Final Fantasy VIII

I just finished replaying FF8 for the umpteenth time.  I genuinely don't know how many times I've finished it.  I have 351 hours in it on Steam, and considering a playthrough - for me - is generally between 60 -85 hours, that's at least 4, and that doesn't include the times I've finished the original PS1 version.

One thing has always bothered me.  How many days does FF8 take place over, within the game?  Well, I counted, and it's 12.  This isn't intended as any sort of commentary on the story.  After all, this is an alien planet, a day to them might be a week to us.  Plus, it's way less fun if your characters are tired after barely walking across half a continent and need a nap, even if that is more realistic.

• Day 1: wake up in infirmary, fire cavern, SeeD exam, ball.
• Day 2: Timber Mission, Galbadia Garden, Deling City, Sorceress mission.
• Day 3: Wake up in the prison, escape, missile launch (simultaneous), back to Balamb, start drifting
• Day 4? - While garden is drifting. Squall is lying on his bed and wonders how long it's been, and states that they've cleared all the monsters out of garden. Could be later on day 3, could be a week later. He falls asleep, Rinoa wakes him up. I'll call this another day
• Day 5? - Defeat Norg, SeeD Ship shows up. Squall thinks things over in his bed again. It's daylight and he's fully dressed, so I think that's just his thinking spot. Squall has a dream/repressed memory about his childhood. Woken by Rinoa. Squall claims he wasn't sleeping, but he was dreaming. Claiming to have not been sleeping is a bit weird if it was supposed to be nighttime just then, so I won't count another day. Deal with FH Mayor and become leader of the garden. Then we're back to Squall thinking on his bed while Irvine meets the others to set up a band. Irvine can go and check on him, and it's clearly daylight, so I'm interpreting this as Squall dealing with his problems by trying to fall unconscious for a bit rather than him going to bed for the night. Selphie and Irvine set up the garden concert for that evening, when Squall gets up. After the concert, Squall goes back to his bed - and the room is actually dark now, so the other times really were just daytime depression naps - and dreams of his childhood trauma again.
• Day 6: Squall takes control of garden. Note that, at this stage of the game, you can dismiss the rest of the team by having Squall sit on his bed, put his head in his hands and say "sorry, can you leave me alone?". He's having another depression nap. Facing King (CC club) clearly happens at night, so I'll call the sidequests another day.
• Day 7: Free Balamb, visit Trabia. I think another day might have passed - it starts snowing while you're there, then you're on the bridge and it's not snowing if you go back, so there's clearly some kind of time skip. I'll call it another day.
• Day 8: The attack of Galbadia Garden. Rinoa becomes a sorceress. There's a time skip from the end of the battle, when Rinoa collapses, to when Squall is summoned to the bridge from her bed. I think this timeskip was also overnight.
• Day 9: Visiting Edea at the orphanage, Laguna films a movie and fights a dragon, back to Edea to find the White Seed Ship. The only time skip here is when you jump from speaking to Edea to being on the bridge, which I don't think represents another night. Squall kidnaps Rinoa. The sun sets as we walk.
• Day 10: Arrive at the Salt Lake Flats, then at Esthar. Get sent into space. There is no indication of night passing, but you do go into hyper sleep and there's clearly a bit of a time skip, so I'm going to count an extra day here. After all, you'd have to wait for Gaia to rotate at least once so you can land in the same place you took off from.
• Day 11: Adventures in Space!
• Day 12: I assume another day has passed on the Ragnarok and re-entering "earth's" atmosphere. Hand Rinoa over to Esthar, then change your mind. There are more sidequests to do here, but none indicate that a night has passed, so I won't count another day. Visit Laguna, enter the Lunatica Pandora for the second time, defeat Adel, and head into Time Compression. Day or night has no meaning in time compression. There is something of a timeskip before the ending sequence over the credits, could be days, weeks, or months.

I never really noticed before - because I wasn't paying explicit attention to whether it was dark or light - just how many times Squall tries to sleep his way through stress.

Oh, I also updated the walkthrough I made in 2015.  The Card Queen subquest is tighter - finished earlier - and I included the scenes you need to see to be able to hear what Zell and the Ponytail Librarian are saying to one another.  I also included a reminder to have Seifer level Ifrit to at least level 10 in a low level game.

I am currently playing the Banner Saga (though slowly) but I'm also playing the Phoenix Wright Trilogy, .Hack//infection, Vandal Hearts II (and intending to finally finish my guide for that), Octopath Traveler, and Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles.  Basically, I'm avoiding my uni work.

1BitHeart

I bought 1BitHeart for 99p from HumbleBundle a week or so ago.  It's made by the same company who made Alicemare, which I enjoyed, and it was cheap, so I gave it a go.

Gameplay-wise it has a lot in common with the Phoenix Wright games - you can have conversations with people, and, in some of those conversations, you can ask for more information or present other topics to either get more out of them or point out a contradiction.  In some ways, it's a bit too much like Phoenix Wright - you can ask someone to revise their statement even though you're literally just a kid having a conversation with someone and not a lawyer in court.  My biggest issue with the game is that the mysteries and how they are solved are not logical and obvious.  They're nitpicky and require good guessing.  There's not even a logical way to just try all the options.  Quite early on, I just thought "fuck it" and followed a guide to get through because I entirely lost interest in trying to play the game properly.  To be fair, maybe that's on me, maybe my brain just doesn't work the way the designer's does.

There are also elements of Persona 5 (and possibly the others which I haven't played) in that you need to make friends with people.  How many friends you have define which of the three possible endings you see, and whether you unlock the bonus chapter (which contains a better mystery than the actual chapters).  This...is ridiculously overdone.  You can make 44 friends in the main game.  A game that took me about 9 hours to play.  I cannot care about 44 people in 9 hours, so the vast majority just became irritating background noise quite early on. To make friends, you need to make their "friendship points" - which the game doesn't tell you about and which are invisible - 100.  You do this by giving them gifts.  Each has 3 - out of, like, 40 or so (guesstimate) possible items that they like, and there are only vague hints as to which 3 they are.  Luckily, everyone likes chocolate so I just defaulted to handing that over.  When you get their points to 100 you receive an item from them and unlock an achievement, so at least there's some indication of how many total friends there are.  Really, they could have halved - or even quartered - this element of the game.  It's too many to actually be fun.

So, yeah.  The game was fine, I guess.  I'd have liked it better if it were more balanced, for example, better, more interesting mysteries for a longer game to balance the number of friends, or just less friends and a more logical progression through the game.  I got through it, which I guess is not the sentiment you want people to have towards your game.  At least it was only 99p, so about 10p per hour of gameplay.  Which, again, fine, I'd spend that much on a book that I'd read in a third of the time.

I've been wanting to play the .Hack series again.  I couldn't find a copy of the iso online so I just booted my old - as in, 2004 Christmas present - PS2.  Still works great!  The next steam game on my list is the Banner Saga, though I've still not finished FF8.

Aveyond: Lord of Twilight, Final Fantasy VIII, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, .Hack//

I've finished Aveyond: Lord of Twilight.  It's the first 'chapter' in the third Aveyond game.  There are four 'chapters' each of which cost £6.99.  The first game in the series, Ahriman's Prophecy, is available for free, but the quality is terrible.  I downloaded it, but the font used is illegible, so I gave up on it fairly quickly.

According to Steam I spent around 20 hours playing this game, although my final save file was just under ten hours, so while some of those 20 hours were me dying and reloading the game, some of them were just me leaving it open while I did something else.  There were many elements of it that I liked.  I liked the characters and I like that the plot feels almost Shakespearean.  I also liked the 'realism' - the environments in the game felt realistically large, there were loads of cities, and, after killing something, you had to search its corpse for loot.  However, there was one big flaw and that's the fact that this isn't a complete game.  There are subquests you can start in this game but not finish until the sequels.  There are chests you can find which you can't open until the sequels.  Finally, the plot just doesn't advance well.  It doesn't feel like a satisfying character journey or ending.  Honestly, I resent the fact that I'll need to pay another £20.97 to finish the story.  I can't remember how much I paid for this first one, but since I probably got it off Humble Bundle it was probably between £1 to £3.  For 20 hours of gameplay, assuming I paid £1, that's 5p per hour, which is 10x as much as Final Fantasy X and X-2 (400 hours to finish the first, second, and third games, all of which cost me £19.99 on Steam).  This game is pretty good, but this first chapter wasn't worth 10x as much to me as Final Fantasy X, and then they want another £21 for the rest of the story?  Fuck right off.  If they pop up on Humble Bundle at a discount, I might spring for them, but I am not paying £6.99 for a 20-hour segment of a game that doesn't even feel like a full game in its own right, and I am definitely not doing that three times in a row.  Knowing that that was what I'd need to do to finish the story just made me resent playing this one.  Oh, also there's only one achievement.  Since there's no indication of which side quests you can finish in this game and which ones need to wait for the sequel, the achievements could have been a way of giving you a hint.  The game just does not reward exploring, because you don't know which blocks you can breach during this game - for example, you do gain a way of blowing through doors blocked with planks, but you don't learn how to pick locks - and which subquests you can finish in this game, or which need to wait.  After the first hour or so I just followed a guide.  Oh, that reminds me - I did like that the puzzles had an element of randomness, so even if you followed a guide there were still some things you had to work out yourself.  That was a nice touch.

The description of the game also claims that "laughing is not optional".  It absolutely is.  The dialogue is human and realistic, but it's not particularly funny.

I've played - and enjoyed - the .Hack// series, which had a similar set-up.  Four chapters, each sold separately, adding up to a complete story.  I enjoyed those games a lot more, and I think a big part of it is that they did feel like complete games, with satisfying story arcs.  I paid more - about £10 for each if I recall correctly - for each one, and I didn't resent that.  I've replayed the series multiple times, and each one came with an episode of an anime series, telling another story that happened alongside the events in the game.  I also enjoyed a sequel manga and the longer anime series, but the biggest difference between .hack// and Aveyond is that each of those things felt like seperate stories.  They were all sparked by the same event, but each had their own events and character arcs.  Plus, my ending save files generally had about 20 hours on them, so they offered approximately twice as much gameplay.

Anyway, in summary, Aveyond: Lord of Twilight is an enjoyable game, but it is not worth £27.96 - the price for all four games without any discounts - and while, theoretically, you could just pay the £6.99 - still way too much - to enjoy just one game, the game is not designed for you to do that.

The next game on my list is actually The Banner Saga, but I just bought several more games from Humble Bundle; 1bitHeart (99p), Désiré (£2.15), Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy (£14.99), PSYCHO-PASS: Mandatory Happiness (£9.99), and The Sacred Tears TRUE. (£3.24).  I've noted down the prices because I quite like "cost per hours of enjoyment" as a way to compare games.  I'm going to play the Phoenix Wright games next, because I have been waiting for them to arrive on Steam for just the longest time.  The whole point of trying to play through all the games I own is to make sure I'm actually, you know, getting value out of the things I buy, so it would just be silly to avoid playing the game I just bought.  I've also been replaying Final Fantasy VIII (and reviewing my guide) and I'm in the end stages of that, so I'll probably finish that as well before starting on The Banner Saga.

Final Fantasy 8: Spoiler Free Guide

Advice on cards and drawing are based on the assumptions that you are playing cards, making use of card mod and various refine skills, and remaining at the original level.  Feel free to ignore.  Since I'm trying to avoid spoilers, this guide will include odd, unexplained actions.  I will sometimes link to a relevant guide to explain the subquest, but those will contain spoilers.

GF
Magazine
Weapon 
Cards 
Blue Magic

Things to Do Differently on Future Playthroughs

This is the second iteration of this post, and I have attempted to fix the below regrets.  I have added an explanation for why onto each point.

- Begin Card Queen Quest on Disc 1 - ie, send her to Dollet before beginning Timber Mission.  Also, lose only the relevant cards to her, instead of using an unrelated card to shuttle her around.  This is just to be efficient.
- Have Seifer level Ifrit up to level 10 during Dollet Mission on Disc 1.   Ifrit needs to reach level 10 to unlock Ammo-RF which is useful for Irvine's limit break and for some weapons.  I usually play a low-level game until I obtain GFs with stat boosts, so not unlocking this early means getting weapons later than necessary.
- Finish the dog bone quest in Dollet later for better items.  I did not previously realise that you get different items based on whether you get them before or during disc 3.
- Watch the scenes between Zell and the library girl.  When you obtain the Combat King 003 magazine, it is accompanied by a scene.  You only see the full dialogue if you've seen enough prerequisite scenes.

Balamb Garden

- 8 Beginner Cards from the Guy near the 2nd Floor lift.
- Shiva at desk or Front Gate.
- Quetzalcoatl at desk or Front Gate.
- Occult Fan I and Esuna drawpoint in Library.  Speak to the pony-tail girl at the desk.  She'll tell you the library rules.
- You can draw Sleep and Silence from Grats in Training Centre.
- Blizzard drawpoint in Training Centre.

Fire Cavern

- You can draw Cure, Scan, Thunder, Blizzard and Fire from enemies on Alcauld Plains.
- Defeat Ifrit. 

Dollet

- Draw Cure, Fire, Thunder and Blizzard from G-Soldiers.  Level Ifrit to 10 to unlock Ammo-RF, which is necessary for Irvine's limit break and weapons.  I suggest doing it here because you can use Seifer if you're trying to keep your party's level low.
- Blind Drawpoint in the Comm Tower.
- Draw Esuna from Wedge.  I suggest getting 100 each, they are excellent for junctions.
- Draw Siren and Doubles from Elvoret.  I suggest getting 100 each, they are excellent for junctions.  However, this is quite difficult, so don't worry about the doubles if you can't be bothered.
- Weapons Mon Mar automatically.
- You can only defeat the X-ATM092 for good on or after the bridge.  You can draw protects from it, but be aware of the time limit.

Balamb

- Timber Maniacs in Hotel Room or at Train Station.  Where you read it changes the first scene with Julia.
- Fastitocalons on the beach give 3AP each and drop Fish Fins which you can turn into Water spells with I-Mag-RF from Shiva.  They're good on strength.  You can use Card-Mod to turn 5 Fastitocalon-F cards into a Water Crystal, from which Quistis can learn Aqua Breath.
- You can get a Spider Web from a caterchipillar, either after battle or by using Card-Mod on its card.  Quistis can learn Ultra Waves from this.
- Card a Bomb in the Fire Cavern and a T-Rexaur in the woods on Alcauld Plains to make card games easier.
- Win the Zell card from Ma Dincht.  I suggest collecting Elnoyle cards, Malboro, and Iron Giant cards in that order of priority if they come up, they'll be useful for later weapon upgrades.  If you want to change the trading rule, pick up the one you want by beating the Card Queen with it before playing with Ma Dincht.

Balamb Garden

- Win the Minimog card in the Foyer.
- After receiving your grade, speak to Cid before leaving his office to obtain the Battle Meter.
- You can draw Protects from Raldos and Blind and Shell from Granaldo.
- Pick up Weapons Mon April from Squall's new desk.
- Before meeting Zell and Selphie, head to the library to watch the conceited SeeD talk to the Library Committee member at the desk.  You may need to enter and exit a few times before it happens.  I went and got the Quistis card and then came back before I saw it.
- Win the Quistis card from her groupies in the Cafeteria.
- Pick up the Magical Lamp from Cid immediately after meeting Zell and Selphie.  Use it and defeat Diablo to obtain GF and Card.  You can draw Demis from him, but it's difficult.
- Visit the library with Zell in your party so he can ask pony-tail girl about a book.
- Obtain Seifer card from Cid in his office.
- Use Diablos's Status Mag RF to make Break magic from Cockatrice Pinions and Softs before heading to Timber.  If you're playing a low level game, you will need this to avoid gaining exp from human enemies.  You'll probably also want to learn Enc-None as soon as possible.  T-Rexaurs give 10AP each.

Train to Timber

- In Balamb, buy enough tents to give everyone 100 curagas (via Life Mag RF).  It's great on HP.
- Lose the MiniMog Card to the Card Queen and move her to Dollet (speak to her again before leaving the screen and she'll tell you where she's going).  You may need to reset a few times.
- Pets Pals Vol. 1 automatically.

Timber

- After the briefing obtain the Angelo card from Watts.
- Pick up Pets Pals Vol. 2 in Rinoa's room. 
- Buy Pets Pals Vol 3 and Pets Pals Vol 4 from the Pet Shop near the station.
- You can get free potions from the guy standing on the bridge over the train tracks if Rinoa or Quistis are in your party.  I don't think they're limited, you just need to exit and re-enter the screen.
- Pick up Girl Next Door in the stacks of magazines in Timber Maniacs.
- Read the issue of Timber Maniacs in the main office.  Encourage the journalist outside to follow his dream.
- Try the Owl's Tears in the house near the railway.
- You can find the man's 500 gil savings if you keep checking the cupboard, but you won't be able to use the Owl's Tears for healing any more.

Side Trips - Dollet, Timber Maniacs, Siren Card, Starting the Obel Lake Sidequest

- You need to get off the train at the right station, or your SeeD rank will go down.  You can then walk to Dollet.
- I suggest spreading Open and abolishing Random.  This thread has some advice that worked for me, even after I spread Open in a different way.
- Read the issue of Timber Maniacs in the hotel room.
- Read the issue of Timber Maniacs upstairs in the Shining Bomber pub.  If you have Move-Find there's a handy save point.
- The Card Queen will also be upstairs in the Shining Bomber.  Ask her about her artist father, and she'll confirm that the Kiros Card has been created.
- You can win the Siren Card from the pub owner, near the pool table.  When you beat him, he'll invite you to his private room and give you 5 Geezard Cards, 4 Red Bat Cards, 3 Buel Cards, 2 Anacondaur Cards, and a Cactuar Card.
- By examining the magazines around this room, you can randomly find various healing items, Geezard Cards, and, eventually, Occult Monthly II.  Exiting and re-entering seems to reset the pile.
- Speak to the boy outside the house nearby, then follow him inside.  If you continue with his quest now - looking at the painting and then looking at the location where the bone is three times - you'll gain a potion, a phoenix down, and a soft.  If you wait until Disc 3, you'll gain better prizes.
- You can win your Minimog Card back from the boy.
- Fight on the beach nearby until you're able to win a Whisper from an Adamantoise, which can be used to teach Quistis White Wind.  They can also be refined into 50 Curagas.

- Head back to Timber.
- Read the issue of Timber Maniacs in the Timber Hotel.
- Go to Mandy Beach  just northeast of Timber and run around until you see an alien abduct a statue.
- Go to Obel Lake and try humming until you are asked to find Mr Monkey.
- Find Mr Monkey in the forest west of Dollet.
- Return to the lake and hum to relay the whereabouts of Mr Monkey.
- Throw a rock in the lake until it skips "many many times".
- Throw a rock at Mr Monkey in the forest until he throws one back.

Excavation Site

- The odd actions listed here allow you to find several items later, further detailed here.  I've written the below assuming you enter from the ladder further to the north, by the 3-branching path rather than the fork.  It doesn't really make a difference, as long as you try to pick up both old keys and tamper with all 3 hatches before hitting the fuses.  Going north from the save point will cause you to leave the area permanently, so just get everything done before then.
- Go down the ladder and pick up the Old Key.
- Tamper with the middle door.
- Leave then return and try to tamper with the far-right hatch.
- Pick up the second Old Key on the next screen.
- The right path leads to the ladder near the fork I mentioned earlier.  From here you can loop round to try to tamper with the left hatch.
- Hit the red fuse followed by the blue one.  Both hatches should swing open.
- Move the boulder to find a cure drawpoint.

 Galbadia Garden

- After the story events, you have a good opportunity to abolish undesirable card rules from Trabia.

• Play the student in the locker room near the hockey rink until Open spreads throughout Trabia.
• Play with the students in the nearby classroom to pick up the Galbadian rule set; do not mix rules.  
• Play with the student until Random or Plus is abolished.  Repeat above until the second one is also abolished.

- Life Drawpoint in Locker Room.
- Haste Drawpoint in golden light.


Deling City

- Pick up Timber Maniacs in the hotel. 
- You can use the woman downstairs in the hotel and the woman outside to edit the rules of FH as you did Trabia earlier.
- The man in black on the left side of the shopping area has the Kiros Card.

Tomb of the Unknown King

- You can draw Life from Sacred and Double from Minotaur.
- Defeat Sacred and Minotaur to gain the Brothers GF and their cards. 
- Now you have the Sacred Card, you can lose it to the Card Queen in Dollet.  This will make her move elsewhere.  Make sure it's somewhere convenient, like Deling City or Timber.  Make a note of where she goes.  You can then win the Sacred Card back from her son.

Deling City

- As Rinoa, pick up Weapons Mon May from the sewers.
- Draw Carbuncle from the Iguions.
- If you have mug you can steal a Hero from Seifer and an Elixir from Edea.

Winhill

- Spend all of Laguna's money at the shop. 

D-District Prison

- You can draw Reflects from Wedge and Haste and Regen from Biggs.  If you have mug, you can steal a Regen Ring from Wedge and a Strength Love from Biggs.
- Go downstairs before going up.
- Play cards on level 5 for a 1/32 chance to win a Luck-Up or a 3/256 chance to win a Phoenix Pinion.
- Tent on level 4.
- Pet House on level 3.
- Pet Nametag and Str Up on level 2.
- Combat King 001 on level 1.
- Play cards on level 10 to improve your Battle Meter.
- Play cards on level 11 for a 1/128 chance of winning a Rosetta Stone.
- Pick up a Cottage and a Rename Card from two moombas on the top floor, after control switches back to Squall.

Missile Base

- Selphie can win Rinoa's card from General Caraway if you head to Deling City first and lose your Ifrit card to him.
- Full-Life Drawpoint in Missile Launch Bay.
- Weapons Mon June automatically from BGH251F2.


Balamb Garden

- Mega-Potion from the SeeD by the gate.
- Remedy from SeeD in library.  If you have Zell with you, this is a Mega-Phoenix.
- Remedy from SeeD in Training Area.
- Tent from SeeD in Parking Lot.
- Gysahl Greens from SeeD in Canteen.
- X-Potion from SeeD in the Quad.
- Elixir from Dr Kadowaki.
- Full-Life Drawpoint under Garden.
- Challenge the CC Club's Jack near the directory.
- Challenge the CC's Club's Club in the hallways of Balamb Garden.
- Win Leviathan card from Joker in the Training Centre.  He will improve your Battle Meter.
- Defeat Diamond by the Directory.  They have a full set of level 7 cards.
- If you have Mug, then steal a Mag-Up from Left Orb, a Spr Up from Right Orb, and a Circlet from Norg.  If you don't have mug yet, go kill/card a few T-rexaurs first.
- Draw Leviathan from Norg.
- Defeat Spade near the 2F lift.  He also has a full set of level 7 cards.
- See the conceited SeeD and the librarian with a ponytail talking about books.  They'll be interrupted by another librarian, and ponytail girl will get embarrassed.  Zell must not be in the party.  Although I brought him to Balamb, I saw this scene when Squall was alone after the ship arrived.  You might also be able to see it when Squall and Irvine are alone after battling the BHG251F2 (always happens, not dependent on your party choices).


Fisherman's Horizon

- Head down to the Master Fisherman and say "What are you talking about?" to obtain Occult Fan III.
- Read the issue of Timber Maniacs in the Grease Monkey's house.
- Read the issue of Timber Maniacs in the hotel.
- Speak to the fishing kid near the weapon shop until he runs out of dialogue.
- Win your Ifrit Card back from Martine.
- Win the Quetzalcotl card from Mayor Dobe and the Irvine Card from his wife.  
- Ultima drawpoint in the Mayor's House.
- Steal Adamantine from BHG251F2.  If you've been doing enough card-playing, you might be able to get Selphie's Strange Vision.
- Return to the Master Fisherman.  Meet him at the inn as requested.  Follow him and listen to his story for a Megalixer.
- Take Irvine and Squall down to the Grease Monkey's House for a Mega-Phoenix.
- Full-life Drawpoint where the fisherman was standing.
- As Irvine alone, visit the library and speak to the ponytail girl near the Esuna drawpoint.
- As Irvine alone, head back to the Grease Monkey's place for a Phoenix Down.  Examine the Sergeant for 5 AP, 5 Fast and 5 Pulse Ammo.   Do not use the Pulse Ammo in battle, you need it for Squall's ultimate weapon.
- The next day, take Squall alone to the library and see the conceited SeeD asking about the library committee members at the desk.  You might also want to take this opportunity to run in and out of the library a few times, since you'll need to have entered 50 times before the final scene in this sidequest.

Side Trips - CC Club, Chocobo Forest, Odin, Tonberry, Blue Magic...

Misc

- Challenge Hearts on the bridge.  Hearts has the Carbuncle card.  
- Take Zell to the library so the committee can question him on his favourite things.
- Challenge Dr Kadowaki then rest in your Dorm Room (alone) to face King.  It's random, you might have to try a few times.  King has the Gilgamesh card.
- On the way past, search Balamb Beach for a stone with letters carved on it.
- Pick up a Pet Nametag from the guy outside the Timber Maniacs Building. 
- Head to the Island just north of the railway bridge near Timber.  It's classed as part of Mandy Beach and there's another rock with letters on it here.

Chocobos

- Head to The Basic's Forest on the western tip of Trabia, Sorbald Snowfield.  After catching the Chocobo blow the whistle on the western side of the screen for a Flare Stone.  There is a more detailed guide here.
- Head to The Roaming Forest, north of Trabia Garden.  The hidden items here are a Shell Stone and a Holy Stone.
- Head to the  Beginner's Forest next to Shumi Village.  The hidden item is an Aura stone.
- Head to the Chocobo Forest of Solitude north of the Centra Ruins.  The items are a protect stone and a Meteor Stone.  You'll need to challenge Chocoboy to a card game, then ask him to move.
- Head to the Chocobo Forest of Fun east of Edea's house.  The prizes here are a Fire Stone, Meteor Stone and Ultima Stone.
- Ride the Chocobo to the eastern edge of this island to find the Enclosed Forest.  The prize here is a Meteor Stone, a Holy Stone and an Ultima Stone.
- While you're here, head to Kashkabald desert to watch an alien abduct a pyramid.
- You can gain lots of AP and very little exp from Cactuars on the edge of Kashkabald Desert nearest to Cactuar Island.  It is considered part of Cactuar Island and is named as such in the menu.
- Go back to the Roaming forest north of Trabia and ride the Chocobo to the forest on the north-easternmost tip of Esthar, over the water.  Speak to the Chicobo to obtain a Chicibo card.
- Find the Card Queen, wherever you sent her, and lose the Chicibo card to her.  Return her to Dollet, where you can ask her about her artist father and win your Chicibo card back from the Queen's son.
- Win the Chubby Chocobo card from the Seed on the 1st floor near the Training Centre.


Winhill

- Watch an alien abduct a cow across the Winhill bluffs.
- Complete the Vase quest for a Holy Stone, by finding the five pieces hidden throughout the town.  You'll need Irvine to find one of the pieces.
- Pop the Chocobo into the air for a Phoenix Down and some Gysahl Greens.


Centra Ruins

- This sidequest is straightforward, but there is a time limit so be sure to save beforehand.  The time limit just boots you out, you can try again.  It doesn't reset your Tonberry count.
- You can draw Stops, Deaths, Doubles, and Triples from Odin and mug for a Luck-J scroll.  Defeat Odin to gain Card and GF.  Odin will randomly defeat enemies for you, so you might choose to wait until later.
- Fight tonberries in the ruins until King Tonberry shows up after 20. You can go out and save, the count won't reset.  If you card them it won't count, but they don't give any exp anyway.  Tonberry King is extremely useful for getting the items needed for weapons because of his level up and level down skills.  

Items for Ultimate Weapons

- Full post here.  Level up/down always doubles/halves the monster's level, so if you struggle to get them between 20-29, try levelling them to 100 and then back down to 25.
- If you mug an enemy, it won't drop anything.
- Your Chicobo may bring you some of these things if you're playing the Chocobo World game.
- You'll need 7 Energy Crystals which are difficult to get at the moment.  You can Card-Mod 10 Elnoyle Cards into one energy crystal.  I suggest trying to get at least 1 and then using Ammo-RF to turn it into 10 Pulse Ammo.  That, combined with the 5 Pulse Ammo from FH will be enough for Squall's Lionheart.
- 18 screws.  You can get 5 by card-modding 1 Geezard card, or they can be won by battling Geezards.
- 4 Sharp Spikes - Card-Mod Grand Mantis cards.
- 2x Windmills.  You can create them by Card-Modding Abyss Worm cards.
- 4 Dragon Fangs, dropped by T-Rexaurs at level 20-29.  You can also mug Star Fragments from them at level 30+.
- 5x Star Fragments (4 if you already have Selphie's weapon) - each takes 3 Iron Giant cards, or are sometimes dropped by T-Rexaurs over level 30.
- Mug six Steel Pipes from Wendigos in the forest near Timber.   They will always have steel pipes to steal at levels 20-29, with more at level 30+. These are needed to obtain a future GF.  Alternatively, you can Card-Mod Elastoid cards.  Anacondaurs also show up in this forest sometimes.
- 4x Dragon Skins, dropped by Anacondaurs at level 30+.  They can be found near Dollet.  At this level, you can also mug Star Fragments from them, with a 4.68% chance of success.
- You'll need 3 adamantines (2 if you already got Selphie's weapon).  Level-Up Adamantoises on the beach near Dollet until you have 2 more Adamantines (dropped at 30+).  You can also mug a Whisper, at any level, to teach Quistis White Wind or mod into 50 curagas.
- You need 2 curse spikes (unless you already got Selphie's weapon).  You can mod Tri-Face cards.
- 2 Dino Bones, dropped by low level (20-) T-Rexaurs or from card-modding T-Rexaur cards.
- 1 Fury Fragment from Card-Modding 4 Blue Dragon Cards.
- 2x Malboro Tentacles from Card-Modding 4 Malboro cards each.  You'll need another six to obtain a future GF, but no hurry.
- For Rinoa, you'll need a Regen Ring, which you can get by modding 10 Chimera Cards.  This can wait until later.
- For Rinoa you'll need a Force Armlet (as well as two Energy Crystals).  You may have won this from X-ATM092 (20% chance), or you'll have a chance to win one from a boss soon.  Alternatively, you can level up Ochus in the forests near Timber for a 4.68% chance of them dropping one.  Since you'll need two energy crystals anyway, I suggest waiting a bit.
- for Irvine you'll need a moonstone, which will not be available until Disc 3.
- You should now be able to get Lion Heart, Ehrgeiz, and Strange Vision.

Shumi Village

- Ultima Drawpoint near the entrance. 
- Pick up the issue of Timber Maniacs on Artisan's Bed in Shumi Village.   Reading this now means Ward will not show up in a later flashback.
- Collect all the stones in Shumi Village for a Phoenix Pinion. 
-  Leave and return.  Talk to Elder, Assistant and Artisan until you are asked to find a way to convince Artisan to help.
- Visit the Grease Monkey in FH, then return to Artisan.  Return to the Elder after convincing Artisan to help to receive a Status Guard.

Balamb Invasion

- You can win the Pandemona card from the hotel owner's daughter now or from the hotel owner by returning to Balamb after this event.
- Draw Pandemona and Full-Lifes (if she's over level 30) from Fuijin.  There are limited places to obtain full-lifes, so I suggest making sure you get the full 300 here.
- Mug two Strength-Ups from Raijin. and Fuijin for a Hero/Megalixer.
- Win Combat King 002 automatically from Raijin.
- Speak to the girl in the SeeD uniform at Balamb Train Station (I missed this one).

Trabia

- Pick up Weapons Mon August, south of the statue. 
- Pick up Timber Maniacs at the graveyard.
- Aura Drawpoint near the rocket.
- Win the Selphie card from her friend. 
- Take Zell down to the library to see the committee discussing his answers.  They're by the esuna drawpoint.

Galbadia Garden

- The important orders are for attack, defence, and care of the junior classmen. 
- Pick up a Cottage on 2f of Balamb.
- Aura Drawpoint under the two trees after rescuing Rinoa.
- Life drawpoint in locker-room.
- Mug Cerberus for Speed-J scroll.  You can draw Doubles, Quakes, and, if he's over level 30, Triples.  Defeat Cerberus for GF and Card. 
- Mug Seifer for 8 Mega-Phoenixes or don't and he'll drop eight mega-potions.
- Draw Hastes from Seifer. 
- Draw Alexander from Edea and mug a Royal Crown or don't and she'll drop a Force Armlet.  You can also draw Demis and Esunas.

Balamb


- With Zell in your party, speak to the library girl at the desk in Garden.
- Pick up Weapons Mon July from the Training Centre.
- Speak to the girl with the red skirt at the entrance to Balamb.  Head to Zell's house then stay at the hotel.  You should receive Combat King 003 in the morning.  I was still missing a single line of dialogue, possibly due to the scene I missed above.

Edea's House

- Try to spread Open and abolish Random in Cetra, just to make your life easier.  The instructions here worked for me.  Because Balamb only had the open rule, which had already spread to Cetra, I used Dollet and Winhill (which counts as Cetra).
- Win Edea's card from Cid.
- Pick up the issue of Timber Maniacs.

Esthar Mountains

- You can level up Ruby Dragon to 45+ to steal Flares, Reflects and Meteors.  This is quite tricky - especially without Selphie's Full Cure - so you might want to wait to hunt them down later.  I'd recommend getting at least one Meteor.
- This was the scene affected by the issue of Timber Maniacs in Shumi Village.  If you avoided picking the magazine up earlier, you can go back and get it now.

White Seed Ship

- Pick up the issue of Timber Maniacs.
- Give Girl Next Door to Zone for free, and you'll get a rename card and the Shiva Card.
- Holy Drawpoint in the Cabin.

Salt Lake Flats

- Have Edea level your GFs if necessary.
- As Laguna, pick up Weapons Mon First in Odine's Lab.  
- Flare drawpoint in O-Lab.

Esthar


- Win Ward card from Professor Odine. 
- Buy Pet Pals 5 and 6 at the Pet Shop.   You can also buy Combat King 4 and 5 from the Book Store, though you'll be getting those last two for free soon.  Click on Cheryl's store until you get a Rosetta Stone.  Click on Esthar Shop!!! until it lets you in at least once.
- Speak to Presidential Aide outside of the Airstation then speak to him again outside Odine's room at the palace.  Examine the stack of magazines to receive Occult Fan IV.
- Pick up the Solomon's Ring from Tear's Point.  You can win Malboro Tentacles from the Malboro's around here when you return after plot events.  You'll need 6 of those, 6 Steel Pipes, and 6 Remedy Pluses (Use Alexander's Med Level Up ability), then you can use the Ring to summon Doomtrain.

Lunatic Pandora
 
- As Zell, pick up Combat King 4 from the running soldier on the high walkway in Esthar.  After speaking to Odine, the first contact point is one screen to the right of this one.
- Meteor Drawpoint in entrance to Lunatic Pandora.   Lift 1 leads to the next part of the game, so go there last.  Lifts 2 and 3 form a loop.
- Go down the ladder after elevator 3 to find a LuvLuvG in the nearway doorway and a Phoenix Pinion and a Power Generator under the panels you opened as Laguna.
- Combat King 005 and Ultima Drawpoint in the next corridor.
- Holy Drawpoint in corridor after lift 1.
- Speed-J scroll where you pushed the boulder as Laguna.  Use Move-Find to save,

Space

- Because Space has all the card rules, there's a chance one will be randomly abolished after playing a game (or choosing to play then quitting).  If you challenge Piet before putting Rinoa down, you'll be right by a save point.  I suggest trying to get rid of Random.  Saying 'no' once and then saying 'yes' and quitting repeatedly worked for me.
- Win the Alexander card from Piet.
- Win the Laguna card from Ellone.

Ragnarok and Side Trips

Misc

- You can do the below anytime after obtaining the Ragnarok and before entering the Lunatic Pandora again.  I suggest at least going to the Sorceress Memorial first.
- Set Rinoa up for the Meteor trick.  Basically, give you only magic which targets the party and meteor, and when your use her new limit break, she will only cast meteor.  This is a good thing, because meteor is multi-hit, allowing her to do more damage per cast than other spells.  You should also try to get her magic stat as high as possible.  It will be tripled when she is under her new limit break.
- Full-Life drawpoint in downstairs corridor of Ragnarok.
- Win the Squall card from Laguna in Esthar. 
- You can farm energy crystals in Esthar by repeatedly talking to the soldier on the low bridge, who will turn into an Elnoyle.  You can mug a moonstone at any level and it will drop Energy Crystals at level 30+.   These should be the last items you need for weapons.  Level-Up doesn't work, so you can either farm the cards or come back after levelling.  You can draw Pain, and Moon Stones can be turned into 20 Holys with L-Mag-RF.  You can also draw doubles which can be refined into Triples with High-Mag-RF.
- You can mug a Regen Ring from a Torama in or around Esthar.
- You can mug Malboro Tentacles from Malboros in Grandidi Forest (including the forest-y bits on top of cliffs) or the Islands Closest to Heaven and Hell.  You'll need to either protect your characters from berserk with junctioning and get lucky, or, ideally, protect them with the Ribbon ability.  The latter is only an option if you have access to Chocobo World, as your chocobo will occasionally find the Ribbon item your GF's need to learn the ability.
- Draw Ultima, Aura, Flare, Meteor, Full Life and Quake at the Islands Closest to Heaven and Hell.  These are good levelling spots, but I suggest holding off until you have Cactuar and all his stat-up abilities.  Ability x4 is also essential.
- Buy Hypno-Crowns from the Esthar Pet Shop.  Use Tool-RF to convert to 10 Aura Stones, then use Supt Mag RF to refine to Aura spells, if you need them.
- Use a Phoenix Pinion in battle at some point.  This unlocks the possibility of the Phoenix showing up to save you if you're all KO'd.

Alien

- Run around on the island near Heath Peninsula until you see an Alien abducting a glyph.
- Defeat the alien Spaceship on Grandidi plateau, north of the Chocobo forest.
- Go to the remains of Balamb Garden to fight Pupu.  Give him five elixirs to receive his card.

Card

- Head to Dollet. Ask the Queen about her artist father and hand over your Alexander card. Win it back from her son.  You can finish his dog quest while you're at it.
- Win the Doomtrain card from the Timber Pub Owner.
- Give the Card Queen your Doomtrain card to get her back to Dollet.  In my case, the RNG was not in my favour.  I tried asking her to play cards X amount of times, saying no, then playing on the next turn.  It took 12 nos before the RNG finally hit Dollet.  You can then try to move her to wherever you want her to stay for the rest of the game.  There's a discussion here.  Avoid leaving her with Direct as her personal trade rule.
- Ask about her Artist father, then win the Doomtrain Card back from her son.
- Win the Phoenix card from the Presidential Aide in Odine's office in Esthar.


Obel Lake

- Head to Monterosa Plateau, above the previous site of Galbadia Garden.  Search until you find a bird guarding a nest and choose to check it out, or keep checking until the birds have left.  If you choose the former, you can level up the Thrustaevis until you can draw Tornados if you want them.
- Head back to Obel Lake and show the rocks to the creature.  Have it tell you to take some time off at Eldbeak peninsula.  You might have to come back after finding the treasure at Mordred Plains.
- Head to Mordred Plains, north of Esthar.  Click around until the rocks start talking to you.  Remember that the red rocks always say the opposite of the truth and search for a Three Stars.
- Read the pillar at the tip of Eldbeak Peninsula.  Head to Minde Island and search until you find a Luck-J scroll.  It won't be there unless the lake creature has told you to take some time off at Eldbeak Peninsula even if you found the clue anyway.

GFs

- Head to Cactuar Island and draw Meltdowns and Tornados from Jumbo Cactuar.  Defeat him to gain him as a GF.
- Head to the Deep Sea Research Centre. Avoid moving when the light is on.  You'll be forced to fight at least two Ruby Dragons, which do give exp.  There's a hidden answer on one of the questions you're asked, scroll down further than you should be able to.  Draw Full-Life and Flare from Bahamut.  Defeat him to obtain Card and GF.
- Return to Deep Sea Research Centre.  You can farm for Curse Spikes here if you want.  I didn't bother because I got plenty of Rosetta Stones from Chocobo World, and I only needed 200 more Ultimas, which can be drawn from the next enemy or created from Energy Stones.
- Draw Ultimas, Regens, and Eden from Ultima Weapon.  Defeat Ultima Weapon to obtain Eden card.
- If you have 6 Steel Pipes, 6 Malboro Tentacles, and 6 Remedy +s, use Solomon's Ring to obtain Doomtrain.

Levelling and Stats

- It's at this point that I generally level my characters to 100.  You don't need to; enemy levels will match yours, so if your junctions are good, you can defeat everything at whatever level you are.
- Between Cactuar and several other GFs, you should have two each of mag up, str up, vit up, spr up, and HP-up. 
- I generally equip all but str-up to the ladies, level them until their HP hits 9999 with junctions (auto, magic), and then swap the hp up for str up.  At level 100, I equip them with a ribbon, spr +40% (or 60%), vit +40% (or 60%), str +60%, and ribbon.
- The same for the guys, but give them str up from the beginning and mag up when their hp hits max.  Give them mag +60% instead of str.
- This should give you almost perfect stats, with maybe a little more needed on magic or strength.  To increase those, you can farm str ups or mag ups.  For str ups: buy 100 of the Power Wrists from Esthar Pet Shop.  Use Gf-Abl Med-Rf to turn them into 10  Hyper Wrists.  Then use Forbid Med-Rf to turn those 10 Hyper Wrists into 1 Str Up.  You can do the same thing with Hypno Crowns to Royal Crowns, to Mag Up.
- This is expensive.  If you need money - approx 1 million gil for 5 Mag or Str ups - use the mega-potion trick.  Buy tents and cottages, convert to mega-potions, sell the megapotions for a profit.
- All of this is much quicker with Tonberry King's Call Shop, Haggle, and Familiar.
- Alternatively, you can Devour T-Rexaurs for strength and Behemoths for magic.  I've found this takes longer than just buying stuff.

Lunatica Pandora

- Mug 2 Megalixers from Fuijin. 
- Mug 8 Megalixers from Rinoa.
- Mug a Samantha Soul from Adel.

Time Compression

- Go through the second arch and head to the Chocobo forest on the North-Eastern tip of the Centra continent.  Head to the Ragnarok, which is indicated by a red dot on the map.  There'll be another arch near there.  If you enter it, a fourth arch will rise near the other three, as a shortcut back here.
- Play Triple Triad with the CC Club on the Ragnarok if necessary.  If you've modified rare cards you can win them back from the CC Club (unless they're from the Card Queen Quest).
- Within the castle, you'll need to defeat a number of enemies to unlock your abilities.  You can find Ultimecia by climbing up inside the clock tower, out over the clock face, and then across a bridge.  The game will warn you and allow you to turn back before facing her.

• Sphinxara, on the stairs.
• Tri-Point, in the wine cellar.  Go up the stairs from the entrance and try to cross the chandelier.  When it falls, it will damage the trapdoor to the cellar, allowing you to open it.
• To get across the chandelier - to fight Krysta - have one party stand in the green thing to the right of the trapdoor, switch, and have your other party cross.
• Trauma, in the library.  There is a puzzle involving using the clock on the floor (visible from the balcony) and the names of the paintings, in order to divine the name of a painting which has been damaged.  The name of each painting includes Roman numerals.  You need to enter the names of the paintings corresponding to the hour, minute, and second of the clock, in that order.  Full solution here.
• Tiamat, by climbing up inside the clock tower past the piano, and using the bell to swing across the gap.
• Gargantua is in the Armory, past the library.  The Armoury Key is on the bridge, up past the piano.  Walk, don't run, or it will fall into the water.  If it does fall, it will be the sparkly object in the water right outside the armory.
• You can also use the floodgate key on the lever in this area.  The floodgate key requires both parties.  One will need to go up the stairs from the lobby, then left, and stand on the lift.  The other party will need to go through the library and round to the left, in order to stand on the other side of the lift and raise the first party.  Once raised, the first party can continue left to grab the floodgate key.  Operate the lever near the prison cell until the water drains away.
• Red Giant appears in the prison cell, once you go for the key.
• Once the water is drained, you can access the waterway to the right of the fountain.  First, play every key on the piano, to make the spikes blocking the waterway withdraw.  You can then walk down, picking up the a rosetta stone on the way, to the other door of the prison cell.
• Catoblepas is in the treasure vault, so you'll need the key out of the fountain, just before the piano.  The treasure vault is in the long corridor, if you head left out of the upstairs lobby.  You'll need to make all the boxes open for him to appear.

- Omega Weapon is an optional boss.  He'll appear in front of the piano for one minute after you ring the bell in front of the library.  It's just outside, near the stairs.  It's easiest to park the party you intend to use in front of the fountain, have the other party save near the dungeons then ring the bell, and then switch parties to reach Omega in time.  He'll open the battle with level 5 death on everyone, and cast Megiddo Flame shortly afterwards, which will do 9998 damage to your party.

Final Fantasy VIII - Weapons

In Final Fantasy VIII you upgrade character's weapons by taking the right items and gil to a tool shop.  Each character has at least three upgrades, and you can skip right to the final one if you like, without passing through the inbetween steps.  Squall's limit breaks are linked to his weapons, but, again, you can skip right to the last weapon and get all the limits inbetween automatically.

Throughout the game, you'll find various Weapon Monthly magazines, which will detail the items needed for the upgrades.  You don't need to have the magazines on hand to upgrade the weapons.

You'll find the magazines in the following locations;

Issue	Location
March	Automatically.
April	Squall's desk, when he has a single room at Balamb Garden.
May	Deling sewers.
June	automatically.
July	Training centre, disc 3, left side.
August	Five steps south of Trabia Garden's gargoyle statue.
1st	Found by Laguna in the Esthar lab.

The character's best weapons and the items required are as follows;

Character	Weapon	Requires
Squall	Lionheart	Adamantine x 1 Dragon Fang x 4 Pulse Ammo x 12
Quistis	Save the Queen	Malboro Tentacle x 2 Sharp Spike x 4 Energy Crystal x 4
Zell	Ehrgeiz	Adamantine x 1 Dragon Skin x 4 Fury Fragment x1
Selphie	Strange Vision	Adamantine x 1 Star Fragment x 3 Curse Spike x 2
Rinoa	Shooting Star	Windmill x 2 Force Armlet x 1 Energy Crystal x 2
Irvine	Exeter	Dino Bone x 2 Moon Stone x 1 Star Fragment x 2 Screw x 18

...which gives you the following shopping list.

Item	Where?
Adamantine x 3	Mug (1) from BGH251F2 (boss) at FH. Dropped by Adamantoise at level 30 plus (Haspberry Plains beach, near Timber) Card Mod: Minotaur = 10 Adamantines.
Curse Spike x 2	Dropped by high level Creeps (Deling City Sewers). Card Mod: Tri-Face (Galbadia Garden).
Dino Bone x 2	Dropped by low-level T-Rexaurs (Balamb Forests, Training Centre) Card Mod: 2 T-Rexaurs = 1 Dino Bone
Dragon Fang x 4	Dropped by Blue Dragons (Near Trabia, in the Forests) Dropped by T-Rexaurs (level 20-29).
Dragon Skin x 4	Dropped by Anacondaurs at level 30+
Energy Crystal x 4	Card Mod: 10 Elnoyle = 1 Energy Crystal, or dropped by Elnyoles over level 30.
Force Armlet x 1	Won from Edea on Disc 2, as long as you don't mug. Can be bought from RinRin's shop in Esthar if you have Tonberries Familiar ability. Rare drop from high level Ochus.
Fury Fragment x 1	Card Mod: 4 Blue Dragon = 1 Fury Fragment
Malboro Tentacle x 2	Card Mod: 4 Malboros card = 1 Malboro Tentacle
Moon Stone	Dropped by Elnoyles, Imps, and Toramas in Esthar.
Pulse Ammo x 12	Ammo-RF: 1 Energy Crystal = 10 Pulse Ammo, or 1 Laser Cannon = 5 Pulse Ammo.  Laser Cannons are dropped by Elastoids over level 20, which can be found in Centra, during the Laguna sequence.
Screw x 18	Dropped by Geezards (near Timber and Galbadia) Card Mod: 1 Geezard = 5 screws
Sharp Spike x 4	Card Mod: 1 Grand Mantis = 1 Sharp Spike
Star Fragment x 5	Card Mod: 3 Iron Giants = 1 Star Fragment You can find and card Iron Giants in Esthar after the Lunar Cry. Or, mug from T-Rexaurs at level 30+.
Windmill x 2	Card Mod: 1 Abyss Worm = 1 Windmill.  You can find (and Card) Abyss Worms in deserts near Galbadia.

It's fully possibly to have the best weapons on disc one if you level and play cards appropriately. If you're playing a low level game, it's still possible, but you will have to Mod a few rare cards. If you do, you can get them back on disc 4 from the Card Queen and the CC Club aboard the Ragnarok. This is true for all cards except the PuPu card.

If you wait till later, using Tonberry's level up skill will help with some of the items which are most easily obtained from high level drops.

Final Fantasy VIII Fanfic - We All Fall Down.

I started writing this a few years ago, and never finished it, which was odd because I know exactly how it ends.

Final Fantasy VIII was the first RPG I ever played, when I was eleven.  I loved it from the first moment.  At first, Quistis was my favourite character, but over the years, that transferred to Selphie.  I think, as an elder sister myself, and as someone who was seen as academically intelligent, I identified with Quistis at first.  I could - and did sometimes - identify with Rinoa on the grounds that I look like her, or Squall because I'm an introvert.  But, in the end, I like Selphie best.

I wrote this story after watching America's Sweethearts, and hearing Bekka Bramlett's We All Fall Down.  The following lines seemed like the realisation Squall would have come to by the end of the game.

Maybe tomorrow is counting on me
To learn all my lessons today.
I'll start by taking a step at a time
And stop throwing my blessings away.

I then realised that another line, "I can't always keep my feet on the ground" fit Rinoa, and made me picture her struggling not to give in to her Sorcery, and to stay human.  During her Sorcery Limit Break, you lose control of Rinoa entirely, and she literally starts flying.  In many ways, her sorcery is something she allows to take control of her, and I wondered if it was hard for her to come back.

The POV character changes in each section, and I specifically chose not to explicitly reveal who each section focuses on.  I could argue that I'm deferring to the game itself, which never explicitly states that Laguna is Squall's father and instead talks around the subject, but I just really like subtleties.  It also allowed me to play around with characters and highlight the similarities between them.  At the end, I will reveal who they are, because I also hate not knowing the answers.

We All Fall Down

1.

He is a young man. He's handsome, too. Blonde hair gleaming in the sunlight, piercing blue eyes. He's not tall, but he has an energy, an exuberance, and a unique, quirky sense of humour, which some find intriguing, and others simply confusing.

He has so many dreams. He runs everyday, down by the seashore, to keep in shape, and while he does he dreams. There is little else to do, after all. Running time is his time, time that he takes away from the world to just be himself. And to think.

He'd like to think deep, philosophical thoughts, but instead he daydreams. The usual daydreams, about getting the girl and saving the day. Either order would work for him.

He's been in love a few times, but nothing that lasted. Their partings were easy, simple, and didn't leave either party feeling too taxed, or emotional, or regretful. Things had run their course, and there was nothing more to be found there.  He longs for something more.

Sometimes, he comes across monsters when he is running. Small, mostly harmless creatures, with a vicious bite. Mostly, he ignores them. Sometimes he fends them off with a stick, dreaming that it is a sword.

2.

He doesn't want her. 

There's no real reason not to. She's pretty, intelligent. Spoilt and naïve, too. Still insists on protecting her virginity at all costs. He doesn't pressure her too much - he thinks it's kind of romantic that she wants to wait.

He likes these romantic ideals, these stories; he toys with them sometimes. When he walks through the corridors of Garden, dressed in his long coat, he pictures himself in the third person, seeing the authoritative way it swishes behind him. He moves as if his life is a film and he is the eternal director and star.  He places himself front and centre, in the lead role of every story he tells himself.

And he doesn't want this story. He doesn't want her.

There's nothing wrong with her. She just isn't what he dreamed of. She's not special enough.

There might have been some conflict with her father. That would have made a good story.  They could have defied her father, run away together. Had a bittersweet dramatic life, and a happy ending. 

That was the problem. He doesn't want a happy ending at this young age. He doesn't want the stories to be over. He doesn't want happiness with no conflict. He can feel himself suffocating in this small town. 

If there is no conflict, perhaps he will create some.

3.

...Sometimes he fends them off with a stick, dreaming that it is a sword.

He walks through the town, his t-shirt drenched in sweat. He wants to go home immediately, remove the damp, grey clothing he wears for these exercises, and throw himself into a shower. That's his usual routine.

Today, though, something is different. He skipped breakfast that morning, despite knowing that it's a bad idea. He's not an athlete, but he knows his body, knows that if he doesn't eat he will feel this uncomfortable starving hunger before he reaches home.  But he is a dreamer, absent-minded and cheerful. He is often distracted from day to day life, and although he runs regularly he still finds his own plans taking him by surprise, forcing him to run out of the door having forgotten everything he meant to do.

Still, he has done this before. This is something he can handle. There's a cafe on his way home, one where he knows he can get the hot dogs he craves . Probably not the healthiest breakfast but, as he justifies it, he needs the protein and carbs.

He is served by the same smiling girl as always, a cheerful dark-haired girl who greets him by name, and shakes her head when she realises that he's skipped breakfast again.

As he orders, he notices that behind her, the door to the kitchen is left open. He can see someone else.  Not all of her. Long dark hair, and smooth pale arms, working, cooking something. He wonders who she is, and why she hides herself. More than anything, he wants to see her face.
 

4.

She cried, on the first day.  Matron told her that crying didn’t help – if she just kept her spirits up and didn’t dwell on things, she’d be fine.

“There’s no need to cry, baby,” Matron had cooed.  “Smile!  A pretty little girl like you should smile.”

She had smiled, through her tears.  Matron smiled back.

It had been hard not to cry, at first.   She’d been so lonely.  She wondered where her daddy was, why he hadn’t come to take her home yet.  She didn’t know any of the other children yet, and they scared her a bit.  Matron had found her snuffling quietly in a corner one day, and had bribed her with a cupcake to cheer up.  “There’s always a bright side,” Matron had said.  Slowly, she learned not to cry.

When that other little boy came, he cried.  He cried, and they made fun of him.  Slowly, she grew into her role.  She couldn’t be the big sister.  She wasn’t the bully.  She wouldn’t be the crybaby.  She was the cheerful one, the one who smiled and cajoled others into happiness as Matron had done to her.  As she grew older, and her physical form stayed small and cute, she found herself cast into that role of the perky little girl.  So much so that she didn’t know how to cry.  The only way she knew to deal with negative emotions was to bury them, to put on a smile and fake it until it felt real.  She threw herself into the role, organising parties and celebrations, and cheering people up.  It was nice to be cheerful.  It felt good to always be working on something to make people happy.

 “It’ll be like a picnic!  We’re going to have FUN!”

She’d known how ridiculous she’d sounded when she’d said it.    She just didn’t have any other options.  She didn’t know what would happen if she wasn’t cheerful, if there wasn’t a bright side, if she wasn’t okay, and the thought terrified her.

5.

More than anything, he wants to see her face.

He asks the girl on the counter who she is, the dark-haired girl in the back room.

"My sister," she says, and from her manner, it is clear that she considers this quite enough information. Still, he persists. Why does she keep herself hidden like that? Can he see her? What are her hobbies, her likes and dislikes, would she like to go out sometime?  To talk, or to see a movie, or to the library, or for a walk, or something, anything.

From behind the door she listens, but keeps herself hidden. As always, she keeps herself hidden.

6.

He’s wondered, before now, what love is.  In his dalliances.  Is it this, is it this, is it this?

He loves women, as a category, but never before as individuals.  Still he wonders, with each new girl.  Does this dramatic, romantic gesture mean that he really loves her?  Surely he wouldn’t have climbed up the side of Garden in the middle of the night if he didn’t?  Or, with another – surely he wouldn’t have spent days writing poetry for her if he didn’t love if?  If he wasn't in love?

Deep down, he knows.  He isn’t in love with her, or her, or with any of them.  He’s in love with love.  He makes romantic gestures for their own sake, for the pleasure of being romantic and dramatic, for playing at being in love.  

Every time, he fools himself.  He thinks, surely, this is it.  Then it ends, and he realises it wasn’t, and he moves on to the next one.  He hopes he is wrong, that this is really it.

Now, though...

He hasn’t made any romantic gestures.    He hasn’t asked himself if this is it. 

He just knows.  Not because he's being more intense, more full on, more stressed than ever before, but because he isn't.

A quiet realisation.  A sigh.  It’s you. It was always you.

7.

As always, she keeps herself hidden.

It is not through lack of effort on his part. He returns, far more often than he used to. She's afraid.

She is afraid he will keep trying, that he will find her, that he will discover her secret.

She is afraid that he won't.

She is afraid that he will hate her, that he will look at her with disgust, and she doesn't think she could bear that. All she wants is to be surrounded by love; she dreams of a large family, of reading stories to enraptured children, watching them grow up and learn about the world.

Of course, her condition makes this impossible. But she can dream. A dream does not cost anything beyond disappointment.

So, he keeps coming, and she keeps dreaming.

8.

I am alive.

…so cold…

It cannot end here. I cannot die like this.

Bring me back!

I will not be forgotten. How…how dare they? They cannot forget me. They cannot leave me here.

I will go mad in this place.

I will never let you forget about me. You could not even destroy me! You left me trapped here, in this hellish tomb!

Bring me back!
 

9.

She keeps dreaming. 

She gives in. 

She has learnt, from her sister, where it is that he appears from each morning. She's heard his enthusiastic talk before now, even muffled as it was by his desperate inhalation of hot dogs. She knows where she can find him, just as he knows where he can find her. But she is the only one who can take down the barrier between them.

It takes her a while to get up her courage, to sneak out early in the morning. Normally, she leaves her excursions for the darker hours of the night, when she is better able to disguise herself with scarves, and with the natural darkness. She isn't worried about the danger of the darkness, not like any other young woman would be. She knows she is safe from direct attacks.

This morning, the sun seems far too bright. She feels exposed. She thinks this was a stupid idea.

10.

He wakes in the night, crying softly. At first, he is too scared too scream, and he's not even sure why he's afraid.

There was something...he's not sure what. Something coming after him, although he couldn't name the purpose. Being chased is scary enough; he doesn't need any further explanation.

He sobs almost uncontrollably. Still, he cannot call for help, cannot even take his head from underneath the blanket. If he does...it might get him.

It is not a very long time - although, to him, it seems it - before there are footsteps and motion nearby. There is always motion; this room is never still, not with so many warm bodies filling it with their breathy sounds of sleep. Still, this is different; this is purposeful. He tenses, but cannot prevent a small whimper from escaping.

Suddenly, warm arms swoop and encircle him. He cries out softly and is shushed. Realising who it is, he clings and cries again.

"Shhhh, baby, it's okay,"

And she rocks him, as if he were younger. He's big now, he knows, but he still likes to be cuddled and held, especially after nightmares.

"It's okay, it's okay," and she strokes his hair. "Was it a nightmare? It's okay. I won't let anyone hurt you baby. I won't let anyone hurt any of you."

He cannot explain why he is afraid, but it's okay. She understands. He had never known a mother, but if he had one, he would like one just like her. He wishes she had more time for him, but now, at least, he does not have to share. She calls him baby, as she does all her charges, but he doesn't mind. He feels loved. He hopes it never has to end, but he dries his tears and wriggles to be put down.

"I'm not a cry-baby," he whispers, with a kind of fierce pride. "I'm okay Matron. It was just a bad dream, and dreams aren't real, are they?"

"No, no, baby, they're not. Go back to sleep."

11. 

She thinks this was a stupid idea.

She sees him long before he sees her. He is focused on the ground in front of him, sweat dripping from his face, causing his hair to fall in front of his eyes. She can't help but smile at him.

When he sees her, he is stunned. He stops, still breathing hard. Her nervousness increases.

"Hello," she says. Her voice doesn't sound like it usually does. The words come out in a breathless squeak. Still, he gazes at her.

"I - " she begins, thinking this was a mistake. "I brought hot dogs."

He smiles then, a huge grin spreading across his face. Shyly, she smiles back.

12.

 I can't keep my feet on the ground.

The magic fills me, and carries me. The power flows through my veins.

It starts at my fingertips, at my crossed hands. It flows, a wave of a shiver down my spine, down to my feet, then slowly back up, carrying me with it. My mind retreats. I am weightless, and my movement is effortless.

I move as if in a dream. Nothing matters, as long as this power keeps flowing. It sparks from my fingertips, and even in my trance I feel my eyes burn.

I feel like a goddess. And sometimes, it occurs to me, that perhaps that is exactly what this power makes me.

It is only an idea that I toy with sometimes. I've seen how this absolute power corrupts. It's just an idea to play with.

13.

Shyly, she smiles back.

" – war."

That's all she hears. She only catches the last part of the sentence, hidden in the kitchen as she is. She can ask her sister about it later.

She's heard the rumours before now. Of Sorceress Adel in Esthar, that power to the East. It had seemed  that she was merely an ogre to scare children with. Now Adel's presence is an imminent threat. Not only to the world, but to her own well-being.

Her sister confirms it. War has officially been declared.

Later, early the next morning, she throws herself into his arms. He tries to comfort her, but he cannot answer the one question to which she needs a reply.

"What if they find out that I'm the same?"

14.

I don't want a pet.

I'm lonely sometimes, I admit it. I have my friends, we spend time together. I have my students, and my position within Garden. I'm always busy, always surrounded by people. And still, I'm a little lonely.

I don't cry myself to sleep at night, that would be silly. But when I see the dynamics of Rinoa and Squall's relationship, him protesting, while she tries to talk him into something, and then they argue, and make up…or when I see Irvine and Selphie, avoiding each other's gazes, the way they do. She'll look at him, with a thoughtful expression, until he looks up. Then her eyes dart away, pretending to be fascinated by something else. So then he'll gaze at her for a while. And then he'll hit on her, in the joking way he does everyone, and she'll brush him off, as she always does, not knowing that he doesn't do this to everyone, not any more. Oh, he'll still make the odd comment, but it's always her he goes back to. She doesn't realise that, of course. Until the middle of the night, when she's too awake to go to sleep, and needs someone to talk to. She knows she's the only one who has that with him, simply because no one else would fit in that bed with them.  They lie awake and talk all night, and then he slips back to his room early the next morning.

They think I don't know. They think no one knows, when it's obvious to anyone who pays attention. Or anyone who has the room next to hers, has exceptional hearing, and stays up late with paperwork.

I don't know if they'll take it further. I think she's afraid to, since that would make her just like every other girl he's known. She doesn't want that. Nor does he, I think.

I can usually find Zell in the library these days. I caught him buying flowers once.

I have my admirers, of course. Many of whom would be happy to buy me flowers, or, probably, share my bed. If I told them to.

I don't want a pet. I don't want someone who hangs on to my every word, who does whatever I command them to, and never thinks of anything on their own initiative. I don't want someone who agrees with everything I say, no matter what I say. If they always have the same opinion, whatever I say, does it make any difference whether I'm saying something important or just chanting the alphabet over and over? If they act on every one of my ideas and never on their own, then it does it make any difference that they're a separate individual, a real person with their own life, and feelings, and ideas? I don't think so.

I don't want a pet, but I would like a partner. 

15.

 "What if they find out that I'm the same?"

He understands then, something that she's only alluded to before.  He understands why she hides herself, why the veins pulse at her temples in the curious way they do, the way she tries to hide with scarfs.  Maybe he understood before now, but didn't want to admit it to himself.

He takes her hand, the most contact he's been allowed up to this point.

16.

This is all wrong.

She was a calm woman, one who dressed in modest, subdued colours. She looked young, still looks young, but before she was a comforting young woman. He can remember his own small hands touching the veins on her face. They were raised then, slightly, an interest texture to his young self. Now they appear almost painful, purple, dramatic, like her clothing.

This is all wrong. This isn't like her.

Tell yourself it isn't her, he thinks. It might as well not be.

Then, it seems, he has a better plan. This plan is simply to stall and see what else turns up, but hey. Pretty good for less than a seconds thought-time.

"I..." He starts. They look at him, the naive optimist and the stoic young man with the scar marring the face he used to know so well. The face which he knows is only a mask, which slips to show a childish fear he recognises sometimes, when the SeeD isn't even aware of it himself.

"I can't do it."
 

17.

He takes her hand, the most contact he's been allowed up to this point.

She doesn't draw away, though she desperately wants to.  She's afraid to look up, to see that expression on his face.  The one she sees in her nightmares sometimes, when they find out what she is.

He speaks.  He tells her that she isn't like Adel, that she never could be.  He tells her that he loves her, that he will always love her, and she won't be like Adel because she'll always have him.  And there on Balamb Beach, he kneels in front of her and vows fealty, to be her knight.

Then he asks her something else.  "Edea...will you marry me?"

Credits

Cid

Seifer

Cid

Selphie

Cid

Irvine

Edea

Adel

Edea

Squall

Edea

Rinoa

Edea

Quistis

Edea

Irvine

 Cid & Edea