Chrono Trigger

We're back: We delve further into Glenn's history and follow Crono, Marle, and Lucca as they begin their trek back home.

He could not get used to being inside these walls. He rubbed his gloved hands together nervously as he walked through the long corridors, reliving the many times he had walked these same hallways. Most of them were joyous memories and there were only a few moments of a negative nature, but now he was no longer able to remember such good times with a clean conscious. In the back of his mind he saw one large part of his picture that was missing and it tore him apart.

There were oil lamps that gave a steady light on this floor, casting no shadows to play games with the mind. He felt his boots rub against the royal red carpet as he inspected each and every portrait that hung over the wall. This had always been his most favorite area in the castle because of the various paintings and portraits that were displayed here. Frog; or Glenn if you would prefer; always had a fascination with art and often wished that he had pursued it in earlier years. His soul had much delight in it; therefore it would be exceedingly fine if he could produce it as well. Nonetheless, he wished to be a knight more than anything else.

However, being a knight had left him nothing but regret and shame.

Oh how he wished he could turn back time while he looked upon those priceless works of art! His gloved hands floated in front of him as they caressed the smooth paint strokes of a particular portrait that was very dear to him. He dare not remove his gloves, knowing full well that a reminder of his unpleasant history lay directly under its leathery exterior. Instead, he only gazed at the picture of a handsome young man adorned in armor with bright paints that gleamed even in the dim lamplight. As he looked at it, he felt his eyes sting and he could not bear to look at it any longer. At that moment he had changed his mind about his sleeping arrangements and he aimed to change them, despite the wishes of the queen, whatever they may be. He had concluded that he did not belong here.

-

At that moment, the queen and king had left the room to allow the three visitors to converse, which was a fortunate thing because certain things they were to discuss would confuse the royal pair greatly. Although they acknowledged her recent distress and the fact that she was hungry, the two felt that a great discussion should be shared over such irregular events and that dinner would have to wait. Of course, the disappearance of that unfortunate girl was the first to come about and the conversation carried on as thus:

"What happened? Why did I disappear?"

At that point (and after Lucca let loose a long sigh of annoyance for having repeated the same thing so often) she recounted the entire story about the accident at the fair that seemed to have happened months ago. She spoke of their travels and even went as far to confide in her that they had traveled through the very fabric of time itself. To their surprise, she did not find them crazy or laugh, but nodded her head as if it were the most sensible thing in the world. It was the exact opposite reaction that they had waited for, and its effect was so poignant that Crono and Lucca could not help but restate it very clearly, to which she agreed without as much as a bewildered look of skepticism.

"Did you just hear what she had said, Marle? We have traveled through time. Does that seem odd to you?" Crono asked, dumbfounded by her simple faith.

At that point she simply looked around the castle as if she were thinking about what to say next. Instead, she was quiet a few moments as she let her fingers roll over the smooth desk that sat against a wall. It almost seemed as she soaked up all that surrounded her in an effort to explain how she could easily believe something as incredulous as time travel. After trying a few times vainly, she merely blurted out, "I noticed since I have come to this place. Did you two feel something that seemed like familiarity? I felt it when I came to this castle."

"That's because you are Princess Nadia, are you not?"

She recoiled as if she were pierced by a bullet. That made Lucca smile a bit as her calm demeanor began to fade and give into one that denoted embarrassment and guilt. She looked at Crono who nodded and she realized that he had known beforehand and it seemed to make the poor girl panic. She stammered as she had done sooner, looking for a way to explain herself, but her explanation would sound so unconvincing that she was afraid to share it. Although she was the princess of a kingdom, her heart was simple and she did worry about how people perceived her; especially those to whom she was slightly attracted.

"I'm so sorry I didn't tell you both. I just wanted to be a regular person for one day, not having to worry about people judging me for who I am."

"What makes you think I would have judged you?" Said Crono, a little indignantly.

"I didn't mean to be unfair, but please try to understand. People act different around me, just because of who I am."

"You obviously don't know Crono then." Lucca stated rather harshly.

Marle returned with a shaky retort, "If I had told him what I was, he wouldn't have escorted me! He would've acted differently! Isn't that right, Crono?"

It was very true that Crono would never treat anyone differently. In fact, he would be the first to extend a hearty welcome. Once there was a mystic who had traveled through the streets of Guardia and he was rewarded with taunts and boos just as it had been described earlier. Even though the feelings of anger were very strong and taught amongst poor, innocent children, it was lost on Crono who had never been taught to disrespect another being merely because of its status in life. That same mystic was lost and was despairingly hungry, but not a single store would serve him. Crono, being the kind soul that he was, helped him find his way through the town, although it earned him a few hard, cold stares. He also went as far to buy lunch for the mystic in exchange of future favors if they were ever to meet again. That should stand as a testament of his integrity.

Nevertheless, this being a great example of his ability to accept others, it was not shared amongst them. His gesture of a pair of folded arms and a head that shook in the negative would suffice. That woman could not be any happier at such an instinctual answer and she had a look of admiration grace her blushing face. "You are a true gentleman, Crono!" At that point they began to explain how their arrival in the past had changed the future, the king and his men mistaking Marle for the queen, and everything in between. They then proceeded to explain how they had saved her which inspired several different emotions in her at once: fear, enjoyment, nervousness, happiness, and even contemplativeness. It slightly amused the two to see her go through so many varying emotions in such a short time and it made telling the story enjoyable.

Near the end of the story they had began to converse while walking through the halls, wondering if all was well in the future or if it had been altered further than it had been because of their escapades. At that moment they disregarded it, realizing that their stomachs begged for sustenance, which was a commandment they were more than willing to fulfill.

-

"I am afraid that mine conscious cannot endure this place." Frog said, as he knelt low to the ground.

He was in the throne room which was easily one of the most glorious parts of the castle. The floors were polished to a brilliant sheen, and each wall was flanked with gorgeous paintings or banners that held the crest of Guardia. In the center of the back wall were the thrones themselves which were adorned with the finest fabrics that were available as were the king and queen that had occupied them. However, the look on their faces betrayed the glorious robes they wore. Their faces were that of someone who had been discouraged, having expected such great things only to have them crumble to the dust.

"Glenn, we ask that you join us for dinner. You are like family to us and we would appreciate your presence." The king said solemnly.

"I cannot. I do not deserve to break bread with thee. It is because of my former sins that the queen faced peril." The warrior pounded his own chest accusingly.

"Do you not see? If you were to return, then such a thing shall never occur! Join us!" The queen said pleadingly.

Frog no longer replied with the quiet dignity that he had held for so long, but spoke as if he were frustrated with such persistence. He clenched his jaw as well as his fists while he tried his hardest to show his respect, yet communicate to his masters that such a thing was far too much a requirement for him to accept. "I cannot eat bread at the table of my friend whom I have left to perish! My soul forbids it! I cannot and I will not! I cannot return to the palace to which my friend had protected so vigilantly! I had hoped that you would understand mine wishes, but I see that thou wish more of me, but thou dost fail to realize that I am unworthy! Please! Do not ask me to take the place of my friend whom I shall never adequately replace! I will not bare it, even for thy sake!"

"Glenn, we only wish for you to be with us. When can you return? When will you realize that you had honor all this time?" The queen said imploringly.

At that moment the conversation had come to an abrupt end as they realized new arrivals. They did not realize it at that moment, but they had been there since the start of their conversation. However, they were certain that they had understood that their comrade was leaving the castle since Crono asked him softly, "So soon? We never got the chance to talk with each other yet. I was hoping that I could find out more about the man that saved my life."

Frog smiled, "Ah, Crono. Thou hast the makings of a great swordsman and a kind soul. The world would be a better place if more were like unto thee. I do wish to exchange pleasantries, but such things that thou cannot comprehend prevent me from doing so. Please try to understand, and hope that we may see each other again in the future."

"Are you really leaving? We just met you!" Lucca added with a tone of depression.

Frog smiled brightly as he realized that he had finally struck a cord with Lucca and he said, "I am sure that we shall meet again someday."

At that point he approached Marle who stood rooted to her spot in stunned silence. Crono elbowed her as if he were trying his hardest to correct a bad habit, yet it did little as she finally closed her mouth, but instinctively cringed as the frog-like creature leaned closer to her, observing her very countenance and comparing it to the queen's. After a few moments he had stepped away and nodded whilst saying, "Truly, your resemblance to the queen is uncanny! What is your name, madam?"

"M-Marle." She began nervously.

"Aye, perhaps we may meet again. Until then, please assist my dear friends, would ye?"

Before she could gather the nerves or relax her muscles so that she could nod, he began to walk towards the doors, the guards reluctantly opening them, allowing their cherished guest and friend to leave the castle. As he left, Lucca looked after him and said with a melancholy smile, "Froggy, you weren't such a bad guy after all."

-

Obviously it was a quiet dinner which the king had hoped would not happen. He was slightly embarrassed that his guests had seen such a dramatic event unfold during a supposedly glorious event. However, the dinner was not without its pleasantries, but not as much as it could have been if Glenn were among them. It had carried on decently enough, but eventually the conversation would have to turn to the rescue which would eventually turn into a conversation about Glenn. At this thought, the king did not feel like hosting a dinner at that moment, but still wished to express his gratitude.

Meanwhile, the three were eating as fast as their mouths and hands could move, almost to the point where the queen was constantly afraid that one among them would suffocate. It was a marvelous spread that included almost everything that they could imagine: pies, cakes, fresh fish, roasted pork, beef, jelly, bread, fruits of all kinds, and even a dish which Marle had requested. However, this dish was untouched since the chef did not completely understand her request. In her time there was a dish that was known as "ice cream", a delectable treat that was very much like smooth ice that was as sweet as sugar. However, the chef heard in his mind, "Eyes Cream", and needless to say, the results of his experiment were less than stellar.

Among the three of them, only one had the opportunity to feast in such a way (every night as a matter of fact) since she was a princess in her own kingdom. The other two would take as much as they could, not certain if they would ever experience such a delicious feast once again. After clearing their plates they would rest, Crono rubbing his stomach in satisfaction, Lucca licking her lips, and Marle cleaning her fingers.

Of course, while they feasted, they spoke on the events that had overcome them and the topic of conversation did eventually fall on Frog. Crono was an honest individual, yet he was still tactful in his approach to something that seemed very sensitive, so he started out with some seemingly harmless questions: namely how Glenn had approached his identity.

"Your majesty? When we helped those nuns in the dungeon, they called him Glenn instead of Frog, which he told us, was his name."

"He never told you that was his real name, I would imagine." The king began.

Crono thought for a moment and the king could see the mood of his eyes change in the flicker of a light as he realized that Frog had never told them that it was his true name. In fact, he said that Frog would do for that moment as if it really weren't his name in the first place. However, that led to another question which was slightly more dangerous. "Well, why would he give us a fake name instead of a real name?" Lucca began.

"It is because he is ashamed." Said the king quietly.

"What do you mean?" Asked Crono.

The king cleared his throat, "'Tis a personal matter, my friend. Although I wish to tell you, I feel that I am bound by my friendship towards Glenn to respect that boundary. I hope you understand."

"I suppose I do." Crono began.

The king had expected Crono to dig a little deeper than he had. The king squirmed in his chair, but he realized that something within wanted to discuss the behavior of his friend with someone who had known him a different circumstance. Instead of addressing it blatantly, he used a different way to express his eagerness to discuss the basic part of the whole history. "However, what I will tell you is that we had a knight here that was by far the second most talented swordsman I have ever seen. Only Glenn could surpass him, yet his loyalty, assuredness, and clear mind have set him above him as a leader among others. I do not mean disrespect towards Glenn, but if you have noticed, his lacks the confidence and calmness that is required of a knight such as Cyrus."

"Is that his friend?" Crono asked, very intrigued with the story.

"Yes, but the title 'friend' does not do it justice. They were brothers and acted accordingly."

"Then what happened?"

This was the awkward part which the king wished that he did not have to address. From this point on, the queen, patting the king's hand in a knowing manner, took over the rest of the story. "Nobody knows for certain. It was said that the two had met with a mystic general and that Cyrus was killed in the battle. Glenn used to be such a handsome man; strong and kind. However, when he came home, he looked like that. He never did tell us exactly what had happened, but we figured out this much: he was cursed. It took many years, but he had grown to accept his cruel fate, but he has done it in the worst way, I fear."

Marle began to feel a pang of guilt for staring at Frog earlier, so she meant to make it up to him in some meager way by asking, "What happened? Can we help?"

The queen smiled sadly and shook her head. A general mood of depression engulfed the table as they all stared down at their plates. "You see, despite his appearance, the whole entire court loves him for his kindness and chivalry. However, he refuses to forgive himself for what has happened. He blames himself for the death of his friend. He claims that he was too weak to prevent it. I say that only god himself could prevent such a thing. That horrible event had happened over eight years ago and there is not a day that goes by that he does not suffer for it. However, I am confident that he shall return to us permanently someday. He will come back to those that love him when he realizes that we still do."

"I hope so." Marle chimed in.

"I never realized how hard he must have had it." Lucca said forlornly.

There was a moment of silence, but it was broken by the king's voice who announced that it would be best if they retired for the night. They replied in the affirmative, saying that they must depart in the morning. They made a move to remove the plates from the table, but realized that servants would attend to it once they had all left the table. An escort led them towards the east wing and away from the dining room. They were more than happy to turn in for the night.

After the trio had shuffled off to their beds, the king and queen smiled at each other in toying manner.

"Shall we retire to the boudoir?" The king said overtly smoothly.

"Yes, we shall." The queen said giggling as he kissed her hand. "We shall celebrate our child."

The king froze and looked deeply into his wife's eyes as if he had missed something. Suddenly, he began to smile excitedly as the reality had struck him. "You are with child? When was this?"

"A week ago. Why do you think I went to offer a prayer of thanks at the cathedral?"

"When shall we announce it? How?"

"Tomorrow. Tonight belongs to us; the kingdom can join in the celebration tomorrow."

Without another word, the joyous husband swept his wife into his arms and he carried her towards their room.

-

The morning had come quickly. During the night the rain had stopped and the world had become dry once again, except the occasional puddle that lay on the ground. The citizens of that quiet town were currently unaware of such great happenings that would be written in the pages of history. However, they would soon realize that the queen was pregnant with child, thus carrying on the next heir to the throne, ensuring the survival of the kingdom. Meanwhile, the trio had known of everything in advance and was happy that it remained so due to their efforts.

A sense of sadness came over them as they realized that they would leave, most likely never to return. They waved a farewell to the kind people of the castle, making their way towards the great mountain range towards the north. There was nothing but a sunny sky that morning and it would ensure an easy journey. Crono was still struck dumb with amazement from his knighting. Lucca did not share the same emotions that he did, but nonetheless understood his thoughts and feelings at such an honor. However, she would be slightly irritated whenever he would constantly prod her with orders that she should become more lady-like to suit a title as impressive as a dame. This would earn him a solid punch in the arm.

Within no time at all, since Lucca knew the way so well, they stood at the base of the mountain. "Now all we need to do is find a river!" Crono said.

"What do you mean?" Marle asked.

"The path I took was a river bed that leads up towards the peak. If we take it we can find our way back towards that portal. It might take a day."

"Or how about we take the path instead?" Lucca said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

"What do you mean?" There's no path!" Crono began with a little uncertainty in his voice.

"Yes there is! The portal is just a small ways from it. Are you telling us that you wandered around in the woods, getting lost when there was a path that entire time?" Marle asked, half-laughing, unsure that he was being honest or merely joking.

Crono said nothing but dug his hands into his pockets and began to sulk. There were howls of laughter that exploded from Lucca and Marle who began to hold their stomachs with their hands as the bent over from the explosion in their lungs. They ruffled his hair, giving him gentle pushes while he began to feel less and less guilty about killing that monster in the beginning of his journey.

Sure enough, there was a trail and it was far more convenient then the path that Crono had passed when he was chased by monsters. While it took Crono half a day to find his way on his first journey, it took no more then an hour for the party to reach the turnoff where the portal floated in the air. By the time they had reached the portal, any remorse that Crono felt for the animal was gone. He saw that the damned thing had caused more inconvenience than he realized.

The moment that they had eagerly waited for had arrived. Before them was a strange contortion that was suspended in midair. At first glance, it merely seemed like heat that rose from the ground in the distance, but flecks of blue light would fly from the odd circle at irregular intervals. As they witnessed this strange miracle many things popped into their minds: one being how they could return.

"Why isn't it opening?" Asked Marle.

"I want you to remember what had happened during the Millennial fair! What caused the machine to go haywire?" Lucca asked with all the flair of a teacher who was teaching a bunch of students.

"It was the pendent." Crono said.

"Whoa! Not bad, Crono. Very observant. I figured that if you were this observant, you would've spotted the trail a while back."

"Shut up."

This earned a fit of giggles from both women while Crono smirked in the face of misfortune. "Anyway, how do we get back?"

"We can return by using this!"

At that moment, Lucca pulled an odd device from her pocket that seemed more like a wand than a device to return them to their time. However, they were stunned as she waved the contraption in front of the portal, causing it to surge in a crackling fit of electricity. In the blink of an eye, the portal had opened so that it was the size of a large, rounded door. Needless to say, the two spectators gawked in amazement.

"Lucca! You are a genius!" Marle exclaimed.

"Yes. I know!" Lucca said, laughing with the inanity of a mad scientist.

"How does it work?" Crono asked.

At this point, Lucca looked down to the ground and shuffled her feet, "To be honest, I don't know."

"What?" Asked Marle.

"All I know is that UGEE and this pendant combined have the ability to control this gate."

"So much for the amazing brilliance of Lucca." Crono replied with a smile.

"At least I didn't miss the trial." She said, wagging her tongue at Crono. "Besides, I was able to combine the properties of the pendant with the UGEE."

"So what are we waiting for?" Marle shouted excitedly, "Let's go home!"

"Okay, but just to let you know, it seems like the gate can fluctuate slightly. For example, I arrived a week before Crono, even though he proceeded me."

"Who cares? Let's just go!" Crono said, pumping his fist in the air.

Without a further comment, the group stepped into the portal and their vision of the world had become distorted as it had before. Slowly but surely, the world faded from view and it felt as if their bodies were flying through the air or cascading down some waterfall. After a few moments an odd world came into their view. It was almost as if they had woken up from a deep sleep with the way the world came into focus. They were in a room with books strewn all about the floor. It was a quaint place, although that was yet to be seen without the odd visual distortion. Suddenly, they felt their bodies fly forward as if they were launched from some chair that they could not feel, and they tumbled to the ground.

They were home.

Author's Note: I hoped that some of you like my explanations concerning the Queen going to the cathedral, how the people view Frog, etc. I would like to give Kit Thespian another thank-you for her diligence in writing her critiques. Also, I would like to direct you to her work, "Up a Tree house" which had I had began to read quite avidly. It's a very charming story. Also, I did not know that women are referred to dames after knighting. Do they call it that when it happens to a woman? And to reply to Caldora's kind words: I use Thesaurus along with Spellchecker a lot-P I know. I'm a cheater.

Disclaimer: I do not own Chrono Trigger. I did not make any profit on this fanfic.

-PJ