The Gunblade Saga Chapter 1

Balamb Garden

By Peptuck3

Well, you like?

Here's the actual first chapter, going from the infirmiry to when Squall gives Selphie the tour of Garden. There are a lot of explanations given in this chapter (as necassary) but they do give my take on some of the important aspects of FFVIII, such as junctioning, magic, and the Gardens. In fact, this whole fic is my interpretation of the events of FFVIII.

One thing: When a character speaks, I'll use quotation marks. " . . . " When a character is thinking, I use apostrophes. ' . . . ' ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------

        Sunlight shined down through the window overhead, blinding him as he woke up. A scent of flowers and warm spring air wafted in through the opened window, the wind carrying it playing with the curtians over the window. Outside, birds could be heard chirping and singing.

        He was lying on a bed, a nice, soft bed, most likely in the infirmiry, he realized, judging by what he last remembered. The brown- haired warrior muttered something and opened his eyes.

        "How are you feeling?" asked a kind voice from beside him. He glanced up to see Dr. Kadawoki standing there, holding a chart. The doctor was a middle-aged, heavyset woman, dark-haired and with a kindly demeanor. She was wearing her usual white doctor's coat, and had a small medical chart in hand. The image of the doctor was blurred somewhat, likely due to the head injury he'd suffered.

        He felt a slight ache in his forehead, but aside from that, he was alright. He sat up, feeling slightly disoriented as his body adjusted to the new position.

        ". . . . . Ok, I guess," he said. Kadowaki nodded and scribbled something on her chart. She glanced back at the man and bent over slightly, looking into his face. He saw her older face become clearer, to which the doctor nodded.

        "Looks like your eyes are focusing. Say your name for me."

        "Squall," Squall Leonhart said immediately. Kadowaki nodded and smiled.

        "Looks like you're fine. No serious head or brain injuries, not too much blood loss. But why don't you take it easier in training? Next time you might not be so lucky."

        Hmph. Squall thought back to the 'duel' he'd fought earlier. His opponent had been the cause of all the trouble.

        "Tell that to Seifer," Squall muttered with a shake of the head. Kadowoki shook her head at the mention of Seifer Almasy's name. Like nearly everyone else inside Balamb Garden, she knew all about how reckless and irresponsible Seifer Almasy was.

        "That Seifer . . . Won't listen to anyone. Why don't you ignore him?" Kadowaki blurted out that last part by accident, since she was so used to advising other cadets of the same thing. Squall's relationship to Seifer was different, however. Him, ignoring Seifer?

        Squall scoffed at that notion. Easier said than done when it came to Seifer. If he wanted attention, then Hyne damn it, Seifer got attention. Other people would try to ignore him, but Squall understood that that would be hopeless. He prefferred taking Seifer head on. From their earliest days at the academy they'd been rivals, and Squall refused to retreat in Seifer's face. Pride was a driving factor in their rivalry, albeit a stupid one. Neither refused to give an inch of ground to the other.

        "I can't just run away," Squall said determinedly.

        "You want to be cool, huh?" Kadowaki said with a knowing smile. She understood Squall's reasons for facing up to Seifer. "Well, don't get hurt in the process!" Kadowaki paused for a moment, recalling something. "Your instructor is . . . Quistis! I'll call her now. Just wait here a moment." The doctor walked out of the room and across the infirmiry towards the intercom on her desk, positioned across from the medical rooms so she could monitor her patients. Squall sank back onto his bed and rested for a moment, throwing his arm over his face to block the sunlight. He sighed in vexation.

        Quistis could be a pain at times, and he figured she was going to be one again. Nevermind that she was a good, if not great instructor, but she got to be a bit nagging and troublesome when she tried to solve others' problems or help anyone out.

        "Quistis, come get your student," Kadowaki said into the intercom. A voice replied, too distant to hear well. "Yes, yes, his injury's not serious, it'll probably leave a scar." Quistis, on the other end, said something in reply. ". . . Right, now please come by."

        Squall laid there for a moment, relaxing on the bed, and relaxing even more when he heard Kadowaki leave the infirmiry. He liked being alone, in solitude, without anyone bothering him. Some time passed, with Squall just listening to the sounds of the birds outside and the calls and laughter of other cadets in the courtyard outside or in the Quad, north of the infirmiry.

        "Squall," a soft voice called from the adjoining room. He turned his head quickly, to see a young girl, a few years older than himself, looking through the glass between his room and the next. "So we meet again," she said, turning to leave. Squall blinked in confusion, and sat up slightly, looking into the glass as the girl walked away. The next room was darkened, so the glass reflected the image of Squall and his own room, making it difficult to see the girl's features.

        "Who?" he wondered. Squall blinked again and shook his head, something telling him that this girl was familiar. But by the time he'd looked back into the room, the girl was gone. A quick glance around told him that whoever she was, she had disappeared. "Who was that?" he muttered.

        Even as he spoke, Squall heard the door to the infirmiry hiss open. In strode a young woman, the same age and height as Squall, clad in a black uniform with gold trimming, a knee-length skirt, and boots. She was blonde, with long hair that hung down either side of her face in front, and done up in the back so it doubled back on itself before coming down. She wore glasses over her large, blue eyes, which rolled as she looked at Squall. The woman sighed, put her hands on her hips, and smiled at Squall knowingly.

        "I knew it would be either you or Seifer!" Quistis Trepe remarked, stepping across the room to stand beside Squall, who sat up. She crossed her arms and bent over, looking Squall in the eye. "Come on, let's go. The field exam's today."

        Squall got up and walked out of the infirmiry behind Quistis. As he stepped out, Squall felt the warm air of springtime hit him. Judging by the sunlight shining down from the opposite side of the Garden to the east, and the students moving around, it seemed classes hadn't started yet.

        'Must still be early morning then,' Squall thought as he followed Quistis down the infirmiry's steps and along the breezeway. Quistis waved and greeted a burly, muscled cadet as he walked by, then slowed down so Squall could catch up with her.

        "Squall, is there something on your mind?" she asked him as he came alongside her. Not even looking at her, Squall opened his mouth.

        ". . . Not really," they both said at once. Squall paused and turned back to his instructor, annoyance crawling over his face as Quistis began to giggle.

        "What's so funny?" he asked, a bit indignantly.

        "Funny?" Quistis stopped laughing after a moment, and waved her hand, dismissing the idea of her finding humor in Squall's discomfort. "No, no, its not that. I'm just happy. I feel like I'm begining to understand my student a little, that's all."

        Squall shook his head as he turned back and resumed walking. "I'm more complex than you think," he countered.

        "Then tell me," Quistis said, matching Squall's pace. "Tell me more about yourself."

        "It's none of your-" Squall began.

        "Business!" And Quistis finished, chuckling again. Squall stopped, and glared down the breezeway. Quistis, her point made, walked past him. After a moment, Squall followed her, the path taking them into the central structure of Balamb Garden.

        Balamb Garden was an immense building, towering over a hundred feet into the air. It was somewhat conical, with a rounded tip. The central structure of Balamb Garden loomed over the whole Garden grounds, painted white for the most part but with many decorative touches all around the main building. Directly above the central building, rotating in the air, was an immense glowing ring that slowly spun around the entire structure. Squall wasn't sure how it remained aloft (physics wasn't his specialty) but it certianly gave the building an almost otherworldly air. Even after spending twelve years at Balamb, Squall was still awed by the immense ring overhead.

        Balamb Garden was one of only three structures like it around the world, all of which belonged to the worldwide Garden organization. Another Garden was located on the Monteresau Plateau inside the Republic of Galbadia, on the continent to the west of the Balamb continent. The other Garden was located in the frigid northlands of Trabia. Each Garden had its specialties. Balamb Garden trained SeeD special forces and also conducted research into the powers of Guardian Forces. Galbadia Garden trained officers for the Galbadian army and also produced SeeD special forces, and conducted technological and weapons research. Trabia Garden operated an exchange progam, sending its students to Balamb for SeeD training, since their Garden was too small. Trabia Garden also conducted research into magic and magical theory.

        Actually, it wasn't "magic," it was "para-magic." The techniques called "magic" used by Garden and other armed forces around the world were actually just the manipulation of magical energy. With the appropriate training, and having the appropriate spell on hand, anyone could use magic. The problem was getting the magical energy itself. Spells could be refined from the bodies of creatures and monsters, from certian magical objects, or taken from magical "fountians" which sprouted from the ground, containing magical energy. Garden also used their own method for obtaining magic, known as "Draw." Drawing allowed one to call forth magic directly from monsters and the "fountians" which Garden reffered to as Draw Points.

        Squall's Garden, Balamb, utilized powerful beings known as Guardian Forces in conjunction with physical training and practice with the use of magic to produce their elite SeeD special forces. Cadets at Balamb Garden trained hard to become SeeDs, also going through classes involving more "mundane" skills, such as mathematics, sciences, arts, etc. In effect, each of the Gardens was like a combination military academy, elementary, middle, and high school, and a university. But the special thing about the Gardens were that they were absolutely free. Anyone who wanted to and proved they had the right stuff could join at no cost. Garden didn't make its money off of its students, at least not immediately. Aside from the money from the Galbadian government to train officers, Garden earned its income entirely off its SeeD special forces, who were hired out as mercanaries in conflicts around the globe. A SeeD's job was exceedingly dangerous, but it was also exciting and very well-paying, which was the lure that brought many cadets in. And all of those cadets trained hard, endured all the studying, practice, and training, in order to reach this day. The day when all the training was put to the test, to determine whether one was fit to be a SeeD or not.

        The day of the field exam.

        * * * * *

        Squall stepped through the doorway on the second floor and into Quistis's classroom. Hers was the last in the hallway, just before the Training Room, a large dojo-like area where the Garden cadets trained.

        He walked across the classroom, passing the seats and study panels, large computers where cadets did their work and studies, and also used as terminals for Garden's online community. The panels were arranged in three lines, extending to the back of the classroom. A wide window at the back of the classroom provided illumination during the daytime. Most of the class was already assembled, sitting and talking among themselves. All of the students were around Squall's age, middle to late teens, and most of them wore their cadet uniforms. For both males and females, the uniform was dark blue, with a jacket featuring silver trim and slivery shoulders featuring beautiful, flowing designs. Males wore matching dark blue pants and boots along with silver collars on their jackets, while females wore short skirts, boots, and a yellow scarf.

        Right behind Squall came Quistis.

        "Good morning, class!" Quistis called with a bright smile. Many, very many, of the guys in the class, smiled right back at Quistis. There weren't many instructors her age in Balamb, and of those, none were quite as beautiful as Quistis. A testament to this fact was the existance of the "Trepies," Quistis's own personal (and highly obsessive) fan club.

        Squall reached the far left end of the classroom, where his seat and panel were located. He moved to sit down, then saw Seifer sitting across from him, at the rear center panel. Well, he wasn't sitting so much as reclining back in the seat, his arms up on the back as if he were relaxing at home instead of attending class at a military institution. The white- coated cadet turned his head to look at Squall and an obnoxious grin, one that Seifer had patented specifically to show how superior he was, emerged on his face. Squall could clearly see the dark line running from the right side of his nose up to the left side of his forehead.

        'At least he didn't get away unscathed,' Squall thought with a slight degree of satisfaction. He took his seat and looked back up towards Quistis as she sat behind her desk at the front of the classroom, positioned in front of a huge viewscreen, currently showing a map of planetary orbits.

        "There seem to have been some rumors flying around since yesterday," she began. Quistis waited until the entire class's attention was focused on her before continuing. "Yes, the field exam for SeeD cadets is later this afternoon. Those not participating and those who failed last week's written test are to remain here in study hall. Field exam participants have free time until the exam. Just be sure you're in top condition." Several students looked around excitedly at the announcement and talked among themselves.

        "Any questions?" Quistis asked the classroom. "Oh, and Seifer," she called. The blonde cadet looked up at Quistis, a "Who, me?" expression on his face.

        "Do NOT injure your partner while training. Be careful from now on."

        A mixture of disgust, surprise, and anger worked its way onto Seifer's face. He glanced over at Squall, then looked back at Quistis. Anger took over in his expression and he slammed his fist down on the top of the panel, as close to an aknowledgement of the order and simultanious beratement as one could expect from him.

        "Field participants, I will see you later. And Squall," Squall glanced up at Quistis as she stood. "I need to talk to you."

        The cadet sighed, knowing what Quistis would say. The Fire Cavern. He still needed to go there. Squall paused and turned on his panel as the rest of the class filed out, among them Seifer, who had nothing to say to Squall, surprisingly. Ignoring Seifer, he quickly logged in and requested the Guardian Forces registered to him.

        Login: [Squall] confirmed.

        GF data for [Squall] . . .

        Searching . . .

        GF registered under [Squall] are:
        [GF Quetzacotl]
        [GF Shiva]

        Squall drew the two GFs out from storage. A small door opened underneath the panel, and out came a small drawer, containing a yellow and a blue stone. Squall lifted the small stones, no bigger than a large gem, and immediately felt the power of the Guardian Forces Quetzacotl and Shiva, entities of lightning and ice, respectively.

        Guardian Forces were powerful entities of pure energy. They embodied tremendous magical power, and when pursuaded or defeated in battle, would give their powers over to meager humans. Guardian Forces were said to be avatars of the gods of creation themselves, allowing only small part of their essence to exist in the mortal world. These avatars were the beings that lended their aid to humans when defeated or convinced. Guardian Forces could be called on directly, at which point they emerged and wreaked havoc on their summoner's foes, or in a few cases, bestowed healing and power on their allies. However, Balamb Garden utilized Guardian Forces in another manner.

        Balamb Garden, drawing on knowledge obtained by the legendary Doctor Odine in the eastern nation of Esthar, discovered a way to combine a Guardian Force's powers with magical energy to give an otherwise ordinary human incredible power. The power of the GF could strengthen a man's muscles, harden his skin, toughen his body, increase his reflexes and speed and even add to and sheild from magical assaults. Guardian Forces were used in this manner by Balamb Garden's SeeD forces, giving them a tremendous advantage on the battlefield, especially against ordinary humans who did not possess the edge a GF granted.

        Squall held the stones a moment longer, then concentrated on them. The stones were the key to summoning the Guardian Force or using its powers. When the GF was either defeated or convinced to join a human, the human recieved a stone as a symbol of their ownership. Whoever possessed the stone could utilize the Guardian Force.

        As Squall concentrated, the Guardian Forces' stones glowed, then just . . . dissappeared, absorbed into Squall's body. He felt, in the back of his mind, the distant, alien thoughts of the pair of GFs.

        Garden's method of using GFs was known as "junctioning." The actual act of junctioning a GF was not difficult to learn, if one knew how to utilize magic. Magic and Guardian Forces were deeply connected, though Squall wasn't learned in the complexities of the relationship. All he really knew was that with the aid of the GF, he could use magic with ease, and strengthen himself, and if need arose, to summon the GF itself.

        Junctioned with his Guardian Forces, Squall paused to concentrate some more, focusing magical energies of spells he had on hand. He'd used up most of his magic he had stocked yesterday in an three-hour long romp in the Training Center downstairs. But he still had a number of Thunders and a few Cure spells, which he junctioned. The electrical magic of his Thunder spells he focused on his physical strength, while the restorative magic of the Cures he junctioned in order to toughen his body. Squall's muscles bulged slightly as magical power strengthened them. Done with his junctioning, Squall rose from his study panel and crossed the room to where Quistis waited.

        Quistis was chatting with a group of the "Trepies," but as Squall approached, they apparently decided to make room.

        "You haven't been to the Fire Cavern yet, have you?" Quistis asked, to which Squall nodded. "You won't be able to take part in today's exam without passing the prerequisite and fighting Ifrit."

        "I know," Squall responded. 'I was gonna go this morning, but Seifer . . . ' Squall thought to himself.

        "Hm? Well, do you have an excuse?"

        'A very good one, how about getting my head cut open?' Squall thought indignantly. But even as he thought that, he remembered that the whole reason they'd gone out to "train" in the first place was due to Seifer rather agressively demanding it and Squall not backing down. The whole fight had really been over pride. And pride was no excuse.

        "No, not really," Squall said.

        "Then let's get going," Quistis replied. "I'll be waiting for you down at the front gate, so come down when you're ready."

        With that, Quistis walked out of the room, waving to the trio of Trepies as she passed through the doorway. Squall moved to follow, and as he reached the door, he could hear a few mutterings from behind him.

        "I . . . I'm so jealous! Maybe I should take that subject too . . ." one person said, sounding appropriately envious.

        "Alone with Instructor Trepe . . ." another envious person muttered, unsurprisingly male.

        "If anything happens to Instructor Trepe, the Trepies will get you back!" called the last of the trio. Squall glanced over his shoulder at the girl who threatened him, and shrugged at her remark before stepping through the door. As Squall headed down the hallway, he went over what he'd need.

        'Gotta load up my gunblade, it'll be in my room, along with my other equipment. Need to stock up on some magic. There's a draw point outside, and there's plenty more magic available from the monsters outside the grounds. And I'll need some breakfast, didn't get a chance to eat before when Seifer said we should train-'

        Squall was apparently so deeply in thought that he didn't hear the steps of the cadet running down the hallway.

        "I'm late, I'm late, I'm LATE!!!" was Squall's only warning before a five foot tall human missile collided with him as he rounded a corner leading to the main elevator. Even caught off guard, Squall still wasn't knocked off his feet by the impact, though the cadet, a girl his own age, fell flat on her rear.

        "Waaah!" she cried as she dropped. Squall glanced down at her, slightly annoyed at her blundering, but then, he hadn't exactly been all that alert himself, so he had no one to blame.

        "You okay?" he asked her as she shook her head slightly, making the brown curls of her hair rising up all around her head like a mop bounce a bit. She was tiny, and also remarkably cute, somehow reminding Squall of a plushy toy moogle. The girl looked up at him with her green eyes as she climbed back up to her feet. Squall didn't recognize her, though he thought she might be from Trabia Garden; a group from the northern Garden should have arrived that morning.

        "There," she said upon regaining her balance. "Tee-hee. I'm fine." She smiled, making her seem even more cute. "Sorry, I was kind of in a hurry."

        'I couldn't guess,' Squall thought.

        "Oh, yeah! Did you just come from that class?" she asked, to which Squall nodded. "Whoo . . . oh, nooo . . . This place is sooo much bigger than my last Garden!"

        'She is from Trabia,' Squall thought to himself, nodding.

        "Oh, hey, hey," the girl said suddenly. "I just transferred here, you think you could give me a tour of the Garden?"

        Squall was a loner, and he didn't like people, but that didn't mean he was uncaring. He was willing to show the girl around, though he wouldn't have exactly jumped for joy at the job. In any other situation, he would have helped her, but right now he had a lot to do.

        "Don't have the time," Squall said, to the girl's disappointment.

        "Oh, bummer," the girl muttered. She began to walk away, waving at him. "That's too bad. Well, see ya."

        Squall watched her walk down the hall, and felt just a bit bad for her. It was hard to not help her, since she was so cute and endearing, even to the taciturn Squall.

        'Yeah, too bad,' he thought. 'She could use-wait, the directory!'

        "Hey," he called after her. The brown-haired cadet stopped and looked back. "I can't take you on a long tour, but at least I can show you the directory." She brightened immediately. It was a good compromise; the directory would at least ensure she wouldn't get lost again.

        "Whoo-hoo!" she shouted. "Alright, let's go!" The pair headed down the hallway towards the elevator.

        This particular hallway was more of an ornate bridge connecting the classrooms to the central elevator shafts. The classrooms were positioned on the second level, in a ring around the central elevators. To reach the elevators, one had to cross the bridges connecting the shafts with the classroom hallways. There were a good fifty feet between the first and second levels, so one on the bridge was offered a spectacular sweeping view of the interior of Balamb Garden.

        The central structure of Balamb Garden was mostly open space, at least around the first level. There were a series of walkways arranged like the spokes of a wheel connecting the various first level facilities. Each walkway connected with a central circular walkway, which surrounded a raised platform where the central elevators were located.

        Seperating the central platform from the walkway was a raised pool that surrounded the elevator platform. Ornate and beautiful fish statues acted as fountians for the pool. The water filtered down underneath the walkway to spill down into an outer pool that ran underneath the connecting walkways to the various facilities. Throughout the expansive room were numerous plants and shrubs. Combined with the flowing water and the general student life, these gave Balamb Garden a vibrant, lush atmosphere, that of an indoor paradise.

        As Squall reached the elevator, it rose up and out stepped another cadet, clad in casual clothes and not his uniform. The cadet was looking at a handful of cards in his hands, and it took him a second to notice Squall as the pair began to step past him.

        "Oh, hey," the cadet said, causing Squall to turn to face him. "You want these?" he held up the handful of cards. "My brother gave them to me, but they're not my thing. You want them?"

        Squall glanced at the cards, which were, unsurprisingly, for the insanely popular card game Triple Triad. Triple Triad was played around the world, even getting advanced, formalized rules in many places, and was rapidly replacing poker, blackjack, and many other forms of gambling. Garden had had the Triad craze since as far back as Squall could remember, and even had their own card club clique. While Squall himself wasn't a fanatical player of Triad, he certianly wasn't alien to the game, and had his own modest deck.

        After inspecting the cards, Squall shrugged. "Sure, why not?" he said as he pocketed them. They were low-powered cards, the kind you'd expect from a beginner's deck, but he could still use them as backups.

        With that done, Squall and his lost charge entered the elevator and headed down to the first floor. As soon as the elevator reached the first level, Squall gestured to a large panel positioned between the elevators and the main entrance.

        "That's the directory," he said. The girl nodded, smiled her thanks, and headed down to the directory. His job done, Squall looked north, to where the dorms were located. He had a lot to do-

        "Umm, question," the girl called, catching Squall's attention. He turned around and saw her standing by the directory, looking confused. "How do you work this thing?"

        Another sigh of vexation escaped Squall's lips as he stepped down the stairs connecting the upper platform to the walkway. He stepped up to the directory next to the girl, and tapped a button. A screen showing a general map of Balamb Garden's first level appeared.

        "'You just move the cursor around and press the button to select an area." Squall was gonna leave it at that, but he felt he had to be just a little more helpful. "Now, here's an explanation of the various facilities." Squall pointed the cursor to the northernmost section. "To the north are the dormitories, which take up the whole North Block. Most of the students and all of the SeeDs live there, along with a few instructors. Not many students make the commute from Balamb or elsewhere."

        "Yeah, I'm in the dorms, too!" the girl said with a nod.

        "West of the North Block is the cafeteria. There's always a big rush for the hot dogs, so you'd better get there early."

        "Got it!"

        "East of the North Block is the garage. That's where students, SeeDs, instructors and any other employees keep their cars. We also use it to store Garden's own vehicles. When a mission comes up, we usually use the Garden cars." Squall moved the cursor down to the bottom of themap, indicating the front gate. "The gate's to the south, you know that . . ."

        'That's right, I need to meet Instructor Trepe down there when I'm ready . . .' Squall thought.

        "Hm?" the girl asked. "What's the matter?"

        "Nothing," Squall said with a shake of his head. "Next, we have the Quad, in the west Block. There's an event being planned there . . ."

        "I know! I know! Its the Garden Festival! its going to be great! I'm planning to be on the commitee! You wanna help too!"

        "Let's just move on," Squall said quickly, not wanting to be steered in that direction. With this girl's unbearable cuteness, she could probably convince him to do anything to help her out.

        "South of the West Block is the infirmiry. You can go there to get treated for injuries." 'Like mine,' Squall thought to himself. "The doctor's name is Kadowaki," he added. "Now, for the East Block. This is the Training Center." Squall moved the cursor over the easternmost of the facilities. "Its the only facility open at night. Its used for training, obviously, and it has real monsters running loose inside. If you don't take it seriously, you could end up dead. Just be careful." The girl gulped as she understood Squall was dead serious.

        " . . . Okay."

        "South of the east Block is the Library. You can look up a lot of material there, but the study panels in the classrooms are more efficient. But you can't take the study panels back to your rooms, while you can with the books in the Library. And you know about the classrooms on the second floor, right?"

        "Yup. I'll remember those."

        "Also, on the second floor you'll find the Training Room, where we practice combat training, and also our labs. And by the way, the Headmaster's office is on the third floor. You'll need permission to get in."

        "What's the headmaster's name?" she asked.

        "Cid Kramer," Squall replied. "That's about it. Anything else?"

        "Nope, got it!" she said. "Heeey, um . . . are you taking today's SeeD exam?"

        "Yeah," Squall said with a nod.

        "Then maybe we'll see each other again later. I'm taking the exam today too, since I already finished my training at my other Garden. Good luck to both of us, huh!" She began to walk away. "Thanks a lot!" the girl called as she left.

        That done, Squall turned north and headed for the cafeteria. He still had a lot to do, and his stomach was telling him what his biggest priority was at the moment.

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Note: I know, I know, Quetzocotl doesn't grant you the STR-J ability. Guess what? I don't care! Excepting specific abilities, like Recover, Treatment, STR+20%, etc. the GFs in this novelization all generally have the same abilities.

Also, the "stone" idea comes from Greenbeans, aka Amanda Anderson, and her fanfic "Sowing the SeeDs."

And yes, Squall is a Triple Triad player! *sticks out toungue at nay- sayers* How else you gonna introduce the game and get Squall some cards unless he's already at least somewhat into it?

If you haven't noticed, I'm rather detail oriented. I am constructing this thing as if it were an actual novel, and also for those who have never played or only partially played FFVIII, and thus, I wanted to accurately describe every setting, person, monster, creature, or item in FFVIII. I like including the little details (like Quistis greeting the muscular student outside the Infirmiry) And of course, I constantly review my own work, leading me to constantly edit and add teeny-tiny touches here and there. Perfection is the name of my game.


Chapter 2

Peptuck3's Fanfiction