A New Beginning - Part V Intro The latest installment in the saga...Caraway gets ready to go through with his insane plot, Rinoa is gone, and Squall doesn't know any of this yet! But he's about to find out... Chapter 5 Squall blinked as the morning sun peeped through his window, the brilliant rays shining down on his face. With a groan, he rolled himself over. It seemed as if the mornings were coming earlier as of late. Stretching, Squall forced himself to sit up. He had a feeling it was going to be another long day. Perhaps he could take Rinoa to Balamb for a while; she could probably use a little time away from Garden. And then he would have to go talk to Cid and try to get the whole mess straightened out. Cid had been married to a sorceress himself. Surely he would understand. Rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he grabbed a towel to take to the shower, Squall noticed an envelope lying on the ground near the door. He curiously bent over to pick it up. "To My Dearest Squall" the front read. Recognizing Rinoa's handwriting, he quickly ripped it open, scanning through the contents. To My Dearest Squall, You know that I love you more than anything else in the world. These last few months have been the happiest of my entire life. I didn't know that a perfect love could truly exist until I met you. You are my everything... ...which is why I had to go. I wish with all my heart that things didn't have to be this way, but I couldn't stand the thought of you suffering because of me. Your place is at Garden - fighting, leading, inspiring. That's what you were trained to do, and that's what you do best. A sorceress can never fit into that picture. You're a fighter, my love, I know that. You would never be happy in the life i could offer you if we had run away together. I know that you would fight for me until your dying breath, but I couldn't have you risk everything for my sake. I hope that you can understand, but I realize you may not. Please don't hate me. There will be others for you, ones that can give you all the happiness you deserve. But still know that you will always carry the key to my heart. I love you... Rinoa With a shout, Squall crumpled the letter in his hand and threw it against the wall, falling heavily onto the bed. She couldn't have left him! She just couldn't have! Putting his head in his hands, he sighed deeply, not knowing what to do with the heaving pain in his heart. He had never even come close to loving anyone in his life until he met Rinoa, and he had given her everything he had to offer. It might not have been much, but he had given it willingly. And he had meant it when he said he would go with her if she was forced to leave Garden. He had known his life would be meaningless without her. 'They always lie to you,' he thought bitterly. That was what happened when you opened yourself up to someone. They told you all the right words, said they would never leave you alone, but they did. They all did. He had learned that lesson the hard way once, and he angrily cursed himself for forgetting it so quickly. The walls began to build around his heart again. 'It's better this way,' he assured himself. 'If you don't get involved then nobody gets hurt.' Trying to ignore the lonely pangs that echoed through his soul, Squall tried to make himself angry again. It was always easier when you were angry - easier to hand out the blame than face the cold hard truths of reality. He was alone again, and perhaps that was the way things were meant to be. He grunted with contempt as he noticed her crumpled letter at his feet. There would be no "others". He wouldn't make the same mistakes again. "Squall Leonheart, Quistis Trepe, Selphie Tilmitt, Irvine Kinneas, Rinoa Heartilly, and Zell Dincht, please come to my office immediately," Cid's voice boomed over the intercom. A small growl grew in Squall's throat. 'What now?' he thought, slinging on his jacket and stalking out of the room. Cid's office was quiet as the others turned to watch Squall enter. Selphie yawned sleepily. "Morning," she smiled. "It's about time you got here." Squall ignored her as walked past the others and saluted Cid. "You asked for me, Sir?" "I asked for all of you," Cid replied, motioning for them to relax. "As you probably know, the group from Deling City returned yesterday morning. While there, Seifer claimed that he caught sight of Dr. Odine in the Presidential Residence. I was slightly skeptical of this information since none of the others reported it, but we began monitoring the Galbadian airwaves nonetheless." Cid sighed. "It appears that Seifer was correct. We intercepted a message less than an hour ago that discussed Dr. Odine's execution at dawn tomorrow. You know that has to be stopped. I'm sending you all in to get Dr. Odine immediately. My apologies to you, Rinoa, it seems your father is somehow involved." Glancing around the room, he suddenly noticed the girl was absent. "Has anyone seen Rinoa?" Cid asked. Squall looked away, remaining silent. "Squall?" "She's gone, all right?" Squall said angrily. "She left." "Squall...," Quistis said with concern, walking over to him and placing a worried hand on his arm. He threw her off. "I don't want to hear it. You tell me to open up - well, this is what happens. I listen to you, but I was the one that was right all along. They always lie to you. They always leave you alone." "Don't be so hard on her," Selphie said. "I'm sure she had a good reason." Squall grunted. "Yeah, because she 'loved' me. She said she couldn't stay with me because she was a sorceress." "I thought you already dealt with that problem," Irvine commented. "Besides, we're the only ones that know, right?" Cid sighed. "Not anymore. I'm afraid it's common knowledge now." He turned to Squall. "I do not mean to be harsh, my boy, but perhaps it is for the best. As our leader, the others expect you to set an example." "You were MARRIED to Edea," Squall retorted angrily. "I know, I know," Cid said, turning around, his hands behind his back. "I was not the example I should have been either. That is why I let Rinoa stay for so long." "Maybe she wants you to go after her again," Zell piped up. Squall shook his head. "This is different. She thought she HAD to go before. This time she left me because she wanted to." "Just don't be so hard on yourself," Quistis said softly. "Whatever." He turned to head back towards the elevator. "We leave in two hours. I suggest you get ready." "Squall!" Zell shouted after him as he stomped away. Zell shook his head. Whatever magic Rinoa had worked seemed to be completely reversed now. Things were back to normal again. "Let's go," he sighed as he and the others quietly left Cid's office. Rinoa sighed sadly as the lights of Deling City came into view. Glancing around her tiny train car, she realized she had been on the same train only a few days before, falling asleep on Squall's shoulder. She swallowed hard as the tears threatened to return, forcing herself to be brave. 'It has to be this way,' she repeated solemnly. The train slowed down as it neared the station and Rinoa stood, waking up Angelo and heading towards the entrance. She knew that Seifer had told her not to come back home, but there had been nowhere else to go. At least if her father refused to claim her she knew the city well enough she could find somewhere to work, somewhere to survive. The doors whizzed open, and she nodded politely to the attendant as she stepped onto the street. Everything was familiar to her, but it was somehow strangely wrong. She could remember when she had run through the streets with her friends, eager to get to the shopping arcade before the sale ended or watch another parade from the streetcorner. She was afraid there would be no more happy memories. The only thing she could think of now was Squall and how much she wanted to be with him no matter how impossible it was. Her heart and mind fought violently, threatening to tear her apart in their struggle. Resolving to be strong, she walked through the streets towards her old home. It loomed familiarly in the distance, the cold house that had brought so much joy and pain. The joy seemed to be disappearing so quickly... Frederick, their butler, quickly opened the door on her second knock, a wide smile beaming across his face as he saw her. "Rinoa, my dear, you've come back!" he exclaimed. She nodded with a sad smile as she entered the house. "Is Daddy home?" she asked. "I'm afraid he's with a guest right now, but I'll tell him that you're here." "Don't worry about it," Rinoa replied with a shake of her hand. "There's no hurry. I'm going to be here for a while." Without another word, she turned and trudged silently up the stairs to her bedroom, Angelo bounding up quickly beside her. As she reached the familiar room, she smiled slowly at how little it had changed since she had left. Her old canopy bed stood undisturbed, the same three pillows on it as before. Angelo ran past her and settled into his old corner. "That's right," she whispered to him. "We're home again." Gently setting her bag down on the floor, Rinoa noticed all the old pictures still on her dresser. Carefully, she picked one up, wiping away the thin film of dust. Her mother smiled back fondly as she held her tiny daughter. Rinoa smiled a little. "I miss you, Mommy," she whispered. Nothing had been the same since she had died. Her father had gotten more and more involved in his work, sometimes seeming to forget he had a daughter. Except when they had argued, of course. Rinoa sighed as she saw another picture of her as a child, clinging onto her father's back. How she missed those days. Everything had seemed so simple then... "Rinoa?" a voice called, and she jerked around, nearly dropping the picture. "Daddy," she said quietly, eyes to the ground. "I didn't expect you here so soon. Did you get my letter?" Rinoa shook her head. "How about Leonheart, then? Did you bring him with you?" Rinoa fought back a tear. "I left him, Daddy." Caraway grunted. He had been hoping they had come together, despite the fact his spies had told him she had left Balamb Garden alone the night before. But he had planted the fake message about Dr. Odine's imminent execution just in case. Things weren't working out precisely as he had planned, but the boy would still come. His daughter would be free. "I have a little surprise for you, my dear," Caraway told her. "Someone I'd like you to meet." Rinoa shook her head. "I don't really feel like talking to anyone right now." "I understand that, but this is very important to me. I worked very hard to bring her here for you." Rinoa sighed. "Daddy, I just..." "None of that," Caraway said sternly. "If you're back under my roof, I expect to be obeyed. And in this household we do not keep guests waiting. Come along then." Rinoa began to follow him out of the room with a sigh. Angelo suddenly jumped up, barking. She shushed him. "Stay here, Angelo. I'll only be a minute." With a whimper, the dog obediently lay back down, his head on his paws. Rinoa smiled and tossed him a dog biscuit. "Good boy." "I'm so glad you're back," Caraway said to Rinoa as he led her through the house towards his study. "Things will be back to normal again in no time, I promise." Rinoa closed her eyes. Her father didn't seem to understand the situation at all. There would never be a "normal" again. But at least he hadn't kicked her out yet... "Rinoa," Caraway said, swinging open the door to his study. He pushed her on in and shut the door behind her. She narrowed her eyes as he quickly locked it shut. "I would like to introduce you to...the Sorceress Ultimecia." Rinoa gasped as the familiar evil stood up from a tall backed chair. Her eyes widened as the sorceress grinned maliciously. "No...," Rinoa breathed, backing towards the door. She didn't have anything to fight with and she was all alone. How could she defeat the Sorceress by herself, without the others...without Squall? "You're dead!" she cried, running to the door and frantically trying to pull it open. If she could only get back to her room...back to her things... Her father's hands suddenly appeared on her shoulders, guiding her back around. She fought with him, but he was still stronger than her as he led her her closer to the grinning Ultimecia. "What are you doing, Daddy?" she whispered. "Just calm down," Caraway said. "She's here to help. You won't be a sorceress anymore." "No...," Rinoa said as Ultimecia moved closer, reaching out her hands towards Rinoa's head. "Not this way...Not this way!" Ultimecia's cold fingers suddenly grasped the sides of Rinoa's head, sending a flash of bright pain through her skull. She cried out, falling to her knees. "Stop!" Rinoa yelled, hot tears of agony welling up beneath her eyelids. But the intensity only increased as Ultimecia laughed wickedly. Caraway stepped back uncertainly as his daughter screamed, flailing wildly at the Sorceress' hands. "Is that really necessary?" he shouted as electric bolts of color raced from Rinoa into Ultimecia. The sorceress ignored him as she laughed maliciously. Finally, it was over as Ultimecia suddenly released Rinoa's limp form. The girl fell to the ground in a still heap. Caraway ran to his daughter's side, cradling her head in his arms. "That was refreshing," Ultimecia said darkly. "She was strong." She turned to Caraway. "Where is the boy?" "They're taking him to the prison. He should be here shortly." Caraway sighed as Rinoa remained unmoving. At least she was still breathing - barely. The sorceress would pay for nearly killing her. He glanced over at the time compression machine in the corner. If he could only send her back a little early... "What a naughty little boy," Ultimecia said, shaking her head at General Caraway. "Such thoughts will get you in trouble." Magically levitating the device, she brought it to her side. "I believe I will take this with me. As for you..." With a slight grin, she flicked her wrist, sending Caraway flying into a bookcase. He groaned as his head hit the edge of a shelf, knocking him unconscious as he fell to the ground. Ultimecia smiled. "Now for the boy. I will kill him..." She glanced down at the time machine. "And then I will go back and kill him again!" With a cruel laugh, she hurried from the room. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ End of Part V.... Uh oh! Looks like trouble. Next time we have the exciting finale! Hope you've enjoyed my fanfic! As always, let me know what you think! squalls_angel@lycos.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Also as usual, please don't rip me off by distributing, copying, or otherwise using my work for commercial purposes without my permission. It's just not nice!