~The Travesty of Love~

Dreams fade, but memories remain, untouched by life's cruel path. Rinoa Heartilly knew this- she had once lived a dream that now sustained only in her memories. At seventeen, scared and uncertain, she had embraced love when it came to her. Opening her heart, her mind, and her soul, she has known how it felt to truly love someone.

But Squall Leonhart had remained closed to her, trapped within the walls he had built around himself to prevent anyone from getting in… getting too close. Rinoa knew that they had had something at one time- a connection so profoundly deep, and so true, that she had believed it could never be broken.

But it had indeed broken, dispersed on the wind as quickly as it had come. When Squall inexplicably left Balamb Garden after the defeat of Ultimecia and their passionate kiss on the balcony, Rinoa was bewildered and more than a little hurt. They had grown so close- or so she believed.

The morning she heard the new that Squall had left Garden, it had taken all of her willpower to remain stoic in front of Zell Dincht, who had delivered the devastating news. She vaguely recalled Zell saying "Don't worry, Rin, we'll find him" before she bid him farewell, bursting into tears once she was alone.

She had cried for herself, she had cried for Squall… but most of all, she cried for the connection between them that was now lost. How could he have deserted her? She was seventeen, and already abandoned by the one she loved.

The anguish and pain had never left Rinoa, even now, two years later. As soon as Headmaster Cid discovered Squall's departure from Garden, he had dispatched droves of SeeD's to search for the missing Commander. But you cannot find one who does not want to be found- and true to Squall's character, Garden was unable to locate him.

Two years passed, and Rinoa was now nineteen. The search for Squall had continued unabated for eleven months, but Rinoa knew it would inevitably come to an end. Offered a permanent home at Balamb Garden, Rinoa had reluctantly accepted, not sure if she wanted to be surrounded by memories of Squall every day. But her friends were there… and by living at Garden, she would be able to dodge Caraway's relentless questioning.

Now, at nineteen, Rinoa Heartilly was a full-fledged member of SeeD. Surrounded by official SeeD business daily, she had slowly been able to push thoughts of Squall to the back of her mind. Her love for the Commander would never die, but Rinoa refused to remain a prisoner of her remorseful memories. Little did she know that what awaited her would require her to draw upon her memories… if she ever had hope of finding love again.