Rebirth of a Holy Dragoon

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy. OCs belong to various friends. I think you know the drill by now.

Notes: None at the moment. Drawing a new cover image soon. I do not like the one I have up right now.

Warnings: You don't remember the list of warnings I gave before? Fine. Here. Cursing, potential OOC, OC x Canon, stupid fluffy romance, sex, angst, self-insert author avatar, shitty storytelling.

FIC START!

Chapter Forty-three

Canti heard Cid's voice, as if it were distorted. She opened her eyes, looking around to see where she was. She was laying on a cot in a very plain looking room. She didn't know how she got here, but as she rubbed her eyes, she figured she must have fallen asleep. The cot was nowhere near as comfortable as the bed she slept on back at the manor. She was covered in a simple blanket. She just stayed there for a bit, letting out a little yawn.

The door nearby opened and Kain came in. She turned over to see him there, holding up a tray. "I figured you'd be awake by now," he said. "Sit up. I've brought you rations from the mess hall."

"Rations? Mess hall?" Canti asked. "That's… military talk."

"It is," Kain said, placing the tray in front of her. "I couldn't make requests. Mess halls don't work that way. You eat what's served and that's that. So please don't be picky."

"I'd have to be hungry to be picky," she said, just picking up a piece of toast. "So that means we're in the Warriors stronghold, huh?" It was dry and crispy. She didn't care. She didn't really want to eat. Her nerves were so tied up that she was afraid to put anything into her system.

"That's exactly where we are," Kain answered her. "Father brought us here until we find whoever it is that's after you. He wanted to report to Leviathan about the situation, but the headmaster's gone AWOL."

"...more military talk…" she grumbled, "…I don't know what that one means."

"Leviathan's gone. Vanished. No one can find him," Kain clarified it kindly. "The situation's gone from bad to worse. No one thought we'd need to fall back to a place like this… Father said that the MP have never had a situation this severe before. They're lacking in leadership for it. He went to try to lead, but the MP and the Warriors of the Water are two different divisions, and the MP refuse to listen to the Grand Dragoon. That's just now how they operate. So it's all disorganized, no one knows how to handle anything, and…" He took a deep breath, noticing that hearing all of this was overwhelming her. "…forgive me, Canti. I've just listened in to all of their conversations, taking part in all of their meetings while waiting for you to wake back up."

"You were waiting for me?" Canti asked.

"Yes. According to the last orders given by Leviathan before he disappeared, he himself ordered that I should be your personal guard," Kain replied.

"Not that you need an official command to do it."

He chuckled. "You aren't wrong."

Canti was barely able to choke down that toast, and she didn't eat much of anything else on the tray. She was too worried to eat, even at Kain's request. She would need to keep her strength up regardless of where they were, and being stressed at all times like this would only make things that much worse on her. "Too bad we can't go back. I liked how we were."

"I wouldn't mind that."

"But… now would be really awkward."

"If you need to lean on me," Kain gestured to her, opening his arms up. "Then come here."

"It's not that I need to," she said bashfully.

"If you want to lean on me, I'm not going to stop you."

She started to, but the door opened again, and their fathers stepped in the room. Richard made sure to close the door behind them. Cid appeared more distraught than he had in a long time. Canti couldn't remember a time where she saw her father's face so sad. Instead of hugging on Kain, she immediately got up and ran over to him, gripping him as tightly as she could manage.

"How are you, baby girl?" Cid asked, returning the affection.

"I'm all right…"

"I hate to have to do this, but we're going be staying here for a while," he said, pulling her up into his arms. She climbed on him until she was sitting on his shoulders and gripping onto his goggle straps. "Well, at least until the house is rebuilt."

"What's wrong with our house?" Canti asked.

"The suspect that's been looking for you? He trashed our house completely."

"I wanted to tell you both to stay at the Highwind Manor, but you know how that's gone down," Richard said. "We've been searching high and low for Leviathan. He's the one with the authority to command the Military Police. If we could combine our efforts this would go a lot easier." He frowned. "Kain, give me a report."

Kain stood up at attention and gave a salute. "Grand Dragoon, sir! We've had contact with a few of the bodyguards of the Senators. I've heard that the Senators are discussing whether or not to give more power to the Warriors of the Water, but some are reluctant. Also, Canti is doing all right. But for that you have visual confirmation."

"...you pay attention way more than you let on," Cid said, surprised that Kain had picked up on all of that just by listening in between taking care of his own duties.

"Of course. I'm in training to be the Grand Dragoon!" Kain proclaimed very proudly. "I have to be aware of all the people that might act one way but believe another way about my ascension. They might even judge me for the way you run things, Father. They may not accept the fact that I'm taking up the position simply because I'm your son."

"Honestly, it's not because you're my son that you're in the running for the position," Richard said calmly. "The results of the tests and the orders of Leviathan are what secure your ascension. This has nothing to do with being a Highwind. They should know that."

"It's like things are falling apart simply because Leviathan isn't here," Canti said softly as she had begun to mess around with her Papa Cid's hair. "They won't cooperate. People aren't thinking like they do when he's around. Isn't he the one that does all the tests and keeps up with what everyone's job is?"

Cid looked up at her. "He is. They might see all this unrest as a chance to throw a coup."

"I don't care what they want!" Kain shouted at them suddenly. "What matters is catching that… that… freak before he finds out where Canti is!" His heart was thumping so hard, he couldn't really hear himself think.

"Kain…" Canti cocked her head to the side as she gazed at him.

"Even if he figures out that we're here, he can't get through. Every door has two Warriors of the Water on guard," Richard reassured them. "If he tries to come all the way here to get her, he'd have to get past all of my men. That won't happen. And even if he does, Cid and I are stationed right outside this door, and Kain is stationed right here. You, my son, are the final line of defense."

"I accept my duty, sir!" Kain said, standing at attention again.

"You always have," Richard smiled at him.

Cid reached to take Canti off his shoulders, placing her on her feet. "Break's almost over. Sorry, baby girl. There's more to do."

"Aww…" Canti frowned a little. "…Papa…"

"Don't worry. Kain will keep you company," Cid said, ruffling her hair. "You won't be lonely." He and Richard both headed out of the room, leaving the duo of cousins to their own devices.

"What do we do now?" Canti asked Kain.

Kain looked around. The room was pretty barebones. "We can find something to do in here… somewhere…" He got up to look through the nearby desk and cabinets. There wasn't much fun stuff, but he did find paper and writing utensils. He didn't know if that would be enough for him, but he still showed them to Canti to see if it might work for her. He kept looking around.

"There's a lot of cots in here…" Canti said. "…we could totally build a fort."

"Let's build a mighty fort, then."

Leviathan watched the screen of code carefully, having found a few things he needed to change. He erased a line and replaced it with another, slightly different line. Sweat dripped down his forehead. This was incredibly difficult to do.

"Sir, I've found the current situation and she is in a secure location," Einar said. "Shall we upload it now?"

"Commence."

Einar gave a nod, pressing a button.

Canti had set up a few cots on their side. There was going to be enough space in here for them both once it was all finished. She liked how she'd managed to get each cot to stand up like that. She took the sheets off of them and planned to make the roof of their fort with them. Kain kept bringing over more of the bedding from the other cots in the room for her to set up. There were still more, so he kept going back and forth.

"Kain…" she said. "…I know you're going to have to clean this up once we're all done…"

"I'm pretty sure I will be, too."

She watched him carry a handful of things. He put them down next to where she was setting up the cots together. "I'm sorry ahead of time."

"Don't be ridiculous," Kain said, smiling. "This is the most fun I've ever had while on duty! I don't care if I have to make every cot in the whole base once we're done."

She yawned. It didn't make much sense, as she felt like she just woke up from a nap. Why was she so tired? "Why are you so-" she yawned again, this time louder. "-nice to me?"

Kain shook his head. "I told you all ready," he replied. "I love you."

Canti couldn't fight it any more. Her brain was demanding that she rest. She fell on top of one of the cots, her eyes closed completely. When Kain noticed he rushed over to her. He was confused. Was it magic? She had a nap just earlier. She didn't sleep this much, did she? It didn't seem natural. She was awake and happy when he had looked at her not more than a few seconds ago. As he tried to wake her, he felt as if his brain was shutting down on its own. He wanted to fight it, as he wanted to warn his father and uncle of what was going on, but there wasn't anything he could do. Kain flopped onto the cot next to her, the last thing he saw before passing out was the face of his cousin in that sudden sleep.

Leviathan took a deep breath. "I pray this works," he said, pressing a few more buttons on the control panel.

"As do the rest of us," Einar added. "Unlocking memories currently."

"While she's going to have to face Borghen herself to be rid of that haunting demon, she's not in a position to stand up to it in her current state," Leviathan said. "I only hope that by delaying it, she can gain more of herself. I might have to make that confrontation a key part of unlocking the barrier between that world and this one."

"Sir. The political situation is in shambles without you there to lead. I highly suggest you go back in to stabilize it," Einar suggested.

"You're absolutely right. I should. But I can't go in during all of this."

"Not saying you can, just saying that time passes differently between the worlds, and that you don't want someone trying to throw a revolution while you're trying to recode the world."

"Einar, I'm not sure you can handle being alone for as long as this project may take."

"I told you, sir. I'm used to being alone. I'll do what I can here, for the sake of everyone that's come and gone in this fight… I have to."

Leviathan could have cried over the fate of that poor boy. Someone had to watch over things from this side.