Chapter 8: A Partner for the Ball

[Jun]

WTH? I actually typed Reese in the name box -_- *slaps self awake*

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Jun looked between Hadrian and Zacke, the crease between her eyebrows etched even deeper into her skin.

"I guess you're right Zacke, I should stay out of it...but I dunno. I just don't feel Reese was really such a bad betrayer? He did help us retrieve the Emerald.... if he really wanted to sabotage our mission why did he do it?" Jun looked at him, her expression even more troubled. "And if he did know ditching Dotna would land him in such dire consequences...then all the more it tells us the amount of courage it took to do it. And why did he choose to leave us at Fisherman's Horizon, above anywhere else? There's too many gaping holes in the whole story to make conclusions about whether or not he screwed up what he was supposed to do for Dotna."

She exhaled into a sigh.

"I guess we just have to hear his side of the story."

[Jax Ridean]

Jun sighed, casting her gaze towards the table. "I guess we just have to hear his side of the story."

"Who's side of the story?"

Swooping into one of the vacant seats besides Hadrian, Jax leaned in to hear the conversation better. Earlier, he had been working in the aviation hanger with some of the mechanics, due to the fact that someone had reported recovering various fragments and parts of the Eponine after her fateful crash into the sea. Not having enough time to shower before heading towards the cafeteria, Jax was slightly embarrassed by the disheveled state of his clothing and the large grease stains that marred his already sullied shirt.

Although most of the group seemed at ease--judging from the insults and jokes that were exchanged at the table, his attention was caught by the grim faces of Jun, Hadrian, and some other guy, who were sitting at the end of the table, all of whom seemed somewhat subdued.

"Am I missing something here? We just beat the shit out of Adel! If I were you, I'd feel like celebrating right now!" He chuckled heartily to himself and nodded his head towards the stranger.

"Hey man, I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Ajax Ridean. But everyone calls me 'Jax' for short. So..um...what's your story?" The grin on his face slowly disappeared. The other man didn't seem to be responding as enthusiastically. Clearing his throat, he turned his attention towards Jun and whispered, "Hey, fill me in would ya?"

[Zacke]

lmao aww Lil you can steal Reesie's name if you want, I don't mind XD

---

"Hey man, I don't think we've been introduced. I'm Ajax Ridean. But everyone calls me 'Jax' for short. So..um...what's your story?"

Zacke leaned forward slightly, looking around at the guy on the other side of Jun. "Hey, my name is Zacke. And nobody has a cute nickname for me except Stardust." he smirked, totally forgetting about the lecture Jun had given him only moments ago about how he shouldn't be making fun of Stardie and yadda yadda. Whatever, she was always loud and mean to him. As far as he was concerned, she deserved it.

/Unless she was here. Then you'd have your tail tucked firmly between your legs./ Iris mumbled.

He would have shaken Jax's hand, but it would be weird with Jun between them. He didn't want to hit her in the face with his arm or something.

"Not much of a story to tell. I was on this mission up until the Ruby, which is I guess right about the time you joined. My sister died... so yeah. Temporary leave." he paused for a second, then smiled and continued. "Anyway, good to meet you, Jax."

[Lawric]

Lawric took on the dead weight, slinging Deo's arm around his shoulders and sliding his own arm behind Deo's back. It might have been easier just to pick him up in his arms, but Deo's stupor was already drawing them enough attention. He wasn't about to carry the guy around all damsel-in-distress style.

Man... Deo... He thought, struggling with stabilizing his limp friend. Deo's head lolled to the side. Lawric rolled his eyes. He had been living with Deo for over a year now, and still found himself surprised at some of the things the guy could sleep through. This was one of those times.

More people were coming to the table, and Lawric found himself unable to recognize a single one. It was making him sort of uncomfortable. Not that he felt left-out or anything. It was just becoming overwhelming. Which was a foreign feeling to him; he had never been this way before. He genuinely liked people--always had. But for some reason, not right now. He'd been trying hard at brushing the feeling off, but it was starting to become harder. He just didn't feel that... good. Right now he wanted a little respite from all the laughing and talking and introductions. He turned to look at Van, who stood nearby.

"I'm going to take Deo with me out to the fountain. I don't know, maybe I'll splash some water on him or something." he smirked and grunted a bit, shifting Deo to keep him from slipping. "So yeah, if you and Jaime need us, that's where we'll be."

With that said, he turned and began moving around the people and tables between them and the doors. Which was awkward with the added burden of Deo, whose feet were pretty much just dragging across the floor.

[Reese]

omg -_- I cannot BELIEVE I managed to overlook the Stardie post. The one post I was waiting all day for, and all day it was right there. *bangs head on desk over and over and over... *

---

Reese felt a light touch on his cheek.

He breathed in, a quick but shallow breath. The sensation of being slowly pulled from a safe and comfortable place filled him. The weighty darkness all around was starting to thin out and drift away. He became conscious of his own physical form. As soon as he was aware he could move, his heavy eyes opened halfway. The light was temporarily blinding, and he closed them again quickly. A few moments later he opened them again, tentatively this time.

His mind was very muddled, as if he were experiencing emotions with no corresponding thoughts. The confusion immediately brought on a sense of fear and vulnerability.

The room was gradually coming into focus, and very soon he became aware of the presence hovering at his side. His gaze shifted in that direction. Bright pink against all the white in the room immediately caught his attention. That color... He turned his head toward it as his vision cleared.

His eyes met with violet ones of the girl at his bedside.

Stardust.

His blood ran cold. He blinked and stared for a second, unmoving, unable to speak. Suddenly, his mind could process thought. And it was doing a lot of processing. Too much. He looked away. Everything was railing into him at once, and he couldn't focus at all. He couldn't even pull the thoughts apart and attempt to figure things out. His heart had gone from restful to raging against his ribcage in a matter of seconds. He briefly considered whether his senses were playing tricks on him, whether any of this were real. How could this be real?

I'm supposed to be dead.

His eyes, like that of a lost child, returned to Stardust. He simply stared; too confused, too afraid, too weak to say anything.

---

*blows in hanky* *happy tears* my Squee is back *sobsob*

[stardust]

HAHA that's okay XD Welcome again, Reese!
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Blinking once, then twice, then thrice, Stardust stared back at Reese. It just hit her--the fact that Reese had regained consciousness.

His eyes just...opened, she said to herself. They were close a...while..back...

She could feel Diwata's exasperation. /Rusty psychotic brain is still processing....3...2...and 1./

Something alerted inside her mind and she quickly pulled back from leaning on his bed. He was okay. He really was back. "H...how do you feel?" was the first thing she said. Somehow, the words felt familiar.

I should call Dr. Kadowaki.

[Reese]

"H...how do you feel?"

He felt like he'd just been punched in the stomach. To hear her voice again, to see her again, after everything... It was shocking; overwhelming. It was terrifying, and yet somehow at the same time filled him with a breathtaking kind of relief. It was so many different things and all of them to such a degree that he knew he would probably never experience this distinct feeling ever again.

He felt his throat begin to swell, and he struggling to hold her gaze. She was peering down at him with that soft, concerned sort of frown he remembered all too well. She was the only person who ever looked at him that way--he would never forget it. She didn't seem upset. Her eyes were full of warmth. How much does she know? He pressed his hands into the mattress and pushed himself up a bit.

"I lied to y--" the words came in a sudden and choked rush, the knot in his throat breaking his voice. He swallowed, his face becoming a pained mask. He held her gaze intently, his jaw clenching as he struggled to hold back the hot tears behind his eyes. "Stardust... I'm sorry."

[Hadrian D'arcell]

Hadrian listened to the piece of info Jun had about this 'Reese' guy. If what she said about Reese were true, then he would feel sorry for the guy, ex-Adel worshipper or not. If that were true being the keyword. He lowered his gaze and stared at the screen of his camcorder. Deo's sleeping face was out of view now since Lawric took his leave, but he didn't seem to notice.

If that were true... Hadrian thought. Then that DoTNA spy might know something about the things Adel did at Esthar---back when she made it her capital. What did she do to half of the citizens? He asserted. There was a profit involved here. He might get some real answers this time. He had to meet this guy.

He turned to look at Jun. She seemed to be considering on seeing him. "Hey," he said to her privately. "If I were you, I'd confirm it for myself. He lied to all of you, didn't he?" He closed his camcorder. "Whether you like it or not, you deserve an explanation," he ended nonchalantly. Placing his laptop on his shoulder like some binder, he backtracked from the table.

"By the way everyone," Hadrian said, patting his laptop. "Who wants to hook up with who at the ball? I'll hook you up. Just tell me who." His usual grin resurfaced again. A few seconds passed and there was no reply. "What? Getting shy?"

[Stella]

"You now Hady, you make my eyes roll so much one day they are going to drop right out of my head" Stella said finishing off the last of her pizza rolling her eyes at the hacker. She had no interest in this guy waking up in the infirmary. In fact she had never even heard of him before so why should she care?

"I'm going to show up to the ball alone and then find a partner for this lame candle lighting thing once I get there" She continued waving a hand nonchalantly at him.

[Zacke]

"I'm going to show up to the ball alone and then find a partner for this lame candle lighting thing once I get there"

Zacke laughed. "My sentiments exactly." he said. "Honestly, I think it's pretty stupid that they try to act like it's mandatory for us to choose partners. What are they going to do if we're not paired up, not let us into the Ball? It's supposed to be in our honor. Hello, we just killed Sorceress Adel and ended the war... " he gave a sarcastic sort of laugh. "Seriously... ridiculous." he ended his rant shaking his head.

[stardust]

"I lied to y--" Reese swallowed, looking extremely vulnerable. She had never seen him like this before. That stern guy in black who was always impassive about everything was being washed over with emotions. "Stardust... I'm sorry."

Watching Reese, Stardust's parted lips pursed. Her face turned solemn. She understood the feeling. It was unnatural that she would understand why Reese looked so different from what he used to be. There was no fronting this time. This was him behind the mask. Her gaze found its way to his hand. She sighed and smirked.

"Don't look at me like that," she gently replied. "I'll get mad at you." She met his eyes. "Didn't you save me back at Advelo?" That was no lie. "Now, you can say we're even." She covered it up. That didn't count for anything. She wasn't mad. She never was, despite how sickened she was with the DoTNAs.



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***If Stardie only knew what kind of hell he went through x.x (What the heck was I blabbering, need sleep haha )

[junkuroki]

Jun listened to Jax and Zacke introduce themselves to each other, glancing at Zacke when he mentioned about his leave of absence.
This was the first time she'd heard him talk about his sister. She remembered that there were times when he looked like he had much on his mind, but he wasn't the kind to unload his troubles on other people. Not to her, anyway, even when she had tried to ask him what was troubling him, albeit in a subtle way. She couldn't profess to understand what he had been going through, and she knew sympathy was cheaper than bottled water....

/You can't force your help on other people. They might not appreciate it./

... if anything it might make him feel even worse, but still she couldn't stop herself from giving him a concerned look.

At the sound of Jax clearing his throat, Jun turned to look at the pilot, noticing that he looked rather different from this morning's freshly-showered look.

"Hey, fill me in would ya?" He whispered to her. Jun raised an eyebrow slightly.

"I was talking about Reese, one of the guys who was on our team before you guys joined." Jun felt reluctant to reveal that Reese was a Dotna spy. For some inexplicable reason, she had already decided to give Reese benefit of the doubt. Just the fact that he'd suffered horribly for ditching Dotna nailed him as a victim more than an enemy.

Yes yes...sympathy was cheap yadda yadda... I know what you're going to say.

/I didn't even open my mouth./

"Reese used to be an agent for Dotna, but he also retrieved the Emerald for us. By swallowing it. He's been lying in the infirmary having been injected with something by Dotna for ditching them. But he's awake now. That's why I said I wanted to hear his side of the story." Jun stopped speaking, suddenly feeling energy sap from her. The talk about Reese was tiring.

But it seemed she wasn't to be let off quite so easily from it.

"Hey," Hadrian said to her privately. "If I were you, I'd confirm it for myself. He lied to all of you, didn't he?" He closed his camcorder. "Whether you like it or not, you deserve an explanation,"

She nodded stiffly.

"He deserves a chance to explain too. But not now. Stardust is probably by his side already, if anyone bothered to inform her. Don't wanna suffer her wrath for playing gooseberry." She smiled listlessly.

She was glad when the conversation turned to another subject, specifically, that of the dance.

"Yeah? Well maybe they think it's fun to look at us pair up. I remember the last ball was a hoot, Stardust and Blaze were fighting. Maybe they wanted to prevent that from happening if there's a partner to distract or restrain them. Although I doubt it would help if things really come to that."

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sorry if this post lackslustre...need rest x.x

[raydensharpola]

Rayden walked away from the table halfway through Jun's lengthy speech about the Dotna spy...Reese or something. As interesting as that was, it couldn't tear him away from his food.

He went to retrieve his personal food trolley from a corner, going up to the buffet line and taking five of everything, loading it on his trolley, plates of food wobbling precariously on each other.

"That's it?" The cafeteria lady's eyebrows were almost hidden in her fringe. "I thought we would have to break into the reserve supply today."

"Nah, I'm cutting down." Rayden replied, to which several excited gasps greeted him and shouts of "he must be sick!" permeating the air.

"Yeah yeah, go buy lottery or something." He mumbled with not a little indignance. Was he really such a bottomless pit in these people's opinions? Not as if he didn't pay for his food...They should all be grateful that he's the cafeteria's single biggest customer, but this is the treatment he gets?

"Still haven't decided yet?" He grinned when he encountered Gemma deliberating in the dessert section. "So is this the same decisiveness that's going to help you select your partner at the ball?" He suddenly recalled Gemma's last jibe at him. "And heh, you know the loads of rabid fangirls throwing themselves at your pilot brother wouldn't let me off if Mr Wendigo becomes his dance partner." He raised his eyebrows. "While I'm more interested in finding a Miss Wendigo...I'm sure he doesn't fit that bill."

[Reese]

it was the opposite of lackluster!

;_; aww Jun is concerned for Zackie, and doesn't want everyone to think Reese is all bad. she's such a good sisser to my boys!! *wants to huggle her*

---

"Now, you can say we're even."

Reese silently looked back at Stardust, battling with his aching throat and burning eyes, trying to reign in his emotions and maintain control. He averted his gaze, knowing that if he kept looking at her face he was going to crack.

He had been charged with making sure she failed in her mission; making sure she died. But knowing that didn't stop him from making a connection with her. He knew the relationship between them was just a stupid fantasy of his, he knew he would eventually hurt her either physically or emotionally--or both--and he was just too selfish to stop himself before things got out of control. She told him herself that she trusted him, and he couldn't even muster up the nerve to tell her who and what he really was before he ditched her. In the end, he ran. Just like always, running from his problems like a stupid, scared child. He really expected to be killed. And it would have been okay--because it would have been an escape.

He always thought he wasn't a very good person at his core; and he had been okay with that, too. Until now. Because to do this kind of thing to Stardust... If he'd had to watch someone else treat her this way, he probably wouldn't be able to keep from strangling the guy with his bare hands.

The fact that she wasn't mad at him made it even worse. Maybe if she hated him, it would be easier for him to stomach his own total lack of morality. But she knew everything, and just like always, she was sticking by him... no matter what.

She deserves so much more than this.

"We're not even." He looked downward at the white sheet stretched over his lap. His voice was quiet, a little hoarse. "How can you even stand to look at me?"

[ani]

Stardust


Stardust became silent. Any person who would willingy cross a fire to save a dysfunctional person like her deserved to be trusted. It was hard for her to trust someone, but once she did, it was hard to shake it off. She had always been this way.

How could she still look at him? That must have been the root of it all.

"Somehow, I consider you," Stardust said, standing from her seat. "...my friend." She placed a hand on her chair. "To lose my trust...." She didn't like the guilt Reese was showing. She knew it was a natural reaction, but somehow, his regretful expression was getting harder to look at.

She didn't want that.

"You have to do better than that," she told him. Stardust touched his shoulders and tried to help him recline. "You shouldn't be sitting up yet. I'm going to call Dr. Kadowaki."


Hadrian


"I don't get it at all." Hadrian grunted. "If you think the compulsary matchmaking sucks ass, then let's ditch the ball." He blinked. "Like I've been saying. Especially you," The hacker turned to Stella. "You look forward on going to the Ball but you plan on going alone." Wouldn't that be kind of sad? But he had to take note, women were always weird, so this probably was normal.

"Really, it's hard to keep up with you," he muttered, looking confused.

Well, I've wasted enough time here. It probably should be my turn to lea--

"Just look at you lot..." A SeeD, a female SeeD, stopped near their table holding a food tray. She had a friend beside her holding her tray as well. "The famed Trinity group who eliminated Adel." She smirked bitterly. "The ball is held in your honor? All you can talk about is the f*cking Ball and your dates!"

"Carmi, stop it," her light blonde friend whispered from beside her, looking wary.

"No, let me cut their daydream sh*t, Ari." Carmi shrugged her friend off, her dark fish-bun hair slightly became disheveled from the motion. "I just lost my brother last night so you incompetent SeeDs could smoothly battle those DoTNA officials to your own liking!" Her tone started to shake.

"And this is the kind of attitude he gets from you people?! Ditching the Ball, b*tching, acting high and mighty?" She grit her teeth, tears welling up in her eyes. "Have respect for the dead!!"

From that loud outburst, everyone in the cafeteria had their heads turned towards them.


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Haha dramaaa~XD