Forgotten.

Rinoa sits alone in the corner of the ballroom, watching Squall waltz a new SeeD around the floor. The last three balls he'd danced with the new SeeD and left her alone in the corner the entire night. She sighed, pushing her wine glass away. She resigned herself to the same fate again as she watched the SeeD flirt with him. She'd been forgotten by him, lost deep in his memory as soon as that girl appeared. She wished he'd acknowledge her at all. Cid appeared and gestured. She nodded, standing to draw on her powers. The fireworks exploded, even better than the last three times she'd done them. She forced all her pain into it, watching the colours spark and flash.

From the top to the bottom Bottom to the top I stop At the core I've forgotten In the middle of my thoughts Taken far from my safety The pictures there The memory won't escape me But why should I care

She sank down in her chair, sipping at the wine she had just before refused to drink. She could suddenly sense the danger in the room as the fireworks died away, the lights died and the music stopped. Rinoa immediately felt the presense of Ultimecia. She lit herself up, making the room pulse with white light. Squall was standing, enthralled by the new SeeD who was growing more and more like Ultimecia. She looked around for her friends, finding them grouping at the back, collecting weapons and GF's from the other SeeD's and they suddenly looked around for Squall. They all noticed the problem as Rinoa changed her light to red, experimenting with colour as she waited for a signal from them to fight. Selphie waved a quick arm as she summoned a GF favourite of hers, Carbunkle. Rinoa nodded and quickly cast the latest spells she knew. She froze, horrified as Squall started to defend her. Rinoa felt her heart wrench in two at the sight of her knight fighting her. Selphie, Irvine, Zell and Quistis were all at her back now, watching the fight develop between them.

From the top to the bottom Bottom to the top I stop At the core I've forgotten In the middle of my thoughts Taken far from my safety The pictures there The memory won't escape me But why should I care

Squall was failing in strength, but she was as well. She watched Irvine and Zell drag him away as the SeeD previously known as Angelica now revert to Ultimecia. Rinoa drew a deep breath, casting a quick glance at Selphie and Quistis. They both nodded and she started the attack on her, shielding the two SeeD from wounds. She left herself unshielded, taking all the wounds that the evil exsorceress could deal out at her. She was falling quicker than she thought she would as her attacks became weaker. A blurry form caught her as she fell towards the ground. She looked up, hoping to see the eyes of the one she loved there, but instead she looked into the dark eyes of the evil she was trying to defeat before she slumped into blackness, loosing blood rapidly from all the wounds inflicted in her skin.

There's a place so dark you can't see the end (Skies cock back) and shock that which can't defend The rain then sends dripping an acidic question Forcefully the power of suggestion Then with the eyes tightly shut Looking through the rust and rot and dust A spot of light floods the floor And pours over the rusted world of pretend The eyes ease open and it's dark again

For a long moment Rinoa could have sworn she was in Squall's arms again, but that faded as she realised Ultimecia still held her, keeping herself alive by drawing on her own life. She looked around and found herself trapped in her arms, being used as a shield. She looked deep into her friends eyes and felt the pain well up as Irvine's shot missed Ultimecia and got her. She watched the pain fill Irvine's eyes at the sight of the wound. She struggled against the hold and looked into Selphie's eyes. "Kill me." She whispered the words, but they thundered in the sudden eerie silence. Selphie shook her head, taking a firmer hold on her weapon. "Not this side of hell." Selphie left it at that as she lunged in to make a physical attack on the eveil woman trapping Rinoa to her.

From the top to the bottom Bottom to top I stop At the core I've forgotten In the middle of my thoughts Taken far from my safety The picture is there The memory won't escape me But why should I care

Rinoa drifted between consciousness and a dark realm where she had no control over any part of her body. She was forced to watch the carnalities she would be forced to perfom, the carnalities Seifer had performed as Ultimecia's knight. Rinoa felt her body fighting in a different place even as she drifted in the dark realm. She couldn't help but cry at the sight of Squall's dead body. She was standing in his intensines, chewing on his heart as it beat still in her hand, his head cut from his body, his body severed into several chunks, scattered in growing pools of blood. His eyes though, were still focussed on her as she fought to control herself, to stop eating his heart, to not kill him as she had done.

In the memory you'll find me Eyes burning up The darkness holding me tightly Until the sun rises up

Suddenly she was back in timber, hugging Zone and Watts before driving blades through their stomachs, killing them with a smile wide on her face. She watched them fall, clasping their stomachs and muttering the name she had been known as by them, 'princess', she couldn't help but feel her bile rise at that as she fought against herself, wanting to get away from that scene, but as with Squall, her body crouched, cutting their chests open, drawing their still beating hearts out and munching on them as her previous followers watch her in horror as she stands, drawing the two knives out of her sleeves, slaughtering every single follower she had in that place, every loyal soul that had respected her and taken care of her.

Moving all around screaming of the ups and downs Pollution manifested in perpetual sound The wheels go 'round and the sunset creeps past the Street lamps, chain-link and concrete A little piece of paper with a picture drawn floats On down the street till the wind is gone The memory now is like the picture was then When the paper's crumpled up it can't be perfect again

She was in Galbadia next, breathing the heavily polluted air, watching as she stalked up the steps into her fathers mansion. She strode into his study, grabbing him by the hair and drawing his head back, slicing down to severe his head from his body. She tossed that to the side, watching the blood pool on the white carpet for a moment before she reached out, shoving his body from the chair and pouncing down on him. She cut his hands off, flinging them to either ends of the room. She stared down at him, slowing cutting him apart at every joint. She was finally left with his torso. She cut his ribs from his stomach and hips. She then cut his chest open, drawing out his heart. Instead of eating it, she drew a lighter from her pocket and burnt it, holding it as the flames licked slowly at the blood covered organ, watching the flesh shrivel and turn a strange red brown colour.

From the top to the bottom Bottom to top I stop At the core I've forgotten In the middle of my thoughts Taken far from my safety The picture is there The memory won't escape me But why should I care

Rinoa was now in Selphie's dorm, backing the frightened SeeD back onto her bed, drawing the weapon from her holder and tossing it out the window, down into the training center. She stared down at the helpless SeeD, cutting her clothing away. "How would you like to die, sweetling? Being carved to pieces or having every muscle cut from your bones?" Rinoa's voice wasn't her own as she whispered the horrid possibilities into Selphie's ear as she ran the blade over Selphie's cheek. Selphie whimpered under her, pleading with her friend for her life. Rinoa stood, grabbing Selphie's arm. She slowly cut the muscles of Selphie's thumb, cutting all the muscles away until only bone was left in its place. Rinoa continued, cutting every scrap of flesh away from Selphie's bones, leaving a blood covered, but flesh free skeleton on Selphie's bed, her flesh spread around her bed, making a blood red ocean around the bed, leaving her there, her heart sitting on the dresser, Rinoa's initials carved in it as she walked from the room, shutting the door quietly behind herself.

From the top to the bottom Bottom to top I stop At the core I've forgotten In the middle of my thoughts Taken far from my safety The picture is there The memory won't escape me But why should I care

She stood in Irvine's dorm, patiently waiting for him to finish with his latest girl. Irvine looked up as the girl screamed and fled the dorm. Rinoa stood there, holding her knife in one hand, her other holding Selphie's eyes. "Eyes for the lover, heart for the murderer, have a taste, they should be sweet." Rinoa tossed them onto Irvine's lap, watching Irvine squirm and push them away, only recognising the colour as they fell onto the floor. "Selphie..." Irvine whispered the name as Rinoa slammed his door shut, giving him no way out as she advanced on him, backing him down into his bed. He was naked and she ran her kinfe down the entire length of his body, not caring if she nicked his skin. "You should be more faithful to the dead." Rinoa cooed the words, lifting the blade to his head. She cut his scalp off, leaving his skull exposed before she cut through the bone, exposing his brain. She smiled, loving the feeling she was holding as she hacked his brain into tiny pieces. She turned and walked out, leaving the tiny pieces of his brain scattered all over his room.

In the memory you'll find me Eyes burning up The darkness holding me tightly Until the sun rises up

She found Zell sitting on his bench, wolfing down the bag of hotdogs he had in his lap. "Tut tut Zell, didn't anyone tell you hotodgs were fattening?" She tossed the bag aside, reaching out to flatten him against his bench. She grabbed the carving kinves left on his counter and drove them through his wrists, spreading his arms apart. She then pinned his ankles in the same way, leaving him spread eagled on the counter. She then cut his clothes open down the front, cutting them away from him. His white skin bared, she drew her kinfe down his arms and legs, a straight line connecting the other four together as she peeled his skin back, exposing all his muscles. She laughed, cutting them open as well, cutting all his organs out to spread on the bench beside him, taking her time to carve the name of each organ on the bench beside it, filling the cuts with blood as she looked into his face, his head being the only thing she didn't cut on him. She stroked his black tattoo for a farewell and strode out the door, leaving the death spread out like a lab rat for a science class to examine.

Now you got me caught in the act You bring the thought back I'm telling you that I see it right through you

She found Quistis in her teaching room, doubled over at her desk, working hard on one paper or another. "Quistis dear, you should rest sometime." Quistis smiled at her as she rubbed at her old friends shoulders. Quistis never saw the knife that Rinoa stabbed into her back through her heart, killing her almost instantly. Rinoa spread her friend out on the floor, lifting her arms gently to cross them on her chest. She closed her eyes, arranged her hair properly and then lifted a hand, creating a ball of fire. She set the desk on fire, standing to watch the fire burn through the desk and shift to the carpet, creeping towards her old friends boots. She watched them catch fire and start to burn the flesh in them. She watched the fire creep up the body, laughing softly as her lovely long gold locks caught on fire, burning faster than her uniform or her flesh burned, scorching her scalp before the flames reached her soft face, the glasses set perfectly on her nose, her eyes closed behind those frames forever. She then doused the flames once they left only charred bones of the instructor that had had such a large fan club.

Now you got me caught in the act You bring the thought back I'm telling you that I see it right through you

Rinoa stood outside Cid's office, trying to get past the secretary. Finally she drew her knife, killing the woman. She slowly cut her up into tiny pieces, drawing the bones from the pieces to sit them to one side, dropping all the pieces, now free of bone into a filing cabinet draw. She coated her fingers in blood and scribbled a message on the drawer she had put the secretary in. She watched the blood run in her words and watched the crimson pool develop under the filing cabinet. "Holding life to death." She smiled as she read her own handiwork. She drew herself back, crouching to wipe her fingers on the carpet, laughing softly as she moved towards the headmasters door. The door swung open, making her stumble back under the blow. Three SeeD she didn't know stared into her eyes, one reaching out to help her. She took his hand, smiling softly as they moved past her and into the elevator, not knowing what they had just left their beloved headmaster with, and she knew they wouldn't have left so easily if they had known.

Now you got me caught in the act You bring the thought back I'm telling you that I see it right through you

Cid looked up, a warm smile welcoming her as she closed the door behind her. She wondered if he knew that death had entered his office and wouldn't leave until it claimed it's victim. She advanced on him, holding the blade behind her back. "Did anyone tell you yet headmaster? That today was your lucky day? You've won a very special treat ..." Rinoa leant over his desk, gripping her knife better as she pulled it around in front of her and pressed it to his throat, watching a thin stream of blood run down his throat, "your death is here to look you face to face." She slit his throat completely, dodging the spray of blood it sent at her. She crouched beside the desk, watching the light slowly die in his eyes as the spray slowed and then finally stilled completely. She turned and walked out, leaving him slumped over the desk.

Now you got me caught in the act You bring the thought back I'm telling you that I see it right through you

She entered the next room, finding Edea sitting there, a smile on her lips. "A pleasure to see you ..." "You welcome death into your life so freely?" Rinoa grinned wickedly as she spoke, slamming the door closed and setting everything in the room on fire as she advanced on her victim, feeling the glory of the kill rising in her blood as Edea made to flee her. She tackled her victim to the ground, wrestling with the small woman who was surprisingly strong against her. She brought her down, laughing as she cut one of her hands off. She watched the pain fill Edea's eyes, gloating as she watched to blood pour from the stump where her hand should have been. She stood, letting that wound kill Edea. She left the room once she was positive she was dead, a couple more stab wounds ensured Rinoa of this as she closed the door.

Now you got me caught in the act You bring the thought back I'm telling you that I see it right through you

She was standing in a bar, watching Seifer drink alone. She coaxed him into a hotel room and slammed the door, spinning to face him. "Did you think your mistress would forget you and let you live without recrimination?" Rinoa whispered harshly as she leapt ontop of him, tackling him to the floor as she rolled around with him, stabbing into his side until she reached a vital organ. She became soaked with his blood as she stood, staring down at his prone body. She reached down, cutting his hair from his head before she skinned him completely, leaving his skin beside his body before she changed her mind and sank down. She diced his skin into tiny pieces, scattering the pieces around his body as one does with rose petals on a bed for a lover.

Now you got me caught in the act You bring the thought back I'm telling you that I see it right through you

Rinoa walked into the bridge of the garden, finding Nida steering the garden, as always. She laughed as she drew her knife again, her laugh drawing Nida's attention as he spun, facing her as she advanced on him, her blood covered clothing probably giving her away as she moved closer, shoving him away from the control panel. "Didn't anyone ever tell you that all work and no play makes Nida very boring." Rinoa cackled as she killed him, strewing body parts all over the controls, watching sparks fly as electricity made contact with the blood running from his severed body parts. She left then, suddenly having a clear idea on who would be her next victim and relishing the hunt and the kill of her.

Now you got me caught in the act You bring the thought back I'm telling you that I see it right through you

She found her culprit in the cafeteria and drew her away with babble about a battle. She led the gullable woman to a room which was empty, completely except for the two women now in it. Rinoa slammed the door, making Xu spin with a wary look on her face. "Didn't anyone tell you about the boy who cried wolf?" Rinoa's voice was sickly sweet as she spoke, drawing her knife out of her belt and lunging at the woman. Xu fought back, making it the hardest kill Rinoa had to do. She fought hard, finally besting Xu by knocking her out with the knife handle. She stared down at her victim before going to work. She cut the limbs off and then scattered them around the large sparse room before fleeing the murder scene, leaving Xu in the large puddles of crimson blood that was left from the open wounds.

In the memory you'll find me Eyes burning up The darkness holding me tightly Until the sun rises

Rinoa stood at Raine Leonhart's grave, waiting for Ellone to appear. The girl came, reaching out to hug her friend, her arms welcoming. Rinoa used that to advantage, ramming the blade up under Ellone's ribs, watching the pain flash across her face as she drew the blade out and stabbed it in again. She watched the girl sag like a paper doll in her arms before she dropped the body down, cutting a series of crosses into her skin before she smeared the blood on Raine's headstone. She walked away, leaving Ellone to stain the green grass covering Rain's grave to a black mottled colour. As she walked away, she almost encountered a problem. Laguna met her as she was walking away. Ward and Kiros weren't with him, so she simply cut his head off and kept walking, moving towards the sea. She was suddenly on Balamb dock. She drew her knife and stabbed it through herself, toppling from the docks down into the water, feeling the salt water sting her was her last sensation.

In the memory you'll find me Eyes burning up The darkness holding me tightly Until the sun rises up

Ultimecia died under Squall's onslaught, making Rinoa wake up from the torturous nightmares Ultimecia had sent her into. She stumbled to her feet, staring at her friends in surprise and then ran a hand down her front. She turned, meaning to wrap her arms around to Squall to find him staring down at the body on the ground. She looked down at the body lying next to the SeeD Angelica that Ultimecia had possessed and froze, recognising the body... It was her own.