Feathers and Roses

Rinoa, now lightheaded because of all the medicines she had been given earlier, glared at Squall as though she were a diamond cutting through a pane of glass. "Three weeks?" she repeated with a firm accent which made Squall's stomach churn even more.

Squall's was trying his best to prevent his uneasiness to get the best of him. "Rinoa, I can explain…I was thinking that three weeks would be a good time because we can…"

And Rinoa cut him off again by uttering, "Three weeks?"

Squall was getting more nervous by the second, and he explained (and lied), "When you were out cold, I was thinking that it would be a good idea to get married to you as soon as…"

At that moment, Rinoa let out a shrilly, crystal-breaking scream that could have shattered the thick windows into silica powder. "Rinoa, please listen to me…" Squall frantically told her when he tried to calm her down.

Rinoa looked at Squall with tears in her eyes, grabbed him by the shoulders, and hugged him fiercely. "Oh my Hyne, I'm getting married in three weeks! Squall, oh Squall, I love you so much! You're the best boyfriend anyone could ever have!"

"Eh heh…heheh…" Squall nervously said as he caressed her back with his hand. "I love you too Rinoa." He shifted uncomfortably from the stool where he was sitting and sighed while Rinoa was still weeping her tears into his white tee shirt with joy.

When she was done crying, she wiped her tears and composed herself once again. Sitting back against the headrest, she asked him, "So, have you sent the invitations? What about the theme for the wedding, have you already planned it? Oh, and what about the caterers and the photographers? We also need some gifts for our guests…oh Squall, you do know how to make a woman feel loved!"

Squall was fidgeting his fingers from where Rinoa couldn't see them, and he once again lied, "Well, I've still been thinking about some of the details but I'll work them out eventually…I hope."

Rinoa beamed at her lover and cupped his cheeks with her hands. "Oh, everything will turn out good Squall." These words made Squall's organs cringe and rearrange themselves. Rinoa pulled Squall closer and rested her head against the crook of her knight's neck as she continued, "I know that my Squally can come up with something that would make this wedding picture-perfect!" Squall felt his stomach exploding and seeping its acids into his other organ systems. "I mean, you aren't exactly the artistic type, but I know for a fact that you will solicit the best people in the business. Everything will be perfect!"

Squall couldn't take it anymore. He felt as if Rinoa was brandishing a sharp letter opener and piercing his lungs open. "And my dress…I will walk down that aisle dressed in a beautiful, flowing pristine gown to be joined forever with the man of my dreams…"

'Oh Hyne! I forgot the dress part!' Squall worried in agony as he continued to rub Rinoa's back gently. Inside, he felt like a war was going on with all the missiles darting here and there.

"And to think that all of this is happening in three weeks!" Rinoa exclaimed.

Squall felt like he was about to suffocate, but he restrained himself and meekly suggested, "Um, Rinoa, I know that you are extremely excited about this wedding but do you think we can talk about this tomorrow? I think you need your rest and I do to."

Rinoa smiled at him tenderly and answered, "Of course Squall, anything for you." She positioned her pillow in a comfortable manner and closed her eyes. Moving her hand closer to Squall's, she said, "Squall, I want you to stay here tonight."

Squall kissed her hand and said, "That's what I'm doing my angel."

Rinoa turned on her side to face him, her eyes still closed. "I mean, would you please sleep here with me…in bed?"

Beaming at her suggestion, Squall wasted not a second to remove his jacket and his boots. After removing his pants, he found a place underneath the hospital-white blankets and took the spot beside his love. "Remember that I will always be here to take care of you."

Rinoa snuggled closer to him and buried her face in the warmth of his chest. "You can be so spontaneous at times Squall. Why didn't you tell me about this earlier?"

"About what?" Squall asked her with a quiver in his voice as her nervously stroked her long, black hair. "You mean about the wedding?" 'You shouldn't bring something like this up…'

Rinoa kissed Squall's chest while keeping her head buried there and said, "Of course silly, what else do you think I was talking about?"

Squall sweatdropped and said, "Uh, well, let's say that I wanted to surprise you." 'Hyne Rinoa, you don't know how hard you're making this for me…'

Rinoa giggled and hugged Squall's waist tightly. "That is something you should never keep a secret from me. I want to plan the wedding with you too." She inhaled the musky scent of his warm, sweaty chest and continued, "We'll talk about this more tomorrow love, but you should tell me whom you have already invited."

Squall felt like he was going to release a dam full of sweat into the room. "Well…um…I already invited…uh…the orphanage gang…of course…and the people we know."

Rinoa was toying with his abs, bringing her hand over his six-pack while asking, "Who are these people?"

Squall stammered while saying, "Uh…I invited Ellone…some friends from Garden…Seifer (shit!)…Cid, Edea…some students from Garden…and…well…"

"Laguna?" Rinoa asked innocently.

"And Laguna!" Squall blurted out. 'DAMN! Did I just say that I was going to invite that clown?'

Rinoa skeptically looked at him and said, "Did you finally settle things with your dad?"

'He's not my dad…' Squall thought irritably before saying, "Well, I just decided to invite him but…erm…I don't know Rinoa. Can we talk about this tomorrow?"

Rinoa sighed in disappointment and said, "Okay Squall, let's go to sleep. But I'll have enough strength to get out of here tomorrow so I want to plan about this wedding with you along with whomever you're planning this with." She nuzzled against Squall's chest and began to doze off. "Good night, my knight."

Squall wrapped his arms around her and softly stroked her fragrant, black hair. "Good night…" 'Damn, what did I get myself into?'

The following morning, Irvine and Selphie took their usual walk in the Quad, stopping every now and then to see the new changes she had implemented on the Garden Festival. As they walked closer to the festival stage, Selphie paused for a moment to examine the banners some of the committee students had put up earlier during the week.

"Ain't it a tad bit too yellow?" commented Irvine as he adjusted his hat to get a better view of the entire stage.

Selphie slowly turned her head and abruptly stole his hat from his head. "You ninny! If that's too yellow, then what am I?" she asked him crossly.

Irvine lightly brushed Selphie's nose with his and answered, "The perfect golden girl…"

Selphie could feel her legs turning into jelly as Irvine swooped down and locked lips with her, for what seemed like hours and hours of passionate kissing. She reciprocated his actions and embraced the cowboy when she suddenly saw Headmaster Cid and Edea enter the Quad. Spreading her palms across his cheeks, she vehemently pushed Irvine off her, causing him to drop her on the Quad's solid marble floors. "Ow!" she exclaimed while eyeing him fiendishly. Composing herself, she stood up and waved at her foster parents. "Headmaster Cid, Matron! How do you like the new setting for the Quad."

Edea was now dressed in the attire that they had seen in their flashbacks. Gone was the eccentric gown with the artificial fur and the unusual headdress. Wearing only an elegant, dark purple dress, she looked even more beautiful, and somehow, mystifyingly younger. Her long, raven hair flowed in cascades around her shoulder. Her eyes, once yellowed by the effects of magic, now showed the warmth of her personality with its striking shade of green. It was no wonder that Cid fell in love wit h this woman. Not only did she have a magnetic charming personality, but she was physically stunning. Her tall physique easily commanded the attention of those willing to pass a glance across her direction, yet her warmth radiated an inviting feel that caused even the most timid creature to willingly approach her. She gracefully lifted her hand to her chin and began contemplating the work that her foster daughter had created. "I like it. The blend of gold and light blue is perfect for the silk banners. You might want to shade the walls and the floor a light cream though. I just think that would make things perfect. What do you think Cid?"

Cid scrunched his forehead and examined the entire Quad. "I think you're right Edea, but don't we need a few decorations to add color?"

"I know! I know!" Selphie exclaimed. "What about pink roses and white feathers scattered on the floor? Those will complement the colors nicely!"

Edea shook her head in disapproval and commented, "Perhaps if the banners were peach-pink colored. Keep the gold, but the blue will not complement the roses and feathers. But I'll let you decide dear."

Selphie slumped on the floor and breathed a sigh of disappointment. "But that will be so hard to change. What will I do with the blue ones?"

Edea smiled slyly at the brunette and said, "Why, magic of course!" She snapped her fingers twice and the blue banners began shimmering before a wave of peach fabric began cascading over the silk. The floors too, had followed the same kind of chameleon magic that Edea had cast on the banners, changing from their usual shade of white into an elegant cream-peach, with streaks of marbling to add that touch of beauty that it needed.

Selphie could only gawk at this marvelous change before saying, "Wow! Matron thank you!" Rushing towards Edea, she held out her arms to embrace her mother figure before pausing at that moment to digest all that had been done. Stopping abruptly, she looked at the raven-haired woman and asked, "But wait a moment Matron, I thought you were no longer a sorceress. How did you pull a spell like that off?"

Selphie looked at Cid, who seemed just as perplexed at his wife's conjuring of that spell. Irvine added, "I thought you had passed your powers on to Rinoa Matron. We assumed…"

"There is no need for assumption Irvine. I was born a sorceress, and what powers I inherited during birth, minimal may they be, runs through my veins and cannot be sapped away by succession. I can no longer achieve the horrible things I had done when my body was once possessed by the spirit of Ultimecia, but what little I can do to help, I will do so with my powers. Like, for example, house cleaning," she so elegantly answered.

Cid turned to his wife, unsure of what to ask, and then decided to blurt out, "Dear, I didn't know you used magic to clean the house. Do you realize that if you use your powers, this will act as a beacon for evil sorceresses and all that riffraff? I don't want you to get involved in all this!" His face switched from that of a compassionate old man to one of commanding authority. "I don't want to lose you again Edea. I am too old. I can't fight with a sword like I used to before."

Edea placed a reassuring hand on Cid's shoulder before exchanging glances with Irvine and Selphie. "Now, now, please do not fret. Cid, I do realize what you say, and no I don't do magic in the house. All I wanted to do was to help the dear with her decoration. Now where else would you find a service that would gladly change floors and colors for a minimal price? Please dear, I know that you are worried, but I know what I'm doing. Besides, the Garden is as of now, a mobile hub, and until the site in Balamb is repaired, we will be on the move." She released Cid and turned to her children. "I'm sorry for all this, but how do you like the changes I've made? Do you like the color?" she asked Selphie enthusiastically.

Selphie grinned and resumed the hug that she had cut off earlier. "Of course I do Matron, of course I do. Thank you so much! But please, like the headmaster said be careful."

Edea returned the hug while saying, "I will be dear. I will be."

This tender moment was suddenly interrupted when a very distressed looking Squall entered the Quad. Almost tripping on the marble steps, he skidded towards Selphie and Irvine to an abrupt halt, panting and huffing while regaining his composure. "Irvine…puff…wheeze…Selphie…gasp…I need your…help!"

Irvine rushed to his side and helped him up. "Ok, take a deep breath Squall and you know, chill. Now what's on your mind?"

When Squall appeared to have calmed down, he sat on a nearby bench, motioning for Irvine to follow him. Making sure no one was listening, he whispered, "Irvine, I'm done for. I know that I rarely do this and by that surprised look on your face I can tell that you're thinking that it's not me talking to you but I really need your help."

Irvine set his hands firmly on Squall's shoulders and said, "Wooow….slow down Squall. You normally don't talk this fast unless…now what did you do?"

Squall impatiently shook his head and said, "Will you at least listen to me? Thank you. I told Rinoa that we are having a wedding in three weeks."

Irvine's eyes beamed and grew as large as melons when he returned, "AWESOME dude! I never knew you had the guts to ask her! So it's a surprise wedding? I never knew you could pull something like this off but WHAM!" He gave Squall a macho punch in the gut and said, "That's what I would have done first but you beat THE MASTER to it. So why didn't you tell us?"

Squall looked grim-faced as he answered, "Because...there is no wedding. Look, there is such a thing as planning something and doing it and talking about something and not doing it yet. I'm in the sticky situation where I told her I would have a wedding in three weeks and I had no idea that I was planning it."

Irvine looked gravely at the floor and was contemplating Squall's cry for help. "All I can say is, we have to act fast. I'll send out invitations and things like that, and I can tell everyone on the squad to prepare something to undo your unholy act."

Squall scoffed at Irvine but before he could reply, Irvine wondered, "When is it again?"

"Three weeks from yesterday."

Irvine paused and shaded his eyes with his hat. "Dang."

Squall looked puzzled and immediately asked, "What is the problem with three weeks from yesterday?"

Irvine pointed to the festival stage and said, "The festival that is three weeks from yesterday."

Squall started pacing back and forth and brushed off his bothersome bangs before stopping again to suggest, "What if we bring this to Selphie? Maybe she…maybe she…no, I don't think she'll do it."

"No, no, don't stop there. I'm sure whatever you have in mind Selphie will consider," Irvine told him.

Squall sighed loudly and said, "What if we cancel the festival for this wedding?"

There was an uneasy silence between the two men before the taller one answered, "I don't know if I can do that, but I'll try."

They both cautiously approached the three (Edea, Cid, and Selphie) who were waiting eagerly for what this fuss was about. Excusing Selphie from the older couple, Irvine brought her to the corner where he and Squall had discussed this frantic dilemma earlier.

Squall, on the other hand, was silently (as usual) looking at the floor, shuffling his feet, feeling his sweat trickle down his forehead, his back, and the nape of his neck. What on earth is taking them so long?

After a few heavy moments (where uneasiness was so thick that it could easily be cut with a butter knife), Selphie and Irvine emerged from the little corner, Irvine walking towards them in his trademark Galbadia Garden prep walk, and Selphie, quite surprisingly, with a huge smile pasted on her face.

Running towards Squall, she squeaked, "It's PERFECT! THERE'S NO OTHER WORD FOR IT! SQUALL, YOU HAVE JUST COMMITTED AN ARTISTE TO THE GREATEST CANVAS OF ALL----your we---"

"Squall!" called a familiar voice from the entryway of the Quad. Squall uneasily stepped behind Edea and Cid, as if he wanted to be hidden from the presence of this newcomer. Moments later, Rinoa appeared on a wheelchair being pushed by one of the infirmary nurses.

Squall could only feel the foreboding doom that was about to come, a feeling of dread that seemed to dampen the dry atmosphere of the Quad when he came face to face with a woman who had her arms crossed over her chest, lips ready to utter his name.