A/N: WARNING: There is lemon content in this chapter. Total sourness, people. So when they start making 'advances' on each other... well, those of you that don't like lemons shouldn't read it. Also, don't worry about Lily. She's a throw away character, trust me.
Optical Goddess: Good questions... He should be phsyically cold, and unfeeling, and originally he was, but there's a reason why he's not any more. This will come into play shortly after this chapter, in fact. I had to come up with some logical reason when I started this fic, because I knew I wouldn't be able to resist putting a lemon in.
Kairi: Look in your booklet for the game. LEONHART. Double check your sources next time.
Chapter 11
As Squall approached the medium-sized, wooden storage house, the air had suddenly fallen silent. Nothing could be heard inside, or near the building where Cid had disappeared to. It seemed almost a sign that he should turn back and forget about what he'd heard, but he wasn't about to wuss out now.
Slowly, he reached for the handle of the door and slid it open soundlessly, fading sunlight flooding into the darkened room. One of the first things he noticed upon entrance was an unconscious Cid propped against some beer crates, with an odd, greenish liquid oozing from his shoulder. He allowed his eyes to scan the shadowed room once more, looking for something, anything out of the ordinary. He found nothing. Just as he was about to walk over and pull Cid out, he heard the screen door to the house slam shut as rapid footsteps pounded the ground behind him. On reflex, he turned to look in the direction of the sudden disturbance, and no sooner had he looked away than he felt a sharp stinging in his back, that tore out through his chest.
He expected the feeling to fade, as it always would, but instead found himself feeling queasy, and light-headed. He stumbled back into the room, the world beginning to spin around him. This was something he hadn't felt in so long, it was almost overwhelming.
At that moment, Rinoa ran inside, concerned overtaking her when she'd heard the other shot fire. She found Squall leaning against a stack of boxes, looking dazed, as the same greenish liquid pumped out of his wound.
"What the hell?" Rinoa wondered, lightly touching the wound. "Squall, are you alright?"
For a short moment, he managed to make his eyes focus long enough to see what it was she was so concerned about. "Hmm, that's odd," he mumbled, absent-mindedly. "It looks like..." his voice trailed off as he searched the room again, this time finding what he was looking for. The end of a long, silver shot gun barrel poked out from a cluster of machinery at the other end of the room. "Irvine..." he muttered, before loosing his balance and starting to fall. Rinoa attempted to catch him, but his weight proved to be too much for her, and they both fell to their knees on the dirty, hay-strewn floor.
"Rinoa!" a voice shouted joyfully from across the shack.
Rinoa reluctantly turned her attention away from the sick-looking Squall and searched for the source of the voice. Quistis, Irvine, Shiva, Ifrit, and Zell stood together, looking over-joyed that they had finally brought down the almighty Death Angel and rescued his captive.
"What did you do to him?!" she demanded, noticing that he seemed to fade more and more with each passing minute.
"Don't worry, it won't hurt him," Irvine said. "It'll just make him a little sick and dazed for awhile. It will also make his abilities inaffective. He might as well be human now. For a day or two anyway. But he'll wake up in an hour or so. So we need to get out of here just in case. Human or not, I don't want to take my chances with him."
"Are you people dense?" Rinoa demanded. "I don't want to be saved from him. He's not doing anything wrong, nor has he ever!"
"Rinoa, we know he may have manipulated you," Quistis began.
"No, he hasn't," Rinoa growled, quickly becoming impatient. "You're a prophetess, can't you see that he's innocent?"
"I see only that he's guilty," Quistis replied. "They have deemed it so."
"It's true, Rin," Zell explained. "I was with Quistis when they told her."
Rinoa turned her attention back to Squall, who's eyes were more than half-closed. The usual angry scowl that was always on his face had dissapeared, and now he looked only fatigued, confused, and helpless. Almost inaudibly she heard him mumble her name, in a way that made it seem that he needed her... he was pleading for her help. She carefully leaned him against the wall, her arms growing too tired to support him, and gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead, before turning to the rest of the group, enraged.
"I don't give a fuck who said what, why, or when!" she yelled at them. "He wouldn't lie to me, I know it," she explained, her voice softening drastically. "I trust him... and you should, too. Unless..." her voice trailed off, as her eyes darted from one person to another. "Fujin was right. There is a traitor here... she was just wrong in her accusation..."
"Rinoa, that's ridiculous," Quistis pointed out. "Irvine, Shiva, and Ifrit are all professionals. And I'm the one that went to Squall with this mission in the first place. Surely you're not suggesting Zell is a traitor..."
"Me?!" Zell exclaimed, panicking. "Hell no!"
"No, it's not Zell," Rinoa said, her voice distant, and thoughful. "He doesn't know much about what's going on... it's evident in the way he talks and acts. The traitor would have to be someone who knew what was going on. And it's true, Irvine, Ifrit, and Shiva are professionals...."
"But, Rinoa," Quistis attempted to reason. "I was the one gifted with the visions that began this journey in the first place."
"Yes, you were 'gifted' with the visions. Or were you? What have you prophesized since then? What wisdom have you shared with us since this all began? You knew things in the beginning that only a prophetess would know... or someone in league with the enemy. And because you called yourself a prophetess, we never questioned... never once suspected that the one that would lead us in the beginning would betray us in the end. You were there when Squall spoke of his past on our train ride to Balamb. You knew of his previous connections with Seifer, and how it would make sense that they would've spoken together at some point in the past, as the memories revealed. But you chose not to enlighten the others, when the question of his loyalty came about," Rinoa stated calmly. She had put every piece of the puzzle together in her head, as she spoke, realizing part by part, the truth behind the lies.
"But Rinoa, I was there when the messenger came," Zell argued. "That was no lie."
Without another word, Rinoa crossed the room until she reached Quistis, and put a hand to her forehead, praying that the abilities she'd been forced to use before would work for her again, even if she didn't understand them.
Just like before, her mind was flooded with images of a lifetime she'd never before seen. But finally, her mind settled on one image in particular, one scene of Quists Trepe's life. It showed her and Zell at the hot dog bar across the street from the hotel, where they were supposed to be while the others went to meet Fujin. Then, a tall, dark-skinned man in a dark outfit approached them. He spoke, mostly to Quistis, before tipping his hat and walking away, leaving Quistis with a small, knowing smile on her face, and Zell with a confused look in his eye. Almost directly after, an image from the train station came to her mind. It was the same man guarding the door that walked up and talked to Quistis. He was helping Seifer.
Rinoa stumbled back slightly as the memories ended, feeling light-headed again but managing to keep her composure. The others looked around at each other, gawking. They had all just witnessed the same thing that Rinoa had, and had put two and two together, realizing that it had all been set up. Quistis was working with Seifer, and she had met with one of his other associates that day, making Zell think that he was an 'official' messenger.
"Quistis... I never would've expected it from you," Zell said quietly after a moment.
"S-so..." Quistis began, attempting to be defensive. "Seifer told me that if I...."
"Shut up!" Shiva snapped. "I for one have had enough of your lies. We turned our back on Squall, because of you. All this time we wasted... we could've had this taken care of by now! Rinoa... you were right all along. We should've trusted you and Squall. So, it's up to you. What should we do with the traitor?"
Rinoa looked away from them for a moment, focusing on the now unconscious Squall. "I don't care. Do with her as you see fit. I'm going to go in and take care of Squall. I need one of you to help me get him to the room."
"I'll do it," Zell offered.
Rinoa just gave a slight nod. "Alright. Irvine... you shot Cid, too. Will he be alright?"
"Yeah. He'll wake up in a few hours, and he won't remember a thing," Irvine explained. "It won't affect him like it will Squall."
"Fine then," Rinoa responded, absently. Her attention was mostly on Squall. "Zell will help me get Squall up to his room, so he can rest. I'll stay with him, take care of him. You guys do what you want with Quistis. And I trust you'll think of something to tell Cid and his daughters, who are inside."
"Rinoa, we're sorry. We really are," Irvine said softly.
"I'm sure you are," she answered quietly. "And I wish you the best of luck on your journey."
"Rinoa-" Shiva began.
"Enough," she interrupted calmly, walking over to Squall and attempting to pick him up on her own. "We'll discuss it later. Right now, I have other things to worry about."
[_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_]
The world was nothing but a dark void in which his mind was sinking quickly. From these forgotten depths of his mind he would see things that he hadn't remembered before. He could see himself clearly, standing before a tall, granite head stone, fingers tracing the words that he was simply too young to read. What he hadn't see at the time was the man standing in the shadows, watching him as he tried to piece together the shattered remains of his life that his mind was too small to comprehend yet. Too young and too innocent to calculate his losses, he didn't know that now was a time in which he was supposed to grieve.
In the nearby church, the bell sounded loudly, and a elderly woman with a sympathetic smile approached the confused little boy, explaining to him as best as she could that his last living relative was deceased, and he would now have to come and live with her and the other parent-less children of the town.
"When everything else around you dies, you will be the only thing left standing... all alone," he heard once more. "Such was my fate, now I will make it yours, through her."
The image that played in front of his eyes began to blur and flicker, another image taking its place. Part of his mind seemed to snap back to reality, sensing his body once again, and feeling a dull ache in the empty place where a mortal's heart would beat. He saw himself, the same age as he was now, stumbling through a darkened room to answer the persistent knocking at his apartment door. Once the door was open, he stood, waiting for his unidentified visitor to speak. But no words ever came, only an ear-splitting explosion of a gun going off. He felt himself suffocated, his long since forgotten lungs suddenly craving oxygen again. A tremor rocked his body, seeming to originate from the left side of his chest. The pain there only increased, until he would've sworn someone had plunged a knife into his chest and was twisting it just so that they could laugh at his pain.
Just when he thought that this inexplainable pain would be the end of him, his eyes snapped open, looking around the small, dimly lit room for a possible attacker. Squall didn't see anything. He was alone, lying in the bed of a strange room. He looked down, studying himself, and noticed a bandage over his chest, in the same place where it had been hurting so much only moments before.
(Well, that explains that, at least) he thought, pulling off the bandage and examining the open wound. He suddenly remembered all that had happened earlier, how he had been shot by one of Irvine's not so ordinary bullets, and how they'd wanted to take Rinoa away.
This last thought nearly sent him into panick, and he threw back the sheets that covered his body and started to jump out of bed. He was stopped however, when Rinoa came through the door to the room, almost jumping ten feet off the floor at seeing him awake.
"Squall..." she breathed, placing a hand over her widly thumping heart. "I didn't expect you to be up and moving." She caught her breath and looked him over for a moment, almost as if to see if he'd somehow been wounded again, then nearly threw herself into his arms. "I was so worried!" she exclaimed. "Irvine said you'd wake up in an hour or so, but it's been more like five hours..."
"Sorry," he replied, uncertain of how to respond to her concern. "Are they still here? Do they still want to take you?"
She shook her head. "I proved your innocence. Quistis was the guilty one all along. They've been interrogating her for information, while I've been up here looking after you," she explained. "Geez, you had me worried sick..."
"Well, you shouldn't worry about me," he replied.
"Maybe I shouldn't but I do," she answered, running her fingertips along the side of his face. "And with good reason."
"What's that?" he asked, his curiosity peaked.
She shook her head again, pushing him back so that he was laying in the bed again. "Enough talk for right now. You need to rest."
"But you just said yourself I was out for five hours," he argued.
"That's.... beside the point," she said, scrambling for a good excuse. "It must've taken a lot out of you."
"Not really... I actually feel better than I have in a long time. I think you just don't want to tell me."
She smiled sadly, "Really, I'm more afraid that you won't want to hear it. The last thing I want to do right now is upset you... and I know it will..."
"Tell me anyway," he pressed, part of him almost needing to hear it, the other part dreading it.
She put a finger to his lips, as if to silence him, and studied his stormy blue eyes for a moment, before saying, "I was just so terrified.... Irvine said you would wake up within an hour or two, and you'd be just fine. He said all I had to do was fix up your wound... but then you didn't show any signs of waking up, I guess I started freaking out. It made me realize some things...."
Squall was silent for a long time, then finally said, "You know it can never last. I'm not like you..."
She nodded, her eyes dropping from his. "I know but... I need this. And I think you do, too. You can't deny that there's something between us, Squall. Maybe we should just enjoy the time we have together."
Squall inhaled deeply, allowing his eyes to flutter closed once more. He knew she was waiting for him to answer, but he didn't want to say what was really on his mind. He didn't want to admit his fears. Finally he said, "So what if you grow attached to me?"
She let loose a bitter laugh, brining her eyes to meet his again. "Yes, what if I get attached to you? After all, you must have so many women that have formed an emotional attachment to you, that you've just forgotten by now. Nothing but pesky admirers... I guess I'll just have to deal with it, though, since I'm already quite fond of you, though I can't figure out for the life of me why," she snapped, rising from her place next to him and starting to walk out of the room.
Before she could make it out the door, a strong hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled her back, so that her face was inches from his. She tried pulling away from him, but found the attempt futile. He wasn't going to let go of her that easily. "Damnit, Rinoa stop!" he ordered sternly. She stopped struggling and looked up at him, pain registering on her formely pride-ridden face. "Do you have to take everything so literally? You know that I'm not good with words... That's not how I meant it."
"So what?" she muttered. "What did you mean, and why should I care?"
He let out a disgusted sigh, and said, "I meant that the more we indulge these feelings we have, the harder it's gonna be when we have to say goodbye. Whether you care or not is up to you."
"I don't care!" she exclaimed. "I don't care about what's going to happen then! You might think that it's set in stone somewhere that we can't be together, but I don't believe it. Nothing is ever for certain in the future... and even still, I care about now. Now, I can be with you. I.... I lo-"
Squall tensed at her words and silenced her quickly with a rough kiss. "Don't say it, Rinoa, please," he whispered, a pained look coming over him. "I can't take it..."
She nodded slowly, biting back her words as well as her tears and leaning forward to meet him in another kiss. "If I can't tell you, I wanna show you," she said.
Her words caused a small tremor to run up his spine, which only seemed to get worse when she kissed him again, this time more demanding than the last. Everything in his mind that was logical told him this wasn't right, yet he couldn't do anything but give in to her, pushing his tongue past her partially open lips and exploring her mouth, just as he'd done before. Somehow he never seemed to tire of it.
She broke away from his passionate kiss and moved to his ear, nibbling on it for a moment before saying, "Come on Squall, show me how you feel...."
He swallowed hard, for the first time in a long time feeling nervous. He knew what she was asking, but wasn't sure that he could comply with her wishes, as much as he wanted to. This was all new, unexplored territory to him, and he wasn't sure how to handle it. "I'm.... not sure that I can," he whispered back.
She seemed to ignore his words, shoving him down on the bed and moving over him, briefly meeting his lips again before moving downward to his neck. He closed his eyes for a moment, wondering why he had the bad luck to meet this wonderful woman now, instead of when he was still alive. It would've been so much less complicated then.
Rinoa stopped her advances and moved her hand up to stroke the side of his face, making him open his eyes. She stared down into the cloudy ethereal pools intently, as if trying to read his mind. Finally she said, "Don't worry about it."
"What?" he asked.
"I know what you're thinking. You're worried about the consequences. Well, don't worry. For once in your life, just let go. Can you do that much for me?"
"You know me too well, to have only known me for a few weeks," he replied.
"We've been through a lot," she answered seriously. "That can change things. You and I... we're somehow bound together, whether or not you believe it, I do."
He sighed and ran a hand through her hair, her head now rested comfortably on his bare chest. "I honestly don't know what to believe anymore."
She lifted her head and positioned herself to face him again, leaning down and starting to kiss him once more. "You can believe in me," she answered between kisses. "Just let go of everything else."
He sat up suddenly, pulling her into his lap and holding her tightly against him. "And if I do? What happens then?"
She merely shrugged. "It's not gonna be the end of the world or anything, I promise."
He kissed her gently on her lips, in a way that made her yearn for more. She wrapped her arms around him, his nearly over-heated flesh burning against her palms as she rubbed them across his back. Before she could comment on his unusual body temperature he shifted his hold on her, putting one hand on her hips and pulling her up and closer to him, using the other hand against the back of her head to steady her against his increasingly demanding kisses. His lips were crushing hers, but his touch upon her skin was still so gentle, his free hand sliding down from her hip and over her long, perfectly formed legs that were bared by her skirt. His lips left hers, her own now red and slightly swollen, and began placing small kisses down the sensitive skin of her neck. She never realized how thrilling this simple touch could be until now. Now, she was in the arms of a man she never would've thought she'd want, but simply couldn't resist. Something about his dark, mysterious air sent jolts of pleasurable electricity through every cell of her body. As a contended sigh escaped her lips, he wrapped an arm around her waist and rolled over, so that her back was resting comfortably on the bed while he positioned himself over her. His typically timid hands were suddenly moving of their own accord, moving from the place on her hips and gliding upward, pushing her shirt up along with them. She couldn't help the small giggle that escaped her throat as his hands struck on her ticklish abdomen.
"What's so funny?" he asked, a very serious look in his eyes.
The smile on her face quickly faded and she sat up, pushing him over onto his back and sitting atop him, propping herself up with her elbows on his chest. "Have you done this before?" she asked.
He shook his head, looking slightly embarresed. "No. You're the first woman I've been close to. No one wanted anything to do with me before."
She offered him a small smile before beginning to leave a trail of small kisses down his chest. He tensed with each touch, her ultimate destination weighing heavily in his mind. His eyes closed briefly, still trying to fight back his fear of commitment before it stopped him from getting what he so desperately wanted. Before another thought could enter his mind, he felt her tugging his belts off, tossing them halfway across the room as soon as they were loose. She reached down to unbutton his pants, but he stopped her, grabbing her shirt by the bottom and pulling it off over her head. Heat spread over her cheeks as she suddenly found her upper body exposed, with only her lacy black bra covering her. She leaned down over him, her lips locking with his once again while his hands moved upward, carresing her outer thighs beneath the rough material of her denim skirt. A soft moan escaped her throat, and she pressed herself further into him, the bulge in his pants pushing against her abdomen. Rinoa sat up again, her face flushed but happy, and reached behind her back to undo the clasp of her bra. The soft lace slipped down her shoulders and was finally tossed away, joining his belts in some distant and forgotten corner of the room. Squall took tight hold of her hands, leaning up and devouring her neck before allowing his pleasurable assualt to travel lower, to her newly revealed flesh. The softness of his lips on her sensitive skin sent her mind reeling, and a quiet cry graced the air as his tongue strayed over her hardened nipples.
Rinoa inhaled deeply as she felt his hands come to rest atop her legs, his thumbs carresing her inner thighs and making her tremble from the touch. He turned her around and threw her not to gently on the bed, his long forgotten animal instincts surging within him. He kissed her with a kind of carnal desire that made her weak inside while he pulled her skirt down and allowed it to drop carelessly to the floor. This sudden display of testosterone-driven dominence not only shocked, but pleased her. To think, this shy man she'd come to know had a bad boy side to him. As much as she didn't want to admit it, it was driving her crazy.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a toe-curling sensation, as his hands moved over her most sensitive area. Realizing that she was having most of the fun, she sat up suddenly and undid his pants, pushing them down to reveal his black boxers.
"Are all the clothes you own black?" she questioned, looking up at him with a glint of humor in her passion-filled eyes.
"Pretty much," he answered shortly before grabbing her by the hands again and pulling her up to stand, against him. Her heart pounded in her chest as he removed the last of her clothing. She drew her hands down his chest, scrapping her nails against his skin until she reached his boxers, which she removed with shaking hands. He lifted her up, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, kissing him hard. He layed her back down, lowering himself over her. Luckily his need for her outweighed his nervouness, so that it was perfectly concealed on his face, and in his actions.
"Be careful," she whispered against his lips, her fingers gently carresing his back. A far off part of her mind noticed that the scars from his wings were now completely gone, no longer marring the black ink lion that suited her soon-to-be lover so well.
He gave a slight nod, and entered her slowly. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her, the only person he'd ever really cared about. He pressed forward a little at a time, making the both of them a bit restless. Still, he was thoroughly enjoying the feeling of her around him.
"Maybe if you go ahead and do it, it won't hurt so bad," she pointed out, hoping that she didn't sound too impatient.
Without answering, he thrust into her faster, tearing through her virginity and squeezing his eyes shut in anticipation of the pain she would feel. He heard her give a slight groan of discomfort, then lay still for a moment, trying to catch her breath. To her surprise, it hadn't hurt nearly as bad as she had expected. Rinoa brushed the thoughts aside and nudged Squall with her hips, aching for him to continue. He didn't need anymore encouragement. He began moving within her again, his eyes closing in pleasure this time. The small moans and sighs that left Rinoa's lips only seemed to heighten everything he was feeling. The world around him was a blur, and the only thing that mattered was the beautiful woman beneath him. Unconciously he began moving harder and faster, the incredible sensations seeming to pile up within him. Rinoa stabbed the nails of one hand into his back, the other hand clutching tightly at the sheets around her in a futile attempt to control her trembling body. It had gotten so hard to breath, as if the air around her were so thick that it was choking. Her muscles burned as he seemed to control her with the forcefulness of his body, moving her to a pattern as old as time.
Suddenly, she stiffened, every muscle in her body tensing until she thought they would pop. Even the muscles within her were spasming, frantically gripping at Squall and releasing him. Pleasure exploded with her, until she almost didn't think she could take it. She bit back a loud scream, but couldn't help the powerful moan that tore through her throat afterwards, feeling her lover release within her. Finally her muscles relaxed, and she layed back on the bed, panting for air. She moved her fingers around stifly, as they were now sore from gripping the sheets so hard, and smiled over at her companion, who had collapsed next to her in a momentary loss of strength.
"Wow..." he murmered, hooking an arm around Rinoa and pulling her over to rest against him.
"You said it," she replied, snuggling into his chest. As she began to drift into the welcoming void of sleep, she noticed the rythmic pounding against her ear that had never been there before. Squall had acquired a heartbeat....
[_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_]
A/N: Okay, so probably not the best lemon ever written (far from it) but cut me some slack, as I'm not an extremely experienced lemon writer. And sorry, Quistis fans, but I really don't like Quistis that much.
Optical Goddess: Good questions... He should be phsyically cold, and unfeeling, and originally he was, but there's a reason why he's not any more. This will come into play shortly after this chapter, in fact. I had to come up with some logical reason when I started this fic, because I knew I wouldn't be able to resist putting a lemon in.
Kairi: Look in your booklet for the game. LEONHART. Double check your sources next time.
Chapter 11
As Squall approached the medium-sized, wooden storage house, the air had suddenly fallen silent. Nothing could be heard inside, or near the building where Cid had disappeared to. It seemed almost a sign that he should turn back and forget about what he'd heard, but he wasn't about to wuss out now.
Slowly, he reached for the handle of the door and slid it open soundlessly, fading sunlight flooding into the darkened room. One of the first things he noticed upon entrance was an unconscious Cid propped against some beer crates, with an odd, greenish liquid oozing from his shoulder. He allowed his eyes to scan the shadowed room once more, looking for something, anything out of the ordinary. He found nothing. Just as he was about to walk over and pull Cid out, he heard the screen door to the house slam shut as rapid footsteps pounded the ground behind him. On reflex, he turned to look in the direction of the sudden disturbance, and no sooner had he looked away than he felt a sharp stinging in his back, that tore out through his chest.
He expected the feeling to fade, as it always would, but instead found himself feeling queasy, and light-headed. He stumbled back into the room, the world beginning to spin around him. This was something he hadn't felt in so long, it was almost overwhelming.
At that moment, Rinoa ran inside, concerned overtaking her when she'd heard the other shot fire. She found Squall leaning against a stack of boxes, looking dazed, as the same greenish liquid pumped out of his wound.
"What the hell?" Rinoa wondered, lightly touching the wound. "Squall, are you alright?"
For a short moment, he managed to make his eyes focus long enough to see what it was she was so concerned about. "Hmm, that's odd," he mumbled, absent-mindedly. "It looks like..." his voice trailed off as he searched the room again, this time finding what he was looking for. The end of a long, silver shot gun barrel poked out from a cluster of machinery at the other end of the room. "Irvine..." he muttered, before loosing his balance and starting to fall. Rinoa attempted to catch him, but his weight proved to be too much for her, and they both fell to their knees on the dirty, hay-strewn floor.
"Rinoa!" a voice shouted joyfully from across the shack.
Rinoa reluctantly turned her attention away from the sick-looking Squall and searched for the source of the voice. Quistis, Irvine, Shiva, Ifrit, and Zell stood together, looking over-joyed that they had finally brought down the almighty Death Angel and rescued his captive.
"What did you do to him?!" she demanded, noticing that he seemed to fade more and more with each passing minute.
"Don't worry, it won't hurt him," Irvine said. "It'll just make him a little sick and dazed for awhile. It will also make his abilities inaffective. He might as well be human now. For a day or two anyway. But he'll wake up in an hour or so. So we need to get out of here just in case. Human or not, I don't want to take my chances with him."
"Are you people dense?" Rinoa demanded. "I don't want to be saved from him. He's not doing anything wrong, nor has he ever!"
"Rinoa, we know he may have manipulated you," Quistis began.
"No, he hasn't," Rinoa growled, quickly becoming impatient. "You're a prophetess, can't you see that he's innocent?"
"I see only that he's guilty," Quistis replied. "They have deemed it so."
"It's true, Rin," Zell explained. "I was with Quistis when they told her."
Rinoa turned her attention back to Squall, who's eyes were more than half-closed. The usual angry scowl that was always on his face had dissapeared, and now he looked only fatigued, confused, and helpless. Almost inaudibly she heard him mumble her name, in a way that made it seem that he needed her... he was pleading for her help. She carefully leaned him against the wall, her arms growing too tired to support him, and gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead, before turning to the rest of the group, enraged.
"I don't give a fuck who said what, why, or when!" she yelled at them. "He wouldn't lie to me, I know it," she explained, her voice softening drastically. "I trust him... and you should, too. Unless..." her voice trailed off, as her eyes darted from one person to another. "Fujin was right. There is a traitor here... she was just wrong in her accusation..."
"Rinoa, that's ridiculous," Quistis pointed out. "Irvine, Shiva, and Ifrit are all professionals. And I'm the one that went to Squall with this mission in the first place. Surely you're not suggesting Zell is a traitor..."
"Me?!" Zell exclaimed, panicking. "Hell no!"
"No, it's not Zell," Rinoa said, her voice distant, and thoughful. "He doesn't know much about what's going on... it's evident in the way he talks and acts. The traitor would have to be someone who knew what was going on. And it's true, Irvine, Ifrit, and Shiva are professionals...."
"But, Rinoa," Quistis attempted to reason. "I was the one gifted with the visions that began this journey in the first place."
"Yes, you were 'gifted' with the visions. Or were you? What have you prophesized since then? What wisdom have you shared with us since this all began? You knew things in the beginning that only a prophetess would know... or someone in league with the enemy. And because you called yourself a prophetess, we never questioned... never once suspected that the one that would lead us in the beginning would betray us in the end. You were there when Squall spoke of his past on our train ride to Balamb. You knew of his previous connections with Seifer, and how it would make sense that they would've spoken together at some point in the past, as the memories revealed. But you chose not to enlighten the others, when the question of his loyalty came about," Rinoa stated calmly. She had put every piece of the puzzle together in her head, as she spoke, realizing part by part, the truth behind the lies.
"But Rinoa, I was there when the messenger came," Zell argued. "That was no lie."
Without another word, Rinoa crossed the room until she reached Quistis, and put a hand to her forehead, praying that the abilities she'd been forced to use before would work for her again, even if she didn't understand them.
Just like before, her mind was flooded with images of a lifetime she'd never before seen. But finally, her mind settled on one image in particular, one scene of Quists Trepe's life. It showed her and Zell at the hot dog bar across the street from the hotel, where they were supposed to be while the others went to meet Fujin. Then, a tall, dark-skinned man in a dark outfit approached them. He spoke, mostly to Quistis, before tipping his hat and walking away, leaving Quistis with a small, knowing smile on her face, and Zell with a confused look in his eye. Almost directly after, an image from the train station came to her mind. It was the same man guarding the door that walked up and talked to Quistis. He was helping Seifer.
Rinoa stumbled back slightly as the memories ended, feeling light-headed again but managing to keep her composure. The others looked around at each other, gawking. They had all just witnessed the same thing that Rinoa had, and had put two and two together, realizing that it had all been set up. Quistis was working with Seifer, and she had met with one of his other associates that day, making Zell think that he was an 'official' messenger.
"Quistis... I never would've expected it from you," Zell said quietly after a moment.
"S-so..." Quistis began, attempting to be defensive. "Seifer told me that if I...."
"Shut up!" Shiva snapped. "I for one have had enough of your lies. We turned our back on Squall, because of you. All this time we wasted... we could've had this taken care of by now! Rinoa... you were right all along. We should've trusted you and Squall. So, it's up to you. What should we do with the traitor?"
Rinoa looked away from them for a moment, focusing on the now unconscious Squall. "I don't care. Do with her as you see fit. I'm going to go in and take care of Squall. I need one of you to help me get him to the room."
"I'll do it," Zell offered.
Rinoa just gave a slight nod. "Alright. Irvine... you shot Cid, too. Will he be alright?"
"Yeah. He'll wake up in a few hours, and he won't remember a thing," Irvine explained. "It won't affect him like it will Squall."
"Fine then," Rinoa responded, absently. Her attention was mostly on Squall. "Zell will help me get Squall up to his room, so he can rest. I'll stay with him, take care of him. You guys do what you want with Quistis. And I trust you'll think of something to tell Cid and his daughters, who are inside."
"Rinoa, we're sorry. We really are," Irvine said softly.
"I'm sure you are," she answered quietly. "And I wish you the best of luck on your journey."
"Rinoa-" Shiva began.
"Enough," she interrupted calmly, walking over to Squall and attempting to pick him up on her own. "We'll discuss it later. Right now, I have other things to worry about."
[_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_]
The world was nothing but a dark void in which his mind was sinking quickly. From these forgotten depths of his mind he would see things that he hadn't remembered before. He could see himself clearly, standing before a tall, granite head stone, fingers tracing the words that he was simply too young to read. What he hadn't see at the time was the man standing in the shadows, watching him as he tried to piece together the shattered remains of his life that his mind was too small to comprehend yet. Too young and too innocent to calculate his losses, he didn't know that now was a time in which he was supposed to grieve.
In the nearby church, the bell sounded loudly, and a elderly woman with a sympathetic smile approached the confused little boy, explaining to him as best as she could that his last living relative was deceased, and he would now have to come and live with her and the other parent-less children of the town.
"When everything else around you dies, you will be the only thing left standing... all alone," he heard once more. "Such was my fate, now I will make it yours, through her."
The image that played in front of his eyes began to blur and flicker, another image taking its place. Part of his mind seemed to snap back to reality, sensing his body once again, and feeling a dull ache in the empty place where a mortal's heart would beat. He saw himself, the same age as he was now, stumbling through a darkened room to answer the persistent knocking at his apartment door. Once the door was open, he stood, waiting for his unidentified visitor to speak. But no words ever came, only an ear-splitting explosion of a gun going off. He felt himself suffocated, his long since forgotten lungs suddenly craving oxygen again. A tremor rocked his body, seeming to originate from the left side of his chest. The pain there only increased, until he would've sworn someone had plunged a knife into his chest and was twisting it just so that they could laugh at his pain.
Just when he thought that this inexplainable pain would be the end of him, his eyes snapped open, looking around the small, dimly lit room for a possible attacker. Squall didn't see anything. He was alone, lying in the bed of a strange room. He looked down, studying himself, and noticed a bandage over his chest, in the same place where it had been hurting so much only moments before.
(Well, that explains that, at least) he thought, pulling off the bandage and examining the open wound. He suddenly remembered all that had happened earlier, how he had been shot by one of Irvine's not so ordinary bullets, and how they'd wanted to take Rinoa away.
This last thought nearly sent him into panick, and he threw back the sheets that covered his body and started to jump out of bed. He was stopped however, when Rinoa came through the door to the room, almost jumping ten feet off the floor at seeing him awake.
"Squall..." she breathed, placing a hand over her widly thumping heart. "I didn't expect you to be up and moving." She caught her breath and looked him over for a moment, almost as if to see if he'd somehow been wounded again, then nearly threw herself into his arms. "I was so worried!" she exclaimed. "Irvine said you'd wake up in an hour or so, but it's been more like five hours..."
"Sorry," he replied, uncertain of how to respond to her concern. "Are they still here? Do they still want to take you?"
She shook her head. "I proved your innocence. Quistis was the guilty one all along. They've been interrogating her for information, while I've been up here looking after you," she explained. "Geez, you had me worried sick..."
"Well, you shouldn't worry about me," he replied.
"Maybe I shouldn't but I do," she answered, running her fingertips along the side of his face. "And with good reason."
"What's that?" he asked, his curiosity peaked.
She shook her head again, pushing him back so that he was laying in the bed again. "Enough talk for right now. You need to rest."
"But you just said yourself I was out for five hours," he argued.
"That's.... beside the point," she said, scrambling for a good excuse. "It must've taken a lot out of you."
"Not really... I actually feel better than I have in a long time. I think you just don't want to tell me."
She smiled sadly, "Really, I'm more afraid that you won't want to hear it. The last thing I want to do right now is upset you... and I know it will..."
"Tell me anyway," he pressed, part of him almost needing to hear it, the other part dreading it.
She put a finger to his lips, as if to silence him, and studied his stormy blue eyes for a moment, before saying, "I was just so terrified.... Irvine said you would wake up within an hour or two, and you'd be just fine. He said all I had to do was fix up your wound... but then you didn't show any signs of waking up, I guess I started freaking out. It made me realize some things...."
Squall was silent for a long time, then finally said, "You know it can never last. I'm not like you..."
She nodded, her eyes dropping from his. "I know but... I need this. And I think you do, too. You can't deny that there's something between us, Squall. Maybe we should just enjoy the time we have together."
Squall inhaled deeply, allowing his eyes to flutter closed once more. He knew she was waiting for him to answer, but he didn't want to say what was really on his mind. He didn't want to admit his fears. Finally he said, "So what if you grow attached to me?"
She let loose a bitter laugh, brining her eyes to meet his again. "Yes, what if I get attached to you? After all, you must have so many women that have formed an emotional attachment to you, that you've just forgotten by now. Nothing but pesky admirers... I guess I'll just have to deal with it, though, since I'm already quite fond of you, though I can't figure out for the life of me why," she snapped, rising from her place next to him and starting to walk out of the room.
Before she could make it out the door, a strong hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled her back, so that her face was inches from his. She tried pulling away from him, but found the attempt futile. He wasn't going to let go of her that easily. "Damnit, Rinoa stop!" he ordered sternly. She stopped struggling and looked up at him, pain registering on her formely pride-ridden face. "Do you have to take everything so literally? You know that I'm not good with words... That's not how I meant it."
"So what?" she muttered. "What did you mean, and why should I care?"
He let out a disgusted sigh, and said, "I meant that the more we indulge these feelings we have, the harder it's gonna be when we have to say goodbye. Whether you care or not is up to you."
"I don't care!" she exclaimed. "I don't care about what's going to happen then! You might think that it's set in stone somewhere that we can't be together, but I don't believe it. Nothing is ever for certain in the future... and even still, I care about now. Now, I can be with you. I.... I lo-"
Squall tensed at her words and silenced her quickly with a rough kiss. "Don't say it, Rinoa, please," he whispered, a pained look coming over him. "I can't take it..."
She nodded slowly, biting back her words as well as her tears and leaning forward to meet him in another kiss. "If I can't tell you, I wanna show you," she said.
Her words caused a small tremor to run up his spine, which only seemed to get worse when she kissed him again, this time more demanding than the last. Everything in his mind that was logical told him this wasn't right, yet he couldn't do anything but give in to her, pushing his tongue past her partially open lips and exploring her mouth, just as he'd done before. Somehow he never seemed to tire of it.
She broke away from his passionate kiss and moved to his ear, nibbling on it for a moment before saying, "Come on Squall, show me how you feel...."
He swallowed hard, for the first time in a long time feeling nervous. He knew what she was asking, but wasn't sure that he could comply with her wishes, as much as he wanted to. This was all new, unexplored territory to him, and he wasn't sure how to handle it. "I'm.... not sure that I can," he whispered back.
She seemed to ignore his words, shoving him down on the bed and moving over him, briefly meeting his lips again before moving downward to his neck. He closed his eyes for a moment, wondering why he had the bad luck to meet this wonderful woman now, instead of when he was still alive. It would've been so much less complicated then.
Rinoa stopped her advances and moved her hand up to stroke the side of his face, making him open his eyes. She stared down into the cloudy ethereal pools intently, as if trying to read his mind. Finally she said, "Don't worry about it."
"What?" he asked.
"I know what you're thinking. You're worried about the consequences. Well, don't worry. For once in your life, just let go. Can you do that much for me?"
"You know me too well, to have only known me for a few weeks," he replied.
"We've been through a lot," she answered seriously. "That can change things. You and I... we're somehow bound together, whether or not you believe it, I do."
He sighed and ran a hand through her hair, her head now rested comfortably on his bare chest. "I honestly don't know what to believe anymore."
She lifted her head and positioned herself to face him again, leaning down and starting to kiss him once more. "You can believe in me," she answered between kisses. "Just let go of everything else."
He sat up suddenly, pulling her into his lap and holding her tightly against him. "And if I do? What happens then?"
She merely shrugged. "It's not gonna be the end of the world or anything, I promise."
He kissed her gently on her lips, in a way that made her yearn for more. She wrapped her arms around him, his nearly over-heated flesh burning against her palms as she rubbed them across his back. Before she could comment on his unusual body temperature he shifted his hold on her, putting one hand on her hips and pulling her up and closer to him, using the other hand against the back of her head to steady her against his increasingly demanding kisses. His lips were crushing hers, but his touch upon her skin was still so gentle, his free hand sliding down from her hip and over her long, perfectly formed legs that were bared by her skirt. His lips left hers, her own now red and slightly swollen, and began placing small kisses down the sensitive skin of her neck. She never realized how thrilling this simple touch could be until now. Now, she was in the arms of a man she never would've thought she'd want, but simply couldn't resist. Something about his dark, mysterious air sent jolts of pleasurable electricity through every cell of her body. As a contended sigh escaped her lips, he wrapped an arm around her waist and rolled over, so that her back was resting comfortably on the bed while he positioned himself over her. His typically timid hands were suddenly moving of their own accord, moving from the place on her hips and gliding upward, pushing her shirt up along with them. She couldn't help the small giggle that escaped her throat as his hands struck on her ticklish abdomen.
"What's so funny?" he asked, a very serious look in his eyes.
The smile on her face quickly faded and she sat up, pushing him over onto his back and sitting atop him, propping herself up with her elbows on his chest. "Have you done this before?" she asked.
He shook his head, looking slightly embarresed. "No. You're the first woman I've been close to. No one wanted anything to do with me before."
She offered him a small smile before beginning to leave a trail of small kisses down his chest. He tensed with each touch, her ultimate destination weighing heavily in his mind. His eyes closed briefly, still trying to fight back his fear of commitment before it stopped him from getting what he so desperately wanted. Before another thought could enter his mind, he felt her tugging his belts off, tossing them halfway across the room as soon as they were loose. She reached down to unbutton his pants, but he stopped her, grabbing her shirt by the bottom and pulling it off over her head. Heat spread over her cheeks as she suddenly found her upper body exposed, with only her lacy black bra covering her. She leaned down over him, her lips locking with his once again while his hands moved upward, carresing her outer thighs beneath the rough material of her denim skirt. A soft moan escaped her throat, and she pressed herself further into him, the bulge in his pants pushing against her abdomen. Rinoa sat up again, her face flushed but happy, and reached behind her back to undo the clasp of her bra. The soft lace slipped down her shoulders and was finally tossed away, joining his belts in some distant and forgotten corner of the room. Squall took tight hold of her hands, leaning up and devouring her neck before allowing his pleasurable assualt to travel lower, to her newly revealed flesh. The softness of his lips on her sensitive skin sent her mind reeling, and a quiet cry graced the air as his tongue strayed over her hardened nipples.
Rinoa inhaled deeply as she felt his hands come to rest atop her legs, his thumbs carresing her inner thighs and making her tremble from the touch. He turned her around and threw her not to gently on the bed, his long forgotten animal instincts surging within him. He kissed her with a kind of carnal desire that made her weak inside while he pulled her skirt down and allowed it to drop carelessly to the floor. This sudden display of testosterone-driven dominence not only shocked, but pleased her. To think, this shy man she'd come to know had a bad boy side to him. As much as she didn't want to admit it, it was driving her crazy.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a toe-curling sensation, as his hands moved over her most sensitive area. Realizing that she was having most of the fun, she sat up suddenly and undid his pants, pushing them down to reveal his black boxers.
"Are all the clothes you own black?" she questioned, looking up at him with a glint of humor in her passion-filled eyes.
"Pretty much," he answered shortly before grabbing her by the hands again and pulling her up to stand, against him. Her heart pounded in her chest as he removed the last of her clothing. She drew her hands down his chest, scrapping her nails against his skin until she reached his boxers, which she removed with shaking hands. He lifted her up, and she wrapped her legs around his waist, kissing him hard. He layed her back down, lowering himself over her. Luckily his need for her outweighed his nervouness, so that it was perfectly concealed on his face, and in his actions.
"Be careful," she whispered against his lips, her fingers gently carresing his back. A far off part of her mind noticed that the scars from his wings were now completely gone, no longer marring the black ink lion that suited her soon-to-be lover so well.
He gave a slight nod, and entered her slowly. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her, the only person he'd ever really cared about. He pressed forward a little at a time, making the both of them a bit restless. Still, he was thoroughly enjoying the feeling of her around him.
"Maybe if you go ahead and do it, it won't hurt so bad," she pointed out, hoping that she didn't sound too impatient.
Without answering, he thrust into her faster, tearing through her virginity and squeezing his eyes shut in anticipation of the pain she would feel. He heard her give a slight groan of discomfort, then lay still for a moment, trying to catch her breath. To her surprise, it hadn't hurt nearly as bad as she had expected. Rinoa brushed the thoughts aside and nudged Squall with her hips, aching for him to continue. He didn't need anymore encouragement. He began moving within her again, his eyes closing in pleasure this time. The small moans and sighs that left Rinoa's lips only seemed to heighten everything he was feeling. The world around him was a blur, and the only thing that mattered was the beautiful woman beneath him. Unconciously he began moving harder and faster, the incredible sensations seeming to pile up within him. Rinoa stabbed the nails of one hand into his back, the other hand clutching tightly at the sheets around her in a futile attempt to control her trembling body. It had gotten so hard to breath, as if the air around her were so thick that it was choking. Her muscles burned as he seemed to control her with the forcefulness of his body, moving her to a pattern as old as time.
Suddenly, she stiffened, every muscle in her body tensing until she thought they would pop. Even the muscles within her were spasming, frantically gripping at Squall and releasing him. Pleasure exploded with her, until she almost didn't think she could take it. She bit back a loud scream, but couldn't help the powerful moan that tore through her throat afterwards, feeling her lover release within her. Finally her muscles relaxed, and she layed back on the bed, panting for air. She moved her fingers around stifly, as they were now sore from gripping the sheets so hard, and smiled over at her companion, who had collapsed next to her in a momentary loss of strength.
"Wow..." he murmered, hooking an arm around Rinoa and pulling her over to rest against him.
"You said it," she replied, snuggling into his chest. As she began to drift into the welcoming void of sleep, she noticed the rythmic pounding against her ear that had never been there before. Squall had acquired a heartbeat....
[_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_][_]
A/N: Okay, so probably not the best lemon ever written (far from it) but cut me some slack, as I'm not an extremely experienced lemon writer. And sorry, Quistis fans, but I really don't like Quistis that much.
