Okay, this is the reason why I wanted Sabin and Cyan to assist Celes and Locke on their journey to go and find Terra...ONE line that Sabin said in this part that almost made me die laughing the first time I saw it...and it's what I based his personality off of. Plus, I like the squabbles between Sabin, Cyan, and Celes that occurred in chapters 17 and 19. I have changed this chapter around so many times it's nuts. A while ago I had a GREAT idea for it, then when I went back to reread it, I was like, "NO! THAT CAN'T HAPPEN YET!" So I had to move the conversation to the epilogue instead. I actually almost scrapped this chapter completely because I didn't want the Locke/Celes romance to come into this fic...cuz I don't like that pairing, but I managed stray away from it.(Plus, I love the "that ribbon suits you..." line. I used one similar to that in Zanarkand A-East because of it, actually) However, the last time I did play this game, I realized how much the aria that Celes sings is a lot like the Rachel/Locke relationship...it makes a lot of sense. Okay, anyway...Oh, and the title of the chapter is from a selection of pieces that I picked a piccolo solo from my junior year of high school. It was the first thing that I thought of, so I stuck with it!

And that, ladies and gentlemen, concludes my seven chapter update! Hopefully I will work out the next chapter soon...then I'll have a few more to update! My favorite chapters (33-36) are coming up soon!

24. A Night At The Opera

I can't believe that I'm here…Locke thought as he blankly watched the curtain rise on stage. The sooner Setzer grabs Celes thinking she's Maria, the sooner we get the airship, and the sooner we can get outta here! He rested his chin in his hand as the narrator entered the stage and explained the main plot of the opera. Locke let out a chuckle when Draco, the lead male role, was ran over by several chocobos that were ridden by some of the other cast members. He wasn't sure if it was on purpose or not for the situation looked out of character, but the dramatic music fit it and the smile on the Impresario's face proved that it was meant to occur. Draco took center stage and started to sing with a beautiful bass voice, and Locke desperately tried to stay awake. The Impresario was smiling like a little school girl, so Locke assumed that everything going well.

"I have no idea what's going on, man," Sabin whispered as he leaned over toward Locke.

"Welcome to the club," he whispered back with a soft chuckle. He started to shake his leg in impatience and wondered when Celes was going to make her entrance. I wonder how she's doing…she must be terrified…He decided that going to see how she was doing made an excellent excuse to leave, so he stood up and slightly stretched.

The Impresario gasped when he saw Locke's action, and Locke wasn't sure if it was because he stood up or the fact that he was contemplating leaving the opera. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to the dressing room," he said quietly as he motioned toward the door.

"Is everything okay?" The Impresario asked as Locke nodded.

"I just want to see how Celes is holding up. I'll be back, I promise." With an approving nod from the Impresario, Locke started toward the exit of the theater. As he passed Sabin, he could hear him lean toward Cyan and ask, "Uh? Why's everyone singing?"

Locke couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief when he walked into the main lobby of the building; he wasn't a big fan of opera. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate it; it was more or less that he didn't understand it. According to him, it was just something for rich, snobby people to dress up for every weekend and show off their elegant clothing and jewelry. The thought of his twenty-fourth birthday came to mind and he felt his body break out into goosebumps.

He walked down the stairs and put his ear against the door of the dressing room. He could faintly hear Celes softly warming up, and his jaw slightly dropped. She was very talented, and he wasn't expecting it. The more he heard, the larger his smile was.

As quietly as he could, he placed his hand on the door knob and turned it. He walked into the dressing room, causing her to stop singing and whip around. He wasn't sure who blushed more; him or her. He was frozen when he saw her, and after blinking in surprise several times, he let his gaze travel from her eyes to her toes then back up to her eyes. That was all he could take before he had to turn away and feel his face burn. Her long blonde hair was elegantly pulled away from her face and secured with a purple satin ribbon, she was wearing an elaborate white gown that was adorned with pearls and fancy designs sewn into the material, and she was wearing makeup. Now she looks more like her…he thought as he faced her once again.

"Ai yai yai!" His voice slightly cracked as he spoke and they both blushed a deeper shade of red. "Izzat…you?"

"No," she said facetiously out of nervousness as she walked toward the mirror and looked at her reflection. She slightly grimaced at the way she looked and turned toward him again as she continued, "I'm just a figment of your imagination."

"Well, it's a good thing to know that a new look doesn't change your personality," he joked with a smile. He was trying to lighten up the situation as much as possible so his cheeks would return to their normal color. "You, uh, you look good."

"Thanks, although I feel like I can't breathe in this damn thing," she replied as her cheeks flushed again. She smoothed her dress around her hips and let out a sigh. "It's just not me. I mean, I haven't worn a dress since…" Her nose wrinkled as she thought about it. "Actually, I've never worn a dress."

"Really?" He asked her as she fingered the material gently.

"Well, yeah," she answered as she looked up at him. "Not too many royal balls when you're a general. Any parties that were thrown, I had to wear Imperial garb, sword and all. I was meant to look tough and give orders, not dress up and look all girlie."

"You look exactly like Maria though," Locke confirmed as he pointed at her. "Well, I've only been to one opera that she's been in and that was over a year ago, but yeah. The Impressario was right by saying that you could fit the role."

She was about ready to open her mouth to say something, but almost tripped again. "Goddesses, these heels are going to be the death of me, I swear. How pathetic is my eulogy going to be? 'Celes Chere, Imperial General turned traitor, killed by falling over and cracking her head open from stilettos.' I think that'll be a first."

"Nice," he responded with a chuckle and Celes attempted to bend over and fix her heels. "So, do you know what happened to the real Maria?"

"They sent her back to Jidoor," Celes informed him as she stumbled over the hem of her dress. "Damn heels. Anyway, the Impresario decided that if she was in the safety of her own home, she'd be, well, safe."

"How does she feel that someone is taking over her spot?" Celes leaned against the wall to fix her heels as Locke spoke.

"I don't think she's too happy with it, but she knows it's for her own good. I understand where's she's coming from; I wouldn't want to be kidnapped by some psycho either." With a mischievous grin, she added, "She lives with Impresario, you know. They've been having an affair or something like that for the last couple of years. I mean, when you think about it, it's probably how she keeps getting the lead roles in all of his operas! I wouldn't be surprised if he wrote certain operas with parts made for her. How scandalous is that?"

"Celes, are you gossiping?" Locke asked, playfully narrowing his eyes. She slightly blushed as she realized that he was correct.

"I blame it on the dress!" She exclaimed as she pointed to her gown. "Look at me, I get all dressed up and now I'm gossiping. I'm thoroughly embarrassed at myself for turning into a girl."

"Nah, don't worry about it," he said with a chuckle as she walked toward the score. "So, are you prepared? I mean, you weren't given a long time to learn the part. Have you even gone over the music with the orchestra?"

"Locke," she said, completely ignoring his questions. Seriousness returned to her voice as he turned away from her. "I hope you don't mind me changing the mood here, but I need to ask you something that has been on my mind for a while now."

Worry washed over his face as he exhaled. He didn't turn around to face her again for he knew she would surely see the deadpanned look on his face, so he remained facing the door. "What's that?"

There was a slight hesitation before she spoke again. He figured she wasn't sure how to form her question, although he knew that she had asked it a million times in her head. He could hear her tapping her shoe against the floor, and with a small exhale she finally spoke. "Why did you help me escape back there? You know, when we were back in South Figaro."

"Celes, that feels like forever ago." He felt the color drain out of his face as he trailed off. To hide his face, he bowed his head, but figured he better just tell her the truth instead of dodging it. "I…once abandoned someone when she needed me…" Especially since he had just seen Rachel's house for the first time in a few weeks, the memories were reopened wounds. Feeling the tears well up, he decided that it would be the best idea if he went back out into the theater.

"Oh. You're talking about Rachel, aren't you?" Her voice was small, but big enough to stop him in his tracks. He could hear her heels click when they hit the ground as she took a step closer to him. She obviously wasn't used to walking in a big dress like that, so she had to lift the hem off the ground and watch where she stepped in order not to trip and fall. "Somewhere inside you were saving…her, weren't you…?"

With a small sigh, he hung his head and closed his eyes. This was a question that was bound to come up sooner or later, but now that it was upon him, he wasn't sure what to say. He simply looked over his shoulder and said, "That ribbon suits you."

She lifted her hand to the purple satin ribbon that was entwined in her hair and let it slide through her fingers. "Uh, thanks?" Now it was her turn to sigh, but he wasn't about to explain the whole story to her. Not only would it take him a while to give her all the details, but Celes' resemblance to her in the dress was identical.

"Look, I don't like to talk about it. Just please accept the fact that I want to help you and refuse to leave your side." He faced her in the middle of his sentence, and her forehead was furrowed in confusion. To lighten the mood, he smiled at her. "I won't change my mind, so you better get over it."

She nodded slightly as she thought about it, then after half a minute, her face broke out into a smile. "Well then, on with the show!" He smiled as she changed the subject; proof that she respected his silence and his privacy. "This is a big scene in which Maria senses that something's happened to Draco!"

"You'd better check the score one last time," he suggested as she shook her head.

"Nah, I think I'm good." She slowly inhaled then exhaled. "Let me just say my words really quickly just to make sure that my mind won't go completely blank while I'm on stage or something. Okay." She froze and put her hand to her mouth. "Oh no, what's the first line!"

"Celes, relax, it's okay!" Locke said as she rushed to the score and quickly flipped through the pages. "If you calm down, you'll remember them."

"Okay, okay," she looked away from the music and faced Locke with a nervous chuckle. She then turned around again, grabbed the score and handed it to Locke. Her voice was frantic and she spoke rather quickly, causing Locke to raise his eyebrows at her. "Let me try this again. However, I want you to look at the words and make sure that I'm saying them correctly, okay? Okay. I don't want to mix anything up. I'm not going to sing the words; I'm just going to say them. 'Oh my hero, so far away now. Will I ever see your smile? Love goes away, like night into day. It's just a fading dream...' Um…Oh! 'I'm the darkness, you're the stars. Our love is brighter then the sun. For eternity, for me there can be, only you, my chosen one...Must I forget you? Our solemn promise? Will autumn take the place of spring? What shall I do? I'm lost without you. Speak to me once more!' Okay, then the guy who plays Draco comes out, turns into flowers, then I take them up to the top of the castle and continue with; 'We must part now. My life goes on. But my heart won't give you up. Ere—Who honestly uses the word 'ere' anymore besides Cyan? Anyway—'Ere I walk away, let me hear you say I meant so much to you. So gently you touched my heart. I will be forever yours. Come what may, I won't age a day, I'll wait for you always.' And that's it. I think."

"Well done," Locke said as he tucked the score under his arm and gently applauded. Those words…He thought to himself as he evaluated everything that she just said. So close to the situation…'So gently you touched my heart, I will be forever yours, come what may, I won't age a day, I'll wait for you always…' The Patriarch promised me that Rachel wouldn't age a day, and she hasn't…Rachel…

Celes walked up to him and took the score out from under his arm, breaking his train of thought. "Well, I know the words, which is a good thing, but to answer your question, no. I've never actually practiced it with the orchestra or anything. Especially since I just bastardized the first line, I hope I remember everything while I'm under pressure. I'm really nervous."

"You will do fine, Celes. You just need to focus. However, it's only natural that you're nervous." He shoved his hands in his pockets as she placed the score back on the table and quickly looked at her hair in the mirror. "This is the first time you've ever had to do something like this."

"Yeah, and it will be the last." Locke chuckled as she walked toward the entrance to the stage. "I don't want to let the Impresario down. I mean, we pretty much told him that we'd save his opera star, but he's never even heard me sing."

"Let him down? Heh, impossible." She looked back at him and he winked at her. "Besides, if it's any consolation, I'll be watching you from back here."

"What!" She exclaimed as her eyes went wide. "Consolation? You can't be serious! How is that supposed to be consolation?"

"Well, if I don't watch you here, I'll watch you from my seat on the balcony. I really don't care where I watch you, so I guess I'll just let you pick," he said as she slightly whimpered. He couldn't help but laugh at her as her face turned completely pale. "What's that look for?"

"You have to watch me?"

"Of course I have to watch you." He continued to laugh at her as she moved aside the curtain and looked out onto the stage again. "Come on, stop being so self conscious. You will be great. I don't know how many times I have to tell you that before it sinks into your brain."

Completely ignoring him, she looked out toward the stage again. "Are there are a lot of people out there? I can't see; the lights are too bright."

"Do you really want to know the answer to that question?" She shook her head quickly and pressed her lips together. "Then why did you ask?"

"To psyche myself out even more," she admitted with a shrug. She gasped when she heard the song before her aria come to a close. "Oh goddesses…that's my cue."

"Good luck, Celes," Locke said with a warm smile. "I'm telling ya, you will be great out there. Knock 'em dead."

"I think that's the first time in my life where I've heard that expression used for something other than the literal meaning." Locke knew that if she wasn't so nervous, she would've laughed, but instead she sharply inhaled then quickly let her breath out. "Okay."

"I'll be waiting right here." She nodded at him and with another deep breath, picked up the edges of her fluffy skirt and made her way onto the stage.

'Must I forget you…our solemn promise…' Rachel…My heart won't give you up…