistis asked once Kei had found a place to 
park.
     Kei made a show of wrinkling her brow as she considered it. "We should 
probably start with some clothes shopping," she suggested.
     "Clothes shopping?" the younger asked. Kei simply nodded and began walking 
towards downtown Balamb where there were plenty of shops clustered together. It 
might be possible to get everything done there without having to leave the 
immediate area.
     Neither of them wore any clothing that identified them as being from the 
Garden. Kei wore a pair of faded blue jeans and a white tee shirt. A stylish 
jacket was worn overtop the shirt to add a bit of flavor to the outfit. Quistis 
watched her curiously as she brushed her hair back with her left hand and ran 
it down her neck.
     Kei had dryly suggested that Quistis try wearing something other than a 
uniform when they went to town. Quistis wasn't as obsessive about keeping her 
nice clothes nice as Xu was, after all. This suggestion demonstrated Quistis' 
plight quite plainly. She'd grown so much that none of her civilian clothes fit 
her properly. Buying something that was her size would be a top priority.
     The first shop they went in was one of the larger clothing outlets in 
Balamb. Kei frowned slightly then stood up on her tiptoes to scan the room for 
the department she wanted.
     "Ah, follow me," Kei told her companion.  They went to the back of the 
store, which was sectioned off from everything else. It was the undergarment 
department.
     Quistis flushed slightly as she turned her eyes away from the various 
styles of panties and bras on display. Kei took no notice of this and continued 
even further into the depths with her in tow. Stopping in front of one rack, 
Kei examined the items it held until finding one that matched what she was 
searching for and pulled it out.
     "Here, try this training bra on and tell me if it's loose," she 
instructed.
     Quistis shuffled even more and turned away with the bra held awkwardly in 
her grasp.
     Kei folded her arms across her chest with annoyance. "It's not going to 
eat you. There's no doubt that you're going to get bigger; you'll grow into it. 
We need to know what size to start off with."
     Quistis flushed even more. "You didn't tell me that we came to Balamb for 
this," she whispered harshly. Why did she feel so embarrassed all of a sudden? 
She'd undressed in the locker room with other girls around plenty of times. But 
her body was *changing*, she could see it as much as she could feel it. It made 
her feel awkward, ungainly, and equally embarrassed when her classmates noticed 
the differences.
     The SeeD's stance softened. "I'm sorry. You'll feel better about this trip 
and about yourself by the end of today, I promise."
     Quistis' eyes met her own. They clearly said that she shouldn't promise 
things that she couldn't deliver. Kei put a hand on her shoulder and gave it a 
small squeeze. "Trust me, Quistis."
     The girl looked down at the bra still clinched in her fist. Kei had asked 
that same thing in the Fire Cavern and hadn't failed her then. "Okay..."
     Abruptly a saleswoman conveniently presented herself to show Quistis to a 
changing room. Kei continued to politely glance through the various items 
available for purchase.


     While Quistis received some impromptu (and much needed) instruction from 
the saleswoman, Kei had little else to do. She wanted to stay close to Quistis 
just as a precaution, but in a section like this there wasn't much to browse 
that could snag her interest.
     Something else caught Kei's eye, however: namely a cute girl looking at 
some lingerie that left very little to the imagination. Kei's imagination went 
places it shouldn't before she gave herself a mental shake. 'I'm here to help 
Quistis, not go cruising for chicks,' she scolded herself firmly.


     As Quistis learned how to put on and wear her training bra, the saleswoman 
took a brief moment to glance over at Kei. She watched the young man that had 
brought the girl in the changing room into the store. His selection for 
training bras had been several sizes too large for the girl. At least he wasn't 
shying away from the subject as she had seen many fathers do. Odd that there 
was very little resemblance between the girl and the young man. It shouldn't 
surprise her though. After the war, the broken shards of many families were 
reformed into a new whole. The girl having a loving father figure was all that 
really mattered.


     Nearly an hour passed while Kei waited. The saleswoman took it upon 
herself to help Quistis find something that was appropriate. She then went the 
even further by explaining some of the physical changes Quistis was going to 
experience in the upcoming months. For that, Kei was grateful.
     Putting the bill on the Garden's account, Kei paid for the bras and then 
held onto the bag as she and Quistis left the store. They wandered around the 
arcade area, doing a bit of window browsing before they hit the next store.
     Kei slowed down as she peered into the Weapon Smith's shop window. There 
was a finely crafted blade sitting on display. Quistis gave her hand a small 
tug to keep her moving and Kei whimpered on the inside. She wanted to admire 
the weapons, not go clothes shopping.
     By late morning Quistis' wardrobe had been somewhat replenished, though 
Kei had admittedly been of little help when it came to seeing what sort of 
typically female clothes best suited Quistis. The cadet seemed to take it in 
stride, and at the store had paraded around in a very pretty dress like she was 
in a fashion show.
     Even though it cost more than Kei would have preferred, she still bought 
it for Quistis. Balamb would pick up the tab. And Kei dared someone to try and 
have Quistis return the dress after seeing the smile on her face as she tried 
the gown on for the first time.
     Kei was ready to call it a day and return to the Garden when Quistis began 
to ask her something.
     "Kei?" Quistis shuffled along the sidewalk with her bag of clothes held in 
front of her.
     "Hum?" the SeeD asked. Kei glanced at her watch and noticed that lunch 
time was fast approaching, but they'd eaten a late breakfast. Quistis shouldn't 
be hungry just yet.
     Quistis stopped walking. "Could I, um..." Shuffle. "I'd like to..." 
Squirm. Quistis blushed and stared down at her toes.
     'She's picking up Jessie's bad habits,' Kei thought darkly.
     "What is it, Quistis?" she asked gently. Different people required 
different approaches to drag answers out of them. Smacking Quistis around 
wouldn't have nearly the effect that it did on Jessie, nor would she want to 
face the wrath of Xu for doing such a thing.
     "I'd like to get my ears pierced," she said in a barely audible whisper.
     Kei rocked back on her heels. 'Well, well, if this isn't a surprise. What 
to do?' She smirked and began walking again.
     "Let me ask you something first," she drawled. "Why do you want to?"
     Quistis blinked, then quickly caught up to the SeeD. "Why?  Um... because 
it's what girls do."
     "Not Xu," Kei pointed out.
     "Ah..." Quistis bit down on her lower lip as she tried to come up with 
another reason. "Because I want to."
     "Why?"
     The girl scowled, her forehead furrowing in thought. She didn't know why.
     "Did you know that in some parts of Winhill babes have their ears pierced 
with a needle no more than a year after birth?"  Quistis shook her head. "Body 
piercing isn't something that the Anshin practice at all. That's why Xu doesn't 
have hers pierced. Point in fact, some cultures view it as a rite of passage 
for womanhood."
     Quistis continued to follow her with a look of polite interest. Kei had 
her hooked now; curious to know where she was going with this. "What culture is 
that?"
     "Yours, Quistis," Kei dug her hands into her pocket and laughed at the 
startled expression on the cadet's face. Balamb Garden was such a melding pot 
of ideas and people that Quistis often forgot the differences in her friends' 
backgrounds. Or that her homeland was different than theirs. To her, they were 
all from Balamb.
     "So I guess that the real question is: are you ready to become a woman?" 
Kei peered at her through narrowed eyes.
     Quistis was visibly startled by this turn of events. She thought they were 
just going clothes shopping. The prospect of facing this stage in her growth 
was unexpected, but at the same time delightfully frightening. She wanted be an 
adult. She wanted to be a SeeD.
     "I'm ready," she answered with less resolve than she was feeling. Why did 
her voice have to crack? Was it because of the fear that was balled up in her 
stomach all of a sudden? Now was the time to prove that she was ready to be a 
woman.
     Kei noticed the cracking of her voice, but said nothing. They continued 
walking as the SeeD lead the way. "It hurts, you do realize. Not as much as 
some things--like a beating delivered by Xu after she's discovered that you've 
eaten the last apple around for kilometers. But still, it isn't a pinch on the 
arm either."
     Quistis refrained from laughing at the voice of experience. She couldn't 
imagine Xu becoming upset over an apple unless Kei had done something to 
provoke her to that point. Logic itself said that pain would be involved. The 
act involved forcing a foreign object through sensitive flesh. Logic couldn't 
justify all of this, but it could certainly try.
     "You're actually getting off pretty easy. Thank goodness you weren't born 
Anshin," Kei nodded her head firmly.
     "Why's that?" she asked. Xu never spoke this much about her homeland. 
Quistis was glad that Kei was in the talkative mood. Admittedly, she'd gone 
through every book in the Library that even mentioned Centra with hopes of 
learning more about the place Xu was from. There was a lot of ancient history. 
Considering that it was the 'birthplace' of modern civilization before the 
monsters drove people to the continents of Galbadia and Esthar, that was to be 
expected. But there wasn't much information to be found covering the last 70 
years or so. Modern history of the Centra continent was a completely blank 
slate.
     "Ask Xu." Kei shook her head with bemusement then added, "I never grew 
up."
     Quistis wasn't sure how to take that, so she tucked it away for later 
consideration.
     The shop Kei led them into was a small one. A matronly looking woman stood 
behind a glass counter that held all sorts of jewelry and makeup.
     Kei nudged Quistis forward. "You should ask her about makeup as well," she 
suggested. The woman smiled kindly at Quistis and began to speak about what 
shades would go best with her fair skin.  Quistis absorbed the lesson on colors 
as Kei patiently stood back and watched.
     'This is going better than I expected,' she thought smugly.  At this rate, 
she could squirm out of nearly every 'lesson' Quistis needed. She already 
planned on saddling Kadowaki with explaining the changes Quistis' body would be 
going through in the upcoming years. Boys wouldn't become much of an issue 
(through either Quistis' disinterest or Kei's discouragement of guys on the 
prowl) until Xu returned. Once her cousin was back, she could explain the finer 
points of courtship.
     Quistis abruptly turned around to ask Kei a question, breaking her free of 
her private thoughts. "Do you wear makeup?"
     Kei blanched. "No."
     "Why not?"
     'Because it's stupid,' Kei thought silently before coming up with a better 
answer. "It's not the Anshin way."
     "But doesn't Xu...?"
     "......"
     Quistis had her there. Though she got only a half point since her cousin 
was rather reserved about it. Xu only bothered to put light makeup on when she 
knew she wasn't going to be training that day.
     Kei jutted her chin towards the woman at the counter, trying to distract 
Quistis from that line of questioning. "Get what answers you can. You'll learn 
more from her than from me."
     That was the truth put bluntly. The two spoke for what seemed like forever 
about things that held no interest for Kei.  She amused herself by looking at 
the items in the glass cases lining the shop walls, but that grew tiresome 
before long. So she stood back with her arms crossed and waited for the girl 
talk to subside. She'd nearly lulled herself into a standing sleep when the 
woman behind the counter called for her to come over.
     "You're her guardian?" She asked.
     "One of them. It takes a Garden to raise a SeeD, you know." She smirked at 
her own pun. The woman smiled hesitantly, moving past the awkward pause that 
followed.
     "Sign here," she pushed some papers across the counter, release forms and 
the like. Kei glanced over at Quistis to see if her nerve had dissolved. From 
the look on her face, it hadn't.  Kei signed the papers after giving her 
companion one more, long look. Quistis returned her gaze with her shoulders 
back and her head held high.
     She was scared shitless.
     While the woman worked, Kei considered how it could be worse. The process 
was a refined one that reduced the discomfort involved to a minimum. After the 
ear was pierced a Cure spell was cast with the stud still in place. This sped 
along the scaring process and the holes were healed almost immediately.
     Kei shook her head mentally while thinking of how the Anshin would 
complicate the process if they practiced it. Their stubborn belief that most 
wounds should be healed naturally over time would only increase the chance of 
infection and make the person's ears ache for days (if not weeks) afterwards. 
It was stupid. Then again, they were stupid, so it's for the better that they 
never picked up the practice.
     To her credit, Quistis didn't so much as flinch. Not that Kei expected her 
to. By now Garden training had significantly increased her pain threshold. 
She'd faced Grats, Bombs, Buels, and the Guardian Force Ifrit--and survived. 
This was child's play for her.
     It was time to acknowledge that she'd grown up.
     Quistis tried not to touch the studs in her ears. The unusual weight and 
slight sting were sensations that she would quickly become accustomed to, but 
it was tempting to fiddle until the newness wore off. Kei chuckled lightly as 
she guided her charge to their next stop. There wasn't much more left for them 
to do in Balamb and they still had yet to visit Kadowaki today.


     Jessie was seated on the floor his back against the wall and his arms 
propped up on his knees. Next to him, LeVar was just as anxious as he leaned 
against the wall. From their vantage point, they could see the Infirmary door 
down the hallway.
     Earlier on in the day, they had discovered that Quistis was strangely 
absent from all her usual haunts. A few choice inquiries clued them in that Kei 
had taken Quistis out for the day. Given Jessie's recent conversation with Kei, 
it wasn't hard to guess why.
     Their own academic obligations had prevented either of them from going to 
Balamb and shadowing Kei. That, and the fact that the SeeD would surely notice 
being followed by two amateurs. Jessie and LeVar liked their internal organs 
right where they were. So both cadets had simply sulked around the Garden until 
they learned Kei and Quistis had returned.
     The trail of witnesses ended at the Infirmary.
     "So, you still think Kei will pull it off after all?" LeVar asked.
     Jessie could only shrug. "I haven't the slightest idea. This is the first 
time I've actually made a bet where I didn't know the odds. This could go 
either way."
     LeVar nodded slightly, still focused on the closed Infirmary door. "You 
backing out, then?"
     "Hell no!" Jessie snapped, jumping to his feet. "You know me: when I'm in, 
I'm in 'til the end. We've got twenty gil riding on this."
     LeVar winced, checking the corridor to make sure no one else was around to 
hear them. "Keep it down a little, will you?" he hissed to his roommate. "If 
Kei finds out we're betting on how she does with... explaining things to 
Quistis, not even Cid will be able to find our bodies."
     "I still think we could have had an underground pool going with the 
Trepies," Jessie argued.
     "You want to risk that much of a leak?"
     "Nah. That gives Kei more bodies to hide. With any luck, when she maims 
everyone else, that'll give me sufficient time to escape to someplace a little 
more inviting. Like Galbadia Garden."
     LeVar abruptly motioned for silence as the door to the Infirmary opened. 
Kei and Quistis stepped out.
     "Thank you for your time, Doctor," Kei said, warmly shaking Kadowaki's 
hand. "It was good of you to help out."
     "That's two you owe me," the Doctor stated.
     A smirk tugged at the SeeD's lips. "When Quistis graduates, we'll call it 
even."
     LeVar and Jessie quickly ducked around the corner to avoid being seen. The 
two females went the opposite way down the corridor, so the guys didn't have to 
scamper off and find a new hiding place.
     Jessie was pouting in the aftermath. "No fair," he muttered to LeVar. "Kei 
cheated! She let everyone else tell Quistis about... maturity. "
     "And that's twenty gil you owe me," LeVar added with a smirk. "Told you 
she'd get it done one way or the other."
     "If you had seen her reaction when I told her about Quistis needing a 
training bra, you'd have placed your bet with me," Jessie said dryly. His eyes 
narrowed as he saw LeVar abruptly chuckle. "And what's so funny?"
     LeVar reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a single gil coin. He 
handed it over to Jessie. Upon a quick examination of the coin, Jessie's eyes 
widened. He glared at LeVar.
     "You used a two-headed coin on me, you bastard?! I nearly wet myself when 
I had to approach Kei!" He crossed his arms over his chest and deliberately 
turned away from his roommate. "As compensation for my mental anguish, I demand 
that we call this bet a draw."
     "Suit yourself," LeVar replied.
     Sure it meant not being able to collect another twenty gil from his 
friend, but the look on Jessie's face before and after his talk with Kei had 
been so worth it.


     By the end of the year, Kei had become a familiar face among Quistis' core 
group of friends. Granted there was some obvious distance (not to mention 
tension) between Kei, and LeVar and Jessie. But that was to be expected between 
actual SeeDs and SeeD cadets. Quistis enjoyed having another female to talk to; 
Skye was frequenting their dorm room less and less. Quistis usually saw Skye 
when the elder cadet was sleeping.
     In fact, it took quite a bit of effort on Quistis' part to find one of 
Skye's studying hangouts.  There was something she wanted to ask the older 
cadet and had finally built up the nerve to approach her.  Quistis wasn't a 
meek person by nature, but some subjects were more painful than others were...
     Upon seeing Quistis home in on her, Skye stacked up the books next to her 
on the bench to make room for Quistis.  There were so many benches throughout 
the Garden that Skye could take up an entire one and not feel guilty for 
monopolizing it.
     "What's up?" Skye asked.
     Quistis looked at her hands that were folded tightly on her lap.  Now that 
she was here, her resolve was wavering.  Did she want to know that bad..?  
"Please tell me about home."
     Skye gave her a puzzled look.  "Huh?"
     "Tell me about Cottage Grove."
     "Oh," Skye breathed softly.  After their first encounter, she made it a 
point to never mention their hometown in front of Quistis.  And until now, 
Quistis had shown no interest in having the status quo change.
     Quistis understood Skye's hesitation.  She probably didn't even know where 
to start.  "Is it nice there?" She prompted.
     "Eh... Yeah.  Lake Obel is beautiful during the summer.  There's a 
festival held at the lake's shore every year.  Everyone in the village goes to 
it, even the old grannies whom you never see leave their porches."  Skye 
abruptly closed her mouth.  Talking about the lake where Quistis' parents died 
in such fond terms probably wasn't a good idea.
     "How many people live there?"
     "I don't know exactly.  Maybe a couple hundred?  The Mayor could give you 
the exact count.  Or the lady at the general store, she knows all the gossip 
and whatnot."
     "Too small of a village for you?"
     Skye smiled slightly and nodded.  "Too slow.  It'd be a nice place to 
retire or raise kids, but it's no fun for people our age.
     "Now let me ask you a question.  Why are you curious all of a sudden?"
     Quistis bowed her head.  "I don't remember it, not even the lake.  
Probably because I was so young when I went to the orphanage.  I wanted to know 
what it was like there."
     "Oh."
     They sat in silence for several minutes before Quistis got up and walked 
away.  Skye watched her go with an odd feeling of sadness.  It must be horrible 
to not remember where you're from.


     It was in early December that Jessie invited Quistis to join his family 
for the winter break. Beforehand he brought the idea to Kei, who needed a 
little cajoling (and a lot of nerve from Jessie) to finally give her approval. 
It only came when Jessie playfully said that if Kei was that protective she 
could come along with Quistis.
     Turned out she agreed to those terms.
     Jessie hadn't expected that, but the SeeD had called his bluff. And he 
really did want for Quistis to get out from Balamb and see a little of the 
world during her break. Jessie also managed to recover some of his pride by 
telling Kei that he could also provide travel fare for all three of them.
     "It's my invitation," he said as he explained his logic. "If you can't get 
there on your own, it's my duty to escort you there myself."
     The location of Jessie's hometown was in the Wilburn Hill region, 
southwest of Deling City. The day after the winter break began, the three took 
a train heading to Deling City. Jessie also took some time to show them around 
the city.
     Quistis felt strange as she was escorted through part of the downtown 
core. This was the place where she had spent some of her childhood before going 
to Balamb Garden. Scattered memories seemed to be lurking everywhere. But 
everything she looked at seemed a little smaller than she remembered.
     "How are you going to get to Wilburn Hill?" Kei demanded evenly as Jessie 
led them into a small building. From the start he had only said 'Trust me!' 
when it came to the travel arrangements. So far he had come through, but Kei 
didn't like not having control of a situation.
     There was no train that they could take to the plateaus, and renting a car 
in Deling City would be costly. If he said they were going to walk or 
hitchhike, she'd slug him on the spot.
     "Afternoon!" Jessie called loudly, waving to the man behind the desk like 
they were best friends. "de Bono, it's been a while!"
     The man in question was tall and thin, and looked slightly cadaverous with 
his pale, gaunt face. He broke out into a broad, toothy grin when he saw 
Jessie. "Damn, you mean they still haven't kicked your sorry ass out of the 
Garden yet?"
     Jessie leaned on the counter as the two guys shook hands. "It's all a 
matter of making sure you never get caught."
     Obviously old friends, Jessie took some time catching up on recent events 
with de Bono. He also introduced Quistis and Kei. de Bono looked Kei up and 
down with a lopsided grin on his face.
     "Interesting pick," he remarked to Jessie. "I take it you're going for 
stamina this time around."
     Quistis didn't get the joke.
     Kei wasn't sure if she did either.
     But Jessie's eyes widened, and he coughed to divert everyone's attention 
from the remark. "The car ready?" he asked.
     "Ah, yes," de Bono said, briskly walking around back. He returned a few 
moments later with a set of keys and an ID pass. "The usual red tape applies, 
Jessie. Present the ID to the officer in the lot and you can take your car."
     Jessie grinned as he spun the keys around his index finger. "Pleasure 
doing business with ya." He glanced over at Kei. "I do this every break, so I 
know the employees rather well."
     "Isn't it expensive to rent a car for the break?" Quistis had to ask.
     "Nah," Jessie said, waving her worries aside. "This isn't a rental place; 
it's a safe deposit lot for cars. My dad does a lot of business in Deling City, 
so he gets dropped off here and then takes the car out for however long his 
business trips are."
     Kei gave him a curious look as they headed out back to the car. The 
vehicle in question was very nice. While it wasn't a luxury car, it was built 
for durability and strength. It resembled a cross between Galbadian military 
jeeps and a small tank. The paint job was black, and inside had a surprisingly 
large amount of room. "It's called a hummer," Jessie supplied helpfully as 
Quistis was at a loss as to what to call the small, cannonless tank.
     Even at their departure from Deling City, Quistis could see the ominous 
outlines of the plateaus known as Wilburn Hill. This was also the name of the 
town and region, though she wasn't exactly sure why. Wilburn Hill was more 
referring to the base of the cliffs rather than the cliffs themselves.
     "It's kinda funny when you think about it," Jessie remarked as they drove 
along down the main road. "The entire area that isn't surrounded by ocean is 
surrounded by the Great Plains of Galbadia. The cliffs are the only real 
attraction around here."
     One of the main roads that criss-crossed wasn't too far away from the 
mouth of the valley the town of Wilburn resided in. The distance might have 
been around fifteen kilometers.
     'Double that distance and you're at the Galbadia Missile Base,' Kei 
thought ruefully. Ever since they had been in Deling City, it had taken a lot 
of effort on her part to not dwell on all the problems with Galbadia. She had 
wished to visit Xu, but her obligations to Quistis came first. Besides, Quistis 
seemed thrilled to learn that Kei was coming along on the trip.
     She doubted Quistis knew how much pulling Jessie had to do to get either 
of them to join him in the first place.
     The distinguishing feature of Wilburn Hill was that it was surrounded on 
three sides by towering cliffs, making it resemble a cubbyhole. The cliffs on 
two sides led straight into the ocean... once you actually got over them. The 
vertical ascent was daunting, and no doubt provided a number of thrill seekers 
and adrenaline junkies a rush to scale the height.
     As she sat in the passenger seat, staring out at the landscape swiftly 
passing them by, Quistis noticed how everything around here was low grass and 
dirt. There were no forests, and it didn't look like they would be near a large 
river or lake--or even the ocean. It was definitely different from the Balamb 
continent.
     They were fast approaching an area where the land started to noticeably 
drop in altitude. Or at least one part of it did. A shadow fell over the 
vehicle as it followed its course towards the base of the steep cliffs. As far 
as Quistis could tell, they were being swallowed up on all three sides.
     Up ahead loomed the town of Wilburn. It had many different levels, a 
majority of the houses and buildings fitting the landscape rather than altering 
the landscape to fit the town. Jessie gave them a brief driving tour before 
heading over to his house.
     "Well, here we are," Jessie announced, pulling the hummer in front of a 
rather impressive and expensive home. There were at least two floors that could 
be seen, as well as a large front garden full of flowers, trees and fountains. 
Everything was enclosed with a large iron wrought gate that swung upon for 
them.
     Jessie parked the hummer next to three other vehicles and everyone got 
out. SeeD training had conditioned all of them to pack lightly; only Jessie had 
an extra duffel bag. He told Quistis that it contained peace offerings to 
appease his siblings.
     Kei tried to mask her confusion as she looked up at the grand manor. She 
would have never imagined someone like him to live in a place this luxurious.
     "I know what you're thinking," Jessie remarked, looking up at the house 
himself. Ensuring neither one had to make eye contact gave Kei the dignity of 
not having to look at his quiet smirk. "'If he's this loaded, why is he in a 
Garden?'"
     Jessie shrugged at the question. "My dad runs a mining operation that 
extracts ore on one side of the cliffs. Both he and my mother have supported my 
petition to be a SeeD from the start."
     "So why did you want to be a SeeD in the first place?" Quistis asked.
     Jessie took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. "Fact is, when you have 
four younger sisters, you want to get out of the house as fast as you can."
     The front door was opened shortly after, and a large man who looked like 
an older version of Jessie stepped out. His beaming smile was unmistakable as 
he hoisted his son off the ground in a fierce bear hug. "Good to have you back, 
Jessie!" he exclaimed through parental laughter.
     Jessie's mother came outside, wiping her hands clean on an apron. Since 
Jessie was currently getting the life squeezed out of him, Kei and Quistis were 
the first people she saw. "Ah, so our guests have arrived."
     Jessie's father grinned and playfully ribbed his son. "I see you've 
managed to snag a SeeD, no less. Impressive."
     Kei could barely contain the look of stunned disbelief on her face. Forget 
the fact that for once she wasn't mistaken as a guy--but to be considered 
Jessie's girlfriend!
     Jessie blanched and vehemently shook his head. "Um, Dad, she's not my 
girlfriend."
     Upon hearing that, Jessie's mother leaned forward and gave Quistis a quick 
appraisal. "You're choosing them rather young, aren't you?"
     It was Quistis' turn to look stunned.
     "Mom!" Jessie exclaimed, trying to keep his face from going from white to 
bright red. "That's Quistis! She's the one I've been writing to you guys 
about!"
     At that, his mother beamed at Quistis. She patted the cadet's blonde hair 
fondly. "So you're the little prodigy our Jessie admires? It's an honour to 
have you--both of you, to our home."
     Kei tried to remain more stoic, though maintaining her poker face around 
this crew would prove to be more difficult than she first expected.
     "No girlfriend this time?" Jessie's father sighed and shrugged his 
shoulders. "I suppose there's a first time for everything."
     "He's always brought a ladyfriend to our house during the break," his 
mother explained to Quistis and Kei, much to her son's embarrassed dismay. 
"You're the first two who've been just friends."
     One of Kei's eyebrows was raised; so that's what de Bono had been 
referring to. Not that she was thrilled with being considered a conquest of 
sorts.
     Jessie groaned, fighting the urge to go around back and kill himself (thus 
saving Kei the trouble later). At this rate, he'd be lucky to have either of 
them consider him a friend by the end of the day.


     Quistis met Jessie's sisters inside, and rambunctious didn't even begin to 
describe them. The eldest, Kara, was her age. Next came eleven year-old Cassy, 
followed by Ashelyn, who was nine. Naria was the youngest at five.
     "It's like an army of female Jessie's," Kei muttered as she was swamped 
with adoring girls who had never been this close to an actual SeeD before.
     Both of them were asked a lot of questions by the sisters, mainly about 
what life in Balamb Garden was like. Kei got a lot of the harder questions, 
such as 'Are you going to marry my brother?' She was beginning to wonder if 
Jessie didn't bring all his girlfriends here to have them break up with him; 
being subjected to this family gauntlet was an exhausting and embarrassing 
ordeal.
     Dinner didn't prove to be a welcomed relief either.
     After washing up from their travel, Kei walked into the dining room ready 
to eat.
     "Oh, you're seat is over there," Jessie's mother said, indicating the far 
end of the table. "That way you and Jessie can sit next to each other."
     Already in his own seat--but not having realized that this was the reason 
behind it--Jessie rolled his eyes. "Mom, I'm training to be a SeeD. You can't 
have high hopes that I'll settle down soon, because that's something SeeDs just 
don't do."
     Quistis couldn't stop giggling at Jessie's growing exasperation with his 
family. She had never thought it would be this fun! She had been seated next to 
Kara, and they both thoroughly enjoyed Jessie squirming in his chair.
     "Mom, give it a rest," Jessie pled as Kei grudgingly sat down next to him. 
"I bring a female friend to the house and you automatically assume I'm dating 
her."
     "In the past you always have been dating them," his mother plainly 
replied.
     Jessie groaned, his head dropping onto the table. "For the last time," he 
lamented. "Kei and I are not an item! We never will be! She's a lesbian!"
     He abruptly stifled a startled cry as Kei dug the heel of her boot into 
his toes. Ideally, his rather tactless remark would get his family to back 
down--but it was still a tactless remark that demanded retribution.
     Ashelyn and Naria, being the youngest and most precocious of the girls, 
also happened to be the most relentless. Ashelyn leaned forward, staring 
sternly at Kei. Kei had to lean back, slightly abashed at being scrutinized so 
thoroughly by someone so young.
     "No one this beautiful can be a lesbian," Ashelyn stated, nodding with 
approval to herself. "You're just trying to cover for her." With that she 
turned her head and called out into the living room, "Dad, I think they might 
be serious! Jessie could be proposing to her sometime this week!"
     Kei's head joined Jessie's on the table.


     Later on in the evening, once all the major questions had been asked and 
answered, the three youngest girls had all been put to bed. With his parents 
out for a night on the town (though Kei had dark suspicions as to their 
ulterior motives for conveniently "leaving" her and Jessie alone), the three 
travelers relaxed after their long journey.
     Jessie challenged Quistis to a video game. She shyly admitted she had 
never played one before, much to Jessie's horror.
     "Even Kara here has played all the games in my collection at least three 
times," he stated emphatically, gesturing to his sister.
     "Video games are for small boys who refuse to grow up," Kei huffed, 
reclining on the family room couch and leafing through a magazine that had been 
lying around.
     Jessie remained unfazed by her deliberate barb. "Come on, what pride are 
you going to lose? Afraid that while you can clobber me in real life, you can't 
clobber me in a virtual fight?"
     Kei slowly turned to him with a slow-burning glare.
     She had taken the bait.
     "Okay, if you're that bent on getting hammered," she said, tossing the 
magazine aside.
     Jessie chuckled and handed her a controller. He tossed in one of the game 
discs and started up the machine. The player directory came on, and Jessie 
immediately selected an old, short man with a long beard (who, when the fight 
began, swayed like he was quite thoroughly drunk). Kei opted for a cute girl 
with black pigtails and a sky blue cheongsam.
     An hour and several consecutive defeats later, Jessie ruefully handed his 
player over to Kara. She actually proved to be a challenge for Kei. In fact, 
Kei found herself strangely addicted to the fighting game. Maybe when she was 
back in Balamb, she'd use her spare gil to buy a system.
     Quistis never did play that night, but she certainly had fun watching the 
dismay on Jessie's face grow with each loss. It was also intriguing to watch 
all the fighting moves and combinations the various players used. She wondered 
how many of the SeeDs at the Garden could fight like this?  She was certain 
that not many could with this level of skill.
     Around midnight they called it an evening and retired to their rooms.
     "Jessie certainly has... a colourful family," Quistis said as she and Kei 
bedded down for the night. The guest room was surprisingly large, and had two 
single beds in it.
     Kei nodded to herself, having been progressively disgruntled by their 
behaviour. She was still trying to figure out just how someone as little as 
Ashelyn knew what a lesbian was. Suddenly Jessie's personality made perfect 
sense--not to mention his desire to get into SeeD as soon as possible.


     The winter break passed by too quickly for Quistis, who was thoroughly 
enjoying the change of scenery. She had been around a lot of kids her own age 
when she was in the orphanage, but her advanced skills always left her with 
older peers at Balamb. It was nice to be able to talk to girls her own age... 
even if they were constantly drilling her about how close Jessie and Kei were.
     Whenever he could, Jessie would take them out hiking for the day and show 
them around the area. Kei ribbed him that he was doing it strictly to escape 
the family; Jessie said nothing in response. There was a special lift that 
could take the trio from the base to the top of the cliffs, and from there they 
had the freedom to wander about as they pleased. The heights of the plateaus 
were flat and sandy. Not much to look at unless you gazed out into the distance 
and saw the sprawling landscape at the base of the cliffs.
     The hikes also doubled as practice time: Jessie tried to find as many 
monsters for them to battle as he could. Geezards and Anacondaur (located on 
the flat top of the cliffs) were in large numbers. A lot of experience and 
drawn magic could easily be gained from them.
     He and Kei also used the vast open areas for Quistis' casting practice. 
She was improving, though not as fast as he knew she could. She was still 
playing primarily with low to mid-level magics; Jessie was sure she would have 
started mastering high-level casting by now. He shared this fact with Kei and 
after studying Quistis she had to agree.
     The time in Wilburn Hill wasn't that much a waste of a break, Kei silently 
reflected to herself. While Jessie and his family were certainly unique to be 
around, she had managed to draw a small horde of Float beads from the roving 
Thrustaevis.
     A few times Kei took Quistis out privately for some practice sessions with 
Ifrit. The GF was becoming quite adept at being there for Quistis' every beck 
and call. It had definitely been impressed with her performance in the Fire 
Cavern.
     It was on their final night with Jessie's family that Quistis admitted 
something to Kei.
     "I want to be an Instructor when I graduate," she said through the 
darkness of their room. She knew Kei was still awake.
     "You want to be just like Xu?" Kei inquired carefully. Imitation was the 
sincerest form of flattery, but it also had its dangers.
     Quistis shook her head, and then chided herself on the fact that in the 
dark Kei couldn't have seen the action. "Everyone's done so much for me to grow 
and become a SeeD. And now I'm finding myself doing that to more and more of my 
friends."
     Knowing full well that Quistis couldn't see her, Kei smiled. That had been 
the answer she wanted to hear from the young cadet. Kei had noticed how much 
time Quistis was starting to spend teaching her various study groups as opposed 
to working with them. They were becoming more tutorials than anything else--and 
the students involved were noticeably improving.


     After the winter break was over, Quistis found herself thrilled to be back 
studying in Balamb Garden. The vacation had been fun (at least for her), but 
Quistis attacked her classes with renewed vigor. LeVar was more than surprised 
at how much she wanted to work through her studies--even if she was 
accelerating past all her study groups.
     "You really are going all-out on this," LeVar drawled one day as he and 
Quistis were walking through the training room. It was getting harder for him 
to find the time to just hang around with her; his graduation was approaching 
in two months, and he was working to finish the last of his prerequisites.
     Quistis nodded happily to herself as she glanced around to watch the 
various cadets practicing their techniques. "When I was with Jessie, I realized 
how much I really missed Balamb Garden."
     It wasn't just her friends she missed.
     It was everything about the Garden.
     Learning was something that came naturally to her. But it was the growing 
interaction she had with her fellow cadets that she was really enjoying. 
Because of that she discovered that she wanted to be more than just a SeeD. She 
wanted to be an Instructor, and help growing cadets reach their full potential. 
Just like how everyone at Balamb was helping her in the same way.
     Quistis doubted that she could become a weapons instructor, but the 
written academics were definitely her forte.
     Suddenly the peace of the training room was shattered as a male cadet 
raced through the doors, leaping hell bent for anywhere but the path of 
destruction being carved by a Fire spell that followed him in. Chasing right 
after looked to be a doppelganger, trying to use the Fire spell to reduce him 
to a charred shadow on the wall.
     While Quistis gawked, LeVar calmly stepped back and made sure she did the 
same. It was like watching one of Jessie's video games all over again: an 
arcade fighter in versus mode. What dumbfounded her was the fact that despite 
the vicious battle the two cadets were waging, very little of the training room 
was being damaged. Almost all the spells were mid-level airborne castings, and 
the first cadet always managed to frantically dodge the attack.
     "Wh- What are they doing?" she stammered.
     LeVar shrugged as if it meant nothing to him. "Their evening routine from 
the looks of it: kill each other."
     Needless to say, Quistis was stunned at hearing that. "They're trying to 
kill each other in a Garden?!" she exclaimed.
     The latter cadet unleashed another Fire spell, the one in the lead 
bounding in between two startled cadets to take cover. The two bystanders 
panicked and immediately threw themselves aside as the Fire spell went off.
     "I suppose 'kill' is a rather inaccurate description," LeVar said with a 
mild shrug. "'Maim' sounds more like their ultimate goal." He motioned to the 
one in the front. "The guy spending most of his time on the run is named Myn. 
The one trying to permanently bond him to the wall is his twin sister, Nym."
     Upon rolling clear of the Fire blast, Myn retaliated with a Fire spell of 
his own--and then lunged for Nym as he brandished some kind of wicked-looking 
weapon Quistis had never seen before. 
     "How can you tell them apart?" Quistis asked, watching in rapt fascination 
as Nym ducked back and tried to avoid getting cut apart by her brother.
     "I've had a few run-ins with them," LeVar answered. "They transferred here 
from Trabia over the break." He pointed to Nym. "If you look closely enough, 
you can see her chest."
     Quistis blushed a little, but realized LeVar was right. It was slightly 
embarrassing to use that as a reference point in telling the difference.
     The two continued to viciously duke it out in the middle of the practice 
area. Both were completely oblivious to the onlookers. Half of the cadets were 
shocked beyond belief. The others--evidently having seen this before--casually 
made a point of staying out of the twins' crosshairs.
     "They hate each other that much?" Quistis asked, still dumbfounded by 
their intense private war.
     "Actually," LeVar replied. "From what I hear, they're incredibly close. 
You pick a fight with one and the other will jump in to help pound on you."
     Quistis puzzled over that point, and then narrowed her eyes as another 
spell exploded over Myn's head. Myn then had to scramble out of the path of a 
volley of sharpened shuriken darts Nym had launched at him.
     "So why are they trying to destroy each other?" she pressed.
     LeVar looked back at the battling twins--who were now brandishing their 
respective weapons at a near blinding speed. Other cadets were scattering in a 
mad attempt to avoid the storm's path. "That? Oh, that's just sibling rivalry."
     "......"


     "Dammit, Jessie, give me back my tray!" LeVar snapped, racing between--and 
sometimes on--the tables. A few students hastily yanked their precious meals 
aside to avoid getting a footprint in their mashed potatoes.
     Floating just above LeVar's jumping reach, a laughing Jessie continued to 
hover through the Cafeteria. "Come on, you're going to be graduating soon. You 
should easily be able to jump this high!"
     "I hate his stupid Float beads," LeVar muttered as he tried to catch his 
breath.
     Fortunately, he was vindicated a moment later when Myn threw open the 
Cafeteria doors and managed to slam a rather stunned Jessie into the wall.
     LeVar shook his head as he returned to the Cafeteria counter to get a 
replacement meal for the one that Jessie was now wearing. After getting his 
meal he sat down across from Quistis and Skye. Both he and Skye were due to 
graduate within a week or so; the written and field tests were all that 
remained. Needless to say, LeVar was doing his best to cope with the tension. 
And in his own deranged way, Jessie was doing his best to help LeVar out.
     Clad in something a little more casual than the cadet uniform, Myn 
sauntered into the Cafeteria. He paused momentarily to look back at the dazed 
Jessie. With a shrug, he then headed for the Cafeteria line. Upon getting his 
meal Myn wandered the Cafeteria in search of a seat.
     Quistis couldn't help but watch him move around the tables. She still 
recalled how relentless he had been in fighting his sister--but right then he 
looked anything but an intense SeeD cadet.
     He paused and peered down at the young woman. "Ah, so you're Quistis," he 
remarked. "It's not every day I meet a cadet with her own fanclub. Mind if I 
join you?"
     Quistis shook her head and Myn took a seat next to LeVar.
     Myn's light brown hair had a generic cut that would have worked for both 
genders, the front bangs on one side of his face reaching down just beyond his 
eye. He was out of uniform, wearing a white tee shirt beneath a light blue jean 
jacket that was left open. The jean pants he wore were of a similar colour to 
his jacket. A strange necklace dangled low from around his neck.
     Curiously enough, he was wearing a pair of sunglasses indoors. This unto 
itself wasn't that strange--but when he turned his head, Quistis could see that 
the top of the frame was curved to shield his eyes even further from the light.
     "I hear you're going to be rooming with my sister once Skye here 
graduates." He motioned with his fork to Skye, who didn't even look up from her 
own meal. "Just a word of warning: Nym corrupted her last roomie thanks to all 
her boy-chasing."
     Myn's face was suddenly elbow-jabbed into his dinner tray, bits of mashed 
potatoes going everywhere. His hands twitched involuntarily for a few seconds.
     "What is that supposed to mean?" his twin sister inquire darkly, her elbow 
still pressed down on the back of his head.
     LeVar, who had leaned back in surprise at the unexpected flurry of potato, 
warily looked up to Nym. Nym was incredibly cute, with a vibrant girlish charm 
that radiated out from her. But the playful smile on her face seemed to 
indicate that she used said charms to get whatever she wanted from everyone 
else.
     Her hair was the same light brown tint as Myn's, and cut in the same 
style. They really could have passed for each other--had it not been for the 
fact that Nym wasn't in uniform either. In fact she was dressed in a very 
tight, black sleeveless dress that barely stretched halfway down her thighs, 
and followed the curves of her body with revealing accuracy.
     A cute beret with a SeeD badge was on Nym's head. Quistis wondered where 
the elder cadet had gotten that. Maybe it was something Nym had picked up at 
Trabia. Or else it was custom made. And just like her brother, Nym was also 
wearing a pair of sunglasses whose design matched Myn's.
     "You'll have to forgive my brother," Nym stated, moving around the table 
to sit on the other side of Quistis. "He only speaks to change the current foot 
stuck in his mouth."
     "I don't think he'll able to speak, period, with all that potato now 
shoved up his nose," Skye idly remarked. Everyone laughed at that, and even 
though she didn't join in Skye did have a broad grin on her face.
     Myn pushed his face out from his food and did his best to recover whatever 
shreds of dignity he had left. Those shreds proved to be an endangered species 
as a number of the other male cadets cheered on his sister.
     "Hey, Nym!" one upperclassman called out. "Kicking his ass again, are ya?"
     "What did he say this time?" the cadet's friend called out.
     Myn pouted as he cleaned his face off with a napkin--though he carefully 
made sure not to remove his sunglasses. And he definitely tried to ignore Nym 
giggling and waving to her adoring public.
     "Speaking of human doormats," LeVar quipped, casting a glance over his 
shoulder at Jessie.
     Jessie groaned as he flopped down next to LeVar, tenderly rubbing his 
head. "Ow! That really hurt, Myn. Why'd you have to go and ruin a good prank 
like that?"
     "Had I known you were going to be floating in front of the door like that, 
I would have come in through the window," Myn cleverly retorted, chowing down 
on the mashed potatoes he had managed to salvage.
     "Um... wouldn't going through the glass like that hurt?" Quistis had to 
ask.
     Myn froze in mid-chew, slowly turning to Quistis with a betrayed 
expression on his face. Even with the sunglasses on, he looked like a startled 
puppy dog.
     "That's my brother for ya," Nym sighed. "Two neurons short of a synapse."


     Later in the week, LeVar and Skye graduated.
     Jessie was lamenting the fact that his victim/roommate was now gone, and 
he'd have to start from scratch on some new cadet. As it turned out, he was 
assigned with Myn as opposed to a new 'sprout', more than likely due to the 
fact that Jessie himself was scheduled to graduate right before the spring 
break.
     On the other hand, Quistis now found herself with someone who was a far 
cry from Skye's indifferent disposition. Nym was anything but laidback; as it 
turned out she was one of the major links in Balamb Garden's rumour network. 
She was also an incredible flirt, and seemed to be exploiting a new male cadet 
every week. Not that said male cadets ever seemed to complain about being at 
her beck and call. Quistis had never seen so many people cajoled into doing 
favours for a single person before.
     Dorm life certainly picked up for Quistis with Nym around. Nym was 
frequently in their room, as was her twin brother. The two made a point of 
dressing differently whenever possible. Casual clothes were worn almost as much 
as their cadet uniforms.
     "A word of warning," Myn cautioned her as he helped Nym move in. "Nym 
snores loudly."
     He quickly tipped his head sideways as a shuriken dart buried itself into 
the bunk frame next to his face. Quistis, on the other hand, had jumped 
considerably high in her chair.
     "Spreading rumours about me again, are we?" Nym growled, walking into the 
dorm room with a handful of clothes.
     "Well, it's the truth!" Myn protested. "I had to grow up sleeping with the 
sound of a chainsaw ripping apart a sequoia!"
     Nym scowled at her brother. "That was Dad who snored loudly, you twit. Get 
your memories straightened out."
     Myn paused and searched his mind. "You know, I think you're right," he 
said, smiling as if he had just solved a difficult physics problem. The smile 
abruptly faded. "Geez, and Dad was that loud even when he was down the hall 
from us? No wonder Mom slept in the guest room whenever she could."
     He struck Quistis as being a little scatterbrained, but good-humoured 
nevertheless.
     As she adjusted to the new roommate, Quistis found herself becoming more a 
part of Balamb Garden's social activities than ever before. Nym would 
frequently throw open the door to their room, and tell Quistis that they were 
going out. At first it had thrown Quistis off, but after a few weeks of this 
she got used to it. In fact, Quistis enjoyed these spontaneous social flings.
     Sometimes they were impromptu Triple Triad tournaments (which she tended 
to rank in the top three), and other times they played games in the Quad. One 
time it was to sneak around the Garden near lights out in order to help a cadet 
find an (unauthorized) pet kitten that had escaped.
     Cid found the kitten.
     "I trust this is not yours," he said, cradling the kitten in his arms.
     Both Nym and Quistis, who had finally located the escaped feline and 
chased it down a corridor, came to a dead halt and meekly shook their heads.
     "I'm relieved," the Headmaster said, nodding to them. "Now then, before 
you two return to your room and hope the Faculty don't catch you past lights 
out, would you be so kind as to tell me whose kitten this is?"
     He scratched the purring animal on the back of its head, and the sight of 
the Headmaster doing this made Quistis wish she could have taken a picture for 
Xu.
     Nym told Cid who the feline's owner was, and then hastily dragged Quistis 
off to their dorm room. As he watched the two young ladies race down the hall 
as quietly as they could--which, much to their credit, was almost silent--Cid 
couldn't help but smile. Quistis was definitely a different cadet than the one 
he had seen a year ago.
     Myn and Nym were seen with Quistis a lot, and it seemed that they would be 
her new mentors when Jessie graduated. Everything was moving full circle, and 
he only had to pull a few strings to see it happen. This was better than having 
to orchestrate an entire social life for Quistis.
     As for the twins, he had been working on a proposal to have them graduate 
as a pair and take missions as a pair as well--yet he intended for them 
graduate just as skilled individually as any other SeeD.
     Cid chuckled as he lavished more pampering on the purring cat. "And as for 
you," he said. "What shall your fate be?"
     The kitten licked the back of his offered finger. "Is that so?" He lifted 
it between his hands so that he could look the kitten in the eye. "You wandered 
onto the Garden grounds and found your way into the hallway. I'll have to see 
what I can do about finding you a good home in Balamb."
     A purr answered Cid as the kitten was returned to the crook of his arm.  
He would have a word with the cadet who gave refuge to the small bundle, but he 
wasn't without mercy.  A few weeks of dish duty would suffice to remind her of 
the Garden's policy concerning pets.


     "Why do you both wear those tinted glasses?" Quistis asked one evening as 
she tutored the twins. She had seen both Myn and Nym wear their shades 
everywhere they went--even to classes--and no one seemed to object, not even 
the Faculty. And that was impressive given the Shumi.
     "It's a hyper-sensitivity to light," Myn informed her. "Since we're twins, 
we both have the same condition. Only in dim settings can we remove our 
shades."
     He nodded to his sister, who then made sure it was dark enough outside. 
Nym then walked over and turned off the light. The room was plunged into 
darkness. Under this cover, Myn and Nym felt safe to remove their sunglasses. 
Without the shades, both their eyes shimmered like water. Quistis found it 
unnerving to have them watch her. She could only see their eyes, but she was 
certain they could see every detail in the darkened room. At least their eyes 
weren't slitted like a cat's. It would take some time to get used to the fact 
that Nym's eyes glowed in the dark.
     Quistis also learned about Myn's talisman that he wore even when in 
uniform--though it was always tucked beneath his jacket. When she asked about 
it, Myn had removed the necklace and let her see it.
     "It's made from Lapis Lazuli," he informed her. "It used to be our 
mother's, and was going to be given to her first borne child." He grinned at 
Nym, who had at the time been reclining on her bunk. "Boy were you a surprise, 
Sis!"
     Nym stuck out her tongue.
     "Since I was the first to come out, it was decided I should get the 
necklace," Myn finished. "I guess that technically makes me the older of us."
     "Strange how I'm always the one who bosses you around," Nym remarked 
aloud.
     Quistis smiled, too engrossed in studying the talisman to see Myn deflate 
at the accurate retort. Its polished surface was cool against her skin, and 
reminded her of Shiva's GF stone. "It's beautiful," she said quietly.
     "Most people think it's a figure-eight, but it's not," Myn explained. 
"This is the symbol for infinity: two loops with no end and no beginning. Tends 
to represent my Sis and me. Two different parts yet still one entity."
     "You can stop kissing up to her anytime," Nym dryly remarked.
     Myn stiffened, visibly insulted. "Hey, I'm just trying to be nice here!"
     "Ha!" his twin retorted. "If you were really being nice, you wouldn't 
leave your magazines around. It's a wonder that the Headmaster doesn't think 
you live here, since half the stuff that is scattered across the room is 
yours."
     Myn perked up. "May I?" he asked, a hopeful smile on his face.
     Nym bopped him on the head for that. "Idiot!"
     But at the very least, he had managed to evoke a laugh from Quistis.


     Quistis was moved to a more advanced weaponry class. While she still had 
her own private sessions in working with the rante ber gangedug, now she found 
herself in a larger class of SeeD cadets. Most of them seemed near twice her 
age, and at least a head taller.
     It was a little intimidating to stand in their ranks as the Shumi 
Instructor explained that each of them had advanced sufficiently enough in 
their own weapon to now be challenged by an opponent who used a different 
weapon.
     Myn was in the class along with her, and was also her first sparring 
opponent. Quistis could barely contain her surprise when he revealed his actual 
weapon. The first time she had seen him use it, he had been moving too fast for 
her to get a good look. Now that she could see it she wished she hadn't. Myn 
wielded a pair of scythe-like kusaragi, which were attached at their bases by a 
metal chain. It was a wonder he had never injured himself while using them!
     But Myn proved to be quite adept and twirling them around his body and 
alternating hands. Every now and again he'd shift his head or his hips to 
accommodate a change in the direction of the deadly blades. "Come on," he 
goaded her. "I may be your roommate's brother, but that doesn't mean I'll be 
gentle."
     It wasn't as vicious of a jab as it could have been, but it got Quistis 
moving. She began to twirl her rante and then stepped towards Myn for the 
attack. He in turn waited to defend himself; odds were he wanted to see how 
good her physical skills were. Her first swings were easily blocked.
     Myn abruptly pushed both kusaragi blades down to the mat as he deflected 
another attack, pinning Quistis' whip to the ground. Quistis stumbled forward, 
and then Myn charged forward to attack. She hastily twisted her body sideways 
as the tip of one kusaragi blade cut through the air next to her.
     Myn pivoted his stance, compensating with his brandishing. The next strike 
grazed the front of Quistis' training outfit, tearing the fabric apart. Myn 
immediately backed down and stopped swinging his chained kusaragi. "Are you 
okay?" he asked, quickly signaling to the Shumi.
     A quick inspection found that only the top layer had been cut. Quistis' 
undershirt and skin were intact--though that still didn't make Myn feel any 
better.
     "This is sparring," Quistis stated, picking up her rante and swinging it 
in preparation to resume their match. "Expect a few cuts and bruises."
     "That's just it," Myn replied, taking a deep breath and psyching himself 
up for a second round. "My weapon tends to cut deep enough to kill the first 
time around."
     Now that she was somewhat familiar with his strategies, Quistis made it a 
lot harder for him to attack. His added height and weight was her biggest 
disadvantage, and he could easily throw her off balance just by pinning her 
whip down. But Quistis threw in a variety of twirls and strikes that kept Myn 
dodging more than blocking, giving him less chance to pin the rante down. 
Attacking him below the waistline made for the best results.
     Myn's biggest disadvantage was that Quistis had the greater range with the 
rante. For the most part, the closer he got to her, the harder his defensive 
blocks had to be. However Quistis couldn't always swing the rante around fast 
enough to completely block Myn from advancing. He got some very good swings and 
jabs at her.
     That still didn't help him when she did a shoulder roll along the mats, 
and swung the rante in an upwards arc as she rolled right into a standing 
position. Myn got the spiked tip of the rante slashing the back of his hand. He 
flinched, and felt the blade of his still-swinging kusaragi cut him on the 
cheek. Myn swiftly caught both parts of his weapon to make sure he didn't get 
any bloodier than he already was.
     Quistis was breathing in deep gasps for air when they finished their 
classes for the afternoon. It was surprising how much she was watching and 
evaluating his moves based on the video game Jessie had played.
     "Good match," Myn said to her as they headed to their respective change 
rooms. "Where'd you learn to swing a rante like that?"
     Quistis smiled at the memory of Eugene. "A friend introduced me to the 
weapon."
     "Well, you're good--but still get all the practice you can with this crew. 
It doesn't get any easier."
     She tipped her head to one side, brushing aside some strands of blond hair 
that were clinging to her forehead from the sweat.
     "This is only the intermediate weapons class," Myn informed her. "Did you 
notice that all of us in there had weapons which had around a two meter range? 
There are a lot of weapons out there, and we're just learning how to deal with 
those that have about the same range ours does. The advanced class is an 
anything-goes melee."
     Upon recalling the class, Quistis realized he was right. The only types of 
weapons in there had been various polearms, whips and chains, or some weapon 
which made use of a chain. There had been no swords, or smaller weapons that 
required more intense hand to hand combat.
     "Take my sister," he said as an example. "She uses shuriken darts and can 
pin any hapless date to the wall in seconds. She has quite the throwing 
distance, and those little buggers are a pain to try and deflect--especially 
when there are five of them coming all at once. You and I won't be fighting her 
for another few years, or unless we're constantly at the top of the class for 
the next month."


     The June heat beat down on Quistis' brow, but she ignored both the heat 
and the sweat trickling down her skin. A spell bead in her hand, she painfully 
focused herself on releasing an Ice spell with the desired result: freezing the 
rock that stood about twenty paces from her.
     She seemed completely oblivious to Jessie (which was just as well, given 
her need for complete concentration), who stood behind her a fair distance to 
watch. They were just outside Balamb Garden. Even though it was her day off, 
Quistis insisted they come out and practice. Jessie could see that the 
frustration of not being able to cast as well as she expected to was getting to 
the young cadet.
     He had learned his Limit about two months ago, making him a candidate for 
graduation at the spring break. But even though learning his Limit seemed like 
a natural thing, it was aggravating to see Quistis still blocked. He wanted so 
much for her to excel at magic--but if she had this much trouble in mid-level 
casting, he wasn't sure how well she'd fare in discovering her own Limit Break.
     Jessie turned his head as he saw Myn saunter up behind him. He was dressed 
like he was heading into town, but got distracted by them.
     "How goes the magic show?" Myn inquired with a smile, adjusting the 
glasses over his eyes.
     Jessie shrugged. "It goes. That's about it."
     He sensed the weariness in his roommate's voice. "What's wrong?"
     "Quistis is still working on her magic, and her slow progress is 
frustrating both of us." Jessie gestured to the rock, which was only half 
encased in ice even after considerable effort on Quistis' part. "The first time 
she tried a spell bead, she blow half a boulder away. I've tried about 
everything I can think of to duplicate that same intense blast from Quistis, 
but nothing's really worked. I've tried concentration techniques, breathing 
techniques, and even tried to find a Puzzle Stone."
     "Puzzle Stone?"
     "Don't ask. I never could find the blasted thing. But I've tried different 
targets--including myself. But even if her life is in potential danger, 
Quistis' magic levels aren't what they should be. Quistis can see the object 
she wants to cast her spells on, but nothing happens."
     Jessie's lips curled into a scowl. "I don't want to push her even further, 
since that will only antagonize us both. But I want to see her get some kind of 
breakthrough before I graduate."
     Myn nodded in sympathy as he watched Quistis try another bead, this one a 
Thunder. "Mind if I have a go at it?" he asked.
     "Be my guest," Jessie replied, gesturing to Quistis. "The lady's all 
yours."
     Quistis was so focused on unleashing the power within the bead that she 
nearly shrieked in surprising when Myn tapped her on the shoulder. "Oh, hi 
Myn," she said, the dejection in her voice was unable to be hidden.
     "Is that it?" Myn pouted with false hurt. "I'd think you'd greet your new 
magic instructor with a little more enthusiasm than that."
     Quistis looked at him in surprise. "You?"
     "Not unless you have a problem with that."
     Admittedly, Quistis had no qualms at all. Anything to help her get past 
this block.
     "Are you sure Jessie's okay with this?" she asked, not wanting to hurt 
the feelings of the cadet who had done so much for her spell-casting abilities.
     Myn chuckled as he looked over to Jessie, and then waved at him. "Don't 
worry about him.  You've got the best magic instructors the boys wing of the 
dorms has to offer!"
     There seemed to be only one constant in all the techniques Jessie was 
trying to make use of; they had Quistis focusing on a mental projection of her 
target. Perhaps it was time to try something completely different.
     "Stop trying to see your target in your mind," Myn instructed. "Don't even 
bother concentrating on that. Instead, I want you to tell me how you're 
feeling."
     The younger cadet's brow furrowed; evidently Quistis hadn't anticipated 
this sort of technique. "What?"
     "Take all the emotions you've ever known you had," Myn explained. "Try to 
find each one individually, and build them up as much as you can. Take all your 
anger, hurt, fear, joy and sadness. Don't express them; just find them."
     Not really sure how to do this, Quistis closed her eyes and tried to 
'sense' her emotions. Myn helped by closing his own eyes and projecting each 
different emotion at Quistis. It took a lot of effort and time but Quistis was 
able to use those echoes from Myn to find her own mirroring emotions.
     Myn was incredibly patient, and spent the rest of the session letting 
Quistis get the hang of how to do this. Just before it was time for dinner, Myn 
called an end to their lesson. "We'll do this each day for the next week, just 
you and me," he said. "If not outside, then in the training hall or the Quad."
     Feeling encouraged by the fact that she had made some form of 
progress--even though she hadn't the slightest idea what that progress meant in 
connection with her casting, Quistis managed a smile.
     "She's making good progress," Myn informed Jessie, letting Quistis walk a 
few steps in front of them as they returned to the Garden.
     He gave Myn a blank look.
     "Quistis is a fast learner. Give me a week to work with her."
     Jessie sighed and nodded. "I've done all I can with her. And I need to 
concentrate on my graduation exams. Give it your best shot."
     Myn made good on his word to help Quistis out every day. The fact that 
they had a mutual tie in Nym (and many of the same classes) meant that they 
could arrange meeting times easily. Myn tried to schedule in late evening 
sessions, when most of the other cadets were not around.
     It took three more days before either of them felt confidant that Quistis 
had isolated her emotions, and could get a feel for them at a moment's notice.
     "Next step," Myn said when he was satisfied Quistis knew how to properly 
do it. "Push every last bit of those emotions into the pit of your stomach. 
It'll make you feel incredibly uncomfortable, but that's how you know you're 
doing it right."
     After that session, Quistis felt like she was ready to vomit. The nausea 
continued through most of the night, but Myn assured her that it would pass 
once she got used to it. There wasn't a need to consult with Doctor Kadowaki. 
And he was right: within a few more days, Quistis felt the residual nausea from 
her casting sessions slowly wane.
     Myn was amazed by how fast Quistis was picking this up. It had taken him 
over two weeks of intense training just to figure out how to identify and 
amplify his emotions.
     When the end of the week came, Myn had Quistis practice outside the Garden 
on their off day. "Now comes the fun part," he said, handing Quistis a Thunder 
bead. "Take the spell bead, and cast it. But I want you to try and not picture 
what will happen beforehand. You need to learn how to keep those emotions 
pinned down, and cast at the same time."
     That didn't work so well.
     Quistis was growing frustrated. She wasn't used to *not* doing mental 
projections during a casting, and didn't know how to try any other way.
     "I'll need to intervene, I see," Myn said. He gave Quistis a reassuring 
smile. "Don't worry. The same thing happened to me." He went in behind Quistis 
and gently placed his hand over Quistis' palm. "Don't do anything; what you 
need to do is feel what happens."
     Myn was the one who used the Thunder bead, and much to Quistis' surprise 
it felt like he had psychically cracked the shell of the bead. The spell 
contained within roared to life and exploded.
     "It seems a little abstract at first," Myn reflected afterwards. "But it's 
best to try and work on 'cracking' the bead rather than envisioning an 
exploding target. Try to get the magic to erupt rather than the rock. Most 
students find it's easier to use the latter, but us mavericks prefer 
unconventional methods."
     Quistis giggled at being called a maverick.
     She liked the term.
     An hour of practicing with Scan beads, and some various offensive magics, 
proved that Quistis worked far better with this technique. It was a thrill to 
feel the magic break free and shoot through her fingers, almost like it was a 
liquid. Quistis knew that all she felt was the residual effect; whenever magic 
was unleashed, it was instantaneous. Summoning it was what required time.
     "Third and final step," Myn announced. "Cast the spell at your target. 
When you feel the magic being unleashed, launch all those emotions you have 
directly at your target. It'll feel like you're aiming and firing a cannon. And 
watch out for the recoil."
     Quistis psyched herself up as she looked at her two potential targets. 
There was a fair-sized rock on one side, and a small tree on the other. She 
decided on the rock, working with the Thunder bead Myn had given her.
     At the first tingling she sensed as the bead's magic broke loose, Quistis 
narrowed her eyes and worked on her emotions. She felt the pit of her stomach 
churn almost in synch with the bead. And then she shattered the bead, throwing 
her arm into the air with a loud shout. Both the spell and her pent-up emotions 
smashed into each other like two raging rivers meeting into one. The proverbial 
floodgate was opened, and the spell shot towards its target.
     The rock didn't get hit.
     The tree, however, did. It exploded when the Thunder spell veered off from 
its intended course and slammed into the tree. A gaping hole was left in the 
trunk, tiny flames licking the edges of the bark.
     "Wow," Myn remarked, whistling his awe at the power behind Quistis' 
casting.
     Quistis though was reeling from what had happened. It felt like she had 
nearly been catapulted along with the Thunder spell. Myn helped to steady her, 
but it still took Quistis a good three or four minutes to regain her sense of 
balance.
     She pinched the bridge of her nose, trying to get over the throbbing in 
her head. Her vision was blurry and she wanted her reading glasses back. 
"W-What happened?" Quistis managed to stammer.
     "You just got slammed by a power you weren't expecting. But that's 
definitely a good sign for a first-timer. You've got some incredible power. Now 
we'll have to work on your control of it."
     Myn glanced back over at the tree. It was good thing they hadn't tried 
this in the Quad; he'd heard from Jessie about what happened the first time.
     Once Quistis felt herself again, she studied the result of her unique 
training. The young cadet's jaw dropped as she saw the battered tree. "I did 
that?"
     Myn nodded, grinning. "I'd say you're learning fast. Give yourself a month 
of this, and you'll be able to shove a lightening bolt up a T-Rexaur's ass."
     While Quistis wasn't so sure about that second part, she was feeling a 
great sense of pride and relief. Her block at casting spells was gone; she felt 
confident that she could duplicate that particular attack. With the way Myn had 
taught her, everything felt comfortably natural. Jessie's method had never felt 
right to her, though she didn't have the heart to tell him.
     "Where did you learn about that?" Quistis asked once she and Myn had 
returned to the Garden. They were lounging in the Quad, waiting for either his 
sister to show up or dinner to be served.
     Myn sighed as he leaned his back against the table. "In Trabia, my sister 
and I were damn near unstoppable--but only when we fought together, or fought 
each other. When we were apart, most cadets our age could pick us off pretty 
easily. It went on like this for about a year, and everyone was getting 
frustrated. The instructors went out of their way, not unlike Jessie, to help 
boost our fighting skills. Nym and I even took up extra training sessions. 
Nothing worked.
     "Then a new instructor came to the Garden, and seemed to recognized 
immediately what the problem was. We weren't virtual prodigies like everyone 
first thought; it's something to do with a heightened synchronicity because 
we're twins. So he had Nym and me change our exercises. We each had individual 
lessons with him, and he taught us that technique I had you use."
     It certainly worked, Quistis reflected.
     Not only for herself, but for the twins as well. Myn wasn't the best 
weapons fighter in the class, but he was certainly up there in the top five. 
She found it hard to imagine that someone with such a vicious-looking weapon 
could be disarmed and defeated.
     "About six months after that we each made a breakthrough, our Instructor 
recommended that we transfer to Balamb," Myn continued. "He said the Garden's 
academic focus would give us equal opportunity to use our magic and our 
weaponry. Headmistress Rebecca agreed, and so here we are."
     He gestured around the Quad.
     "A lot of times, even if I'm just fighting against Nym, I pin up and then 
release all my emotions as I attack. It's a great rush, and she usually never 
knows what hit her." He winked mischievously.
     "Hey, Myn!" his sister suddenly called out. The pair stood up to greet 
her, then went to the Cafeteria for a hard-earned meal. 


     "What's with you?" Kei asked, watching Jessie anxiously pace across the 
breezeway. The last time she had seen him this fidgety was when he had roped 
her into buying Quistis a training bra. It was quite entertaining watching him 
act like a worried child--so long as he didn't have something he was trying to 
tell her.
     Jessie tried to jam his hands even deeper into his pockets, wondering just 
how he had gotten himself into this situation. "Myn said he could get Quistis 
past her magic block in a week," he informed Kei. "And he did. I know Nym, 
she's going to claim the favour I own Myn for helping out. He'll just shrug it 
off and let her do it. I can only fear what she's going to have me do for her."
     "I thought you all were doing this for Quistis' benefit."
     He nodded. "Naturally. But I personally wanted to see her get over the 
block before I graduated. Now I owe Nym a favour for that."
     Kei never said it aloud, but she sympathized with the hapless cadet in 
front of her. Nym was interesting to be around, but it was like watching a 
grown-up Ashelyn at work. And after being with Jessie's family for a few weeks, 
Kei felt that no one deserved such a punishment... even if it was Jessie.


     Later that night, Jessie met up with Nym at the overlook for the Training 
Centre. It was past curfew, and he had enough problems as it was without 
worrying about a Faculty member catching him.
     Nym giggled as she consulted the chronometer on her wrist. "Ah, right on 
time. I like that in a man."
     "Aha haaaa... cute," Jessie replied dryly, his hands in his pockets.
     Nym feigned hurt and took a small step closer to him. Her hands were 
behind her back, and she was leaning forward on her tiptoes as if she were two 
years younger than her actual age. "Most of my lackeys like to think so."
     "Ease down on the innocence factor, please," Jessie sighed. "I know when 
I'm caught. So what do I get to do? Is there a report I need to write for you? 
An alibi I need to provide? Or is there a new blouse you want me to buy 
from--?"
     He never managed to get out another word as Nym swiftly moved forward and 
pressed her lips against his. The surprise he wasn't able to vocalize was 
registered in his wide eyes. Nym finally broke away from the kiss and then 
laughed. It wasn't her patented girlish giggle either; this one was a little 
more adult, and a lot more sultry.
     Jessie just stared at her like a deer caught in headlights.
     "Come here," Nym instructed, starting to unzip her jacket. "We've got 
about fifteen minutes before the patrol comes around this way. And you owe me 
big."


     Quistis was startled from her reading as Nym slipped back into their dorm 
room. She looked at her older roommate, and saw something... different in Nym's 
pleasant facial expression.
     Nym sighed and stretched out her arms. "I think I'm in love," she sighed 
to herself.
     There was definitely something different about her roommate tonight, 
Quistis reasoned. Nym was moving around their room like she was light on her 
feet. And her uniform was in slight disarray too. Though Quistis really 
couldn't figure out why.
     "Could you turn out the lights for me?" Nym asked as she disrobed.
     With a sigh, Quistis set Myn's latest issue of Combat King aside, placed 
her glasses in its carrying case, and got out from between her sheets.
     When Quistis turned the lights out, Nym removed her sunglasses. Even her 
shimmering eyes were lit up with some kind of dreamy delight. "G'night, 
Quistis," Nym purred as she contentedly curled up in her covers and went to 
sleep.
     Quistis shook her head and returned to her bed. For all she had learned 
since coming to the Garden, there were a lot of things she still didn't 
understand.


     Myn didn't look up from his magazine as he heard the door open up. "You're 
lucky you didn't get your sorry ass found by one of the night patrols," he 
stated. When he got no response, Myn looked up from his magazine.
     Jessie was standing in the middle of the floor, his head tipped to one 
side as if he were trying to listen to a near inaudible noise. There was an 
awed smile was on his face. "Wow!" was all he could breathe.
     Myn groaned, and buried his head in his palm. "She collected her dues, 
didn't she?"
     A rogue smile played on Jessie's face. "Did she ever."
     "Oh, the sacrifice you two make on Quistis' behalf," Myn dryly commented 
before returning to his magazine.

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