A Time For Us
mystasia

** Final Fantasy Eight and all characters belong to Squaresoft, nothing is mine!**

Prelude: The Curse

"Do you think we'll ever meet again?"

The sun's brilliant rays streaked the land with its golden light, touching down upon the earth's children, spreading warmth to all near and far with its glorious ember flames. Birds singing their merry tune greeted the new day, the new opportunity with delightful cheer. But it was the passing breeze that blew by gently caressing her face bringing with it the memories of the past, which had woken her. Shooting straight out of bed from nightmare plagued dreams. Dreams that were memories, memories that were dreams. Of a past, her past…their past. She sat dazed for a few moments, and it wasn't until the shrill cries of a newly awaken baby, did she even acknowledge her surroundings. Climbing out of bed, she rushed towards the room that was adjoined to her own to the beautifully decorated crib sitting in the middle of the equally decorated room.

Smiling softly, sympathetically, she gingerly picked up her miracle. Small button nose, soft delicate lips, a tuff of black hair matting that small little head, but what drew her in the most were those large and innocent doe brown eyes staring straight back up at her with tears sparkling in those chocolate depths. However, her little angel's cries did not stop as tear after tear trailed down chubby cheeks.

"Shh…come on sweetie, mommy's here now. Don't cry." She coaxed, but the child would not be comforted. So she did the only thing that had always calmed her little girl down. She started to sing, but with the song came memories of the life she had just been dreaming of earlier.

Whenever sang my songs
On the stage, on my own
Whenever said my words
Wishing they would be heard
I saw you smiling at me
Was it real or just my fantasy
You'd always be there in the corner
Of this tiny little bar

However, the memories always brought the thoughts of 'what ifs?'

Looking down at her daughter, the first what if came to her mind as she could not help but wonder if things had been different, if she had lived another lifetime, she could not help but wonder if her daughter's eyes would have been, instead of the doe brown they were now, a deeper blue just as his had been.

His eyes so passionately stormy yet they had also held such a frosty glow at the same time, just as he had been. So passionate about her and protecting her, yet cold to others and those he had to kill cold-heartedly for trying to murder her.

She sighed, shaking her head at such thoughts. She was happy with her husband, she shouldn't be wondering if her daughter would look any different if she had married another man. What kind of wife was she?

So lost in her thoughts, she never realized that her daughter had stopped crying and was now looking up at her in wonder.

My last night here for you
Same old songs, just once more
My last night here with you?
Maybe yes, maybe no
I kind of liked it your way
How you shyly placed your eyes on me
Oh, did you ever know?
That I had mine on you

What if our love had been stronger?

flashback

She stood with her back to him, doe eyes cast down over the scenery below them, her hands clasped tightly in front of her. He made no effort draw her into his arms, and she made no move to give him a kiss in greeting.

Instead, she stood looking down at the passing scenery below, and he looked at her small form, a pensive frown upon his face. They were both battle worn, seeing so many things in their lives that not many other would ever see. They had been tortured, nearly killed, and had killed mercilessly in order to survive. It had been a battle of survival with only the fittest to survive, and they had been one of the fittest.

They had been angel and lion, sorceress and knight, friends and lovers, but never had they just been woman and man. Perhaps this was the reason they were now at this point in their lives. The moment of rebirth was upon them, but life would not let them leave without a price as a soft sigh escaped her lips, and the words spilled from her mouth and his as they flowed together, lingering in the air.

"It's over isn't it?"

Darling, so there you are
With that look on your face
As if you're never hurt
As if you're never down
Shall I be the one for you
Who pinches you softly but sure
If frown is shown then
I will know that you are no dreamer

What if I had been stronger?

"It was never there in the beginning."

His voice was so cold, so very bitter. It no longer held the warmth nor did the love it had once as he spoke to her. Gone was the hope. And without turning her back, she knew. His beautiful stormy eyes were now a soft icy color; she literally felt the frost climb over her skin as the warmth of the light of love began to fade from her life.

She was almost too afraid to ask this particular question, but she had to know. She had to know that he had loved her too and had enjoyed his time with her as much as she did her time with him, even if he didn't realize it.

"Do you regret the path you've chosen? Do you regret being my knight?" Do you regret loving me? Her heart asked silently.

So let me come to you
Close as I wanted to be
Close enough for me
To feel your heart beating fast
And stay there as I whisper
How I loved your peaceful eyes on me
Did you ever know
That I had mine on you

She smiled at the maid, clutching her child closer to herself as she exited her mansion. Climbing into her car, she never noticed that her driver seemed to look different today.

Darling, so share with me
Your love if you have enough
Your tears if you're holding back
Or pain if that's what it is
How can I let you know
I'm more than the dress and the voice
Just reach me out then
You will know that you're not dreaming

What if I had never let him go?

"What's done is done. I cannot change the past." His reply was cryptic as he turned away from her, and she knew that this would be the last time she would see him. This was her fault after all, this was her fault. She was doing this to protect him, but then again he couldn't see that now, could he?

His footsteps pounded in her ears as he began his walk out of her life forever. She tried to remain stoic, to remain strong, to stop the shattering of her heart, but she couldn't as she whipped her head around to see his back turned to her.

"Do you think we'll ever meet again?" She called out desperately. He stopped, mid stride and looked back at her, and for one breathtaking moment, icy eyes clashed with warm honey ones as they both fought an inner battle. But he said nothing as he turned and resumed his walk out of her life forever. She stood watching him, tears coursing down her cheeks as she whispered softly, "I love you, my brave Griever."

And with that she collapsed on the ground in tears, cursing Hyne for separating her and her love, for ruining her life.

end flashback

Darling, so there you are
With that look on your face
As if you're never hurt
As if you're never down
Shall I be the one for you
Who pinches you softly but sure
If frown is shown then
I will know you are no dreamer

She smiled sadly as she looked out of the window of her car. Their departure had been bittersweet. It was bitter because she had lost her first love, and her knight, but in the process she had found her true love and now had a beautiful daughter. Something she had thought impossible, but here was the little life that proved that anything was possible. True there were times she thought of him and their love, but she would not have changed anything that had happened.

He was the lesson she had to learn, and he was the man she had to reach, and now life was giving her a reward for the pain she had been through in her younger years. A life that had shaped her and made her the woman she was today, a life that to her, was perfect.

She was abruptly pulled from her thoughts as the car swerved to the side all of a sudden and continued to jerk around.

"What's going on? What's wrong?" She asked her driver, and gasped when instead of staring into the face of her driver, she was now gazing into the eyes of what seemed to be a madman. She raised her hand in defense, a natural reaction, but stopped when he aimed a gun at her face.

"Don't try anything bitch." He spat as he drove wildly down the streets, "I know about you and your kind. You sorceress whores cause nothing but trouble. One of your kind took my Sarah away from me, but now I'm getting my revenge by killing off the last of the witches that had taken my Sarah during the war. You should have died a long time ago you bitch."

He continued to rant, shoving his gun in her face as he drove wildly. Normally, she would have done something, but three things stopped her. First being her daughter, if she tried anything, her daughter might be hurt in the fray. Two, the only spells she had on her were a barrier, a curaga, and a thunder. Third, no one in this town knew she was a sorceress, something she and her husband had successfully concealed until this moment.

But as she stared at the man in horror, she realized that her last night had come and gone, and her future was with the stars. Desolately, she looked down at her daughter who was now crying again, and cast the barrier spell on her before she turned to look at her kidnapper. He hadn't seemed to notice her spell as he drove off the road, narrowly missing a light pole. She closed her eyes and cast the thunder spell and waited until she felt the car swerve for one last time, and then the punctures in her abdomen as the world began to dim.

Her mind raced through her life's memories as the sound of crying and shattering glass reached her ears. It was over in a few minutes as her eyes struggled to stay open, she reached over to her daughter, and murmured a soft apology as she passed on a curse to her innocent daughter.

A curse passed onto her by a dying woman, a curse that had led to war, and to constant fear and torture. A curse she had never wanted to bestow upon her daughter, but now had no choice but to.

"I'm so sorry Rinoa." Her voice was a mere whisper as she felt the power leave her body as the life seeped away from her, one thought entering her mind,

What if I wasn't a sorceress?

So let me come to you
Close as I wanted to be
Close enough for me
To feel your heart beating fast
And stay there as I whisper
How I loved your peaceful eyes on me
Did you ever know
That I had mine on you
**Eyes On Me, Final Fantasy VIII Theme**

Somewhere on the other side of the world, in a small little village, a man awoke in cold sweat as he felt a connection that had been buried, but never forgotten, suddenly vanished, leaving him strangely empty. The woman at his side awoke with him, a concerned hand upon his shoulder as he shivered from the memory of his nightmare.

"What's wrong Laguna?" Raine asked softly, but her husband said nothing as he continued to sweat, and then he did something she had never seen him do. Laguna Loire wept for the first time since he met Raine. He wept as he whispered a soft goodbye to his angel, "Julia…"

tbc(???)

A/N: So what did you think? I kind of wrote this in haste, and I don't have a beta reader yet, so… This is my first FFVIII fic, and I'm not really sure about writing it. Should I continue?