Freya smiled a little as she watched the show. She knew that the history and associations of "I Want To Be Your Canary" were somewhat painful for her old friends – especially Dagger, poor darling – but she still loved the story and the prose. She also couldn't help but be slightly amused by the way she could see the actors beneath the parts they played - Blank's good-hearted roughness under the mask of the treacherous friend, Ruby's sass and spunk behind Cornelia's royal dignity. Freya glanced up and back at Dagger – Queen Garnet til Alexandros XVII, in all her royal splendor, was smiling sadly, mouthing the lines along with the actors on stage. As the diplomatic envoy of Burmecia – well, what was left of it, at any rate – Freya saw much of the young queen, and the differences between the sparky young woman she'd called Dagger and the sad, calm queen she called Garnet made Freya's heart hurt. She sighed and turned her attention back to the stage; Marcus had just come back out on the stage for his soliloquy before the climax of the play. Freya frowned slightly – he wasn't supposed to be cloaked at this point in the plot. Next to her, Fratley scowled slightly and leaned over to whisper to her.
"Is it my imagination, or –"
_-_-_-_-
"– or did Marcus' voice just change?" Hilda murmured to her husband. Cid nodded, squinting a little as he studied the cloaked figure on the stage.
"Perhaps the other actor was injured," he mused under his breath. On Hilda's other side, Eiko frowned in thought. They were right, that wasn't the same actor, but the new guy's voice…she knew him, but from where? Eiko started to chew the inside of her lip as she stared at the man talking on stage. His head was bowed slightly, so that most of the audience wouldn't be able to see his face, but if Eiko leaned forward a little she could just see part of his face. Her jaw dropped in shock when the man looked up a little, and directly at her, and Eiko clapped her hands to her mouth to keep from screaming. She couldn't believe her eyes – they'd all been sure he'd died at the Iifa tree, they'd seen the thing collapse in on itself and on him, but Zidane smiled at her for half a second before continuing his monologue. Eiko had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out loud. She sat back, grinning like a maniac beneath her fingers, then looked back at Dagger, dressed up as the queen in her pretty chair and pretty dress and pretty crown.
"Happy birthday, Dagger," Eiko whispered into her hands. "Hope you like your present."
_-_-_-_-
"She told me that she could not live without me."
I guess I owe Marcus for this, really – the last part of the show is the best, it's his favorite, and here's me stealing it out from under him. Well, after the last two months of them insisting I stay at the hideout instead of coming back here, back to her, they owe me this. Makes us even, I guess – though I've gotta come up with some way to get back at Blank for the bars on the window. Son of a bitch knows me too well.
"Could she have betrayed me? Nay, never would my love speak false."
Marcus' soliloquy is one of the best things in this show. Avon really did good on this bit. I know that if I was dumb enough to look up at her, I'd see Dagger whispering the lines right along with me – she's cute like that. Don't want her knowing it's me just yet, though. Gotta save that for the end of the speech.
"I beseech thee, wondrous moonlight, grant me my only wish!""
Alright, here goes. I've been wanting to do this for way too long. Hands up to the sky, classic supplication-to-the-gods pose, crescendo up to the big line just like always – basic, really. Now, here comes the twist – grab the hem, great big flare with the cape that always impresses people, turn to face flush front –
"Bring my beloved Dagger to me!"
_-_-_-_-
She'll swear later that her heart skipped a beat at that line.
Dagger's first, instinctive response is to think that she's finally lost her mind and started seeing things. It's been months, there's no way…she saw the Iifa tree implode…but he's standing there, real as the stones of the castle and smiling up at her, and she can see Eiko jumping up and down on her seat…
Eiko can see him too? I'm not hallucinating?
She remembers nothing of the frantic run down through the castle, the crowd, up to the stage. Even as it happens, even as she runs (and curses her shoes) she isn't thinking, isn't registering anything except how much she wants to hold him, punch him, slap him silly for worrying her so much and kiss him till he can't see straight for finally coming back. Zidane jumps down from the stage and she jumps up into his arms, her dress flaring behind her like some sort of wings. Zidane laughs happily and sets her down on her feet. He pulls back a little, just enough to look her in the eyes, and he's smiling even wider now that he's pulled off that insane little stunt.
"Miss me?"is all he says. She barely chokes back a sob as she presses her cheek against his shoulder, and a second later starts hitting him.
"Where have you been? I was so worried about you!"
"Hey, hey, the boys locked me up, said I owed them one more show." He lays one hand on her hair and pulls her close. Otherwise I would have been back here as soon as I got out of that hole in the ground. I missed you…" he murmurs, running his fingers through her hair. Dagger giggles a little – the crowd is cheering wildly, and she can see Eiko still jumping up and down and clapping.
"Well, you can't ask for a much more dramatic ending, can you?" she laughs. Zidane pulls back just a little, and smiles at her.
"No, not an ending, Dagger," he says softly as he leans in to kiss her. "More like 'beginning'."