Author's Notes: This makes more sense to be chapter one for me. So, let's try this again.
Maybe I'm A Lion
Chapter One
The Door Opens
"Squall! Hurry up or we're going to be late!" Rinoa called outside of Squall's dormitory door. She was dressed to the nines in a beautiful shimmering red ball gown. Her raven hair was tied up into an assortment of curls upon her head and her bangs were moved from her eyes. Her foot tapped in annoyance as she waited for her boyfriend to leave his chambers and escort her to the graduation dance.
"Come on Squall! You are supposed to give a speech in 15 minutes to the new SeeDs!" she yelled again.
The door slid opened and the young officer of the Balamb Garden stood, towering over his pouting girlfriend, "Sorry Rinoa. I lost track of time." He said coolly, adjusting the collar of his uniform slightly.
Taking his arm as he stepped from the room, Rinoa raised an eyebrow, "You lost track of time? Squall Leonhart, commander of the Balamb Garden and savior of this world, lost track of time?" she scoffed slightly, not at all hiding her sarcasm.
Flinging his chestnut hair slightly, Squall only ignored the girl's outburst, "Give me a break Rin. I'm allowed to forget sometimes."
But the girl only sighed as they started off towards the ballroom, "I know. But you have been forgetting a lot. You were late to three of your meetings with Cid, forgot completely about helping Selphie with this dance, and you slept in six times and were late to the training missions for the candidates," She paused, hugging his arm tighter, "Squall, I'm worried about you…"
Halting in her tracks, the young commander pulled Rinoa into his arms and hugged her tightly, "Rin, you don't have to worry about me. I'm just overworked and I'm still working at feeling 100 again. After this ball, I'm gonna take off and we're going to go to Balamb and just spend the weekend there relaxing. Just the two of us, okay?"
Rinoa embraced Squall's hug and smiled a soft grin, "Ok."
They remained silent for only a few moments, letting the sounds of the party echo threw the hallways of the Garden. Both teens did not seem to care if they were late to the dance. All that mattered was that they were together and that was that.
That night was the one-year anniversary of the end of the Sorceress War and the freedom of the world from the control of any military power. The gardens were still in full commission and students still came to become SeeDs. The schools became the world's military, uniting them against any and all evil that might come again.
"Come on. We're gonna be late," Rinoa muttered, moving back to Squall's arm. They started off once again towards the ball, unaware of the growing darkness surrounding the garden…
"YOU ARE LATE!" Selphie's high-pitched shout echoed outside of the noise ballroom. She, Irvine, Zell, and Quistis, were waiting outside for the arrival of the commander and his girlfriend.
Rinoa pulled away from Squall's arm and bowed, "We're very sorry Selph. Squall lost track of time and—"
But the angry, but usually, perky girl only shook her head and covered her ears in frustration, "Whatever! I'm still mad at you Squall for forgetting to help me with this whole thing! But, you have a speech to make. So, I'll handle you later. Get in there and wow them!" And with that, she stormed off back into the ballroom.
Irvine, now a full SeeD, class A officer, simply, tipped his hat to Rinoa and Squall, "Sorry about Selphie you two. She's just under a little stress."
'Yeah, I noticed," Squall merely thought as he nodded understandingly.
Quistis tossed her hair slightly, "Well, get going Squall. They are waiting on you."
Bowing his head slightly, he took up Rinoa's arm again and they started into the ballroom.
It was even more beautiful than the last graduation dance the garden had, which had been Squall's very own. The room looked as if it was in an enchanted forest of sorts. Long strings of garland tinted with gold and sliver lights encircled each of the columns. The balconies were dressed in the same fashion. It almost seemed like the night before the Starlight Festival, when the garden celebrated Christmas.
All the students, SeeD and non, were dancing and talking to the sounds of the wonderful orchestra that placed the most wonderful waltzes for the students to dance to. Some, stood off to the sides, drinking champagne and chatting with higher ranked officers or government officials that always attended this dance to congratulate the new students and give them words of wisdom, when they weren't too drunk off of the liquor that was being served.
Squall and Rinoa made their way through the crowd, bowing to those who greeted them. Walking up the stairs of the ballroom's grand staircase, they stopped at the top and looked out over the guests. The band silenced and everyone looked up towards the two, ready to listen.
"Go ahead Squall," Rinoa muttered, slipping her arm out from his and taking a step back.
Squall stared out at the crowded room. He saw so many familiar faces looking up at him. The headmaster Cid and matron stood with Ward, Ellone, Kiros, and his father, President Loire, watching him closely. Seifer and the discipline committee stood near the base of the stairs, as if being Squall's bodyguards. Of course, Seifer would never admit to being that.
Clearing his throat slightly, Squall began: "Congratulations to the new members of Garden's elite mercenary force known as SeeD. I am very proud to have you with us. You will now be able to see the world and travel to places beyond this Garden. To see different Worlds even…" he paused, looking out over the room. Then, he gave a rare smile, "Let your journeys be many, and you adventures lead you discovery everything you could dream of. Thank you."
The applause was great and almost deafening. Squall bowed slight and stepped back to regain Rinoa's arm, "That was a wonderful speech Squall," she smiled, "But, it didn't sound like you at all."
"I decided to stop there before I sounded anymore like Cid," he muttered, remembering the speech he had received the day he graduated. Sighing lightly at the memories, the teen used his free hand to rub the temple of his head, moaning softly, "I don't know why, but this headache of mine is not letting me think straight."
As they started down the staircase, Rinoa glanced over at him slightly, "Why didn't you take something for it before you left your room?"
"That's just the thing. I did…" he muttered quietly, so softly that he knew Rinoa did not hear. They entered the floor and began their mingling with the guests. Everyone's heart was light with happiness and joy, for the evening was bright and full of life.
The darkness was growing…its time had now come….
"A fine speech son!" Laguna spoke loudly, hitting Squall on his back, almost making him loose his footing, "I couldn't have done better myself!"
"Isn't that the truth…." Kiros whispered quietly to Squall, keeping a perfectly straight face. Squall knew that his 'father' was used to Kiros' wisecracks and knocks at him. Therefore, it didn't faze him at all.
Rinoa and Ellone were speaking quietly to each other, an occasional laugh from them while Cid and Edea were speaking to Laguna and Squall. "A wonderful speech Squall," The matron told him softly, "Filled with heart and kindness."
Squall felt his face ting pink at Edea's kind words, "Indeed," Cid added with his broad grin, "Shows how much you have grown and changed, Squall."
The praise and such for how much he changed didn't seem to cure his pounding headache. As the conversation continued, Squall would try to rub his head slightly, without being too noticeable. There was so much pain, it was almost blinding.
"And to think, this whole party has gone without a single hitch," Laguna sang happily, taking another sip of champagne.
Suddenly, the entire ballroom darkened to that only the light of the full moon lit the area. The couples stopped dancing and the music halted as well. Murmurs of question were spread about as the people stared, seeking out answers to the sudden cut of the lights.
Selphie's voice echoed loudly as she was running about, searching for answers herself, "What happened! Why did the lights go off!" she screeched, while Irvine chased after her, trying to calm her down.
"Everyone stay calm!" Quistis shouted, "We're going to try to get the lights back on as soon as possible. Please leave the ballroom in an orderly manner!"
The ballroom slowly began to empty as Squall headed towards the middle of the dance floor to look around. Something didn't seem right to him. There was uneasy feeling circling about the entire room and he didn't like it one bit.
"Squall! Come on! Let's get out of here too!" Rinoa called to him from the doorway.
"Right…" he whispered into the air, as he turned towards the door.
That's when it happened. The familiar sharp stabbing pain rushed through Squall's chest. It spread up into his head and then back down to his feet. The young commander doubled over in agony, crying out in pain. It felt like a fire had begun in his chest. An uncontrollable blaze within his very being. He heard Rinoa call to him, as did the others. But, they sounded as if they were miles away from him. All Squall could focus on was the pain…and nothing more.
"Your heart…give us your heart…" it was a low raspy voice, as if not even human.
'What?' Squall thought.
"The darkness is coming…give us your heart…give us strength…"
'The darkness?'
"No more talk…give your heart to us…to the heartless…"
'The heartless?'
"…..the door has been opened…."
The room began to spin about Squall. He saw flashes of his friends reaching out to grab him as he fell. The sounds of air rushing and screams of all those he knew rang out into the consuming darkness. The ballroom almost seemed to be vanishing about him as he continued to fall into the darkness. Tiny creatures appeared about his body, yellow beady eyes gleaming as they stared him down. Squall could feel their tiny claws reaching and digging into his arms and legs. He heard Rinoa scream for him. Everything was growing dark about his mind. A dark cloud of nothingness encased his senses and poisoned his mind. He was falling into the darkness…
Author's Note: And it's off to the Kingdom Hearts world. Please forgive the grammar and spelling. It will be better by the next time around. Stay tuned.
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