Disclaimer: Ah, well, I don't own FFIX, if you're wondering, in which, I'm SURE you're not, because no person from Squaresoft is going to post fanfiction here, are they?^_^

(All right, on with the show!)

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"Zero, you disgrace me. You disgrace the name of all Eidolon life, you snake-bellied reptile."

Zero Bahaumut was barely listening anymore. His flat lobes were straining to hear a distant sound, and his scaled nostrils flared red, taking in a scent, faded through the distance between time. A low, paranoid growl began to rise in the back of his throat, and he lifted his head, expanding his vast, white wings at the same time.

"He's not going to live for much longer!" he roared, another throaty growl following his hostile words. "My son did this! It isn't right, considering he is the summoner's friend! I'll-"

"You'll go there and set things right if need be," Ultima hissed, drawing his fingers along the black wall of nothingness. "I do not …..care if that damn |teken| lives or dies, Zero. You will live to serve the girl."

"If the man dies," snapped the father of Bahaumut, "Then I will do nothing but hide in a hole of Zero space. You will never find me, and my power will seal."

"You cannot do that!" Ultima roared, flaring his bright wings so suddenly, that the white, grand dragon had no choice but to cringe back. "Leave now, and serve the girl!"

Zero Bahaumut scooped the "air" with his wings and roared his fury, but he was powerless to do anything but obey commands. Pumping his vast, thinly- skinned appendages, he rose into the air and dropped out of sight. He entered another part of nothingness, where no one could find him unless they were summoned. There, he hovered, and let himself growl his deepening rage.

"That man…." he hissed to himself, a thoughtful expression suddenly crossing his face. "He can't die. I know his hidden power, but you are to arrogant to sense it, Ultima. Perhaps, when his feelings that control him now have destroyed your precious Gaia, you will turn to me."

He suddenly thought of the girl.

"No…."

"No…." he repeated to himself. "I will not let it happen….If he dies, so does that power, and the last survivor of such a brave family. My father…."

He didn't finish his thought. With a forceful beat of his wings, he was gone again. A mere flash of white remained where he had once been hovering. But the dragon was long gone, disappearing into the blank, but colorful area between worlds and reality.

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"Eiko, don't….p-please…." Vivi knelt at the top of the gaping hole, a took the six-year-old's hands away from her face. "He…he could still be a-alive, right? Maybe he's just breathing really….really slowly…and…" his gaze darkened, and he swallowed. "And…really quietly. V-very…"

Eiko Carol shied away from his hands, but lifted a sleeve to her eyes, dabbing at the welling tears. "I-I'm not gonna cry!" she said offensively.

Then she hiccupped.

"Eiko!" Vivi cried, as the girl suddenly threw herself forward, over the lip of the gaping pit. He watched he scramble down the wall of rocks and gravel, before gathering enough nerve to follow her. Seconds after the violet-haired summoner stopped at Amarant's still figure, Vivi stopped as well, and stared down at the mass of flame-red hair. He wasn't going…He wasn't going to cry.

Amarant lay in a helpless heap, with his head against the ground. His eyes were closed, and not even his chest rose with any slight sign life, or breath. The black mage found himself looking away, feeling sick at the horrifying sight.

Eiko seemed to notice him turn his head, because she mad an annoyed, but devastated face, "It's….It's not that bad. He….he's gonna be Ok, I know it…"

The girl slowly knelt on her knees, and placed a hand on the bounty hunter's chest. Then she tilted her head against it.

Vivi's heart dropped into hid stomach, when she lifted her head again, expression unchanged.

"Eiko…." he began, moving forward a step.

"Leave me alone!" she cried, balling her fists into the air. "Just go away!!"

"Eiko-"

"He's dead! I went through all that, and all I wanted to do was SAVE him! He had to go and KILL himself, and now look!" she exclaimed, holding her head in her head in her hands. "The JERK!"

|Little summoner……|

Eiko jolted upright, eyes wide. Vivi aimed a confused, and morose look at her, and took a cautious step backwards.

|Little summoner girl, stop being so angry…I cannot enter your intellect when it is so full of rage….|

"Z-Zero?" Eiko stammered. Vivi took another retreating step.

|I am he.|

E-Eiko?

Eiko stood up. That's funny, she never remembered falling down.

Eiko? Eiko???

The girl suddenly looked to her left, and then her right. She was….in a colorful room, where the walls and ceiling never ceased to change colors.

Vivi? Where was Vivi?

Eiko!!!

Eiko felt her nerves go rigid with amazement, "Vivi? VIVI??"

|He's safe, little summoner. I have put him to sleep. He rests comfortably in the soft arms of my home.|

The six-year-old spun in a circle, tilting her head to gaze at the strange walls, "Zero! Where am I? Why did you bring me here? I want Vivi back!"

|And what about your other friend?|

Eiko bit her lip uncertainly. Whay kind of joke was this? "He's dead, Zero. You should…you should know that. You're an Eidolon."

|Apparently, but answer the question, Eiko Carol of Madain Sari. Do you want your other friend back as well?|

"Of course I do!" Eiko cried, jumping up and down. "But Amarant's…he's….he's…."

|Go on…..|

"He's…." the six-year-old abruptly realized what she was looking at. Against the color-shifting walls, through some sort of multi-shadowed mist….She could see someone standing with their back to her. And to her disbelief, she saw that it was Amarant. Eiko absent-mindedly lifted her hand to touch the wall and found it very cold – too cold to keep her hand on for much longer than two seconds.

"He's…." the girl repeated, and then took a step back, eyes wide. "….Not dead, is he?"

|Your friend is alive because right now, I hold on to his very existence – his soul in my power. Tell me, Eiko Carol, what would you do for this back?|

"What…" Eiko breathed, and hiccupped. "What…would I do? For Amarant?"

|That is the question.|

The six-year-old summoner turned around, and slowly faced all of the other walls behind her. Much to her surprise, she found that they each held an image. One of Dagger, Zidane, Freya, Steiner, Mog, Morrison and the other moogles, Quina, Beatrix, and yes, Amarant. And then…there was Vivi. He stood in the depths of the wall on Eiko's right, staring placidly, unknowingly into the eerie length of the room.

"I…." Eiko began again, and turned around again. She almost squealed with surprise, and fell on her bottom, scrambling madly away.

The picture of Amarant had been replaced by a horrible, red-tinted image. It was clear, almost too clear for the six-year-old to bear. Madain Sari was in flames, and a red eye blinked mercilessly above it, sending more destruction into the village of summoners. There were noises, too. Screaming, wailing, cursing, and the unhappy sound of a great, roaring fire.

Then the picture was gone. She stared into the swirling colours, and suddenly found herself leaning against the cold wall for support. Only it wasn't cold any longer. It was warm, and cool at the same time. Yes, she could remember this feeling now.

It was the feeling of being whizzed through he air.

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"OW, Hey!"

Startled, Eiko found those words coming from her own mouth, and she was no longer inside of the colored room. She was flying through that air, and something had a grasp on the wing ornaments on her back. She glanced up.

Amarant's smirking face glanced down at her momentarily, as if he could tell she was looking at him. Then he was no longer interested, but concentrating on climbing the vines and roots towards the top He didn't stop for breath, he didn't even ay anything. Yet.

"What in the holy judgement's name are you DOING?" Eiko screeched. Or, at least, the past Eiko did. The present Eiko had no power over anything. She could only watch, and listen.

"Getting even with the monkey," the red-haired man growled, and glanced to where a stunned, and sick-looking Vivi lie grasped in his right hand.

"You're gonna, urf, break my wing ornaments!" the six-year-old yelled through a mouth-ful of air.

"That's too damn bad."

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With a jolt, Eiko sat upright, feeling the cool stone beneath her back. Her breath came in rapid gasps, and she looked around, head snapping left, then right. She was back, in the bottom of the wide pit she'd made with the soft. Amarant lie beside her, as motionless as ever.

|Eiko, answer my question. What? Would you give your own life for him?|

"Ah…ugh…" Eiko uttered, and stood up on two shaky legs. Vivi was there. He stood up as well, brushing off his jacket, and straightening his pointy hat.

|Is he that important? Why do you want him to live?|

Suddenly, Eiko felt both overwhelmed and angry at the same time. Balling her fists at her sides, she screamed at the air.

"Because he's dead! Because he died to save US! He might no BE dead, if I hadn't been such a jerk and stayed, when he told me to go! He KILLED himself, so that em an' Vivi could live!!"

There was silence, and Vivi was now looking at her as if she'd just swallowed her Angel's Flute.

Eiko's rapid breaths began to quieten, and she waited patiently for the Eidolon's response.

|…..That is your answer? So you would give your life so he would live?|

Eiko narrowed her eyes in frustration, "It's what he did for me! So yes, I would!"

|Little summoner, you make me proud.|

"Wha…" Eiko suddenly doubled over in shock. "What? What's with that? All of a sudden, you're PROUD of me? You're killing me, that's what you're doing! Amarant is dead! You lie!"

"Da….Damn the lie," came the gruff response. Something beside the six-year- old stirred.

"Eeeeeek!"

Eiko practically threw herself back against the nearest boulder, staring with wide eyes at the unmoving figure of Amarant. Only, "unmoving wasn't quite the correct term to put ti anymore. The man's red tassles of hair moved slightly, as the bounty hunter attempted to lift his head.

"Ahhh! Amarant!"

"A-Amarant?"

Both Eiko and Vivi spoke at the same time. Or, Vivi spoke, but Eiko screamed her words. Before she could help it, she'd flung herself around the tall assassin's neck, as he rose into a sitting position.

The hug did not go well.

The six-year-old felt herself being peeled from her grasp and then deposited with an unexpected amount of strength on the ground. Again, Amarant spoke with obvious distaste.

"Go….hug someone else, you little brat. I can't believe…."

|This man…..He died so you could live. I see now. That is….most touching, even to someone of my modesty. Eiko?|

Eiko tilted her head to stare into the empty, blue sky, as if waiting for the great Eidolon to make an appearance.

|Eiko Carol, he will not remember this.|

The six-year-old stifled her surprise. "What???"

Amarant and Vivi both stared at his with puzzlement.

|Amarant Coral….if he does, then he will slip slowly into a state uncurable. You may find it funny if it pleases you. But I cannot simply allow the monk to remember this day. Instead, he will remember waking up on the bank of this shore. It is inevitable.|

"But…." Eiko gasped, jerkign her head from the left, to the right again.

|You and Vivi will remember. You, little summoner, must remember me for the next tiem I come. I will be at your service….I promise.|

"But-"

"Eiko?"

The six-year-old summoner looked straight at the black mage, who was standing at her side now. Amarant ignores them both, and stood up, "I need some sleep," he muttered.

'You were just dead! That should be enough sleep for you' Eiko thought angrily. But she turned back to Vivi, "What?"

"Ah….er, was it an Eidolon?"

Eiko stood up, and glanced at the Amarant, instead of responding. It was almost a miracle. The wooden splinter was gone, the blood was gone. All the was left was the numerous scratches and gashes he'd received.

"It…."

Eiko wasn't sure what to say. But after a few moments of thinking about it, she spun to look Vivi directly in his eyes.

"You know, Vivi. It was…and Eidolon. But it was something more."

Vivi blinked.

Eiko smiled, "It was my Eidolon."

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(Ahhhhhh….finally! My poor, cold fingers are almost *trembling* with exhaustion, whew! Nah, not really. I think I'll continue with me Amarant/Lani pairings, eh? I'm Canadian, eh? No, really, I am. Hehe. Someday I'll write a lemon. When I'm older, of course. I'm only 14 for cryin' out loud, lol)