It was a very chilly night Rinoa soon realized. She shivered in her singlet, nearly wishing she hadn't given up her jacket to Squall. She stole a glance at him, and immediately changed her mind.
He leaned heavily against her car, face very pale. A faint hint of red was starting to show through Rinoa's thin jacket - the bullet must have ruptured a vein or something ... Rinoa shivered at the thought of the bullet finding it's intended target.
Then there'd be three bodies lying on the road, rather than one.
They had been sitting in the cold light of Rinoa's car headlight for the past quarter of an hour, waiting for the police to show up. Hardly any words had passed between.
Rinoa had given an abridged version of what had happened before he arrived, then she called the police. They now sat opposite each other, Rinoa shivering and Squall brooding.
It was Rinoa who broke the silence.
"They should be here by now." Silence. She nearly thought he wasn't going to answer, then-
"How do you know the man under the car is the sheriff?" asked Squall.
"... Well, when I called him, his phone rang under the car. Also, before I hit him I saw amber eyes. Sheriff Martine has, I mean, had amber eyes." said Rinoa.
Squall was silent for a moment, looking down in contemplation.
"Why do you ask?" said Rinoa.
"... Amber isn't exactly an original colour. Anybody could have amber eyes ..." replied Squall thoughtfully.
"I suppose, but what about the phone ringing?" asked Rinoa. Squall shrugged.
"It's really strange .. you'd never expect this sort of thing to happen out here." said Rinoa. "I reckon that guy killed Martine. The only thing is, why did he try to kill us? He could have just left, and not risked us seeing him. And why leave the body in the middle of the road?"
"Maybe he wanted it to be found." said Squall quietly.
"That means he wouldn't have needed to try and kill us - I found it. It doesn't make sense."
"Maybe you interrupted him ... and the body wasn't supposed to be found yet."
"Maybe ..." said Rinoa, eyeing her car, and the arm sticking out. The wind started to pick up slightly, and Rinoa tried to stop her teeth from chattering.
"You cold?" said Squall quietly. Rinoa nodded, rubbing her arms up and down.
"A little." Squall was silent for a moment, then he sighed.
"Here." he chucked his jacket at her roughly.
"Huh? But Squall-"
"It's only fair. I am ruining yours." said Squall.
"... Thanks." said Rinoa, smiling and slipping on the black leather. White fur lined the collar, it was extremely warm, and carried with it a uniquely calming scent.
"I want it back later." said Squall sharply, eyeing her wearily.
"Yeah, Yeah. All in good time. ... Anyway-" said Rinoa, "-when are we doing our assignment?" Squall sighed.
"You want to discuss that now?"
"What else are we going to do? Sit silently in the dark ignoring each other?"
"Sounds like a good plan ..."
"Squall! Seriously!"
"Fine. If it makes you happy we'll organize this." stated Squall coldly.
"Finally! Sunday at the library?" Squall sighed.
"What time?"
"Eleven thirty?"
"Alright."
"See? That wasn't so painful was it?" Squall rolled his eyes.
"You have no idea."
"Why were you so against us meeting up for this thing anyway?"
"That's none of your business."
"I beg to differ. If your problem causes us to fail this module it is very much my business."
Squall gave her an unamused look.
"Do you just not like me or something?" asked Rinoa, taking on a more serious tone.
"What if that's the case?" said Squall.
"Then I'd be wondering what I ever inadvertently did to make you hate me." replied Rinoa crossing her arms over her chest. Squall sighed.
"Look, I have my reasons for not wanting to hang around you. It's just the way it should be."
"What do you mean the way it should be?"
'I can't rely on anybody else.'
"Never mind."
"But-" Squall was saved from further questioning by the arrival of the police. The sound of the siren and colour of the lights pierced the night, cutting through the darkness and silence.
Rinoa gave Squall a scrutinizing glare, before picking herself off the road, and walking towards the police car, which had slowed to a halt, and switched off its siren.
(o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o)
The police at the scene had taken Squall and Rinoa's details, then told them to wait in the car. Twenty minutes later, an ambulance and a tow truck showed up.
Squall's wound was tended for, and Rinoa was checked over as the police tried to selvage the body without ruining anything that may potentially be evidence. They seemed to have a hard time, the body was somehow caught up under the vehicle.
Eventually they managed to pull it out. Rinoa threw up in the bushes on the side of the road at the sight of it, and even Squall paled considerably.
If it was Martine, his face was a bloodied pulp, slashed up in every direction. His throat was cut as well, crimson congealing, and caking the front of his hardly recognizable navy blue uniform. More disturbing, his eyes lids were missing. The amber orbs stood out against the crimson that surrounded it. All his limbs stuck out at irregular angles, and one of his arms was roughly amputated just below the elbow. Presumably, the other half was stuck under the car still.
"Good god ... He must have been dead before that young lady hit him. Nobody gets that slashed from being run over." said on of the officers weakly.
"Poor Martine ..."
(o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o)
An hour later, after being throughly checked over, and driven away from the scene, Rinoa and Squall were seated side by side in a conference room at the police station. One wall was a single sided mirror, and the other three were concrete.
A wooden table took up most of the space, and across from the pair was a vacant seat.
The door on the far side was open, and two people were whispering heatedly about something. They fell silent. Apparently a consensus was reached, as a portly man walked in, closing the door behind him. He took the vacant seat.
"Hello, I am Constable Ward. I suppose you two know why you are here?"
"Yes." said Rinoa. Squall gave a curt nod.
"Good good. Your complete cooperation will be appreciated. I need you to tell me exactly what happened to the two of you tonight. Every last detail, no matter how irrelevant it may seem. Can you do that?" they nodded. "Oh, before we begin, do you two want to call your parents to tell them where you are?"
"My father's out of town." said Rinoa.
"My mother's probably asleep right now." said Squall.
"That's a no? Okay, we'll continue. You are ... Rinoa Heartilly?" said Ward, consulting a piece of paper in front of him, "And you are ... Squall Leonhart?" Ward sounded slightly surprised. He glanced at Squall briefly, who gave a curt nod.
"Is there something wrong?"
"Nothing. Nothing. Okay, Miss Heartilly, if you please."
"Well, I was driving home-"
(o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o.o)
Another hour later, they finally finished their count of what happened, Squall concluding the story with -
"I think he went in the direction of the reserve." Ward nodded.
"Thank you for your time and patience. If anything else occurs to you, don't hesitate to call. Just one question Squall, Is your father's name Laguna? Laguna Loire?"
Rinoa watched curiously as Squall stiffened visibly. He seemed taken aback.
"Yes. He was." said Squall. Ward's face broke into a sad smile.
"The last time I saw you, was about fifteen years ago. You were only a little boy." said Ward fondly. Squall's face remained an emotionless mask.
"I knew your father, he was a dear friend. We worked together before he ... well ... you know. How is your mother doing these days?"
"She's been better." said Squall. Ward gave Squall a knowing look.
"She seemed quite ill before the two of you moved away." Squall frowned, and looked away.
"Anyway, I've kept you two long enough. One of the other officer's will give you two lifts home. Your car, and your motorbike need to be inspected and checked, so I'm afraid, for the time being, they are confiscated. Don't worry, you'll get them back in a week or two. You two are free to go, outside the door is the officer who will be taking you home. Good bye."
"Bye." said Rinoa, yawning. Squall gave a nod, closing the door behind him as they left.