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Misery's Son	By : Pixxit Category: Final Fantasy VIII > General Views: 721 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VIII, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 6
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Dancing with the Devil

~ When you dance with the devil, the devil don�t
change. The devil changes you.

He stretched across the cold expanse of sheet beneath him, the absence of
Squall�s warmth apparent to him even before he�d opened his eyes. His scent
lingered, but it was all that was left. Seifer�s eyes
remained closed, unwilling to open them and admit that whatever sweetness he�d
held through the night had been wrested from him in the harsh light of day.
He�d felt Squall�s reluctance, known it for his own, and yet he hadn�t asked
him to stay.
Reaching blindly along the edge of the mattress, he welcomed the clarity
that came with such cool crispness. It was too soon. Too soon to grasp his arm
and order him back to bed. Too soon to release the tenuous hold he had on his
temper and demand, just once, that Squall look at him. Forget his damned
charity and really see Seifer Almasy.
Whoever the hell he really was�It was getting to the point where Seifer didn�t recognize the cool emerald stare in the
mirror anymore. So many months of holding it back, beating it down, it had
wrought changes in him. Major changes.
He�d purposefully kept the truth from Squall. Where he�d been, what he�d
been doing all this time. Maybe one day he�d tell him. Maybe.
Right now the thought of reliving those early days had the power to send him
further into himself. To a place he didn�t want to visit ever again. He had a
feeling that Squall wouldn�t understand.
He rolled to his back, stretching his long body under the blankets, reveling
in the simple feeling of completion. It had been a long while since he�d
felt�content. He wasn�t going to give it up this time; he was going to hold on
to some sense of normalcy if it killed him.
Reaching over his head, he let his hands curl under his pillow as he let his
mind wander over the events of the previous night. Of course he�d known Squall
was coming for him. He had his sources, after all, and news of the President�s
son trying to slip unnoticed into town had spread like flames through a forest.
The Estharian underground had more efficient ways of
trading information than the most sophisticated government. Seifer
had known the second he�d stepped across the city limits, belts jangling and
hair blowing in the breeze. But he didn�t really need to be told. Seifer could feel him. In the subtle change of the wind,
he�d felt him. And it was for that very reason that Seifer
had accepted Squall�s shy kisses last night. It was time. Time
for them to be what they should have been to one another since this whole thing
started.
Whether he knew it or not, Squall Leonhart was his
and his alone. He�d marked him for himself when they were just boys and it
wasn�t something Seifer took lightly. Squall would
understand it soon enough and until he was ready to accept what couldn�t be
changed, Seifer would wait. It was what he was good
at. He�d done it this long, hadn�t he?
Prepare yourself, Commander mine. The game is on.

***
Squall hesitated at the bottom of the stairs, listening to the rattle of
plates and such. Laguna and Kiros were obviously
having breakfast. Great. Mindless
chatter. Just what he was looking forward to on a morning where he
wanted nothing more than to crawl right back into bed.
Whose bed? The nagging little voice in the back of his mind asked him
silkily. Squall frowned. He would not begin talking to himself. Being in this
Palace was bad enough, he refused to give himself more
reasons to relate to Laguna.
But, sanity aside, he couldn�t stop thinking of the way Seifer
had looked when he�d left his bed this morning. So
vulnerable. As if he was the one who needed protection for once.
Squall had to admit that the image of Seifer Almasy, errant knight, needing protection from anything was
ridiculous. And from the one person he�d sworn to fight unto his grave. Seifer hadn�t meant the things he�d said during the war,
Squall knew that as well as he knew his own name. But he also knew that Seifer was capable of more than anyone had ever given him
credit for.
Squall shook his head slightly, his hair falling into his eyes. Why was he
standing here daydreaming of Seifer when he had
Laguna to deal with? He wanted to pray for guidance, but he didn�t quite know
how and so he figured he�d get through this the same way he got through
everything else. Blind Luck.
*****
Kiros rustled the paper slightly as Squall entered
the room. Heads up Brother.
Laguna looked up, one long tendril of hair falling over his eye; the softly
curling ends threatening to drag into his plate. Kiros
smiled softly, wanting to smooth it over Laguna�s shoulder himself, but not
about to get up to do it.
"Laguna?" He called in his soft voice.
Laguna turned his attention away from his son.
"Huh?" He asked absently.
Kiros tugged lightly on his own locks and nodded
in Laguna�s direction. Laguna looked down, landing his
hair right on his bagel and then he lifted his head as he flipped the wayward
sweep of hair behind his shoulder. He offered Kiros a
sheepish grin and Kiros closed his eyes, shaking his
head slightly.
Squall almost smiled himself. He would have been embarrassed by the obvious
closeness displayed between the two men had he not experienced it himself just
hours ago. And while the emotions that had coursed through him were new and not
a little intimidating, they were not embarrassing.
"Hi there, Squall. Sleep well?" He almost cringed as soon as the
words left his mouth. The last thing he wanted was for Squall to know that he�d
entered his room to find it empty. He didn�t want to make Squall any more
uncomfortable than he already was.
"Uh. Yeah. Well enough, I suppose." He
answered, wondering why he couldn�t answer the question quickly and then just
shut the hell up.
Kiros turned his attention back to his newspaper.
Somehow he doubted Mr. Commander would appreciate being the source of Kiros� amusement.
"Good, good." Laguna sat up straighter, moving plates around,
nudging a chair for Squall to sit in.
"Here, have some breakfast. I suppose you two have a long drive today,
huh?"
Squall looked up and forgot to guard his emotions for he found himself
locking eyes with his Father. Forest green eyes met
cobalt blue ones and Squall felt the jolt throughout his body. His Father. After so long, this was what it felt like. To know your origins, to accept that you could look upon that
someone who was responsible for your existence.
It was humbling. And it was freaky as hell. Not something Squall was ready
to accept. He needed time to adjust.
"Well, uh, I don�t think we�ll really need a vehicle. We�ll manage on
our own."
Laguna looked at him, eyebrows drawn together.
"C�mon Squall, think about it, it�s too long for you two to travel without
some sort of protection. I wouldn�t feel right about that."
Kiros lay his paper down, deep, dark eyes settling
right on Squall and not wavering.
"Well, I�" He began, not liking the scrutiny he suddenly found
himself facing. The guilt he felt at leaving the Palace as suddenly as he�d come was beginning to rear its ugly head. He didn�t want to
feel beholden to Laguna as well.
Seifer chose that moment to make his entrance and
just the way he seemed to fill the doorway wiped Squall�s thoughts away. They
stood silently observing each other, words not coming easily, as if they ever
had and it was Laguna who broke the strained silence.
"Good morning, Seifer."
Seifer managed to tear his gaze away from Squall
and an easy smile spread across his sharp, even features.
"Thanks, you too."
His voice was still husky from sleep. Squall didn�t think he�d ever heard Seifer�s voice sound that way. It gave him chills along his
spine.
"C�mon, guys, sit down, please, eat." Laguna offered, motioning
toward the array of pastries and breads that were arranged so perfectly on the
table.
Seifer chose the seat across from Kiros and diagonal from Laguna. That put Squall at the
other head of the table.
Seifer reached across his plate and lifted a danish off of a silver serving
tray. It shone in the morning sunlight, as though it had recently been
polished. It was heavy, elaborate and had little bunnies at each end it. Seifer grinned.
"Sweet little tray, Laguna." He observed dryly, and Laguna knew he
was teasing him good-naturedly. He blushed and tucked his hair behind his ear
as he continued to spread some sort of fruit puree over his toast.
"Yeah. I have a sort of�attachment to it, I
suppose. Brought it with me from Winhill, couldn�t
leave it behind."
His voice turned nostalgic toward the end of his sentence and Seifer felt a little guilty for asking. It must have been Raine�s. Laguna gave a little half smile and continued.
"Strange, though, how I managed to bring the craziest things with me
while I left my ability to reason back in that cottage. I might not have
complete recollection of my last few days there, but I have a really gaudy
serving tray to show for my time spent."
He probably would have gone on, having always been the type of person who
couldn�t stop the words from pouring out once the floodgates had been opened.
Foolish as it sounded, he felt it was rude to give someone only part of a
story, even if his heart were breaking with the telling of it.
Kiros stopped him from recounting things that were
better left buried and he rested his eyes on Squall, who was settling into his
chair hesitantly, his belts clinking against his gunblade
as he moved.
"I assure you, Commander, there will be no outbreak of battle here at
the table." He stared pointedly at Squall�s weapon. Squall shrugged.
"Never rule out the possibility." He advised quietly.
Kiros narrowed his eyes and Seifer
knew what was coming. Kiros might look like nothing
more than delicate skin stretched across fragile bones that belied his regal
heritage, but his appearance was a fa�ade. While he looked like he should be
doing nothing more than raising blue-blooded horses, drinking only the finest
Scots Whiskey and lounging most comfortably in a scarlet brocade smoking
jacket, Kiros was a retired soldier, a trained
killer. And a damned good one. Seifer
knew this from first hand experience, although that was something Squall
probably didn�t need to know.
"Trust me, little cub, no one is getting through that front door
without me knowing about it hours in advance. I assure you, you may rest easy
while you�re here."
Squall resisted the urge to sneer at him. Barely.
"Is that right? How do you explain my presence?" He asked
smoothly, a tone that Squall seldom used. He didn�t make a habit of being a
show off. Now, however, was an instance where his status got the better of him.
"Easily. I let you into this city. I�d had
only to say the word and you would have bathed in your own blood at the city
limits." Quietly spoken and deadly serious, Squall didn't know whether to
be glad that such a man was guarding his father, or angry that he�d been made a
fool of. He settled for his usual reaction. Bored
indifference.
"Interesting." He managed. Seifer grinned. Kiros had a
tongue like a whip; he�d felt its sting more than once. But then, he was almost
certain that Kiros had been the one who�d cleared the
road for his emergence from hell. The worst kind of hell he could ever have
imagined.
He shook his head. He would not think about it. Not today. Maybe not tomorrow. It was time to bury the past.
Laguna�s brows were drawn together in tension, the deep green of his eyes
assessing the situation before him; most probably he was trying to think of
something to say that would lighten the mood. Seifer
saved him.
"Those are some pretty beads you�re wearing today, Kiros.
Those new?" He asked,
voice light and teasing.
Squall turned to stare at him, recognizing that voice. It was the one he
reserved for Zell. When he was
about to torment him, of course. Did he and Kiros
know each other?
Kiros� expression didn�t change, although he
didn�t appear to be angry. Laguna grinned and snorted in amusement.
"Good one, Almasy."
Squall cringed. Laguna�s laugh tinkled like wind chimes. It made him want to crawl under the rug and vanish.
"Y�know, I was with him when he got those, he
couldn�t make up his mind whether or not they would hang right, or something
like that and I said to him, I said, �Kiros, I don�t
know about those beads, I mean, they�re kind of girly and you remember that guy
who got the crap beat out of him��"
Squall closed his eyes. Hyne deliver me.
Kiros was regarding him with his dark, calm gaze
and he shook his head slightly.
"Laguna�" One word, meant as a warning, although not menacing.
Laguna grinned at him and winked.
"Yeah, sorry pal. Anyway, the point is�"
He paused, scratching his head and realizing too late that he�d scratched his
head with the hand that still held his breakfast.
"Oh, no. Look what I did." He looked at Kiros. "I�m so clumsy. Excuse me guys, I�ll be right
back."
He retreated with a bashful grin and Kiros watched
him go, eyes soft and unfocused, until he disappeared around the corner, the
sound of him tripping on that first step causing a smile to play over the curve
of Kiros� lips. But when Laguna�s footsteps faded out
of hearing range, Kiros turned to Squall with the
grace of a long, dark panther. His dark eyes hardened, his red beads swinging
against his dusky skin.
Seifer braced himself for the coming storm.
"I�m only going to say this one time, little lion. I don�t care if
you�re the Commander of every Garden on this planet; you will not come into
this Palace and treat Laguna with anything other than civility and respect. I
realize it�s asking too much for you to show him a little warmth since you
don�t seem to possess any, but know this: Laguna has suffered endlessly. I
won�t have you shredding what heart he has left. He�s your father, whether or
not you want to admit it, he is. I don�t think it will kill you to offer him a
kind word every so often just to keep that smile on his face. Do we understand
each other?"
Squall sat, smoldering under Kiros and Seifer�s collective gazes. His thumb stroked over the
trigger of his gunblade and there was murder in his
eyes. Seifer had once thought that his pride eclipsed that of his comrades
by leaps and bounds, but not so anymore. Leonhart was
all grown up and Seifer recognized the look in his
eyes. It was the same one he used to wear. And sometimes still did. Although not as often.
"Squall." He warned,
low and insistent.
Squall didn�t take his eyes off of Kiros.
"How dare you threaten me." It came out
as a growl, a sound that had sent grown men scurrying for the shadows. Kiros didn�t bat an eyelash.
"I dare whatever I want, little cub. If you want respect, you�ll have earn it and so far you haven�t impressed me all that much.
What our lost one here sees in you is beyond me."
Seifer�s eyes widened and Squall finally broke the
contest of wills, his gaze sliding easily to Seifer.
"What have you told him?" It didn�t sound like a question; it
sounded like an order. Seifer shrugged. Kiros grinned.
"He tells me nothing. He doesn�t have to. Your empty bed speaks for
itself. Don�t turn this into something ugly, Leonhart.
Accept it, accept him. Start over."
Squall eased his hand away from his weapon.
"If you were anyone else I�d kill you where you sat." He told him
neutrally.
Kiros acknowledged his promise with a slight
incline of his head.
"And if you were anyone else you wouldn�t even be here." And, as an afterthought.
"He loves you. Don�t turn your back on him." He rose regally,
laying his napkin beside his plate. It had barely a crease. He turned to go,
paused in the doorway.
"And I wasn�t referring to your golden knight." And then he was
gone.
Squall made a small choking sound and closed his eyes, mortification winning
out against his rage. He didn�t look at Seifer, nor
did he speak, but when he opened his eyes, he heard his rival�s voice, soft and
amused, coming from his right.
"So. We staying
another night?"
Squall nodded, rising, eyes averted. "Let me make a phone call."
Seifer leaned back in his seat, not ready to leave
the table, but definitely on his way to being full.
"And then what?"
Squall turned, met his gaze, the look in his eyes holding him captive.
"And then we head outside."
Seifer raised an eyebrow. "Why the hell would
we do that?"
Squall curled his lips in what Seifer supposed was
his rendition of a smile.
"We�re going to dance."
Seifer sat up then, indignant and quite put out.
"But I don�t have a weapon."
Squall�s smile never wavered. "I know."
- 6
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- 8
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Misery's Son