Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy IX.... we own it all to SquareSoft©
Dedication: To all those who are being patient with me and my 20 other fics....


~*~Chapter 11~*~

*~*Must you run and hide behind a woman?*~*

" Brother! I'm going to kill you, and you're going to stay dead this time! Do you hear me? It won't be Zidane who'll be finishing you off, it'll be me. ", Anomen promised as he raised the axe over his head and charged, head on.

Zidane stared at Anomen whose eyes were transfixed on Kuja. He watched as Anomen slowed his charge to a slow advance, axe in hand, eyes wide and wild, lips set in a pernicious grin.

" So, you think you can defeat me, brother? ", Kuja suddenly spoke up, breaking the dead silence in the room.

Anomen chuckled low and deep as he nodded his head once, " Of course! If little Zidane here couldn't do it, then that leaves me with the opportunity of taking you worthless life. Father would be proud.... "

From the other side of the large bedroom, Garnet now held Eiko behind her as she watched the two older men glare at each other. She bit her lip hard and shot a glance at Zidane whose face was unreadible at the moment, except for the cocked eyebrow, straight, rigid lined mouth, jutted out chin, and tense body movements that caused his muscles to ripple to life beneath his white muscle shirt.

Vivi squeezed Zidane's hand hard, causing the young man to look down at him, " What is it, Viv? Something wrong? ", he asked, his voice low and full of concern.

Vivi slowly nodded, not tearing his yellow glowing eyes from the two men across the room, " I-I'm scared, Zidane... there's too much evil power in this room... ", the little black mage whispered as he slowly backed away to stand behind Zidane, resting a light hand on the back of his thigh.

Zidane flashed him an assuring smile and reached down to give his hand a gentle pat, " It's going to be alright, Viv... I promise I won't let anything happen to you... "

" What about D-dagger? Eiko? "

At the mention of her name, Zidane's face went completely serious. Over and over her name repeated in his mind, causing him to glance over his shoulder at the young woman, just to make sure she was alright and alive.

" If any of them as so much ends up touching a hair on her delicate, innocent head... they're going to wish that they hadn't! ", he vowed under his breath as he brought his attention back to his brothers who still glared at each other.

Garret stood by the doorway, arms handing at his sides, hands resting on the handles of his daggers that were itching to be used as he glanced over at Zidane and caught the glance he shot at Garnet.

' She will be mine! I will taste those lips, feel her soft skin rub up against mine, look down into her soft, innocent chocolate eyes. If he interferes... which with him just being here does just that, I will kill him. If it's the last thing I do.... ', he promised silently as he flexed his fingers and then wiggled them, trying to get rid of the itching feeling that they carried.

Garret wanted to plunge the blades of his daggers deep into Zidane's heart. He had wanted to do that ever since Anomen had sent him into the dungeons for that visit.

' Brother! What are you going do? ', Zidane cried out silently to Kuja's turned back.

Kuja heard the question and turned his head to glance at his baby brother, ' Do not worry... just try to get everyone else out! ', he replied calmly.

As soon as Kuja had his head turned, Anomen immediately lunged at him with the axe. A loud gasp from Garnet caused Kuja to crouch low to the ground and then push off into a backflip, landing a few feet in front of her. The axe sliced through the right side of his sliver, dark purple and gold robes, leaving blood marks from the previous victim to fall to the axe in the fabric.

Kuja swiftly stod up, whipping his long silver hair from his face as he faced Anomen, eyes dark and narrowed, " You made a big mistake Anomen! Remember what father said about touching other things that didn't belong to you? Well... you just did that and that little brother was a bad thing to do... ", he hissed through clenched teeth as he raised a hand over his head and held the other one outstretched in front of him, fingers spread and emitting a dark glow at the tips.

Zidane and Garnet immediately bent down to gather the small children into their arms and hold them close. Eiko wrapped her arms around Garnet's neck and buried her face into her shoulder. Garret watched as Zidane began to back up slowly making his way towards Garnet, who was completely taken by the battle before her, in her own bedroom.

" Zidane! Are you now a coward? Must you run and hide behind a woman? ", Garret shouted out to him as he firmly grasped the handles of his daggers and slowly unsheathed them.

Zidane's head jerked in Garret's words and his eyes went dark as he narrowed them and held the now trembling Vivi closer, " Must you taunt and coax just to have you way? Must it be you who is the coward... hiding behind your petty insults? ", Zidane spat back coldly while calmly walked to Garnet to hand her Vivi, who had curled himself up into a tight ball for protection.

Garret snorted and then motioned with a dagger to come get him " Zidane... being a thief if very, VERY disrespectful to your family heritage. Couldn't you at least be something else? A thief doesn't deserve someone like Garnet... "

Zidane walked towards him, unsheathing his own daggers, completely identical to Garrets. He held them high and crinkled his nose in disgust as he eyed Garret.

" The only one disrespecting my family heritage if you, Garret! You're the one who could've chosen something else... but, instead you decided to become a follower, an imposter... a pathetic man who could only be a stupid monkey... "

Kuja snorted, " Zidane, you may be right about Garret.. but the one you should really be worrying about is this good for nothing brother of ours. He betrayed us.. and most of all.. he betrayed you with creating that... thing! "

Zidane glanced at him and then brought his attention back to Garret, " You're right, Kuja... ", he replied.

Garret shook his head, " I'll not hear another word! ", he shouted before a merciless battlecry ripped from his throat and mingled with Anomen's as he lunged for Kuja again, Garret lunging for Zidane.

Kuja waited till Anomen was a few feet awat before conjuring a dark spell and casting it upon him, " Afrosaicous... flames of darkness... suketua... come to aid... onairytau... departure... ", the chant slipped past his lips in a deep monotone voice as he waved the hand that was over his head around a few times before bringing it down to rest beside the other one.

Anomen easily dismissed the sudden spell that was meant to tear his insides apart painfully into thousands of pieces, leaving only blood, nothing more, nothing less. He knew the spell all too well.

***

Zidane quickly brought up his dagger and blocked the more that Garret had implied to him, the thick, sharp blade slicing over another until both blades were only centimeters from each other's noses, resting and straining against each other's handles.

They both stared at each other, determination ablaze in bother their deep forest green eyes as they gritted their teeth against the pressure they both applied on each other's swords.

" Y-you won't win, Garret! ", Zidane promised as he swiftly brought up his other dagger, hoping to catch Garret in the gut.

Vivi uncurled himself from his ball of protection to watch the two vicious fights in front of him with wide, frightened eyes. Garnet's arm wrapped around him tighter and Vivi looked at her, watching her as she watched the two look-a-likes battle mercilessly. He followed her gaze and then shook his head as he watched one of the Zidane's knock the other under the chin with the back of their dagger, straddled his front as he fell to the ground and raised his dagger over his head, hoping to plunge it deep into the other Zidane's chest.

" N-no! ", Vivi's voice was small and hoarse, barely a whisper.

Garnet gasped as she watched the dagger raise higher into the air and then fly through it, straight at the heart of the identical twin of Zidane who laid helplessly on the floor....


(Author's Note: I'm sooooo sorry that this is taking LONG, and I'm sorry that this chapter is short and doesn't have much in it... but... the next chapter is the final one... *sighs and then snickers* BIG surprise for you ALL!! MWUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I do hope you squirm in your seat trying to figure out how this is going to end.... hehe *rubs her hands together as she goes to write out Chapter 12* )