Chapter Three: After Hours

Notes: I figured I should tell everyone on this as well. This is most likely my last update until sometime in January. I need some time for jobhunting and working on the doujinshi for OhayoCon. It's FFIX as well, so if anyone's gonna beh there, pick up a copy. We're real cheap at CrackFish Productions. –grins-. Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys this.

1111111111111111111

Vivi sat quietly in the backseat of Amarant's car. Zidane was next to him, and Kuja took the front seat. It had been interesting, watching the two try to figure out a seating arrangement, to say the least.

"So you've never been to Treno before?" Zidane asked him.

He shook his head. "I don't go out too much. Is it fun?"

"That depends," Kuja drawled, feeling more at ease with the young Mage than he had at work. "Are you looking for Zidane's type of fun, or Ama's?"

Vivi saw Amarant glare a little, but he only shook his head. The boy blinked. "What's the difference?"

"About three random…friends," Amarant frowned, hoping Vivi would catch the meaning.

He didn't, but he didn't press further. Zidane poked his head in between the two front seats. "Why're we headed this way?"

"We're stopping home," Kuja smiled. "I need to change."

Zidane sat back, draping a hand over his eyes, as he seemed to do a lot. "Oh god, someone's getting molested tonight."

Amarant shook his head again. Vivi was getting confused. Again, he decided not to ask, in favour of staring out the window instead. Amaranth drove a bit fast, but Vivi didn't mind. He liked watching the trees whip by. It was a bit too cold to roll down the window, but he would have liked to feel the wind hit him as well.

While he was watching the background, the car got off the highway. When he finally noticed, they were pulling into the parking lot of an apartment complex.

"Might as well grab a snack while we're here," Zidane leaned against the car while Vivi got out, his hands stuffed in his jacket pockets. Vivi slid out to join him, and the two walked to the complex's main door. Kuja had already managed to drag Amarant inside, no small feat considering the size ratio of the one doing the dragging.

Vivi looked up at the blond. Usually in a bright mood, now his face looked shadowed. "Is something wrong?"

Zidane jumped a bit, startled by the boy's voice. "Hm? Nah, it's nothing."

"Is it because…Kuja and A-Amarant…?" he asked softly, finding it difficult to form words.

A slight flush came over Zidane's face. "What? You mean…? Oh. Um…" he frowned, not being able to explain. "Do you think Ama and I are…?"

Vivi blinked. "You're not?"

He shook his head. "Not really. I mean, not in the way you're probably thinking. We used to be. But it doesn't bother me," he smiled to prove the point. He unlocked the apartment door and led the Mage inside. "Kuja, you ass, thanks for unlocking the door!" he yelled, tossing his jacket over the light blue sofa in the corner of the room.

From behind a closed door, Kuja responded cheerily. "Try moving your tail a little faster and next time it wouldn't be a problem!"

Zidane rolled his eyes, turning to Vivi. "Want something to eat? I've got some leftover Chinese I was gonna heat up…"

He nodded, shifting a little awkwardly. "That sounds good…"

The monkey headed into the kitchen. Vivi decided to follow, rather than be left to his own devices in the living room. "So…if it's not Amarant…-w-what's wrong, if you don't mind me asking?"

Zidane offered him a small smile, pressing buttons on the microwave. "You really think something's wrong, huh?" Vivi nodded. "Actually, I was kinda worried about you."

He sat on one of the kitchen chairs. "Me?"

"Yeah. I was wondering if you were okay with this. I mean, you've never been and all, and I was worred you'd be uncomfortable with it all. I know Kuja drove you around a little today, so I didn't want you to go just because I asked. I was just worried." he took the plate out of the microwave, setting it on the table and handing Vivi a fork.

Vivi felt his face getting warm. He shook his head. "No, I really wanted to go. I'm a bit nervous, but I do want to…"

Zidane grinned, popping a shrimp into his mouth. "That's good."

"I thought you were in a hurry," Kuja spoke up, coming to lean on the counter.

"Well, since –someone- decided to stall, I figured it'd be a good idea to feed ourselves," Zidane replied, smirking around the shrimp tail jutting out from between his lips.

"You look like a moron."

"Yeah?" he countered. "You look like a girl."

Vivi started laughing before he knew he was doing so. Both brothers turned to look at him. "I'm sorry," he managed, trying to stop himself with little avail. "You guys are just so much fun!"

"Wait until they start fighting. It's a laugh riot," Amarant walked up beside Kuja, resting his chin on his hand.

Zidane raised an eyebrow briefly, but shrugged, changing the subject. "Is everyone ready?"

Vivi nodded. Kuja rolled his eyes, but smiled. "It's about time."

Amarant sighed, grabbing his keys off the counter. "Let's get this over with."

1111111111111111111

Vivi remembered vaguely that he'd never seen Zidane dance, but he figured that he could. He was absolutely right. It was amazing to watch. Zidane, after Vivi assured him he was fine at the bar, promised he would check on the boy frequently. He mingled into the crowd, but stayed on the fringe so he could see him. From the bar, Vivi watched, sipping on his soda every so often.

He was watching so intently that he didn't notice the bartender lean over next to him, arms folded. "What do you think of love at first sight?"

Surprised, Vivi jumped, falling off the stool. Lighting fast, the girl caught him before he fell, pulling him up to sit on the bar. "Jeez kid, I'm sorry! Are you okay?"

Vivi nodded, pulling his hat down. "I'm fine. I'm just not good with people sneaking up on me. What did you say?"

She smiled. "I asked what you thought about love at first sight."

He blinked. "Why did you ask that?"

"Cuz you seem to be lovin' the sight of monkey-boy over there."

Vivi's face burned. "W-What?"

She waved a hand. "Just kidding. Zidane's an awesome dancer, but not as good as Kuja."

"You know them?"

"Friend of a friend. I'm Lani, by the way," she extended a hand, which Vivi shook.

"I'm Vivi."

"So you're the new kid, huh? I've heard about you. The way I hear tell, Zidane's taken a liking to you, coming from a certain redhead." She went back to work, wiping down the counter. Everyone seemed to be dancing, so the bar was practically empty.

"You mean Amarant?" Vivi asked. "Is he the friend that knows Zidane and Kuja?"

Lani nodded. "You're quite the perceptive one. How come you're not out there with them?"

He looked down. "Well, to be honest, it's pretty crowded. And I tend to get stepped on in crowds. Plus I don't know how to dance, so I'd only wind up ruining everyone's fun."

Lani pulled at the brim of his hat affectionately. "God, you're just too cute!" she yelled out into the crowd. "Hey Zidane! Get your tail over here!"

Amazingly, the blond heard her. He wove expertly through a few people and sat down next to Vivi, a bit out of breath. "What's up?"

"You're almost as much of a moron as your brother," she admonished good-naturedly. "Aren't you gonna teach him to dance?"

Zidane looked about as shocked as Vivi at the sudden question. "Well, if he wanted to, I guess…" he turned to the boy. "You wanna?"

Vivi shrugged awkwardly. "I dunno. I don't wanna be any trouble…"

Lani squealed. "Isn't he just so cute? Now both of you get out there!" she nudged them both.

Zidane pulled Vivi off the bar, half wondering how he got up there but not asking. The two walked uneasily to the edge of the dance floor. The blond offered a smile. "So what do you think of Lani?"

Vivi stood with his hands in the sweatshirt pocket. "It think it's odd the Amarant seems like such an aloof person, but all his friends are really hyper," he looked around. "Are we allowed to stand here if we're not dancing?"

Zidane shrugged. "You can do whatever you want. So…did you really wanna dance or did you just say that cuz Lani was pushing you?"

The small Mage smiled a bit. "If you want to, it'd be nice…"

The blond smiled back. "Okay then. Let's dance!"

1111111111111111111

"I halfway wondered if you'd ever come to see me Ama!" Lani sighed, setting out drinks for him and Kuja.

"I'm usually too busy getting hijacked by weirdoes," he drawled, glancing at the silver-haired man beside him.

"I have to prove that he's a good dancer," Kuja replied with a tiny shrug.

"From the looks of you two out there, I'd say there's little doubt about that," Lani grinned.

Amarant ran a hand through his hair. "You're such a fangirl…"

"Well what do you know…" Kuja was looking out into the crowd, a vaguely amused look on his face. "Looks like the kid can dance. I'm surprised."

Amarant and Lani followed his gaze. At the fringe of the floor, away from the depth of the crowd, were Zidane and Vivi. Watching Zidane dance was nothing new, but now the kid was with him, moving happily with the monkey and the music as if he'd been doing so for years.

Three sets of eyes watched in surprise. The two didn't notice. Lani smiled. "I told him it'd be more fun. He's so cute!"

Amarant glanced at her. "Now I –know- this is your doing…"

Lani laughed. "Better believe it. And I'm glad I did. They both look like they're having fun now."

"They weren't before?" Kuja kept his eyes on the pair. "Zidane dances alone all the time."

"You can dance and not have fun," Lani pointed out. "Trust me. It's subtle, but you can tell. A bartender knows these kinds of things."

"He can dance pretty well, I'll give him that," Amarant's attention turned to his drink. "Wouldn't expect it from a quiet kid like him."

"Well, I didn't expect it from you either 'til I saw it," the girl smirked, nodding in the direction of Zidane and Vivi, who were coming toward them after finally noticing the congregation.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Zidane threw himself onto the stool next to his brother, leaning back against the bar.

"Just watching a show," Amarant drawled.

"I'll be right back guys," Lani moved to help some customers that had come up to the bar.

Vivi scrambled up onto the stool next to Zidane. Kuja smiled at him knowingly. "Having fun?"

The boy blinked. "Yeah."

Zidane looked over at him. "You okay?"

"I'm just not used to all this. I'm kinda thirsty."

Zidane grabbed the glass next to Kuja. "This one's yours, right? Here."

"Zidane--!" Kuja started.

Vivi drained the glass before he could finish. Immediately he felt dizzy. He shook his head to clear it. Amarant stared at him, shocked, while Kuja covered his face with a hand.

"Zidane you moron! That was mine!"

Vivi leaned over, blinking. "I don't…feel too good…"

Zidane's eyes widened. "Oh shit…"

The boy began listing to the side. Zidane grabbed him by the shoulders before he fell off the stool entirely. "Oh crap, I'm sorry Viv! You're okay, right? Let's go, we'll take you home, okay?'

"What the hell happened?" Lani rushed over, hearing the commotion.

"Zidane gave Vivi my drink accidentally," Kuja explained, grabbing his coat. "We're taking him home."

"Are you crazy?" she put her hands on her hips. "You can't just leave him alone like this!"

"She's right," Amarant handed Zidane Vivi's jacket. "You should have him stay with you guys tonight. That's some pretty strong stuff he just downed. He's gonna have some trouble in the morning."

Zidane wrapped the jacket around Vivi's shoulders, keeping a tight hold on the boy. "Okay, we'll do that. C'mon Vivi, let's go."

Vivi nodded slowly, letting the monkey guide him out into the cool air. "Okay…thanks…"

Amarant unlocked the car. "I can't believe you got him drunk."

"It's not like I meant to!" Zidane snapped, ushering the Mage into the car. He slid in after him.

Vivi lay against Zidane's side, closing his eyes. "…Tired…" he fell asleep almost instantly, his mind only vaguely registering Zidane's arms wrap around him tightly.

1111111111111111111

Gar and Kurumi are gonna kill meh for taking a hiatus on a cliffhanger like this! –grins-

Bloodshy Testament: I hope you didn't mind meh testing out the reply thing on you. Sorry about that. Thankehs for reading though.

Blair Lafrad: Darn, you caught meh. Thankehs to Kurumi's addictive writing, I've decided to join the party. -grins-

Garnet-Crystals: I'm pretty sure I'm seeing some of that in the future. Though of course, it's Vivi, so nothing all creepy, but a little fluff never hurt anyone, right?

Devilish Kurumi: -laughs- I know, I love them all too. I think that's the best thing about writing AUs is getting the charas to interact without the predetermined plot as help. Or maybeh I'm just a masochist. -shrugs and goes to read all your updates-