Squall hadn't meant to fall asleep. He had wanted to stay awake, to watch over everyone. After all, you never know what could happen. SeeDs should always be prepared.
But it was so quiet in the forest, there wasn't so much as a sound, and Squall hadn't slept properly for a long time. He had been too proud to admit it, but deep down, he knew he wouldn't be able to stay awake all night.
He managed to keep his head full of thoughts for a few hours, keeping him awake. He also had that nagging feeling of guilt eating away at him inside. This was something he had never felt before…sympathy. If he had a choice, maybe he wouldn't take Rinoa to Caraway. She didn't seem dangerous, and he couldn't think of another reason Caraway would want her brought to him. Sure, he had his doubts, but a mission was a mission, and he was a SeeD. He would do what he had to. That's what he'd always done.
After a few hours, his mind became free from all thoughts, and he slowly drifted off to sleep, unable to keep his eyes open any longer.
Rinoa picked up on this. She had begun to worry that he wouldn't fall asleep, that he'd stay awake all night keeping an eye on her. She had been lying there now for hours, and she was finding it difficult to keep up the pretence of sleeping.
Slowly, she lifted her head, being careful not to wake Squall. There was no perceivable change in his breathing and his eyes remained shut. Satisfied that he was still asleep, she stood up as silently as she could, and began to walk away from the group of SeeDs.
There was a cold wind biting at her skin, causing her to shiver. She put Squall's jacket on and stared back at him, pangs of guilt flowing through her.
"He's going to get in trouble for this, isn't he?" she thought. She had heard that SeeD punishments were harsh and didn't want anything bad to happen to Squall. "After all, he helped me out before. Granted, I wouldn't be in this situation if it wasn't for him. No, that's not true. Some other SeeD would have come for me, so I guess I can't blame him. Besides, I kind of feel sorry for the guy. No friends, no family. His job is all he has. That's not a life." She started to chuckle to herself.
"I bet he'd kill me if he knew I felt sorry for him." She took one last look at the sleeping figure before turning round and walking deeper into the forest.
"Sorry Squall," she whispered, "But I can't go to him."
It felt like she had been walking for hours, but it could only have been a few minutes. The storm was still raging, and the cold wind had picked up. She leaned forward and bit her lip, determined not to give in to the elements. She was thankful for the jacket Squall had given her. Without it, she might have been tempted to turn back for fear of freezing here. The more she walked, the harder it became to go any further, her feet felt like lead, and it was a struggle to see where she was going, as she had to stare at the floor so that nothing carried by the wind got in her eyes.
Suddenly, she felt a pair of hands grab her from behind. She spun around quickly.
"Squall." She struggled, trying to free herself from his grasp, but to no avail. "Let me go." He shook his head and began leading her back to the others. "How did you find me?"
"I heard you wake up. I've been following you." His face was expressionless.
"But I didn't see you. I didn't hear you."
"No, you wouldn't have."
"Another part of SeeD training, huh?" He nodded and they continued in silence for some time. "Please don't take me to him." He noticed the fear in her eyes and he began to feel guilty once more.
"I have to." He couldn't look at her. He didn't want to see the look on her face as she realised he had to deliver her to Caraway.
"Please, Squall. Look, I'll double what he's paying you. Will that help?" He shook his head.
"Caraway's one of our best customers. The headmaster at Garden would never oppose him. And besides, you don't even know how much he's paying us. I doubt you'd be able to get half of it."
"Surely there's something I can do."
"Nothing." He sighed. "Why don't you want to go to him anyway? What made him order us to kidnap you?"
"What, you're interested in your mission now? What happened to not caring?" she muttered sarcastically.
"Fine. I was just trying to be nice," he spat, marching her back to where the others were sleeping.
"There you are Squall. I was worried." Quistis had woken up and was keeping watch over everyone else. "What happened?"
"She made a run for it."
"Good thing you found her. Here." Quistis tossed a length of rope to Squall. He immediately understood, looping one end around Rinoa's wrist, and the other around his own.
"You're not going anywhere now."
Thanks to:
Starlight
CTHKSI-thanks for reading so much of my stuff.
Rinoa Leonhart73
Rebekka
Emma
Angelprinzcess29
Riona- sorry you thought she was being a little "girly." Hopefully this chapter will help that. Maybe the being girly was all part of her escape plan.
Icicle
Hiasha-love your new fic by the way. Everyone go read it.