Title: Zyxt
Fandom: Final Fantasy VIII
Author: Batsutousai
Beta: Shara Lunison & Shivani
Chapter: 10 of 10
Rating: M
Pairings: Squall/Seifer
Warnings: AU, minor canon-fuckery, slash/yaoi
Summary: Alone in Time Compression, Squall sets out to make them all a happier ending.

Disclaim Her: My only real regret about this fic was that Seifer and Squall never got their matching scars. Oh well...

A/N: For the faint of heart – or something – there's a lemon in this chapter. There's also plot both before and after – though mostly after, since it's fairly early in the chapter – the lemon, and I didn't mark it because I'm still – and always will be – an asshole. Thanks.

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Never Let You Go
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"Why are you sitting like that?" a child's voice asked.

Squall glanced up to see himself standing over him, looking confused, but fidgety. He recognised the lighthouse in the distance as being from the orphanage. 'So, I ended up here again. Of course I did.' He uncurled his arms from where they'd been holding his knees tight to his chest and stood. "No reason," he offered to the child at his side. "Go on, go find Sis."

Little Squall's eyes widened, then he was off, running to look for Ellone some more.

'Never stop looking,' Squall thought to himself. 'Because no matter how much it hurts, it's always worth it. They're always– Fuck!'

"Squall!" Edea's voice called and the woman herself came into view. She paused upon seeing Squall, then stepped cautiously forward, asking, "Excuse me, have you seen a little boy?

"You don't have to worry," Squall heard himself say. "That little boy won't go anywhere." 'Not until it's too late for you or anyone else to save him.'

"I think so, too," Edea agreed, looking hopefully behind the older Squall. "Poor thing..."

Behind Edea, Ultimecia flashed into appearance and Squall reached for his gunblade on reflex, though he didn't quite draw it. "Do what you came here to do, Sorceress," he ordered her.

"I...can't...disappear yet..." Ultimecia choked, stumbling forward. "I...can't..." She froze and her mouth opened in a silent scream as her magic flared up and towards Edea.

Squall made to catch the woman who had been like a mother to him, only to find a piece of that magic streaking into him, making him grimace as it settled uncomfortably against the rest of his Sorceress magic. 'Apocalypse. Well, I did want it, I suppose. Ow.' He shook his head and knelt next to his foster mother, who had fallen to her knees. "Matron, are you okay?" he whispered, gently brushing a lock of hair out of her face.

Edea looked up at him, eyes tired, but sharp. "You called me Matron. Who... are you?"

The words he had spoken in another life returned easily to his lips and he told her about SeeD, about Garden, about their duty to, one day, take care of Ultimecia.

Edea searched his eyes. "You're...that boy from the future?"

"...Matron," Squall whispered, because he knew he would soon be returning to that darkness. 'No, Hyne, please let me stay. Please let me stay with this family, with these people who love me. I don't want to be alone...'

"Please return. You do not belong here."

The younger Squall returned as Squall stood. "...I can't find Sis. ...Am I...all alone?" He looked helplessly up at his older self, desperate and with eyes full of tears.

Squall managed a smile for this tiny, innocent version of himself, this child without nightmares of a future that would never happen, or one that had. "You'll never be alone, Squall," he promised as the darkness started creeping over his view of those two figures. In the background, peeking out of the house, he saw a shock of blond hair over bright green eyes, and Seifer's fire magic crept over his skin. "Never," he said again and the orphanage vanished.

Arms appeared around him and Squall sank back into Seifer's embrace, closing his eyes against tears of relief. 'Seifer, you came back for me...'

"I remember that day," Seifer said, a strange note in his voice. "You'd just run off and I was going to follow you, but Matron told me to stay in the house. I went to peek, and Matron was talking to this strange man all covered in blood. A woman appeared, and light went from her into Matron. And into that strange man." His hand rubbed gently over Squall's heart, where Ultimecia's magic had pierced him. "That man just sort of faded away, soon after that. It was so very strange."

Squall turned in Seifer's arms and buried his face against the taller teen's vest, curling his hands against the blood-splattered coat. "I thought–" He choked and a tear slipped free. "Hyne... fuck...Seifer..."

Seifer pulled Squall's face up and gently wiped the trail of tears away before possessing Squall's mouth with intent and causing the slighter teen to melt against him, even as more tears slipped from Squall's closed eyes. "I will never leave you," Seifer swore before pressing more kisses against Squall's lips. "Never."

"Ahn... S-Seif-er..." Squall stuttered as the kisses trailed down his jaw and neck. "F-fuck..." He let out a long moan as the skin at his throat pulled, stung a little, and then a tongue was laved over it, soothing the pain. "T-the Cou-Counc-cil... Ah!" His head fell back as one of Seifer's hands got his tee free from his trousers and stroked up his back in just the right spot.

Seifer's breath trailed up his chest, where he'd been licking a line along the Griever necklace's chain, to brush against his neck, jaw, ear... "Fuck the Council, the homophobic pricks. They'd be dead if it weren't for us." His tongue trailed around the edge of Squall's ear, making the younger teen gasp. "You promised me sex, damnit."

"I-in a b-b-be– Ah!" Squall arched as Seifer brushed his back again, all coherent thought flown out the window.

"You never specified that," Seifer informed him, laying them carefully on the nothingness beneath them. "In fact, I recall you saying I could do whatever I wanted to you." He slid his hands down past the twisted Griever pendant and blood-stained shirt to the mass of belts that always hung teasingly along Squall's ass and hips, taunting Seifer every time he had to walk behind the teen. And he did so love to walk behind Squall.

Just as clarity was beginning to return to him, Squall felt an almost painful warmth against him, tempered by cotton briefs, and his head fell back, a moan ripped from his throat. Hands trailed down his thighs and over his knees, pushing his trousers slowly out of the way, belts clinking in the background. Then they were back up, sliding under his briefs and pulling them down, down...

Fire magic flared over his skin as the cotton was removed from the equation. Flames soothed over his back, stroking him the way Seifer always did and making him arch into Seifer's touch, certain that he was getting burns and not certain if he gave a damn.

Seifer's name played like a mantra in his head, driving out thought and leaving warmth and pleasure and SeiferSeiferSeiferSeifer...

An uncomfortable sensation drew him back from that edge of bliss, of something that Did Not Belong, pressing into him from behind. He squirmed, trying to get away from the finger, but then his magic was drawn there – manipulated like only Seifer could do – and the discomfort flared icy-cold and a Flare went off behind his eyelids, blinding him with pleasure and wringing him dry.

'If this is death, I'll take it,' he thought sluggishly.

Consciousness returned, and with it, that discomfort, but it was less discomfort and more there. "Wha–?" he slurred.

Lips pressed against him, gentle and warm and Seifer. "Thought I'd lost you for a second there," the warm breath chuckled against his lips.

Squall opened his eyes, feeling heavy and sated and so very warm. Green eyes ringed by fire smiled down at him, pupils blown against the darkness that wasn't really dark. 'Seifer,' he thought.

"I'm still here," Seifer whispered, pressing another kiss against his lips.

"Seif– Ahn!" Squall's head fell back as fingers curled in him and fire sparked low in his stomach.

"Found it," Seifer whispered, lips moved to Squall's ear and fire sparked in his stomach again.

The skin beneath his ear pulled as fire sparked in his stomach again, and somewhere far, far in the back of Squall's thoughts, he realised that Seifer was giving him another hickey, damn him.

Seifer breathed into his ear again, and Squall couldn't help the shudder that wracked him when Seifer's tongue traced the line of his ear. "I'm going to fuck you," Seifer whispered and Squall groaned, eyes falling closed. "I'm going to fuck you," Seifer repeated as fire sparked in Squall's belly again, "and you're going to like it, Squall. You're going to like it so much, you'll ask for it again."

"Nng," Squall managed, one hand scrabbling for a hold on Seifer's arm, which rested by his head. "Sei– Ah! F-fu-ck. D-d-o eh-eh– Ahn..."

Seifer pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth before pulling away. The uncomfortable sensation in his behind vanished and Squall wished, suddenly, that it would come back; he'd got used to it, and–

Something pressed into him, so large, and Squall gasped in pain, wanting to squirm away, but Seifer's hands held his hips, keeping him in place. "Seif– Ow–"

"I know, I know," Seifer whispered, voice a little strained, and one of his hands moved from Squall's hip to his stomach, soothing lightly over it with the faintest hint of Squall's ice magic, making his stomach jump and dance. "Relax, Squall. Relax..."

Squall reached for the hand on his stomach, entwined their fingers and nodded. The pain returned, slow and torturous, but he gripped Seifer's hand, feeling the older teen grip him back just as hard. They stayed like that for a long moment until the tight, hot, pain became just discomfort, Squall's own magic soothing away the burn.

Seifer pressed in and out, sparks of pain dancing up Squall's spine until Seifer twisted just right, and the heat pooled low in his belly, making him gasp and drop his head back. Seifer's lips pressed against his throat, making yet another mark, but Squall didn't care anymore. Because, maybe...

'Maybe, the more he marks me, the longer he'll stay. Oh, please, Hyne, let him stay make him stay I can't lose this I can't lose him I–' His breath caught and his mind stuttered to a stop as pleasure burned cold and hot and he choked on a gasp, squeezing the hand that Seifer had never removed from his as tiny Flares flashed behind his eyes, lighting up the dark nothingness around them.

When Squall's mind returned to him, he became aware of someone whispering his name against his hair, arms wrapped tightly around him. He felt over-hot, like he always did when Seifer held him, and his magic slowly tingled to the surface, cooling them both off just enough.

Seifer's mantra stopped, then he asked, "Squall?"

Squall rubbed his face against Seifer's bloody vest, uncaring for the stains of death and pain because this was Seifer, and he'd put up with anything for him. Even being obnoxiously hot. "...love you," he murmured.

Seifer's breath caught and his face pressed against Squall's hair all the more, frame shaking ever so slightly.

Squall was confused – 'Is he cold?' – but then he felt a wet spot on top of his head and he pulled his arms out from between them so he could wrap them around his lover. "Seifer..." he whispered, "What's wrong?"

Seifer's voice was choked when he spoke, and muffled by Squall's hair, but the slighter teen understood him fine, "I almost had you, and then you looked so frightened and you were vanishing and there was nothing, not even light. I thought... I thought I'd lost you, that I wouldn't be able to help you..."

Squall looked up into the red-rimmed eyes, remembering with perfect clarity the afternoon at the orphanage, standing over the grave of the bird they'd tried so hard to save, when he learned that Seifer's greatest fear was to be unable to protect the things he loved the most. "You found me," he whispered, wiping away a line of tears. "You didn't lose me, you were there, right when I needed you the most. We're okay."

Seifer nodded and managed a strained smile. "Yeah."

Squall brushed at the tracks on the other side of Seifer's face. "We should get back. I don't..." He cast a nervous glance at the darkness surrounding them. "I don't know how long we can survive here for."

Seifer's eyes burned for a moment, his usual good-humour returning to him. "Does that mean I can get you on a bed, then?"

"Horny bastard," Squall quipped.

Seifer's expression took on a distinctly smug gleam. "I popped your cherry."

"Fuck. You."

"If you want."

Squall worked his jaw for a moment, not certain how to respond to that, before he fell back on his old favourite, "Whatever."

Seifer laughed and drew him into a brief kiss with so much feeling in it that Squall was left reeling. "Come on, let's find our trousers..."

Squall let Seifer pull him to his feet, but as soon as he tried to stand on his own, pain lanced down his lower back and he fell back into Seifer's arms, grimacing. "Ow. Fuck, ow."

Seifer shifted his hold on the smaller teen and leaned down to pull something from the sack that had landed near their trousers and boots. Finding it, he pulled the cap off and handed it to Squall before focussing on the container in his hand behind Squall.

Squall sniffed the lid and raised an eyebrow at the smell of a particularly poignant healing potion. "What is this, a Hi-Poi– Ah!" He pressed forward, against Seifer's chest, as two fingers entered his anus. "What are you– oh..." He relaxed a bit as the healing potion got to work on his behind, breath hitching when Seifer teasingly brushed his prostate. "S-sto–" He hit the blond when he did it again. "Seifer!"

Seifer chuckled in his ear and finally slipped his fingers out, running them lightly up his spine to help with the lingering pain there before stealing the lid back and recapping it. "All better."

"I couldn't have just swallowed it?" Squall demanded, taking a step back and pleased to find he could take his own weight again with very little difficulty.

"This way was more fun," Seifer assured him, slipping the jar away before reaching for his pants and trousers.

Squall grumbled wordlessly, but hunted down his own clothing. His jacket had been pulled off at one point and putting it back on reminded him of the marks on his throat and under his ear. He felt inexplicably warm when he touched the largest one, over his jugular, and he turned to Seifer with a poor attempt at a scowl. "Give me that potion."

Seifer got that smug look on his face again as he swaggered up to the shorter teen and took a moment to consider his handiwork. "I rather think I like it that way."

"Seifer..." Squall growled, reaching into his own bag of healing supplies.

Seifer grabbed his wrist, a sharp look in his eyes. "Leave them," he ordered.

Squall bristled. "The hell I will! I am not going out in public looking like someone's fucking whore!"

Seifer growled deep in his throat and he tightened his grip on Squall's wrist. "You are not 'someone's whore', you are mine," he hissed. "And I intend to make sure no one mistakes you for available again; especially not Rinoa."

"Seifer," Squall tried, backtracking, "I can't see the Council like this."

"Fuck. The. Council," Seifer snarled. "If not for us, they'd all be dead right now. They can shove their bigoted principles up their asses with those fucking sticks of theirs. And if those twatwaffles get it into their heads to try and harm you because we're together, I'll fireball all their asses and leave them in hell with Ultimecia."

Squall blinked up at the fire-rimmed, angry eyes and nodded a bit numbly. "Okay."

"Good." Seifer finally let go of Squall's wrist and took a helpless look around the emptiness they were trapped in. "Now, how the fuck do we get out of here?"

Squall considered that as he reattached his items bag to his belt. "Before, when we were getting ready to leave, Lagu– Dad–" he grimaced faintly at the foreign word on his tongue, "–kept going on about 'courage, friendship and love'. I thought it was a load of shit, but it's worth a shot?"

"All of that's right here, though," Seifer teased as he pulled Squall against him.

Squall snorted and wrapped his arm around Seifer's waist. "I'm touched," he said drily, though a part of him had warmed at Seifer's declaration. "Home has all those things, right? Garden has our family and friends."

"They're the reason we fought," Seifer agreed in a subdued tone. "Do you think they're okay?"

"Yes," Squall said with certainty, closing his eyes and thinking about his friends and Ellone and Laguna.

Seifer imagined the large office with the two desks that were his and Squall's; where they spent so much time toiling over paperwork and met with the others for updates and laughs.

There was a clatter to one side and someone breathed, "Hyne..."

"You're back!" Selphie's voice screamed and the two gunbladers barely had time to open their eyes before they were almost bowled over by the tiny firecracker.

Quistis tackled them from the other side and Ellone followed Selphie, squeezing the younger girl close to Seifer and Squall, though she didn't seem to mind. Irvine and Zell stood off to either side, looking almost like they wanted to join the huddle of hugs, so Seifer motioned them both in and they endured a bit more teary-eyed friends.

Finally, Squall's eyebrow twitched warningly, a sure sign that he'd had enough of the emotional reunions for the day – or at least for the minute – and Seifer quickly set about defusing the situation by twisting and reaching down to gently dry Selphie's eyes. "There, there. What's all this, then? Not that I mind having a pretty girl hugging me..."

Selphie sniffled and pulled away to rub at her own eyes once Ellone had backed up a bit. Ellone bit her lower lip, then offered, "Time Compression was almost a month ago."

"We th-thought y-you were d-d-d-dead!" Selphie offered, rubbing furiously at her eyes.

Squall and Seifer traded surprised looks. "Ahh..." Squall managed, rubbing at his forehead. "I hate Time Compression."

"You haven't, ah, had our funerals or anything, yet, right?" Seifer wondered uncertainly. " 'Cause, you know, it would sort of suck to be officially dead."

"At least someone has their priorities in order," Irvine muttered before shaking his head at the Headmaster. "It's Garden policy to not declare MIA SeeDs dead until either their bodies are returned or five years have passed without word from them. Since Laguna was next of kin, we left the official announcement in his hands, but he agreed to wait."

"Your dad is kind of more awesome than I thought he was," Seifer informed Squall.

Squall's eyes widened and he dug into his pocket for his MIT. Once it was out, he hit the speed dial for his father.

"Loire," the weary voice on the other end said.

Squall swallowed against the lump in his throat and felt better when Seifer's hand slipped into his. "...Dad?"

There was the definite sound of a chair falling over, then, "Squall! Holy shit! Where are you? I'll send someone to come pick you up! Is Seifer with you? Are you two okay? Where have you been? It's been a month!"

Squall had held the MIT away from his ear sometime after his name was shouted, and Laguna was talking loud enough that they could all hear him. Smiles had appeared on everyone's face, and even Squall looked more amused than irritated with his father's usual spastic nature.

Once Squall could get a word in edgewise, he remarked, "It's a good thing I'm not bleeding to death, or I'd have been dead by the time you let me talk."

"You're not bleeding to death, are you?" Laguna shrieked. "Wait, wait, I'll be rig–"

"Hello, Squall," Kiros said calmly over the MIT, and Squall could still make out Laguna's frantic rambling in the background.

Squall snorted. "Kiros. Seifer and I are at Esthar Garden, and we're both fine."

"Good. We'll be there in thirty minutes and you can give us your report. Why don't you have Dr Palmerton check you out while you're waiting?"

"Really, we're both fi–"

"That wasn't a suggestion, Squall," Kiros informed him before hanging up.

Squall scowled and hit the end button. "We've been ordered to the infirmary," he informed his lover.

Seifer sighed. "It's a valid concern," he allowed. "I take it they'll be here soon?"

"Half an hour. Sooner if they let La– Dad drive." Squall grimaced slightly.

"We'll escort you to the infirmary," Irvine decided, waving everyone towards the doors.

Squall grabbed for the messaging tablet on his desk – old desk? – only to have Seifer snatch it from his hands before he could even turn it on. "Hey!"

Seifer handed the tablet back to Irvine, saying, "Until you're cleared by Shelly, you're on medical leave. That means no work."

"I was just going to let the other Heads know–"

"No work, Squall," Seifer said again, slipping his arm around Squall's waist.

Squall huffed a bit, but didn't bother arguing any further.

In the lift, Irvine set about sending out the required messages while Selphie gave the irritated Squall curious looks.

"What?" Squall finally snapped, scowl deepening when the others turned away to cover smiles.

Selphie reached out a hand and touched the hickey on his jugular. "No wonder you didn't notice a month passing."

Squall sputtered while Seifer laughed and shook his head. "It was really only a few hours for us. We'll explain everything when Laguna gets here. I promise."

It was summer break, which meant there were no students on campus and most of the Estharian staff had gone back to the city, so Garden was pretty empty. One of the few remaining Estharian staff members was Doctor Shelly Palmerton, who had no one at home in the city to return to, so she'd elected to remain on the Garden grounds at all times.

When they walked into the infirmary, Shelly had her back turned, working with something in a cupboard. "I keep telling you lot not to beat each other up during your little training gigs, but you never listen, do you?" she muttered loud enough for them to hear her.

Quistis, Irvine, and Zell all winced, making it clear who she was talking to.

"I'm afraid this wasn't a training accident," Ellone offered.

Shelly whirled from her cupboard, face a mask of professional concern. Then she caught sight of the two missing Headmasters and had to catch herself on the doorframe, professional mask melting away to shock, then happiness. "Hyne," she whispered. "You're okay..."

"We're alive and in one piece," Seifer agreed. "However, there are health concerns. Will you check us over?"

"We're fine," Squall muttered, but he let Seifer pull him over to one of the beds when Shelly pointed.

Shelly ran one of her high-tech Estharian medical toys over the both of them, considering her read-out for a moment before looking up at them. Her eyes flickered briefly to the marks on Squall's neck, then she announced, "You're both low on Vitamin D – not dangerously so, but I'll give you both a shot of it just to be safe – but otherwise in perfect health. Squall, do you need a potion for those?" She raised an eyebrow, eyes again looking to his neck.

"No, he doesn't," Seifer informed their doctor. Squall just rolled his eyes, not even bothering to argue with his lover.

Shelly glanced at the blond, face professionally blank. "You're going to make a number of enemies in Esthar if the wrong people notice those."

"We already have enemies in Esthar," Seifer growled, eyes flashing with fire. "I, for one, am tired of tiptoeing around them. If they want to start something over our personal life–"

"Seifer." Squall pulled Seifer's face around to meet his eyes, cold hands cooling the fury in Seifer's voice and eyes even through the ripped gloves. "Shelly isn't your enemy."

Seifer closed his eyes and took a deep breath, borrowing Squall's magic to get his own under control. "Sorry, Shell," he murmured after a moment.

The door to the infirmary slid open as Shelly asked, a strange note in her voice, "Might I run one more test on you, Headmasters?"

"What sort of test?" Squall asked, turning to the doctor while their friends at the door spoke to the new arrivals.

"The test to check for Sorceress magic."

Everything got very, very still for a long moment before Squall said, "There won't be a need for that."

"With all due respect, Headmaster–"

"Seifer and I have been Sorceresses for two months – almost three for you all," Squall said, voice chilled. "There's no need to run a check to find out what we are already aware of."

There was a choked sound from near the entrance and the infirmary doors slid opened and closed.

Laguna sighed. "Elle, could you go after Kiros? Bring him to the Headmasters' office once he's calmed down?"

"Yeah," Ellone agreed and hurried after the magic-phobic man.

Laguna slipped through the shell-shocked teens crowded around the middle of the office and stopped at the end of the bed Seifer and Squall were sitting on, offering a tired smile. "Hey."

Squall nodded to his father. "Sorry we were gone so long."

"I'm just glad you're back," Laguna admitted easily. "I think your office would be more comfortable for a debrief, don't you?"

"Almost certainly," Squall agreed as he and Seifer slipped off the bed they'd been sitting on. "Shelly, did you want to come with? You've earned the right, I believe." His icy eyes focussed on her. "Perhaps it'll help you calm down."

No one missed the unspoken threat in that comment: 'If you don't agree to come with and calm down, you won't leave this room alive.'

"Of course, Headmaster," Shelly whispered, looking away.

Under Seifer and Squall's sharp gazes and Laguna's faintly troubled smile, everyone – Irvine, Quistis, Selphie, Zell, Shelly, Ward, Fujin, and Raijin – moved silently up to the Headmasters' office. When Seifer and Squall took their usual seats behind their desks and everyone else settled into the couches and chairs that littered the office, there was a definite sense of them being in trouble and about to be told their punishment.

Seifer and Squall remained ominously silent until Ellone finally led an obviously stressed Kiros in and directed him to a chair. Once Ellone had seated herself, Squall said, "The short and simple story is that a little over two – three, whatever – months ago, I received the memories, para-magic, and GFs of an older version of myself, who had fallen through Time Compression after fighting the Sorceress Ultimecia. It was a bloody fight and a lot of people died, so I decided to change things. When I saw Sis at Garden, I travelled with her to Esthar, Seifer joining us en route, and I explained my memories to them.

"We worked out a plan to defeat Ultimecia before she could cause any trouble, and part of that plan involved getting rid of Adel's Tomb up in space. A consequence of that – largely because we were the only humans within a couple thousand kilometres of Adel when she died – was that Seifer and I inherited her powers. To keep each other in check, we became Knights."

"We had no intentions of creating a Garden," Seifer continued when Squall had fallen silent, "nor did we intend to pick up any of the rest of you. We knew, going into this, that there was a very real chance that we would die at Ultimecia's hands or, if not, get lost in Time Compression, as the other Squall did. Things happened and the Council gave us Garden to keep us out of their hair. We couldn't very well refuse, and it was nice to know that, even if we weren't here, the five of you–" he looked over Quistis, Zell, Irvine, Selphie, and Ellone, "– would have each other to lean on."

"We could have helped you, though," Selphie interrupted, expression sad. "We could have gone with you and helped you face Ultimecia, right?" She looked around at the others, all of whom nodded.

"There was too much risk," Squall said in a monotone. "I lost you in that other life, I wasn't about to lose you again."

"Well, that's a bit selfish," Quistis bit out.

"Then I'm selfish."

Seifer snorted. "You all didn't have the training. Squall had been training for over two months by then, and I for over one. And we had Sorceress magic to our advantage. We had the best chance of surviving."

"This is neither here nor there," Laguna interrupted. "I take it you managed against Ultimecia?"

"Yes," Seifer agreed. "It was a pain in the ass, but we managed it. Squall's memories of the building helped a lot."

"We were separated when Time Compression rebounded," Squall added drily. "I saw Matron in the past and told her about Garden and SeeD, to keep the timeline intact. Seifer found me and we returned home."

"What happened with Matron, anyway?" Seifer asked, leaning forward.

Laguna shifted awkwardly. "We lost her and Cid Kramer when time compressed. Finding them was...not a priority."

"You mean you let the search orders get buried under piles of other paperwork on your desk," Squall commented, a spark of humour in his eyes.

"The Council would have her head," Ellone pointed out. "She's a Sorceress, and one who was moments from starting a war."

"It's not for the Council to decide," Squall said, shaking his head. "Galbadia was the one who should have a beef with her, and since she's the wife of Garden's founder, that makes her our problem." He pulled over his messaging tablet, which Irvine had returned to his desk once they'd returned to the office. "I have a pretty good idea where she is, but we'll need Galbadia to agree to let us handle this. Dad, can you tell the Council this is a Garden affair and they're not to involve themselves further?"

"Sure thing," Laguna agreed, pulling out his MIT and stepping out into the hall to call them.

Seifer shook his head at the two. "What happened to the Ragnarok?"

"Laguna wanted to leave her in Galbadia, so you could find her if you reappeared there, but the Council wouldn't let us," Irvine reported. "She's out back."

Seifer glanced at Squall, who raised an eyebrow without looking up from the message he was typing out. "I don't see why not," Squall said to the silent question. "She's their mother, too."

"Once Squall and Laguna are done, we can head to where Matron should be," Seifer decided, taking note of the smiles that lit the others' faces. He turned to Shelly, who had sat silently through the whole meeting. "Shell, do we need to keep you under lockdown in the infirmary, or will you be able to keep our secret?" She was the only wild card, after all. Even Kiros, for all his fear of magic, would never share their secret with anyone outside the office.

Shelly stiffened and said, "I wasn't raised Garden, but I understand Garden loyalty. In the two months you spent in Esthar and the weeks since that I've been a member of this staff, I've never seen either of you show any threat of the Sorceress insanity. As long as you have a Knight, I see no reason to report an unlikely threat to the Council."

"As long as we keep Seifer away from the Council, they'll never find out," Squall added, setting his tablet back in its rest. "I told you your temper would get us caught."

Seifer shot him an unimpressed look. "One person in two months is not a bad track record."

"Two," Squall corrected. "La– Dad only found out because of you."

Laguna stepped back into the room then, looking irritated. "They want a meeting to discuss things," he reported to his son, holding out the MIT.

Squall took it, expression sour. "What?" he demanded of them.

"We cannot simply allow a Sorceress free reign," Minister Souhrada informed him. "There is always a chance that she'll go rogue again–"

"I don't know exactly what all my father explained to you, Minister, but let me repeat the important things," Squall said in a voice sweet with poison. "Edea Kramer was possessed by a Sorceress from the future by the name of Ultimecia. Ultimecia is dead and, therefore, no longer capable of possessing anyone. Mrs Kramer has never had visions of world conquest on her own, and even if she were to suddenly develop them, both her husband and foster children are SeeDs, which makes this a Garden concern, not yours."

"Sorceresses must be sealed–"

"Which just keeps them in suspended animation over the planet until... what, exactly? The next Lunar Cry drags them down to the planet and the seal cracks, catching the people during that time completely off guard and forcing them to deal with both a Sorceress and an influx of monsters at the same time?" Squall snorted. "Don't make me laugh. Edea Kramer is a Garden problem and will be handed by us. If the Estharian Council of Ministers decides to press this issue, we will push back, and you really don't want to go to war over something so simple, do you?"

Souhrada was silent for a long moment before he abruptly hung up.

Squall handed the MIT back to his father. "I doubt they're done, but that should keep them distracted for long enough for us to take a trip and check on Matron."

"Let's go now, then," Laguna agreed.

They all trooped out to the Ragnarok and climbed aboard. Squall started through his pre-flight check, earning him fond smiles from everyone else, and Seifer slid into his co-pilot chair, which he turned to face the others as they settled around the room. Raijin and Fujin had elected to remain at Garden, and Ward had stayed in the conference room below the cockpit with a twitchy Kiros, but everyone else had followed the two Headmasters up and there were only two free chairs; watching everyone settle against a wall or on the floor was quite humorous.

They were just raising into the air when Selphie asked, "So, what sort of Sorceresses are you? You have a type, right?"

Seifer grinned and formed a fireball in his hand. "I'm fire, with some non-elemental magic that I never use. The non-elemental magic comes from Adel; at least, that's what Squall said."

"She was a non-elemental Sorceress," Squall agreed as he turned his chair to face them. "The only reason our magic is elemental is because of our own affinity to elements before we received the magic." He held out his own hand and formed a crystal of ice there. "I'm ice, with non-elemental magic."

"You're fire and ice?" Irvine asked, clearly amused. "That must be fun in bed."

Seifer's grin turned a bit lecherous, only for Squall to throw his ice crystal at him. Seifer blocked it with the fireball still in his hand. "That could have been dangerous," he commented.

Squall bestowed his creepy smile upon his lover. "I will let you mark me, Seifer, but if you go start spreading our sex life around to our friends, there won't be one. Do I make myself clear?"

Seifer winced, having no doubt that Squall could last without sex far longer than Seifer could. "Yeah."

"Whipped," Zell coughed.

"You wanna say that to my face, Chicken-wuss?" Seifer snapped, giving the tattooed blond a heated glare.

Zell turned to Squall with wide eyes, but the brunet snorted and turned his attention to the console with access to the messaging service. "Erm..." Zell said, inching behind Laguna.

"Xu, Martine, and Angelica have all agreed to let us decide what to do with Matron," Squall announced, flipping through the messages. "Martine also says that he will handle the Galbadian government, and Xu adds that we should tell Cid he's not getting his Headmaster position back because he needs to be his wife's Knight, not running a school."

"Yeah, about that..." Seifer muttered. "Wouldn't it have been smarter for him to have left Garden to someone else and stayed on the White SeeD ship during all those years?"

"I think..." Ellone grimaced a bit and shook her head. "He stayed to ensure you made SeeD, Squall."

"Of course he did," Squall muttered, sending acknowledgements to their fellow Headmaster and Headmistresses.

There was some laughter at that, and then they were landing outside the orphanage. As they all piled off the Ragnarok, Edea and Cid came out to greet them, Edea smiling while Cid looked stressed.

"Hello, children," Edea offered as the group of SeeDs and Ellone stopped in front of her, the three adults staying back. "I'm grateful to find you together and happy." Her eyes focussed on Seifer and Squall, who stood with their hands entwined. "You've defeated Ultimecia?"

"For now, yes," Seifer agreed. "She'll still be a problem for the future, but that's beyond our control. For the present, she's no longer a concern."

Edea nodded. "I'm glad."

"B-but you said you weren't S-SeeDs," Cid stumbled, looking confused and tiny at his wife's side. "You were G-Garden, but then you qu-uit."

"We are SeeDs, Cid," Seifer said, rolling his eyes. "Xu let us take the exam when the Estharian Council of Ministers made us the Headmasters of Esthar Garden. We only kept Ultimecia believing that so she would underestimate us. If you hadn't run away, you'd have known that."

"Esthar Garden?" Cid wondered, his eyes brightening. "You got the Estharians to open a Garden?"

Seifer sighed and rubbed helplessly at his eyes.

Edea, however, had taken on a sad expression. "You've come to seal me, then?" she asked.

"Seal you?" Quistis asked. "No."

"Why would we seal you?" Ellone added. "It was Ultimecia who was in the wrong."

"But you're from Esthar..."

"We're from Garden," Squall corrected, a cold note in his voice. "Yes, the Estharian Council wants to seal you, but I've made it quite clear to them that this is a Garden concern, and we don't believe that sealing Sorceresses is at all useful. It does nothing but leave a problem for future generations, and destroys all chance at instant communication between countries, besides."

"You weren't in the wrong, Matron," Seifer added, squeezing Squall's hand. "You were simply a tool of someone much stronger. We don't blame the sword that dealt a fatal blow, so why should we blame the person whose body was used?"

"Then what?" Edea wondered, looking over the faces of her children. When they all turned to Seifer and Squall, she too looked at them, curious.

Squall frowned faintly as he considered the crumbling orphanage behind the Kramers. "While you weren't at fault, your face is too well known for you to safely reside anywhere but in seclusion. The only people who know about this place are us and the White SeeD, and we all know you to be innocent." He focussed his eyes on Edea, who was smiling again, understanding in her eyes. "This will be your home, from now on. Yours and Cid's." His gaze flickered to the ex-Headmaster.

"But I have to return to Balamb!" Cid exclaimed.

Seifer snorted. "About that, Xu told us to tell you that you need to stay and be your wife's Knight, not leading a school. If she sees you back in Balamb without Matron, she'll probably have you knocked out and call us to transport you back here."

Edea patted Cid's arm, amused at his crushed expression. "Perhaps it's time to leave Garden in the hands of the newer generation, dear. They certainly seem determined to take the reins, if nothing else." She turned back to the teens before her. "Will you visit?"

"Of course we will!" Selphie declared, jumping forward. She scrabbled in her pockets for a moment, then pulled out her MIT and held it out to Edea. "It's Estharian technology, a Mobile Instant Transmission Communicator. Everyone else's numbers are already programmed in it, so you can call any of us anytime you want! And we've got the Ragnarok, so we can visit all the time!" She turned to look back at Squall. "Right?"

Squall grimaced. "We'll see."

"If he won't fly you down for a visit, I will," Seifer promised, grinning when Selphie gave him a hug.

Selphie pulled back after a minute, wrinkling her nose. "No offence, Seifer, but you smell like dead things."

Seifer blinked, then looked down at himself. "Huh. I forgot we never changed."

Edea laughed and shook her head. "Well, our shower is working, if you wanted to at least clean off?"

Squall shook his head. "We'll use the showers in the Ragnarok." His eyes darted to Seifer when the blond smirked. "No," he said.

"Does that mean we're staying here for a while?" Selphie asked, eyes wide with false innocence.

"Definitely," Seifer agreed.

"Come on in, then," Edea offered while Squall silently threatened his lover with a knife that he'd pulled from nowhere. "There should still be some bread left from yesterday, and I can put the kettle on for tea..."

There was a resounding cheer at that and everyone but the two Headmasters headed into the orphanage, Ellone introducing Laguna, Kiros, and Ward as they went.

Once they were alone, Seifer gently lowered the hand holding the knife away from his throat and bestowed Squall with a gentle smile. "Let's go shower and change."

Squall sighed and slipped the knife away as they started for the ship. "No shower sex," he ordered.

"Why ever not?"

"Because neither of us wants to find out what happens when our magic mixes around water."

Seifer grimaced. "Ah, right. Good point. Hadn't thought of that." He paused for a moment, then asked, "How about changing room sex?"

Squall chased him through the ship with icicles, making the blond laugh.

Seifer caught Squall around the waist as soon as he entered the changing room attached to the showers and drew him into a kiss. "I love you," he whispered against Squall's lips.

"I know," Squall whispered back.

"And I'll never leave you."

Squall closed his eyes and pressed up for another kiss in response. He knew.

-0-0-0-
Owari
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A/N: The end! They all lived happily ever after! (Except the Council, who lived happily never after. XD)

So, originally, I had absolutely zero interest in doing a sequel to this fic – I even had a clever little bit of snark for this author's note telling you that – but sometime after writing Sins, I thought I might like to do a post-canon fic, and since I already had two fics that basically followed canon, why not write a sequel for one of them? *insert stupid face here* I had more ideas for Zyxt, so I decided to try my hand at it.
There's about 500 words written. Never got any further, though it's been sitting there for almost two months. Whether or not I ever finish it, I can't say. I can say that it won't be happening any time in the coming months, as I'm sick to death of this fandom right now.
Long story short: After failing to write the sequel for Zyxt, I got another fic idea for this series and, well, wrote it. A whole fic, longer than this one, but following a similar premise. It's called Noblesse Oblige and I'll be posting the first chapter shortly after this chapter's up. Summary: No one thought to warn Squall against touching his younger self, and he leaves a part of himself behind when he returns to Time Compression.

~Bats ^.^x

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