Lost and Found

Chapter 3
Call for Help

"President Loire, Headmaster Cid is on line two," Laguna heard his secretary say through the intercom on his desk.

"Thank you," he answered, then picked up the line. "Hello, Cid."

"How's our boy doing, Laguna?"

"No different unfortunately. I've tried everything." Squall had been in Esthar for two weeks now, and in that time had barely talked to him. He stuck to staying in his room and when he wasn't there, he left the city in search of creatures to fight. Laguna had set guards on him when he went out on these excursions, worried that he could be hurt or killed. As skilled a fighter as Squall was, Laguna couldn't help but be concerned.

"Is there anything I can do to help?"

"I'm not sure, Cid. I wouldn't mind a little help. Squall just won't talk to me. I tried to set up some therapy sessions with a psychiatrist, but he's having none of that."

"Maybe I should make it an order that he have these sessions," Cid suggested.

"No. I think that will make things worse if we force him. He's angry enough as it is. I'm just at a loss. I just don't know what to do, Cid."

"I'll send someone to help."

"Who?"

"I'll let you know. I need to discuss it with her first."

"Thanks, Cid." Laguna hung up the phone with a little bit of hope. That hope left him a few moments later when the two guards came into his office, noses bloodied.

"What happened?" Laguna sighed, already knowing.

"Your son, Sir. He wasn't very happy with us following him. Apparently he's known we've been watching after him, but he decided to put a stop to it today. Sorry, Sir."

"That's alright. You two can have the rest of the day off."

"Thank you, Sir," they said in unison, then promptly left. Laguna silently prayed that whoever Cid was sending could do something, anything to fix his son's broken spirit.

~~~~~

Squall had been gone for a while now and there wasn't a moment when Quistis wasn't thinking about him. She hoped that Laguna was getting through to the cold Commander, but had her doubts. In the past eight months Squall had been stubborn, so she didn't think two weeks in Esthar would make much difference. It was her fear, in fact, that he would be so stubborn that he wouldn't come back to Garden at all.

She walked through the Garden aimlessly, not really having a destination. She got a few smiles from some of the male cadets as she walked. She still had her fans, but none of them meant anything to her. The man she did care about seemed oblivious, or just didn't care. Either way, it hurt. To love someone for so long and not even be acknowledged was painful.

When Rinoa has come into the picture, she'd given up. When she died, she was saddened, just like the rest of them had been. Rinoa had been like a sister, but a few months after her death, she had that hope again. The hope that Squall would notice her feelings. She'd felt guilty about it, but that didn't change her desire to have him love her in return.

"Quistis Trepe, please come to my office," Cid's voice ordered over the intercom. She changed direction, heading to see what the Headmaster wanted. She hoped it wasn't a mission. She just didn't have the heart for one right now.

"You wanted to see me, Sir?" she said when she entered his office minutes later.

"Yes, Quistis. It appears President Loire isn't making any progress with Squall. I think it may help if I send someone to Esthar. I thought that someone could be you."

"I'll do it," she said without hesitation.

"You don't want to think about it? This isn't a mission, so it's not an order that you go."

"No, Sir. I want to do this. Anything to help."

"Good," he smiled. "You'll leave immediately. I'll have Zell take you on the Ragnarok."

"Yes, Sir," she said and left his office quickly to go pack. As she walked to her quarters, she made a promise to herself that she would break through Squall's ice shield, if it was the last thing she ever did.

~~~~~

Quistis heard a knock on the door, just as she closed the latches on her suitcases. She wasn't surprised to see Selphie and Irvine with Zell.

"Zell told us you're going to Esthar. We thought we'd come see ya before you go," Irvine said with a soft smile.

"Thanks, I don't know how long I'll be there, but I'll stay for as long as it takes."

"Bring us our Squall back, Quisty," Selphie said with tears brimming her eyes.

"I intend to."

"Good, because the impostor that's taken his place is a real asshole," Irvine said, putting his arm lovingly around Selphie.

"You ain't kidding," Zell agreed.

Quistis spent a few minutes with her friends, getting goodbye hugs and good lucks from them. With the job ahead of her, she needed it. It wasn't long before she and Zell were flying toward Esthar and the cold Balamb Lion.

~~~~~

Laguna was happy to see Quistis come into his office. It had been a while since he had seen the young woman and he was grateful to her for coming.

"So, where is he?" she asked after shaking Laguna's hand.

"I believe he's in his quarters, at least that's what one of the guards told me."

"Does he know that Cid sent me?"

"No. I haven't told him. He doesn't seem to want to talk to me as of late," Laguna said with a hint of sadness. Quistis nodded in understanding, having gone through that herself with Squall. "Thank you for being here, Quistis. Squall hasn't been making things easy.

"I'm not surprised......Where's his room? The sooner I go see him, the better I think," she said and he told her where to go.

Soon she was outside his door, trying to will herself to knock. She was nervous and apprehensive, not really knowing how he was going to react. His mood wasn't going to be good, that much she was sure of. She took a deep breath and knocked, pushing her fear aside.

"So, has Cid come to his senses?" he asked as soon as he saw her. No 'hello', no 'nice to see you, Quistis', and she hated to admit it made her angry, but she didn't let it show.

"No, Squall. Can I come in?" The look on his face made her think he wouldn't let her, but he moved aside to allow her by.

"Then why are you here?"

"Because, you're being a stubborn ass and your father needs help getting through to you."

"Shit! Is that what you're here for? To be my babysitter? You might as well go back to Garden, because I don't need this!"

"Not happening. I'm not going anywhere," she said, getting just as angry as he was. He gave her a scowl and walked into the other room. She followed him, determined not to give up. "Why do you have to make this so hard?"

"You should know me by now, Quistis," he said, laying down on the bed.

"Squall..."

"Quistis, just go. I'm not in the mood for this."

"No!" His eyes swiveled over to her and narrowed. He sat up, putting his feet back on the floor, giving her a scrutinizing look.

"What do you want, Quistis? Huh?! Maybe you want to try getting into my pants? Is that it?" Her face burned and she looked away from him, trying to block out his words. "Who knows? Spread your legs, maybe you'll get lucky," he said mockingly. She'd never been so angry in her life and in three strides she was standing in front of him, smacking him hard across the face. The strength of it rocked his head back and when he looked up at her, she saw that his lip was bleeding. The expression on his face hadn't changed and she actually saw a hint of a smile on his lips.

"Bastard!"

"Deal with it," he said. "I do everyday." She turned her back to him and left quickly, unable to stand looking at him anymore. When she made it outside to the hallway, a sob escaped her, tears spilling down her face. This was going to be much harder than she initially thought.