Trapped

She never liked stealing, Hiyo always believed it was wrong to steal, but given her current situation, she had no other choice. Given the choice between stealing and starving, stealing is always the better option.

Hiyo crept around the corridors of the second floor, hoping that she could find the lost and found room, but given the size of the school and how it was only her first week, she mostly ended up lost or not finding anything at all. It had been around an hour since Zidane and her began the hunt for the elusive storage, but it now ended up like every single night she ventured into the school. This was her third attempt, the first was sabotaged by Zidane, the second was close to being sabotaged by the same boy and now the two are working together. But she didn't have time for teamwork; she needed to find that storage room and find her most valued possession at any cost!

She had just searched through a senior Geography class when she heard sounds coming from the staircase. Zidane? No, that's not right, in the four days and five nights she knew Zidane, she knew Zidane moves like a monkey and as quiet as a cat; these footsteps were heavy, clumsy and loud. But regardless, she was curious as to what it was. Taking a few steps closer to the stairs, hoping she could catch a glimpse and escape if it was danger.

She suddenly wished that she hadn't.

At the bottom of the landing was none other than a police officer, dressed in black, wearing a hat and looked very fit, this was the last person on Earth she wanted to see. She quickly ran in the opposite direction, hoping to get a head start, but it made no matter, the officer saw her the moment she saw him, and quickly ran in pursuit. It wasn't much of a chase as the officer tackled Hiyo to the ground.

"Eeek!" Cried Hiyo. "Let go of me, you asshole!" She cried, but the officer was already grabbing her wrists and taking his handcuffs from his belt and locking them together.

All Hiyo could do was cry and whimper in fear; she had been thieving for two years now, whether it was a fruit stand or poorly guarded store, she was always careful, she would often plot out her methods of stealing: what she wanted, escape routes and how many seconds it would take to get from the steal point to outside. Hiyo was always careful, but what went wrong? Why was a police officer here? Were they on to her this whole time?

The shame was: none of it mattered, she had her hands handcuffed behind her back by a faster and stronger police officer, and soon going to be expelled and tried for burglary. But the more she tried to accept this reality, the more the blonde haired thief struggled to break free, but the handcuffs were tight and strong and was even the kind that didn't have a chain, making escape a lot harder. And even by some happy miracle that she managed to get the cuffs off, the officer would simply catch her again and repeat the process.

Hiyo had completely given up now, there was no hope of escape, no hope of completing the contest and no hope of reclaiming her lost treasure. Until...

"Hey!" Zidane called, luring the attention of the officer and with one great kick to the face, the officer was knocked out on the floor.

"Zidane!" Gasped Hiyo in surprise, before realising her situation: she was cuffed and in a very vulnerable position, easy pickings for a boy like Zidane. "D-Don't just stand there! Get me outta these things!"

"Alright, alright, don't get your panties in a twist." Zidane chuckled and took the key from the unconscious police officer and unlocked her restraints. "Alright, you're free, let's-"

But suddenly his world was flipped upside down as Hiyo used her first act of freedom by darting forward and kissing Zidane on the lips, passionately and hard. Zidane was astounded at first, but soon fell in love with the kisser and the kiss. After ten seconds, they parted.

"Thanks. Zidane...I really thought I was done for..." Hiyo panted from the kiss, but before they could enjoy their moment, they heard voices from the staircase quickly approaching.

"More cops!" Zidane identified. "Quick, let's take the stairs at the other end!" He ran at full speed, but before he could continue, Hiyo tripped with a help of pain.

"Oww! That bastard twisted my ankle!" Growled Hiyo in pain. But before she could try and run on her badly wounded leg, Zidane picked her up bridal style and began to run. "Zidane..." The tailed thief and rogue girl made it to the other end of the corridor where a second set of stairs were, but unfortunately, a team of more cops were coming up as well. "What now?!"

"Up! On the roof!" Zidane commanded as he ran upwards and upwards, ignoring the heavy burden Hiyo inflicted, until the stairs ended with a door at the end in which he kicked open, revealing the wide open rooftops.

"This is my first time up here..." Hiyo gasped. But Zidane was already at work, quickly closing the roof door and barring the handles with his daggers, gently pulling it to make sure it was tightly jammed. Once they were secure and safe did Zidane sit on the ground to rest.

"Well now what...?" Sighed Zidane. "I can't take 'em all while protecting you...More importantly, we can't get to the lost and found room with them prowling around."

"You're still thinking about the game?!" Asked Hiyo, a little dumbfounded. "Zidane, we've got bigger problems like..." But she stopped to think over Zidane's last words. "Wait...You FOUND the lost and found room?!"

"Yeah! Wasn't that difficult if you know where to look." Zidane said. "I even have my eyes set on this one ring that sounds very expensive!" But Hiyo gasped when Zidane mentioned the ring.

"Don't you dare touch that ring! If you even look at that ring, I'll never forgive you!" She snapped angrily, causing Zidane to back away in fright.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down, man! Geez!" Zidane spoke defensively. "Is it your ring?" This question made Hiyo calm, but at the same time, more sad.

"It was my mother's..." Hiyo answered. "It was the last thing she left me before she...she..."

"I understand." Zidane said. "S-Sorry for your loss."

"That ring is the only thing I have left to remember her by...With my mother gone, I have to live in an orphanage, but they never feed us and if they do, it makes us sick. So I secretly steal from wherever I can and feed my friends there. But no matter what I went through, I never once thought of selling my mom's ring…When school began, I thought that I could get in if I dress smart, so I stole a few of the clothes here at the school." That last comment made Zidane secretly chuckle. "I stupidly thought to take my ring to the tour of the school a few days before we started, and I ended up losing it. I was so careful, but it must have slipped off when walking between classes...I came here every night trying to find it, hoping nobody stole and sold it yet, if that happened, I don't know how I'll live without it..." Zidane listened to Hiyo's story closely and smiled.

"You don't need some ring to remember your mom." Zidane said with confidence. "If you really loved your mom, she'll always be here..." Zidane placed a palm on Hiyo's chest, symbolising her heart, this caused Hiyo to well up in tears and nod to this. "Still, it sounds like a good ring to just pass up, let's go get it!" But at those words, the door jammed by Zidane's dagger gave a loud thud, causing Hiyo to hug into Zidane for protection.

"Oh no, they've found us!" Hiyo squeaked in fright. "What do we do?"

"Nothing we can do. Might as well face the music." Zidane sighed in despair.

"But...How are you going to explain this to your parents?! You're going to be sent to a delinquent's correctional facility and get expelled if you're caught!" Hiyo gasped.

"I don't have parents, Hiyo...I can't even remember them..." This caused Hiyo to gasp in shock. "But I have something even better...Friends...My friends give me courage, strength and pick me up when I fall down. I believe in my friends, no matter what..." Then the door crashed open from the hinges, knocking aside Zidane's daggers, to reveal someone unexpected for Zidane.

"That's some mushy crap, Zidane..." Laughed Squall as he came through with his Gunblade resting on his shoulder. "Didn't think you were the type!"

"Squall!" Gasped Zidane in surprise.

"Class president!" Gasped an equally surprised Hiyo.

"And Bartz!" Smiled the man with the same name as he peered past Squall.

"Bartz!" Zidane laughed in joy, walking up and grasped hands together as a gesture of trust and respect. "What are you doing here?"

"We can very much ask you the same question." Scolded Squall as he thumped the blunt edge of his Gunblade over Zidane's head, making him recoil in pain.

"Owowow!" Grimaced Zidane, holding his head and feeling for any lumps.

"We spotted you leaving in the middle of the night and thought we'd keep an eye on you." Bartz explained.

"And what a mess you've stirred!" Squall barked in annoyance. "You got half the police squad searching the school for you! I have every mind to turn you both in!"

"N-No! It was all my fault!" Hiyo objected. "I asked Zidane to come! I'm at fault here!"

"Whatever..." Sighed Squall. "Anyway, we're leaving! Be thankful I won't bring it up with the teachers." He and Bartz headed for the edge of the roof, making Hiyo nervous about their intentions.

"Wait!" Zidane called. "We can't leave now! I've still got unfinished business here!"

"Zidane, knock it off!" Squall yelled. "Every cop in the school is looking for you, and you wanna go back down there?!"

"Squall's right." Bartz said. "It's too dangerous. You could risk our entire-!" But before he could finish his sentence, Squall banged the blunt edge of his Gunblade on Bartz's head as well and nudged at Hiyo. "Well...you know..."

"They're right, Zidane…We know where the lost and found room is, it's better to not risk it when we can come back another time." Hiyo agreed as well.

"I appreciate the concerns, guys." Zidane said. "But still, I wanna do this. Not just for Hiyo, but for myself. I never back down from a challenge, even when the odds are stacked high against me. If I backed down now, how could I call myself a master thief?" Squall looked at Zidane and saw the conviction in his eyes.

"Last chance, Zidane. The second we leave, you'll be on your own, we won't be there to help." Squall warned, but Bartz interjected.

"That's exactly what he wants, Squall." Bartz said. "Zidane's a thief, someone that can work on his own to get a job done and the more people around him means the trickier the work gets, isn't that right?" Zidane was stunned that Bartz figured it out and nodded.

"Right!" Zidane grinned.

"Can't say you weren't properly warned then." Squall said and turned to the edge of the building. "We're leaving."

"Wait!" Hiyo called and immediately rushed to Zidane and hugged him tight, tears welling in her eyes. "Zidane, be careful...If you think it's too dangerous, I won't get mad..."

"Hey relax! I've got this covered. You just stick with my buddies, they'll keep you safe." Zidane replied. "And in case I don't make it back safely..." He took the dagger discarded on the ground from the door's violent open, put it back into its sheathe and handed it to Hiyo. "You seem fond of things to help you remember, maybe this will help you remember me." Hiyo took the dagger and tore up in tears and nodded.

"Come back safe..." Hiyo cried. Suddenly, Squall picked Hiyo up and lifted her onto his shoulders. "Uwa! Hey! What are you-?! Class president?!" Hiyo squealed in surprise, trying to keep her skirt down while holding on to her gifted dagger.

"This oughta give you a head start, Zidane. You might wanna hang on, kid." Squall warned as he and Bartz both jumped off the edge of the school with a screaming Hiyo with them. The last Zidane heard was Hiyo's scream going off in the distance, leaving him alone on the roof.

"All right! Let's do this!" Zidane said, pounding his fists together in anticipation and ran to the destroyed door and picked up his remaining dagger and smiled. "This night will be forever remembered!"