Disclaimer. Squaresoft owns all these guys and places. I don't mean to infringe you guys so........ just chill, eh??? Please please please forgive me for going into so much biology but I have just finished my course and it has to be used for something. Okay?


The Longest Road.

"And I'll always find my way back here, just so I can be with you...."




Chapter fifteen; The fallen will return home....




Soft sound of peaceful breathing known only in slumber.

The quiet ticking of a quartz movement clock.

A breeze stirred a forgotten wooden wind chime on the balcony.

Squall scratched his forehead slowly as he listened. Sitting up he swung his legs over the side of the bed and reached over to a drawer to find a pair of shorts.

He crossed the room swiftly, relying upon the sounds he had barely noticed before now to guide him. Underneath that ticking silver and black clock was a silver and black case, with a symbol embossed upon it. A lion's head, jaws in a contorted silent roar stretching over all eternity.

The image was also carved into the adamantine blue blade of the weapon within the case.

And the image, a roaring lion was in his name and was carved also into his soul. The lion was so much a part of himself that he could not remember nor imagine life with out it being a part of his mind, a part of his body and a part of his spirit.

Just like he couldn't imagine life without Garden, or life without Zell.

He took the gunblade into his hands and used the sound of the wind chime outside to lead himself to the balcony. A energy rushed through him as he felt his mind align with the power of his gunblade.

The gunblade held in both hands, straight out at a perfect ninety degree angle to his body, suddenly moved and swept in a clockwise arc to his left. Now again to his right before he pivoted on his heel to thrust and again, moving through fluid motions that he remembered from his days of battle with Seifer.

Sweep, block, thrust, parry. So swift no change of direction was visible. As beautiful as dancing.

Even blinded, he was still a force to be reckoned with.

At his peak condition, he could practice like this for two hours straight.

In five minutes, he was exhausted.

A faint murmur of concern sounded from the open door. "Are you okay baby?"

Squall nodded as he sank to his knees, defeated by his own body. "I'm fine Zell... I guess I'm still tired."

"Mmmmm." Zell mumbled. "Good enough excuse." As the blonde turned to get dressed so he could go get something to eat, he noticed the blinking light on the answering machine signifying a received message. Clicking the play button he searched a drawer for his favourite pair of denim shorts.

"Squall I need to see you immediately! Get down to my office as soon as you hear this, it's about the blood test, there was something.... unusual."




And that was how Squall found himself being hastily dressed and being half-dragged, half-carried to the infirmary.

"I need a further blood sample for testing purposes." Dr Kadowaki started.

"What was the unusual thing you were talking about Doc?" Zell asked, teeth clamped together and fists clenched tight on the edge of his seat, white knuckles stark against the black leather of his chair.

She looked at Squall who nodded.

"There's a foreign body in the blood stream. It seems to be dormant at the moment but it could become active at any moment. I have no idea what it could do if it becomes active." She stared at a blown up image from the microscope. "It seems to be bonded to your lymphocyte bodies..., your white blood cells....."

"So in other words, we are going to have to wait and see what's going to happen?"

"Basically. Now, about that blood sample."



********



"People of Galbadia!" The woman cried. "We are a great nation, a great people. And I am here to lead you."

A cheer rose from the crowd. They didn't particularly care about who led them as long as they didn't raise the taxes.

The air crackled with energy as the raven haired sorceress gave her speech, her powers coming in to play as her angel wings rose behind her and a golden light from no apparent source shimmered across her skin. Rinoa was no fool, she knew how important the theatrics were for a president.

Lenses surrounded her, tv and newspaper press officials baying for her attention. Her words were being broadcasted to the entire world.

"I hereby declare the city Timber a free state unless they chose to join us...." She paused. Some sort of alarm went off in the back of her head, but she had no idea why.... She heard a muffled thud.

Pain. As though she had been punched in the stomach. A strange warmth spreading over her abdomen.

Her father fell to the ground clutching his shoulder.

A red stain was blossoming on her stomach. She'd been shot by a sniper. She clutched at the wound and opened her mind.



********



Squall, being led back to his quarters heard a whisper.

"Take good care of Ayden. I always loved you Squall...."

"Rinoa?" He wondered aloud.



********



Her spirit, in the form of her astral body appeared at the side of a cot within the presidential residence.

The tiny child within the wicker basket stirred as she leant over it. His eyes brimmed with tears of sorrow and of an understanding beyond his years. "Ayden. Little fire." Rinoa whispered. He reached out to curl his fingers around a fallen lock of her hair. "I give you a gift that for many has been a curse. If it turns out to be the same for you then I am truly sorry, but for someone like you it should never be. You have the same spirit as your father and you will be a great man."

She kissed him on the forehead and gave all of the sorceress powers up to him.

"I will love you always my son. Remember that...." Her voice trailed off and her astral body disappeared as a second bullet struck her, entering her skull just above her left eye.

Rinoa Heartilly was dead long before she hit the ground.








Authors notes.

All the Rinoa lovers are banging on my door with big torches at the ready! This chapter is mainly dedicated to a certain YAOI writer and regular reviewer of my fics (you know who you are, and if my other readers want to be nosy, check out my reviews, the one who wanted to backhand a certain sorceress!)

I'm about to go and write the next chapter so as per usual, I ask for reviews (beg, plead, ask, request, you name it I'm doing it) Thanks,

luv Darksquall.