Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Final Fantasy Saga ❯ Young Love? ( Chapter 10 )

Final Fantasy Saga

Chapter X: Young Love?

"Hey, what is it with you and Eliza?" Gren asked, sighing as he looked up at the ceiling of the Invincible Gamble. "I usually can tell things when I look at people… but when it comes to you and her, everything seems like some kind of jigsaw puzzle. There are times when you guys are friends, and definitely nothing more, but then I also feel the presence of times where it's more than that."

"Me and Eliza?" shaking his head, also staring at the ceiling, Ark laughed a bit, "No way, she's like my sister! That would be gross!"

"Well you haven't dated anyone since you got here," Gren smirked, "Could it be that you're saving yourself for her and don't even know it?"

Ark stood up from the floor, the crowd surrounding them. It was Saturday and at the same time Fight Night, such a special occasion for Ark and Gren as it was their usual time to duel. "Watch it, Ashforn," Ark cracked his knuckles, "You are talking about my little sister, after all."

Standing upon his legs once more, Gren laughed and looked around at everyone cheering, "Hey… when was it that we became heroes to this school?"

"Don't ask me," answered Gren's friend. Ark smirked and looked back to Gren, "I just want one thing, and one thing only. To beat you!"

"Amusing," Gren's breath felt cool against his lips, a bit of rejuvenation in the heated club, "So very amusing." As Ark attacked with a simple right punch, Gren dodged to the left and tripped him, adding in a soft tone as he did so, "Dumb animal."

The less experienced Ark fell down hard to the ground, having put a lot of force behind that punch, but sprung right back onto his feet. Gren was always amazed at his determination, always baffled by how much Ark put into every moment of every fight. If he held the same dedication in all other things, then Ark might actually become an extraordinary person some day. Gren saw that Ark even had the potential to actually defeat him, but the big question was if Ark would ever actually meet that potential. More and more as this year went, Gren's final year at the Mana Academy, he felt that Ark might just manage it before he left. That would really make Gren proud. One final time Ark charged Gren, and this time Gren landed a hard punch right into Ark's forehead, knocking the young warrior unconscious and ending the match.

After he helped them carry Ark over to lay on a table, Gren sat down and had another drink. Sipping at the drink, he began to think about all the things which took place since the beginning of the year. Even for a place as unusual as the Mana Academy, the last few months had seen a strange amount of events swirling around in an ominous manner. Gren felt something to be very strange in all of this chaos, he was feeling as if there were a larger sequence to it all. On top of that, Gren was certain that it had all been triggered by Eliza Knight. Until he had proof, however, Gren would not be slinging around any accusations. Besides, he was almost certain that she and Ark had romantic feelings for one another, and as such was more happy for the two than anything else. Gren had a serious problem with curiosity though, and until he knew if they really did have feelings for each other he wasn't going to be properly satisfied.

It was rarely in Gren's nature to meddle in matters when it didn't require him to fight somehow, since usually others could use their brains to take care of matters. Though Gren was far from incompetent, at the same time he recognized that his level of skill was greater than that of most with a sword. It wasn't right for a person to not use their skills, especially the ones in which they excel, it denied all that was right about human nature. These thoughts were so unusual to Gren, and yet at the same time he knew that he was one of the few people he knew which thought about such things. Eliza was innocent and kind, she focused entirely on the new day and the challenges before her. Ark was smart in battle, but in times of emotional and philosophical contemplation he did not even remotely understand truth. It wasn't that Ark was a fool, he was just a simple man, a man who had no need of such things. In many ways, Gren envied Ark for that. He would help Ark now though, not in a battle of the body, but of the heart. Gren had now decided that by the end of the week, Ark and Eliza would become a couple.

Day 1 -- Monday

Gren's plan was a very simple one, and if he managed to pull it off he might even have things wrapped up by Wednesday. First he had to make it so that both Ark and Eliza realized that the other was more than just a person, but that they were humans with both physical and emotional needs. To do this, he would stage an elaborate discovery for Eliza, making sure she discovered some nudie magazines which Gren had planet in Ark's dorm room. Though this would, in the worst case scenario, cause Ark to come to some physical harm, it would also open Eliza's eyes. After that, Gren would have to start dating someone, in order to make Ark and Eliza feel like third wheels if they hanged out with him on their own. On the third and last day of the plan, Gren would arrange for a double date, which he was sure would then end with the two becoming a couple. If that failed, he'd come up with some other plan, but that was unlikely. Gren's plans hadn't once been miscalculated.

He just had to figure out which of the many, many girls who had written him love letters he should choose to date for a little while in order to get on to the last two phases on the plans. There was Relm, the art major who had pretty eyes, but then Gren had heard that she had a very overprotective grandfather which spent frequent time on campus. There was a good chance the old man would interfere, and so she was unfortunately inconvenient for these purposes. Lulu was a very alluring young woman, but at the same time Gren wasn't especially into the entire goth thing. The more that Gren thought things over, none of the girls who had asked him out in recent days appealed to him, and he was starting to realize why he wasn't seeing anyone now. Gren decided to focus on this more later, for now he'd continue to see the results of the first phase of his plan. As he saw Eliza reading in the library, Gren walked over and sat down beside her.

The library of the Mana Academy was one of the most amazing feats that the entire place had to offer. It was over ten floors tall, spanning over ten thousand books ranging from ancient texts to classical literature to teen romance novels, and they were organized to perfection by a group of super-intelligent and calculating Cactaurs. A series of teleport pads and flying Chocobos controlled transport from one floor to another, Laguna likely didn't much care for conventional means such as elevators and stairs. The first four floors of the library were dedicated to textbooks and more technical writing pieces, with the six floors above then being dedicated to the fictional pieces held within the library. Then there was another floor above those, the only one accessible by a staircase, which held a snack bar and a lounge-like area in which people could read and write in peace. It was in this area that Gren met Eliza, knowing that she came here to study while Ark was in class on this day. Sitting down at the table beside her and greeting her, Gren then said calmly after some small talk, "I actually have some bad news for you, Eliza."

Looking a bit worried, Eliza put down her book and actually began to pay slightly heavier attention to Gren, asking with an tone matching her look, "What's wrong?"

"Ark got sick in class today, he's actually ill in his room," Gren smiled and gestured towards the snack bar, "I was thinking you should go bring him something warm to eat and keep him company. Sadly, I have a test tonight, and so I really should study."

"Oh, really?" Eliza looked at the time and then back towards Gren, "Strange… you almost never study. It's a miracle you get as good grades as you do."

"It's my last year here, I may as well be sure I don't stumble at the finish line," explained Gren, "It only makes sense, you know?"

Nodding, Eliza commented shortly, "That's true." She looked at the time again and closed her book, adding, "I guess you're right, I'll bring him something to eat. It'll help him get his strength up." Standing up, Eliza seemed to pause to think, and then turned to ask Gren, "What do you think would help him most? Warm soup or a sandwich?"

"The sandwich," Gren responded, "My theory is it's just exhaustion, some good hearty food should get him up and going again."

"Thanks a lot, I owe you one Gren!" Eliza bounced to the snack bar to pick up Ark some food, and so Gren began the first phase of his plan. He wished he could go and make sure it all went smoothly, but if he got caught out of the library then Gren's alibi was forfeit. The magazines were placed on Ark's bed, it would be very simple for Eliza to notice them. Gren was sure everything would go off without a hitch, the trickiest parts of the plan would be in the final night, making sure that the mood was romantic enough for Ark and Eliza to notice each other.

A little while after Eliza had left, someone randomly sat down next to Gren at the table. Somewhat surprised, Gren looked quickly to his side and saw Rikku sitting beside him with a smirk on her face. She had proven somewhat special when she was un-phased by Shiva's curse, and made herself very useful when they stormed Shiva's palace, and so Gren had definitely begun to consider her a friend. In the weeks since that battle Rikku and Eliza had begun spending a lot of time together, Gren guessing that Eliza had been in need of a female friend to gossip with and all those other such behaviors. He was glad that they were so close, but whenever she was around him she seemed to get a bit strange and goofy.

Gren gave Rikku a calm smile and said very politely, "Hey. It's good to see a familiar face here."

"Everyone's a familiar face, to you," Rikku smiled, "But I'm not really here for small talk. I saw you putting those magazines in Ark's room. What are you up to?"

"Up to?" Gren laughed, "You have quite an active imagination, now don't you? I haven't been to see the dumb animal today. He's at class anyways, so going to his place would be useless."

"I'm not naïve, Gren," Rikku poked his forehead playfully, she seemed much more comfortable today than she normally was around him, "Now spill it!"

"Fine, fine, but you have to promise you'll keep it to yourself. Especially from Ark and Eliza," he warned the energetic girl, also adding, "Understand?"

"I got it," answered Rikku, smiling cheerfully and looking around a bit before focusing on him again, "So…?"

"Well, it started on Saturday. I realized that Ark and Eliza need a little bit of help getting together. They'd make a great couple, but don't really see each other that way, so I have a plan to get them together by the end of Wednesday night," he explained, "The magazines are part of the plan. Next up I need to find someone to date for a bit. And now that you're in on it, you have to help me figure out who I should choose." Hopefully a fresh perspective would help Gren in picking a girl, since it was more or less point and click for him.

Day 2 -- Tuesday

Much to his surprise, Gren woke up on the second day of his plan feeling extremely good. Of course, it was also due to something very unexpected which he hadn't seen coming the day before, but he didn't wake up alone. Resting in his arms was Rikku, who had confessed to having a very big crush on him the afternoon before. One thing had lead to another, and before he knew it they were here, and the rest was pretty obvious. When he awoke, Gren didn't more, but rather just looked down and watched her sleep for a while. Emotion was the single most unpredictable and amazing things that came with being a human, and he was very thankful to have the emotions he did. Gren hadn't even realized it, but he was trying to get Ark and Eliza together for another reason. It had been a very long time since Gren felt anything for anyone, not since Jasmine had he felt something resembling love. Over time, Gren had grown more and more lonely, and now with Rikku in his arms he felt good for the first time in ages.

Gren wasn't just going to do this to help Ark anymore, he and Rikku might even last a pretty long time as things looked. This was now just as much about Gren and Rikku as it was about Ark and Eliza, and in a way that made things even better for him. Now that Gren thought about it, if he had gotten Ark and Eliza together he was going to become a third wheel, and would likely be unable to take it. Rikku and Eliza were already close, and so that made it much easier for her to become a part of their little group, so Gren also wouldn't be left behind in the dust. On top of all that, he had real feelings for Rikku, and that was making this all even more worthwhile than everything else. Last night had been one of the best nights Gren had since coming to the Mana Academy.

Rikku's eyes opened slowly, and she looked up at Gren, then he said happily and very slightly, almost in a whisper, "Good morning."

"Wow… last night really happened," Rikku giggled a bit and rested her head on his chest, "It was like a dream."

"It was," Gren ran a hand gently through her hair, both soft and thick at once, and then said as well, "But it was better than a dream. Dream's end… and today we woke up, and there's as much a chance for today to be good as there was yesterday."

"Very wise words," Rikku kissed Gren's forehead and sat up, yawning, "We have some work to do though. We have to act all lovey dovey in front of Ark and Eliza for your plan, now don't we?"

"About that," Gren sat up with her, and reached a hand out to touch Rikku's cheek, "I don't want you to think… well, last night… I would not have done that with someone who I was just using to get Ark and Eliza together. I really do want to be with you."

"I wouldn't have slept with you if I felt it was just sex for either of us," Rikku added, "My feelings for you aren't lukewarm Gren… they're pretty strong."

"I'm not going to toy with those feelings," assured Gren, kissing Rikku softly, their lips caressing gently as their eyes closed. He could feel her softness, taste her breath, feel Rikku's very essence being shared with him through their lips. After backing out of the kiss, Gren opened his eyes and added, "My feelings for you are pretty strong too. I'm very, very happy right now."

"Let's get ready," Rikku hugged Gren close and then finished her thought, "We do need to finish your plan. It got us together, so it's important to me."

"Me too," Gren chuckled softly, he hadn't genuinely laughed in some time, "Let's be on our way."

When the two got out of the dorm, sneaking out a bit obviously since girls weren't allowed in the boys dorm, they proceeded to lay it on extremely thick. People could nearly cut the cheesy romance and awful corny dialogue with a knife, and Gren was sure that many of them wanted to. Ark and Eliza definitely were going to hear about it, but Rikku and Gren didn't plan to actually meet with them until lunch. This was all proceeding according to Gren's plan, and he was also relieved when Rikku assured him this was definitely not how she wanted things to be all the time. Normally Gren wasn't much for public displays of affection, his personal feelings were that such things were supposed to be done in privacy. The only reason he did this now was to force romantic tones into Eliza's mind, and beat them in Ark's head until even the dumb animal got the picture.

Eventually lunch came, and that was when Gren and Rikku had to tone it down. Instead of being obnoxious and showy with their affections, they were going to be more subtle and sneaky in their actions, showing a more delicate side to romance. It worked perfectly, all through lunch Gren could see in Eliza's eyes a growing loneliness. She would almost definitely be thinking about love as things stood, and Gren hoped that she began to consider how well she and Ark would be together. As for Ark, even he seemed to take notice, but what shocked Gren the most was how Ark began looking at Eliza. He'd never noticed it before, but the dumb animal had always looked at Eliza as if she were an angel, did Ark simply not say what he really felt? Gren began to wonder if perhaps Ark had feelings for her, but was holding them back for some reason, why would Ark repress something? It wasn't in the dumb animals nature to feel one thing and do another, and this realization began to disturb Gren.

"Hey, why don't we go on a double date tomorrow night?" Rikku suddenly asked Eliza, laughing and smiling as if it were nothing at all, "You and Ark, me and Gren, it'll be fun!"

Eliza looked at Ark a bit and smiled before she asked him happily, "Well, what do you think?"

"I don't mind, what should we do?" Ark asked, looking around as he usually did, obviously as paranoid as a cat.

Day 3 -- Wednesday

It didn't take Gren very long to get dressed for the date, but then he rarely found it hard to get an outfit together that looked nice. He was clad in a dark green buttoned long shirt and black dress pants, his hair parted as it normally was. Gren had a feeling that everything was going to go off without a hitch, especially after he had seen the look in Ark's eyes when they met with Eliza. Ark had feelings for Eliza, strong feelings, and Gren could see it without any mistake. What was keeping Ark from just asking her out then? This question worried Gren slightly, but there was always a chance that Ark was simply nervous. None of it really mattered though, he doubted there was anything that was truly significant between the two aside from everything he already knew about their respective pasts.

Walking over to Ark's room, Gren knocked on the door and waited for a few moments. The door opened and Ark stepped out, but Gren found himself shocked at just what he saw before him. His friend Ark was dressed up, and not just a little bit, Ark was in very formal clothes compared to his common apparel. He was dressed in black dress pants and a long sleeve buttoned shirt much like Gren's, though Ark's was a shade of colorful red that would look rather hideous on anyone other than him. His normally wild and untamed hair war combed, and most unusual of all his eyes seemed to have a gentleness in them now which Gren had not once seen. It was true, Eliza made Ark into a better man, she made him into a man at all rather than an animal.

"Impressive," Gren said as he tossed Ark a wry smirk, "Might I ask why you decided to dress so amazingly… not you?"

"Shut it, Ashforn," Ark responded quickly, "You know, even if I'm dressed nice, I'll get your blood on my shoes without a second thought."

Laughing happily, Gren raised his hands and made a peace sign, "I give, I give! But it seems obvious enough to me what's going on here." It was time for the last push, the push which would make his plans a complete success.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Ark said, he seemed more like he was playing dumb than Gren would have expected here.

"You have feelings for Eliza, I can see it in your eyes when they meet with hers," Gren shook his head and added, "You've kept up quite the façade until now, but it has become clear as day to me."

"Fasede?" Ark looked confused by the word façade, but then he also responded to what he did understand, "Sorry, but you have no real idea what you're talking about Ashforn. There's nothing between Eliza and me that isn't already obvious enough."

"Oh really?" Gren smirked playfully, "Sorry Ark… but I'm not a man easily fooled. You feel something, and it is obvious enough to me."

Ark waved his hand in dismissal and replied very nonchalantly, "Think whatever you want. Come on, we'll be late picking the girls up if you don't stop your yapping."

Though he was rather anxious to get the truth, Gren knew that in time he would come to it, and that the time was drawing rather near. As the two young men set out for the girls dorm, walking rather quietly as they went, Gren found himself a little bit nervous. The silence was a rather awkward one, especially because of the conversation the two had before starting the walk. It was a rather calm and quiet night, little going on and that provided very little to distract Gren from this feeling. Gren hoped that Ark wouldn't allow for his annoyance towards Gren to affect how he could treat Eliza, since it was a known fact that Ark almost always let his personal feelings change everything. Before Gren knew it they were at the front of the girl's dorm, he had been lost in thought, and saw Rikku and Eliza standing outside waiting for them.

Ark was obviously shocked at what he saw, and Gren was right alongside him for it at the sight of sheer beauty before them. Rikku and Eliza were both wearing positively stunning dresses, each one fitting the girl absolutely perfectly both in form and in color. Rikku wore a crimson dress with an open-slit leg down her right side, which was tied closed in the back and had thin straps along her shoulders. Eliza was in a sky blue, strapless, dress which went down to her knees before it stopped. The dresses on the two women were both form fitting and loose at the same time, dangling in places and clinging to certain places with an almost perfect amount of balance.

The four of them had started off getting dinner, at which Gren found much amusement. Ark had tried to eat politely nearly the entire time, but had obviously not learned much about the finer points of manners, and was just a little off the entire time. He did well considering his normal eating habits, but was still obviously inexperienced at the entire issue of manners. After dinner they all went to the movies at one of the various on-campus theatres provided by the school, but it was pretty dull and so they left a little before the film was even over. Rather than calling it a night, Rikku and Gren encouraged Ark and Eliza to go for a walk with them in the park. After they got there though, they left and allowed for Ark and Eliza to be alone, hiding in the bushes watching.

Eliza was sitting on a bench, Ark standing up and a couple of feet away from her. Gren knew that this was when it would happen if he had succeeded, the night was almost over and there was little chance that he and Rikku had failed. Ark didn't actually seem that nervous, nor did Eliza, but rather they were very relaxed. Eliza began to hum a gentle tune, and Ark watched the sky quietly. This was a side to their relationship which Gren hadn't seen, since Ark and Eliza were always aware he was around when he saw them together. This was what they were really like, when they weren't being watched, when they're being their true selves to each other. What Gren saw was in every way the true form of Ark and Eliza's feelings for each other, but what came now was what truly shocked both him and Rikku.

"They're trying to get us together," Eliza laughed and leaned back in the bench, "Isn't that funny?"

"I know," Ark laughed with her and shook his head, "Why exactly haven't we told them yet?"

"No idea," Eliza closed her eyes and shrugged, "How about we tell them tonight? Since they're so bothered by us not being a couple and all, it'll get them off our backs."

Back at Gren and Rikku, Rikku turned to Gren and whispered her question softly, "What are they talking about?"

"I'm not sure," Gren turned his attention back to the conversation between Ark and Eliza, thankfully not having missed much. But when he looked back, the reason he hadn't heard anything was because Eliza and Ark had begun kissing.

Popping out of the bushes, Rikku declared in a rather loud shout, "Yes!"

Ark and Eliza stopped and began laughing, Gren coming out of the bushes behind Rikku and shaking his head a bit. Eliza then admitted the truth, "Ark and I got together shortly after we met again on campus. We just haven't been very public about it."

"So…" Gren looked at Ark and started to chuckle, actually quite surprised he had been so subtle about it all, "You son of a bitch, I knew it."

"Yeah, yeah," Ark laughed and gave Gren a slap on the back, "We had originally been doing it so you weren't a third wheel, but with Rikku here we don't need to worry about that anymore." Gren had actually succeeded in a sense, he got Eliza and Ark into the open, but he was quite annoyed at the same time. He didn't win or lose, he was simply there, and to top it off they had been sparing his feelings. It was annoying. Annoying. Annoying. Annoying.

* * * * * * *

"Shiva was destroyed, my master," Terra said to Vandalheart, the lord of this castle, and the seeker of the Crystals. "There is a high chance that the ones responsible are from the Tribe. Or their descendents."

"A small fraction of the Tribe did indeed survive the massacre, the scream of an echo… but it is no concern, they are no match for you," Vandalheart smirked, his eyes so dark they pierced shadow as he added, "I shall send Ansem to deal with those fools. You simply relax… continue to observe from where you are."

"Yes, my master."

To Be Continued

Author's Notes: Soul Caliber 2 is a demon! It sucks my energy until I have no more! Except, then Full Metal Panic and 24 Season 2 come for more! Full Metal Panic is an excellent anime, and I highly recommend it, its my new personal favorite mecha anime. 24 is the spellbinding epic which chronicles an entire day, hour by hour, in 24 episodes. The second season continuing this tradition, taking place 18 months after the first season. So far I love both these series very much, and I'm doomed with the impending release of Final Fantasy X-2.

Now, on another note. I have several more fanfics in the works now, and this is likely going to have some kind of an effect on Final Fantasy Saga. As I've stated earlier, I have every intention of writing until the end of this story, and getting new chapters to you in a timely manner. However, I will start posting chapters every other week, rather than every week, once the other fanfics begin. That will not be for some time now, though, so don't worry about it. I'm just warning you in advance.

The first of these new fan fiction projects is The Legend of Zelda: Lords of the Sky. It's a Zelda fic taking place in a world like Skies of Arcadia (a series of flying islands, with airships being the only modes of transportation). It will be another epic tale, with twists and turns around corners, that will also retain all of the things which make Zelda as great as it is. So the Triforce, Ganon, Princess Zelda, all are going to be having their proper roles in the universe. This will be the first of my new fan fiction projects to begin, and will be nearly as long as Final Fantasy Saga (I don't have an exact chapter count for Zelda: Lords yet though, its still in the planning stages).

Along with the Zelda story, I also have a Rurouni Kenshin fanfic in the works. The Rurouni Kenshin fanfic isn't anywhere near as far along as the Zelda one, mostly due to the massive amount of reading and research required to make an RK fic that retains the feel of its normal series (I'm modeling villains after real historical figures, and using genuine martial arts to mold their fighting styles). The Rurouni Kenshin story will focus on Sojiro Seta around six years after his fateful battle with Kenshin. Sojiro has remained a rather peaceful person, and found that he enjoys a rather quiet life, until he learns that he has a long lost sister. Thus begins his journey to find his last living family, and from there many things are going to happen. This will be a sweeping era-piece epic about family, love, and warriors compassion. It will likely end up being the most human, and dramatic, of my stories, but at the same time it's the furthest away from being done. I still have a lot of research to do for it.

Last of the fanfics I'm working on aside from Final Fantasy Saga is a Final Fantasy 7 story. It's going to be a 24-like telling of the life of Reno, Rude, and Elena over the course of one day. I won't reveal the nature of the story, except having you know it's about the Turks lives and situations after the fall of Shinra. It will definitely be getting a hard R rating, unlike my previous fics which all have only PG-13 level material. Zelda may even be as low as PG, honestly.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It was a little hard for me to write, because I wrote the entire thing then my computer deleted it. Having to write it all over, I was trudging through it with little motivation. If that lowered the quality, I'm sorry, I promise I'll be back to my old self in the next chapter. See you later!

Next Time: A lost trip to the beach. A rematch between two fighters. A carefully planned announcement. Laguna Loire must find a way to rebuild the science buildings damaged in the escape from Shiva's palace, and he makes his bargain in an unexpected partnership. Don't miss Final Fantasy Saga Chapter 11: Laguna's Announcement.