***Misted Reality: Part 6***
Lovers often share their ambitions and dreams with one another, but it's a cruel twist of fate when they are doomed to share in each others nightmares. Their worst fears are commonly that they will loose the other half of the passion they've found, but no horror could compare with complete betrayal. Nothing could hurt more than discovering that the one you love may not have ever been the person you thought they were.
Quistis lay dazed on the floor of her dorm room, doubled over in pain from the wound Seifer had left her. Half of her wanted to just curl up into a little ball and let herself slip away; she felt so unbelievably ripped to shreds by Seifer's actions, his words. But, she couldn't. There had to be an explanation for what Seifer had done. It couldn't be that he was really just.....a killer. No! There had to be some other reason.
Quistis set her mind on getting help, and she dragged herself painfully to the intercom next to her bed with that in mind. Squall was the closest, his room was right next door. She only hoped he was there.
Fumbling with the intercom on her nightstand, and barely keeping herself held up to reach it, Quistis typed in the code for Squall's room.
Beep. ".....Squall....." Quistis struggled to get out.
There was no reply for a moment, until......
Beep. "Quistis? Is that you?" Squall's voice answered, to Quistis' extreme relief. "What is it?"
Beep. "...Squall......help....I.....I need.....hurry....." Quistis' strength failed her, despite how she wished she could say more, and she collapsed to the floor beside her bed.
Beep. "Quistis...? Quistis!"
----------
"Quistis!!" Squall yelled into the intercom.
There was no answer.
Squall instantly panicked, distraught by the breathless urgency in Quistis' voice. Rushing out his door to reach Quistis' room, Squall felt his throat closing with anxiety. She'd sounded so weak......like she was in pain.......like she was.......
Squall reached Quistis' door in a less than second, madly hitting the key panel for it to open. Thank God it wasn't locked.
As the door opened before Squall, he charged inside, his gaze dashing about the room in search of his friend. He saw no sign of her at first, until at last noticing a pair of feet sticking out from the other side of the bed.
"Quistis?!" Squall called, rushing around the bed to her. He stopped short when she came into full view, taking in the sight before him. There was a trail of blood that led a ways away, showing how she had dragged herself to the intercom, and there was a pool of blood beneath her, quickly soaking into the carpet.
"Oh God....." Squall stated, breathless. He'd imagined a million horrors that could've befallen Quistis, but nothing could've prepared him for what he saw. For the stab wound that only could've been left by a weapon he knew well.
(........no....not Quistis......) Squall thought, frozen in place. (.......that wound's from a gunblade......like the other murders......) his breath caught in his throat. (....don't tell me she's........)
Squall shook himself from his shock, falling to his knees beside Quistis. He gently lifted her head as he knelt there beside her, lifting her shoulders up onto his lap for support.
"Quistis......open your eyes......look at me....." Squall pleaded, desperate for this all to be a dream.
Unbelievably, her eyes did open, and she looked up at Squall, though without truly seeing him anymore.
"......Squall......you came......" she smiled weakly.
"Of course.....of course I came," Squall soothed. Then turning his head out, he yelled towards the door which still stood open. "Somebody help! Hurry! I need help in here!" His cries were nearly choked back by his forming tears.
No one had changed more than Squall since Ultimecia's defeat, and Quistis and his relationship had been affected the most. They'd grown very close, truly like brother and sister. The whole gang had bonded closer together, but their relationship was something special, and Squall wouldn't let Quistis go without a fight.
"Hang on, Quisty.......please hang on......" Squall whimpered. "This isn't happening.......oh, God.............who did this to you?"
Quistis' smile fell at Squall's question, her eyes fading with each passing moment.
"....don't.....blame him......" Quistis whispered.
"Who, Quistis?" Squall pressed, stroking her face gently. "Who?
Quistis cringed, tears streaming down her pained face. ".......Seifer....."
----------
You think you know someone. You think that perhaps they're not the same person they once were. You think maybe, just maybe, they've become someone that you can call a friend. So......what if you're wrong?
Azumi, the girl in the dorm across from Quistis', appeared on the scene moments after Squall's cry for help. Squall immediately sent her to get Dr. Kadowaki, and as soon as the ever-loved physician arrived, Quistis was rushed away.
Rinoa and the rest of the gang came almost immediately as well. Apparently, Azumi had made quite a fuss over the incident on her way to get the doctor.
Selphie and Irvine went along with Quistis to the Infirmary, but Zell and Rinoa stayed behind with Squall. He wasn't taking things too well.
"Squall, calm down," Rinoa demanded, half running to keep up with the SeeD Commander as he stormed his way through the Dormitory's hallways. There was a particular room he intended to reach.
"Yeah, man," Zell offered, following close behind them. "I mean, whadda ya gonna do? Kill him?"
Squall's eyes narrowed. "That's the idea....." he growled menacingly, stopping abruptly as they reached the intended dorm room. Seifer Almasy's.
Squall punched in the code to open the door, not even bothering to see if the occupant was in. It was locked.
"Squall, I will not let you go in their like this," Rinoa stated firmly, hands on her hips. "You don't even know what's going on......"
"I don't care!" Squall interrupted, beginning to type his Commander override code into the key panel. "He tried to kill her, Rinoa! He murdered three people!"
"You don't know that for sure!" Zell jumped in, though sounding a bit hesitant himself. As much as Zell valued his and Seifer's newfound friendship, half of him wanted to jump on the "once-a-traitor-always-a-traitor" bandwagon.
Squall paused, a single digit left to punch in for his code. "She said his name......." he whispered. "Quistis said it was him. That's all the proof I need,"
The last number was pressed......and the door whooshed open.
Sitting on his bed, crying into his hands, sat Seifer.......with a bloody Hyperion lying on the floor at his feet. He looked up at the sound of his door opening, his face stained with so many tears, and he gasped at the sight of his persecutors. He'd been expecting them....
Seifer stood up from the bed, trying to get out some sort of plea or words of grief as he stumbled towards those at the door. But, before he could offer any explanations, Squall rushed at him, slamming him back against the wall and pinning him harshly.
"You fucking, son-of-a-bitch!!" Squall screamed, all control lost in his rage for revenge.
"Squall!" Rinoa reprimanded, right on his heels. Despite the devastating evidence against Seifer, she felt compelled to defend him.
"How did it feel to rip your gunblade through her, you bastard......huh?!" Squall breathed darkly, ignoring Rinoa's protests, as well as Seifer's uncontrollable sobs.
Tears streaming down his face, Seifer could find no words to defend himself. (....that's it, Squall.......hate me.....) Seifer thought despairingly. (.....what kind of.....monster am I....to have done the things......I've done.......?)
"Come on, man, stop it!" Zell tried, reaching to grab Squall's arms away from painfully forcing Seifer to the wall. "Look at him...."
Seifer was truly a pitiful sight. He wore only his black pants, his upper body exposed to show the countless, fresh scratches covering his chest and arms, like he'd been clawing at his skin. Like he'd been trying to rip the shell of someone not quite him away. Looking down at Seifer's hands, Squall could clearly make out the cells of dead skin collected under his fingernails, proving he'd been doing just that. Aside from his marred body, Seifer also couldn't stop crying. He was wailing and gasping for breath almost hysterically.
".....I'm so sorry...." Seifer whimpered, unable to rest his gaze on any one of them. ".....I never........I didn't mean to........" he couldn't say it, he was too overcome with guilt.
(.....God, he's repulsive......) Squall thought bitterly. (But I won't let him get to me! I will *not* feel sorry for him!)
Squall gradually released his grip on Seifer's shoulders, disturbed by the young man's presence, though not in the least convinced of his innocence.
As Squall's arms fell back at his sides, Seifer's legs failed him without that added support, and he sunk slowly to the floor, drowning in his tears.
"Oh, Seifer...." Rinoa whispered, crouching down close to him and stretching out an arm to touch his face. But, before she could reach him, Squall sharply hit her hand away.
"Don't touch him!" he commanded. "I'm not falling for this act....."
"Act?!" Rinoa barked back at him. "Are you blind?! He's in agony!"
Squall shook his head with a cynical laugh, glaring down at Seifer. "I'm *sure* he his," he stated sarcastically. "You can cry all you want, you damn freak, but I won't fall for one, single tear...."
"God, Squall, give him a break!" Zell cut in, clearly disgusted with Squall's coldness. "I know Seifer's done some unthinkable things, but he's not putting on some act here. There's gotta be something more goin' on that we don't know about......"
Squall stared over at Zell almost contemptibly. "What, that he's a murdering......?"
"Enough!" Rinoa yelled, grabbing Squall's shoulder and swinging him around to face her. "Think what you want, Squall Leonheart, but get off your high horse and shut the hell up!"
Squall stared back at Rinoa, stunned by her unusual outburst, and fumbling for words to counter her with.
"Don't *even* start with me," she growled dangerously, before Squall could get out a single word. "The fact is, we can't be sure *what's* going on. And, despite what Quistis may have said, or what we've found here, we can't blame Seifer outright for the murders...."
"But, I know he....." Squall tried.
"No!" Rinoa cut him off. "Until we can be sure, you will *not* patronize him. Understand?"
His face stern with indignation, Squall began grinding his teeth in a vain attempt at keeping himself collected.
(Damn her!) he thought angrily. (I know Rinoa only means to do good in this somehow, but......what good can come from siding with a killer!)
Squall sighed deeply, grumbling to himself. He admired and hated that Rinoa could do this to him all at the same time.
"Fine..." He said through clenched teeth, his hands forming into tight fists. He turned towards Seifer then , addressing the rest of his statement to his former rival. "But....you will *not* leave this room until we have this figured out. Do you here me?!"
Seifer answered with his best attempt for a nod, still struggling to conquer his tears.
"Good," Squall stated coldly. "I'm going to check on my friend now...." He turned towards the door then, adding as he passed by Zell, "Stand guard outside, and *don't* leave Rinoa alone with him,"
Zell shot up a hand in salute, "Whatever you say, Sir!"
Squall glared at him slightly, but then exited out the door to head to the Infirmary.
"Gee, Rinoa...." Zell began, after Squall had left. "...that was amazing. Can you teach *me* to do that?"
Rinoa gave him a half-hearted smile, trying to remain serious. "Wait outside, Zell," she commanded softly.
"But......Squall said....."
"Zell..." Rinoa emphasized, narrowing her gaze.
"Yes, Ma'am!" he replied hastily. Before exiting through the door, however, Zell cast one last look at the distraught Seifer, afflicted by a dull pain in his chest from the sight of his.......friend.
(There's a reason behind all this.....right?) Zell thought, leaving Seifer and Rinoa to be alone within Seifer's dorm room. (......yeah.....there's gotta be!)
After Zell had left, Seifer still sat huddled on his floor, leaning back against the wall as he rubbed at his remaining tears. Rinoa knelt down in front of him, smiling warmly, though he wouldn't meet her gaze.
"Seifer.....you can talk to me, you know," she said gently. "I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation for all this,"
Seifer smiled back at her falsely. "I wish there was.........but I don't know what it would be......" he whispered.
(.....I tried to kill Quistis.....I almost did kill her.....) Seifer thought, his gaze becoming lost and unfocused. (.....what if.....what if I had......what if.....)
Seifer's eyes widened with fear suddenly, and he turned towards Rinoa in a fit of panic.
"Get out! Get away from me!" he cried, looking up into Rinoa's concerned, velvet, brown eyes. ".....I don't wanna hurt you.....I don't wanna hurt you, too....."
Seifer looked so afraid, so helpless, Rinoa felt near tears herself, watching as fresh ones found their way down Seifer's already reddened cheeks.
"Seifer.....I can't do that. You....you've killed three people...." Rinoa stated carefully. "...You attacked Quistis, you.........something's happening to you. Something's making you do this, and we need to figure out what....."
Rinoa reached out a gentle hand to place it on Seifer's shoulder, but he shrugged it off fearfully, sliding away from her against the wall.
"....I know.....I know this doesn't make any sense......" Seifer said, stiffening from the momentary feel of her touch. ".....I want to know....why....why I'm doing these things........but.....but what if I......." he paused, swallowing hard and clenching his eyes shut in an effort to find the right words. ".....just give me some time.......alone.....to think......please.....please just go......"
Though she understood where Seifer was coming from, Rinoa was so afraid for him, so anxious to discover what was happening to him, that she didn't know if she *could* go.
(I want to help you so much, Seifer) Rinoa thought painfully. (Is it right to leave you...?)
Rinoa's brow creased in indecision, but deep down she knew what she would ultimately choose to do. The last thing she wanted was to make things any harder on Seifer than they had to be.
"Alright," Rinoa sighed at last, standing up. "I'm just a call away when you're ready to talk," She started for the door, stopping to say over her shoulder, "We'll figure this all out, Seifer, ok? Don't worry," She continued on then, but before she could exit, Seifer's voice stopped her.
"Wait!" he called anxiously, halting her in her tracks. "....when you.......when you know if she's gonna.......be ok....." Seifer began. ".....come and tell me.....will you?"
Rinoa smiled. "Of course I will." she stated warmly. "I'll come back as soon as can, alright? I'm sure Quistis will be just fine."
Seifer nodded to himself as Rinoa left, leaving him all alone to drowned in his sorrows. He mechanically pulled his knees up into his chest, thinking about Rinoa's final reassurance.
(.....but...what if she isn't going to be ok....?) he thought depressingly. (.....what if Quistis.....what if I......damn it! What's happening to me!)
**********
Not much to say this time. Squall is quick to judge Seifer, but Rinoa and Zell really want to believe that there's more to all this than Seifer being a murderer. What do you think? Well, I'll be posting the next part before the day is over, it's nearly finished already, so things are really gonna heat up. Love ya all, and PLEASE REVIEW!
Lovers often share their ambitions and dreams with one another, but it's a cruel twist of fate when they are doomed to share in each others nightmares. Their worst fears are commonly that they will loose the other half of the passion they've found, but no horror could compare with complete betrayal. Nothing could hurt more than discovering that the one you love may not have ever been the person you thought they were.
Quistis lay dazed on the floor of her dorm room, doubled over in pain from the wound Seifer had left her. Half of her wanted to just curl up into a little ball and let herself slip away; she felt so unbelievably ripped to shreds by Seifer's actions, his words. But, she couldn't. There had to be an explanation for what Seifer had done. It couldn't be that he was really just.....a killer. No! There had to be some other reason.
Quistis set her mind on getting help, and she dragged herself painfully to the intercom next to her bed with that in mind. Squall was the closest, his room was right next door. She only hoped he was there.
Fumbling with the intercom on her nightstand, and barely keeping herself held up to reach it, Quistis typed in the code for Squall's room.
Beep. ".....Squall....." Quistis struggled to get out.
There was no reply for a moment, until......
Beep. "Quistis? Is that you?" Squall's voice answered, to Quistis' extreme relief. "What is it?"
Beep. "...Squall......help....I.....I need.....hurry....." Quistis' strength failed her, despite how she wished she could say more, and she collapsed to the floor beside her bed.
Beep. "Quistis...? Quistis!"
----------
"Quistis!!" Squall yelled into the intercom.
There was no answer.
Squall instantly panicked, distraught by the breathless urgency in Quistis' voice. Rushing out his door to reach Quistis' room, Squall felt his throat closing with anxiety. She'd sounded so weak......like she was in pain.......like she was.......
Squall reached Quistis' door in a less than second, madly hitting the key panel for it to open. Thank God it wasn't locked.
As the door opened before Squall, he charged inside, his gaze dashing about the room in search of his friend. He saw no sign of her at first, until at last noticing a pair of feet sticking out from the other side of the bed.
"Quistis?!" Squall called, rushing around the bed to her. He stopped short when she came into full view, taking in the sight before him. There was a trail of blood that led a ways away, showing how she had dragged herself to the intercom, and there was a pool of blood beneath her, quickly soaking into the carpet.
"Oh God....." Squall stated, breathless. He'd imagined a million horrors that could've befallen Quistis, but nothing could've prepared him for what he saw. For the stab wound that only could've been left by a weapon he knew well.
(........no....not Quistis......) Squall thought, frozen in place. (.......that wound's from a gunblade......like the other murders......) his breath caught in his throat. (....don't tell me she's........)
Squall shook himself from his shock, falling to his knees beside Quistis. He gently lifted her head as he knelt there beside her, lifting her shoulders up onto his lap for support.
"Quistis......open your eyes......look at me....." Squall pleaded, desperate for this all to be a dream.
Unbelievably, her eyes did open, and she looked up at Squall, though without truly seeing him anymore.
"......Squall......you came......" she smiled weakly.
"Of course.....of course I came," Squall soothed. Then turning his head out, he yelled towards the door which still stood open. "Somebody help! Hurry! I need help in here!" His cries were nearly choked back by his forming tears.
No one had changed more than Squall since Ultimecia's defeat, and Quistis and his relationship had been affected the most. They'd grown very close, truly like brother and sister. The whole gang had bonded closer together, but their relationship was something special, and Squall wouldn't let Quistis go without a fight.
"Hang on, Quisty.......please hang on......" Squall whimpered. "This isn't happening.......oh, God.............who did this to you?"
Quistis' smile fell at Squall's question, her eyes fading with each passing moment.
"....don't.....blame him......" Quistis whispered.
"Who, Quistis?" Squall pressed, stroking her face gently. "Who?
Quistis cringed, tears streaming down her pained face. ".......Seifer....."
----------
You think you know someone. You think that perhaps they're not the same person they once were. You think maybe, just maybe, they've become someone that you can call a friend. So......what if you're wrong?
Azumi, the girl in the dorm across from Quistis', appeared on the scene moments after Squall's cry for help. Squall immediately sent her to get Dr. Kadowaki, and as soon as the ever-loved physician arrived, Quistis was rushed away.
Rinoa and the rest of the gang came almost immediately as well. Apparently, Azumi had made quite a fuss over the incident on her way to get the doctor.
Selphie and Irvine went along with Quistis to the Infirmary, but Zell and Rinoa stayed behind with Squall. He wasn't taking things too well.
"Squall, calm down," Rinoa demanded, half running to keep up with the SeeD Commander as he stormed his way through the Dormitory's hallways. There was a particular room he intended to reach.
"Yeah, man," Zell offered, following close behind them. "I mean, whadda ya gonna do? Kill him?"
Squall's eyes narrowed. "That's the idea....." he growled menacingly, stopping abruptly as they reached the intended dorm room. Seifer Almasy's.
Squall punched in the code to open the door, not even bothering to see if the occupant was in. It was locked.
"Squall, I will not let you go in their like this," Rinoa stated firmly, hands on her hips. "You don't even know what's going on......"
"I don't care!" Squall interrupted, beginning to type his Commander override code into the key panel. "He tried to kill her, Rinoa! He murdered three people!"
"You don't know that for sure!" Zell jumped in, though sounding a bit hesitant himself. As much as Zell valued his and Seifer's newfound friendship, half of him wanted to jump on the "once-a-traitor-always-a-traitor" bandwagon.
Squall paused, a single digit left to punch in for his code. "She said his name......." he whispered. "Quistis said it was him. That's all the proof I need,"
The last number was pressed......and the door whooshed open.
Sitting on his bed, crying into his hands, sat Seifer.......with a bloody Hyperion lying on the floor at his feet. He looked up at the sound of his door opening, his face stained with so many tears, and he gasped at the sight of his persecutors. He'd been expecting them....
Seifer stood up from the bed, trying to get out some sort of plea or words of grief as he stumbled towards those at the door. But, before he could offer any explanations, Squall rushed at him, slamming him back against the wall and pinning him harshly.
"You fucking, son-of-a-bitch!!" Squall screamed, all control lost in his rage for revenge.
"Squall!" Rinoa reprimanded, right on his heels. Despite the devastating evidence against Seifer, she felt compelled to defend him.
"How did it feel to rip your gunblade through her, you bastard......huh?!" Squall breathed darkly, ignoring Rinoa's protests, as well as Seifer's uncontrollable sobs.
Tears streaming down his face, Seifer could find no words to defend himself. (....that's it, Squall.......hate me.....) Seifer thought despairingly. (.....what kind of.....monster am I....to have done the things......I've done.......?)
"Come on, man, stop it!" Zell tried, reaching to grab Squall's arms away from painfully forcing Seifer to the wall. "Look at him...."
Seifer was truly a pitiful sight. He wore only his black pants, his upper body exposed to show the countless, fresh scratches covering his chest and arms, like he'd been clawing at his skin. Like he'd been trying to rip the shell of someone not quite him away. Looking down at Seifer's hands, Squall could clearly make out the cells of dead skin collected under his fingernails, proving he'd been doing just that. Aside from his marred body, Seifer also couldn't stop crying. He was wailing and gasping for breath almost hysterically.
".....I'm so sorry...." Seifer whimpered, unable to rest his gaze on any one of them. ".....I never........I didn't mean to........" he couldn't say it, he was too overcome with guilt.
(.....God, he's repulsive......) Squall thought bitterly. (But I won't let him get to me! I will *not* feel sorry for him!)
Squall gradually released his grip on Seifer's shoulders, disturbed by the young man's presence, though not in the least convinced of his innocence.
As Squall's arms fell back at his sides, Seifer's legs failed him without that added support, and he sunk slowly to the floor, drowning in his tears.
"Oh, Seifer...." Rinoa whispered, crouching down close to him and stretching out an arm to touch his face. But, before she could reach him, Squall sharply hit her hand away.
"Don't touch him!" he commanded. "I'm not falling for this act....."
"Act?!" Rinoa barked back at him. "Are you blind?! He's in agony!"
Squall shook his head with a cynical laugh, glaring down at Seifer. "I'm *sure* he his," he stated sarcastically. "You can cry all you want, you damn freak, but I won't fall for one, single tear...."
"God, Squall, give him a break!" Zell cut in, clearly disgusted with Squall's coldness. "I know Seifer's done some unthinkable things, but he's not putting on some act here. There's gotta be something more goin' on that we don't know about......"
Squall stared over at Zell almost contemptibly. "What, that he's a murdering......?"
"Enough!" Rinoa yelled, grabbing Squall's shoulder and swinging him around to face her. "Think what you want, Squall Leonheart, but get off your high horse and shut the hell up!"
Squall stared back at Rinoa, stunned by her unusual outburst, and fumbling for words to counter her with.
"Don't *even* start with me," she growled dangerously, before Squall could get out a single word. "The fact is, we can't be sure *what's* going on. And, despite what Quistis may have said, or what we've found here, we can't blame Seifer outright for the murders...."
"But, I know he....." Squall tried.
"No!" Rinoa cut him off. "Until we can be sure, you will *not* patronize him. Understand?"
His face stern with indignation, Squall began grinding his teeth in a vain attempt at keeping himself collected.
(Damn her!) he thought angrily. (I know Rinoa only means to do good in this somehow, but......what good can come from siding with a killer!)
Squall sighed deeply, grumbling to himself. He admired and hated that Rinoa could do this to him all at the same time.
"Fine..." He said through clenched teeth, his hands forming into tight fists. He turned towards Seifer then , addressing the rest of his statement to his former rival. "But....you will *not* leave this room until we have this figured out. Do you here me?!"
Seifer answered with his best attempt for a nod, still struggling to conquer his tears.
"Good," Squall stated coldly. "I'm going to check on my friend now...." He turned towards the door then, adding as he passed by Zell, "Stand guard outside, and *don't* leave Rinoa alone with him,"
Zell shot up a hand in salute, "Whatever you say, Sir!"
Squall glared at him slightly, but then exited out the door to head to the Infirmary.
"Gee, Rinoa...." Zell began, after Squall had left. "...that was amazing. Can you teach *me* to do that?"
Rinoa gave him a half-hearted smile, trying to remain serious. "Wait outside, Zell," she commanded softly.
"But......Squall said....."
"Zell..." Rinoa emphasized, narrowing her gaze.
"Yes, Ma'am!" he replied hastily. Before exiting through the door, however, Zell cast one last look at the distraught Seifer, afflicted by a dull pain in his chest from the sight of his.......friend.
(There's a reason behind all this.....right?) Zell thought, leaving Seifer and Rinoa to be alone within Seifer's dorm room. (......yeah.....there's gotta be!)
After Zell had left, Seifer still sat huddled on his floor, leaning back against the wall as he rubbed at his remaining tears. Rinoa knelt down in front of him, smiling warmly, though he wouldn't meet her gaze.
"Seifer.....you can talk to me, you know," she said gently. "I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation for all this,"
Seifer smiled back at her falsely. "I wish there was.........but I don't know what it would be......" he whispered.
(.....I tried to kill Quistis.....I almost did kill her.....) Seifer thought, his gaze becoming lost and unfocused. (.....what if.....what if I had......what if.....)
Seifer's eyes widened with fear suddenly, and he turned towards Rinoa in a fit of panic.
"Get out! Get away from me!" he cried, looking up into Rinoa's concerned, velvet, brown eyes. ".....I don't wanna hurt you.....I don't wanna hurt you, too....."
Seifer looked so afraid, so helpless, Rinoa felt near tears herself, watching as fresh ones found their way down Seifer's already reddened cheeks.
"Seifer.....I can't do that. You....you've killed three people...." Rinoa stated carefully. "...You attacked Quistis, you.........something's happening to you. Something's making you do this, and we need to figure out what....."
Rinoa reached out a gentle hand to place it on Seifer's shoulder, but he shrugged it off fearfully, sliding away from her against the wall.
"....I know.....I know this doesn't make any sense......" Seifer said, stiffening from the momentary feel of her touch. ".....I want to know....why....why I'm doing these things........but.....but what if I......." he paused, swallowing hard and clenching his eyes shut in an effort to find the right words. ".....just give me some time.......alone.....to think......please.....please just go......"
Though she understood where Seifer was coming from, Rinoa was so afraid for him, so anxious to discover what was happening to him, that she didn't know if she *could* go.
(I want to help you so much, Seifer) Rinoa thought painfully. (Is it right to leave you...?)
Rinoa's brow creased in indecision, but deep down she knew what she would ultimately choose to do. The last thing she wanted was to make things any harder on Seifer than they had to be.
"Alright," Rinoa sighed at last, standing up. "I'm just a call away when you're ready to talk," She started for the door, stopping to say over her shoulder, "We'll figure this all out, Seifer, ok? Don't worry," She continued on then, but before she could exit, Seifer's voice stopped her.
"Wait!" he called anxiously, halting her in her tracks. "....when you.......when you know if she's gonna.......be ok....." Seifer began. ".....come and tell me.....will you?"
Rinoa smiled. "Of course I will." she stated warmly. "I'll come back as soon as can, alright? I'm sure Quistis will be just fine."
Seifer nodded to himself as Rinoa left, leaving him all alone to drowned in his sorrows. He mechanically pulled his knees up into his chest, thinking about Rinoa's final reassurance.
(.....but...what if she isn't going to be ok....?) he thought depressingly. (.....what if Quistis.....what if I......damn it! What's happening to me!)
**********
Not much to say this time. Squall is quick to judge Seifer, but Rinoa and Zell really want to believe that there's more to all this than Seifer being a murderer. What do you think? Well, I'll be posting the next part before the day is over, it's nearly finished already, so things are really gonna heat up. Love ya all, and PLEASE REVIEW!