Author's Note: Omg, it's finally here. I'm almost finished with Binary. Holy crap, it doesn't seem possible. Well, here it is, folks. The last full chapter. A couple of you might've been confused on the whole pod thing, but my point was, one of the sides was crushed in, so it could only fit two people at a time, and the pilot had to be one of those two people. Just imagine that the back side was crushed in, so there's hardly enough room for two. Does that explain it a little better? I hope so. Enjoy! I'll see you at the Epilogue.

Chapter 10

Night Sky Stage

Fare thee well, my bright star
I watched your taillights blaze into nothingness
But you were long gone before I ever got to you
Before you blazed past this address

-Indigo Girls, "Fare Thee Well"

Rinoa had spent a majority of the time she and Squall had left on the ship down below the cockpit. It was simply too painful to stay up there with him, as much as she wanted to spend every waking moment left in his presence. Knowing that their time might soon be ending was too hard on her. But after a while, she came back up, her eyes red and puffy from crying. She tried to hide her face from Squall when she walked in, but he was already up and moving toward her when he saw her come in.

Meeting in the middle, Rinoa stopped and stared into Squall's eyes for a moment. Slowly, she took both of his hands in hers, and continued to look at him. Firmly, she told him, "I'm not going back without you."

Squall heaved a sigh, letting go of her hands and running a hand through her hair. "Rinoa…"

She shook her head. "I'm not, Squall! Look at all we've been through. How have we gotten through it? Together. It's taken both of us to get this far. We have to go back together." She was repeating herself, but that seemed to be the only way to make Squall listen to anything she said.

He stubbornly kept fighting. "We can't afford to wait for another option, Rinoa. I won't let us both die up here. There's no sense in that. They'll…they'll come back for me."

She opened her mouth to protest again, but was interrupted by Quistis. "Squall," she crackled. "Come in."

Tearing his eyes away from her, Squall walked over and picked up the radio. Rinoa found a seat and sat heavily upon it, keeping more tears at bay. She wanted to be close to the radio, however. "We read you," Squall responded. "What do you have for us?"

"We sent the pod up an hour ago," Quistis explained. "It should be there soon. Have you decided who's going first?"

"Rinoa is."

"Squall will be."

They said the words simultaneously. Rinoa looked over at Squall with a challenging spark in her eyes. This was why she was sitting close to the radio. Quistis was still waiting for a definite answer. "Squall?" she prompted.

"Rinoa is going first," he said more assertively, meeting Rinoa's eyes.

Rinoa tried again. "No! Quistis, take him first, I…"

"You're taking her down first, Quistis."

Quistis took in a shuddering breath, though it was quiet. "Are you sure?" she asked, as if she wished he wasn't. Rinoa knew every one of them standing behind Quistis was probably wishing the same. Given the choice between their commander and the girl they hardly knew, she had a feeling she knew who they'd choose.

"I'm sure."

"You two realize that if we can't get the escape pod back up there…" she began, trailing off.

"I know. I'm willing to risk it."

Several moments of silence passed between them. Words of protest died on Rinoa's lips, as she finally conceded to Squall's insistence. There was no way she'd be able to convince him otherwise, no matter how hard she tried.

The words Quistis spoke next made Rinoa wish to be smaller than a dot of the thousands of stars surrounding them. Softly, but with an undertone of slight anger, Quistis said, "I don't think that's the right decision, Squall."

He shook his head and replied immediately, "I don't care. It's my decision."

"You're our commander," she told him more strongly. "You're too important to Balamb Garden. And you're too important to us. We need you."

Rinoa felt as if she wasn't even in the same universe as these two. She didn't even exist. She watched Squall tense, then he demanded, "Then as Commander, I order you to take Rinoa down first. Tell the pilot, and have him contact us when he gets there."

Normally she would've been ecstatic. He was protecting her; saving her life yet again. But all she could feel was sadness and guilt. He was saving her life at the possible expense of his own, which was the exact opposite of everything they'd been working toward. They'd been working together so both of them could make it out. She'd never felt so miserable in her life.

Quistis sighed resignedly. "Yes, Squall. Understood. Just…" She stopped. "Nevermind. We'll see you down here soon."

"Over and out."

"Over and out," she answered quietly, and the radio clicked off.

"You really think they can come back for you?" Rinoa asked, desperate for some sort of reassurance.

"Yes," he replied calmly. "They've got plenty of supplies in Esthar. I'll be back down with you a few hours after you get home."

He sounded convinced of the idea, but Rinoa still didn't know if she should believe him. She wanted to, every part of her wanted to believe it. Visions of what their lives would be like after they reached home played through her mind. The first thing she would do was placed her feet on solid ground and keep them there. Next, she would find everyone she knew and tell him how much she'd missed them. That was the most important thing on her mind.

Another factor she wondered about as she thought of home was how Squall would address everything that had happened between them on the ship. Would he ignore it? Act as if it didn't matter? Accept it and embrace it? She could never predict with Squall.

Thinking of home brought a smile to her face, through her doubts about Squall. Fresh air, sunshine, people, and real food were just a few of the things she was looking forward to.

…But none of that mattered if he wasn't with her.

She felt as if they'd grown so much closer in space…but she couldn't be entirely sure if he felt the same way. Squall was (for the most part) unpredictable and unreadable; that much she'd learned by now. At the very least, they had started a beautiful relationship.

Watching him in admiration and longing, Rinoa's thoughts were broken when another voice broke in on the radio. "Ragnarok?" an unfamiliar male voice called. "Commander Leonhart, do you read?"

"It's Squall," the SeeD corrected, his voice level but verging on annoyance. "We read you. What's your status?"

"We're ten kilometers away from your ship and closing in, but we can't get too close. We're going to send a rescue pod your way right now. We'll take one of you, and come back for the other. Your station looks relatively unstable, so be careful."

Rinoa's stare snapped from the radio to Squall, an expression of alarm clear on her face. He seemed unfazed, however, and didn't meet her eyes. He was perfectly calm and placid; she knew something about this reaction was off, even if it was Squall.

"Copy," Squall answered, still staring straight ahead. "We're ready when you are. What exit will you be waiting near?"

There was a pause before the stranger answered, "The pilot deck. Make sure you have the proper equipment ready. You have suits with adequate oxygen, correct?"

"Correct," Squall responded. "Rinoa is coming out first, so she'll be waiting for you on the deck. I'll see her off."

"Understood. Deploying pod now."

With a nod, Squall gave one last word of confirmation before signing off. He still hadn't acknowledged Rinoa at all, but she followed him anyway down the lift and toward the room they'd started in after Squall had saved her. There they found the suits they needed, and despite the dread she felt in putting it back on, went back into the suit she nearly died in.

Watching him fit his suit quickly and efficiently, Rinoa couldn't hold her tongue any longer. "Squall," she started, her voice dull and low beneath the space helmet. "What did they mean when they said our station looks unstable?"

He didn't pause, snapping his own helmet on. "It's just the Lunar Base," he explained neutrally. "It makes a stronger gravitational pull on the Ragnarok, creating a less stable field around us. It's risky to knock that out of balance…it would knock us out of orbit."

Rinoa's eyes widened. "So…we're in danger right now? Will you be in danger if I leave?"

"No," he answered sharply, making her jump. "You'll be fine. Now hurry, they won't wait forever."

As if on cue, the ship lurched with a painful groaning, screeching sound. Both Squall and Rinoa stumbled, and Squall immediately reached out to stabilize her. They helped each other to their feet, and Squall now seemed even more hell bent on getting her off the ship as quickly as possible. He still had her hand, and was practically dragging her to the pilot deck.

"Squall!" she protested while they walked very quickly down the stairs. "What was that? What's going on?" He kept going until she pleaded in a shout, "Talk to me!"

Now he stopped, letting go of Rinoa's hand and whirling to face her. His eyes burned deeply into hers, and her anger was quelled when she stared into his face. She was transfixed by the intense emotion in his gaze.

"Rinoa, remember the night we met?"

She blinked. "Of course I do. But I don't see how that has anything to…"

"When you saw that star, what went through your mind?"

Rinoa shook her head. "Squall, I don't…"

"Just answer the question!" he exclaimed impatiently.

She looked away, heaving a sigh. She'd gone through that night thousands of times in her mind, especially after they'd met again for the Timber Owls. It wasn't difficult to go back to the night of the SeeD Ball at all.

"I thought…" she started, "I thought that star we both saw meant something. It was more than coincidence that we saw it at the exact same moment… I looked over, saw you standing there, and something told me we should dance."

"Even though I was a stranger?" Squall asked in a rushed voice. "You trusted me enough on first sight to approach me and dance with me?"

Rinoa paused. "Yeah, I guess I did."

Now he spoke more deliberately, his tone serious and quiet. "Then why don't you trust me now?"

His heartfelt words took her by surprise even more than his abrupt actions had. He was right; she needed to show more faith in him. He'd done nothing so far in this whole ordeal that would give her cause to find Squall untrustworthy. She'd trusted him on sight that first time they met. And now, more than ever, she needed to trust him with her fate.

"All right," she said with a nod. "Lead the way."

He nodded shortly, and before he turned back around to continue toward the pilot deck, he murmured, "Thank you."

They ran the rest of the way to their destination, little jolts throwing them off balance every few minutes. After each groan of the ship, Squall's pace became more and more panicked. When they finally reached the deck, Squall stopped before pressing the button to open the door. He took both of Rinoa's hands in his and looked deeply into her eyes again. Only this time, they seemed sad.

"I need you to make another promise," he told her. "Only this time, you have to swear it to me." He was still in a hurry. They could hear the sound of the pod waiting outside.

Rinoa didn't like this. Squall was frantic… "Okay," she said slowly. "What is it?"

"No matter what happens here, you have to promise me you'll go on with your life. Don't waste your time with pointless searching. That you won't give up on your own life."

Her heart leapt to her throat, and her stomach seemed to go in the opposite direction. All the air in her suit felt as if it depleted at once. "Why are you saying this?" she asked, instinctively putting a hand where her necklace would be. "You're coming with me! We're getting out of this together, Squall!"

He shook her frame once. "Just promise me! Please. Before it's too late."

Her worst fears were confirmed in his words. A lump constricted her throat, and all she could do was shake her head vigorously, struggling to fight back tears. She closed her eyes to hide them, and Squall took her helmet between his hands, leaning forward to meet hers with his own. Almost unconsciously, she started to embrace him, and he responded, but their suits stopped them halfway.

She looked back up at him, and he pleaded again, "Promise. I need to hear you promise."

Rinoa choked on a sob before answering, "I promise." Every thought racing through her mind screamed that she shouldn't promise; that she should stay behind with him. But her logic was no longer in control.

The door was opening. Her body started to become weightless again, and reality came rushing back to her. The rescue pod moved closer, but she wasn't ready to leave. "No!" she cried, reaching her arms out to Squall, who'd stepped back to avoid being sucked out. "I take it back! I'll stay here!" Tears streamed down her cheeks now.

She saw him mouth a few words, and then motioned for her to get into the pod. His face, no matter what kind of mask he tried to put up, was just as distraught as her own, though free of tears. She knew he'd never been good at goodbyes.

Finally, the pilot of the rescue pod got out and headed toward her. "Miss, we must leave. We can come back, don't worry." He opened the door for her, but her gaze was still locked on Squall. We can come back, she thought despondently, but there'll be no one here to rescue.

Rinoa remained motionless. Another jolting movement shook the Ragnarok; the largest one yet. "Go!" Squall shouted. "Go now!"

She felt foreign hands on her shoulders, making her jump. The pilot led her to the pod, and she didn't fight. When the door closed after she was seated, she immediately looked out the window. When the pod turned, she was looking directly back at Squall, who stood exactly where he'd been. She put a hand up to the window, fresh tears still making their way down her cheeks.

"Squall…" she mouthed, no sound coming from her throat.

The pod took off back in the direction of the ship that would take her the rest of the way back to earth.

She watched through the back window until he was completely out of sight before wrenching sobs took her over her.

He was gone.

Fare thee well, my bright star
There's a brief, brilliant miracle dive
That which I looked up to, and I clung to for dear life
Had to burn itself up just to make itself alive
And I caught you then, in your moment of glory
Your last dramatic scene against a night sky stage