Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy nor any part of the series.
Author's Note: *crawling out from a hellish place called "school", barely making it out alive* ;_;
The tall brunette was carrying the tray that held two plates with heavy lunches for him and his girlfriend. Rinoa was walking ahead of him, as she searched for their usual table that almost everyone in Deling High naturally avoided, ever since the first time they claimed it. Or, well, rather Squall claimed it. All the students seemed to be too scared of him, even when he never did anything wrong, or perhaps maybe he wore his frown far too often. And now, being seen with Rinoa made her a scary figure as well, since she was the only person who can endure the cold, intimidating guy and the only one capable of wiping that angry facade off his face.
Nobody dared to mind them spending most of their time together. The rumors had stopped as soon as they started, and even the foolish Leblanc finally shut herself up. While Cloud, the ever protective friend of Rinoa's, finally decided to give way to the couple and stopped appearing at the cafeteria during lunchbreaks. After all, there was nothing more he could do.
Squall gently landed the tray on the their table, that obviously didn't welcome any other people. It was a small one that kept only two chairs. Rinoa figured it was the best way the two of them could spend the lunch together, since Squall was not exactly welcomed to join her friends, whilst if she joined his, her group might feel a bit betrayed. Adn they never thought about merging the two groups, since it would bring rather, chaotic results. Sitting with just by themselves would seem more understandable for the two rival parties.
"Thank you." Rinoa murmured at Squall as she sat down and took her own plate from the tray. She meant paying for her lunch.
He said nothing, though he only nodded slightly and turned to his food.
She glanced around the place and found her friends gathered around one table, as usual. That morning, she told to them that she'll be joining Squall for lunch, like how it had been for the past few days. Tifa and Yuffie did not take it too well ever since the first time, but Yuna was able to side with Rinoa and explained the whole situation to them.
"Why does she have to leave our table? I mean, you never have to do that with Tidus, right?" Yuffie said, with a pout on her face.
"We simply just both agreed that we eat with our friends. Rinoa and Squall wanted to spend their time together. It's never our decision to make." Yuna replied, making her explanation as simple as possible for the likes of a childish, impatient ninja such as Yuffie. "Please, be happy for Rinoa."
It was what she was best at; softening other people's hearts and make them understand. And she owed Yuna alot for that.
Rinoa's mind drifted to her friends. She felt a bit guilty for leaving them so suddenly as soon as she started dating Squall. She owed them alot, somehow, especially Yuna, Rikku and Paine. They had been her first friends, and they never put her down. Rinoa wished she could get Squall to join her and her friends during lunchbreaks, but she couldn't imagine him interacting with them, especially with Tifa and Yuffie who still resented him. It was her sacrifice for spending her lunch with her boyfriend, since, after all, he was more than willing to sacrifice spending his lunchtime with his friends so it wouldn't seem unfair to Rinoa's side. But he had less to worry about it, for his group was extremely supportive of him. Rinoa wished hers was just as understanding.
She stared at her friends for a short while, and watched them as they cheerfully talk (of course, except for Paine who remained silent the whole time) about things that she couldn't hear. She was not envious of them. She just felt... guilty. And what made that feeling dig even deeper to her conscience was seeing that they were occupying the very same table where she first met them. She could still remember how Yuna, Rikku and Paine (especially Paine) told her about the rivalry between Cloud and Squall, and how it all started. Well, with the little knowledge they know anyway. Now Rinoa knew alot better.
Then, she remembered something. There was that missing piece of the whole picture.
The "fight" Paine told about.
She turned back to Squall, who was eating silently with his corn and peas. It was not exactly the most delicious dish, but Squall wasn't exactly a choosy one. He would eat ANYTHING on the table. It had been awfully silent between them while she was contemplating about her not spending so much time with her friends. And she thought it was the perfect moment to ask him about that incident, even if it meant interrupting him with his meal. After all, it was the reason why she chose to be with him. Not to stare at him blankly and let him be quiet, but to do things couples do doing lunchbreaks. That included talking.
"Squall." He responded to her gentle call by turning his head up and looking at her in the eyes. "I just remembered... you were supposed to tell me about that... you know... fight with Cloud."
Squall's brows slightly raised. Then, he put his fork down on his plate and gulped some liquid form his glass of water. He turned back to Rinoa.
"It isn't really a big deal." He replied.
"Well..." Rinoa adjusted herself on her seat. With his reply, it was obvious that they will be going back doing everything the hard way just to extract something out from him. "Paine said it was pretty bad." Squall's brows furrowed. How could someone, who barely knew anything, say something like that? Truth to be told, Cloud and he were going through something even worse, like their years of chasing the insanely dangerous Hojo for one.
"I want to know." Rinoa pressed on.
There was nothing to lose if he told her anywayl she heard worse. After all, he did promise her that he would tell her someday about it.
He leaned back on his chair without taking his eyes off her, while she, continued staring at him, waiting for his answer.
"It was about two weeks after the tournament. Cloud and I wanted so much to kill each other, but it was against the rules we were living with; Balamb Garden's rules, Shinra's rules, school rules, and even human rules." Obviously, he chuckled. "At first, we fought through the most subtle ways; tests, competitions, blitzball," Rinoa's eyesbrows rose. Actually impressed that quiet people like Squall and Cloud could actually play blitzball. "anything to kick each other's ass, to prove that I'm better than him. The same goes with..." He would say "asshole", but he chose to sound nicer.
"Cloud." Rinoa finished for him.
"Yeah, Strife." He added. Rinoa frowned a bit.
"One school day, we just glared at each other and we already knew it meant we had to settle with an agreement. We both met at the parking lot, right after school. And the moment we got the sight of each other, we understood that we had to settle it our own way. I told him the day, and he set the time and place. And those were the only things we needed to know."
Rinoa could imagine how the whole conversation left, knowing how they were men of few words. Squall, for example, said "Saturday.", then Cloud replied with "3:00, at this and that street." And then, they both parted ways, without any more word.
"I brought my gunblade, and he brought a huge sword." A ridiculously huge one, he thought. "And that was how it was; we fought."
"Let me guess," Rinoa leaned backwards as she cocked her head sideways. "No one still won."
Squall shook his head. "We just dropped on the ground, bleeding badly." Rinoa winced at that. "I had cuts everywhere, and I could say the same for him." Squall trailed his finger on the diagonal scar between his eyebrows. Rinoa's brows creased.
"Was that... by Cloud?" She asked, referring to the mark on his face.
Squall nodded. "Yeah..." He put his hand down, as if he suddenly became conscious. "I... especially bled here."
Rinoa sighed and shook her head disapprovingly. "What about Cloud?"
"I don't know." He replied. "Don't care."
Squall, for some unknown reason, nervously played with his fork as he stared down back to his plate. Rinoa sighed. They did not need to hurt each other for that simple fight. Then again, she never understood boys, and their impenetrable ego. She bet it was worse with the two, the most proud people she ever met in her life. And to think it happened all the way back when they were still in their first year of high school. Letting their fight pass by for the just a few weeks was already enough to give their rivalry a big room to grow stronger. But years? She couldn't fathom that. Unless they chose to ignore the whole thing, but it did not stop with just school, they had their fight even as they work with those organizations, which were, by the way, part of their lives as well. It would seem like as if they were born and destined to be enemies. And there was no way stopping it. Sadly, Rinoa couldn't see any other way to stop it.
The raven haired sighed. "Men." She said under her breath defeatedly.
The bell finally rang for dismissal, much to Rinoa's delight. Their Psychology teacher never stopped rambling about things she did not understand, which Cloud (who had been her some sort of translator ever since day one) claimed that the lecture was never really important. Nonetheless, the instructor gave her a headache.
Rinoa finally gathered her things and stood up from her chair, while Cloud followed.
"Rinoa," The girl turned to face the blonde. "will you be... uh... coming over?"
She understood what he had been doing regular visits to Terra ever since the time she met her. Rinoa, after seeing how Terra needed some female company at her confinement, promised to give her a break and see her everyday.
Rinoa nodded. "Yeah. I'll be there." She smiled reassuringly.
Cloud replied with a small smile. "I'll see you then." He waved his bag on his shoulder and walked out of the classroom.
As she walked through the hall and approached the exit of the building, she effortlessly saw the tall brunette who was leaning against a wall by the doorway, waiting for her. Rinoa quickly ran to him and gave him a smile, though he never returned it. Instead, he stared at her softly and gently took her hand, leading her outside the building to his car.
"Squall..." She called, and Squall turned to her. He hoped she would say something good, like an invitation to go see a movie or eat somewhere; they haven't done that in a while. She always had something to do after school, a habit she was not planning to break.
"I'll go drop by to see Terra." As usual. That reminder just made his heart sank, and it felt worse in every passing day. She chose to spend more time doing that Strife bastard a favor by visiting that girl she barely knew, rather than go out with him like a girlfriend should with her boyfriend. The only time they could be together was during lunchbreaks which only lasted for an hour. And maybe the few minutes that he spent with her to go to school, then bringing her to that Shinra building to see that girl again. He barely spent any quality time with her. Maybe during weekends, he could wait for that; still it did not feel right. And somehow, he felt like Cloud was plotting it against him, in a way to steal his girlfriend from him and torture him by her constant absence. Nevertheless, in the end, it was Rinoa's choice. Be forced by Cloud or not, it was up to her whom she wanted to spend her after school hours with. Though sadly, everyday, she chose not to spend it with Squall.
"...you won't have to make sacrifices for me. Because I will do those for you... in everyday that I'm with you."
Stupid promise. Now he had to pay for the consequences it brought to him. It was sincere, he truly swore with his whole heart and soul that he would be the one making the sacrifices. But he never knew it would be this difficult to keep a such promise. Sometimes, he wondered if Cloud heard his oath, or he just knew that he was going to willingly do anything for Rinoa. Either way, Squall was not quite fond of what was happening to him and his girlfriend. He wanted, so badly, to confront her about it. But it was out of his capabilities. Everytime he attempted to talk to her about serious things, especially when it came to their relationship, he just couldn't gather enough courage to talk to her and always ended up freezing with his mouth completely shut, and tongue tied in a knot.
Rinoa noticed his brows furrowed with the hint of hurt in his eyes. He may always have that deadpan expression in his face that he wore every so often, but Rinoa seemed to be the only person who could read Squall's face, no matter how unreadable it may seem.
He didn't reply to her reminder. Somehow, he knew it would be coming, though he remained hopeful that she would change her mind. He may be the cold, emotionless, dismissive Squall Leonhart, but even a passive person like him was capable of longing to be with Rinoa for a longer while.
"Squall?" Rinoa called again, more gently this time, careful that he might just snap at any second. She knew something was wrong, but she couldn't figure it out. She kind of knew that it could be about spending too much time with Terra, while she couldn't do the same with Squall. Or maybe it could be something else such as a bad incident that happened in his class like a fight with his friends that might have brought his mood down, she didn't know. Even after he entered the relationship, Squall had never been the talkative type, unless he had something important to say. Or during some rare ocassions when he was in a really good mood, he would talk, though still not as much as a normal person usually would. She understood that, and she knew it would be one of the hardest things to deal with Squall. But then, it would really help if he at least told her what was in his mind so she would stop guessing and finally see the whole picture.
Squall only hummed and barely nodded in reply, as if he was simply forced to respond for the sake of it. Rinoa wanted to be annoyed at him, but she couldn't get herself to. His silence was daring her not to say another word.
After they went inside the black convertible, the whole trip was painfully silent and uncomfortable. And Squall's frown and hurtful expression were not helping. In all honesty, Rinoa was tired of always initiating conversations between the two of them, especially when the problem lies within him. She wanted for him to start the talk every once in a while, but it would seem like he wasn't planning on telling her anything.
She couldn't help it anymore. She needed to know what was bothering Squall, especially if it concerned about her as well.
"Squall, something wrong?" She asked in a low voice.
He didn't reply, nor did he look at her. His eyes were locked on the road in front of them.
"Please, say something!" Rinoa pleaded. Still, she did not get any reply.
After a short moment of silence, Rinoa leaned back on her seat and looked down on her lap. "Is this about me going to Terra's place too often?"
A longer while had passed, and still nothing from Squall.
"If it is, I'm sorry. Please just wait a bit longer. Cloud said he would capture Kefka as soon as he can." She said, assuming it was his unspoken reason.
"And you believed him?" He finally responded, in his plain, low voice.
So this IS about spending time with Terra, she confirmed. "Why wouldn't I believe him?"
Squall sighed deeply as he closed his eyes momentarily and shook his head. "Forget it."
"What? Squall, please. Tell me what's on your mind." Rinoa leaned forward and persisted.
Squall's hands captured his forehead and massaged it. "Let's just drop it."
"If you don't say anything I will never figure out what really is wrong with this whole thing. I just wanted to help, Squall. She needs help more than-"
"If you're just going to keep helping her, then..." He stopped himself at the middle of his stern sentence. Squall knew that if he carried on, he might say something he would regret.
"Then?" Rinoa asked, begging him to continue. "Then? What?"
"Nothing." Squall replied. He was aware that this was the best time to talk to her about that problem, but he chose to simply let it pass. With the way their argument flowed, he knew that it won't be leading to an agreeable conclusion. Squall never wanted to deal with that.
Suddenly, the car stopped, and it was only then Rinoa realized that they finally arrived in front of the building where she was going to see Terra. She glanced at the structure, then turned back to Squall, who still was not looking at her. Rinoa's brows creased upwards as she opened her door and stepped outside. She didn't bother asking him anymore if he would pick her up when she's done. If he doesn't, then she could always walk her way back home. Otherwise, she could already tell that the ride would be a long and cold. She'd rather walk by herself, then.
Squall glanced at his side mirror, where the image of the disturbed Rinoa reflected. His breathing became uneven. It was not the first time they actually fought, right? Their first real conversation was during that afterparty, and it was not exactly a friendly one, since they kept throwing stubborn words at each other. But this time, it was different. It felt as if a petty fight would threaten their relationship, and there was nothing good about it.
He needed to calm down. It will pass, right? They should be able to resolve this in the future. But what if they couldn't? Five minutes of the fight felt like forever to Squall, and who knew how long it would last? He wanted to turn his wheels back to where he left Rinoa and tell her he was sorry for being an idiot. But she had already vanished from her spot and was most probably inside the building.
Too late, he thought and slammed his hand against the board.
"Everything alright?" Cloud asked the raven haired girl in a low voice as they waited inside the lift. Rinoa timidly turned to him and smiled meekly.
"Yeah." She nodded. "Why did you ask?"
The blonde looked at her suspiciously, not entirely convinced with her answer. He then turned to look at the floor indicator located at the top of the elevator's door, his body was protectively near Rinoa, his arm was almost brushing against hers.
Finally, they arrived at the seventeenth floor and Cloud opened the door to the suite. They were greeted, as usual, by Angeal who offered Rinoa some brownies he apparently received as a gift from an admirer inside Shinra, and Genesis, who was reading his favorite book "Loveless", like always. And as usual, he did not greet the newly arrived youngsters.
"No thanks, Angeal." Cloud said to the nicer man, who reached the box of brownies to them.
"Thank you, Sir." Rinoa said as she picked one piece from the box.
Without wasting anymore time, Cloud lead Rinoa to Terra's room, where the emerald haired girl was waiting for her regular visitor.
"Rinoa!" Terra quickly stood up and pulled Rinoa into an embrace.
"Hey." Rinoa smiled and hugged Terra back. As usual, Cloud left the two as he closed the door of Terra's room.
"How are you?" Terra asked her usual question to the raven haired visitor.
"I'm good." Rinoa forced a wider smile. Being with Terra only reminded her of the small argument she had with Squall, not long ago.
"Good." Terra let go of Rinoa and approached the door. She pressed her left ear against it, her expression concentrated, as if she was testing something.
"Okay, I think the coast is clear." Terra stood up straight and faced Rinoa. Cloud's classmate was confused with what his childhood friend was talking about.
"Huh?"
Terra walked closer to Rinoa. "I got a secret." She winked as she whispered.
Rinoa squinted and grinned as her sly reply.
"I already know how to get out of this room." She replied excitedly.
The visitor was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
"I discovered that I can use my gravity magic to bring me down from this floor to the ground." Terra answered. "All I have to do is jump out of the window and then cast Gravity. It is the safest way to escape." She continued cheerfully.
"Terra-"
"It took me alot of practice to do it perfectly. It took me days to do it. Then, this morning, I finally did it! I couldn't wait to get out with you!"
"But," Rinoa was baffled, as she looked at Terra worriedly. "Terra, it could be dangerous!"
Terra's excited expression suddenly became downcasted. Then, she sighed. "Well, I just wanted to get out of this place... and... I thought I could go with with you."
Rinoa watched her sympathetically as Terra walked towards her bed and sat at the edge of it, disappointment written all over her face. She should've figured out that Rinoa was just like Cloud, but she was still hopeful that Rinoa would stay by her side when she decided to escape out of the room. Rinoa felt a bit guilty, knowing how Terra wanted so badly to get at least a bit of the fresh air outside the building, where she was prohibited to wander. For days, all she heard from Terra was that she couldn't wait to get out of her room and see the world outside of it. Even Rinoa wanted the same thing for Terra, but what if that madman Kefka was here? What if he kidnaps her again? It would be her responsibiliy for letting that happen, despite knowing the risks. But looking at Terra's current state...
Rinoa sighed defeatedly. She couldn't stand watching Terra so helpless and lonely. She could've went out by herself without waiting for Rinoa; at least she did not do that. Instead, she chose to be more behaved and waited until someone would go out with her. Maybe it was out of fear, since she may not know what it was like outside anymore. Or maybe she just wanted someone like Rinoa with her when Cloud finds out and began scolding her for being stubborn. The raven haired had no idea. But...
She sighed again. "You know," Rinoa broke the awkward pause between them. "If we're going out, you should cover that head of yours so people won't notice it."
Terra's face suddenly lit up as she gratefully looked at Rinoa. She couldn't believe she finally agreed!
"C'mon!" Rinoa said, smiling, as she gently pulled Terra's hand. "There's no time to waste!" Terra excitedly stood up.
Cloud, if ever you find out, please don't kill me, Rinoa prayed.
Terra was so far enjoying her day-out as she took another sip of her strawberry inside a cafe Rinoa brought her to. The raven haired did not exactly enjoy the gravity spell Terra did. She was never really fond of the feeling that she was falling, and the powerful spell tortured her slowly. She was only glad it was finally over.
"How are you going back up to your room?" Rinoa casually asked.
Terra, who was wearing Rinoa's blue hoodie (which she thankfully have brought with her) turned to her company and smiled. "I'll be using a wind spell."
Rinoa forced a smiled, for the nth time. "I see." She nodded. She was more nervous about Terra being outside the building than the emerald haired girl will ever be.
"This is a nice place." Terra giggled as she took another sip of her drink.
Rinoa smiled, this time, more sincerely. She was glad that Terra was finally outside, but she had to make their little outing short, before Cloud finds out that they were not inside the guest room anymore.
"Who do you usually go out with?" Terra asked curiously.
"Well," Rinoa shifted uncomfortably in her seat, still cautious of anything suspicious around them. Like I can protect Terra if Kefka shows up, she thought. She didn't even know what that Kefka looked like. "I often go out with my boyfriend." Her cautious mood suddenly turned to sad, when she suddenly remembered how she and Squall have not resolved their small misunderstanding yet. "And sometimes, with my friends." She said right after, distracting her own thoughts from Squall.
"Who are your friends?" Terra asked.
"Well, there's Yuna, Rikku, Paine..." Rinoa replied, as she held out her fingers and counted each of them.
"When can I meet them?" The mage asked again.
"Uhm..." Rinoa thought for a moment. So far, she knew Rikku was always busy helping her dad manage his business, while Paine... well, Paine was not exactly as sociable. Yuna, on the other hand, maybe have a more flexible schedule, except when she and Tidus planned a date. Rinoa thought it would be a good idea to just call Yuna and invite her over; it was better that they do everything now while Terra was outside before she finds any other excuse to go out for a next time.
"I suppose you can meet one of them now." Rinoa replied.
Terra's smile became wider. "Really?"
Rinoa nodded. "Yeah, sure." She reached for her bag and took out her mobile phone. She then dialled Yuna's number.
It was thirty minutes after Rinoa's call, and Yuna finally arrvied at their meeting place. Rinoa asked her to come and meet her new friend that she visited everyday. It was also a small get-together to somehow make up for the time they missed hanging out with each other. Yuna did miss eating with Rinoa during lunchbreaks, and with her new boyfriend, they even barely got to talk. Luckily, she was free that day, since her own boyfriend Tidus was busy with his school training for blitzball with his team. Through the glass windows from across the street, she could see her friend's straight, black hair, with another girl whom she barely saw with a blue hood that covered her head. They were sitting at one hidden spot inside the place, engaged in what seemed like a deep conversation.
She was about to cross when suddenly, she saw two tall figures in casual clothings standing beside their table. Yuna cautiously watched what they were doing, as she slowly crossed the street, which was luckily almost empty of vehicles, and people.
Then, to her surprise, the two figures suddenly grabbed Rinoa and the other girl forcefully, and covered the lower parts of their faces with folded hankerchiefs. Their two victims immediately became unconscious.
"Rinoa!" Yuna yelled and began to run, when suddenly, something seemed to have exploded inside the cafe and filled the place with white smoke. Yuna stopped from her steps, unsure of what to do; if it was a good idea to get inside help her friends out despite the cahos, or stay outside so she could stop the men from going any farther once they step out from the door. She chose the latter one, though she was itching to barge inside and to check on her friend. Then, after a few moments, the smoke suddenly vanished, and the people inside the place acted srangely, like nothing happened. They kept on eating and chatting like they normally did before the explosion and smoke came about.
Through the windows, Yuna scanned the interior of the place. There was no trace of her friend, nor the enigmatic figures. The brunette finally ran inside.
"Rinoa?" She desperately called, as she checked the table where she last saw her. She then checked every table inside the cafe, to no avail. She then went to check the bathrooms (yes, she also checked the men's toilet), but saw no sign of the raven haired.
She checked every corner of the whole place to search for her friend. But in vain.
She ran outside, and glanced around the deserted street, but still no sign of the mysterious figures. "Oh no..." Yuna's heart began pounding furiously against her chest, hysteria slowly overwhelming her. She had to call for help.
Yuna quickly took her phone out from her pocket. She honestly didn't know who to call first. Should it be Tidus? Cloud? She would've called Squall, but she didn't know his number. Maybe Tidus does, he was Squall's close friend. Her breath was jagged, and her hands were shaking as she dialled Tidus' number, and panickly told him about what she saw,her voice trembling with anxiety. The blitzball player promised her to call Squall as soon as he could. Then, she called Cloud, and it was the first time she heard the usually silent and calm blonde so scared and angry.
Tears were flowing down her cheeks as she talked to the two, and more went out after she put her phone down and felt alone. Overflowing fear instilled within her, completely helpless and anxious.
Then, it hit her, something that she could do that may help her abducted friend. With the small amount of calmness left in her, she breathed slowly. It would require tranquility to be able to perform the last aid she could send to her friend, an SOP that she learned from her hometown. She had to accomplish it, before it's too late; before they have gone too far that searching for them would deem impossible.
Yuna looked up at the sky, after she became collected enough to concentrate. She prayed, and hoped that the entities above would heed her prayer.
She closed her eyes and chanted, in a tongue only a person like her could understand.
"Please..." She pleaded, to anything or anyone up there, for help. Then, she thought of Rinoa, and the poor girl. "Hang in there."
From the high heavens, if one was to pay close attention, a giant, avian figure could be seen swiftly hovering to the Northern direction from where Yuna was standing, answering to her call.
A/N: Can anyone guess the name of the bird figure that appeared in the sky at the end? :3