Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Sowing the SeeDs ❯ Chapter 8

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Sowing the SeeDs : Part 8

a fanfic by His lordship Chaos
with Greenbeans
edited by Helen Fong
based on the world of Final Fantasy 8
created by Square Electronic Arts L.L.C.


- Quistis -

Because of Quistis' breakthrough in casting, she swiftly
advanced from working with mid-level to high-level spells. That
didn't mean the work was any easier, but she was noticeably
progressing nevertheless. The first reward for her efforts and
Myn's teaching was that she was now allowed to attend a special
class on GF handling.

To Quistis' surprise, there was one other cadet there her age.
Everyone else was at least two or three years older than either of
the two girls. Age wasn't a requirement; only that one's level of
magic met certain standards.

The class itself was primarily a tutorial seminar that took
place for all of one off-day. Afterwards the Faculty instructor
teaching them would take them into the Training Centre for
individual practice on GF summoning and attacking. For now the
cadets just had to get acquainted with their first two Guardian
Forces.

There were six cadets in total who were receiving their GFs.
A Faculty member met them in the Quad mid-morning. "Cadets must
demonstrate care and respect for Guardian Forces," the Shumi
teacher told them in no uncertain terms. "If you do not treat
Guardian Force with respect, Guardian Force will not respect you.
Will not want to come out when summoned. Might be very bad if cadet
is in fierce battle."

Quistis had learned a lot about GFs already from a variety of
sources: Xu and Kei primarily, but there had also been books in the
Library about GF historical research. And then there was all her
practice with Ifrit. She hoped Ifrit wouldn't get jealous if she
used Shiva and Quezelcoatl for a little while; she couldn't afford
to let it slip about her own 'private' Fire Cavern test.

After the Faculty member lectured them for a greater portion
of the morning about GF types, learning abilities, castings and
summonings, the cadets were given their Guardian Forces. Quistis
studied the small leather box that was handed to her. She undid the
bronze latch and flipped the lid up. The interior casing was made
to cushion and fit two small stones. The icy-blue coloured one she
recognized as Shiva's; the creamy yellow one belonged to
Quezelcoatl.

The brushing of her skin against the polished surface of each
stone stirred the Guardian Forces to life. Shiva realized that it
was Quistis handling her faster than Quezelcoatl did, and seemed to
want to be petted again. The thought of a kitty-like Shiva getting
its tummy rubbed made Quistis laugh out loud. She blushed and
quickly apologized as the others turned their heads to her.

They had a break over lunch, and then returned to try their
hand at summoning a GF. Most of the cadets had never seen a GF
being unleashed before, and stood in awe as the first one released
their Shiva. A few of the older cadets milling around took the
opportunity to watch the display, cheering to see who could get
their GF to make the best appearance.

When Quistis' turn came, Shiva and Quezelcoatl reacted faster
and more spectacular than for anyone else. She got rave reviews
from the spectators--a number of whom showed their Trepie
inclinations by chanting, "Quistis! Quistis! Quistis!"

A stern glare from the Faculty calmed them down.

The Shumi gave her a quizzical look, and then complimented her
on her technique. "Not often cadet can do that on first time," it
told her. "But do not think you are excused. You have much else to
learn about Guardian Forces."

Quistis knew the Faculty was right.

By the end of the day, the attending cadets were all quite
friendly with each other. Quistis learned that the other young
cadet her age, Reika, was an aspiring Triple Triad card shark too.
She promised to have a game with Reika later that evening.

After an even match against Reika, a number of foolish cadets
'volunteered' to have Quistis pillage their card decks. Once she
returned from her unexpected tournament, Quistis found Myn sitting
at her desk reading a magazine.

He looked up from whatever article had last caught his
attention. "Oh, you're not Sis."

"I should hope not," Quistis said, carefully placing her GF
stones and their carry case on her bunk. "She'll pitch a fit if she
sees your feet are up on her textbooks."

Myn shrugged, his head turning to follow Quistis. "Who's going
to know?"

He suddenly became acutely aware of Nym's shadow looming over
him. "How about me?" Nym replied in an ominous voice.

Despite the subsequent thuds and shouts that were heard,
Quistis calmly laid herself out on her bed and started browsing
through yet another of Myn's magazines that he'd left lying around.
A brief skim of one article struck Quistis in a funny way. Most
people didn't write like this, so she consulted the title.

"'Anarchist Monthly'?"

"It doesn't hurt to be informed," Myn said as his sister
pinned him to the floor with a headlock. "You should read it. At
the very least it offers a new slant to the news of the world."

Once she was satisfied that she had trounced her twin enough,
Nym got back on her feet and dusted her legs off. She then went
through some of her casual wardrobe, picking something a little
nicer to wear for the evening.

"Going out?" Quistis asked.

Nym nodded, appraising herself in the mirror as she held a
rather tight blue dress in front of her body. "We're trying to make
it to dinner in Balamb before curfew tonight. His treat," she
added.

"You do realize he should be studying for his exams," Myn
said, rolling his eyes.

Nym smiled and winked at Quistis. "I have to enjoy my time
with him while I can."

Quistis wasn't exactly sure what either of them meant. Nym had
been acting a little out of character lately, but the twins never
seemed to let Quistis in on the reason. Neither did Jessie for that
matter--though she saw even less of him nowadays for obvious
reasons.

Once Nym changed and left, Myn offered to wander around the
grounds with Quistis--though only after a little hand-to-hand
combat session. Feeling pleased with her work at the GF seminar,
Quistis agreed. Their sparring was more casual, and they talked
more than they actually threw punches.

"I hear you got your GFs today," he remarked, dodging a punch
aimed for his face. He danced back for a few steps, then charged
with a fury of jabs at her chest.

Quistis nodded, twisting herself sideways. She managed to
deliver a good blow to Myn's side. He didn't seem too fazed, but
backed away. They took to circling the ring for a little while.

"From what I hear, Diablos is especially testy if you don't
use him on a regular basis," Myn said. "His very nature sets him
apart from most of the other GFs. Diablos only submits--"

He hastily ducked a roundhouse kick from Quistis aimed at the
side of his neck. The kid may not have been tall, but she was
definitely limber and agile.

"--when fought and defeated," he finished. "It's a matter of
respect for your authority. Ifrit is very much the same way. A SeeD
gets him right before they graduate. The Fire Cavern test is
something--"

It was his turn to attack; pulling a punch that caused Quistis
to flinch. He then dropped low and spun his body around, a sweep
knocking Quistis off her feet and onto the mats.

"--all cadets must go through. You get to fight, defeat and if
you win, receive Ifrit. Gain his GF stone and you're on your way to
graduating."

He walked over and offered a helping hand. As she let Myn pull
her up, Quistis couldn't help but smile inwardly about the fact
that she had already taken care of that pre-requisite. But then
what would she do when the time came to officially take the Fire
Cavern test?



Quistis saw little of Jessie over the course of July--though
whenever she did catch sight of him, Nym was usually cajoling him
into something. However, now he wasn't as unwilling as he used to
be. Quistis didn't ask, and usually didn't have the time. It was
surprising how much work was to be done when a cadet was raised to
the higher grades.

When it came time for the spring break, Jessie joined the
ranks of SeeD. Much to his delight, his old roommate was on hand at
the party afterwards. SeeD LeVar was able to pay Quistis and the
twins a brief visit while he bunked down at Balamb for the break;
his keen mind and brilliant strategies were making him a popular
tactician to have on hand in any situation. As a result, he moved
around quite a bit.

Myn and Nym also hung around the Garden during the break, and
much to Nym's glee Jessie didn't have to leave on a mission until
the break ended. At LeVar's recommendation, the two SeeDs were
going to be working together for their next contracted operation...
of which neither one was at liberty to discuss with the cadets.

Quistis couldn't wait to finally be a part of all the secrets.



Near the tail end of the break, the Headmaster found himself
busy with receiving yet another new cadet who had arrived at Balamb
Garden. Cid looked down at the stack of files and papers in front
of him, and then up to the cadet seated across the desk. Now came
time for the standard interrogation session.

"So why did you wish to transfer from Trabia to Balamb?" he
asked.

"As you can see from my records, my weapons and combat skills
are both diverse and impressive," the cadet replied, his voice even
and betraying little if any pride in this fact. His baby blue eyes
were focused on Cid with an almost intense, shark-like gaze.
"However, there are other areas where I lack such proficiency."

Cid nodded as he thumbed through some of the papers. "This is
because of your upbringing in the Weapons Guild, am I correct?"

The cadet nodded.

"It's not often we receive Guild students into SeeD," Cid
noted. "Though it is something perhaps we should do more often." He
filed away an idea for a possible exchange program between the
Gardens and the Guild. Something to consider at a later date. "I
note that your magic usage severely lacks despite Trabia's best
efforts."

"Headmistress Rebecca felt that Balamb would be better suited
to develop my magic usage without completely frustrating me." The
cadet added, "She believes very strongly that I would make a good
SeeD."

He didn't seem fazed by all his faults being pointed out; if
anything he seemed eager to overcome them. That unto itself was
commendable in Cid's book. "Judging from her records, and your
progress reports, I would be inclined to agree," Cid said with an
absent nod of his head. "We tend to be a little more accepting of
cadets using magic and Guardian Forces." He smirked as he added, "I
can see a transfer to Galbadia would be out of the question for
you."

The cadet winced at hearing Galbadia mentioned. "Point taken,
Sir."

The Galbadian Garden was known and oft-lamented for its
vehement discouragement of teaching magic to SeeD cadets--even to
the point of banning GFs. This was just one of the reasons why a
transfer to Galbadia was not ranked highly as something a SeeD
cadet wanted in life.

"Do you have any Guardian Forces?" Cid asked.

The cadet shook his head. "Just one: Diablos."

One of Cid's eyebrows went up. "Oh?"

Without missing a beat the cadet answered, "I got him through
a curious quirk of fate that best remains unsaid for now."

A cryptic smile tugged at the edges of Cid's lips.
"Intriguing. You'll have to tell me that story later on. But in the
meantime, I would advise that you keep in mind the fact that you
possess one of the more powerful GFs out there."

"It's good to see we share the same sentiments then, Sir."

"I should also state here and now," Cid added, leaning back in
his chair, "that until your usage of magic reaches the Garden
standards, you will not be issued any other Guardian Forces.
Besides, Diablos isn't known for enjoying other playmates in his
sandbox."

The cadet smirked. "Interesting analogy. Is there anything
else you require of me then?"

Cid closed the top file, and smiled at the cadet. "Nothing
comes to mind. If that matter is settled, then everything looks
good to me. Welcome to Balamb Garden, cadet Enju."

Enju stood up and bowed formally. "Thank you, Headmaster. I
look forward to graduating from here as a SeeD."

"Please, call me Cid," he said. "We are primarily on a
first-name basis here--though the Shumi are obvious exceptions. I
am sure you will do SeeD justice when you graduate."

There was nothing else to be said as Enju bowed again--though
not as formal and deeply as before--and moved towards the door.
His hand reached for the doorknob.

"Oh, one last thing, if I may," Cid called out, his tone of
voice making it sound like a sudden afterthought. "Could you roll
up your sleeves for me?"

The cadet froze, abruptly on the defensive. It was subtle, but
the tension was there regardless. "Sir?" he asked. The fact that he
didn't say 'Cid' made his wariness known.

"Could you roll up your sleeves?" Cid repeated. His voice was
matter-of-fact, as if it shouldn't be any trouble.

Still hesitating, Enju complied as he stepped away from the
door and approached the Headmaster's desk. Enju removed his coat,
revealing a pair of specialized armguards over his sleeves. Cid
recognized them as the kote of the Weapons Guild: a leather
gauntlet covered by small armour plates, meant to deflect the
strike of a blade. While Enju's kote seemed fairly new, there were
a number of nicks and marks on the armour.

"I am trusting these are not against uniform regulations,"
Enju asked cautiously.

"I can sanction an exception for you, if needs be," Cid
replied. "Take off the kote, please."

Enju hesitated again, but not necessarily out of fear. His
eyes were narrowed, gazing almost defiantly at the Headmaster.

"Just one will do, cadet." Cid was meeting the gaze perfectly,
and right then, it was a matter of whose will would bend to
accommodate the other.

Enju relented. Being a cadet meant following the Headmaster's
instructions. And it definitely wouldn't have put him in Cid's good
graces if they butted horns during their first meeting. Once the
straps were undone, the kote was tossed onto the guest chair. Enju
pushed back the sleeve of his uniform and raised his forearm for
Cid to see.

The skin was visibly paler and hairless. His smooth skin was
almost painted white in the light of the office. But what really
caught Cid's attention were the numerous angel feather tattoos,
painted to look as if they were floating down Enju's arm. They were
tinted purple, their edges fine and dark. But because of how pale
Enju's skin was, the surface of the feathers still appeared white.
Moments later, the snowy complexion started to fade to something
more flesh-coloured.

"Altered pigmentation?" Cid inquired.

Enju nodded.

"I take it that all your skin goes this white when exposed to
darkness or moonlight?"

Again Enju only nodded, and did not vocalize a response.

Cid kept a poker face as he continued to examine and
scrutinize the tattoos. Finally he rose from his chair, pacing both
hands on his desktop. "Thank you," he said to the cadet. "I
appreciate your co-operation. That will be all."

"Is there any trouble, Headmaster?" Enju asked, very careful
of how to respond to the developing situation.

The Headmaster shook his head. "Not unless you're the one to
make it, cadet Enju. You can put the kote back on; I'll make sure
your instructors know that you're allowed to wear them."

"All the time, preferably," Enju added.

"Of course," Cid said with a nod. He strolled past Enju while
crossing the office. Cid waited with his hand on the doorknob as
Enju covered the tattoos up with the kote, and then opened the
door. "You may come in now, cadet Myn."

Myn strolled into the Headmaster's office, paying more
attention first to Cid. After a semi-formal bow, Myn redirected his
focus on Enju. The two stood about four or five steps apart,
staring quietly and briefly summing up their first impressions of
the other.

Cid gestured to Enju. "Cadet Enju, meet cadet Myn. The two of
you will be roommates here at Balamb." He shifted his gaze over to
Myn. "Please show our new friend around the Garden. It's best he be
acquainted with his surroundings before he gets lost on his way to
his first classes. Incidentally, they start tomorrow for you,
Enju."

"Yes, Sir," Enju said politely. "The evening should give me
ample time to learn the layout of Balamb. It's bigger than Trabia,
but I don't think that should pose a problem."

The two cadets began to walk out, with Myn taking the lead.
Right beside the door laid Enju's two rather large, black duffel
bags. On his way out, Enju quickly hoisted one duffel bag over his
shoulder and took to carrying the other one with his left hand. He
reached back and grasped the knob to pull the door closed behind
himself.

Abruptly Enju paused and turned his head, looking back at Cid.
"There will be no trouble if it can be helped, Headmaster," he
stated. "I assure you."

Cid gave a knowing smile. "Very good."



Yet again Myn gave an unsure glance over his shoulder at the
new cadet. Enju was currently lagging about two steps behind Myn's
pace, and appeared quite content in quietly turning his head left
and right. Myn could only presume Enju was checking out Balamb's
gear-like configuration of corridors, classrooms and dorms.

Upon leaving the Headmaster's office, Enju had slipped a pair
of sunglasses over his eyes. Even though it wasn't bright enough in
the Garden corridors to warrant its use, Enju didn't mind wearing
them.

Nym tended to dislike people who always felt they had to wear
shades to look 'cool'. He had to wear his out of necessity, or else
he'd run the risk of burning his retinas from the sunlight. Being
photo-sensitive was a lot better than being blind. Sometimes he
felt jealous of the cadets who didn't have to wear any form of
glasses, sunglasses or otherwise.

The Grat always seemed greener on the other side, as the
saying went. Or was it the grass?

Adding to the discomfort was the fact that Enju hadn't spoken
a word after leaving Headmaster Cid's office--which had been almost
ten minutes ago. If he was indeed making mental notes of the
Garden's layout, he was being very focused about performing that
task.

"So," Myn said, trying to start up a conversation. He adjusted
his own pair of sunglasses. "Since we're going to be roommates, we
should get to know each other. You came from Trabia too?"

Enju nodded.

"My sister and I came from Trabia," Myn continued, growling
under his breath that Enju might actually decide to say something.
Anything! "I don't recall seeing you around--but then again we were
probably in different classes. What did you think of the Garden?"

"It was very cold," Enju replied. His voice remained
non-committal, and for the most part as unemotional as could be.

Myn nodded. "Trabia tends to be."

Silence.

Enju wasn't going to say anything further on the subject, it
appeared. Myn forced himself not to stop and stick his face right
in front of Enju's. "AND?" he pressed.

Enju gave an indifferent shrug as he glanced down an adjacent
corridor. "Nice Chocobo forest," he added, pushing the sunglasses
back up the bridge of his nose.

Swiveling around, Myn walked backwards and made an exasperated
gesture with his arms. "Anything else? I'd appreciate getting more
than a few words from you, Enju. Care to drop the stoicism?"

"Forgive my seeming rudeness, but we can get acquainted later
tonight?" Enju stated. "Right now, I have other priorities to be
mindful of. Namely, where are the training facilities?"

Myn was taken aback by the cold shoulder he was being given;
his restraint could only go so far before the last proverbial
button was pushed. Myn came to a dead stop right in front of Enju.
Showing what might have been a hint of surprise, Enju came to a
halt about two paces from his new roommate.

"If you're that anxious to get to the training room," Myn
snapped. "I can escort you there myself--and then wipe you across
the mats for being such an ass."

A strange smile crept its way onto Enju's face. "Really? You'd
do that for me?"

Myn stiffened, finding the retort a little confusing. "You
want me to kick your butt across the training room?"

"Not exactly," Enju replied evenly. "But I've heard of the
high-caliber SeeDs that Balamb produces. I'm rather anxious to see
how I stack up against them."

"So... you do want me to kick your butt across the training
room, then?"

"If you think you can."

There was a playful tone in that, and Myn had to laugh. "Maybe
you're not such a hardass after all, Enju."

Enju shrugged, adjusting the weight of the duffel bag on his
shoulders. "I mean it. I'd like to see you try, as you so
colourfully put it, to kick my butt across the training room."

"In good time," Myn said, slapping Enju on the arm. Enju
merely looked down at where he had been hit, as if unsure how to
react to it. "Come on, I'll show you where to dump the luggage, and
then I'll let you check out the training room. Sound fair?"

Enju shook his head. "No, but I don't exactly think you'll let
me escape."

The two continued towards their dorm room, and while Enju
remained silent for most of the trek (save for the random
one-worded reply), Myn wasn't so unnerved about it anymore. He made
an effort of pointing out and describing whatever he could; at
least it would make him feel like a useful guide. And Enju seemed
to be paying attention to him, looking in whatever direction Myn
was describing as they walked along.

"...and over there we have our Infirmary with Doctor
Kadowaki," Myn was in the middle of saying. "She has a cute nurse
*and* the Doctor knows her medicine. If you need to get patched up,
this is the place to limp your way over to."

But Enju suddenly wasn't paying attention to Myn's discourse.
His head slowly turning with Quistis as she walked past him. She
was busy talking with one of the other female cadets, and failed to
notice the blue eyes following her from behind the sunglasses.

"Say, Myn... who's she?" Enju asked, interrupting Myn's praise
about the Cafeteria hot dogs. His voice sounded relaxed, like he
had suddenly taken personal interest in Balamb for the first time.

"You don't know about Quistis?" Myn was rather surprised and
didn't bother hiding it. "She's practically the poster child for
Balamb. She's even got her own fan club; they call themselves the
Trepies. That's quite the achievement for a thirteen year-old, I
have to say. Then again, she will turn fourteen in a few months."

But Enju wasn't even paying attention to Myn anymore. His eyes
were still following an unsuspecting Quistis down the corridor.
Enju's steel expression slowly lifted and was replaced with a
wolfish grin. "Here," he said, blindly tossing one duffel bag at
his new roommate.

Myn was caught off guard and stumbled backwards as he caught
the large--and surprisingly heavy--bag. The next surprise came when
he saw Enju drop his second bag on the floor and head off in the
opposite direction. "Hey, where are you going?" Myn called out
after him.

Enju spun around on the balls of his feet, and leaned forward.
He slid the sunglasses down his nose momentarily, and gave Myn a
playful wink. "I'm off to make some new friends."

And with that, he turned and briskly walked away.

"You don't even know where your room is!" Myn exclaimed.

Enju casually waved that aside as he continued after Quistis.
"I'm sure I'll find it eventually. And please be careful with my
bags; most of what's in them doesn't take kindly to being
rough-housed."

Left alone with a heavy load to carry, Myn could only stare in
disbelief at the fleeting form of his roommate. It was certainly
apparent that Enju wasn't going to be coming back anytime in the
near future. And that meant he was relegated to delivering Enju's
bags to the room. Not that he liked the idea in the slightest.

Myn growled to himself, "I'm going to kill that guy." His
frown turned into a diabolical smirk as he hoisted Enju's one
duffel bag onto his shoulders and grabbed the other duffel bag with
both hands. "Even better, I'll have Sis help."



"Ah, she arrives," Nym remarked, waving to Quistis as she
briskly stepped into the Quad. "Back from another successful Triple
Triad pirating session, are we?"

Quistis parted ways with Reika and joined her roommate at a
vacant table. A tree stretched over them, giving comfortable shade
from the glow of the setting sun. It had been a successful Triple
Triad match, she admitted to herself. A part of Quistis couldn't
wait to challenge Xu when she returned. Quistis sorely wanted to
test her mettle against the one who had introduced her into the
game.

"Hello, and who have we here?" Nym remarked with a sly grin,
her gaze locking onto someone else.

Quistis followed Nym's line of sight, and found that her
roommate was eyeing a male cadet just wandering into the Quad.
Quistis laughed. "Down, Nym. Don't sink your teeth into him yet."

"I need every man I can get if I'm to build up a harem that
rivals yours," Nym replied.

That caused Quistis to shrink down a little from
embarrassment. "It's a fan club, not a harem. And I didn't ask for
it either."

"Oh, admit it," Nym ribbed her. "You like the attention. And
if you actually put some effort into it, you could nicely exploit
your willing fans." She studied the roaming cadet further. "I don't
think I've seen him around before. Transfer student, maybe?"

It was the start of a new semester, so that would have easily
made sense.

Quistis took a good look at the newcomer herself. With the
shades on, it was impossible to tell what colour his eyes were.
Though from this distance it wouldn't have really mattered. On the
other hand, he was surprisingly tall and looked quite mature for a
cadet. He looked almost like a full-fledged SeeD.

"Eighteen, maybe nineteen," Nym said, appraising her potential
fanboy/galley slave. "Tall; nice, broad shoulders; toned chest is
evident even underneath his shirt; and I like the ponytail too.
Added bonus there. Why are you laughing like that, Quistis? You
should be taking notes for when you want to get a boyfriend."

Boyfriend?

That was something that had yet to come into Quistis' mind.
She was still thirteen--and besides, her desire to become a SeeD
Instructor was ranked first on her priority list. Yet mild
curiosity got the better of the young cadet, and she gave the
newcomer a second appraisal. Quistis had to admit he looked
charming at first glance, but odds were he was easily four or five
years her elder.

She returned her attention to Nym, only to see that Nym was
cleaning her proverbial claws. "I'm going to flag him down," she
told Quistis as she waved the cadet over to join them. "And
remember: I called first dibs."

Quistis sighed at the thought of yet another dress added to
Nym's already growing collection of presents from the male cadets
at her beck and call.

Enju strolled over towards their table, hands in his pockets
as he looked around the immense Quad. "Evening, ladies," he said.

"You look a little lost," Nym remarked, flashing him a
disarming smile.

Enju nodded, though didn't seem to take the bait. "As a matter
of fact, I am," he admitted, looking at the Quad. He reached up and
slid the sunglasses off his nose, an overwhelmed look in his blue
eyes. "I was supposed to have a guide to show me around, but he
took off a while ago. Told me to check the place out on my own and
then meet him in the Cafeteria for dinner."

Both Nym and Quistis were surprised. That sort of behaviour
was definitely not something Cid or Balamb endorsed. "Who was your
guide?" Quistis asked.

The cadet searched his memory, scratching his faded copper
hair. "Oh, it was a foreign name. Kinda stands out. Myn, something?
At least that's how I think he pronounced it."

Nym abruptly stood up. "Excuse me," she said somewhat curtly
as she stalked out from the Quad.

"Where are you going?" Quistis called out after her.

"To injure my brother," Nym glibly replied before turning a
corner.

Not understanding what had just happened, Enju shrugged and
turned to Quistis. "So... care to give me the guided tour?" He held
out his hand. "My name's Enju."

"My name's--" Quistis began as she shook his hand.

"Quistis," he answered for her. "Unless I've somehow mistaken
Balamb's pride and joy for someone else."

The surprise registering in Quistis' eyes was unmistakable.

"Oh, you're quite the legend around the Gardens," Enju said,
using the handshake to lightly pull Quistis off the bench and onto
her feet. "Rumour has it Cid has you under lock and key to make
sure he can take all the credit for when you become the best
operative in SeeD history."

Although she didn't want to in front of him, Quistis blushed
quite profusely. All the Trepie adoration was one thing. But having
other Gardens talking about her was too much! Did she have fan
clubs in the other Gardens too? She forced herself not to laugh at
the thought of how Nym would look upon hearing that.

Enju smirked and let a few fingers brush against her flustered
cheeks. "I know I'm cute, but you're embarrassing me, Quistis."

That didn't help her skin return to its normal colour. But
Enju took it in stride, laughing with a fondness in his voice that
helped quell Quistis' feelings of being on display.

"So then," he remarked, taking a step back and turning towards
one of the exits. "How about that tour?"

As she showed Enju around, Quistis fondly remembered how Xu
had taken her on very much the same tour when she had first arrived
at Balamb. Since this was after class hours, more students were
milling about than usual. Many nodded or waved to her, and almost
all of them took note of the 'friend' she was showing around.

Quistis first took Enju to the main entrance area, and showed
him the directory. If he ever got lost, he could fall back to here
and consult the map. "The overall shape is like a gear," she
explained. "The corridor we just walked down would be the circle
base of the gear. The breezeways that lead off to the various areas
of the complex are the teeth."

Whistling at the sight, Enju slid down his shades to get a
good look at everything. He pointed to the main elevator shaft. "I
recognize that; the Headmaster's office is on the third floor."

"Just remember that you can't go up there without permission,"
Quistis made the point of saying. "The second floor is mostly
comprised of classrooms, while the majority of the dorms are on the
first floor. The Cafeteria is open from 0900 to 2100, and the
Library is open from 0900 to lights out."

Enju nodded as they took the elevator up to the second floor,
and Quistis showed him some of the classrooms he'd be in.

"So what brought you to Balamb?" Enju idly inquired, still
admiring the view of the Training Centre from up above in the
overpass. "Aside from a car, of course."

A bittersweet smile appeared on Quistis' face. But being at
Balamb, and most recently talking with Skye, had helped her face
her tragic childhood. Very calmly she explained how she had been
orphaned before being brought to Balamb.

Enju's smile faded, and for a moment he looked like a
different person. "I'm sorry," he said. He avoided her gaze by
glancing down at the foliage of the Training Centre far below. "I
didn't mean to kill the mood like that."

She smiled as she looked at Enju. "It's okay. Balamb's become
my family now. There have been so many friends who've acted like my
big brothers and sisters. Many are still around... and some have
passed on."

Like Sean. Even though she had survived the worst parts of his
horrific death, the terrors of reliving the memories were always
there in the back of her mind. But she had slowly gotten over that.
There were times when she doubted she would ever recover, but life
at Balamb had changed significantly since then.

And for the better too.

"So... got a boyfriend?"

Quistis nearly tripped over her feet as Enju casually asked
that question.

There was no one else on the overpass.

It was just the two of them.

"Well?" Enju asked again, still keeping his back to her. "Do
you have a boyfriend, or are you available?"

"Garden frowns on that sort of relationship." Quistis stumbled
over that sentence. Her face felt hot and flustered; she couldn't
even tell if he was serious or just teasing her.

"At least I know where things stand," Enju muttered to
himself. You can't get hurt if there was no one you cared about. It
was a policy he knew all too well.

Enju glanced back over his shoulder at Quistis. "You coming
along, or are you just going to stand there? From what I gather,
dinner should be starting soon."

He wasn't saying anything more about her being single, and
that gave Quistis the chance to breathe again. Maybe it had just
been a simple question after all, probably asked on behalf of some
Trepie. That was probably it. Quistis let the logic calm herself.
She caught up with Enju and showed him to the Cafeteria.



At dinner, Enju sat beside her yet acted perfectly calm, as if
nothing had ever happened on the overpass. Quistis kept expecting
him to do something, but he remained a social gentleman as he ate.
There were random questions asked about Balamb Garden that were
easy enough to answer, but he never inquired any further about her
personal life.

Abruptly the Cafeteria doors were thrown open and in limped
Myn. The look on his face attested to the fact that he was rather
irate with something--or someone. One of the cadets whistled and
remarked about how agitated Myn looked; it wasn't every day someone
managed to get the more patient of the twins that pissed off.

Quistis found herself an uneasy spectator in what could become
a brawl. Myn wasn't the type to back down once someone set him off.
But just who or what could have gotten Myn that angry?

"You!" he growled, singling out Enju.

That answered that question.

"Oh, you're back," Enju called out, waving him over as if
nothing was wrong. "Look, Myn, I found the Cafeteria all by
myself!"

Myn stomped up to the table his eyes fit to kill. "Because of
you, my sister almost killed me!" he snapped.

Enju remained fairly nonchalant, leisurely gesturing to Myn
with a forkful of food. "What are you complaining about? You're
still in one piece, I see."

"Barely," Myn retorted. "She never even gave me a chance to
tell my side of the story before she used her shuriken on me. My
favourite jacket is now full of holes, and my jaw hurts like hell."

Quistis tried to step in and circumvent a possible fight. SeeD
frowned on cadets fighting as a matter of principle, but Myn looked
more than eager to throw a few punches. If anyone was needed to
play peacekeeper, she was the only one who knew Myn well enough.

"What happened?" she asked, trying to sound stern with Enju.
He seemed to be regarding this as a game, while Myn was certainly
taking this very seriously.

Myn turned his gaze to Quistis, but pointed to Enju. "This
guy, my new roommate--" He let that last word roll off his tongue
like poison. "--is not even here for five minutes, when he ditches
me to chase after you!"

Quistis froze, her entire face going red.

If the Cafeteria hadn't been quiet during the argument, it
certainly was now.

Enju sighed and shook his head. He sounded like an exasperated
teacher when he did that. "I'm guessing subtlety isn't one of your
strong points," he said to Myn. "We'll have to work on that."

"You left me to carry your bags to our room, each of them
weighing as much as me if not more," Myn stated. "Just so you could
flirt with her!"

"Yes, and my plan worked perfectly," Enju agreed. He slapped
Myn on the arm. "Thank you for helping out. My life now has
meaning."

Before anyone could even respond to what had happened, Enju
got up from the table, dropped off his tray and then sauntered out
of the Cafeteria.

Myn found himself unable to do anything except stare ahead
vacantly, and blink. "What just happened?" he asked.

Quistis said nothing, preferring to try and blend into the
chair she was seated in. The fact that her entire face was bright
red thanks to Myn's patented foot-in-the-mouth prevented such
camouflage, however.



"I don't believe this," Nym said after hearing the story. "You
were stupid enough to embarrass poor Quistis like that in front of
the entire Cafeteria?"

Myn was still flustered at her berating. "I was angry," he
said. "At least I didn't behave like you. If I had, Enju's head
would be rolling across the training room floor by now."

They were in Nym and Quistis' dorm room. As usual, Quistis was
laid out on the bottom bunk, some of Myn's magazines scattered
around the corners of the bed. Nym was sitting on one of the swivel
chairs while her twin was sitting on the edge of the desk.

Realizing he couldn't win against his sister, Myn decided the
best tactic was to change subjects as quickly as he could. "But get
this," Myn said. "I checked out his bags after he left me standing
in the hall with them."

He got a cuff upside the back of the head from his sister for
having said that.

"Ow! What was that for?" he snapped at Nym.

"For going through another cadet's personal belongings," she
retorted.

Myn looked indignant. "Oh, and I suppose you wouldn't have
indulged your curiosity?"

Nym shifted uncomfortable in her chair. Both Myn and Quistis
knew that if she had the chance, Nym would have had those duffel
bags unzipped in a heartbeat. If anything to claim a pair of his
boxers for herself, for use as blackmail material later on. It
wouldn't have been the first time an unco-operative male cadet
found his underwear stapled to the message board, all courtesy of
Nym.

"If he won't be in my harem," she had stated often enough.
"Then he won't be in anyone else's either."

Whereupon Myn usually turned Quistis and said, "You see what
I've had to live with all my life."

"So what was in it?" Quistis asked, admittedly curious herself
about the guy responsible for causing her to blush so many times in
one day.

Myn shrugged. "Enju wasn't kidding when he said his stuff
didn't take well to rough-housing. In the outer pouches, he had
maybe two spare uniforms, and a really strange set of casual
clothes. Everything else was weaponry."

Quistis sat up when she heard that. "He brought his own
weapons?"

Most of the students in the Gardens could barely afford their
own weapon, let alone many weapons. And then there was the cost and
effort of upgrades. How could someone like Enju have acquired that
many weapons?

"The guy's got a stockpile for a small army," Myn said. "But
he evidently takes his blades seriously: they're all individually
wrapped and secured for travel purposes. Mostly close combat stuff;
he's got a few polearms with detachable blade heads. And no pistols
either."

"I find guns are too uncivilized," came Enju's voice,
startling the room's occupants. "Fights were meant to be
face-to-face, if not hand-to-hand. The distance pistols give takes
the personal meaning out from the battle; it cheapens the thrill of
victory."

The three cadets turned their heads and saw Enju in the open
doorway, his back leaning against the frame. His hands were in his
uniform pockets, his weight shifted onto one foot. By all
indications he was in quite the lazy mood.

"I didn't realize they meant that much to you," Myn said,
surprisingly humble despite all that Enju had subjected him to
within the span of a few hours. "I'm sorry about the weapons."

"Actually, I was expecting you to do that after I left you
hanging in the hallway," Enju said, waving Myn's apologies off.
"Thought you might want to find some pair of Chocobo-patterned
boxer shorts to hang on a message board in retaliation."

"You have boxer shorts with Chocobos on them?" Nym asked,
unable to conceal her laughter.

Quistis inwardly groaned, knowing that now Nym would
definitely rummage through his things to keep a pair for
herself--blackmail purposes or otherwise.

"Thankfully, no," Enju replied. He stepped out from beneath
the doorframe and joined the trio, sitting on the corner of
Quistis' desk. "I was raised in the Weapons Guild, so I've been
fascinated with bladed weapons for a long time. I've also made a
point in training with a wide variety. I have my favourites, but
I'm not limited to them. What about you three?"

"Don't try sparring with her," Myn said, thumbing over to his
sister. "Nym loves her shuriken darts. She'll pin you down to the
nearest wall and ravish you before you have a chance to know what
hit--"

And as it turned out Myn knew exactly what hit him. Enju
lifted one of his legs up to accommodate Myn's unceremonious crash
onto the floor, courtesy of swift kick to the ribs by Nym.

"Are you two related, by any chance?" Enju inquired, turning
to Nym as he pointed down at the twitching Myn. Moments later he
decided to make use of his roommate as a convenient footrest.

"They're fraternal twins," Quistis answered.

Enju thought that over for a few seconds. "I'm surprised you
haven't paralyzed him with a few throwing darts yet."

"I still need him," Nym replied with a giggle. "No one else
plays the punching bag like he does."

"Hey!" Myn exclaimed.

Everyone laughed at Myn's expense, even Quistis. The fact that
Myn seemed to take his abuse in stride made it all the more
amusing, and she was glad she didn't have to feel guilty about all
the barbs he took.

Enju gestured down to Myn. "So what toys does the carpet
crawler like to play with?"

"For your information," Myn retorted, pushing himself off the
floor. "I'm working on the chained kusarigama."

Enju's eyes widened, and he looked at Myn with newfound
respect. "That's a pretty dangerous toy. Two scythe blades linked
that closely together; you're liable to cut your own head off along
with your opponent's."

"I've got more than enough scars to testify to that," Myn
agreed, dusting his pants off. "But it's worth seeing the look on
your opponent's face when you pull out bladed nunchaku like that."

That drew a chuckle from Enju. "Sometimes intimidation is the
better part of valour." He turned to Quistis. "What about you?"

For once Quistis wished Enju was wearing his shades. She was
feeling incredibly self-conscious. His cool stare seemed to cut
right into the core of her being.

"You can show him, Quistis," Nym prodded her on. The older
cadet decided to take the initiative, and carefully took out the
rante from its drawer. She then handed it to Enju.

"She designed the modifications herself," Myn added.

Enju whistled as he felt the whipping chain's weight in his
hands. "A rante ber gangedug. It's a difficult weapon to wield--not
to mention a heavier version of it, too. Interesting modifications
on the handle; makes for better grip and overall efficient use of
the weapon. I am impressed, Miss Trepe. I am very impressed."

She beamed at that, the colour of her cheeks returning to
normal. Eugene would have been proud, had he not been away on
assignment. For a brief moment Quistis wondered what he was doing.

"You know," Enju added, looking directly at Quistis. She
cringed. "We never did get a chance to finish off our tour. Care to
squeeze in a few more wings before curfew?"

Quistis looked to her friends for a way out. But Myn had done
something to invoke his sister's wrath (yet again) and was getting
his arm twisted. "Go on, Quistis," Nym said as she gave another
solid yank on Myn's wrist. "Looks like you've roped in another
Trepie, so you might as well live it up while you can."

That wasn't the way out Quistis had been searching for.

Hesitantly she directed her gaze back over to Enju, who was
leaning against the top of her bunk and looking into her eyes.
"I'll be good. I promise."



With a sigh, Enju looked up at the night skies beyond the
dome. "You're not as talkative as you were earlier this evening,"
he remarked to Quistis. "Was it something I said?"

Trying to keep a step or two ahead of him, Quistis nodded. She
didn't even want to say what, certain he knew well enough, and was
just trying to prod her into speaking.

"Well if you're not going to talk, I suppose I should," Enju
stated. "Level the playing field. After all, you don't know
anything about me, do you?"

Quistis paused. He knew exactly what buttons to push to get
her attention, and she grudgingly had to admit defeat to her
curiosity. She just hoped it wouldn't get her into any more
trouble. Nym was trouble at times, but it was a fun kind of
trouble, the kind you laughed about together afterwards. Enju
seemed to be a completely new breed of trouble, and Quistis wasn't
sure if she liked it. She wasn't sure if she really liked being
around him.

Enju closed the distance between them, and frowned as he saw
her expression. "I'm not going to bite your head off. Anyone who
would do that to someone as cute as you are deserves to die
themselves."

His phrasing caused her to flinch. How could he speak so
easily of life and death? Though the day may come when she must
take a life, that didn't mean she had to make light of it.

Quistis abruptly noticed that even though he had volunteered
to do the talking, Enju wasn't speaking a word. He was just
standing there with his hands in his pockets, staring at the
expanse of the Quad.

"Aren't you going to say something?" she asked.

Enju glanced back at her, visibly preoccupied with something
else. "Not sure anymore. I look back at my life to find something
worth mentioning, and all I find are bad memories."

Quistis picked up on that but didn't say anything.

"Ask me a question, and maybe I can answer it," he offered.

After seeing him brood about his past, Quistis decided that
asking a question about where or how he grew up wasn't the way to
go. Instead she tried finding some middle ground they both shared.

"What's Trabia Garden like?" she asked. Certainly she'd heard
a lot of stories from the twins, but it felt as though the best and
most tactful thing to do would be to play innocent.

It was Enju's turn to look surprised for once. "You knew that?
Oh, Myn told you, I bet." He considered his reply for a moment.
"It's cold for most of the year."

"Something about the curriculum?" she pressed.

Enju nodded. "Trabia's a good Garden; it deserves a lot more
credit than it's given. They push you hard in everything:
academics, magic and combat."

"What was your worst subject?"

Most people began by asking what someone's best subject was,
but Enju didn't seem the type to really care which one was asked
first. Quistis' hunch was right. Enju didn't even blink when he
replied, "Magic. It doesn't like me, and was the only thing holding
me back. I excelled at everything else. They tried regular casting
techniques and some unorthodox ones.

"Hell, they tried having me work with Guardian Forces... but
Shiva and Quezelcoatl didn't seem to even acknowledge I was ever
there. With every option at Trabia exhausted, Headmistress Rebecca
thought that Balamb might be able to help."

Quistis found it strange to think that they shared a
commonality: her weapons skills were above par, but not at the
levels Enju seemed to be at. On the other hand she had experienced
that frustrating block at casting spells. She could still recall
how aggravated she got over her wasted efforts, more with herself
than anyone else.

"Did you get to meet with Myn and Nym's magic instructor?" she
asked.

Enju hesitated for a moment and then said, "Yes. No success."

He scowled and Quistis presumed he was getting annoyed with
his faults. She knew the feeling, sometimes berating herself for
getting certain answers wrong on a test, or not getting high marks
on an assignment. But now seemed the time to move onto a less
aggravating topic for him.

"What's your best subject?" she asked.

Enju immediately replied, "Weapons training; it's my
specialty. My father used to be in the Weapons Guild, and also
designed weapons."

"You inherit his skills then?"

"I have a knack for using anything with a blade," he said.
Somewhat cryptically he muttered to himself, "That's generally what
keeps me alive."

Enju reached over to the side of his uniform and detached
something from the belt. Quistis didn't recall seeing it there
before. It was a thick strip of metal, easily the length of Enju's
forearm. It was a dull metallic gray, but with a precise design to
it.

"This is a variant of a weapon my father designed," Enju said,
flicking his wrist. The single strip of metal suddenly became a
multitude of hinged, thinner strips all stacked on top of each
other and connected at the base. "From what I know, it's called it
a kinzoku-sensu."

A metal folding fan.

The sensu itself was large enough to conceal someone's face,
but Quistis wasn't sure just how this fan could act as a weapon
outside of deflecting someone's attack. The slender metal flaps
were laced together with incredibly small chains; they didn't
actually fold over each other, but each one slid out from beneath
the last.

Abruptly Enju flicked his wrist again, and razor-thin,
retractable blades extended out from the tip of each flap. Quistis
jumped back in surprise, definitely not expecting that to happen.

"Beautiful but deadly," Enju stated. He seemed captivated with
his reflection on the metal, studying every edge and contour of the
kinzoku-sensu.

Quistis could gruesomely imagine the damage it can do if
slashed either up or down someone's chest. If the fan was held
horizontal, you got a rake effect that cut the chest to ribbons. If
the fan was held vertical, you got the equivalent of being sliced
open like a fish. She shivered, not enjoying the weapon at all. Why
anyone would want to be an artist with such lethal objects was
something she couldn't understand.

Enju snapped his wrist, the sensu folding back to its original
form. "This was my father's legacy," he said, his voice losing its
usually playful edge. He attached the sensu to his belt via a loop
at the fan's base. "Whenever I carry this with me, I feel like I'm
carrying a part of him."

His voice was subdued, but proud.

He reminded Quistis of Sean in a number of ways. "Sean's
father is a Weapons Smith too," she said. "Sean used to--"

She abruptly stopped, her thoughts coming to a crashing halt
as her heart was gripped a little tighter in her chest. This sensation
was something she hadn't expected to happen. Maybe because this was
the first time she had spoken of Sean so openly to someone after his
death, outside of her sessions with Doctor Kadowaki.

"Sean?" Enju asked. "Who's he?" Then he noticed the uneasiness
in Quistis' expression, and decided not to press the matter.

The subject had to be changed. Quistis took the initiative.
"What about your father?" she asked. "I'm sure he's proud to have
his son using his weapons as a SeeD cadet. Have you visited him
recently?"

"From time to time I pay my respects to my family," Enju
answered, the roguish smile fading. "There is an unmarked grave
somewhere on the outskirts of Tenmile; as far as I know, that's
where my father--where all of them--are buried."

Tenmile was a small town on the outskirts of Timber, if
Quistis recalled her geography correctly. It was destroyed during
the same Galbadian advance that captured her home village of
Cottage Grove.

Enju shifted uneasily under Quistis' gaze. He didn't like
being watched with those sorts of eyes.

Eyes that sympathized with him.

"I... I'm sorry," Quistis said, bowing her head.

Enju shook his head and motioned for her to continue walking.
"Don't be. From all accounts, he died protecting us. The details
are sketchy at best. What I do know is that the attackers didn't
even spare women and children."

It wasn't often she heard a firsthand account of any battle
from one of the victims. Textbooks did their best at relaying
facts, not the emotions. "How did you survive?" she asked.

"Blind luck, or else fate wants something from me. I was left
for dead amidst a field of ash and blood. Ever since I've been an
orphan."

They had more in common than perhaps either of them wanted to
admit. She gently slid her hand on top his, giving it a reassuring
squeeze. Enju gave a small smile and then slid his sunglasses back
over his eyes.

"What about the Weapons Guild?" Quistis asked as they started
up the tour again.

"It's a loose organization of skilled weapon users, kind of
like a club. They gather together on a yearly basis to test
themselves. If they've improved enough, they raise a rank or two.
You can be a master, but there are ten levels in the mastery. I
never did get to see if I could be a master. I was a journeyman
when I signed on with Trabia."

"What about your teacher?"

"Oh, I had a teacher alright," Enju said, almost ruefully.
"Nastiest woman I've ever come across. I still don't know whether
or not the fact that she made me do an extra hour of practice every
night was because she hated me or liked me."

"What was her name?" Quistis asked.

Enju exhaled as if he were trying to spit air like it was
water. "Mistress Niethe, I think. I've regressed my memories of the
years I was under her tutelage. But," he added, flicking his wrists
and letting the metal fan unfold once more, "her training
definitely paid off."

Quistis didn't even catch when he had unfastened the weapon.
He was definitely fast. She made a mental note of that in case she
had to spar with him later on.

"I was with the Weapons Guild until I was twelve or thirteen,"
Enju was explaining. "Then I did some traveling and decided to
enroll as a SeeD cadet in Trabia Garden. Just managed to slide in
under the age limit too."

"You don't like flaunting it, do you?" Quistis observed. When
he looked at her curiously she said, "Your childhood in the Weapons
Guild."

Enju nodded. "The Guild was my life after I was orphaned. I
had nowhere else to go. That's why I'm so good with my weapons; I
was raised with them as my play toys."

Quistis knew her play toys growing up: books. But in time she
had replaced them with real friends like Xu, Sean, the twins, her
trio of 'brothers', and Kei. She suddenly wondered if Enju had any
human friends.

He didn't strike her as being the type to have many.



As he got integrated into Balamb Garden, Enju became a
familiar sight around Quistis. He started hanging around her as
much as the twins did. Quistis didn't mind his presence--but he
definitely had a way of getting under her skin when he wanted to.
The guy was such a complex mystery. He had Jessie's playful sense
of humour, but there was something else about him that made her
shiver.

She found herself puzzling over him more and more. She had the
time to do it, given how far ahead she was in her studies. The only
real challenges to her these days were keeping up with her magic
and weapons training.

One evening she visited Myn to return a magazine he had left
on her desk. Myn was around, but apparently Enju had disappeared.
"Where'd he go?" she asked. Her first guess would have been the
training room; if Enju had anything to be called a regular haunt,
it was the training facilities.

"Oh, he's here," Myn said, lifting a finger to his lips. He
then nodded with his head to the upper bunk.

Quistis stood on the edge of the lower bunk and peered at
Enju, who was lying facedown in his pillow and sleeping soundly. He
was usually a night owl, the most vibrant either early in the
morning or late at night. But in the afternoon he seemed to spend
most of his time in a hibernation state. For Enju to be this tired
in the evening was a first.

"Sleeping beauty took some kind of medical test today," Myn
explained. "Whatever it was really wiped him. I got a call from
Doctor Kadowaki an hour ago asking me to drag him back to our
room."

"Is he sick?"

Myn shook his head. "He wasn't when I saw him earlier this
morning. Odds are he'll bounce back. In the meantime, try not to
let Sis hear about this; I don't want my room to become a crime
scene. And I'm sure Enju would like to keep most of his clothes
on."

Enju had recovered by the next day.

At lunch in the Cafeteria, Quistis turned her head as someone
tapped her shoulder. No one was on her left, so she instantly
turned right. Enju sat down, winking at her.

"Miss me?"

"If you go away again, maybe I'll know for certain."

Enju chuckled as he sifted through the various items of food
on his tray. "Attitude! I like that." He took one bite of his hot
dog, and then abruptly stopped chewing. "Now what's this supposed
to be?" he managed to sputter despite his mouthful.

"Hot dogs," Myn replied as he walked in behind Enju. He
reached over and promptly stole the remainder of the hot dog from
Enju's hand. "The pride and joy of Balamb's Cafeteria. Trust me:
they're an acquired taste."

Enju winced a second time as he forced himself to swallow. "I
see. I pride myself on being omnivorous, but that could drive me to
become a vegetarian."

"Suit yourself," Myn retorted, savouring a bite from the
reclaimed hot dog.

"Xu's a vegetarian," Quistis spoke up. It didn't seem all that
necessary a thing to say. Enju wasn't making a personal attack, but
it felt somewhat personal to Quistis.

Enju paused, looking at Quistis in confusion. "Xu?"

"Her old roommate," Nym replied between chews of her rice.
"She's currently in Galbadia, training to become an Instructor."

That drew a grimace from Enju. "She has my deepest sympathy,
then."

The twins nodded their own regrets.

"What's wrong with Galbadia?" Quistis asked, confused by their
sudden dark reactions.

"Aside from almost everything?" Nym replied sourly. "You've
read the history books, Quistis. You've even taught half of what's
in them. Galbadia Garden is practically ruled by the military. They
ban virtually all use of magic, and they hate anyone who's not like
them. You don't fit the cookie cutter, and they'll haze you until
you're dead... or you kill them."

Quistis felt a sinking in her stomach as she thought about Xu.
Did Galbadia hate the Anshin? If that was the case, then she hoped
no one knew about Xu's heritage. Quistis feared of the hassling Xu
would get. She had gone through the same thing herself over her
intelligence, and that had been anything but pretty.

"I've heard a few stories about Headmaster Martine," Enju
added, trying to steal some of Myn's vegetables. "Most of them
would put the guy on my personal shit list, to be honest."

Myn defensively slammed his fork down on Enju's. "Mine too."

Quistis paled considerably.

She hoped Xu was doing all right at Galbadia.



Enju joined her weapons class at the end of the week, albeit
briefly. Because of his evident skill, he was raised to a more
advanced level--but only in weapons handling. He was denied rising
higher in hand-to-hand combat.

On the day in question, he had shown up for class with one of
his personal glaives slung over his shoulder. The blade on the
glaive was decorated with some sort of black symbol. As far as
Quistis could tell it was some sort of dragon. Even though it must
have been hot for him, he kept in uniform--though let the jacket
stay open to give himself some air.

The Shumi Instructor paired everyone off for their first
sparring match. As it happened, Quistis and Enju were paired off as
opponents.

"You know what they say," Enju quipped as he spun the glaive
over his head before bringing it into a ready stance. "All's fair
in love and war. Especially war."

He raised both his eyebrows a few times to shine Quistis on.
She wasn't exactly impressed, and attacked with her rante. Enju
whirled, hastily dodging the tip as it nearly cut through his
cheek.

He leapt back and out of the rante's reach, a predatory grin on
his face. He gripped the shaft of the glaive, both hands right at
the middle. Abruptly he turned his wrists in opposite directions,
a metallic click resulting from the action.

Quistis froze as she heard the sound.

With a rapid motion, Enju jerked what turned out to be two
halves of the pole away from each other. The shaft itself proved to
be hollow, links of a slender metal chain pouring out from the
space.

That thing doubled as a hidden whip!

And now its reach was even farther than Quistis' rante.

The hand that gripped the bladed half went over Enju's head
and mercilessly whipped the glaive around. He released the blade,
throwing all his muscle and weight into the blow as the glaive
went spinning towards Quistis. She threw herself sideways to avoid
the frighteningly large blade as it nearly sliced open her chest.
But she also felt the end of the blade snag her rante and tear it
from her grip.

Both hands now on the lower half of the glaive, Enju gave a
solid yank and sent the weapon twisting back towards himself. He
ducked as the chain flew over his head, and with a rapid motion
managed to snag the upper section in his grip.

Sweat dripped down his face, and his breathing was heavy from
the assault. "Never take your opponent's weapon at face value," he
stated.

He now stood between Quistis and her weapon. There was no
chance she could recover it--not with the reach his glaive had, and
the ferocity with which he wielded it. Enju wasn't kidding when he
said he was good with weapons.

"What is that?" she asked him as they retired to the sidelines
once the exercise was over.

"Something I picked up from the Weapons Guild," Enju said as
he tried to catch his breath. "Nothing that impressive. I've seen
polearms that can be divided into three or four sections by hidden
chains. When you get hit by those, the shaft stings even worse than
the blade. Other variants include hidden blades inside the pole.
I've heard of one with a hollowed shaft: it was filled with
gunpowder and used as a miniature cannon. The blade was blown out
from the end of the pole and..."

He cut his story short.

"Well, as you can imagine, the end result wasn't very pretty."



Later the following night, Enju found Quistis in the Library.
She had gone there to find out what she could of the Weapons Guild;
his descriptions of the Guild did little justice to the skills its
members displayed. If he was just a journeyman she wondered what it
would be like to be a seventh or eighth level master.

Quistis gave a brief glance over to the chess board on the
other side of the table. For a long time the board had never been
used, until very recently when she decided to play around and slide
a pawn forward. The next time she had visited the Library, she
discovered that another cadet had countered by moving an opponent's
pawn.

And so the ghost chess match had begun. Each day she'd come
back and find a different piece moved, and then counter it with one
of her own. She was dying to know who her opponent was. Had he not
been on assignment with Jessie, she would have guessed LeVar.

"Ah, so this is where my cute little bookworm has burrowed
herself," Enju's voice remarked as he sauntered up behind her and
tapped the bridge of her reading glasses. He picked one of the
volumes off the top of the stack.

Quistis glowered, though Enju was too far behind her to see
it. These were the sorts of little things he'd do to her: they were
annoying and endearing at the same time. Of all the would-be
brothers she'd had at Balamb, he acted the most like a real older
brother. Namely one who could get on your nerves at will.

"How can you read these things?" Enju sighed, letting the
volumes of pages run through his fingers. "There are no pictures
whatsoever."

Quistis stared at him in disbelief.

"It's a joke, Quistis," he added hastily. "You've got to stop
taking life so seriously."

"You don't strike me as the type who seems to take anything
seriously, including becoming a SeeD," Quistis retorted. "The only
things you really like are your weapons."

Enju grinned and set her textbook back down on the table.
Finding a nearby bookshelf, he placed his back to the books and
leaned against it. "It's the journey that counts, not the
destination."

"But how can you learn anything if you don't have a
destination to walk towards?"

"Touchy, my dear. Touchy. So what is your destination?
Becoming a SeeD?"

She nodded, removing her glasses. "An Instructor, actually."

One of Enju's eyebrows went up. "Really? Such a lofty goal for
one so young. Who are you trying to prove yourself to?"

Quistis looked at him in confusion. As far as she was aware,
she had stated her intentions honestly.

"Everyone's out to prove something, Quistis," he said.
"Whether it's to themselves or to someone else. What about you?
What are you trying to prove here at Balamb?"

Quistis was silent for a long time. Finally she answered him:
"That everyone's faith in me is not misplaced."

The last thing she wanted was for Sean's death to be in vain.
He had given the ultimate sacrifice for her benefit, him more than
anything else. It was hard for Quistis to tell Enju about Sean, and
what he meant to her. Instead of the usual jokes he'd crack, Enju
listened silently and with a solemn expression on his face.

"You're doing this on their behalf?" he mused. "A noble if not
misdirected effort."

Quistis immediately went on the offensive. How dare he tell
her that everyone's efforts were misdirected! "What's that supposed
to mean?"

"You have a life of your own to live, Quistis, one outside of
what everyone else would have you live." Enju's composure was cool
as he watched her with his piercing blue eyes. "And believe me, a
life is a precious thing to have. Don't waste it by being someone
who is born out of another's ideals. Prove yourself to yourself
first, and see if Balamb is really your place to call home."

He was talking about her, not everyone else.

Enju readjusted his position against the bookshelf, his arms
crossed over his chest. "If you want to be a SeeD and happen to
fulfill everyone else's goals, then more power to you. But until
then, you're powerless to your insecurities. Decide for yourself:
is Balamb the place you want to be? Not where everyone else wants
you, but where you want yourself to be?"

Quistis was left without an answer, one that she knew she'd
have to find for herself. Enju gave a final wave and then headed
for the door. He paused for a moment, as if considering an
afterthought.

"Oh," he added, leaning over to the chess board and sliding
the rook piece forward two squares. "Checkmate in five."

Quistis momentarily appraised the board, and then moved her
queen diagonally. "Checkmate in three," she retorted evenly.
She could almost see Enju's brain seize up from the shock, and she
had to giggle.

Her laughter was short-lived though. After Enju left, she
became very quiet. Once more she found herself questioning
everything about her life. Quistis didn't get any sleep that night.
She didn't have an answer when the time came for her to get ready
for classes.

This time it didn't surprise her.

Nor did it make her feel any better.



When Quistis' fourteenth birthday rolled around a celebration
was held. There was a large surprise party in the Cafeteria,
orchestrated by the ever-growing number of Trepies on campus. Later
that evening a smaller, private one was held in her and Nym's dorm
room.

The twins attended, as did Enju.

The surprise guest was Kei.

"I didn't expect you to show," Myn remarked, opening the door
and gesturing for her to come in. "Heard you were on assignment."

Kei nodded, undoing a part of her jacket. "Finished early and
thought I'd have enough time to catch you here."

She had gotten along with the twins a lot better than she had
with Jessie and LeVar. Nym was playful, but had a delicious mean
streak Kei admired. And Myn was so used to being pounded by women
that he didn't really fear Kei... not that it stopped him from
making the usual tactless remarks in front of her. Kei usually just
held back and grinned as she let Nym perform the smackdowns.

Kei's eyes locked onto a new face she hadn't seen before. Enju
was leaning against the bunks, chatting with Quistis. The younger
blushed at something he said, and he laughed at the reaction.

"I don't think you've met Enju before, have you?" Nym said,
pulling him away from Quistis. "Cadet Enju meet SeeD Kei. She's a
good friend of Quistis."

"She's been around here longer than we have," Myn added with
a nod. "So that would make her how old, then?"

His eyes widened and he frantically ducked a pair of shuriken
darts that got impaled into the door.

"Never ask a woman how old she is," Nym stated, glaring at her
brother.

Myn vehemently nodded in compliance.

Kei had to admit she loved the way Nym worked--and she was
cute too. It was a shame that Nym had to spend her time chasing
after the guys.

"Do I know you from somewhere?" Enju inquired, causing Kei to
look away from a potential date.

"I've been around," she replied.

Enju shook his head. "No... something else, SeeD Kei. Forgive
me for saying this, but I can't help thinking we've met before,
someplace outside of Balamb." He shrugged the nagging sense of deja
vu aside. "Pleasure meeting you, I'm sure." He held out his hand,
an odd smile tugging at his lips.

Something about him set Kei on edge. With sudden caution, she
shook hands and felt something against her palm.

Kote.

He was wearing kote.

'What kind of a cadet wears armguards even when dressed
casually?' Kei thought to herself. She took an immediate disliking
to Enju. There was something about his face, about his eyes, that
she found unnerving. And she was a good judge of character. The
rogue charm he was using on her wouldn't work; Enju seemed to
notice this.

"Well then, I'm sure our next encounters will be ones to
remember," he said, nodding as he withdrew his hand.

The message was meant just for Kei.

She wanted to reply with a hard punch to the face, but didn't
want to do it in front of Quistis and the twins. Not when she
lacked any proof about Enju. He was definitely hiding something,
and she wanted to find out what.

And Kei didn't want him anywhere near Quistis.

She knew a wolf in the fold when she saw one.



Myn and Enju had taken to practicing their weapons sparring
late in the evenings when no one else was around in the training
room. It surprised Myn to know that Enju had never studied the
chained kusarigama, and Enju enjoyed the challenge of fighting
against a new weapon. Every time they sparred Enju would bring a
different weapon to test out against Myn. Some worked, and others
barely protected Enju.

That was one thing Myn found odd about his roommate: Enju
rarely seemed to flinch, even when he got nicked. Death was
something Enju didn't seem worried about. At the very least it made
Enju the ideal partner to practice with--so long as you were a
challenge to him.

"Ready whenever you are," Enju announced, raising a katana to
shoulder level. The tip of its blade pointed at Myn's face.

Myn grinned and started to twirl his chained kusarigama. "Fine
by me. The faster I throttle you, the sooner I call it a night."

Their engagement was fast and furious, Enju proving to be
highly adept at using the katana to block Myn's lethal strikes. The
usual ring each pair of cadets fought within was quickly discarded,
the two chasing each other across the entire training room. For a
while it looked like an even match.

However, Enju proved to have another trick up his sleeves. He
started nudging the fight towards the walls, and drove towards that
direction whenever he and Myn broke into a run. Myn was caught off
guard as Enju leapt off the floor and took two or three steps along
the wall, gaining height as he moved.

Enju vaulted into the air, spinning his katana around and
managing to knock the kusarigama from Myn's hands. There was little
else Myn could do aside from admit his own defeat. Yet Enju still
charged even after that fact. Myn's eyes widened as he saw Enju
pounce, the cadet bringing the vicious point of the blade to a halt
a literal hair's breadth from Myn's face.

Enju's own eyes were wide, but from something altogether
different. They were nearly glazed over, as if the sparring match
had become second in his priorities. Abruptly Enju let out a deep
breath and relaxed, pulling his katana away from Myn's face.

"Good match," he said.

Myn nodded. "Yeah. I thought you were going to kill me back
there."

"I was almost going to," he agreed.

Myn swallowed hard, a cold chill going through his body
despite how hot and sweaty he was. "Okay, I'm just going to go to
a corner and wet myself."

Enju sighed as he tossed Myn a towel. "You really don't know
how to take a joke."

"It comes from fearing my sister," Myn glibly replied. "You
going to shower?"

"No. I've got something to take care of first. Keep the water
warmed for me."

Before Myn could say anything else, Enju was out the door. The
sheathed katana held in one hand, he made his way to the elevator
and pressed the button that would take him to the third floor. He
had an appointment with the Headmaster, and was already running a
little late. Myn was proving to be more tenacious with the
kusarigama than Enju had first thought.

That was making it fun.



Despite the late hour of the night, light crept out from
beneath Cid's office door, indicating that the Headmaster was in.
Enju knocked once before entering. Cid was seated behind his desk,
reclining in his large chair. The desk itself was cleared off save
for a single filing folder.

"Doctor Kadowaki's tests are completed," Cid said, motioning
to the report. "Do you know what she found?"

Enju opted to stand instead of sit. He placed his hands in
front of him, as was customary for cadets at attention. "I hold
suspicions."

"I'll summarize," Cid said. "Because of the eugenics done to
you, you are for the most part unable to use magic. Beads and
energy quanta have a limited range and effect primarily because of
the magic used in... modifying your body. Your skin in essence
nullifies almost anything you can cast."

Enju lowered his eyes and studied the floor, carefully taking
this into consideration. He sighed deeply, not liking the fact that
he would never cast anything above a mid-level spell in his life.
This sort of procedure was irreversible. A price to pay for his
past, he supposed.

"You're taking it rather well," Cid observed.

He looked up at the Headmaster. "Wishful thinking can't undo
something like this, Sir," he answered. "I might as well get over
it and move on with my life."

That gave Cid reason to smile. "Spoken like a SeeD, though I
wouldn't mind a little more emotion in your voice when you say
that. I'd like to know you're still human."

Enju nodded. "Thank you for all your assistance in these
matters, Headmaster Cid. And let me express my thanks to Kadowaki
too." He paused a moment before saying, "I have to ask: how did you
know about me?"

"Something seemed off with your credentials, Enju," Cid
replied, leaning back in his chair. "Call it a Headmaster's hunch.
Although I must compliment you on forging such clever visual
communiques. You had Rebecca's image physically perfect--but there
were a few mannerisms unlike her which I picked up on."

Enju's gaze seemed to zero in on Cid's face, reading the
expression. "There's something else."

"I'm also quite familiar with the Weapons Guild, even though
I'm not a member," the Headmaster said. "Some of the Masters are
good friends of mine. Perhaps that's what drew my attention to your
file: most Guild members who are raised in it from childhood stay
for life. You are a notable exception."

"It's not exactly like I can hide my skills," Enju replied. "I
can feign being on par with everyone else, but I despise being
unable to use my true potential. It was a risk either way, and I
chose the option that would bring me the least amount of
questions."

Cid nodded diplomatically. "A good strategy, which I commend.
As for the rest of your... illustrious history, it was a matter of
piecing a few things together. You've hidden yourself quite well
here at Balamb. I only found you out because I have contacts with
the Guild and knew what to look for." He leaned forward in his
chair, his gaze causing Enju to shift stances in discomfort. "Now
perhaps you can do me a favour, cadet Enju. Tell me, how is Quistis
doing in her studies?"



Hand-to-hand combat classes had Enju always popping up to
meddle with Quistis' life yet again. He flashed her a grin and
waved as he hopped onto the mats to spar with his latest opponent.
Quistis could only roll her eyes in exasperation. She had her own
sparring partner to worry about, and tried to avoid him as much as
possible.

But Enju proved a greater distraction than she had expected.
Quistis backed down from her own match as she watched Enju fight.
He was moving with a strange gliding speed, always dodging or side-
stepping his partner's attacks. He looked as if he was deliberately
holding back.

A jab to the ribs knocked Quistis back into her own match, and
she made quick work of defeating her opponent. She'd had time
earlier to study the techniques of most of the other people in the
class, and was exploiting whatever weaknesses she could find to
their fullest. The Faculty instructor noted how much this strategy
was paying off for Quistis.

"Good match," she said, helping the larger cadet back onto his
feet as best she could.

Moments later Quistis winced as Enju flipped his opponent over
his shoulder, slamming the guy's back onto the mats. The final blow
had come so swiftly there was nothing the other cadet could have
done. Defeat had been painfully easy. Enju backed away and helped
the cadet back up.

Quistis focused on her next sparring match, trying to make it
not look so obvious that she was watching him.

Towards the end of the class, Kei decided to check in on
Quistis. She scowled the instant she saw Enju there. Just how had
that guy managed to muscle into almost all of Quistis' classes any
ways? She became so focused on watching Enju that she had forgotten
her initial reason for coming to the training room. Only when
Quistis took a break and joined Kei at her side did Kei take her
attention off of Enju.

But Quistis was now watching Enju.

And her expression was one Kei wasn't sure she liked.
Something was up between those two, and it--like everything else
about Enju--was rubbing her the wrong way.

"So what do you think of him?" Kei asked.

Quistis patted the sweat off her face with a towel. "I'm not
sure. There's a trick to fighting Enju. He's a literal storm when
it comes to weaponry or hand-to-hand. But he doesn't handle magic
very well--both casting and receiving. I don't even think GFs like
him.

"The best strategy is to ensure he doesn't get the chance to
strike first. When he attacks, he's relentless. Even you would have
trouble holding him back, Kei. Casting magic against him puts him
at the disadvantage."

It was good to see a cadet having already picked apart the
strengths and weaknesses of her opponent. But that hadn't been the
sort of answer Kei was looking for. She watched Enju get taken down
again after holding his own for a few minutes longer than before.

How could someone be that good with weapons, but be so
horrible with magic when he came from Trabia? That Garden was
famous for its heavy emphasis on magic, especially in the energy
quanta technique.

Come to think of it... Kei had visited Trabia on a few
occasions when Enju would have been a cadet there. Yet she had
heard no mention about him, nor had she caught even a glimpse of
him. Something was contradictory here. Kei made a mental note to
take the matter up with Cid later on.



"Nym, can't you find someone else to cling to?" Enju asked
politely as he tried to pry the female cadet off his arm. He warily
glanced round the Quad, and to his relief found very few witnesses
around. "People will start thinking we're an item if you keep this
up."

Nym smiled and giggled, tightening her grip on Enju. "Now
won't that be a shame. I guess Quistis will have to fend for
herself. Though it's not like she doesn't have an adoring legion of
Trepies to choose from."

"Okay, what do you want?"

"For you to defect over to my side would make a great start."
Nym playfully stuck out her tongue.

They passed in behind a group of obvious Trepies (given their
conversation topic) who had clustered at one of the benches. Out of
mild interest, Enju slowed his pace to hear what they were saying.
Nym pouted at no longer being the centre of his attention, but kept
quiet nonetheless. For as much as she tried to raid Quistis'
'harem', she still considered Quistis a close friend.

What the two heard didn't exactly thrill them.

"I'm telling you, in a year or two, Quistis is going to be
pure make-out material," one of the cadets said. "I would love to
get her alone up in the alcove over the Training Centre one night."

They continued laughing and sharing fantasy ideas about
Quistis.

Enju scowled. He could feel himself seething at the cadet.

Nym placed a restraining hand on Enju's shoulder. "Leave it
alone," she said. Her tone definitely indicated that this was
something to stay away from. As much as she was tempted to kick
their asses herself, she'd seen that look in Enju's eyes enough
times in sparring to know the inevitable outcome. Enju would take
it one step further to the extreme.

"That doesn't sound very SeeD-like," he said.

"They outnumber us six to two," Nym added.

Enju cracked a vicious smile, his lips curling back to reveal
his canines. "Hardly a fair fight for them."

"I'll report them to Cid." While she would have loved to
unleash her shuriken herself, Nym knew her protocol. Retaliating
personally could mean even more trouble in the end for them.

Enju slowly turned to Nym, and removed his sunglasses. "Save
yourself the effort. I'll handle this."

Before Nym could say anything else to stop him, Enju broke
free and stalked towards the group of Trepies. Noting his presence,
the guys abruptly stopped talking and turned to face Enju. His own
gaze never left the one who had talked about getting Quistis alone
in the overpass.

"Do yourself a favour," Enju stated in a solemn tone. "Show a
little respect for Quistis, aside from a wet dream in your sheets."

His warning went unheeded.

"Oooh, is someone jealous?" the cadet retorted, not exactly
taking Enju very seriously. "You just want her all for yourself,
don't you? I've seen you hanging out with her a lot, cadet. Admit
it: you just want a piece of action like the rest of us."

One of Enju's hands balled into a fist, cracking his knuckles.
"I'd appreciate it if you shut your mouth," he said, his tone
deceptively even.

The cadet gave a leering grin, daring Enju to react. "Or what?
You'll break my jaw?"

Enju's arm shot out, his fingers tightly wrapping around the
cadet's throat. "Among other bones in your body, yes," Enju
snarled, giving the cadet's windpipe a squeeze to further drive
across the point.

The other cadets inched away. Enju released the guy's throat
a few moments later, having delivered his message in no uncertain
terms. "You're a SeeD cadet," he stated coldly as he turned away.
The sunglasses went back over his eyes. "The next time we so
much as brush shoulders in the hallway, you'd damn well better be
acting like one."

He left the Trepie group and rejoined Nym. The cadets didn't
speak for a long time afterwards--though one of them spent a fair
time gasping for breath.

"That was intense," Nym remarked. She tried to sound calm, but
her voice was shaky. "You... didn't mean what you said back there,
did you? About breaking his face?"

Enju smirked. "I meant every word."

They rounded a corner and walked down one of the halls.

"I suppose congratulations are in order," Nym sighed. "You've
managed to isolate almost every Trepie in Balamb. Word of your
little stunt will be news by tomorrow morning."

"Good," Enju said. "Maybe then they'll back down and give
Quistis the room she needs."

Nym had to give an incredulous laugh at that. "Don't you think
you're being just a little territorial? You know that you could
avoid all this if you just pledged your allegiance to me."

"It's more than that, Nym." Quistis was becoming a young
woman, and now more than ever her life would be going through
dramatic shifts. Enju added, "She lost her childhood before its
time. I don't want that to see that happen with her adolescence."

"I take it you lost yours?"

Enju nodded. "Innocence is more fleeting than childhood. I'd
prefer not to see history repeat itself with someone like Quistis."

Later that evening, Enju was called to the Headmaster's
office. It didn't surprise him. In fact, Enju had been expecting
it. He remained standing as he found himself before Cid once again,
the hardened expression on his face masking any true feelings he
had at that moment.

"I hear you came within a hair's breadth of threatening the
life of another cadet, Enju," Cid said, leaning back in his chair.
His voice wasn't loud and harsh, but very collected--if not
disappointed with Enju. "I won't condemn you without hearing your
side of the story--but remember our agreement when you first
arrived here. You may be a special case in Balamb, but that doesn't
entitle you to exclusive rights. I can see your potential, but
there are shadows you must control if you wish to become a SeeD."

"Permission to speak freely," Enju requested.

"Granted."

Enju didn't hesitate in vocalizing what he said next. "He was
being an asshole, Sir, so I straightened him out."

One of Cid's eyebrows went up.

"Being a Trepie doesn't mean they are entitled to exclusive
rights either--especially where Quistis is concerned," Enju said.
"You may deal with me as you see fit, and I will abide by it. But
I will not sit idly by when someone I both admire and respect is
being spoken of in such derogatory terms.

"Besides," he added. "It's not like I actually broke his
face."

"Among other bones in his body," Cid finished dryly. "I am
well aware that when she first began, Quistis was met some heavy
opposition because of her gifts. It was not an easy or fun task of
putting that opposition to rest, and ensure that a few jealous
cadets would not shake Quistis' self-confidence. Yet now it appears
the pendulum has begun to swing in the alternate direction."

Enju adjusted his stance, the tense expression on his face
easing up. "She isn't seen as the child prodigy anymore,
Headmaster. Quistis is becoming a young woman--a very beautiful
young woman. Now while I won't guarantee to being there for her for
every step of the way, I can readily assure you that I will protect
her from whatever wolves happen to be out there."

Himself included, Cid thought.

He wondered how well Enju and Kei were getting along. Rumour
among the SeeDs had it that Kei didn't think too highly of Enju,
but both players were very good at keeping it just a rumour. If
they'd had any clashes already, they made sure there were no
witnesses.

"Then please do me the favour of being a little more subtle in
your tactics," Cid answered.

A smile tugged at the corners of Enju's mouth. "Subtlety is my
specialty."

Cid kept his poker face, appraising the cadet before him once
again. Something was slowly changing about Enju, but it still
needed time. And this change was meeting with a lot of resistance.
"The Trepies were, in fact, created by someone who had the very
same goal of protecting Quistis. He went so far as to die to ensure
Quistis could realize her full potential."

"You're talking about Sean," Enju said. He straightened,
resting his hands behind his back. The SeeD cadet looked every bit
as respectful as he should have been before the Garden's
Headmaster. "May I speak freely again, Sir?"

Cid nodded.

"I am not Sean," Enju stated. "I understand the sacrifices he
made for Quistis, and I respect him for willing to go so far as to
die for her. This is the same position I am taking with regards to
her. But that still does not mean neither you nor anyone else
should assume I am here as his alleged reincarnation. Our pasts
were different, as are our lives now. I think and act and perform
as Enju, and not as Sean. If you have a problem with my methods, I
would appreciate you taking the matter up with me personally, and
not talk to me as if you expect me to be Sean."

"Does Quistis know that?" Cid responded.

Enju's brow creased in confusion.

"This is all simple for you, because you are working from a
different paradigm," Cid explained. "You have come to grips with
who and what you are, Enju. I would go so far as to say you are
comforted in knowing how dark you can be. But Quistis is still a
child in many ways, and is only now starting to grow up. She still
feels partially responsible for Sean's death, and it haunts her. You
lack that sort of remorse, Enju."

"We can debate ethics in a classroom setting," Enju said.

"I've heard your philosophy," Cid responded. "You have no
loyalties save for yourself--and a slight patriotism for Timber."

Enju looked away momentarily, his focus lost in other
thoughts. "Timber just happened to pay me well for my services.
They paid on time, and never tried to renegotiate. Clients like
that become favourites for a reason. You said it yourself: I hold
no loyalties, save for myself."

"Be that as it may," Cid countered. "You are known in some
underground links as a Timber sympathizer. I can understand it
better than most others, knowing your past. But it still reflects
your solitary nature. You cannot change the Garden, Enju; it is
meant to change you, and ideally for the better. That means
becoming a part of a family of cadets and Instructors. More than
anything, that is what challenges you the most here.

"For all she's gone through, Quistis is more innocent than you
could ever hope to be. For as much strength as she has, she is
still a delicate soul. Be aware, cadet Enju, that the actions you
do for her 'protection' may in fact hurt her. SeeDs are both a team
and a family. There is more to be served here than just your own
interests."

Enju said nothing in response, but the silence attested to him
having understood what Cid was telling him. He didn't have to like
it--but he owed the Headmaster a lot more than any other person in
his life.

"There will, admittedly, need to be some form of disciplinary
action," Cid said at last, returning to the incident itself.

Enju merely stood his ground, his expression remaining
unchanged. "I am prepared for whatever punishment give me, Sir. In
my mind, my actions are justified. But since Garden rules state
otherwise, I will abide by them."



Myn was waiting for him just outside the Headmaster's office,
even though it was getting perilously close to curfew. He'd
expected to hear Cid's raised voice--even though he had yet to ever
hear Cid shout in anger--but the near silence that had come from
inside the office was just plain unnerving. Enju slipped between
the double doors of the Headmaster's office with a sour look.

"How harsh was it?" Myn asked.

Enju shoved his hands into his pockets and began heading for
the elevator. He finally said something as they reached the end of
the walkway and pressed the call button. "It could have been worse.
A lot worse." Enju scowled again and slid on his sunglasses. "I'm
still not thrilled with the knowledge that those Trepie characters
are acting like this."

"Come on," Myn sighed. "I wish I could do something as much as
you, but not every Trepie's a bad one. Don't condemn them all
because of one guy--and might I remind you, technically you fall
under the Trepie title too. Besides, it's hard to figure out where
to draw the line."

"A line should be drawn," Enju stated.

"Come on, Enju, what can you do after that stunt you pulled?
It's not exactly like you can run for President of the Trepies."

Enju froze.

The elevator doors opened up for them, but he didn't go in.
The doors closed and the elevator descended back down to the main
lobby without the two cadets inside it.

Enju slowly turned to Myn, a diabolical smile on his face.
"Really?" he remarked with wolfish interest.

Myn's eyes widened upon realizing just what epiphany he had
helped unleash. "Oh no! No no no! Enju, don't even think about it!"

"But don't you see? It's perfect," Enju said. "The Trepies
have always been loosely associated. Making them at the very least
an unofficial club can easily weed out any cadet who'd--"

"You're still not listening to me!" Myn protested. "Enju, you
would never be able to pull off becoming the Trepie President!"

Enju sighed as he conceded to that point, and pushed the
elevator call button again. "You're right, Myn. You're absolutely
right." Before a look of relief could appear on Myn's face, Enju
added, "That's why you're going to be the Trepie President."

"WHAT?"

"Come on," Enju prodded his roommate. "You're starting a small
fan club, not a rebellion!"

Myn remained skeptical.



An official reprimand was placed in Enju's file for
threatening his fellow classmates. In addition, he got two months
of dish duty. He didn't protest his punishment, it was more lenient
than some he'd been subjected to in the past. Not to mention that
the time spend washing dishes was also spent thinking. Myn was
still resisting his plans to make him the Trepie President, but
that would soon change.

It was on a pleasant summer evening that Quistis waited for
Enju outside the Cafeteria for his dish detail to be finished. He
worked two hours a night after the dinner rush. There was no way
he could keep his punishment a secret from her, nor why he was in
trouble. At first, he feared that she would begin avoiding him, but
that hadn't happened.

"Nice night for a walk," she commented idly from her leaning
position against the wall.

"That it is," he readily agreed. "Would you like to go
somewhere?"

She fell into step beside him. He once again lamented in
silence that their walks would probably be the closest he'd ever
get to her. Even so, he still enjoyed the time they spent together
like this.

"Aren't you in the Headmaster's advanced tactics class
tonight?" he asked.

Cid began offering small, advanced classes for those students
who excelled beyond the regular curriculum. Quistis took additional
schooling three evenings a week on top of her regular school work.
Such a classload would bury him in a week's time, but she seemed to
thrive in it.

She shook her head. "It was moved to Wednesdays."

"Ah..."

They veered out from under the covered hallway to one of the
outdoor courtyards that was a popular place to eat lunch. She sat
on the bench of a nearby picnic table while he took up a perch on
the table itself. Low-hanging branches from a shade tree messed
with his hair before he batted them away in annoyance.

He watched her as she studied the flowers that lined the
pathway leading to this table. He quickly picked up on the idea
that Quistis craved companionship in the sense of being around
other people. Solitude didn't suit her well and she went to great
lengths to avoid such a condition. Even when thinking, she longed
to be around somebody. Her beauty only increased when she was so
deeply in thought. It was a shame to break her concentration to ask
why they were out here.

"Why did you do it?"

"Do what?" he asked innocently. He hadn't done anything
recently that warranted the young woman's scorn.

"Threaten the other cadets? It was because of me, wasn't it?"

He sighed inwardly. The question was bound to come up sooner
or later. She was too smart not to notice something like that, and
her roommate was too well-ingrained with the information network
for it to slip by.

"It was because of you," he admitted, but continued before she
could stop him. "You were the female in particular that he
insulted. His behavior was inappropriate towards *any* cadet, not
just you."

She didn't respond immediately as she considered his answer.
"You would have done it on behalf of anyone?"

Ouch, she was on the ball tonight. Enju laughed ruefully.
"Doubtful. Usually I don't trouble myself with correcting my peers.
That's what the Faculty are for, after all. But I won't let an
insult to my friend go unchallenged, would you?"

Again, she paused. "I don't know, to be honest."

Ah, that would give her something to think about for a while.
He could slip off the hook while she considered it. "More often
than not, we are what we do. And here, we not only represent our
own honor, but the honor of Balamb Garden. One should act
appropriately, yes?"

She agreed with that. Before he could leave unscathed, she
asked him one last question. "Will it happen again?"

He turned around and gave her one of his roguish grins. "I
should hope not; these dishpan hands are murder. But if it does,
I'll be there for you."

"Not to break his face?"

Enju paused. "We'll see." It was meant to be a joke, but
Quistis thought that he was still being half-serious.



Cid was hosting an after hours class on the ethics of SeeD.
More students than he anticipated showed up for this open session.
Even Enju asked to be released from his dish duty so that he could
attend tonight's class. Then again, the topic they would be
discussing was one that every cadet would have to decide for
themselves.

During the lecture, he was holding back until the end--waiting
for the post-discussion period to wrap-up with his own comments.
The class he was presented with tonight was very vocal and
refreshingly fervent in their discussion. Even he wasn't sure
where the debate would go in the end. So he leaned back against the
edge of the desk and listened very carefully.

"We're mercenaries," a cadet stated. "And mercenaries are, by
definition, in it for the money. Technically there are no
loyalties, save for ourselves."

"But SeeD is an organization, not a faction," Quistis
countered. "Ideally, SeeD isn't bound to any outside loyalties, but
the world is forged by loyalties and relations. There are certain
ethical standards to adhere to, and no amount of money should be
allowed to dictate how we view that."

"SeeD can't be held responsible," the cadet retorted. "We're
not paid to empathize, we're paid to act. Now I understand the need
to think for ourselves, but if we hold ourselves accountable to
everyone, then we just tie our hands behind our backs. What we do
when the Shumi hires us may be something that Dollet hates us for.
But they know going into any deal with SeeD that we have no
underlying loyalty. Therefore, while we may help them one day, the
next day--provided the price is right--we may overthrow them."

From where she sat in the row furthest from the door, Nym
nodded in agreement. "I hate to admit it, but he's got a point,"
she spoke up. "We're all trained killers in this room. The life of
a mercenary isn't one to be romanticized. When you cut to the
chase, we're all seen as being in it for the prestige and the
money. However, the issue that should be debated is this: is there
a point where SeeD should draw the line on any ethical issue, lest
we come under fire from the public majority?"

"Murder is murder," another cadet insisted. "But is there
justification for killing someone to prevent a war or save someone
else's life? Are we justified in killing a mob boss for the sake of
stopping a gang war?"

"It's a classic case of needing a watcher," Quistis finished
emphatically. "The world doesn't have a watcher, so SeeD acts as a
surrogate one. But this only works to a very limited extent."

"Exactly," another cadet near the back agreed, nodding to her.
"Is there a price that exceeds the value of any life--human or
otherwise? We're now asking who watches the watcher, to make sure
they stay within some sort of ethical framework."

Quistis turned to Enju, who was currently staring straight
ahead, most of his face hidden behind his clasped hands. "What do
you think, Enju?"

She had called him out.

He wasn't sure if he should take it as testing to see if he
was awake, or challenging his viewpoint, or something else entirely
different. Enju lifted his head and addressed the class.

"Loyalties complicate the issue," he stated. "SeeD's largest
problem lies in its size. An individual or a small group of people
can act as they are paid to, without a significant fear of
consequence. They live as they please, and others accept without
question the fact that such people live by different ethical
standards. SeeD is an organization that reaches into all the five
continents. Therefore, any conflict of interest--especially
political--holds great potential of ripping it apart."

His eyes shifted directly to Quistis.

"Fortunately for SeeD, such a conflict has yet to arise. I
would agree with the opinion that mercenaries should hold no
loyalties, nor should they try to rationalize their ethics to other
people save for themselves. Such things will only destroy you in
the end. If they are in it for the money, let them live by the
money. Ethics hold a distant second to that."

"Y'all are complicating the issue," a cadet that had remained
silent up to this point broke in. "It ain't up to us to decide
right or wrong. Orders aren't meant to be questioned. We're in this
one way or the other. What it really boils down to is if we trust
the people in charge of us to conduct themselves honorably."

All eyes in the room moved to where the Headmaster was leaning
against the desk. "You've put the topic into stark relief," he
complimented. "It is an issue of trust. Psychologically, any
'crimes' committed by SeeDs can be justified as being the sins of
its commanders. Do you trust those commanders to make decisions
that won't leave you in a position of needing to find
justification?

"You must never hide behind your uniform. Don't let *it*
justify the decisions you make. You are all intelligent people
capable of great acts of compassion, but you can also fall into the
trap of inhumanity. While orders are orders, you are not a machine.
You may be a tool of the person who is giving you orders, but
realize that when it comes down to it you are still human."

He paused to give them an appraising look, his mouth quirked
into a half-smile. "Don't misunderstand me. I'm not condoning
insubordination. You are expected to act as professionals, but that
doesn't mean you get to shut off your brain and your heart to do
so. Understood?"

The class sat in stunned silence. Cid had done it again with
his penchant for speech making. It would take them days to sort out
and assimilate the deeper meaning of the topics discussed here
tonight. He reminded them of when the next session would be
meeting, then dismissed them for the evening.



Few took notice when an unsigned post was made to the message
board announcing the first official election for the Trepie's
President. Those who did notice thought that it was just another
piece of spam and quickly scrolled past it to get to the next entry
declaring who had dumped or dated who.

Enju saw it as declaration of war.

"Let the race begin," he said, slapping Myn on the back.

Myn could only groan. "I can't believe I let you talk me into
this."



Quistis was searching for Nym, who was proving to be more
elusive than ever. Every cadet she asked said Nym had been there
just five or ten minutes ago. The trail led all over the Garden,
but without a sign of Nym's presence. Quistis was a little anxious;
it was close the start of her afternoon training class, and she
didn't want to be late. The Faculty tended to scold tardy
cadets--especially when they had come this far in their training to
know better.

Nym was going to be her sparring partner for the class, and
they had agreed to meet a half hour earlier in the training room to
practice. In true form, Nym was late. Quistis could only guess what
had grabbed the twin's attention this time.

In desperation she checked in on Myn and Enju's room. With any
luck, Nym was there giving her brother a hard time. But her knock
on the door went unanswered. Quistis knocked a second time and then
ventured to open the door a little.

The curtains were drawn, blocking most of the sunlight.
However, the majority of the room was still quite visible in the
noontime sunshine. Myn was nowhere in sight and Enju was sleeping.
Quistis paused as she saw him; Enju had a strange habit of sleeping
curled up in a corner, a sheathed katana nestled at the base of his
neck. His hands wrapped around the sheath like it was some kind of
teddy bear.

Myn didn't mind Enju's eccentric sleep pattern. After all,
Enju had spent his childhood in the Weapons Guild so it was
probably a part of his training. And Myn preferred Enju to sleep
that way--as opposed to having him uncomfortably toss and turn all
night long in the bunks. Both roommates agreed that Enju sleeping
in the corner was better for the both of them.

He looked so peaceful, even if the position seemed
uncomfortable. Quistis doubted she could sleep like that for even
a night. She'd heard Nym once joke about how her and Myn's parents
would say, "Those two are angels--but only when they're sleeping."

Enju looked that way.

Whatever defenses he always had on while awake were gone now,
and he appeared surprisingly vulnerable. Quistis' heart started to
beat a little faster as she quietly watched him sleep. He really
was cute, she admitted.

So what did that mean?

Her feelings for Enju were so... different. Quistis wasn't
quite sure how to describe it. She loved Xu, much like she loved
Matron. But the pangs of what she felt for Enju were something
altogether new, and Quistis wasn't sure what that meant. Half the
time she enjoyed laughing with him. The other half of the time she
wanted to either punch him or just hide from him.

But his intentions always seemed to be two-fold. Every time he
did something to stir her, it felt like he had a hidden agenda of
his own to work with.

Hesitantly Quistis stepped forward.

She had never been kissed before, not in the way Nym always
happily described. What did a kiss feel like? If she could at least
try while he was sleeping, they'd be okay. She could satisfy her
curiosity and Enju would be none the wiser.

Quistis paused a second time, her face hovering close to his.
Was she really ready to go through with something like this? She
suddenly doubted how much she knew about Enju, and where they
stood.

"Are you going to just stand there admiring the view, or are
you actually going to kiss me?" Enju abruptly asked her in a quiet,
amused voice. His eyes didn't open, and if he hadn't spoken Quistis
would have thought him to still be asleep.

Before Quistis could speak, he leaned forward and pushed his
lips against hers. She could feel the warmth of his breath as he
kissed her for a little longer, then pulled back. It didn't even
look like he had opened his eyes the entire time.

Quistis' eyes were wide at what had happened. Her surprise and
fear were quickly replaced with a look of indignity. Quistis turned
and stormed out from his dorm room. The door was pulled shut behind
her.

Enju chuckled to himself, his eyes still closed. "So, I have
a chance with you after all."




Quistis went out of her way to avoid Enju, which was a harder
thing to do than it first sounded. But somehow she managed to go
for the rest of the day without running into him. A part of her
wondered if Enju was deliberately keeping his distance.

As much as she wanted not to see him at all the next day, she
was denied the wish. "Aren't you even going to look at me?" Enju
asked as he sat down next to her at breakfast. Quistis shifted her
chair so she could look in the opposite direction and didn't reply.

Enju sighed as he went at his meal. "For the record, you were
the one who leaned closer to me. I merely finished what you
started."

That garnered only a cold shoulder in response.

He laughed, shaking his head. "What are you so worked up
about, Quistis? I rather enjoyed what we shared, and don't tell me
you didn't enjoy--"

"We didn't share anything," she stated, cutting him off.
Quistis turned and glared at him, trying to ignore how flushed her
cheeks were when confronted by his playful smile. "And I'd
appreciate it if you just dropped it."

Enju raised his hands in mock defense.

Quistis gave him one more baleful look before picking up her
tray and leaving. Dark thoughts continued to cloud her mind when
other topics should have been at the forefront.

After examining the situation objectively for the better part
of the morning, she came to the conclusion that her anger was
misdirected. It wasn't Enju's fault that she'd given him the
opportunity to kiss her. She shouldn't have gone into his room while
he was sleeping, and especially when she had no business there.

But that didn't mean she wasn't angry at him for taking
advantage of an offer she wasn't certain she was ready to make. She
pondered that during lunch and by the afternoon she still didn't
feel any more charitable towards him.

It didn't help matters when the Faculty Instructor paired her
and Enju together for their sparring exercises. Enju seemed to
have taken the hint from this morning and was keeping his proverbial
distance. They each practiced their punches and blocks in turn
before Enju made his first attempt at conversation.

"They say fighting is a lot like dancing," he remarked. "Do
you like dancing, Quistis?"

"I've never danced before."

"Would you like me to teach you?"

She glared at him from under hooded eyebrows, "No."

"That's a shame. I'm sure it's something you would be good at.
You've got the lithe form that many a journeywoman would die for.
Not everyone can make it as a dancer, you know."

Quistis was left unsure as to if he was hitting on her or not.
The type of dancing he seemed to be referring to was a fighting art,
not the dancing in the traditional sense.

Stupid Enju! Always thinking about fighting or weapons. Didn't
anything else register with him? Her displeasure with him renewed.

"Last sparring match before the class ends," the Shumi stated.
"Cadets are to practice for two more minutes, then shower."

Quistis narrowed her eyes as she let her body shift its
stances on the mats. Enju waved her to step forward and try her
luck against him. "Shall we?" he inquired. With a wolfish smile he
added, "A kiss goes to the victor."

Enju was suddenly picked up like a rag doll and placed in
Quistis' mercy--which wasn't much. Evidently, he hadn't been
expecting that much fight from someone smaller than he was. Quistis
went after every weakness she knew he had. Enju never had a chance
to get in a first hit as she delivered a swift chop with the side
of her hand to his neck, followed by a number of rapid punches just
beneath his ribcage. Enju stumbled back, and Quistis used that
leverage to slide her foot behind his and trip him.

Looking stunned and rather worse for wear, Enju crashed onto
his back, and barely had time to prevent Quistis' elbow from
ramming itself right into his stomach. His entire body twitched, a
hoarse gasp escaping his lips.

Now having vented most of her steam, she didn't seem
hard-pressed on staying in the training room. Her blonde hair
trailing behind her, Quistis turned away and left the other
students to clean up after themselves.

"Well," Myn dryly remarked, strolling up to the mat. He had
seen the entire match--all five seconds of it. "Dare I ask what you
did to piss her off like that?"

Enju coughed weakly. "I think I'm in love," he sighed with a
grin, staring distantly up at the ceiling.

Myn pushed his sunglasses back up the bridge of his nose. "I
think you're an idiot, personally. Can you actually get up?"

Enju's laugh tapered off into a groan. "I don't think so. I
can't feel my legs anymore." He raised his arms to his roommate.
"Carry me."

That only served to exasperate Myn even further. "Twit," he
said, abandoning Enju on the mats.

"I had no idea she could be that forceful when she wants to
be," Enju said in the Cafeteria later that night. "I think I might
still be limping tomorrow."

Myn sighed, rolling his eyes. "You did ask for it, so don't
cry on me. At least you dropped that silly Trepie President idea."

"No, I haven't," he announced cheerfully. "You've already been
added to the ballot and the flyers I ordered should be ready the
day after tomorrow. You'll be handing them out at meals like a good
little cadet, won't you?"

Myn glowered, "Sis will kill me if I become the Trepie
President. She won't take having her twin heading up an opposing
and larger fan club."

Enju ignored that as he looked out the dorm window. The Garden
seemed a little brighter than usual tonight. "You'll thank me for
this someday. No longer will you claim that you haven't done
something to deserve Nym's wrath."

Myn gave his roommate a stern expression. "Why are you so
adamant about dragging me into your warped little mind games? It's
bad enough that I have my sister to contend with, now I have you."

Enju wasn't listening.

By the next morning, Enju has somehow managed to slip a flyer
under the door of every known Trepie proclaiming Myn's better
traits. The race for President heated up when a strong challenger
presented himself as opposition. Enju would need to play his ace to
get Myn the slot.

"We need to get Quistis to publicly endorse you as her choice
candidate," Enju said later that evening, as he paced around their
dorm room.

Myn didn't even look up from his reading, "Who is this 'we'?
If it means so much, why not just *ask* her. It's not like she
still wants to lodge her boot where the sun don't shine."

"Just... ask her?" He stopped pacing to look at Myn.

"Yeah, why not?" His roommate flipped a page and kept reading.

Enju was out the door in a heartbeat. "I would have never
thought of that," he called back behind him.

Myn shook his head. "Never the easy way with you, is it?"



The quiet still of the midnight hours was broken by activity
in the training room. Alone, Kei kept up a relentless rail on a
punching bag like it had become the greatest evil imaginable. Her
mind was focused on something other than the punching bag, and the
more she thought about it--about him--the harder her strikes
became.

She'd managed to get Myn alone and ask him about Enju. The
twin's words were still haunting her, and Kei felt the only way to
purge herself was to take it out on the hapless bag.

"Oh, there's something he's not telling us," Myn had said.
"Quistis told me about his family being killed, and I respect him
if he wants to not talk about it a lot. But there's something
else."

Kei's eyes narrowed as she started drilling what would have
been Enju's chest region with a series of vicious jabs and solid
punches.

"You can see it in the way he behaves. He usually looks like
another candidate for becoming a SeeD. However... every now and
again, he slips up."

Kei's attacks on the bag increased.

"Watch his face, especially his eyes. I think that might be
why he hides his eyes so much: he doesn't want us to know."

She finished by spinning around on the ball of one foot,
slamming the inside of her other foot into the bag. Despite the
abuse it was taking, the bag remained intact.

By now she could feel the pull of exhaustion taking its toll
on her body, but she was feeling a lot better having vented. As she
left the training room, Kei resolved to take care of this matter
herself. Quickly and quietly if possible--though she doubted that
Enju would let it end that way.



Quistis' public approval of Myn as a liaison for the Trepies
locked his election as the President. He wasn't sure if he should
thank Quistis for going along with Enju's plan or not. When he
asked why she co-operated, she in turn asked why she would hide the
fact that she liked him? Either she didn't understand what was at
stake or was playing dumb.

Nym was, of course, furious and pounded him accordingly.

With Myn in a position of influence within the Trepies, he
secretly took Enju's cue on how to shape the loosely organized
group into a more perfect union. The sort of behavior that began
this crusade in the first place wouldn't fly with Myn in charge.

Quistis seemed to be mildly amused, but for the most part
remained disinterested in the existence of the Trepies. She had
more important things to focus on.

And that was how things should be.



November passed into December, and Quistis was starting to get
anxious about Xu's impending return from Galbadia. The more anxious
she got, the more anxious Enju became.

"I'm losing her to someone I've never even met," he lamented.

But it was still good to see Quistis so excited. Someone like
her needed to smile and laugh as much as she could in life. The
anticipation also helped Quistis mask a personal struggle she was
starting to face: learning her Limit Break. She knew that this
could be a problem, based on her difficulties with casting. Initial
frustration was something she'd been expecting. Yet so far she had
made little in the way of progress.

Even if it was half-hearted, Quistis quietly reasoned that she
would stumble into it eventually. Ideally before Xu returned. What
a surprise that would be, to show her friend her true power with a
surprise Limit!



Doctor Kadowaki's medical files were private, and only meant
for authorized eyes. Currently, Kei's wasn't one of them. But that
still didn't stop her from finding the medical examination file on
Enju. Her SeeD authority permitted her to get into places like this
without having to go through the proper channels. It wasn't exactly
ethical, but it wasn't restricted either. There were times where
being in the gray had its benefits.

Kei simply shrugged it off as a black bag operation. No one
had to know outside of herself, and Quistis' well-being was at
stake. The more she watched Enju interact with Quistis, the harder
she had to restrain herself from knocking him flat on his ass.
Whatever he was hiding was the answer to what made him so
dangerous.

It had taken her about two weeks of seemingly random
visitations, and careful observations of Kadowaki typing in the
entry code for the Infirmary's computer terminal. And that was
probably going to be the easiest part. Kei watched the screen flash
to life, a hazy blue light casting shadows across the darkened
Infirmary.

Kei worked her way through the cadet files until she found
Enju. Oddly enough he had never given a surname... or a first name
if Enju was his surname. This sort of thing wasn't uncommon--the
Anshin did that. Thoughts of the two sorts of people she disliked
caused Kei to scowl.

The Anshin were forgotten.

Her target was Enju.

The personnel files stated a brief history, which left a lot
of convenient blanks. According to his record, he was orphaned at
a young age and then taken into the Weapons Guild until he was
twelve. A two-year gap marked the time between entries, when he
suddenly became enrolled as a cadet at Trabia.

'Bullshit,' Kei thought to herself. If he had been to Trabia,
it wasn't for as long as the documents stated. On her last mission
she had paid Trabia a brief visit and used her SeeD status to
ransack the cadet files. Enju's name had shown up with all the
forged credentials she was looking at now.

She had to grudgingly give Enju credit for covering his tracks
well enough--but not perfectly. A random mention of his name to
some Faculty members and Headmistress Rebecca had provoked some
confusion. That only proved that if he had spent time in Trabia, it
had been skulking around in the shadows.

The screen changed, scrolling through a list of the Trabia
classes he'd attended and moved up from. As expected from a member
of the Guild, his weapon handling was unsurpassed, his hand-to-hand
skills were above average, but his casting abilities were painfully
lacking.

When Kei saw this was a dead end, she tried working with
Doctor Kadowaki's medical files. All transfer cadets had a physical
exam performed, the results being documented into the files. That
required a second pass code different from the first, but Kei was
prepared for that. When she located Enju's medical report, it was
about as ordinary as the rest of his documents. A few scars from
Guild exercises, but nothing to be alarmed about.

"Damn dummy files," Kei muttered to herself.

Now came the fun part: hacking. Kei would never have known
where to start looking if she didn't already suspect Enju. An
hour's worth of frustration and painstaking effort rewarded Kei
with the grail she'd been seeking.

A hidden sub-directory inside some medical reference pages led
her straight to the truth about Enju. The fact that he constantly
wore the kote, and some form of dark jacket over his back, tipped
her off to some kind of marking or scar he was discreetly hiding.
The odd shimmering of his skin was a second point to start
investigating.

It was Enju's skin condition that led Kei to his real medical
file. The reference page had been dealing with physical alterations
of the skin made by magic, causing someone to have an unnatural
shine in the darkness. There were fifteen other variants apart from
the one Enju had. Kei found it hard to believe that anyone would
want to violate their body like this. Especially when one of the
side-affects was a nullifying of the person's ability to cast
spells.

Kei rubbed her sore eyes.

Her back was starting to ache from leaning forward in the
chair for so long, but she was close to the end. A third and final
pass code was requested. It took Kei another hour to finally
decipher what Kadowaki was using. If she'd spent more time
listening to what Xu told her regarding Triple Triad, she would
have had it in minutes:

C A R D K I N G

The screen went black momentarily as the entry code was
accepted. Enju's medical data came blinking to life in a series of
scrolling reports and rotating diagrams. Kei felt her entire chest
tighten and constrict as she saw the charts.

On each arm Enju had the tattoos of falling feathers. Kadowaki
presumed the feathers to belong to either a dove or an angel. The
intricate detail on those feathers paled in comparison, though, to
the design of a pair of angel's wings that stretched down Enju's
entire back. The wings were folded, running from his shoulder
blades down past his waistline. They became a brilliant indigo when
exposed to darkness, while his skin paled to a silvery white.

Suddenly she knew exactly who Enju was.

Kei slowly closed the file, and then covered up her own
tracks. Any records of her entering the system were wiped clean
before she turned off the terminal.

She swore under her breath.

Everything had just fallen into place--and the picture it
formed was one Kei would rather have not seen. After closing down
the computer terminal, she reached for her katana and quietly left
the Infirmary.

It was too late tonight to confront him.

Tomorrow night would do just as well.



With a tired yawn, Myn rubbed his sore calf muscles and got
ready to retire to the dorm room for the night. He'd been doing
some extra weapons practice by himself in the training room;
tomorrow was the test to see if he could rise into the advanced
classes. The Faculty would be picking three random opponents in his
current class, and see how Myn stacked up in an endurance battle
with one right after the other.

The guys' locker rooms were quiet, though he had left a few
other students out in the training room. Most were due to graduate
soon like he was. Then again... most of those cadets weren't going
to be graduating as a pair.

A quick shower washed the sweat and grime from his skin. Myn
toweled himself off and headed for his dorm room. He found a bit
of a surprise in discovering that Enju wasn't inside. "Now where'd
he go?" he sighed.



While there was an open textbook sitting beside him, Enju
didn't have the resolve to continue studying. Despite the overall
dim light in the Quad at this hour of the evening, he had hoped to
get some research done for an upcoming assignment. But every time
he tried to focus on the words on the page, he found his heart not
in it. The page might as well have been blank.

Enju leaned forward on the wooden bench, resting his elbows on
his knees. Absently he glanced down at his reflection in the metal
plates of his kote. He'd been lucky at concealing his tattoos thus
far, especially the one on his back. Making sure to shower when no
one was around was tricky enough, but he had to remain in uniform
almost all the time to keep the markings hidden.

Fortunately, the weather around Balamb was on his side: it was
late November, and the air was cooler. Staying in uniform kept him
comfortably warm as opposed to baking him in a summer's heat.

So why go through all the trouble?

He'd been asking himself that numerous times in the past few
months. And he always forgot the question every time he looked at
Quistis or even thought about her. What both irritated him and made
him uneasy all at once was how he had never thought of anyone like
this before.

He sighed, rubbing a palm against the armour.

It was actually very strange to think that, after all the
threats to his life he'd faced before, something as seemingly
insignificant as asking a girl out on a date would spook him so
much.

"I must be losing my edge," he muttered to himself.

But the question lingered: what would she say if she learned
the truth in every last dark and bloody detail? Headmaster Cid had
said she was a delicate soul. Was getting close to her the best
thing for Quistis?

The agitation of staying still finally got to him.

Enju grabbed his book and began walking towards his room.
About halfway there he realized he was actually walking in the
direction of Quistis and Nym's room, not his own. He'd probably look
like an idiot when he showed up at their door for no apparent
reason. But he had to see her face one more time, to know for
certain whether asking her a simple question was the right thing to
do.

He never did get to find an answer that night.

About halfway to Quistis' dorm, Enju abruptly paused. He
glanced over his shoulder, looking down one of the breezeways. "Out
of curiosity, how long do you intend to follow me from the
shadows?"

Kei stepped out from an alcove in the wall. To say she didn't
look pleased to see him was an understatement. Her grip around her
sheathed katana was firm, and she never took her eyes of the cadet.
"We need to talk," she told him.

"I'm sure it could wait until tomorrow," Enju replied.

She shook her head. "We talk about it now."

The SeeD was no mood to be argued with.

Enju scowled at the interruption, and followed Kei as she led
him into a more private setting for their discussion. Around this
time of night, the overpass for the Training Centre would be
deserted. Faculty patrols would have recently caught any cadets
trying to hide there for a make-out session.

"So why have you brought me here?" Enju inquired, gesturing to
the expanse around them. The textbook was dropped onto the floor,
and he smirked. "I've recently heard of your preferences, so I can
only assume you're not here to get fresh with me."

Kei scowled. Was this idiot trying to provoke her even
further? "I'm here about Quistis," she stated. There was no need to
use her trump card just yet; her knowledge about him was the best
thing she held to force him to back down. "I think you're taking an
unhealthy interest in her."

Enju's cool demeanor abruptly vanished. It was like watching
the expression on his face just wash away like an evening tide.
"That's a hell of a thing to say."

"Ever since she came here, Quistis has been taught and looked
after by a number of us," Kei said, taking a step towards him. "At
first it was Xu and Sean. Then after his death, Sean's friends and
I went out of our way to help ensure she graduates a SeeD."

Enju shook his head, his eyes watching her the entire time.
Their usually vibrant look seemed to be glazing over with one of
cold steel. "I don't see what this has to do with me, save us
sharing a common goal."

"It has taken a small army to help build Quistis up after Sean
was killed. She's becoming the SeeD she will be with our combined
help and efforts. What you're doing with her could undermine
everything we've worked at!"

He regarded her with mild amusement.

Kei continued, "There's no 'I' in 'team', cadet Enju."

The fact that she used his subordinate title went disregarded
by Enju. "There's also no 'O', 'U' and a number of consonants in
that word either," he replied coldly. "Everyone has different
means, but the motive is still the same for us all. I don't see why
you're getting all worked up about it, Anshin."

Kei stiffened upon hearing her clan name.

How in the hell did he know about that?

"Oh, did I forget to mention that?" Enju remarked. "I know
quite a bit about you, Kei of the Anshin clan. All the time you've
spent watching me hasn't gone unnoticed. You showed quite the
interest in me, so I decided to repay the favour."

"The SeeD personnel files are classified."

"So are the cadet medical files."

He knew.

Kei instinctively reached for the hilt of her katana. At least
this would make confronting him somewhat easier.

"Oh, come now, Kei," he said, detecting her movements. "I'm
unarmed. It would hardly do a highly-rated SeeD credit in taking
down a cadet like me."

Her eyes narrowed and she stepped toward him again. But her
hands let go of the katana, the weapon slung at her side. "You are
nothing that you claim to be," she stated. "You are no cadet, and
you will never become a SeeD."

"Cid would appear to think otherwise." He practically daring
her. "Is there something you wish to teach me yourself?"

Kei responded by leveling a hard punch into Enju's face. It
was something that could have serious repercussions for a SeeD,
striking a student like this. But right then she didn't give a damn
about the rules. Enju took the full brunt of the hit, pitching
sideways but not collapsing onto the floor.

He paused as he regained his balance, and then straightened
up. Gingerly he ran the tip of his index finger along the inside of
his lower lip. When he brought it back out in front of his face, he
saw skin stained with crimson. And he could feel the warm metallic
taste of blood in his mouth.

"I'm impressed," he remarked, briefly sucking the blood off
his fingertip. "You know enough for when to risk a punch."

Kei was beyond these little games. He'd sparked enough of her
wrath to get her to use her best weapon: his past. And forget him
just leaving Quistis alone. Kei wanted him out of the Garden,
period. "I know all about you," she said. "I've had to pull a
number of strings to do it."

"I've told Quistis nothing but the truth about me," Enju
replied, dismissing Kei's accusations. He turned to leave, but Kei
refused to let him escape that easily.

"And conveniently left out the rest," she shot back, grabbing
him by the shoulder and forcing him to turn and face her. The fact
that he was about a head taller than her held no bearing on the
SeeD's current disposition. "Your skill with so many weapons means
you had to be under a Weapons Master's tutelage for a number of
years. That much I'm certain of."

Enju snorted. "Please. I've made it no secret of the fact that
I grew up in the Guild. Not many people know because they don't
ask, and I'm not about to rant about my past. Mistress Niethe was
my instructor until I was twelve."

"It's afterwards that I'm here about."

"And?"

Kei drew her katana, poised to bring the slender and lethal
blade down upon him in a heartbeat. "Death's Angel."

He was one of the most feared assassins for hire that ever
lived. To think that such a ruthless predator could have gotten
into Balamb...

Enju stared at her in surprise, and then laughed as if she had
told a joke. "That's your revelation?" he chuckled, sighing in
amusement. "If you've read the underground links, SeeD Kei, you'd
discover that Death's Angel died in a bomb explosion over six
months ago."

"Then let me see your arms."

Enju's smile was shattered by Kei's challenge. He never
obliged her, but simply bowed his head in defeat. To Kei it was a
shallow victory compared to what she was bracing herself for next.

"Ah, yes. You raided Doctor Kadowaki's files on me, after
all," Enju said. The feather tattoos on his arms and the wing
tattoos upon his back had given him his title in the underworld:
the angel of death. There was no other way she could have known
about him. Everyone else who'd seen his face as that killer died
moments later.

Enju crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the
balustrade. "So you've found my dirty little secret," he drawled.
"Tell me, do you feel vindicated now? And yet how does that make us
different? We're both seasoned killers, SeeD Kei. We've both shed
blood. I just happened to make more money than you while I was
employed."

That did it.

Kei snapped into action as Enju choicely went after her
profession as a SeeD. "I am nothing like you!" she exclaimed,
swinging the katana at his chest.

Evidently Enju had been expecting this to happen, and pushed
off the balustrade into a low roll. He narrowly avoided the katana,
its tip grazing the back of his jacket. Enju rolled back onto his
feet, yet had to instantly face Kei's second attack. Instead of
raking the blade down, she tried to impale him on it.

One of Enju's kinzoku-sensu was suddenly in his hands, the fan
opened up and its hidden blades deployed. Enju spun sideways,
narrowing avoiding Kei's thrust with her katana. His arm lashed out
as he darted past the SeeD, drawing a thin spray of blood after
him.

Kei winced as she felt her right arm get cut open by the
blades of the metal fan. At least he hadn't been given the chance
to do that to her dominant hand, otherwise she might have lost her
katana. Kei looked back, her eyes narrowing as she saw her blood
drop off the sharpened edges of Enju's sensu.

"I thought you said you were unarmed," she growled, chiding
herself for ever believing the words of an assassin.

"I lied," Enju replied, panting for breath.

He scowled as he considered his chances. Kei was more than
adept at using the katana. And her sword had a far greater range
than the sliver-like blades of his kinzoku-sensu. Enju doubted he
could move fast enough to injure her and back away unscathed. At
least Kei wasn't using a pistol; for as much as his sensu was
designed as a shield, it could not deflect a bullet.

Things were so much easier when his opponents only saw him
coming a split second before their lives ended.

Meanwhile Kei was briefly examining her arm. The wound was
superficial. A Cure bead within the next few minutes would heal it
nicely. More than enough time for her to kick Enju's ass. Her right
arm hanging limply at her side, Kei brandished her katana and
prepared to attack again. This time Enju held his ground, waiting
for an opening.

Enju dodged her first slash to the head, then blocked with his
sensu as she tried to stab at his arm. The metal flaps of the fan
neatly pushed the katana away from him, allowing the chance for
Enju to deliver a solid punch to Kei's cheek.

Instead of falling, Kei absorbed the blow and then retaliated
with her wounded arm. Enju stumbled back as she rammed her clenched
fist into his stomach, driving the air out of him. His eyes widened
and he hastily ducked a swing that would have taken off his head.

"You're a threat to everything the Garden stands for," Kei
spat at him, smashing her katana down. He sidestepped and lunged at
her, trying the rake his kinzoku-sensu down her front side. Kei
jerked back, but not fast enough; the jacket of her SeeD uniform
was torn open. He was definitely good with weapons, even when his
own had a limited range.

"And what makes you think the Headmaster doesn't know about
me?" Enju snapped. "Your loyalty to Cid blinds you from it."

They engaged again, and wound up with their weapons clashing
against each other. Random sparks flew as Kei tried to force down
his sensu with her blade. She pushed with her katana. He pushed
back with his fan.

"I must confess," Enju hissed, their faces so close together
despite the proximity of their lethal weapons. "You're one of the
first people I've met who's managed to piss me off like this."

"Get used to it," Kei retorted, pushing him away. "I probably
won't be the last."

Enju growled, forcing back the temptation to use one extra,
lethal feature of his fan that even Quistis didn't know about. But
it would be near impossible to explain this, even if he managed to
hide Kei's body.

With them engaged in such close combat, Enju lost track of
what Kei's injured arm was up to. It came as a nasty surprise when
she brought her hand forward and a Fire spell exploded from her
palm. He was blinded by the blast of magic as the flames licked
at him. That provided Kei the opportunity to follow her first
spell up with a second, more powerful Fira.

Enju pin wheeled across the floor like a rag doll. He rolled
out of control before colliding with the balustrade, his head
connecting with the railing. With a groan, he pushed away from the
balustrade--and then froze as the tip of Kei's sword was nudged
beneath his chin.

He had lost.

"No one ever knew Death's Angel had a weakness to magic," he
said between gasps for air. "Otherwise our positions would be
reversed. You've been talking to Quistis, haven't you?"

Kei didn't feel like answering his question. "Why did you come
here?" she demanded evenly.

Enju stared straight at her. He was one of the few who, when
confronted like this, didn't avoid eye contact. She lifted the
blade, using it to raise Enju's chin. He got the point: Kei wasn't
going to ask twice.

"Not for a job, as you seem to be implying," he answered. "I
signed on with SeeD just after I retired."

"An assassin never retires," she countered. The katana made
itself more acutely known against his skin. "They just get killed."

Very slowly and very deliberately, Enju lifted one of his
hands and gripped the side of her katana blade between his index
finger and thumb. Kei let him carefully move the weapon out from
immediate thrusting range of his throat.

"Why do you think I've become Enju?" he said. "He was born
from the ashes of the warehouse explosion which claimed the life of
Death's Angel."

It was all too easy to let some of his known enemies tail him
to that warehouse. They thought they had the chance to become the
top assassin, or take revenge for someone he'd previously killed.
None of them dreamed that he had been planning this for weeks. It
gave him the perfect set of witnesses to watch him walk into the
deserted warehouse--and then see the warehouse detonate a moment
later.

No one even noticed his shadowy form leaping off the rooftop
of the warehouse, blown onto the safety of an adjacent rooftop by
the explosion's shockwave. Admittedly he had almost died in the
process, but timing was everything to ensure the ruse worked.

"Care to enlighten me as to why you decided to conveniently
end your previous life?" Kei inquired sharply.

Enju hesitated. "Personal politics clouded the job. I decided
to make a change of lifestyle instead of completing my last
contract."

"So you created a new past for yourself and came here."

"I hung around the Trabia Garden for a few months, and then
decided Balamb would make a good place to start my life," Enju said
leisurely. "It's impressive what one can do when they learn how to
fashion a past and credentials. All one needs is time, cunning and
a few extra uniforms, SeeD Kei. I was able to pass for a
transferring student with little difficulties."

Kei glared at him, tempted to let her katana slide beneath his
neck again. "And so you brought your killer instinct to us? Forgive
me for not being flattered."

Enju chuckled, slowly getting back onto his feet. "Well, who
would think to look for me here?" he said, tenderly rubbing the
back of his head. He'd have to use his own tonics when he got
back to his room to ensure that the swelling would go down. "SeeD
is a respectable mercenary organization, hardly the place for the
Death's Angel to be a pupil of.

"Cid knew who I really was the moment I stepped into his
office as a transferring cadet. So long as I don't make unnecessary
waves, he's allowed Balamb to be my home. Doctor Kadowaki knew
also. Those medical files on my tattoos and skin were from her
tests, to ensure my alternations wouldn't affect my training. If
you've read the files, you know why I can't cast magic very well."

Kei found herself lowering her weapon as she stared at Enju in
disbelief. Cid and Kadowaki were a part of this? Why had they let
a creature like Enju into Balamb?! Kei couldn't see any use for the
former assassin, save for T-Rexaur fodder. But if that was the
case, then Enju was protected by a higher power. Namely the
Headmaster.

The last thing she wanted to do was ruin her relationship with
Cid. Killing Enju would definitely drive a wedge between them.
Grudgingly she backed away, allowing Enju to leave.

"A conspiracy lurks in every shadow, SeeD Kei," Enju stated,
sensing her stung pride. "More often than not, you just have to
stare into the darkness at the right angle. And then you can see
all the hidden strings that everyone's dancing to."

He walked calmly past her and picked up his fallen
kinzoku-sensu, tucking it into his belt. "I think we've both had
enough for one evening."

The pleasantness in his face had returned.

Kei scowled at the eeriness of how he could turn the charm on
and off like a light switch. How many other cadets, or even
teachers, suspected that beneath his smile lurked a remorseless and
lethal killer? The trick of the assassin was to blend in with any
surroundings, something Enju excelled at.

"So are you going to try and kill me in my sleep?" Kei
inquired. It was a valid concern, but she was still fuming so much
at him that the real threat was lost to her.

He abruptly paused at the entrance to the overpass and glanced
back at Kei. "If this becomes very personal between us, then yes,
I will. But you'll have to make the first move. And we both know
you're smart enough to know when to keep a secret."

If word got out Death's Angel was hiding at the Garden, a lot
of would-be assassins and angry relatives of past victims would
show up. Balamb would be turned into one giant war zone, and
everything Cid and the SeeDs had tried to establish would be
destroyed.

"Keep as close an eye on me as you wish," he said on his way
out. "I'm not the threat to Quistis that you perceive me to be."

He felt another jolt of pain rack his shoulder, and then
ruefully though to himself that it would be much more pleasant to
fight a Snow Lion bare-handed than go for a rematch against Kei.
There was something about Kei that made him wary.

No normal person should have been able to defeat him that
easily, magic or otherwise.

-----

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