It's ok to be us ch3
The Tournament
The first week of the semester was over, finally. Squall felt like this week had been the longest of any week he could remember (except for perhaps time compression, who knows how long that actually was). His classes were going well, considering the changes that had to be made last minute. While he still taught the specialized weapons class, he found that Zell was overbooked for his martial arts class. Squall had decided to split that class in half and teach it himself. He was more than capable of doing so, having trained in martial arts since he was a young child, but he was certainly not the charismatic teacher that Zell was.
Today for example, Zell had suggested that they combine classes to practice the techniques learned this week in a sparring scenario. With only fifteen minutes remaining, one student had suggested that the two instructors engage in a one on one demonstration. The idea had spread like wildfire amongst the combine class of fifty. Squall didn't want to be put on the spot, but Zell had seemed as eager as any of their students.
"C'mon man LET'S DO IT! There's not much time left and they could really use the break." Zell had said.
"Ugh, whatever." Squall agreed reluctantly, as the class cheered.
Zell and Squall lined up opposite of each other, while the class formed a large circle around them. They bowed to each other and took their stances.
'Zell prefers to use his hands. If I let him get in too close, I could be in serious trouble." Squall thought to himself.
Sure enough, Zell's first move was a lunge forward to close the distance. Squall had seen it many times.
'Hesitate, and DISRUPT' Squall thought as he threw a snap kick off his front foot, forcing Zell onto the defensive.
The match continued with many gasps and cheers from the students. They seemed pretty evenly matched. Squall was the best at reading his opponents posture ad predicting the next move. But Zell had the advantage of tremendous energy and a natural ability to improvise. Neither seemed able to land a critical blow, until, with five minutes remaining in the class, Zell leapt into the air, throwing a side kick at Squall. Squall was ready for it, turning slightly and grabbing Zell's leg, flipping him around and slamming him into the ground.
Zell landed hard, but before Squall could react, he had swept Squalls feet out, knocking him over too. Zell rolled over on the ground kicking Squall in the chest. Both remained on the ground for a moment, dazed.
"Alright that is enough." Squall said, standing up.
The students all cheered and applauded as the two instructors bowed to one another again.
"Don't forget to pick up your copies of Combat King and study up for Monday!" Zell said. "This month's issue is a crossover with Weapons Monthly, and there will be a weapons convention and martial arts tournament next weekend. Both Commander Leonhart and I are already entered into the tournament, so be sure to get your train tickets if you plan to come, and if you plan to enter, get your applications in by Tuesday. Dismissed!"
And with that Zell turned to hightail it out of there. Squall stopped him.
"What was that about me entering the tournament?" he said angrily.
"Well, I just, I mean, you were gonna go anyway so I just-"
"Yeah, I was gonna go. To the WEAPONS CONVENTION! Damn it Zell. Now I have to call and cancel my entry."
"You can't do that! I just told the class that you were gonna compete! How would that look if our fearless leader backed out of a silly little tournament?" Zell said, now smirking a little.
"Sometimes, I hate you so damn much." Squall said. Zell was right. He would lose face if he backed out now. He would have to talk to Rinoa about it. He could use the different perspective. "I'm not saying I'll do it. I'm just saying let me think about it."
"Oh yeah man, go talk it over with the Mrs. and let me know. We could train together this week. You know, with all of our spare time." said Zell, walking away.
"Whatever." said Squall, heading for Rinoa's classroom. Her class ended half an hour later than his did. Though he wouldn't admit it, he had missed her this week. The added workload meant neither had much free time, and he missed having lunch with her. But he was the Commander, and answered only to Cid. He could sit in on the end of her class if he wanted to.
He entered the door to the back of the classroom, and saw that Rinoa was teaching the students about the Reflect spell. She smiled when she saw him.
"Cadets! Commander Leonhart is present, about face and attention!" she said. In unison the class stood up, turned to face him, and saluted.
"At ease. Please continue Instructor Heartilly."
"Actually, sir, your timing is perfect. Would you mind coming to the front to assist me in a demonstration?"
Truthfully, Squall felt he had done enough demonstrating for one day, but he couldn't say no to her. Laughing inwardly at how formally she addressed him, he stepped forward.
"Remember what we were talking about, Reflect only works for one rebound. Let's see that in practice." Rinoa cast Reflect on herself and Squall.
"Notice how we both have Reflect, watch what happens when your opponent tries to use an elemental combat spell. Commander, if you would."
Squall obliged and threw a basic Fire spell at her. Sure enough, the bright yellow barrier came to her defense and the spell rebounded upon Squall.
"Notice, everyone, that despite his Reflect, the spell still hit him. But Reflect can be a double edged sword, because if I were to attempt to heal myself-" Rinoa cast Cure on herself. Once again, the spell rebounded onto Squall. "-it would again rebound onto your opponent. Be sure to have Dispel for such occasions when you don't have the time or supplies to heal with potions. Thank you Commander"
The class paired up, all casting reflect, and practiced with the effects of the rebounding spells. Rinoa moved to stand next to Squall.
"So, hey there handsome" she said, smiling at him.
"Hey,"
"So, why are you really here. Did you miss me?"
"..."
"I missed you too. Teaching is hard work, what with the magical energy I have to expend every day, to all the papers and homework, plus tests and practical exams. The pace of these classes is exhausting! I'm surprise anyone is learning anything." she said.
"You're a good teacher." Squall said.
"Oh stop! Look, I'm blushing. How was hand to hand today?"
"It was... fine"
"Squall Leonhart, don't you lie to me, I can always tell. You're not very good at it."
Squall sighed in defeat, and told her all about Zell entering him into the martial arts tournament.
"And the worst part is, I can't get out of it without losing face in front of my students." Squall said.
"Squall, everybody here has the utmost respect for you. And nothing you could do would change that. Trust me. Only the six of us know all the details, but everyone knows you saved the world. If you don't wanna do it, then don't. Simple as that. Although..."
"Although what?" Squall asked.
"Honestly I think you should do it. If you and Zell both go, I don't think anyone could beat you both. It would be inspiring for one of you to bring home the title, and if you lost it would rally everyone behind you, and give you an excuse to train that much harder. Either way, it benefits everyone."
"Yeah, everyone but me. I just wish Zell hadn't just thrown it on me like that."
"I know, but you'll be great, if you decide to do it" Rinoa looked at the clock. "Okay! Class Dismissed!"
The students collected their belongings and headed out of the classroom. Squall watched as Rinoa finished packing up and putting everything away. When they had left the classroom and Rinoa had locked up, Squall reached out and took her hand.
"So, you think I should do it?"
Rinoa turned to look at him. "I think it's completely up to you, but if you're asking for my opinion, then yes, I think you should do it. You never know, you might accidentally have some fun."
"Do you want to, I don't know, do something tonight?" Squall asked her. He hated that he still felt awkward around her.
"Oh, uh, yeah, I'd love to, only, I have a lot of grading to do. How bout we get an early dinner and you can come over, maybe help me with some of these evaluations. You know, because I have field exams tomorrow and next week. And I really wanna be prepared for them, especially my first one."
Squall sighed. He loved how committed she was to her job, and their ultimate goal, but some selfish part of him hated how it interfered with their time together. She should be there for him alone, damn it. He recognized this as a crazy impulse stemming from his feelings for her, feelings he still didn't fully understand.
"Whatever. Meet you at the Ragnarok in an hour. That would be-" he checked his watch, "four thirty."
"Perfect." she said, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Now go shower. You smell like sweat and combat and Zell."
He blushed as she walked away. Did he smell that strongly? How could he not know that? Had he just gotten used to it? Gross.
"Hey!" Rinoa called to him, turning back to face him. "Just do it, stop thinking about it! I know you are!"
And with that, she headed for her own room. Squall did the same.
'Damn her' he thought. 'How can she read me so clearly? She must be getting into my head. But I think I like it. I don't seem to have to explain things to her anymore.'
Still puzzled by this thought, Squall made it to his room, showered and changed, and headed to meet Rinoa at the Ragnarok. He had only been waiting for her for a few minutes when he heard her voice.
"You're always fifteen minutes early aren't you?"
"Whenever I can be." he replied.
They boarded the ship and headed for Dollet. When they arrived, they selected a restaurant and ate. The conversation was mostly about the classes they were teaching and students who were giving them trouble. They then boarded the Ragnarok once more and headed for Balamb.
Upon arrival, they headed for Rinoa's room where they sat down on her little sofa. After going over the requirements for the field exam the next day, and a few sample student applications, Rinoa continued working on her tablet while Squall began reading the latest issue of Combat King. After a few hours of minimal conversation, Rinoa shifted her position, and lay down with her head in Squall's lap.
Squall did not object, but rather started stroking her hair and massaging her head. She purred in response.
A short time later he noticed she had fallen asleep. He sighed, still gently petting her, and removed her tablet. As he scrolled through her work, he saw she had gotten about half way through. Rather than wake her, he decided to go through and fill out as much as he could. Before he knew it, he had finished her evaluations. Smirking to himself, he attempted to place her tablet back in her arms where he had gotten it. This roused her.
"Wha time s it?" she asked with a yawn.
"About nine thirty." he said.
"Oh shit. How long was I out? I still have so many evaluations to do!"
"You were out for probably two hours." he said smirking as she powered on her tablet and began to scroll through the applications and evaluations of her students.
"Squall, why are all of these done? Did you do this?" she asked.
"You might wanna go through them again in the morning, especially to add specific comments. I wasn't there, so there was only so much I could do and-"
He was interrupted by Rinoa pressing against his lips with hers.
"Thank you Squall. That was so thoughtful of you." She kissed him again.
"Don't get used to it. I have plenty of my own boring ass work to do, and I am not going to keep up with yours also."
"Mhm, so what are we going to with the rest of our night?" she said seductively into his ear.
Squall could feel himself withdraw slightly as sexual tension built.
She stood up, took his hands, and pulled him up with her.
"Take your shirt off." she said removing his jacket.
"Rinoa, I-"
"Trust me Squall." she said leading him over to the bed. When he removed his shirt, she let her fingers dance over his exposed chest, delicately tracing his scars. She kissed him again, with a little more passion than before.
"Good, now lay down on your stomach" Rinoa said, walking toward the bathroom.
Squall did as she asked, with several ideas of what she might be planning, none of which he was particularly comfortable with. But he trusted her, and knew she wouldn't push him to do anything he didn't want.
He heard her return a moment later. Without a word, she climbed onto the bed and straddled his hips. He heard the click of a plastic bottle cap opening, then felt her hands on his back, applying lotion to his skin. She began to massage, from his neck down to his lower back. Her hands were strong and precise. Squall let out an involuntary groan of pleasure.
"Does that feel good?" she asked him after a while.
"Yeah it does Rin." he sighed into the pillow. Usually the idea of someone else's hands on him was something he avoided at all cost. It was something to be tolerated when having an injury treated. But for the first time, he was enjoying being touched by someone else. "You have such... power over me. I would have never guessed that this would happen to me, never mind that I would enjoy it."
"I'm flattered." she said, working his shoulder blades. "You have beautiful skin. It's so soft. I'd love to lay my hands on it as often as I can."
"Maybe we'll have to work out something on a weekly basis." Squall said into the pillow.
"I'd love to, except..."
She had stopped, and gotten off him. Squall turned his head to look at her.
"Except what?" he asked now noticing her cute, sky blue, silk pajamas.
"Except if we were to do that, I might have a hard time keeping my hands off of you. And besides, now you get to return the favor. Move over. The lotion is on the nightstand. And please take your boots off!"
Squall did as she asked once more, now slightly apprehensive. He had never given a massage before. Hell, he hadn't had a proper one until tonight. He grabbed the lotion from the bed side table and sank back into his own head for just a moment.
His icy, calculating side took over. 'Trapezius, latissimus dorsi, levator scapulae, rhomboideus major, and rhomboideus minor.' he thought, reviewing the superficial group of muscles in the back. He reasoned that if he could coax them to stretch in the right direction, he could release the built up lactic acid and thus create the desired effect.
He was snapped out of his calculations by Rinoa removing her silk tank top. Her back was to him, and she was not wearing a brassier. He stared for a moment at her porcelain skin, before she called him over.
"Come on, don't be shy."
Squall moved over onto the bed and straddled her hips, just as she had done. He, however, was careful not to apply any weight to her frame. Lotion in hand, Squall began to trace her muscles with his fingertips. He was gentle at first, still getting used to her silky skin under his calloused hands. Gradually he increased the pressure until she gave a contented moan of pleasure.
"That feels heavenly Squall" she said. "How did you learn to do this?"
"I have a pretty competent knowledge of the muscles of your back and how they work. You know, SeeD medical training for the field. That, and mimicking you."
"I bet you say that to all the girls. Whatever you're doing, don't stop." Rinoa said meekly.
Squall was surprised at how easy it was to manipulate her. He experimented with different muscle groups, smiling to himself as each made her coo or purr differently.
After a while, he noticed her reactions began to slow down and eventually stopped altogether. He noticed that she was once again asleep. He gently got up, draped the sheets over her, and began preparing to leave. He collected his shirt, jacket and boots. As he began to get dressed however he heard her angelic voice call out to him.
"Don't leave. Stay with me. Please?"
"Rin, I have more to do tonight, and you have an early morning. Tonight is not the night."
"Please? Don't leave. I love you. Don't leave me alone tonight."
He sighed, again defeated by her charms.
"That's not fair." he said, undressing again. "You shouldn't be able to make me do whatever you want just by batting your eyelashes."
"Well I can," she said, batting her eyelashes. "So take your shirt off, and come to bed."
When Squall neared the bed, Rinoa pulled the sheets back to allow him entrance. He lay down next to her, and she threw the covers over him. They lay there, facing each other. Rinoa gave him a small smile, kissed him again, and curled up next to him. Squall wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close, and once again marveling at the softness of her skin. After a few silent minutes and another kiss, Rinoa rolled over, now with her back to him, and guided his hand upward, over her breast, onto her chest over her heart. She pressed his hand there, and he felt her heart beating in her chest. Rinoa was out in minutes, and Squall was close behind her.