Ellone : Nostalgia, Part III (Father)
Title: Nostalgia, Part III: Father
Fandom: FFVIII
Claim: Ellone
Other characters/pairings: Squall
Table/Theme Name & Number: (VII) 6. Game
Rating: PG
Warnings: n/a
Notes: This was supposed to go with the other two “Nostalgia” pieces, and it’s been sitting on my hard drive forever. My bad. For reference: Mother :: Sister
Summary: Ellone slowly introduces Squall to his family.
“You’re not an orphan, Squall.”
He’s sitting there with a look on his face like he just swallowed the world and may be choking on it.
“I was afraid you’d say that,” he says slowly. “I - I kind of thought that was the … point of this entire … exercise.” He does not look thrilled.
“I…” Ellone doesn’t understand. She’s loved Uncle Laguna from the day she first met him. Laguna was her father and uncle and brother - and savior, in a way: the Knight to a grey Sorceress, one who never really was.
“Raine is my mother,” Squall says, and she can hear the SeeD in his voice, rationalizing. Ellone takes a moment to be proud, so proud of this boy who isn’t her own flesh and blood but still beats in her heart. She sees Raine every time she looks at him.
“And you are not my sister.” The statement hangs between them, wrought: awkwardness, a childhood love, yearning and never realized; potential, and the endless sense of loss.
“You are still my brother, Squall,” she says, reaching out to him: “Never doubt that.”
“But Laguna is…” Squall chokes on the words, apprehensive.
“Were they married?” he asks her quietly, and his voice is that of a young boy surrounded by stone and sea.
“I think so. Raine - she had a ring.” Ellone pauses. “And he does as well. I would assume so.”
“Why am I …Leonhart, then?”
Ellone shakes her head. “Squall, I don’t know. We could go look -”
“No.” It’s curt, sullen: this is the new Squall, the one she had to reconcile with her little brother. “I’ve looked enough, Elle.”
“Are you angry?”
“No.” He pauses. “Yes.” Another pause. “I just saw how he treated you, Elle, and it makes no sense. One minute he dotes on you, saves you from a Sorceress, and the next - he’s forgetting about you to rule Esthar! And what about m-my mother?” He stumbles over the word, which he’s probably never used before in his life - certainly not in this same way.
“What do you mean?” Ellone asks gently.
“He hurt her,” Squall says slowly, wrestling to keep the hurt out of his own voice. “He didn’t come back. How does it - doesn’t that make you angry?”
She shakes her head slowly, trying to explain. It was easier when she could show him, but everything she’d tried to show came out wrong. “You’re - right. He left, and that made Raine very sad. But…” She pauses. Thinks. Sighs. “He left to find me, which made Raine very happy. And he did find me, and sent me home - which made Raine even happier.”
“She didn’t care that he didn’t come back?”
And Ellone sees it, finally. It’s because she hadn’t come back to the orphanage: to Squall, it has always been about who stays and who goes.
“Of course she cared,” she answers slowly. “But Raine was - she had me, and she was going to have you, and she had Winhill. She wanted Laguna, yes, but she didn’t need him.” In her voice is a silent reprimand, no matter how much she wants to hide it.
“They were in love?” he asks softly, and Ellone nods.
“Then he should have -” Squall breaks off, angrily. “He should have come back to her.”
Ellone giggles. “Squall, you’re much more of a romantic than you give yourself credit for.”
He gives her an angry glare that is more embarrassment than anger; Ellone smiles. “They loved each other very much, and it was mostly because they both knew - how the other felt - it wasn’t a sad thing, Squall, not at all.”
She squeezes his hand. “It was a happy thing, for both of them.”
Squall rolls his eyes and sulks somewhat.
Ellone waits. She’s sure he has more to say. She does too. If only he’d let her take him back, again, to find the right memories this time: why has her gift never helped when she needed?
“Laguna’s a good man,” she says to the silence.
Squall blinks, and then sighs, and then nods and shakes his head somehow simultaneously.
“I mean…” He trails off, and then gives a small, cynical Squall chuckle. “He’s the biggest goof I’ve ever seen.”
“That he is,” she replies, smiling at him.
Squall’s not so easily appeased. “Everything’s a game to him,” he says.
“Is that such a bad thing?” Ellone stares at her brother-not-brother, wondering when he unlearned how to smile. Her heart knows it’s no secret: Squall lost his smile the day she left that Orphanage, and he hasn’t played a game since.
Squall is staring at her. “Is it - a bad thing?” he stammers angrily. “Elle, yes it is. I don’t believe that you can so easily forgive him for -”
“I don’t believe you can so easily condemn him,” she interjects smoothly. Ellone never gets angry, but she also does not like when people insult her Uncle Laguna.
Squall shakes his head. “I’m not - it’s - I just don’t understand him.” He’s tripping over his words clumsily, as if stumbling through a rainstorm, and Ellone smiles: she likes how Squall can just be Squall around her.
“I know,” she replies. “But he passed a lot of good things on to you. You should try.”
Squall sighs, deep in thought, and Ellone wishes she were better at this. Instead she says, “He likes chess, Squall.”
Squall shoots her a look two parts confusion and one part irritation. “What does that - ?”
“You could …play him. Spend some time together. Something you have in common.” Now her voice is hesitant. Squall blinks. “You might be surprised,” she adds, not wanting to let him know that she’s planned this for a while. She’d bought Laguna the hand-carved wooden chess set after she’d seen a similar one in the corner of Squall’s office.
She doesn’t want to let Squall know just how good Laguna is, either. Squall is SeeD, and if he ever takes the time to analyze Laguna’s chess strategy, he’ll learn more about the man than she could ever say in words. He’ll understand.
Unexpectedly, Squall’s lips twitch, as if he wants to smile. “You’re going to guilt-trip me into it, aren’t you?”
She laughs, surprised. “Only the first time.”
He groans. “Do I have to?”
“You’re my little brother,” Ellone says, and means it. “That means you do as I say.”
For over_look, FFVIII
XP: brokenprism
Fandom: FFVIII
Claim: Ellone
Other characters/pairings: Squall
Table/Theme Name & Number: (VII) 6. Game
Rating: PG
Warnings: n/a
Notes: This was supposed to go with the other two “Nostalgia” pieces, and it’s been sitting on my hard drive forever. My bad. For reference: Mother :: Sister
Summary: Ellone slowly introduces Squall to his family.
“You’re not an orphan, Squall.”
He’s sitting there with a look on his face like he just swallowed the world and may be choking on it.
“I was afraid you’d say that,” he says slowly. “I - I kind of thought that was the … point of this entire … exercise.” He does not look thrilled.
“I…” Ellone doesn’t understand. She’s loved Uncle Laguna from the day she first met him. Laguna was her father and uncle and brother - and savior, in a way: the Knight to a grey Sorceress, one who never really was.
“Raine is my mother,” Squall says, and she can hear the SeeD in his voice, rationalizing. Ellone takes a moment to be proud, so proud of this boy who isn’t her own flesh and blood but still beats in her heart. She sees Raine every time she looks at him.
“And you are not my sister.” The statement hangs between them, wrought: awkwardness, a childhood love, yearning and never realized; potential, and the endless sense of loss.
“You are still my brother, Squall,” she says, reaching out to him: “Never doubt that.”
“But Laguna is…” Squall chokes on the words, apprehensive.
“Were they married?” he asks her quietly, and his voice is that of a young boy surrounded by stone and sea.
“I think so. Raine - she had a ring.” Ellone pauses. “And he does as well. I would assume so.”
“Why am I …Leonhart, then?”
Ellone shakes her head. “Squall, I don’t know. We could go look -”
“No.” It’s curt, sullen: this is the new Squall, the one she had to reconcile with her little brother. “I’ve looked enough, Elle.”
“Are you angry?”
“No.” He pauses. “Yes.” Another pause. “I just saw how he treated you, Elle, and it makes no sense. One minute he dotes on you, saves you from a Sorceress, and the next - he’s forgetting about you to rule Esthar! And what about m-my mother?” He stumbles over the word, which he’s probably never used before in his life - certainly not in this same way.
“What do you mean?” Ellone asks gently.
“He hurt her,” Squall says slowly, wrestling to keep the hurt out of his own voice. “He didn’t come back. How does it - doesn’t that make you angry?”
She shakes her head slowly, trying to explain. It was easier when she could show him, but everything she’d tried to show came out wrong. “You’re - right. He left, and that made Raine very sad. But…” She pauses. Thinks. Sighs. “He left to find me, which made Raine very happy. And he did find me, and sent me home - which made Raine even happier.”
“She didn’t care that he didn’t come back?”
And Ellone sees it, finally. It’s because she hadn’t come back to the orphanage: to Squall, it has always been about who stays and who goes.
“Of course she cared,” she answers slowly. “But Raine was - she had me, and she was going to have you, and she had Winhill. She wanted Laguna, yes, but she didn’t need him.” In her voice is a silent reprimand, no matter how much she wants to hide it.
“They were in love?” he asks softly, and Ellone nods.
“Then he should have -” Squall breaks off, angrily. “He should have come back to her.”
Ellone giggles. “Squall, you’re much more of a romantic than you give yourself credit for.”
He gives her an angry glare that is more embarrassment than anger; Ellone smiles. “They loved each other very much, and it was mostly because they both knew - how the other felt - it wasn’t a sad thing, Squall, not at all.”
She squeezes his hand. “It was a happy thing, for both of them.”
Squall rolls his eyes and sulks somewhat.
Ellone waits. She’s sure he has more to say. She does too. If only he’d let her take him back, again, to find the right memories this time: why has her gift never helped when she needed?
“Laguna’s a good man,” she says to the silence.
Squall blinks, and then sighs, and then nods and shakes his head somehow simultaneously.
“I mean…” He trails off, and then gives a small, cynical Squall chuckle. “He’s the biggest goof I’ve ever seen.”
“That he is,” she replies, smiling at him.
Squall’s not so easily appeased. “Everything’s a game to him,” he says.
“Is that such a bad thing?” Ellone stares at her brother-not-brother, wondering when he unlearned how to smile. Her heart knows it’s no secret: Squall lost his smile the day she left that Orphanage, and he hasn’t played a game since.
Squall is staring at her. “Is it - a bad thing?” he stammers angrily. “Elle, yes it is. I don’t believe that you can so easily forgive him for -”
“I don’t believe you can so easily condemn him,” she interjects smoothly. Ellone never gets angry, but she also does not like when people insult her Uncle Laguna.
Squall shakes his head. “I’m not - it’s - I just don’t understand him.” He’s tripping over his words clumsily, as if stumbling through a rainstorm, and Ellone smiles: she likes how Squall can just be Squall around her.
“I know,” she replies. “But he passed a lot of good things on to you. You should try.”
Squall sighs, deep in thought, and Ellone wishes she were better at this. Instead she says, “He likes chess, Squall.”
Squall shoots her a look two parts confusion and one part irritation. “What does that - ?”
“You could …play him. Spend some time together. Something you have in common.” Now her voice is hesitant. Squall blinks. “You might be surprised,” she adds, not wanting to let him know that she’s planned this for a while. She’d bought Laguna the hand-carved wooden chess set after she’d seen a similar one in the corner of Squall’s office.
She doesn’t want to let Squall know just how good Laguna is, either. Squall is SeeD, and if he ever takes the time to analyze Laguna’s chess strategy, he’ll learn more about the man than she could ever say in words. He’ll understand.
Unexpectedly, Squall’s lips twitch, as if he wants to smile. “You’re going to guilt-trip me into it, aren’t you?”
She laughs, surprised. “Only the first time.”
He groans. “Do I have to?”
“You’re my little brother,” Ellone says, and means it. “That means you do as I say.”
For over_look, FFVIII
XP: brokenprism