Brahne's Story

Disclaimer: I own nothing of FFIX but this story!


6. The Living Dead

Brahne woke up expecting to see scars over her body and feel further excruciating pain but, much to her surprise, her skin was smooth and her mind felt clearer than it had ever felt. Somehow everything felt better, not only was the sun shining outside and birds were singing but she felt full of energy and it was as if every burden she had ever had had been lifted. Smiling to herself for the first time in ages, she looked around the room. It was drowned in sunlight and sparkling like a glittering ballroom with no evidence that a dark spell had ever been carried out.

She closed her eyes for a moment, her mind remembering the spell that had ripped through her body that now seemed to have brought her such peace, she would gladly do it more times if it meant she could lie in this room forever free of pain and guilt. It was indescribable how tranquil lying on the bed with the feeling that the spell had worked in her heart. From now on she could do no harm she was sure of it.

With this joyous thought in mind, she threw back the duvet and got ready to face the world once more when suddenly an awful sound came from the other side of the door. Someone was crying. Brahne froze, a sudden flow of guilt swimming up to her heart. She knew exactly why someone was crying. Like all happiness had been drained away from her within a second, a ruthless injection of reality brought her out of her peaceful dream world into her hell. The kingdom had been informed of the King's death. She herself had been so happy that she would never do such an awful deed again that the horror of what she had done had somehow drifted out of mind but now, here it was, stronger than ever- pangs of guilt leeched all her previous happiness away and a sudden veil of grief fell over her. As if she had seen a ghost, her face became pale and she fell back on the bed. The sun hid behind a dark grey cloud and the birds stopped singing casting a grieving silence over the castle.

The child continued to cry and soon it became like torture, gripping Brahne's once joyous heart and shredding it into many pieces. A tear trickled down the young Queen's cheek and, deep in thought, she rocked back on forth on the bed. One tear became two and two tears became a stream. Her head was buried in memories again and they played over and over again. Suddenly, she knew what she had to do now. Like a transparent ghost floating over the crying people, she crept of the room, down the stone spiral staircase and towards Dr.Tot's basement chambers.

The room was just as she had left it. Upon the desk, towers of papers sat waiting to be finished and there were still a few books on the table that Dr.Tot hadn't put back in his search to help Brahne. It felt like a million years ago she had raced down to this very room, crying, and had been unable to think clearly at all. Now, her mind was in a state of acceptance even though her loss still hurt beyond words. She wanted to say goodbye to her love once and for all. She wanted to explain to him everything. There was no way her heart could move on until she had faced up to her crime one final time. Cautiously approaching the purple cloth she had seen Dr. Tot conceal her husband with, she tried to remember a way to reveal him. Her mind, however, was blank and it was only when she heard a voice behind her, that it became alive with any thought.

"So the time has come…"
Brahne's heart began to beat faster, only slowing down when she had time to think the voice belonged to Dr.Tot. She spun around to look at the wise tutor.
"I…I…"
She wanted to explain herself better, make him understand somehow she was not evil but her head couldn't find the words. Dr. Tot, however, didn't have the expression upon his face that said he was believed he was confronting a mass murderer. He smiled weakly, his right hand silencing any attempts of Brahne's to explain herself.
"I spent all that night trying to reassure myself I had done the right thing," he began quietly, "My head was telling me that you were a heartless murderer, that what I did was wrong and that I should have had you arrested when I had the chance… but after much contemplation it all came down to the same thing. I believe you Brahne, I believe you weren't in control of what you were doing. I can't find another reason. You wouldn't… you couldn't have…You… loved him too much. "

Brahne felt an enormous flood of relief enter her body but also another wave of grief. She cried a little more as she stared at the purple cloth. This seemed to trigger something in Dr.Tot's mind. He spoke even softer than before.
"Brahne? I don't want you to tell anyone about my incantations. I don't wish to associate myself with it, I only have the ability to read and acquire the knowledge it gives me after all . I am a simple man, I need only knowledge-" he paused for a moment, unsure of how to start his next sentence it seemed- "A-And Brahne, if I mentioned a book of dark spells you must forget about it. It brings nothing but evil, nothing good ever comes of it. It's best left sealed where it can do no harm…"

Brahne felt her heart surge with a sudden hatred at these words. She had not forgotten what the jesters had told her about him reading it and bringing about the fever that had killed Garnet because of his lack of skill. However, she said nothing. The only thing she could really think about was how much joy that horrific spell had actually brought her. Without much more thought, she blurted out what she knew about the book. Perhaps she wanted Dr.Tot to know that the book could do good but, whatever she thought, it didn't bring much joy to Dr.Tot.

"Dr.Tot that book is unsealed but it is ok, I promise. It has blessed me with protection. I don't think I will harm anymore…"
Dr.Tot's face went whiter than a sheet, his eyes filled up with fear and he stared off into the distance. If anyone had walked in at this point they might have thought he was a victim of shell shock, his mouth seemed to foam a little giving him the appearance of a terrified puppy dog.
"Dr.Tot?" Brahne said concerned, feeling as if a rotten apple had finally began to work its way into her digestive system. She never seen the man like this before.
"No spell from there comes without a price…" Dr. Tot spoke in a scared whisper, his eyes still somewhere in the distance.
"It's ok. The scars vanished and I feel…"
"Never will you be the same again. NEVER!"

Suddenly Brahne felt like the puppy dog, one who was being scolded by its master. She jumped back in shock. If she hadn't expected Dr.Tot to act so scared she certainly didn't foresee him raising his voice so unexpectedly.
"….I…. I... don't get what you mean," Brahne stammered, suddenly feeling as if the room had turned into a sauna.
"Don't you understand?" Dr. Tot bellowed, looking straight into her eyes, "That book is evil! It was sealed for a purpose! It may seem like a quick fix to your problems but no piece of magic will bring you that kind of solution! In time, you will understand. In time, that spell will reveal its true form to you. It will destroy you Brahne!"

Brahne felt as though she had had another injection shot into her. She could feel all the colour drain from her face. Over and over the words "destroy you" played in her mind. Was she going to die? Why hadn't the jesters fully informed her of the consequences? What was going to happen to her? Her throat became sticky and dry, dreading to ask such a simple question.
"But… I thought it would help me…" she whispered to herself. "I thought it had helped me…."
"Many have fallen under its spell with that promise," Dr. Tot informed her, "It is a dangerous controlling object to all who come across it. Brahne… do you… ?"
The Queen looked up from where she had been deep in thought.
"I want to know what is to become of me," she said decisively. "If there is a price to pay then I must know of it. There is no point hiding from the inevitable. What will happen to me?"

Dr.Tot dropped his eye contact and his voice became absent of emotion, replaced by a voice of wisdom.
"It is hard to say. According to my reading, it is reported that inevitably there will be a destruction of the body. The human body cannot possibly withstand a spell of that nature. I am not sure exactly but I would say that over a period of five years your body will feel the full effect. Naturally, your immune system will treat it as an infection and will get rid of it. It is in this time that you may feel the positive effects of the spell"- he flicked open a book and began to search finally sliding a finger down a page to bend it over- " However, this spell is no infection and it will gradually multiply increasing its power. The body will become confused and will attack itself causing natural processes in the body to breakdown. Reported effects include: an inability to produce iron for the blood or process fats, the sight is not unheard of to be lost or badly damaged and mood swings/ personality changes are also reported. Victims who live may find themselves the Living Dead"

Dr.Tot slowly closed the book and it puffed out a haze of dust. It was as if it had cast a spell upon a room. There was complete silence with only the sound of the clock ticking nearby. Brahne slid down to where the cloth lay, her eyes streaming. She could feel nothing. Her whole body felt numb.
"Brahne… This is a dangerous time for others," Dr. Tot began delicately, "If this spell does to you what it is reported to do then these mood swings and this whole transformation cannot happen within daylight…"
He trailed off leaving Brahne to come to the awful conclusion.
"...You will lock me up?" she said quickly, relieving Dr.Tot of having to say it. He bowed his head once more.
"I… have.. no choice…."

Brahne felt as though the words she had spoken were twisting her insides and squeezing out every bit of emotion . She had lost all ability to speak her feelings, instead they were churning up her insides like a blender and the result was horror and devastation in her face. Her eyes were pouring out acid tears that burned into her skin. Now, it all seemed so obvious that such an evil book could only do harm but then, she was desperate to save others from her husband's fate. For what seemed like an eternity, she sat sobbing in silence eventually speaking in a voice that sounded as if it belonged to a person who had had their soul sucked away.

"Dr.Tot... before... before you... can I have privacy to bury my husband?"
Dr.Tot felt his own eyes burn with tears as he opened another book.
"This is the last time I ever read an incantation… "

Brahne closed her eyes and let tears fall down her cheek. When she had opened them, the tears were falling into a sea. She didn't know how she had got there, she didn't even recognise the place, but she knew that she was here to say goodbye. She held the purple bundle in her arms that was now solid with the body and continued to cry.
"I don't know if I can really find the words, " she sobbed on the secluded land Dr. Tot's incantation had brought her to. "But I have to explain somehow. I don't understand things myself. I'm scared of what is happening to me and now I learn that I too am more or less going to die…"
She lay the bundle down on the soft green grass and looked into the distant ocean.
"…It's beautiful here. I think you will be in peace. I want that more than anything. Never will I forgive myself for what I have done but I find comfort in the fact that you will be here…"
She gently rolled him onto the lapping waves.
"…. Rest in peace, may your eternal sleep be filled with pleasant dreams…"
He slowly drifted out into sea and Brahne caught her reflection shimmering on the water. This, she knew, was the last time she'd ever see herself look like the person in the water.

I hope that was an ok burial. I thought it would be nice as D.T's final incantation to give Brahne her a final wish of privacy to bury her husband. O.k well she could have buried him outside the castle somewhere but then they'd have to go move the body and suspicions about the death may be running high. By Dr.Tot reading this final spell, it ends Dr.Tot's "magic use" and Brahne can have her wish before she will effectively lose her mind and body.