It was the middle of the night. The dogwatch, as his earlier self would have called it, and Squall stood on the balcony of his new home, breathing.

Just, breathing.

A breeze, cool and fresh, dampened with spray from the nearby waterfall and scented with the flowers and foliage of the surrounding forest, caressed his skin and ran invisible fingers through his hair. Squall closed his eyes, and let it wash over him.

All of it.

The night sang with a droning background of rushing water, while clicks, chirps and buzzes wove a melody and accompaniment under, over and through it. Night birds added their soft twitters and hoots, and hunting bats contributed with their virtually inaudible cries.

He sighed and leaned forward onto the railing, opening his eyes and gazing outward into the darkness. A clink sounded as the ring that now adorned his left hand made contact with the ironwork. It was an unaccustomed weight on his finger, mere hours old, but one that he grew more comfortable with by the moment. He tracked his gaze upward into the night sky. A brilliant riot of stars scattered about the black eternity above, and was echoed below by fireflies dancing and dodging above the pool below the waterfall.

Squall simply absorbed it all and let it permeate his being. The paradigm shift that had begun the moment he'd locked eyes with the beautiful brunette standing in his doorway, all those months ago in Esthar, was nearly complete. The last, worn out fragments of his old life, his old self, cracking and falling away with each breath. What was emerging was, he hoped, a better version of himself.

His broken shoulder still ached, the healing incomplete as yet. It had awakened him and driven him from bed to the bathroom, and then to the balcony. Once there, he was loathe to leave, instead basking in the peace that he had finally found for himself.

Soft footsteps behind him made him smile. There was only one other person on the entire island.

"Everything okay?" she asked.

He glanced back over his shoulder and smiled again at the way her pale skin glowed in the starlight. She was beautiful, flawless in her nudity. His breath caught, and his heart started to race.

"Yes." he finally answered.

Encouraged by this, she came forward, pausing to gently caress his naked back before snuggling under his invitingly lifted arm. Pulling her close against his side, Squall dropped a soft kiss on her temple.

"So what are you doing out here then?" she asked him.

"My shoulder was aching a bit, and it woke me. Then I had to use the bathroom and...I decided to come out here for some air. It's lovely tonight." he explained.

Rinoa sighed happily, gazing at the fireflies. "It is. Like we're the only two people in the world."

Squall made a small sound of agreement, before observing, "well, we are the only two people on the island at least."

"So, we could do anything we want, wherever we want," Rinoa said. "That brings up all sorts of interesting possibilities."

Squall laughed softly and turned her to face him.

"It does, doesn't it?" he asked, running his hands lightly up and down Rinoa's arms. His voice dropped to a husky rumble as he asked her, "What did you have in mind?"

"Pretty much the same thing we've been doing all night." she replied with a soft laugh, prompting him to chuckle as well and pull her flush against his body.

"Never gets old, does it?" he murmured, moving his hands around to her back and down, cupping her buttocks and pressing her closer. Gooseflesh sprang up on her skin where the cool night air touched it, but she was warmed by the heat of his body.

"No," she said softly gazing up at him. "It doesn't."

A slight smile played across his lips then, and starlight glittered in his eyes as he bent down and touched his lips softly to hers. Her eyes drifted shut and she leaned into him, holding him close and stroking her hands up his back. His hands roamed her body as well, raising her temperature with each touch. The heat between them burst into flame, threatening to burn them both. Once started, he couldn't seem to stop, and became lost in the taste of her kiss, the silk-velvet feel of her skin under his hands, the heat and scent of her desire.

Pulling back, he took a long breath, and whispered, "care to break in the chaise lounge?"

"Yes," Rinoa whispered back.

Stepping back, he took her hand, and she smiled at the undeniable evidence that he fully intended to continue their interlude to its natural conclusion.

"You truly are impressive," she laughed softly.

"And you are biased," was Squall's amused reply as he led her to the chaise.

"A bit, perhaps. But not too much, and I was referring more to your stamina than your dimensions, though I have no complaints about that either."

Another soft laugh was his reply, then, "Good to know."

He brought both hands up to her face then, cradling it gently and caressing her cheeks before he kissed her softly, then sweetly, then deeply, with searing heat and need. Then he sat down on the edge of the chaise and pulled her over to him.

He held her hand to steady her, and she gracefully straddled him, sighing as she sank onto him and took him into herself. He dropped his hands to her hips and pulled her to him as he thrust upward. Her head fell back with a moan as she rolled her hips forward in response. They moved slowly, gently together, her fingers playing through his sleep tangled hair as he took first one, then the other of her nipples into his mouth, sucking and teasing.

Their lips fused as they continued moving together, losing themselves in each other as they blended into a whole new entity. It was no longer "he" and "she" but "we". And despite having made love together numerous times before, this time was different. They were making love as husband and wife now, and that added an entirely new dimension. It was...more. It was the cementing of a bond already established, and yet, new.

Passion swept them along and left them gasping as it drowned them at the last, and they came to themselves still wrapped in each other's arms, lost in each other's eyes.

"What do you see?" Rinoa whispered, wondering at his intense regard.

Starlight glittered in his eyes, leaching out their color and leaving unfathomable mystery behind. He remained silent for a moment, as though unable to put into words what it was that he saw, when he looked at her. Finally, he raised his hand and gently cupped the side of her face, answering, "everything."

Author's Note: And just to add a cherry on top (per the wishes of some who've cared to voice an opinion), here is the sweet, fluffy epilogue I hinted at. It was heavily influenced by Owl City's "Fireflies". It got stuck in my head for some reason and well...fireflies ended up in the story.

Thank you all for reading, commenting and hopefully, enjoying this story. There is more to come...