After the Storm Has PassedAuthor's Note: This is a rewrite of my first fanfic After The Storm Has Passed. Basically, it's better and revised. It's made Karena more human, made Zell more like Zell, got rid of spelling errors, etc. Hopefully this will get more reviews than the first one... Hopefully.... Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or places, I do own Karena and a few "original" characters. I do own this story and take full credit for "The Storm" Mwahahahahahahahaha. As the first chapter was written when the power went and I was writing by candlelight. I sat there alone in my room. I didn't know my life was about to change, back then, I couldn't tell the future. I find myself wondering if my life's better now or worse. I guess it's a mixture of the two, I suppose I got the good with the bad. I don't really know why I was chosen. Or really, why any of this happened. Not really... I know one thing though, it will never happen again. Not for a long time anyway... I bet most of you are thinking, what is she on about now? I thought this was going to be interesting. Well, you have to wait to find out what is happening. It all begins with me, home alone, practicing for a play. The play was an adaptation of Final Fantasy VIII, as my drama tutor was mad on the series. She'd written songs and a huge script. The play was so long that it's in four parts! I was Quistis, but I don't really look like she does in the game. I have long red hair, and I hasten to add that anyone who says "ginger" is uneducated and prejudiced. I don't wear glasses and there's no way that anyone's going to pair me up with a guy like Squall. Yet, as Quistis I had to sing Julia's Song, Eyes On Me. The girl who had been picked to play Julia could play the piano very well, but sang like a cat. So it was written in that I would sing the song. So, here I am, sitting in the middle of my bedroom, memorizing lines, imagining the applause. My mom went out about half an hour ago, shopping for shoes. My dad was at work, he wouldn't be home for hours. I used this time to practice because the house was quiet. My brother was at a friends, where I hoped they'd decide to adopt him. I looked down at the song I was to sing and inwardly groaned. How could I ever sound like Fei Wong? It was impossible. But still, I had to try. So I read through the music a few times and tried to sing the song.
Whenever sang my songs
My last night here for you
Darling so there you are I closed my eyes and thought about the people I loved as I sang. Crushes who I'd looked at from across the classroom to find them staring at me. About my mom and dad, when they sat in the lounge late at night, how they secretly look over at each other when they think I'm not looking. I thought about all the ways I could relate to the song. And when I opened my eyes... "I don't remember turning that on..." I whispered. My TV was on, showing a scene from Final Fantasy VIII, it was the field full of flowers. Above it was a cloud, it looked dark and menacing. I went to turn my TV off, but the standby light was on. I looked at the plugs to find them lying on the floor next to the socket. I leaned forward and I felt a warm breeze on my face. The scent of the flowers. "What the hell is going on?" I asked aloud. I put my hand on the screen, but it passed through. I felt the flowers brush against my skin. I picked one and brought my hand back through. The flower became real. "Weird..." I threw the flower onto my book. I wondered what I should do. Suddenly a feather, Rinoa's feather, fell from the top of the screen to the bottom. It was then blown out by some wind and it landed on the carpet. I bent over and blew it, it didn't move. I knew I should put it back in the TV set then phone the electrical repair man and get him to sort this out. I picked up the feather and felt my insides turn into ice. My head began to spin. I couldn't breath, I couldn't see. I screamed, but I couldn't hear myself. I couldn't feel a thing. I thought I was going to die. The last scene I saw in this world was the picture of Eminem on my wall. Perhaps not the most comforting of things....
My feet hit the ground with such force that I fell. Looking at where I landed there were little craters. I was breathing heavily as I looked around. I didn't know where I was, but if I put two and two together... I would say that the cave near me was the Fire Cavern, which meant I was in the plains outside Balamb Garden. But then again, I couldn't be sure. Until I knew where I was I decided not to make assumptions. I looked at the scenery. A bleak one to be honest. A few trees, grass, and I assumed beyond the trees was the road. I set off, hoping that I was right heading in this direction. I entered the trees hesitantly. The fact that there were T-Rexaurs in here was present in my mind. As I walked I tried to make as little noise as possible, while keeping moving forwards. It was difficult to say the least. It was then that I heard the sound of my death. A loud roar that could only be one thing. I turned. I saw the monster running towards me. I screamed and ran as fast as I could. The T-Rexaur was faster, but it couldn't weave through the trees, it pushed them over instead. I broke out of the forest and threw my arms in front of my face as I ran blindly forward. I couldn't run much further. The T-Rexaur was still following me. I couldn't carry on running. I turned and faced it. I thought for a second then I saw a GF appear. "Shiva, kill it," A deep male voice commanded. The beautiful ice queen broke out of her icy case and covered the T-Rexaur in ice. I turned and ran as the ice came dangerously close to me. I stopped and then looking back saw that the T-Rexaur was still alive. I watched as the man sliced it into little pieces with his gunblade. "You okay?" He called. I nodded and jogged back over to him, collapsing at his feet. "Whew, I thought I was done for. Thanks..." I said, catching my breath back. He crouched down next to me. "What were you doing away from the road anyway?" It was the first time I'd seen his face. The storm grey eyes, the scar, the gunblade, the lion pendant, all the belts. I swallowed. "You're Squall Leonhart!" I squeaked, climbing to my feet and looking down at him. "You killed Ultimercia and saved the world!" I stared at him as he rose. He drew his gunblade and held it to my neck, I wondered what I had said to be that offensive. "How do you know about that? That's classified information. Balamb never released my name," Squall's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Are you the person who's spying on the top SeeDs?" I shook my head, I hadn't a clue about that person. Who was Squall on about? I had the feeling I had landed at a bad time. "I don't know anything about that. I just know things, okay? I am not a threat to you. I'll do anything to prove that to you," I said, as sincerely as I could. Squall tilted his head and put his gunblade down. "Then you won't mind me handcuffing you?" He said. I shook my head and turned around sticking my hands out behind me. He tightened them, a little too tightly, and then I felt a sharp pain in the back of my head. I only remember blankness after that.
"Mr. Sakaguchi?" The hesitant receptionist poked her head through the door. He looked up at her and smiled, he had been reading through the promotion campaign for the Final Fantasy Movie. She stepped inside. "There's the Head of Square-Europe on the phone. There appears to have been a problem..." She raised her eyebrows. Sakaguchi smiled again. "Put them through..." He replied. He picked up the phone and the man on the other end seemed to be having a nervous breakdown. "The OtherWorld Glove, it went haywire. It didn't send our agent through, but a seventeen-year-old girl named Karena Dove. Her parents don't have a clue what happened. They say the power went out, that their daughter was gone. The door was locked, but her key was inside. All the windows were locked and none were broken. They say there was a white feather in her bedroom and that's it," The man blurted out. Sakaguchi took a deep breath. "Does this Karena Dove know any martial arts? Anything that means she could succeed in the mission set for Miss Jeflin?" Sakaguchi asked. The man at the other end seemed speechless for a moment. "You cannot be serious? Sending an untrained person into the OtherWorld system, and letting her loose? She could destroy the whole system!" He then remembered he was talking to his boss. "I really don't think it is a good idea..." "Final Fantasy was going to be my final game, hence the name. If Final Fantasy ends with Final Fantasy VIII-2, I won't mind," Sakaguchi said, although he knew it would be a blow to him. He had hundreds of ideas. "Sir... I'll e-mail our agent on the inside, he'll look after her..." The man then hung up. Sakaguchi raised his eyebrows and picked up the promotional campaign for the Final Fantasy Movie. Doctor Aki Ross, the Seer, the alien... Hm...
I woke up in a van. I was lying on one of the seats. I sat up and felt dizzy. I recognized it vaguely as a Garden Mission Car, like the one from the Dollet Mission. Squall came through and sat opposite me. I looked at him and found myself blushing, he was really cute really. He folded his arms and sat back. "I've injected you with a simple truth drug. Also you've been injected with a tranquilizer, so you can't run away. Now, what's your name?" He asked. I swallowed, but I couldn't lie, so I just stated my name as he asked. "Karena Dove," I replied. He nodded, and then smirked. "Do you know where you are? If so, where?" He waited as I battled the drug, eventually losing. "I'm near Balamb Garden, in the same Garden Car you used for the Dollett Mission," I found myself saying through gritted teeth. Squall looked shocked and he stood up. "How do you know this?" He shouted. "How do you know my pas-" There was banging on the side of the car. I looked towards the door hopefully. I knew that as long as no one asked me a question I'd be fine. "Squall! Unlock the doors you lazy skiver!" The childish voice shouted. I knew who it was, it was Selphie. It could only be Selphie. Squall looked at me and then opened the door. I realized I wasn't handcuffed anymore and the tranquilizers were wearing off. Selphie hopped inside, wearing her yellow sundress and her brown boots. Her nunchaku over her shoulder, her brown hair slightly longer than I remembered and with less of a curl at the end. "Thank you! Why did you just run off back there! That was really mean! I could have been eaten by a Bite Bug! Or worse, I could have been eaten by Zell!" Selphie scolded playfully. She sat down next to me, then stood up again. She blinked. "Ooooh!" She said, as though she understood something now. "You're Squall's new girlfriend! No wonder he locked the doors!" Selphie giggled. I shook my head and felt the truth drug forcing me to open my mouth. "No I'm not Mr. Leonhart's new girlfriend Miss Tilmett. He just saved my life from a T-Rexaur. He thinks I am a spy, which I am not. And I have a question, what happened to Rinoa?" I coughed, if the tranquilizers were wearing off, the truth drug was as potent as ever. Squall launched himself at me and grabbed my shoulders, shaking me. "How do you know all this? What are you? Why are you here? Where are you from? ANSWER ME!" Squall threw me back into the seat and I began to cry. I realized there wasn't really much chance of me going home. I missed my mom and dad already. To a certain extent I missed my younger brother, but not as much as I missed everyone else. "I know all this because in my world it's a story. I am human just like you, with feelings just like you. I don't know why I'm here and I am from another world! Please don't hurt me. I can't help it. If it upsets you then don't talk about it. I can't stop my mouth from working," I found myself saying. Selphie gasped and Squall just stared. "Another dimension?" She asked. I nodded. Squall glared at me so I whispered the word "yes". There was silence. Selphie stared at me, Squall carried on glaring. I jumped when there was another bang on the side of the van. Selphie opened the door. I stood up and made a break for it. "Hiya!" I heard someone say. Then I ran straight into him. It was like hitting a wall. I looked up to see Zell Dincht. He looked at me surprised. "I'm going home! I don't care what you say! I'm not letting you bully me!" I pointed at Squall. I shoved Zell backwards, he lost his balance and fell. I jumped over him and made a break for it. I saw Irvine, Quistis and Rinoa running towards the van. I looked back to see Squall, Selphie and Zell coming from the other direction. Before I knew it they had surrounded me. I acted without thinking. Selphie went for me first. I sighed, Tae Kwon Do was a self-defensive art, but this was self-defense in a way. I kicked the wooden end of the nunchaku and then let the chain wrap around my arm. I pulled and disarmed Selphie. I used the nunchaku to deflect Quistis's whip and brought my leg up behind me to hit Rinoa in the stomach. She was hurled onto the ground. I saw Zell stay back, out of my attack range. Squall brought his gunblade up, but I used Selphie's nunchaku against to deflect it. I heard a click and the fighting stopped. "I don't think you're going to hurt anyone else," Irvine said. I turned to see the Exeter in my face. I shrugged and threw Selphie's nunchaku to her. Then I back-flipped, knocking the gun from his grasp. I stood still for a moment, then span around to block Zell's attack. For a while he circled me, then he attacked. I blocked. We were equally matched. He attacked, I blocked. I attacked, he blocked. We were equally getting tired. Then there was a gunshot. I felt the bullet graze my leg. I looked up to Irvine, which was long enough for Zell to bring my legs out from under me. He pinned my arms down and sat on my hips. I struggled, but my strength gave in. I lay there. It suddenly struck me that if I died, I'd never see my parents again. My friends, I wouldn't tell them how much they meant to me. A new strength took over. A strength I didn't even know I had. I overpowered Zell and the roles were reversed. He couldn't move, but he was looking up at me in a dazed way. "I will not lose!" I hissed. He swallowed and nodded. "Then you've won," He replied. I raised my eyebrows and stood up. The rest of them were staring at me in a way that suggested they were shocked. "Now I'm going to collapse on the floor with exhaustion," I said. I fell to my knees as they gathered around me. Zell sat down beside me and pulled out a phial of green goo. I watched as he rubbed it on my leg, where the bullet had cut it. The wound disappeared before my eyes. "Thank you..." I closed my eyes, quite prepared to lie here and wait for another T-Rexaur to gobble me up. I was kicked in the side however by Squall. "Get up," He commanded. I couldn't, no matter how hard I tried. He kicked me again, this time harder. I felt the air leave my lungs and I coughed. "Yo, leave it out man. You're bloody well lucky that she's not dead. An innocent civilian life. So don't start kicking her. I'll bet she's worn out, and I'll also bet that not one of you could say that she's not trained by some force or other. So we need her alive and in a fit state to talk. Now back off and leave her alone you asshole," Zell told Squall. I looked to Zell in appreciation. "No need to stick up for the "spy". The fact is, no matter what you say, I know almost every detail of the Ultimercia incident and you may have to do something for me to keep me from blabbing," I challenged. Squall brought his gunblade to my throat. "Or I could just kill you," He said. I nodded. I knew one of the best places to be to find a way home would be Garden. I hoped he'd listen to me. Or that Zell would stick up for me. "Here I am, trying to appeal to the better side of 'talk-to-the-wall' Squall..." I paused to let that sink in with him and Quistis. He looked at me with the same hatred, and Quistis looked shocked. "You let me join Garden, help me find a way home. I won't go running over to Timber Maniacs and the TV Station. It's no big thing is it? A little girl like me?" I smiled sweetly. I wondered if I was telling the truth now, whether what I was saying was the truth or not. Would I really run off to the press? "She'd be a valuable asset to SeeD... Although I don't know her story, or why you're being such a meanie. I think what she asks is fair enough," Rinoa said, putting her hand on Squall's arm. He shook it off and began to walk away. "Fine, you can carry her back then, my lady," I made a rude gesture. Then I stood up, shakily. Zell steadied me and I let him help me. "You didn't have to do that you know..." I said. Zell grinned. "Yeah, but Squall's being mean to everyone because of Rinoa. I'm fed up with it, so I wasn't going to let him scare someone away," Zell explained. I looked at him closely. His tattoo wasn't all that bad... "Yeah well, he should watch it. This bitch bites." (Author's Note: If I put lift I mean elevator, I'm English remember! So's Karena. I think I've translated it for all you Americans but sometimes things slip through...)
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