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A Reunion

Alexandria's conference hall welcomed several dignitaries over the centuries. They came from all walks of life on the Mist Continent, but not one claimed ties to the Blood Mage clan. Well, open ties anyway. Lady Hilda visited Alexandria quite often in years past, but she kept her mouth tightly closed over her "witchy" abilities. The royal broom closet proved a very fierce temptation, and the kitchen staff owned a beautiful set of cast iron cauldrons.

Kuja always made it a point to dress in his finest when visiting her royal highness. An audience with the young and beautiful queen was much easier on his eyes than her grossly portly mother. Their last meeting came under the disguise of black robes and white mask, signs of sickly plague and possible doom. Upon his pardon, he donned white slacks girded with a deep crimson belt. Its color gave the queen pause.

The sorcerer's love of theatric arts wrapped its arms around him again, caressed and seduced him for more costume play. In his repertoire lay a half mask, meant to cover only the right side of his face. It came from the opera house, a prop from one of their early productions. Kuja adored the story and music of a tortured and disfigured soul very much in love with an innocent chorus girl. Many a night found him reading the legend from which the opera itself was based, a lonesome phantom without companionship.

Hilda saw him running finger over the mask's delicate curves. He often did the same with her. "Oh, sorcerer," she mused. "What are you planning now?"

"Spoilers, lady," he said with a grin, using her earlier words. "Go make yourself ravishing."

"And of Eiko?"

Kuja spoke with dignity and an air of authority. "Give her the cloak of a white mage and make sure she polishes her horn." He kissed his lover's cheek. "We will not hide who we are."

"They used to persecute us." Hilda's eyes bore into his own.

If anyone saw the pair now, they'd smell the magic around them. One of earthy sage, the other of light rose-water. "What happened to your foremother? The Bad Wolf?"

"...they lynched her."

He just snorted. "And the Doctor? The first of our kind?"

"We don't know."

He raised an eyebrow. "How can you not?"

"We've never seen a body. He simply disappeared."

"Go on then. I shall watch."

Not surprisingly, Kuja decided to do a little more than simply spy.

Three mages waltzed proudly down the marble halls of Alexandria; two trained in blood and shadow, the smallest still white and pure. A queen greeted them as friends, family. Lady Hilda genuflected in the proper fashion, Kuja bowed at the waist. Eiko attempted a curtsy, then ran to hug Zidane. "Hi," she giggled.

"Hey," he greeted back. "You look good."

"I've been running around in the woods all day. Miss Rosemary says I can grow up to be the most powerful mage that ever walked the earth." Eiko squeezed his waist again, then skipped over to Garnet's open arms. "And mama taught me how to take off and land on my broom-"

Lady Hilda rushed forward and embraced the summoner around her shoulders. "Dear, we do not speak of that during the daylight hours."

"Oh, right," the girl said. "Sorry. Do you guys wanna see me fly it at night?"

"Eiko..."

Garnet smiled, but the movement looked forced. Her aunt no longer represented Lindblum nobility, nor did she hint at any past ties to humanity itself. Her usual dark gold gown was replaced by one of rich black and red. The sleeves were still long, but her shoulders and throat were bare, covered only by a silvery blue cloak. Her hair cascaded down in soft waves, free from the wimple and veil of yesterdays. Every time she blinked, Garnet saw the flash of black eyes, and almost heard the steady drumming of the two hearts.

Kuja was no different in aura and strong magic, but he still adored all things theatric. Not that he needed to cover his beautiful face, but he often did so for fun and intrigue. Zidane recognized the half-mask instantly from his own days in theatre. Pair the stage prop with a black cloak that matched the dress of his mistress and the sorcerer took on an eerie appearance that seemed more suited to the hours between midnight and three in the morning. His walking cane doubled as a staff.

"Hey, bro," waved Zidane. " 'Sup?"

"Please refrain from calling me that."

The queen cleared her throat, finally spoke. "You two seem very well."

"As do you, young canary. How fares your health these days?" His eyes flashed vividly against the opposite colored mask.

"I am quite strong."

don't blink don't blink don't blink Their aura was stifling; another mage easily smelled the odorous remains of blood, alive and fluid. There was something else that surrounded the pair, a bond never unbroken, a heart entwined between them. "Well, that's marvelous," Kuja said. "I'd hate to see the Alexandrian kingdom suffer without their beloved monarch."

"Rule one," stated Garnet with authority rightly bestowed to her. "Do not ever make me regret granting you a pardon."

"Why, I'd never dream of such a thing little canary." His smile beneath the mask showed no fear, even to those the world considered heroes.

Eiko cringed. "Yep, still creepy."

"If you would sit down," said Garnet, "there are matters I wish to discuss."

"Perfectly understandable," Kuja answered. "But I do suggest you choose your words carefully lest you upset my mistress. The lady does get quite volatile these days."

Zidane chuckled.

Servants offered their queen and her guests wine (grape juice, for Eiko), along with freshly baked bread and an assortment of jams. That, of course, didn't stop the summoner from asking if she could have a teensy, tiny sip of the wine. Just a little one.

"Please?"

"No, dear."

Eiko turned to Zidane. "Please?"

"No way; Dagger would kill me."

To Kuja: "Pretty please?"

"You heard your mother."

Pout, pout, stupidmean grownups. "Oh, great. You're one of those step-dads." She began to mock his words. "You heard your mother."

Garnet toyed with the idea that this entire scene might be a very interesting dream sequence. That, or this batch of wine was unusually strong. Zidane lounged in his chair beside her, across from them sat the other couple. Even if one didn't understand the ways of blood magic or other such chants, they'd still see the bond between the pair. Gentle eye contact, soft smiles, nimble fingers that intertwined.

Kuja gave her a glare over his chalice. "I am not your stepfather. I am your lordship and you are my ward."

"Okay," Eiko nodded. "My lord, may I have a sip of wine?"

"No."

Still creepy, still stupid, still a big meanie. "Aw, c'mon!" She batted her eyelashes like a few of the maidservants. "You're the one who said I didn't need to practice my stitching anymore."

Hilda gave them both a very stern, yet very silent staredown. All anyone in close proximity heard was the slight tapping of her foot under the table. The sorcerer remembered a technique meant to reduce stress; he mentally counted to ten. "I did say as such, little summoner," he said eventually. "Then your mother nagged me like I was some common farmer from Dali Village."

Zidane put down his drink and started to laugh. When he stated, "Welcome to every man's hell!" his own wife and queen gave him such a fierce look, the servants in the next room felt a distinct cold chill.

"I did not nag you, Kuja." Hilda smiled sweetly, flipped a lock of hair over her shoulder.

He answered, "You ran your mouth more than necessary."

Her smile disappeared. "You silenced me." As she heard him say behind closed doors, there were better things she could do with her mouth.

"Man, that's awesome!" Zidane grinned like he recently defeated a Grand Dragon, and afterwards used its hide to build a tent. "I wish I had that power."

"Zidane!"

"Oh, but I'd never use it on you, babe." He whispered to his brother, "I so would."

Feminine, girlish chuckles echoed throughout the room; not from Lady Hilda, and most certainly not from Eiko. Garnet laughed in her hands, her eyes twinkling. The servants in the next room no longer felt a cold chill, instead felt an aura of calm resolution.

"Your highness?" questioned Lady Hilda.

"My apologies, aunt." The queen's giggles continued, much to the surprise of the guests at the table. "All of this is simply too bizarre. I thought I've seen it all, but this -" She motioned to the blood mages. "-this is weird even for me. My aunt is sharing the bed of the man who once tried to destroy us all, the same man who later saved my life from plague."

"Sharing his bed," Hilda said. "I'm his mistress."

"Mistress, courtesan, concubine, lady friend." Zidane rambled off choice words on his fingers. "There are so many words to describe things right now."

Kuja slammed down his wine. "Choose them carefully, brother."

"What, none of them are bad."

Garnet ignored the two men in the room. "Does anybody care to guess where Amarant is?"

"Screwing Freya behind Fratley's back," Zidane answered.

"You see?" said the queen. "More sexual scandal. And what about our own Beatrix and Steiner?"

"They're usually guarding us ... when they're not doing it!" The young thief turned consort leaned back in his chair, laughed loudly like he was in a gambling hall with ale and whores. "Hey, wanna hear about Ruby's latest conquest?"

"Enough with your gossip!" Kuja snapped his long fingers in Eiko's direction. "My ward is but a child and I'll not have her hear such crass talk!"

Eiko barely yawned. "Please, I used to hear Zidane and Amarant talk all the time. Trust me, this is nothing."

"And this -" Garnet again motioned to her guests at the grand table. "-is not my idea of a happily ever after."

Kuja shrugged. "And I thought Hilda's people obsessed over fairy tales."

"We are not obsessed, sorcerer. We just started them all."

While the adults spoke, the young summoner eyed the pitcher of wine in the center of the table. She then wondered if she could perform a switcheroo between her juice glass and her mother's wine chalice. Darn it; as she eyed the wine, Kuja eyed her. Her latest pouty face was far from false. "I like the boy wizard," she mumbled.

"Reminds you of Vivi, right?" Zidane smiled.

Kuja, wisely, did not open his mouth.

"What are Blood Mages?" questioned Garnet, her tongue sharp with authority. "I've read little about them, aunt. You've never revealed much about your ancestry. How many witches are in your family line?"

Later, when alone with his mistress, the sorcerer would recount how the crumbs from his pastry settled together to form the words 'BAD WOLF'. The magic was trickery, liked to prove it was there and active. Lady Hilda replied to her niece, "The term 'witch' is not completely accurate, though we do accept it."

"Mama said she's going to get me a cauldron for my birthday."

"Not in the daylight hours, Eiko!"

"Sorry."

Whenever Kuja attempted to brush away the crumbs, they rolled together again on his plate. (BAD WOLF) "My lady ..."

"We blood mages are healers," Hilda explained. "We are wise men and women, and when the need arises we are also mighty warriors."

"Doctor," said Kuja.

"Doctor who?" asked Zidane.

"If you are such healers," said Garnet, "can you not return to Lindblum?"

Hilda rested her chin on her hands. "And so we've reached the crux of the matter."

When Kuja again mouthed the word 'doctor', his pastry crumbs returned to a normal scatter. He quickly emptied his wine chalice. Such an odd spell that often appeared out of nowhere. "My home is still in the desert, canary, and Treno still holds my auction house. Lindblum will never again appear in our destinations."

"But plague is rampant!" The queen's voice went into a plead. "Kuja, you saved countless lives here, including my own. Can you and my aunt not go back and offer your talents to the people?"

"The people knew I planned to leave when the judges granted the annulment." Hilda's gaze settled on her lover, his gentle face that held secrets and remarkable chants. "I have done what I said. No, I will never go back."