"Hey, Sal gal."
I looked up from my desk within the Security Section of Balamb Garden and smiled at the tall, gorgeous, and slender young woman with the spiked black hair and dark brown eyes. She had only been filling in for a few of Quistis' classes at first. Quistis had then been working at my older brother Zack's T.V. station part-time, until she could find and train a full-time Assistant Manager.
But then, just before my birthday party, Quistis had decided to take a leave of absence from Garden and work at the T.V. station full-time - I guess work had picked up since she had gone on staff - and Janine had needed to fill in for all of Quistis' classes. Janine Larabie seemed a part of the Balamb Garden family, and I loved having her there.
"Hi, Janine. What are you doing down here?"
Janine lifted a report. "Homework. Need to drop it off for H.O.S."
I giggled, never prepared for when she called Seifer 'hoss'.
Janine smirked and leaned a hip against my desk as she crossed her arms. "You set a date yet?"
"Three months from my birthday," I reported.
Janine straightened sharply. "...the hell! You serious? There's no way in hell you can plan a wedding in less than three months!"
I smiled up at her. "Uh-huh. Selphie's planning the decorations for the Reception and the wedding, we're having Commander Squall perform the ceremony at the Training Center - Zell promised to ask him today - the Reception will be in the Cafeteria - Francine already said 'yes' to catering it - and there will be dancing in the Quad. Zell's taking care of the live band, Irvine said he would tend bar, and Rinoa will be helping me pick out the bridal gown and the bridesmaid dresses. Oh! Did you want to be my maid of honor?"
Janine blinked. "You serious?"
I smiled wider. "Of course I'm serious."
Janine smirked and again leaned against my desk while crossing her arms. "I'm not exactly a 'maid', but hell. Why not?"
"Oh wonderful!" I searched within the drawers of my desk for the notebook and wrote Janine's name down.
"Why didn't you ask Selphie?"
"I already have her doing so much for the wedding, so I told her I was going to ask you. I was already torn between you two. After all, you've both done so much for me." I tucked the notebook back away and looked up. Janine had an odd look on her face. "What?"
Janine looked away while giving a slight clearing of her throat. "Nothing."
"Oh. Okay." I worried my lower lip. "Janine?"
She focused again on me. "Yeah."
"Could you help me ask Seifer to be security?" She arched a slim eyebrow, and I hurried on. "Zell and I agree that having so many 'civilians' coming in will be dangerous for Garden, and so we thought Seifer and Marshal would be perfect to coordinate security, but..."
"But you don't have the spine to ask."
I playfully frowned. "Hey. I have spine enough to ask. I'm just sure he'll say 'no'."
"So what am I supposed to do about it?" she pressed, smirking.
I giggled. "Make him say 'yes'."
Janine laughed. "Yeah. I figured it was something like that. Well, what makes you think I can?"
"Zell says you got him to go to my birthday party."
Janine's smirk twitched, as did her eyebrow. "Figures. That boy. I'll have to slap him around a bit."
"No. Leave him alone."
Janine shrugged. "Maybe."
I giggled and then stood, my smile very quickly vanishing. "So, can we do it right now? Before I change my mind? I mean, you're down here anyway."
Janine gave my arm a comforting grip. "Okay, Sal gal. I'll help you get the big guy to say 'yes'." She motioned toward his office with a jerk of her head. "Come on."
I followed after her, wringing my hands as she knocked twice on the door with her knuckle and then opened the door before he had even said "Enter." Oh boy.
"Got a second, sir?" she asked as she stepped inside. Then she motioned me in before even waiting for that response.
Seifer looked up from his current project and raised an eyebrow. "Larabie. Regal. Problem?"
Janine stepped forward, saluted - which received a smirk from Seifer - and handed him the 'homework' previously mentioned. "Here's that paperwork you wanted."
He accepted it and set it aside. Then he gestured toward me. "Regal?"
I cleared my throat and stepped forward, standing in front of one of the chairs so as to use it for support. "Personal question, sir."
"And?" he pressed while sending Janine a sidelong glance.
She stood at ease with her hands clasped behind her back, watching me with a slight smirk.
I cleared my throat again, intercepted Janine's encouraging motion of head toward Seifer, and blurted, "I wanted you and Marshal in charge of security for my wedding."
Seifer's eyebrow lifted and he sat back in his chair, arms crossed. "Mind saying again?"
"I... I want..." I swallowed hard. "I know that inviting friends and family will make it so that a lot of new people will be coming and I didn't want to put Garden or the SeeDs or candidates at risk, so I thought that if I had you and Marshal on Security that would make everything safer and you would know what was going on and so you wouldn't think that anything bad was going to happen - as Head of Network Security - and if you didn't have time to do it I knew that you could assign someone else that you trusted to get the job done right--"
"Regal," Seifer interrupted, hand raised. "Calm down."
I flushed. "Sorry," I whispered, sending Janine a sidelong glance. She shook her head, lips smiling with her withheld laughter. I reluctantly smiled and focused again on Seifer.
"So you want me on security detail, do you," he repeated.
I nodded. Please oh please. "Yes, sir."
"How much control do I get?"
I blinked. "Control, sir? All of it, sir."
"Uh... Sal gal," Janine interrupted. "That isn't such a wise idea." She focused on Seifer. "No offense."
"Hm."
She looked again to me. "Why don't Dincht and you keep the final say. After all, it's your wedding."
"Oh, but I tr--"
"Trust me," she insisted.
"Regal. It's fine. I'll give you final say," Seifer said, drawing my attention.
I blinked, totally and completely unprepared for the ease of the conversation. Of course, I had noticed him to be a lot less stressed. I wonder if it has anything to do with the black market ring being found and dispersed?
He leaned forward and again took up the perusal of his reports. "Anything else? Or can I get back to work?"
"That's all, sir. Thank you."
"I've got a problem, though, sir," Janine spoke up. "If you've got a moment."
Seifer sighed and looked back up from his reports. "Fine. Regal, dismissed."
"Yes, sir." I smiled at Janine, to which her expression responded 'You can pay me later,' and then turned to leave. Wow, I thought as I closed the door behind me. And my life seemed to have turned into a collection of those.
I pushed from the door and headed back to my desk, my dreamy and silly smile returning full force. Now I just had to ask Marshal. I was almost positive that he would say 'yes'. Zell had even said that Marshal would ask me to ask Ahndra to help out. I certainly hoped so. I wanted both involved.
I typed in Marshal's ID, waited for the search and then the connect, and then smiled when his face came onscreen. "Hi, Marshal."
Marshal sat up from his desk at Galbadia Garden's Security Section and smiled, his silver eyes twinkling. "Yo, Meg. How's life?"
"Wonderful."
Marshal smirked and set aside a report. "I bet. What can I do for you?"
"I was hoping you and Seifer would be security at my wedding."
His smile vanished and then immediately returned. "No kidding?"
I smiled and shook my head. "No kidding. I already asked Seifer and he said 'yes'."
"No shit?" Marshal chuckled and shook his head. "The dickhead's going soft."
"Marshal," I hissed, scolding.
"Oh. Sorry." He cleared his throat. "Sure, Meg. Not a problem. Can I ask Ahndra to help out?"
I nodded. "Of course."
"Great." He motioned toward me. "Hey thanks, Meg. Thanks for asking."
I smiled brighter. "Sure, Marshal."
"I better get off. If Seifer finds out you're using company time..."
"Oh. Right." I checked behind me and then did a finger wave and a whispered, "Bye, Marshal."
He chuckled, shook his head, and said, "Bye, Meg."
Then the window disappeared and I brought up my activity window to go back to work. But my mind had already wandered to wedded bliss... I shivered and giggled.
I heard Zell step into the Infirmary as I changed into my orchid one-piece swimsuit behind one of the curtained 'rooms'. "I'm here, Zell. I'll be out in a sec."
"K."
I heard the rustle of the curtain to the room beside mine as he stepped past to change into his swimming trunks. He looked spectacular in swimming trunks. And jeans. And his uniform...
I giggled. "You should have seen Marshal's face when I said I asked Seifer to be in charge of security for the wedding. It was funny. Oh, and he asked if Ahndra could help, just like you said he would. Just like I hoped he would." I giggled again. "It kept me from having to ask her and Seifer. I can only handle one in a day. But Janine was there to offer moral support, thank goodness."
I stepped past the curtain and made my way up to and in to the hot tub. Then I leaned back against the tub and closed my eyes. "Ahhhh."
I heard the soft padding of Zell approaching the hot tub and opened my eyes as I sat up. But my smile faded when I focused on his face. Zell's expression wasn't a bright smile or a grin or a smirk. It was almost somber.
"Can we talk about Winhill for a sec?" Zell asked as he sat a little ways to my right, which completely surprised me.
My hopes plummeted. "Sure, sweetie."
I knew before that he had been waiting for word on whether or not a Garden had been approved for the little town. When a Garden had been turned down by the Network because of Winhill's small size, they had approved, instead, the building of a Security Station.
Unfortunately, the Security Station final approval had been held up because of Winhill's city council dragging their feet by making specific changes to the contract with the Garden Network. Seeing Zell's expression made me wonder if this final contract submission had been denied.
Zell released a deep breath. He didn't meet my gaze. "The Security Station in Winhill was denied."
"Oh no..." My eyes burned with tears as I scooted to sit close beside him. "Zell, I'm so sorry," I said as I wrapped my arms around his mid-section.
"Yeah. Me, too." He let out another breath and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "It sucks, Sally. I really wanted to do the Garden Security thing there."
"I know," I said softly. "So did I."
Zell sighed again, and this time he scrubbed at his scalp. "Now I don't know what to do. I really thought I was supposed to set up a Security Station. They deserve protection as much as everyone else."
My lips drooped. "I know, but... but maybe we're supposed to stay here at first?"
"You think?"
I sat up and focused on his thoughtful expression. "Just until Commander Squall and President Laguna change the council's mind. The Commander knows how important a Security Station would be, especially after my report and Marshal and Ahndra's investigation."
"That's true."
"Besides, Mom and Dad said the first year or two of marriage is really hard," I admitted, "with trying to get used to living with another person and stuff like that. Maybe we should just get a larger dorm-room here and live on campus for the first six months or year? Just until things settle down? At least then we won't have to worry about rent or the bills that come with a house."
"Yeah. Housing is free here." Zell smirked. "It would definitely be easier on the bank account, huh?"
I smiled and then snuggled back against him. "Who knows? Maybe the Network will arrange to build a Security Station outside the council's limits a little later? That way they don't have to do a contract and the Network can have complete control. There's a first time for everything."
Zell chuckled as he stroked my upper arm. "That'd be a riot, doing it anyway and telling them to go to hell."
I yawned. "Uh-huh," I sleepily admitted as I snuggled closer.
Zell laughed. "There ya go again. Sleeping in the hot tub."
"Can't help it. It's warm," I mumbled. And Zell was better than a pillow.
Zell began to twirl the end of my braid around his finger, and I smiled. "So, I guess we stay here at Garden until things get straightened out," he said, tone thoughtful. "I'll be sure to let Squall know we'll need a bigger room."
"Okay," I sighed.
"But what should I do with the property I bought?"
My eyes snapped open and the 'snoozes' fled. "Property?"
"Yeah. I had bids for building a house and everything. Now what do I do? Do I have them build it anyway? Or should I sell the property and cancel the bids until we know for sure what we're doing?"
I sat up and focused on Zell's thoughtful expression. "Property?" I asked again. "You bought... You bought property in Winhill?"
Zell smirked. "Surprise."
My jaw gaped a moment, and then I squealed "Oh Zell!" and kissed his cheek as I threw my arms around him. Then I pushed back and happily rambled "Oh please oh please build a house It doesn't matter to me if we can't live in it right away That will give me time to decorate and buy just the right curtains and furniture Oh I could plant a flower garden and make it so pretty Oh Zell, sweetie, please have them build the house Please oh Please!"
Zell just grinned and said, "Okay."
"Oh thank you Thank you," I cried as I again kissed his face and hugged him tight.
"So much for my surprises," Zell laughed. "I don't have any more. Probably a good thing. I nearly blurted the proposal I don't know how many times. And then the house and the honeymoon? Damn. I thought I was going to go insane."
I giggled a very silly sounding giggle and pushed back. "Thank you so much, sweetie."
He touched my nose. "Sure, kitten. I just wish I could have made the Security Station happen. It would've been great to work for Garden and live in Winhill and do those submission reviews for Combat King all at the same time."
I snuggled down into his side again and released a happy breath. "It could still happen, Zell," I assured. After all, it seemed like the impossible was becoming regular occurrences for me.
"I'll ask Seifer tomorrow about the details of the council's 'no'. He's got to be damned pissed that they turned us down. He hates it when people say 'no'."
I sniggered. "'Death is answering 'no','" I quoted.
Zell laughed. Then he snapped his fingers. "Speaking of 'no', Squall said 'no' to performing the ceremony--"
I sat up, eyes wide. "What?" My lip trembled. "Now what are we going to do?"
Zell pushed his hands toward me in a comforting motion. "Don't cry, Meg. He only said 'no' at first. Then I walked him through it and he said he'd do it."
"Really?" I sniffed. "He said 'yes'?"
One side of Zell's lips twitched upward. "He said 'yes'. It's just he hates doing new crap. Afraid of looking like an ass. That's why I went to the library and checked out a book on Garden wedding procedures, so that I could show him there was nothing to it."
My expression brightened. "You did research?"
His ears turned pink. "What's that supposed to mean?"
I shook my head, still smiling. "Nothing. I just know how you hate it. You'd rather ask someone who knows." I giggled and kissed him on the cheek before snuggling mine against his, eyes closed. "You're very social."
Zell wrapped his arms around me as he nibbled my ear. "Yup."
I giggled out "That tickles," and enjoyed every second of it.
"Duh." He nuzzled my neck, sending thoughts and plans completely out of my head. Then Zell released a deep breath and held me tight as he asked, "This... This wedding. It's really happening?" very quietly.
My lips tilted upward in a soft smile as I sighed, relaxing into his arms and whispering, "It is, sweetie. Promise."
I locked the door of my room and turned off the lights before scurrying over to my computer and turning on the monitor. I logged on to the Internet - after encoding the stream - and found the designated chatroom. I smiled and typed in the greeting message.
WINGEDHEART: Meg! Hi! This is exciting!
I giggled. I couldn't help it. Even with what I was currently considering, the prospect of keeping a secret from Zell was always an adventure. MEGAFENIX: I know what you mean.
WINGEDHEART: So what did you need to ask me that's so secret?
My smile faded a little bit, fear coming quickly in to mutilate my calm and jumble my stomach. MEGAFENIX: I was hoping you could teach me how to sing in front of people better.
Rinoa likely fell out of her chair.
WINGEDHEART: Of course! What made you change your mind?
MEGAFENIX: Him.
WINGEDHEART: He didn't talk you into it, did he? This should be your decision.
MEGAFENIX: It is, Rin. I promise. He deserves to have the best wedding, and I know how much he wants to hear me sing. Besides, he won't care if I'm horrible or wonderful. Just the fact that I stood up there and did it will be enough for him. He's like that. You know that.
WINGEDHEART: Yes, he is, isn't he? Of course I'll help you, Meg. It'll be hard to keep it a secret if you're always coming out to Deling, or me to Balamb, so we'll have to do a lot of it over the Internet. Do you have a room you can go to to do that?
MEGAFENIX: I'll use my security phone and go down to the 'basement'. The acoustics is great down there, and the phone will be able to get a secure connection. I'll have a little keyboard, too, so that I can play the pitches.
WINGEDHEART: You know how to play piano?
I smiled and nodded while typing MEGAFENIX: Yeah. I know how to do a lot of things that I haven't told anyone. Too afraid they'd ask me to play in front of people. Why do you think only Zell knows I can sing?
WINGEDHEART: ^_^ You're so funny.
MEGAFENIX: ~_~ I know. ...So, can we start this weekend? That'll give you enough time to send me some possible songs. I'm a second soprano, btw.
WINGEDHEART: ^_^ I've got a few in mind. I'll send them over via courier and have you sign for them. No exceptions.
MEGAFENIX: Thanks, Rin. I appreciate this.
WINGEDHEART: You're welcome, Meg. And trust me, the terror is worth the look on his face.
I wistfully smiled. MEGAFENIX: I know.
Zell was worth a lot of terror.