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Dagger pulled from her closet a cloak, for it was cold tonight. She looked around for a moment before traveling out of Alexandria.

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When Dagger reached the place the map had indicated, at first she thought she had gone to the wrong place. All she could see was a clearing, nothing really special about it at all….

…Until she noticed it. A tree stood in the middle of the clearing, and by the light of the dual moons, Dagger could just see Zidane. He was hanging by his wrists, and seemed hardly conscious. He was stripped to the waist, and looked very, very exhausted.

A woman, tall and thin, with long black hair stepped forward. A black dress clung to her thin frame as she walked towards Zidane. For a moment, and only for the space of a moment, the woman turned to Dagger, somehow noticing her from across the clearing.

The woman's face was small and pointed, her black hair cascading down her shoulders and back. Dagger would have said she was pretty or even beautiful until she met the woman's eyes. Deep, piercing green eyes grabbed Dagger's attention as she froze, afraid to move. In their emerald depths swirled a certain contempt; Dagger guessed it was for Zidane's life. Dagger stared as the woman turned back to Zidane and roused him with one sentence: "Why hello, my love…"

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Zidane awoke to a familiar voice. It was sickly sweet: "Why hello, my love," it said. He recognized it as Cyra. As he opened his eyes, he realized that it was dark out. He knew what was about to happen. Cyra was going to kill him tonight. He felt her hand lifting up his drooping head.

His entire body tensed with this realization: he was going to die tonight! "Cyra," he whispered; his voice was low and gravelly. She dropped his head; he had no strength to keep it up, and so he let it fall back to his shoulder. He felt the pressure on his wrists release, and he hit the ground hard. He prepared himself to be hauled up and dragged over to the stone table for his death. He lay there, not moving or struggling, even as he heard Cyra laughing.

To his surprise, he felt himself being pulled up and into gentle arms; it was Dagger! She had come. His heart cried out to her; he stole a glance at her. No sight could have been more beautiful to him as he relaxed into her tender touch…..

….until he realized that she was about to witness his death. He didn't want her to see him tortured and killed. She deserved better. Before he could fully digest that she was here, Cyra spoke.

"Right on time," she said, smiling sadistically. Zidane resisted the urge to bury his face in Dagger's arms. He could not deny the fact that he was terrified of what Cyra was going to do to him. "Stand up!" she yelled. Zidane trembled for a moment, then stole himself.

He had given Cyra his word.

He forced himself to his feet, even though it was quite painful. Cyra pointed over to the stone table. He took a step, and then another. He knew he was going too slowly for Cyra, but he couldn't do much else. It didn't surprise him when he felt Cyra kick him hard. He fell forward.

"Get up!" Cyra yelled, hauling back to kick him again. Zidane cringed, but, curiously enough, the next thing he felt was Dagger's gentle and kind touch. His heart, once more, rejoiced at the feel of her kind and loving touch. He looked up at her and felt like a stake had just impaled his heart. He couldn't think of anything more saddening to him than to see Dagger cry, especially because of him.

She helped him up and over to the stone table.

He lay down upon it, saying nothing. He risked another glance at Dagger, who had tears flowing down her face. He wished desperately that he could kiss those tears away.

The rock was cold and hard against his tender back, but Cyra walked over and rolled him over, and bound him face down. The shackles were attached low on the rock; she bound him tightly, so that he could hardly breathe. He was pulled so taut across the table that it seemed to open his back up, tearing the wounds and making his back hurt even more.

He knew that Dagger could see his bruised and bleeding back now; somehow, that struck him as humiliating. He didn't want her to see him like that, but there wasn't much he could do about it now.

"What do you see, Dagger?" Cyra asked. Zidane waited for her answer; he knew she was still crying.

"I see Zidane," she whispered, between small sniffles. Cyra laughed. "You see a weak and pathetic sacrifice, hardly worthy of my attention." Dagger was quick to respond. "Then why don't you let him go?" she asked. Zidane closed his eyes. He couldn't bear to hear Dagger in this kind of agony. As much as he had wanted to see her before he died, he didn't want this. This was just too much for her.

"Because his life is forfeit to me," Cyra said, "As will yours be, if he offers any struggle." He heard Dagger gasp.

Don't worry, Dagger…. he thought to her, I'd die a thousand times before I let Cyra touch you.

There was a silence. Then, Zidane caught a soft, sadistic purr.

"Hit him twenty times," he heard Cyra whisper. Dagger gasped. "If you don't hit him," she whispered, "Then I'll hit him forty times, and I doubt that he'll be able to survive that."

It felt like an eternity before he felt it. It was a whip, a feeling he was well acquainted with. It hurt, but not quite as much as it would have if Cyra was wielding it. Dagger was trying to hard not to hurt him any more than was necessary; her love was touching.

Zidane had suppressed his cry for two reasons. The first was that he didn't think Dagger would have been able to stand it if he had given any kind of vocalization. The second was that Cyra might make Dagger hit him more if she thought he was breaking.

He managed to suppress it for fourteen strikes. But on the fifteenth, he could stand it no longer. He allowed the tiniest of whimpers to escape his lips. He sensed Dagger in her hesitation. He cursed himself for giving over, but his back simply hurt too much.

Over the last five, his cry grew into a gut-wrenching scream. "Shut up!" he heard Cyra cry, and she strike him hard across the face.

She walked away. He was thankful she wasn't about to make both he and Dagger go through that again.

He hoped his death would come soon enough, for the pain excruciating, but the thought of Dagger standing beside him, weeping, was even more painful.

A cold wind blew across the clearing. Zidane quivered slightly. He felt the slight touch of fabric across his back. He tried to look up. Dagger moved around in front of him, her soft brown eyes moist with tears. Oh, god, Dagger…please doesn't cry…he thought. She caressed his face before touching her moist lips to his dry lips. Dagger had no idea how comforting that kiss was to Zidane's anguished, grief-stricken heart.

He felt the cloak being removed; he saw Cyra walk towards him. She lifted his head, as if to gaze into his eyes, but then pulled a knife to his throat. He quivered. Is this is? he wondered, hoping it was.

"Oh, but that would be too easy," she said in a patronizing tone, pulling the knife back. "I want you to suffer before I take your life." Haven't I suffered enough? he thought. "But I suppose," she said, pulling out the cruel looking collar and chain, "that I could let you have some water before we begin." Water! Zidane thought. Oh, how he had longed for water during the four days he had been held prisoner here. He felt himself being released from the rock and hauled to his feet. Cyra slipped the collar around his throat, tightly. She bound his hands behind his back and, to his surprise, handed the chain to Dagger and pointed over to the tiny brook that flowed just inside the forest.

Dagger gently knelt down beside him. He felt her tender touch against his face, a touch that almost made him forget why he was here. She gently helped him to his feet and began to walk over to the brook, with Cyra following closely behind. Once they reached the stream, Dagger gently lowered Zidane to the ground, in a kneeling position. He rested his face in the water for a second, enjoying the cool feel of that healing liquid pour around his face. He drank eagerly. He felt Dagger stroking his face, chest and arms encouragingly, not hesitating to lay a kiss there as well.

Cyra only allowed Zidane a few swallows of water before grabbing the chain that Dagger had abandoned and yanking it. He choked, but gave no resistance. She had shown him mercy, and he dared not rebel against that.

Cyra dragged him back to the stone table, where she bound him face up. Zidane whimpered softly as he was bound, for his wrists hurt intensely. He lay against the cold rock, his back scraping against it. It hurt!

Zidane, even in his pain, stole a glance at Dagger, who seemed to be in shock. Her tears were so much so that her entire face was slick with them. She seemed to be in worse agony than he.

He looked back up at Cyra. "Please…" he whispered. She stared down at him, anger in her eyes. "Please, must Dagger watch?"

Cyra laughed. "She's going to be the one that kills you!" Zidane gasped. No! he thought desperately, Anything but that. It'll kill her! She'll die because of me…

His silent plea was ignored. A sword, long and narrow, was handed to Dagger. It was a beautiful sword; a weapon like that was rare to be of such great workmanship. The silver of the sword glinted in the moonlight.

Zidane found the prospect of Dagger being the one killing him more frightening than Cyra killing him.

"I have a feeling," Cyra whispered, walking around Zidane, her finger trailing along Zidane's heaving chest, "that you know what to do with that sword."

Zidane knew this was just too painful for Dagger. "Please, Cyra," he whispered to her, "Don't make her do that," Cyra ignored his desperate plea. In fact, just to spite Zidane, Cyra gagged him so that he would stay silent when he was slaughtered like the innocent lamb that he was.

Dagger laid the sword down at his chest, and applied just a little bit of pressure.

"It's going to have to be harder then that," Cyra cackled. Zidane heard Dagger swallow hard. It was killing her!

Dagger tried not to look at his face. He knew that was best, but he wanted to show her that he forgave her for this. It's okay, Dagger… he wanted to whisper, but couldn't. The hurt in Dagger's eyes…. He found soft tears forming in his eyes as well.

"Oh Zidane…." she whispered. Zidane heard it, feeling the tears in his eyes dripping on to the hard table. He watched as Dagger finally gave herself over to looking into his face.

That must have hurt her badly. Zidane could see the visible anguish in her eyes, but at the same time, he met her eyes. It's okay…go on...Zidane thought to her. The emotion must have carried though his eyes.

Despite that, Dagger shook her head, mouthing the words, I can't. Zidane allowed a morose smile to cross his features. You must.

Zidane felt herself mentally preparing herself to kill him.

Zidane felt her brace herself, the sword pointing straight into his chest. She thrust the sword into his chest.

Zidane's death was not instant. He screamed in exquisite agony, writhing in his bonds. Cyra turned into the woods and left laughing, even as Zidane cried out. Finally, he fell back to the rock, panting in a much labored breath. His breathing wasn't smooth, though. He could hardly see straight, he was in so much pain.

Dagger rushed over to his face. Even as though he couldn't stay still with the pain he was in, she took his face in both of her hands. She pulled the gag off so that he could talk, but she imagined he probably couldn't now.

"Hush, my love," she whispered, caressing his bruised face with her hands. Despite the pain, he relaxed slightly. She touched his cheek, and the side of his face. It felt wet. He knew she felt the tears he had shed.

"Zidane, I…" she couldn't finish her sentence. She tried again, but met the same result. This is too painful for her! he thought, watching her in her own exquisite agony. He forced himself to speak, no matter how much it hurt. He couldn't let Dagger go through this alone.

"Just kiss me and tell me you love me," Zidane whispered in a pathetic, wheezing voice, "It's all I ever wanted from you."

Dagger lowered herself down and touched her lips to his forehead. She lifted up and touched her lips to his nose. "I love you," she whispered, before touching her lips to his parched lips. They held that final kiss for a moment, until Zidane fell back against the rock.

He was dead.

I0I0I0I

Dagger stared at his lifeless body for a moment. I just killed him… she realized, staring at the sword that had pierced his heart. After a moment of contemplation, she decided it was the least she could do to release him from his terrible bonds.

She reached forward and unbound his wrists first, which was not an easy task. Cyra, in her hatred for Zidane's life, had bound him so tightly that it took a lot of strength to release him from his shackles. His wrists had been bleeding, and so fresh blood covered them. She couldn't believe the Cyra's cruelty. Finally, she cut him free, giving him the freedom he deserved, even if it was just a little late for him to enjoy it.

She next laid her cloak across his body, touching his face and lingering there. It was already cold.

Finally, she plucked a rose from the plant beside the table where Zidane lay, and placed it on his chest. "I love you," she whispered again.

She kissed his forehead one last time before leaving.