The following is a Final Fantasy 9 fanfiction by Kaiya Beck and The Pink Tonberry. Yay for legal stuff! Some of the characters in this fanficiton belong to Square Soft. Marco, Kavi, Hope, Jade, and other incidental support characters belong to the respective authors of this fanficiton. Please do not distribute this document without my express permission.

The Pink Tonberry

mercybrand@hotmail.com


After 'Happily Ever After'
Alone (by Kaiya Beck)


Black Waltz One alighted on a ledge in the mountains and rested there, hunched over and trying desperately to get his breath back before anyone discovered him. As he regained his strength, he sent out a private message of help to his brothers. He and his brothers had a special psychic link to each other's minds. It was very useful, but it had considerable drawbacks, such as the fact that if one of them became hurt, the others felt the pain as well. One was brought back to the present as he realized that no one was answering his call. He tried again, more insistently. Where are you?! he cried within his mind. If you can hear me, answer! Please! He couldn't sense them. That was the most frightening of all. Through the short time they had been together, he was able to recognize the thoughts and psyche of his brothers. Two's mind was orange and warm, but showed a hint of the power that lay beneath his mellow exterior. Three's mind was bright yellow and bursting with energy. He had always been the most energetic of the three. But now... the fact that One couldn't sense any trace of their presence in his mind... it was almost more than he could bear. The feeling he had wasn't grief. The Black Waltzes did not feel grief. It was more like losing companions, as if a general had lost two of his finest soldiers in battle. It was a mere feeling of remorse, as well as surprise that his brothers actually could be killed. One shook his head. He was driving himself crazy with this useless mind prattle. First thing was first. Capture the princess... One thought to himself. That's your initial goal. Capture the princess and take her back to Kuja. Then... maybe then he'll be able to tell me what happened to my brothers. He stroked his bell thoughtfully. His Sealion had been killed, but there were more that were ready to do his bidding. The summoning was only used as a last resort, however. "But if it does come down to it, you'll be ready, won't you, my pet?" One asked the bell. "Oh, yes, you'll be ready."

Garnet hummed a little to herself as she combed her hair. Though her voice had lost some of its purity as she aged, it was still very beautiful. She stopped for a while to examine her face in the mirror. She still looked young, younger than she would have imagined. There were some age lines on her face, but it seemed to accentuate her beauty more than detract from it, and despite two long-term pregnancies, her body still remained thin and lithe.

A sudden knock at the door shook her from her thoughts, and she glanced toward it. "Come in," she said softly. The chancellor, a sleek looking man with long dark hair and warm brown eyes, poked his head into the door. "Your Majesty," he said, "If you are finished with your preparations, we would like to begin the meeting." Garnet sighed.

"Yes, Petran," she replied wearily. "Thank you." With a bow, the chancellor left, shutting the door behind him. Garnet put her head in her hands. Petran was a sly one, but she had to admit that he was a good chancellor. There was no doubt in her mind that he had his sights on marrying her, and not just for her beauty, but for what she represented. Marrying her would automatically put him next in line to the throne. It wasn't going to happen, however, she thought to herself. Her heart still belonged to that one special person. Zidane... she thought sadly, If only you could see how fast your little Marco is growing. He's just like you. She vaguely wondered where Marco had gone. He'd said he was going to go exploring with Jade, and Gaia only knew what he'd meant by that. All the same, Garnet thought, it's not as if I can keep him here against his will. He's a young bird who needs to be free of his cage once in a while. She shook her head, laughed at herself. Look at me, she said to a portrait of Zidane hanging above the fireplace. I'm an old woman reciting poetic nonsense and pining for what might have been. Do you think it's time I grew up? The portrait grinned rakishly back at her and she smiled. "You're no help," she said laughingly. "Just make sure Marco comes back safe, all right?" As she turned back to her mirror, she could have sworn she saw the portrait just wink at her. Her heart gave a sudden lurch in her chest and she realized that despite his death, she was still very much in love with Zidane. "Oh, Zidane... Why did you have to leave me so soon? We were so happy together. I... I loved you so much..." As it had many days before, grief marched into her room, and she let it into her soul, nestling her head into her arms as she began to cry without noise.