Chapter 22
"We did it, Selphie," Irvine whispered. "We brought them home."
Word of their return seemed to have spread like wildfire throughout Garden. There were literally hundreds of students lining the corridor from the front entrance of Garden, and more were pouring in each second. The crowds parted as the four figures walked amongst them, allowing them to pass through without hindrance. For Squall and Rinoa, these moments were unbearable. There was not one sound from the crowd, no whispers, no murmurings, and the silence hung over the pair, filling them with dread. Even more disconcerting was the fact that each and every student's gaze was firmly fixed on them, and refused to waver.
To Squall, this was the worse possible type of reaction that could have greeted them. After talking to Selphie and Irvine, and discovering that the truth about Rinoa was now known and that his part in the defence of Garden had also been recognised, Squall had secretly been hoping that he would be welcomed back with open arms, although deep down, he felt sure that this was not going to happen.
"After all," he reasoned to himself, "They were eager enough to denounce me when they believed me to be corrupted by Rinoa. Why should they be glad that I've returned?"
Instead, Squall had been hoping for some sense of anger or resentment towards him. He was accustomed to it, and he knew how to deal with it. This reaction was something different, something completely new to him.
Apathy.
That was something that he did not now how to deal with, and it unsettled him. He hated being on unfamiliar territory, and especially despised the feelings of insecurity that typically went with it. Throughout his life, he had always been taught that the key to victory is knowing your enemy, and so Squall had constantly strived to know how people were feeling and what they were thinking, so that he could determine just what their motivation is for fighting. This was the main reason why Squall was not comfortable in his current surroundings. He had no idea what anybody in the crowd of students was thinking. Did they all secretly despise him for what he did and were just too afraid to speak their minds? Or perhaps they were all feeling guilty for doubting him, but didn't know how to express it. Whatever the reason, it was not apparent to Squall, and so he was relieved when they finally reached the far end of the corridor and steeped into the elevator.
As soon as the doors closed, Squall allowed himself the luxury of breathing a deep sigh of relief. It was only then that he noticed that Rinoa was shaking. Evidently, she had not enjoyed the experience either, even though she was perhaps better adept at dealing with situations that were out of her control. He took her hand and squeezed it gently, trying to convince her that everything will turn out okay in the end. Her face showed no reaction, but her fingers began to grip his more and more tightly, letting him know that she was in need of any comfort that he could give.
Eventually, after what seemed like an age, the elevator stopped and the pair found themselves stood outside the door to Headmaster Cid's office.
"We'll be waiting outside for you," Selphie said, but Rinoa and Squall barely heard this. They were too focused on the looming entrance of the office before them, both being acutely aware of what was at stake here. They both knew that if Cid did not believe them, it could be the end of everything they had together, and for that, both Rinoa and Squall were secretly terrified. They squeezed each others hand one last time, before letting go of each other and entering the office.
"Squall, Rinoa. Take a seat please," Cid announced in his most authoritative voice. They both obliged, nervously, waiting with bated breath for his verdict on the recent events. "Now, I just want to put you at your ease. We know now that you have not been trying to deceive us, Miss Heartilly. The fact that we were recently attacked by a Galbadian Army unit, apparently searching for you, lends weight to your side of events. Add to that the fact that Miss Trepe has admitted that her accusations were false, and I have to conclude that I have no further grounds for detaining you in custody."
Relief flooded over Rinoa and Squall and the tension in the room was immediately lifted. She even managed a slight smile, thankful that her ordeal was over, for now at least.
"Thank you," she whispered, still not quite believing that she was free to go.
"I would like to offer you a formal apology from SeeD," Headmaster Cid continued. "Our treatment of you was appalling, and we are prepared to admit that."
"I'd just like to forget about all that," Rinoa replied.
"However, Squall, your case is a little more difficult. You were placed in a position of responsibility. You had your orders and you deliberately disobeyed them, freeing a prisoner. Normally, I would be forced to discipline you severely. SeeD is an organisation based on rules, and examples must be set to the younger cadets. However, it was brought to my attention that, when you helped Miss Heartilly to escape, you had already been dismissed from SeeD. As such, you are not eligible to be punished for this."
Squall looked up at the Headmaster with a start. This was something that was entirely unexpected. He had expected to be permanently dispelled from the organisation, or at least be demoted to such an extent that his career would be in ruin. Headmaster Cid was known as a fair man, one who would always abide by the rules, although never be harsh in the extreme. He was also very keen that people should face the proper punishment for their crimes, which made this announcement from Cid all the more shocking to Squall, so much so that he wasn't entirely sure that he was hearing this properly.
"Now that Miss Trepe has admitted her part in this, it seems that you were dismissed from SeeD wrongly. As a result of this, I would like to reinstate you to your previous position, effective immediately."
"Thank you, Sir," he muttered in disbelief.
"It's good to have you back, son," the Headmaster sighed, finally dropping the air of formality. "There's just one thing, though, before I let you go. I need to know what happened with those soldiers in Garden."
Squall took a deep breath, and began his lengthy explanation.
Headmaster Cid nodded gravely. "It was just as I had feared. This was a planned mission, and was well-organised."
"Yes, Sir. That was the conclusion that I came to as well," Squall agreed.
"I have already discussed the motivation for this attack with Zell, Selphie and Irvine, and we came to the conclusion that they came to retrieve Rinoa. That could be the only reason why such a small force was sent. They would have known that, had they been spotted, they were certain to die. They had no chance of fighting off all of the SeeDs in Garden and then escaping alive. No, they meant to get in unnoticed, find what they were looking for, and get out again, before we even knew that they had been here. Can you think of any other reason for this?"
"No, Sir," Squall replied. "Not if there were no explosives found on the bodies." Squall looked over at Rinoa, and she saw the fear in his eyes, the fear of losing her. It seemed as if they would not be able to relax just yet.
"Well, all we know is that they want Rinoa back, and they're not prepared to risk an all out attack to do this, probably in case she was hurt in the process," he concluded. "It's not enough information to formulate a good plan on."
"Erm, Sir?" Rinoa began, nervously, "The order this time may have been to bring me back alive, but that won't keep. If my father believes that there is no way that he can get me out of here unharmed, then I don't think he's going to shy away from an all-out attack. I mean, I can't think why he would want me alive anyway. He didn't seem too bothered about my safety when he sent those soldiers after us in the woods, why should he worry about that now?"
"The orders given to me by Caraway were very specific. We were told to bring you back alive and unharmed. Are you certain that he would risk your life now?" the Headmaster asked.
"I'm sure of it," she replied. "He won't let me get in the way of any of his plans. He'd rather have me dead."
"Well then. We're going to have to be very proactive here," Cid decided. "It's no use just sitting here, waiting for an attack to come. We're no match for the full force of the Galbadian army in any case."
"Do you have a plan, Sir?"
"Not at the moment, Squall." He glanced at his watch. "It's late. I will call a meeting first thing tomorrow. We'll decide what course of action to take then. For now, you're both dismissed."
"General, there's a phone call for you on line one."
"Thank you, Gloria." He pushed the button on the phone for line one. "This is Caraway," he growled down the phone.
"Did you think it was wise to try and deceive me?" the deep, menacing voice on the other end of the line questioned. Immediately, Caraway froze. He had been discovered.
"He must have spies everywhere," he thought, bitterly.
"Well?" Still he offered no reply. The man was obviously becoming impatient. "If you try anything like that again, mark my words Caraway, I will order her execution." The line went dead.
Caraway was still unable to move. He must have listened to the dialling tone for a full ten minutes before the realisation of those words set in.
"They're going to kill her."
He held his head in his hands, and began to weep.
A/N: I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas.
Thanks to:
Optical Goddess
Freakker
Meestyna
Renegade Seraph
Angelprinczess29
Mariko Heartilly
Dan
Old User
Angel Rinoa Heartilly
Omnitoad
Rinoa Heartilly-Leonhart
MagzDD
Phrozen-Heart
=]
TLL
Happy Youkai