Hello, everyone! So... this is another Kuja fanfic. This is about what happens after FFIX, ten years into the future. But Kuja is back? Of course! Hello, why do the badguys who suddenly turn good always die!? It's just not fair! So now he's back, and he's starting to regret it.
I DON'T OWN ANYTHING. Except for a few original concepts and all that, but you get the point. Anyway, BRING ON KUJA!
Desert Rose
Chapter 1-
My lips were dry- as if I were a fading, wilted rose in the midst of the harsh desert terrain of the Outer Continent, sand laden wind tossing me to and fro. With the bright light above me, I believed this to be true. Perhaps this wasn't just another withering dream- but if this was truly a reality, I wasn't sure I liked it.
"Is… is that supposed to happen? Is he supposed to mutter pithy quotes?"
"This Kuja we're dealing with, remember? You know how he was."
Was…. What did that mean? And certainly I wasn't talking aloud, was I?
"Uh, yeah, you are. Can you sit up?"
The speaker sucked in a breath as the other speaker hit him. "He just woke up, you fool! If you've been dead for ten years, you wouldn't want to rush, now would you?"
I snapped my eyes open, they quickly being burned by the bright light.
"IT'S ALIVE…." a child, maybe five or six, gasped in total awe. "Aunt Miki, it worked!"
"Shh, quiet now, Brahne," an older woman with a regal air about her said.
Brahne… why did that seem familiar? Wasn't she…. Yes. The elephant lady; once a ruler of Alexandria, I believe. Hadn't I been the one to kill her? I think that would be a yes, too. Horribly greedy, that woman was. Ah, but she did make a fine puppet.
"Zidane, quit waving your hand over his face!" Mikoto- my own sister, I remembered- snapped.
Hurt, my brother replied, "Sorry."
Garnet sighed, standing up out a creaky chair. "I'm going to outside for a while. Brahne and Terra are getting restless. Do you want to come too, Kuja?"
What?
"Ooh! I'll go, Mom!"
"Of course, Blank, dear."
Mikoto sighed, but I somehow knew that she was smiling. "Those three are like your clones. Too hyper for their own good."
Zidane chuckled. "Maybe. Hey, Kuja? Bro? Yo, you awake in there!?"
"Stop shaking my shoulders, you insufferable-" I stopped, coughing. My mouth was sandpaper inside. "Water?"
"Yes sir," Zidane said, somewhat mockingly, taking off somewhere.
I carefully opened my eyes again, shielding them from the bright light. "Oh, I apologize. Kuja, could you turn off the lights, please?"
They flipped off and I looked around. Mikoto looked older- maybe in her early twenties. Her blonde hair was still short, but just a few shades darker than before, but she still had the same bright, calm blue eyes as before. Beside her stood a dark haired boy of about ten years old. He also had blue eyes, but his face resembled Princess- Queen now, I supposed- Garnet's.
Zidane walked back into the lab-like room, carrying a glass of water. His eyes widened. "Bro!"
"Don't call me that," I snapped in a hoarse voice.
He shrugged, grinning audaciously, and handed me the glass, which I quickly drank. "Now," I began, now having the breath to do so, "what is going on here? Why is Mikoto a woman? And what the heck are these munchkins doing here!?"
I stared dismally at Garnet- much older than before- and the three children that came back in. Two were blonde little girls, one at age five, the other at age eight. The boy had dark red hair and was about nine. Garnet sighed. "These are my children, your nieces and nephews."
My eyes went wide. I turned between Zidane and Garnet incredulously. How'd those four happen in just the little while I've been gone?
Speaking of which, just what had happened to me? There was the Iifa tree, I teleported Zidane out, and then… then…. Then what?
Zidane laughed. "Dude, don't you remember dying?"
"What?" I deadpanned.
Mikoto elaborated: "You died ten years ago at the Iifa tree, after rescuing Zidane. I merely brought you back with a great deal of magic and quite a bit of science I remembered from when Garland was still around. I'm sorry it's been about ten years- I had trouble piecing your memory back in correct places and a few things like that- but here you are."
The room was silent for a minute, then I burst out laughing. Mikoto scowled at me, but that only made me laugh harder. My sides hurt when I finally stopped. "You… expect me to believe that you brought me back to life?"
She nodded, completely serious. Some things never change, I suppose. "Ah. Yes. While I was dead," I continued, this time winking to the children, "I must have been the tooth fairy, also."
The youngest- Brahne- giggled. Garnet smiled, but it was a little sad. Ugh. Pity from the not-so-young child. But… wasn't she older than me, now? Physically speaking, of course. According to the mirror on the wall in Mikoto's lab, I still looked the same as I did ten years ago.
"Oh," Mikoto explained, "you're not any older because, technically, you weren't alive until just a few moments ago."
I blinked. "Um… alright."
Suddenly, Brahne rushed up, poked me, then rushed back. "Yes?"
"ZOMBIE!" she screamed. She and Terra simultaneously jumped behind the motherly protection of Garnet. "He's undead, Terra! Blank was right!"
"I'm just as undead as Mikoto," I said.
They gaped at her. Mikoto sighed and shook her head. "No one here is a zombie." She a look to Blank, who flinched. "Not your uncle, not me. Your father, perhaps, is slightly brain-dead, however."
Brahne, Terra, and Blank looked at each other, then let out a "DAD'S A ZOMBIE TOO!"
Kuja sighed. "If Dad was a zombie, wouldn't that make us half zombie?"
"WE'RE ZOMBIES, TOO!?"
The adults sighed, I snickered, and younger three rushed out to hunt down some phoenix downs. "You were right, Mikoto. They are just like Zidane."
Garnet groaned. "Not you, too…."
After a gourmet meal prepared by the huge white, blue, and pink thing (Zidane called it Quina), I went outside and looked around at Alexandria. The city was nothing like how I remembered it. It was exceptionally modernized with a touch of flair that made it seem more than what its time could have dreamt up. I guess this was thanks to Mikoto, who held the esteemed job of royal engineering technician. Vivi, the first puppet I had ever made, was royal mage. He still looked the exact same as me, but he seemed a little slower than before. I guess not even he could live forever. For some reason, I found it a little sad to think of him "stopping".
"Take this, Zombie!" Terra shrilled, throwing a phoenix down at me. It landed at my feet, and she watched, waiting for me to explode into holy flames. Oh, what the heck.
I fell down, howling, "Oh no! Not a phoenix down!"
The girl giggled as I acted as I imagined a real zombie would do. Suddenly I jumped up. She flinched back, screaming and laughing at the same time. "Aha! But I'm a special kind of zombie! I don't die with just a phoenix down!"
She took off running and I took off chasing her.
"Leave my sister alone, foul zombie!"
I barely had time to move back as Blank tackled into me. He threw acorns at me, which actually, surprisingly, hurt. "Brahne, now!"
She threw a fistful of mud on me, ruining the silk my robes were made out of. "No! This was expensive Terran silk!" I gaped. I glared at the munchkins. "Don't you know that there is not a finer fabric anywhere on Gaia!? Oh noooooo!"
"Ah! Princess Brahne, what have I told you about throwing mud on the gues….uessttttsssss!"
I glared up at the stuttering knight, staring down at me in horror. "Quick! Behind me, children! HE'S COME BACK AS A ZOMBIE!" Steiner squealed. If it were any other time, I would have found it amusing to hear him scream at a higher pitch than Terra and Brahne.
Instead, I stood and swatted mud off me with the utmost suavity I could. If I only I were a villain again…. Ah, yes. That stupid agreement:
"Listen, Kuj."
"Don't call me that!"
"If you're gonna stay here in Alexandria, Kuj," Zidane continued, ignoring my rants, "I've got to have your word that you won't turn into a crazy, psychotic narcissist again. Look, I've got four kids now and a whole country to look over. Dragging you into justice isn't exactly something I can find to do in my spare time. So, be a good boy?"
I scowled at him.
He cocked an eyebrow.
"Mm." I muttered.
Zidane leaned in obnoxiously. "Excuse me, dear brother?"
"Mmm."
"I still didn't quite-"
"FINE! Just don't call me 'Kuj', or 'brother', and don't you dare once make me baby-sit those hooligans!"
The king of Alexandria grinned evilly. "But babysitting is in your new job quota. You're the godfather."
Finally, with a tight sigh, I looked the shaking knight in the eye. "Yes, Tin Man? What is your business with me this very fine day? Oh, would mind getting me a towel or something, dear Brahne?"
The little girl, fighting to get out of Steiner's overly protective grasp, nodding. "Okie, Uncle Kuj!"
"Don't call me 'Kuj'," I said, trying to sound as nice as I could.
How did Zidane do it? How did he manage to put up that dense smile and be friendly to everyone? Ugh…. I was definitely going to leave Alexandria soon.
With a large gape, he stared after her in shock, happily skipping off. Maybe I would learn to like kids after all. "Ahem?" I reminded him.
"AHH!" Steiner burst, falling back. He straitened his helmet and frantically waved for Blank and Terra- who stood by, watching in glee at him making a fool of himself- to make a quick retreat. What an amusing knight! Steiner jumped back up, pulling his sword out and brandishing it towards me menacingly. I yawned and examined my nails with great interest. "Have at thee, evildoer! OWW! Prince Blank, please do not throw- OUCH! Princess Terra, please don't- OOMF!"
Kuja walked by his siblings roughing the knight with little interest, his nose stuck in a book. Was that Lord Avon? And how old was he, again? Ten…. Reading that…?
Brahne and Vivi walked up. The mage and I stared at each for a moment. "Ah… I apologize…?" I offered.
With just the narrowing of his eyes, my sleeves caught on fire. "There's a nice pond over there," he added as I frantically tried to put them out.
I quickly dived in, ignoring the dank algae that littered the surface. I quickly swam up. Vivi still stared at me dismally. "I'm good now!" I cried. "I-I've sworn into the good side!" He just glared at me in silence. Of course he believed me. He was just angry that he did. I grimaced at my ruined clothes. First mud, and now who-knows-what…. "Now, please, can I get out of these sullied clothes?"
"I-it's quite scary how he keeps staring at me like that," I muttered to no one in particular. Vivi sat as far away from me as possible, way away on the far end of the table. Mikoto sighed, calmly eating her dinner prepared by the pallid thing again. Zidane hadn't even heard me. "And," I added, staring in disdain at the horrible clothing that was given to me, "this fabric is itchy. What did this awful material come from? Sheep's skin?"
Mikoto shook her head. "You shouldn't complain. At least you are here again."
"'Peace is but a shadow death, desperate to forget its painful past… though we hope for promising years, yesterday's sorrow constantly nears. And while the moon still shines blue, by dawn it will turn to scarlet hue.' Surely you haven't forgotten Garland's favorite bedtime story for us?" I quoted. Something inside me stirred, longing for more poetry, however dismal or seemingly narcissistic it was. Maybe I'd get my young namesake to show me to the library later. He seemed interested in the finer works.
Speaking of him, Kuja looked up. "I haven't heard that one before. Who is Garland?"
Blunt, I answered, "The spawn of Satan."
Mikoto shook her head, giving a less harsh explanation. Personally, I thought I hit his description head-on. Kuja's eyebrows furrowed. "But, if he was your 'father', wouldn't that make the spawn of Satan our grandfather?"
"What a horrible thing to realize, isn't it?" I mused. "Even worse to know he made you to die when the little black sheep turned seventeen!"
All of the chatter in the room stopped. With a sigh, I stood. "I'll be wandering the halls searching for the library- if there is such an intelligent thing in this place."
Kuja slipped out of his chair and rushed up to me. "I'll show you."
I looked at him curiously, but the boy didn't show anything on his calm face. "Are… you a mage?" I asked, coming into realization. "Is that why you don't play outside with your brother and sisters?"
He shrugged, going down a hallway. "Mother says that I shouldn't go into magic. She said that there was a thing called an Eidolon- and that they would only hurt me later on if I learned how to summon it."
I burst out laughing. "I'm probably the cause for that," I explained when he looked at me curiously. "See, I used to be the bad guy of sorts. Even though Garland was much, much worse than I."
"What did you do that was so bad?"
I stopped, and he also stopped. With my face pale, I admitted, "I did… a lot of things that ruined a lot of lives. It is certainly something I will never do again…. But I suppose saying that won't change the past, will it? Heh, I can't believe that Zidane would want me back. Perhaps he was the better one, after all. Well… Mikoto is obviously the smart one of the three of us. I am an excellent mage."
Suddenly, I smiled. "And I think that you could become an excellent mage also."
Blank frowned at the oncoming nobles. I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. Just how many of these people had theirs lives ruined because of me? Finally, I openly gaped as the Minister of Black Mage Village walked in and stopped dead, glaring at me.
"Kill me now!" I moaned, as he raised his hands to catch these sleeves on fire also. Instead, tiny fireworks erupted in front of Blank's face. He jumped up and cheered, rushing over to the mage. Brahne and Terra giggled, tiny fireworks and magic acts playing in front of them too. Kuja ignored the explosions in front of him- still reading those impossibly hard novels. With a sigh, Zidane finally got up and started greeting guests.
What was this celebration about again? Must have been something planned before I "came back". I tried to spot out anyone that would ultimately try to kill me right away. There were some rats from Burmecia, a couple and that old tutor, Tot, from Treno; actually a few genomes, and the Regent, Hilda, and a purple haired-
Was that Eiko Carol?
I gaped slightly, staring at the summoner. Her hair was longer and in elegant curls, few of which curled out from her face, fanning it out to view. Bangs hung around her horn, now much longer and prominent. Eiko wore a flowing golden gown, beads expertly sown into the bottom in a swirl pattern. Kuja smirked, stifling a laugh. "She's too young for you. Eiko's only five or six years older than me."
"I'm close to twenty, and I don't dare think of that brat as anything like that."
He rolled his eyes and went back to the book. "Hey, Kuj! Come here!"
The room went silent, everyone there staring at me. Beside me, Kuja sighed. "Father really needs to find a way to distinguish the two of us."
"I-I think he meant you," I said, trying desperately to find an open exit. Just to rub my insecurity in my face, Steiner quickly went and stood in front of the last exit, and so I quickly stood. "Well, come on."
The few from Burmecia snarled at me as I passed. I supposed that meant I was not forgiven. Kuja stuck his tongue out at them. Zidane scowled the Burmecia folk. "Can't you guys get over it?"
In response, all but two turned tail and left. Ah, let them. Stubborn rats.
I then recognized one of the remaining rats to be Freya. The other one must have been an awfully close friend. Freya laced her arm through the man's outstretched one, pulling her in for comfort. "It is… certainly not a pleasure, I must admit… erm, sir."
"Likewise."
Freya's companion let out a low murmur to her, one that I didn't quite catch. It must have been an unflattering comment, I supposed. Trying to ignore them and their skeptical looks, I turned to Zidane. "And what is it that you requested for, Zidane?"
He gave me a dark smile. "You're going to round up the kids and make sure they don't get into trouble. You might want to get Brahne first. She likes mud. And… well, most of the people here (except Quina, probably) would not enjoy mud being flung over their attire."
At this moment, I felt like an apathetic teenager who just wanted to go to his room, lock the door, and forget about everything for a while. Well… except for the teenager part, I did fit that description. I miserably scowled at him. Besides, wasn't I the older sibling? Shouldn't I be the one telling him to look after them? They were his children, after all. "Really?" I whined. "Isn't that supposed to be the obese knight's job?"
"Steiner? Heck no," Kuja replied for his father. "His idea of fun is to go outside and pick flowers for Beatrix."
The four of us stared at him in disbelief. He nodded, honestly telling the truth. "It's a little sickening, actually. Brahne plays in the dirt, Blank and Terra eventually sneak off and begin terrorizing the butlers, and I'm left picking daisies and listening to him rant on and on about how beautiful, strong, and perfect she is."
"So, you and Eiko will do the job?" Zidane hinted in a sing-song voice.
"YOU SORRY EXCUSE FOR A KING!"
In just an instant, an angry, hormonal summoner tackled into me. "NO, I WILL NOT WORK WITH THIS SADISTIC, NARCISSISTIC TERRORIST TO ALL OF GAIA! WHAT THE IN THE LIVING MOGNET MAKES YOU THINK I'M GOING THROUGH WITH THIS!?"
After her tirade for Zidane was over, she turned dagger eyes on to me. "AND YOU! DON'T YOU DARE ONCE THINK THAT I'LL LET YOU FOOL ME WITH THIS IDIOTIC FAÇADE THAT EVERYONE ELSE IS STUPIDLY BELIEVING! I KNOW YOU'RE A MONSTER, AND THAT'S ALL YOU'LL EVER BE!"
A tear dripped onto my cheek. "And you took everything away from me!" she cried, her voice shaky. "My family, my home, Mog, and now Zidane and Dagger? Don't you think you should leave and never show your hideous face again!? All of Gaia would benefit from you just dying again! And this time, don't have your baby sister conned into bringing your pathetic self back to life!"
Finally, she kneed up (HARD) and I blacked out.
So, did everyone enjoy that nice little chapter? If so, please review! Next chapter includes a new character that eventually will play a huge role in this crazy plot. (Anyone guess the importance of Young Kuja not becoming a mage? Guess right, and I'll send you virtual cookies.)
Anyway, see you next chapter!
~WiREP
