Squall continued his furious pace around Galbadia City. It had been over two hours since he had left the hotel, and he still felt like tearing Irvine's head off. Logically, of-course, he new that he should not feel any undue anger towards Irvine, he was only trying to help him and try to get him to move on with his life. Of-course, logic had little to do with anything concerning Rinoa, from the moment he met her at that dance lifetimes ago, to his dramatic rescue of her, to the sudden and angry departure 3 years ago, and the amount of self destruction he had done since.

He was so absorbed in the maelstrom which his thoughts had become that he did not notice what neighborhood of the city he was entering. The walls were old and cinderblock. Graffiti was everywhere, from the walls, to the wood boards that covered half the windows of the area. The other half the windows were all covered by strong bars, though some of them had obviously been damaged in burglary attempts. Squall had walked for about 10 minutes in this area before these facts dawned on him.

Squall consulted his memory of the map of Galbadia City, and realized he had entered Melrah, one of the worst sections of the city. It also happened that the hotel and the shopping arcade was on the far side of the neighborhood, about 2 miles away. He decided he would continue, because exiting and going around again would take over an hour on foot, and busses did not run through the area.

As Squall continued forward, he turned his thoughts to being aware of his surroundings. Were he not so distracted by this, he might have realized this was the first time in 3 years that he easily slipped into his role as a combat warrior. Sure enough, soon people started to take notice of the stranger in the neighborhood. He could feel eyes on him from every building that he passed. To make things worse, it was starting to get dark, and he saw no streetlights in view. Again consulting his memory, he decided to take a small alleyway to the next street over, remembering that this particular street he was walking on made a turn to the right and would run parallel to the street the arcade was on.

The alleyway was about one hundred feet long, and about 4 shoulder-lengths wide, and there was not a soul in sight. He started down the alleyway, increasing his awareness. it was about half way down when he first heard it. Footsteps. Behind him.

Squall made a quick glance over his shoulder and discovered 2 men following him. He slowly increased his pace to a brisk walk. He heard more footsteps, this time from in front of him. He discovered to his dismay that the exit to the next street was blocked off by 3 more men. As he closed, he gave the three men a rundown. Two of them, the ones on either side, were a little shorter than him, with no obvious armaments. The third one, on the other hand, was at least 6 foot 5, and was extremely well built. to make matters worse, he carried in one of his enormous hands a very heavy looking pole about 3 feet long. As he came within 10 feet of him, he stopped.

The footsteps behind him continued to approach, and stopped about the same distance behind him. No doors or windows presented themselves as a possible way of escape. He cursed himself for getting himself trapped and surrounded.

The tallest of the men in front of him took a few steps forward. "Well, well... What have we here? You's certainly a pretty boy."

Squall only stared back at him, saying nothing. His mind instead was racing to plan possible strategies on getting out of this situation alive. He did not like the fact that very few of these strategies did not involve extreme pain. "What, you got no tongue or something?"

Squall continued to stare at the man, while keeping a sharp ear for any changes in the locations of the men behind him. Finally, he decided on a course of action that would most likely get him through this situation. taking a few steps back, he annunciated his intentions clearly. "I am just passing through the area, and will be out of your sight before you know it. Please let me pass."

All five men burst into laughter. The man on the right in front of him whispered something into his companion's ear, while the tall man took another step forward. "I'll tell you what. We will let you pass. But, we require something.... in exchange for this. Say... 5000 Gils."

Squall frowned "I don't carry that kind of cash on me."

His opponent smiled. "Well then, maybe I could settle for that jacket of yours, hmm?"

Squall narrowed his eyes. "No"

The man opposite him started laughing again "Well then, I guess you cant pass then"

Squall calmly stared back at him taking note of his physical stature. He had to be at least 250 pounds. His rippling biceps had to be at least 8 inches in diameter, and his chest gave the hint of extremely well built physique. He backed off a step. "I would reconsider if I were you. Unless you don't want to see the light of day tomorrow."

Another ripple of laughter burst through the five people surrounding Squall. "What do you think you are boy? A SeeD or something?"

Laughter again ensued. Squall smirked slightly at this comment but remained silent. Taking another step back, he glanced over his shoulder to give the two men behind him a rundown. He noted a rather large knife in the left most person's hands, while nunchukus occupied the other's. He turned back forward to note that a baseball bat and a knife occupied the other two men's hands. As the men continued to laugh, he decided now was as good of a time as any to move.

Squall quickly spun and charged the man with a knife. He jumped onto a wooden box that was tucked against the wall, and pushed off of it. Before any of the 5 knew what was going on, both of his feet connected with the knife wielder's face. Squall rolled onto the floor, and used his legs to knock the nunchuku holder's legs from under him. Squall continued this motion fluidly, and was standing in less than a second. A boot to the side of the head increased Squall's odds to three to one. Those three stood agape at how quickly their comrades were taken down. That is until anger contorted the leader's face.

The leader charged Squall and swung the pipe at him. Squall ducked and dashed past him, and continued onwards. His shoulder connected with the man holding the baseball bat's chest, and Squall felt several of the man's rips crack. Unfortunately, Squall's feet got tangled in the other mans feet and he hit the ground. The remaining two were charging him, and he knew he did not have time to get up before they were on-top of him.

Squall closed his eyes and held his palm out towards them. Lightning blasted the leader as Squall cast Thundaga, and he dropped hard. The last person skid to a stop at the sight of this, and stared for a moment, before dropping his knife and running down the alley way again. Squall picked himself off the ground and stared at the 4 unconscious men for a moment before continuing onwards.

A wiry smile formed on Squall lips.

Zell inserted the key into the door and turned the knob. A small push got the gold framed oak door moving, "OH MAN!!!"

Zell raced into the suite, dropping their luggage at the door. The room that he entered was huge, and richly furnished. the couch was black leather, and had a very comfortable and tasteful dining set in it. A kitchen was tucked away in the corner to the left of the door, and each of the opposite corners had a door that led to small but comfortable bedrooms. Zell ran in and started sit hopping on the plush couch, before grabbing the remote control and switching on the forty-two inch flat panel television. As the martial artist continued to flip through channels, Irvine brought all their luggage into the room. He started opening cases and unzipping bags, and dragged out some equipment. "Zell, reckon you mind gettin' off your lazy ass and lendin' me a hand with the surveillance equipment?"

Zell sighed and switched off the TV. "What's our plan for this stuff?"

The cowboy paused for a moment to consider. Natalie's room was at the end of this side of the hall, and this suite and one more room (which they also had rented) were the only other ones on this side of the elevator. "Okay, here's what were gonna do. This living room will be our command center, you and I will stay in these rooms, while Squall is in the other one. I don't think either of us wants to be in the same room as him, I reckon?"

Zell's nod came very quickly, and Irvine continued. "You take the laser strips and hook them up at the start of the hallway. Run them down both walls from the roof to the floor. then take the pressure mats and cut the carpet so that you can put them underneath. Make sure to cut at the wall so that no-one will be able to see that you moved the carpet. I'll be setting up our monitor and recording equipment in here, along with our sound alarms in both this suite and Squall's room. If you finish with your stuff, setup the camera at the other end of the hall and the motion detectors in all 3 rooms. Here's the lass' key"

Irvine removed a metal key from his jacket pocket and handed it to the blond. Zell gave Irvine a mock salute and gathered up the laser strips, then left the room. As Irvine began setting up some equipment in this room, Natalie popped her head in and coughed. Irvine looked up and smiled "What can I do for ya, ma'am?"

Natalie stepped into the room. "I am going to go downstairs to the bar. I am meeting my partner and we need to practice the music that she wants to play for this Friday."

Irvine straightened up. "Sure thing, Lass." he walked over to the table and picked up Exeter and latched it in his under arm sling. After throwing his coat over and concealing the gun, he put his hat back on, smiled, and extended his arm towards Natalie. "Shall we?"

Natalie smiled and took his arm, walking out and almost into a confused Zell. "Huh? what's going on?"

Natalie responded that they were going downstairs so that she could practice. Irvine continued. "Zell stay here and continue setting up the stuff. Radio if you need help."

Zell's face contorted in anger and he beat his fists together "Tsk! Fine" He continued to mumble as he ran a wire from the two strips now hanging off the walls into the suite living room.

Irvine and Natalie got into the elevator and started riding down to the lobby. "You know, he really is a sweet boy. Kinda hot tempered, but lovable all the same."

Irvine smirked as he remembered the joke which he played on Zell before. "Yea, wouldn' trade him for the world, a great partner and a great friend."

Natalie's face turned towards a frown for a moment "May I ask you something?" Irvine nodded "Why is Squall... so...well..."

Irvine interrupted her "Squall-like?" Irvine smirked slightly but lost it as he continued. "We all grew up in an orphanage together, with a few others, Squall had come after his mother died giving birth to him. He and his half sister, who was a few years older than us, used to play quite a bit. Then she left when he was five, Squall fell into a sort of depression. He was hurt because he thought that everybody disappeared and hated him. I left soon after, and only bumped into them a little under 4 years ago. I guess he took that feeling and closed himself off completely from everybody else. But during a mission we had, he met this girl who broke through the barriers that he put up. They quickly fell in love and were going good for about 10 months before she suddenly departed after a fight, not their first, nor their worst either. I guess Squall felt vindicated and fell back into his old self, save one difference, mentioning this girl brought his anger to the surface, as you saw earlier."

The elevator dinged and the door rolled open. The two stepped out. Natalie frowned again "Did this girl love him in return?"

Irvine responded "As far as we all could tell, they were both head over heals. Maybe Squall had problems showing it sometimes, but no one could question his devotion and feelings towards her, except her it seems."

Natalie's face took on a stoic look "It must have been heart wrenching for him when she left. How could any woman just leave him like that? How could she be so cruel?"

It was Irvine's turn to grimace "I don't know, but trying to hold Squall together has been almost a full time job for us. He tried to push all his friends away, and almost got himself killed several times."

As the two walked down the stairs into the lounge. Natalie felt a slight worry when she saw the room empty. She then spotted a folder lying on the piano and walked over to it. There was a note sitting on the folder "Here is the music which I've selected for Friday, including a new song. I'm out walking the dog and buying a new dress for the performance. Practice, and we will rehearse tomorrow. - R." Natalie read the note and opened the folder, perusing the sheets of music lying inside. She turned her head towards Irvine and smiled "Would you mind waiting upstairs? I get a little nervous trying to practice with people in the room, especially when working with new pieces."

The cowboy frowned. "I don't think I should leave you. What happens if someone tries to get you?"

Natalie pointed towards the back stage area. "There is a door that locks from this side back there, that is the only way in besides the stairs. Lock it up and wait upstairs, and if someone does come, ill scream okay?"

Irvine walked into the backstage, and found the door. He locked it, then put a laser detector on either side of the door. He walked back into the lounge and glanced at Natalie, who was opening up the baby grand, once more before walking up the stairs.

Squall finally worked his way back to the hotel. It had been over four hours since he had smashed Irvine against the wall. The fight that he had gotten into had done more for his temper than he could have imagined, it felt like a huge weight was lifted off his shoulders. He paused a few steps from the door to the hotel. He glanced at a store just across the street, which looked like a woman's formal apparel store. Lying just outside the door, he thought he saw a dog with brown and black fur, but he could not tell. Strangely he got an overwhelming urge to walk into the store, and dismissed it instantly as stupid and insane. He turned and walked into the hotel.

Rinoa walked out of the store carrying a deep blue dress wrapped and boxed. She stopped and pet Angelo, then gave him a treat. If she had looked up, she would have seen a figure wearing a black leather jacket walk into the hotel. She stood up and motioned for Angelo to follow him. Suddenly, she stopped. A soft summon seemed to pull at the back of her mind, causing her focus to drift absently to the hotel, it felt, strangly, as if she were being called. She thought that perhaps she should just walk in real quickly and put away her dress before taking Angelo for a walk, but one glance at her dog dissuaded her of that. Still, she wanted to go back, she could not explain it. She sighed and walked towards the park, Angelo right at her heels yapping.

Squall entered the hotel and saw Irvine sitting reading a magazine with his back turned towards him. Squall quietly walked up behind him and looked over his shoulder at what he wads reading. At first he thought that it was one of the many magazines that the hotel had sitting on the table in front of him. Half a second later, he amended that Irvine would probably never read them and that he probably kept it in his jacket. I wonder if Selphie knows he reads that magazine. Squall smirked at the scene which he imagined would be caused if he told... or "discovered." Then logic got the better of him. That would be an absolute nightmare. But it wouldn't hurt to make Irvine indebted to me a little... "Wow, Irvine, does Selphie know about that?"

Irvine jumped at Squall's voice. He spun around horrified and dodged the magazine under his coat. Squall made a careful note that he was tucking it into a pocket on the left side, near the bottom, on the inside of his jacket. "Squall! Buddy!" Irvine put his arm over Squall's shoulder "We... ah... no need to mention this to anybody, I reckon?"

Squall eyed the cowboy warily. "We'll see" Irvine's eyes looked like he was begging, but Squall changed the topic very quickly. "Where's Natalie?"

Irvine removed his arm from Squalls shoulder. "She's downstairs practicing" Squall opened his mouth but before he could say anything Irvine continued "Don't worry, the only other entrance into the lounge is a door that is locked and alarmed by our personal equipment. If anybody goes down there, I'll know."

Squall studied Irvine for a moment, then inquired "How long has she been down there?"

Irvine studied his watch for a moment "'Bout 3 and a half hours, I reckon"

Squall rubbed his chin while considering "I think I will go down make sure she is..."

At that moment, Natalie walked up the stairs, carrying the folder that she had been studying earlier. "Squall! I see you have returned."

Squall nodded and bowed slightly. "Ms. Darvin, I apologize for leaving abruptly before. Shall we conduct you to your room?"

From behind Squall, Irvine's jaw dropped. From her perspective, Natalie caught it easily, but did not press the matter. She too was surprised by Squall's manners, or more specifically, the fact that that he was being openly friendly and having manners to begin with.

The three made their way to the elevator in silence. The elevator quickly climbed and deposited them on the 14th floor. Squall's eyes fell on Zell still working on setting up the security equipment. Squall proceeded to inquire Zell about the security arrangements for a minute, then headed into his own room and shut the door. Zell went back to his work diligently, and Natalie motioned for Irvine to go into her room.

Irvine's face grew a wide, dirty smile as he walked into Natalie' room. She set down her folder, then turned and was about to start talking to Irvine when she caught his grin. She covered her face and groaned. "Irvine, wipe that smile off your face. I'm not that type of girl and you aren't my type of guy anyway."

Irvine winked at Natalie, the grin remaining on his face. "Just messin' with ya, lass. So what's up?"

"I caught your shock when I came up. I get the feeling Squall isn't a very open person, but that jaw drop had me curious what I missed"

Irvine's smile disappeared instantly as he rested his bottom on the desk. "Its just that Squall hasn't apologized to anybody once since... well... in the last 3 years... since he closed up again. And forget that, he was purposefully polite to you, that is certainly rare indeed. Not even the Headmaster hears him like that very often, and he pays Squall's check" Irvine snorted slightly.

Natalie looked thoughtful as Irvine scratched his stitches. "To tell you the truth, he has been a total wreck. I know he is hurting, but he will not let anybody close again."

"I assume you have tried your various guy ways to drag him out of this?"

"Most of them. Squall is a warrior down to the bone. The absolute best way for him to blow off steam and work off anger and frustration is by killing something with his gunblade. But the Headmaster forbade him to go into the Training Center 'cause of several accidents that occurred that almost got him killed. My guess is that somewhere along his walk, he found a fight and cleaned the house."

Natalie listened in silence, considering what to do. She abruptly started walking out the door. Irvine was right behind her "Hey! Where do you think your going?"

Natalie turned and faced Irvine. "Obviously, male psychology isn't working, so I'm gonna work him myself."

"Now wait here one minute! I'm not gonna let you do anything that might harm him."

"Oh please, Irvine, I'm not going to try to force myself on him. I'm only going to see if I can pull him out enough that he will be pleasant to work with. Now is a very good time, considering what happened downstairs."

The cowboy furrowed his brows "I'd be careful, the lady in question made it a stated fact that she wanted to draw him out of his shell, and he ended up here. He might not take kindly to it, and might start associating your actions to hers. Not to mention they met because she was a client for SeeD and he was the one assigned to her."

This produced a snort from the tall blond woman. "Oh please, I can sense your jealousy from a mile away. I'm not going to try to seduce him. He might be cute, but I'm not going to do anything."

A fitful laugh was heard down the hall. Natalie and Irvine turned to see Zell rolling on the floor trying to contain his laughter. "Oh Hyne, if you are going in there, id drop the 'cute' idea. The commander will blow up faster than I can eat a hotdog."

Something about what Zell said buzzed around Natalie's mind demanding attention, but she could not place it. She shook her head and stared down the corridor, but Irvine grabbed her arm and stopped her immediately "Did you forget what I just said?"

The blond sighed and stared right back at him. "Look, I'm not going to seduce him. I love how the three of you fawning over me. I wouldn't get rid of it for anything right now." She smiled and gave Irvine a quick kiss on the cheek.

Irvine blushed and before he could register it, Natalie had already disappeared into Squall's room.... without knocking. Irvine and Zell exchanged looks and prayed for their commander's sanity... and that the mission would not end unexpectedly and tragically tonight.

Squall rested his hands against the wall of the shower, leaning his weight on it. He had finished a long day, and the shower felt like a godsend on his aching muscles. He finally summoned the will to step out of the shower, and proceeded to dry himself off. He was really looking forward to just flopping on the bed and sleeping. After wrapping his towel around his waist, he opened the bathroom door and stepped out. He immediately wished he had not.

Natalie was sitting on his bed, her arms propped behind her, and leaning back against them. Squall could not help but run his eyes over her curves. The way she sat seemed to accent them. Squall swallowed and tried to move himself, but failed. "Its about time"

It took Squall a moment to register that she had spoken, but when it did, he finally got control of himself again, and scowled. "What the hell are you doing in here?"

"And men complain that we take too long in the shower. I've been waiting here at-least a half hour." Natalie stood up and approached Squall "Now, id like to have a very civil conversation with you. You have two choices. I can either step into the bathroom and let you change, which entails that you will tell me what I want to know willingly, or we can talk like this."

Natalie ran her fingernail over Squall's chin and down his chest. Squall, in an amazing amount of self-control, stepped back. "Get into the bathroom."

Natalie smiled and walked into the bathroom closing the door. Squall quickly changed into boxers and pants, and then slipped on a tee-shirt. He paused to clear his head, then returned to the bathroom door and knocked. Natalie opened the door then brushed past him and sat down in one of the room's couches. Squall ran his hand through his wet hair and leaned against the wall. "You wanted to say something?"

Natalie narrowed her eyes. "Actually, I wanted to have a civil conversation with you. You seemed like you were in a good mood before."

"I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but I don't have 'civil conversations' here."

"You did once."

Squall narrowed his eyes. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Irvine told me about your previous relationship. Don't worry, I'm not in here to try to plant myself on top of it. As your employer, your personal attitude can have an adverse effect on this contract, so I need to be able to understand you."

"If Irvine told you about it, then why do you need to ask me?"

"Because he can't tell me what you are thinking, and what you are feeling."

"Yea, well I don't tell anybody that. What makes you think you are any different?"

"One word: Contract."

Squall's eyes narrowed again "I don't believe me telling you all about my personal life is mentioned anywhere in that contract."

Natalie smiled "No, but predicting your teammate's actions is a must for a military unit. I need to know how you think so that I can predict yours."

Squall paused a moment considering "You seem to know quite a bit on military psychology."

"You would be surprised on what I know. But you are dodging the subject. I want to talk to you about the past."

"And if I refuse?"

"Natalie's smile turned wicked in an instant "Then we can wait until the next time you are showering, and next time I will not let you change."

Squall frowned again "I can lock the door you know."

Natalie fished through her purse and withdrew a hotel key from it. "How do you think I got in to begin with?"

Squall covered his face with his hand "...Whatever"

Natalie's smile turned pleasant again. "Well?"

"I hate women."

"You would be surprised how many of us say that about men."

"Do you really think that after meeting me less than 12 hours ago, you can understand me enough to be able to help my problems?"

Natalie's smile slowly vanished "No, that is why I am asking you to talk to me. So that I CAN understand. No one can understand and help you unless you talk to us and let us help you."

"Has it occurred to you that I don't WANT your help?"

"Has it occurred to YOU that burying your emotions only works for so long? You are a military man, you should know that Psychology 101 states that '...without the proper outlet, emotions can build up and affect the judgment of the soldier until a release comes in the most adverse of times.'"

Squall rubbed his chin, his eyes narrowing slightly "That is quoted right from Shaum's The Soldiers Mind"

"You are correct."

Squall sighed and buried his face in his hand again "You know, you are worse than she was. She waited a few days before she started digging and ripping out my guts."

Natalie paused to consider a moment "She was something special wasn't she?"

Squall only nodded his head in agreement. Natalie took this as a sign that Squall had acquiesced and pressed further "Did you love her?"

Squall did not hesitate in his response "With all my heart."

Natalie paused a moment before questioning him further. "Irvine said you had an argument the day she left. What happened?"

Squall sighed in obvious pain "It was her birthday. I had planned a big surprise party for her in Garden's ball room. Only Irvine, Zell, Xu, the headmaster and I knew about it. We spent weeks setting it up under the guise of the ballroom was off limits for remodeling. We had the schedule planned out so finely. She would wake up at 11 AM like always, walk into my office. I would take her to lunch in Balamb right there, While we were gone, Irvine would announce the party on the PA system and everyone would gather into the ballroom. When we got back, we would head right for the ball room and she would have her party. And then I...."

Squall's voice caught. Natalie stood up and walked over to him, laying a hand on his shoulder. "What happened?"

"She woke up early, and came to my office. I was busy clearing out some last minute items before I took the rest of the day off for her. She walked in at 9:15. The reservation was not 'till 11:30, and she started pressing me, asking me what I had planned for today. The problem was, I had meetings planned until 10:30, one was a phone conference with the President of Esthar and President Caraway. She started scolding me for making appointments on her birthday and demanded to know why I would do such a thing. I panicked. I don't know why, but I said I forgot about it."

It was Natalie's turn to cover her face with her hand. Squall turned and glared at her "I know, it was stupid, but my mind was desperate. I told her I needed to finish up the meetings and id 'make' a reservation at the restaurant I already had one for. She started yelling at me. I was in too much shock to register what exactly she said, but it was along the lines of 'why didn't I remember' and 'why was I ignoring her over the last months?'"

"Ignoring her?"

"I was getting nervous about all the preparations, I was spending almost every minute outside of my office in the ball room working on the decorations, even through the night a lot of times. Sometimes, I would just sit there and worry for hours."

"What happened then?"

"She started screaming about how I didn't love her and I was only stringing her along and left in a rush. I knew I could very well get injured if I followed her right then, she lost her temper with me before. So I figured I would give her an hour to calm down while I finished up the meetings, then go to her with the reservations."

"That sounds reasonable"

"I was on the phone with President Laguna when Zell rushed into my office and told me she had packed her bags and left a half hour ago. I immediately jumped and ran out the office, with the president still on the phone. I got to the garage and raced after her, but there was a child in the road about 2 miles from Balamb. I swerved to avoid him, lost control, and crashed into a signpost. I ran the last two miles with a broken leg, but I missed her train. I....."

Squall's voice cracked again and he covered his face with his hands while he started sinking slowly to the floor. Natalie heard the slight sobs coming from between his hands. How could that woman not see how deeply he was in love with her? Was she blind? Natalie made a resolve that if she ever met the woman, she would slap some sense into her right then and there. "Squall, I don't know what to say. 'I'm sorry' seems too shallow for the grief you are feeling, and I'm sure you have heard that too many times anyway."

She wrapped her arm around his shoulders and sat down next to him. She realized this was way over her head and probably over most psychologist's too. After a few minutes, Squall finally spoke again "Natalie, thank you for your concern, but I don't think there is anything you can do. Please leave"

Natalie considered a moment, and stood up. "Squall, you might not know me well, but you can still come talk to me whenever you want. Your friends also care about you greatly. You don't have to face this alone, like you have been . It just doesn't work."

Natalie waited for any response from Squall , but did not get one. Quietly, she walked to the door and left the room. After quietly closing the door, she walked across the hall and into Irvine and Zell's suite. Zell and Irvine looked up from the television towards Natalie. They started to get up, but Natalie motioned for them to stop. "We have a lot of work cut out for us."

Without waiting for a reply, Natalie departed and went to her room.

Rinoa woke up suddenly. She did not remember her dream, but a feeling of total anguish suddenly had enveloped her. She could not place where the feeling was coming from, and it eventually subsided. She lay back down and closed her eyes, trying to forget the overwhelming feeling.

Squall was standing at the top of a hill in a park. That much was obvious, but he did not recognize it, nor did he have any idea where he was. He stared at a path of white bricks that lead around a few trees and down a hill, and then at a bench sitting to his left under a great oak tree. A few flowers poked up around the base of the trunk, like clouds across a green sky. These flowers were only beginning to bloom, but he recognized them instantly. Edea's orphanage has the same flowers in the field.

Taking a step closer to the tree, he glanced around looking for some mark so that he could recognize where he was. Before he could take a second step though, he stopped in his tracks. A woman stood there, her hair raven black and her back turned to him. She wore a light blue tee-shirt with the picture of an angel on it, and a white skirt that seemed to make her look floating.

Squall stood rooted in place as the girl bent down and picked a flower. She brought the now dying flower to her nose, hidden by her hair and took in its scent before laying it down sideways on the ground. A slight gust of wind picked up and a pink pedal broke free of the delicate object before floating up. A slender hand reached out to catch it and closed its fingers around it. Opening the fingers a white feather floated up from the hand and behind the woman. The woman spun, bringing her hand to her hair to push the wind whipped curtain of black out of her face.

Squall's heart leapt. He would know that face anywhere. The woman brought her eyes down from the sky where the feather floated and gazed directly at him, into him, and through him to his soul. Her hand still hovered near her face, frozen in the completion of its act to push the hair out of her face. Light brown highlights played in the wind as she stared with a completely frozen face, taking in the sight before her eyes. Rinoa finally dropped her left hand and brought her right hand to her mouth, which was just starting to open in shock. Time was irrelevant and the background faded away as the two stared into the other's face, disbelief written on both.

Squall opened his eyes and sat up with record speed. The sun was shining in the window that he had forgotten to cover the night before. He was back in his hotel room, though it took him a minute to recognize the place. The memory of Rinoa was still burned into his eyelids as he got out of bed to start the day.