-I looked at my story, "Scar" and remembered how I came up with the plot. Now, I'm wondering why Portal is related to Dissidia.

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy IX, if I did...uh...something would happen!

It was morning again. I had an easy time memorizing the first half of the play because Kuja helped me. He told me to use clues to help me remember better. Thing is, my memory may be almost photographic, but at some points, it doesn't work when I really need it to. Example, plays. I couldn't remember the simple line of courteous refusal. I just had to say "No thank you, my good man. I believe I do not need such a grand serving of food for this."

...I must be lame.

"Mornin'!" Ruby greeted me, smiling. She seemed to like me a lot more than she liked anyone else here. Maybe it's because I'm surprisingly not as materialistic as Marcus and the others are. I understand why Cinna loves his hammer so much, since he told me, but I don't think he wants anyone else to know. It leaves Ruby in constant wonder.

I got a glimpse of Blank, taking his cup of coffee in hand and reading his part. We did perform this play, but only once. We were rusty now, all of us had to go through our scripts again and again. Blank muttered and mumbled, almost burying his face in the script. He kept mumbling something, the same thing, I think. He didn't even bother looking up to notice anything. Kuja casually walked in like any other guy in Tantalus and just grabbed the stuff he needed to whip up another delicious breakfast while also, looking at his copy of the script we considered sacred around these times. Marcus just walked in, yawning, and pushed Blank's head, making him spill some of his coffee. Marcus just took his seat, casually lifting his feet and putting his hands behind his head like nothing happened.

Blank glared. "Dude. So not cool."

"Whatever, Bro."

Blank gave another glare and quickly went back to memorizing again. I turned to Marcus who was a seat away. "Hey, you don't seem to be taking the play as seriously as everyone else seems to be..." I said, taking a sidewards look at Ruby, who seemed to make her script pop out of nowhere, now reading it like Blank was. "And you're the main. Again."

Marcus arched a brow, or at least I think he did. "You don't seem to be taking it seriously either."

"Well, I got half down already, so I might as well take a break. Besides. It's early in the morning. You know how I hate mornings to some point."

"Everyone hates mornings."

"I tackle people to the ground unless they give me what I want when it's seven." I said, sipping my cup. "I'm pretty sure people don't normally do that when they're grumpy in the morning. I dare you to prove me wrong."

Baku came in, swinging the door open. "Morning weaklings!" He marched in, proud and as loud as ever. It kind of hurt my ears. He slapped Marcus' legs, sending them off the table or Marcus removed them on his own. "How many darn times do I have to tell ya I don't want feet on the table!"

Baku plopped down on his seat, looking around for...something. I didn't like locking my gaze on him. I just didn't. I have this strange, strange feeling of looking into people's eyes. Sometimes, maybe, it's because I don't want to see what's in there because I'm scared. I felt my hands shake, just remembering what Garland told me. How can he even, anyway?

He seemed to have heard my thoughts or sensed my fear, so Baku slapped my back, sending a sharp, sharp pain up my spine. I nearly yelped. He laughed. "You look down, boy. Something bothering you? You know our other rule."

"Don't cry over spilled milk, I know, I know." I said, just as he was about to. "You don't need to remind me, Boss."

"I hope not."

I wanted to believe I didn't hear Garland. Oh how much I wanted to, but I know I'm just lying to myself if I force myself to believe. No one wants that, I suppose. And, I've heard someone tell me: 'The best way out is through'.

Maybe I just need to stay calm and take things easy. I'm probably over reacting this time.

It was nice to be back in Lindblum. I decided to take this chance and run away for a while. It was late at night, Kuja was sleeping on his bed, covered in sheets and blankets and pillows that he stole from my bed, snickering as he did. Amazing how much Kuja changed.

I was alone, outside of Lindblum. If I was going to face off with Garland again, I might as well check on everybody. I grinned to myself when I remembered Choco. We had fun times, honestly. He would scream kweh and force me to look for treasures with him, even if we were about to go and fight Kuja.

I rummaged through my pockets and nap sack I slung over my back, looking for a Gysahl Greens. I wondered why it was called that, considering it wasn't really green. I almost thought I had to go back to look for those things. It was hard enough getting out without anyone noticing, what more breaking in and looking for a Gysahl Greens?

"Ata..." I said, kneeling down on the chocobo tracks that weren't far off and put the Gysahl Greens I found in my nap sack on the tracks. It didn't take very long, but after a few seconds, Choco came running at me, chirping—or something—quite loudly.

"Shh..." I said, finger to lips. "Keep quiet. I'm sneaking away." Choco understood, to my relief. I climbed up and got myself comfortable. I pat his head and hugged his neck, making sure I wouldn't fall off. "Hey, Choco. Could you maybe run at full speed to Alexandria? I need to check up on her..." I whispered softly to Choco, smiling.

He softly 'kwehed' and began to run fast. Really fast. At this rate, we would be there before the night ended.

"Choco, stay here." I said softly. We were right outside Alexandria. I'm thankful I gave in to Choco and let him learn how to do all sorts of things. He was extremely used to climbing, something I needed to get to Alexandria. I trusted him to stay by the tree. I would've tied him, but last time, someone tried to catch Choco and eat him. Since then, I didn't want to tie him, just in case he had to run for his life. In the middle of the night, it was really possible to get killed.

"Run if you have to, okay?" I said, slowly backing away to sneak into Alexandria. I didn't want anyone to see me, first off. I just want Dagger to. I didn't want to drag anyone into this anymore. They've been through a lot, haven't they? Besides, Dagger has a kingdom to rule, Freya has a place to rebuild, Vivi has a life to live, Eiko's with the regent, Quina...s/he's probably done with traveling. Steiner and Beatrix are guarding Dagger, Amarant's nowhere to be found...basically, everyone's living their life. I don't want to step in again and ask them to back me up.

All I needed was to get in, wasn't it? I pulled the cloak's hood down, covering my face. I walked in, as calmly as I could. Last I checked, soldiers didn't guard at night. I could be wrong, but I might as well take the chance, right?

"State your business." The one guard on my right side said as stern and strict as ever, proving me wrong.

"I wish to..." I paused, slightly thinking. I faked a cough. "I wish to...check your security...?"

"...are you mad? It's late at night. Everyone's asleep. I'm afraid we must escort you out. It's but three steps away." The guard on my left said. "Please take your leave now or else we will arrest you. The queen demands high security and states that all suspicious characters shall be put to the dungeon. That's as far as you can know."

I decided to take things easy and not knock them out. Getting arrested for breaking in even though it's to see the love of my life is another story. I lifted my hood. "Do I look familiar to you, or did your queen not tell you to give a special treatment in case I came back?"

They froze. "S-sir, we apologize for—"

"No, it's okay. I just need to see Dagger."

They looked confused, but I guess they sort of knew I meant their queen. They both nodded and let me in. I turned to them again and grinned. "Please don't inform anyone else of my presence." I said, as formal as I could. The two guards nodded again.

After a moment of stealthily walking, I managed to sneak in the castle. I don't know how, but luck is really on my side. Dressed as a guard, I had to take off the cloak. I sneaked in past Steiner, who was clearly falling asleep. I really do wonder if they have shifts here. I climbed up the stairs, as quietly as I could, which was hard considering the armor clanked like Steiner's only less...loud. If I remember well, this was where Queen Brahne used to sleep. I'm betting Dagger's there now, all cozy in her bed. I sighed.

'Love is only hopeless if you make it.'

I took a deep breath, slowly walking up to her door. I heard her voice, making me stop in my tracks. My ear was next to the door, trying to listen to what she was saying. I couldn't hear much, but I heard some words and phrases. I guess that was good enough.

"I hate...suitors...I don't want...bride." She said, softly. I smiled. "But...I really like...so kind, handsome...would...pick him."

My whole body froze. It took a lot to step back. I nearly fell down the stairs, but what worried me more was that I made a lot of noise trying to keep myself balanced and failed. I looked back up, seeing the doors slowly open. I grit my teeth and threw the helmet to the floor, and the rest of the armor I could remove in a moment's notice, hoping it would make me a lot faster.

I heard her voice. "Zidane?" But I ignored her, running away. I felt she tried to chase me but I was too fast.

"Zidane...!" She cried, in a tone just below a shout. She was faster than before, letting her catch up to me. Or at least, close enough to grip my arm and stop me in my tracks. "Zidane...where were you all this time?! We were so worried...I couldn't sleep, I...I couldn't...I'm just happy..." She manged to say. She started to cry tears of joy. I gripped her arm like she gripped mine, making her let go. She smiled. I only frowned.

"You're better off..." I let go of her arm, looking at her as intently as I imagined I could. "without me."

I took off and ran.

I threw the last piece of armor I had on and kept running from the castle, starting to get misty eyes. I didn't like this at all; Garnet picking someone over me. She probably sees more in him than me, considering I'm just a lowly thief. She doesn't need to care about me. She doesn't even need to pretend she does...

I ran to Choco, who tilted his head. Choco bent down and rubbed my apparently, wet cheek with his beak. I merely closed my eyes and pet his head. He 'kwehed' and plopped down, biting my pants as if telling me to rest with him. I gave a weak smile and sat beside him.

"Okay then. You wanna rest? Then let's rest a while. But we're gonna have to go at full speed again after this." I said, stroking the back of his head down to his neck repeatedly. He gave a chocobo sigh and put his head down on the ground, resting. I lied down on his feathery side, falling asleep. He tried to curl up while draping his wing over me like a blanket, covering half of my body from anyone who happened to pass by.

My eyes were half open, but were slowly closing. After that, I fell fast asleep.

When I woke up, I nearly screamed, because for one, I saw Baku looming over me, a disapproving look on his face, arms crossed. I saw Kuja at the side, sighing in disappointment. I didn't look at them for too long and looked away. "Gonna beat me up again, Boss?"

"Hell yes I am."

"Kuja? Can we talk later?"

Kuja nodded. "Of course." He said, in a worried tone. I gave an almost too fake smile. A smile I hope said I was still fine, and I'm still sane. Kuja looked at me, worried still and left. Leaving me and Boss alone in the same room he beat me up in when I said I was going to look for Dagger after we crashed. Baku shook his head.

"Boy, tell me first why you ran away."

"I..." Trailing off, I looked to the side, seeing Choco still there. He 'kwehed' and tilted his head. "....I went to Alexandria last night. To see Dagger." I paused, seeing if I could mentally tell Choco to go back to his home. I looked back at Boss. "Just beat me up, I don't really care anymore."

He gave a sudden worried look, but that didn't really stop him from beating me up.

I was lying down in the room, staring up at the sky. I felt a presence; definitely Kuja. I turned around, eyes weary from staying up late at night to visit Dagger, only to find out she prefers a suitor who loves fancy tea just as much as she would. Only to have a race with her, to see if I could get away or she would catch up. He sat down beside me and sighed, holding his script. I'm guessing he was reviewing, his part wasn't that much, after all.

"What's wrong?"

"I visited Dagger last night..."

"Why?"

"I heard Garland's voice echo in my mind, he said believing a lie isn't gonna get me anywhere." I looked down. "Kuja, the only thing that I know Garland can consider a lie is the fact that I believe I'm not a weapon. Maybe what you said was right; that it would be silly. But does that really make it impossible?"

He fell silent. "I think it's just you, Zidane."

"I wish it was..."

"It probably is. After all..." Kuja said, looking away, forcing himself to remember what he did. "I destroyed Terra."

"He spoke to me again in Memoria. In fact, he guided us a little; me and everyone else." I paused, hugging my legs and resting my head on my knees. "He's somewhat alive, I guess, if he could speak to me through my mind. Maybe I am just scared, but..."

"Well, don't think about it. Only worry when it happens again."

I nodded, smiling weakly. "Hey, brother. About Dagger...I'm pretty sure you're curious about what happened last night, too?"

"Yeah. And that chocobo you have brought you here because it saw how tired you were, probably."

"Hmm, well, Dagger's had a few suitors while I wasn't there to burst at every one of them. Last night, when I sneaked in, I managed to hear what was on Dagger's mind, late at night. You can say she has a particular liking to a suitor...and...she said she "would choose him"...." I paused, laughing softly as if it would keep my sanity. "She's really better off without me..."

"Well, Zidane, I hate to break it to you, but if she isn't going to wait long...maybe she's not the one..."

"I know that...let's just..." I uncurled, pulling at my drawer for the script, grabbing it as quickly as I could with a too fake smile that tried to say I was fine. "Let's just practice, okay? We...we need to get everything perfect for tomorrow or boss will kill us."

"Zidane..." He said, sighing. He grabbed his script anyway, but still gave me that worried look. I smiled, insisting that I was okay.

I was okay...

Apparently, Garnet might have thought it best to leave me for a while. I was alright with that. That's her choice, not mine. If she chooses some fancy prince over me, then...maybe I should accept that fact and move on. Thing is, I felt like I couldn't. I really felt like we were...meant to be.

"Zidane, you look bushed..."

I gave a heavy sigh, looking at the sky again. "Yeah. I am."

Blank walked over, stopping beside me and resting his arms on the railing keeping us from falling off; the same way I was positioned. He stared up the same way and didn't say another word. I guess he was tired. Probably bushed like myself since him and Marcus were Ipsen and Collin, respectively.

"Dagger's picking someone over me..."

"Well, I guess that's as far as us thieves can go. We can only fall in love with princesses only to have our hearts broken. It's sometimes easier if we didn't even have hearts to begin with." He sighed. "Sometimes, feelings are a burden, huh?"

"I guess so." I said softly, resting my head.

"I had a girl once. Her name was Mira. She had it all, beauty, determination...guts, especially. When I first flirted with her, she whacked me across the face with her purse. And her purse had metal in it. God knows what she was carrying that time." He visibly winced. "Either way, we managed to get along because I had to save her; a damsel in distress. One day, when we were walking in Lindblum, she told me her father was sick. By that time, I already thought she was the one; the one that would stay with me forever."

"The moment I heard her father was sick, I was determined enough to actually look through all the books in Lindblum and learn to make medicine for her father. It took a lot of time, and she began to grow impatient and at the same time, scared. She was scared that she might lose her father and impatient because...well, yeah. You know why. When I finished the medicine, I immediately ran to Mira, but when I got there, she was already crying beside her father. When I called her name, she looked at me with the hardest glare I've seen her do." He paused, catching his breath. "Thing is, her father was a logger, and he had a really big ax. Mira was so angry at me for taking too long, she went berserk, she nearly killed me with that ax. She never forgave me."

"Since then, she changed. She changed even her name. It wasn't Mira anymore." He gave a sidewards look at me. "Her name would be familiar to you, I guess."

"Why, what's her name?"

"Lani."

My eyes widened. She was that girl. That girl that nearly killed us all. The one in Fossil Roo; the one with Amarant. Last time we visited Madain Sari, she was there. She gave a welcoming smile when Amarant and coincidentally, Dagger, wanted to stay in the airship for a while. Lani told us how when the moogles helped her, she realized how selfish she was. Whatever happened in her head that time, she must have changed because she couldn't trust anyone anymore, and became selfish. That makes sense. I looked at Blank who still looked at the sky and decided to do him some, what I thought, justice.

"Hey Blank? I don't know if this is good news, but she changed. She's less...murderous, I guess." I gave a weak smile. "She's in Madain Sari, Eiko's village. I'm sure you know Eiko, right? The little girl that was with me?"

He nodded. "Yeah. I know Eiko. It's nice to know Mira's back, too."

"I think she prefers to be called Lani, as of now..."

He smirked. "Lani, then."

So, I guess that's Ruby, Cinna and Blank down. Next thing I know, Marcus and the Nero Brothers are going to sit beside me and tell of a tragic story like they have.