A/N: Wassup people? Thanks for the reviews!
To Everyone: I just wanted to make it clear that it wasn't my intention to be deceptive. When I finished chapter 7, I had it in my mind that Irvine was going to be the traitor, but when I start writing ch. 8, I realized it fell a bit flat, and the writing needed a twist. So that's why I said Squall wasn't going to the traitor (originally he wasn't) and then he was.
Chapter 9
A moment ago, Rinoa was ready to fall asleep where she stood, but now her eyes opened wide, and her head shot up from its comfortable spot on Squall's chest.
"What was that?!" Rinoa demanded.
Squall grabbed his tattered shirt and pulled it on over his head, unsure whether or not he was glad, or annoyed at this sudden interruption. "I have a pretty good idea..." his voice trailed off. "Either way, we're going to find out. Come on," he said as he headed out the door.
She followed behind him silently, as they hurried down the stairs. Upon reaching the lobby, they found a group of people had gathered around one woman, who was covered in blood. They were all shouting in their strange language, and though Rinoa couldn't understand a word of it, it was clear to her that they were panicking. The girl in the middle of the crowd had short, brown hair streaked with bright red, two hoops in each eyebrow and one through her nose. She wore a white halter top, now soaked with red, that showed off the elaborate tattoo of a phoenix on her back. She also wore a light blue skirt with silver chains and trinkets hanging from her waist, and a pair of scruffy brown boots.
Squall stood on the outskirts of the crowd listening while the girl explained her story for what was perhaps the hundreth time. Once she was finished, Squall turned to Rinoa and explained, ""She just came from one of their temples. She said a tall man with blonde hair came in with a gun, and started killing people. She barely escaped with her life, and was lucky not to be injured, herself. I knew Seifer would come here... I knew it."
"How? How did you know?" Rinoa asked.
"He's going in order," Squall mumbled, somehwat to himself. "From where it started, and to each place that followed afterward..."
"Where what started? Squall, you're not making much sense!" Rinoa exclaimed.
"It's nothing," he replied. "But I think I know where he'll be going next. We need to leave for the town of Timber next. It's too late for this place, now."
"Squall... you know something I don't. Tell me, please. If we're going to work on this together, we can't keep secrets," she argued.
"It's no secret," he growled in reply. "It's just not for you to know."
"We will discuss this later, Mr. Leonhart!" Rinoa shot back, angrily. "The crowd's breaking up, though, so maybe we should go talk to the witness. Or you should, anyway."
Squall nodded and approached the shaken girl. She took note of them immediately, and said, "You are not from here, no?" in a weird accent.
"That's right," Squall said. "We're from Deling City, but we're familiar with Dollet. Can you tell us what happened to you? It would be of great help to us, if you could. This has happened before, and we're attempting to stop it."
She was silent for a moment, interpreting his words, then said, "If I can, I will help you. Xu, I am called. Today, I visited the temple that is of my group. I did as normal... he came, then. He killed many people, a man with bright eyes and hair. I think, evil he was. Great evil, I sensed from him. Many friends now are dead. Only I am left, to carry on our..." she paused for a moment, searching for the right word, "religion."
"Did he say why?" Rinoa asked gently.
"Say..." her voice trailed off. "He said, 'redemption' I think. Know what it means, I do not. Many things there are, that he said. That word, he spoke many times."
Squall nodded. "Yes, thank you. We should go now."
He turned to leave, but Rinoa grabbed him by the arm and held him in place. "We're very sorry for your loss," Rinoa said gently.
"Thank you," Xu replied quietly.
Rinoa tugged on his arm and pulled him toward the stair case to go back to their room. Squall took note of the irritated look upon her face, and knew he was in for another lecture, or at least another arguement. Slowly, a corner of his mouth lifted into a smirk as he thought of how many times they'd argued, and how she always seemed so determined to change his ways by yelling at him. He would almost go so far as to say she was 'cute' when she's angry... but not quite.
"What is it now, Rinoa?" he asked, trying to mask his amuesment as he took a seat on the bed.
"You're a real jerk, you know that?" she began, shutting the door to their room behind her. "You're just wonderful with the people, aren't you?"
"I never claimed to be," he replied honestly.
She sighed. "That's beside the point. What is it that you're keeping from me, Squall? There's something you know about Seifer that you're not telling me, I know it. If we're going to be a team, we have to trust each other. I already proved to you that I trusted you. Now why don't you trust me?!" she demanded, sitting beside him and gazing into his eyes with a look of pure desperation in her eyes. "I need you to trust me."
He let out a frustrated growl, the humor of his mood ivaporating in that instant. "It's not a matter of trust! I wish you'd understand that. A lot of things have happened to me, a lot of it involving Seifer. But just because I know Seifer well enough to know what he's thinking doesn't mean anything. I came to know him through my own misfortune, and that's all there is to tell. The rest is irrelevent. You just want to know because you're nosy," he accused, his temper getting the better of him. "You need to learn to mind your own damn business and stay out of mine!"
She stood up suddenly, crossing the room, and stood with her back to him, arms crossed over her chest. "Maybe it was a mistake trusting you," she said quietly. "Maybe you should take me back to the others now."
He hung his head, exhaling in a disgusted sigh. At that moment, he was very disgusted with himself. He really hadn't meant to explode at her, but the pressure of the situation, paired with the sudden revelation that he was, for the first time in a long time, utterly on his own with no help from his superiors, had created a deadly stress within him, and he'd taken it out on her.
"Rinoa..." he began slowly, "don't... don't go. You're the only one that believes me. If you leave, then... then..."
"Then you're on your own?" she finished, turning to watch him. "That's right, I'm all you have left now. You need me, Squall. Admit it."
"I... I..." he struggled with a surge of emotions as they battled with his pride. He couldn't admit to this, not after all the times he'd sworn to himself that he didn't need anyone. But really, where would he be right now without her? He would fail without her.
"Say it," she pressed. "You know it's the truth."
He opened his mouth again, trying to form the words he knew were right, but his battered ego was determined to hold on to it's last shred of dignity. "Damnit, Rinoa, don't make me do this," was all he could manage, sounding almost as if he were pleading.
She realized then, for the first time, how hard it all must be on him. Everything he'd believed and lived by had suddenly failed, and now all he had left was a reality that he had scorned for most of his existence. She quickly crossed the room and kneeled down in front of him, so that they were eye to eye. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I didn't realize how hard this must be on you." She searched his face for any sign of acceptance, and ran a few fingers through his silky brown hair, gently pushing it behind his ear. Yet again, she found her eyes settling on his lips, which tempted her in ways she couldn't understand. She leaned in, hoping to close the distance between them, but he backed away slightly.
"No, Rinoa," he said, shaking his head. "We can't. I told you before..."
She rolled her eyes slightly, and moved closer to him. "I don't care what you said before. All these mortal and non-mortal rules... do you do everything by the rules?"
"Yeah," he answed as if it were obvious.
She laughed, standing up then boldly sliding into his lap. "Well, I don't. And anyway, aren't you already breaking the rules? You took off with me, and turned your back on your comrades."
"That was their fault," he replied, trying to ignore the wave of physical sensations that were stirring in his body from her close proximity.
"And what about when you were human?" she asked. "You always played by the rules then?"
"Yes," he answered in a shaky voice, her warm breath against his ear, and her body heat pressed so closely against him beginning to have dangerous effects on his resolve.
"Then I think it's about time you started living," she said, and, without waiting for a reply, captured his lips with hers and kissed him with all the passion that had been growing inside of her since their last kiss.
Despite that he was so insistent on them avoiding such phsyical activity, he almost immediately began to return her advances, his arms wrapping tightly around her and crushing her to his body. He accepted her gentle, but passionate kisses, then in turn kissed her harder, a new part of himself stepping forward and demanding that his growing need for her be satisfied. Before she could stop herself, she yanked his shirt off over his head, breaking their intense kiss for a small moment, then getting back at it with just as much fervor as before. She ran her hands over every inch of his upper body, the feel of his tense muscles and bare skin exciting her even more. She scrapped her nails down his chest, and heard him let loose a low groan that sent shivers down her body. She forcefully shoved him down, slamming his back on the bed as she became more impatient. There was something about him that she couldn't quite place, something that drove her crazy in a way that no other man had been able to do before. Just as she was thinking that she had him right where she wanted him (literally) a loud ringing shattered the moment. Rinoa drew away dissapointedly as Squall reached for the phone.
"Just let it ring," Rinoa grumbled as she considered snatching the phone out of the wall and throwing it out the window.
"I wish I could," he mumbled, "but it might be important."
He answered the phone, muttering a hello, and was greeted by a, "Squall Leonhart, give us Rinoa, now!"
Squall layed back on the bed, Rinoa still sitting on top of him, and handed her the phone, "It's for you."
"Hello?" Rinoa asked, slightly confused as she wondered who would be calling her.
"Rinoa!" she heard Quistis' voice exclaim from the other end. "You're alright! Squall hasn't hurt you or anything has he? Is he taking you to Seifer?"
"Oh please," Rinoa replied. "I'm perfectly fine. Squall and I are trying to track down Seifer, with or without your help. I don't know why you were so quick to believe that Squall is a traitor, but-"
"We recived an official message," Quistis interrupted. "As in, from the people upstairs. They know he's a traitor as well, and they've warned us. You're in danger, Rinoa. We managed to track you down in Dollet, and we're on our way there now. If you can just stall until tomorrow, then we'll be able to save you."
Rinoa looked down at Squall, who was watching her intently, taking in all her features while he thought she wouldn't notice. She smiled down at him, carresing his face, with her finger tips, and said to Quistis, "I don't care who said what. I trust Squall. And you should, too."
"We're still coming after you, Rinoa," she said. "We can't let you stay with Squall. We won't let you stay with him, he is a danger to you."
"Whatever you say, Quistis. It's been nice talking to you," she replied, then hung up the phone.
"They're coming after me," she told Squall. "We have to be out of here by tomorrow. I'm going to the bathroom for a quick shower, then we need to look into catching a train to the Timber place you talked about," she explained, then paused for a moment, a mischevious smile spreading over her face. She leaned down over him again, and brushed her lips against his before thrusting her tongue into his mouth and kissing him long, and hard. When she was finished she whispered against his ear, "Your welcome to join me," then stood up and headed into the bathroom, leaving a breathless, wide- eyed Squall behind.
As she closed the door to the bathroom, he simply lay there, catching his breath, and managed to murmer to himself, "... Wow..."
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"There's a train leaving for Timber in half an hour," Squall told Rinoa, staring up at the foriegn letters that flashed across the black overhead screen of the train station. "It's the last one 'til morning, so we have to be sure and catch it."
"What do we do until then?" Rinoa asked.
He shrugged, "Not much we can do. Dollet isn't exactly a tourist city, you know. That's one reason why I like it."
"How long did you live here?" Rinoa asked, sitting down on a vacant bench.
"About a year and a half," he replied. "Until an old friend tracked me down, and I felt it was time to move on. I eventually returned to Deling City, though. That was the last place I ever lived."
"What happened to you?" she asked. "How did you die?"
"You already know," he answered, absent-mindedly, the mental slapped himself as he remembered that it was supposed to be a secret.
"I do? You never told me. You insisted that it was none of my business. Unless..." her voice trailed off in thought. "You were the one I saw, weren't you?" she realized. "You were the one that was murdered..."
"Yeah," he admitted. "I guess it was only a matter of time before you figured it out."
"But who? And why? I remember how it felt... it was so painful. How could hate you so much that they would leave you in agony like that? It was Seifer, wasn't it? He killed you..."
"No, actually he didn't, believe it or not," Squall said. "He was murdered too, by the same person. But in a lot of ways, it was my fault." His voice dropped as he admitted, for the first time, one of his other deepest secrets. "It was because of me that both of us died."
"How?" Rinoa asked, confusion evident on her face. "How could you have been responsible for that?"
Before Squall could answer her, an announcment came over the loud speaker, and Squall stood up. "The train came it in early, so we can go ahead and board. Let's go."
Rinoa stood for a moment, watching him walk toward the train gates. She could remember him saying, what seemed like an eternity ago, that both he and Seifer died by the same hand. Did he mean the real murderer, or was he referring to himself? She dismissed these thoughts with a shake of her head and followed after him, deciding not to think about it for now. Now was not the time.
They took a seat on the train, a heavy silence falling between them, until at last Rinoa asked, "How long until we get to Timber?"
"A few hours," was his response.
Irritated by the ever persistent silence that threatened to swallow them once again, Rinoa decided she would try and make conversation once more. "So, have you been to Timber? Is it nice?"
"Rinoa, just quit. We both know what you're trying to do, and I'm not in the mood for it," he snapped.
"Squall, whatever happened back then... it's in the past now. It's time to let it go. No one's going to hold it against you. At least, I won't. Whatever it is you did... it's over now."
"No, it's not," he corrected. "You see, I know why I, of all people available, was chosen for this assignment. It's my responsiblity, even after all these years... I'm the reason why Seifer's been doing this. The reason why he will continue to do this, until we stop him. I'm responsible for all those people's deaths..."
"No!" Rinoa protested. "No, you're not, and I won't have you thinking that way."
"It's too late..."
"No, it isn't. Squall, I don't understand what's going on here, but there's something you should know, and never forget," she said, twisting around in her seat to face him. She gently laid a hand on his shoulder, and said, "No matter what happens, I'll be here. I'll stand by you, because I trust you. Even if the rest of the world fails you, I'll still be here with you. I won't let you down."
"Why?" was all he could manage to say.
"Because..." she took a deep breath. "Because I care about you, Squall."
"Well, you shouldn't. I'm no good to anyone."
"Yes, you are. I need you... to stay with me, to protect me. I care about you, and I know you care about me, too... don't you?"
"I guess," he replied.
"That's not good enough," she laughed, attempting to lighten the mood a bit.
"Alright, I care about you," he said grudgingly, in a such a way as to betray the very meaning of his own words.
"I know you do," she responded happily, throwing her arms around his shoulders and bringing him as close to her as she could manage while sitting down.
"But what about when this is all over?" he asked.
"We'll figure out what to do once we get there," she answered quietly. "But in the mean time, I just want to stay like this. No more secrets, no more hiding. Just trust. Do you trust me?"
He nodded. "Yes. I trust you more anything else in this world."
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To Everyone: I just wanted to make it clear that it wasn't my intention to be deceptive. When I finished chapter 7, I had it in my mind that Irvine was going to be the traitor, but when I start writing ch. 8, I realized it fell a bit flat, and the writing needed a twist. So that's why I said Squall wasn't going to the traitor (originally he wasn't) and then he was.
Chapter 9
A moment ago, Rinoa was ready to fall asleep where she stood, but now her eyes opened wide, and her head shot up from its comfortable spot on Squall's chest.
"What was that?!" Rinoa demanded.
Squall grabbed his tattered shirt and pulled it on over his head, unsure whether or not he was glad, or annoyed at this sudden interruption. "I have a pretty good idea..." his voice trailed off. "Either way, we're going to find out. Come on," he said as he headed out the door.
She followed behind him silently, as they hurried down the stairs. Upon reaching the lobby, they found a group of people had gathered around one woman, who was covered in blood. They were all shouting in their strange language, and though Rinoa couldn't understand a word of it, it was clear to her that they were panicking. The girl in the middle of the crowd had short, brown hair streaked with bright red, two hoops in each eyebrow and one through her nose. She wore a white halter top, now soaked with red, that showed off the elaborate tattoo of a phoenix on her back. She also wore a light blue skirt with silver chains and trinkets hanging from her waist, and a pair of scruffy brown boots.
Squall stood on the outskirts of the crowd listening while the girl explained her story for what was perhaps the hundreth time. Once she was finished, Squall turned to Rinoa and explained, ""She just came from one of their temples. She said a tall man with blonde hair came in with a gun, and started killing people. She barely escaped with her life, and was lucky not to be injured, herself. I knew Seifer would come here... I knew it."
"How? How did you know?" Rinoa asked.
"He's going in order," Squall mumbled, somehwat to himself. "From where it started, and to each place that followed afterward..."
"Where what started? Squall, you're not making much sense!" Rinoa exclaimed.
"It's nothing," he replied. "But I think I know where he'll be going next. We need to leave for the town of Timber next. It's too late for this place, now."
"Squall... you know something I don't. Tell me, please. If we're going to work on this together, we can't keep secrets," she argued.
"It's no secret," he growled in reply. "It's just not for you to know."
"We will discuss this later, Mr. Leonhart!" Rinoa shot back, angrily. "The crowd's breaking up, though, so maybe we should go talk to the witness. Or you should, anyway."
Squall nodded and approached the shaken girl. She took note of them immediately, and said, "You are not from here, no?" in a weird accent.
"That's right," Squall said. "We're from Deling City, but we're familiar with Dollet. Can you tell us what happened to you? It would be of great help to us, if you could. This has happened before, and we're attempting to stop it."
She was silent for a moment, interpreting his words, then said, "If I can, I will help you. Xu, I am called. Today, I visited the temple that is of my group. I did as normal... he came, then. He killed many people, a man with bright eyes and hair. I think, evil he was. Great evil, I sensed from him. Many friends now are dead. Only I am left, to carry on our..." she paused for a moment, searching for the right word, "religion."
"Did he say why?" Rinoa asked gently.
"Say..." her voice trailed off. "He said, 'redemption' I think. Know what it means, I do not. Many things there are, that he said. That word, he spoke many times."
Squall nodded. "Yes, thank you. We should go now."
He turned to leave, but Rinoa grabbed him by the arm and held him in place. "We're very sorry for your loss," Rinoa said gently.
"Thank you," Xu replied quietly.
Rinoa tugged on his arm and pulled him toward the stair case to go back to their room. Squall took note of the irritated look upon her face, and knew he was in for another lecture, or at least another arguement. Slowly, a corner of his mouth lifted into a smirk as he thought of how many times they'd argued, and how she always seemed so determined to change his ways by yelling at him. He would almost go so far as to say she was 'cute' when she's angry... but not quite.
"What is it now, Rinoa?" he asked, trying to mask his amuesment as he took a seat on the bed.
"You're a real jerk, you know that?" she began, shutting the door to their room behind her. "You're just wonderful with the people, aren't you?"
"I never claimed to be," he replied honestly.
She sighed. "That's beside the point. What is it that you're keeping from me, Squall? There's something you know about Seifer that you're not telling me, I know it. If we're going to be a team, we have to trust each other. I already proved to you that I trusted you. Now why don't you trust me?!" she demanded, sitting beside him and gazing into his eyes with a look of pure desperation in her eyes. "I need you to trust me."
He let out a frustrated growl, the humor of his mood ivaporating in that instant. "It's not a matter of trust! I wish you'd understand that. A lot of things have happened to me, a lot of it involving Seifer. But just because I know Seifer well enough to know what he's thinking doesn't mean anything. I came to know him through my own misfortune, and that's all there is to tell. The rest is irrelevent. You just want to know because you're nosy," he accused, his temper getting the better of him. "You need to learn to mind your own damn business and stay out of mine!"
She stood up suddenly, crossing the room, and stood with her back to him, arms crossed over her chest. "Maybe it was a mistake trusting you," she said quietly. "Maybe you should take me back to the others now."
He hung his head, exhaling in a disgusted sigh. At that moment, he was very disgusted with himself. He really hadn't meant to explode at her, but the pressure of the situation, paired with the sudden revelation that he was, for the first time in a long time, utterly on his own with no help from his superiors, had created a deadly stress within him, and he'd taken it out on her.
"Rinoa..." he began slowly, "don't... don't go. You're the only one that believes me. If you leave, then... then..."
"Then you're on your own?" she finished, turning to watch him. "That's right, I'm all you have left now. You need me, Squall. Admit it."
"I... I..." he struggled with a surge of emotions as they battled with his pride. He couldn't admit to this, not after all the times he'd sworn to himself that he didn't need anyone. But really, where would he be right now without her? He would fail without her.
"Say it," she pressed. "You know it's the truth."
He opened his mouth again, trying to form the words he knew were right, but his battered ego was determined to hold on to it's last shred of dignity. "Damnit, Rinoa, don't make me do this," was all he could manage, sounding almost as if he were pleading.
She realized then, for the first time, how hard it all must be on him. Everything he'd believed and lived by had suddenly failed, and now all he had left was a reality that he had scorned for most of his existence. She quickly crossed the room and kneeled down in front of him, so that they were eye to eye. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I didn't realize how hard this must be on you." She searched his face for any sign of acceptance, and ran a few fingers through his silky brown hair, gently pushing it behind his ear. Yet again, she found her eyes settling on his lips, which tempted her in ways she couldn't understand. She leaned in, hoping to close the distance between them, but he backed away slightly.
"No, Rinoa," he said, shaking his head. "We can't. I told you before..."
She rolled her eyes slightly, and moved closer to him. "I don't care what you said before. All these mortal and non-mortal rules... do you do everything by the rules?"
"Yeah," he answed as if it were obvious.
She laughed, standing up then boldly sliding into his lap. "Well, I don't. And anyway, aren't you already breaking the rules? You took off with me, and turned your back on your comrades."
"That was their fault," he replied, trying to ignore the wave of physical sensations that were stirring in his body from her close proximity.
"And what about when you were human?" she asked. "You always played by the rules then?"
"Yes," he answered in a shaky voice, her warm breath against his ear, and her body heat pressed so closely against him beginning to have dangerous effects on his resolve.
"Then I think it's about time you started living," she said, and, without waiting for a reply, captured his lips with hers and kissed him with all the passion that had been growing inside of her since their last kiss.
Despite that he was so insistent on them avoiding such phsyical activity, he almost immediately began to return her advances, his arms wrapping tightly around her and crushing her to his body. He accepted her gentle, but passionate kisses, then in turn kissed her harder, a new part of himself stepping forward and demanding that his growing need for her be satisfied. Before she could stop herself, she yanked his shirt off over his head, breaking their intense kiss for a small moment, then getting back at it with just as much fervor as before. She ran her hands over every inch of his upper body, the feel of his tense muscles and bare skin exciting her even more. She scrapped her nails down his chest, and heard him let loose a low groan that sent shivers down her body. She forcefully shoved him down, slamming his back on the bed as she became more impatient. There was something about him that she couldn't quite place, something that drove her crazy in a way that no other man had been able to do before. Just as she was thinking that she had him right where she wanted him (literally) a loud ringing shattered the moment. Rinoa drew away dissapointedly as Squall reached for the phone.
"Just let it ring," Rinoa grumbled as she considered snatching the phone out of the wall and throwing it out the window.
"I wish I could," he mumbled, "but it might be important."
He answered the phone, muttering a hello, and was greeted by a, "Squall Leonhart, give us Rinoa, now!"
Squall layed back on the bed, Rinoa still sitting on top of him, and handed her the phone, "It's for you."
"Hello?" Rinoa asked, slightly confused as she wondered who would be calling her.
"Rinoa!" she heard Quistis' voice exclaim from the other end. "You're alright! Squall hasn't hurt you or anything has he? Is he taking you to Seifer?"
"Oh please," Rinoa replied. "I'm perfectly fine. Squall and I are trying to track down Seifer, with or without your help. I don't know why you were so quick to believe that Squall is a traitor, but-"
"We recived an official message," Quistis interrupted. "As in, from the people upstairs. They know he's a traitor as well, and they've warned us. You're in danger, Rinoa. We managed to track you down in Dollet, and we're on our way there now. If you can just stall until tomorrow, then we'll be able to save you."
Rinoa looked down at Squall, who was watching her intently, taking in all her features while he thought she wouldn't notice. She smiled down at him, carresing his face, with her finger tips, and said to Quistis, "I don't care who said what. I trust Squall. And you should, too."
"We're still coming after you, Rinoa," she said. "We can't let you stay with Squall. We won't let you stay with him, he is a danger to you."
"Whatever you say, Quistis. It's been nice talking to you," she replied, then hung up the phone.
"They're coming after me," she told Squall. "We have to be out of here by tomorrow. I'm going to the bathroom for a quick shower, then we need to look into catching a train to the Timber place you talked about," she explained, then paused for a moment, a mischevious smile spreading over her face. She leaned down over him again, and brushed her lips against his before thrusting her tongue into his mouth and kissing him long, and hard. When she was finished she whispered against his ear, "Your welcome to join me," then stood up and headed into the bathroom, leaving a breathless, wide- eyed Squall behind.
As she closed the door to the bathroom, he simply lay there, catching his breath, and managed to murmer to himself, "... Wow..."
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"There's a train leaving for Timber in half an hour," Squall told Rinoa, staring up at the foriegn letters that flashed across the black overhead screen of the train station. "It's the last one 'til morning, so we have to be sure and catch it."
"What do we do until then?" Rinoa asked.
He shrugged, "Not much we can do. Dollet isn't exactly a tourist city, you know. That's one reason why I like it."
"How long did you live here?" Rinoa asked, sitting down on a vacant bench.
"About a year and a half," he replied. "Until an old friend tracked me down, and I felt it was time to move on. I eventually returned to Deling City, though. That was the last place I ever lived."
"What happened to you?" she asked. "How did you die?"
"You already know," he answered, absent-mindedly, the mental slapped himself as he remembered that it was supposed to be a secret.
"I do? You never told me. You insisted that it was none of my business. Unless..." her voice trailed off in thought. "You were the one I saw, weren't you?" she realized. "You were the one that was murdered..."
"Yeah," he admitted. "I guess it was only a matter of time before you figured it out."
"But who? And why? I remember how it felt... it was so painful. How could hate you so much that they would leave you in agony like that? It was Seifer, wasn't it? He killed you..."
"No, actually he didn't, believe it or not," Squall said. "He was murdered too, by the same person. But in a lot of ways, it was my fault." His voice dropped as he admitted, for the first time, one of his other deepest secrets. "It was because of me that both of us died."
"How?" Rinoa asked, confusion evident on her face. "How could you have been responsible for that?"
Before Squall could answer her, an announcment came over the loud speaker, and Squall stood up. "The train came it in early, so we can go ahead and board. Let's go."
Rinoa stood for a moment, watching him walk toward the train gates. She could remember him saying, what seemed like an eternity ago, that both he and Seifer died by the same hand. Did he mean the real murderer, or was he referring to himself? She dismissed these thoughts with a shake of her head and followed after him, deciding not to think about it for now. Now was not the time.
They took a seat on the train, a heavy silence falling between them, until at last Rinoa asked, "How long until we get to Timber?"
"A few hours," was his response.
Irritated by the ever persistent silence that threatened to swallow them once again, Rinoa decided she would try and make conversation once more. "So, have you been to Timber? Is it nice?"
"Rinoa, just quit. We both know what you're trying to do, and I'm not in the mood for it," he snapped.
"Squall, whatever happened back then... it's in the past now. It's time to let it go. No one's going to hold it against you. At least, I won't. Whatever it is you did... it's over now."
"No, it's not," he corrected. "You see, I know why I, of all people available, was chosen for this assignment. It's my responsiblity, even after all these years... I'm the reason why Seifer's been doing this. The reason why he will continue to do this, until we stop him. I'm responsible for all those people's deaths..."
"No!" Rinoa protested. "No, you're not, and I won't have you thinking that way."
"It's too late..."
"No, it isn't. Squall, I don't understand what's going on here, but there's something you should know, and never forget," she said, twisting around in her seat to face him. She gently laid a hand on his shoulder, and said, "No matter what happens, I'll be here. I'll stand by you, because I trust you. Even if the rest of the world fails you, I'll still be here with you. I won't let you down."
"Why?" was all he could manage to say.
"Because..." she took a deep breath. "Because I care about you, Squall."
"Well, you shouldn't. I'm no good to anyone."
"Yes, you are. I need you... to stay with me, to protect me. I care about you, and I know you care about me, too... don't you?"
"I guess," he replied.
"That's not good enough," she laughed, attempting to lighten the mood a bit.
"Alright, I care about you," he said grudgingly, in a such a way as to betray the very meaning of his own words.
"I know you do," she responded happily, throwing her arms around his shoulders and bringing him as close to her as she could manage while sitting down.
"But what about when this is all over?" he asked.
"We'll figure out what to do once we get there," she answered quietly. "But in the mean time, I just want to stay like this. No more secrets, no more hiding. Just trust. Do you trust me?"
He nodded. "Yes. I trust you more anything else in this world."
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