by BlackRose, 2001
BlackRose's page
Disclaimer: Squaresoft own everything. I'm just a harmless otaku.
Spoilers: Disk 3Thanks: to Tenshi no Korin for endless encouragement, new obsessions, and the suggestion of some names for these poor nameless boys (which I promptly rearranged some letters on ~_^).
Night time. All around him was the murmmur of home, the reassuring echo of waves washing against the hull and the soft creak of timbers as the ship swayed gently with the roll of the ocean. It was past the peak of the night and the tide was coming back in.
The tiny cabin was quiet and still, but for his own breathing and the sighs of the ship. He shifted, pulling the covers tighter around his shoulders and trying to fall back asleep.
The quiet wouldn't let him.
Another handful of minutes, counted in the beats of his heart and the rush of the waves as he lay restlessly, decided him. Rolling out of the bed, the boy raked back the fall of his hair and grabbed up a pair of trousers from the floor, skinning into them and knotting the tie around his waist as he strode to the door.
Eris was up on deck, just where the boy knew he'd be.
The moon overhead was waxing, bright and heavy in the sky, wreathed round in hazy scraps of clouds. It picked out the edge of the cliffs around their anchor, black and silver against the night, and washed in shades of grey across the rigging and deck. It was still and deserted - a night watch was kept on the bridge, but they hadn't needed to patrol the decks in awhile.
Quiet and peaceful - except for Eris.
Moonlight flashed along the handle of the yard arm, glinting across the metal point and the wicked curve of steel beneath it. It whirled in Eris' hands, part staff, part spear, part something known only on the seas. Bare feet scuffed soft against the polished deck, barely a ghost of sound, and only the chuff of Eris' breath as he lunged and recoiled sounded over the crash of waves against the base of the rocky cliffs.
The boy dropped down, squatting flat footed against the deck, his body swaying with the motion of it as he watched. The light of stars and moon turned Eris' hair silvery, the pale material of loose trousers and the band that held back the strands of his hair brilliant and shining. The muscles across his back leapt with his movement, square hands easily twirling the haft of the yard arm, sending it slashing around him in a sharp swath of cutting hook.
Taking a breath, the boy raised his voice. "Eris." And, when that brought no response, "Eris!"
The butt end of the yard arm thumped down onto the deck, bringing both it and Eris to rest. The older boy turned, eyes flashing, to find who had interrupted him. "Naine," he acknowledged.
Sighing, the first boy pushed himself to his feet. "Eris," he said tiredly, "the night's half over. You need to sleep."
Eris' expression tightened, his jaw clenching. "Like hell," he said flatly. Deliberately turning away, he lifted his weapon again, starting another series of feints and attacks.
Naine blew out a breath, shaking his hair out of his eyes. "Tch," he scolded. "Matron heard you, she'd wash your mouth out."
It was the wrong thing to say. Eris faltered, the rhythm of his motions coming to a halt. Whirling, he turned on Naine, the younger boy backing up a step as he approached. "If she saw us now, she'd do a hell of alot more then that," Eris hissed angrily.
There were few on the ship who could stand up to Eris in a temper. Naine counted himself among those few and after a reflexive jump back he made himself stand his ground, head up, eyes locked to the older boy's. "We did everything we could," he said steadily. "Better than anybody might have expected. I think she'd be proud of us."
Their gazes held for another minute before Eris jerked away. Naine let out a low, relieved breath. "'Better than expected'," Eris echoed him, spitting the words out. There was a sheen of sweat across his bare chest, his hair damp with it. Dropping down, the older boy crouched on the deck, the yard arm held like a flag before him. "Better than expected for a bunch of half trained kids," he said bitterly.
"SeeDs," Naine corrected sharply. "We're SeeDs."
Eris' slid the yard arm down, laying it gently against the deck. Then he was moving, uncoiled with the speed of a striking serpent, hand lashing out. Naine gasped as the older boy grabbed his arm, shaking him roughly. "Like fucking hell," Eris spat. "Like *fucking* hell we are!" He shook Naine again, making the younger boy's teeth snap together. "Look at yourself! Unarmed... Your knives - where are they?"
Catching his breath, Naine tried to pull himself free. "In the cabin," he muttered.
Eris' hand flashed up and the younger boy steadied himself, trying not to duck. The open handed blow fell on his cheek, snapping his head around, and he swayed with it.
When Eris released him abruptly Naine caught himself, gingerly pressing a hand to his cheek. "Alright," he admitted softly. "Alright, I deserved that."
The blow had sapped some of Eris' anger and the older boy slumped, fists falling to his side. "We all do," he said wearily. "Every one of us. Matron..." his voice broke and he turned away once more. "Hell."
Naine swallowed. "Ellone..."
"Ellone was *our* charge," Eris said bitterly. "*Ours*! We failed her." He snorted, sliding down to sit on the deck, legs splayed before him. "She's in better hands now."
"I don't know if I'd call Esthar 'better hands'," Naine said with a sour sort of humor. "Eris - we just have to trust Ellone knew what she was doing. Those Garden SeeDs..."
"Oh yes," Eris interrupted with an inarticulate sound. "*Them*." He leaned down, pressing his forehead to his knees, his face hidden.
"Oh..." Naine said slowly. "Oh." He sank down beside Eris, arms wrapped around his bent knees. "That's what's eating you, isn't it?"
The older boy's voice was muffled against his knees. "You saw them."
"Hard not to," Naine replied.
Balamb Garden had been a sight to see, a massive blue and gold jewel in the afternoon sun as it floated across the water. Naine had seen it before, but still... that close, close enough to touch, it cast its shadow across the deck, dwarfing their ship. There had been a battle since they had last met; the sloping curves of the Garden were no longer serenely pristine, marred with scorch marks and cracks and the scars of explosions.
But it had still been a glorious sight and in so many ways it made their ship, the home they took so much pride in, seem small and dingy in comparison. Just as the three who had disembarked from it, bright and vibrant in their casual clothes amidst the pale uniforms of those on ship, had overshadowed them completely with every step they took.
"How old do you think they are?" Naine asked. At first glance he had thought the others to be their own age, but the pale, almost pretty face of the Garden SeeDs leader had been dominated by dark, hard eyes with a heavy weariness that had made him shiver and wonder if he was wrong. So self posessed and strong as they had stood on the deck; a serious faced woman whose fingers trailed restlessly along the links of the whip hung at her belt, an energetic blonde man who had grinned at Naine in a flash of bright teeth, and the leader, dark and silent in his leathers, the grip of the gunblade slung across his back worn and well used.
Eris sighed, lifting his head. "Maybe a few years older then us. Maybe. Not by much."
Naine slid closer until his bare shoulder touched Eris', the two boys leaning against each other. "They fought Matron," Naine whispered.
"They're SeeD," the other boy said, his voice sharp and the accusation plain.
Naine tilted his head back, looking up as the clouds shifted in slow ripples around the moon. "They're *Garden* SeeD," he said at last. "They're the weapon against the Sorceress. It's what they're trained for."
Eris rapped a knuckle against the deck. "*This* isn't a Garden."
"No," the younger boy agreed mildly. "It's not. We're not *Garden* SeeD." He drew himself up, tapping his fist against his own chest. "We're *White* SeeD. Matron's SeeD. We're not the soldiers on the front line - that's not what she wanted of us. We're the protectors, not the attackers."
"We did a poor job of protecting," Eris muttered.
"Ellone jumped ship," Naine pointed out. "What did Matron's letter say? You didn't let me read it."
The older boy shrugged. "Just to trust them. That they're SeeD. Help them however we could." He sighed, pulling his knees up to rest his chin against them. "That they'd take over from here, and our part was done."
"Our part is to protect," Naine repeated. "You saw the Garden. If Ellone had been there during whatever battle they were in..."
He saw Eris flinch slightly. "Esthar..."
"Ellone went with that Esthar ship willingly," Naine said, exasperated. "We're not jailers, to keep her here!"
There was no reply and for awhile they sat in silence, listening to the waves and the motion of the ship in the water. "Do you think she's alright?" Eris asked at last.
"Who? Ellone?" Naine grinned, laughing softly. "Eris, Ellone could kick that Garden SeeD leader's ass if she wanted to, you know that. She's probably in Esthar's presidential suite right now!"
It was outrageous and it drew a reluctant grin from the other boy. "Okay," he said, nudging Naine slightly. "Alright, you win. Maybe we did do the best we could. Sure wasn't any way the whole lot of us could have kept her on board if she didn't want to be."
"And we are...?" Naine prompted.
Eris sighed. "SeeD," he admitted. "*White* SeeD," he added, putting the same emphasis on it the other boy had.
"White SeeD and a boat load of half trained kids," Naine amended, grinning. "So you'd better get some sleep, because if 'Leader' isn't around to put the fear into them then the younger ones will have the rest of us tied to the mast for human sacrifice before noon."
Groaning, the older boy scrubbed his palms over his eyes. "Get a hunting party organized and go on shore tomorrow. We need some fresh meat anyways, and it'll keep the kids occupied."
"And *that's* why you're the leader," Naine teased gently. Standing, he nudged Eris with one foot until the other boy got up as well. "Come on - you can get a few hours of sleep before the kids start running around, if you're lucky."
"Brat," Eris said, though the word didn't have any sting to it. "You'd better hope *you* get some sleep - you're the one leading the hunting party." Ignoring Naine's dismayed groan, he pushed Naine ahead of him towards the cabin.
