Well, here we go again…. And to think, I want this to be around 50 chapters long. Oh, what have I gotten myself (and you guys) into?

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Final Fantasy VIII characters, places, or general ideas. I can, however, direct you to the individuals who DO own them all.

Chapter Thirty-Six

What To Do When The Walls Fall Down

Seifer sat up in his bed, in his room, in darkness. They didn't trust him. He sensed it. He knew Squall didn't trust him either. That was a no brainer. Squall has hated him ever since that little "incident" with Rinoa and Adel. He had never intended on hurting Rinoa. It just sort of happened that way. But, then again, Squall had never really trusted him to begin with. Just how many times must he tell them that he wanted nothing to do with Rianna anymore? She needed to be stopped. She was too powerful, too obsessive, and he wanted no parts of that again.

They didn't trust him because he made one little mistake two years ago. He hadn't been himself when that happened. He didn't know what he was doing. Ultimecia had manipulated him. She had ordered him to kill Rinoa because she was a threat. He didn't know any better then. But by the time Seifer had taken Rinoa, she and Squall were close, and that had come as a surprise to Ultimecia. She wasn't prepared for a connection between Rinoa and her main target, Squall.

He didn't know just why Ultimecia had targeted Squall. Maybe to her, he was the weakest. . .

Seifer sighed. How was he going to tell Squall Rianna's plan? Would he even believe him? Ultimecia must have told Rianna her reasons for targeting Squall, or she could have just guessed. Rianna was following her mother. Her target was Squall.

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Rinoa and Squall remained silent with each other. Squall kept his back to Rinoa, lost in thought as he stared up into the night sky, watching the darkness swirl around, captivating.

Was Seifer trustable? Could they believe what he was saying? Of course, they had seen that body, but did Seifer's story match the truth of that?

"Is there even such a sorceress?" Squall asked aloud, speaking his thoughts.

"Yes." Rinoa tried to keep as quiet as possible. She had been harboring this secret for a very long time, heeding the warning of a very wise individual.

Squall turned around to face her. He hadn't expected an answer. "What?"

"There is such a sorceress," she remained speaking softly, afraid of how he might react.

"How do you know? You actually believe Seifer?" he demanded, walking over to her. Rinoa could see the hatred that he had held for so long behind his eyes.

"Well, yes and no. Some things he said were a it far out, but the things about Natural-born sorceresses were all true." She looked away again. So far he wasn't taking this well. Maybe that was why she had been warned not to tell a soul until the time was right.

"Rinoa, how do you know?" Squall asked again, his voice was starting to shake, almost as if he were scared.

"Edea told me. There were a lot of things she told me when I left Balamb. She said that there were things I needed to know. That was one of them." She refrained from looking at him. The glare was scary to her. There were things about him that continued to hold her in fear.

"So all that about Natural-born sorceresses is all true?" Squall growled, a little on the upset side.

Rinoa nodded. She felt his gaze on her. She could also feel something else there. Something that was sure to come. There was the first step. The ground was beginning to become shaky where their relationship was standing. He was distancing himself from everyone again.

"Why didn't you say anything before? And what about Rianna? Did you know about her?" He demanded, becoming agitated.

Again, Rinoa just nodded. Squall walked away from her again, cursing under his breath.

"Why! Why didn't you say anything before?" He had to put in a little more effort to keep from yelling at her. Rinoa bit her lower lip.

"Rinoa! I'd like an answer!" This time, though, he lost all control and yelled at her. Rinoa found strength somewhere and stood to face him.

"Because Edea asked me not to tell anyone! She wanted to avoid chaos! Are you happy now? I know you're under a lot of stress because you want to keep everyone safe, but you certainly don't have to take it out on me!" She screamed at him before dropping back into the chair. Tears streamed down her cheeks.

The silence that followed had to have been the worst ever. Squall stood there watching her. All and any anger and frustration had been replaced by regret and despair. Rinoa sat in the chair, crying her heart out but making no sound.

Squall hated himself then, more than ever before. He did take his anger out on her and the others, but he had never hurt any of them, though. They just seemed to frustrate him to the extent where he couldn't handle it.

He took a few steps closer to her. "Rinoa?" But the damage was done. She wouldn't look at him. The only thing that kept her from running out of that room was the fact that, scary enough, she felt safe there. Seifer was out there somewhere.

Squall merely shook his head, and before Rinoa could do or say anything, he was out the door.

As the door slammed, Rinoa jumped up, but it was too late. He was livid. She sighed. Why does this sort of thing have to happen? She thought bitterly, angered by the childish way she had acted. The chances of him coming back soon were slim to none. Rinoa sighed yet again. What was she supposed to do? Wait for him? Or go after him?

Almost as suddenly as she had made up her mind, a little voice in the back of her head gave her the final decision:

If you love him, go after him.

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Squall walked as far away from that room as possible. He didn't want to talk to anyone. He felt so bad. He hadn't meant to do that to her. He loved her more than anyone on the planet. Nothing could change that. She was his first love, his last love, his only love. No one could understand him better than her. She had succeeded in bringing him out of the darkness that had began to consume him. She taught him how to love.

"Why? Why do I do this to her? When she gets too close, I always move away! I don't understand why! I need an answer!" He yelled out over the dark city from the balcony. He had found his way back to this place. It seemed to help ease the wounds.

"Maybe you're just scared," Rinoa spoke softly from behind. She had only just walked through the door, somehow knowing that he would be there.

" Why, though? Why am I scared?" He knew that was her behind him, but he refused to face her. He was too ashamed by how he had acted. The best thing was too just stay where he was for now.

Rinoa moved out to him, taking her time, not wanting to move too quickly. She placed a hand on his back when she reached him finally.

"I know why. It's another thing I can see in your eyes. You're scared of me." Rinoa tried not to cry. She had shed enough tears for one day, even if it hadn't lasted very long.

"Maybe I am scared." He agreed but in a shaky tone of voice. " I think that I'm scared I might hurt you. You're around me all the time. I'm not used to that. Yet, I never want you to leave. When I get angry out here, there's no training center around that I can use to calm my anger. There's only you, and I'm afraid I might blow up one day, and you'll be too close. I don't want to hurt you. Even now, I hate myself." His voice trailed off as he struggled to maintain a fixed gaze out in front of him.

"Squall, look at me. You won't hurt me. I -- no, we have been through a lot. You do scare me sometimes, but I can always get over that. I'm here, in the danger zone, because I love you. I'll always be here, and I refuse to go anywhere," she finished with a strong voice. Every word, every syllable came out clearly and sank deep in his heart. He believed her.

"I don't want you to go anywhere either. I just don't want you to get hurt, and Rianna may try to do that. She may target you." He had listened to her when she told him to look at her, but now, he was having a difficult time looking her in the eyes.

"Squall, I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to leave you alone in this. Rianna is my problem too and we should face her together. She can't hurt me if I'm with you. Nothing can hurt me." Rinoa wrapped her arms around his waist, hanging onto him like there was no tomorrow. "I'm not scared of her. My one fear is losing you." She spoke into his shirt.

"Rinoa," He pulled away just enough to look her in the eyes. "Although I may not always show it, I love you." He had to force those three little words out. "Sometimes I just don't know how to express myself. Remember, I've never let anyone in before. When I fell in love with you, I didn't have a chance. You changed me, but you know I wouldn't have it any other way. I don't want to love anyone else. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, to wake up every morning to your shinning smile. I want to be with you and only you. I want to live and die with you. I want to be beside you always because I never want to let you go."

Crystal clear tears dropped down from her cheeks onto the stone floor below. Her heart was beating so loudly, she swore he could hear it.

"I don't know what to say to that," she smiled.

"Don't. Just never leave me, and I'll be the happiest man alive." Squall couldn't have been anymore serious.

"You have nothing to worry about." Rinoa wiped away her tears and hugged him again.

Squall held Rinoa in his arms. He was oblivious to everything around him except her. She was the only thing he saw.

The darkened sky held many secrets. One of which needs to be known. The greatest of Evil will soon be unleashed from its dark chambers. They have waited a long time for this destruction and will stop at nothing to achieve it. The Earth and all its inhabitants will soon perish if what has protected for so long is destroyed.

Rianna was growing stronger.

A/N: Ummm, I think I went a bit overboard with that one. I just wanted a little proclamation somewhere in there, but I think that was overdoing it, don't you guys think so? I do like the last paragraph though. I wonder if anyone can guess what's in store. I have this little feeling that maybe, just maybe now, you guys might not like me very much. Hehe. Later Days!