FF8 is not owned by me. I'm just dreaming.
Beta: HeartlessTitania
ooo000ooo
Chapter 1: From Within The Darkest Hour
ooo000ooo
She never understood the phrase, 'it's cold as hell outside'. Who determined hell was cold? Most artists depicted hell as having flames that burned the flesh of sinners, so where did the view of it being a frozen wasteland in which nothing could grow come from?
She had her theories of what hell was, and none of those images came to mind.
Hell was absence. It was the realization that, despite all effort, one could no longer feel the love of those who cared for them in their darkest hour. Hell was the realization that even when surrounded by a thousand screaming people, one was still alone in their vastly silent world. It's the absence of hope of ever finding the peace they once knew.
That is a hell. Rinoa understood all too well.
Tonight, the only sound in the filthy streets of Trabia was the sound of her boots crushing the snow beneath them. The thin light casted from the street lamps did nothing to penetrate the darkness of the nearly abandoned warehouse district. Usually, a smart girl wouldn't find herself walking these streets alone and unarmed like she was, but as she tied up her scarlet red hair, she knew she had no choice. Carrying a weapon— especially hers— would alert those who were out searching for her
The dilapidated structures she passed were the sound reminders to keep the fear she was feeling untraceable in her features. If she hadn't, the men who had found their way there would draw to her like vultures. They would circle her as their target, biding their time until they had the opportunity to strike. It was for survival that she learned to walk these streets with assurance. Only the strongest could survive here.
Her destination laid straight ahead, and its weathered black doors was an eye sore— even for these parts. She didn't need to look at her watch to know that she was late. The music flooding the empty streets warned her that the people waiting for her would not be happy.
Laying her hand flat on the door, Rinoa allowed her weakness to show for a moment. Closing her eyes, she tried to focus on the mission— her objective— and the people relying on her. She prompted herself that failure was not an option and pushed through the door amassed with scars.
A wall of cigarette smoke and catcalls assaulted her right away. Since starting this gig two months ago, she had to develop a thicker skin to withstand crude comments and unwanted touches as she pushed her way through the crowd on her way to the bar. It was just another night in the midst of others, and there were more important things to worry about then that cat calls she heard. Leading the list was her boss, who laid in wait for her appearance.
Middle-aged and poorly groomed, he was a retired Galbadian soldier who lost an eye in the last sorceress war. Thin wisps of hair tried to hide the sunspots on his balding head, but that was not the first thing you noticed about the man. No, it was the stench of chewing tobacco and whiskey. It was the only armor he wore now
"Get your worthless ass over here, Rin," Jack's jagged voice ordered while filling two beer glasses at once.
Rinoa internally sighed at the greeting— and yes— that was considered a friendly greeting in these parts.
Rinoa did her best to squeeze past the ardent men with her chastity still intact. Quickly, she unzipped her black powder puff jacket before ducking under the bar to throw it in a corner.
Rinoa could feel the hungry men's eyes burning her skin with their shameless gazes as she clocked in. Unfortunately for her, her plunging scarlet silk top and painted on leather pants allowed plenty of visual stimulation.
"This worthless ass brings in your customers, Jack." She shouted out to remind him with irritation.
Men pushed towards her section now, all trying to order over each other.
"Only when you're behind the bar!" He blasted back before turning away with a drink order.
That was true. The owner has seen his books for the first time go into the black since her employment. Still, the treatment by her boss was less than ideal and even at times bordered on worrisome. However, she needed the cover and the job. It offered her great security in this location that she couldn't do without.
Pushing all those thoughts to the back of her mind, she set up her stations before shouting out to no one particular, "What will it be tonight?"
"Top shelf whiskey on the rocks, babe." The closest man who had been fortunate to score a spot in her section ordered.
"Got it," she said quickly, turning around to go under the bar for the stash of high-end liquor.
This was yet another one of her bright ideas that kept her boss in the black. Despite being called "top shelf," it was her idea to place it in a lower position underneath the bar. Before this, everyone ordered the cheapest beers and liquors because of their placement. It didn't take a genius to figure out why they kept ordering them. Once Rinoa had switched the placements around, the orders for the most expensive bottles went through the roof, and in turn, cushioned her boss's bottom line. That saved her worthless ass so many times; Hyne only knew she was a klutz who couldn't remember what liqueurs went into Galbadian martini.
Feeling their eyes burning into the Balamb Lion tattoo that richly adorned her lower back. She let the men linger and took few extra seconds to check that the measuring spout was secure. The little extra show always seemed to bump up the tip at the end of the night.
"Twenty gil," she demanded, sadly knowing she wouldn't see any of that money.
"What? That's a total rip off!" the man shouted, his eyes never rising higher than her collarbone. "I can get the same drink across the street for half the price."
She cocked her eyebrow, letting the warm brown fluid wash over the ice before looking over to the next patron. He was a younger man wearing a business suit with no purpose being in such a place if it hadn't been for the local talent serving him a healthy dosage of cleavage.
"Twenty gil," she offered it to him instead, garnering a surprised look from the original patron.
"What the-?" The previous cad questioned as the younger man slowly went for his pocket book.
Rinoa smirked as she took the young man's money and shoved it in the waistband of her leather pants. She knew every man would follow the money's path. It was a sad truth known to all; sex sells and the illusion that there was a possibility of sex got her higher tips.
She turned to the previous patron. "Get your cheap ass over to the next bar before I call security."
With that warning in effect, Rinoa called out for the next order and did what she did every night. She poured shots and took them with them when offered. The familiar numbing sensation it presented was her escape. It helped dull her senses so when she saw someone dropping a hundred gil on the bar, she would lose enough inhibitions and do what was required of her.
Laying flat on the bar, Rinoa lifted her shirt to place a shot glass filled to the brim in her navel. She finished it off by smudging some salt on her stomach and placing a lime wedge in between her teeth.
It was all for show, and the hundred-gil tip helped, but she couldn't deny how fractures her spirit had become doing this night after night.
The stranger's tongue violated her skin as it lapped up the salt. It made her want to leap off the bar and show him how very dangerous she could be, but she forced herself to hold still. The worse was yet to come anyways.
The lanky brunette drunkenly pushed himself up on the bar and hovered over her. Placing his lips on the shot glass, he quickly whipped his head back so the liquor would fall freely back. Usually, she just closed her eyes and pretended it was someone else— someone who meant something to her.
But seeing his face over her sent her to another time. With brown bangs spilling forward, for a second she thought she saw blue eyes causing her heart to stop. His lips lightly brushed hers. Eagar to linger longer, but smart enough not to, his lips quickly retreated with the lime in his mouth to the roar from his companions. Freed from the painful bed the wood bar had made, she looked at him once more to see golden eyes celebrating his courageous feat.
Rinoa quickly washed her mouth out with more alcohol before sensing a demanding presence looming in the back of the room.
A single man, dressed in a long black trench coat stood by the door watching her. With skin nearly as white as the buzzed crop hair he sported, a weary frown seemed to be always pinned to his face. Oddly, it seemed to be an understood rule that the last stool in her section was his. No one ever sat there.
Rinoa smiled at his punctuality and skipped the theatrics by just pouring a drink from his private whiskey stash. No matter how she responded to him, his generous tip would always be there, and his eyes would remain fixated on the wooden bar. Her eyes would always sneak back to him, her sole target.
"Hey love," she placed his whiskey and a glass down before leaving him to his thoughts.
She kept tabs on him throughout the night as he continuously traced over a pair of initials carved into the bar. For a while, she had wondered if those initials meant something to him, but after a little research, she found those initials were that of the local drunk who died a year ago. This drunk had no family and certainly no friends. This made it likely that the man's motions were out of routine rather than sentimental. He was an absolute mystery to her.
He never spoke more than a few words to her before leaving her with more questions than answers. Tonight seemed different right off the bat, though. He ignored his drink for her and watched her as she took shots with the locals. She could tell he was processing her every move and it made her anxious.
When she saw him lift his full glass towards her, she moved with urgency towards her best client.
"I'm leaving town tomorrow," he stated simply waiting for some response from her in return.
Rinoa slumped over the bar a bit while propping her head with one hand. She could hear her boss yelling about her poorly timed break.
"Really? I'm missing your pocket book already," She sighed wondering if this is where it would end.
A smile pulled at the corner of his lips, but he refused to give in to the simple emotion.
"Pour yourself a glass," he ordered pointing towards his bottle.
"I'm more of a cheap bourbon kind of girl. No sense of messing with my tastes if you're not going to be around tomorrow," she chided, but in reality she always picked the cheaper booze knowing her even cheaper boss watered it down. Her tolerance had grown while working here, but her liver wouldn't thank her if she started in on that kind of drinking.
"A glass." This time he ordered more firmly in a tone that told her just to listen.
Giving him a glance look over, Rinoa grabbed another glass and reached out to pour. His rough hands beat her to the bottle and, proceeded to pour more into her glass than she would have liked.
This was an interesting turn of events; she thought to herself as she picked up the glass with hesitation.
Looking up at him she saw he was waiting for her to drink first, so she raised her glass up silently and knocked it back while bracing for the fire.
After a second she coughed but added a nod in appreciation. "That's some good stuff."
"A rare bottle from Esthar," he agreed, already making this the longest conversation they have ever had. His hand went to pour her another glass.
"Watch it, buddy. I want to be able to count my gil at the end of the night," she mocked, but was unwilling to walk away from him despite engaging her boss.
"I've watched you here for a while," he acknowledge while still being as unreadable as ever.
"Like what you see?" She leaned back allowing his eyes a full view of her, and for once, he actually took the time to let himself enjoy the view.
"I do," he acknowledged. "And there is no doubt in my mind that you're the kind of girl who knows exactly how much gil you have on you at all times. You work hard."
Rinoa felt the heat of his eyes go to the exposed skin her low riding pants gave her, and suddenly she felt naked and exposed.
His head tilted to the side as lust filled him. "What won't you do for a few gil?"
Her jaw tightened. "Just about anything, but what you probably want."
He studied her in amusement, and slowly, a smile formed. He took the bottle and poured her another drink. "Really? Sure there is no amount that can persuade you? I'm a wealthy man."
"Don't take it to heart. No man's gil can." She stood her ground firmly, hoping that would be enough to end the awkward conversation.
"Well, what about just taking a look at a picture then?" he requested in defeat. "See, I'm looking for someone."
"Are you kidding?" she scoffed at the turn of events. "I'm not a snitch. That kind of bull would hurt my tips in the long run."
"Good thing there is nothing to snitch about." He put his hands together sizing her up. "He's a missing person I'm hoping to find. He's no criminal... Just lost."
"Yeah sure." She leaned back from the bar taking her freshly poured drink in hand. "That's what all the bounty hunters say, but it's never the truth."
"Three hundred gil just for you to tell me if you've ever seen this man before," he baited her by sliding out a roll of paper gil. The man was serious, and there was not enough strength to hide the surprised look that came across her face.
"You know most people would just lie to you for that kind of gil," she warned. It was true. When most bounty hunters were willing to slide her a few gil for some information, it was her practice to take the gil and make up an elaborate story. She was practically doing a favor for him by being so blunt..
"If you do, so be it." His smile pressed into a thin line as he passed the time by staring at her chest.
Why was he so desperate for her to just look at a single picture? To offer so much gil with absolutely no information was sounded off warning bells. It also seemed to peek her interest. She had to follow this lead no matter what the outcome was.
"Quick," she nodded in agreement, as the man quickly hunted for the picture in his jacket.
She steadied herself on the bar with her elbows. Once again, the effects of her work life were starting to take their toll all at once. When the black and white surveillance photo slipped onto the bar, she hardly batted an eye at the man pictured looking over his shoulder. Most of it was blurry and grainy, likely from it being enlarged.
Still, it was good enough that someone could make a positive ID.
Rinoa tilted her head to the side and let out a long sigh. Her fingers traced the handsome man's firm jaw line. His icy eyes and stone cold expression could easily freeze her in place. His brown hair was ruggedly unkempt and cut into crass layers that obscured his eyes.
"Damn, nothing that fine has ever been around here," she said smiling at the picture of the man caught on film unexpectedly. "Hey, when you find this guy would you give him my number?"
With that, she dismissively slammed her fist on the picture before flattening it for its reward. The man watched her with more intrigue now.
"Never seen him, huh?" he asked once.
"I said no," she warned him more sternly. "For what it's worth, I'm telling the truth for once. Oh, and I totally meant it when I said he should give me a call."
The man looked down at his picture once more before letting out an exasperated sigh. He simply threw the entire wad of bills onto the bar without even counting it.
"Have a good life!" Rin shouted as he quickly disappeared through the door.
She turned back to the bar that appeared to be on the verge of a riot.
"You think we can get some service here sugar?" a bearded dockworker shouted causing her to scowl.
"I'll get to you sooner or later," she barked back as she carefully turned her back to hide the wad of gil in her leather boot. Only then did she notice her hands were trembling to the point of being useless.
"Just breathe," she whispered as she steeled herself against the flood of emotions that wanted to spring forth. This was not the time to falter— especially when others may be watching.
"Damn it Rin! Do you not hear all those men behind you? I'm going to can your ass tonight!"
That was the reminder she needed to pull herself together. The real world wasn't going to stop for her, so as if nothing had happened at all, she forced herself to get back up.
"Ok, fellas, who's next?" she asked turning around with a devilish smirk.
The rest of the night she continued to drown herself in her work. The last two hours of her shift was painfully slow despite the high demand for spirits. But as their large bouncer, Toni, kicked out the last few drunks, Rinoa wasted no time in grabbing her jacket.
"You're not skipping out so easily Rin." Her boss's voice cornered her as she stood up with her jacket in hand.
"Get away from me, Jack," she warned without a second glance.
"After you just ran my best customer away tonight? I don't think so."
That's when Rinoa turned around to see him. The proximity made the sleeping forces in her body ignite, making her need to escape that much more urgent.
"What did you say to him, Rin?" Jack asked, backing her into the bar.
"Nothing," She responded truthfully. "He said it was his last night in town. What would you have me do, Jack? Chain him to the bar?"
Undeterred, he sneered at her. "I saw him proposition you."
This was becoming ridiculous. "Oh come on Jack, I'm a bartender, not a prostitute."
Apparently, that was the wrong answer as he pushed into the bar.
"What makes you think you're worth more than a few gil?" He asked shoving her again. "Maybe had you taken his offer he would've found a reason to stay."
Rinoa clenched her jaw as she tried to diffuse the situation before either one of them lost their temper completely.
"Trust me, that wasn't what he was after anyways. He would've been out of here had I spent the night with him or not." She tried to assure him.
That made her boss's eyes narrow. "Really and what makes you so sure of that?"
When she saw the ex-soldier eyes darkened, her throat went dry as she struggled to voice an answer that would suit him.
"Listen, Jack, " She started. "He just wanted me to look at a picture-"
"Oh, so now you're a snitch!" He exploded, pushing her hard against the wall, sending a few liquors to meet their end. "Do you know what kills bars? People like you who snitch and run off customers. Is that what I get for taking you in?"
Dizzy, Rinoa shook her head with dismay. "You're kidding me, right? No one came here before me. Jack, the guy is a missing person case, and I've never seen him before."
"Oh… And he paid you all that gil stuffed in your boot for that?" His hand pushed her even harder making more bottles come crashing down. Feeling a sharp pain in her shoulder, Rinoa had enough was nearly ready to lose her own temper.
Jack slammed against her this time, holding her neck tightly as he breathed in her face. "You're nothing special, girl. Just another whore I found on the street that was desperate. Hell, Toni has a better rack than you."
She couldn't help the spiteful laugh that left her. "Well unless you're patrons are willing to play with a stick shift, I'm the best thing you got going for this bar."
Rinoa saw his fist ball up and rise just as the sound of cocking shotgun could be heard from the darkness.
"Lets let the pretty lady go, partner."
She recognized the voice instantly despite not being able to see him in the storage room.
Wide-eyed, jack's fist slowly lowered. "Who's there? Toni!"
"Toni's busy in the back, and who I am ain't important right now. You going to let go of my pretty friend now?" The voice asked with patience waning.
Jack took a step back in defeat letting Rinoa dart under the bar and out towards safety.
ooo000ooo
As she retreated into the snowy streets of Trabia, Rinoa was quickly reminded by the elements of the black powder puff jacket in her hand. Shrugging into it, Rinoa felt something in her pocket— something heavy— that hadn't been there before and plunged her hand into its pocket to retrieve it. What she found was a small metal object wrapped in cords.
Pulling out the MP3 player, Rinoa looked up to the stars.
"Thank Hyne," she smiled before unwrapping the cords and popping the buds into her ears.
She played with it some as she walked before the player came to life. Only one song was listed, and to her surprise, it was a song called, "Kung Fu Fighting."
A small smile came to her remembering how it was once hummed to her from an energetic soul while at a place that existed far from there
She pressed play and heard a series of beeps connecting her to an open channel. A familiar voice rang clear through the ear buds.
"Hey, Rinoa? Can you hear me out there?"
She smiled. It had been a long time and the friendly voice made her want to cry, but now wasn't the time to have an emotional breakdown. She knew that despite the streets appearing to be deserted, something had to be up if he wasn't willing to come meet her in person.
"Hey babe, I've got a microphone sewn into your jacket. First off, cough if you're ok."
She knew what the ok stood in place for, and that was sober. She failed to cough, which lead to an exasperated sigh from her normally enthusiastic male counterpart.
"Damn, ok, we got trouble princess." She frowned at his choice of name for her. Only two other people called her that, and she wished it would stay that way. "Three men are ransacking your apartment right now. No idea what they are looking for, but your cover is blown. So I think it's best if you started walking towards the train station."
The news was deeply unsettling. She could just imagine the men tearing her room apart right now, and it was enough to make her blood boil.
"Rin now's not the time," he reminded her soft.
She knew he was right and forced herself to stumble in the opposite direction of her apartment, cursing the fact that she was about to leave nearly everything she had behind.
"Eyes are in the sky," the voice spoke through the ear buds once more. She refused to look up, but she knew that she was being watched over. That should be comforting, but again, that could only mean one thing. "You've got two behind you, and from what I can see, there is one waiting up ahead. Did something happen at work today? Hum Kung Fu Fighting if yes…"
Now he was just messing with her and in her current state it wasn't appreciated. Slowly she started to mimic the music- as best as she could remember.
"That was seriously awful, Rinoa," he laughed at her misery. "Heads up! The two following you split from each other and are going around to the next alley. We aren't the only ones in communications. What happened at the bar? Touch your hair if it was something to do with our mission…"
She quickly brushed back the few fly away strands of her scarlet hair.
"Sniffle if it has anything to do with him."
She mimicked a cold and sniffled a bit tugging her jacket closer. Being followed was unnerving and knowing someone was waiting for her up ahead was downright frightening. She almost wished she hadn't known in the first place.
"You're about to cross an alley. He's waiting for you there— ceasing communications. We're watching Rin—" Suddenly the mp3 player started to play the irritating song that had been downloaded for her. Rinoa's annoyance was cut short when someone ripped the buds out of her ears and pulled her into the alley.
"Hey-!" She screamed, but any further attempts of calling out were dashed when thick leather gloves covered her mouth.
She was thrown violently against the brick wall with her head hit first, causing a splitting headache to add to her alcohol fueled haziness.
Rinoa let out a whimper as a man's weight crashed on top of her securing her from being able to fend him off.
"We meet again," spoke the familiar voice.
Rinoa opened her eyes to see her mysterious patron with the black trench coat. Rinoa only had seconds to figure out who he was and who had sent him. She allowed her face to display her genuine confusion.
"I thought maybe a more civilized conversation out of the view of your boss might yield better results." His hand dropped from her lips.
Doing her best to stay calm, Rinoa kept up the charade, "I told you I don't know who he is. I was serious when I told you that-"
"Is that why you are walking to the train station with none of your things?"
Her eyes widened. So he was behind the looting of her apartment. Now more than ever was she uncertain of whom he worked for and what he would do to her. She needed to answer him now, and she had to take a calculated guess that he wasn't SeeD.
"Are you for real?" she asked, hoping to Hyne that he believed her charade. "Listen, I'm behind on my rent, and my boss fired me. If I don't skip out, I'll be in real trouble."
He studied her face trying to detect any hint of betrayal in her words, but he would find none because, for the most part, what she was telling the truth.
"Listen I was serious back there when I said I didn't recognize the man in the picture, but both you and I know this isn't some missing person's case. Who is he? Maybe I've heard of him."
The man in black studied her a bit longer until a vibration from his wrist. Rinoa couldn't see what he was looking at but whatever it was alerted him to something that made him nervous.
"We'll meet again," he stated hastily.
"Who's the guy?" she asked again with more urgency, wanting him to say his name out loud. Just once for her sanity's sake.
"Until we meet again, Sorceress Heartilly," he smiled all knowingly.
Once more, a shock wave rippled through her. The man's weight dropped off her suddenly, allowing her to legs to give our and drop long the wall.
The figure walked away and for a few minutes she was left there alone in the snow, with her heart trying to escape from her chest. Moments later she heard a voice call out her name.
Relief washed over her when she saw Zell running towards her.
Diving into the snow next to her, Zell grabbed her arms and searched for any injuries. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you?"
"Zell…" Rinoa started but stop short.
"Who the hell was that guy? SeeD? Did they track us down?" He fired off a million miles an hour.
"Zell-" Rinoa spoke more urgently now, while looking up into his eyes, completely lost.
"Holy, shit Rinoa. You're far from ok." Zell recoiled a bit from her breath.
"He had a picture of him, Zell," Rinoa finally communicated.
She waited for a reaction, but the martial artist did nothing but look blankly back at her.
A car pulled into the alley as neither one spoke anything. Selphie opened the driver's door and stepped out. "Quistis is waiting at the station."
"We shouldn't stick around too long," a voice called out from the roof top. Irvine scaled down a fire escape with a shotgun secured to his back. "We don't know who those guys were, but it sounds like they're coming back for her."
Zell never broke eye contact as he considered all their options. "They're right. We need to go to the train station."
Rinoa blinked a few times in horror. Did he not hear what she said?
"Rin?" Zell questioned seeing her head starting to shake.
"No," She rebuffed him. "No! We can't leave yet... He knows something. He has the answers we are looking for!"
Irvine landed with a thud on his feet next to her, making her jump. She was too on edge, and she couldn't even pretend to have a strong façade anymore.
"Staying would be suicidal," Irvine spoke up as he looked down at her. "We don't have eyes on the apartment anymore. Hyne knows if they bugged it or have people waiting. We meet up with Quistis…. That was the plan if our cover gets blown. You know that."
"He has a picture!" She looked up at Zell completely distraught.
No one said anything as she shivered relentlessly on the ground.
"Zell, he had a picture," Rinoa said it again breathlessly, still amazed by it herself.
Zell's eyes widened and went from Rinoa to Irvine. Selphie looked on with uncertainty.
"That man showed me a picture of Squall. Don't you know what that means?" Tears started to chap Rinoa's cheeks.
The group fell silent in disbelief, but Rinoa wouldn't stop pleading with the tattooed blonde who held eerily still. Slowly the fighter allowed a single breath to escape from him as he scratched his head in amazement.
"It means he still exists somewhere. He was real," Zell answered.
"No, he IS real," Rinoa corrected defiantly.
She watched as the truth of the statement washed over the struggling fighter. His tightened jawed relaxed slightly in submission as he looked over to Irvine. Irvine let out a long sigh, knowing that this night would change everything.
"Hey, I believe you ok?" Zell whispered while looking back towards her.
Irvine agreed quietly, "This isn't over, yet. We just have to come up with a new plan.
"Get in everyone," Selphie called out from the car. Rinoa looked up to the petite brunette who gave her a smile that was meant to encourage her. Still Rinoa could only feel the heavy weight on her shoulders.
Zell helped Rinoa to her feet. She wished she had better control of her shaking legs or that she could chalk it up to the cold weather and scandalous attire she wore. The concerned look on Zell's face told her he knew better anyway.
It was almost a year to the day from when they woke from a deep sleep after the garden celebration…
A year to the day since they found out— that to the rest of the world— Commander Squall Leonhart never existed...
A year since their love had completely vanished like it had never happened at all...
Squall Leonhart had simply fallen out of history altogether.
"Hey, I think you should take a picture of yourself for Squall, Rin," Irvine quipped on the way to the car.
Rinoa raised an eyebrow as she watched the slow cowboy gait to the car. He turned and looked over his shoulder. "That man always had a thing for leather. Bet you that fake tramp stamp would send him right over the edge."
"Irvy…" Selphie complained disgusted as she sat down in the driver's seat
Rinoa smirked a bit, wondering what he would think of her recent façade. The last two months had been hell but now knowing they weren't crazy had made it all worth it. She had seen undeniable proof that he had existed. It wasn't much, but it was something to go off of.
"Don't forget the red hair! Are you sure you want to dye it back?" Selphie perked up at an idea. "Maybe he'll like it?"
"The faux lion tattoo will take a few more weeks to wear off. Let's find him soon, so he can see it for himself." Rinoa made an effort to smile at her friends. "But the red hair is retiring without photos."
Rinoa could see Selphie frown in disappointment. "That took Quistis and I a whole week to get right. I can't believe you're going to throw out all our hard work."
Zell helped Rinoa into the warm car before sliding in himself. "We only got twenty minutes till the train leaves. We gotta make up time."
Rinoa dipped her head in agreement and felt the car shift into gear. Zell placed his arm around her shoulder giving her a warm squeeze, and there she settled for the rest of the car ride lost in thought. She tried to pull up the memory of the grainy picture once more and wondered why it was becoming increasingly more difficult to remember him. The whole world may have forgotten who Squall Leonhart was. But his friends still remembered, and they would not give up on finding answers. After all, no one disappears into thin air.
ooo000ooo
Layla's Corner
ooo000oo
The first chapter is up! Did you like it? Hate It? Review please so I know! Even as time passes reviewing keeps a fandom alive!