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FFVIII: The Losing Side
Fandom: Final Fantasy VIII
Pairing: Seifer/Squall
Warnings: Alternate Universe, angst, deathfic
Rating: PG
Summary: The prince comes to free his princess. Partial AU for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
au_abc.
Seifer has been fighting it. He's been fighting it with all he has, all the weapons he knows. He's been juggling information and keeping things back only for her to jerk his body out of his control and dance him along like a puppet on the strings. He pretends loyalty. He closes his eyes and follows her blindly just to keep hidden the spark of hope and the anger at being, well, fooled.
He thought she would give him something amazing. But she just took away his control.
Glory. That was what Seifer had wanted. Looking down at Squall on the metal floor of his cell, it doesn't seem so glorious. Not glorious at all, really. He would try to stop his body as he moves, tugging Squall up with a hand in his hair, but that would only betray his hope. A hope he doesn't even dare to really hope unless she seizes on it and crushes it and realises that he isn't truly her willing and loving servant.
Squall looks sick. Seifer realises that even as he orders the moombas to take him away. He helps them chain Squall to the wall himself. He does his best to hold back his sorceress' anger. Patience, my mistress. We won't find out anything by harming him too much too soon.
And so it goes.
He watches Squall's body jerk and strain with the electricity and he wants to stop it. But just this hasn't gained him his freedom yet. He feels her drawing on his knowledge, taunting Squall. The look in Squall's eyes says that he believes Seifer is doing this to him. Of his own accord.
That in itself almost breaks him free, but his sorceress has him on a tight leash.
Patience, my knight, she echoes back to him. Time enough to prove your character.
For a moment, she gives him his eyes. He looks up and meets Squall's eyes, frightened and pleading, apologising and needing forgiveness. Squall stares at him blankly, pain and fear and fatigue trickling through his expression. It hurts to see him like that, broken open but still not giving in.
He hears Squall's whisper.
"...A torturer..."
And he sees Squall slump.
And then she takes him again, issues orders in his voice and keeps him from looking at the almost broken body bound to the wall. Instead everything snaps with cold efficiency as she forces him to walk out of the door.
He's his own man again after that, until she needs him again. Even when she isn't forcing her way into his mind, he tries not to betray a sliver of his true feelings. So instead he tries to feel satisfied that Squall is suffering. That his rival is finally defeated and even if he's not begging for mercy, he's broken enough to show his pain. The feelings disgust him on one level and excite the part of him that Ultimecia took him for.
He doesn't want to be that forever, though. A sadistic sorceress' torturing cowardly knight. That's not his dream. Certainly not his romantic dream. Heck, the best romance he can hope for in this situation is that Squall comes to save him like the prince who always comes for his princess.
That's his hope. That Squall can save him.
He hears Squall's scream of pain with more than just his ears. His bones feel it. For a moment, he thinks he's free, but...
No. Not yet. Just a little more.
Patience, my knight, she whispers again, right into his mind, mocking and cruel, and he pretends to be thinking of breaking Squall.
-----
"Well now, Squall. I'll ask again. What is SeeD? And why do they oppose the sorceress?"
She's using him again. He's as baffled at the questions as Squall is. He's listened in on the endless graduation speeches Cid made to those who'd just passed the exam. Xu and Quistis seemed to think it would shame him into passing for once. He'd been waiting for Squall, just cause that seemed fitting. He just hadn't betted on Squall passing first time, when he hadn't ever gotten close. Just makes him think that maybe he was never cut out for SeeD.
Anyway, the point is that he's heard Cid telling the new SeeDs all about what they have to do before, but he's never heard any mention of them opposing the sorceress. There's no secret behind SeeD -- just a lot of bloodshed for money.
The guard enters and he turns, waiting. The look on his face is the clever, practised smirk. Ultimecia rides his body so well.
"Sir Seifer, the missiles targeted for the Garden are ready to launch," the soldier says. The words are bitten out exactly. The guy would make an excellent SeeD. And whether he's a willing knight or not, whether she dances him along like a puppet or not, 'Sir Seifer' still has a ring to it.
"Excellent. Balamb Garden is to be destroyed on charges of training SeeDs to oppose the sorceress."
He turns to see the look on Squall's face, the broken down mask, but Squall is slumped, breathing heavily. Too tired to even react with his usual defiance. Seifer wonders for a moment if Squall's spark is gone altogether, but then Ultimecia is speaking through him again.
"It's a pity, really. I grew up there, too... But orders are orders, and Edea wants it destroyed."
"N-no..." Squall whispers, but Ultimecia draws Seifer's body up and there's the smirk again, when all Seifer wants to do is ease Squall down off that wall and take him in his arms and comfort him.
So that's why you've... disapproved, my knight.
I still do your will.
That's right. You do.
"After the Garden's gone, the SeeD hunt will begin. I'll be Edea's bloodhound and hunt down every one of your kind. It'll be fun, Squall. Don't die on me, yet."
But Squall doesn't hear him. His eyes are wide and far and he takes in one long shuddering breath that stutters in his throat and then he's gone. As simple as turning off a light switch. And the switch turns on Seifer's grief too, shocking, sudden, profound, one of the most powerful emotions he's ever felt. For a moment his mind stirs under Ultimecia's control.
And abruptly, Ultimecia's presence within him, her grip on his hopes and dreams and actions, is gone. Shaken off. Supplanted.
"Squall," he whispers, and when he can say it he knows the full truth of it. Squall saved him. Squall came for him like a prince for a princess but it took his life to set the princess free. "Fucking bitter fairytale," he mutters.
"Sir?"
He finds a scrap of concentration for the soldier as he cuts Squall down from the wall. "To your other duties, soldier. I'll take full responsibility for whatever happens here."
"Rather you than me, sir," the soldier says, grimly, but he's gone, to betray Seifer or to pretend as hard as he can that he has no idea what's going on. Seifer doesn't care. He takes Squall's limp body into his arms and holds him. For the first time in his life, Seifer cries.
-----
"How do we know if we can trust you?"
"The one I love is barely in his grave and you're already demanding that I do a full fucking report, instructor?"
"That's exactly what I'm demanding. Seifer Almasy, you've been nothing but trouble for us from the start. Just because you brought Squall's body to us doesn't mean you're trustworthy. Now report."
"It started in the TV station..."
-----
"You okay, Dincht?"
"Just fine, Almasy! How about you concentrate on not getting your ass kicked?"
Seifer grins. He can't help it. He barely thinks of the sorceress-whisper or the undercurrent of horrible grief at Squall's death. He just throws himself into battle after battle, proving himself, showing Cid that even if they never gave him a rank or let him wear the new uniform, he's still on their level. He can kick as much ass as Dincht and that's for damn sure.
It's easy to let go of the pain a little when he has fighting to focus on. Especially monsters. Monsters are the easiest because they look nothing like Squall. Fighting Squall was always the best release, though, and sometimes when he faces a soldier there's the tiniest flicker of that that makes him miss Squall all the more. A flicker of what he'd once had.
"Come on, Seifer," Quistis says, and he follows. Might be hopeless, but he's glad to be fighting for the losing side.
Thanks to Squall.
Pairing: Seifer/Squall
Warnings: Alternate Universe, angst, deathfic
Rating: PG
Summary: The prince comes to free his princess. Partial AU for
au_abc.Seifer has been fighting it. He's been fighting it with all he has, all the weapons he knows. He's been juggling information and keeping things back only for her to jerk his body out of his control and dance him along like a puppet on the strings. He pretends loyalty. He closes his eyes and follows her blindly just to keep hidden the spark of hope and the anger at being, well, fooled.
He thought she would give him something amazing. But she just took away his control.
Glory. That was what Seifer had wanted. Looking down at Squall on the metal floor of his cell, it doesn't seem so glorious. Not glorious at all, really. He would try to stop his body as he moves, tugging Squall up with a hand in his hair, but that would only betray his hope. A hope he doesn't even dare to really hope unless she seizes on it and crushes it and realises that he isn't truly her willing and loving servant.
Squall looks sick. Seifer realises that even as he orders the moombas to take him away. He helps them chain Squall to the wall himself. He does his best to hold back his sorceress' anger. Patience, my mistress. We won't find out anything by harming him too much too soon.
And so it goes.
He watches Squall's body jerk and strain with the electricity and he wants to stop it. But just this hasn't gained him his freedom yet. He feels her drawing on his knowledge, taunting Squall. The look in Squall's eyes says that he believes Seifer is doing this to him. Of his own accord.
That in itself almost breaks him free, but his sorceress has him on a tight leash.
Patience, my knight, she echoes back to him. Time enough to prove your character.
For a moment, she gives him his eyes. He looks up and meets Squall's eyes, frightened and pleading, apologising and needing forgiveness. Squall stares at him blankly, pain and fear and fatigue trickling through his expression. It hurts to see him like that, broken open but still not giving in.
He hears Squall's whisper.
"...A torturer..."
And he sees Squall slump.
And then she takes him again, issues orders in his voice and keeps him from looking at the almost broken body bound to the wall. Instead everything snaps with cold efficiency as she forces him to walk out of the door.
He's his own man again after that, until she needs him again. Even when she isn't forcing her way into his mind, he tries not to betray a sliver of his true feelings. So instead he tries to feel satisfied that Squall is suffering. That his rival is finally defeated and even if he's not begging for mercy, he's broken enough to show his pain. The feelings disgust him on one level and excite the part of him that Ultimecia took him for.
He doesn't want to be that forever, though. A sadistic sorceress' torturing cowardly knight. That's not his dream. Certainly not his romantic dream. Heck, the best romance he can hope for in this situation is that Squall comes to save him like the prince who always comes for his princess.
That's his hope. That Squall can save him.
He hears Squall's scream of pain with more than just his ears. His bones feel it. For a moment, he thinks he's free, but...
No. Not yet. Just a little more.
Patience, my knight, she whispers again, right into his mind, mocking and cruel, and he pretends to be thinking of breaking Squall.
"Well now, Squall. I'll ask again. What is SeeD? And why do they oppose the sorceress?"
She's using him again. He's as baffled at the questions as Squall is. He's listened in on the endless graduation speeches Cid made to those who'd just passed the exam. Xu and Quistis seemed to think it would shame him into passing for once. He'd been waiting for Squall, just cause that seemed fitting. He just hadn't betted on Squall passing first time, when he hadn't ever gotten close. Just makes him think that maybe he was never cut out for SeeD.
Anyway, the point is that he's heard Cid telling the new SeeDs all about what they have to do before, but he's never heard any mention of them opposing the sorceress. There's no secret behind SeeD -- just a lot of bloodshed for money.
The guard enters and he turns, waiting. The look on his face is the clever, practised smirk. Ultimecia rides his body so well.
"Sir Seifer, the missiles targeted for the Garden are ready to launch," the soldier says. The words are bitten out exactly. The guy would make an excellent SeeD. And whether he's a willing knight or not, whether she dances him along like a puppet or not, 'Sir Seifer' still has a ring to it.
"Excellent. Balamb Garden is to be destroyed on charges of training SeeDs to oppose the sorceress."
He turns to see the look on Squall's face, the broken down mask, but Squall is slumped, breathing heavily. Too tired to even react with his usual defiance. Seifer wonders for a moment if Squall's spark is gone altogether, but then Ultimecia is speaking through him again.
"It's a pity, really. I grew up there, too... But orders are orders, and Edea wants it destroyed."
"N-no..." Squall whispers, but Ultimecia draws Seifer's body up and there's the smirk again, when all Seifer wants to do is ease Squall down off that wall and take him in his arms and comfort him.
So that's why you've... disapproved, my knight.
I still do your will.
That's right. You do.
"After the Garden's gone, the SeeD hunt will begin. I'll be Edea's bloodhound and hunt down every one of your kind. It'll be fun, Squall. Don't die on me, yet."
But Squall doesn't hear him. His eyes are wide and far and he takes in one long shuddering breath that stutters in his throat and then he's gone. As simple as turning off a light switch. And the switch turns on Seifer's grief too, shocking, sudden, profound, one of the most powerful emotions he's ever felt. For a moment his mind stirs under Ultimecia's control.
And abruptly, Ultimecia's presence within him, her grip on his hopes and dreams and actions, is gone. Shaken off. Supplanted.
"Squall," he whispers, and when he can say it he knows the full truth of it. Squall saved him. Squall came for him like a prince for a princess but it took his life to set the princess free. "Fucking bitter fairytale," he mutters.
"Sir?"
He finds a scrap of concentration for the soldier as he cuts Squall down from the wall. "To your other duties, soldier. I'll take full responsibility for whatever happens here."
"Rather you than me, sir," the soldier says, grimly, but he's gone, to betray Seifer or to pretend as hard as he can that he has no idea what's going on. Seifer doesn't care. He takes Squall's limp body into his arms and holds him. For the first time in his life, Seifer cries.
"How do we know if we can trust you?"
"The one I love is barely in his grave and you're already demanding that I do a full fucking report, instructor?"
"That's exactly what I'm demanding. Seifer Almasy, you've been nothing but trouble for us from the start. Just because you brought Squall's body to us doesn't mean you're trustworthy. Now report."
"It started in the TV station..."
"You okay, Dincht?"
"Just fine, Almasy! How about you concentrate on not getting your ass kicked?"
Seifer grins. He can't help it. He barely thinks of the sorceress-whisper or the undercurrent of horrible grief at Squall's death. He just throws himself into battle after battle, proving himself, showing Cid that even if they never gave him a rank or let him wear the new uniform, he's still on their level. He can kick as much ass as Dincht and that's for damn sure.
It's easy to let go of the pain a little when he has fighting to focus on. Especially monsters. Monsters are the easiest because they look nothing like Squall. Fighting Squall was always the best release, though, and sometimes when he faces a soldier there's the tiniest flicker of that that makes him miss Squall all the more. A flicker of what he'd once had.
"Come on, Seifer," Quistis says, and he follows. Might be hopeless, but he's glad to be fighting for the losing side.
Thanks to Squall.