Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy X 1. Distant Shores

_AN: Final Fantasy VIII and X belong to Square-Enix and the character designs described all belong to Tetsuya Namura. People may not like the idea of an X/VIII crossover, but I always thought it would be nice for Tidus to come and shake things up._

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"_Don't cry!"_

The words of a small voice echoed in his ears as the waves rushed across his cheeks. _"We'll dream another sea for you to swim in." _The waters looked the same, crystal blue and clear, warm and welcoming. But something was different, he couldn't breath this water. He thought of a new sea and a new life as the clear blue blinked into black.

* * *

Squall Leonheart stepped out onto Balamb beach. It had been weeks since Ultimecia was defeated and after the victory party things had slowly gone back to normal, Quistis took over as headmaster to balance Squall as commander, Irvine passed his seed exams and was currently lending aid to Galbadia garden, helping set up Xu as the new headmaster after Martine's untimely death. Laguna had just proposed a new plan to present Balamb with a companion garden in Esthar and the joint efforts between Balamb and Esthar were already underway. Selphie had left a few days after Irvine to oversee the rebuilding project and in Timber. Rinoa had enjoyed Squall's smiles and all of the luxury that Balamb could manage, but the power of sorceress' Ultimecia, Adel and Edea were too powerful for her to take. It took only a week for her to start feeling the effects, small flashes of uncontrollable emotions that created uncontrollable spells. Quistis had tried to absorb some of her power but the powers inside Rinoa surged as she began to siphon them off. Squall searched for anything that could help contain her and after she turned to for help she was quickly convinced to go off to his secret lunar research facility to find a way to bind her powers. Squall had suspected that Odine was more concerned with finding a way to draw and junction that much power than saving Rinoa and after their parting fight Squall assumed that he wasn't supposed to be waiting for her.

Squall was sad, almost as gloomy as ever. Without the warmth that Rinoa had coaxed out of him, and now the companionship of Irvine, the one other person that he had opened up to he had crawled back into his old shell. Leading missions had been the only haven he found from his loneliness, so the fact that his friends were making peace around the globe was a bittersweet feeling. Quistis had insisted that he dug his head out of the files and here he stood, his boots almost touching the surf, the calm waves lapping up closer and closer as if they wanted to comfort him but never got near enough. Squall stood in contemplation, stiff as a statue until something washed up along the shore to draw his attention.

Squall clenched his jaw and ran out 20 meters to where the thing had washed up in full reconnaissance mode until he realized what it was. It was a man, a blonde handsome man, his build was somewhere between Squall and Seifer's, he was taller and bulkier than Squall but not quite as massive or intimidating as Seifer. He had sun-bleached sandy blonde hair, and a striking tan similar to Irvine's, he was wearing odd clothing a yellow jacket that left his muscular chest bare, a long glove across his left arm and a small glove on his right hand. He was wearing something like a black jumper with uneven shorts, and the loudest yellow shoes that Squall had ever seen. A light blue aura flushed across him as Squall noticed the symbol repeated across all of his clothing, in red on his leg and jacked, on his silver earring and his necklace. Squall grabbed for the necklace, the rings he had warn for years connecting him to his past when he realized that they were gone. Rinoa had ripped the chain right off his neck in their last spiteful argument on the balcony where they had found their love, the aura of other sorceress' pulsing out of Rinoa with her rage and the rings that were so precious to him had flown over the edge and tumbled into the ocean. Squall turned his attention back to the man in front of him, he was young, only a few years older than Squall; two tops. He had a rounder face than Squall was used to seeing with perfect clear sun kissed skin, his lips were plump, his nose smallish and round and his eyes were a crystal blue, clear and entrancing.

"!" Squall jumped back, realizing that he was awake.

"Uh, hi… My name Tidus, what's yours?" He said with a big smile, running one of his gloved hands through his thick hair.

"…how are you conscious?"

"I cast Regen on myself before I blacked out, I was just lucky really I only had a second when I realized that I couldn't breath."

"… Why didn't you just cast Aero, then you would have had a bubble of air…" Squall said with a scolding tone, uncertain of who could have a Regen spell when they didn't even have Aero. "You could have died you know? You shouldn't fool around."

"I don't know Aero…" Tidus said looking a little ashamed "I actually only know a few healing and attack spells, they pack punch but I was never really into the status modifications."

"What do you mean 'know'? How did you get close enough to a monster with a spell like Regen when you don't have any support magic?"

"Monster? What are you talking about…?" Tidus said looking up at him.

"To draw magic from…" Squall said, his patience wearing thin. _Pretty boys are always dumb_, he thought with a snort, and then he thought of Irvine and wanted to take it back.

"Is drawing magic like summoning? I just learned some magic from a few of my companions a while back…" he trailed off staring at the sand.

"Did your companions teach you how not to drown?" Squall said in an almost blank tone, there was just a hint of sarcasm.

"What's your problem man?" Tidus said climbing to his feet and using the few inches he had over Squall to tower over him.

"My problem is: What kind of stupid person washes up on shore when they're junctioned with powerful magic and why the hell would you just give me your name like that?"

"What is junctioning exactly? The magic is just there, in my head…"

"Does it ever run out?"

"I get tired but the magic never goes away…"

"Like a Sorceress?" Squall asked raising an eyebrow.

"You're taking me back to my whole 'magic police' question…" Tidus said with a smirk.

"I'm the commander of Seed and Balamb garden."

"The what of the what? Look… I'm new here… I must have hit my head," Tidus said falling back on an old and somewhat lame excuse.

"May have?" Squall mumbled with his impassive face.

"What's with the bad attitude, huh? I introduce myself and you practically jump down my throat."

"Why would you introduce yourself to a total stranger? There's no point in getting to know different people, in bringing them into your world…"

"What's that supposed to mean, you came over here to help me, I can tell. You were already coming to 'draw me in' or whatever so what's the big problem with giving me your name?"

"But you didn't need my help," Squall said blandly.

"Disappointed?"

"…." Squall let out a heavy sigh, this was the most he had spoken to anyone since Rinoa had left and as usual it was exhausting.

"Look, I do need your help. I told you, I hit my head so I don't really know anything…"

"But your name and that you know magic and where you learned it?" Squall raised an eyebrow. "You're talking to the Commander of a global mercenary organization that had brought down armies not to mention three sorcoress' so you'll have to come up with something better than feigning amnesia." Squall said crossing his arms and hoping that his tongue would go back to its usual laziness some time soon. Tidus leaned in till his lips were only an inch from Squalls ear and whispered:

"Does it make you hard?" Squall jumped back a deep blush coloring his pale cheeks for a moment before he could subdue his reaction and glare back at him.

"What?"

"Introducing yourself with some big fancy title to a complete stranger. What an arrogant jerk."

"…" Squall had a flashback to the way he felt around Seifer when he tried to lord the disciplinary committee over everyone and frowned.

"It's just my job…" Squall said with a sigh.

"Oh, is that it?" Tidus said crossing his arms defiantly.

"Fine, just come with me…"

"What is that an order _commander_?" Tidus said with a little smirk, he kind of liked arguing this guy and hadn't minded the way that he had been looking him over before he opened those pretty little lips of his and spewed out arrogance.

"You said you wanted my help. You 'hit your head' so I'll take you to Dr. Kodikawa."

"Okay… you know I used to be an important guy where I came from…" Tidus said before realizing that the more of his history he retold the less and less believable amnesia would be, not that he really needed a cover, he just needed to find a way to fit in and to live.

"Whatever," Squall said leading him across the beach, into town and into his hummer for the long quiet journey back to garden.

* * *

Tidus was mildly amazed as he looked at Balamb garden. It was so round, and blue, encrusted with symbols and a halo of yellow light around the center. He definitely wasn't in Spira anymore; the technology was advanced but nothing like the things from Zanarkand either. No one spoke to them as they crossed the gardens halls, many bustling students stopped to check him out, Tidus was surprised that no one checked out his chaperone but thought that maybe his attitude had more to do with it than his looks. Squall hadn't said a word to anyone all the way to the doctor's office and when they found Dr. Kodikawa she was wearing a black suit under her doctor's coat and looked up from a medical file.

"It looks like you have a new friend," she said with a slight smile.

"He washed up on shore. He said he hit his head," Squall said stoically.

"Alright, what's your name son?" she said motioning him to sit on the examination table.

"Tidus, you must be Dr. Kodikawa…"

"Yes, nice to meet you. Now, what were you doing washing up on shore?" she asked as she went to grab some medical equipment and began scanning him. "Oh, you cast Regen, very astute."

"Sorry I'm late," a beautiful blonde woman said as she walked in the room. She was wearing the same refined uniform that many of the students wore along with a slim pair of glasses that made her look like a sexy librarian.

"Hello, I am Headmaster Quistis Trepe, welcome to Balamb garden." She said with a brief smile.

"Hi, I'm Tidus, so you're in charge here?" he asked looking her over for a moment before looking back at Squall.

"I am in charge of the student body at this garden, yes but it military circumstances the headmasters all defer to the commander." She said nodding toward Squall.

"You really are a commander? Well, there's a surprise." Tidus said with a smirk. "I was sure you were like 16," he chuckled.

"Squall turns 18 in about a week," Quistis said with a little smile.

"Squall, eh? So that's your name..."

"You brought him here without introducing yourself? What have I told you about being more diplomatic Squall? You have to learn to represent Balamb properly." Quistis said putting her hands on her hips.

"He was a vagrant." He said crossing his arms with a glower.

"Vagrant or not you are still the representative of Balamb and especially after the end of the war you are more iconic than ever."

"Whatever," Squall scowled.

"Vagrant? Who's a vagrant? I just didn't know what I was getting in to, that's all. I didn't know that I couldn't breathe in the water, that's all." Tidus said dumbly.

"Where are you from? You certainly are dressed flamboyantly, is it Esthar maybe?" Quistis said putting her hand on his shoulder and trying to read him.

"I'm from… a place called Zanarkand." He said unsure of what else to say.

"Zanarkand, I've never heard of it… is it on the Centra continent?" she said leaning in and looking in his eyes.

"Zanarkand is in Spira… that's where I come from."

"Feh, first you pretend to have amnesia, and then you make up places? I'd say he was a Deiling spy but he's too dumb," Squall pouted.

"Well, there's nothing wrong with your head Tidus, but there's something unusual about your cells," Dr. Kodikawa said writing something down in the charts, and taking her scanner readings into another room.

"It's Magic, you're completely coated in magic," Quistis said with amazement. "It's like touching a sorceress except this power seems completely natural, unlike the gift of Hyne it seems that its integrated, it takes you no energy to maintain?"

"Maintain what?" Tidus asked raising an eyebrow.

"I would like to invite you to stay here at garden for a while, maybe take a few classes and see how you fit in? You are a bit old compared to the beginning students but if you would like I could arrange for some more advanced classes."

"You're inviting me to go to school?"

"Well, to be honest with you, I would like the opportunity to study you and observe your magic, and weather you come from some make believe country or not it seems like either you have no place to go, or at least no place that you want to go, so why not stay here?"

"Will that make him my commander?" Tidus asked raising an eyebrow.

"I can't think of a better person to run through the training center with you and get you caught up with our basic tactics, Squall was a straight A student." Quistis said barley hiding her amusement, Squall had been so distraught lately and since peace seemed to be settling in she thought that babysitting might take his mind off of Rinoa absence, she also thought it would be prudent to keep a potential sorcerer guarded by a sorceress knight and the savior of the planet.

"Quistis…."

"No arguments, I am in charge of acceptance and the class scheduling so until Tidus is settled in and has learned the way things are done around here he'll be in your care," Quistis said in a stern tone.

"How will I get all my paperwork done?" Squall glowered.

"You're more than on top of your paper work and if you get behind Nida and Zell should be available to help you shoulder the burden.

"I guess I could stick around for awhile…" Tidus said scratching his head awkwardly. "Sorry you got stuck with me though, Squall." He said with a soft smile.

"Whatever."

Dr. Kodikawa poked her head out of her office for a moment. "In the next day or two I would like to do a full bio-scan of you Mr. Tidus."

"Just Tidus and I guess that's okay, as long you're not going to dissect me."

"Well, now that that's settled, Squall as you know there are currently no openings in the dorms so Tidus will be staying with you."

"No," Squall said simply.

"Your room is more than big enough for two people and it would be prudent for you to look after our guest."

"No…" Squall repeated.

"Look, its okay… I can crash outside or something…" Tidus said awkwardly.

"You are ultimately in charge here Squall, but you brought him in, how would it look to the students if their commander was unwilling to deal with the consequences of his actions?"

"…"

"Besides you don't want to encourage students to bring in vagrants," Quistis said more softly.

"Not a vagrant," Tidus grumbled. "I'm a guardian, a protector of the summoner." He said proudly.

"That sounds a bit like a sorceress knight, so you two already have something in common.

"…" Was all Squall said for hours.


	2. Their First Battle

_A/N: This is a Mature story... if you don't like MM relationships or Lemoniness then close the window now. Otherwise enjoy. If you read any of my "Spira as a dream" you'll notice that I keep Tidus the same._

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"So when do we go to the training center?" Tidus said, looking away from the class information console. He had gotten through the basic tactics tutorial, and battle seemed similar to what he was used to, aside from the summoning and drawing magic and he was eager to blow off some steam.

"Do you know how to use any weapons?" Squall asked impatiently. So far his entire day had been babysitting Tidus and as much as he needed to unwind in the training center he didn't want to have to worry about some amateur getting him killed.

"I can use a long sword…"

"A long sword? Hyne…"

"What's wrong with a long sword?" Tidus said with a frown.

"It's so basic…" Squall said massaging the bridge of his nose to quell his irritation.

"So… where did you get that scar, anyway?"

"…." Squall looked at Tidus blankly and then shifted his attention to the clock. "We should be able to pick up a _long sword_ in Balamb and be back her in time to clock a few training hours before dinner," Squall said. Tidus didn't like the emphasis put on his signature weapon, but he couldn't argue with getting out and learning some new moves. Tidus just wished that his teacher was a little friendlier.

* * *

The ride back to Balamb was almost as quiet as the first one that day, Squall had driven quietly and Tidus tried to read up on the local history.

"So what exactly is a GF?" Tidus asked looking up from his data pad.

"Did you read the entries?"

"Yeah, but it was pretty vague, I mean, where do they come from… what do they want?" The Fayth had been the only way to summon where he came from, and he didn't want to have anything to do with using the souls of the dead, even if they had made him.

"They come from another dimension… They want to help people who prove their strength and have similar goals."

"So they just want to help?"

"…. They also feed off of the emotions and memories of their hosts…"

"Hosts… like a parasite? Is than safe?"

"We just make sure not to have them junctioned for too long, you begin to loose things…" Squall said keeping his eyes locked on the road.

"How did you end up being a Commander? You're younger than me…"

"…. Why do you want to know?" Squall asked with a small frown.

"I'm just curious… I'm not used to the way things are here…" Tidus said looking out the window. "Everything is different… I'm just… The last guy who found me on the shore was a lot nicer," he said with a small laugh.

"…. Whatever."

"Fine." Tidus said folding his arms with a frown.

* * *

"A long sword?" The junk shop owner asked raising an eyebrow. "You want me to make a long sword?"

"What's wrong with that?" Tidus shouted back at him.

"Hey, Squall!" Zell shouted bouncing over to the junk shop. "What are you doing here?"

"Trying to pick up a weapon for him." Squall said with a frown.

"Hi, I'm Tidus," He said waving.

"Hey, I'm Zell. Nice shorts!"

"Thanks, I like yours too… hey are you a Seed?"

"You bet your ass, I'm Seed class S, Squall and I grew up together."

"Really?" Tidus turned to Squall. "You have friends? That's great," he said with a big smile. "I was a little worried you hated everyone."

"…." Squall looked down at his shoes.

"He's just been down since Rinoa left…"

"Zell…" Squall said with a frown.

"Rinoa..."

"… So why are you guys looking for a weapon?"

"Quistis accepted him into Seed and she decided that I should help train him." Squall said.

"Really?" Zell asked raising an eyebrow. "Cool! I can help too!" Zell said punching the air with a bright smile.

"Ahem, your long sword will take a couple of hours; I'll have to modify a scrapped gunblade." The junk store owner said.

"Alright," Squall said with a nod.

"Long sword?" Zell said with the same disappointment that both Squall and the junk store owner had. "Have you ever tried knuckles? I actually just upgraded and I have a pair of old Gauntlets. You want to give them a try?" Zell asked handing him a pair of magical gloves.

"Really? Sure!" Tidus said with a grin, it wasn't the weapon he was used to but he was definitely willing to try something new. He pulled off his old gloves and slipped on the Gauntlets. "Cool!" he said looking them over.

"Help! Somebody help!" a woman shouted running up from the beach. "Blue Bombs are attacking my son, please help!" She said screaming and crying hysterically.

"Alright, let's go!" Tidus shouted running off to the beach.

"He's my kind of guy!" Zell shouted chasing after him, doing flips and cartwheels along the way.

"Hyne," Squall mumbled before chasing after them.

* * *

When they reached the beach there was an eight year old boy cowering by the rocks with two Blue Bombs and a Bruel circling around him.

"Where did those come from?" Squall said with a frown.

"Aren't there monsters everywhere here?" Tidus asked as he raced over to the kid.

"Yeah but those aren't from around here," Zell shouted flipping forward and catching the attention of the big blue bombs, one of them leaned in to bite Zell when an inferno swirled around it and it disintegrated. "Nice cover Squall," Zell shouted back with a grin. Squall just shook his head as he cast protect on the little boy and moved into position.

"Yeah, way to go! You can do it!" Tidus shouted, casting cheer on Zell and infusing him with energy.

"Hey, thanks! Now watch and learn," Zell said rushing the last blue bomb and raining punches down on it. Zell jumped up and stomped on the bomb, smashing it to the ground and making it grow. Zell wailed on the bomb until he summoned a meteor shower that blast in into oblivion.

"Cool!" Tidus shouted, "My turn!" Tidus charged the Bruel as he cast thundaga, charging his Gauntlets and pummeled in, electrocuting it until it turned to dust.

"Nice! How did you do that?" Zell said with a grin.

"I just figured I could pack more of a punch…" Squall walked over to the little boy and looked him over, casting cure for his few little cuts and bruises.

"Don't cry," Squall said softly patting the boy on the head before picking him up. Tidus just watched in amazement, he had never expected to see Squall be so sweet to anyone and especially not in the way that people had been kind to him when he was young. "…." Squall looked back at him for a moment and then took the boy over to his mother.

"Thank you," the woman said with a bright simile and she ran off into town with her son.

"That went pretty well, don't you think Squall?" Zell said with a grin. Squall just shrugged. "Hey, Ma is making me a big dinner… If you want to join us I think she would really like that…"

"…."

"We'd love to," Tidus said slapping Zell on the back.

"I guess…." Squall said awkwardly.

* * *

Ma Dincht was ecstatic to have more visitors and there was more than enough stew and freshly baked bread to go around.

"Squall, it's so nice to have you come over," she said with a bright smile. "Our Zell talks about you all the time." Zell turned bright red and tried to shake his head but no one seemed to be paying attention. Tidus was laughing behind his spoon.

"Yeah, he told us you met your father?" Pa Dincht said before eating another big spoonful of stew. Squall paused eating for a moment to glare over at Zell and then nodded.

"Laguna Loire…." Squall said softly.

"The President of Esthar? Well that's wonderful" Ma said with a bright smile. "I hear he's a great man, you should bring him over for dinner some time."  
"…."

"Hah, it looks like defeating sorceress' is in your blood my boy…" Pa said, taking another big gulp of wine.

"Hey Tidus, come here." Zell said bouncing up from his seat, "I want to show you something really quick."

"…Okay," Tidus said bouncing up after him.

"Don't be long you too. So Squall how is Rinoa? Have you spoken to her lately?"

"…I have to go to the bathroom," Squall said disappearing down the hall toward Zell's bedroom and hiding in the bathroom.

* * *

"Nice room," Tidus said playing with Zell's punching bag. He had spent so much time over the last six months on the pilgrimage he had forgotten what a proper bedroom looked like.  
"It's not much," Zell said rubbing his neck awkwardly.

"It's cool."

"Thanks… I just wanted to give you these…" Zell said scrapping together a big pile of magazines and setting them on top of the table. "I was so jazzed watching you fight… I figured these back issues of Combat King might show you a thing or two," Zell was bouncing up and down again already, punching his punching bag and trying to avoid staring at Tidus too much. "Not that you really need any moves, what you did out there was pretty cool."

"Thanks, you know I never really thought I would be doing any had to hand combat but I did learn a lot of things I could use playing Blitz ball."

"What?"

"It's a sport where I come from, I'll show it to you some time."

"Cool!" Zell said with a big jump.

"And… Thanks Zell, for being so nice… you remind me of this guy…" Tidus paused, his eyes a brilliant blue as he stared out the window. "He helped me out a lot when I was lost and we ended up being really close…"

"I'm happy to help," Zell said slapping Tidus on the shoulder really hard. "Oh and there's something else I wanted to give you…"

"But you've already done so much,"

"Yeah well he and I don't really sync very well and he seems to like you…" Zell said, taking off his glove and placing his hand on Tidus' cheek

* * *

Squall slunk out of the bathroom and peeked out into the dinning room, Ma and Pa Dincht were waiting patiently for them to return. Squall shook his head; he didn't want to talk about Laguna or Rinoa. He wasn't going back in there alone. Squall crept over to Zell's door, careful not to get caught by his parents and called back to the table. The door was opened a crack and he peeked in awkwardly. Squall didn't really want to be alone with them either; to be asked more questions or teased. He felt like it was dangerous to be with two people who were so friendly. The last thing he wanted to do was open up, share his feelings and let in more people who would just leave him in the end. Zell put his hadn't on Tidus cheek and they looked into each others blue eyes for a long moment.

"Sorry, I don't know why he didn't transfer…" Zell said blushing at the way Tidus was looking at him.

"Who?"

"Maybe…" Zell leaned up and gently kissed Tidus, blue magic pouring into Tidus as their lips touched.

"Oh!" Tidus said, stepping back.

"Sorry, I… he didn't seem to want to junction. I mean… I wasn't..." Zell blushed even more.

"Are you sure you can give me your GF? I mean they're pretty special right?"

"Yeah, but like I said, he really likes you. He and I don't sync… so…." Zell stepped back awkwardly, cornering himself against the wall.

"This feels so weird; he's talking to me… Leviathan, he says you," Tidus beamed moving up closer to Zell. "He's still connected to you, you know." Tidus could feel waves of warmth, admiration and desire. He felt Zell's intense passion as well as his desire to be seen that way, touched and loved.

"What?" Zell said softly, looking up at Tidus as he moved in only inches away. "That doesn't happen…"

"Well, I am from another world you know," Tidus said in a soft voice. Tidus ran his fingers across Zell's tattoo admiring it and his light blue eyes.

"Oh?" Zell said as Tidus pressed him up against the wall and kissed him, his lips firm but gentle as he brushed a hand against his cheek. Zell grabbed Tidus' jacket pulling him closer, their kisses deepening as Tidus slipped his tongue into Zell's mouth. Zell rubbed his hips against Tidus' thigh gently as their kisses grew hotter and more urgent.

Squall barely blinked as he watched them, he knew that he probably shouldn't be looking but they had taken him by surprise with both what they were doing and how beautiful they were doing it. Tidus' deep blue eyes were lidded as he pressed those full lips of his against Zell's. Zell's porcelain pale skin was a bright pink, his eyes closed with this sweet dreamy expression on his face. Tidus pulled back from their kiss pressing his hips firmly against Zell's gentle rocking as he ran his ungloved hand across Tidus' chest. Tidus pulled off his right gauntlet and started unbuckling Zell's belt, tossing them both to the floor.

"You don't mind, do you?" Tidus whispered into his ear as he slid his hands under Zell's shirt feeling the firm plane of his stomach. Zell shook his head, licking his lips in anticipation. Tidus planted a soft, slow kiss on Zell's lips as he slipped his hand into his shorts, tongues massaging each other playfully as he wrapped a firm hand around him and began stroking. Zell let out heavy breaths between kisses, a low moan starting in his throat as Tidus made his head spin with sweet slow kisses and fast firm strokes. "Do you like that?" Tidus asked breathily as he kept up his steady rhythm and began nipping and kissing at Zell's neck.

"Yeah," Zell moaned out. He had to bite his lip to keep anything louder from slipping out. "Tidus," he whimpered, calling the other boy back to kiss his lips tenderly. Zell wrapped his arms around Tidus' neck, pulling him in close. Tidus chuckled against his lips, feeling another wave of desire as he cupped Zell's butt through his shorts with his other hand. Zell began to jerk against Tidus' rhythm, hips spasming as their kissed slowed. Squall had turned light pink, aside from feeling like a voyeur the entire interlude made him feel funny. He had never thought that Zell was into other boys and hadn't even had time to consider Tidus' preferences in the day that they had met each other. He felt a little bit disappointed that they were both so easy and unguarded. Mostly he was unsettled. Squall took a deep breath and decided it was better to brave awkward conversations about his father or his sorceress who had left him than to be caught watching a scene like that.

Tidus pulled back to look at Zell, his lips swollen with kisses, his skin flushed and glistening, his breaths still hot and heavy. Tidus gave him another short kiss before sliding his hand back out of Zell's shorts.

"You were that hot for me?" he said with a little smirk. Zell turned and even deeper shade of red.

"I-I mean… it has been a while since anyone, I mean…" Tidus kissed him again gently, quieting his fumbling words.

"Don't be embarrassed, I was just teasing. It's flattering." Tidus said with a beaming smile. "I didn't know that would be so intense…"

"Sorry, I should have warned you about junctioning a GF, I forgot how heavy it was the first time." Zell said straightening up his hair and buttoning his shorts up shyly. Tidus leaned in close to his ear and whispered: "Actually I meant you," and licked his fingers clean, giving Zell a little jolt.

"Oh," Zell said pausing for a moment like his brain had shorted out. As his breathing began to normalize he took a long look at Tidus. "Do you want…? I mean I could," Zell looked him up and down.

"Maybe we should get to know each other better before that, besides we probably don't have enough time," Tidus said with a chuckle.

"Oh yeah, dinner," Zell said with a dopey grin.

* * *

"Where have you boys been? I was about to send Squall in there to look for you too." Ma said with a little frown. Squall was staring down at his plate awkwardly stirring his stew periodically and taking small spoonfuls. Tidus and Zell sat back down at the table across from each other.

"Sorry Ma, we didn't mean to be rude," Zell said. He was just barley blushing now. He opened his mouth to explain but Tidus cut him off.

"Zell was showing me some of his fighting magazines; he's helping me learn how to fight." Tidus said with a bright smile.

"Oh he always gets carried away," Pa said sloshing his wineglass in Zell's direction.

"I don't mind," Tidus said with a quick look back to Zell.

"Well it's good you have a new friend," Ma said smiling at Zell. "And speaking of new friends how is that girl, the librarian?"

"Oh… we talked some but she wasn't really interested," Zell said lowering his head in shame.

"Well that's too bad," Ma said softly.

"It's her loss," Tidus said as he resumed eating his stew.


	3. Invasions

**A/N: None of these games are mine, and there will be inappropriateness again. I just love the idea of Tidus and Squall-they and Cloud are pretty much the same guy, with different sad histories, and varying amounts of courage.**

* * *

Squall was stone silent on the ride back to Balamb after dinner and Tidus was becoming accustomed to the quiet. He didn't know what to think about any of it. Tidus and Zell. He had never really noticed how handsome Zell was; the incessant chatter had distracted him. All of the awful things Seifer had done to Zell over the years suddenly made sense and then he wondered if the two of them had shared the same kind of encounters that he had just witnessed.

"Hey… So that Zell guy, he lives in the garden?"

"…yes." Squall said looking over at Tidus for a moment and then back at the road in front of him.

"He's really nice… sweet." Tidus said licking his lips, whether it was an unconscious gesture or not it had caught Squall's attention. "He really likes you, I could tell." Tidus said with a little grin.

"…" Squall was perplexed. He wondered why when he had met Tidus first Zell had been able to hit it off with him so quickly. And after a battle, 15 minutes alone and a 2 hour meal that they had all shared Tidus could tell him things about his friend that he hadn't already known. His thoughts bothered him, he had tried so hard to cram his feelings back behind that old wall, but he was already failing. Already feeling things and it frustrated the hell out of him.

"So… your dad is an important guy?"

"…"

"You really don't want to be friends?" Tidus said crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"…" Squall thought about Irvine again and those violet eyes of his. He thought about how he missed those stolen gazes as they trained together or ate, when Irvine thought he wouldn't notice. He missed being dragged to stupid gatherings with Zell and the rest of the orphan gang but now that it was just Zell, Quistis and himself. It had been a month and a half since Irvine had left, and then Selphie. And a whole month had passed since Rinoa had left him. He felt strange like suddenly time was moving so slow, it had felt like much longer. Squall looked sad, and Tidus picked up on it.

"So… will we be heading to the training center?" Tidus asked awkwardly, he felt dejected after Squalls long pause; once again he missed his orange-haired companion.

"Yes, just for a bit; I am curious about how you did that earlier, and I think you should try it again, and try to draw some magic in the training center, so that Dr. Kodikawa and Quistis can look over the camera feeds."

"Is it really so bizarre to have magic inside me?"

"Yes," Squall said tightening his jaw, memories of Rinoa nibbling at his consciousness. "The only people born with magic on Hynes planet are sorceresses, and they are volatile, and often oppressive. There are only a few born in a generation with the power, and it builds with every generation. The last war—before this one, was the first time a sorceress had become so powerful…"

"So you think I am a sorceress?"

"Maybe," Squall said.

"Does it matter that I am male?"

"Adel was male, and he almost conquered the entire planet, he was the worst of all until Ultimecia."

"But I don't want to conquer anything," Tidus said.

"That's reassuring," Squall said, and the rest of the ride was silent.

* * *

Though Tidus had expected to have his first free day after training with Squall, and they had fought in harmony, once Squall watched him draw spells from a few monsters he panicked. As Tidus absorbed poison, aero, and fire they seemed to be absorbed into him. When they were attacked by the T-Rexar, Tidus hadn't even needed his assistance, he merely seemed to struggle for a moment, he did a small flurry and called for leviathan as if summoning him, but instead of being joined by the serpent beast, Tidus became a translucent blue like water, and he began to drip. He rubbed his hands together and pushed toward the T-Rexar, a stream of water flowing from his hands and circling the beasts head until it drown and fell down dead in front of them. Tidus had never seen anything like it, and as a result, Tidus was locked away in the infirmary the next day, separated from Squall, and Zell his new found friend. He had not been sure exactly what was wrong, but as he looked down at his skin and it slowly went back to its normal color, he saw how wide Squall's eyes were, before he regained his composure and ushered him out of the center.

Squall was glad that he had avoided sharing his room with a vagrant—he had been nervous about dealing with such a forward person, especially after what he had witnessed—but now as he lay awake in bed he thought about the way his body changed as he called the magic, the way the air seemed to change around him, as if he were dipping into a power deeper than anything he had ever seen. It felt like sorceress magic, except, it felt controlled, which was somehow much more terrifying. As he drifted to sleep he saw himself as a little boy in the rain, a dream he had more often now that he was alone again.

* * *

_The rain soaked through his shirt, chilling him deep down, his fingers going numb as he fumbled to wipe away his own tears. He looked up at the grey sky; the orphanage looked so lonely at night. He wanted to stop crying before Seifer saw him, and had an excuse to tear him down, but somehow he couldn't stop. By now he would have thought Ellonie would be there—and then he remembered that someone had taken her and he was all alone._

_"Don't cry," a soft little voice said. Squall quickly looked up, and saw a boy with blonde-ish hair, but it wasn't Seifer and it wasn't Zell. He just stared at him and continued crying until the boy placed a hand on his shoulder._

_"Be strong, that's what he always tells me," the boy said with a little smile._

_"But I'm all alone, and no one will come for me…" He sniffled, thinking vaguely about a woman with a kind smile, and his missing sister._

_"I came for you…"_

_"But I don't have anyone…"_

_"Me neither… I mean not really. I can never be with them again, not since the battle…" the boy said, his hand trembling, but still on Squall's shoulder. "You're not alone, so don't cry. I am here with you."_

_"But who are you?"_

_"Didn't you chastise me for giving you my name too easily?" the boy said, and before Squall knew what was happening, the boy was a man—Tidus—the sorcerer, but he was still just a little boy. "Come here," Tidus said firmly, and young Squall complied. Tidus wrapped his arms around the child, causing they boy to shake with sobs. "Hey, I said it's okay."_

_"This never happened," Squall said, unable to free himself from the memory, but still aware of its distance. "No one came."_

_"I'm here now," Tidus said the boy's raw emotion so compelling that he kissed his hair tenderly and pulled him in tighter. As Tidus held him, he really felt it, not like a dream, but like a connection that grew as they spoke and interacted. Squall couldn't stop crying, and Tidus couldn't let him go, the image reminded him of himself as a boy, after Jecht left, and once more this boy was just so tender, and so sweet. Tears stung in his eyes as he hugged the boy, knowing full well that this wasn't a dream, just as the faith had invaded his mind, he was inside Squalls, even locked within the infirmary._

* * *

Squall woke up in a cold sweat; unfortunately it was the first of many nights to come.


End file.

Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy X, Drama, Romance