The Cold Woman
Six years have passed since the accident. Virginia never came back home, but Jet hasn't given up hope of finding her. He spends most of his time searching the world over on either Lombardia, or the new Hovercraft he'd gotten - - as a sandcraft is now useless, ever since the oceans began to refill - - looking for a sign. When not doing that, he visits the friends and family of everyone in the group, wondering if they might have seen her. But no trace of her has ever been found. Jet even returned to the mountain where it all happened, looking to find a body or even her, trapped in the cave. But even that turned up futile, which got him thinking that she got out, and hasn't been able to get home for some reason.
Through all of his endeavors, Jet gained a new outlook on life. Although the memories of Virginia often hurt him, he wouldn't trade them for any amount of treasure. She was dear to him, one of the few people who would accept him for what he was. Precisely why he never told his origins to anyone.
If ever Jet was tired, or worn out, he would return to Boot Hill, and stay with her aunt and uncle. They had been glad to accommodate him, especially since he was working so hard to find Virginia. He used to return every weekend, but it has now changed to once a month, as he is working overtime on his searching. If it keeps up like this, he'll be coming back only once a year.
On this day, he was at the Ruins of Memory. He remembered the time they had come here to find the Teardrop in order to save Maya, and Asgard had revived and attacked them after they'd beaten up the Prophets. Then there had been an explosion, and the ceiling had collapsed. Much like how they had been separated in the first place. Jet sighed as he thought about those times.
"I didn't think any other treasure hunters would come here," a voice said, "This place has been cleaned out for years. I don't even know why I'm here if I can't get anything."
Jet turned around to the source of the voice. Behind him was a young woman, about 25. She had on a brown shirt, red pants held on with a black belt with a golden buckle, brown boots with a ruby in the front, a red headband, and a red vest/jacket with pockets over each breast. Her hair was brown, with a short ponytail held on by a ruby, a chin length tress on the right side of her face, and a shoulder length tress on the left. An eyepatch covered her left eye, and her right one was blue. Scars covered her bare arms. But except for the patch and the scars, she looked awfully like Virginia.
"Ginny! Is it really you? I have been waiting a long time!" Jet exclaimed.
But when he stepped forward, he found the woman had aimed a large bazooka at his head. She stated, "My name is Megami, world renowned treasure hunter. Why do you approach me, boy? I am not this 'Ginny' you seek. Just leave me to find my treasures."
Jet thought the woman sounded a lot like he used to, before Virginia changed him. "I'm sorry. I thought you were my wife. She and I were separated in an accident six years ago, and I haven't seen her since. I've been searching for her, for a long time. So if you have see a woman named Virginia Enduro in the past, could you possibly tell me where it was? I need to see her again."
"You must really care about her," Megami deduced, "But I have not seen this woman. The only thing that concerns me is Gella, not someone else's love problems. There is no need for me to fall in love with a man anyway. Love only gets in the way on the battlefield."
"I beg to differ. Love can bring out a strength we didn't know we had before. I've fought so much harder if I knew that Virginia needed my help. She does the same for me," he informed her.
Megami told the youth, "Your memories of her are just causing you pain. Now that she's gone, it hurts to remember all the good times. Just throw them away if they get too painful and you'll feel much better. It worked for me, when my memories were just too much to bear."
At that moment, Jet realized that he sounded just like Virginia. And this woman was sounding an awfully lot like he used to, before his love had changed him. It was actually kind of funny. He now knew what it meant by the expression "the shoe is on the other foot".
He looked her in the good eye. "I could never just throw away my time with Ginny. She is the most important person in my life. You're just a coward, if you want to run from your past. I admit, I once did something like that. Then I let my past nearly control me. But all it did was cause me more pain. Once I faced my past and embraced it, I felt like my wings could take me up into the sky, and fly away from all of my pain." He laughed a little bit, that sounded like something Ginny would say.
"Memories are only the past," Megami said, "They won't get me even one Gella."
"The past can sometimes guide us to the future. I've experienced the value of my memory first hand, on several occasions. What in your past could be so terrible that you have to run from it?" he asked, remembering how his memories of green Figaia had helped them in their fights.
Megami was silent. But she had on a look that Jet knew all too well. It was a look of sorrow, and loss. He wondered how much she had suffered to get like that. Did it have something to do with why she was scarred, and had lost her left eye? Or was it another incident?
After a little while, she stated, "What happened to me in the past is none of your business. Just leave me alone. Only I can walk the path I have chosen." With that, she left.
Jet watched her go. 'Who is this woman, and what is her problem? She reminds me of me back in the old days. And I'm really starting to act like Ginny? I guess you really do begin to emulate the one you love.' He then began to head back to Jolly Roger, thinking of what had happened.
- - - -
Teefa's Last Words…
Don't ask why I named her Megami. That means Goddess in Japanese. It sounded cool, that's all. Looks like Virginia, acts like Jet, threw her memory away like Kanon. I was going for Jet to begin acting like Ginny, just for fun.
