MC Something Happens 02

You’re a big girl today, Selphie. It is today, on your eighth birthday that I believe you are old enough to understand what I have to tell you. Today, you will finally know the story of your father, me, and… Selphie.

Rinoa dodged a few bodies as various office personnel zoomed back and forth while trying to complete whatever task they had been given. There was chatter everywhere, as well as harsh orders, and the sound of coffee makers, fax machines, ringing phones, and automated voice pages filled the office to the point of insanity. Warily, the General’s daughter glanced at the chaotic jumble that was the main office and almost laughed. Almost.

“Yeah. Just a month after Ultimecia and everyone’s back to being the cold business people they were hired for,” Xu said sadly, shaking her head. She gave the younger girl a pat on the shoulder. “I’ve got to get to Cid. I’ll see ya around.”

Far down below her in the Lobby sat a waiting Selphie. She had fifteen minutes to kill before classes started and the circular main way was the focus of many students as they talked and laughed in their little groups in various places. Sighing, the Trabian swung her legs from her position on the stair rail and waited for Cid to reach her. The distinguished headmaster of Balamb Garden was walking calmly through the lobby walkways, greeting a student here and there. Selphie watched with a small smile as he pointed to a male student, catching the words “tuck in that shirt” through the chatter in the air.

“Now, Fauna, you know that females are restricted from taking personal handbags into class with them,” Cid informed, turning to the petite girl. “And Feroze?” he said, looking to the teenager. “Cut you hair already.”

“AH!! Oh, Selphie—always the scaring me,” he said, turning and watching as the much shorter teenager grabbed his wrist, a knit band in her other hand. “Now what’s this all about?”

“It’s National Friendship Day, Sir. This band says you’re not only my principal now, but you’re my friend too!” she said lightly, tying the string. When she received bewildered silence from him, her shoulders slumped. “It’s a young people thing,” she assured. Then she brightened again. “Besides! I haven’t been able to stop smiling for the last month!”

Cid shook his head and began ascending the stairs leading to the elevator. “Yes well, Selphie, we all have been happy for the last month. It seems the Sorceress Wars have finally come to an end.”

“And you know, I just can’t get it through my head yet—I saved the entire world four weeks ago,” Selphie continued, staring off into space with awe. Cid turned and gave her an odd look.

Selphie slowed her step, eyes darting to her left at the chatting girls. After hearing those few key sentences, she shifted her textbooks in her arms and knowingly rolled her eyes, skipping down the last few steps. Now where was that player best friend of hers?

Selphie rounded the corner and came across the main hallway of classes. Students dotted the hall in their groups, some standing, some sitting, some walking. She expertly ignored them and eyed the crowd for any sign of a certain Galbadian gunslinger. After a few moments, she found him, his arm casually slung around a blonde. He had his back to her and she contemplated jumping on him for the pleasure of seeing his new flirt mate glare daggers but something else caught her attention.

There wasn’t a doubt in her mind he would be saying THAT sentence a lot today. Slowly, with the grace of a cat, she sauntered up behind him and reached for the bundle of bands.

“Oh Irvine,” she said sweetly, looking over his shoulder. She caught the attention of both of them as she waved the bracelets back and forth in the air. Casually, she leaned one arm on his shoulder. “These fell out of your pocket,” she informed him dryly, smirking.

Selphie shook her head. She would have been angry a few weeks ago but now she just became annoyed. Irvine’s failed attempt at wooing the female population of Garden was once a touchy subject but she saw little significance in it now. She knew he never really liked any of them.

“Yeah,” she said, shrugging. “You chase after all these easy-on-the-eyes. Newsflash, Irvine: with those girls,” she raised a hand and poked him in the forehead with her index finger, “the lights aren’t all on upstairs.”

Quistis raised a hand and slowly pulled off her glasses, shaking out her long hair in the process. She hardly had time to put her blond locks up in their regular style now that she was back to being a SeeD and taking classes like every other student. Every morning for the last week she found herself rushing to get coffee, only to have to stand in line and wait for the instructors to clear out first. Then she would have to race to her first class while trying to dodge undergraduates as they scurried through the halls. Now, adjusting the strap of her shoulder bag, she wormed her way through the groups of students in the circular main lobby toward the classrooms.

“You gotta understand, Selphie,” Irvine said, juggling two bracelets in one hand. “I’m only seventeen years old. I’m just passing my time with these girls. They’re…” he paused, catching a woven white band, “… temporary fun.”

Quistis walked her way past a line of male students, all probably one or two years older than she. They leaned nonchalantly against a section of lockers with their arms crossed as the watched the people pass. Rolling her eyes, the blonde looked away from them when she passed. Still, she heard a whistle.

Irvine turned with Selphie following him to their first class. “And,” he continued, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I’m looking for a girl who… makes something happen in my heart.”

“Her, her, her,” Selphie wisped, emphasizing each word with a flick of her hand. With slightly more serious thoughtfulness, she propped her elbow on his shoulder again. “So what are you going to do once you find her?”

Her best friend gave her a genuine smile and shied away from the light pressure of her arm. “I…” he said, backing away slightly, “am going to kneel down in front of her--”

She gasped as the figure she walked by suddenly turned and crashed straight into her. For a moment, the world seemed to move in slow motion. Irvine watched in wonder as the woman in front of him steadied herself from the collision, her hand gracefully reaching up to push back a lock of hair. She seemed to smile at him. The way her eyes lit up and her face just brightened when she saw him…

Her voice brought him back to Earth. Irvine blinked and finally focused in on the face of his childhood sister figure. “Oh, sorry, Quistis, I blanked out there for a second.”

“Irvine was just telling me about the FABULOUS girl he met the other night… in his dreams,” Selphie said, elbowing the much taller male. Quistis looked curiously from one to the other. She never knew when they were just friends or on the path to something more… she sighed. The topic never amused her too much.

“Well, nice to know we’re all getting along,” Rinoa commented, coming up behind Quistis. A series of ‘Hey Rinoa’s were heard and the brunette returned them evenly. “So how’s everyone this morning?”

“Alas, I just like a lot of comfort,” Irvine said, bringing the two lass’ attention back to him. Quistis good-naturedly shook her head while Selphie just stared. Was it not just one minute ago he was telling her about his real dream of one girl making him happy? One who could make something happen in his heart, according to him. Maybe he wanted to keep his reputation as a womanizer. Hyne knows the Garden population wouldn’t believe him if he told them he was just searching for the right person… like everyone else.

“Irvine, you’re a ladies man. I agree with Rinoa—highly doubting you’ll ever wish for just one girl,” Quistis said, smiling faintly. He knew she was just teasing but oddly enough, she believed it to be the truth.

When he looked back to her, Selphie shrugged innocently. Irvine smiled. “She’s beauty with a side of ice,” he said, shaking his head. Momentarily glancing down at his hands, he noticed the abundance of woven bracelets still in his palm. Shooting a quick grin at Selphie, he turned and went after the blonde.

It was Saturday night, the first night of festivities in Balamb. Its annual historic fair had been a tradition for over thirty years now and the current year’s atmosphere outshone even the greatest amusement park because it closely followed the defeat of Ultimecia. That fact alone made everyone a little happier.

Selphie casually glanced around at the booths lined shoulder to shoulder. She could smell the fried foods mixed with the stench of cigarettes and almost turned up the contents of her stomach. Not that she didn’t love a good festival—just the smell.

“I’ve been wanting to see the crafts anyway,” Quistis agreed. She hooked an arm through Selphie’s and walked a bit faster, passing both Squall and Rinoa. “Come on, Sel, they’ll catch up.”

Happily, the brunette complied as their remaining friends watched the pair head off toward Main Street. Selphie sighed into the night air, watching her breath come into view. Once they reached the street of craft booths, she couldn’t help but stare impressively at the different works. In one stand hung what seemed to be thousands of necklaces, all with the same distinct style but different in appearance, obviously. Momentarily she stopped and fingered one with a purple crystal pendant.

Selphie nodded, her eyes traveling down the line of sitting dolls. They were no more than three feet in height but the way their embroidered gowns fit them perfectly and their faces portrayed the most realistic of expressions, they did strikingly resemble actual little girls.

The pair moved on, every now and then pointing to an interesting display. Music forever vibrated through the air but not to the point where one couldn’t have a conversation with another. Eventually they reached the end of the block and took a turn up the stone steps leading to the courthouse. Booths were also set up in lines accordingly on the grass. The light was dimmer there, under the trees and the setting was a perfect mixture of hanging lanterns and moonlight.

“I feel like some dippin’ dots,” Quistis announced suddenly, nodding to the specific booth. Selphie reached around and pulled her shoulder bag forward, unzipping the front pocket.

After ordering two cups of strawberry and mint the two picked the nearby stone ledge running along the sidewalk on which to sit. The overhanging branches of the trees were just barely out of reach had one of them made the attempt to touch them.

The brunette looked down to her wrist at the statement. “Oh—these were just Irvine’s leftovers,” she answered lightly, examining the bands. “Hyne knows he gave out enough to the entire female population of Garden on Monday with the same phony sentence.”

“Irvine? Please—he wouldn’t commit if it meant his life,” Selphie wisped, waving Quistis’ statement off with her hand. “So he flirted with me—big deal, he does that with every girl.”

“We got really close, none the less,” she continued, scooping the little balls of ice cream in her cup. “You know, I kind of put him in a deeper light because he was the only one who remembered the orphanage.” Her voice dropped noticeably. Quistis nodded, understanding what only an orphan could. Selphie continued after a moment’s pause. “He’s my best friend. I know too many of his techniques to be anything more.”

Quistis squinted at the schedule card in her hand and frowned. There, her first class—the code ended with a three. She racked her memory for the class coding she memorized as an instructor. Threes were the ranked third in the academic ladder. What was she doing there then?

Sighing, she balled the hard paper in her fist and hurled it across the room. She knew something was wrong ever since the first day she stepped foot in that classroom. Everyone was coincidentally one year younger than she and summoning had been the weekly lesson. It had been far too easy for the established blonde. Determined, she stalked off for the office, a small glare in her blue eyes.

“Mrs. Preston?” she asked as soon as she reached the front desk. Xu silently pointed a finger in the left direction and watched as the blonde nodded shortly and took a turn down the hall toward her counselor’s office.

“I came because I think there’s been a mistake in my class placement,” she replied blandly, but politely. She had come to know many of the office personnel in her last year as an instructor. They knew she meant business when she said it.

“Oh, I see,” was the thoughtful answer. She rolled her chair over to her computer and clicked around a bit before coming up to the correct page. She waved Quistis over. “Mm hm, you are in third level—that’s a problem.” The elder paused a moment. “Now, let’s see…. SeeD first rank should land you in advanced placement combat politics.”

Frowning, he plopped down in his seat and stared unseeingly at the far wall. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he kept hearing Selphie’s voice as she talked to her friend—she always seemed to register in the back of his mind at one point or another.

But all traces of the brunette faded when his eye caught sight of the woman suddenly coming through the door. There were plenty of other people in the room, some even coming in before and behind her, but his attention was oddly focused this morning.

Quistis clutched the single textbook closer as she looked casually around the room for a familiar face. From the second row, she noticed a set of brown eyes that had sent many hearts to their seven hells. Smirking none too nicely, he glanced briefly at the seat beside him.

Exhaling deeply, Quistis was the least bit discouraged to find that every other person in the room she either didn’t recognize or didn’t associate with. She liked Irvine just fine—sometimes he did seem a bit over his head on the girls, however. Come to think of it, she couldn’t remember one time when they had simply talked. Shaking her head a little, she settled in the seat beside him, her eyes traveling the length of the wall opposing his direction. No words were spoken, though it was clear who had won the upper hand.

Surprisingly enough, the male student shrugged and moved to the next seat. Truth be told, it didn’t matter where one sat in the room anyhow, considering how it was elevated and everyone had a perfect view.

“And now that that’s established, I’d like to start with a lecture—in other words, start typing frantically on those laptops.” Saying this, she turned from the podium and shuffled through a few papers on her desk. Quistis leaned over toward Irvine.

“Oh! And one more thing,” Instructor Wensley said, turning back to her class. In her right hand was an unfolded letter with obvious sparkly green ink looping across the blue lines. “I thought these stopped in high school.”

The class laughed shortly, too preoccupied with knowing whom the letter-writer was. When notes were found, Instructor Wensley was famous for posting them on the bulletin board in the main office for the entire world to see and make jokes about. Unlikely? Maybe so. But it was true.

The older woman shook her head and walked briskly to the trashcan, crinkling the paper as she went. “You kids these days—you all say the same thing. Think you know about love when something just suddenly goes wrong with the relationship and you’re trying to let them down gently. The cycle never stops, but it’s funny the way it starts so young.”

“I mean, it goes ‘girl, movies, hotel’ nowadays,” he answered, smirking. This was the one class where one could be casual—every student used that to their advantage. More laughs were heard around the room. Instructor Wensley, Kate, her first name was, simply smiled and approached the podium.

“I shouldn’t expect much else from you young lads,” she said, eyes traveling over the males in the room. “It’s psychological that men have a harder time committing…” her voice died when she reached his slouched figure, his eyes downcast and his entire posture portraying thoughtfulness. He had been very quiet since the beginning of class, when usually he would have joined in the remarks made by Mr. Anderson on any other morning. “I suppose you would know tons about that, wouldn’t you, Mr. Kinneas?”

Thirty SeeDs snickered at the cowboy, every last one of them knowing full well the womanizer he was and even claimed to be quite proudly. Truth be told, half the female population of the classroom had some sort of relationship with him one time or another. Quistis almost chortled. Almost. Selphie remained silent.

Kate leaned both arms on the podium, her head tilted in amusement and surprise. Her smile was skeptical, for the added bonus of being an instructor who students could befriend was the fact that teenage gossip made its way to her ears more than twice a day. And she knew of the infamous Galbadian gunslinger and his many… conquests.

Something in the back of her mind seemed to flicker—a small, tiny insignificant nothing pushed away in the corner of her thoughts suddenly surfaced and she lifted her head to look at her best friend in silent question.

“If she can’t be my best friend,” Irvine went on, even motioning as he spoke, “I can’t love her. I have to be that close to her already, or else it isn’t worth it. And even if she couldn’t love me back, at least we’d be friends enough to know that it isn’t worth ruining that relationship over.”

Kate, who had propped her chin up in her hand at some point, squinted at him, her facial expression even more surprised than the previous moment’s. “… Yeah…” she answered eventually, her figure straightening. “That’s good,” she said shortly, eyes laughing. “All right, class. We left off yesterday talking about search techniques…”

Selphie stared at the back of Irvine’s head, her thoughts suddenly swimming in her head in all different directions. What she had first passed off as a witty way to answer a question and defend his honor had turned out to be solemnly true. The discussion about her came to recollection. He had all these things inside that head of his and he was still the way he was? Things about finding the one right person who made something happen in his heart and defining love as friendship before any other typical answer such as passion, lust, and romance… The brunette shook her head a little, her brow creasing with bewilderment. The guy surely had a lot of hidden opinions.

The hall was always crowded after the first class. It was the one time during the day, other than lunch, that students took a break, ten minutes allowed, to be exact. While many formed their various circles of friends and stood annoyingly in the way, freshmen also plowed others over in vain attempt to be on time their first year in the higher levels going into SeeD. A certain blonde fell victim to them that day.

“Hyne dammit,” Quistis grit out as a redheaded undergraduate met her shoulder-to-shoulder, unintentionally taking the button on her jacket with him. As he passed, the small pin caught, dragging her sleeve with him and the blonde watched helplessly as her notebook slipped from the crook of her elbow. A moment later, the binder crashed to the ground and white papers scattered in the small area around her figure.

Sighing deeply, Quistis rebuttoned the cuff of her SeeD jacket and counted slowly to three before dropping down to her knees to gather the mess of whiteness strewn across the floor. For a few suspending moments, bodies passed her left and right in the hallway, all of them looking and yet none of them stopping to help.

She had a light grasp on the last packet of papers when a much larger, harder hand landed atop hers, instantly warming her cold hands. Her hands were always cold. Slowly, she raised her blue eyes up from the hand, to the arm, to the shoulder, and finally to the face of—

“So…” Irvine said, handing her the papers. In his other, he held a bracelet. Oddly enough, the same white yarn-woven bracelet he had offered her last Monday. Now he held it out to her again. “Want to be friends?”

Quistis blindly stuffed the papers in her notebook, her eyes fixated on the figure before her. A small smile appeared on her face, not kind, not sarcastic… a little bit of both. A minute passed, or five. It seemed like he was more than interested to know her answer.

“… Okay,” he said finally, breaking the heavy silence. He turned to stand from his crouch, but a small pressure on the bracelet in his hand pulled him back. He turned back around and happily let go the bracelet as Quistis took it fully in her hand. She was smiling again, this time, genuinely.

A/N: I’m confusing people, I know. I said that this was an Irvine/Selphie story in the summary and it is—it totally and completely is. But there are other things that will lead to them being together and don’t assume them. ^_^

Also, I have people wanting to know what significance the first Selphie has in the story (Irvine’s daughter, the eight-year-old) and you’ll just have to wait for that too. This plotline is just so… developed and intricate that right now in the story, you’re supposed to be a little confused, but I PROMISE that it all fits together in the end. I PROMISE. ^_^

The daycare director, Tahna, looked at her critically. "If any child would run and hide from you, it would be Satan’s little spawns. Honestly, Quistis, you don’t know your own vibrancy."

The older woman waved a hand. "And much too modest about it too. The kids love you here; you know that. Kait over there is easy to get along with," she motioned with her free arm, for her other presently held a sleeping one-year-old. "She’s a quiet one, but she’ll like you, no doubt."

"Thanks," Quistis smiled and began a slow walk toward the small figure crouching in the sand box. She looked five or so, with short brown hair that flipped out at the ends. Her yellow dress was light and summery, perfect for the airy temperature of the midday sun. She seemed a bit too interested in watching the sands slip through her small hands as she simultaneously picked other handfuls of it. Quistis smiled a little and crouched down in front of her at eye level.

"I believe that," Quistis said shortly, tilting her head. The innocent in front of her seemed the type to linger in corners by herself, playing with her dolls or, in this case, sand. Seeming to notice the condition of her hands, Quistis quickly reached for them.

Now the blonde frowned. Children these days; either too much of a personality or too less of a sense of identity. There was no happy medium. This Kait seemed the latter of the two. Briefly, Quistis raised her head and surveyed her surroundings. The playground of the large church was home to a busload of children who came every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for two hours after school. Quistis herself volunteered every Wednesday for the self satisfaction of calling herself a good Samaritan. One wouldn’t think she even liked children with her usual cool exterior, but it was something she began to take notice of after the final battle. She was an orphan, forced to go though childhood without a biological mother and father. Children, little as they had to do with her when she switched over to mercenary mode, were the reason behind everything at some point. She knew that now.

Yet now, looking over the surrounding courtyard of the church, she wondered if there was anything of interest beyond the playground for herself and her new friend. While the latter seemed perfectly content watching the sand slip through her fingers, Quistis would have hated to see the child’s mother frown at the sight.

Just past the slides grew a fresh patch of flowers; blue, pink, purple, and a few smidgens of red peeked through the green grass. Quistis turned to Kait. "Do you like picking flowers?"

The little girl looked up. She bit her lip and eventually nodded. Smiling, Quistis held out her hand, regardless of the dirt stains she knew she would be receiving once Kait took her hand. "Let’s pick some then. They’re right over there."

Briefly, Quistis was reminded of the time when she and Selphie would kneel in the flower fields outside Matron’s orphanage and pick flowers for her. They only had each other at the orphanage, considering the company of four boys; one too arrogant, one too childish, one too annoyingly introverted, and one too preoccupied with stealing Selphie away from her every now and then.

"Who are you picking them for?" Kait’s voice knocked her out of her thoughts. Quistis blinked a few times, looking at the assortment of flowers in her hand she had randomly picked while remembering.

The question was innocent enough, but Quistis found herself pausing in saddened thought. "My mom isn’t living anymore," she answered eventually. It sounded better than saying ‘dead.’

The idea, simple and common as it was, had never occurred to Quistis. The thought that her parents even had a grave never crossed her mind. She suddenly felt very neglective to her long-dead mother and father. "I suppose I could," she answered slowly, wishing she knew exactly where they were.

A short distance away, in the open space of the playground, six boys, all no older than eight, jumped on the lone figure in the middle of their circle, their childish war cries attracting the attention of the entire daycare. In unison, both Quistis and Kait turned their heads at the commotion.

Somewhat reluctantly, the familiar figure took the black cowboy hat off his head and handed it to the nearest boy, a child with flaxen blond hair that was in need of a cut. The six of them ran off, waving the hat like a prize. Quistis watched as Tahna, the director, approached their previous watcher. She said a few words to him, none of them within hearing distance of Quistis, but they were most likely instructions.

Quistis recoiled. Children caught on a little faster these days, didn’t they? "You could say that," she answered evenly, eyes never leaving him. Motioning for Kait to follow her, she stood and made her way back to the playground. The girl obeyed without question.

"He usually comes in on Mondays, but he told me he had something come up this week and made it up today," Tahna answered for him, looking to Quistis. "If I had known you two knew each other I would have scheduled you both for the same days."

The little brunette pouted a little but whatever her gut emotion, it passed in a moment’s second. Irvine looked from the five-year-old to Quistis for a moment before clearing his throat. "Well! I’ll be in the toy room."

And with a slight nod of the head, he turned and disappeared in the swarm of children crowding the playground. Quistis shook her head a little. Irvine Kinneas was volunteering at a daycare. The world had to be ending somewhere. Tahna had also gone off to deal with her group of children, leaving the two girls alone again. Presently, Quistis felt a tug at her denim skirt.

And with that, the two set off for the double door entrance to the church. The deafening sound of the old-fashioned latches clicking out of place echoed through the empty sanctuary at their entry and caught Irvine’s attention as to who had followed him in.

Reaching the first pew, Quistis looked up to see the would-be cowboy waiting patiently near the front of the sanctuary for them. Encouragingly, she gave Kait a little nudge. "Go on ahead; I’ll be there in a minute."

Nodding, the child ran off happily down the lengthy aisle, a few petals falling from the bouquet still in her hand. She passed Irvine with a smile before disappearing through the side door leading to the Sunday school rooms and the like. After the door closed behind her with some finality, Quistis turned her attention back to her long-time friend, once forgotten. Nervously, though for what reason she would never know, she began a slow walk up the aisle toward Irvine. The flowers she had picked were still in her hands, and she suddenly found herself staring at them under his gaze. By Hyne, what had happened to her in the last three days every time she got around him?

Quistis tilted her head a little. "To be direct, yeah. At first I didn’t know what to make of the five of us meeting again, ten years later, going up against our own surrogate mom."

An uneasy silence passed between them as they both looked around in the sanctuary, their eyes traveling over the stain-glass windows and the amazing height at which the ceiling hovered above their heads. The church was itself was old-fashioned, but still impressive in structure.

The air had become very serious rather abruptly. Both teenagers shifted a little, their imaginations suddenly realizing the irony of the situation. It was funny if they thought hard enough.

"I better go," Quistis dared voice, turning and walking briskly to the door which Kait had disappeared through merely minutes before. She left Irvine standing there, looking after her.