Author's Note: Omg, I live! Sorry it's taken me so long, guys, but things have been really crazy. I seriously don't know if I've ever been this busy in my entire life, and that's no stretch. College is hard. But I'm all moved into my dorm room, and I've survived my first week of classes. So as a reward to myself, I'm posting the last real chapter of the story. There's an epilogue coming, that should be sometime this week if I'm lucky. So keep an eye out! I hope you guys enjoy this one. It's been roughly edited, so if there are any typos or other errors, I'm sorry. But I needed to get it up while I had the opportunity.

Special side note: This chapter, or the scene in it, was inspired by a song called, "All That I Want," by Michelle Featherstone. The song is perfect for one special scene you'll find in here, and I highly recommend listening to that song. You might like it, you might not, but I liked it and it was what gave me the scene.

Luminosity: Absolute brightness. The total energy radiated into space, per second, by a celestial object such as a star.

Emersion
Chapter Ten: Luminosity

The ballroom of Balamb Garden looked just as beautiful as Rinoa remembered from the first night she'd seen it so long ago. For some reason, even though it wasn't covered in decorations and commemoration banners, the ballroom always looked different on SeeD Graduation nights. And it was even more special now that Rinoa was wearing one of the uniforms herself.

Though she would have preferred something more feminine, Rinoa was proud to don the black jacket and skirt that signified her place as a SeeD. The colorful yellow ribbon flowing down the middle of her outfit was Rinoa's favorite part, and she liked the way it moved as she walked through the room. The calf-length socks were itching her legs, but she ignored them and kept sifting through the crowds of SeeD graduates. When she stepped to the side of the main floor, memories of the night Rinoa met Squall bombarded her, and, though she attempted to keep the emotions at bay, she was finding it difficult.

"Hey," a familiar voice greeted from behind. Rinoa turned to Quistis with a smile and a hug, glad to see a friendly face.

"You look great!" Rinoa praised, in awe as she took in Quistis's sea blue, strappy long dress. It complimented every beautiful feature of her friend. "That dress is beautiful."

"Thanks!" Quistis grinned, looking over Rinoa's attire herself. "That suits you," she commented. "Like you were always meant to wear it."

Those words made Rinoa swell with pride, particularly because of who it was coming from. "Thank you," she said sincerely. "It's all still hard to believe."

"Believe it," Quistis told her. "You made it. Now try to have fun tonight, okay? I have to go talk to the headmaster."

Rinoa nodded. "See you later." Quistis walked away and Rinoa turned her attention back to the dance floor, doing her best not to look up at the glass window in the ceiling. The last thing she needed to be reminded of was stars.

Distracting herself by watching people on the dance floor, Rinoa suddenly spotted a familiar face in her peripheral vision, and her stomach performed a sickening turn. The one person she'd dreaded seeing out of sheer embarrassment was directly to her left. Cale was doing the same thing she was, watching everyone as they swayed and moved with their partners, and when she looked over at him, he met her eyes with flushing cheeks, then immediately looked away. He appeared to be just as embarrassed as she was.

Rinoa knew she owed him an explanation, with one hell of an apology attached. He probably felt like she'd led him on, when that wasn't the case at all. If nothing else, he needed to know the absolute truth. Working up every ounce of confidence left in her, Rinoa walked over to Cale. He turned back with surprise, but said nothing and returned his gaze to the dance floor.

"Hi, Cale," she said abashedly. "I know you have no reason to talk to me right now, but I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am about what happened the other night." He still didn't turn his eyes to her, but Rinoa kept going anyway.

"See, there's…there was this guy that I was with, and we kind of…met under a shooting star." Rinoa wrinkled her nose at that description. Shaking her head, she continued to fumble, "It sounds corny, I know, but he – this guy – sort of…disappeared about a year ago, and sometimes things like that get to me. I just wasn't ready to go through it all again, and I know that now. But I'm really sorry if I hurt your feelings."

Cale's expression was slowly softening, but he still appeared wounded. That much Rinoa had expected, but all she really wanted was for him to understand. Finally, he moved his eyes to hers and said, "You could've just told me that a few days ago. I've been wondering what I did wrong for almost a week now."

"I know," Rinoa answered, biting her lower lip. "I'm really sorry, there's just been…a lot going on."

Cale gave her a curt nod. "I appreciate that," he told her quietly. After a pause, he added, "Congratulations on your test."

Rinoa smiled slightly. "Yeah, you too."

"Thanks."

When it was clear she wasn't going to get anything else out of him, Rinoa started to walk back the way she came. "Rinoa," Cale called to her. She looked back at him, and he said after a moment, "Good luck. With whatever you do."

Now Rinoa smiled fully, nodded and turned back. The damage was done, but at least she didn't feel like he hated her. Hopefully, Cale would find someone who would be able to fully appreciate him. He deserved that, she thought.

She hadn't made it all the way to the other side of the dance floor before a hand reached out and pulled her from the crowd, causing a yelp of surprise to escape from Rinoa. When she realized who it was, she scolded, "Laguna, don't do that to me! You scared me."

Laguna chuckled without remorse. "Just keepin' you on your knees," he commented smugly, as if he was being clever.

"You mean on my toes?" Rinoa corrected.

"Sure, whatever. Anyway, you look awesome in your uniform! Totally perfect."

Rinoa looked down at herself and smoothed out the creases in her shirt, then back up at Laguna. "Thanks," she replied. "I like it too. It feels right."

A fast-tempo song was playing on the dance floor, and Laguna looked at her with an excited spark in his eyes. "You wanna dance?" he asked, sounding more like he was begging. "You did promise."

"Right, right," Rinoa conceded, although truthfully it was nice to have to someone to divert her attention. Taking his hand in hers, Rinoa led Laguna into the sea of couples and started to move to the beat with him. he appeared to be thoroughly enjoying himself, Rinoa noted, and his dancing was certainly amusing. Not only was he off the beat most of the time, but his moves were so exaggerated and silly that Rinoa had a hard time keeping a straight face. Eventually, she gave up and joined him in the crazy steps, laughing through most of the song.

When the fast number had finished, an easier one started. Laguna moved a little closer to Rinoa and placed one hand on her shoulder, and the other on her hip. "I liked the fast one better," he complained.

Rinoa continued to move slowly to this new song, glad that she felt a little less ridiculous now. "I'm sure you did," was her playful response to Laguna.

They danced a few minutes longer before Laguna looked down at her in slight concern. "How're you doing with being here, by the way?" he asked, closer to her ear.

Rinoa shrugged. "I'll be fine as long as I can keep my mind off of him."

When night had finally fallen on Deling City, Squall made his way to a familiar location where his leader was waiting. Squall wasn't entirely sure what Lon was going to say to him. So much time seemed to have passed since he'd left Deling City for Esthar, and Squall wasn't even sure if the group thought he was alive. Briefly, he wondered if any of them would care if they did think he was dead, but cast the thought from his mind just as quickly as it entered.

Opening the door to the hiding place Squall knew Lon would be, he ducked inside and looked around, spotting Lon in the corner. Realization dawned on Lon's features as his eyes moved up and down Squall's figure, like he couldn't believe Squall was standing there. Shooting up from his chair, Lon moved forward, the shock melting away on his features.

"Well, well, it looks like someone made it out of Esthar alive after all," Lon said, a certain tone in his voice that Squall couldn't quite pinpoint, but didn't appreciate. "I guess I was wrong to assume you'd failed. You did actually complete the mission, right? After that long, I'm hoping the answer is yes."

Squall's eyes narrowed. "Yes, I completed the mission," he answered irritably. "I was injured during a fight with the group you wanted me to suppress, and the president of Esthar took me in. I've been recovering, but I didn't get a chance to send word."

Lon considered this for a few moments, seeming to mull it over. "You did take out the faction?" he asked again for confirmation.

"Yes," Squall responded emphatically, intentionally forgetting to add the part where he'd saved Laguna's life. Lon didn't need those details.

After another slight hesitation, Lon nodded. "Right then. I'll only let you come back if you tell me the full details of what happened."

Squall's brow furrowed. "What?"

"You're not telling me the whole truth," Lon shrugged. "Give me the whole story, or you can't come back."

"How do you know I'm not telling the whole story?"

Lon smirked. "Oh, please. It's written all over your face, Leonhart."

Squall could count on one hand the number of times Lon had referred to him by anything but his code name, but he always used it when they were talking about personal matters. Strangely, however, the use of his true last name made Squall feel exposed. "The full story is…complicated," he finally said, keeping his eyes averted.

"You knew someone in the faction?" Lon guessed.

Squall shook his head. "I knew the president of Esthar."

"Interesting," Lon commented. "And?"

Rolling his eyes skyward, Squall finally confessed the last part he hadn't wanted to give up. "And the president knew someone else I…didn't necessarily want to see."

"An old enemy?"

"No," Squall replied quietly, like he was uttering someone's closest secret. "It was the opposite."

"Ahh," Lon breathed, fully understanding now. "I see, I see. I thought you had that lovelorn look on your face." He chuckled. "Who would've thought? You with a girl out there somewhere."

Keeping the negative retorts to himself, Squall merely nodded. Before he could do anything else, though, Lon's forehead suddenly crinkled. "Why are you here, then?" he asked pointedly. "Unless things didn't go well, shouldn't you be with her now? Why come back to this godforsaken place?"

Squall opened his mouth to respond, but found that nothing came out the first time. Concentrating harder on the answer, he tried again. "I have a responsibility to you and the others," he said, keeping his voice matter-of-fact.

Lon considered that, then nodded slowly, coming to a decision. "Right. You've got a choice then, Siber," he said, returning to his use of Squall's code name.

Squall waited, unsure what to expect. "What choice?" he asked.

"You can return to us with no hard feelings," Lon went on. "There will be no punishment for your disappearance on a mission, and we can pretend none of this ever happened. Or..."

"Or what?" Squall pressed, becoming impatient.

"Or...you can separate yourself from us without penalty, and go back to the life you used to lead. The choice is yours." A warning look flashed in Lon's eyes as he added, "But your choice must be final."

Focusing on the music was the best way to keep Rinoa's mind from the memories of Squall, and she continued to do just that. However, it then occurred to her that "Waltz to the Moon," the song she'd dance to at the first SeeD Ball, might well be played next. Rinoa closed her eyes briefly and prayed that that wouldn't happen. She didn't want to fall apart here. Not here.

While her eyes were closed, she suddenly felt Laguna stop dancing, even though the music seemed to be reaching its climax. It sounded like everyone in the room had stopped what they were doing as well, and gasps and murmurings started to float around her. Rinoa opened her eyes and instantly felt her heart leap to her throat.

There stood Squall behind Laguna, his visage slightly afraid. His eyes were on Rinoa's shocked expression, but every other eye in the room was on him. He looked as regal as she remembered him looking the night they met, dressed in the same SeeD uniform he'd worn then. When he spoke finally, his gaze was still locked on Rinoa, but his question was directed to Laguna.

"Can I cut in?" he said deeply, to which Laguna responded by immediately breaking away from Rinoa like she'd burned him, and stepping several paces back. She shot Laguna a panic-ridden glare before turning to Squall.

Slowly, Squall extended his hand to her, and Rinoa simply stared at it for a few moments. "What are you doing here, Squall?" her voice shook. "You said you were going back to Deling City. We said goodbye. You shouldn't…" Realizing that she was speaking loud enough so that people near them could hear, Rinoa finished in a hiss through her teeth, "you shouldn't be here."

Squall shook his head. "No," he told her, his voice quieting as the song ended. "This is where I always should've been." He motioned to her with his outstretched hand while a very slow song's opening bars filled the ballroom. "Dance with me," he said softly. "Please."

Rinoa couldn't shut the words out. This place, this room, these feelings…she couldn't keep them at bay. Not when it came to Squall. She reached out a trembling hand and placed it in his, letting him draw her close to his chest and sway them gently to the music. Though it felt so right and there was no place Rinoa felt she'd rather be, this closeness and intimacy tugged painfully at her. She rested her head on his chest and listened to his heartbeat.

As much as she would've liked to simply enjoy the dance, Rinoa had too many questions. She lifted her head slightly and said aloud, "Are you really here to stay?"

"Yes," Squall answered simply.

Her head shifted up to look at him. "How?" was all she could manage.

Squall swept a piece of stray hair from Rinoa's eyes. "Lon cut me off," he told her, no emotion stealing into his voice. "I failed my mission, and therefore the group itself, so he told me to leave and never come back."

"Really?" Rinoa said, unsure whether to trust this explanation or not.

"Really. You told me you'd be here, and I wanted to see you." He traced her jaw-line with his finger, and Rinoa struggled to keep her focus.

Silence followed for a long time, but unspoken words still seemed to be flowing between them. Rinoa was so tired of going back and forth like this. It was exhausting, not to mention confusing. Would things ever go back to normal? Would she ever feel like she had closure? Not with Squall disappearing and reappearing in her life so often. But she couldn't say no to him. She couldn't say no to all the feelings he created within her, the comfort he made her feel, or how safe she felt when he was close to her. No one else could spark this feeling, and Rinoa got the unsettling feeling that no one else ever would.

As the soft music went on, Rinoa brought herself closer to him and reached her arms up around his neck. She felt him touch his temple to hers before she heard him whisper, "I love you," in her ear. Upon hearing the words she'd longed to hear for so long, her heart felt like it would explode out of her chest and joyful tears welled in her eyes.

"I love you too, Squall," she answered, almost inaudibly. "I always have."

Squall held her tighter in response. Finally, it had been said. Those words, that single phrase had been the only thing standing in the way of letting herself completely give in to him, and now it had been said. She had no reasons left to run from this.

And that in itself was the most wonderful feeling she could imagine at that moment.

The song came to a close, and the pair stopped moving, but she didn't release their hold on each other. Rinoa feared that if she let go of him, this would all disappear. Squall would leave her alone again, and her empty life would resume. But as she pulled away, the scene remained, and he started to lead her off of the dance floor. It was then that Rinoa noticed all the eyes following their every move. Had they been watching the entire time? Every other surrounding had vanished when she and Squall were dancing, it seemed, and the other students were no exception.

Squall led her to the balcony, out of view, underneath the clear night sky. He didn't release her hand, but turned toward the front of the balcony and looked out across the shadowed valleys and hills. Rinoa remained quiet, drinking Squall's presence in, still afraid that if she blinked, he would be gone when she opened her eyes again.

"Do you want me to stay?" Squall asked flatly, still looking forward. "I can go other places if you'd rather not get involved."

Rinoa looked at him dubiously. "Squall, look at me," she said, moving close to his side and smiling softly. "Do I look like I don't want you to stay?"

His eyes met hers, and his lips suddenly tugged into a smile Rinoa hadn't expected. A rush of joy stole through her at the sight, and she beamed in return. "I was hoping you'd say that," he murmured.

His lips inched toward hers, and, though every part of her was quaking and trembling, Rinoa met them in a tentative kiss. Within seconds, however, it turned more passionate, until his hands hand moved to her neck and there was no space between their bodies. There was no doubt in either mind that this was the kiss they were sharing now had been worth waiting every second for.