Re-Creating Hell
Chapter Nine: Off The Mission
By: PasifikStar


*All Standard Disclaimers Apply: I don't own Final Fantasy or it's characters.

The yelling hadn't died down. Selphie sat uncomfortably on the sofa of the Caraway mansion, fidgeting nervously as angry screaming could be heard from the upstairs study of General Caraway. Next to her, Irvine had his arm around her shoulders as he tried to comfort her.

Across from them, Quistis tried to drink her tea peacefully, but winced whenever she heard Rinoa yell at her father or Rinoa's father yell at her. Seifer was playing triple triad with Fujin, Raijin, and Zell on a table a little ways from them and as far as they knew, Squall was upstairs, sleeping in the darkest room there was - Rinoa's walk in closet.

Finally, Quistis put her tea cup down and let out a sigh. Seifer looked up at her. "Quisty, what's wrong?"

"I should go up there," Quistis said, shaking her head. "I shouldn't just sit here and wait."

"You can't do anything," Irvine assured her. "This is between Rinoa and her father."

"No, it's not," Quistis sighed. "Do you know what will happen if Rinoa is put into to the Safe House?" Everyone in the room had their attention focused on Rinoa now. She took another deep breath to explain. "This team will not last."

"What do you mean?" Zell asked, putting down the rest of his cards as he looked up.

"If Rinoa's put in the Safe House, both Quistis and I will be distracted," Selphie admitted. "Half the time we'll be wondering if she tried to escape and if she was out some where blowing up things to let off steam."

"You saw how hard it was for us to concentrate on the actual mission when Squall was missing," Quistis said. Everyone seemed to look down and acknowledge that fact. "Not a single thing was mentioned about the Blood Moon or the unsealing the entire time that we were looking for Squall because our first priority wasn't saving the world, it was looking for our friend." She said strongly.

"She has a point." Zell mumbled.

"But we're the only ones that can do it, right?" Selphie piped up. She looked eagerly into Quistis' eyes. "Right...?"

"They said we're the best ones," Quistis explained. "But we're not the only ones out there."

"Wait," Seifer said. He tossed down his cards and stood up. "Who else is in the running for this?"

"Leska's daughter," Quistis explained. "I was doing research on magic and found out that she comes pretty damn close to Rinoa's blood line."

"Yeah, but she doesn't have a team-" Irvine began.

"That can easily be remedied," Quistis cut him off. "She has strong ties to Ronso."

"The were cat clan!?" Irvine gasped, sitting up straight. "Impossible! They don't even like to interact with the rest of the fucking Underworld!"

"Well, that's what I found out!" Quistis retorted sharply. She sat up straight. "Listen, do you think I WANT this team to fall apart? To tell you the truth, I don't think any other group is suited for this except us!"

"And what makes you think that?" Irvine asked incredulously.

"While any other group can be assembled for this task, none of them will work as well as we can," Quistis said. "I know it sounds corny, but I think that we are it."

"What are we going to do?" Selphie sighed. She leaned forward and cupped her face in her hands.

"Ellone found something," Zell murmured from his seat on the floor. "She mentioned it briefly before I left for your apartment."

The group turned to him. "What is it about?"

Zell looked down at his cards. "She heard Guado talking to Master Laguna about the mission. Guado said that if we don't get any results soon, he'll send his own team comprised of Leska's daughter, some were cats, and other vampires from related clans...including the Strife Clan."

"Oh shit..." Seifer said. "Shit!" He punched the wall furiously. "This cannot be fucking happening!"

"Seifer, calm down-" Quistis began. Seifer whirled around and faced them.

"Calm down!? They gave us something this important like this only to take it away as if it's some joke!?" Seifer exclaimed. "Are they even taking this serious!? This isn't some political chess piece they can move around like it's some sort of fucking game!"

"We're not chess pieces!" Selphie said, standing straight up and looking into her brother's eyes. "We're not pieces of wood or ivory or plastic being moved around a board! We're living things with our own minds and hearts!"

"Selphie's right!" Irvine agreed. "Rinoa's been targeted here. She's our friend, right? We can't let them get her."

"This is personal now," Zell said, nodding energetically. "This isn't just about keeping Hell's Gates closed. This is about the fate of our friend."

"I completely agree," Quistis said. "But how are we going to get Rinoa out of the Safe House?"

Selphie looked up at Quistis and smiled. "Whoever said she's going there in the first place?"

"No!" Rinoa shouted for the hundredth time. "I told you I will not go! How many times must I repeat myself, Caraway!?"

"It is for your own good!" the General responded loudly. "Putting you on this mission was a mistake! It's more than you bargained for!"

"I'm in this way too deep to be ripped out of it now!" she yelled. "I'm not going to leave my group and be put into a Safe House!"

"What if Adel gets you?"

"That won't happen!"

"It was close to happening today!" Caraway yelled. He took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. "You were in a laboratory that was owned and operated by Adel herself! What would've happened if she got her hands on you?"

"She didn't-"

"But what if she did?" Caraway insisted. "Think about that, Rinoa! Not only are you putting yourself in danger, but the whole world!"

"I'm not a child any more, father! I can take care of myself!"

"It's not about that, Rinoa!" he sighed heavily. He fell back against a big leather chair and put a hand over his face. "Rinoa...you are my daughter and I love you. I know what Adel is capable of and you do as well. But it's like she's taken several steps more and now she's more dangerous than ever."

"I'm aware of that, but I have to do this! I feel like's in my blood to do this!"

"It was in your mother's blood to have powers like yours, Rinoa and she was targeted!" he gasped, looking directly at her. "She was killed and I just don't want to see the same thing happen to you. Do you think I want to see you dead, Rinoa?"

Rinoa eyes were filled with tears as she struggled to regain her composure. She gritted her teeth and took a deep breath. "I understand that you love me, father," she told him. "I understand how you feel. But I am not going to relent. My mission is my mission and I will carry it through or die trying."

"Rinoa, you do not know what you are doing," Caraway warned her. "That sorceress will devour you!"

"Nothing will happen to me." Rinoa assured him.

"Nothing is certain, Rinoa."

"As long as Squall is with me, I'll be all right." Rinoa whispered quietly to herself.

Caraway heard and looked up. "Loire's son?" He narrowed his eyes. "It was going to get him that put you in such danger!"

"He saved me before and then as well," Rinoa added. "I trust him."

"Rinoa..." Caraway sighed. "Loire is a good vampire. And I'm sure his son is a good vampire as well, but...you shouldn't get too close to him."

At that, Rinoa's head shot up and her brown eyes went straight into that of her father's. "What are you talking about?" she asked in a shaky voice filled with anger.

"Do you know how many sorcerers have been turned into vampires that have been recorded?" Caraway asked. Rinoa shook her head. "None."

"What?" Rinoa shook her head. "Wait a second, father, are you implying that...?"

"They take mates for life, Rinoa," Caraway sighed. "You know that! Many vampires have tried to turn their mates into one of them and failed. And you know what happens when they fail."

"They die from blood poisoning..." Rinoa trailed off. "I know...but that can't always be the case! Vampires intermingle with lycans-"

"Because their blood lines are close enough...and even then there are some cases of failure," Caraway added. "Sorcerers were not meant to be vampires, Rinoa."

"Why not?" Rinoa asked. "Why is it so much easier for the other races to mingle with them, but not sorcerers?"

"Because a vampiric sorcerer is too powerful," Caraway explained. "It is the reason why the children of a vampire and a sorcerer have extremely diluted magical blood. It the reason why so many sorcerers had died at the turning because their body rejected the vampire blood. Magic blood and vampire blood just do not mix."

"Just because I'm in love with Squall doesn't mean that I'm going to turn for him!" Rinoa covered her mouth. *Oh crap...*

"You're in love with Squall..." Caraway had a pained look on his face. "Oh, Rinoa...you're more like your mother than you realize..."

"What...?"

"Nothing..." Caraway sighed. Shaking his head, he stood up. "There is a Safe House in lower Deling waiting for you-"

"No!" Rinoa shouted. She shot out of her chair. "I am NOT going to the Safe House!"

"Rinoa!" Furious, the brunette quickly walked to the door and pulled it open. She stomped down the hall, followed closely behind by her father. "Rinoa, listen!"

"There will NEVER be enough reasons for me to go to a Safe House!" Rinoa shouted. The reached the top of the stairs. "I will not EVER go there again!"

"It is too dangerous for you to-"

"I am not a weak!" Rinoa screamed. Downstairs, the group heard the yelling from the stairs and reluctantly looked at each other, each wondering if they should go out and look.

"I am not saying that you are weak, Rinoa! It is exactly because you possess that much power that is putting you in danger!"

Rinoa gripped the side of the stairs with her hand and closed her eyes. She took deep breaths, trying in vain to calm herself. "You will not jeopardize this entire mission because of your selfishness."

"MY selfishness?" the sorcerer roared. "You are the one being selfish! Instead of realizing the danger, your pride won't let you back down and you refuse to do so!"

"I was asked to do this!" Rinoa shouted back. By now, the group had congregated at the bottom of the stairs and were watching the father and daughter go at it. "You and the other clan members came to us, myself included, and requested that we take care of the matter and we accepted! I am doing this NOT for me, but for everyone else!"

"Then, for once, think of yourself and go to the Safe House!"

"How is going to the Safe House going to help everyone!?" Rinoa shouted. "HOW!? There is just as much a risk of Adel finding me in the Safe House! And don't think that she won't break Immortal Law and destroy an entire Safe House just to get to me!"

"Rinoa Heartilly Caraway..." the General said, his voice low and collected. "If you do not go into a Safe House, your entire team is off this mission."

"What!?" several voices gasped from the bottom of the stairs. Rinoa looked down, noticing them for the first time. Their faces were filled with shock as they heard the news.

"Can he do that!?" Zell asked. "Isn't that all the clan member's decision?"

"It was Cid and Edea's idea to gather you children for this mission," Caraway explained. "I was against it, obviously, because I feared for Rinoa's safety. Loire was also concerned with the safety of the children, but after strong delegation, Cid and Edea made it clear that you all were to be chosen."

"If that's the case, then how can they possibly revoke the mission from us?" Quistis demanded sternly.

"What have you done so far that has proven Cid and Edea correct?" Caraway asked. "A laboratory exploded. Squall was thought to be dead. So far NONE of you have done anything to show that you can handle this...Cid and Edea had pleaded for you to have at least a week to give you all a handle on the situation and yet nothing has surfaced that we do not already know!"

*Or that we haven't told you...* Quistis thought to herself.

"The deal was that if within a certain amount of time, you children were able to attain enough information and be able to put a dent in Adel's plans, the mission would be yours, else another team will take over." Caraway told them.

"The team of Leska's daughter..." Zell trailed off. He closed his eyes and mentally swore.

"Now, if Rinoa goes into a Safe House, then I will ask for an extension of the time period. But if she does not," Caraway threatened. "This mission will be given to Leska's daughter, Yuna, and her team."

All eyes went to the brunette at the top of the stairs. She was shaking in fury as she gripped the stair case railing. It cracked under her force. "You're playing dirty, Caraway."

"I am not playing, Rinoa," the man replied. Rinoa lifted her face to meet the gaze of her father. "It is your call."

"I hate you..." Rinoa hissed under her breath.

"Take us off the mission." a voice said behind her.

Rinoa whirled around as the group turned their heads to the dark hall way. "Squall..." Rinoa whispered quietly.

The vampire walked into the dim light of the hall from the darkened passageway. He looked calm, composed, completely relaxed as his request was given. Caraway narrowed his eyes. "It is not your decision to make, young Loire-"

"It's Leonheart," Squall cut him off. "Not Loire."

Behind gritted teeth, the old sorcerer replied, "Whatever your last name may be, it does not give you the authority to decide for Rinoa."

"Well, you seem to be doing quite a bit of that for her," Squall responded casually. "It seems that her decision was not to be put in a Safe House yet you seem to be deciding that she will be. I was just putting in my piece."

"Your week is over," Caraway stated. "The Blood Moon will arise in less than a lunar month. We do not have time for this."

"General Caraway, sir," Quistis said from the bottom of the stairs. Attention was given to her. "I have to agree with Squall. Take us off the mission."

"What!?" Irvine said.

"Quistis, are you insane!?" Seifer hissed. "You said so yourself that you don't think anyone else can do this!"

"And we cannot do this either if Rinoa is not with us." Quistis answered, as if it were so obvious.

Next to her, Selphie let the words sink in and slowly nodded. "I agree with them," she announced. "The only reason I'm on this mission is because Rinoa is my friend and she was drawn into it. No Rinoa. No Selphie. No Quistis."

"No team." Squall ended, giving Selphie a curt nod.

"Do you all not care about Rinoa!?" Caraway shouted. "Rather that have her safe, you're willing to risk her life like this!?"

"Unlike you, FATHER," Rinoa said, emphasizing his title bitterly. She shot him an angry glare and began to go down the stairs. "They care not only about my physical safety, but about what I want as well."

"What are you saying, Rinoa?"

Halfway down the stairs, Rinoa closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Take us off the mission."

The sorcerer's eyes went wide, unsure of what to say. He had been positive that Rinoa would go to the Safe House had the choices been given. Slowly, he turned to look at Squall. The vampire's eyes held the general's in a cold gaze.

"Squall!" Irvine called from the foyer. He was holding the door open for the others as they headed out. "Let's go!"

Squall nodded. His eyes seemed to enter Caraway's soul, as if reading the general. "I heard what you said," he told him in a low voice. The general's eyes narrowed. "The matters of your daughter's heart are not in your control. And that's what you fear, isn't it? Not being able to control Rinoa's free spirit."

"You wouldn't understand. You're not a father-"

"I don't have to be Rinoa's father to love her," Squall cut him off. "Good evening to you, General Caraway. This may be the last time we meet." Grabbing the edge of the railing, Squall jumped over it and off the second floor. He landed on both feet, gracefully, right in front of the door, where Irvine was leaning against the door way waiting for him.

The cowboy straightened up and exited the building. Squall cast one final look up at General Caraway, then stepped out into the inky darkness of the night.

"What the hell were you thinking!?" Seifer shouted as he walked along side of Quistis. "Take us off the mission?! WHY!?"

"You know damn well why!" Quistis snapped back. "Tell me, if Rinoa was locked away somewhere like a sitting duck, just waiting for Adel to get her, would you be concentrating on your work? No!"

"But we can't just back away from this mission, ya know," Raijin said. "What are we going to do, ya know?"

"Head back to Esthar." Squall said as he walked behind them. Rinoa had waited just outside the door for him to join them and was now walking next to him, his arm around her waist firmly as she leaned against his shoulder.

"Squall, why did you want to get off the mission in the first place?" Zell asked. "I know Rinoa doesn't want to go to a Safe House and all, but..."

"I think several of you are missing the point." Selphie said with a smile as she happily skipped towards the Ragnarok. Irvine had wondered why she suddenly seemed to perky after what just happened. They entered the red ship and Selphie took her seat next to Irvine as Fujin and Raijin headed towards the cock pit.

"And what exactly is the point, train girl?" Seifer snorted as he angrily crossed his arms.

Selphie gave him a knowing smile. "We may be off the mission," she explained. "But no one ever said we couldn't save the world."

A phone was ringing in a dimly lit corner bar and a young vampiress lifted up the receiver. "Loveless, how can I help you?"

"Tifa," Squall said over the phone. "I need some information."

"Ask away, kid," Tifa said as she set out some newly washed glasses. "What's the question?"

"Has there been any news surrounding the Strife Clan?" Squall asked. He heard Tifa gasp and smirked. *She's always had a thing for what's his name...Wind or Storm...*

"Cloud's clan?" she asked nervously.

*There we go...CLOUD...* "Yeah."

"Well..." Tifa sighed. She looked over her counter to a table in the far corner where a pale vampire wearing a sleeveless dark blue turtle neck sat. His hair was spiky and a pale blond color. She blushed just looking at him. "Cloud did say he might have to go on some trip again..."

*A trip huh...?* Squall thought to himself. "Did he say where?"

"No...wouldn't say," Tifa said. She frowned. "Why? Is something wrong?"

"No," Squall assured her. "Just trying to...figure out something."

"I know you, kid, you just don't call to say hi," Tifa scolded. "So fess up."

*I need to lie, but not completely lie...* "I have to go Tifa," Squall said. "I'm afraid I'm breaking up...there's only on bar on my cell phone."

"I can year you perfectly."

*Damn modern technology!* "Okay, okay...but I really do have to go...I'm on a date."

"A date."

"Yes, a date."

"You don't go on dates."

"I do now."

"Since when?"

"Since..." Squall covered the end of the receiver as he looked over at Rinoa and waved for her to come over. She walked from the kitchen, where she was eating some left overs of Raijin's noodles, and to the living room where Squall was along with several other males watching Blitzball on Selphie's beloved flat screen television.

"Who is it?" Rinoa asked as he held the phone to her.

"Just answer it." Squall told her. His free hand took the bowl of cold noodles from Rinoa.

Shrugging, she took the phone and brought it to her ear. "Hello?"

"Hello? Is this Squall's date?" a disbelieving voice asked.

"Squall's...date...?" Rinoa's brown eyes looked down at Squall, who seemed to be ignoring her and focusing all his attention on the Blitzball game. "Uh...yes...my name is Rinoa."

"Oh! Are you his girlfriend?" Tifa asked cheerfully. "I'm his cousin, Tifa. Sorry to bother you kids then. Tell him I said bye. Bye!"

"Bye..." Rinoa heard the other woman hang up and looked at Squall. "What did you tell your cousin?"

"I couldn't have her telling the Strife Clan that we're doing our own mission now," Squall stated as Rinoa dropped the phone on his lap and took her bowl of cold noodles back. "So when she started to ask I said I had to go and she didn't believe me...so I said we were on a date."

"Wishful thinking..." Irvine sang from the love seat he was sharing with Selphie, who was eating coco-puffs from the box.

Squall shot Irvine and annoyed glare. Rinoa stood next to the arm chair Squall was sitting in and looked towards the hall way. "Maybe we should've forced Quistis to get some rest..." Rinoa mumbled quietly.

"You know she would've just studied up in her room," Selphie said, matter of factly. "And we didn't have a chance to tell her seeing as how the moment we landed at the palace, she demanded a ride back here."

"And what's that thing she's been hugging, anyway?" Rinoa asked. "It looks like one of my clan's history books."

"Seifer, you were with her," Selphie said. "What is it?"

"How the hell am I supposed to know?" Seifer snapped. "Like she'd tell me anything."

"Touchy..." Irvine mumbled. "Someone isn't getting any."

"Damn right," Seifer hissed. "And that someone better be you!"

Irvine was about to give a come back when Selphie clamped her hand over his mouth. "Don't taunt the hungry dog, Irvy," Selphie told him. "Else he'll cut your hand off and then hack the rest of you into tiny pieces."

Seifer nodded, eyeing Irvine like a predator. "I'll kill you one day, Kinneas... one slip up and..." Seifer ran his finger across his neck. "Understand?"

"Perfectly." Irvine agreed, shrinking back into his chair. Selphie cuddled against him and he put his hand on her waist, fully aware of Seifer's glare.

"Hey, Raijin," Zell said. "Think you can cook us some hot dogs since those noodles of yours were so killer?"

"I don't know, ya know...never really tried to make hot dogs, ya know..." Raijin said. "Rinoa, do you guys even have hot dogs, ya know?"

"Selphie, do we have hot dogs?" Rinoa asked looking across the living room of their apartment to where Selphie was.

From her seat, Selphie shook her head from side to side. "Nope."

"Sorry."

"HOW can you NOT have hot dogs!?" Zell gasped, completely horrified by their answer. "I mean...HOT DOGS, people!"

"Zell, calm down-" Rinoa began, but Zell began to frown and rub his stomach.

"But...I'm so hungry..."

"Buy," Fujin said. She stood up. "Bored."

"I'll go with you, ya know," Raijin said. "I need to stretch my legs out, ya know."

"Me, too!" Zell announced, also standing up and making his way straight to the door. "You don't know my favorite brand!"

"His favorite brand...oh, Hyne..." Seifer said as he rubbed his forehead. "I can't believe I'm reduced to hearing this..."

"Hey, you just don't know the joys of hot dogs!" Zell snapped back. He put his shoes on as Fujin and Raijin put on their boots.

"Fujin, take my car," Rinoa said. She tossed Fujin her keys. It wouldn't be the first time Fujin would drive her car and the female shape shifter was more of a proficient driver than Seifer. *But then...anyone is a more proficient driver than Seifer...Mr. Totaled five cars after I got my license...*

"Thanks." Fujin grabbed the keys and headed out the door, with Zell leading the way, expressing his feelings on certain condiments. The door closed behind Raijin.

"I hope the supermarket has Zell's hot dogs..." Selphie said with a concerned look. "He seems so worked up about it."

"He's always worked up about something," Irvine assured her. "That's what makes Zell...well...Zell."

"I'm going to check on Quistis." Rinoa announced. She had walked into the kitchen and put her bowl in the sink.

"Call me if she's causing trouble." Seifer shouted over his shoulder as she passed. Rinoa merely nodded and walked into the first floor hall way to the dark room lab.

The sorceress saw the door was opened just a crack and knocked quietly as she pushed it open. All the lights were on in the room and sitting at her little station was Quistis. She seemed to be completely in the zone and didn't even hear Rinoa enter the room. Her glasses were on and her eyes were completely pasted to the pages of the large book she had been carrying.

"Quistis?" Rinoa whispered quietly, so as not to surprise her. The blond didn't answer. "Quistis?" she persisted, a little bit louder that time.

"Huh!?" The blond jumped slightly and turned around in her seat. She let out a heavy sigh. "Oh, Rin...I'm sorry, I didn't hear you."

"I just wanted to come in and check up on you," Rinoa said, concern written on her face. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine..."

"You've been here since we got back. Aren't you at least hungry?" Rinoa asked. Quistis smiled slightly.

"I'm fine..." As if her stomach heard her, it grumbled and she blushed. *Caught...*

"Your tummy says other wise," Rinoa giggled. "Zell, Fujin, and Raijin went to get hot dogs. I'll bring you one when they get back, okay?"

"Thank you, Rinoa," Quistis smiled softly and turned back to the book. Rinoa was about to leave, when Quistis spoke up again. "Hey, Rin..."

"Yeah?"

"Is it true?" Quistis asked. "About vampire blood and magic blood not mixing?"

Rinoa was about to ask how Quistis knew, but quickly shut her mouth. She'd known Quistis long enough now to acknowledge that she knew far more than people gave her credit for. And people gave her credit for a lot. The brunette sighed. "Well...when I was little, my mom told me a story...it's pretty old," Rinoa leaned back against the counter. "Supposedly, when the world was created, vampires came from hell and sorcerers came from heaven. So they were from two different worlds now in the same world. Both were equally powerful - vampires with their strength and agility and heightened senses and sorcerers with their magic...and then, to prevent an all powerful creature that could pose a threat to the humans on earth, the blood of vampire and sorcerer reject each other."

"So if a vampire wanted to turn their mate and their mate was a sorcerer...the sorcerer would die?" Quistis asked.

"That's the story," Rinoa sighed, throwing up her arms slightly. "Only those with very diluted magic blood could be turned, but then there are still cases of them dying later on. Full bloods like myself would die...probably almost immediately."

Quistis frowned. "That's why the only vampiric sorcerers are hybrids...like Ultimecia."

"And they're still rare," Rinoa nodded. "Ultimecia's powers were pretty strong. They say that it was her vampiric half that was weakened."

"Her mate was pure sorcerer right...I wonder if she ever tried to turn him."

"I don't think she would've," Rinoa said seriously. She crossed her arms over her chest. "She never had any reason to since they were both immortal. But you know what?"

"What?" Quistis was now facing her.

Rinoa looked down at the floor. "I don't think that Ultimecia really wanted to prevent the races from working together. I think she had another motive."

Quistis looked intrigued. "And what might that be?"

The other woman shrugged. "No idea...but it's just a feeling."

Quistis nodded and waved her hand over to Rinoa. "Come here," she said. "I want you to see this."

With a questioning look on her face, Rinoa walked over and stood at Quistis' side. Her eyes fell on the dark leather book opened and a quarter of the way read. "What is that?" Rinoa murmured. "It looks like a clan history book..."

"It is a clan history book," Quistis explained. "I stole it from the lab and I'm glad I did."

"Whose book is it?"

Quistis smiled with pride at the fact that SHE had this priceless book in her hands. She looked at Rinoa. "It's Ultimecia's."

"Zell, isn't that a bit much, ya know?" Raijin said. Zell put the tenth package of hot dogs into the cart as Fujin looked around nervously. She prayed that no one they knew would see them with a car full of hot dog and hot dog...accessories.

"Raijin, my friend," Zell said. "You MUST be new it this. We are only scratching the surface."

"Everything!" Fujin gasped as she pointed into all the things in the cart. The ten packages of hot dogs, the packages of buns, ketchup, mustard, relish, pre-diced onions, cheese, chili, ground beef.

"What if we don't have enough money, ya know?" Raijin asked, worried.

Fujin pulled out her wallet and went through it. She sighed. "Barely..."

"Hey! That means if I put in my gil, we can buy some more!" Zell announced cheerfully.

"No!" Fujin and Raijin gasped.

Zell froze in his spot. "Not hot dogs!" he exclaimed. "I meant beer or something to wash these down with..." He turned around and sighed. "I'm not a hot dog eating freak you know..."

Behind him, Raijin and Fujin looked at each other. "Sure." Fujin mumbled.

Up ahead of them, Zell was heading to get soda and beer when he heard someone talking in the isle next to him.

"I'm sorry we had to stop, Lulu," a soft spoken voice whispered quietly. "I completely forgot."

"That's all right, Yuna," a more adult female voice assured the soft spoken one. "We're not in any rush."

*Yuna?...Where have I heard that name before...?* Zell thought to himself. Suddenly, it hit him. He whirled around and rubbed his butt. "Raijin! Watch where you're going with the cart!"

"Sorry, ya know," Raijin laughed sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I wasn't paying attention, ya know."

Fujin lifted her hand to silence them. She had also heard the voices and the familiar name. Her eye narrowed as the conversation on the other side of the isle. Her eye went wide when she realized who they were. "Leska!" she whispered quietly.

Raijin and Zell looked at each other. Fujin continued to hold her hand up so she could listen in. "When are we supposed to meet the others?" Yuna asked quietly as she picked something off the shelf.

There was a pause. "In an hour at a place called Loveless," Lulu replied coolly. "Kimahri is checking the map as we speak."

"Maybe we should ask on the locals?" Yuna asked.

"We'll ask when we see one." Lulu answered.

Zell waved for them to follow him and walked down the hall. They turned into the next isle casually and Zell stopped, pretending to look at the things on the shelves.

"Ask him!" Yuna whispered.

Zell waited. Raijin was waiting at the end of the isle as Fujin shook her head with her hand over it. "Excuse me," the older woman said. "But you wouldn't by any chance know where a bare called Loveless is, would you?"

Zell turned around to face the woman and his mouth nearly fell off. *Oh, Hyne...* The woman named Lulu was extremely pale with black hair and dark make up. And her low cut dress made him notice just how well endowed she was. "Loveless?" he asked. He narrowed his eyes, pretending to be suspicious. "Why would you go there?"

Lulu raised an eyebrow. "Either you know or you don't know-"

"Lulu!" Yuna said. Behind Lulu, a shorter girl with short brown hair appeared. She had one green eye and one blue eye, but was smiling warmly. "We have a meeting there," she told Zell. "Would you know where it is?"

"That's a vampire bar," Zell stated obviously. "Are you two vampires?" He especially eyed Lulu.

"I'm only a quarter," Lulu answered. She looked at Yuna. "Come on. He obviously doesn't know WHAT he's doing."

"Of course I know what I'm doing!" Zell said. He grabbed the first thing on the shelf. "I'm here to buy..." he looked down at the bag. "Stayfree ultra thin maxi - OH HYNE!!" He dropped it immediately as if he had burned his hand and turned bright red.

Lulu merely sighed and shook her head as she walked away. Yuna bowed slightly and ran after Lulu.

"Psst...AHAHAHAHAHA!!" A chorus of laughter came from Fujin and Raijin as they leaned over the cart, laughing hysterically as Zell finally realized what isle he was in.

Fujin had tears in her eye as she held her stomach and shook her head. Raijin was even worse, about ready to double over in laughter. "Didn't you know? It's the feminine hygiene products, ya know!" Raijin laughed.

"Tell," Fujin laughed, still in tears. "Others!"

Zell looked around the isle, slowly walking in a circle as the harsh reality hit him. His hands balled into fists at his sides. "Shut up!" he yelled "I didn't know! I thought they were buying supplies for their mission! Not... not pads and tampons!" he shouted.

The other two desperately tried to regain their composure, as Zell stormed out of the isle. "So...sorry!" Fujin snickered. She and Raijin were still snickering, as they would be the entire ride back to the pent house.

"Can we just go!?" Zell snapped impatiently. He made a bee line to the register. *This is just great...when Seifer hears about this, it won't end...*

Back at the apartment, Rinoa sat down on the chair next to Quistis. Her eyes were wide open, filled with shock. "I can't believe that..." Rinoa whispered quietly. "But it makes so much sense..."

"It explains why Adel was never effected during the wars," Quistis said, removing her glasses and placing them on the table. "Her businesses never suffered. Her labs and factories never targeted."

Rinoa shook her head. "It's all because she's Ultimecia's younger sister..." The brunette ran a hand down her face, still unable to believe it. "That means that Adel is also a vampiric sorceress."

"Yes," Quistis nodded. "But she's never been known to openly drink blood."

"But her factories and labs..." Rinoa argued. Quistis nodded.

"Exactly...they produce artificial blood...more pure than human blood and sell it to vampires," Quistis explained. "Now we know her reason."

"Do you think her vampire blood was diluted like Ultimecia's?" Rinoa asked.

Quistis leaned forward. "Now, that's where I think it's wrong," the blond said. "If Adel's vampiric blood was diluted like Ultimecia's, wouldn't Adel's level of magic be as high as Ultimecia's?"

"But it is, isn't it?" Rinoa asked. "I mean Ultimecia was once one of the greatest sorceresses of all time. Adel is currently one of the greatest."

Quistis smiled and nodded. "But, Rin, tell me...how did she get that powerful?"

Without thinking, Rinoa immediately answered. "She consumed the magic of...other sorcerers..." Rinoa's eyes went wide and Quistis nodded. "Oh my Hyne...Adel was consuming sorcerers' magic so she could strengthen her own magic because it's not her vampiric blood that's diluted...it's her sorcerer blood!"

"Perfect, isn't it?" Quistis asked. "It makes complete sense now..."

"But that still doesn't explain her motives for wanting to open the gate." Rinoa pointed out.

"I'm only part way through the book," Quistis said, tapping the pages gently with a pencil. "I'm hoping to find more."

"Humph! And my father said we found nothing!" Rinoa snorted. *Take that, old man!*

Quistis smiled slightly. "We'll explain to the others later. And since we're no longer on the mission, we don't have to report it."

"And so the other team won't have this sort of information..." Rinoa grinned. *Once again, take that, old man!*

Quistis laughed. "Rinoa, I can hear your thoughts pretty clearly." Rinoa blushed sheepishly.

"Sorry...it's just that after all that happened last night with my father..."

"It's understandable," Quistis agreed. "But you know it's just because he cares. As strangely as he might show it."

"I just hope he doesn't try to pull anything else..." Rinoa sighed.

Quistis nodded and heard her computer beep. She turned to her monitor and read the message saying that all her files had been saved. That reminded Quistis of something. "Rinoa, I found something strange in the files I downloaded from the laboratory."

"Is about my clones?"

"That's the thing," Quistis said, turning back around on her chair to look at Rinoa. "For some reason, it says that your DNA has been processed, but you yourself weren't actually cloned."

"Then what was?" Rinoa asked. "Just my genes or what?"

Quistis didn't know how to tell Rinoa. Her eyes darted around in front of her, trying to find the best words, but shook her head when she found none. "The DNA that they used was used to clone not your whole self..." Quistis began. She took a deep breath. "According to the lab notes, the only thing cloned was your heart."

Brown eyes went wide as Rinoa pulled back, lifting her hands to chest, as if shielding her beating heart. "My...heart?" Rinoa asked quietly. "But how...how can it live without...you know... the rest of me? That's impossible, isn't it?"

Before Quistis could answer, another voice did. "It is possible."

At the sound of that voice, Rinoa and Quistis both jumped off their chairs. They looked to the door way and found Squall standing there, somewhat hidden in the darkness of the hall way. Quistis immediately dimmed the lights and turned them off, leaving only the red light for Rinoa's photo lab on.

"Squall..." Rinoa whispered quietly. "Did you...see it?"

Squall stepped into the small room and nodded his head slightly. "When I was brought before Adel, there was this room lined from top to bottom with glass cylinders filled with dark blue liquid," Squall told them. "I told you earlier...in the Ragnarok...what choice she gave me."

"Yes..." Rinoa nodded. "Irvine even said he would've done the same thing."

"As did Seifer." Quistis added. She felt a warm heat on her cheeks and hoped that the other two wouldn't notice in the dark.

"When Adel told me, she made her point clear with a...visual..." Squall explained. He closed his eyes, replaying the memory in his mind. "She took a cylinder from the wall and opened the top. As soon as she removed the lid, I knew it was blood inside. The dark blue liquid immediately turned red and she put her hand inside," He looked Rinoa straight in the eyes. "She pulled out a clone of your heart, Rinoa...and it was still beating."

The smell of iron filled the room as the creature lifted up a heavy ring in her hands. It's carved lion had been worn over time, but it still retained it's beauty. She slipped it on her thin finger, tipped with a long sharp nail.

"The first heart." she said.

The vampire standing before her nodded and walked to metal case. He opened it and revealed six glass cylinders in a row. He lifted the first one and carried it to Adel.

She took the cylinder from the vampire's pale hands as he kept his head bowed and his green eyes lowered to the floor. Slowly she unscrewed the lid and threw it to the side. Reaching her pale arm into the warm liquid, she pulled out the first of many still beating hearts from the cylinders.

Adel smiled, opening her mouth to reveal a long, pointed set of fangs. Lifting the beating heart, that still pumped out blood, to her lips she sank her teeth into it. Red liquid oozed out of it's new wound as Adel closed her eyes and drank the heart dry.

Suddenly she stopped. Her eyes narrowed as she tore the half consumed heart off her teeth and held it in her hand. "What is this...?" she hissed.

The metal cylinder dropped to the floor, spilling out the rest of it's bloody contents as she glared at the heart and pierced it with her long finger nails before throwing it aside. She ordered for another cylinder and repeated the motions.

Adel threw that heart away as well. "Are you SURE you used the blood of the sorceress!?" she growled.

"Yes, Madam," the white haired vampire said humbly. "It has been tested and was a match."

"There is no magic in these hearts..." Adel hissed bitterly. Her eyes narrowed as they began to glow red with fury. She strode over to the case and grabbed another cylinder, only to find that the heart within carried no magic.

Now filled with rage, Adel tore through the other cases, finding that each heart, while cloned from Rinoa's blood, was vacant of magic. As anger swept threw her, she threw the cases around violently before raised her hand, an explosive energy attack collecting there.

Behind her, the white haired vampire, slipped into the safety of a the shadows as his mistress began to blow up all the cases, sending metal, glass, and blood everywhere. Soon, the once white marble room was glistening with a fresh coat of sorceress blood as a furious Adel stood in the center, her eyes narrowed.

"Sephiroth!" she yelled out angrily.

"Yes, madam?" a calm voice asked as the white haired vampire once again melted from the shadows and bent down on one knee before Adel. The blood touched the edges of his black clothes as he knelt there.

"Find me another sorcerer for the time being!" she growled viciously. She whirled around, the long train of her dress following behind her. "Before the Blood Moon, I will CONSUME the magic of the Heartilly sorceress myself!"

The vampiric sorceress left the room, her train dragging behind and leaving a trail of blood behind her. Sephiroth looked up slowly and smiled as he pulled out a the glimmering blade of a katana. A wicked look on his face, he melted back into the shadows and prepared for his hunt.