Hey guys! I am so glad to finally be updating this! I so should be doing homework right now, but whatever. This is a lot more interesting. Anyhow, this chapter is for those of you who have been waiting patiently for me to develop Seifer's relationship with Rinoa. More on this in Chapter 13 as well! For now, read and enjoy!

Chapter 12

"Hyne, Seifer! Are you fuckin' crazy?" yelled Raijin as he hastily cast Curaga on Seifer's hand. Mesmerized by the sudden surge of purplish light, Seifer stood frozen in place, watching the dark puddle of blood collect at his feet, waiting, as the tingling sensation numbed his injured fingers.

"Try moving it… I don't think it's broken, but ya never know."

"I'm fine," Seifer growled, giving Raijin a deathly look that would have chilled anyone else's blood, yet seemingly had no effect on present company. Not a minute later, Eryka from the front desk ran outside, accompanied by another older woman with clear blue eyes and thinning gray hair--she looked livid.

"Mr. Almasy! We do not condone this kind of behavior at this establishment! How did this happen?!"

"I tripped," Seifer responded insolently, observing all color drain from the woman's plump face as she glared at him with utmost disgust. Eryka stood speechless by her side, flashing Seifer a contemptuous look, mentally cursing herself for ever thinking he was attractive.

"Tripped…. Tripped?! I could have you thrown in jail for destruction of private property!"

"Save your breath and go threaten someone who gives a damn." He sounded tired, like his mind was far away.

"Get your stuff and get out or I will have you arrested!" She stormed off, tailed closely behind by Eryka. Seifer started walking away when Raijin raised his voice in protest.

"Aw,shit! Look what you've done! Where are we gonna stay now, ya know? Where the hell are you going anyways?" Turning around on his heals, Seifer swung at Raijin, missing his head only by an inch as Raijin hastily ducked.

"Mind your own," he said in a threatening whisper and stormed off, his trenchcoat trailing behind him in a blur of white. His first thought was to go look for Fujin, but angry and proud, he pushed that thought out of his head. It's not my fault she left. One childish kiss and we were kids, practically… She takes it as if proposed marriage to her. I don't think of her in that way! He suddenly felt a strong urge to see Rinoa. He couldn't refrain from smiling as he remembered the look of pleasant surprise on her face as he pinned her down to the ground just a short few hours before. However, deep inside he knew that although her lovely smile made his own heart beat a little faster, his attraction to her wasn't simply superficial. After all, if he just wanted a whore, that wouldn't be hard to get--Seifer was used to girls flinging themselves at him at the clubs that he frequented with Raijin on their days off. No, Rinoa was different--he wanted to get to know her, wanted to simply be near her. She wasn't afraid to stand up to him and always spoke her mind, which ridded him of the necessity to try to read it--something he always found annoying with other girls. Lost in thought, he hardly realized that his feet were taking him directly to Caraway's mansion. Ugh I wish I didn't have to wait till tomorrow to see her…Hyne, get a grip, Almasy! She'd laugh if she knew that you were willing to compromise the entire mission just to see her. Wait, but what if no one saw me? He looked at the fence, weighing his options. Well, well… I guess I'm just gonna hafta test how good security really is in this place. If she can get out, I can get in. Out of the corner of his right eye, he noticed a strangely shaped tree that was growing surprisingly close to the unguarded side of the fence. Making sure that no one saw him, Seifer approached it, feeling the area behind it with his fingers. One of the boards was definitely loose and creaked softly as Seifer applied some pressure to it. A few seconds later, he was inside the enclosure, swiftly walking to the back of the house. He saw a window with heavyset bars extending along its entire length. That must be Caraway's prison, he noted to himself as he searched for the back entrance. Quickly picking the lock with a tiny pin, he carefully opened the door, stepping inside a small, narrow hallway. And this must be the kitchen. Seifer glanced at his watch. Dinner wouldn't be served for another few hours so hopefully it'll be empty. Noiselessly, he made his way upstairs without running into anyone and stopped in front of Rinoa's door. Taking a deep breath, he pushed it open and peeked inside. She was lying on the bed, curled up under a fluffy white and blue blanket. Her features were relaxed and she wore a tiny smile on her lips, indicating that she was deep asleep. Seifer tiptoed to her bed and leaned over, simply observing her even breathing. Taking off his glove, he gently ran his fingers along the side of her face. He smiled as she moaned slightly, still asleep. The suddenly she woke up with a start as a loud gasp escaped her lips.

"Shhhh," he whispered, quickly placing his hand over her mouth. "It's me." She nodded her head in recognition, pulling his hand away from her face.

"Seifer?! What are you doing here? Is something wrong?"

"No, angel. Just missed you, that's all," he responded smirking at her. She looked into his eyes, trying to figure out if he was playing with her, yet the emerald depths revealed nothing.

"How did you get pass the guards?"

"It wasn't hard. Is your father home? I saw a black car drive off as I was nearing the mansion."

"No, he said he had some quick business to attend to in town."
"Convenient," he simply stated yet Rinoa caught a suggestive note in his tone.

"If you came here hoping to repeat… umm… if you assume I am just gonna fling myself at you because of what happened earlier, well you're wrong. You're gonna have to do better than that!"

"Ouch, that hurts," he grinned at her. "Isn't it enough to say I just wanted to see you?" She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously, starting to say something insulting but stopped mid-sentence. What if he is serious?

"Alright, Seifer. Tell you what… Why don't you take me out on a date so we can get to know each other better and then we'll see what happens."

"A date?" He chuckled. "Maybe I should go have a little chat with your father too, lest he thinks I am gonna corrupt his little girl. Oh, wait, I've already corrupted his little girl." He gave her a big grin, gauging her reaction. To his surprise, instead of getting mad, she started giggling.

"So a date then?" she asked innocently.

"Sure, I'll take you out on a date… If you play a little game with me."

"A game? Just what type of girl do you think I am?" she asked pretending to be upset with him again.

"Let's make it simple. Your game, my rules," he purred into her ear.

"Ok, you're on! Hope you've been practicing your card-playing skills, because name of the game is Triple Triad." Seifer groaned, but couldn't refrain himself from smiling. He pulled out his deck, making sure Rinoa saw his Diablos and Doomtrain cards.

"Are you sure you don't wanna forfeit now and save us some time?"

"Play the game, Almasy," she said with pretend seriousness.

"Just being helpful. Aight, rules are Sudden Death and Random. You're on." However, things weren't going as he had predicted. After the first round, he lost his Doomtrain card and now was sulking as he was forced to put down his very rare Bahamut card."

"Ooh, such a good card. That'll be perfect for my collection," Rinoa added brightly.

"If you can get it." They played again, and this time luck was in Seifer's favor as he happily moved her Angelo card over to his side.

"How about we raise the stakes, angel? If you win, I'll take you out on a romantic date, I win… well, you're just gonna have to find out." He smiled wickedly.

"You know, I've always enjoyed nighttime walks on the beach," she said laughing at the grimace that formed on his face. The last match was long and tedious, but ended rather unexpectedly as Rinoa masterfully used Sudden Death to her advantage.

"So… are we going to dinner first?" she inquired matter-of-factly as she pocketed Seifer's Bahamut card.

"What, no consolation prize?" Laughing, Rinoa leaned over and brushed her lips lightly against his, causing a shiver to go down his back. He wanted to deepen the kiss, but she pulled away and got off the bed, putting her hair in a loose ponytail and straightening her dress.

"Come on! I've starving," she added merrily as she tugged lightly on his arm.

TO BE CONTINUED

My special thanks to Psyjester! You're awesome!