Another new chapter. Very exciting, I know.

I would like to thank AmyKowalewicz for her epic reviews.

I warn you, if you are a Garnet fan, I wouldn't really read ahead. I make Garnet hell of a bitch in this chapter.

Also, this chapter is emo. But I guess it is under 'Angst'.

There is swearing in this chapter. Thought I should say.


I was not looking forward to this. I was not looking forward to this at all. I asked Freya to stay close, because if Garnet attacked me, I couldn't fight back; she was a girl. I guess I was old fashioned like that.

I walked through the castle I knew so well, and knocked on Garnet's bedroom door. I could see Freya hidden in the shadows. She opened the door, and leaped on me.

"Zidane! I was so worried! I thought you had left me forever!"

"Garnet… Please get off…"

"Why Zidane?"

"I have a lot of things to tell you."

"Yes. Why did you run away? That whole silly plan with Kuja didn't fool me for a minute."

"It wasn't a plan; I really did go to Kuja's place. But while I was there some things happened."

My tail kept twitching, showing my nervousness. Damn this expressive appendage!

"What things…?"

She seemed a little suspicious now. I didn't know what her reaction was going to be, so I decided to just tell her.

"I've gotten together with Kuja…"

Nothing. She just stood there. I turned tail and started to walk out.

A sharp incinerating pain.

"FUCK!" I screamed, holding the base of my tail.

I was on the floor, cradling my tail. She might as well have kicked me in the crotch. That would have hurt less. Everyone knows not to pull a genomes tail. Everyone except Garnet.

I felt her kick my side, soon hearing Freya's voice. Ugh. I felt ill again now.

"Garnet stop, he's not well!" I heard Freya shout.

"Stupid bastard, dumping me for a narcissistic freak!"

With one final kick to my stomach, Freya dragged Garnet away. That last kick hurt. I was sure I could hear Steiner's voice…

"Please refrain, your highness!"

He was on my side…? I guess even Rusty didn't condone senseless violence. I felt that nasty tickle in my throat. Everything was quiet. For that moment I was blessed with silence.

"Zidane, are you alright…?" Freya asked.

Instead of answering back, I started to cough. I felt something come up my throat, but it was to smooth to be vomit. I looked at Freya in front of me, and she had blood all over her.

"Freya, what happened to you…?" I asked weakly.

She had a worried look on her face. I felt something dribbling down my chin, so I wiped it away, thinking it was just drool. But I looked at it and it was blood. I was covered, Freya was covered, and the floor was covered. I had coughed up blood. Blood! That meant there was defiantly something wrong with me!

"There's something wrong, there's something wrong!" I screamed.

I started to hyperventilate. Freya was trying to calm me down, but it wasn't working.

"Zidane stay calm, getting worked up isn't going to help anyone!"

Oh man, I was blacking out. Freya's face grew more blurry by the second. Soon I found myself in nothing but darkness…


"Zidane! Zidane, wake up!" Freya screamed.

He was unresponsive. Freya knew that there was nothing majorly wrong with him, but she was still worried.

"Steiner, get me one of Garnet's elixirs."

"But she-"

"Go Steiner!"

With that he ran off, soon returning with an elixir. Freya forced Zidane to drink it. He obviously didn't like it, showing signs of distaste, but Freya knew it would help.

"Should I get some phoenix down?" Steiner asked.

"I think we should let him come around on his own. I'll have him drink another elixir, and we'll see how he feels then. Kuja won't be too happy to hear about this…"

"I hope Zidane will forgive her highness."

"I'm sure he will. Zidane doesn't get mad, unless there's a really good reason to. He might be a little groggy when he wakes up, so I wouldn't recommend being around when that happens…"

"What about you, Miss Freya?"

"He won't dare shout at me."


I was starting to come around. I felt angry. Angrier than I should have felt. Never have I felt this much rage build up within me. My supposed 'friend' had just beaten me to a bloody pulp. I wasn't gonna stand for that.

"Zidane…"

I felt someone shake me out of my dazed state.

"Come on Zidane, wake up…"

"Freya…?"

"Yes. Now drink this."

Before I had a say in anything, she put something to my lips, forcing me to drink it.

"Ugh, Freya, you know I don't like elixirs!"

"Shut up and drink it. It'll make you feel better."

After finishing the disgusting drink, I stood up, even though I felt a little unsure of my balance.

"Where's Garnet?" I asked sternly.

"Now Zidane… You can have your words with her later. Rest for a few minutes, and you'll feel better."

"I don't want to give her my words! She needs to be put in her place!" I shouted, holding the pummels of my daggers.

"I'm sure you don't mean that."

"Damn straight I do!"

Please, excuse my language, but I was royally pissed off. By the royal brat herself. I ran off, in search of Garnet, paying no heed to Freya's words. My tail flicked behind me, like something possessed. Small tufts of pink fur started to envelope my tail, but I shrugged it off.

"There you are!"

Garnet was in one of the many hallways, and she stood there, staring at me.

"What do you want?" She asked aggressively.

"Tell me why you did this to me! Just because I've found someone else? Someone else who's more loving and caring than you'll ever be!"

"You wish! I bet Kuja is just manipulating you! Once he gets bored of his new toy, he'll throw you away, just like the black mages!"

"How dare you! He would never do such a thing, and let's not even go back there!"

"Just like the black mages. He'll use you for something, and then he'll just discard you. I'm sure you'll come crawling back, begging for forgiveness of me."

"You wish you were that important to me, don't you? I'm sure if that ever did happen, which it never will, I would come crawling back to Freya! Like hell I'd come back to you! There are only two people in this world that I'll trust and forgive, no matter what, and those two people are Kuja and Freya!"

"Kuja is just a narcissist, a sadist, and a megalomaniac! How could you possibly love that?"

The sun shone though the windows, hitting strands of my pink and blonde hair.

"Do you want to take that back? Or do I have to do something drastic?"

"Looks to me as if he's controlling you right now. You poor, stupid bastard."

I felt the trance take me over. My clothes vanished, and were replaced by tufts of electric pick fur. Once I was in trance, there was no reasoning with me. I attempted to kill whatever was in my sight.

"Zidane!" Freya called, "Stop this madness!"

I only growled at her, which I'm sure I would have regretted later. Ignoring Freya, I jumped toward Garnet. She had that element of fear in her eyes. She had seen me in trance before; I was relentless. That look of fear had satisfied my bloodlust.

Garnet knew well that she was no match for me in my current state, so she swiftly fled, leaving me to chase my prey. I was much faster than her, so I soon caught up with her. I leaped toward her, but Steiner had jumped in front of her, acting like a human shield. I had no business with him, so I evaded him and went after Garnet.

Then Steiner did the unthinkable.

"FUCK!"

I had no time to be cradling my tail, so I soon forgot about Garnet and turned my rage onto him.

Steiner had gotten a lot better within his ability of sword play last time I watched him fight, I must admit. Plus, he had a lot more stamina than me, and that was unexpected.

I swiped my daggers at him, and he blocked every blow I dealt. Soon finding my daggers inadequate, I threw them aside, swiping at Steiner with my feral claws.

He soon had me exhausted. With a final attempt to land a hit on Steiner, I collapsed to my knees, breathing heavy.

"I admire your fight Zidane… But I cannot allow you to harm her highness…"

I growled in response. I lay on my stomach, my tail swishing above me in submission. I felt someone lay a hand on my head.

"That's you done Zidane…" I heard Freya mutter. "I'll get you back to Kuja soon, alright?"

My furry pink tail latched onto Freya's arm, signalling my thanks and defeat.

Another piercing pain. It wasn't my tail. It was my whole body. A flash of light took me out of my trance and I was being thrown against a wall. It was Garnet. She had gotten one of her staves and thrown a ball of magick at me.

"Garnet! You should never hit a man while he's down!" I heard Freya shout.

I've had enough. I picked myself up and walked away, as fast as I could manage. I reached down to grab my daggers and continued to walk, or rather limp away.

While Freya and Garnet continued to argue, Steiner ran up to me.

"Zidane, I won't let you go out in the condition you're in."

"Why would you care…?"

"You are a formidable enemy. Yet you are still my comrade and friend. I cannot let you get yourself injured anymore than you are now."

"You know Rusty… I'm just a stupid teenager. You don't have to speak so highly of me."

"Your being modest Zidane. You are far from stupid."

"Yeah well… In the state I'm in now, you can call me what ever you like."

"Zidane…"

I heard Freya and Garnet scream at each other, and with one final 'humph' off Garnet, Freya calmly walked over to me.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes. Just a little winded…"

"You look exhausted. I'll get you home, and you can rest on the way."