Squall awoke to the sound of a whistle. It was faint, distant, but it was definitely a whistle.

Rinoa! She whistled to Angelo like that. Could she be here? Had she found him when he couldn't find her?

"Rinoa!" he yelled, though he knew his voice probably wouldn't carry very far. He'd never been very good at whistling.

He ran towards the sound, or at least tried to. It was difficult to tell what direction it was coming from and he soon ran out of the ground. The barren landscape disappeared before him—he was at the edge of a cliff, with nothing but fog below him. He turned, trying a different direction. But the ground was gone there too. He looked around, three-hundred-sixty degrees, there was nothing but cliff. Somehow, after walking for miles, he was on a tiny island. It didn't make sense, but he didn't have time to think about it. He could still hear the whistle, though it grew fainter. Rinoa, if that's who it was, may still be nearby.

He knelt at the edge of the cliff. There was no visible bottom to what was below him, just swirling fog and nothingness. But there had to be something more—if he leapt into the fog he could fall forever, could he? He stood and jumped off the edge of the cliff. He didn't know what to expect, he just knew he couldn't stay where he was.

A sudden commotion caused Tidus to spin around. A figure dressed in black fell from the sky, hitting the ground in a roll several feet behind him. Tidus dropped his hand to the hilt of his sword as the figure—a young man who looked to be about Tidus's own age—sprang to his feet. When the other did not draw a weapon, Tidus stepped forward.

He said the first thing that came to mind. "You're not Yuna."

The other said nothing. Tidus imagined he could see his own disappointment reflected in the other's expression. "I'm not who you were hoping for either."

Still no response.

"Well, uh, so…do you know where we are?"

"No." The guy in black looked up at the sky. "Not a place anyone wants to be."

"Right. Yeah. The sky—that's not normal."

"Was that you? Whistling, before?"

Tidus nodded. "Yep." Tidus paused, but when the other did not continue, he figured he might as well introduce himself. "I'm Tidus. Guardian to High Summoner Yuna."

Tidus hadn't really thought about what he would say before he spoke and his words surprised him. He usually introduced himself as the star player of the Zanarkand Abes. When had he stopped thinking about himself that way? When he realized Zanarkand didn't exist? Or when he realized Yuna was the single most important part of his life? Not just the most important—the only part of his life that mattered at all.

"Squall Leonhart. SeeD," the other responded.

"What's a SeeD?"

"A member of an elite mercenary force. Trained to defeat the Sorceress."

"Sorceress?" Tidus had never heard of anyone use the word Sorceress outside of a fairy tale before.

Squall simply nodded in response.

"Are you from Spira?" Tidus asked.

"No. I'm from Balamb Garden."

"Never heard of it." Tidus scratched the back of his head. This definitely wasn't what he was expecting of the Farplane.

"How'd you end up here?" Squall asked.

"I don't really know." Tidus hesitated, not sure how much to tell. It was a strange story he probably didn't need to get into right now. "There was a bright light and…BAM! Here I am. How about you?"

"It's a long story."

"You got somewhere else to be?"

Rinoa strode steadily forward. As she walked, she held on tightly to the rings hanging from a chain around her neck.

She didn't know where she was. She didn't want to be here. She wanted to be home. She wanted to be with Squall. The place was empty, desolate. She tried not to pay attention to it. She continued on, hoping desperately that Squall would appear before her. He had to—why else would she be here?

There, up ahead—was there a figure in the mist? She broke into a run. It could have been—it must be—

"Squall!"

As she approached, the figure turned around. It was him!

She sprinted the last few steps and, as soon as she was near enough, she fell into his arms. She inhaled deeply, reveling in the rich scent of his leather jacket.

"Are you okay?" he asked her.

"Yes. Now that I'm with you," she replied, still clinging tightly to him. He'd set his hands gently on her back. He was so strong, yet he always had such a gentle touch.

"I don't suppose there's anyone else coming?" An unfamiliar voice startled Rinoa. She pulled away from Squall just enough to see that there was someone standing beside them. He must have been there all along, but somehow Rinoa had not noticed him. He looked to be about the same age as she and Squall, his height and build similar to Squall's. He stood peering into the mist in the direction she had come from.

"Not that I know of." Rinoa looked over her shoulder into the distance. There was nothing but mist.

"Didn't think so." There was such disappointment in his words, Rinoa was tempted release her embrace of Squall and give him a hug instead.

"I'm Tidus, by the way."

"I'm Rinoa," she replied, finally taking a step back from Squall. "Where are we?"

Squall shrugged. "No idea."

"I was hoping you might know," Tidus said.

"I don't know where we are, but I don't like it. Let's go home." Once again, just as she had in the meadow, she lowered her head and released her sorceress powers. She waited for it, the itch between her shoulder blades that turned into a brief, searing pain as her wings unfurled. She waited, but it didn't happen. Never before had her powers failed to activate. She tried again, tried to focus harder. Still nothing.

"Squall, it's not working." She looked up at him. "My powers, they won't activate."

"It's okay. Magic might not work here." His expression was neutral and unreadable as always. She felt herself relax a little, even though his words weren't much comfort. "I lost my junctions after the battle, so I couldn't tell for sure." Squall turned to Tidus. "What about you? Do you have any magic?"

"I can cast Haste," he replied.

"Try it."

Tidus brought his left hand in front of his face and then gestured outward. He paused for a moment before shaking his head. "Nothing."

Squall dipped his head in acknowledgment.

"Then how are we going to get home?" Rinoa tried to keep the panic out of her voice, but was only partially successful.

"We'll find a way," Squall said. She didn't understand his confidence, but she was glad for it. If anyone could find a way out of here, it was Squall.