A/N: Dun dun dun! The end! Eeeeeek!
Part Four – Confession
~***~
He was stunned after Selphie broke the affectionate kiss, yet he still didn't hesitate in reaching for her and pulling her to him for another. All of his sorrow dissolved at her touch; it was then and there he knew what he wanted indeed had to do.
~***~
"Rinoa Heartilly." She didn't move an inch at the sound of the unfamiliar voice, instead keeping her stance frozen as she stared unblinkingly at the still water. It had stopped moving reasons unknown. When a strong hand clamped on her shoulder, she flinched, then berated herself for showing any outward sign of her inner turmoil. She moved her eyes to the side, taking in the sight of a man who seemed to be containing his energy until it could be put to better use. He had blonde hair messily styled in a semi-mohawk and a black mark crawling along the left side of his face. His appearance didn't scare her; what made her blood run cold was what he was wearing. SeeD uniform.
"I've come a long way for you," He said after a momentary lapse. He had a friendly voice and she felt he would have been a person she would have liked if it weren't for the position he held, and the coiled weapon that was his body. He removed his hand after she refused to answer him and put his fists together. Metal garnished each knuckle; his weapon was surely his fist. "We've been informed that Squall has tried to abandon us."
Inwardly, she cheered. Just before the man had disrupted her tranquility, she had been debating whether or not to tell her best friend that the love of her life wanted to kill her. Two sides...now they were one. But this man had obviously come for a reason. Deep down, she knew her last breath wasn't far away.
"What are you going to do about it?" She finally asked, shivering slightly. Her voice was devoid of emotion, and softer than she would have thought would be required to speak at all. The man ordered her to look at him and she did so without pausing a moment. His eyes were blue, like Squall's, but where Squall was ice, he was fire. Squall seemed to do everything with a detached certainty, whereas this man seemed to act out of anger or passion.
" Squall Leonhart has disobeyed orders. He knows the consequences. Shame, really." He smiled sardonically; in amusement or irony she could not tell. "Such a pretty girl to waste."
~***~
Selphie giggled a bit and he suddenly realized that he loved her laugh. It was so unexpected that it reminded him of wind chimes, not that it tinkled. No, hers was a breathy, singing sort of laugh, and it made him think of music. Her grip was firm on his hands and she gazed into his eyes thoughtfully. Now seemed like the perfect opportunity to tell her everything.
"Selphie, I want to tell you something," Squall said, taking in a deep breath. "I never meant to…"
"Oh no!" Removing her hand from Squall's grasp, Selphie's eyes widened at the watch on her wrist that was beeping shrilly.
"What is it?"
"SeeDs. About a few miles away...we must have triggered an alarm system!" She ran to the computer and unhooked a wire dangling from the modem. The wire was plugged into the computer for the purpose of transmitting the information into a small laptop she had brought along.
They left the laboratory wordlessly, but not before Selphie left a spherical bomb in the center of the building. Squall didn't have to ask why she did so; any information she had that they didn't was a blessing, a leg up on the opponent.
~***~
After landing in Galbadia, Selphie and Squall hurried back to the hideout where they were met by quite the scene. Selphie shrieked and grabbed onto Squall as it dawned on her love what the reason behind the pandemonium sunk in. The message he had sent to Cid. The older man had actually taken action. Squall almost laughed at the absurdity of it. He'd always considered himself invincible, but he then realized that Cid was not going to give up one of his most prized SeeD so easily. Freedom was not a common word in the vocabulary of a proper SeeD.
"She's alive..." Selphie cried out, falling to the ground in her distress.
In front of them was another one of Garden's SeeD, Zell Dincht, third in command behind Cid and Squall, and a fair match for the latter. The man was ruthless, always thinking with his hatred rather then his head. No one knew why he was so angry; enmity seemed to radiate from him whenever he was 'working', though slaughter seemed a more effective word. The only thing that would calm him was a beautiful woman or food, preferably hotdogs. Zell had a firm grip on Rinoa Heartilly, who Squall had nearly forgotten about in his shock. His arm was wrapped around her neck and Squall knew with the right movement, he could snap her neck. Behind them were Irvine, Quistis and Seifer, who were backed into a corner, defeat drawn on their faces. They hadn't noticed Selphie and Squall's arrival but unfortunately for them, Zell did. His electric blue eyes lit up and he gave a sinister smile.
"Here he is now...We can start the party." He said in a low voice, moving his eyes to Rinoa so that her reaction would bring him amusement. He was disappointed when she seemed apathetic to the entire situation. Squall couldn't even look at her; he knew what she thought of him now. The other three Forest Owls turned around to meet with the traitor in their midst.
"I knew there was something wrong with you! Selphie said you were alright, but I knew it!" Quistis was the first to shout, her eyes filled with tears. "And to believe that I took your word over my own husband's!"
"What's going on?" Selphie asked, as Squall remained silent. "Quistis, what are you talking about?"
"Don't you know?" Irvine hissed. "He is SeeD. Sent here to kill you."
Zell gave a low chuckle, as if the scene unfolding was a comedy Friday on a twisted TV channel. Squall could feel all eyes on him, accusing and hateful. His eyes began to water as Selphie tugged lightly on his leather sleeve. What would he tell her? Yes, I betrayed you, I'm sorry, let's have pancakes after I waste my friend and colleague of seventeen years. Right, Squall.
"It's not true..." She said, over and over. "It can't be...I…I loved you…" She trailed off and looked at him in disbelief before backing away, shaking her head in disgust and betrayal.
He knew the truth would have come out sooner or later, but it was all happening so fast.
"Rinoa kindly told me the whereabouts of your hideout," Zell explained to fill in the silence. His voice was sarcastically amused, as if this was a fine game to play on a boring Saturday afternoon. "Now hand me the girl, and your beautiful companion will go free. I must say I think it's fair; this one's quite a looker. Shame about the cute brunette but," he shrugged, "c'est la vie, eh Squall?"
"Don't listen to him!" Rinoa shouted. Zell tried to clamp his hands over her mouth but she fought against him. "He made me do it! He's going to kill you both!"
Squall ran to Rinoa too late. In an instant Zell executed his trademark move, twisting her neck and snapping it. He let her fall to the ground in a heap and smiled.
"Naïve little thing isn't she?"
Selphie screamed, running towards Rinoa's body. Seifer let out a shout at the sight of their friend, murdered violently in front of them. The insane man who had taken her life showed no remorse for what he had done. Instead he was leering at Squall, lightning jumping in his eyes.
Not a word was said for a few minutes until Zell spoke again. Squall closed his eyes in pain and glared at him, willing him to shut up.
"See now Squall, you should have
just killed the whole bloody faction in the first place. A bullet in the temple
each and you could have spared a lot of hurt feelings." He shook his finger at
Squall as if scolding an old friend in jest. It took a moment for Squall to
register that they were in fact old friends, such an effect Selphie had on him.
She made him feel as though he belonged. "But no, you had to seduce the girl,"
he gestured to the fallen Rinoa, "then her successor," he turned his hand to
Selphie. "If you ask me old boy, I'd say you just needed a good lay."
"Now I remember you," Seifer whispered, a scowl distorting his features. "You were the man Rinoa was with a summer ago. The 'dark handsome stranger.'" He snorted indignantly, his face betraying his words.
Selphie gasped, remembering Rinoa running out in the summer days, pleasant secrecy on her face and dreams in her eyes. Selphie would always ask who the mystery man was, but Rinoa would simply shake her head and say, "Someday, Selph. You'll meet him and realize what a wonderful person he is. I love him so much..." Then she would about him for hours, relating every detail but his name. Words began to jump out at her; unruly brown hair, rarely smiles, always so serious, loves me. Squall had believed that his past relationship with the former leader would have gone unnoticed, but obviously, it had backfired on him.
"Selphie, I love you," Squall said, looking into her eyes imploringly. "I don't care what I am, what I was, that won't change the way I feel towards you."
"You used me..." Her voice trembled and she gazed at Rinoa in stony silence. Her eyes were focused on her deceased friend, even when she continued to speak. "You came into my life to kill me. You've killed others. And not only that but you pretended to be in love with her. She cared about you, you bastard! She died still in love with you! You…you killed her!"
Her words seared through him and for a moment he thought that death would have been a better solution then this. He loved her, there was no denying that...but how could he have been so blind? There were strings protruding from every direction; SeeD, Deling, the Forest Owls, his mother's solved murder and finally...Rinoa.
That summer...he had met her that summer. She was friendly and open, similar to Selphie. The difference was that her life burned for one purpose only: the downfall of Deling. He had not known she was a Forest Owl until later on in their relationship. Cid had ordered him to take advantage of the situation but for some reason he couldn't. Emotion… it frequently stalled him from listening to the ones in charge. Rinoa trusted him; she even brought him happiness at times. So instead he told her everything as if having an obligation to her. But he had lied to her to preserve the beautiful innocence he so enjoyed about her. He wanted to keep alive her dragons and princes, and fairy tale dreams. He said that he loved her. Never had he uttered those words to anyone and it felt strange, wrong. But it worked; she believed him and would follow faithfully as he wanted her to. She wouldn't have to die and he wouldn't feel guilty. He wouldn't have to be sorry.
Her tragic end was his fault entirely. She had tried to protect Selphie, protect him, but instead they would be joining her.
"Let the other four go," Squall ordered. " It's me you want, so get it over with." Zell rolled his eyes.
"Tch, not exactly." Zell leaned against the chipped wall with a smug smile on his face. "Cid wanted the girl out of the picture too. I mean, we have to finish the job you failed to complete."
"You can't have her."
"The other three can go, just leave the girl."
Squall could hear Quistis shouting in protest as Seifer dragged her out against her will. Irvine sulked behind them but Selphie remained beside the body of her friend. Squall had never seen her so downcast before and it hurt him more than anything ever had. Everything was happening because of him. If he hadn't entered her life, she may have been still happy. Her hot tears wouldn't have scalded the earth with remnants of her aching sadness.
"First you, Leonhart. Then Cid will be here to take care of the girl." He could hear Zell saying, his voice distant and faded.
It happened so fast. A blur in time, a nanosecond in which a little bit of sunshine fell from the sky forever.
He heard Selphie shouting for him to watch out, throwing herself in front of him. He felt a sudden pressure against his chest as she was thrown against his chest with a power that didn't come from her legs. He tasted the copper tang of her blood on his lips. He saw her crumple to the ground and observed his clothes and body covered in red liquid. There were no rose petals.
"I love you too," She whispered, so quietly he could barely hear, as he knelt beside her. There was a bullet in her back, and a gun in Zell's hand.
"Selphie..." Her name was so beautiful. She was beautiful. It was killing him that he would never see her smile again. Squall fell to the floor, his knees becoming drenched in her blood. There was so much blood; never when he had killed someone had there had been so much blood. He lifted her torso in his trembling hands and began to sob, his tears mixing with the red staining her cheeks, making pink droplets, which dripped off her chin. He wanted to see her sparkling green eyes again, or hear her musical voice. Squall cradled her in his arms, holding her body close to him.
"You knew the rules, Leonhart." A new voice, but he recognized whom it belonged to. Director Kramer had come as promised to finish the job. Squall would be killed by the same man who had killed his father. 'How poetic,' he thought sarcastically. But he didn't care; the only thing he was aware of was Selphie. Her hair fell around her shoulders, highlighted with little blonde streaks. She looked like an angel.
She was all he had left and now that she was gone, he had nothing to live for. That was why when he felt he cold revolver pressed against his head; he waited for the sound of the trigger being pulled.
"Selphie," he sighed, and laid his head to rest on her chest. "I love you."
"Touching," sneered Cid, and the world exploded.
Zell Dincht watched, transfixed, as their blood pooled together and ran down the drain. Then he plastered his smug smile back on his face and followed his foster father to the airship.
(a/n: Oh, don't cry! And please don't kill us! *cowers* We just felt that there should be a Squallphie with a tragic ending and this story really wouldn't have had a realistic resolution anyway. The main point is that war is bad! And killing is bad! That's why you should never become an assassin or the head of a resistance faction or you'll die!)