The classroom was bright, sterile, and full. Quistis walked in a few steps ahead of him, already in lecture mode. Despite everything, she was actually extremely informative. She knew her stuff, as they said.

  Squall took a seat at the back, as usual. The Trepies clustered in the front row, leaning forward adoringly.

  Also near the back, Seifer leaned across his desk, whispering something to Raijin and Fujin. Raijin was tall and broad, with dark tan skin, a shaved head, and a slow, easy grin that rarely left his face, like he was always up to some mischief. Fujin sat beside him, silver hair cut in a sharp bob, her single visible eye narrowed with cold amusement. All three snickered, periodically glancing back at Squall.

  Squall didn't react.

  Quistis stood before the electronic whiteboard. "As a reminder, the prerequisite field exam must be completed before the group portion of the SeeD test. That means you, Seifer."

  Seifer didn't bother hiding his groan.

  "Some of you seem to think the rules don't apply," she added, eyes flicking to Squall and hanging a little too long. "They do."

  The bell chimed. Students gathered their things. Quistis raised her voice. "Squall. Stay behind."

  He stayed, but first accessed his desk terminal and withdrew Quetzalcoatl. He thought about fiddling with the GF tutorial screens, but Quistis was waiting.

  [Quetzalcoatl Guardian Force junctioned.]

  When the last student left—except for a trio of Trepies hovering by the door—he approached her desk.

  "So, you still haven't completed the basic field exam," she said. "Which means you'll have to do it today… with me."

  Squall gave a small nod. Did she have to pause so meaningfully? "Fine."

  "Have you junctioned your GFs?"

  "Of course," he said. "I take this seriously."

  Her smile returned. "Good. I'll prepare. I suggest you do, too. Don't worry about potions or anything. I have some."

  She turned and walked off, her gait smooth, almost provocative—but still technically within the bounds of propriety. She knew exactly what she was doing.

  As Squall left, the Trepies stared daggers. One of them, a male, muttered under his breath, "Lucky bastard. If that were me, I'd treat her real nice."

  Squall didn't even spare him a glance. Whatever.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Squall made his way toward the dorms; the hallways were quiet. The walls hummed with the Garden's ever-present power, sterile and steady.

  Halfway there, someone rounded a corner too fast and collided with him.

  "WAAAAH!"

  Squall went back a half-step, but the girl, all ninety pounds of her, took a spill in the hallway, with books scattering.

  "Oh! Sorry!" the girl said, rushing to pick them up.

  Squall helped her with the books. He wasn't a complete jerk, even if he was aware of this tired trope.

  As he handed them back, he noted she had honey-brown hair tied in high loops that bounced when she moved. Her uniform looked newly issued. A bit too crisp. New student, then.

  "I'm Selphie! Just transferred here from Trabia. I'm totally lost. This place is so much bigger." She looked around like she was about to bolt. "Do you know where the dorms are? Or the cafeteria? Or…literally anything?"

  Squall blinked. "There's a directory on the first floor."

  Selphie hesitated, her green eyes going wide. "Oh… okay…Thanks. I guess." She gave him a tight smile and walked off, clearly disappointed.

  Squall watched her go. Maybe he should've offered more help. But she'd figure it out. People always did.

  Besides, this was Balamb Garden, not Trabia. They had a good reputation, but Balamb was elite for a reason.

  Near the central elevator, a student with a headband sat cross-legged on the floor, flipping through a small deck of cards. He looked up as Squall passed.

  "Are you a fan of Triple Triad?"

  Squall paused. "I see people playing in the cafeteria. Never tried."

  The guy grinned. "It's addicting. I'm trying to cut back, actually. Thought I'd give away some of my cards. Pass on the obsession, y'know?"

  He fanned out a hand of them. Intricately designed. One had a glinting seal of the Shumi Tribe—gold ink embossed into the back.

  "The official cards are from the Shumi Tribe. Some say they're infused with actual Guardian Force energy. If you've got the Card Mod ability from Quetzalcoatl, you can convert them into items even, and then those items into spells. Big help during a fight." He leaned in, lowering his voice. "Pro tip: I've heard you can get a big leg up on the exams if you grind fastiocalon-f's on the shore and use that card mod ability to create some cards, and then convert those cards into water spells. Just don't tell the instructors."

  "Thanks," Squall said, genuinely interested in something for once. He had always enjoyed finding ways to game systems for maximum effect.

  The guy started dealing casually, and Squall sat down across from him. In minutes, he had learned the rules and even won his first match.

  Something about the cards... they spoke to him. It wasn't easy for something to grab hold of Squall Leonhart, but this Triple Triad had an elegant symmetry to it. The monster designs, the numbers, the strategic calculations...

  It all just made sense.

  Before he knew it, an hour had passed, and he'd won several more cards from the guy.

  "You've got a talent for this," the student said. "They have tournaments and stuff, you know."

  "Interesting," Squall said.

  Something to look forward to, then. He had to build his deck better.

  "I've... got to go," the student said, looking at his watch. "Getting late."

  Squall nodded, reality snapping back. He had lost track of time. "Right. I should prepare for the field exam."

  The guy gathered his remaining cards. "Here's another tip. If you're into it, there's that weird kid in the blue shirt who runs around Garden non-stop. Kinda annoying, but the rumor is he's holding onto a Minimog card. It was mine originally, but I guess it made the rounds to him. He's gotten really cocky since then."

  Squall nodded, tucking his new cards away. "I'll keep that in mind."

  He stood and headed for the elevator. Seifer's mark still stung on his face, a reminder of what was at stake today.

  Time to focus on what mattered. The SeeD exam. Becoming one of the elite.

  Then maybe people like Seifer would finally leave him alone.