Hunted By The Shadows
Chapter Thirteen
The blinding light streamed into the room, straining his eyes as he opened them. Groggily he sat up from his bed and yawned. He hadn't got much sleep last night since Rinoa had come around, but for that he was grateful in a way, it stopped the dreams lasting all night and his attempts to stay awake were spent with someone else to concentrate on. She had come to his home last night, crying and scared. He couldn't just throw her out could he? A sudden thought entered his mind, now she knew everything about him that he didn't want her to know. She read the article, worked out that Ellone was his sister. He could have denied it, made her believe that he didn't know about this girl. The girl was his sister, the only family he cared about. The biggest secret he kept, now known. What made it worse was that he admitted the dreams. Spoke about the past. He hated himself for telling Rinoa about it, yet at the same time felt a weight lift from his shoulders. Inside, a part of him had been yearning to have someone to tell his past to for so long. Someone to tell whom he knew wouldn't judge him. Yet at the same time he was angry with himself. He hadn't even known Rinoa that long. What if she betrayed him?
A feeling of hatred ran through his veins as the thought entered his mind. What if she blamed him, threw him away when he was weak and vulnerable? Just like his father did. Took him to an orphanage far away, the only memories he had of his sister was one photograph and the drawings he had stolen from her room before he was sent away. He hated his father for that; at the time he was only eight years old. His father had a breakdown; he couldn't even look Squall in the eyes as he saw him the last time before he was taken to the Orphanage. Laguna Loire. He was only supposed to have a small break, the orphanage was only supposed to be temporary. But he never came back.
The sound of someone's breathing behind him caught his attention. He turned around as the thoughts of last night came back to him. Squall had offered to take her back home, but when he mentioned it she seemed to get scared again. She pleaded him not to leave her alone. He couldn't help but stay with her like she asked him to, the terrified look in her eye was too much for him. He let her stay the night; let her sleep in his bed. And when he was going to walk away to sleep on the sofa she pulled him back. Wanted him to watch over her, at least until she fell asleep.
The thoughts came back to him again, those thoughts that were changing him, twisting his mind. Making him help her. Once she was asleep, he couldn't leave her. Couldn't pull himself away, as if he was frozen in that position. He watched her sleep peacefully at first, and then when the dreams came, it was just like in Trabia. He had held her, like she had held him when she found out about Ellone. He had held her trying to make the fear go away. He was going to leave as soon as she settled down, but as soon as she settled down he found himself relaxing next to her. So he fell asleep.
Looking down on her fragile sleeping form now, he suddenly felt the need to quietly slip away. So she would never know that he cared for her so much. Rinoa should never know his weakness around her. Standing up from the bed he made his way to the door.
"Squall...?"
Crap. He turned around to see her sleepy form looking up at him from the bed which she lay in. Her hair fell loosely on the pillow as she turned her head to the side with a smile on her face as she studied him closely. Squall looked around the room quickly trying to think of a reasonable excuse at why he would be in the room.
"Sorry, did I wake you?" he said, feeling like an idiot. "I just needed to get something."
He watched as Rinoa giggled, obviously finding some humour in his current situation. Feeling uncomfortable at her watching him, he made his way towards the door, hoping Rinoa would accept his excuse.
"Aren't you going to get this 'something' you came in here for then?"
Squall stopped in his tracks thinking for a moment, he needed another excuse quickly. Looking down at his watch he turned back to her. "I... just got my watch while you were asleep." Grabbling the door handle he quickly made his way out the door and away from her, hoping that maybe she didn't think he was some sort of stalker.
Making his way through the main room of his apartment he let a relieved sigh escape his lips. He looked down at a picture of Ellone on the coffee table. Picking it up in his hands he studied the photograph, her smiling face gazing back at him. Putting it back down on the messy pile, he began tidying up all of the articles he had collected.
The click of his bedroom door opening made him turn to face Rinoa. "I guess I better get back soon," she said softly "I promised Amy I'd help her out in the library this morning and I need a shower."
He watched as she spoke with a smile. The actions were so simple, yet it amazed him how she could change so quickly. He knew that all the dreams were starting to scare her, but she always managed to act as though nothing bothered her. Something that he could never do.
"Thank you again, Squall. I know it must be a pain having to put up with me turning up and expecting things from you all the time," she said sadly as she stepped closer to him, "You're the only one who I feel safe with."
She watched as he turned to her, a look of understanding in his eyes. He wouldn't say anything, nor did she expect an answer. "I'll see you later," she said before leaving his apartment, a new feeling of security inside her.
The library was quiet as usual. It was a place Rinoa liked to help out at when she had nothing better to do, usually to keep Amy company when it wasn't busy. Placing a few books on the shelves in the small library she turned around when she heard a familiar loud voice. She saw Zell energetically embracing Amy as soon as he walked through the entrance.
Rinoa walked up to them. "Hi," she beamed.
Zell turned to her. "Rinoa," he enthusiastically yelled, before gripping her tightly in a hug. "How have you been?"
"I'm okay," Rinoa said hoping that Zell would let her out of his deathly grip sometime soon.
She sighed in relief as he finally let go and took a step back. "I hear you've been in Trabia with Squall," he winked.
Rinoa nodded, then suddenly felt the lava rise to her cheeks as she saw Zell's reaction. "Not like that," she replied giving him a playful hit on the arm, "It was a trip as friends," she said not wanting to give the real reason. In truth she didn't want to think about her visit to Trabia anymore. It was something that scared her just thinking about it. Hearing those words come out of Selphie's mouth, seeing her face. It was something that sent a chill down her spine.
She quietly left the happy couple, and continued to put the books back on various shelves as she felt those words cut deep inside her again. Not now, she had a new plan to help Squall and herself figure this out together. Maybe after today they would have more clues. There could be a stop to all this.
A man sat silently at a table reading through some books. She took a few steps closer realising it was Squall. "You crept in here quietly," she said standing next to the table.
"You were talking to your friends," he stated seriously.
Smiling slightly she took a seat next to him, "I've got some good news for you," she said "You remember that journalist Selphie was talking about? I phoned her up this morning. Her name's Quistis Trepe and I think she can help us."
Squall looked at her for a moment. Taking note that he was concentrating on her instead of his books she continued. "She said she'd get the first train here. Squall she'll be here in the afternoon to help us."
"What did you say to her to make her come here so urgently?" he asked suspiciously.
Rinoa looked away from Squall for a moment, she knew he would probably think it was a stupid idea. "I told her I have the dreams and that I'm probably going to be next," she didn't even need to see the look Squall was giving her. She could feel it, like it was burning two holes in the side of her head. "It's a risk I'm willing to take for more information. We made a deal. I tell her everything that's happened to me, and she'll give me all her information. I think she knows more than us, Squall. It can help you find out what really happened to your sister."
Daring herself to look back up, she was met with his angry gaze. "Did you tell her about me?" he asked, his voice deadly cold.
"No," she said shaking her head. "I don't want you involved in this. She agreed to keep my name confidential in her work, so this is my risk. I'll see you after she's gone to tell you everything she has told me."
His stare softened slightly at the words that he wasn't getting involved but he was still concerned about all of this. This journalist could easily lie and anything could happen to Rinoa. He was worried. Squall looked at Rinoa in silence for a moment before speaking again. "Let me come with you."
She looked back at him, slightly startled by his sudden decision. "I thought you would have wanted to stay out of this, which is why I didn't get you involved."
"I don't trust journalists," he said turning back to his books, "and I don't want you saying too much to her."
Rinoa looked at him disappointed. Did he really not trust her? Sighing to herself she decided that she would feel more comfortable with Squall there anyway. "Okay, meet me at the train station at three o' clock."
The squeaking halt of a train coming to a stop echoed throughout the train station. A moment later, the hiss of the train doors opened, and passengers poured out. Among the many passengers a blonde haired woman with icy blue eyes scanned the platform. Rinoa studied the blonde woman for a moment, noticing no other passengers seemed to be looking for anyone, so decided to approach her.
"Quistis Trepe?" she asked approaching the woman cautiously. Her long blonde hair was held back neatly in a clip, with only the two strands falling loosely at the front. She wore a black skirt and jacket with a white blouse underneath.
Quistis turned to the direction of the voice to be greeted by a raven- haired woman. "You must be Rinoa," she said holding her hand out politely and Rinoa shook her hand. "Thank you for getting in touch with me," she said, examining Rinoa.
Looking over the raven-haired girls shoulder she studied a man standing closely behind her, a grave look in his eye. "A friend of yours?" she asked turning back to Rinoa.
Rinoa glanced quickly behind her shoulder, "Yeah," she stated, "This is Squall."
Politely Quistis held her hand out for Squall to shake, but was rudely presented with a cold look. "You're here to talk to Rinoa and give us some more information then?"
"Ah yes," she said ignoring his cold looks, "Is there anywhere more comfortable to go than standing in the train station to talk?"
Rinoa nodded and gestured for Quistis to follow her, giving Squall an angry glare noticing how impolite he was being. Briskly, the three made their way towards Rinoa's apartment. The journey didn't usually seem that long, but today however, it seemed a lot longer than usual. Rinoa came to the conclusion that it was probably due to nerves of having Quistis visiting her. Also it didn't help with the awkward silence roaming.
Relief spread through her senses as she approached her apartment and opened her door wide to let the two guests inside. Quistis sat on an armchair, leaving Rinoa and Squall to sit on the sofa together. She watched as Quistis took out a small notebook and pen out of her expensive looking leather handbag. "It's alright if I make notes for research purposes isn't it?" she asked politely as she saw the two watching her.
"Of course," Rinoa replied, shifting uncomfortably in her seat.
"I suppose I better tell you a bit more about myself," Quistis spoke "I guess it sounds strange to you at why I would be so interested in all this."
"About two years ago when I first became a journalist, the police wanted some help in an investigation they were running. I was in Balamb at the time, so the police force wasn't very big. They thought they had a serial killer on the loose, so they asked me to write an article in a local newspaper giving details on the deaths, in hopes that people would get in contact and help them with the investigation. At the time I didn't think much of it, after all it was one of my first jobs so I just did what I was told."
"It was when I was told more background information on the investigation that I realised how strange it was. They think that it's a copy of ritual killing. There's been so many of the same deaths over the last five hundred years, there are probably many more they still don't know about. Sometimes I would be told to go and visit the family and friends of those who had died, then write an article on them. They would show me things, diaries, drawings and so on. They told me about the dreams these people had before they were killed. It was so strange that they should all have similar experiences, almost as if the killer wasn't human."
She smiled at them knowingly, "So I've begun my own little investigation. I've moved up from Balamb and I want to reveal the truth about what is happening to these people. I believe that citizens should be able to know the truth instead of thinking that it's some serial killer."
"So you visit a lot of these victims then?" Rinoa asked.
Quistis nodded her head, "The last person I visited was Selphie, but I guess you already know that. I've always wanted to be able to speak to someone who is having these dreams. Maybe see if I can find out what makes it happen," she studied Rinoa a moment before speaking again "Anyway, enough about me. You're brave for coming to me; I know it must be hard for you. I assume you have these dreams?"
Rinoa nodded her head slowly, "Every night."
"What do you dream about?"
"The first time I had a dream, there was this strange looking person. I assume he was a man; it's hard to tell. He's got a hooded cloak on, so I can't see his face. He carries this short sword with him, which he stabs me with every night, but I always wake up just as he does it. It's got a strange symbol on... like some sort of eye."
Quistis made a few notes in her notebook, then looked back up to Rinoa, "Do you see anyone else there?"
"Just recently there's been a woman there. She has bright blue eyes with no pupils... she always looks at me, a strange look in her eyes. It scares me. Then she points to me, and the man runs to stab me with his sword."
"Anything else? Like anymore people around, or a scenery you know?"
Rinoa crossed her arms over her chest and looked towards the ground, "I'm in a cemetery. It was where my mother was buried. When it starts, I'm looking down at my mother's grave. It's like... watching her funeral all over again." She stopped for a moment to face Quistis, "Sorry, that's all I can really tell you."
"That's fine," she said with a reassuring smile. "Is there anything you want to know from me? Like the symbol for example?"
"You know more about the symbol?" Rinoa asked, feeling that maybe she had made the right decision in getting in contact with this journalist. She obviously knew a lot more information than they did.
"The symbol is similar to an ancient icon know as the 'Eye Of Faith'. About a thousand years ago it was a symbol given to those of bravery. Mainly warriors would be given this privilege when they proved themselves strong enough to which people thought Hyne had blessed them. These people were known as Holy Warriors, and once they had achieved this, they would get an 'Eye Of Faith' symbol engraved in their weapons to show others that they could protect them."
"Although, I haven't been able to prove that this is the symbol on the weapon used, as the symbol that's been presented to me so many times is slightly different. Where the 'Eye Of Faith' is simply and eye with a cross inside, this other symbol had a tear underneath and various patterns behind the cross. I've spoken to experts about the symbol and there's still a debate on it. Some believe that behind the cross it could represent a serpent, whereas others believe that it represents the smoke of evil."
"So it's like an evil version of the 'Eye Of Faith' then?" Squall said in thought.
"I guess that's one way of putting it," Quistis said. "I have a notion for you, Rinoa. I'd like you to take time to think about this for me, as I know you may not want to participate. I'd like to perform hypnotherapy on you, put you in a dreamlike state in better terms."
"No," Squall said callously. He didn't like where this conversation was leading.
"That was why I asked her to think about it before giving a definite answer," Quistis stated "I know it must sound cruel of me to want to do this, but I believe this will give us the opportunity to examine the dreams further and discover a reason behind them, maybe even stop them. During the dreamlike state I would like to monitor your heart and brain activity. It's perfectly safe, and if it gets too bad we'll be able to take you out of your dreams. I know people personally who can do this, so I assure you, you'll be in safe hands."
Rinoa sat quietly unsure of what to say. Did she really want to go this far? "I...-"
"Don't answer just yet," Quistis said cutting her off "Think about it for me."
Squall watched as Quistis stood from her seat and gathered her belongings. "You have my number if you want to get back to me," she said giving Rinoa a comforting smile. "I'll let myself out."
Silence passed between the two until the door had firmly shut. Rinoa thought for a moment before turning to Squall, who still sat beside her.
"I don't trust her," he stated coldly.
Authors note: Oh the suspense, eh? Okay, maybe we lied when we said this would be the last update for two weeks. Seriously now, this will be the last update for two weeks! So there you have it, hopefully a lot had been explained in these last two chapters. You finally know who it was in the first chapter (hopefully), it was Ellone! Now you know more about the symbol. Whoop! Only a few more chapters left, and things should be getting a lot more exciting! Please review! I updated super fast especially for all who read this... which appears to be only Dark Angels. Yes, you're getting thanked again! Thank you! (Alas, we have chapter titles!)