epilogue

EPILOGUE – TO THE FUTURE

The brisk evening air swept up from the darkened beach side, carrying the scent of fresh salt to the young man's nostrils. His stare pivoted between the shoreline and the sea from his overlook upon the Garden balcony, watching the moon's reflection on the waves. It was a perfectly peaceful night; only the orchestra and the omnipresent hum of chatter from the ballroom behind him disturbed the serenity. Down on the shore, several flickers of flame broke through the darkness, just the latest of many. Soon the calm would be shattered again by another round of fireworks. And as he saw sparks fly from the first lit fuse, he looked on with anticipation, wondering what color might light up the night sky this time.

Up the salvo of rockets soared, one after another. They burst into dazzling splashes of green and red moments later. The town of Balamb just beyond came aglow in their wake. He was sure the ensuing celebrations down there were more than a match for those in the Garden; plenty of cadets and SeeDs had opted to take their night of merriment to the streets instead, with the full blessing of the mayor, who'd already been at work organizing the town's own festivities by the time they'd returned. In the end, everyone was just happy to have survived. All was right once more in their little corner of the world.

To top things off, Squall's resignation speech had been well received, and his appointment of Quistis had elicited a standing ovation from all. She'd been apprehensive to step into the role, but risen to the occasion all the same. He already knew she would make a better commandant than he could ever hope to be. Still, he would remain stationed at the Garden for a while yet to finalize any outstanding matters, and offer her what meager expertise Xu had imparted to him. And then, on September 9th, he would officially resign, after a career lasting just shy of seven months.

Feels more like seven years.

"So, this is it, huh?"

He turned his head as Rinoa came up beside him. She leaned forward on the balcony railing, crossing her arms just as he had.

"The end of an era," she said.

"Are you surprised?" he asked.

"Nope. Not at all."

She smiled knowingly as she brought one hand up, and pointed her index finger to her temple.

"I already knew Quistis was next in line. Because Ultimecia knew."

"Ah… all according to plan, I guess."

A mixture of pride and relief washed over Squall with the next calming ocean breeze. Apparently, his decision making was still on the right track as far as history was concerned.

"Yeah, looks like it," Rinoa agreed. "But… is that really a good thing?"

Her smirk faded away, to be replaced by a face far more glum.

"It just means Ultimecia's revenge really is destined to come one day. It might be far away, but… how are we all supposed to go on living like normal now? Knowing what fate holds in store? How so many people are going to die in the future? And all because one of my successors ends up passing my power to the wrong person. That's how it's all been written. That's how… it's already happened…"

Rinoa's dilemma was one Squall himself had mulled over for weeks now. Every word she'd spoken was true, and seemingly beyond their ability to change. So it would be for certain if they just accepted fate as immovable, the same way Ultimecia had. But there had been at least one man he'd known who'd dared to think differently. 'My destiny is my own,' he'd proclaimed.

Here's hoping you're still out there somewhere…

"Well, I don't want to believe I just drifted here on the tides of fate," he finally spoke. "All my life, there weren't many paths for me to choose. Sometimes, there would be only one. From those limited options I had, the choices I've made are what brought me this far. And the way I see it, that's what really matters: they were still mine to make, regardless of whether fate played any part in it. I'm here because I chose to be here."

He straightened himself up from the banister and turned to face Rinoa head on.

"I won't pretend to know the mysteries of life. I don't know if each of us has our own destiny set in stone from the moment we come into this world. But I do know there's no use living in fear of the future. You're the one who taught me that, Rinoa. It's like you said that night: what matters is today, the time we have right now, and how we decide to spend it. And I want to spend it with you. To face the future and whatever it might hold, together."

Rinoa stared back at him in awe. Her face was flush, her eyes wide. Squall's confidence faltered after a few moments; had his passion compelled him into coming on too strong? Another firework exploding in the background was what it took to finally break the awkward silence.

"That… sure would be something," she replied as she quickly turned back to watch.

"Yeah… wouldn't it?" he nervously agreed.

Come on. This is it. No more stalling.

"Anyway, there's something else I've been meaning to ask," he went on. "That ring of mine… do you think I could have it back now?"

"Huh?"

She snapped her attention back to him. Somehow, her expression looked even more stunned now.

"You… want it back?" she repeated, confused.

"Is that asking too much?"

She lowered her eyes, clearly disappointed, and dipped her hand into her pocket. He held out his own to receive the ring as she placed it in his palm.

"Thanks," he said as he slipped it back onto his finger. "What's the matter? It's just a ring."

"I… know," she muttered, still not meeting his eyes. "It's just… I'd gotten so used to having it all this time, and… well, I thought…"

Squall's heart ached; he couldn't stand to keep this charade up any longer. Hurriedly, he dipped his hand into his own pocket.

"Don't feel so bad," he reassured her. "Here, you can have this one."

He abruptly took her left hand in his, and slipped the band onto her ring finger. It was an exact replica of his own, lion engraving and all, tailor-made for her as she'd wanted. The brief glimpses Squall had made into her mind with Ellone had told him everything. A quick word with Zell was all it had taken to finally get it done. And the look on her face as she stared down at it in speechless amazement was worth it all.

"What do you think?" he asked with a smile.

As she raised her eyes to him, he brought up his left hand to show his own ring in solidarity. In doing so, he'd formed a perfect mirror image of the SeeD salute he'd practiced for so many years. This time, however, it was different. This time it spoke of loyalty to a new cause of his choosing, one he could commit to with all his heart for the rest of his days. Not out of obligation, but for the sake of a force much greater. Her shock melted away into a teary-eyed smile.

"You… idiot!"

She threw herself at him. He wrapped his arms around her in return, and there they stood, locked in the tightest, most emotionally charged embrace Squall could recall; all truly was right once more in their little corner of the world. They parted but slightly only as another firework went up. They turned their heads to face the explosion of light, and then turned back. They gazed longingly into each other's eyes. And as they both heard the shrill whistle of another one making the climb, they both leaned their heads in.

Their lips met as the second firework burst across the sky. Even as any trace of it faded away, light, sound, and all, they stayed clinging to each other, lost in a moment Squall never wanted to end. Eventually however, his lungs gave in. He broke from the kiss, but only pulled her closer. He placed his hand to the back of her head as she buried her face in his chest. The world stood still again, as if time compression had never ceased to be.

A familiar melody echoing out from the ballroom was what finally prompted him to let go. He turned his eyes and ears back inside to be sure; he'd only heard the song a few times in total, after all. As he noticed the same vocal soloist take the stage with the band and orchestra however, he was certain.

"Is that our song I hear?" he asked.

"Our song?" Rinoa half-chuckled.

"Well, it was theirs."

Seizing the moment, he extended his hand to her.

"How about it? For old time's sake."

"You're asking me to dance?" she said as if it were the most ridiculous thing she'd ever heard.

"Are you turning me down?"

She just laughed, and cast her eyes back out over the balcony.

"You've really changed, Squall. So much has."

Maybe too much.

"But, you know… there's one thing that hasn't."

She took his hand, and gave him a playful smile.

"You're still the best-looking guy here."

With that, the two of them strode back into the ballroom, hand in hand, ready to face the future.

Together.

THE END