"When we first met, it almost seemed as if you knew me... where did you hear my name?"
where was this coming from all of a sudden? [almost] ...
just like the guardian force seems [almost] surprised to have been recognized.
surprised, maybe, in the way ifrit had been upon realization that shiva was junctioned as his companion GF during his prerequisite task to his final field exam, and in the way the GF junctioned to him during that encounter stirred in recognition of bahamut’s remarkable presence once the core’s pulsing blue light had abated at the deep sea research center
does it matter?
that’s his first thought, reflecting a quickly drawn and personal view on the matter, kept private and safe in his head. not meant to be callous … but honest, and unsure of why it did seem to matter. but it mattered enough to spark the question and bahamut didn't strike him as the sort of being to venture the ask without good reason of some kind.
so it's not what he says,
and it's not the kind of answer bahamut deserves from him. he owes a great deal to being entrusted with the power of GF, even with the roughly associated costs and risks involved with prolonged use of them. they all had something they wanted to protect or defend against—their reasons for becoming strong.
they were indebted to them for that.
“learning and knowing about GF is part and parcel of balamb’s training curriculum to prepare and graduate candidate SeeD.” being what they are, and what he essentially remains. "it's part of our job to know about the different GF that exist, that we might encounter out in the field, and how we might utilize your powers to achieve our goals." amicably, of course. it didn't come for free, nor did it come easy.
" ... you're more like a myth, or a legend, though."
and he hadn't needed confirmation from the GF to know what he was up against at the time, knowing the very moment his form had been revealed.
