Last Chapter Dedication: Anthony67, blazinangelwings, Dark Angel, Katie,
Angelprinzess29, Cats eye, devilman14, Rinoa Heartilly, Tiffany, Mayanoka
(as always), Ashbear, Nihara, Dunno, ?????????? (brilliant name, might I
add), digi*girl, Rika, Nnnnnn, Angeldarling76, Annonymous-how the hell do
you spell it, Who am I?, Laura Hurely, joanna, wildrinoa, Jennifer, Sakura-
princess, Rinoa J., AnGeL-WiNgS, Briarlynn, Sisi, Chibi-chan, Dimwit,
Cherry, Rem, Squinoa luver, Rinoafreak, Exile87, Reckor Ball, & Radical Ed.
****Sorry if I didn't mention you. I couldn't access one page of my
reviews, due to computer trouble. But even if I didn't list you, you
review(s) were appreciated just as much. And to my personal friends, I did
this in the order of the actual reviews, so don't feel bad if you're not
first on the list.
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Chapter 9
Rinoa was slowly led back the way she had come, with Seifer squeezing her shoulder the entire time. Laguna never realized that Rinoa didn't follow behind him. He was too wrapped up in trying to find his son.
They went through the front room and into was once a sitting room. It was completely different now. The room was circular, as it had always been. But parts of the burgendy carpet had been torn up. There was a large torch in the center of the room with a blazing fire in it, and on the other side of it, was a golden throne, where Ultimecia sat.
Seifer shoved Rinoa to her knees in front of the over-sized torch and looked up at Ultimecia.
"Here she is, Master. Just as you wanted."
"And Leonhart?" she asked.
"He's still chained up in the dungeon. He won't be bothering us."
"You haven't executed him, yet? Go and do it now. This is an order."
Seifer grumbled slightly, but did as he was told, leaving Rinoa alone, frightened and worried, in front of Ultimecia.
==============================================================
Squall leaned back against the wall, his vision still blurry and his senses slow. He wasn't sure how, though he figured it to be acredited to these so-called powers of his, but he could feel Rinoa's fear. In a twisted way, it gave him hope. At least she was still alive. But there was nothing he could do for her, now. Or was there?
He decided, that though he wasn't sure he believed he had powers, that he would try it. He wasn't sure he could ever forgive himself if he didn't save Rinoa. He couldn't put what he felt for her into words, but he knew he just couldn't let her die. It might kill him, too.
So, after a moment's debate, he concentrated on breaking the chains around his wrist. At first, it didn't seem that anything was happening, other than his head starting to throb again. Then suddenly, the chains gave a loud screech and fell away, freeing him.
Unfortunately, the loud noise attracted attention from the guards outside. Three of them rushed in, ready to beat Squall unconcious again. But his adrenalin was already pumping by that time, and he wasn't about to lose this fight.
He threw a hard punch into the face of the man nearest to him, catching him by surprise. He back kicked the man coming up behind him, connecting with his temple. The other man he belted in the stomach, then rammed his head into the wall.
Luckily, one of the guards had been carrying his prized Gunblade, because at that moment, Seifer strutted into the room with his usual smirk on his face, carrying his own Gunblade.
Not a word passed between them, before they ran at each other, Gunblades drawn and ready to kill. They came crashing together with the force of two freight trains, moving toward each other on the same track. Their blades clashed together violently, sparks flying as metal slid on metal. Seifer thought he would be able to keep up with Squall, but he was horribly out of practice. After all, Squall was a soldier who depended on his skills to survive, and Seifer was the son of an emperor, who fought in his free time. It wasn't long before Squall had knocked the Gunblade from Seifer's hand, sending it flying across the room.
"So you think that's it, huh? You think you got me?" Seifer asked.
He reached his hand into his coat, bringing out a gun. Squall brought his Gunblade down in one swift, powerful movement and drove his blade into Seifer's chest, and across his shoulder. He fell to the ground, gasping for air, and clutching at the wound. Squall gave him one final glance before stepping over his fallen body, to the outside.
============================================================
"Is there anything more you liked to say, Rinoa?" Ultimecia asked as she stared and the trembling princess through the tall flames.
"I have nothing to say to you," she said, struggling to keep her voice steady.
(Just that I'll miss you, Squall. And I love you) she added silently.
She lowered her head to the ground, her thoughts filled with him. From the moment they first met, to right before their capture. She could still feel him, deep within her soul. He was alive, and fighting for her.
(Then I'll fight for him, too) she decided, before looking back up to Ultimecia with a steady gaze. (I have the power.)
She took note of the heavy crystal chandalier that hung high upon the ceiling, and began to concentrate on it.
"You would rather not see your death when it komes?" Ultimecia asked.
Rinoa didn't answer. There was suddenly a slight rumbling from above, causing Ultimecia to gaze upward. The chandalier shook, causing the crystals to make sharp, high-pitched sounds as they shook violently. There was a loud crack, as the chain holding it up snapped, and the chandalier came down.
It had been Rinoa's intention to cause it to fall on Ultimecia, but instead it missed and fell somewhat to the side, knocking the large torch over, into a tapestry that hung on the wall. The next thing she knew, the room was on fire.
"You imbecile!" Ultimecia yelled. "See what you've done!"
As everything around them began to burn, Ultimecia launched herself at Rinoa in a last ditch attempt to take her powers. Rinoa dodged out of the way, and was nearly impaled by a piece of falling debris. It was a long, sharp, and thick sliver of wood. Perfect.
Rinoa snatched it off the ground and stumbled over to wear Ultimecia lay on her back, dazed with her own rage.
As Rinoa held her weapon over her head, Ultimecia glared up at her. "Your mother knew that the man I loved was in love with someone else when she introduced me to him. She stabbed me in the back. Then he, Laguna, my first and only love, had me condemned to live alone, locked away for the rest of my life. I want the power to take my life back. I want revenge. But you think I'm evil for that?"
"I don't think you're evil," Rinoa answered sincerely. "All of us get hurt. None of us go through life without it happening. And we have every right to be angry. But what right do you, or any one else, have to judge? If you had a chance to undo all you've done, to me, and to Squall, would you?"
Ultimecia gave a scowl darker than evil and said, "Darkness is the poison that fills me, corrupting the life that flows through my veins. Hate is the shadow upon my doorway, sealing my the fate that has been forced upon me. Evil creates the wings upon me, weighing me down as much as they lift me up. Revenge is the acid that eats away my humanity, until I am nothing more to you than a creature to be caged. My soul is damned. My heart is rotten. If you let me go now, and it will be the last mistake you ever make."
Rinoa nodded slightly, then brought her weapon down into her chest, ending Ultimecia's misery. Then she ran out as fast as she could, choking on the smoke and floating ashes that was once her tower.
Once she was outside, she was relieved to see Squall coming up from the dungeon. She took a deep breath, and ran to him, colliding violently with him when they finally met.
"I'm so glad you're okay!" she exclaimed, looking up at his face. "What happened?!" she asked, gently touching the bruises and sweliings on his face.
"Seifer," he answered. "What about Ultimecia? Is everything alright?"
She nodded. "Ultimecia's dead."
Squall looked up and noticed the tower. "Holy shit! Your tower's burning down, Rinoa!"
"I know," she said. "Let it burn. I was never very fond of the place anyway. It's a bad reminder of the past. I want to think of the future.
============================================================
The next few days passed by very slowly. Rinoa was stuck with the task of trying to reorganize everything at the palace, and plan a party for the new empress, which was her. Squall, on the other hand, was busy trying to recooperate. He was very tired, and weak from his battle and his day in the dungeon. In truth, the journey as a whole had taken a lot out of him. Well, both of them really, but especially him. He slept for a full day straight, and was ordered to rest after he woke up. Laguna, who had gotten lost while trying to find Rinoa after he'd discovered she was gone, was set to the task of inviting various people to the big celebration that was in planning. And Seifer, who managed to survive his wound after the palace staff took care of him, surrendered, grudgingly, to the soon-to-be empress, and swore his alligience to her.
The day of the celebration, Edea and her family arrived at the palace. Rinoa was glad they were early. There was something she needed to talk to them about.
Later that evening, after all the preparation was finished, the large celebration was held in honor of the newly appointed empress. As expected, she made a very dramatic entrance after everyone had already gathered in the palace square.
She was dressed elegantly in a long white drees that flowed around her legs and wrapped around her neck. A small silver crown adorned her head, sparkeling in the festive lighting. Two white feathers were braided into strands of her hair that framed either side of her face, and a sheer veil with white pearls knitted into it in erratic patterns was attached to her crown and spread to cover the entire length of her raven black hair, mimicking the midnight sky when it was littered with stairs.
She was recieved with a wide round of applause from all the people that had come to see her claim the throne. Almost of all of the people they had encountered throughout the course of their adventure, from beginning to end, was there. Even Seifer, who had just barely recovered enough from his near-fatal wound to attend, though he was not amoung those that appluaded her. But much to her dissapointment, she didn't see Squall anywhere.
After the official arrival was over, everyone spread out over the square, tending to their own business. As she began searching through the crowd for Squall, she came across Quistis, who was sitting by herself looking very down.
"Are you okay?" Rinoa asked.
She smiled slightly. "Just a little down is all. Congragulations, by the way. You and Squall are the purfect couple."
"Oh," Rinoa said, nodding in understanding. "I see."
"So you do? I knew you would figure it out. For nearly two years I chased after that boy. For as long as I've know him. But it seemed the only people he ever really saw were the superiors that gave him his orders. That is, until you came along. You were the first that he chose to see. The first he saw with his heart."
Rinoa looked at her sympathetically. "You'll find someone, too. I just know it."
Quistis smiled sadly and gave a nod. "Perhaps. Only time will tell."
Rinoa nodded to her, then walked off, once again in search of Squall. Instead she had the misfortune to bump into a very grumpy Seifer.
"Watch where you're walking, bitch!" he growled.
"Shall I remind you," she began in an overly sweet voice, "that I am the Empress now, and the only reason you're alive right now, is because I showed pity on your sorry ass?"
"Just leave me alone," he grumbled and started to push passed her.
Suddenly, Rinoa was struck with an idea. "Hey wait!" she yelled as she ran to catch up with him. She grabbed him by the arm and began pulling him forward, ignoring his questioning looks.
When she had finally reached her destination, she shoved Seifer in front of her, and grinned at the curious gypsy in front of them.
"Quistis," she began, taking Sefier's hand and thrusting it at her, "this is Seifer. Seifer, this is Quistis. I'll leave you two alone to get acquainted."
With that, she turned and walked away, a small smile playing on her lips. As she made her way through the crowd once again, she spotted Edea, and immediately went over to her.
"Hi," she said as she approached her. "Um, about what we disscused earlier... I hate to bother you, but have you made a descicion yet?"
Edea smiled beautifully, and said, "Yes, we have. And we've decided, that....we'll do it."
Rinoa laughed in relief. "Great. Thank you so much. I knew you and Cid were perfect for the job."
"It's no problem at all," Edea replied, pulling her into a warm, motherly embrace. "It's an honor, granduaghter."
Rinoa smiled and patted her on the back. "Thank you. By the way, have you seen Squall anywhere?"
Edea nodded and pointed to the bridge where Rinoa and Squall had first met. Rinoa thanked her again and walked off to find him.
As she approached the bridge, she saw Squall's unmistakable silhouette against the moonlight. She slowly walked closer to him, seeing that his back was turned to her, looking out over the river and sipping wine.
"Squall?" she asked in a quiet voice.
He set his wine down at turned to look at her. "You look...gorgeous," he blurted out.
She smiled. "Thank you."
Just then, music began to play in the distance. Rinoa offered her hand to him and asked, "Dance with me?"
He took her hand and began to dance with her, much in the same way they had danced the night they had met.
"So," she began as he spun her around, "what are your plans after tonight?"
He would've shrugged if it wouldn't have disrrupted the dance. "I'm going back to my home town. I guess I'll get acquainted with my father and sister, though I'm still not used to the idea. And now that the place isn't ruled by Chu Yun anymore, the place might not be so bad now. Maybe it will be different."
Rinoa gave a slight sigh, but said, "Sounds good."
"Yeah," Squall agreed half-heartedly. "And I'm sure you'll make a good Empress for your new Empire."
"I might," she replied. "If I were staying."
Squall stopped in mid-dance. "What?"
"Well, I had a talk with Edea earlier, and tomorrow, there'll be a ceremony naming her and Cid the new Emperor, and Empress. I'm turning over my crown to them, and they're going to start working on making this land a democracy."
"Why?"
"I don't want to be Empress," she answered.
"Oh. So you'll still be staying here then?"
"No. One of the reasons I don't want to be Empress is because I don't want to live the rest of my life here. I've already spent more time inside these walls that I ever wanted to."
"Then where will you go?"
"I want to go out and see the world," she said. "The world I caught a glimpse of during out little adventure."
"Oh," he replied with a droop in his voice as he turned away from her to face the river again. "I'm sure you'll have fun."
"D-do you really want to go back to your town?" she asked nervously.
"I don't really want anything," he said.
She lowered her head and tried to swallow the lump that had risen in her throat. The way he had made it sound, he really didn't care whether or not he ever saw her again. He didn't want her.
"W-well...I....if....." she stammered in a tremulous voice.
Suddenly he turned to face with desperation filling his eyes. "Marry me."
"W-what?"
"Marry me," he repeated, pleadingly. "Please?"
She burst into relieved laughter and practically threw herself into his arms. "Of course I will."
He held her tightly, letting out the breath that he'd been holding as he'd waited for her answer. "We can stay here until we get married, as soon as possible, and then go out and see the world. Just the two of us."
"Yeah. And after we've seen the world we can settle down in your home town, near your father and sister. But," she sighed worriedly and slid her hands down to her stomach. "It might just be three of us."
"Are...are you serious?!" he demanded.
She wasn't sure how to take his reaction, but she assumed it was bad. "Well, it's too early to tell, really. It hasn't been that long. But, still, I just having this feeling...."
He began to laugh. "So, I might just be a father, huh?"
"Are you...mad?"
He laughed again. "Of course not. I... I wanna have children with you. I want a family."
"So do I," she said, smiling as she threw her arms around his neck and pulled him into a passionate kiss.
"Mmmm......Mrs. Leonhart," he groaned playfully.
"I like the sound of that," she returned. "Now, come on. Let's go back to my room."
"But you room-"
"My new room. The Imperial bed room. But I only get to use it for tonight, since I'm handing over my crown tomorrow."
"Then by all means, let's make the best of it."
Rinoa's laughter rang out, into the night, sealing the fate of the happy new couple. They were now free to go off and build their own tower of dreams.
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A/N: You ever get that feeling that your writing is just too sappy? I'm currently drowning in that feeling. But anyway, I hope it was good. It really wasn't the masterpiece I was hoping to make, but hopefully it'll do. It's been a long, fun ride, kids, but it's over now. Hope you had as much fun as I did. Geez, why am I talking like this is the last thing I'll ever write. I need to shut up. So, allow me to refer you to my other fic "Of Angels and Demons", what I'm hoping will be a true masterpiece. With that note, I'll leave you now. Catch you next fic! ~Dark Raion
==============================================================
Chapter 9
Rinoa was slowly led back the way she had come, with Seifer squeezing her shoulder the entire time. Laguna never realized that Rinoa didn't follow behind him. He was too wrapped up in trying to find his son.
They went through the front room and into was once a sitting room. It was completely different now. The room was circular, as it had always been. But parts of the burgendy carpet had been torn up. There was a large torch in the center of the room with a blazing fire in it, and on the other side of it, was a golden throne, where Ultimecia sat.
Seifer shoved Rinoa to her knees in front of the over-sized torch and looked up at Ultimecia.
"Here she is, Master. Just as you wanted."
"And Leonhart?" she asked.
"He's still chained up in the dungeon. He won't be bothering us."
"You haven't executed him, yet? Go and do it now. This is an order."
Seifer grumbled slightly, but did as he was told, leaving Rinoa alone, frightened and worried, in front of Ultimecia.
==============================================================
Squall leaned back against the wall, his vision still blurry and his senses slow. He wasn't sure how, though he figured it to be acredited to these so-called powers of his, but he could feel Rinoa's fear. In a twisted way, it gave him hope. At least she was still alive. But there was nothing he could do for her, now. Or was there?
He decided, that though he wasn't sure he believed he had powers, that he would try it. He wasn't sure he could ever forgive himself if he didn't save Rinoa. He couldn't put what he felt for her into words, but he knew he just couldn't let her die. It might kill him, too.
So, after a moment's debate, he concentrated on breaking the chains around his wrist. At first, it didn't seem that anything was happening, other than his head starting to throb again. Then suddenly, the chains gave a loud screech and fell away, freeing him.
Unfortunately, the loud noise attracted attention from the guards outside. Three of them rushed in, ready to beat Squall unconcious again. But his adrenalin was already pumping by that time, and he wasn't about to lose this fight.
He threw a hard punch into the face of the man nearest to him, catching him by surprise. He back kicked the man coming up behind him, connecting with his temple. The other man he belted in the stomach, then rammed his head into the wall.
Luckily, one of the guards had been carrying his prized Gunblade, because at that moment, Seifer strutted into the room with his usual smirk on his face, carrying his own Gunblade.
Not a word passed between them, before they ran at each other, Gunblades drawn and ready to kill. They came crashing together with the force of two freight trains, moving toward each other on the same track. Their blades clashed together violently, sparks flying as metal slid on metal. Seifer thought he would be able to keep up with Squall, but he was horribly out of practice. After all, Squall was a soldier who depended on his skills to survive, and Seifer was the son of an emperor, who fought in his free time. It wasn't long before Squall had knocked the Gunblade from Seifer's hand, sending it flying across the room.
"So you think that's it, huh? You think you got me?" Seifer asked.
He reached his hand into his coat, bringing out a gun. Squall brought his Gunblade down in one swift, powerful movement and drove his blade into Seifer's chest, and across his shoulder. He fell to the ground, gasping for air, and clutching at the wound. Squall gave him one final glance before stepping over his fallen body, to the outside.
============================================================
"Is there anything more you liked to say, Rinoa?" Ultimecia asked as she stared and the trembling princess through the tall flames.
"I have nothing to say to you," she said, struggling to keep her voice steady.
(Just that I'll miss you, Squall. And I love you) she added silently.
She lowered her head to the ground, her thoughts filled with him. From the moment they first met, to right before their capture. She could still feel him, deep within her soul. He was alive, and fighting for her.
(Then I'll fight for him, too) she decided, before looking back up to Ultimecia with a steady gaze. (I have the power.)
She took note of the heavy crystal chandalier that hung high upon the ceiling, and began to concentrate on it.
"You would rather not see your death when it komes?" Ultimecia asked.
Rinoa didn't answer. There was suddenly a slight rumbling from above, causing Ultimecia to gaze upward. The chandalier shook, causing the crystals to make sharp, high-pitched sounds as they shook violently. There was a loud crack, as the chain holding it up snapped, and the chandalier came down.
It had been Rinoa's intention to cause it to fall on Ultimecia, but instead it missed and fell somewhat to the side, knocking the large torch over, into a tapestry that hung on the wall. The next thing she knew, the room was on fire.
"You imbecile!" Ultimecia yelled. "See what you've done!"
As everything around them began to burn, Ultimecia launched herself at Rinoa in a last ditch attempt to take her powers. Rinoa dodged out of the way, and was nearly impaled by a piece of falling debris. It was a long, sharp, and thick sliver of wood. Perfect.
Rinoa snatched it off the ground and stumbled over to wear Ultimecia lay on her back, dazed with her own rage.
As Rinoa held her weapon over her head, Ultimecia glared up at her. "Your mother knew that the man I loved was in love with someone else when she introduced me to him. She stabbed me in the back. Then he, Laguna, my first and only love, had me condemned to live alone, locked away for the rest of my life. I want the power to take my life back. I want revenge. But you think I'm evil for that?"
"I don't think you're evil," Rinoa answered sincerely. "All of us get hurt. None of us go through life without it happening. And we have every right to be angry. But what right do you, or any one else, have to judge? If you had a chance to undo all you've done, to me, and to Squall, would you?"
Ultimecia gave a scowl darker than evil and said, "Darkness is the poison that fills me, corrupting the life that flows through my veins. Hate is the shadow upon my doorway, sealing my the fate that has been forced upon me. Evil creates the wings upon me, weighing me down as much as they lift me up. Revenge is the acid that eats away my humanity, until I am nothing more to you than a creature to be caged. My soul is damned. My heart is rotten. If you let me go now, and it will be the last mistake you ever make."
Rinoa nodded slightly, then brought her weapon down into her chest, ending Ultimecia's misery. Then she ran out as fast as she could, choking on the smoke and floating ashes that was once her tower.
Once she was outside, she was relieved to see Squall coming up from the dungeon. She took a deep breath, and ran to him, colliding violently with him when they finally met.
"I'm so glad you're okay!" she exclaimed, looking up at his face. "What happened?!" she asked, gently touching the bruises and sweliings on his face.
"Seifer," he answered. "What about Ultimecia? Is everything alright?"
She nodded. "Ultimecia's dead."
Squall looked up and noticed the tower. "Holy shit! Your tower's burning down, Rinoa!"
"I know," she said. "Let it burn. I was never very fond of the place anyway. It's a bad reminder of the past. I want to think of the future.
============================================================
The next few days passed by very slowly. Rinoa was stuck with the task of trying to reorganize everything at the palace, and plan a party for the new empress, which was her. Squall, on the other hand, was busy trying to recooperate. He was very tired, and weak from his battle and his day in the dungeon. In truth, the journey as a whole had taken a lot out of him. Well, both of them really, but especially him. He slept for a full day straight, and was ordered to rest after he woke up. Laguna, who had gotten lost while trying to find Rinoa after he'd discovered she was gone, was set to the task of inviting various people to the big celebration that was in planning. And Seifer, who managed to survive his wound after the palace staff took care of him, surrendered, grudgingly, to the soon-to-be empress, and swore his alligience to her.
The day of the celebration, Edea and her family arrived at the palace. Rinoa was glad they were early. There was something she needed to talk to them about.
Later that evening, after all the preparation was finished, the large celebration was held in honor of the newly appointed empress. As expected, she made a very dramatic entrance after everyone had already gathered in the palace square.
She was dressed elegantly in a long white drees that flowed around her legs and wrapped around her neck. A small silver crown adorned her head, sparkeling in the festive lighting. Two white feathers were braided into strands of her hair that framed either side of her face, and a sheer veil with white pearls knitted into it in erratic patterns was attached to her crown and spread to cover the entire length of her raven black hair, mimicking the midnight sky when it was littered with stairs.
She was recieved with a wide round of applause from all the people that had come to see her claim the throne. Almost of all of the people they had encountered throughout the course of their adventure, from beginning to end, was there. Even Seifer, who had just barely recovered enough from his near-fatal wound to attend, though he was not amoung those that appluaded her. But much to her dissapointment, she didn't see Squall anywhere.
After the official arrival was over, everyone spread out over the square, tending to their own business. As she began searching through the crowd for Squall, she came across Quistis, who was sitting by herself looking very down.
"Are you okay?" Rinoa asked.
She smiled slightly. "Just a little down is all. Congragulations, by the way. You and Squall are the purfect couple."
"Oh," Rinoa said, nodding in understanding. "I see."
"So you do? I knew you would figure it out. For nearly two years I chased after that boy. For as long as I've know him. But it seemed the only people he ever really saw were the superiors that gave him his orders. That is, until you came along. You were the first that he chose to see. The first he saw with his heart."
Rinoa looked at her sympathetically. "You'll find someone, too. I just know it."
Quistis smiled sadly and gave a nod. "Perhaps. Only time will tell."
Rinoa nodded to her, then walked off, once again in search of Squall. Instead she had the misfortune to bump into a very grumpy Seifer.
"Watch where you're walking, bitch!" he growled.
"Shall I remind you," she began in an overly sweet voice, "that I am the Empress now, and the only reason you're alive right now, is because I showed pity on your sorry ass?"
"Just leave me alone," he grumbled and started to push passed her.
Suddenly, Rinoa was struck with an idea. "Hey wait!" she yelled as she ran to catch up with him. She grabbed him by the arm and began pulling him forward, ignoring his questioning looks.
When she had finally reached her destination, she shoved Seifer in front of her, and grinned at the curious gypsy in front of them.
"Quistis," she began, taking Sefier's hand and thrusting it at her, "this is Seifer. Seifer, this is Quistis. I'll leave you two alone to get acquainted."
With that, she turned and walked away, a small smile playing on her lips. As she made her way through the crowd once again, she spotted Edea, and immediately went over to her.
"Hi," she said as she approached her. "Um, about what we disscused earlier... I hate to bother you, but have you made a descicion yet?"
Edea smiled beautifully, and said, "Yes, we have. And we've decided, that....we'll do it."
Rinoa laughed in relief. "Great. Thank you so much. I knew you and Cid were perfect for the job."
"It's no problem at all," Edea replied, pulling her into a warm, motherly embrace. "It's an honor, granduaghter."
Rinoa smiled and patted her on the back. "Thank you. By the way, have you seen Squall anywhere?"
Edea nodded and pointed to the bridge where Rinoa and Squall had first met. Rinoa thanked her again and walked off to find him.
As she approached the bridge, she saw Squall's unmistakable silhouette against the moonlight. She slowly walked closer to him, seeing that his back was turned to her, looking out over the river and sipping wine.
"Squall?" she asked in a quiet voice.
He set his wine down at turned to look at her. "You look...gorgeous," he blurted out.
She smiled. "Thank you."
Just then, music began to play in the distance. Rinoa offered her hand to him and asked, "Dance with me?"
He took her hand and began to dance with her, much in the same way they had danced the night they had met.
"So," she began as he spun her around, "what are your plans after tonight?"
He would've shrugged if it wouldn't have disrrupted the dance. "I'm going back to my home town. I guess I'll get acquainted with my father and sister, though I'm still not used to the idea. And now that the place isn't ruled by Chu Yun anymore, the place might not be so bad now. Maybe it will be different."
Rinoa gave a slight sigh, but said, "Sounds good."
"Yeah," Squall agreed half-heartedly. "And I'm sure you'll make a good Empress for your new Empire."
"I might," she replied. "If I were staying."
Squall stopped in mid-dance. "What?"
"Well, I had a talk with Edea earlier, and tomorrow, there'll be a ceremony naming her and Cid the new Emperor, and Empress. I'm turning over my crown to them, and they're going to start working on making this land a democracy."
"Why?"
"I don't want to be Empress," she answered.
"Oh. So you'll still be staying here then?"
"No. One of the reasons I don't want to be Empress is because I don't want to live the rest of my life here. I've already spent more time inside these walls that I ever wanted to."
"Then where will you go?"
"I want to go out and see the world," she said. "The world I caught a glimpse of during out little adventure."
"Oh," he replied with a droop in his voice as he turned away from her to face the river again. "I'm sure you'll have fun."
"D-do you really want to go back to your town?" she asked nervously.
"I don't really want anything," he said.
She lowered her head and tried to swallow the lump that had risen in her throat. The way he had made it sound, he really didn't care whether or not he ever saw her again. He didn't want her.
"W-well...I....if....." she stammered in a tremulous voice.
Suddenly he turned to face with desperation filling his eyes. "Marry me."
"W-what?"
"Marry me," he repeated, pleadingly. "Please?"
She burst into relieved laughter and practically threw herself into his arms. "Of course I will."
He held her tightly, letting out the breath that he'd been holding as he'd waited for her answer. "We can stay here until we get married, as soon as possible, and then go out and see the world. Just the two of us."
"Yeah. And after we've seen the world we can settle down in your home town, near your father and sister. But," she sighed worriedly and slid her hands down to her stomach. "It might just be three of us."
"Are...are you serious?!" he demanded.
She wasn't sure how to take his reaction, but she assumed it was bad. "Well, it's too early to tell, really. It hasn't been that long. But, still, I just having this feeling...."
He began to laugh. "So, I might just be a father, huh?"
"Are you...mad?"
He laughed again. "Of course not. I... I wanna have children with you. I want a family."
"So do I," she said, smiling as she threw her arms around his neck and pulled him into a passionate kiss.
"Mmmm......Mrs. Leonhart," he groaned playfully.
"I like the sound of that," she returned. "Now, come on. Let's go back to my room."
"But you room-"
"My new room. The Imperial bed room. But I only get to use it for tonight, since I'm handing over my crown tomorrow."
"Then by all means, let's make the best of it."
Rinoa's laughter rang out, into the night, sealing the fate of the happy new couple. They were now free to go off and build their own tower of dreams.
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A/N: You ever get that feeling that your writing is just too sappy? I'm currently drowning in that feeling. But anyway, I hope it was good. It really wasn't the masterpiece I was hoping to make, but hopefully it'll do. It's been a long, fun ride, kids, but it's over now. Hope you had as much fun as I did. Geez, why am I talking like this is the last thing I'll ever write. I need to shut up. So, allow me to refer you to my other fic "Of Angels and Demons", what I'm hoping will be a true masterpiece. With that note, I'll leave you now. Catch you next fic! ~Dark Raion