Note: I am going to say that I own Final Fantasy VIII so that when they sue me for copyright infringement I can counter sue for mental anguish and suffering. I will make millions! And then I will buy Final Fantasy VIII. Don't tell me it won't work. It will.
PLEASE NOTE THIS CHAPTER IS KINDA STEAMY. I AM RASING THE RATING FOR THIS CHAPTER TO R.
I Forgot Your Name
By Kupo
Chapter Twelve: Finger Food
--Balamb Garden, 3F Office.
Squall sat stiffly at his large mahogany desk, his lips pressed together tightly. On his left was a small and neat stack of treatises, contracts, and other miscellaneous Garden documents bearing his signature. In front of his rested the day's final document, a negotiation between Esthar and SeeD for protection of high-ranking officials during the nation's 300th year celebration. It was a tall order, two Rank A SeeDs to each official, and Squall didn't like it.
Old men… government is so corrupt, no wonder they are afraid to go out in public. Despite all my father—despite all Laguna's reforms… there are many under him who try to undermine his authority…
Tired of debating the pro's and con's of the situation, Squall decided that it would be best to agree with Esthar for now, the country was already in a state of great disarray as word began to leak out of Laguna's accident and subsequent mystery surrounding what could have happened. The rumor was that a political radical had followed Laguna up Mt. Cloud and pushed him over the edge when Laguna bravely refused to put his signature to a document releasing a dubious gang leader from prison.
At least no one has found out what really happened… or what didn't happen… up there…
As he uncapped his pen, there was a buzz from the phone on his desk. Putting down the pen, he pressed the red intercom button.
"Yes Xu, what is it?"
"Sir, Rinoa is here to see you."
"Go ahead and send her in, I'm almost done here anyway," Squall replied, then released the button and pushed back his chair. Rinoa had not stopped by the office for several days, which was uncommon. Ever since the defeat of Ultimecia, they had fallen into somewhat of a pattern that worked for both of them. Rinoa had made it known many times that while she did not oppose SeeD or what they stood for, she had no desire to join or become one. So while Squall and the others were at work she would involve herself in causes for those who needed help in the community. He had always been proud of the way she gave so selflessly of herself to others.
But lately the routine had changed. Since he had brought her home from Centra, her whole demeanor had changed. It was in no way threatening, and thank Hyne that those strange fits had seemed to have stopped… but Squall felt like something was a little off. She had always been so talkative. It was one of the things that he had hated at first, but grew to love and look forward to. Now she was much quieter, preferring to let others guide the conversation, to sit back, listen, observe.
She's been through a lot too, Squall. Don't forget that. She just needs time to regroup. She needs to know that there are people there supporting her all the time, people who love and trust her. This proves that things are getting back to normal, I bet she's even brought something to eat, just like she used to…
The door opened with a muted click and Rinoa stepped smoothly into the room. Squall's breath caught in his throat and he found himself frozen, halfway risen from his seat. Rinoa had pulled her hair back from her face and it was pinned to the top of her head, falling in gentle curls and waves about the sides of her face and the back of her neck. She wore a low-cut black lace halter top, and a two-layered black skirt, one layer black fabric and the top layer some sort of black silk. Two high-heeled black shoes completed the stunning ensemble, and Squall found himself speechless.
Rinoa smiled easily and shrugged.
"I felt like dressing up."
Pulling his eyes away from her body, he met her gaze.
"Rinoa… you look great—I mean, you look really great. I didn't expect you to come here looking, um, so nice… if anything, I thought you were, uh, just bringing over some lunch," he said quickly, mentally berating himself for stuttering and for losing so much of his poise.
One sexy woman in front of my desk and all that SeeD training goes right out the window…
Rinoa continued to hold his eyes with hers as she shrugged.
"Who says I have not brought anything to eat?" she asked playfully, and pulled a small bag out from behind her back. "Now sit down, I will get everything all ready."
Squall lowered himself back down to his chair and watched as Rinoa pulled different cartons from the bag and set them down carefully on his desk. She sat down on the opposite side, facing him. Squall smiled.
"Hey Rin… I'm gonna go grab some plates, ok?" he explained as he stood up. Rinoa rose with him.
"No Squall, it is alright… sit back down," she said with a sparkle in her eyes. Squall felt the beginnings of a worried frown cross his features, but he did as she had asked. Rinoa moved from her side of the desk to his and pushed his chair back slightly. She slowly lowered herself onto his lap and wrapped one arm around the back of his neck. Softly she kissed his cheek and whispered into his ear.
"I will just feed you myself… if that is alright with you…?"
Squall swallowed thickly, still in a somewhat of a stupor. She was so close to him, he could smell her soap and her shampoo. Her chest, so close to his face, rose and fell softly with each breath. He could feel himself start to blush furiously.
Oh Hyne… is this really happening? This is so not like the normal Rinoa… but who am I to complain?
"Rinoa…" he breathed quietly, looking into her eyes. Rinoa didn't give him the chance to look as long as he would have liked, for she pulled his face close to hers and locked him in a deep kiss. When they parted for a breath, Rinoa flashed him a seductive smile.
Taking the initiative this time, Squall drew her to him and held her tightly. He could feel her fingers in his hair as he deepened the kiss and could also feel his own subsequent reaction to this intimacy. He shifted her on his lap so that she was straddling him, never breaking their intense kisses. Rinoa quietly moaned his name and Squall could take it no longer. With one sweep of his arm, all the carefully stacked papers and all the food Rinoa had brought with her fell to the floor below. Putting a strong hand to each side of her waist, he lifted her from his lap and onto the bare desk. Her skirt had ridden up to her thighs and he pushed it higher. Rinoa tugged at his shirt and he helped her to pull it over his head. He could feel her smiling under his kisses, which she returned with a great passion that he hadn't realized existed.
They had made love before. Many times, in fact. The first time had been the night he had asked her to marry him. However, in the past few weeks he had not attempted to proposition her because of all the strange happenings, and she had seemed to have no interest in any intimacy either. This was a welcome, and wanted, change.
He slid his hands from her thighs to the bottom of his shirt. Running his hands up her sides, he peeled the top from her body and over her head. Her hair had fallen from its carefully pinned style and cascaded around her. He felt her hands at his waist, pulling on the buckles. Once she had undone them, he stepped out from his pants. With his hands on her shoulders, he slowly pushed her down so her back was pressed to the desk. He could feel an intense energy coming from her, and he wanted to be a part of it… a part of her. And so they became one.
Rinoa… I love you so much
--TWO HOURS LATER
Squall lay on the floor, his head resting on Rinoa's bare chest. His hair clung to his damp forehead. He could feel Rinoa's fingers in his hair, twirling the strands slowly. He lifted himself from her and rested on his elbows, looking at her. She looked back at him, her dark eyes deep and intense.
"Rinoa?"
"Mmm?"
"What was that? Not that it wasn't great- it was! But what happened? I've never known you to be like that, you know?" he asked, genuinely curious. He watched in surprise as her eyes filled with tears.
"Squall, I know I have not been… very well lately. I just wanted to make sure that you knew how much I love you, and how much I need you…"
Moved by her explanation and her tears, Squall leaned forward and kissed her cheek where a tear had streaked across it.
"Rin… I love you more than anything else on this earth… I know I'm not always very good at showing it, but… I need you too." He said tenderly. With a wink he added "But I also need my clothes… Let me sign one more paper and then we can get out of here a little early for the day. What do you say?" he asked, as he pulled on his rumpled pants.
Rinoa nodded and pulled on her skirt and halter top, and then crossed the floor to stand behind him while he pulled the unsigned document between Esthar and SeeD from the mess on the floor.
"What is that one about?" she asked.
"This? It's a contract for SeeD to protect the old Esthar government cronies during the celebration of Esthar's founding," he explained, signing his name to the document.
"It sounds important."
"Well, yes it a way it is. It's very important for us to keep the peace whenever possible," he replied, pleasantly surprised in the interest Rinoa was taking in his work. He stood and scanned the room, looking for his shirt.
"I will bring it to Xu for you, since I am already dressed," she said with a small smile. Squall nodded and handed her the document, and she turned and left the room with it. Squall resumed his search for his shirt, and eventually found it under his desk. Pulling it over his head, he smiled slightly.
What was that?
--Void.
Rinoa sat in the darkness, her face in her hands, her back to the strange window into the real world. She had watched in horror as Squall had fallen to the charms of her imposter… and as they had begun to make love.
Should I feel betrayed? Squall thinks that's me…but why can't he tell the difference? Doesn't he know me well enough?
Hoping that it was over, she turned back to the mirror. She found herself looking at Squall as he stared into the false Rinoa's eyes. She heard him ask her what was different, and for a moment she believed that he had realized something was wrong. However, he seemed satisfied by the reason he was given. She watched for a few more minutes as they talked, and then Squall handed her the contract between Esthar and Garden.
Rinoa felt anger rise within her as she watched Squall lean down and kiss her softly on the lips, but the anger turned to dismay when the strange window followed the false Rinoa out of the room and into the hallway.
I want to see Squall…
She watched as "Rinoa" paused outside Squall's door to read the document carefully, a smile playing on her lips. With a nod, she folded the paper and entered the door directly on her right, Xu's office.
Xu stood and held out her hand.
"Rinoa, you've got the contract? Great! This needs to be send out tonight and I'm way behind in the paperwork… Do you mind running down the briefing room and letting the SeeDs chosen for the mission to be ready to go for 6 am tomorrow? I wrote down all their names, so really all you have to do is read them off." Xu explained with an apologetic smile. "I hate to make you run errands, but it would be such a big help…"
Rinoa watched as her imposter smiled and said it would be no problem to run down and read off the names, she was headed in that direction anyway. She took the list and exited Xu's office. As she walked down the hall, she appeared to read the 6 names on list, and her lips curved upwards into a cruel grin, which disappeared from her face when she reached the briefing room. Looking every bit the innocent helpful Rinoa, she paused outside the door and spoke quietly to herself.
"If the SeeD was not able to notice the difference, there is no way that these fools will either…"
Rinoa watched in surprise as her double turned and seemed to look directly at her.
"Don't you know what's going on yet? Don't you know who I am? Why I have done what I have done? Squall will never leave me, I just proved it. I can make anyone my loyal servant, but he will be one of my finest. And now, Rinoa… If you will excuse me, that is… I have a war to begin."
With a final smile at the true Rinoa, the other turned and entered the room where the six SeeD sat, awaiting their orders. As the window into the real world turned dark, Rinoa sank to her knees again.
What can I do? How can I fight? Oh, Squall…help me. I'm all alone…
Ok, there we go. That was my very first attempt at writing anything remotely sexual, so if you gotta flame me about it, please don't be too mean or I will cry *puppy dog eyes* I know this chapter didn't have too much action-action in it, its kinda like the last breath before the plunge into the big issue at hand. I really wanted to reinforce the idea that Squall isn't going to leave Rinoa, and that this weird possessed Rinoa is very, very good at fooling everyone. And I suppose that if you can fool someone when you're that intimate with them, you can fool almost anyone, right? And she's sneaky too! And no worries, I will explain exactly who she is in the next chapter, so be patient! But enough from me, it's time for my thank you's!!
squeakychris- Wahoo! I am so glad that you liked it. I am really trying to keep everyone in character, and sometimes it is so hard. Hope this one was good =)
Cusp of a Butterfly- Hehe, I hope you got to stay up late and read this one, too. I'm glad that you weren't confused by the whole "watching yourself" thing either. Let me know what you think of this one =P
Karla3- OMG, monkey hugs! For me?!?!?! *so happy she dies* And you gave me one of the nicest, well-rounded reviews I have ever gotten. Really. After reading it, I really felt happy, and I'm glad to think that I've grown as a writer! Come back from Queensland so that you will update and then I can write YOU good reviews. Yay for monkeys!
Noacat- You loved it? *gets teary eyed* I feel so special! And ya, it's gonna start getting sad soon! I will be crying right along with you. I hope that you liked this one =)
Evan'sRinoa- Hehe, well at least for now, I would say that you don't have to worry about Rinoa dying. It's not in the cards as I see the story right now… just hope that I don't' get writers block and need some kind of action to happen *wink* Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter =D
DemonRyu- Heyhey, thank you! You know, if I do decide to go in that direction, you win the award for being most perceptive, hehe. And I agree with what you said, she really is above and beyond most of them. Please review and let me know what you think, ya? =)
eDSta- Hehe. I loved Kingdom Hearts, too. I'm glad you like the mystery in it, sometimes I worry that people will lose interest if I make it too dark. Was this one any good? =P
You guys make me so happy when you review. Please everyone keep reviewing, it absolutely makes my day and keeps me motivated =)
Next up: WAR!!!!!!!
