Didn't Capture the Hearts of Both
~**Garnet's POV**~
The look in his eyes was painful, yet I didn't want to break the gaze; for all I knew, it could have been the last time I could get lost in it. He knew that I didn't want him to go, but I also knew that he had to. There was no way around it, no matter how hard I fought. It was just a battle I was waiting to lose; it was a battle that neither one of us wanted to happen.
"Why can't I go with you?" I asked softly, as I felt hot tears build up in my eyes. Even now my voice was starting to crack as I spoke.
"Dagger, this is something I have to do on my own," he replied softly, never breaking the gaze, too afraid to look away from my eyes. I could sense he knew that this was dangerous, but he wasn't turning his back; not now, not ever.
It just didn't make sense to me. Why would he go back to save Kuja? After all the things that he has done to try to hurt, kill, destroy, and pain us, he's still going back to save him. Every time I thought of this, a new flare of anger washed through me. I hated Kuja, and I always will. He's done more than I can ever think of to hurt me, and everyone knew it. Eiko knew it; Vivi, Steiner, Beatrix, Amarant, Freya, and Quina knew this; finally, Zidane knew this. He knew better than anyone else does because Kuja gave him extreme amounts of pain. Not as much as Garland, but a lot, none the less.
Zidane knew what I was thinking because the hatred for Kuja flashed in my eyes again. A long sigh escaped his lips as he kept staring at me. I loved that stare, and I wanted to be lost in that stare forever, but I couldn't no matter how hard I tried. He stroked my cheek gently with his thumb as a lone tear slid past my eyelid.
"Promise me you'll come back," I pleaded. It was the last thing I could do.
"I promise I'll return to you, Dagger." It was all I needed to hear. He hand slowly left my face and he backed up. I never looked away from his eyes; their power was too strong and too effective on me. He bowed his head as Steiner quietly ushered me to the airship.
I wanted to still see him, even as I flew away; I wanted to still be lost in his gaze. Maybe it was my last chance, so I had to take it. As the airship was slowly lifting off the ground, I ran to the edge and looked down upon Zidane. Once again our eyes met and neither one of us looked away. My hair was blowing over my face, but because of the new length, it never got in the way of my eyes.
His expression was sad, as if he was slowly regretting the decision that he had just made. I wanted to jump from the ship into his arms, but I didn't move. All I did was slowly mouth good-bye as he finally left my view.
I backed away from the railing and slumped to my knees. Tears streamed down my face as I held back a sob. Even though I had just left him it stabbed me like daggers. I wanted to be with him again, and what made it worse was the fact that I didn't know if I would ever see him again. It hurt, and I cried.
"I'm all alone now…" I whispered to myself as I pounded on the wooden floor with frustration. I bit my lower lip and felt weak and worthless. I started to tremble as I could feel everyone's eyes on me as I cried my heart out. Not even Steiner wanted to disturb me in my state, but one approached me carefully.
The steps were so light and so small; I could barely hear them. When they finally approached me, I didn't look up. Eiko knelt down in front of me and looked into my tear filled eyes. She gave me a soft smile and rested her hand on my stomach.
A white aura surrounded her as she closed her eyes and concentrated hard on something. I didn't know what she was doing, but she soon smiled and looked at me when the aura was gone. Her eyes flashed a bright shade of green as she took her hand away from my stomach. They eventually went back to their normal sky blue color and that was when she told me.
"You said you're now alone, right?" I didn't know how she heard me, but before I could ask she placed my hand on my stomach and kept speaking. "As long as she's with you, Dagger, you'll always have Zidane with you. With her you will never be alone. Never, Dagger…"
I clutched my hands to my stomach in disbelief. For the rest of the night I over looked the land hoping my prayers would bring Zidane home to me…
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~**Seven Years Later**~
"Princess Jade Til Alexandros the 18th, come here right now!" yelled Steiner as the little princess ran through the castle with a very large armor clad man running after her. She let out a small laugh and ran faster down the hallway. She was a very young child who was filled with all the happiness that the world could provide. Even though she had grown up with a single mother who had several suitors, she never acted as if she wasn't happy, but secretly she would hum to herself the song that her mother had taught her.
She was fairly tall for her age and she already had long flowing chocolate brown hair that cascaded down her back. It was streaked with strips of golden honey that would shine as brightly as the sun in the middle of summer. A thin ivory horn poked out of her forehead, and a small, light brown tail slithered out from her backside. Her eyes were dazzling green, "Like your father's," her mother would say.
She was the exact mixture of her mother and her father, or so everyone told her. She was already seven years of age, and unlike other children she knew, she never met her father. Queen Garnet would tell her all about her adventures with Zidane as a bedtime story. Although Jade loved these stories, she secretly disliked her father because of some of the things her mother talked about, especially the time in Pandemonium. Jade hated to see her mother cry herself to sleep wishing for her father, and every time she saw this, it only made her dislike him more.
Steiner would often explain to her how noble her father really was, but he could tell she still was angry with him. She even tried cutting off her tail to rid herself of his trait, but General Beatrix and Garnet stopped before she could cut it off with a simple dagger.
'I hate him! Why did he leave us, Mommy? Tell me why!' she had demanded of her mother. Garnet was only horror struck as she fell back into a chair. 'Marry someone else who is here to rule the kingdom, to take care of the castle, and to take care of you… Why can't you move on?' After she had said that, she wished she hadn't. The look on Garnet's face pained Jade and Beatrix alike. Garnet's dark eyes clouded over, and tears spilled over, running down her cheeks. Garnet stood up and walked toward the door. Before she left the room, she said one thing coldly to her daughter.
'I can't let go because I love him. I always have, and I refuse to let some cocky noble rule over my kingdom. I'd rather die alone than o have someone else take his place.' And with that the door was shut.
This event had taken place a year ago, but that had nothing to deal with Jade's current situation. She continued to run down the stairs and into the kitchen laughing all the way. Several people were preparing for the big feast that was going to be held that night. She dodged around people with great skill like a thief, unlike Steiner who was not quite as successful.
Jade jumped up and latched her brown tail onto a pole hanging above Steiner's head. He would have run by if he didn't heat her childish giggles coming from above him. He looked up at her and let out a small sigh. She swung happily while holding on to her dress so that it wouldn't fall over her head. She gave him a broad smile as he grabbed her down from the pole.
"Princess, you really shouldn't run around the castle like that, especially when everyone is preparing for the big feast tonight. Your mother would have a fit if you ruined your dress. Now go see Beatrix and your mother so you can get ready for the play," He said as he placed her on the ground pushing her in the general direction of her chamber. Jade looked over her shoulder and then quickly ran off to go visit her mother.
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~**Jade's POV**~
I ran throughout the hallways going back toward my mother's room. Steiner was ruining my fun, so I guess it's better that he just let me go get ready for the play. I didn't see why it was such a big fuss in all of Alexandria! It was just some play that we go to see every year, it's not like it's Christmas or anything like that. Still, my mother wanted to see it year after year ever since I was born.
I brushed a few loose strands of hair out of my eyes as I finally reached the big doors to my mother's room. I reached up and pulled them open with a slight struggle, but it was fairly easy after I got it open a crack. I heard my mother and Beatrix talking through the door about something. I didn't get to pick up on much of the conversation, but it was clear what they were talking about as soon as I stepped into the room.
"But mother ran it well by herself!" my mother protested. "Why can't I do the same?! All the men I have been with after my adventure only came after me for my land or my money. They aren't worthy to help me rule MY kingdom! Why do you treat me as if I'm still just a child?!"
"It just works so much better with two people," Beatrix finished.
"Do you think I can't run Alexandria by myself?"
"I never said anything of the sort-"
"You do, don't you? You and Steiner both think that I can't handle the Kingdom, don't you?!" By this time I could tell my mother was outraged. I always knew about how she thought that Steiner and Beatrix deemed her unworthy, and I also knew that they were the ones behind all her previous suitors. My mother hated each one, and each one pretty much hated her.
Beatrix unfolded her arms and moved closer to her. I could see my mother's eyes gloss over with tears. She was going to cry again and I hated that. I knew that it was all because of Zidane that this was happening too. If he didn't leave us, things wouldn't be like this.
Mom turned away from Beatrix and wrapped her arms around her waist.
"I know you're thinking of him again right now, Garnet. I can almost sense your need for him even as we speak, but you heard the news as well as I did. My Queen," Beatrix paused before she continued to speak, for what she was going to say was going to pain my mother more than anyone could imagine, and she knew it, "… Zidane is dead." I noticed that my mother stopped breathing when Beatrix finished her sentence. A violent shudder shook her body as Beatrix said those words. "You know what the rescue team said when they returned from the Iifa tree. No sign of him was found, and the whole tree was devoured by its vines. Now seven years later, you're still mourning over his death when everyone else has moved on. Even little Eiko who was close to him got over his death and has moved on. You really should-"
"Damn it, Beatrix!" The yell caught me by surprise, for I had never heard my mother swear before. She slammed her hand on the windowsill as two lone tears fell onto her hand. Beatrix and I both backed up from her sudden outburst. With a cracking voice, my mother continued to speak. "You don't understand, do you? I can't move on! I just can't! No matter how hard I try, I feel myself moving away from him, and it hurts, Beatrix! It hurts… I can't live my life with someone else because they will never have what he has. Although I'm not really sure what that is at the moment, it's what made him different; it's what made him special."
"Garnet, please," Beatrix pleaded softly. She knew how much pain my mother was in. I didn't know how to handle the situation, but I knew that they were unaware of my presence. Beatrix walked over to my mother and placed her hand on her shoulder. She hated to see her cry like this, especially when it was over my father. "The kingdom needs you in one piece, and right now half of you is ruling while the other half is still hoping for Zidane. The only reason why we're looking for a suitor is to make up for the part of you that isn't here." She paused thinking carefully about what she was going to say next. "It was like… he created an alter-ego when he started to call you Dagger, and that part of you stayed. That part of you misses him."
"No," she began slowly. "The part of me that is Garnet, misses him. The part of me that is Dagger, loves him." She looked at mother wordlessly. "The reason why it hurts so much, Beatrix, is because I love him. It would be like you losing Steiner." I knew that sentence had to have hit Beatrix hard. She and Steiner were close; you might as well have said they were in love. My mother used this knowledge to the best of her advantage. "But that's what it is. I've lost him, and as much as I want to believe that he's dead and never coming back, I can't do it. Because of some part of me that keeps saying that he's alive and just lost, I can't let his memory go."
They were always arguing about Zidane whenever I was out of hearing range. My mother was always pining over him and I could never understand why. I let out a small cough before my mother could continue to let them know that I was there.
Beatrix looked at me and bowed. My mother on the other hand turned away hiding her red eyes from my vision. She was about to cry, and I knew it. I rubbed the small horn on my head while my tail fell limp at my side. I walked over to my mother and tugged on her dress slightly to get her attention. She looked over at me and gave me a wiry smile.
"Beatrix, leave us please. I want to us to get ready for tonight's production," my mother said calmly as she placed a soft hand on my shoulder. I held it firmly as I looked over at Beatrix. She didn't say a word, but simply nodded and left the room with only the sound of her armor clanking.
A heavy silence filled the room, and for a long while, nothing more was said….
(A/N: Well what did ya think? I'm fully aware that most of this looks a lot like my fic "Still Waiting to Cheat Death" but that was the whole idea! I got the idea for this fic when I was riding home on my bus listening to the FFIX song caled, "Didn't Capture the Hearts of Both" hence the title, and my friend though it sounded cool. Most of the plot will be the same, but now we have Zidane and Dagger's little Daughter, Jade! I decided to stay with the gem idea for names, plus Jade sounds pretty. Please tell me what you think and I'll update the rest of the fic ASAP for those who really like it. Read and Review PLZ!! Good or bad, I don't care!! I just luv reviews ^.^)
~**Garnet's POV**~
The look in his eyes was painful, yet I didn't want to break the gaze; for all I knew, it could have been the last time I could get lost in it. He knew that I didn't want him to go, but I also knew that he had to. There was no way around it, no matter how hard I fought. It was just a battle I was waiting to lose; it was a battle that neither one of us wanted to happen.
"Why can't I go with you?" I asked softly, as I felt hot tears build up in my eyes. Even now my voice was starting to crack as I spoke.
"Dagger, this is something I have to do on my own," he replied softly, never breaking the gaze, too afraid to look away from my eyes. I could sense he knew that this was dangerous, but he wasn't turning his back; not now, not ever.
It just didn't make sense to me. Why would he go back to save Kuja? After all the things that he has done to try to hurt, kill, destroy, and pain us, he's still going back to save him. Every time I thought of this, a new flare of anger washed through me. I hated Kuja, and I always will. He's done more than I can ever think of to hurt me, and everyone knew it. Eiko knew it; Vivi, Steiner, Beatrix, Amarant, Freya, and Quina knew this; finally, Zidane knew this. He knew better than anyone else does because Kuja gave him extreme amounts of pain. Not as much as Garland, but a lot, none the less.
Zidane knew what I was thinking because the hatred for Kuja flashed in my eyes again. A long sigh escaped his lips as he kept staring at me. I loved that stare, and I wanted to be lost in that stare forever, but I couldn't no matter how hard I tried. He stroked my cheek gently with his thumb as a lone tear slid past my eyelid.
"Promise me you'll come back," I pleaded. It was the last thing I could do.
"I promise I'll return to you, Dagger." It was all I needed to hear. He hand slowly left my face and he backed up. I never looked away from his eyes; their power was too strong and too effective on me. He bowed his head as Steiner quietly ushered me to the airship.
I wanted to still see him, even as I flew away; I wanted to still be lost in his gaze. Maybe it was my last chance, so I had to take it. As the airship was slowly lifting off the ground, I ran to the edge and looked down upon Zidane. Once again our eyes met and neither one of us looked away. My hair was blowing over my face, but because of the new length, it never got in the way of my eyes.
His expression was sad, as if he was slowly regretting the decision that he had just made. I wanted to jump from the ship into his arms, but I didn't move. All I did was slowly mouth good-bye as he finally left my view.
I backed away from the railing and slumped to my knees. Tears streamed down my face as I held back a sob. Even though I had just left him it stabbed me like daggers. I wanted to be with him again, and what made it worse was the fact that I didn't know if I would ever see him again. It hurt, and I cried.
"I'm all alone now…" I whispered to myself as I pounded on the wooden floor with frustration. I bit my lower lip and felt weak and worthless. I started to tremble as I could feel everyone's eyes on me as I cried my heart out. Not even Steiner wanted to disturb me in my state, but one approached me carefully.
The steps were so light and so small; I could barely hear them. When they finally approached me, I didn't look up. Eiko knelt down in front of me and looked into my tear filled eyes. She gave me a soft smile and rested her hand on my stomach.
A white aura surrounded her as she closed her eyes and concentrated hard on something. I didn't know what she was doing, but she soon smiled and looked at me when the aura was gone. Her eyes flashed a bright shade of green as she took her hand away from my stomach. They eventually went back to their normal sky blue color and that was when she told me.
"You said you're now alone, right?" I didn't know how she heard me, but before I could ask she placed my hand on my stomach and kept speaking. "As long as she's with you, Dagger, you'll always have Zidane with you. With her you will never be alone. Never, Dagger…"
I clutched my hands to my stomach in disbelief. For the rest of the night I over looked the land hoping my prayers would bring Zidane home to me…
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~**Seven Years Later**~
"Princess Jade Til Alexandros the 18th, come here right now!" yelled Steiner as the little princess ran through the castle with a very large armor clad man running after her. She let out a small laugh and ran faster down the hallway. She was a very young child who was filled with all the happiness that the world could provide. Even though she had grown up with a single mother who had several suitors, she never acted as if she wasn't happy, but secretly she would hum to herself the song that her mother had taught her.
She was fairly tall for her age and she already had long flowing chocolate brown hair that cascaded down her back. It was streaked with strips of golden honey that would shine as brightly as the sun in the middle of summer. A thin ivory horn poked out of her forehead, and a small, light brown tail slithered out from her backside. Her eyes were dazzling green, "Like your father's," her mother would say.
She was the exact mixture of her mother and her father, or so everyone told her. She was already seven years of age, and unlike other children she knew, she never met her father. Queen Garnet would tell her all about her adventures with Zidane as a bedtime story. Although Jade loved these stories, she secretly disliked her father because of some of the things her mother talked about, especially the time in Pandemonium. Jade hated to see her mother cry herself to sleep wishing for her father, and every time she saw this, it only made her dislike him more.
Steiner would often explain to her how noble her father really was, but he could tell she still was angry with him. She even tried cutting off her tail to rid herself of his trait, but General Beatrix and Garnet stopped before she could cut it off with a simple dagger.
'I hate him! Why did he leave us, Mommy? Tell me why!' she had demanded of her mother. Garnet was only horror struck as she fell back into a chair. 'Marry someone else who is here to rule the kingdom, to take care of the castle, and to take care of you… Why can't you move on?' After she had said that, she wished she hadn't. The look on Garnet's face pained Jade and Beatrix alike. Garnet's dark eyes clouded over, and tears spilled over, running down her cheeks. Garnet stood up and walked toward the door. Before she left the room, she said one thing coldly to her daughter.
'I can't let go because I love him. I always have, and I refuse to let some cocky noble rule over my kingdom. I'd rather die alone than o have someone else take his place.' And with that the door was shut.
This event had taken place a year ago, but that had nothing to deal with Jade's current situation. She continued to run down the stairs and into the kitchen laughing all the way. Several people were preparing for the big feast that was going to be held that night. She dodged around people with great skill like a thief, unlike Steiner who was not quite as successful.
Jade jumped up and latched her brown tail onto a pole hanging above Steiner's head. He would have run by if he didn't heat her childish giggles coming from above him. He looked up at her and let out a small sigh. She swung happily while holding on to her dress so that it wouldn't fall over her head. She gave him a broad smile as he grabbed her down from the pole.
"Princess, you really shouldn't run around the castle like that, especially when everyone is preparing for the big feast tonight. Your mother would have a fit if you ruined your dress. Now go see Beatrix and your mother so you can get ready for the play," He said as he placed her on the ground pushing her in the general direction of her chamber. Jade looked over her shoulder and then quickly ran off to go visit her mother.
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~**Jade's POV**~
I ran throughout the hallways going back toward my mother's room. Steiner was ruining my fun, so I guess it's better that he just let me go get ready for the play. I didn't see why it was such a big fuss in all of Alexandria! It was just some play that we go to see every year, it's not like it's Christmas or anything like that. Still, my mother wanted to see it year after year ever since I was born.
I brushed a few loose strands of hair out of my eyes as I finally reached the big doors to my mother's room. I reached up and pulled them open with a slight struggle, but it was fairly easy after I got it open a crack. I heard my mother and Beatrix talking through the door about something. I didn't get to pick up on much of the conversation, but it was clear what they were talking about as soon as I stepped into the room.
"But mother ran it well by herself!" my mother protested. "Why can't I do the same?! All the men I have been with after my adventure only came after me for my land or my money. They aren't worthy to help me rule MY kingdom! Why do you treat me as if I'm still just a child?!"
"It just works so much better with two people," Beatrix finished.
"Do you think I can't run Alexandria by myself?"
"I never said anything of the sort-"
"You do, don't you? You and Steiner both think that I can't handle the Kingdom, don't you?!" By this time I could tell my mother was outraged. I always knew about how she thought that Steiner and Beatrix deemed her unworthy, and I also knew that they were the ones behind all her previous suitors. My mother hated each one, and each one pretty much hated her.
Beatrix unfolded her arms and moved closer to her. I could see my mother's eyes gloss over with tears. She was going to cry again and I hated that. I knew that it was all because of Zidane that this was happening too. If he didn't leave us, things wouldn't be like this.
Mom turned away from Beatrix and wrapped her arms around her waist.
"I know you're thinking of him again right now, Garnet. I can almost sense your need for him even as we speak, but you heard the news as well as I did. My Queen," Beatrix paused before she continued to speak, for what she was going to say was going to pain my mother more than anyone could imagine, and she knew it, "… Zidane is dead." I noticed that my mother stopped breathing when Beatrix finished her sentence. A violent shudder shook her body as Beatrix said those words. "You know what the rescue team said when they returned from the Iifa tree. No sign of him was found, and the whole tree was devoured by its vines. Now seven years later, you're still mourning over his death when everyone else has moved on. Even little Eiko who was close to him got over his death and has moved on. You really should-"
"Damn it, Beatrix!" The yell caught me by surprise, for I had never heard my mother swear before. She slammed her hand on the windowsill as two lone tears fell onto her hand. Beatrix and I both backed up from her sudden outburst. With a cracking voice, my mother continued to speak. "You don't understand, do you? I can't move on! I just can't! No matter how hard I try, I feel myself moving away from him, and it hurts, Beatrix! It hurts… I can't live my life with someone else because they will never have what he has. Although I'm not really sure what that is at the moment, it's what made him different; it's what made him special."
"Garnet, please," Beatrix pleaded softly. She knew how much pain my mother was in. I didn't know how to handle the situation, but I knew that they were unaware of my presence. Beatrix walked over to my mother and placed her hand on her shoulder. She hated to see her cry like this, especially when it was over my father. "The kingdom needs you in one piece, and right now half of you is ruling while the other half is still hoping for Zidane. The only reason why we're looking for a suitor is to make up for the part of you that isn't here." She paused thinking carefully about what she was going to say next. "It was like… he created an alter-ego when he started to call you Dagger, and that part of you stayed. That part of you misses him."
"No," she began slowly. "The part of me that is Garnet, misses him. The part of me that is Dagger, loves him." She looked at mother wordlessly. "The reason why it hurts so much, Beatrix, is because I love him. It would be like you losing Steiner." I knew that sentence had to have hit Beatrix hard. She and Steiner were close; you might as well have said they were in love. My mother used this knowledge to the best of her advantage. "But that's what it is. I've lost him, and as much as I want to believe that he's dead and never coming back, I can't do it. Because of some part of me that keeps saying that he's alive and just lost, I can't let his memory go."
They were always arguing about Zidane whenever I was out of hearing range. My mother was always pining over him and I could never understand why. I let out a small cough before my mother could continue to let them know that I was there.
Beatrix looked at me and bowed. My mother on the other hand turned away hiding her red eyes from my vision. She was about to cry, and I knew it. I rubbed the small horn on my head while my tail fell limp at my side. I walked over to my mother and tugged on her dress slightly to get her attention. She looked over at me and gave me a wiry smile.
"Beatrix, leave us please. I want to us to get ready for tonight's production," my mother said calmly as she placed a soft hand on my shoulder. I held it firmly as I looked over at Beatrix. She didn't say a word, but simply nodded and left the room with only the sound of her armor clanking.
A heavy silence filled the room, and for a long while, nothing more was said….
(A/N: Well what did ya think? I'm fully aware that most of this looks a lot like my fic "Still Waiting to Cheat Death" but that was the whole idea! I got the idea for this fic when I was riding home on my bus listening to the FFIX song caled, "Didn't Capture the Hearts of Both" hence the title, and my friend though it sounded cool. Most of the plot will be the same, but now we have Zidane and Dagger's little Daughter, Jade! I decided to stay with the gem idea for names, plus Jade sounds pretty. Please tell me what you think and I'll update the rest of the fic ASAP for those who really like it. Read and Review PLZ!! Good or bad, I don't care!! I just luv reviews ^.^)