Author's Note: Sorry for the last two 'blah' chapters. I was just trying to get everything in place before I move the story forward. I'll make up for it with this chapter!—I hope. And no Skurai, I don't hate Rinoa. In the game she seemed so helpless to me, it was irking. So thus I gave her power!
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Chapter Ten: Revelation
"Did you miss me?" The voice crooned.
Squall didn't bother to answer. He saw the figure in the reflective surface walk towards him. The faint scent of jasmine flowers flowed with the familiar grace that Squall knew belonged to the black haired sorceress—even though he had yet to look directly at her.
The ends of her faded blue robes came into view of Squall's downcast eyes. He turned his head away to fixate his dulled gaze on a different blue; the blue of the free sky outside the window.
Rinoa watched intently, noticing the strange mark on Squall's forehead when he shifted his gaze. She moved to him and raised a hand up to graze his cheek. Rinoa softly coaxed the brunet's face to look at her, so that her dark eyes could examine the blood red scar slashing diagonally between Squall's paled gray eyes. The gentle smile she had been wearing vanished at once, "What happened?"
Squall mentally sighed—out of both annoyance and relief. He was irritated by the fact that Rinoa was making a big deal out of something as insignificant as a scar. But he also was thanking the crazy prince who had made it because of the way Rinoa almost looked appalled at the sight was priceless.
After a moment of silence, where Squall supplied no answer, Rinoa backed away and glared towards the doorway. "Fujin!"
The white haired girl from before looked up from her position against the stonewall near the curtained passage. She arched a questioning eyebrow at the sorceress' less-than-friendly tone of voice.
"What happened to his face?" Rinoa demanded.
Fujin lifted one shoulder in a lazy shrug then apathetically stared towards the windows.
Rinoa narrowed her eyes threateningly at Fujin, "If you don't know that, then you can at least tell me where you found him."
Fujin spared the sorceress a brief, empty glance. She lifted a hand and began to examine her nails in an unconcerned manner. "Quarry."
"How did he get there!?" Rinoa fumed.
"Walked," Fujin answered sardonically but with a dead serious expression.
Squall watched the exchange from behind his mental wall of ice. He thought the answers to the questions would have been quite obvious. It was Seifer who always made the threats and tried to aggravate Rinoa whenever the opportunity came. Even Squall could pick up on the dangerous tension between the two cousins. And judging by the way Rinoa looked about ready to kill, Squall assumed the prince had succeeded in infuriating the sorceress.
And how? By slashing my face? All of that was just to win some stupid power game?
Squall felt the ice in his mind melt from a burning anger that had suddenly taken flame. The scar on his forehead throbbed almost painfully with the new tide of emotion. He no longer held forgiveness for what Seifer had done. Squall just felt utterly bitter about being used.
"Of course he walked, I didn't expect him to ride around in my litter! I wanted to know who sent him there, you worthless bitch," Rinoa growled at the insolence. Fujin opened her mouth to speak but was cut off by Rinoa's upraised hand. "Silence. I don't want to hear you speak again. I know who sent him to the quarry, spare me your worthless reply."
Fujin seemed to hold back a sigh. Squall easily recognized the small pause of breath that he often found himself doing. He also noticed that the tension between these two was similar to the one between the sorceress and the prince. That only led Squall to believe that Fujin was not one of Rinoa's servants. Instead she had to be one of Seifer's; they both showed arrogance that was remarkably similar.
Fujin turned to exit, only to be stopped by Rinoa once again, "I didn't say you could leave. Tell me where that bull-headed cousin of mine is."
"Gone," Squall found himself saying aloud. His voice sounded hostile with the newfound outlook on the prince. Rinoa must have heard it because she smiled at him as if she had found an ally.
"I can only hope that by 'gone' you mean he is dead, but that is unlikely. Where did he go to, Velden perhaps?" Rinoa turned her attention to Squall while supplying him with possible answers.
Squall glanced towards the door where Fujin was glaring at him. He had expected the white haired servant to answer the question, but it seemed she was angry at him for telling Rinoa what little he had. Why was she surprised though? Squall didn't feel a sense of loyalty to Seifer, or to Rinoa. Actually he disliked them both and now was beginning to hope that they would kill one another and leave him out their petty fight.
He looked back at the expectant brown eyes that were urging him to respond. Squall complied after telling himself that there was no point in doing things halfway; that he should finish what he started. Squall also decided he wanted to answer Rinoa's question if only for the satisfying feeling of being against the prince instead of putting up with his antics, "He fled into the desert."
"Like the true coward he is," Rinoa commented thoughtfully. She smirked at Fujin while keeping her eyes keenly on Squall, "Do you happen to know why he ran?"
Squall nodded but felt apprehensive about explaining why. The way the sorceress' eyes shone with dark interest made him hesitate. How was he supposed to tell Rinoa that Seifer had left after killing a guard in order to save him? If she knew that, Squall was certain that he would be forced to remain a pawn for both the sorceress and prince.
Yet it was better that she received an answer from him instead of hearing it from someone else's lips. Other people would tell things that Squall would like to keep secret, "He killed one of the guards in the quarry."
Rinoa seemed pleased with the given information and did not press further. She retained her silence for a moment. Squall could practically see the wheels turning in her head. Whatever she was thinking it must have been pleasing because she was broadly smiling by the time she spoke.
"It's a pity that he isn't here. I brought back a gift for him," She gestured to a box on the table. Squall had not noticed it before since he was concentrating on the ice in his mind. Now that he looked, he became aware of the cold air the object emitted. It was a black box set in the middle of a low wooden table. Squall could sense the magical aura around the box and also could see a few symbols carved into the wooden sides.
Rinoa saw him analyzing the box and stepped close to him once more. She smiled up at his blank expression when their eyes met. "Do you know what that is?"
It's a box.
Squall kept the satirical comment to himself. He shook his head and look away. The coldness of the box seemed to sink into his skin. It wasn't the kind of icy touch that made a man shiver; this was more like the chilling touch of death. The very color of the box was disturbing to view—the un-faded black like that of raven feathers, the very symbol of death. It only strengthened Squall's dark thoughts about what was inside the box, not what the box itself was.
"Are you sure?" Rinoa chimed with a knowing grin.
Squall glanced from the box to the sorceress. His heart quickly jumped a few times before he was able to quelled his escalating alarm. The brunet shook his head again while keeping a straight face. On the inside his mind was telling him exactly what 'that' was.
It's an ice spell used with the power of Shiva. When it is casted on an object with snaring encryptions the spell becomes frozen until the object is broken. In this case, the ice spell will remain in effect until the box is opened.
"Hmm, maybe I'll tell you some other time," Rinoa mused and switched her attention to Fujin.
Squall felt his fingers twitching nervously at his sides. He crossed his arms to keep the shaking from climbing up his arms. Rinoa was testing him, trying to catch him off guard. But if she knew the truth, then what was the point of this dance they were performing?
"Fujin, I'm disappointed that you are not as useful as others led me to believe," Rinoa started in on the servant.
Her tone of voice drew Squall's attention. The brunet lifted his eyes to watch the two. He almost felt concerned for Fujin's sake. The white haired girl was maintaining an expression calmer than Squall was managing. Rinoa in turn had on a smug smile that rivaled Seifer's smirk.
"They had said you know everything that goes on in this castle. I was deceived if a man working in the quarry has more information than you," Rinoa paused to flash a small smile in Squall's direction. "Or maybe you knew and was holding back to help hide Seifer for the pitiful coward he is."
"Never," Fujin responding while swiping her arm through the air between herself and Rinoa. "Seifer is no coward."
"Hn, he sure runs like one," Rinoa boldly retorted. She brushed a few strands of black hair over her should and turned his backside towards the irate servant. "You are dismissed. I expect you to return before dinner is served. Until then do what you wish because I shall see to it personally that you will no longer work in the palace."
Wishful thinking, Squall thought while remembering how Seifer had told him the palace had no place for 'scarred' servants—yet here he was once again. He watched as Fujin left and Rinoa stood quiet in contemplation. His eyes then wandered back to the black box.
"He had no reason to leave," Rinoa broke his daze with her gentle tone.
Squall forced his attention back to the sorceress. He didn't want her to catch him staring. There was something meaningful in that box. But what could she store in a square container that he judged to be roughly the height from his elbow to his wrist?
The most powerful things usually come in small proportions, a distant memory whispered in Squall's mind. He remembered an old friend telling him that very phrase while handing him a wrapped object that barely filled the palm of his hand. But that felt like such a long time ago..
"He shall return. Give him time and he will come crawling back. Dirty and broken, but he will still come," Rinoa spoke but it sounded more like she was assuring herself. She walked towards the low table then sat on a couch situated alongside.
Squall couldn't seem to picture the prince coming back in the way Rinoa envisioned. He couldn't see the man doing anything that would humiliate himself. It seemed to be Seifer's way to be full of pride even when he was beaten. Even if the prince had been born a slave, the blonde would probably still have been as strong-willed.
"In the meanwhile I shall enjoy his things," Rinoa said more cheerfully. She rolled on the couch so she was lying on her stomach. She was grinning at Squall and almost appeared innocent in his eyes.
In front of the other people Squall noticed that Rinoa was vicious; always posed like a poisonous snake ready to strike. But when he was alone with her, Rinoa seemed friendlier, more human—at least when she wanted something from him. Squall didn't know if she dropped her shields because she trusted him, or was just playing innocent in hopes that he would trust her and answer those not-so-casual questions of hers.
Not likely.
"Except that servant girl of his. I have no use for her because of that pathetic loyalty she has to him," Rinoa continued to talk while tracing a finger in circles along the couch cushion. "No one should be that foolish. Seifer will only drag his loyal subjects down with him. Sit?"
Squall knew it wasn't an offer he could politely refuse. He stiffly walked over to a chair next to Rinoa's couch and sat. The sorceress smiled and propped her chin up on her hands to have a better view of the brunet. "People should learn to be more like me. I live for only myself, because you can't expect others to help get what you want in life. All you have in the end is yourself anyway. There is no use in trying to make a life that would be perfect for you and someone else, it never works out, that other person always sees things differently and want only what they want. The trick in life is to trust only those you need to trust."
Squall sparred Rinoa a tense glance. If she only trusted those useful to her, then why was she telling him? He was no one that could be of use. He hoped she would have no need for him. He was a no one. Just a slave. Nothing more. A slave. A no one.
"But even people like Fujin serve a purpose," Rinoa swung her legs over the edge and stood. "So I have on more use for that girl."
She drifted in front of Squall and leaned forward while planting her hands on his knees. She brought her face so Squall could smell the scented oils, and determine exactly where she had dabbed them onto her fair skin. He pressed back into the chair to avoid brushing noses with the sorceress.
Rinoa smiled and withdrew slightly, "But I need you to do something for me to make sure she serves her purpose."
Squall glanced down at the hand creeping up the inside of his leg but stopped around mid-thigh. Her fingers lingered on his lightly tanned skin, pressing faintly to let him know where they were. Squall shifted to push further back into the chair and lifted his blue-gray eyes to silently question the sorceress.
"What do I want you to do you ask? Well.." She showed her attractive smile while lifting away the trespassing hand. Gently she ran her index finger over the scar between Squall's eyes. "Since he scarred one of my servants.."
Squall couldn't believe what he was hearing. Rinoa was suggesting that he should go and attack Fujin, just to get even with that stupid cousin of hers? He would not be part of their game any longer. They would have to do their own dirty work.
"You can't expect others to help you get what you want," Squall icily repeated her earlier words.
Rinoa jerked backwards like the words were a slap across the face. She stared shocked with a partial gaping mouth. The look was soon covered with an angry glare. She turned her back on the brunet and faced the black box instead. "You're right. I guess I have to do everything by myself."
Squall pressed even further into the chair, wishing he could just disappear. He shouldn't have said that to Rinoa. She was different than Seifer. The prince would laugh, or retort with some sarcastic remark. Not the sorceress. Squall had seen plenty of people suffer after disrespecting Rinoa. She was the type to remain calm, then as soon as the person turned their back a dagger would find it's sheath in their side.
Rinoa calmly reached forward and traced her fingers along the top of the box. She then turned back to face Squall, "I thought you were different than that Squall. It seems in my short absence you have picked up on some of my cousin's deplorable habits. I was going to make you special too.."
Squall tensed as the sorceress stepped forward while stretching out her arm. She traced her fingers along his arm—his skin turned blue and frosted in the zigzag pattern she drew. Squall knew she had taken a small amount of power from the spell-snare box. The ice spell clung to her fingers, the ones she used to pass the frigid power onto his skin. Even though it was cold, it felt like fire to his senses.
As
soon as the blue appeared, it disappeared to leave Squall's arm untouched.
Rinoa smiled while Squall confirmed that the sorceress definitely knew his
secret—or at least one of them.
"I knew you were different
than the others. You are one of us," Rinoa eagerly explained, but
managed to keep the words from spilling past her lips.
Squall could only mentally wince at the way Rinoa used the term. He knew she didn't mean that he was one of the royalty, or noble people. She was talking about a completely different type of people.
"I could feel it that night, when I summoned Quezacotl. I felt your power along with mine. You must have as well because I did it so close to Zamir. It's because when one of us summons, both of us summon. All of us have someone who we are connected to, someone who we share our power with, someone who is our other half, our opposites."
Squall stared at the rambling woman. He was starting to think she was crazy by the way she was going on about this 'us' and other halves. He also knew that what she was saying wasn't a lie. She was speaking the truth, but it sounded so absurd—Just like it had the first time he had been told.
"I didn't believe you were my other half, so I had to test you. I cannot tolerate Shiva's powers, but you," Rinoa grabbed Squall's arm to examine where the blue lines had once been. "You are able to handle her cold power."
Squall pulled his arm away from Rinoa and tried to play deaf to her excited words. It all made perfect sense now, to why the sorceress had taken him from the quarry that day. Squall had spent years hiding who he was, denying and suppressing what magical abilities he had. He had done it for so long that he could no longer sense others that had the ability, so he thought they couldn't find him.
He didn't want to be what she was talking about. Squall was not a sorcerer..
"I always knew you were special, like me." Rinoa spoke, but was cut off by Squall's abrupt stand.
"I'm not like you.." he hissed in a voice barely higher than a whisper.
Rinoa looked thoughtful for a moment as she silently stared up at him. "Squall, don't be foolish now. I'm giving you the chance of a lifetime. If we stick together we can become unbeatable. It's not often that two halves find one another."
She sat herself back on the couch while observing Squall's distress, "Just think about the possibilities. I could become a High Priestess, and you High Priest. We could easily take over this land and rule it side by side. Perhaps even as husband and wife.."
Squall listened to Rinoa say the last phrases suggestively. He clenched his jaw tightly and crossed his arms over his chest. Even though the sorceress was beautiful, he couldn't find himself to be attracted because he knew of the ugly scales that hid beneath the outwards appearance. "I want nothing to do with you."
Rinoa let the smile fade from her lips as soon as she realized the proposition did not tempt Squall. She crossed one leg over the other and pressed her lips into a thin line. "You can't deny that we are the same."
Squall shook his head, "We're nothing alike."
"I suppose you are right," Rinoa faked a sigh then flashed a smile full of spite. "You are too weak in comparison to me."
"..Whatever," Squall kept his face as calm as possible.
"I gave you a chance Squall, I really did. I was even willing to overlook that hideous scar, but if you truly refuse me I have to let you go back to the pitiful existence in which I found you." Rinoa calmly stated.
Scowling, Squall turned his head aside while shifting his weight to the left foot. He didn't give a damn anymore. He didn't want to hear Rinoa stretching this issue any more than it should go. She could go talk to a wall for all he cared. Squall was not even going to consider this issue a problem. It would be ignored like everything else.
"You are dismissed, slave," Rinoa gestured towards the door. "And when the moment comes, expect no mercy."
Just like that?
Squall looked skeptically towards the door then headed out without a backwards glance. He knew this wouldn't be over. The sorceress he knew would never let something such as this slip through her fingers. Squall was going to pay, one way or another..
I don't care. I am not a sorcerer..
End Chapter.