Angel
by Lady Pyrefly
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Chapter One-Warm Days
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"It's so hot!" Rinoa whined. She and the rest of her friends were all in the library because, ever since Garden's air conditioning broke, it had become the coolest place in the entire school.
"We know it's hot, Rin. Complaining won't make it any cooler," Squall snapped.
"Hey! Don't talk to her like that!" Seifer commanded. He had been a little protective of Rinoa ever since returning to Balamb a few weeks ago.
"Don't tell me what to do!"
"I'll tell you anything I want!"
At that moment, Edea walked up and asked quietly, "Is there a problem here boys?"
Quickly, Squall and Seifer backed off, and Irvine covered, saying, "No, it's just the heat makes everyone a little short tempered."
"I understand. It's a little crowded in here." That was an understatement. Half the Garden was either stuffed into the library, or packed into the hallway outside hoping for even the smallest draft of cool air. "Maybe you should go down to the beach," Edea continued, "It would probably be cooler than here."
"Why didn't we think of that?" Selphie wondered, before they all left.
Down at the beach, things weren't much better. As it turned out, the other half of the Garden that wasn't inside, was at the ocean, trying unsuccessfully to cool off.
Finally, after much searching, they found a spot all to themselves at the end of the coast. The sun beat down hard on Rinoa and her friends. Rinoa struggled to find a place to sit that would give her at least partial coverage from the sunlight.
Eventually, however, she gave up. "If I can't stay away from the heat, I might as well work on my tan."
So Rinoa took of her blue overshirt, and everyone couldn't help but stare. Underneath the blue shirt, Rinoa wore a black halter, and on her back were jagged scars from an injury long ago.
"Rinoa! What happened to your back?" Squall asked.
Rinoa half-smiled and said, "They don't call me Angel for nothing."
"What do you mean?" Zell asked, oblivious as usual.
Quistis answered, "In common mythology, when an angel reveals its wings, they rip the skin and leave scars on the angel's back. But I don't think that's what happened to Rinoa. Zell! Are you listening to me?"
Zell, who actually wasn't listening, didn't respond. He was too busy punching the air. Rinoa did, "No, I got these scars when my mom died." There was a certain finality in her tone, so the others didn't question further.
The Angel sat back on the warm sand, and she remembered...