Wow. I hope you guys appreciate this. This is my fastest update ever for this fic. Which has a lot to do with a lot of free time in which I had nothing to do but write. Don't expect me to update again at this rate; you're lucky to get it once, hahaha. The petition to reverse the FFN rule is still up. Please send me your author name and email address to sign it.
TweekinTinkaToy and I are trying to recruit authors to write Sain fics. We prefer Sain-Florina(obviously) but any fic that portrays Sain well would be appreciated. You can contact me via AIM or email of you have any questions. Both are on my profile.
Okay, now for my favorite part: reviewer responses. Which is shorter this time, hopefully due to my quick update time.
TweekinTinkaToy: My favorite reviewer and supplier of evil plot bunnies. Thanks for all your help. Haha, yes, my fic is actually a warning on the severe consequences of suppressing your true feelings for too long. You have good reason to fear for Sain; I don't know if anyone could keep up with Florina, after all, there are three of her. No, the rating is gonna stay right where it is. I can't write anything deserving of a higher rating; it would go against the very fiber of my being as a writer.
z-animatr: You are offically dubbed my most creative reviewer for the words you use for the situations I provide. Congratulations on the achievement; I look forward to your comments on this chapter.
FIREEMBLEMFREAK252: Hahaha, your review made me laugh. I'm glad you llike it.
Lemurian-Girl: Sorry about the short chapters; my chapters will al be about the same length. At the start of a fic, I pick a target word count and try to stick pretty close to it. That's the method of my madness.
JSB: Surprisingly, the answer is none of the above. But you'll find out who it was at the start of the chapter.
Dairokkan: Haha, yes she is.
CharChar Wu: Yes, there is a method to my madness, as I'm getting fond of saying. You were the only one to catch the anachonism, even if it was meant to be there. Congratulations on being a sharp reader.
Page-Chan: Haha, yes, fear the power of alcohol. Listen to Brad Paisley's single 'Alcohol' to hear a couple of reasons. It's a funny song. I amazed even myself with this update; crazy what you can do with a couple of hours of free time.
Nightmare3: You made it just in time. Thanks for the compliments. On a side note, TweekinTinkaToy and I are trying to recruit fellow Sain writers (See bold note above). We'd be honored if you'd help our cause.
Chapter 7: She's Back
"Florina, do you know what you're doing?" The question was simple enough, but it was enough to trigger something that had only recently been suppressed in Florina's mind.
You guessed it: her irrational side. WHAT ARE YOU DOING? DON'T YOU REALIZE THAT'S A GUY?' To say she was frantic would have been an understatement.'Don't listen to her; don't deny yourself the pleasure any longer. You're about to lose something you can never recover. Do you really want that?' The voice was calmer now, although it still had more than a tinge of nervousness. Florina hesitated; what was she doing? 'NO! Don't listen! She's only trying to confuse you! We're so close; don't deny me now!' Now it was the braver side's turn to be frantic.
Sain sensed her hesitation. "Are you ok?" He asked, visibly concerned.
"Eep! I am most certainly not okay! I'm in a skimpy bathing suit, and I nearly took that off! I was one wrong move from losing my virginity! Please. Go. Away!" Florina screeched, running back to her changing room.
Sain stood still for a minute, shocked at her outburst. But just for a minute. Then his chivalrous reflexes kicked in, after years of training for situations such as this. Sain followed Florina, knocking on her door. "Please, Florina, tell me what's wrong. I promise to do anything I can to help." Sain said, vexed by Florina's sudden change in personality. When there was no answer, Sain paused for a moment, then made up his mind and opened the door, which Florina had neglected to lock in her haste. The sight made his eyes bulge, and he nearly fainted from blood loss.
"Eeep! Sain! I should've known you were too good to be true! You're just trying to bed another pretty girl. I wish I had left you to my sisters!" Florina was standing there, in all her glory. Translated: she was in the middle of changing. 'I told you he was no good! Just like all men! Hmmph. Florina, think for a minute. If he was really like that, wouldn't he have tried something before now? You've haven't even known him for three days! Maybe, but the first two were in a cave. He could have done anything he wanted with you anytime during that period, but he was a perfect gentleman. Personally, I would have preferred it if he had tried something, but now isn't the time to dwell on what might have been. Just give him a chance to explain himself.' Florina calmed down enough to know that her braver side was making sense. 'Fine, he gets one chance.'
Sain turned around as quick as humanly possible. For once, he cursed his phenomenal reflexes. Oh well, he had more important things to worry about at the moment. "Florina, please listen to me. I swear I didn't mean to do that. I was worried about you when you ran off like that. Then when you didn't answer the door…" Sain didn't have to continue.
"You…You were worried about me?" Florina asked hesitantly. 'Don't fall for it! He's just trying to trick you!' Florina ignored the voice.
"Of course I was worried about you. First you started acting strange, and then you got upset and ran off. Although I won't deny that I liked the change, I don't want you to feel pressured into doing anything rash."
"You liked the change?" Florina asked, doubts about Sain creeping into her mind. Well, actually, it would be more accurate to say they were yelled into her mind. 'I told you he was a pervert; he admitted it himself!'
"Well, yeah, any red-blooded male would. But I don't need you to change. I like you just the way you are. If you're comfortable, then I'm comfortable." Sain said kindly.
"Do you mean that?" Florina asked timidly.
"With all my heart; I don't want to lose you." Sain said solemnly.
"Oh, Sain!" Florina threw herself onto Sain's back, wrapping her arms around his waist in a tight embrace.
Sain stumbled from the unexpected impact, landing face first just outside the door.
The waiter chose that time to check in on them. Noticing Florina's state of undress and their suggestive position, he said the only thing that came to mind, "Mountain High cannot be held responsible for any children conceived on restaurant property. Although we do ask that you hang a sign on the door if you ever decide to return." Before either of the mercenaries could explain, he promptly turned around and exited the room.
"Umm, Florina?" Sain said.
"Yes?"
"Maybe you should get your suit on before we go back to our meal." Sain suggested. "It's not like I mind, but I don't know if I'd be able to focus on the food. You wouldn't want me to starve, would you?"
"Oh!" Florina blushed deeply and dashed back to the changing room to retrieve her suit. I can't believe you just let two guys see you naked! And you were even lying on top of one of them! Unfortunately, he still had his clothes on. Make sure you fix that part next time. What are you talking about? There isn't going to be a next time, is there, Florina? Of course there's going to be a next time.' Florina shut out the argument and concentrated on changing so she could return to her date. Wow, that sounded weird. Whoever would have thought that she'd be on a date with any guy, much less a world-famous womanizer? Although to be fair, he was much different than she had expected him to be. In fact, other than her sisters, Sain hadn't looked at another girl since they met. Well, except for those girls in the crowd earlier today. And the lady they passed on the way to the restaurant. And the receptionist…Okay, she still had a ways to go in that area, but at least he hadn't hit on any of them. Except for that one lady in the crowd. But he did say he was kidding. That was a start, wasn't it? Florina sighed, how had she ever fallen for him in the first place? An even better question: how had he ever fallen for her? She wasn't the prettiest girl in the world. Heck, she hadn't even been the prettiest girl in Lyn's or Eliwood's armies. She most certainly wasn't the most outgoing or sociable. What did he see in her? He was smooth, well-known (although not exactly well-respected), witty, and, dare she say it, handsome. Any girl would be lucky to have him. She, on the other hand, was… well, herself. She couldn't think of another way to say it. She decided to ask Sain about it when she returned; after all, she couldn't have doubts about Sain nagging at the back of her mind. Or in her case, yelling and arguing in the front of it.
Sain looked up to see Florina exiting the changing room. He smiled at her return; he didn't like having her out of his sight. It brought back too many painful memories of dates who had left, never to reappear. "Welcome back, my lady. Come join me in finishing this delicious meal." Sain invited charmingly.
"Thank you, my savior. Although I do believe I'll forgo the oysters and wine this time around." Florina blushed.
"Ah, if that is your decision, I shall respect it." Sain feigned disappointment.
Florina giggled. "Sain, do you mind if I ask you a question?" Florina inquired.
"You just did." Sain grinned.
"You know what I mean." Florina shook her head at Sain's antics.
"Of course, it's just fun to take your words literally. You don't need my permission to ask a question; in fact, I wish you'd ask more of them." Sain said.
"Okay, Sain…Why?" Florina asked quietly.
"Umm…Why not?" Sain suggested. Seeing Florina's disapproving frown, he apologized, "I'm sorry; I'll let you finish."
"Why…" Now that she had decided to ask, it had suddenly become really hard to get the words out of her mind and onto her tongue. Seeing Sain patiently waiting, she continued, "Why…did you… pick me? You probably had hordes of women to choose from. Why did you stay with me after the storm? Why are we together now? What's so special about me?" Once she got started, the words all came out in a rush.
Sain chuckled softly. "I was wondering when you'd ask that question. In fact, I've been expecting you to ask that from the moment I accompanied you to this village. But if I'm to answer your question, you must answer one of mine when I'm finished. Agreed?"
Florina nodded; this answer was too important for her to refuse Sain's request. Besides, with any luck, it might actually quiet, or at least calm down, those annoying voices. 'Who are you calling annoying?' Florina sighed inwardly; two heads might be better than one, but one voice certainly made life simpler than two.
"Okay…" Sain started into his response.
A/N: For any of you who only read these endnotes, make sure to check out the bold sections in my pre-chapter notes. Don't forget to send me your signatures, to write Sain fics, and review.