Date: late 8-29/early 8-30
Author's Notes: WOOT! My first new story in a while. I'm sick of everyone writing angsty Vivi fics, and I'm sick of everyone saying all the Black Mages died. Hasn't poor Vivi had enough trauma in his life?! C'mon! Anyway, my theory is: Kuja is a big, fat liar. I say there is a cure, and here's a fluffy, short, HAPPY story about it.
P.S. No flaming. It's rude. Shut up about the ending.
P.P.S. And please, please, PLEASE, read "Being," my serious fic. It's about three black mages who wake up, and what they do after that. I really want feedback on it, but nobobdy's given me a review for the last two chapters. Please, if you like this, read my serious (but not angsty) story, "Being."
Vivi stood at the bottom of a ladder, looking up at his best friend, Mr. 314, above him, and wondering how the other mage could ever be so brave.
"Please hand me a hammer," said Mr. 314.
Vivi picked up the hammer and climbed up the first two rungs of the ladder, as far as he could go without getting scared. Stretching his arms, Mr. 314 took the hammer and returned to repairing the roof.
Vivi climbed back down and sat on the first rung, reflecting on the happy shouts and construction sounds around him. Faced with the prospect of stopping, most of the mages had tried to remain cheerful and live out their days as best they could, but a general feeling of despair and hopelessness had nonetheless pervaded the village, and had been reflected in its ramshackle, decaying structures. But now, in the weeks and months after the Cure, a change had taken over, and as everyone started to realize that their homes and stores would still be in use for much longer than anticipated, repairs had been begun.
Right now, Mr. 314 was repairing the roof. It had several small holes that leaked when it rained heavily, and was liable to gain more. Vivi watched as his friend worked, replacing shingles and hay while humming a tuneless melody.
Vivi wanted to offer to help, but knew his offer would be rejected. Ever since the Cure, everyone had started treating Vivi like a king. They brought him food, did chores for him, gave him things for free... Some of them had even started calling him "Sir Vivi", which embarrassed the young mage. Even Mr. 314, Vivi's closest friend, had been giving Vivi special treatment, refusing to let him do all but the simplest tasks around the house they shared.
Such as holding the ladder and handing up tools. In this case, Vivi's fear of heights prevented him from helping, but he still wished there were something he could do.
He stood up. "I'm going to go see how everyone else is doing," he said.
But before he could take a step, Mr. 314 shouted, "No! Stop!"
Vivi had no choice but to obey. In his alarm, Mr. 314 had inadvertently turned his request into a spell.
Realizing what he had done, Mr. 314 quickly scrambled down the ladder and removed the spell. "I'm sorry," he said.
"It's okay," said Vivi, "but why do you want me to stay here so badly?"
Mr. 314 seemed to flounder for a moment. "It's just… I need you to help me with the tools."
"But… but that's hardly anything!" sputtered Vivi.
"I know," said Mr. 314, "but it makes the work go so much faster."
Vivi sighed. "Can I at least start dinner?" he asked.
"Oh, no, no!" said Mr. 314, shaking his head vigorously. "Umm… I forgot to tell you. Mr. 286 invited us to dinner."
"Oh," said Vivi. Mr. 314, apparently convinced he had talked Vivi out of leaving, climbed back up the ladder, and Vivi sat back down on the bottom rung. Resting his head on one hand, he began to doodle shapes in the dirt. It was really very nice of everyone to be so grateful, especially since the Genomes had done all the work, but they didn't realize how horribly boring it was to have nothing to do.
It was now just after sunset, and Mr. 314 was still working. Vivi lay on the ground in front of the ladder, staring at the clouds and watching Mr. 314 out of the corner of his eye. Funny, it seemed all he was doing now was moving hay around…
Suddenly, and for no reason Vivi could discern, Mr. 314 half-jumped, half-climbed down the ladder, barely giving Vivi time to move out of the way. "Okay! Time to go!" he said, sounding somewhat anxious.
"What?" Vivi asked as he stood up and brushed himself off. The nearest clock was inside the house. Unless there was a gaping hole in the roof, there was no way Mr. 314 could know what time it is.
Mr. 314 seemed to realize what Vivi was thinking. "Vivi, please, just trust me," he said, definitely looking nervous now.
Somehow, Mr. 314's request made Vivi more nervous, but he still nodded. After all, this was his best friend. "Okay."
Mr. 314 looked relieved. "Let's go then," he said, and began walking.
Vivi walked behind him. "Um… Mr. 286's house is in the opposite direction," he said.
"Did I say 286? I meant 276."
Vivi remained silent. Something was definitely going on. Still, he followed Mr. 314 as they strayed away from Mr. 276's house and toward the center of town. Suddenly, with one building between them and the village square, Mr. 314 stopped, looked back at Vivi, and smiled warmly. Then he walked around the building. Vivi, more confused than ever, followed.
And there, in the middle of town, were two enormous banquet tables laden with food, with every single Black Mage in town sitting around them.
Vivi gasped and blinked in surprise, as all of the other mages stood up and began clapping and cheering. Still smiling, Mr. 314 led Vivi over to a raised, throne-like chair at the farthest table and motioned for him to sit down. Vivi sat, and the cheers grew louder.
At the opposite side of the table from Vivi, Mr. 288 stood up and motioned for silence, which the other mages quickly complied with. He cleared his throat and began to speak.
"Dear brothers, we are gathered here today to honor Sir Vivi Ornitier, Knight of Alexandria, Defender of Gaia, and, most recently, savior of the Black Mages!" There was another round of cheering, and Mr. 288 waited for it to stop. "Mr. Vivi- and I know you do not like being called 'mister', but I feel I must show my respect to you- Mr. Vivi, you have done what we once thought impossible: You found a way to stop the process that threatened to take us all at so young an age. Thanks to you, we no longer need fear an early, senseless death, but we may look forward to long, healthy, happy lives." There was more applause as Mr. 288 sat down, but this time the applause didn't stop; it welled up into a cacophony of happy cheers, and it didn't end until one person began, and others joined in, chanting, "Speech! Speech!"
Vivi gulped. He didn't like public speaking. Taking a deep breath, he stood, and the crowd immediately calmed down.
Vivi cleared his throat. "Um… First, I'd like to thank you all for all of this. Not just the banquet, but all the other things you've done for me. But… Um…" Feeling his voice start to crack, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath before continuing. "Um… The thing is… I don't think I should be the one getting it."
A small murmur ran through the crowd.
Vivi continued. "I mean, I really didn't do that much. The Genomes are the ones who actually came up with the serum. I just donated some cells for them to study. And Mr. 314-" he looked at his friend, sitting next to him, who seemed utterly surprised to be mentioned- "It was Mr. 314 who tested it out, without knowing if it would work or not, or even if it would hurt him."
There was silence now. Vivi could feel himself beginning to sweat, with dozens of glowing eyes staring at him intently.
"Um.. Like I said, I'm really grateful, but, well, I didn't really do anything."
"But it came from you!" said someone in the group. "You were the only one of us who didn't have the genes that made them stop!" Others murmured their assent.
"Yeah… " replied Vivi. "But I didn't do anything to get that. You'd have to thank ku-" he stopped short of saying Kuja. "You shouldn't thank me for something I couldn't help."
Once again, silence, only this time, even more uncomfortable. Then someone stood up. "I think I understand," he said. "You didn't do anything but supply the genes. It was others who did the work to make a treatment for our problem."
"Yes!" Vivi said, relieved someone understood.
More silence.
Mr. 288 stood up again. "I have a suggestion. With your permission, Mr. Vivi, let's change the dedication of this banquet to all of the brave, hard-working people who have made our continuing existence possible."
"I agree!" said Vivi. Another cheer came up from the crowd.
"Then let supper begin!" proclaimed Mr. 288.
One final, small cheer was sent up, then died down to quiet conversations. Vivi, relieved to be out of the spotlight, slumped down into his seat.
Mr. 314 looked at him with admiration. "That was a great thing you did."
"No, that was a great thing you did," said Vivi, and smiled. It sounded like something Zidane would say.