What the hell is this?

The words ran through Rinoa's mind as she hung high below Caraway's yard. The drop was a long one, in which she knew she wouldn't be able to survive. He had caught her hand just in time, and now they hung from the ledge, unable to move in any direction but down. Rinoa was at a loss of things she could do, there were no outcrops of ledges she could swing on to, and she had no energy left.

She clenched her teeth, sensing Squall, above her, gasp in pain. The blow through the wall had caused some unexpected damage. She hated hanging from his hand so high up, unable to move, unable to help, she hated to see him in pain like this, but what could she do?

Zell quickly ran to Selphie, who lay cold on the ground, as Quistis reflected another deadly blow from the sorceress, Elynia. Zell stumbled back in horror, "Sh...Sh-She's dead!" He gulped and gasped for air, "Selphie's dead!" his eyes glazed over and Zell balled up his fists, "That! That sorceress, whatever it is!" Zell fought to regain regular breathing and ran in an all out assault on Elynia. "YOU KILLED HER!"

Quistis ran to Selphie's limp body, lying motionless on the tile floor. She checked for a pulse, nothing. She checked for breathing, nothing. She was really dead. "No ... not Selphie .. Not now..." anger welled up inside of Quistis. Refusing to act on it in a thick-headed manner, such as Zell, she stood and glanced to see Yumenegau holding his blade low and staring hopelessly at Selphie's body.

Zell was quickly thrown back, unconscious by the sorceress. The blond SeeD rested in a corner on the far side of the passage. Quistis found herself taking ragged breaths tying to comprehend what was happening, when she saw Squall's hand holding onto the ledge. Maybe there was hope yet.

The former enemy, Yumenegau ran past and struck a successful blow to the sorceress with his curved blade, he yelled back to Quistis, "Help the others!" before he resumed his intimate battle with Elynia.

Quistis took a step closer and spotted Squall's gunblade lying on the ground. Her head filled with a sense of dizziness and she stumbled forward and fell, unable to move. She tried to lift herself and dropped back down as the dizziness over took her again. She blacked out. Unable to see, only to hear, she felt around with her hands only to cut her hand on the sharp blade of the Griever, and fall from dizziness again. She couldn't move.

As Squall winced in pain trying to raise his hand, which held Rinoa. He felt his ribs crushing against his lungs, making it almost impossible for him to breathe. He gasped, and gripped her hand tighter, as it started to slip.

The raven-haired girl looked up to him a single tear running down her pale cheek, "Squall.. " She took a deep breath and glanced down.

This is all so effing strange. I stopped actually reading what I was editing in chapter one. I've just been scanning. Insta-Poet Rinoa, anyone? xx;

"We have to.. find a way... a way to get up." He winced in pain.

Another tear ran down her face and she shook her head quietly.

Squall stared at her confused, was she afraid of falling? He couldn't let her fall, he knew it and he tightened his grip on her hand once more.

She looked up at him and smiled weakly, through her tears. "Squall.. " She choked on a sob, "You have to climb up.." More tears streamed down her pale, angelic face as she shook her head. "You can't lift up ... not unless.." She stopped suddenly.

Squall felt his hand, slippery, loosing its grip on Rinoa's, he tried to tighten it, but she only slipped again. "Listen, climb up from there, can you?"

Rinoa felt weaker than ever now, she had lost all of her energy, she could barely talk or hold on. Something within her tugged at her, pulled at her to forget it all, just move to a different stage in life.. a more peaceful stage of life.

"Thank you, Squall..."

Squall paused, what was she talking about? "For what?"

Rinoa smiled weakly, "For dancing with me.. at the SeeD graduation. Thank you for dancing with me."

The dark haired SeeD was struck with puzzlement. Why was she talking like this? This isn't the time to be talking about things like that.

"Thank you for helping Forest Owls.. Thank you helping me.. Thank you for everything."

What was she getting at? Squall gasped for breath, "Rinoa?"

She merely smiled forcefully and loosened her already loose grip on Squalls hand, descending a little lower. "Squall.. I..." She choked on another sob and found herself crying beyond her belief.

The pain jerked at him, harder now. His condition was worsening by the minute as they hung from the ledge, but he paid no attention to it, "Rinoa.. what-"

She smiled up at him and gently loosened her grip more, until she held on only by her finger tips, "Every second I hold on, your pain gets worse... I don't want to hurt you, Squall.. Don't give up on the battle, on life on anything.. Life is a journey, an a dventure, live it to the fullest. Sacrifices are made and tears are cried.. When your fantasy is over, your adventure finished.."

An image of a large field appeared in Squall's eyes, the flower petals seemed to dance among the gentle wind.

'I will be here...'

'Why?'

'I'll be 'waiting' here...'

'For what?'

'I'll be waiting... for you... so...

If you come here...

You'll find me.

I promise.'

A feather drifted past Squall's eyes and gently glided to land at his feat.

Squall saw Rinoa again, he shook his head, "I don't understand..."

"I..." She looked straight into his eyes, "I'm sorry, Squall, I don't want to hurt you.." Her fingers where slipping fast, she would soon fall.

She closed her eyes and smiled one last time at him, "I love you, Squall... Goodbye." She let go.

Squall hung unmoving as Rinoa fell, when she had started to fall she had simply looked down. She hadn't looked back up, and now she was...

A strong force arose in Squall's head, his vision blurred and his head throbbed with pain as warm tears found there way through. The streaked down his face as Squall closed his eyes and hung in silence, focusing on something new. In that very second she had let go, a gap had been made in his heart. Something had been torn from him to save him, to keep him from his pain ... instead the pain he felt increased even more as he felt a sudden emptiness, a sadness.

As he hung for countless moments, paying next to no attention to the fight above him, he thought nothing. His head usually filled with thoughts had filled with questions.. Though he thought nothing, just blackness, nothingness. She had let go. Squall's body surged with anger, this sorceress had been responsible for Irvine's death, and now Rinoa. Squall pulled himself up, his pain increasing. He pulled his legs up, gasping for breath as he lay on his crushed ribs.

He finally had pulled himself all the way up and reached for his gunblade, a few simple feet away. Pulling himself up slowly, Griever in his hand, arms throbbing with pain and his head pounding, the dark haired SeeD charged at the sorceress, "This is the end of you."