LEGACY
CHAPTER TWO
The funeral was an affair of little extravagance, and Rinoa knew that was just the way Ma Dincht would have wanted it. There were very few decorations, and no choir, just one lonely organ, droning away a somber tune as Zell, his father, and a plethora of relatives Rinoa couldn't identify marched slowly down the aisle. They all held their heads low, all seemed sad and tired and distant, and Rinoa wondered if any of them were even listening to the organ. Rinoa looked around at everyone that had gathered and couldn't help but allow a wistful smile.
Everyone was there.
Everyone at Balamb composed a family, of sorts; especially those six that had been involved in the Ultimecia crisis one month previous. Battling side-by-side against such a destructive evil as Ultimecia and the Lunar Cry had forged an invincible bond that simply existed--no matter how different their personalities or attitudes or philosophies. Once again, Rinoa couldn't help but smile as she recalled President Laguna standing at the head of the Ragnarok's bridge, gesticulating wildly as he explained their mission. "Love, courage, and friendship people! Let's show em what we got!" Memories of Ultimecia's nightmarish future dystopia flooded back in torrents, and she had to bite her lip to bring herself back to reality. No matter how little they spoke of it or even thought of it, within their hearts all six of them knew that their love for one another was all that had sustained them when faced with Time Compression.
Squall was beside her, holding her hand gently. It wasn't like Mrs. Dincht had meant the world to Rinoa; far from it. She was just a friendly face to Rinoa, but she knew that the older woman had meant the world to Zell, and seeing him in such a state was enough to make Rinoa's eyes well up with tears. Two pews in front of them stood Irvine, Selphie leaning tiredly against him, her own eyes moist with fresh tears. Xu, Quistis, Nida, Cid, and Edea sat as a group farther down the bench that seated Squall and Rinoa, and all were still and silent. Alisha the library girl stood alone at the end of a pew, dabbing at her eyes. Seifer was at the opposite end of her pew, almost hiding in shadow, as if he felt guilty being there for Chicken-wuss.
Everyone was there.
They were all assembled in support of Zell, lending their prayers and petitions and whatever else they could offer.
--
The funeral was followed by a burial, which was in turn followed by a brief reception. All that had been present at the funeral once again showed up for the reception.
Zell was picking at the chicken dinner that had so generously been donated from the Balamb Garden cafeteria. It had been a lovely gesture, certainly-- but what he wanted more than anything right now was just a goddamn hot dog.
Rinoa looked on from across the table with concerned eyes. She didn't know what to say; surprising, considering she had suffered the loss of her mother. She knew what dealing with the death of a parent was like; she had been there. But there was something different about this, and Rinoa could sense it, she just couldn't put her finger on it.
From out of the corner of her eye she could see Seifer, hunched over a nearby table and nursing a small glass of punch. There was something strange about Seifer lately-- he just seemed so quiet and reserved, a far cry from what he had been only months ago. Rinoa wondered if he was just trying to gain forgiveness for his past sins, for all of the people he had hurt and lives he had broken. Throughout the entire funeral affair Seifer had been standing discreetly along the sidelines, silently lending Zell his strength along with so many others.
Ironic, considering he wouldn't have been caught dead at Zell's birthday four months ago.
"He wants forgiveness," Squall said quietly. He had noticed Rinoa's scrupulous examination of Seifer and was just beginning to speak his thoughts. "He wants redemption, he doesn't want to be disliked around here anymore."
Rinoa looked at Squall sadly and bit her lip. She couldn't deny the summer they had shared, barely a year ago; just her and Seifer. It had been so romantic, and he had been so kind and charming. That was the Seifer she was beginning to see more of, the very same Seifer she had had feelings for.
Headmaster Cid and his wife Edea were both seated beside Zell and trying their best to console him. Rinoa looked from Cid to his wife, at the way that she held onto his shoulder with such devotion. Cid was his wife's Knight, for sure, but Rinoa wondered if when push came to shove Edea would be the one protecting Cid in peril. "When I was 13 my mother died," the man was saying to Zell. "At the time I was just fully beginning to comprehend how massive a thing death was… The fact that death was it. The end. My mother would never draw breath again, and I would never see her again." He shook his head, swallowing a lump in his throat. Zell was just staring at his plate, occasionally rearranging his chicken with his fork. "But then I had a long talk with my uncle… and he told me something I would never forget." With that, Cid put a reassuring hand on Zell's shoulder and gripped it firmly; with the kind of strength a father passes to his son. "Do you want to know what he said?"
Zell looked up from his plate and forced the corners of his lips to curl up slightly.
"He said… 'Death is only the beginning.'" Cid paused to let his words sink in, then continued. "I was baffled at first. How could this be so? Especially after I had just come to the revelation of how final death was. But he explained it all to me… He explained that my mother's spirit would live on forever in the Gaia stream, and that I would one day join her. He told me that life has a definite beginning, but no middle or end. Life is infinite. And death… death is only the beginning to an eternity of life." Cid gave him a conspiratorial pat on the back and smiled warmly.
Zell stared straight ahead for a few moments, digesting the information and pondering its significance to his life. He looked down at his plate and then looked back up at Cid and Edea. "Can I have a hotdog?" he asked innocently.
***
Rinoa stalked through the corridors of Balamb Garden.
It was later in the day, and the events from the morning were still plaguing her. She felt such despair for Zell, but at the same time she couldn't deny the strange visions with Ultimecia either. As much as she deeply wanted to pass them off as delusions, she knew she couldn't. She knew that something about them had been genuine, and she had a vague idea of what it was she needed to do to find out what was going on.
But for the moment she was just frustrated. And exhausted. And hungry. Maybe she should head to the cafeteria. Squall was God-knew-where and she wanted somebody to talk to.
"You wanna see a card trick?" The sultry voice came from behind her and caused her to freeze in her tracks.
Irvine? She whirled around and smiled. Irvine was approaching her, fingering a stack of cards and wearing his telltale smirk. "A card trick?" Rinoa wrinkled her nose at him. "How old are we?"
Irvine feigned that he had been stabbed, his hands rising to clutch at his heart and his eyes bulging. "You wound me!" Irvine laughed.
Rinoa giggled, but kept up the act. "Oh I just kill you sometimes, don't I?"
"You bet." He ran up so he was in step with her and wrapped an arm comfortably around her shoulder. "What's buggin' ya, sweets?"
Rinoa bristled, wriggling out from under his arm and smiling politely. "Uhm, what's bugging me?"
Irvine put a hand to her shoulder to halt her "I asked you a question… now, logic dictates that you would respond as accurately as possible." His eyes twinkled as he spoke.
Rinoa looked at him in wonder for a few moments before allowing a small smile to show and starting to walk again. When he put his arm around her this time she didn't shy away. "Well… lots of things, I guess."
"Like…?"
There was a small pause. Rinoa wrapped herself in a hug as she ambled along. "Well……. Things with Squall are going a little weird."
"…Whatever," Irvine said, doing a perfect imitation of the gunblade specialist's catchphrase.
Rinoa's eyes widened and a grin blossomed across her face. "Oh you! Stop it!" she laughed, playfully punching his shoulder. "No it's not like anything's going… wrong with us, it's just that lately he hasn't had much time for me."
Irvine nodded in understanding.
"And… well, I mean I guess that's natural, because being a SeeD commander's hard work and all, and I guess I wouldn't have it any other way. It's just…I guess, I wish we could just settle down, you know?"
Irvine raised an eyebrow. "That's a lot of 'I guess'es there, Rinni. Speak your mind for once."
Rinoa giggled and gave him a gentle kick in the shin. "I gue--… I don't know what else to say right now," she affirmed, clasping her hands behind her back.
Irvine gave her a doubting look. "Nothing else? Otherwise, you're fine."
"Well, I feel bad for Zell…"
Irvine smiled slightly. "Zell's a big boy. He can take care of himself. Anything else?"
Rinoa looked over at him and bit her lip. Yes. "No," she lied through her teeth. "Nothing else. Everything's… fine."
Irvine clutched at his heart again. "Rinni you're killing me!" he said through a jovial grin.
Rinoa allowed a giggle to escape through her lips. "And you know how much I love doing it too."
Before she could say anything more he turned and wrapped her in a big hug-- a friendly, brother-sister kind of thing-- nothing more, nothing less, and Rinoa knew it. "Well give me a call when you're ready to open up," he said jocularly, pulling back. "Until then… get some rest for Hyne's sake. No offense but you look like hell."
They went their separate ways, and Rinoa headed to her room in a daze. Irvine was a good friend, she concluded; always willing to listen and help her. There was more to him than most girls gave him credit for.
When she was finally standing at the foot of her bed, it seemed so inviting. She hadn't slept soundly at all the previous night, so Irvine was right; she did look like hell.
She was asleep before she hit the mattress.
***
Rinoa stalked through the corridors of Balamb Garden.
"You can feel it…running away… along with your sanity."
*flash*
"You…know what you must do…"
Suddenly Irvine was there by her side. He was clutching at his heart, his eyes wide. "You're killing me, Rinni!" he gasped. He pulled his hands away from his heart and allowed Rinoa to see the blossoming flower of blood as it seeped through the fabric of his vest and stained the floor.
She looked down at her hand, at the dagger that was poised in her grasp, at the tip that was stained scarlet…….
"Rinoa! Rinoa!"
***
"Rinoa… Rinoa…" Squall was whispering to her, trying to bring her back to consciousness.
She sat bolt upright, a scream rising to her lips. She suppressed it before it could emerge, and Squall put a finger to her lips, trying to whisper soothing things but being drowned out by Rinoa's ragged breathing. "Honey what's wrong?"
Rinoa put a hand to her forehead and shut her eyes. "It was… another nightmare. That's all, I'm ok…"
Squall's eyebrows grew together in concern. "Another nightmare?"
"I said I'm ok!" Rinoa said through clenched teeth, her voice almost a growl. It was obvious something was wrong; Squall had never seen her in such a state. She sighed deeply, wiping perspiration from her brow. "What time is it?" she asked, beginning to look around. Her eyes weren't focused enough to read the figures on the clock yet.
"It's… uh… about 4 o'clock. I heard the news and instantly just wanted to be with you… I just can't believe it." Squall swallowed a lump in his throat and stared off into space, his eyes unfocused and sad.
Suddenly Rinoa felt sick. "News?"
Squall looked at her in wonder. "Oh, you wouldn't have known, would you? You've been sleeping…"
She sat up, feeling terror grip her. "What?! What happened?"
Squall's despairing eyes met hers. "Headmaster Cid has been murdered."