[Uncharted+FFVIII] The Ring
Yet another fic for ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
camalyng! She gives me all the plotbunnies and I regret absolutely nothing.
Title: The Ring
Rating: G
Fandoms: Uncharted and Final Fantasy VIII crossover
Characters: Nathan Drake, Rinoa Heartilly, Irvine Kinneas (Squall Leonhart, Edea Kramer, Zell Dincht mention-only)
Summary: In order to be considered a descendant of Squall Leonhart, Nate decides to nick the Griever Ring from Squall's wife Rinoa. Little does he know that she has other plans for him.
Spoilers? Supposedly for FFVIII (I've never played the game, but they seem to be late-game spoilers regarding Edea and Squall), definitely early-game spoilers for Uncharted 3.
There it was. Nate couldn’t help grinning widely as he peered up from his book and gazed straight at the Griever Ring across the room. Although he couldn’t see it too clearly, not from this distance, Nate knew it couldn’t be anywhere else but in Rinoa Leonhart’s hands. He’d done too much research to think otherwise.
After years of pouring over all the old books in the Centra Library and eventually the giant library Matron had in her house, Nate came to the conclusion that if he really was a descendant of Squall Leonhart, ripped from the future through Time Compression, then he just had to steal back what was rightfully his. Just one hitch: that ring never left Ms. Leonhart’s neck. How was he supposed to take it from right under her own nose? Even a master thief like Tantalus couldn’t pull something that complicated off! Especially since it wasn't just one ring to steal: Ms. Leonhart always wore it alongside her mother's. And quite frankly, Nate didn't care much for some deceased pop star.
Taking a deep breath, Nate closed his journal before pocketing it in his messenger bag. He slowly moved forward, still keeping an eye on Ms. Leonhart and her friend.
He couldn’t act stupid, not when the matter of his heritage rode on this Griever crest. Squall Leonhart used it in almost everything, from his gunblades to his clothes to even his cars; it was a mark of the house of Leonhart! If anyone was going to take Nate seriously as Squall’s son, then he had to have something that marked him as Squall’s son (or was it grandson?) He’d done his homework in advance: every spring, Ms. Leonhart and her husband made their annual trip to Centra to pay their respects to Matron. Sometimes, their friends – high-ranking SeeD – accompanied them. This year had been one of those instances; Nate had seen SeeD Dincht and SeeD Kinneas walk beside Mr. and Ms. Leonhart upon their arrival.
Their presence didn’t deter Nate; if anything, they made him even more determined to claim the ring back. After much begging and pleading with Matron, Nate had been granted permission to spend time in the same room as Ms. Leonhart and SeeD Kinneas. Now, as he quietly made his way to the other side of the giant lobby, Nate wondered if he could’ve been any less obvious about his intent. Although Ms. Leonhart barely noticed him, SeeD Kinneas had given him a wide, genuine smile. How awkward.
Every now and then, he could hear actual bits of conversation. The details of the Leonharts’ weekend plans didn’t faze Nate; he knew that Ms. Leonhart enjoyed a good evening of music in Dollet with her husband. They’d appeared often enough in the society papers for it to be common knowledge. Nate tried to act inconspicuous, just like those rich society kids when they’d visited the Home, as he swiftly moved towards the door and attempted to open it. He couldn’t steal the ring now, not when he was the only one alone in the room with an armed officer and his best frend’s wife. It’d just land him in even more trouble with Matron! Without thinking, Nate fished his out from his pocket and gazed down at his deck.
He’d battled some of the other kids for their cards, and he’d ended up becoming pretty good in the process. As he walked out, he dropped one of his cards and---
And Ms. Leonhart picked it up for him. She knelt down, carefully taking it into her hand, before walking over to Nate and handing it to him. “Here,” she said, warmly smiling at him. “Looks like you’ve got good taste in cards.”
If he wanted to, he could’ve taken the ring right then and there. He saw it, plain as day, wrapped tightly around Ms. Leonhart’s neck. It - along with her mother's ring - glimmered in the sunlight, radiating of pure energy and light… it felt so stupid, so shameful to just take them without even informing her.
He hesitated for a second, his gaze barely moving from her neck, before he slowly nodded and accepted his Squall Leonhart card. “Y-yes ma’am.”
She quizzically looked at him, folding her hands and placing them behind her back as she got a better look at him. “Hm? Are you alright?”
“Yes ma’am,” he said, finding his voice again as he managed to stare into her deep brown, almost black, eyes. Strange: he felt like he could see more of himself in her than he could in Mr. Leonhart. But wasn’t he related to him? What about the Griever Ring? Ms. Leonhart didn’t have any special accessories to call her own—or if she did, he couldn’t recall them off the top of his head. (Her mother's ring, again, didn't count.) “I’m fine.”
“Doesn’t sound like it to me, kid,” SeeD Kinneas quipped as he knelt down and gently pried Nate’s other hand open. “… For one thing, that’d be Rinoa’s ring right there. Don’t think you meant to take that, did you?”
Okay, so maybe he’d given into his temptation and went through with it. He didn’t think he’d get busted that quickly! Nate avoided SeeD Kinneas’ face as he murmured, “No sir, I didn’t.”
“Irvine!” Ms. Leonhart scolded, putting both of her hands on her hip as she looked straight at him. “You just ruined it. I was going to tell him I knew about it after we’d had our nice long conversation.”
SeeD Kinneas just chuckled, “Then I guess I should leave before I ruin any more of your big surprises, huh, Rinoa?”
He tipped the edge of his cowboy hat towards them before he turned to leave. “Just holler if you think you need me.”
Ms. Leonhart just giggled as she watched her friend leave through the large metal doors. Once they slammed shut behind him, she turned her attention back to Nate. With quite possibly the biggest smirk Nate had seen in all of his twelve years, she asked, “Soooo… what were you planning to do with those rings, huh? Sell them on the black market?”
“Of course not!” The words spilled out of Nate’s mouth faster than he could catch them. Indignantly, he stood his ground as he shook his head and responded, “I’d keep the Griever ring safe with me. Because you know, it’s rightfully mine.”
“Oh is it?” Now Ms. Leonhart just looked curious. “Why’s that?”
“Because…” Nate choked on his own sentence as he gripped the ring tightly in his fist. “Because it means I’m his descendant.”
He could feel Ms. Leonhart’s arms immediately wrapping around him. In mere seconds, she had completely enveloped him and motioned for Nate to come even closer to her. She softly, gently whispered in his ear, “If you want to be his kid that badly, you could have just said so.”
Nate broke free from her grip long enough to stare at her face, “… You mean it?”
“Yeah,” Ms. Leonhart responded, her smile never leaving her face as she pulled Nate in for another hug. “After all, we can’t have Squall’s descendant running around without us now, can we?”
Something wet dripped down his cheeks. It took Nate a moment to realize that it tasted salty too. For dust that kept getting in his eyes, they sure liked falling down faster than ever. For what felt like forever, he didn’t let go of her, instead wrapping his own arms around her waist and resting his head on her shoulder.
“No,” he said quietly after a moment. “I guess we can’t.”
Then, he opened his hand and held out the ring. “Sorry, Ms. Leonhart---“
“Mom,” Ms. Leonhart corrected. “I’m not having any descendant of mine call me anything else.”
Nate sheepishly smiled, “Sorry, Mom.” The words felt strange, almost foreign, coming off his lips, but he suspected he’d get used to it pretty quickly in a few months.
He never did get the Griever Ring like he wanted, but that afternoon? He’d gotten much, much more than he’d ever thought he would have imagined for himself.
camalyng! She gives me all the plotbunnies and I regret absolutely nothing. Title: The Ring
Rating: G
Fandoms: Uncharted and Final Fantasy VIII crossover
Characters: Nathan Drake, Rinoa Heartilly, Irvine Kinneas (Squall Leonhart, Edea Kramer, Zell Dincht mention-only)
Summary: In order to be considered a descendant of Squall Leonhart, Nate decides to nick the Griever Ring from Squall's wife Rinoa. Little does he know that she has other plans for him.
Spoilers? Supposedly for FFVIII (I've never played the game, but they seem to be late-game spoilers regarding Edea and Squall), definitely early-game spoilers for Uncharted 3.
There it was. Nate couldn’t help grinning widely as he peered up from his book and gazed straight at the Griever Ring across the room. Although he couldn’t see it too clearly, not from this distance, Nate knew it couldn’t be anywhere else but in Rinoa Leonhart’s hands. He’d done too much research to think otherwise.
After years of pouring over all the old books in the Centra Library and eventually the giant library Matron had in her house, Nate came to the conclusion that if he really was a descendant of Squall Leonhart, ripped from the future through Time Compression, then he just had to steal back what was rightfully his. Just one hitch: that ring never left Ms. Leonhart’s neck. How was he supposed to take it from right under her own nose? Even a master thief like Tantalus couldn’t pull something that complicated off! Especially since it wasn't just one ring to steal: Ms. Leonhart always wore it alongside her mother's. And quite frankly, Nate didn't care much for some deceased pop star.
Taking a deep breath, Nate closed his journal before pocketing it in his messenger bag. He slowly moved forward, still keeping an eye on Ms. Leonhart and her friend.
He couldn’t act stupid, not when the matter of his heritage rode on this Griever crest. Squall Leonhart used it in almost everything, from his gunblades to his clothes to even his cars; it was a mark of the house of Leonhart! If anyone was going to take Nate seriously as Squall’s son, then he had to have something that marked him as Squall’s son (or was it grandson?) He’d done his homework in advance: every spring, Ms. Leonhart and her husband made their annual trip to Centra to pay their respects to Matron. Sometimes, their friends – high-ranking SeeD – accompanied them. This year had been one of those instances; Nate had seen SeeD Dincht and SeeD Kinneas walk beside Mr. and Ms. Leonhart upon their arrival.
Their presence didn’t deter Nate; if anything, they made him even more determined to claim the ring back. After much begging and pleading with Matron, Nate had been granted permission to spend time in the same room as Ms. Leonhart and SeeD Kinneas. Now, as he quietly made his way to the other side of the giant lobby, Nate wondered if he could’ve been any less obvious about his intent. Although Ms. Leonhart barely noticed him, SeeD Kinneas had given him a wide, genuine smile. How awkward.
Every now and then, he could hear actual bits of conversation. The details of the Leonharts’ weekend plans didn’t faze Nate; he knew that Ms. Leonhart enjoyed a good evening of music in Dollet with her husband. They’d appeared often enough in the society papers for it to be common knowledge. Nate tried to act inconspicuous, just like those rich society kids when they’d visited the Home, as he swiftly moved towards the door and attempted to open it. He couldn’t steal the ring now, not when he was the only one alone in the room with an armed officer and his best frend’s wife. It’d just land him in even more trouble with Matron! Without thinking, Nate fished his out from his pocket and gazed down at his deck.
He’d battled some of the other kids for their cards, and he’d ended up becoming pretty good in the process. As he walked out, he dropped one of his cards and---
And Ms. Leonhart picked it up for him. She knelt down, carefully taking it into her hand, before walking over to Nate and handing it to him. “Here,” she said, warmly smiling at him. “Looks like you’ve got good taste in cards.”
If he wanted to, he could’ve taken the ring right then and there. He saw it, plain as day, wrapped tightly around Ms. Leonhart’s neck. It - along with her mother's ring - glimmered in the sunlight, radiating of pure energy and light… it felt so stupid, so shameful to just take them without even informing her.
He hesitated for a second, his gaze barely moving from her neck, before he slowly nodded and accepted his Squall Leonhart card. “Y-yes ma’am.”
She quizzically looked at him, folding her hands and placing them behind her back as she got a better look at him. “Hm? Are you alright?”
“Yes ma’am,” he said, finding his voice again as he managed to stare into her deep brown, almost black, eyes. Strange: he felt like he could see more of himself in her than he could in Mr. Leonhart. But wasn’t he related to him? What about the Griever Ring? Ms. Leonhart didn’t have any special accessories to call her own—or if she did, he couldn’t recall them off the top of his head. (Her mother's ring, again, didn't count.) “I’m fine.”
“Doesn’t sound like it to me, kid,” SeeD Kinneas quipped as he knelt down and gently pried Nate’s other hand open. “… For one thing, that’d be Rinoa’s ring right there. Don’t think you meant to take that, did you?”
Okay, so maybe he’d given into his temptation and went through with it. He didn’t think he’d get busted that quickly! Nate avoided SeeD Kinneas’ face as he murmured, “No sir, I didn’t.”
“Irvine!” Ms. Leonhart scolded, putting both of her hands on her hip as she looked straight at him. “You just ruined it. I was going to tell him I knew about it after we’d had our nice long conversation.”
SeeD Kinneas just chuckled, “Then I guess I should leave before I ruin any more of your big surprises, huh, Rinoa?”
He tipped the edge of his cowboy hat towards them before he turned to leave. “Just holler if you think you need me.”
Ms. Leonhart just giggled as she watched her friend leave through the large metal doors. Once they slammed shut behind him, she turned her attention back to Nate. With quite possibly the biggest smirk Nate had seen in all of his twelve years, she asked, “Soooo… what were you planning to do with those rings, huh? Sell them on the black market?”
“Of course not!” The words spilled out of Nate’s mouth faster than he could catch them. Indignantly, he stood his ground as he shook his head and responded, “I’d keep the Griever ring safe with me. Because you know, it’s rightfully mine.”
“Oh is it?” Now Ms. Leonhart just looked curious. “Why’s that?”
“Because…” Nate choked on his own sentence as he gripped the ring tightly in his fist. “Because it means I’m his descendant.”
He could feel Ms. Leonhart’s arms immediately wrapping around him. In mere seconds, she had completely enveloped him and motioned for Nate to come even closer to her. She softly, gently whispered in his ear, “If you want to be his kid that badly, you could have just said so.”
Nate broke free from her grip long enough to stare at her face, “… You mean it?”
“Yeah,” Ms. Leonhart responded, her smile never leaving her face as she pulled Nate in for another hug. “After all, we can’t have Squall’s descendant running around without us now, can we?”
Something wet dripped down his cheeks. It took Nate a moment to realize that it tasted salty too. For dust that kept getting in his eyes, they sure liked falling down faster than ever. For what felt like forever, he didn’t let go of her, instead wrapping his own arms around her waist and resting his head on her shoulder.
“No,” he said quietly after a moment. “I guess we can’t.”
Then, he opened his hand and held out the ring. “Sorry, Ms. Leonhart---“
“Mom,” Ms. Leonhart corrected. “I’m not having any descendant of mine call me anything else.”
Nate sheepishly smiled, “Sorry, Mom.” The words felt strange, almost foreign, coming off his lips, but he suspected he’d get used to it pretty quickly in a few months.
He never did get the Griever Ring like he wanted, but that afternoon? He’d gotten much, much more than he’d ever thought he would have imagined for himself.
no subject
bahahahaha I love that he has Griever cars
He’d done his homework in advance
Oh Nate ♥
It’d just land him in even more trouble with Miss Edea!
I love that he still manages to get into trouble at the orphanage.
Your bb!Nate is precious, and your Rinoa is gorgeous 8D man I inspire the best things!
A few FF8 notes: The kids at the orphanage call Edea "Matron", Rinoa's eyes are brown or something rather dark, and Rinoa also wears her mother's ring on her necklace along with Griever; that could be considered special.
no subject
But aah I'm glad you enjoyed it. ♥ I feel like there'll be more Nathan Leonhart adventures somewhere down the line...
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