FOREWORD: This is an ongoing fanfic. To start reading from the beginning, click here.
Series: Final Fantasy VIII (8)
Pairing: Zell Dincht & Squall Leonhart
Status: ongoing
Rating: PG
Warnings: shounen-ai, light Rinoa bashing
Search keyword: ff8_floating
Notes: The end is abrupt, and the chapter is even shorter than the last. I apologize if the story seems to be drifting aimlessly. Anyway, Squall gets detention.
It was about noon and Zell figured he still had to attend the specialized SeeD training session that day. Ms. Glynn would most likely accept Squall's absence, given that the order was issued by the headmaster himself, but it didn't mean he didn't was excused.
After lunching on two hotdogs and a large cola, Zell hurried from the cafeteria to the quad. Without his training partner, Zell wasn't sure what he was going to do today.
But of course, Ms. Glynn had plans already. Before Zell even entered the quad, she was standing by the entrance and promptly greeted him sternly.
"I am fully aware of your partner's current duty," she began, "So for the time being, your temporary sparring partner during class will be the Galbadian transfer, Irvine Kinneas. Outside of class, you're still responsible for watching after Leonhart, understand?"
"Yes madam!" Zell couldn't help but grin. Selphie was going to throw a fit! And speaking of, was Selphie's partner showing up today? As soon as Ms. Glynn dismissed him, the blond headed into the quad and glanced around to look for the rest of his friends. Selphie was standing on the stairs near the waterfall, bouncing on her heels, but Rinoa was nowhere in sight. Irvine wasn't there yet either, so Zell decided to join Selphie until class began.
"Hey Selphie. You know if Rinoa's showing up?"
"Hey Zell! No, I don't think so, Ms. Glynn assigned me to Quistis as my temporary partner for the training for now," the usually bubbly girl stopped bouncing and gazed worriedly at the flowing water. "I wonder how she's dealing with this."
"Rinoa? What do you mean how she's doing? Seifer's the one who's hurt, she's just watching over him from what I can tell."
"Well yeah," she exhales, "I mean how she's taking this with Squall knowing now." The brunette pursed her lips into a frown.
"You knew about Rinoa and Seifer then.." Zell felt silent rage building within.
"Well duh!" the girl spun to face Zell. "Remember we were partners? Unlike most of you guys, we bonded and talked to each other! I tried to get Rin to 'fess up to Squall, but she didn't want to break it off with him until she was sure about Seifer." She paused in thought then continued. "I mean, that's just playing Squall, right? I told her that but she insisted that wasn't the case. Well I don't know."
"Why didn't you say something? You know how much this hurt Squall because nobody told him?"
"It wasn't my place to," Selphie looked down and tapped her shoe at the edge of the stairs. "Rin made me promise to keep this to myself, a promise between us girls you know," she sighed and looked up at Zell earnestly. "How is Squall?" she asked, fear seeping in her quiet voice.
"He's okay. He's on detention for a week though," the martial artist chuckled and shadowboxed the other way. "He's a fighter like the rest of us. He'll find some way to get through to Rinoa."
"I'm glad!" Selphie returned to her normal self and jumped up and down gleefully. "But hey, if he's on detention, who's your partner for now?"
Fangs baring, Zell grinned widely. "Irvy-chan!" He mimicked the hyper girl's shrill call at the cowboy, who happened to walk in at that moment, and darted off laughing.
"Hey that's not fair!" She stomped and chased after Zell throughout the quad.
Irvine Kinneas' ears perked up to his name being called so affectionately by the blonde. "Zell, my darling!" he exclaimed, seeing Selphie tailing the blonde running towards him.
Upon contact, Irvine spun Zell around in his arms, whose sneakers were off the ground and curled behind as Selphie would. When the bouncy ninja finally caught up with them, she bent over in exhaustion and stuck out her tongue.
"Oh Selphie sweetness, did I not tell you about Zell and me?" he grinned mischieviously, setting Zell down on his feet but still holding him close.
"Well," she straightened up and suddenly snatched the cowboy's hat with a jump. "Guess you won't be needing this back!" she taunted with a silly smile.
Zell doubled over in laughter when Selphie led Irvine in a short chase which ended up in a light tickling and kissing session at the foot of the stairs. Sighing afterwards, he looked on in wonder if he would ever have a chance at that kind of happiness. Dream on Zell, he told himself - Squall's still in love with Rinoa, remember? Oh yeah and let's not forget he's not into guys.
Then Ms. Glynn whistled and everybody gathered for the day's training session to begin. Everybody was looking forward to this; they could all work off the previous night's stress.
----
Class was extremely long, and Squall wondered if the class was normally this quiet. No, couldn't be, Cid said he was assigned to a rowdy, out-of-line class. Didn't seem like the class he was looking after though. Didn't matter anyway, he was paying for his actions yesterday, although this hardly seemed like punishment. He didn't have to deal with extraneous training sessions for a week - he loved sitting in silence - and that meant he had lots of time to think. Oh. So that was Cid's intention. Squall rubbed his forehead and sighed silently.
Yes, attacking Seifer was wrong; yes casting Death on him then beating him senseless while junctioned was wrong, but who wouldn't considering Seifer was kissing your girlfriend in front of you? Seifer, of all people, who should not take his readmission to Garden and even quick promotion to SeeD for granted, was the last person Squall would want to lose Rinoa to. That bastard deserved to be destroyed for helping out Ultimecia on his own free will, for pulling the world into jeopardy. And yet once the war was over, Cid decides to forgive him and give him a second chance at becoming a SeeD? Not that he shouldn't deserve a second chance, but being a SeeD meant fighting against the sorceress, and could Seifer be entrusted to that task when he once willingly fought for a diabolical sorceress? Squall sure didn't trust him.