Alright, Chapter 10! We've hit the big one-oh, and there's still soooo much to go! Oh, and congrats on Wolf and Ej for guessing. :D hee-hee, this is gonna be fun… If I sound crazy or weird, it's 1 in the morning and I'm pissed at my brother, it's not entirely my fault. We were talking about the end of the world because of FF7, and he said I'd have a million people to apologize to, then he started listing my faults. Grrr, sometimes I hate him. Anyways, here are some review responses, and then we go forward!
Magical Girl Pretty Sammy-Chan- Yeah, it kinda does! Alright, add some Selvine into this bottle, and Squinoa only if the mixture fails… lol. Glad to know SOMEONE'S rooting for me… -glares at brother-
Ej- Yeah… something like that. Hee-hee, you'll find out! And… good guess. -grins- Thanks to you too, glad everyone likes it!
Wolf- Heck, we have history with him… Elmo (lol, popcorn!), Miss Falcone… God, I miss her. Good teacher. Thanks to you too-too, I'm gonna keep writing. And yes, Zell loves his beer! lol, still, I have NEVER heard you laugh like that before, and just over "nyum-nyum".
Chapter 10: Stuck
"Thus, no one can leave, and no one can enter. I'm sorry," the mayor finished as he walked slowly off the stage. A dull murmur of outrage and disappointment rose up from the crowd, and Squall turned to look at the guards standing post at the entrance to the town. Why him? Why had things ended up this way…?
-FB (a.k.a. flashback)-
Squall sat up, head heavy and eyes drooping. Hauling himself off the bed, he placed both hands on the desk and stared into the mirror. "Ugh," he shuddered. Dark circles were running underneath his eyes, and he felt nauseous. His hair was tousled from tossing and turning, the room stank of sweat, and so did he. Those drinks he had last night hadn't done him any good, and seeing the note she had left made his dreams fill with her, in a drunken sort of way. He frowned and rubbed his forehead. There was no way in hell he could leave today.
"Hey, is a Leonhart in here?" a voice called. Squall opened the door, not bothering to fix his appearance. The inn owner looked him up and down before shaking his head. "There's going to be a town meeting," he began.
"I'm not a member of this town, doesn't concern me," Squall said bluntly as he tried to shut the door. Funnily enough, the man's big belly blocked the door, he didn't even wince as it squished his stomach.
"Everyone in this town must come. You don't come, the Sheriff will have a bone to pick with you," he said with a grin. Squall sighed. What could the town govornment possibly need to see the outsiders for?
"Fine, just give me a minute," he groaned, shutting the door. This time, the man leapt out of the way.
"Yeah, sonny, you take that minute. Heaven knows you need it," he joked, laughing as his footsteps clomped down the stairs. Squall began to comb through his hair with his fingers as he attempted to make the circles seem less noticeable. Finally, after several unsuccessful minutes of face-cover-up, he groaned, sheathing his gunblade and stalked downstairs.
"Why the hell me?" he said aloud to the disapproval of a few old ladies standing nearby. He glared at them, before he fingered his gunblade. The two women were frightened into silence as he walked by, silently chuckling to himself. Yes, it wasn't his nature to scare over-the-hill women, but it sure as hell was funny. He left the building and stalked over to the town hall, seeing a few familiar faces but preferring to stick to the back. His heart leapt into his throat as soon as he caught glimpse of Rinoa, thankfully back in her powder-blue dress. Swallowing his heart and ignoring the quickened beating, he looked to the front, watching the mayor approach the wooden podium.
"As you know," he began, clearing his throat, "The attacks on our fellow citizens have been increasing, but the problems seem to be linked." He stopped, loosening the tight hold of his collar. "I have people patrolling the gates, however…" he halted once more, waiting for a response or a cry of outrage. "However, for your own safety, they have been instructed to stop all, and I mean all that are coming, or going." The crowd began to murmur, but a few sentences too late, he kept going without stopping. "Thus, no one can leave, and no one can enter. I'm sorry," the mayor finished as he walked slowly off the stage. -AN: and now back to present times- Squall sighed. He had obviously walked off quickly as to avoid fruit being flung at him. He turned. Now he couldn't leave… well, he was stuck here for quite a while. Still, not all of him was upset. A very large, yet very timid, part of him was glad to be stuck in the same town as Rinoa Heartily.
"Man, can you believe it?" a voice rang out. Reflexes taking over, Squall ducked into the shadows, hiding in the corner as much as possible. And yet, to his horror, a bunch of people stopped right in front of where he was. With a smile, he recognized Quistis, Selphie, Irvine, Zell, and, his heart jumped, Rinoa. Rinoa shook her hair out of its tight bun and sighed.
"I know, but the good thing is that now none of the cowhands from Caraway's farm can come to get me!" she said with a grin. The others stared at each other and smirked. "What?" she asked.
"Now HE can't leave," Quistis said evilly. Rinoa stared at her, a look of confusion on her face.
"Squall, silly," Selphie said. His eyes widened. Why were they talking about him?
"Yeah, we all know you have a thing for him," Zell said with a laugh. Rinoa frowned.
"I do not!" she cried. Despite the fact that he was trying to forget about her, his heart sank at her words.
"Oh, come on, you stare at him all funny, you're always spaced out when he's around, what more evidence could we need?" Irvine smiled, patting her on the shoulder.
"Look, we need to go," Selphie said, putting a hand on Irvine's arm. He nodded and put his arm around her.
"Yeah, we'll see you guys later," he said. As they walked off, Zell smiled gently.
"Gotta go to the bank, see you later! Quistis, will you help me out for a while, things are getting tough…" She nodded and they walked off, Zell continuing. "See, all those papers and bank statements are driving me crazy, and you've had experience with papers and stuff…" it droned out. Still, Rinoa didn't move, pondering what they had said. Squall shuffled, hoping that she would leave soon. Instead, the noise alerted her attention and brought her to look closer at the shadowy corner, hoping to God it wasn't a werewolf. Taking his chances, Squall leapt out of the corner and clapped a hand over her mouth, keeping her from an almost ear-piercing scream.
"Shh! It's just me," he reassured her before removing his hand. Rinoa suppressed a smile. She had hoped she would see him again.
"Why were you hiding?" she asked, cocking her head to the left slightly. Squall hadn't thought of that.
"Uh… I… uh… Well… uh…" he started, unable to continue at all. The fact that she was staring at him like that wasn't quite helping either. "I heard voices… and I… well, I, uh…" Rinoa laughed a deep belly-laugh that had her doubled over. He couldn't understand why it was so funny, but seeing her laugh like that made something swell inside him. It grew and grew as she kept laughing, almost grappling onto the wall for support. Finally, he burst. Rinoa instantly stopped laughing and straightened up… it was unbelievable. Squall was… laughing. A short, deep bark-like laugh that enthralled her, and she began to laugh as well. Soon they were grasping each other's arms for support, laughing until their sides hurt. Passing people stared at them as if they were insane, but neither cared. Finally, the two stopped, gasping for breath and still clutching each other. Realizing that Squall's arms were pulling her down, Rinoa crashed to the ground, bringing Squall with her. Making a small "x", they landed on top of each other, Rinoa laughing once more. Squall grunted slightly as he shifted, his arm didn't feel too great.
"What?" Rinoa said, laughter subsiding as she lifted her head to stare at him. He grunted once more and shook his head.
"N-nothing, just my right arm," he said, trying to raise himself up before falling onto his back. Rinoa sat up and pushed his legs off her lap before she crawled over to his arm.
"Damn, let me see it," she said gently. Her delicate fingers traced his arm through the sleeve, upon reaching the elbow, he jolted. "Okay, let's just…" She thought of the local doctor, known for loving his whiskey, but still quite useful when he was sober. "God, just take me now!" she cried. Squall stared at her. She looked back at him, anger screwed into her features. "The doctor was out of town, and now he won't be allowed in!" she growled as his eyes widened. "You can still walk, can't you?" she asked with a frown. He grinned slightly, only upturning one corner of his mouth.
"It's my arm, not my leg," he said. "I'll… ugh," he stopped as he shifted. "I just need some help up." Obligingly, she stood up and held out her hand.
"Left arm, please," she said as he stuck out his arm, placing his feet in a crouching position. Hauling him to his feet, she moved his arm to a comfortable position against his chest and instructed him to keep it there. Her fingers grazed his chest lightly; at the sudden contact, he shivered. "I have medical kits in my room." Squall frowned and allowed her to lead him through the town, taking him to the inn. If it weren't for my arm, this would have been perfect, he thought wistfully.
-POVC-
"Look, they've been able to slip out; we'll be able to get in just the same!" Seifer argued, arms rose in the air and a fire burning in his eyes. Ultimecia lifted herself off her chair and stared him, a fire blazing in her eyes as well, but a cold one.
"No. We go in as humans, we come out as humans." In his anger, Seifer turned right then and there. His fangs bared, he stared at the obstacle from his bloodlust. She laughed. "I can beat you in a fight, don't even try." Frowning, he dropped his form.
"My hunger grows greater, when do we feast?" he said, mock respect dripping from each syllable. She laughed.
"Soon, O servant. Very, very soon." Their laughter mingled as dusk approached them… things were about to get quite… interesting…
Hee! Alright, this was the longest chapter yet, what'd y'all think? I happen to like it, poor Squall, though! And no, it's not broken, just sprained. For those of you who guessed Seifer was a werewolf, yay for you! You win nothing! Still, congrats to ya. I'm not going to change my title after all, I like it the way it is. :D, and the rating will not go up, this will stay T, thank you. Augh, I'm not going to write ANYTHING about… that. -shudders- Can barely even stand to hear it read aloud. You would know that, wouldn't you? Yeah, you know who I'm talking to. To Tame a Wolf? Yeah, you know who you are! -kills you- lol, j/k. Took me a whole damned day to write this, I'm ticked at my brother again. :D, he never stops. Whelp, FF7 beckons. Thanks for reading, and I would much appreciate it if you guys pressed that little button down there labeled "Submit Review". Please? Thanks to Ej for the town-close-down idea!
-greiverwings
