Disclaimer: I don't own FF8 or any of its characters. 

A/N: This is an idea that just sorta popped into my head as I was playing FF8 and listening to Shakira.  Neither of them really inspired me, but that's when I got the idea… ^_^  Anywayz, here it is!

            Everything was going great.  Squall Leonheart, the ex-lone wolf, was now just a regular guy.  He felt reformed, cleansed, liberated – finally.  He didn't have to be afraid to be who he really was inside.  He didn't have to hide what he felt, for he knew his friends would understand and be there for him no matter what.  He wished for life to always be this way.  He never wanted it to suddenly make a turnaround to where it used to be.  It was a gloomy, lonely world, and he no longer wished to be part of it.

            He had been sitting on a bench in Balamb, letting the beautiful sunshine wash over his handsome features.  He took pleasure in the outdoors more so than before.  He respected it, from the dirt beneath his boots to the highest cloud in the heavens.  He glanced around, watching the people as they passed him by.  So many people in the world, so little time to get to know them.  He even surprised himself at how pleasant he felt that day.  It seemed like nothing in the cosmos could go wrong, and he liked feeling that way. 

            A light tap on his shoulder caused him to jump slightly, but only because he had been so comfortable and unwary.  He turned to look into the face of Rinoa Heartilly.  Whenever he saw her, he felt a sense of kindheartedness radiating from her.  He cherished her probably more than any man could ever show to a woman.  "Hi Squall!" she said cheerily.  "Mind if I sit down?"  She beamed at him, her chocolate eyes sparkling. 

            Squall nodded and scooted over.  "Sure."

            "What are you doing here?  I thought you'd be training or something," Rinoa said with a giggle.

            "I wanted to get some fresh air," Squall replied.  "What about you?  What are you doing here?  Not that I mind…"

            "Well… Selphie and Irvine are going out tonight… Quistis and Seifer are going out tonight… and Zell finally got a date with Tarah, that girl that he had a crush on for the longest time."

            "Your point being…?"  Squall wasn't trying to sound rude, he just wanted to know what she meant by what she had said.

            "We should do something too," Rinoa said in a devious manner.  "You know… like a date."

            Squall nodded, a smile beginning to spread across his lips.  "Okay.  What do you wanna do?"

            Rinoa took Squall's arm and gave it a gentle squeeze.  "Let's go to the beach and watch the sunset."  She hoped he didn't think it sounded clichéd, but she thought it would be exceptionally romantic. 

            "If that's what you want to do, I'm all for it," he replied.  She almost gasped and looked him in the eyes.

            "Really?  You'll do it?" she was overjoyed.  A night with Squall at the beach?  It couldn't get much better than that.  After the battle with Ultimecia, they hadn't had too many "dates".  At least, not technically. 

            "Of course."  He leaned forward to kiss her, and she graciously returned it.

~*~*~*~

            The sun had just set.  The sky only had a few rays of copper and gold sunlight left in it.  The waves rolled in and out with low whooshing sounds.  Not much else was heard at the beach, as Squall and Rinoa leisurely walked along the shore, hand in hand.

            "This is kinda weird…" Rinoa commented with a slight laugh.

            Squall turned to her, an eyebrow arched.  "Weird?  How so?"

            She looked up at him, a smile still on her beautiful face.  "You and me… like this.  Who would've thought, huh?"

            "I don't care.  I just know that you're the most wonderful person that ever came into my life.  I don't know what I'd do without you."  He turned to her, seeing she was now in tears.  "What?"

            She wiped them away with the back of her hand and let out a light laugh.  "No, it's nothing.  It's just… that was so sweet, what you just said."  He put his hand under her chin and tilted her head up so she was looking directly at him.  "Squall, I…"

            Before she could say anything else, he placed his lips against hers.  The kiss lasted for quite some time, until a rustling sound caused both of them to turn away from each other and towards where the sound had come from.

            Out from underneath one of the docks nearest to them, crept a pure white wolf.  No hint of any other color was in its fur, simply unpolluted colorlessness.  Its eyes were the clearest, most incandescent shade of cerulean.  The ocean itself wasn't even as blue as this creature's eyes.  

            Rinoa let out a gasp.  "Squall!"

            Squall bent down and picked up a seashell.  "Get outta here!" he shouted.  He launched the shell at the animal, hitting it square in the chest, but it didn't run off like every other animal would do.   It still stood there, it's deep eyes staring right through Squall.  "Come on!" Squall exclaimed, "Go!"

            The wolf threw back its head and let out a long sorrowful howl.  Then, as quickly as it had appeared, it slinked away in the blink of an eye.        

            "You didn't have to hurt it…" Rinoa commented as she regained her composure.  The animal hadn't really frightened her, but stunned her more. 

            Squall shook his head slowly.  "I didn't hurt it.  You saw the way it didn't run."

            "There was something odd about it…"

~*~*~*~

            The next morning, Squall was informed that Headmaster Cid wanted to see him – that he had news to tell him.  What it was, he couldn't even begin to deduce.  He thought nothing of it as he walked into Headmaster Cid's office and sat down in the chair in front of his desk.  "You wanted to see me, sir?" he asked.

            Cid nodded slowly and removed his wire-framed glasses, placing them gently on his desk.  "Yes, I do.  Thank you for coming.  Do you know anyone by the name of Hannah?"

            "Hannah?"  Squall contemplated for a moment, then shook his head.  "No.  Who is she?"

            "She's… well… she's your younger sister, Squall."

            Squall was taken aback.  "My… my sister?  But, I don't have a - "

            "Yes, you do.  I received this letter today, explaining a terrible event, which happened two nights ago.  It seems you knew nothing about her, so I assume this would not affect you very, but I felt you should know either way."

            Squall took the piece of paper from Headmaster Cid's outstretched hand, and carefully read it:

Dear Mr. Squall Leonheart,

            I am terribly sorry to have to pass this dreadful news along to you.  On the morning of July 7th, Miss Hannah Leonheart, 15, was brutally murdered in an alley at approximately 4:43 am, at the hands of a still unidentified person.  It is not even known if the slaughterer was even a male or female, but please rest assure that we are doing our best to catch this horrid individual.  A funeral will be held tomorrow afternoon at the Riverston Memorial Cemetery.  The citizens of Riverston offer our condolences.  Again, we are very sorry.

                                                                                                Sincerely,

                                                                                                   President Clayton Hampton        

            "I… I don't understand…  How couldn't I have known I had a sister?" Squall wondered aloud.  He had been in an orphanage all his life, and there was never any mention of any siblings.  If he did have a sister, why wasn't she in the orphanage with him?  He had a billion questions, but no one to answer them.  Or at least… he thought.

You like?  If you do, drop me a review, but if you don't, please don't flame me, or at least be gentle about it.  Flames hurt my feelings…  Anyway, if I get a few good reviews, I'll continue.  It may be boring at first, but believe me, I have an interesting plot in mind for this fic.  Thanx!