Chapter 3: Go Back
Her eyes blinked open at the dog's third bark, sitting up her black hair fell perfectly past her shoulders. Her eyes scanned the room; the walls and shelves empty; a smell of cleaning solution; she rubbed her head. Rinoa frowned, "It was just a dream?" The long golden haired dog jumped up on the end of the bed, barking.
"Go away, Angelo," she whined at the dog, in reply it barked again. "Silence," she murmured as a blue spell left her right hand and zapped the dog, now it was just making the motions of barking, she stifled a little laugh.
"Rinny, you awake in there?" Quistis asked politely from the other side of the door. Rinoa didn't answer.
"C'mon Rinny, we just wanna make sure you're okay, tee hee."
She threw a pillow over her head and laid back down, "Not Sephlie, not now…" She slid the white pillow off her face and yelled, "You don't have rights to call me Rinny," then whispered to herself, "Only he can call me that." The door slid open and there stood the two girls. The shorter one dressed in a shiny golden halter-top and skintight dark blue flares, her hair flipped out. The instructor wore a three forth length pink shirt, baggy blue jeans, small framed glasses resting on the end of her nose and hair pulled back in a half pony tail.
"RINNY! I'm so excited!" Selphie yelled jumping up and down. Rinoa just stared at the two of them, wondering how much coffee Quistis let Selphie have this morning. Angelo whimpered; jumping off the bed; to go see if these people would be nicer. The sorceress groaned, flicking her wrist at the three of them, casting a stop spell.
She stumbled out of her mess of sheets, scuffling across the stiff carpet to find clean clothes. Rinoa pulled open the first draw she could get to; reaching in she pulled out a pair of blue jeans and an oversized sweatshirt. She slid her bright blue shirt over head and pulled down her plaid pajama pants that she had no recognition of changing into last night. Her raven hair bounced, as she jumped into her blue jeans; reaching for the sweatshirt, she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror.
Her almond eyes set on the figure, that looked almost unfamiliar, eyes set deep in her head, bags underneath them, the chain with her mother's ring and the one she got from Squall, just hung around her neck. The two rings landed in-between her breasts which where covered by a black lace bra. Its like there's no life left, her own voice echoing in her mind.
The stone in the griever ring shined once in the sunlight. //Squall, please tell me last night wasn't a dream. Better yet tell me the past year was all a dream.// Her eyes darted towards a falling piece of paper, bending down she picked it up. Squall. One tear rolled down her cheek and out went the angel wings, -his- angel wings.
The once pure white wings, were know being infested with a pale gray, everyday without him the darkness spread. "I am good. I am good." The sorceress would tell herself over and over again. Rinoa's own thoughts interrupted by the old instructor's voice, "Selphie, breath. You're scaring-" the blond women looked up at her raven-haired friend, "Rinoa why are you standing there half dressed?"
"Tee-hee. Yeah and if you want to go out anywhere today you need to makes those things go POOF!"
Quistis nudged Selphie, the instructor saw the change in color of her wings, even though she had only saw them once before.
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"C'mon Squall you gotta come to the costume ball, it'll be fun, and I kinda already told Rinoa you'd take her, so you gotta go," the hyper active girl was pleading now, begging even.
"Whatever."
"Tee-hee, she'll be so happy!" The green-eyed girl ran off to tell her friend of the good news. It had only been three weeks since the final battle, and Selphie was already planning all type of parties to raise money to rebuild Trabia Garden.
That night, a man dressed in shiny knight's armor stood at the entrance to the guest wings of the dormitory. A chain vest weighing him down, on top of the weight of the metal boots, helmet and nose guard. If it hadn't been for the griever pendent he refused to part with no one would be able to tell who he was.
His attention now drawn to a girl, no a woman, in an elegant puffy white dress like she was going to married. Her raven hair down, with little curls accenting her features. Around her neck hung, almost floated, his griever ring and her mother's silver ring, huge white wings protruded from her back.
She looks like an angel. How did I let Selphie talk me into this one? "My lady." He knelt on one knee, extending his right arm out for her to take. Rinoa giggled, pleased with him for tonight at least, she took his hand. Together the sorceress and her knight walked to the costume ball.
The two entered the celebration hall, and all eyes turned to them as if they knew all the wonders of the world. Rinoa saw Irvine and Selphie in the corner having a little fight over his costume, which was a fairy, taken from A Midsummer Night's Dream. Squall had been looking the other direction to where Quistis and Xu danced, leaning on each others shoulders, like they were the only two in the room, not caring what other people thought.
Sorceress Angelwing and her knight danced for most part of the night in their original costumes. Squall, told her that he needed to get out this knight outfit, running out just as a slow song played. Rinoa leaned against a column looking much like Squall at the SeeD ball where she first met him.
The blond instructor dressed as a cat, wearing a tight leopard print cat suit and cat ears from Josie and Pussy Cats. "How did you do it?" Rinoa looked at her, confused. "You got him to be your date."
"Selphie's work. You looked really cute dancing with Xu, I'm so glad you too finally hooked up."
The ex-instructor blushed, her attention turning to the wings on Rinoa's back. Massive white wings, whiter than the whitest of whites she'd ever seen, "Are they real?"
The sorceress knew what she was talking about right off, a couple people had asked her that question earlier. "Yup. All mine."
"Do they hurt?"
"No, just take a lot of power or emotion, to come out."
"Ohhh," the instructor nodded, and slipped away upon hearing the clunking of Squall's boots. He was in his every day clothes, his black leather pants with red belts and his feathered leather jacket.
"You're the cutest girl here tonight."
"…"
"You probably wont dance with me cause you only dance with boys you like...You will like me, you will like me."
"I can't dance." Rinoa said softly, holding back brief laughter.
"Well I can't dance alone." He dragged her out on to the dance floor, just as Waltz for the Moon played in the hall. Near the end of the song, she pulled him out to the balcony, looking out over the water and at the bright full moon, and a moment neither of them would ever forget, no matter how many times he denied it.
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Pink cheeks broke up the paleness of her face at that moment; wings disappearing, sliding on the sweatshirt; she bit her lip.. //It always used to last a longer, the power its receding…// She tried to give the two in the doorway a smile, but couldn't. "So what are you guys doing today?" She blurted out hoping they wouldn't realize what she had done to them.
"We're going to Esthar!" Selphie cheered, jumping up and down, "You wanna come with us? I need to get some stuff for the wedding."
Rinoa understood now, she saw the ring on Selphie's finger and vaguely remembered Irvine asking her how Squall proposed to her. None of that mattered to her, not now, she was going back, back to where Squall was. "Of course I'll come with." She nodded, a white feather floating to the ground, turning into a pink petal. //It wasn't a dream.//
Her eyes blinked open at the dog's third bark, sitting up her black hair fell perfectly past her shoulders. Her eyes scanned the room; the walls and shelves empty; a smell of cleaning solution; she rubbed her head. Rinoa frowned, "It was just a dream?" The long golden haired dog jumped up on the end of the bed, barking.
"Go away, Angelo," she whined at the dog, in reply it barked again. "Silence," she murmured as a blue spell left her right hand and zapped the dog, now it was just making the motions of barking, she stifled a little laugh.
"Rinny, you awake in there?" Quistis asked politely from the other side of the door. Rinoa didn't answer.
"C'mon Rinny, we just wanna make sure you're okay, tee hee."
She threw a pillow over her head and laid back down, "Not Sephlie, not now…" She slid the white pillow off her face and yelled, "You don't have rights to call me Rinny," then whispered to herself, "Only he can call me that." The door slid open and there stood the two girls. The shorter one dressed in a shiny golden halter-top and skintight dark blue flares, her hair flipped out. The instructor wore a three forth length pink shirt, baggy blue jeans, small framed glasses resting on the end of her nose and hair pulled back in a half pony tail.
"RINNY! I'm so excited!" Selphie yelled jumping up and down. Rinoa just stared at the two of them, wondering how much coffee Quistis let Selphie have this morning. Angelo whimpered; jumping off the bed; to go see if these people would be nicer. The sorceress groaned, flicking her wrist at the three of them, casting a stop spell.
She stumbled out of her mess of sheets, scuffling across the stiff carpet to find clean clothes. Rinoa pulled open the first draw she could get to; reaching in she pulled out a pair of blue jeans and an oversized sweatshirt. She slid her bright blue shirt over head and pulled down her plaid pajama pants that she had no recognition of changing into last night. Her raven hair bounced, as she jumped into her blue jeans; reaching for the sweatshirt, she caught a glimpse of her reflection in the mirror.
Her almond eyes set on the figure, that looked almost unfamiliar, eyes set deep in her head, bags underneath them, the chain with her mother's ring and the one she got from Squall, just hung around her neck. The two rings landed in-between her breasts which where covered by a black lace bra. Its like there's no life left, her own voice echoing in her mind.
The stone in the griever ring shined once in the sunlight. //Squall, please tell me last night wasn't a dream. Better yet tell me the past year was all a dream.// Her eyes darted towards a falling piece of paper, bending down she picked it up. Squall. One tear rolled down her cheek and out went the angel wings, -his- angel wings.
The once pure white wings, were know being infested with a pale gray, everyday without him the darkness spread. "I am good. I am good." The sorceress would tell herself over and over again. Rinoa's own thoughts interrupted by the old instructor's voice, "Selphie, breath. You're scaring-" the blond women looked up at her raven-haired friend, "Rinoa why are you standing there half dressed?"
"Tee-hee. Yeah and if you want to go out anywhere today you need to makes those things go POOF!"
Quistis nudged Selphie, the instructor saw the change in color of her wings, even though she had only saw them once before.
--------------------------
"C'mon Squall you gotta come to the costume ball, it'll be fun, and I kinda already told Rinoa you'd take her, so you gotta go," the hyper active girl was pleading now, begging even.
"Whatever."
"Tee-hee, she'll be so happy!" The green-eyed girl ran off to tell her friend of the good news. It had only been three weeks since the final battle, and Selphie was already planning all type of parties to raise money to rebuild Trabia Garden.
That night, a man dressed in shiny knight's armor stood at the entrance to the guest wings of the dormitory. A chain vest weighing him down, on top of the weight of the metal boots, helmet and nose guard. If it hadn't been for the griever pendent he refused to part with no one would be able to tell who he was.
His attention now drawn to a girl, no a woman, in an elegant puffy white dress like she was going to married. Her raven hair down, with little curls accenting her features. Around her neck hung, almost floated, his griever ring and her mother's silver ring, huge white wings protruded from her back.
She looks like an angel. How did I let Selphie talk me into this one? "My lady." He knelt on one knee, extending his right arm out for her to take. Rinoa giggled, pleased with him for tonight at least, she took his hand. Together the sorceress and her knight walked to the costume ball.
The two entered the celebration hall, and all eyes turned to them as if they knew all the wonders of the world. Rinoa saw Irvine and Selphie in the corner having a little fight over his costume, which was a fairy, taken from A Midsummer Night's Dream. Squall had been looking the other direction to where Quistis and Xu danced, leaning on each others shoulders, like they were the only two in the room, not caring what other people thought.
Sorceress Angelwing and her knight danced for most part of the night in their original costumes. Squall, told her that he needed to get out this knight outfit, running out just as a slow song played. Rinoa leaned against a column looking much like Squall at the SeeD ball where she first met him.
The blond instructor dressed as a cat, wearing a tight leopard print cat suit and cat ears from Josie and Pussy Cats. "How did you do it?" Rinoa looked at her, confused. "You got him to be your date."
"Selphie's work. You looked really cute dancing with Xu, I'm so glad you too finally hooked up."
The ex-instructor blushed, her attention turning to the wings on Rinoa's back. Massive white wings, whiter than the whitest of whites she'd ever seen, "Are they real?"
The sorceress knew what she was talking about right off, a couple people had asked her that question earlier. "Yup. All mine."
"Do they hurt?"
"No, just take a lot of power or emotion, to come out."
"Ohhh," the instructor nodded, and slipped away upon hearing the clunking of Squall's boots. He was in his every day clothes, his black leather pants with red belts and his feathered leather jacket.
"You're the cutest girl here tonight."
"…"
"You probably wont dance with me cause you only dance with boys you like...You will like me, you will like me."
"I can't dance." Rinoa said softly, holding back brief laughter.
"Well I can't dance alone." He dragged her out on to the dance floor, just as Waltz for the Moon played in the hall. Near the end of the song, she pulled him out to the balcony, looking out over the water and at the bright full moon, and a moment neither of them would ever forget, no matter how many times he denied it.
----------------------
Pink cheeks broke up the paleness of her face at that moment; wings disappearing, sliding on the sweatshirt; she bit her lip.. //It always used to last a longer, the power its receding…// She tried to give the two in the doorway a smile, but couldn't. "So what are you guys doing today?" She blurted out hoping they wouldn't realize what she had done to them.
"We're going to Esthar!" Selphie cheered, jumping up and down, "You wanna come with us? I need to get some stuff for the wedding."
Rinoa understood now, she saw the ring on Selphie's finger and vaguely remembered Irvine asking her how Squall proposed to her. None of that mattered to her, not now, she was going back, back to where Squall was. "Of course I'll come with." She nodded, a white feather floating to the ground, turning into a pink petal. //It wasn't a dream.//