Disclaimer: I do not have possession of any of the settings or characters within this story; Squaresoft does. Though, if I could own merely one character, I'd certainly go for Squall. ^.~

 Pierce My Heart

The attractive sorceress known as Rinoa Heartilly stood upon the petite dock in the town of Balamb, just gazing at the dazzling azure sky as the zephyr soothingly blew her hair and cerulean duster overcoat. It was early dawn and she was the only one on the pier at such a time. Everything was so tranquil and breathtaking. If only she had someone like her lion to share this moment with, but that could not be probable.

The young man Rinoa desired to be with, Squall Leonhart, was somewhere distant from her presently. A few days previously he was at last ready to perceive his mother. He could not sleep for nights subsequent to the battle with Sorceress Ultimecia despite perception that the world was in serenity. The silhouette of a beauteous woman standing on a hill in isolation—as if she were waiting for someone—kept emerging in his reoccurring reverie. She would always whisper the name Laguna and then turn around. Squall would then wake up absolutely perplexed.

The young SeeD knew it was his mother. He wanted to pay his respects to the one that would be a compassionate and loving mother to him if she hadn't died in childbirth, despondency and seclusion, or the other rumors of her death. So he decided that he should meet with his father Laguna Loire and Ellone Loire, or rather "Sis" to him. Following that, the family would go visit the gravestone of Squall's late mother, Raine Loire.

Rinoa Heartilly smiled as she thought about how well her life was going albeit she felt lonely and she was a sorceress. She relentlessly had the trepidation of people showing odium towards her for being one and hence making her life miserable. Numerous people knew she was a sorceress, but they knew she was a kind one and would never do anything detrimental. Even if she did turn iniquitous, she would not even know how to impair anything—she barely could use any of her powers. She did ascertain innovative ones periodically, but nothing too acute. She was just able to hover objects and use her new Angel Wing Limit Break.

"Hey, look, it's that witch Rinoa!" yelled a boy to his friend, gesticulating to that young female standing on the beach as the two boys walked more adjacent to her. "Or should I say bitch?"

          "Yeah!" screamed the other one, it being palpable now that the harmony of the early morning was shattered. "I hate sorceresses! I hope you die soon, Rinoa! You're nothing but a witch! It's because of the previous sorceress that my father was killed! When I grow up, I will make sure to make sorceresses extinct on our planet, starting with you. I want to avenge my father's death!" The angered boy attested his antagonism by throwing a stone at Rinoa.

As a result of the callous verbal abuse given to Rinoa, tears brimmed in her eyes. They were searing tears that hurt. She clutched her fist, trying to hold in her rage and not liberate it. No matter how much she tried to hold in her emotions, though, the innocent sorceress couldn't. What she detested most was when someone nettled her about being what she was or when they abhorred her for it.

Back a few months ago before the defeat of Ultimecia when she initially became a sorceress, she wanted to be kept in the Sorceress Memorial since she posited it was for the best. But a person that cared for her had freed her, and that person was her lion. And from that point on, she deemed that Squall would always be there to condole her when someone mentioned something tactless to her because of the power she had. And he was always there; but this time, she had to get on without him.

Placing her hands on her ears as she shook her head and fell to her knees, Rinoa tried to ignore the oral cruelty the children still gave her. But it was incessant no matter what. Even if they had ceased, the rest of her life would be filled with this afflict. Myriad thoughts flew through the beautiful girl's mind along with mixed sentiments. She just could not take this anymore. They continued to call her names as one boy picked up a rock and threw it at Rinoa.

"Die, witch!" the young boys screamed simultaneously as the rock hit Rinoa in the back of head.

"I can't take this anymore," the sorceress stammered under her breath. "Please forgive me, Squall." Rinoa turned around hastily following that avowal being said, her visage covered in tears. The spirited, kind-hearted sorceress, in one mere second, became an infuriated, loathsome sorceress.

Rinoa crossed her arms and she was lifted into the air by duo white angel wings. She then lowered back down, permitting the Angel Wing Limit Break to manipulate her till it would ultimately wear off. Those preceding brown eyes of gentleness were staring at the boys, now crimson eyes of atrociousness. She held out her hand as the boys gazed at her with consternation, releasing a Firaga spell upon them. Being under the influence of her Limit Break, the attack was greatly more effectual. Fire illuminated the atmosphere and the contiguous area, causing everyone in that vicinity to stare, awe-stricken. The blistering lava blasted at the boys, readily knocking them either unconscious, or, them being so fragile, maybe even knocking them to death.

The sorceress grinned, self-righteousness in her tone as she laughed. She looked at those in proximity to her and shot them irritated gazes, making them back away. Rinoa then collapsed. And a few minutes anon, she came to. She found herself with flames surrounding her as men tried their best to divest that section of Balamb of the conflagration. Rinoa opened her eyes and blinked, her vision being indistinct. She then saw in front of her a woman trying urgently to revive the fallen young children.

"You're nothing but a witch!" the maiden screamed to the disoriented sorceress. "I heard of you becoming a sorceress, but I always heard you were a benevolent one. I see that I was completely incorrect and what I heard were utter lies! How could you wound these children? I hope the Commander of SeeD kills you like he did to Sorceress Adel and Sorceress Ultimecia!"

                                                                                       

"What have I done?" enquired Rinoa to herself as a solitary tear slid down her cheek. "Commander of SeeD killing me? That's…Squall. Squall's gunblade piercing my heart…" The lovely sorceress stood up, trying to reclaim balance as she tried to make sense of what she had just done. She then did something she never did once in her life; Rinoa Heartilly ran from something she had done.

Dusk had glistened its prettiness upon the planet and innumerable twinkling stars adorned the sky. No one was outside at such an hour in the town of Balamb since it was relatively minuscule except the occasional people wandering around. Rinoa came back to the town following interminable hours of running, falling and walking. She was exceedingly fatigued. Accompanying those hours of running from what she had done was excruciating thoughts and invariable admonishments to herself inwardly. She had never hated herself the way she did now. Rinoa knew no one could ever absolve her. And if the world wanted her dead for the anguish she caused, then she conceded that she should die.

The sorceress began to cough ad infinitum and leaned against a building's wall, gasping frantically for air. It had been exceptionally cold outside and because of her persistent crying and running it made her ill with an unbearable headache. Those who saw her pretended they did not. Evidently they were witnesses of what had taken place before; otherwise they would have stopped to help her. The building she was laying against was Zell Dincht's house, but of course he wasn't home; his mother was, though. She contemplated querying for her help since she was a gentle woman, but Rinoa berated herself for even thinking such a thing. She did not deserve any aid.

Rinoa slowly supported herself onto her weak legs. Endeavoring to focus, she made her way to the Balamb dock she was at in the morning. She looked into the cold water to see the reflection of a girl with a pallid face. Redness was upon her face from the bitter weather as well. Tears fell out her glassy, red and fiery eyes. Her lips were purple and cold as ice. Rinoa knelt down and scowled, hugging herself to attempt to keep warm. She rubbed her temples heartily, but the massive headache she had did not weaken at all. Her stomach hurt very much from not eating for so long, but not virtually as much as her heart ached. It was as if Squall had already pierced her heart with his gunblade…

At the entrance of Balamb were two teenagers walking around aimlessly as they shared a conversation. The two were part of a posse of three, but the third member was not present with them. They walked to the Balamb dock as the female member of the group laughed at a joke by her friend. She hastily stopped laughing when she spotted a young female lying by the cold waters of the sea by the dock.

"Seifer, isn't that Rinoa Heartilly?" Fujin asked, pointing to the girl in blue. "If so…she looks dire."

"Huh?" Seifer replied, too absentminded at the joke he had made prior to even discern what she said. "Oh, yeah. It is. Ha. I guess Squall dumped her and she's sulking. Poor kid. Anyway…"

Fujin widened her eye at Seifer's cold heartedness and proceeded to kick him in the stomach. "What kind of a person are you?" she questioned as Edea's former knight squealed in pain. "Go help her."

"Geez, you women have such short tempers," he retorted as he regained his balance and walked over to where Rinoa laid, Fujin following him. Seifer knelt down to Rinoa and snapped his fingers in front of her face. "You alive?" He received no response. He removed his glove and put his hand on her arm. It was as frosty as ice.

"Seifer, is she all right?" his friend inquired again.

"Holy shit!" Seifer yelled, perusing her face. "Rinoa looks terrible! Maybe we should let her sleep here; she needs all the beauty sleep she can get." He laughed at his own joke again, Fujin incensed at Seifer's pitilessness. He then put his hand under the fallen sorceress's neck and the other under her knees, lifting her comatose-seeming body and setting her down on an adjacent bench.

"What are you doing?" Fujin asked, tilting her head at Seifer's proceedings.

"What does it look like I'm doin'?" Seifer retorted once again. "Let her sleep here on this bench for the night. It's better than the ground." He looked at the sleeping sorceress, smirked and ensued to walk away. Fujin of course had her eye widened and walked in front of Seifer, ready to punch him for his actions.

"Seifer, you insensitive dolt!" she screamed. "Take her to the Balamb Hotel!" With that said, she pointed to Rinoa who was tremulous in her sleep. She sat down on the bench as Edea's former knight groaned.

"Fine, fine." Seifer lifted Rinoa back up and carried her to the Balamb Hotel. "I'm guessin' I have to pay her way for the night, too, eh?" Seifer didn't receive a response from Fujin. She just sighed.

After a couple minutes of walking, Seifer entered the Balamb Hotel. It was brilliantly designed and he posited it was better there for Rinoa than on a bench in the bitter weather. He gave the receptionist a sneer and was about to say something when she interrupted.

"Welcome to the lovely Balamb Hotel," the young receptionist said. "Will you two be spending the night in a room? That will be one-hundred Gil then."

Seifer widened his eyes with a laugh. "Heck no!" he yelled. "This chick and I aren't with each other. I'm just dropping her off in a room for the night while I take off." The cunning young man threw the receptionist one hundred and one Gil and headed up the stairs to a room. "Keep the change."

Slowly placing the girl on the bed, Seifer looked at her and smiled a bit. Everyone thought of Rinoa as a goddess due to her appealing loveliness; Edea's former knight included patently. He renounced that thought and grimaced when he saw that there weren't any blankets in the room. Sighing, he looked at Rinoa and then walked away. Seifer turned around again to see her shivering and as much as he wanted to leave her, he just couldn't.

"Damn place!" he yelled to the empty room. "What kind of an inn doesn't have blankets?" In an irate manner, the young man took his long, white overcoat off of himself and placed it nonchalantly on Rinoa's sleeping body. He then walked out.

Dawn's beauty kissed Balamb with dazzling rays of sunlight. That luminosity shone brightly into Rinoa's inn room, causing her to wince her eyes subsequent to opening them. She groaned a bit and stretched, breathing in the superb scent of the elegant inn. The young girl then noticed the long and proverbial overcoat that protected her from prior quivering.

"Seifer?" Rinoa queried herself, running her fingers on the coat's edges. She shrugged and tried getting off of her bed but failed, falling backwards. She stood up again and gradually, holding onto the wall as she did so, walked to the door and down the staircase. She then walked out of the inn, smiling shyly at the receptionist before doing so.

It was observable that Rinoa slept in judging by her surroundings. There were people walking around the town, but of course not a lot since Balamb was quite tiny. She walked around without purpose for a few minutes till she spotted the diminutive pier at the end of the town; the same dock she was at yesterday where she harmed those young boys. Just remembering what she had done ached her heart immensely, causing her to stop walking and clutch her necklace, lowering her head in ignominy.

The pier was desolate so Rinoa knelt down a few inches away from its edge, looking up at the serene azure sky. It was lovely and peaceful, as was the rest of the world with the exception of the minor crimes. In essence, everything was nonviolent and Rinoa, being a sorceress and knowing what she did was appalling, knew she was disturbing the serenity. Tears fell from her eyes at every thought that pertained to what she had did in the recent past. It was probably news all around the world now that a sorceress attacked guiltless children. Rinoa was the only sorceress and she knew all of her friends would loathe her now. What genuinely ached her heart was that Squall would hate her as well.

"Need a friend?" a jovial and remember able voice inquired, walking to the sorceress and sitting down next to her. Rinoa looked up to see the charismatic Selphie Tilmitt. The cheerful adolescent winked.

"What about another?" asked another recognizable voice. That tone of voice was more deep and grave. It belonged to Quistis Trepe. She sat down on the other side of Rinoa and put her arm around her.

"I don't need to ask if you need another friend; all the ladies want me already," Irvine said from behind them, walking up to Rinoa as she turned around and smiled meekly. He sat behind her and returned her smile as Selphie punched him lightheartedly.

"Yo!" a young man interrupted. "Never could have enough friends!" Zell yelled, joining the group. He sat down at the side of Quistis and took Rinoa's hand. "Cheer up."

Rinoa sniffled and cleared her throat. "How could you guys refer to me as friend?" she asked inaudibly. "Haven't you heard what I've done?"

"Rinoa, don't be so hard on yourself." Quistis solaced as she looked at Zell. "Tell her."

"Ma told me everything, Rinoa," the enthusiastic young man said. "She witnessed the verbal abuse those children said you to. She told me and then I told everyone else. We would never hate you for doin' what you did. You lost control…it happens sometimes."

"Rinoa, those little brats are all right," Selphie added with a scowl. "Didn't you hear? You did not hurt them much…they faked a lot of their so-called injuries just for attention."

"So…I didn't kill anyone?" the young sorceress queried optimistically. "But still…just because you guys still love me as a friend and condone me doesn't mean that Squall will forgive me and still love me…" She closed her eyes, grasping her necklace once more; a tendency she had when tentative. Looking at her mother's ring did not bring the tears that fell next. Looking at Squall's ring did.

Squall Leonhart walked from the train station and then walked to the southernmost area of Balamb. He seemed to have a lot on his mind and decided to sit by the dock for a bit. He was exceedingly exhausted from his trip and he couldn't wait to see his friends. The one he wanted to see mainly was the one he loved, Rinoa Heartilly. He had previously read in the newspapers about what had happened, but he would never ever cease loving the sorceress that captured his heart.

Not knowing his friends were at the pier, the young reserved man continued to walk there. He came to a stop when he saw them all trying to enliven Rinoa. She was hugging her legs with her head down. Squall felt tears in his eyes from just seeing Rinoa in pain and agony. He walked closer and stood there watching her.

At the dock, Rinoa's comrades continued to condole her. The sorceress held a faint smile but it wasn't much at all. Selphie could not acquiesce to see Rinoa like that so she plotted a moderately evil scheme in her mind. She whispered it to Quistis, who laughed gently.

"Rinoa, come to the end of the dock!" Selphie yelled, beaming. "There's something awesome I found there the other day under water and I meant to show it to you. You need to stand on the very edge to see it, though." The sorceress nodded and followed her friend to the edge of the dock, oblivious to what the ex-Trabia student would do.

"I don't see anything." Rinoa tilted her head and knelt down on the dock border. Selphie stood behind her, gesticulating to the others to watch her next move.

"Of course not!" yelled Selphie. "You need to go in to see it! Tee-hee!" With that said, the carefree girl pushed Rinoa into the water and jumped in after her. "Woo-hoo!"

"Ah, what the heck!" joined in Zell, pushing Quistis and Irvine in the water simultaneously. They surfaced the water rapidly, both shooting glares at Zell. And of course, he was then pulled in as well.

None of the friends candidly knew how long they were in the water that morning. They were too immersed in having excitement to even think of the time. And most prominently, so was Rinoa. They splashed each other countless times, wrestled, and fought teasingly amongst each other. It truly was enjoyable.

"Would ya just look at that?" Seifer said, sneering from the distance of Balamb with his posse. He was viewing the friends in the water naturally. "Like a bunch of children."

"Affirmative, but what is wrong with that?" Fujin questioned crossly, walking away from Seifer to the pier.

"Nothin'," the young man replied. "I'd never let any chick push me around in water, though." He laughed, following Fujin to the edge of the dock. Once there, Fujin smirked and did what almost any female would do if they were amid Seifer when he had said that: She kicked him in the water and laughed.

"You get him, Fujin!" Raijin yelled, pleased. "He deserved it, ya know?" Raijin was kicked in the water as well. Fujin grinned and jumped in also, splashing her friends ferociously.

Rinoa, notwithstanding being wholly affianced with having so much fun, noticed Seifer and his friends in the water at the far end. She blinked and smiled, remembering something. Climbing out of the water, she told everyone she'd be right back and she ran to the Balamb Hotel. A few minutes later, she returned holding the overcoat Seifer had given her to keep warm. She went back in the water and swam over to where her former boyfriend and his posse were located.

Perceiving someone was behind him, Seifer turned around to see a young figure swim up to him. He smiled slightly when he saw it was Rinoa but then grimaced when he saw she was carrying his overcoat…in the water.

"Hi Seifer," the young girl greeted as she brushed wet tendrils away from her face and smiled. "I thought I should return this. Thank you." She pulled the coat out of the water and gave it to him.

"Why the hell did you bring it in the water with you?" Seifer yelled, snatching the coat. "You give a girl somethin' to keep warm and she goes and damages it!" He wiped it off with gloved-hands, though it did not help at all. He then threw it on the dock.

Rinoa timidly looked down and turned around, heading back to her friends. "Bye Seifer."

"Hey, wait!" he yelled, grabbing her arm. She gave him a mystified look. "You still depressed and crap? That chicken wuss told me why you were in distress; 'cause you thought you hurt some children and you feel everyone hates you since you're a sorceress."

"Y-Yeah, that's right," Rinoa reluctantly conceded, evading eye contact.

"Listen to me, Rinoa," Seifer said sympathetically as he held both her arms, causing her to look into his eyes. "Even if this whole friggin' world thinks you're an abject sorceress, I know you aren't. Now get lost." Seifer smirked as Rinoa smiled and blushed, turning away once more to go back to her friends.

Kneeling on the dock, Rinoa tried garnering her thoughts. Seifer made her feel much better. She presently knew that her friends and Seifer did not detest her. But that one significant person in her life, what if he did? The one who was so diverse from all the other people in the world; the one who was her literal opposite. The one whose eyes could make her scowl alter into a sweet smile. The one who had jeopardized his life for her myriad times. The one that she loved unconditionally, Squall Leonhart; what if he hated…

Intuition might have told her this, but Rinoa was not quite sure what made her turn around and relinquish her taunting thoughts. She stood up instantaneously; clutching her rings attached her necklace again. She bowed her head in indignity and mortification, agonizing thoughts flowing through her mind as warm tears burned her eyes. Her lip trembled as she walked forward slowly and vigilantly, as if she was ready for Squall to pull out his gunblade to pierce her heart.

 

The time it took her to get to him seemed to be perpetual, but she at last reached him. Squall looked at her and frowned, bewilderment within his mind. The one he loved appeared heartrending, lost and perplexed.

"Rinoa, what are you doing; what's wrong?" The young man tilted his head and put his hand under her chin. Brown eyes locked with those of blue. Squall placed his hands on her arms and pulled her closer. Rinoa saw his lips coming nearer to hers and finally, they met hers. The two shared a gentle kiss and parted.

Whenever the angel kissed her lion before whilst being dispirited, the quandary and misery in her heart would withdraw, even if for a little while only. But this time, the pain did not.

"Squall, I…"

"What's wrong…you usually smile after a kiss." Squall smiled a trifle; eager she'd return it. "You're grimacing instead."

"I've sinned, Squall…" Rinoa bit her lip as she kept eye contact as arduous as it was. "Everyone hates me. I harmed two children. I've become a wretched sorceress. As the leader of SeeD, it is your job to kill me." She let go of the one she loved and knelt in front of him, clasping her hands together. It was as if she was silently praying for amnesty.

"Rinoa, even if the whole world hates you, I will always be your knight."

The young sorceress looked up at him with her teary chestnut-colored eyes after he said that. Squall took her hand and the two embraced each other. It was an embrace of abiding trust, protection and most prominently, it was an embrace of love. To pierce Rinoa's heart; he could never. But to love her…he could do that always and forever.