Author's Notes: Well, it's nice that all of you feel pity for Squall, lol. He won't get much until he meets Rinoa, which will be soon, I promise. Things will really start to develop in chapter 4, but because these are so long (in fact I've never made chapters this long in all my stories…at least continually) they're taking me quite a while to produce, so I hope they're up to your expectations in terms of quality. I love this story, I'm working hard on it, and I thank you all for your reviews! Please keep them coming! Love ya all.

Running

Chapter 3

Forest Owls and Graduation

The night seemed to go by slower and slower for Rinoa. She'd been in her room since 5 o'clock, and it was nearing 7:30 presently. She picked up the phone on her nightstand, and dialed the number, listening to it ring in her ear and smiling as the person picked up.

"Hello?" a male voice said.

"Hey Zone," she replied, sitting up in her bed. "What's up?"

"Oh, hey Rinoa! Not much here, what are you doing?"

She sighed dramatically, hoping to get her point across. "Oh nothing, just sitting in my room, trying to avoid my biological parent as much as humanly possible."

"Uh oh, you guys have another fight?"

"Not necessarily, it was more on my end that the shouting took place, but nevertheless, I don't want to see him again tonight."

"You wanna talk about it?"

She shook her head, though he couldn't see it. "No," she said quietly. "I've just been sitting in here for two and a half hours listening to my stomach growl and I wanted some company."

He made a noise of agreement, and a moment of silence ensued. "Well, Watts and I had a Forest Owls meeting this morning."

This perked Rinoa up. She had been interested in Zone's resistance group since a little after she'd met him, and always loved to hear updates about it. "Oh really? And how did that go?"

He hesitated a little before going on. "It was okay. But we really need more members. And a better leader. I'm not exactly cut out to be a leader."

Rinoa made a face. "Oh please, don't fish for compliments. You think Watts could be a better leader than you?"

Zone laughed at that one. "Well no, I didn't say that, but I really don't have leaderships, it's not a self-esteem thing."

"Well, if you say so. But I think you can do anything like that if you set your mind to it."

Zone smiled. "Well thanks."

"What's in other news?"

"Well SeeD has been helping Timber in some kind of monster peril for the past few hours. Watts and I thought it best to stay out of town a while until they clean it up."

Rinoa sat up on her bed, a thought flashing in her head. "That's it, Zone!"

Zone was confused. "That's…what?"

"You can hire SeeD to help you in your resistance plans!"

Silence registered on the other line. Zone kept opening his mouth to say something and then shutting it again. "But Rinoa," he finally managed. "Where would we get the money for that?"

She bit her lower lip. "I could loan you it. I mean, come on, how much easier does it get? SeeD would help in no time!"

He had to admit, it was a good idea. But he didn't want Rinoa to have to pay for it. That would be like charity. He'd be making installments of payment for the rest of his life to pay it off. "I couldn't let you do that Rinoa, not unless you…"

He stopped. Rinoa lifted an eyebrow. "Not unless I what?"

"Not unless if you joined the Forest Owls!" he exclaimed, excitement growing in his voice.

Rinoa was stunned. "Y-you want…me in the Forest Owls?"

"No, the other Rinoa I know. Of course you! Why not you?"

She blinked, trying to determine how to answer him. Could this be her way out? If she ran away, to a resistance group her father didn't know about and traveled a lot, there was a good chance that after about two weeks he'd quit looking and she could live her life free of him.

"Zone, I…I don't know what to say…"

"Say yes, Rinoa. You're a great leader, you'd be perfect."

"What makes you think I'm a great leader?" she asked with a small chuckle.

"Well," he stated bluntly. "You're a girl. Girls are good at telling people what to do."

Rinoa screwed up her face in a manner that didn't quite register as angry, but not too happy. "I'll take that as a compliment, buddy. But watch yourself."

He gulped. "I guess that was kind of poorly worded. But think about it! You've got the money I could eventually try to pay you back, you've got the leadership qualities, and you're General Caraway's daughter…"

"Do me a favor and don't remind me of that."

"Sorry…but seriously, you could be the greatest thing that ever happened to the Forest Owls! What do you think?"

Rinoa thought for a moment. "Hmm…"

"Will you join us?" Please? You already believe in our cause."

"If I run away to join you, will you grant me protection from my warden?"

"You got it."

She grinned. "Then yes. Yes, I'll become a Forest Owl."

Zone let out a whoop of excitement. "Yes! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Now all we have to do is plan out how we'll get you here."

"We'll figure that out later, it's getting late. Call me tomorrow at about 5, okay?"

"Yup, gotcha."

"So I'll talk to you soon?"

"Yeah, thanks so much Rin, you won't regret it. Bye!"

"Bye." Hanging up the phone, she had a feeling she wouldn't regret running away.

"What is taking so long?" Aleston Gray demanded, kicking the wall in front of him. They'd been waiting for over an hour to hear back from the Garden officials, and all of them were getting impatient, including Squall. Although it didn't read in his expression or body language, he was more nervous than ever.

Traydon stood clear down on the other side of the hallway, arms crossed and face grim. He was still seething from his encounters with Squall, but the younger cadet paid no attention to him. It was the best and only option he had if he expected to remain a Balamb student.

Finally, one of the Headmaster's servants walked into the hallways, causing everyone to stop moving and listen hopefully for their name. "Rubiv, Clay," he called out first. Clay gave a shout of joy, and walked forward, heading for the acceptance room while the rest stayed behind.

"Gray, Aleston." Another cry of achievement. Squall wasn't worried, that was only two out of the four. But he did get in a fight…

"Leonhart, Squall." He let an inward sigh of relief out, and silently walked forward. He could feel all other's eyes on him, but ignored them.

"Weredon, Alexia. That is all. Thank you."

Squall kept walking, knowing he had just made an extra enemy at Balamb Garden.

"Well, I am pleased to congratulate all four of you today. As you can tell by the small number among you, very few cadets get the privilege of being in SeeD. We have to judge harshly and carefully, so to be accepted is a great honor. Now, here is your grade report."

He headed toward Clay first, and handed him his report, whispering in his ear, "It's always honorable to protect the helpless. Remember that." Next he moved to Aleston, shaking his hand and saying, "Treat others as others. You'll get the same in return." He skipped Squall and moved on to Alexia. Handing her the grade report, he said, "Always give it your best shot, no matter what stands in your way. Never give up or give in."

Finally, with a smile, he came to Squall, performing the same routine. Leaning in, he said, "Best of luck in the years to come. I'm expecting wonderful results from you. See me in my office after you're dismissed."

Squall couldn't seem to get rid of the man. But better to go to Headmaster Cid's office than face Seifer or Traydon. He dismissed the group with another fortune cookie phrase (lmfao to Lindsay), and gave Squall the motion to follow him back. He'd been in Headmaster Cid's office far too many times lately, and to tell the truth, he was getting sick of it. He didn't mind the Headmaster, hell, he might go so far as to say he even liked him a little. But currently, he was on an overdose of Cid Kramer.

"Thank you for your cooperation in this, Squall. I'm sure you're sick of me telling you good job-well, I'm sure you're sick of me in general, but I promise, this is the last time I'm calling you in here. For a while."

Squall tried desperately to hide his annoyance. "Yes, sir," he said as politely as possible.

"Now for the matter at hand. We don't normally assign freshly graduated SeeD's on missions this early, but we're in desperate need for another good SeeD, and we have decided you would be a perfect candidate."

Squall groaned inwardly. I'm so damn sick of all this 'you're so special,' shit. Can't they just leave me alone and act like I'm a normal person? "I see, sir. What is the mission?"

Cid pulled out some papers from under the stack on his desk. He shuffled through a couple of them, adjusting his glasses, and with an, "Ah!" began reading the mission file. "'SeeD has been asked to help Deling City in the matter of cleaning out their sewage pathways. Monsters have been overrunning the place, and assistance is needed to clear them out.' How does that sound to you? Any questions?"

"Yes sir. If I may ask, why is Galbadia Garden not assisting them? Are they not much closer?"

Cid chuckled heartily to himself. "Always thinking, aren't you Squall?"

That's more than I can say for you, Squall thought silently, suppressing a small smile at the thought. "That's a very good question," Cid went on. "And my answer to it is that Galbadia Garden's SeeD simply doesn't have the right talents for such an assignment."

Squall looked suspicious. "The…talents, sir?"

"That's right. They specialize in different types of tactics, and Balamb SeeD is more fit for the job, that's all. Deling government wants it done quickly and quietly, and we have a good reputation for doing just that."

He nodded in understanding, but Squall still didn't believe Cid was telling him the full truth. But he wouldn't push it any further. Standing up with the Headmaster, he saluted. "You leave tomorrow at 0700 hours. Understood?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. As your Headmaster, I wish you nothing but the best in your years as a SeeD at Balamb. We're lucky to have you here."

"Thank you sir."

"Thank you, Squall. You're dismissed."

Squall exited the office and readied himself mentally to brave the hallways full of students coming out of class. He never knew what each one would do…especially after hearing of his graduation. He wasn't halfway into the hallway when he heard someone shout his last name. Turning around, he saw Clay and felt like sighing with tremendous relief. The new SeeD approached him, and was smiling from ear-to-ear.

"I just wanted to say nice job on the exam. You handled that whole thing with Tray really well, you deserve to graduate."

He nodded. "Thanks," he said stoically. "You too."

"Thanks. If you want a little piece of advice, though, steer clear of him. He's pretty pissed still."

Squall's expression remained blank. "I figured. Well, I'll see you."

Clay wasn't done. "Hey wait," he said, reaching out to grab Squall's arm before he shrugged it away. But he did look back at him. "What?"

"I heard you have your first mission tomorrow morning in Deling City."

Squall's brow crinkled. "H-how did you…?"

Clay shrugged. "Word travels fast around here. I have a friend who'll be with you tomorrow on that mission."

Squall gave a nod of understanding. Damn, I'd say word travels fast. It hasn't even been ten minutes. "Well anyway," Clay went on. "Maybe next time we'll be on a mission together."

"Maybe."

"Until then, good luck! See ya around."

"Yeah."

Squall kept walking. Although he didn't and wouldn't show it, he appreciated Clay's kindness. After dealing with Traydon and Aleston, he realized kindness would be rare among the SeeD's he was to work with. As he traveled further down the hall, he found Seifer leaning against the wall. Part of him wanted to avoid confrontation altogether and turn around and walk away, but the other part knew that if he did so-because Seifer had already seen him-it would only make things worse.

"Oh look, Traydon, it's Mr. Hot Head himself. Shall we bow?" Seifer said mockingly with a smirk.

I'm the hot head? He should listen to himself more often, Squall thought to himself as Traydon emerged from behind Seifer. Oh great, just what I need, two in one. He said nothing in return, and kept walking past them, but Seifer stuck a foot out. Luckily Squall saw it before he could trip, and looked over at his rival, waiting for more taunting.

"Maybe we should," Traydon remarked back to his new ally. "He certainly thinks he's worthy enough to be royalty. What should we call you from now on, Leonhart? King Squall?"

Squall ignored them, merely looking ahead of him. He waited for Seifer's foot to go back to its place by the wall, but nothing happened. "Heard you got your first mission tomorrow," Seifer said, looking at Squall even though the stare was not returned. "Bet you think you're something special just because Headmaster Cid thinks you're Hyne on Earth."

Squall rolled his eyes. "Will you let me pass?" he said without malice, stating it as merely a question. No threat was added to it, making it less fun for Seifer to make fun of him. He waited again, still not looking into his rival's emerald eyes, knowing what he saw in them he wouldn't like. Within a few moments, the foot came back, and Squall moved forward.

He continued walking down the hallway toward his dorm room, but not without shouts behind him. Shouts such as, "You'll kill them all with your stupidity tomorrow!" and, "The only reason you got the mission is because you're a suck up!" all which followed him to a restless slumber that night, before the morning of his first mission.