Dissidia Academy Chapter 1 (Prototype)

This is my storyline, but not all of the characters are mine. I respectfully disclaim any characters from the Final Fantasy franchise, as they belong to Square Enix.

Chapter 1

Rain...that's all that could be heard. Just the soft sound of rain hitting the windows of this small apartment. It was all I could afford, what with the salary I earn at my part-time job. I could've moved, but, that would require me getting another job, which I couldn't do. It just wasn't possible. There was nothing else...
The only other sound that could be heard was the squeaking of the mice that had infiltrated my home, and with my money going to rent, bills, and food, I didn't have the budget to afford any traps, or poison. I was stuck with any and all uninvited guests, except for certain bugs I knew were easy to kill. Spiders and such...though, I've thought of keeping one of the poisonous ones and feeding them whatever mice I could catch. Free food for an odd pet.
It was about two in the morning, and I was attempting to sleep. I had my eyes closed, but I wasn't out. I opened them, it was no good, I couldn't sleep. I just hoped I'd be able to get through work later that day. I had nothing else to do, so I just turned on the TV and watch some late night show. I didn't bother to turn the lights back on, just in case I did fall asleep. That was when I heard it.
It was small, and weak, but I could hear it. A simple, pleading mew. It surprised me, as there weren't any cats in the building. No one who lived in this dump of an apartment building could have one, not even a goldfish. Needless to say, hearing what I did piqued my curiosity. I got up, but didn't move. That first mew didn't tell me where the cat was. The second did, outside my front door. Walking up to it, I could tell the cat knew someone had heard it, 'cause it started mewing more and louder, almost as if it were saying, "Yes, I'm here!"
As soon as I opened the door, I looked down, what I saw tugged my heart strings so hard, I swear it was going to jump out of my chest. Right in front of me, was a kitten, probably about six months old. It's fur was soaking wet from being out in the rain, and also a bit filthy, but you could still tell the color was a radiant white, as if it were born of the light of Cosmos itself. It's eyes also stood out, they were like beautiful amber stones. It was almost as if they were staring straight into my soul.
I knelt down, just looking at it. This poor, thing was thin as a stick. I could see its ribs. That was it, I think, this sight, that changed my life forever. It gave another pleading mew before I scooped it up and brought it inside, closing the door behind me. While I had it in my hands, I decided to give it a good look, as though there was some sign that he was lost. Nothing, though I did figure out the gender.
"A boy, huh?" I said, looking into those amber eyes, "Long way from home, aren't you?"
He mewed, as though he were responding. First thing, I had to give him a bath, and since he was too small for the tub, I used the kitchen sink. When I turned on the light, I sighed in disgust. I hadn't been able to clean it yet, or fix anything, since moving in. The oak cabinets were falling off the hinges just about every time I opened them, the floor used to be nice white tiles, but now they were dirty with grime, and rat droppings, the sink was full of today's dishes, the counter was broken in several places, and the wall paint was chipping off.
"It's dirty as hell, but it's mine." I said bluntly. No reason to make it sound like I'm living in a mansion.
I could tell the little guy didn't like getting even more soaked than he already was, but he didn't make a fuss. Plus, I think he was glad that all the dirt and mud on his fur was getting washed away. After drying him off, I placed him on the only part of the counter that wasn't broken. Next thing, I had to feed him. He looked like he hadn't eaten in days. I went over to the fridge, when I did, three mice jumped out. Really startled me.
"Great. Another place they love to hide."
Wiping that moment from my mind, I grabbed a package of fish. It was still good, so he wouldn't get sick. I didn't want to give to him straight from the package, so I grabbed a plate from the drain board, and placed on that. When I put his meal in front of him, he sniffed it as if he'd never had fish before, whether or not he did, he realized that this was his food. Something he probably hadn't had in quite a while. As soon as he took that first bite, I knew I couldn't just abandon him, so I said something I never thought I would...
"Maybe, you should stay here...with me."

Two Years Later...

The suns rays came in through the blinds on the windows. I opened my eyes slowly, as to let them adjust to the light. As soon as I fully opened them, a pure white cat opened its eyes as well, and meowed a "good morning". This cat was the kitten I had taken in, and I'm more than glad I did.
He was a full grown, handsome, two year old cat. A real mouse catcher, and my only friend. I named him Prince.
I smiled, "Good morning to you too."
He replied with a small lick on the tip of my nose. A constant sign of endearment, along with the usual cuddling he'd do. I sat up, and stretched, Prince did the same. A new day...I began to wonder what would happen, if anything would change. Whatever would come my way, I knew I'd have my silent partner with me...
Silence...all except for his purrs and whatnot.
"Well," I said getting up from the bed, "guess we should get something to eat, no?"
Prince jumped off the bed and waited by the door as soon as I finished. This was the usual start of our morning routine. I walked over to the door, and the both of us headed for the kitchen. When I got to the living room, for some reason, I expected to see Tifa Lockhart sitting on the couch with her usual smile.
That's right, Tifa's on a personal vacation.
Prince knew something was wrong, 'cause he started rubbing against my legs, purring. I looked at him, smiled, picked him up, and went into the kitchen. I opened up the fridge and look inside.
"So," I said looking at my feline passenger, "see anything you'd like?"
His eyes moved from one item to another, as if he were pondering the question, which he might've been for all I know. He finally looked at me and meowed.
"The usual? Very well, one fish coming right up."
After breakfast, I grabbed a book bag, and walked up to the front door. As I was about to leave, I turned to look at Prince, who was sitting on the arm of the couch, which was a lovely shade of red, and able to fit three people.
I smiled, "Remember, be a good boy."
With that said, I opened the door and was on my way.

Within about and hour, I stood before the great Dissidia Academy.
Dissidia Academy is a college meant to train and educate future fighters for the war between the goddess of harmony, Cosmos, and the god of discord, Chaos. It's always fun attending here, even though I know there's the possibility I might fight after graduation. There are two campus', the Cosmos Campus, which is meant for those who hold the light within, and the Chaos Campus, which is filled with darkness. The only other difference is the Cosmos Campus looks like a prestigious academy, while the Chaos Campus looks like all hell broke loose. Needless to say, I chose to attend the Cosmos Campus.
You have to climb two flights of stairs to get to my classroom. Class 2-B. Walking in, I could already tell there was going to be something special happening soon, our class president, Squall Leonhart, was standing at the front of the class, standing in that usual leader-like straightness whenever he got up there.
If I had to put Squall's personality into one or two words, they would have to be...lone wolf. You would never see the man with anyone. He always kept to himself, as best as he could. Buddy projects, what can you do, huh? The scar that ran across his face, I often wondered how he got it, battle maybe? He had on a white t-shirt, black gloves, black pants with two brown belts going diagonally across his butt, and black shoes. He must've left his black jacket with the white fur sown into the collar at his desk.
As I walked past him to get to my desk, he held out a piece of paper.
I looked at him, "What is that?"
"You'll see." He said.
I sighed and took the paper. I hoped it wasn't some kind of questionnaire, those things got annoying pretty quickly. They were always asking the same things, like, what is your favorite way to pass the time, or something like that. I placed the paper on my desk, and sat down. On the very top of the page was the title "Culture Fest Ideas".
So that's what he's going to talk about.
Sure enough, as soon as the bell rings, and everyone's in their proper seat, Squall grabs a piece of chalk and writes "Culture Fest", all in capitals with three exclamation points.
"All right, listen up. The culture fest is only one month away, and we've yet to come up with an idea as to what we're going to do."
Just about the entire class groaned. I couldn't blame them. When it was announced, Squall started to slowly get into his competition mode. He's always been this way, trying to outdo class 2-F at the Chaos Campus.
"Dude, if it's a month away, shouldn't we wait until there's only a few weeks left?" Asked a certain energetic boy.
I turned to look at the back of the class, where Tidus was sitting, his arms crossed in frustration. Tidus' our class' ace blitzball player. He just about always had this happy look on his face, as if he had just won some impossible battle, wearing the uniform he had on when Sin took him from his home.
Squall sighed, "Because if we wait that long, then we might not be able to prepare it in time. And if we don't get it ready, then we won't get any visitors, and if-"
"Squall," I interrupted, "just what do you want us to put on this?"
He calmed. "Just, put down whatever idea comes to mind."
Sitting right next to me, Zidane Tribal raised his hand. A known thief with a monkey tail, the boy could steal the hearts of some girls. He wasn't always lucky though. His long, blond hair was tied down in a ponytail. He had that usual "this is gonna be good" smile on his face.
Squall knew what he was going to say though, "And no, Zidane, that doesn't mean you can put down 'speed dating' as an idea."
Zidane put his hand down almost immediately in defeat.
I leaned over and whispered, "You had to have known he'd reject it."
Zidane leaned closer to me, "Yeah, I know Cloud, but I was hoping to get a funny look from him."
He had a point. All except for a few choice expressions, it was the same serious face every time, as though happy, sad, or even sweet, kind man never existed. I thought maybe something had happened to make him that way. We sat back up when Squall continued.
"Moving away from that, we've just received word that the annual archery competition will be two weeks from now," he paused, "anyone looking to participate should speak to the Headmaster between now, and next Friday."
Archery competition, huh? I wonder if I should...
I shook the thought away. Out of anything, archery wasn't one of my best sports. It'd be foolish for me to even think I would survive the event without completely embarrassing myself. However, sign-ups didn't end until that Friday, so...I had time to really think about it.

Lunchtime. I was sitting at the end of a table all by my lonesome. I'm not very social myself, but, unlike Squall, I'm not one to turn someone away, or decline an invitation. I just don't make any initiations, that's all. That day was pizza day, but I had brought some leftovers from last night's dinner for my meal. A simple sandwich, the only real dinner I can do considering my budget. I'd love to do an exquisite dinner, maybe get Prince some real cat food, but no...we've lived off of what we have, and there have been no complaints from either party.
Maybe I should apply for a food card, that way we could get some decent meals.
Food cards were basically one way the school aids its students. They help those who can't afford it. They can't be used for fast food or restaurants, but they're a big help.
"Hey, mind if I join you?"
I look up to see Zidane standing next to me.
"No, not really." I reply, motioning to the seat across from me.
He's not sitting with his friends?
Zidane normally sits with three others, Tidus, Bartz Klauser, and Vaan.
"Oh, them? They've got clean up duties with the coach, remember? Last weeks incident?"
I nodded. That was completely horrible. What had happened was, on that particular day, Coach Driesand was making us run laps through one of his obstacle courses, and the three of them thought it'd be funny if one of the faces on the punching dummies was his face...with a certain expression that I don't believe I should be remembering.
"They'll be starving by the time you guys get back to your dorm house."
Zidane started laughing. "It'd serve them right!" He smiled, "Don't get me wrong, Cloud, I'm all for a good prank, but not on Coach Diesand. That's committing suicide right there."
That was the entire truth. You mess with the coach, and you might as well quit the field, 'cause that's one battle you'd never win. A lot of his punishments were pretty harsh though, I was pretty surprised those three only got clean up duty.
"So," he said, changing the subject, "got any ideas?"
"For the culture fest?"
He nodded. To be honest, I wasn't one for coming up with the ideas. Normally, I just went along with whatever everyone agreed to. I could never come up with any good ideas, even Prince agreed.

After school, I headed straight home. I had the day off from work that day, so I thought it would be nice to spend more time with Prince. I checked my mailbox before walking up the stairs to the third floor, which is where my place was. There was a letter from work. I wondered what they sent me that couldn't have waited until the next time I was in, or they couldn't call me in to speak about. Shrugging it off, I entered through the front door.
"Prince, I'm home!"
As usual, he comes bounding out of my room, and jumps right into my arms, purring and licking my face, so happy to see me.
"Alright, alright, I missed you too."
I put him down, and he goes for the couch, knowing I'd sit right next to him. As soon as I sit down, I open the letter from work. In it is a check for two hundred and thirty gil, as well as an actual letter to go with it.
"Let's see here..."

"Dear Mr. Strife,                                                                                                          
We deeply regret to tell you that we have released you of your duties
as a member of our staff. We hope you understand, and accept your final paycheck."

I didn't read the rest of it. I didn't need to, I got the gist of it. I've been let go...I've got no way to pay my rent, or buy food, or anything. Prince knew something was wrong, because he began rubbing his head against my cheek, trying to comfort me.
"Looks like we're out in the doghouse big time, little buddy."
He meowed a saddened reply. I placed the letters on the table. Nothing ruins a day like finding out you've been fired from a job.
I had been working at a cafe as a waiter. It didn't pay very much, but it was the only way I had to actually live on my own. And, luckily, when I picked up Prince, I didn't cat food, the fish was always enough for him. But now, we were about to have nothing at all. I'd have to find a new place for us to live, because the owner's a stick in the mud when it comes to this. He practically requires you to have an income before you even sign the lease. I would be thrown out in two one week tops. Which meant I needed to apply for the schools dorm houses.
The dorm houses are for those who have no place to live. Basically, the school pays for you, and a roommate or two if you want, to live in a completely furnished house. Any extras you had to produce yourself.
I sighed, this was the worst moment of my life. Tifa was sure to have a few choice for my former employers if she found out, but I was never one for keeping secrets from her.

That night, as I was preparing for bed, I began petting Prince. He didn't purr like usual, he just looked at me with those amber eyes.
"Still worried about me?"
He meowed as if to say, "Of course I am."
"Well, so am I, but about you." I lied down, "There might be a chance that whoever I room with might not like cats."
He licked the tip of my nose.
"I know, getting rid of you would never be a choice for me. You're the only friend I have."
I knew, I would've died than put Prince back in the same position he was in when I met him. I could never abandon him like that.
As I'm drifting off to sleep, I manage to get what's always been on my mind out in the open. "I wish you could speak...Prince. It'd be kind of nice to hear you respond..."
With that, I fall to sleep's sweet lullaby.