Chapter 5: The True Face of Herself

  He was floating, sinking deeper into darkness. But Zell heard a voice that was echoing throughout the void. It was soft and soothing...exacly what he needed at the moment. He felt panic rise in his throat as he struggled to move and found that he couldn't feel his body at all.
"Oh God...am I dead?", he whispered to himself. He recieved no anwser except for the constant murmuring of some unknown voice. It gradually grew louder and it was no longer one voice, but two. Very gutteral and deep. He recognized the accented growl of Bahamut and realized that it was talking, chanting some incantation, totally in sync with the other voice. Zell heard the voices fade away as his darkness turned into scorching heat. His mind, overloaded by the constant rush and ever changing flow of emotions, screamed in frustration. He could feel his body, but it felt so heavy. Pain seared him blindly and he screamed within his mind. The voices faded compeletely, and Zell desperately shouted for them.
" NOO!! Don't...leave!!!!! P-Please...someone...SAVE ME!"

  Drip...drip....drip....
Something wet was dripping on his face. Squall squeezed the moistened cloth to drip more water onto Zell's fevered face. He turned his head from side to side, the droplets of water running in odd directions down the contours of his visage. Squall grimaced as he drew another breath and grasped his ribcage; the damage there had still left him with some lingering pain, although when he woke, he was mysteriously healed. He couldn't explain to himself how the T-Rexaur that was laying the proverbial smack-down on he and Zell had vanished, leaving only a large bloody smear on the damp, dew-covered grass. He couldn't logically reason how he had found Zell alive when he should have been dead. And he couldn't figure out why Dominique was the one kneeling over him when he awoke; shouldn't she have run away for help or something? Either way, he was relieved to see someone there. He didn't ask how his wounds had been healed, but he was curious about the fact that when he awoke and saw Dominique, her shirt was gone and she was sporting nothing but a grimy and bloody, once-white bra. He immideately offered his jacket to her so she could maintain some decency; although as dazed as she had seemed, she looked embarrassed about her state.
  Zell moaned again, rolling his head about on Dominique's lap; she had created a pillow for him with her knees. She gently held his head in place with her hands, hushing him with a soothing hiss. His eyes fluttered open as best they could, considering he had recieved a decent black eye at some point in the battle. He tried to sit up, but let fourth an agonized roar as his broken ribs creaked and groaned within his chest. He clentched his teeth and groaned. Squall tried to keep Zell from moving around too much.
"Zell, you've got to stay still.", he ordered, carefully placing his hands on Zell's shoulders. His action agitated the nearly-forgotten dislocated joint.
"AAAUUGGHHHH!!! DAMN Squall...watch it...will you?", he grunted, blinking grit from his eyes. Squall wiped his face again with the cloth, a concerned pucker showing on his brow.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to. Stay real still and I'll try to finish patching you up."
Zell remained silent as Squall began casting another Curaga spell. The magic, as potent as it usually was, was no match for broken ribs and dislocations. They had always been instructed never to use curative magic for healing serious wounds, like broken bones and such. For those situations, they needed to set the wound as best they could and then seek immideate medical attention. Zell could hear the two voices returning, syncronizing their incantation. He couldn't understand it; it was in some weird language. He looked upward and could see the warm pinkish glow of the sunset through the foggy skylight windows above him. Dominique's face blocked his view as she leaned over his head. Why in the world was she wearing Squall's jacket? The sight was slightly amusing because the jacket was much bigger on Dominique than it was on Squall. Her hair sweeped past her shoulders and created a canopy about Zell's face. She smelled like peach blossoms. Her eyes were focused and clear as she studied the nasty black eye Zell had recieved. Then he remembered, as clear as crystal. Wings...blood...a massacre that only he had beheld. Squall hadn't seen. He hadn't seen the monster Dominique had become. He hadn't seen the sick leather wings protruding grotesquely from where her back should be smooth and rounded. He hadn't seen how she acted in swift precision, executing a perfect execution. Sickened by the memory, he clenched his eyes closed and turned away from her face. A flicker of humiliation flashed across her face, although none had witnessed it. So her secret was out. As Squall finished the spell, the voices disappeared again, and they proceeded to get Zell to his feet. Squall threw Zell's good arm around his shoulders and wrapped his arm around Zell's waist to support his body. Dizziness hit Zell as he stumbled along, but Dominique was behind him and she put her hands against the small of his back to help him keep his balance. He looked back at her through a slitted and swollen eye. She was clutching Squall's jacket very closely to her body and she wasn't looking in Zell's direction. She was looking back at the spot where the T-Rexaur had been.
"Come on.", Squall grunted as they emerged from the Training Center and shuffled down the hallway. "We need to get you to Dr. Kadowaki."
Zell staggered down the tile floor walkway, trying to force his broken body from Squall's grasp.
"I'm...fine...", he grimaced as he stumbled and Squall caught him before he hit the floor.
"Like Hell you are. I'm taking you to the Infirmary."
Zell made no further arguements.
  As they made their way across the Garden grounds, they came across Quistis talking with Ross, Nida, Xu, and a few other SeeDs. She gasped as she saw how mangled the three of them looked and immideately ran to the Infirmary to notify Dr. Kadowaki. The others just stared in shock and whispered amongst themselves as the trio trudged past them. Students lining the hallway stared and murmured as they passed. No one was sure what had happened, but it was apparent that it was bad. Dr. Kadowaki immideately rushed Zell to an examination table, seeing how he was the worst off. He slowly sat on the table and laid back, his face clentched in pain as his ribs groaned again. Rinoa suddenly burst through the doorway, followed by Irvine, Selphie, and the group of SeeDs Quistis had been talking to. Quistis immideately ushered all of them from the wing to give Dr. Kadowaki adequite room.
"We'll be okay.", Squall reassured Quistis as he looked from Zell to Dominique. Quistis pursed her lips and nodded as she exited behind the others, the door closing with a "Blipp...zeeerrrrr". Dr. Kadowaki felt along Zell's left shoulder socket, poking and probing him with her fingers. He yelped as she hit a particularly tender spot.
"Yes, we'll have to put that back where it belongs.", she clicked her tounge after shaking her head. "Ok, I'm going to lift your arm...Squall I need your help here, can you? Alright Zell, when I say so, I'll need you to relax and try not to move. Squall, hold his body down please. Okay Zell, ready? This may hurt..."
She lifted the arm straight out above Zell's head, much to his body's distaste. He could already tell this was going to suck...very badly. He looked quickly to Squall as Dr. Kadowaki began to shift the joint into position. Squall gave him a grave smile and pressed his body weight against Zell to hold him down as the shifting became more painful. Tears streamed down Zell's cheeks as Dr. Kadowaki shoved at the socket, attempting to pop his shoulder back into place.
"ARRHGGGHHHH!!!!", he shouted, his back arching in pain against Squall's force. Dr. Kadowaki grimaced.
"I know, I know...it hurts, but you have to stay still or you'll only hurt worse. One more time Squall. One...two...three...PUSH."
She shoved again as Squall pressed and Zell screamed. A soft pop was heard as the joint slid back into place. Dr. Kadowaki gently let Zell's sore arm slide back down to his side. She helped him sit up and began to set his ribs. She didn't need to X-Ray him to tell he had cracked ribs. After probing a bit, she concluded nothing was out of place and wrapped Zell's torso in splints and a very large Ace bandage. After that, she fitted his arm into a sling. She gave him a few shots of antibiotic and pain killers and helped him lie back to rest as she tended to Squall. Dr. Kadowaki set Squall's ribs, wrapped his sprained wrist, and let him wait in the sitting area. She took Dominique into another room adjacent to Zell's. She was gone for a long time...an hour at least. Squall quietly walked back into Zell's room to check on him. He was awake, staring at the ceiling. When seeing Squall enter, Zell tossed up a weary hand.
"Hey, man. You alright?"
"I should be asking you that. How do you feel?", Squall asked, pulling up a chair. Zell chuckled grimly.
"I feel like shit."
Squall felt the corner of his mouth pulling up. Looks like Zell was going to be alright. He folded his hands in his lap, sitting up straight because the splints around his middle prevented him from slouching. Zell rubbed his sore shoulder with his good hand while both of them remained in silence.
"You think she's alright?", Zell asked after seconds of silence. "I mean...she looked pretty bad." Should he let Squall know what he had seen? Would be believe him or would he just think Zell was dilerious and under high strain? Squall shrugged.
"I think she'll be okay. She didn't seem too bad off. But...", his brow furrowed in thought. "I can't figure out why...why she didn't have her..shirt on." He chuckled in disbelief, shaking his head. So THAT'S why she was wearing Squall's jacket. Her wings must have---wait, that was crazy. No, he had to have been imagining what he saw. Zell had been losing lots of blood; he really could have been dilerious. Zell swallowed.
"Was she...I mean, did she look normal to you?"
Squall shrugged again. "Yeah, a little bruised and bloody, but other than that, normal." He tilted his head back and began to count the tiles on the ceiling. "That T-Rexaur was completely gone. There was nothing left of it...just blood. I guess some other monster got a hold of it and finished it off. I guess Dominique hid until they were gone. But that still doesn't explain her shirt...", he muttered outloud to himself. Zell gulped again. If he told Squall, and this was a real life issue - Dominique really had something growing from her back - then he would need to tell someone in order to help her, right? But if it got out...the rumor mill would have a feild day with that one. Zell knew Dominique already felt she had it hard enough. Dr. Kadowaki would probably be suspicious. There would probably be gashes or scars or something on her back. He could hear them talking in the other room although he couldn't hear distinct words. He had to say something...he had to...
"Uh Squall, we're...like, real good friends, right?"
"Zell, if you're trying to give me your final words, save your breath. You're not going to die."
"Humor me, alright?! I just want to know I can really trust you."
"Yeah Zell, you can trust me.", Squall said with a concerned frown. What was going on in that hyperactive head of his now? Zell looked clearly distressed about something. He took a deep breath and swallowed before speaking.
"It's about Dominique."
His voice was shaking. Squall couldn't understand why Zell seemed so upset...almost frightened.
"I saw something...that maybe I shouldn't have."
Maybe Zell knew how her shirt was missing from her body. Hey now....wait a minute...nahhh.
"She...s-she...oh man....", Zell moaned, rubbing his face.
"You don't have to tell me if you can't do it. It's alright...I won't force you---"
"She's got wings.", Zell blurted out, interrupting Squall in mid sentence. Squall's mouth hung slightly open. The Hell?
"Wings, Zell? Are you sure you're feeling alright?", Squall said, rising from his chair to stand next to Zell's table. Zell scowled at him.
"I'm tellin' you! I know what I saw!! She had friggin' DRAGON WINGS coming outta her back! She shredded that T-Rexaur to a pulp!! She---"
"Are you sure you weren't just seeing her summon something?", Squall interjected into Zell's ramble. Zell shook his head. He knew Squall would be tough to convince.
"No, listen to me.", Zell said slowly, as if Squall were extremely stupid or hard of hearing. "She really had wings, Squall." His eyes were scared and uneasy. A pang of realization hit Squall. Was he really telling the truth? Who knows what happened to Dominique in the past? Even she didn't know herself. Who's to say it wasn't possible? Then reason kicked imagination in the ass. This was absurd. Zell was badly injured and had lost a lot of blood. He may have imagined the wings coming from Dominique when they were actually from her GF. Wait a minute...did she even have a GF?
"Zell...she was summoning...", Squall said in a false sense of logic. Zell grabbed Squall's arm and squeezed hard. He really did have a strong grip for such a small guy.
"Bull shit. You know she wasn't junctioned to anything. Damn it! You know it Squall!!! She wasn't junctioned...that was really her....", Zell's tone softened as he slowly released Squall's arm. Squall's heart was pounding in his chest. Was this panic? Distress? Concern? He didn't really know. But Zell was right...she wasn't junctioned. He didn't even notice it during the fights, but...she was completely open. Squall sat back in his chair, his face fixed in an expression of disbelief.
"She wasn't junctioned...", Zell repeated. "But...she was trying to cast magic on me before we were attacked."
Squall crinkled his brow in a serious manner. "But you know that's impossible. A human can't cast magic unless it's junctioned with a GF."
"Unless they're a sorceress.", Zell stated numbly, once more staring up at the ceiling. He had a point. Rinoa could cast magic even without the GF. Equipping herself only made her spells stronger.
"So you think Dominique's a sorceress? Maybe she doesn't remember...", Squall murmured.
"I've been thinking about it for a while.", Zell stated. "I remember getting hit and then she was there. She said she'd try a spell. I could feel it, Squall. I could feel her healing me up. Then we were hit and...well, parts of it are a bit fuzzy, but I remember seeing you. You were lying on the ground...didn't even move. Then I saw her and she was walking towards that thing and then she started shaking..."
Zell's words grew more and more frantic as he continued. "And she wouldn't stop shaking, Squall. She wouldn't stop! Then she screamed and her back was bleeding. I heard this ripping noise and these wings...these WINGS came out!! They reminded me of Bahamut...then s-she...she started shredding that T-Rexaur...she...she cut its head off. I saw it."
Zell once more had tears running down his tattooed face. This time, they were not from pain, but from fright.
"It was right infront of me. It was still movin'! And then I started blacking out...but I thought if I could stay awake, I may be able to save both of you...but...b-but..."
He was blubbering now, sniffing and hiccuping like a little boy who had been scared of the monster in his closet. Squall walked to the sink and got Zell a cup of water. He couldn't fully comprehend what Zell had been through, what he saw, but...he knew whatever it was, it had really shaken the guy up. Zell hiccupped a few more times before calming himself down. He wiped his face with the back of his hand.
"S-Sorry. I just...guess I let it get to me....sorry."
"Don't worry about it.", Squall said, patting him on the back softly. "I believe you."
"But what do we do about Dominique? She knows I know, Squall. And now you know too! I'm...man, I'm worried about her...ya know?"
"Yeah, but...we shouldn't treat her any different. She's still Dominique. And if this is a problem for her...like maybe part of her past...we should try to help her out."
Zell nodded as Dr. Kadowaki suddenly walked back into the room followed by a ashen Dominique. Dr. Kadowaki's face was grim and the usual sparkle from her ageing brown eyes was gone. She ushered Dominique silently into the waiting area and shut the door behind her. Motioning to Squall, she walked towards her sink to wash her hands.
"Squall...", she said as she lathered up. "Who is Dominique's guardian? Her parents?"
"I-I don't know. None of us do. She just turned up and---"
"How was she treated at the Orphanage, do you know?"
Her tone was hard and almost threatening. Squall shook his head in confusion.
"Doctor, I don't understand..."
"Was she physically ABUSED in ANY sort of way, Squall?", she said turning towards him sharply. Squall stepped back in shock. Surely his beloved Matron wouldn't hurt this girl she had taken in. Anger flickered inside him. Seifer...he must have....no, he was so...protective over her. He wouldn't have harmed her. The children? No...they were physically incapable of such actions. Maybe someone at Garden; then it would make sense why she stayed so secluded all the time. She was scared of someone? Someone who had hurt her? Out of all the possibilities, Squall couldn't conclude on one, so he helplessly shook his head.
"I don't know. What's wrong with her?"
Dr. Kadowaki pulled a series of papers from her file she had placed on her desk. She handed them to Squall.
"Those...", she explained. "Are diagrams of what I found on her. Two vertical cuts on her back...just above her shoulder blades...like someone had stabbed her there or cut her in some way. They were nearly closed, but I could see that they had been opened before."
She pointed to another paper Squall had shuffled to. "She had multiple bruises and scars on other places of her body - the scars being farily aged - but the one that interested me the most was this long one on the back of her neck, ending just below her hair line. It starts from the base of her skull and...", she traced the mark with the tip of her pen. "Travels about four inches down the back of her neck. This was just below it."
She handed him a photo of a marking, a tattoo...but it wasn't like the one Zell had. It looked digital, like a bar code. Squall shrugged helplessly again. He didn't know what to do. Why was she telling all of this to him anyway? He had enough to deal with on his own without Dr. Kadowaki trying to make him her partner in pratice. She rubbed her forehead with tired fingers.
"I wanted to show you those and ask about her guardians because I suspected abuse. I'm sorry, but...I didn't know what else to think. It's all so bizarre. My mind...it doesn't think out of the box anymore. My training, you know. I just...I felt I needed to tell someone...and I trust you the most, Squall. Thank you for your time.", she sighed, taking the papers back from him. Squall felt sick. He had two people's trust now...and that was great, but it was a trust he didn't want to be burdened with. Something was not right with Dominique, and he had the feeling that it would only get worse before it got better.

~*~ ~*~ ~*~

  Nearly a week had passed since that incident with the T-Rexaur. The Training Center hadn't been closed as expected, but more warnings were posted throughout the hall. Although no one had repeated the actual events that had happened, somehow students were whispering about it in the halls. Between classes, during breaks, lunch periods...they were all talking about what had happened to the ever invincible Squall Leonhart and his sidekick, Zell, and how Dominique the Freak hadn't been hurt at all. The story in circulation when along the lines of that the T-Rexaur was attacking them and Dominique went beserk and killed off the T-Rexaur with her bare hands and then injured Squall and Zell in the process...or something like that. Either way, she was avoided like the plague from that moment on. Of course, what the rumor mill had spread wasn't what had happened at all, but who was to argue? Zell had already had a close call when he tried to tell off a group of tough-talking boys who were spreading the lie even further; he slipped and nearly mentioned the winged apparatuses that Dominique had sprouted but he caught himself and then stormed away in a fluster, the snickers of the boys sounding behind his back. Squall was constantly being bombarded with questions about what happened although he made no reply to any of them. Dominique had it much worse though. As she made her way through the halls in attempt to get to her next class, she passed several clusters of students. After rounding a corner, she brushed by one particular group who had been holding a lively conversation. The subject suddenly switched to the Training Center incident the moment Dominique rounded the corner. The conversation immideately fizzled to a soft murmur, like they didn't want her to know they had been discussing something she had been involved in and possibly caused. Dominique clutched her books closer to her chest and sped up her footsteps to get away from them. Her hair (it was down that day) swished smartly behind her as she bounced from earshot. She didn't have to hear them crystal clearly to know that the subject of the discussion had been her. She could feel their eyes roving her, penetrating her back, as if to see inside her heart. She closed her eyes and broke out into a run.
"Have to get away. Have to get away.", she panted to herself. She darted around another corner and sprinted on the straight-way. Suddenly she crashed into a solid form. Her books jammed into her stomach and she coughed hard at the impact.
"I-I'm so sorry...I didn't see you...", she stammered, still shaken by the encounter with the first group of students. She looked up and met the sneer of Duncan Abernathy, a boy who's parents were very wealthy (his father used to be some high ranking and decorated war hero in the Galbadian Army). Duncan dusted off his uniform jacket like he had a filth all over it.
"Watch where you're going, Freak.", he snorted, combing his dark hair to the side with his fingers. His groupies sniggered behind him - three boys and a girl. Dominique opened her mouth to retort but she made no sound. Duncan laughed and leaned closer to her face.
"So I hear you're pretty powerful. Like a sorceress or something. You attacked Leonhart and Dincht, didn't you?"
"N-No...I'd never...", she stammered. Duncan grabbed her chin with a hand, snatching her head from side to side.
"You don't look so tough.", he muttered, jerking her face around in a most uncomfortable manner. "Well, are you?"
Dominique made no anwser and Duncan squeezed her face harder, causing her to wince.
"I asked you a question, Freak.", he snarled throwing her face from his grasp. Dominique cupped her sore chin and glared up at him. He laughed coldly.
"Gonna get mad at me now, are you? Gonna 'attack' me? Make me hurt like you made those others? C'mon...", he snorted, giving her a push in the shoulder. "Get angry. I wanna see for myself if those rumors are true. That you're some kind of psycho bitch who's got freakish powers. Come on...show me!!"
Dominique didn't reply; she looked away from him at the books she carried in her arms. Duncan swung a fist at the books, knocking them from her grasp. Dominique gasped, her face paleing and she started shaking in fear. Duncan scowled again and raised his fist to strike another blow, but a suprisingly tight grip incased his hand and pulled his arm back behind his head in a painful manner. Duncan grunted and looked around to see who the jack-ass was that was hampering his movements. The very agitated, cornflower blue eyes of a certain cowboy poser glared at him angrily.
"You wanna rethink that, Abernathy?", Irvine growled, digging his nails into the flesh of Duncan's fist. Duncan grimaced at the pain, but only snorted in reply. Irvine pulled his fist back further, causing him more pain. The more Duncan tried to fight it, the deeper Irvine dug his nails into his hand. Dominique stared at them with startled eyes, maintaining her silence.
"Now...I want you to apologize to the lady," Irvine said in a low, menacing tone; he could be quite scary when he was angry. "Pick up her books, and get the hell out of here, got it?"
"Go...piss off...Kinneas...", Duncan grunted. Irvine pulled his hand back hard this time and Duncan groaned outloud. His groupies stared in disbelief but did nothing to assist their friend. Irvine slung Duncan's hand down and pushed him away, positioning himself between him and Dominique. He casually tossed his auburn ponytail behind his shoulder, cooly sticking his hands in his uniform pockets and tilting his head up to look down at Duncan from the tip of his nose. Duncan snarled, rubbing his throbbing hand. He motioned for his group to clear out and graciously flipped Irvine the bird before shuffling off to a classroom. Irvine let out a huge sigh and turned to Dominique.
"You alright?", he asked, giving her a smile. Dominique nodded and tried to force a small smile to her own face but failed miserably. She bent to pick up her books; Irvine followed suit.
"I'm sorry you had to go through that.", he said, handing her the last of her books. Dominique shifted their weight in her arms and shook her head, her locks of hair swishing around.
"I....well...it's nothing new...", she murmured, turning slowly to continue to her destination. Irvine followed her.
"But that doesn't make it right.", he said softly, walking shoulder to shoulder with her. "Hey...let me walk you to your next class?", he offered, sticking out his elbow for her to take. Dominique looked up at his grin with wide, glassy eyes. Chuckling nervously, she smiled and nodded, and took his arm as he escorted her to the classroom.
  Irvine walked Dominique to her next class, which happened (by coiencidence) to be taught by Quistis. The encounter with Duncan had held her up a few minutes and she was late. Embarassed, she walked quickly to her console and sat, Quistis giving her a curious look.
"You're late, Dominique.", she sighed. "I'll be there in a minute to help you get caught up."
She noticed Dominique seemed distressed and Quistis looked towards the door, having heard an urgent hiss. Irvine was there, motioning for her. She pushed out from behind her desk and walked to the door. Speaking in a very low voice, he explained what had happened.
"Yeah, like she had this run-in with some ass. He gave her a really hard time about what happened to Squall and Zell.", Irvine stated. He rubbed the back of his neck. "So I'm not like, telling you how to do your job or anything but---"
"You want me to go easy on her?"
"Er...yeah. Just for now. I think she's had a hard morning."
Quistis smiled and nodded. "Alright. I'll take care of her. Thanks Irvine."
Irvine nodded in return before walking away. He paused and turned back. "Hey, I'll be back after class to pick her up."
"Yes, I think that's a good idea. Maybe having someone with her will keep something like that from happening again."
With that, Irvine walked back towards the elevator and Quistis turned back into the class room, the door closing behind her. The class was chatting carelessly among themselves as she took her place back at her desk.
"Okay now...we were about to discuss the biology of GFs.", she said. "Turn on your control panels please."
The students switched on the screens as Quistis piloted them through their lesson from her own console.
"Although a GF is a magical entity, they still have physical bodies.", she began the lecture, directing the student's attention to the paragraph on their screens. "Their bodies are just like ours and the genetic difference is only by 1%. Scientists in Esthar and all over the world have been researching GF DNA for decades, trying to map out the GF genome and discover the one thing that seperates us from them."
The screens changed to reveal pictures of GFs held in captivity. Dominique gazed blankly at the screen, feeling something like agitation stirr within her mind. What did they have to lock these creatures up for? What did they do wrong? Quistis' voice pulled her from her thoughts.
"Dominique?"
"Yes?"
"Can you anwser the question? I was asking whether the Elemental properties of the GF were based on nature or nurture."
"I-I don't understand, Quis---er, I mean, Instructor."
"Do GFs have their Elemental properties because they were raised in a particular environment, or because they have an inborn ability to possess an elemental property?"
Dominique chewed on her lip.
"Um...", she said as she scanned the paragraph for the anwser. She thought back to the articles she had seen Squall reading. She remembered him sharing something like that question with her before. "I think...um, I think it's inborn, Instructor. I think the Elemental properties are passed through the offspring...uh...", she stated quietly, unsure of her anwser. Quistis smiled and nodded.
"That's right. Good anwser. It is true - GFs DO pass their traits, including Elemental properties, to their offspring. Now, does anyone know why certain GFs are easier to train than others? Some are more aggressive by nature than others and are therefore harder to control. What makes them that way? Carver?"
Quistis questioned the boy with messy, dirty-blond hair in the middle row. Dominique looked over at him from her console. She had seen him somewhere before...oh yeah, he was one of Duncan's friends. He was there that morning in the group that was talking about her. Carver cleared his throat as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"I think Dominique knows that anwser. Don't you, Dominique?"
He glanced sideways at her, as if accusing her of a crime. Quistis scowled from her desk.
"That's not necessary, Carver---"
"But it's the truth.", he argued, rising form his seat. He looked accusingly at Dominique who was cowering in confusion in her seat. "She allowed her GF to attack Squall and Zell!! She just let it tear them to peices!"
Dominique shook her head, bewildered. "N-No...I...I'd never...I didn't have a GF at all!"
"Carver!", Quistis barked. "Sit down NOW! I won't tolerate this!"
But Carver didn't back down. He continued his verbal assault as the class began to mumble amongst themselves. Carver addressed the students around him.
"You all heard the stories, right? You all know that she killed off the monster and then had a little fun mauling humans?"
The students mumbled, confirming what Carver was asking. Dominique shook her head.
"No! It's not like that!! I---"
Quistis shouted again at Carver, but he only raised his voice. Just because he was a rich kid with influential, ambassadoric parents he thought he could say whatever he wanted to without reguard to the rules. She was slowly losing control of her class, and she feared for Dominique's dignity as it was steadily being ripped away from her.
"Hell, I'd be scared to touch her. Might attack me or something.", Carver snorted as he sneered at Dominique. She looked on the verge of tears.
"You know...", a cool, smooth female voice piped up. It was Leigh Baxton, the girl in Duncan's group. "...I heard something totally different.", she drawled, twirling her hair around her finger in a bored fashion. "I heard that she's a sorceress who possessed Zell's Bahamut GF and turned it against him."
"See? She's a danger to all of us!", Carver shouted, pointing a long finger at Dominique. She shuddered, horrified that her class was rallying against her. Quistis seemed so far away. She couldn't help her at all because her shouts were dissolving under the ruckus the class was causing. Seeing how he had everyone's attention, if not their support, Carver continued to take advantage of the situation.
"No wonder she's a freak...what if she possesses one of us? Or our GFs and turns them against the whole Garden? Everyone's in danger---"
CRAAAKKK
The loud pop interrupted the roar of students and they looked up to see Quistis Trepe branding her chain whip in the front of the room. Her face was red with anger and she snapped the whip again over her head to insure she had everyone's full attention.
"Carver...", she hissed through clentched teeth. "Outside...now..."
Carver stubbornly shuffled from the classroom and Quistis followed. She gave a chilling warning to anyone who dared to utter another word before she left. After the door shut behind them, she cornered Carver.
"Just what did you think you were doing?", she hissed, hands on her hips. Carver smirked cockily.
"Just telling the truth. Everyone deserves to know that they're in danger while she's still here."
"Dominique is NOT A THREAT to ANYONE at this school. And I suggest you get all the facts before you start spreading vicious lies about an innocent person. From what I know, she SAVED Squall and Zell from being KILLED by that monster."
Carver shrugged, uneffected by her arguement. "So if you really know what went on, why don't you say something? You're at risk too, you know. I wouldn't be suprised if she hasn't eaten some of the younger students already. I thought there were more of them here before she came---"
SLAP!
Carver held his cheek in shock. Quistis was breathing hard, her hand stinging from striking Carver's face. They didn't speak for several seconds before Carver blurted out a stream of obscenities in a quaking voice.
"My...father...will...hear...about...this!!!", he shouted in her face as he stormed away. The bell sounded for the end of class and the students filed out silently as they passed their palid Instructor. Quistis looked helplessly at Carver through the crowd as he hastily retreated and she looked at her shaking hand. This time, she had truely crossed her boundaries. If Carver told his parents what had happened and they contacted the Garden...Quistis could lose her job and possibly recieve harsh demerits in her SeeD ranking. Hell, she could even be booted out of SeeD entirely! Using physical force with a student was strictly forbidden. She covered her face with her hands and choked back a sob. Leaning her back against the wall, she saw Dominique's bewildered expression in her mind. The scene from the classroom played itself over and over again. It was a horrible thing to have to experience. Perhaps this was her punishment for not doing all she could to put a stop to the verbal torture. And Irvine had told her to take it easy...
  Exhausted, Quistis slowly walked back into the empty classroom. She grabbed the corner of her desk; she felt on the verge of collapse. She heard a faint hiccup from the back of the room and peeked around the console to see Dominique hunched over in her chair, her face buried in her hands. Her shoulders were shaking, racked with uncontrollable sobs. Biting her lip, Quistis grabbed several tissues from her desk and rushed to Dominique. She put her arms around her as Dominique buried her head into Quistis' shoulder, her sobs coming fourth loudly. Quistis felt her own eyes well up at this girl's anguish.
"...*hic*...I...I-I wouldn't...*hic*..."
"Shh shhh...I know. I know you wouldn't hurt anyone, Dominique.", Quistis soothed, rocking her back and fourth like a small child. Dominique shuddered again, bring her face up from Quistis' shoulder to take a tissue.
"M-Maybe....maybe t-they're r-right...*hic*..."
"Right about what? They were all lies, Dominique! Ugly, nasty lies!"
"I know b-but...*hic*...", Dominique stuttered as she wiped her eyes with the tissue. "...but I don't remember...what happened..."
Quistis pulled away slightly, staring at Dominique. She let her continue.
"I...I blanked out...as I was trying to *hic*...heal Zell up...I don't *hic* remember anything after that. When I woke up...*hic* my shirt was gone...and there was blood everywhere *hic* and...a-and...Zell and Squall...they w-were---"
She had started sobbing again. Quistis rubbed her back soothingly in an attempt to calm her down. Dominique threw her face into her hands again, her hair sweeping around her like a canopy.
"It'll be alright, Dominique."
"B-But...maybe *hic* I DID really *hic* h-hurt t-them...I can't *hic* r-remember...anyway...*hic*. I'm so *hic*...confused..."
She buried her face once more into Quistis' shoulder. Irvine and Selphie appeared at the door, Irvine keeping his word that he'd walk Dominique to the next class. They stood there, watching Dominique sob into Quistis' arms. Quistis gave them a helpless look and shook her head. Selphie squeezed Irvine's hand.
"What happened, Irvy?", she whispered in confusion. Irvine ran his fingers through his bangs. What bad timing.
"I think they need a minute, Selph. Let's just give them a minute."

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