be convinced."
"No," Selphie corrected, "I'd convinced you after the last Fire Cavern test. Remember?"
I did. "You're right." I looked over at her as we approached the Garden's front gates. "It feels great to actually be done with it."
"Now we just need to get you a field exam scheduled."
I smiled. "Finally."
Selphie giggled. "No doubt. At least you'll have earned the party after graduation. Stay there as long as possible. Dance as much as possible. Laugh as much as possible."
I giggled. "Yes, ma'am."
Selphie gave my shoulders a squeeze. Then she looked toward the front gates. "Hey, Zell!" she called. I looked up in time to see Zell stop pacing and face us. "Guess what? She beat Squall's time!"
Zell leaped up into the air with a holler of "oh yeah!" and then jogged out to meet us. I blushed molten and tried to beat back the Thrusteavis that had set up house in my stomach. You're going to ask him, remember? Just wait for Selphie to leave and then do it. Okay? I could do it. What was so hard about saying ‘Zell, will you go out with me?' Nothing. Right?
Zell gave Selphie a high five, and then he motioned to do the same with me. I flushed and made contact with his hand. "Sweet!" he exclaimed. "How much did ya beat it by?"
I shrugged. "I don't know," I said softly.
"It was, like, a fraction of a second, but who cares? She beat it." Selphie gestured to the Garden. "Come on. Let's go post the scores so everyone else can see."
My smile vanished. "No! Don't do that!"
"Why not?" Zell and Selphie asked at the same time. "You worked your butt off for that score," Zell continued.
Selphie nodded. "Come on, Sally. Squall won't care. He'll be thrilled."
"But everyone will know."
Selphie and Zell exchanged astonished looks, fists on hips, and then looked back over at me. "That's the point." Selphie giggled and shook her head. "You're so funny."
Zell took a firm hold of my arm and Selphie's to walk us toward the Garden. "It's getting posted, Meg. Now come on. Let's scoot to the cafeteria and celebrate with a mouthful of hot dogs, ice cream, and soda pop."
Selphie extricated herself from Zell's grasp. He let go of both of us. "Can't. Sorry. I've got to get ready for exams this afternoon. Besides that, I've got about a billion papers to correct from earlier this week. Then I've got to start planning field exams."
We headed into Garden and started down the main corridor. "OK," Zell told her. "But it's your loss."
Selphie giggled and veered to the elevator as Zell and I went right toward the cafeteria. Okay, Sally. Do it now. I gave myself a slight nod, took in a deep breath, and--
"So what happened? Tell me all the gory details."
"Oh." The question skittered to a dark corner. "Well, it was the same as usual--"
Zell frowned and gave me a slight push. "Tch! You call that a story? Come on! How many monsters did you have to fight before getting to Ifrit? Did you get hit the most or did Selphie? Who used Shiva? Did you do more physical than magical damage? Tell me!"
I giggled. "I didn't know you were wanting a bedtime story," I said. Sally? Are you joking around with him? Good for you!
"Damn straight! I worked you hard yesterday, remember? I pushed and you pushed back, harder. You've got to give me a little something as payback!"
"Fine, fine." I said with a sidelong smile toward him. "It was dark as death and smelled of horror and grief as we entered the red and black cavern of the fire god Ifrit," I began in a tone of gloomy stories and ghosts.
Zell laughed, giving my arm a slug. "Now that's a story!"
I giggled. Maybe this could count as a date? Couldn't it? Yeah. Maybe in an alternate dimension.
"Don't stop," he said as we passed the library. "Keep going."
I grabbed at the different stories I'd heard, and thrillers I'd watched and read, and struggled to piece together more of the same. "Shadows and flames teased our senses, hinting at the danger that hid beneath boulder and crevice. Selphie and I cautiously made our way deeper within, keeping our weapons ready as we searched the darkness for the eyes we felt watching."
I sent Zell a sidelong glance. He stared at the polished floor of the walk that led to the different sections of the Garden, deeply engrossed in my story. My eyes twinkled. "Fire bat!" I gripped his arm. Zell gave a startled yelp and then laughed as he met my gaze. I giggled and looked away, pointing ahead at the imaginary foe. "'Look out!' I warned Selphie, not seeing the buel rising up behind me. Clink-- thwack-- and the buel fell, leaving me safe to dispatch the fire bats. Fists and feet flew, littering our path with broken bodies. We moved on, our eyes alert and our ears strained. Deadly silence. Eerie peace and nothing."
Zell opened the door into the cafeteria, holding it as I passed. Then he released it to hurry up and walk beside me. This is so awesome! "Shivers, doom, and gloom raised the hair on our necks and arms, but there was nothing behind us save the bats and buel of before. My wary gaze examined our trail ahead, jagged and dangerous. So close to the entrance of Ifrit's lair we could imagine the feel of his breath on our faces. We pressed onward, readying ourselves to meet the fire god himself."
Zell and I grabbed a spot in line as I continued the story, Zell turning to face me as he listened with rapt attention. Have I died and gone to heaven?
"Up he roared from the fire pit," I intoned with a raised arm, mimicking Ifrit's action, "power and strength exuded from him in waves of fire and flame that surrounded us. Selphie and I took a step back, but then we steeled ourselves against his intensity and prepared for the attack." I made a ridiculously melodramatic summoning motion with my arms and hands. Zell accepted a tray of hot dogs, cookies, ice cream, etc and followed beside me to a table, still intently listening.
"'Shiva', I summoned, and I only vaguely heard Selphie begin her onslaught of cold and ice and weapon. The ice goddess appeared in a water chrysalis of elegance and power, shattering her prism of ice and releasing a barrage of her essence against the fire god. Ifrit bellowed with rage, countering the onslaught with a ball of fire. I stumbled," and I enacted the motion to my chair, "staggering in an attempt to hold my footing. The relief and renewal of Selphie's cure was immediately felt and I straightened, again calling forth the ice goddess. Again and again waves of fire and ice, heat and cold, weapon and rage were exchanged until at last, when Selphie and I believed we could take not another assault, the fire god roared and agreed to join, dedicating his power to my need."
I stood and took a bow. A few of the candidates and junior classmen actually applauded. I flushed deeply before sitting quickly into my chair.
"That was the best telling of the Fire Cavern I've ever heard," Zell said with an appreciative nod as he finished his second hot dog. I finally began my first, slightly smiling as I munched. "Do the junior classmen ever come into the library for your stories?"
"Nope," I said. I took a drink of milk.
"You're kidding! Tch! You've definitely gotta tell Selph. She should put some of your stories on her site here at the Garden. They'd be great!"
I giggled and shook my head. "No thanks."
"Aw come on. You'd love it. Besides, the minute Selphie posts your scores, everyone's gonna wanna meet the person that beat Squall's score anyway. You might as well have the story ready."
Zell, I don't care what everyone else thinks about me. Or how popular I am. I just want you. But I wasn't ever going to say that. "I hope not."
Zell made a face. Then he pointed a partially gnawed cookie at me before dunking it into his vanilla ice cream. "You're kidding, right? You beat Squall's score!"
I shrugged. "So what?"
Zell dropped the cookie into his ice cream--splut--as he stared at me. "So what?" He blinked. "So you should be blabbin' it on the entire network!"
"Why?" I finished my hot dog and reached for the dressing and my celery. "That doesn't prove anything. I just wanted to pass. You made that happen. Now I can do my field exam and graduate. That's all I want."
/>
Zell rested his right elbow on the table and put his cheek on his fist, watching me as he munched another ice cream slathered cookie. Goose pimples raised on my arms, but I ignored them as I swirled the dip in the little plastic cup with my celery stalk. Okay, Sally. He's quiet. Ask him out. You can do it. I cleared my throat-–
"Say, you wanna meet my ma?"
My finger tightened on the celery stalk. It collapsed with a crisp squinch. I raised my eyes to meet his. "Your mother?"
Zell nodded and lowered his fist from his cheek. "Sure. I've got a day off tomorrow, so I'd planned on heading over to Balamb and saying ‘howdy' to Ma. She likes meeting my friends, and it would be great if you told her that story. She'd get a kick."
Meet his mother. Zell Dincht's Ma. I swallowed my heart and gave a slight nod followed by a timid smile. "That sounds like fun," I said softly. Boy, does it ever.
"Great. You work tomorrow?"
I shook my head. "I asked for the day off because of the exam qualifier today. Thought I'd need the time to myself." Go to Balamb?
Zell laughed. "You thought you'd fail, didn't you?"
I shook my head again. "No. I didn't know what to think. That's why I wanted the day off." Meet his mother?
Zell popped the last of his cookie in his mouth and finished his soda. He pointed at my plate. "You gonna play with it, or eat it?"
A giggle escaped the shock. I set down the celery. "I'm not really hungry. Too excited. I can hardly believe I passed."
He stuck out a hand. "Give me your cookie and then we'll