Hey, hey people! I guess that last chapter made some of you sad, well, it's just what I said: It's not the last chapter and a lot can happen in three chapters. You just have to be patient and trust me. I know that sounds REALLY scary, but you have to do it if we're going to get through this story without any causalities.

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy VIII. I also do not own Ultra Lord. I own a few characters of my own and Squall's changed personality. Still on eBay!

Life Less Ordinary

Chapter Twenty- Two

"The Proposal"

Squall never went home that night, and by dawn Raine was ready to call the Search and Rescue team to come find her son. She paced the room just inside the door of the house until Laguna came in and made her sit down.

"I'm sure he's fine. He probably just needs some time to work out his thoughts. You know him. He does this sort of thing." Laguna said, in a weak attempt to comfort her.

"Laguna, after what happened last night, how do you know some angry student hasn't attacked him? You know there are going to be some angry students!" Raine protested. She was so close to breaking down into tears. "I just want my son home safe, Laguna. I don't want anything to happen to him."

Laguna held his wife close. "I know, Raine. I know." She turned and sobbed into his chest as he stared at the door. "Come home, son." He whispered.

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Rinoa got home at about three in the morning and collapsed in the den. She never made it up to her own room. She was cold, weak, and emotionally wounded. The whole way home she'd cried until she could barely see the road in front of her. When she finally reached her house, she was still crying, and she cried until she fell off into an uneasy sleep on the leather couch in the den.

The sound of her mother's voice woke her. She sat up, groggy, dark hair sticking to her forehead just slightly delusional. It took her a long time just to realize where she was as the den was still relatively dark. Her eyes scanned the room for any other signs of life, and when she was sure there was none, she decided to listen to the sounds of a conversation coming from the kitchen.

"No, no, I haven't told her yet, but I will. I promise!" Her mother laughed into what Rinoa determined to be a phone since she didn't hear another voice besides her mother's. But who was she talking to? That was the question at hand here. Rinoa listened on, hoping to grasp a firmer understanding of this odd conversation. "I don't know what she'll say, but I'm sure she'll be excited. For all I now she probably has a good idea of what's going on. I wouldn't put it past her. She's very bright." Rinoa smiled at this compliment, but it still didn't help her find out what her mother was talking about or who she was talking to, for that matter. She concluded that she'd just have to keep listening.

Her mother's voice went muffled, and Rinoa couldn't hear anything anymore. She frowned and crossed her arms over her chest. She didn't get very far in the conversation, and she still had no idea what was going on.

The door suddenly opened and Rinoa winced as the light poured in, hurting her eyes. She grabbed a pillow and rolled back over to block out the blinding light.

"Oh, I see you're awake." Julia said brightly. She took a seat beside Rinoa and gently rubbed her back affectionately.

"Hmm," Rinoa mumbled through the pillow. Julia laughed.

"I have some good news and bad news." Julia forced Rinoa to roll over.

"What's up?" Rinoa asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Well, the bad news is that Raine called earlier this morning and said that Squall never came home last night, and he still isn't there. She's really worried and wants to know if you might know where he would be." Julia herself looked worried.

Rinoa's heart sank as she heard the news. "Squall's missing?" She asked.

"Yeah," Julia replied sadly.

Rinoa felt her heart sink as she remembered their conversation last night. She hadn't agreed with it then and she didn't agree with it now. It was stupid, but she knew she had to respect his wishes, but she wondered if he knew that she was willing to deal with his mistakes? They didn't bother her anymore because she knew his intentions were pure. Yes, his mistakes may have wounded her, but given time, they would heal.

Julia watched that all-too-familiar distant look take over Rinoa's face. She gently touched her shoulder. "Where is he, Rinny?" she asked gently.

Rinoa shook her head. "I don't know." She whispered. "Last I saw him was on the secluded cliff last night. We talked and then I left. I haven't seen or heard from him since." She left out the more finer details of the conversation and the fight they had. She knew her mother would disapprove the whole idea.

"So you don't know where he is?" She asked again, now rubbing her daughter's shoulder gently.

"No," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I'll call Raine and tell her. He should be fine. he knows how to take care of himself." Julia got off the couch and left the den to find the phone again.

"I'm sorry," Rinoa whispered again. She suddenly got an idea and searched frantically for her phone. She eventually found it and dialed his number. She never got a ring; it went straight to his voicemail. She sighed and tossed the phone onto the other, adjacent couch with disappointment. It was worth a try, even if it didn't work.

She sat there, wrapped in the fleece blanket, shivering again. Where was he? She was worried for him. Where could he be? There were a thousand places he could be, especially since he had a car. He could've, for all they knew, driven back to Esthar. She was sure that the thought had crossed his mind, but that still didn't help anything. No one knew where he was. I was almost as if he'd jumped off the face of the planet, and the real question, "Would be come back?"

"He said he'd be around," she whispered out loud, defending the part of her that still cared for him, but there was more of her, as always, that took over her and declared that her life would be a whole lot better if he did disappear and never came back.

She shook her head, trying to get rid of that thought. It wasn't something that she wanted to be thinking about. She didn't want anything to happen to him, despite all that he had done for her. There were still some good qualities about him, and she knew that his intentions were true.

Rinoa decided that it wasn't worth her time to sit there and mope. She got up, grabbed her phone, and went upstairs for a quick shower. She concluded that, if they were up to it, she and the rest of the gang should help find Squall, but her mom was right, though. He could take care of himself, but it wasn't right to make everyone worry. Plus it was a "just in case."

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"How long has he been gone?" Quistis asked as they all sat in Joe's. There weren't many people there, but those who had made it were talking nonstop about the dance last night and how much fun it had been.

"He never came home last night." Bryce replied, stifling a yawn. "We've all been up since last night, and he never came in." He even looked tired, too.

"Let him be! He'll reappear when he feels like it! He used to do this kind of thing all the time in Esthar!" Drag stated. He was sick of everyone worrying about Squall.

"Yeah, but this is different! He's never been gone this long before!" Zion pointed out frantically. Of the entire group, he was the one who had worried the absolute most, proving to be more of a mother hen than perhaps Raine.

"Oh, please! He's been only gone a few hours!" Drag scoffed, wanting to throw something big and harmful at his brother's head.

"But still!" Zion protested, worried for his cousin's safety.

"But still nothing!" Drag yelled, grabbing the first thing in reach, which just happened to be a pillow and threw it as hard as he could in his whiny brother's direction.

Lucky for Zion, he had well-developed reflexes and ducked before it could do major damage to his face. "Hey!" he yelled. "That was unnecessary!"

"No, it wasn't. It was perfectly necessary! You were annoying me, Mother Hen!" drag reached for something else, but Quistis smacked his arm so hard that he recoiled and sat glaring at his brother.

"I am not a Mother Hen!" Zion protested, whining a little bit more.

Rinoa looked to Quistis, "Well, this conversation sounds familiar."

"Yeah! You're right it does!" Quistis laughed and everyone looked at her funny.

"What/" Drag asked.

"That's what Rinny said to me the day we met you guys." Quistis pointed out, explaining it to them. "We were waiting on Seifer to get here, and Rinny kept saying that I was a Mother Hen."

"Hey! I remember that!" Selphie giggled.

Rinoa found herself being pulled out of this now-happy conversation as a thought pushed its way through her head. Did this mean that this was the end? She wondered. Did this conversation re-occur for a reason, to symbolize the end of the group of friends? She hoped not, but couldn't help feeling that it was.

"Do you think he'll come back?" Selphie asked.

"Of course he'll come back! It's not like he's run away! All he's done is gotten away for a few hours! He'll be back. Will you people quit worrying?" Drag demanded.

"He's been gone for over twelve hours!" Zion complained. He kept putting his hand to his mouth and nibbling away at his nails, and it was driving Drag mad.

"As unfortunate as it is," Quistis began. " Zion does have a point. Squall has been gone a pretty long time. Has he ever been gone this long in Esthar?"

"No!" Zion answered as Drag replied at the same time.

"Yes!"

"Okay, which is it?" Selphie asked.

"He's never been gone this long before!" Zion jumped up and began pacing the floor.

"Alright, worrywart Mama! Sit your butt down and quit whining or I'll force you down myself and strap you to your seat with duct tape and super glue your mouth shut!" Drag exploded, his top finally blowing right off. "Is that what you want? Is it?"

Zion's jaw dropped as he stared at his brother in complete surprise and shock. He couldn't remember the last time his bother had ever threatened him like that. He shut his open mouth and sat down, taking his brother seriously. He avoided eye contact after that, not wanting to anger him any more than was absolutely necessary.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Haven't you guys ever heard of brotherly love? You know Peace, Love, and Happiness?" Selphie made a V sign with her fingers and smiled like she was in a daze.

Drag raised an eyebrow at her and just said, "Shut up, ya hippie."

"Fine. Be that way." Selphie crossed her arms over her chest and stuck her tongue out a Drag. "I don't want to be your friend either! You're just a big meanie butt!"

"Oh, I'm hurting inside." Drag's voice was overflowing with a thick sarcasm as he clasped both hands over his heart and feigned extreme pain.

"You'd better be!" Selphie warned, moving her hands to her hips.

"Believe me, Selphie. I'm so scared I'm shaking in my boots." He made a small motion with his foot.

Selphie looked at him in confused state. "But you're not wearing any boots!" She looked down at his feet which were covered by a pair of black, dirty chucks.

"Exactly," he replied with a nasty grin, but Selphie still didn't get it.

"Can we get back to what's more important here?" Quistis asked, sending her famous death glare in the direction of Drag and Selphie.

"We need to find Squall." Zion whispered.

"How can we find someone who's not lost?" Drag demanded.

"Well, he's not here, is he?" Quistis threw at him. If Quistis was fighting in this battle, too, then Drag didn't have a chance. Quistis always got what she wanted.

"That's because he wants to be left alone! Why doesn't anyone understand that?" Drag jumped up, exclaiming nearly at the top of his lungs.

"How do you know that?" Quistis asked, rising up off the couch as well in a way of challenging the headstrong Esthar guy.

"Because, unlike the rest of you people, I know my cousin. I know his habits and what goes through his head." Drag replied definitely.

"You can't know a person until you get directly in their head." Rinoa said, looking up at Drag from her seat.

"true, but I still know my cousin better than anyone in this room." Drag sat back down.

"I beg to differ." Seifer snapped.

"Then where the hell is he?" Drag demanded.

"I don't know." Seifer admitted.

"See, then you can't say you know him!" Drag pointed out.

"But I do know him!" Seifer protested, now standing, too. "And if you know him so well, then you tell us where he is!"

"I don't know either." Drag snapped.

"Then quit saying you know him better than anyone else!" Seifer growled.

"Guys, guys, guys!" Selphie yelled, jumping in between the two guys. "We don't need to be fighting. It's not worth it! Come on guys!" Selphie tugged on Drag's arm, trying to get him out of Seifer's face. She saw Quistis garb Seifer's arm and do the same thing. It wasn't helping much.

'I do know him better!" Drag yelled. "I spend more time with him!"

"And what am I? Chopped liver?" Seifer demanded.

"I don't know, are you?" Drag sneered.

"Come on, guys. This isn't worth that!" Selphie was trying as hard as she could to pull Drag back, but he was stronger than she was.

"Seifer, stop this before it gets out of hand!" Quistis commanded, but Seifer wasn't paying any attention to her.

"You tell me." Seifer yelled. People were looking over here now, giving the two feuding guys strange looks.

"Well, smell yourself and find out." Drag barked. That was a lame comeback, and Seifer nailed him for it.

"How about you find some better retaliations!" Seifer ripped his arm out of Quistis' weak grasp, much to her opposition.

"My retaliations are just fine, thank you. It's not like you could do any better!" Drag shoved him, giving way to first physical contact.

"I can and I usually do!" Seifer shoved him back.

"Guys!" Selphie whined, trying to get them to stop.

"This is unnecessary! This unnecessary!" Quistis was yelling.

"Come on, you two boneheads! This isn't going to solve anything!" Bryce was heard from his seat on the couch.

"I know! Sit down and let's get through this rationally!" Zion was heard, too.

All the noises and voices were driving Rinoa crazy. She couldn't think, couldn't hear, and couldn't do anything. Everything was all jumbled together and causing complete pandemonium.

"EVERYBODY, QUIET!" She screamed, louder than anyone else.

Silence hit immediately as everyone stared at her much like they all had the night before. Even people who weren't in their little argument were silent. in fact, all of Joe's was silent.

"We don't need this. This is ridiculous. One of our friends is missing, and nobody knows where he is. I think that is more important than standing here fighting." Rinoa snapped.

"You're right." Seifer frowned. "We should just ask ourselves, what would Ultra Lord do?"

"Say what?" Everyone looked at him in complete shock at what had just come out of his mouth.

"Nothing," he shook his head. "Forget it. We need to get with the program." His cheeks flushed and they still looked at him like he had just spoken gorilla.

"Yeah, we shouldn't be fighting man." Drag agreed. He stuck his hand out at Seifer. "I'm sorry man."

"No problem, we're all stressed out." Seifer took his hand, shook it firmly, and that was the end of it.

"So what now?" Zion asked, once everyone had settled down and conversations had picked up again.

"We've got to find out where he is. We've got to find him." Rinoa said.

"Where do we look?" Zion asked.

"Anywhere and everywhere. There are only so many places he can hide." Rinoa answered. "But we should split up and look for him in pairs."

"This is crazy. He's not lost, and I'm sure he's fine. We don't need to be doing this. He can take care of himself!" Drag exclaimed, still against this whole idea.

"Well, then unless you can show me his exact GPS location, go stick your head in a hole somewhere because you don't know if he's alright. You don't know if someone hasn't hurt him. He could be anywhere in any state, and I don't care if this is completely useless. It means something to me, and I won't feel better unless I know he's really okay." Rinoa replied, biting Drag's head off and making her point clear. A though crossed her mind that she didn't voice: I've already lost him in one way. I don't want to lose him in another.

"No, I can't give you his exact location. I can't even tell you if he's alright. I'm hoping, you might say. I may not agree with this, but I'll help you." Drag sighed, giving in to her.

"You know, there a lot of things that I don't agree with, but I'll deal with them anyway. I can't let them hinder my life." Rinoa snapped. She wasn't trying to be mean.

"Okay." That was all Drag was able to say.

"Where do we look for him?" Selphie asked.

"Anywhere and everywhere." Rinoa repeated.

"We should divide Balamb into sections and each pair take a section and search for him." Quistis suggested.

"How do you even know he's still on Balamb Island? He could've gone to Dollet for all we know!" Drag protested. "Hell, he could be half way to Esthar by now!"

"I don't think he'd go to Esthar," Bryce shook his head. "I mean, where would he go?"

"Where would he go?" Drag asked. "He could walk right into the palace and no one would think anything of it. He could go to Esthar University to Elle. He could go to our house. Mom and Dad would take him in. That's a duh. He could go to any friend's house. There are a million places he could go!"

"We get the point, but I agree with Bryce. I don't think he'd go to Esthar. I think he's still in Balamb somewhere. he's just hiding, and we've got to smoke him out, that's all." Rinoa sighed and crossed her arms over her chest. "And I agree with Quistis. Splitting up and looking for him in assigned sections is a good idea."

"How soon should we start?" Zion asked.

"As soon as possible, but first let's see if he's returned home yet." Rinoa pointed to Bryce. "Will you do that?"

"Yeah, sure." Bryce whipped out his phone and called home. He walked out of range of everyone else in order to hear well.

" Zion, I'm putting you and Bryce together as a pair." Rinoa commanded. Zion just nodded. "Quistis, I want you and Seifer to go together." They nodded. Out the corner of her eye, she saw Zell coming over. "Selphie, will you go with Zell if he'll help?"

"Sure, Rinny!" Selphie exclaimed, eager to help.

"Drag, you and I are going to work together. If you don't like it, tough." She was showing no mercy, and Drag suddenly had a lot more respect for her.

"I have no problem." Drag smiled.

"Good." She returned the smile with one that was nothing short of menacing. Bryce came back over, putting his phone back in his pocket. "Anything?"

"Dad said he hasn't come home yet. Mom's still really worried. I think mom's really upset. He said she kept pacing around the room." Bryce replied. He looked worried, too.

"Okay, then we need to get started." Rinoa continued in her command. "Who will take what?"

"Seifer and I will take downtown!" Quistis exclaimed.

"Bryce and I will take the ports." Zion said.

"Zell and I will take uptown and the school." Selphie said as Zell wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Okay, Drag and I will take the woods and the west side, the industrialized section, and town hall." Rinoa said. "Let's meet back here at six, but if anyone finds him before that, call. Okay?" Everyone nodded. "Let's move!"

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Squall didn't want to be found. It was that simple. He did not want to be found. he wanted to stay hidden until he was ready to face the rest of the world. He liked being alone. He liked being able to sit and think about all the things that he'd done wrong. He could actually try to work things out without having people interrupt him and telling him that he'd done something wrong.

By around noon, however, he'd fallen asleep in his hiding place. The night before the Formal he hadn't gotten any sleep, maybe five or six hours, and then last night, the night that ruined everything, he didn't sleep at all. He never even went home.

That night was painful, and he would remember that night until his dying day. It was a mistake on his part, and probably the biggest mistake he'd ever made in his life. he'd hurt people and lost a very valuable friendship. Of course, that had been by his own accord. He thought it would be the wisest thing to do. He thought that if they weren't friends, then he couldn't hurt her anymore. It was logic, but wasn't sure if that logic was good or not.

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"Why are we going to the woods?" Drag asked Rinoa as the two drove in her car to the place.

"Because last night, after the dance, I went back there, and he found me there. I thought he might return there." She shrugged.

"Uh, I don't mean to be a jerk or anything, but do you really think he'd return back here?" Drag asked doubting her intentions. "I mean, it sounds like he doesn't want to be found. So why would he go back there?"

"I don't know, actually." Rinoa looked over at him, now not so confident that she knew where he might be. "I guess I thought he might come back here. It seemed like a good idea before, but now I don't think so. But it's worth a try, isn't it/"

"I suppose. Whatever floats your boat, Rin. But I still stand by what I said before: he doesn't want to be found and probably wants to be left alone for awhile. I'm pretty sure he knows what he's doing." Drag said to her.

"...I know. I just want to make sure." Rinoa whispered. She gripped the steering wheel until her knuckles began to turn white. Drag watched her with a strange expression.

"Why do I feel like you're hiding something? After the dance last night, you should be mad, not concerned. You should be glad that he's missing. What gives?" he asked.

"Nothing. Am I not allowed to be worried?" she demanded as she stopped the car at the end of the muddy road. They exited the car and headed down the trail to the cliff.

"Not when he's done something to majorly upset you and ruin your life. Now what's up? You can tell me." Drag tugged on her arm gently.

She recoiled back and shook her head. "Nothing's wrong. I'm just concerned, that's all."

"Come one, I'm not that dense. What's going on?" He asked again.

Rinoa sighed, "Okay, listen. Last night we had a conversation that I didn't, and still don't agree with. He left me with more questions than answers, and I just want to talk to him if I can. he wants to walk away, but I refuse to let him."

"Ah, I see. Looks like the plot keeps getting bigger." Drag said in a weak attempt to sound wise.

"It's 'the plot thickens,' dummy!" Rinoa laughed. She then realized that this was the first time in several days that she'd actually laughed.

"Yeah, well. I was close. No, harm, no foul." He said.

"Do you mean the action or the chicken?" she asked jokingly.

But Drag didn't answer her. They'd reached the end of the woods and were now on the cliff. Drag had never been here before and was stricken by the beautiful sight of the sea crashing against the snowy cliff.

Rinoa smiled, but as she looked around, her smile slowly diminished away. he wasn't here, but she wasn't all that surprised. Drag was right. He wouldn't come back here, that was too obvious. yet, she had hoped that he would be here. She wanted to talk to him, to maybe knock some sense into him. This wasn't necessary. They didn't need this separation.

"Whoa!" Drag exclaimed. He had moved to the cliff and was looking over the edge in pure astonished amusement. "How long have you guys kept this place a secret?"

"I never knew it was a secret, but you should see it in the summertime when the sun is setting. It's the perfect spot to be." Rinoa sighed. This was a big dating spot during the summer, and you could always find someone there with a partner.

"Yeah, I bet. Great place to bring a chick, right?" Drag looked over to her and grinned, but she only shrugged and looked away.

Something caught her eye in the ground, and she kneeled down to see what it was. She picked up a slightly dull ring with the carving of some sort of monster on it. "hey, Drag?" she called.

"Yeah?" he was looking out over the water again.

She walked over, carrying the ring and showed it to him. "Look at this." She handed it to him.

She saw Drag's expression change immediately from curiosity to complete shock. "He's been here."

"Who?" Rinoa asked as Drag took her ring and placed it back in her hand.

"Squall."

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They all met back at Joe's at six with no luck. No one had seen hide or hair of him, and some were beginning to even wonder if he was still on the island. Only Drag and Rinoa had managed to scrap up a clue.

"So he left his ring on Lover's Cliff?" Quistis asked, shocked.

"It would appear that way," Zion said, holding the ring up to the light.

"How do you even know it's his?" Quistis demanded.

Bryce jumped up and grabbed the ring from Zion. He walked over to Quistis and showed it to her. "See the carving on it?" she nodded. "It's a lion named Griever. Griever is our family guardian and our symbol. This is Squall's ring because of that and because of the fact that he takes the symbol of our family extremely serious. This has to be his."

"But if he takes it so seriously, then why'd he leave it on Lover's Cliff?" she demanded.

"It was probably just an accident. I don't think he'd do it on purpose." Drag said, snatching the ring from his younger cousin.

"Unless he had a good reason. Maybe he knows that we were going to try to find him." Zion proposed.

"Nah," Drag shook his head.

"That does sound like him, though." Zion said.

"No, I don't think he'd do that because of last night. I really do think we should give him some space. He'll come back when he wants to. Until then," he handed the ring back to Rinoa. "I think you should hold onto this."

"Are you sure?" Rinoa asked. Everyone nodded, and she tucked it safely into her pocket. "Okay."

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Rinoa stepped into her dark house at about eight. She'd left Joe's knowing no more than she did now. Squall was still gone and no one knew where he was. Drag had advised everyone to stop worrying about him and let him be for a while, but she was still worried regardless. The least he could do was call someone and let them know that he was okay, but he was hidden in his own silence.

"Mom?" Rinoa whispered, peering into the kitchen. She didn't see her in there anywhere and wondered if she was even here. She checked in the garage but her car was still there, so where was her mom?

She looked everywhere but couldn't find her mother anywhere and it was starting to annoy her because now two people were missing, but she was sure that her mother would be back soon. She didn't think her mother would so something so immature like this. So she decided to just wait it out in the den until her mother got home.

When she sat down on the couch, she pulled out Squall's ring. It was a stunning thing, and she admired it a lot, but when she tried it on, it was too big. She inspected it carefully, seeing how it was worn down from everyday use. She liked it and hoped that she could get it back to him. She wanted to at least try to talk to him one more time. She didn't want it to end like this.

The sound of a car door shutting shocked Rinoa. She quickly hung the ring on the chain around her neck with her mother's engagement ring. She then proceeded out of the den to look for her mother. She found her in the kitchen, coming in from the garage.

"Oh, hey honey!" she smiled and kissed her daughter on the forehead. "I'm glad you're here. I have something I need to tell you." She moved her daughter to a chair at the table.

"What's going on?" Rinoa asked as her eyes drifted over to the door where she saw her mother's editor and ear friend, John enter.

"Sweetie," Julia suddenly looked very nervous. "Some things are going to change."

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It was nearing eight o'clock, and Squall still hadn't appeared out of his hiding place. Laguna sat in his office and heard his wife making dinner in the kitchen. He knew that after tonight, something had to be changed. This could not be allowed to happen again. He sighed and headed to the kitchen to talk to his wife. He had to prepare himself for a conversation that he knew would not go well.

"Raine?" he asked, stepping into the kitchen. She was fixing her oldest son's favorite meal: barbeque wings, mash potatoes, gravy and Mac and cheese.

"yes/" she turned to him, wiping her teary eyes.

"Raine, we need to discuss what to do with Squall." Laguna walked to her and touched her shoulder gently.

"What about him?" She asked.

"I don't want him to return to Balamb High School even if he isn't expelled."

"Well, where's he going to go, Laguna?" Raine demanded. "He needs to finish school."

"Yes, but first he needs to learn control and responsibility." Laguna said. "Raine, he needs the same treatment I received."

He watched his wife's face turn pale as she understood the meaning of his words. Her head began to shake before she could find her voice. "No!" she gasped, barely above a whisper "NO, Laguna! Don't do that to my son! Please, no!"

"Raine, I don't think we have much of a choice. He needs to mature. He needs to go to Military School. He'll learn everything he needs to succeed. trust me." Laguna tried to convince his wife but she just kept shaking her head.

"He doesn't need that! He doesn't need that kind of punishment! No, Laguna!" she pleaded with him.

"Raine, will you just listen to me/" he demanded, grabbing her and pulling her out of her hysteria. "It's not punishment; it's a character builder. Raine, we don't have a choice. He's too rouge. He needs to be controlled, and military school will do that for him." Laguna tried to get her to understand, but it was difficult.

"We have other options than that, Laguna! We can't jump to conclusions!" she protested.

"Yes, it is. Raine, if he is expelled from school, do you know how hard it's going to be to get him into another one? Raine, the military institute at Esthar will straighten him out. I promise." He held her hands in his. "I did it, and I turned out just fine."

Raine sighed. "Fine, but if anything happens to my son, I will hold you accountable." Tears began to swell in her eyes again, and Laguna pulled her close to him again.

"Nothing will happen to him. I promise." He whispered to her comfortingly.

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Outside the kitchen door, three figures were standing in the shadows. Drag, Zion, and Bryce were all listening to every word of the conversation.

"Aw, man!" Bryce whispered, shocked.

"Military school?" Drag asked, his eyes falling to the floor. "No!" he shook his head. As if this night could get any worse.

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"What?!" Rinoa exclaimed, jumping to her feet, knocking over her chair in the process.

"John and I are getting married, sweetie." Julia smiled, hoping her daughter would be happy for her.

"That's great, but," she shook her head. "Whoa! What a shock!"

"I know, and I'm sorry." Julia stood up and walked around the table to hug her daughter. She received the hug and the two held each other.

"Mom, this is great, but how ill this work? John's life is in Timber, in the big city." Rinoa asked, pulling away.

Julia's face fell a little. "Well, you see, that's the bad news, sweetie." she took a deep breath and forced herself to keep going. "We're selling the house and moving to Timber. We're moving back to Galbadia."

Rinoa's eyes got really wide, and Julia thought she might have gotten away with this cleanly.

And then Rinoa fainted.

A/N: Well? What'd you think? I know it's not looking too good, but you have to trust me. On second thoughts, it'd be better if you didn't trust me. I'm really not that reliable. Speaking of reliability. Life Less Ordinary's final chapter will be posted on Christmas Eve. "Feel free to bask in my glow!" I love King Julien! R&R and Later Days and Merry Christmas!