Part I: An Unexpected Invitation

Squall savored the sound of the waltz fading behind him as he made his way from the ballroom to the dim, empty halls of Balamb Garden. It had been a long night for the young Commander. Too many speeches made, too many hands shook, and certainly too many of Irvine's inappropriate jokes followed by too many of Quistis' stern rebukes. The more he recalled the noise from the evening, the more eager he was to turn in for the night. Only the sound of Rinoa's heels clicking beside him filled his ears now, the presence of which was certainly welcome.

They walked in comfortable silence, during which Squall quietly reflected on how much his life had changed in recent years. It wasn't too long ago - just about a year or so - when he first donned the uniform that he wore now. Who would have predicted that in that short amount of time, he would go from a rookie SeeD member to the Commander of the entire Garden? Even more, he wondered, who would have thought that he himself would change so much? There were facets of his life now that would have been unimaginable back when he was seventeen. Selphie's giggles and Zell's loud mouth were no longer just things to tolerate during missions. Instead, they had become normal, almost daily features of his life. Add to that a quirky, former Galbadian soldier turned president of the largest, most innovative city currently known to man - who turned out to be his biological father - and his old self might as well never have existed.

A quiet, musing smile spread on Squall's lips as Rinoa started humming the waltz they danced to earlier. He secretly found it amusing that she could never last too long in silence. Thinking back to his previous train of thought, he started wondering about her most. How could he have imagined that the same girl who randomly forced him to dance at his SeeD graduation over a year ago would now be walking the halls with him, holding his hand and swinging it back and forth? He wasn't completely oblivious to himself. Even back then, he detected a slight tinge of attraction towards her. He just never imagined she would become more than just a stranger. Even more, he never imagined that a small attraction would become so much more.

"You're becoming such a good dancer!" Rinoa teased.

"You're a good teacher," He replied. "Aren't you tired? You danced a lot tonight."

"Nope! I would have danced all night long if you weren't such a party pooper!"

"You know you could have stayed. I wouldn't have minded."

"And let you escape only to get lost in that secretive little head of yours? Not a chance!" Rinoa released his hand and skipped ahead of him. "We're just gonna have to have our own little party here!"

Rinoa winked at him, then turned around and ran off into the dormitory hallway. Squall sighed and shook his head. She was always joking around and pulling pranks on him. That was another thing to wonder about. Who would have imagined that quiet, stony Squall would end up with someone so mischievous and silly? Then again, who was he kidding? He kind of loved that about her.

He put his hands in his pockets and walked patiently towards where she disappeared.

Rinoa was sitting on one of the ledges in the dormitory hallway by the time he found her. She had been entertaining herself by staring at her feet as she playfully swung them back and forth.

"Finally!" She said when she saw him. She hopped off the ledge, adjusted her dress, brushed down her hair, and held her arms out.

Squall tilted his head and stared at her.

"Dance with me!"

"There's no music."

"So what?"

"And it's really late."

"So...?"

"And someone might see us and think we're crazy."

Rinoa shook her head and put her hands on her hips.

"Squall," she chided, "Can't you just be silly and irresponsible for once?"

He narrowed his eyes in response, but Rinoa could see his lips betraying a hint of a smile. This was enough encouragement. She planted her feet firmly on the ground and held her arms out once more. "Well? What are you waiting for?"

Squall stared at her, realizing that she must have chosen this spot due to its atmosphere. Unlike most of the others, the dormitory hallway was open to the courtyards and thus to moonlight. It was romantic. Even he could see that. He, however, wasn't entirely averse to it. The moonlight was casting a soft, bluish glow against Rinoa's figure, and he liked it.

To Rinoa's surprise, he approached and gently placed one hand on her waist and took her hand with the other. Her eyes widened with excitement as she realized that he was actually - unexpectedly - giving in to her request. With her body reeling with energy at the prospect of a dance, she braced herself as Squall pulled her close, lifted her hand, and then...

Nothing.

The last thing Rinoa saw was a twinkle in his eye before, in one sweeping motion, he pulled her in and locked his arms around her. He held her so close and so tightly that she couldn't wriggle free when she tried. It dawned on her immediately: he wasn't about to dance with her, he was about to arrest her!

He drew his face close to hers, smirking. "Like I said. It's TOO LATE for dancing. We need to get you back to your hotel."

Rinoa glared at him, her eyes wide with shock at the thought of easily falling for his ruse. Still tangled in his arms, she sheepishly stuck her tongue out at him, but he only found it amusing. He retaliated by planting a kiss on her forehead.

"See?" He said, laughing softly as his lips brushed against her skin, "I can be funny too."

Another sweeping motion, and Rinoa found herself being dragged back towards the main hall, her hand secured by his tight grip, as if she were a child being dragged away from a park.

Rinoa stared at the back of Squall's head as he led her down the hallway. She momentarily considered pulling a prank in revenge, but she decided against it. Maybe he was right. Maybe it was too late for shenanigans.

The quietness of the night started seeping into Rinoa's mind, extinguishing any last traces of mischief. No longer interested in poking fun at Squall, she entertained her restless mind by looking around. Curiously, her eyes always landed back on him. She couldn't see his face, but she could picture it perfectly - serious, unemotional, brows furrowed above a set of piercing blue eyes, gazing into the distance, lost in whatever thought might be whirling around his head. She could see why most people found him standoffish, but she kind of liked that about him.

She stared at him more - at the soft hair, the slender neck, the broad shoulders. She gazed at the way his SeeD uniform fit him, capturing the wideness of his torso while making way for the slenderness of his waist. Suddenly, a small bubble of a thought rose to the surface, making her blush at its arrival. It wasn't the first time the thought crossed her mind, but it was the first time that it tugged palpably within her. She wondered what caused it to manifest now. Was it just a silly, inspired wisp of spontaneity brought on by the romantic quiet of the night? Or has it been bubbling beneath the surface for longer than she realized? Before she knew it, she stopped dead in her tracks.

Squall turned around, startled by the slight tug at his arm. He was even more puzzled when he found her staring blankly at him.

"Is everything okay?" He asked.

She didn't answer. She could only at gaze at him, growing more starry-eyed by the second. Soon the dreamy look on her face culminated in her putting her hands behind her back and swaying playfully side to side.

Squall frowned, wondering if she was setting him up for another one of her pranks.

"What is it, Rinoa?" He asked more firmly than before.

"Oh, nothing." She said.

It was definitely not nothing, Squall thought. He recognized that motion all too well - she only swayed whenever had something on her mind. He shrugged his shoulders and waited.

Rinoa could no longer contain herself. She glided over to him and started playing with the chain across his uniform, all the while biting her lip to suppress a mischievous smile.

"I was wondering..." She said slowly, "...if I could stay over tonight?"

Squall frowned at first, puzzled by her request. Then, just as he opened his mouth to ask, the look in her eyes registered.

He froze.

It took every fiber of Rinoa's being not to laugh at the look on his face. It was as if someone cast Stop on him. "Wait," She giggled, helpless against her amusement, "ARE YOU BLUSHING?"

"N-no..." He said quickly. Determinedly.

It was no use, Squall thought. Even he could feel himself coloring. At the very least, he was glad that the others weren't here. Quistis would have translated every expression on his face, Selphie would have giggled to death, and goodness knows the unimaginable, inappropriate things that would have come out of Irvine's mouth. Strangely enough, he predicted Zell's reaction to be the most sensible of the group. He would have tried desperately to change the subject or point out something random. Or he would have ran away, which Squall almost felt an instinct to do right now. If only Rinoa wasn't holding on to the chain on his uniform...

"So?" She prodded, her eyes expectant and glittering.

"Y-yeah..." Squall heard himself say. "Of course..."