Lost Memories of My Love
Chapter 26 – Renunion
"Hey, Squall!"
As he walked down the hallway of the Estharian presidential palace to his office, and looked up when he heard his name being called out. Usually he would ignore whomever it was that was calling him, but the voice that had called him just then wasn't a voice he would usually ignore.
Ellone came walking down the hallway in her sleeveless pretty white dress that reached her ankles. She had stopped wearing her old clothes and decided to be a little more formal once she moved into the palace. Squall could tell that she had just been outside for her daily walk around the gardens with Laguna, as she was wearing her elegant chapeau on her head. She also had begun to grow her hair, abandoning the short hair she had for so long. It had grown as long as her waist already.
"Hey, Elle," said Squall, stopping when she approached him.
Ellone smiled warmly. "How was your trip to Trabia?"
"Fine," answered Squall.
Ellone nodded. "Oh, that's good. How is it down there?"
"Cold," replied Squall shortly. "Uh … hey, Elle … can we talk?"
Ellone nodded cheerily. "Of course."
"Um … somewhere more private," said Squall, not liking the fact that they were in an open hallway. "How about my office?"
"Sure," said Ellone, nodding. "Let's go."
Squall and Ellone walked to his office together in silence. Squall was used to silence. Ellone, however, wasn't … she had tried very hard to help Squall return to normal, but it was too hard. His cold and bitterness was normal now. She loathed it sometimes, but the fact that he actually said more than three words strung together that day made her happy.
Squall swiped his security card and punched in his code at his door. Esthar, being the futuristic place it was, had many high-tech gadgets and gizmos all over the place.
As the two of them walked in, Ellone adapted to the environment of the office very quickly. The room was extremely neat and tidy and very dull. The only things on the walls were his diplomas, licenses and certificates from Garden. The window was open, letting the bright sunny light into the room and all that was heard was the faint droning of the air conditioner.
There was something that caught Ellone's eye, however. A new portrait hung on the wall. It was very large and it looked to be hand-drawn. It was a painting of a girl sitting in a field of flowers with angel wings sprouting from her back. Ellone knew immediately that the girl in that picture was Rinoa, and it was then that she began questioning Squall's well being.
"Where did you get that painting from?" asked Ellone, pointing to the new picture on the wall.
Squall glanced at the canvas on the wall and looked slightly embarrassed. He was meaning to transfer that picture into his bedroom, where he knew nobody would see it and question about it.
"Oh … uh … I bought it when I was in Deling the other day," said Squall, scratching the back of his head, "I was … supposed to put it into my bedroom…"
Ellone nodded slowly. "Okay … then." She smiled warmly again. "It's a pleasing spectacle for this dull room."
"Uh … right," said Squall. He sat himself at his desk and sighed, as if he had just run a marathon.
Ellone sat herself down on the sofa on the far side of the room. She looked at Squall and sensed his uneasiness. "So … what did you want to talk to me about?"
Squall looked up at her and forgot that he had called her up to talk. "Oh … right. Well … I don't know how to say this…"
Ellone nodded in understanding. "Well … just tell me, how was Trabia?"
"That's just it," mumbled Squall, "I met … somebody…"
Ellone's tactic worked. She had discovered that Squall tended to speak more openly when she spelled things out for him. "Who did you meet?"
"I met a woman…"
Ellone raised an eyebrow. "Okay…"
"And she looked exactly like … like Rinoa," said Squall, finding himself handling things well. "She acted like Rinoa, she spoke like Rinoa … I was so damn sure that she was Rinoa."
"But Squall … Rinoa's…"
"I know she's dead," said Squall.
Ellone looked very surprised. Three days really wasn't much, but Squall had changed so much during three days. She knew that Squall was taking a walk down memory lane during these three days after meeting a girl that looked exactly like Rinoa. But his attitude sure changed with this walk…
Squall began to explain what had happened in Trabia. He told Ellone about how he encountered the Rinoa look-alike, how he reacted, and how he took her back to Deling. He didn't explain in great detail, but Ellone could easily read Squall's expression to tell how he was feeling.
"…But she just didn't know what the hell I was talking about," said Squall slowly, "She just … acted as if she was someone else…"
"Maybe she is someone else," said Ellone gently.
"I know that … now," said Squall, "I've just … been going through a lot lately."
Ellone nodded. "I can relate."
There was silence between them both.
"Do you believe … that she's still alive?" asked Ellone finally.
Squall thought for a second and knew already that she was talking about Rinoa. "No."
"Come on, truthfully, Squall," said Ellone quietly.
"She's dead, all right?" said Squall fiercely. "This woman didn't have a clue when I spoke to her. She probably thinks I'm some mental case now. I really thought that was her … but I was blind and didn't think straight. When I thought about it, I faced the facts. I was in denial when I saw this woman. Rinoa died two years ago … her body was found in the hospital with her ID. Don't tell me she just magically came back to life, because she didn't. There's no such thing."
"She's a sorceress…"
Squall stopped and actually thought about it. But he shook his head. "So? So were Ultimecia … and Adel … do you think that if they could come back to life, they would?"
Ellone took this into accord. "Well, if you want to go back to her past…"
"No," interrupted Squall, "Don't waste your energy … we need your power for more … important things…"
"Then why did you call me up here, Squall?" said Ellone quietly.
"Because…" Squall clenched his fist in anger. Why did he? Was it because he really did believe Rinoa was still alive somewhere? "Because I wanted someone to talk to…"
Ellone couldn't help but smile. He was getting better … usually he wouldn't have 'wanted someone to talk to', and if he did, he would've went and talked to a wall.
"I'll always be here for you, Squall," said Ellone. "Please remember that."
Squall looked away and nodded. "Thanks, sis."
Ellone nodded. "No worries."
Just then, there was a knock on the door. Squall looked up and was slightly irritated with the interruption. Nevertheless, Ellone and Squall appeared to have finished having their little heart-to-heart talk.
"I'll get it," offered Ellone. She stood up and opened the door, only to be met by none other than Laguna Loire himself.
Laguna, who was a good fifty-something years old by then, still looked as young and buoyant as ever. He still wore his casual turquoise shirt and matching pants, with his long hair in a ponytail and pierced ear. He seldom wore formal attire, and nobody could really picture him in a formal manner anyway. Laguna hadn't changed a single bit, despite his coming of age.
Squall groaned to find his father at the door, and it annoyed him even more to see him so cheerful.
"Uncle Laguna!" said Ellone brightly.
Laguna chuckled and invited himself in, with his hands in his pockets. He tried to look cheerful around Squall – he tried so hard to earn Squall's respect. But it was harder than he thought. Since Rinoa's supposed death, things were a lot more difficult.
"Hello there, Squall," said Laguna, standing in front of Squall's desk. He tried not to look down on him.
"Sir." Squall stood up with an emotionless expression on his face.
"Oh come on, Squall, you don't need to call me 'sir', you know that," said Laguna.
Well I'm not calling you dad, that's for sure. "Why did you come here?" asked Squall.
"Just coming to pay a visit, that's all," said Laguna, "I can do that, can't I?"
Squall was about to reply with a smart-ass answer, but Ellone cut him off by closing the door and clearing her throat.
"Of course you can," she said, walking up to the two men.
"Wonderful," said Laguna with a boyish smile, "So how was your trip to Trabia? Quite good, I expect?"
"Humph, yeah, just perfect," said Squall, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
Laguna ignored Squall's sarcastic tone. "Did they agree to the funds for an Estharian Garden?"
"Yes," said Squall shortly.
There was an awkward silence.
"All right then …uh, I'll leave the funding up to you then," said Laguna, when Squall didn't continue. He didn't want to have to ask for it. Just thinking about asking for it gave Laguna a million possibilities.
"Fine," said Squall flatly.
"So, have you hired some new staff yet?" asked Laguna.
"Yes," answered Squall, "I expect some of them coming in tomorrow."
"Ah, wonderful," said Laguna, "The building of the Garden is coming along just fine. They've gotten a lot done while you were gone."
"Yes, it looks really pretty!" said Ellone, knowing that Squall was going to bite back hard. "Almost done."
Squall didn't say anything.
Laguna cleared his throat. "Well … I'll leave you to it. Let me know if you need some help."
"I will," said Squall, rolling his eyes. Not that I'll need any help. And if I do, the last person I'd go to is you…
"See you both later, then," said Laguna. And with that, he left Squall's office.
Ellone sighed. "Really, Squall … when is this going to stop?"
"When is what going to stop?" asked Squall, sitting down again.
"You know exactly what I'm talking about," said Ellone. "He truly does care for your wellbeing."
"Yeah, well if he cared so much then why did he throw me in an orphanage?" demanded Squall, "It sure helped, didn't it? Helped my ass … it messed me up bad…"
"We've been through this a million times," said Ellone in exasperation, "He did what he did so he could save the world."
"Oh, right, so it's all right for his son to get messed up but it's not all right for the world?" said Squall angrily.
"You know exactly what I mean," said Ellone warningly. She sighed. "He loves you, Squall. He would do anything for you."
"Well it's too late for that," said Squall sharply, "What he did scarred me. He's the reason why I went through hell."
"And that was how you found happiness," said Ellone quietly.
Squall stopped and thought about what his sister said. She was right … he went to the orphanage, and from that he joined SeeD, and from that he met Rinoa, and from that he found himself again, and from that he saved the world. Maybe … maybe fate existed after all…
"I still can't forgive him," said Squall flatly.
Ellone threw her hands in the air in irritation. "You know what, Squall? Quistis is right. Everyone is right. You dwell on the past way too much. You say you move on, but you don't. Because you're afraid of the future. You're so afraid of the future that you have to hang onto the past."
"I'm not afraid of anything," argued Squall.
"Yes, whatever Squall!" exclaimed Ellone. "You can keep your tough act on. You can pretend not be afraid all you want. It's not going to get you anywhere." She sighed and just walked out of the office, bumping into Ashleigh, who was about to head in.
"Hello Ellone, is Squall in there?" asked Ashleigh innocently.
"Please don't talk to me," snapped Ellone, walking past Ashleigh.
Ashleigh stared at Ellone in shock, then just walked into the office.
"What's wrong with her?" asked Ashleigh snobbishly.
Squall kept his face in his palms and did not look up. I don't need this now. Ellone never went off like that when they were younger, but lately she had been very irritable with him. Squall tried to ignore it, and he was pretty good at it. He never let what his friends or Ellone or Laguna, or Ashleigh said to him. But the words he tried to forget would come back to him later, and he would feel guilty about it. For about ten seconds.
"She's just in a bad mood," mumbled Squall.
"Uh huh…" Ashleigh smiled. "Come on, Squall, look at me. I haven't seen your face for so long!" It then came to her attention that there was a new portrait in the room – Rinoa's portrait. Ashleigh was very alarmed at this, but she did not question it.
Squall rolled his eyes and took his face out of his hands. He looked at Ashleigh with no emotion whatsoever. She looked quite the same. Her amber hair was no longer wavy, but dead straight. Her features were still sharp, and she still had that snobbishness in her eyes. She had lost a lot of weight and had a pretty figure. She also dished out some of her mother's and Squall's money to get implants to make herself look more 'visually pleasing'. That day she was wearing the white suit that she got from her mother for her twenty-first birthday – the same white suit that was covered with blood when she ran over Rinoa. She wore that suit everyday to work.
What was her job? She worked alongside Squall and the others. She was a part of the Estharian Garden project and played a vital role – the treasurer. She financed all the money and she was damn good at it.
"Oh, how adorable you are … you managed to keep your Estharian tan," said Ashleigh brightly, sitting herself on the edge of Squall's desk and forgetting about the painting. She pulled her short white skirt down to accommodate.
"I'm not in the mood," groaned Squall.
Ashleigh slightly frowned. He's never in the mood… "Oh, well, I hear you managed to receive the funds from Trabia. How much are they offering?"
"Fifty million gil," replied Squall. He found Ashleigh's position right in front of him on his desk to be quite disturbing. The least she could do was to sit on a seat, since they were discussing formal business. He might have been marrying the woman but he put his work before that.
Ashleigh looked at the ceiling thoughtfully. "Not the most generous of offers … but it'll be fine."
"How much do we have in our investments?" asked Squall, not looking at Ashleigh.
"We have almost two billion gil on us at the moment," said Ashleigh, as if she knew it off by heart, "This is after the building payments. The whole Garden is almost complete; it'll probably be about another two months. But you should probably ask Zelly about that, he's in charge of the building and maintenance and all that."
"And what about the staff?" asked Squall. "How much are we to pay them?"
"Well, we promised them a ten thousand gil salary per month … so it'll probably cost us around two and a half million gil a year for the staff."
"All right," said Squall, taking the information into accord. "Thank you, Ashleigh."
Ashleigh slightly frowned. "Is … that all?"
"Uh … yes…?" Squall pretended to look for something in his drawer to avoid looking at Ashleigh from such a position.
"Oh … okay…" Ashleigh got off the desk. "Squall…?"
"Yeah?" he said, still rummaging through his neat drawer.
"The wedding is in six months … are you sure that with his whole Garden thing that we'll have time?"
Squall sighed and looked up at her. "I don't know. You're in charge of that … I don't care about what happens."
Ashleigh narrowed her eyes at her fiancé. "I've made all the arrangements … how can you say you don't care?"
"If you've made all the arrangements, fine," said Squall. He definitely wasn't looking forward to the wedding - that was for sure. Especially after the recent turn of events.
Ashleigh decided not to argue. She didn't exactly feel loved, but Squall was marrying her. He had to love her, didn't he?
"All right … I'll see you later then, sweetie," said Ashleigh.
"Remember there's a board meeting tomorrow morning," said Squall. "All new staff and board members will be there, as well as the president. If our treasurer is missing then it's pointless."
Ashleigh smiled weakly. At least he thinks I'm important… "Don't worry, I won't forget." I won't…
"Wow … it sure is warm today!" said Rinoa as she got out the apartment building. She and Min had arrived in Esthar the previous night, and already they were called for work. It was easy for her to adapt to the warm weather – she wore a baby blue nylon tank top and a black cotton skirt that came half way up her knee. Since she was going to such a formal place, she decided not to look too casual and threw a matching black blazer over her tank top, which only made her extremely hot.
"Get used it, Sierra," said Min, "We're going to be here for a long time." She was dressed similarly to Rinoa; instead she wore white and pink. Both of them had their hair tied up, Min's was in a tight ponytail and Rinoa's was in a loose bun. Both of them took off their blazers on their way to work – they walked to the presidential palace, where the meeting was held. They lived not too far away.
"We'll have to take this extreme weather into accord when designing the uniforms, huh?" said Rinoa.
"Yeah…"
The two women finally reached the palace and were simply stunned at the size of the building.
"Oh my god, I'm not going to survive here," said Min, blinking furiously.
"I bet we're working with billionaires…!" Rinoa gasped.
"We look like street kids," said Min. She shook her head and put her hand firmly on her stomach. "Ugh … I'm so hungry…"
"Didn't you eat breakfast?" asked Rinoa.
"No, I was too busy trying to get out of bed," groaned Min, "This time difference is going to kill me. I think I'll get something to eat. You go on ahead."
"All right, but don't be late okay?" said Rinoa, "The last thing we need is for you to be late on the first day."
"Don't worry, don't worry!" said Min sheepishly, "I'm not that stupid."
"Uh, right," said Rinoa, "Well enjoy breakfast. Please don't cheer over the amazing and different food they have here. You'll make yourself late."
"Sierra, you're crazy, I'm not like that!" said Min, looking offended. "Well, later."
Rinoa and Min parted ways. Rinoa climbed the stairs of the gigantic building and took a deep breath as she came to the front door.
"Here goes nothing…" She pushed it open and was met with the cool feel of air conditioning. Relived, she quickly cooled down and put her blazer on and approached the front desk, the heels of her shoes clicking on the polished tiles.
"Can I help you?" said the young woman at the desk.
"Um … I'm here for a board meeting for the establishment of the new Garden?" said Rinoa.
"Oh, right," said the woman at the desk. "Can I have your name, please?"
Rinoa went through the details and the woman checked everything up on her computer. She then had to hand her ID over to her, and go through a million things. Security must have been tight; after all, the president lived here…
"Okay, you're clear," said the woman, "Take the lift to the fourteenth floor and head straight until you see a room with 'Board Committee' on the door."
"All right, thank you," said Rinoa.
She headed for the elevator and pushed the button, patiently waiting for it to come. As the lift door opened, a young man with long brown hair in a ponytail and a black suit was there, and was about to step off until he looked up and looked really shocked.
"HOLY CRAP!" he shouted, getting off the platform, looking dumbstruck. Of course, he was Irvine, Squall's bodyguard.
Rinoa blinked. "Uh…?"
"You're … you're…!" Irvine restrained himself from saying 'Rinoa' because he knew she was dead. "…Beautiful!"
Rinoa laughed. "Oh, thank you."
Irvine stared at her for so long, not believing his eyes. "Do you … work here?"
"I do now," answered Rinoa, "I'm new here."
"Oh … right!" said Irvine, scratching the back of his head. "Well … the name's Irvine, you'll see me often. You?"
"I'm Sierra," answered Rinoa, "I … don't know if you'll see me often, but I'll be here."
"That's … that's great…"
"Irvine!" called a vibrant female voice from the hallway.
Rinoa looked over Irvine's shoulder to find a brunette in black, none other than Selphie, run up to the two of them.
"Who the heck are you talking – AHHHH!"
Irvine turned around and flustered. Selphie stared at Rinoa in horror, who looked very alarmed. She pointed at Rinoa, stuttering.
"That's … she's…!"
"Really pretty," answered Irvine, giving Selphie an urgent look.
Selphie blinked five times and burst into a huge smile. "Yeah! That's right! Pretty shirt, I like the colour."
Rinoa slowly smiled. "Thank you. I'm Sierra."
"And that's Selphie, great, we've met, let's go!" said Irvine. He grabbed Selphie by the arm and dragged her away from the baffled Rinoa.
"Byeeeee, Sierra!" shouted Selphie.
"STOP YELLING!" yelled the woman at the front desk, who seemed very far away.
Rinoa, bewildered, headed back into the elevator, not knowing what to think. People here sure are … interesting…
"Irvine, Irvine, did you see that?" cried Selphie, "She looked just like Rinoa!"
"Yeah, I know," said Irvine, "This is really scary. If Squall finds her … he's gonna…"
"Cry!" screamed Selphie, "Why did he hire a girl like that?"
"He didn't hire her, Quistis is in charge of staff members," said Irvine.
"But why would Quisty do that?" questioned Selphie.
"Let's ask her."
Rinoa stood in the elevator, fixing her hair up as she looked into one of the mirrors. She stopped when the elevator came to a halt, but noticed she was only on the eighth floor. As the doors opened, a young woman in a white suit with straight amber hair came onto the elevator.
She didn't notice anybody in the elevator until Rinoa said a polite, "Hello."
Ashleigh almost had a heart attack when she heard that voice. She focused on the woman in front of her and sounded as if she were about to scream when she saw that face. It's Rinoa, there's no doubting it … shit, what the hell is she doing here?
"Are you all right?" asked Rinoa in concern, when she saw Ashleigh's horrified look. She sounded as if she were about to cry.
Ashleigh found her voice and composed herself. "I'm … I'm fine." What the hell … fuck, this is bad … she's supposed to be dead…
"Are you … sure?" asked Rinoa.
"I'm fine, all right?" snapped Ashleigh in panic.
Rinoa looked taken aback. "I'm sorry."
It was only then that Ashleigh realised Rinoa acted as if she didn't know her. What's she playing at?
"No, I'm sorry for snapping," said Ashleigh apologetically. She cleared her throat and began her act. "Say … are you new here?"
Rinoa nodded slowly.
"Ah, I see," said Ashleigh slowly. "My name is Ashleigh Leonheart, I'm the treasurer of the committee."
Rinoa nodded again. Leonheart … that name… "Nice to meet you, Ms Leonheart. I'm Sierra Hearten."
"Ah, it's actually Mrs," said Ashleigh, beginning her test, "I'm getting married soon … I just like to call myself Mrs for the happy thrill."
Rinoa smiled politely. "Congratulations."
She doesn't remember a thing… Ashleigh couldn't help but smile to herself. Her fears were slightly lifted, although she still had a bad feeling inside of her.
"No, I remember, I didn't hire any woman that looks like Rinoa," argued Quistis, as she, Selphie and Irvine walked up the stairs together.
"How can you not?" asked Irvine, "You're in charge of recruitment. I saw that woman with my own eyes five minutes ago."
"Yeah, me too!"
"Well, it's not Rinoa, right?" said Quistis.
"Of course it's not Rinoa," snapped Irvine. "She said her name was Sierra."
"Then stop worrying," said Quistis, "It's not as if it's a ghost or anything."
"That's not the point," said Irvine, "When Squall sees her, he'll flip out like hell."
"Well, I didn't hire her," said Quistis, "I would know. There is no one named Sierra on my list."
"You don't understand, Quisty!" said Selphie, "This woman … looks exactly like Rinoa. And I mean like, splitting image."
"Oh come on, I don't believe that," said Quistis, "We haven't seen her properly for six years."
The three companions stopped as they reached the fourteenth floor. "No, you don't understand!" said Selphie, "She's got the brown streaks, the raven hair, the pale skin, the blueness … everything!"
"So what, it's probably a coincidence," said Quistis earnestly.
"Yeah, well let's see coincidence … she's right over there, heading out the elevator with Ashleigh," said Irvine.
The three of them headed up closer, and Quistis' heart almost stopped when she saw the woman exit the elevator. Irvine and Selphie were right; she was a splitting image of Rinoa, even if they hadn't seen her in six years.
"Oh my god, you're right," said Quistis, clasping her hands over her mouth.
"Yeah, see," said Irvine. "Now let's call her over for a closer analysis."
"Hey, Sierra!" called Selphie loudly.
Quistis collected herself and prepared herself.
"Oh, well I'll see you in the meeting," said Rinoa.
Ashleigh nodded and walked away from her. Rinoa headed over to the trio.
"Hello," said Rinoa as she approached them.
"Hey, Sierra, welcome to the crew," said Irvine, "Meet Quisty, she's the smart one."
Quistis smiled. "Hello, my name is Quistis."
"Nice to meet you," said Rinoa.
"Likewise," said Quistis, "Well … I have a couple of questions for you, Ms…"
"Hearten," answered Rinoa, "But just call me Sierra."
"Ah, of course Sierra," said Quistis. "Well … I'm the recruitment manager."
"I see," said Rinoa, "Well, I'd like to thank you for this offer. It's really going to help me and my partner."
"…Partner?" said Quistis.
"Yes, my business partner," said Rinoa. Min you dog, what a great impressio you're making. "Uh … she's looking for something to eat right now. She'll be here for the meeting."
"I … see," said Quistis. "Well, that is the thing. I don't recall ever hiring someone from … uh…"
"Trabia…" answered Rinoa slowly. Oh crap, don't tell me I'm getting kicked off on the first day.
"Trabia!" shouted Selphie, "I'm from Trabia!"
"Wow, really?" said Rinoa, "Great."
"I don't know you, though," said Selphie, cocking her head.
"Oh … I only moved there two years ago," answered Rinoa.
Quistis cleared her throat. "As I was saying. I don't recall ever hiring someone from Trabia, so I'd like to ask who hired you?"
Rinoa looked uncomfortable. "I … I don't know. Whoever it was offered the job to my partner, and she only delivered the message to me. I don't know who offered the job, you'll have to ask her." Min, I'm going to kill you.
Quistis nodded slowly. "I see. Well, I'll raise the issue later when your partner gets here."
Rinoa smiled weakly. "Thank you. Well … I'll see you in the meeting, I guess."
Quistis returned the smile. "Of course."
Rinoa walked away, blindly looking for the boardroom, whilst Quistis, Selphie and Irvine were left to talk.
"You're right," said Quistis, "She looks like Rinoa."
"See, told you so!" said Irvine gloatingly.
"But I didn't hire her, Squall is going to die when he sees her!" said Quistis, panicking. "He's getting over her death, this is going to shatter him…"
"Don't you think we know that?" said Irvine, "Why did you say I'll raise the issue later instead of just kicking her out? That would have made things a lot easier, and Squall would never have to meet her."
"Well that's just stupid!" said Quistis, "That's unfair."
"Well you're the boss, you have the power to kick her off," said Irvine earnestly, "I mean, she decided to strut herself in here without being invited. Sounds pretty unfair to all the other Garden worker-wannabes."
"But her name was listed on the computer," argued Quistis, "Somebody hired her. The security around here is really tight. You make sure of that."
Irvine nodded. "Yeah, I know that."
"You … didn't make any errors, did you?" asked Quistis.
"Hey, are you blaming me for this?" demanded Irvine. "It's not my fault, I check the records and give the names to the secretary! And that's not even the main part of my job. I'm in charge of the security guards and all that, the alarms, suspicious characters in the building."
"They come with photographs, Irvine!" said Quistis in frustration. "Surely you would notice a woman who is identical to Rinoa?"
"Of course I would!" snapped Irvine, "And I don't remember ever seeing someone that looked like her. That's your job! You're the one who checks the résumés and all that, I just check for criminal records! Maybe you're the one who screwed up?"
"I didn't screw up," argued Quistis, "I think I would know better than that."
"And you're saying I don't?" snapped Irvine.
"No, I'm saying—"
Selphie whistled loudly to stop the quarrel. "Guys! Stop arguing! We can blame each other later, right now we have to worry about that woman from actually getting anywhere near Squall!"
Quistis sighed. "You're right."
"Yeah, we have to drive her out of the building and make sure she never comes back," said Irvine, nodding.
"Yeah, got any ideas, brainiac?" asked Quistis in irritation.
Irvine nodded. "Yes, I do have a couple of evil schemes up my sleeve…"
