Author's Notes:I didn't mean to start a new story, especially not since I have a monster titled Battle Born taking over my life, but here we are! I recently, and by that I mean a few month's ago now, got Final Fantasy IX for my PS4. I grew up playing it on my PS2, and I still have my original copy that I will never part with, but I got inspired while replaying the game. Zidane is my favorite character right after Vivi, and Zidane and Garnet are my OTP from the game, so I couldn't resist trying my hand at some good ol' story time with the heroes! I have no idea how long this is going to be, but I'm going to safely assume that it'll be like that FFXV story I wrote-three chapters and pretty short. Only time will tell where this story goes from here, so I hope y'all enjoy the ride!
The title is a song from the NieR: Automata soundtrack. I thought it fit pretty well with the tone I wanted.
Chapter 1
Slamming the empty glass down on the table, Zidane grumbled under his breath as his tail swished behind him in agitation.
He should have known better. He shouldn't have been so damn stupid. He was a hoodlum, a thief, so who in their right mind would ever think a queen would fall for the likes of him?
Shaking his head, the blond rose from the table and meandered out of the tavern, hands shoved into the pockets of his blue trousers. He wandered the streets of Alexandria with no destination in mind, but as he walked, he realized where his footsteps were taking him—the castle.
Of course. Even his heart knew what the right choice here was. He had to see her. He couldn't chicken out, not now, not after everything they'd been through. For god's sake, he'd leapt off the tallest point of the castle to save her, knowing that if he hadn't had such impeccable timing and quick reflexes, the woman he loved would've died. He'd traversed foreign continents for her. He'd gone up against monsters worse than any nightmare for her. And in the end, he'd fallen for her as more than just a pretty face and the next fling, like was so often the case for him.
Stopping just before the moat that surrounded Alexandria castle, Zidane released a long sigh, eyes darting to the clear surface of the water. The reflection of the castle quivered on the surface, a mocking sight if he'd ever seen one, but he had made up his mind.
He couldn't stay here.
Since his return, something didn't quite feel right. He had wanted for nothing more than to see her again, to show her that he was alive and safe and here for her, but he couldn't bring himself to do it no matter how often he stood at the water's edge and stared at the one place he knew he would never belong.
The gondolier always asked if he wanted a ride, but the answer was the same each time—no.
Today was no different as the blonde woman, one of the castle guards, steering the boat pulled it into place, staring at the tailed man with expectant eyes shining just under the bill of her helmet.
He shook his head and she nodded, maintaining her position as she waited for someone else to need a ride.
Another castle guard walked up not even a minute later, followed by a Knight of Pluto, and clambered into the boat without so much as a side glance at Zidane. Not that the tailed young man was complaining. He was worried one of the guards would notice him anyway, so being ignored was a blessing.
"Hey, Barbara, Weimar." The gondolier smiled, nodding at her passengers as she addressed them.
The female guard waved, returning a smile of her own. "Hey, Cindy."
The knight simply nodded politely.
"How're you guys doing?"
The couple shrugged in unison, but Barbara was the one to answer. "Same old, really. Just getting back from lunch break."
Cindy sighed heavily, the oar in her hands slacking as her shoulders slumped. "I wish I could go on lunch break. I haven't eaten anything all day."
"Didn't you eat breakfast?" Weimar frowned at her.
She shook her head, blonde hair falling over one shoulder from the action and her slouched posture. "I woke up late and didn't have time."
Barbara offered a sound of sympathy, a soft hum, as she frowned at her fellow guard. "If I had known, I coulda bought something from town for you."
Cindy straightened her back and pushed her hair back over her shoulder, using the oar to finally start pushing the boat from the stone dock. "It's okay."
Zidane almost envied them. The simple conversation and simple problems for people who held normal lives, for people who didn't have to deal with the turmoil he had found himself trapped in. To say he was a different man after the events he'd endured would be an understatement, for sure, and the idea of having a normal life was nothing but a delusion to try and make himself feel better.
The blond turned away then, meandering off and leaving the castle, and the useless chatter, behind him. He had a destination in mind now, a place where he could take his mind off his troubles and put the past behind him, or at least mull over his thoughts by getting hammered and playing cards.
Garnet was better off without him. It'd been a year since they'd last saw one another, so he was sure that in that time span she had moved on. Perhaps she had even found someone else. He wasn't anything special anyway, just a monkey, a lady's man and a skirt chaser, a ne'er-do-well who had nothing going for him, nothing to offer, especially not to a queen.
He could always return to Tantalus, his home before he knew where his real home was, but he didn't feel the need to return there right away. Something about being alone, being left to one's own devices, was comforting in a sad way, so he sought refuge elsewhere.
Refuge in a city that never slept, that no matter the amount of people who flooded the streets during the perpetual night, one could always count on feeling truly alone in a crowd.
To Treno it is.
