Squall looked out the rain-streaked window, his eyes unfocused and distant. Skye sat parallel from him, smiling faintly. The train was rocking slightly, preventing silence that Skye wished for. She looked at Squall. Rinoa. Could you have picked a harder, colder person than Squall Leonheart? I guess… this is the way it was meant to be. He's…unique. I've never seen anyone quite like him. He's unspoken. He has things he needs to get out. Squall's had a tough past, from what Rinoa had told me. Why can't he see that opening up can save him from the kind of pain he's been through before? Nothing can save him from the anguish of the death of a loved one though…

He grimaced, coming back to the real world. His head hurt, and, figuring he might as well get some sleep, he leaned his head back, shifting into a more comfortable position. In about ten minutes he was out like a light.

"Squall…" he heard a voice call out to him. He gasped. That voice… it was… but how could it be?

"Rinoa?" he managed to get out.

"Squall… Accept was has happened. I don't want you to linger on things of the past. Now that everything has changed, you're back to being the man you were when I first met you. Do you need to be softened up again?"

Rinoa appeared, looking as pretty as ever. Squall couldn't believe it.

"Rinoa… You don't understand."

She put one hand on his cheek.

"Please, Squall. Everything will be okay. It's okay to grieve. But don't live in the past. You taught me this yourself. The past is a guidepost, not a hitching post." Her voice was gentle but insistent.

"How can I not look back on it? It ruined my life." Squall was desperate to grasp and accept what she was saying.

"There are great things waiting for you. If you stay looking back upon one dire thing, you can never move forward so grand things can happen."

"There's nothing 'great' waiting for me! You were the thing in my life that mattered most. How can there be better things waiting for me than you?"

"Who knows? Love might lay in your future. You think love is a curse because someone you loved was taken from you. Love is a blessing, too. Our blessing. And I knew you could never be mine alone. You have someone better out there, ready for you to come and sweep her off her feet." Rinoa's eyes were filled with shining tears, but she was smiling. She grasped his hand. "It's time to let go, Squall. You'll always be my angel. I hope I'll always be yours, my love." She faded away into the mist.

"Wait!" Squall yelled. He ran into the mist, reaching out, desperate to find Rinoa again, to give her a hug, to comfort her, to hold her in his arms and be with her once again. He was falling, falling into to deeper and deeper darkness, and all was lost to him.

"Wake up, Squall. We're at Galbadia Garden."

He reluctantly opened his eyes. His mind immediately flew back to the dream.

Skye looked at him, standing up and stretching. There he goes again.

Squall followed her out the door of the train absently.

"Your body's here, but your heart is a hundred miles away." She commented.

"… I guess." He said, but his voice was vacant.

His hands were in his pockets and he was gazing at nothing in particular. What did that dream mean? It's as if I can still almost feel her touch. It hurts to know I was so close to her. If I could've held on to her a little longer, maybe I would wake up and find it was all an evil dream. Please… God, if you do exist, help me to comprehend everything you've done. Rinoa felt, looked so real… did she really come to me in my dream?

Squall saluted as the Headmaster of Galbadia Garden noticed and walked over to them.

"Hello, sir." Skye said cheerfully.

He looked to Squall, who saluted him again.

"I'm sure you're here because of the experimental GFs, correct?"

"Yessir." Replied Squall in an all-business tone.

"There is a new sorceress falling to power. Her name is Echo. She is the first to experiment with GFs after Sorceress Ultemecia. She's the biggest threat since Ultemecia, too. Echo has taken a GF called 'Deathborn'. It was created from combining several destructive monsters such as Diablos, etc. Deathborn has a mind of its own. It is contained now, but Sorceress Echo has all control over it and, unfortunately, her current location is unknown. So who knows how long it can be kept in one place? It must be defeated. Winhill lay in ruin because it got out of hand once. It was weakened then and it proved no large effort for Deathborn to destroy a whole town. It can't be imagined what it can do under full power. You must defeat it. You will be sent to Esthar, because Esthar is closest to the contained area where the GF is being held. Transportation as well as two rooms at an inn will be provided. Any questions?"

"No sir." Squall said in a rather official tone that hinted he would rather be anywhere else.

"Nah." Smiled Skye, a plan forming at the back of her mind.

"Alright. There will be a train in half an hour to Esthar. Until then you're welcome to make yourself at home here. Good day."

The Headmaster dismissed himself and Squall relaxed his tense posture a bit. He had been standing straight as a board.

"Let's go." Skye said.

"Where?" Squall met her with slightly cold eyes.

"I dunno. Let's explore! You might find something of some use."

This sounded peculiar to him, and he glared at her suspiciously. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means something might happen. Or maybe you'll find something out you didn't know before."

"How do you know?"

"Just a feeling."

He shook his head, eyes shaded.

"Whatever."

Squall followed her despite his doubts. He bit his lip, hoping the half hour would go fast.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Okay, plz review. Does it suck? If so, what's wrong with it? Thanks for reading my story.


~Sefie Lynne tilmitt