I remember days full of restlessness and fury
I remember nights that were drunk on dreams
I remember someone who hungered for the glory
I remember her, but it seems she’s gone…

     Seifer stared at the ebony-haired beauty in front of him. He’d just been beaten in front of her. She stared back, mouth slightly open, dark eyes filled with something he couldn’t name. It looked as if she was arguing with herself. She looked the same as she had when he’d last seen her. Beautiful dark hair with golden-red highlights, wide chocolate brown eyes, a full pouty mouth, petite frame. But she wasn’t the Rinoa he knew from before.

Where’s the girl?
Where’s the girl with the blaze in her eyes?
Where’s the girl with that gaze of surprise?
Now and then I still dream she’s beside me…

     Her eyes had lost the carefree innocence he’d once loved. Still loved? Did he ever love? He didn’t know, it had been so long. Not only that, but the expressiveness was gone as they gazed at each other. Seifer had no idea what she was thinking, how she was reacting. She’d pulled down a shield. Smirking inwardly, he wondered vaguely who she learned that from.

Where’s the girl
Who could turn on the edge of a knife?
Where’s the girl who was burning for life?
I can still feel her breathing beside me

     His mind played images back of their long ago summer-or not so long ago. Her running down the streets of Deling City, hair streaming out behind her, before turning to grin at him, eyes sparkling. He’d smirked back and kissed her, taking her completely by surprise. When he pulled away, Rinoa gazed up at him, then took again to her heels, bright laughter drifting back to his ears. He gave chase.

And I know
She remembers how fearless it feels
To take off with the wind at her heels
She and I took the world like a storm

     Dancing at the club in Deling. She was the most beautiful girl in the room; even decked out in sluttish clothing, she emanated a compelling naïve aura. When they’d arrived, all eyes were drawn to the good-looking pair, jealousy apparent in the eyes of males and females alike. They danced and danced, until the early morning hours, and then they danced back to his hotel to fall asleep.

Come again
Let the girl in your heart tumble free
Bring your renegade heart home to me
In the dark of the morning
I’ll warm you, I’ll rouse you

     Many times Seifer had climbed up the trellis of the Caraway mansion to her room, early in the morning, when he couldn’t sleep. She left it unlocked for him and he woke her up with hard kisses that left her face flushed and her lips bruised. Her dark eyes, still filled with sleep, glazed over with passion and she would reach for him. And he would leave before the General burst in to discover what the dogs were barking about. But now…Now her eyes weren’t innocent, weren’t glazed. They were empty, void of any emotion towards him. She still loved him, right?

Rinoa*
Don’t forget that I know who you are
We were cut from the same surly star
Like two jewels in the sky sharing fire

     She had to love him. They were the same, people to whom all were drawn, willingly or not. They created magic, a fiery kind wherever and whenever they were together. The fire couldn’t die, could it? Had it died, like her eyes when she looked at him? No, it wasn’t possible. They knew each other inside and out…or at least he knew her. Or he thought he did. Maybe he didn’t anymore.

Where’s the girl
So alive and so aching for more?
We had dreams that were worth dying for
We were caught in the eye of the storm

     No, that wasn’t possible. Seifer and Rinoa both had dreams, dreams they confided in each other. She knew of his romantic dream, his want for love, his desire to be needed. Likewise, he knew her dream to free Timber, her dream to find love of her own. For awhile they had convinced themselves that the other was the love they were waiting for. Had they ever really unconvinced themselves? Seifer hadn’t…He didn’t know about her. It certainly seemed like she was not happy to see him.

Where’s the girl?
Is she gazing at me with surprise?
Do I still see that blaze in her eyes?
Do I dream or is she beside me?
Now…

     Uncertainly, Seifer held open his arms, silently asking for her help. He’d just been defeated by Squall and company, including her. But that didn’t mean she didn’t love him. Rinoa’s eyes widened and she took a step back. Something flickered in her eyes, regret but anger, too. “Rinoa,” Seifer tried gently. “Please…” The brunette shook her head violently and took another step back. Right into Squall’s arms. His rival glared at him through wintry gray eyes, and held Rinoa closer to him. Seifer felt his heart fall through the floor, and his green eyes hardened. So that was it. The slut had chosen Puberty Boy over him. Fine.

Let her go!
Let her live, let her die on her own!
We are all of us bruised and alone!
Now we both will have nothing to hold!

     Seifer lunged forward, grabbing Rinoa by the arm and yanking her out of Squall’s arms. Caught by surprise, Squall’s grip gave easily and Rinoa, easily overpowered by Seifer, was dragged out of the room, screaming. Cursing, Seifer swept her up and took off at a run to the opening seal on Adel’s tomb. He could hear the angry shouts of the others and footsteps behind him. Sneering into Rinoa’s dark eyes, he climbed the ladder and approached Adel, hauling Rinoa by the arm. He hoped he would pull it out of the socket. How dare she betray him! She was about to find out that no one betrayed Seifer Almasy, not even childish beautiful girls.

Oh, let her know
Turn it in to that renegade heart
That the best of our dreams fell apart
And the dark of the morning grows

     Seifer threw a smirk over his shoulder as the SeeD team, headed by Squall, approached and he looked up at the emerging Adel. “Here she is!” he called, the struggles of Rinoa barely moving him. Adel’s eyes locked on Rinoa’s scared face and she reached out a hand. “Come get her!” He sneered at Rinoa, and tossed one more glance at Squall. “No one betrays Seifer Almasy!” he yelled.

Cold…

     Seifer pushed Rinoa to the floor, then dove out of the way as Adel reached into the young sorceress and they merged. As Squall and his team faced off with Adel, Seifer, laughing insanely at the hanging Rinoa and her sure fate, jumped down to the main floor of the Lunatic Pandora. Still laughing, he jumped off the floating building, tumbling into the grass around Tears’ Point. He rolled over onto his back and looked up at the glowing crystal of Lunatic Pandora, the laughter fading.
     Tears rolled down his cheeks to land in the grass.
     Good-bye.

 

Note: *Rinoa was actually not the name in the song, but I changed it.  The song is “Where’s the Girl” by Frank Wildhorn