The Secret Garden

Based on: Final Fantasy Record Keeper

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy. The OCs featured in this fic belong to various friends. Note that while the characters belong to friends, I am the one writing the fic itself. Thank you to my friends for allowing me to borrow your characters. If you wish to appear, please send me a message and we can work something out.

Notes: This is the sequel to Records of Keeper Canti. It's wibby-wobbly, timey-whimy in its execution. I care not. If you care, shut the fuck up and go away. If you don't like it, don't read it.

Warnings: Cursing, potential OOC, OC x Canon, stupid fluffy romance, sex, angst, self-insert author avatar

FIC START!

Chapter Twelve

Reform

After walking home from school with Crystal, completely unable to find the time to talk with Minwu about the nightmare she had the night before, and exhausted from all the repeated work in both physical and magical areas, Canti didn't want to do anything. At all. She put her shoes in the closet, she hung up her uniform, put away her spear and her satchel, and once she was in casual clothes, she hit her bed with all the force her ten year old body could muster. Her eyes were half open, her body drained in every possible way she could imagine.

The front door opened and closed again about an hour later, with Cid coming in. "Hey, you home, sweetheart?" he called, but she didn't answer. She figured he would come looking for her to check on her anyway, so there was no need to bother. Cid eventually did wander over to her door, finding her sprawled out on her bed. "…uh oh. Did something happen at school today?"

"...everything at school happened today," Canti replied, shoving her face into a pillow.

"You wanna talk about it?" Cid asked. "I'll get supper started. You want some stuffed bell peppers? I picked up some nice peppers in the market on my home."

"Okay, Papa…" she said as she sat back up, going over to the tiny dining table.

Cid sighed, heading over to the kitchenette that made up one corner of their living room. He pulled out one big pot and a pan, kicking the heat up. He seemed fully ready to get it all going, humming as he went along. "So. Tell me all about your day."

"Combat Basics was all about doing repeated movements with our weapons. Over and over again, we did the same motions," she said. "My shoulders hurt!"

"Yeah," Cid said as he was chopping up veggies on a cutting board. "When I first started, I had that for a while. I had to keep going, though, until eventually those muscles were so worked that I didn't feel a single thing. Now, my lance feels like a natural extension of my body. Takes years of practice, but if you want to master a weapon, you have to do it."

Canti looked up at the Venus Gospel on display on the nearby wall. "Papa Cid, how did you get yours anyway?"

"What do you mean?"

"I have a school issued spear, but yours has a name and… it's even kinda shiny," she said as she stared up at it. "It's kinda like the Stardust Rod my classmate Minwu carries around. Has that same… shininess."

"Oh, weapons give off that kind of a kind of mystical energy when they are in the hands of the one they truly belong to," Cid explained. "There are many lances and spears out there, but there is only one that is made specifically just for me." He put hamburger meat into the frying pan, which made loud sizzling noises. "Don't worry. You'll find one that's meant just for you. And when you find it, it will shimmer… just like that one does for me."

"...a shimmering weapon…" she whispered. For a few seconds, she couldn't take her mind off of the spear up on the wall. She wondered what it would be like if she had her own weapon that seemed to bond just with her just like her Papa. What would it look like? What would it feel like? What would it's name be? Papa Cid had the Venus Gospel, and Minwu had the Stardust Rod. Those names seemed to be so special, so unique. Just as unique as the people who used them. She wondered if she was unique enough to have her own unique weapon, too.

"But that's not the only thing that happened today, now is it? There's more than that on your mind," Cid said, stirring his chopped veggies into the meat. He sprinkled in some spices and then looked over at her. "That can't be all."

"Papa Cid, did you have magic classes, too?" Canti asked.

"Can't say so, no. I only know very basic first aid magic simply because I have to, since I have you," Cid answered. He tossed the frying pan around over the burner, getting all of the meat and veggies evenly exposed to the heat. "Didn't take any formal classes for that."

"...well, I almost fainted. I was so dizzy!"

"Of course. Magic draws from inside you, from the power within. And since you have an exceptionally strong spirit, you've been assigned to study white magic," he said. His peppers were done boiling and ready to stuff. "Did you cast your first spell?"

"Not even. Instructor Ifreet has us working on spell transcriptions… one boy fainted while doing the assignment. I was dizzy, but only after I wrote the spell symbols ten times," Canti said, laying her head on the table. "I tried to get up to turn it in, but I couldn't move until my head stayed still…" she let out a long sigh. She remembered from what was said that this is was going to be the assignment for a while. Every day, until their minds grew strong enough to actually handle the magic. "…it made me wonder if I even want to study magic!"

Cid began stuffing the peppers and prepping them for putting them into the oven. "You have to study magic," he said quietly. "You have to take the courses the tests determine are right for you."

"What?" Canti asked. "We don't get a choice?!"

"No, we don't," he continued. His tone was practically emotionless as he said it. "Truth is, no one talks about it, but all us adults know. They test us… and then they put us where our abilities are suited. It would be a waste of potential if we study the things we aren't the best at."

She shook her head. "But that's not fair!"

"Baby girl, this is why it's not discussed in front of children," Cid said. He put the four peppers, stuffed with meat and veggies into the oven and set the timer before going to sit with her. "You… you can't tell anyone that you know."

"But what if Minwu doesn't want to be a white mage? What if Crystal wants to learn magic? What if someone who can sing doesn't think it's all that important to learn how?!" Canti cried, slamming her hands on the table. "Why?!"

"Because they might do something to you," he whispered. "I only told you because I know you'd be smart enough to figure it out on your own. I know you are. You're special, you just don't know how to handle it, so you come across as a difficult child… but I see it. And they know it, too." He saw her eyes water, and opened his arms to her. She got up from where she was sitting and rushed into his arms, clinging to him. "The tests scan us all, every aspect of who we are and ever will be. They know absolutely everything," he kept his voice quiet, just in case some passerby came close to the house, and to comfort her as much as he could. Cid pulled Canti up into his lap, letting her lay her head on his chest. "So the best thing we can do is just do as we are bid. It's all we can do."

Canti clung to him, sinking into his warmth. "…I don't think it's important to take Chorus," she said quietly. "Singing doesn't seem important at all…"

"You do have a lovely voice," Cid said. "There must be a reason why you were made to take it."

"Even if my voice is lovely, it… it's just my voice, Papa. It's not a valuable skill, it doesn't seem to help in this fight against the enemy that the Headmaster talked about," she said insistently. "It doesn't make sense, and, and…" She sniffled.

"It doesn't matter," Cid whispered. "We do as we are told. There is a reason why you are honing your voice and learning to use it."

"...Papa…"

Cid sighed. "I was hoping you wouldn't have feelings like this only on your second day of school, but it can't be avoided, I'm afraid," he said quietly. "You just… you pick up on things. You notice things no one else does. That's why being around people is so scary for you. It's over stimulation, and with so much bombarded into your mind, it becomes hard to process it." He gripped her tighter. "Leviathan himself explained this to me the day I came to meet you the first time. But I'd understand it, I'd be able to help you cope more than anyone else in our entire country."

"The Headmaster?" she asked.

"Oh yeah. He also runs the orphanage behind the scenes. And probably more than that, too." Cid said, putting her back down. The oven dinged and dinner was done. He went to pull it out and set it on the table. Four plump green bell peppers stuffed with ground beef and veggies let off steam there for a few minutes before Cid began to set the table for them both and serve the plates up.

Canti stared at them, but she didn't feel hungry at all. She was unsettled and angry at everything. How could the people in the country know about this, but not do anything about it? How could they live like this, with no free will?! She turned away. "I'm not hungry… you just eat them…"

"If you don't eat, you'll wake up hungry. That always hurts when it happens. You can't ignore eating, pumpkin," Cid said. "Get back here. Even if you can't finish one, you still have to eat something."

Canti turned back around, sitting at the table and letting her papa make her a plate. She ate, even though she didn't want to, and oh, all she could do was think about running out into the street and screaming about the truth of the tests. Of those in higher power not letting people live the way they wanted. It infuriated her that just because she had the potential to do something, she didn't have a choice as to whether she wanted to study it or not. Once she was done, she opted for going straight to bed.

"You don't want to read a book?"

"No…"

"Not even a choose your adventure book? We can read Undertale again."

"Those are just fantasy, Papa…" Canti said, turning away. "Just… empty fantasy…"

Cid felt utterly defeated upon realizing what this meant. She wasn't going to be happy like this. He couldn't believe what telling her the truth had done to her. How could he have… even thought this was a good idea? Canti was usually a happy child. Smart, and certainly more adult than her age would lead people to believe, but cheerful. He let out a desperate sigh, going over to her door. "Do you need anything else?" he asked quietly.

"No, Papa…" she said sadly, covering her face up with a pillow. Clearly she was holding back tears, but she dare not let him see her cry. It was the first time she'd ever done that to him. She tapped the button to kill the lights in her room as if to shut him out in a polite way. "…just let me sleep."

The retired pilot took a few steps away, looking up at his weapon which shined in the dim light of their tiny little living room. What could he do now? He had broken her spirit, taken away her drive to do as best as she could at what she was supposed to. Now Leviathan would be absolutely livid with him. He feared losing her to the powers in charge because of the knowledge he gave her. He sat on the couch, putting his head in his hands. Cantirena was his daughter, and he felt as if he was the biggest failure to her.

When Cid heard Canti snoring from where he was, he walked up to the Sphere terminal and tapped it to turn it on. He put in a few choice numbers and letters to make a call. Soon, the one that appeared on the monitor was that of Leviathan himself.

"Cid Highwind," Leviathan said, having his arms crossed. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this call?"

"Sir… I believe… her spirit is broken. Today in particular has hit her hard, and… I believe we need to wipe the memory of today," Cid said seriously. "She's… figured it out."

"Hook her into the system in her sleep," Leviathan commanded. "I will see to it. Did she do anything important today?"

"Just the usual school grind," Cid answered. "No report of anything that merits being kept…"

"Very well. She will sleep much deeper tonight because of this process," Leviathan said as he started to typing on another keyboard. "Be warned, she will be incredibly confused tomorrow morning. She may not even be able to function at school. We cannot do this process too much or it could destroy her psyche." Suddenly the eidolon became enraged. "Be careful, Cid! Cosmos will be incredibly upset if something happens to Cantirena! Raising her here peacefully is the most important assignment! This is an order from the Heavenly Mother herself!"

"...sir. I will hook her in."

"See that you do!" The screen went fuzzy for a bit before turning completely off.

Cid turned to go back to Canti's room. He reached under her bed, pulling out the same kind of device Leviathan used on her to scan her back in his office at the Garden. He strapped it on her head and hooked the device into the wall. And he sat there, holding her hand, as he watched lights around the helmet atop her head turn on. The machinery hummed as it worked, causing Canti's breathing to become much deeper and much slower. Her skin grew warmer while connected to it, but removing an entire day's worth of memory from a mind not in stasis was a very time-consuming task. Cid would not lose her because of his stupidity. He would never utter another word about this to her until she was of age to know the truth.

At least thirty, he figured. And maybe not even then.