The thief and his princess
Summary:
When Zidane, the youngest thief in the infamous Tantalus group, meets the mysterious Dagger on the Alexandrian streets, he thinks of her as nothing but one of his many flirts. But with time, he will realize that the girl does not only hold the power to bind his heart forever, but that she is an unwilling part of a conspiracy that can easily destroy the world. - A FFIX AU Fan Fic
Chapter five ~ A Rough Escape – II -
The princess nodded. "Yes. I am Garnet Till Alexandros XVI, heir of the throne of Alexandria."
Zidane stared at her, her royal authority seemed to flow through the entire area. Steiner, who stood beside the princess, raised his sword one more time. "You have heard the Princess! Leave this place now, or I will..."
"Don't, Steiner", Garnet said quietly. "I... do not want him to be harmed. Leave now, Zidane, please", she added and looked at the young thief, who still stared at her, unable to believe.
Suddenly, he clenched his fists and shook his head. "No. You're lying! You can't possibly be the princess – it wouldn't make any sense!"
"It does", she answered. "I am pretty sure that your boss found out about my true identity shortly before he gave you your new order. I will not -"
"What is with this noise that disturbs me in my peace?", a strong, female voice said.
Steiner raised his hands in the air, his eyes wide opened, then he ran towards the corner from which the voice came.
"I- I am so sorry, your majesty, we did not intend to disturb you", he stumbled across his own words. "In fact, it was this little thief, who -"
"That is enough, Steiner", the voice said and out of the dark, a tall, slim woman made her way in. She wore the light armor of a female knight, having a sword by her side and a beige cape flew around her back. She had soft hair, shimmering in chestnut. From her eyes, one was covered by a silver matter , the other one had an intense glare.
Steiner fell on his knees and lowered his head. "I am so sorry, your majesty. It was all my fault, being an useless knight – I am just dirt underneath your shoes. I am willed to receive any punishment you give to me. But give me a chance to wash away this shame from my name and to transport this dirty little thief out of the reach of your castle."
The queen nodded slightly, then she shook her head. "I am not disappointed in you, Steiner. I know you are just doing your very best to protect me and my precious daughter." Suddenly, she looked at Garnet and the princess instinctively twitched. "Come over here, Garnet", Beatrix ordered. The princess shot a quick look in Zidane's direction, then she nodded and slowly moved towards her mother. Queen Beatrix smiled lightly, then she slapped her daughter into her face. Steiner and the princess both twitched, but didn't react in any other way.
"How dare you to bring people like him into my castle? Did I not teach you that discretion plays the most important role in your business?"
A quiet sniffle escaped Garnet's lips, but she nodded: "Forgive me, your majesty."
The queen let out a sigh and shook her head in disappointment. "Now, we have to take care of this little boy. Steiner?"
The knight got up from his knees and saluted: "Yes, your majesty?"
"Lead this gentlemen to my daughter's room and serve to his wishes until my daughter is ready."
Steiner's eyes opened even wider. "B- but your majesty, he is obviously a thief and he is soaking wet and dirty on plus, do you really - ?" The queen just stared at the knight and he hastily nodded. "Forgive me, your majesty. You", he added towards Zidane in a harsh way, then he shook his head slightly and went on: "p... please follow me this way, sir."
Zidane couldn't move. His eyes were attached to Garnet, her fragile body and her innocent face. He couldn't lift his eyes from the red streak on her cheek and the wetness in her eyes. Angrily, he turned his head towards the queen and clenched his fists. "How dare you", he sizzled and made step towards Beatrix, "touching Da-... touching her like that! Aren't you ashamed? Your poor daughter sells her own bo-"
"Why does this take so long? Take him with you, Steiner", Beatrix interrupted Zidane without even looking at him.
Steiner nodded and grabbed the thief at his arm and dragged him along. Zidane turned his head around to keep eye contact to Garnet, but she looked down. Quickly, she was out of sight.
"Let go off me, bucket head!", Zidane shouted but Steiner ignored him and led him out of the Prima Vista into a corridor of the castle. Zidane pulled and pushed and tried to get rid of the knight's grip, but it was useless. He was still confused, taken aback – and hurt. Zidane did not want to admit it, but this information pushed Garnet out of his reach. For a moment, Zidane let hang down his head and stared to the ground. Then, whilst passing endless corridors and rooms, he looked to Steiner.
"Who are you anyway?", he asked and Steiner lifted himself up. "I am the guardian of the princess. It is my highest priority to guarantee her a safe and comfortable life."
Zidane frowned, then he shook his head angrily and shouted: "Then how can you let her sell her own body and prostitute herself?" In this moment, Steiner stopped his steps for a short while and Zidane used this to free himself. He jumped a step back and laid his hands near his daggers, but Steiner just stared blankly at him. Suddenly, Zidane realized he said something he shouldn't have said. He felt as if the answer he was about to hear would make him unhappy. He tried to make a step back, but in this moment, Steiner took a deep breath.
"What do you dirty little thief know? We all... We all love the princess, the queen foremost", he said and looked down a little.
"Then how can you let her suffer like this?", Zidane shouted with passion. "She is way too young for a life like this. And even if she was older – she's a princess! What kind of princess has to do that? What kind of mother is that who lets this happen?"
Steiner's eyes had a saddened and concerned look. "It is not like we are not trying to stop this, thief. But our country became poor. So poor, that we need everyone in the castle to work at their best – including the princess. And the... service of our beloved princess makes a lot of money. These days, our kingdom could not afford to cancel such a business."
Zidane shook his head. "But what about her soul? What about her feelings? Can't you tell it's going to kill her from the inside? How can her mother let this happen?"
Steiner looked away. "It is not in my responsibility to talk about these things freely... Please, follow me now. You would cause a lot of trouble for the princess if you run away."
Zidane let hang down his arms and head. Then he nodded and followed Steiner.
"Mother, I -", Garnet said but the glare of the queen rendered her silent.
Beatrix gently shook her head. "Garnet... My precious child. Do not think I would not love you. You are my one and only child. But the more I love you, the more I am worried about your safety. This is the only reason why I have to punish you in these moments, when you let down your guard and risk to be hurt. Please understand this." The queen raised her right hand.
Garnet shook her head panicking: "No, Mother, please stop this! I do not want this anymore-"
"Silence!", Beatrix said calmly. "Your suffering will be over soon, my daughter. Just … sleep a little longer."
From her right hand, white sparkles flew through the air and reached Garnet. The young princess wanted to scream, but her body didn't obey her any longer. With a weak sigh, she lost consciousness and fell.
Steiner had led Zidane into the heart of the castle. Servants rushed through the corridors, carrying delicious food, filled bags and other stuff from one side of the castle to the other. They all looked surprised when they saw Zidane, but with a quick regard to the knight, they lowered their heads and rushed on. Despite being an excellent thief, Zidane has never entered the castle before – it was a strict order of Baku.
Zidane lowered his head. It's been over two hour now since Blank and I parted. By now, Blank must've talked to the others. Baku sure is mad at me... I wonder what they're going to do? We had strict orders to avoid the castle... But wait? How are they supposed to know I'm in here anyway? Blank doesn't know about Da-... her true identity. It seems like I have to fight my way outta here alone. But then, what does the Prima Vista do here? Maybe they expected it? Could that be the reason Baku wanted to keep Dagger? No, gotta think about my escape first. The young thief gave Steiner a long look. He seems to be a good knight, despite being helpless to guard the princess. If it comes to a fight, it would be hard for me to win.
Suddenly, the knight stopped in front of a door and pointed with his hand into it. "This is the room of princess. I expect you to be careful."
Zidane made a step back. "What should I do in there, old man? Do I have to wait for a punishment or what?"
Again, Steiner had this depressed look on his face and mumbled: "It is not in my responsibility to speak of this. The princess will tell you herself."
Swiftly, before Zidane could react, Steiner grabbed his arm, pushed him into the room and shut the door. A quiet click proved Zidane's guess. Still, he tried once opening the door, but as he thought, it was locked. With a sigh, the young thief turned around – and gasped when he realized the luxury he was in.
The room was bigger than the main room of the Tantalus' place and light pink walls seemed to go up to the sky. A canopy bed in the left corner of the room was big enough for five people to sleep in, and the lace and satin of the blanket and pillows seemed as soft as they would melt under slightest touch. Next to the giant bed, there was a cupboard, which could inherit clothes for a whole family, with one of it's doors being a large mirror. A table stood in the middle of the room, next to it an ornate chair. Satin carpets swallowed every step, curtains devoured every sound. Zidane walked to the middle of the room, but he didn't dare to touch anything.
"All this looks as if it's more fragile than ice and I… am the heat", he said whilst looking around. "How should I dare to sit down? All the more I'm in here, it gets dirty." He let his arms fall down hopelessly, shook his head and sat down on the floor. "Dagger", he said quietly. "So you're a real princess? Your beauty, your grace... Your more than beautiful voice that pierces my heart like a... dagger. Is all this royal education? Was it all trained? The way you spoke, the way you laughed, even your slightest smile? Were they all... faked?" Zidane shook his head. "Damn. Damn damn damn damn damn!"
Abruptly, the door opened. Zidane jerked his head around and saw Garnet in the entrance. Like the day they met, there was this awesome smile and this soft, yet intense expression on her face. Still, something on her seemed to be different.
"Dagger!" Zidane got up as Garnet approached him, then he stepped back. "So you are the princess?", he asked. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Instead of an answer, the young princess made a step further and laid her finger on his lips: "Hush, Zidane. Do you remember the promise I gave to you? To make all your secret dreams come true? I shall fulfill this promise now."
Zidane stared at the princess, his eyes wide open. Quickly, he shook his head. "Is this the way your mother wants to silence me? That's not you talking there, right?"
For a moment, the look of Garnet's eyes changed to a hurt one, and it was this moment when Zidane realized what has irritated him since she entered the room: The look of her eyes had been empty, as if there were no emotions behind them.
"What's wrong with you?", Zidane asked and stepped forward.
The princess shook her head. "Do not talk anymore, Zidane. Let me take you in and-"
Suddenly, loud noises, slaps and rattling occurred from behind the door. Then, it was violently opened and Blank and Marcus rushed in. "Yo, Zidane", Blank called out and grinned. "You could've told us you were invited to this nice house party – we would've loved to accompany you."
Zidane stared at his friends. "Blank! Marcus! How the hell did you find out I'm in here?"
Marcus winked. "We're Tantalus. Where there're treasures, we sure come in." Something beside Zidane moved and the young thief turned his head. It was the princess, who slowly made her steps backwards to her closet. "Dag-... What's wrong with you? Don't you recognize Blank and Marcus?", Zidane asked, when he suddenly remembered something. He turned his head to the thieves and began talking quickly: "Listen, guys, we have to take her with us! She is the princess and she's..."
Blank made a movement with his hand: "We know. Baku told us after I reported you've been missin'."
Marcus nodded. "Yeah. He was pretty mad at you first, but then he just said 'Gwahaha, I can't believe this fool followed this precious little thing right into her castle' and then, he shouted at us for doing nothing and made us come here."
All of a sudden, a white flash appeared next to Marcus' head. The thief ducked and rolled over one side. Zidane turned around and saw how Garnet was holding an ordinary staff. Somehow, her eyes seemed to sparkle, her lips were compressed as she prepared another spell.
"What's wrong with this girl?", Blank shouted and drew out his sword but Zidane ran in front of him. "Don't! She doesn't seem to be herself at this moment, it's like she'd been cursed-"
"Zidane, watch out!", Marcus shouted. From Garnet's staff, another white flash appeared and flew just a few inches above Zidane's head as he managed to crouch in the last moment.
"Whether she's herself or not, I'mma make her silent!", Blank growled and rushed towards the princess. Garnet yanked her staff up but Blank managed to slap her with the knob of his sword and the princess lost consciousness. Zidane hurried towards the falling girl and caught her before she hit the ground. She lay heavy in his arms, but Zidane just shook his head slightly and turned to the thieves. "I can't even tell how thank-", he started but Blank just waved his hand. "Never mind, bro", he winked. "Let's get outta here!"
Meanwhile, Marcus had looked through the room of the princess. His pockets were filled with jewelry and he chuckled every time he put some more into them. Zidane gave him a sharp glance, but he didn't dare to ask Marcus to stop; without him and Blank, he might have ended up being executed. With a snort, Marcus stood up and looked frankly at the youngest thief. "Whaddaya waitin' for? Baku is goin' to be mad anyway – even more if we make him wait"
Zidane nodded. "You run ahead?", he asked towards Blank, who just took his sword away. The redhead gave him a grin. "Sure." Hastily, the three thieves left the room, taking their precious prey with them.
As they quit the room, Zidane could see how the hallway was empty. "Wasn't a soldier here?", he asked warily while running down the stairs. Marcus muttered: "We knocked him over; wouldn't surprise me if he had run away afterward."
Zidane, however, wasn't at ease. This bucket head didn't look like a coward. I gotta be careful
They reached a room which connected the first floor with the ground-floor. There were two corridors to their sides and Blank gave Zidane a sign. The young thief nodded and hid behind the walls as he waited for Blank and Marcus to sneak forward. Marcus gave him the sign to follow, but Blank hastily shook his head. Seconds of anxiety past. Suddenly, a Pluto-Knight entered the hallway. Before he even knew what was happening, Blank had knocked him over. Now, the redhead made an approval sign as well. Zidane, who had kneed on the ground the whole time, pushed himself up, trying to not let the princess fall. He quietly, yet hastily snuck after his companions.
As they reached the ground-floor, a scream occurred. The three thieves jerked their heads and saw a small kid, clothed in a blue vest, greenish trousers and wearing a pointed chap. He had thrown his hands in the air and ran directly towards the thieves, his head turned back. Suddenly, it stopped and awaited the three soldiers running after it.
"Do- don't come near", the kid called out and moved its hands, covered in gloves. Suddenly, red sparkles appeared and flew towards the attacking soldiers. Fire burst out and the soldier fell down screaming. Without turning his head, the boy ran on – directly into the thieves.
"Watch ou-!", Marcus called, but the kid ran into him and fell down. Marcus kneed down and asked: "Hey, you okay?" The kid got itself up and did its pointed chap. Then, it looked up.
"Whoa!", Zidane and Blank called out surprised and jumped back. Where the face was ought to be, pure darkness existed. The only things recognizable were two big, shining yellow ovals as eyes.
"P-please, don't attack me", the kid whispered and shivered. "I'm not bad!"
Marcus nodded. "Alright, boy. What's you're name?"
"Vivi", the kid hesitantly responded.
"Alright, Vivi", Zidane took over and made a step closer. "You see this girl here?"
Vivi raised himself on tiptoes and looked at the sleeping princess. "She- she's beautiful", he gasped. "Is she the princess?"
Zidane nodded. "Yes, that is the princess. It is very important for her own sake that we get her out of here. Will you help us?"
Vivi's eyes seemed to grow even bigger. "Me helping you?", he asked shyly. "But how?"
"You seem to be an excellent black mage", Zidane grinned. "You sure could be helpful protecting the princess from mislead soldiers."
Slowly, Vivi nodded thoughtfully. "A- alright."
"Excellent", Zidane said and nodded towards Marcus and Blank. "Let's go!"
In this moment, another troop rushed around the corner. "You there, stop!", one of them shouted and raised his sword.
Blank jerked back and grabbed his backpack. "Let's get the hell outta here", he shouted out and threw a small, round bag at the Pluto-Knights. Before reaching the ground, the bag opened and some weird creatures jumped out of it.
Oglops? Zidane thought irritated while watching the soldier running without any set goal, just to get out of the oglops reach, then the young thief remembered. One day, whilst being on another mission, it was Blank's duty to distract the opponents with a bag of oglops. He only cursed about them back then – but ever since, he had some with him, just in case.
What a luck for us that we're in such a case right now Zidane thought, then Marcus, Blank and Vivi rushed by him to the exit. Zidane shook his head and followed.
Marcus opened the door and was the first to see the outside again. Before the others could follow, he screamed out loudly and hurt.
"What's wrong, Marcus?", Blank asked whilst taking Vivis hand in order to catch up to the door.
A cough, then silence.
"Marcus?", Blank shouted once more, then he let go off Vivis hand and increased his speed.
"Stop it, Blank", Zidane called after him, but it was useless; the redhead had now reached the door and ran through it. Just a moment later, Zidane heard a muffled groan.
Zidane cursed. "Damn! Vivi, stop right there!", he ordered and the kid stopped running, its breath going really fast.
"What is it? Won't we help them?", Vivi asked when Zidane pushed him into a little corner next to the door. The young thief tried to look friendly. "Don't worry, we will help 'em. But for now, we have to hide." Then, he turned towards his door, his eyes narrowed, and waited.
Whoever is behind it – he seems to know we've got the princess. There's only one guy right now that could actually be there. And... he'd be a pain in the ass...
Seconds past; Zidane kept staring at the door, Vivi had sit down and seemed to be deep in thoughts. In these few moments of silence, Zidane turned his head towards Garnet. She still was unconscious and the strange look on her face didn't disappear. Gently, Zidane stroke her face and smiled.
I'mma make you safe, Dagger... I promise!
Suddenly, steps occurred from behind the door. It weren't the rushed and hasty ones Blank or Marcus would've taken to get safe; these steps were slow, thoughtful – almost gentle. Nonetheless, Zidane felt threatened. He laid Garnet on the ground carefully and nodded towards Vivi. "I'm going to distract the opponent. In the worst case, you wait here until everything's calm and get the princess out of here." Vivi wanted to speak up, but Zidane shook his head and kept on talking: "In the merchandise quarter of this city, you will find an old bakery next to a tailor shop. Its owners took it down several months ago; you will recognize how it's gone to rack. Next to it, there is a tiny, secret trap door. Sneak into it – make sure no one sees you! - and make your way to a wooden door. Next to it, there's a rope; pull it down three times hastily, two times long and another time, you stop halfway. There should be two guys, named Cinna and Baku. Hand the princess over and tell them they have to guide you." Zidane released his hair tie and gave it to Vivi. "Here, give this to them and they'll see I sent you. Now hide!"
Vivi wanted to answer something, but Zidane got up and ran into the hall, facing the opponent. He stumbled when he saw it was the queen. She hold a giant sword that glistened in the dimmed light. Beatrix turned halfway. "Ah", she said, "there you are. Where is my daughter?"
Zidane stepped back and drew out his daggers. "As if I'd tell you! You don't even deserve to be called a queen, less a mother! From now on, we'll take care of the princess!", he shouted enthusiastically.
Beatrix pulled her hair back. "Fool. I defeated a hundred ogres in one swipe – you are no match to me. Now give back my daughter and I shall spare your life!", she demanded while pointing at him with her sword, but Zidane just shook his head.
"Then you shall die", Beatrix stated and raised her sword. Before Zidane knew what was happening, the queen had approached him and attacked. The young thief barely managed to jump aside, but the sides of her sword touched his arm. A small wound opened and Zidane clenched his fists. He turned around quickly and started a complex attack with his daggers, but Beatrix always moved out of their reach. Another strike, this time against his right hand. Zidane screamed out in pain and tried to move it, but he couldn't. Cursing, he ran away and hid himself in a dark corner. Hastily, he opened his bag and took out a Potion. He needed to drink half of the bottle until the wounds on his arm and hands closed without leaving a scar behind. Zidane attached the half empty bottle at his belt to be able to grab it at any time.
He carefully looked around the corner – and realized in shock that the queen was moving towards the wrong corner; the very corner Vivi hid in with the princess! Another curse escaped his lips, then the young thief jumped out of his hideout and waved with his arms: "You're even too stupid to find your enemy!"
Quickly, yet balanced, the queen turned around, a little, evil smile upon her face. "So there you've been hiding. It will not help you, thief; you stole my daughter's mind so I shall steal your life." Once more, they started to fight. As the queen cut his chest, Zidane hastily took the potion and poured it into his mouth, but before he could drink all of it, Beatrix slapped the bottle out of his hands, smashing it against the wall and the precious mixture ran out. All his curses didn't help, so the thief pulled out one of his best abilities: his speed. He ran towards the queen and tried to strike her down, but she just stepped out of his way and moved backwards. Zidane hunt her down the entire hall, and whilst he was breathing terribly, the queen didn't even look exhausted.
Suddenly, Beatrix stood directly behind him. Before Zidane could react, she knocked him with her sword so that he stumbled. The young thief turned around quickly, but Beatrix had already approached him and was holding her sword up to her face, making it look as if her face was split in half. It seemed Zidane saw something in her uncovered eye; a soul behind a mask, suffering. But before he could go after this intention, the queen reached out with her sword and was about to strike him. Zidane caught the blow with his daggers, but its intensity made him stumble back and cough a few times whilst holding his chest.
With these gently steps, Beatrix approached him, the Save The Queen, her powerful sword, loose in her right hand. "Not in a thousand years, you could beat me", she whispered, then, her face got a determined expression and white and light blue sparkles appeared around the swords blade, making it shine and glisten in an almost holy way. She raised the Save The Queen once more and called out clearly Climhazzard. The glimmering strike that crossed Zidane's chest made him lose his breath; he opened his mouth wide in shock, but he could not scream. Dark spots appeared in his sight and suddenly, he saw how the ground was coming nearer.
It looks bad!
Vivi, who was still hiding around the corner, watched the uneven battle with his wide eyes and his fear grew bigger and bigger. Suddenly, the queen stroke Zidane hardly and the thief, who barely managed to block her hit, stumbled back and coughed terribly. The queen moved her lips, but she was too far away for Vivi to hear her words. Then, her sword started to glisten and glimmer and with a loud call, she cut Zidane. Terrified, Vivi saw how the young thief was stumbling even more, before he seemed to break down.
"Get up", Vivi whispered in the most quiet way. "Come on, get up!" But the young thief didn't move and the queen gave him a last look. Then, her eyes stared directly at the corner in which Vivi was hiding. The black mage hold his breath, but it couldn't stop him from shivering. Seemingly endless seconds passed, then, the queen throw her head back, turned around and left the hall with as gentle steps as before.
Vivi listened to the sound her steps made, and when he was sure he couldn't hear them anymore at all, he got up from his knees. Without looking back to the princess, he rushed towards the motionless body and shook him.
"Sir? Please, open your eyes sir!", Vivi called out, first quietly, then ever louder growing. But the young thief's face kept being as motionless as his body. Vivi shook his head hesitantly.
No, this can't be! How am I supposed to lead the princess to their headquarters? I can not do this alone, I...
Suddenly, a greenish soft light appeared around Zidane's body. A jingle occurred as the light grew bigger and in this jingle, a soft moan mixed. As the light disappeared, Vivi could see how Zidane had opened his eyes halfway. The young thief moved his head, then he lift himself up a bit and looked at Vivi. His eyes opened wide as he spoke "You?"
Vivi shook his head. "No, I didn't do any-", but steps occurred behind him, and as the black mage turned around, he saw the princess approaching. In her hands, she hold a staff.
Zidane got up. "Did you just use white magic?", he asked.
Shyly, the princess nodded, then she mumbled: "I heard Mother and you fighting with each other, then, she called out for her holy blow; somehow, her voice and the fear about you broke the spell she put on me earlier."
Zidane nodded. "So she really did put you under a spell – I knew it." The thief looked around, then he nodded once more. "Alright, then -"
All of a sudden, the princess made a step towards him and took his hand in hers. "I have a favor I want to ask of you!", she exclaimed excitedly.
Confused, Zidane stared at her begging face and her hands. "Wha-what?"
"Would you... kidnap me?"
For a moment, Zidane kept silent in awe, then, he smirked and knelled down. "My princess; with your allowance, I will kidnap you."
"What a lovely scene", a voice from the door said. Zidane, Garnet and Vivi jerked around, in fighting position, but to their relief, it were Marcus and Blank. Both of them had several bruises on their heads, but they seemed to be alright.
"Where'd that queen go?", Marcus said while massaging his head with a hurt expression on his face.
"This sir fought against her bravely and-", Vivi wanted to say, but Zidane just shook his head: "I didn't do much. She thought I was finished and walked away."
"You're tougher than I thought, bro", Blank grinned.
"I'd suggest to leave now", Marcus interrupted the friendly scene harshly. "Who knows when this queen figures out you didn't die."
Zidane nodded. "Alright. Where is the boss at the moment?"
Blank jerked his head. "Waiting in the ship. He was about to head off once you were in, but this bucket head was with you and suddenly, the queen appeared. He send us out to get you back."
So Vivi and Dagger wouldn't have found Baku and the others anyway.
Zidane nodded, then he thought about it. "Bu-, wait! Why's the Prima Vista -?"
"Can't we just talk about that later?", Marcus grunted. "I need some rest. Seriously."
Quietly, the group snuck through the palace. In every corner, they expected Beatrix, Steiner or the Pluto-Knights, but to their surprise, they made it to the airship without any happenings.
Vivi was the last one to enter it. "I don't want to be a bother to you", he said whilst looking at his folded hands, but Zidane pat him on the shoulder. "Hey, never mind. You're an awesome black mage and we sure could use one. Come with us." With a bit more of glimmer in his eyes, Vivi nodded. He did his pointed chap and followed Zidane into the airship.
When the airship was about to start, loud noises appeared from the outside.
Zidane, Vivi and the princess rushed towards the deck and saw how Queen Beatrix shot at them. Especially Garnet's eyes widened in shock. "Mother, how can you?", she whispered scared. "All the civilians..!"
Indeed, most of the bombs missed the Prima Vista and landed on and in the Alexandrian houses. Screams occurred and Garnet broke down. "Please, stop this!", she screamed towards her mother, who was watching the procedure from her throne.
Zidane had to grab the princess' shoulders; otherwise, she would've jumped and died.
Blank, get us outta here at once!, he thought desperately.
Suddenly, he felt a vibration going through the airship; one of the bombs had hit the machine room. Screams and curses from its inside were to hear.
"Guys?", Zidane shouted and ran towards the door, but just, as he reached it, Garnet screamed out loudly.
"Dagger!", Zidane cursed and turned around. The princess had been hit by the fragments of a bomb. Her entire left arm was bleeding. Zidane rushed to her and gave her a potion. As the princess didn't took it, he opened the bottle himself and gently poured the drink down her throat. The wound on her left arm closed, but Garnet didn't relax, continuously crying and screaming.
Once more, Zidane prayed to get out of the city as soon as possible.
And to his relief, the Prima Vista managed to escape the Alexandrian walls. The sun was just about to set and they flew directly towards it, glistening in its peaceful, orange light.
Zidane still held Garnet. She was crying ever since they escaped and Zidane knew that these were the bruises not on her body, but those on her heart.