Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy IX, only this plot.
The next morning, Vivi and Eiko tip-toed into the make-shift nursery to see how Dagger had gotten along with Little Zidane. They found the queen asleep with her head resting back against the splat of the rocking chair, the tiny boy snuggled contentedly in her lap, tail securely fastened around her upper arm. As the two young mages moved through the room, they saw Dagger stir and open one eye. Seeing them, she smiled then tried to stifle a yawn. Since she did not have any free hands, it did not work very well.
"G'morning, Dagger," Vivi whispered, not wanting to wake the baby.
"Morning," she responded, sleepily but pleasantly.
"How did it go?" Eiko asked, coming up next to the rocking chair and touching Zidane's warm little hand.
"He only woke up once last night," Dagger said with relief, "and after Adam changed him, I fed him and then he went right back to sleep, thank goodness."
"So what's the plan for today?" Vivi asked, taking up position on the other side of the chair. "Because so far, it doesn't seem like the archives are going to turn up much of anything."
Dagger nodded. "I know. The question is: What can we do? Even the scholars can't hope to completely decipher that spell, though Beatrix has asked them to try. It would be wonderful if they did come up with something but I am not going to put all of my hopes on that."
By this time, Zidane had begun to stir and was starting to let them know he was awake. Vivi pulled on the bell cord to summon Adam while Eiko got a bottle ready. Once Adam was finished and the little boy was well on his way to finishing his breakfast, the other members of the party began to arrive, all having the same discussion the mages had just had.
"Good Day, Your Highness," Steiner saluted. The effect was spoiled somewhat by Quina almost bowling him over in her rush to join the group around the rocking chair. Once everyone was situated, the discussion began anew, though with practically the same results.
"Good morning, everyone," came Mikoto's greeting as she walked into the room. The party smiled (for the most part) and returned the sentiments then listened as she continued.
"From what I have heard and seen, I doubt we are going to find much to help us here. Therefore, I was wondering whether any of you might know someone who could possibly assist us."
"Well, I for one do not know of anyone who had studied Old Standard to that degree but Dr. Tot may..." Beatrix mused.
"I did not necessarily mean someone fluent in the ancient language. Rather, can you think of someone who is highly skilled in magicks, perhaps even unusual spells in particular? Even if we are not sure how the spell worked, one who is deftly practiced in such arts may be able to return Zidane to his original state," the female Genome explained.
As she finished, a grin spread across Dagger's face. The queen glanced at Eiko and knew that she had had the same thought.
"Aunt Hilda," Dagger said.
"Yeah, Mom would be able to help!" Eiko agreed, as the others began to realize the possibility.
"So that means we need to get to Lindblum," Freya observed, and with that, another planning session began. As luck would have it, there were no operational airships in the royal hanger currently so Vivi presented an alternative.
"Blank and Ruby," he explained. "Baku loaned them the Prima Vista and they just got back earlier this week and haven't returned it yet. We could ask them for a ride."
"Though we might have to bring Blank back to life first," Eiko pointed out, " 'cause he's gonna die laughing once he sees what we've done to Zidane."
"I go get refill of milk for Zidane. We almost out," Quina said, her hand raised.
"Alright, then meet us at Ruby's theatre," Dagger responded. The Qu chef nodded and headed out. Everyone proceeded to gather up the needed supplies and began to set off into town. It was decided that Beatrix would stay at Alexandria castle to look after business while the queen was away. Dagger thanked her fervently then waited as the general gave Baby Zidane a little kiss on the top of his head. He smiled, his hands reaching up to grasp her hair.
"You are certainly adorable like this," she said with a grin, "But you had better come back the right height." Dagger laughed, thanked her again, then hurried after the others.
Making their way through town was easier then they thought it would be. No one had realized just how early it was, and only a few people besides the shopkeepers were out and about at the time. Halfway to the theatre, Mikoto split ways with the party.
"I had a thought," she said before taking off, "I shall meet you in Lindblum." The others were confused of course, but they trusted her so they continued on their way.
Arriving at Ruby's theatre, they bypassed the rope that was hung across the stairway leading to the entrance and knocked loudly on the door.
"Who is it?!" Ruby's voice sounded from somewhere deep inside.
"It is Her Majesty! Queen Ga..." Steiner began indignantly but Dagger cut him off.
"It's me, Dagger, and the rest of the group!" she called.
"Oh! Come on it, darlin'," came the reply. "Key's under the lantern!"
They filed into the cozy establishment and waited for Blank and Ruby to join them. It sounded as though their arrival may have woken the newlyweds up. The wait was not long though.
"Well, howdy!" Ruby greeted them in her usual manner, Blank following close behind. However, they both stopped short before reaching the party, having spotted the baby Dagger was holding, his tail wrapped around her arm. Before anyone had a chance to explain, though, Ruby put her hands on her hips, smiling, if a little indignantly.
"When did ya'll 'n Zidane tie the knot?!" she asked. "An' how come nobody came 'round to tell us 'bout it?"
A few hands clapped over eyes in consternation. Dagger groaned, "No! This is not my baby! It's..."
"WHAT?!" both Blank and Ruby looked shocked. That baby most definitely looked like a miniature Zidane...but then...
"But I thought Zidane would always stay with you..." Ruby said, confused and sympathetic.
"You want me to kick his butt into next week for you?" Blank asked, " 'cause I will. After the way he went on about how he felt about you, then he goes and ..."
"Argh!" Dagger interrupted exasperatedly. "NO! It's not like that! This isn't Zidane's baby either! This IS Zidane!" Her outburst startled the little boy in her arms and she spent the next several minutes calming him back down.
During this time, Blank and Ruby were silent, looking very shocked and confused as they watched Dagger soothe the infant. When her statement did finally manage to sink in, Eiko's earlier prediction turned out to be close to the mark. Blank started laughing uproariously. He laughed harder and harder to the point where he was doubled over and gasping for breath. But even Ruby couldn't help but giggle.
Once Blank managed to catch a breath and get his laughter under control, he wanted answers.
"Okay, spill it. What did you guys do to Zidane?" he asked, still grinning like an idiot.
"Oh sure, he automatically assumes it was something we did," Eiko muttered.
"Well, he's right," Vivi pointed out. The group proceeded to recount everything that had happened since the previous afternoon, and by the time they finished, Blank was doing his absolute best to hold back the hysterics threatening to incapacitate him again.
"And so, you want to take the Prima Vista back to Lindblum to get our boy fixed right again," Ruby concluded for them. Dagger nodded as Blank broke into a fresh wave of laughter. Steiner gave him a reproving look but most of the party could understand why the young man would find Zidane's predicament so amusing, given his long friendship and even brotherhood with the cocky Genome.
Composing himself once again, Blank turned to his wife and asked if it would be alright if he took them to Lindblum.
"Well, o' course, love!" was her response, "I gotta stay and things ready 'round here, but you go on."
"Are you sure you'll be alright here by yourself while I'm gone?" he asked. He winced as soon as the words left his mouth, though. Ruby's hands were once again on her hips and she was looking at him with an interesting expression.
"Blank," she said pointedly, "Do you honestly think that I am incapable o' takin' care o' myself for a few days? Baku would have your hide if you let anyone else fly his ship, and besides that, you should help anyway, seein' as it's Zidane in trouble an' all. Now get your heinie in gear and get on the road."
"My apologies, dear," Blank said with a grin and a bow, "You are absolutely right. I shall obey." With that, he ran into the back to grab his pack.
"Now then," Ruby turned to the rest of the party, who were all grinning broadly to see Blank so whipped. "While ya'll have a minute, hand that little guy over, 'cause I'd like to hold him."
(A/N: ...I know, a very long wait for a not very exciting chapter. I'm sorry. I shall try to do better Also I am pretty sure that I got the name of the ship right, but if I didn't I apologize about that too.
Thank you so much to everyone who has reviewed and even those who haven't but still read It motivates me and makes me happy. Thanks to CrimsonCobwebs for pointing out Mikoto's proper name spelling )