Audience of One

Chapter Fifteen

"Hey, wake up now… come on…"

Garnet felt a nudging against her shoulder. She then felt the warmth of the stone and rubble beneath her cheek. Garnet squeezed her eyes tightly for a moment before she found her hands scraping against the ground and forcing herself up. She felt absolutely drained, more so than usual, and her eyesight was a bit foggy as she swept her hair back from the frame of the face. In front of her were still the ruins of Madain Sari. She blinked rapidly and squinted her eyes as she realized she was on the other side of the canyon from Eiko's hut. Garnet rubbed at her face and frisked through her hair. What had happened? All she remembered was the deep canyon below her and then nothing. As Garnet rubbed at her eyes, an old oak staff again nudged at her back and she gasped sharply, looking over her shoulder. There was a tanned girl standing with sunlight gleaming between pockets of mist over her shoulders. Her dark chestnut hair had gray streaks through it. Across her chest was an olive cloth that held a very small baby. Garnet rubbed at her bleary eyes and blinked towards the sunlight as her eyesight aligned. The woman seemed as equally startled as Garnet in that moment.

"Lani?!"

The ex-bounty hunter dug her oak walking stick into the ground and that's when Garnet noticed another smaller toddler with vibrant red hair hugging Lani's leg, shying away from the stranger laid in the rubble. "Surprised to see you here, Princess," Lani said coolly, pressing her hand to the harnessed child's head. "Things haven't been good out here. Mist, monsters, and…. Well, I suppose you met the monstrosities across the way there."

Garnet came to her feet, though she was almost dizzy for a moment. She worked on tying her knotted onyx hair up onto her head as she turned to gaze across the vast canyon. There wasn't much movement among the orange and gray rocks. Garnet was still in that moment as she listened to the rushing river and gushing waterfall below. She dug deep into her mind to figure out what had happened, but nothing came to the forefront. Garnet then looked to Lani. "What are you doing here?"

Lani laughed, reaching her hand down to graze the wild curls of the toddler beside her. She only shook her head. "I should be the one asking you that. We saw something incredible from our campsite, I just had to come investigate."

Garnet paused and looked back towards the jagged canyon. Still, her mind was drawing a blank. Slowly, she approached the edge, looking down at the dizzying drop. "What did you see?" Garnet asked, her back to the woman and her children. "I don't know what happened. I fell into the canyon but… there's no way I could have climbed this wall." She felt a damp pocket of mist graze her cheek and she shuddered when she remembered its presence.

"A dwagon!" The little one suddenly exclaimed, throwing his hands widely at his side. "It was bwue and puwple and howled like a wolf!"

Garnet's boots skidded through the rubble as she turned to Lani with wide eyes. "A dragon?" Garnet echoed. Lani nodded. The queen's eyes darted everywhere and she could hear her shallow breath in her ears. "Could it be… Leviathan? Did the walls hear my prayers…?"

"You look like you could use a good meal," Lani said, interrupting her thoughts. Garnet's dark eyes shot to the ex-bounty hunter. "We've got a camp not too far away. We sleep in a cave, but it's safe. I can boil up some hot water so you can wash your face, too."

"You'd do that for me?" Garnet asked, aware of how miserable she must have looked with her scarred, scraped, and bruised appearance. Her blouse was tattered at the hems and sported a rip in the side from where she had wrangled herself through a crevice in the rocks. Her boots were worn and chalky from the dust and her hair was a knotted mountain atop her head. "After everything that's happened? I… I know it's been awhile but-"

"None of that matters," Lani turned away, looking to the hazy sunlight behind the wall of mist. "That was a long time ago, Princess. We were both different people then."

"You don't have to call me that anymore. I'm not a princess any longer."

"Her Majesty, then?" Lani looked over her shoulder, cocking a bold eyebrow up. "Did you succeed that horrid person we used to call your mother?"

"Yes and no…" Garnet lowered her chin. "I'm not a queen, either. You can just call me Dagger and we'll leave it at that."

Lani's chocolate eyes hovered on the young person for a beat longer before she turned forward again. "Alright, Ezra, lead the way back to camp. I bet your father had some luck finding something to eat." The vibrant red headed child grinned widely before he began clambering over the rolling boulders that made up the far western side of Madain Sari. Garnet looked over her shoulder once more, staring at the decaying ruins of the Eidolon Wall over the landscape. She pressed her lips tightly together before she resigned to following Lani and her scrambling toddler.

…

Steiner's sword came through the heavy vines in front of them and they crumpled to the floor. With the mist seeping between the dense trees, it was hard to see more than five feet in front of them. Nocturnal creatures croaked and yelped amongst the thick canopy above them. Eiko was acutely aware of the lack of owl's hooting. She stuck close behind the captain with Liam right behind her. Taking up the rear was Freya, who used a small pocket knife to etch notches in the trunks in hopes of finding their way back. The forest was eerie. For Eiko, it terrified her the most. Years ago, Eiko had pranced through that forest without any fear. She said hello to the Hedgehog Pies and waved to every little creature she saw. But in that moment, Eiko felt like it had become a personal hell scape around her, devoid of anything living with good intentions. Liam tried to keep his eyes forward. He had read books about the Evil Forest before with all it's creepy, disorienting turns. But never had he been in a forest that smelled like sulfur with a blanket of mist that made him shudder. Steiner's eyes scanned back and forth as he slowly navigated the line forward. In the last five years of his life, living the absurdity of Zeke Tisdoll, having a child, and trying to contain a semblance in his life, he never thought he'd find himself here again, wandering amongst the mist in what was beginning to feel like a suicide mission. He had to be strong, mentally and physically, for the sake of Beatrix and Addam, however. With each step, Steiner reminded him he was doing it for his son, to give him a chance at a better life in this world. If that was even possible. Steiner straightened his shoulders. He told himself to stop thinking like that as he hacked another thicket of ivy's down. From the back, Freya watched the tracks they left in the dewy grass. She held her lancer at her side with fingers so tight, her knuckles were white. The mist surrounding her felt like she was facing an old foe once more. One that had caused more chaos and destroyed more lives than she liked to give credit to. A tree branch cracked above and Freya lifted her lancer, squinting her eyes to look between the thickets of brush. It was nothing, she told herself, still walking backwards right on Liam's heels.

"How much further?" Liam's hushed voice cut through the darkness.

"I don't know," Steiner whispered back, stepping through a bush that scraped up against his armor. "Eiko, are we even going the right way?"

"I mean, there's only one way," Eiko shook her head, looking back and forth. "The canyon leads to a dead end and that's where Black Mage Village is." They all took a few more steps forward, their shoes crunching through the grass. "I haven't heard a single owl… that's usually how you know you're getting close. Where are they?"

"Owls don't tend to stay in areas that are unsafe," Freya said, turning in a circle with her lancer at the ready. "Something bad is happening in this forest."

"We should turn around," Liam suggested, straightening up. For a moment, the mist and shadows made him believe he saw a silhouette, but he blinked rapidly and shook his head. "There's got to be another way."

"Yeah, just jump off a fifty foot cliff to get there instead," Eiko deadpanned. "We can't turn around. We've got to be at least half way there."

"Look," Freya whispered, taking a few steps out of line. With her lancer, she pointed towards the scorched ground. "Someone had a fire here not too long ago."

"Wait a minute…" Eiko's eyes began darting everywhere. She then knelt down, knitting her brow together, as she stared intensely at the ash. Just a few feet away, she saw a large leaf stained and crusty with some sort of goo. "This was from my vision. When Mikoto was trying to fix Zidane's wounds and I saw Dagger on the boat." Eiko looked up to the stunned Dragoon. "We can't be far. Then we'll be in the safe haven, like Mikoto said." After a moment of hesitation, Eiko looked around again. Without any light, she felt disoriented.

"You're certain?" Freya asked, her lips barely moving.

"I'm pretty sure," Eiko nodded. "But… let me try something."

Her slender little fingers came forward to touch the ash and Eiko closed her eyes. In the next moment, she felt a head rush, with blurry visions running past her eyelids. She heard boots rushing through the grass. The sound of clanking armor and the swish of swinging swords. The sound of ragged pants rang out and Eiko caught a snippet of hurried feet in front of her. Then a bloody palm pressed to a tree trunk. She heard shouts and had spinning eyes that ducked just as splintered wood came raining down. Next, her face was against the dirt clearing and her nails dug at the pebbles in front of her as she pulled her numb body just from the edge of the damp grass. There were hollers, the sound of rushed water washing against tin buckets. Her vision was whirling everywhere as she was turned onto her back and she felt hands come to cup her face. The words didn't make sense at all. The only thing Eiko could understand was the word "owl".

Her eyes shot open abruptly and Eiko came to her feet. She looked diagonally through the trees, narrowing her eyes. "This way. Zidane and Mikoto went this way," she pointed now.

"You're sure?" Steiner asked, lowering his sword.

"Just trust me," Eiko took the lead and everyone fell in line behind her. As they passed tree after tree, Eiko inspected them closely. Then she halted and stepped forward, tenderly pressing her hand against the rough bark. Everyone saw it clear as day in the dark mist. A smeared bloody hand print, left in a hurry. Eiko stared at it intensely, her blue eyes shimmering. The man she had seen as her hero, the one person who had always seen the best in her, was being hunted like an animal. Hadn't he done enough for this world? What did everyone want with him? All Eiko knew in that moment was that the bloody hand print gave her a renewed sense of what she had to do. That she had to give her all that second forward with everything that still laid ahead of them. Eiko had to see Zidane immediately. She couldn't waste one more breath without knowing where he was and his condition. Then they'd find Dagger. "Come on, this way."

Together, the team of four began forward, now with a sense of urgency. They had to be close, Eiko reasoned. How far had Zidane run to end up face down in the clearing of the Black Mage Village? And what was it about the small settlement that kept the dangers of the mist out? As she stepped over a tree root, there was a racket from above. Then suddenly, a figure fell onto Liam, knocking him on his back. The engineer let out a shout as he felt cold steel against his throat. Immediately, Freya pressed her lancer to the dark person's neck, directly between where the helmet and armor did not meet. Liam clenched his teeth and breathed heavily as he stared at the face above him. Their skin was as white as chalk and their eyes looked like something of a hell spawn, so dark and coal-like, devoid of any human feelings. Liam's eyes slowly lowered from the stony face and he was bewildered in the next moment.

"He's wearing the crest of Alexandria," Liam said and the sword came even closer against his neck. "You're… you're a Knight of Pluto!"

"Impossible!" Steiner was incredulous.

"Stand up," Freya demanded coldly. Her mythril lancer began to pierce his ghostly skin. "I assure you, I'd be faster in the kill than you would be."

After just a beat, the soldier complied and stood up, facing the group. Steiner's jaw became unhinged in that moment. Even Eiko and Freya seemed numb when they saw the heartless figure's face. Liam propped himself up on his elbow, leaves stuck in his hair, his heart threatening to leap from his chest. It was a demon, he was convinced. A figment of their imaginations. They were being poisoned by the forest, he reasoned. They were all becoming disillusioned by the mist and sounds and slanted shadows. But by the way the other three stared at him in pure shock, Liam was certain he was missing something in the scene. The crest was glaring at Liam and he felt his stomach twist as thoughts of Garnet occupied his mind. How could the Outer Continent be so cruel to play these tricks?

"Weimar…" Steiner's voice was just a whisper. The Captain's eyes fell to see the glaring gash in his ribcage that had ended the young man's life. "But… but how…?"

"Good to see you again, cap'n," Weimar grinned, bearing red stained teeth. Steiner winced, his heart strings being pulled taut. He never wanted to return to that smoky, chaotic night in the Alexandrian garden, but here it was, confronting him in the flesh. Freya kept her guard up, her mind reeling. She recalled the hurried night she had spent rounding troops, strapping on her best armor, and traveling to Alexandria without an inkling of what to expect. She held her lancer steady as memories of lined up, lifeless bodies on the cobblestone flashed by. Steiner couldn't find the courage or strength to raise his sword to a man he had once admired as a hard-working, though girl-crazy, soldier. "I see the mist can't even keep you away."

"Why… how are you here?" Steiner tried not to stumble over his words. "What's happened?"

"It's the cycle, cap'n," Weimar told him, positioned to run or attack. Nobody could read what the ghastly looking man would do next. "It's given me another fighting chance."

"I don't understand," Steiner only shook his head.

"The cycle," Freya spoke up now, staring at him with a hesitation she tried to conceal. "You're talking about the mist?"

"That's right," Weimar nodded. "The planet didn't know what to do with all of us after the insurrection. Instead, it gave us a second beginning."

"Then why are you doing this?!" Liam scrambled to his feet, furiously combing all the brush from his hair. "What you're doing is wrong. You're endangering the world!"

"Can't believe you brought Her Majesty's pet with you. Not even I came across as that desperate."

"Who are you working for?" Freya asked directly. "There's no way you were just reborn from the mist with a taste for Black Mage lives."

"It's not the Black Mages we want," Weimar shook his head. He smiled grotesquely. It was enough to make Eiko gag as she stood behind Steiner.

"It's Zidane…" Steiner whispered, his dark eyes wide.

"Bingo, cap'n."

"Why?" Freya lowered her lancer. "He has nothing more to offer you. He's not the angel of death the lore once touted! He's got nothing to do with the cycle."

"No…" Steiner shook his head, his stomach knotting up tightly. "If you're here, Weimar… that means… Astrid is, too."

"Think again about what you're doing," Weimar said. "Think carefully about what's really important to you."

And with that, he concealed effortlessly into the darkness and the group of four was left in a stunned silence. Freya let out a huff, lowering her lancer to her side. She looked to Steiner. The poor man was as white as Weimar's dead skin. Eiko let out an uneven breath, trekking back to where Zidane's bloody hand print glimmered in the thick mist of the forest. Liam ran his hands anxiously through his hair, waiting for someone to say something. But everyone was quiet for a very long time. Eiko folded her hands together and tilted her chin down. Freya put a hand on her hip and paced a few steps, shaking her head over and over again. Her fist then suddenly came out and she punched a tree, letting out an aggravated sneer.

"I'm such a fool," she huffed, throwing her weapon to the ground. "All this time, I assumed Dagger just couldn't live with the fact Zidane would be nothing but silent in her life and she had to be Queen. And I thought we were coming after Zidane to remind him of what an idiot he is. But instead, it's all just so complicated, just like before. Zidane's been fighting a war. And Dagger is out there somewhere in it, too. We're running out of time and facts to go by. We have to get to the Black Mage Village now before somebody dies!"

"We're close," Eiko lifted her head now, her eyes bright in the darkness. "We know enough to get by for now. The sooner we find Zidane, the faster we'll find Dagger."

Steiner sat down on a mossy rock, rubbing at the cold sweat plaguing his skin. "My own men turned against me. This… this isn't a war I wanted to find myself in…"

Freya's tense muscles softened as she looked at the confused and blind-sided captain. She licked her lips as slowly she went to him, kneeling beside him. "I'm sorry, Steiner. But we'll fix this. We've stopped the mist before. We'll make sure your men are put to the eternal rest they've deserved after all this time."

Liam looked between everyone before he turned away, walking a few steps towards the misty darkness beyond them. He crossed his arms over his chest, rubbing at his stubbly jaw. Liam also could only shake his head at the wildness that was unfolding in front of him. The people he traveled with seem well accustomed and knew all too well. But for Liam, he felt like he was walking in a dark room filled with booby traps. Garnet wanted Zidane, he understood that. But did she know something about the evil mist that threatened to overtake the world again? Why wouldn't she confide in someone? Why had everything happened the way it did?

"Liam?" Eiko had appeared at his side, nearly startling him. "Are you okay?"

"Yes… I suppose," Liam turned his face from her sight, pursing his lips tightly. Everyone looked at him now. "This is all just so new to me. I'm a bit out of my element."

"I'm sorry," Eiko told him. The tenderness of her voice reminded everyone in that moment that she was still only a child. "I know this isn't what you wanted at all. But for us… life has always been a bit screwed up. Even if Dagger isn't marrying you… she'll appreciate what you're doing for her. For her friends."

Liam slowly looked to her now with bright, clear complexion and wide blue eyes. Eiko had always been dismissive of her, but he could tell at that second, she was being quite genuine. Liam offered her a small grin and nodded. "We should get a move on to find Zidane. I'm not the only one who wants to find Garnet unharmed." After just a few beats, the group mustered themselves back together and continued on through the dark, unforgiving forest.

…

"Zidane! Get off of the roof! You will hurt yourself!" Mikoto called out in a frustrated frenzy from the clearing of Black Mage Village. Her brother had perched himself up on the straw roof of the highest tower where the Mages inside chopped firewood. Under his arm, he had a rolled parchment, basically an SOS, that he so desperately needed to send off. In his hands, he held a wooden flute. It was old with chips and some mildew growing on it. His jaw was tense as he looked at the forest and lands surrounding the quaint little settlement. He couldn't see much at all except bleak blankets of mist. The bane of his existence, he referred to it. Zidane briefly remembered a time in his life when mist was just part of every day life. No one understood it, but they learned to adapt to it. As a child growing up in Lindblum, he had marveled at the Regent's revelation to use it to their advantage. There was no going back to that sense of existence, however. Once Zidane had learned the true source and vitality of the mist, it had changed him forever, whether he wanted to admit that or not. Zidane looked to the flute in his hands. The Mages had crafted it. They claimed it made the owls flock and dance. Just as he was about to inhale and blow, though, Mikoto interrupted him again. "Zidane! It will not work! We have tried so many times! The owls know more than us!"

Zidane leaned forward, planting his hand against the straw. "I'm as close to the sky as I can get! It's worth a shot!"

"You will re-open your wounds!"

"Just make sure the team is getting assembled!" Zidane called back. "We gotta find Dagger. That's more important than this, anyway!"

Zidane pressed the flute to his lips and it let out a shrill, melodious cry. He was still as he stared into the grayness that surrounded them. After a few beats, however, nothing was happening. So Zidane made the call again, waiting earnestly. He pressed his lips together and rubbed tiredly at his face. "Oh, godsdammit…"

Mikoto, on the ground, was feeling the same thing as she watched her brother's futile attempts. She knew he was desperate. She also knew he'd go out there himself if that's what it took. For Mikoto, it required a lot of coaxing of a few people to convince them to leave the safety of the village. Once they understood how much it meant to Zidane, they were hesitantly on board and began making preparations. Zidane was an anxious mess. He dreamed of Garnet almost every night and fervently told it to Mikoto the next morning when they had a meager breakfast of lukewarm oats and seaweed. Zidane didn't care how injured he was, his guilt was enough to drive him to forget all of it. Mikoto sighed and frisked her fingers through her hair. She wished she could have been of more help. Her poor brother was torn in so many places. His desire to be with Garnet, his duty to protect and continue Vivi's work, and his devotion to the village certainly didn't make anything easy on him. With the occupation of the mist, she could see how anxious he had become. She knew he felt his hopes waning every day that he could be good enough. Mikoto just wanted him healthy again. It was impossible to get him to that state, however, when he refused to rest, even for a few hours. Zidane was too hard on himself, Mikoto decided. She could only hope for a miracle.

Behind her, suddenly, however, she heard rustling in the brush. Mikoto gasped sharply, staggering towards the deck of the huts. Her heart beat wildly in her chest. The day had come, she told herself. It wasn't a safe haven, it wasn't off limits. They had overstayed their welcome and the mist had decided that. From the roof, Zidane saw his sister's startle and, deftly, he began sliding down. He grabbed hold of the edge of the roof and tossed his flute and letter into the open window first. With some effort, and a groan, Zidane dangled off the edge of the roof and swung his legs to catch the edge of the window. His abdomen was lit with pain as he pulled himself in. He then grabbed the sides of the ladder and slid down, startling the Mage at the bottom splitting a log. Zidane looked around the room before he noticed an unused ax, which he grabbed and held over his shoulder as he came barreling out of the woodcutting shop. Zidane's boots thundered against the deck as he prepared himself for the unknown. He was just powering his arms up to swing when he suddenly came to an abrupt halt just on the edge of the clearing. Zidane's entire body numbed and he dropped the ax. It became decisively stuck in a board. Slowly, his feet compelled him forward, his eyes as wide as saucers. It was a dream, he told himself. Another stupid, fevered dream. Mikoto had to have given him ether before he went to bed. None of it was real.

"Zidane!" Eiko squealed, racing past Mikoto and up the stairs. She leapt into him and he couldn't believe his arms were wrapping around her. She had gotten so tall since he had last seen her. "Oh my gods, I can't believe we actually found you!" She wailed into his neck. His mind was still not registering everything as he was suddenly enveloped by Freya and Steiner in a big group hug. After they parted, Zidane slowly lowered Eiko back down.

"It's so good to see you again," Freya told him. "You're the first break in all of our travels."

"I wish it was under better circumstances," Steiner said.

"But how…?" Zidane was still stunned as he looked between all his friends.

"We've been trying to track Dagger down," Freya replied. "And we need your help to do that."

"We have to stop the mist!" Eiko pitched in.

"You have only just arrived," Mikoto interjected now. "Please, let me get all of you hot towels and a warm meal on the fire. We can catch up over a nice stew. Edward managed to harvest some fish from his pond today, how does that sound?" The weary travelers all offered grins at the suggestion. "Come on now, let me take you to some accommodations. Zidane should be resting now, anyway. We can chat in a bit. I am sure you are all exhausted." Mikoto, the ever attentive host, began ushering them all away. Eiko looked towards Zidane until he disappeared from her sight. The young man felt a grin come across his face and he lowered his eyes towards where the ax was stuck straight up in the boards. He should have never doubted their involvement without a letter.

The creak of the stairs, however, had him lifting his light eyes. Liam stood there, looking almost sheepish. His black satin coat sported stains and his dark hair was disheveled atop his head. He stopped a few feet short of Zidane and they only stared at each other in silence for some time. Finally, Zidane cleared his throat. "Thanks for coming, Liam. I guess you're as worried about Dagger as we are."

"Of course," Liam averted his eyes and nodded rigidly. "I'm just trying to help in any way possible."

Zidane leaned against a wooden beam nearby, glancing at the thickets of mist surrounding them. "The last I saw, Dagger was at Madain Sari. It's not far from here."

"You have the visions, too?" Liam stuck his hands into the pockets of his trousers. "You… see through her eyes?"

"Yeah," Zidane licked his lips. "I don't know why, though."

Liam took a deep breath as he gazed around at the small, humble village he suddenly found himself in. "You know, Garnet did all of this for you. You two are connected somehow. There's a tether that keeps you two together, no matter what."

Zidane pushed away from the wooden support. "Liam, I-"

"It's fine," Liam held his hand up now. "I understand, Zidane. More and more by the day. She wouldn't marry me. She couldn't."

"What are you talking about?" Zidane furrowed his brow. Liam's green eyes looked to him, rather surprised. He then only shook his head.

"Let's just say the wedding is the whole reason we're here…" Liam then wandered around the corner in the wake of the others. Zidane furrowed his brow, staring after where Liam had gone.

"The wedding…?"

…

The orange and red flames of the fire flickered against the edge of the rocky mountain side, briefly illuminating through the dense forest just on the edge of the clearing. Garnet found herself laid up against the stone, allowing her trousers to dry. With an absent mind, her fingers turned the fun colored stones of the necklace Mathilda had gifted her. Lani was busy poking at the fire and keeping it alive. Her baby daughter laid on a blanket, fast asleep, while her son, Ezra, pretended a branch was a sword and entertained himself. Her husband hadn't been there when they returned. Lani had some oats she cooked up for the children to hold them. Garnet had passed on food and, instead, watched as the stars broke through the nighttime above her. Her mind was still reeling and she was beginning to think she didn't know reality from fiction any longer. How could it be that the mist had come back, bringing with it all the people who had died under her watch? It made Garnet feel restless, guilty, and like a fool. What had started as an adventure to recapture a light in her life had ended up rifling up all the nightmares that had laid dormant in her mind. Nearby, Ezra played make believe of battling foes. Garnet wished she could only do that again, to not be stuck in the middle of a surprise war that tormented her mind. Garnet thought of her friends as the stars glittered overhead. What were they doing? What did they think of her now? She was just beginning to count on all the burned bridges in her mind, the state in which she left everything, when there was rustling in the brush. Garnet sat up now, hugging her knees. Ezra became incredibly excited and threw his stick to the side. In the next moment, a tall and wide figure emerged.

"Daddy!" Ezra yelled with delight, running up to him in a prance. "What'd ya get, Daddy?!"

The man smiled as he came to the fringe of the light. "Lots of protein for a growing boy such as yourself."

Garnet's eyes widened. "Amarant?"

He seemed startled to see the guest and lowered a mesh net filled with fish. "Dagger?"

"Oh, did I not mention Amarant was my partner?" Lani was smiling as she kept prodding the flames on.

"Well, I'll be damned," Amarant said as he gave the net to Lani, who immediately set to putting some out to be scaled and roasted. "Should have known you wouldn't be far behind the mist." He reached into the cave and procured a crystal bottle filled with a dark amber liquid. Amarant sank down near Garnet, looking to her beneath his wild mess of red hair. Lani dutifully began shucking the scales off the fish. The baby wriggled near the warmth of the fire, but remained asleep. "How'd you figure out what happened out here?"

"I didn't," Garnet said, resting her chin on her knees and watching the flickering flames. "I just found out. I came here to find Zidane."

Amarant took a swig of his drink and shook his head back and forth before clucking his tongue. "Zidane? Now that's a name I haven't heard in some time…"

"But how?" Garnet raised her eyes to her old friend whom she had faced oblivion with. "He's been at Black Mage Village this whole time."

"Yeah, and we used to live a peaceful life in Madain Sari until the mist started back up," Amarant replied, roughly. "And those… goons, whatever you call them, came from the north."

Garnet looked back to the fire, her dark eyes glinting with the wavering flames. "They used to be living people that I knew."

Amarant lowered the bottle from his lips. "So…" his gruff voice rang out. "It's starting again, huh?"

"It looks like it," Garnet replied grimly. Amarant took another swig of the bottle and then extended it to Garnet.

"Come on, now, you deserve some," Amarant told her, pushing the bottle into her hands. "I saw Leviathan today. Whatever you've been through, you need it more than me."

Garnet's fingers laced around the neck of the bottle and she looked to her old, rugged friend. He had changed, she could sense it. But certainly not in a bad way. Amarant didn't give off a warm feeling. He still had that closed off way about himself and the need to get things done right and only once. However, in that moment, Garnet was comforted by his presence, despite never having been in the past. It was finally a familiar face that didn't send a chill down her spine. She had been on the run for so long, surfing with strangers and doing things outside of her comfort zone. For the first time in a while, Garnet felt somewhat relaxed as she sat by the fire with Amarant and Lani's little family. After a moment, Garnet took a drink from the bottle and she coughed as it ran down her throat and warmed her wholly.

"Made it myself," Amarant smiled as she tried to clear her throat. She handed the bottle back to him. "You probably don't wanna know how. But it will help you sleep."

Garnet's mind was already tilting at the one drink and she watched as Lani placed the fish onto rocks and nestled them into some charred ash. "How long has it been like this?" Garnet asked, looking to Amarant again. He continued to nurse his bottle.

"Maybe eight months at best," Amarant shrugged, watching his son pick up his stick sword fighting game again. "It hasn't been long."

"Zidane left over a year ago," Garnet shook her head. "Why didn't he write before this happened?"

Amarant's bottle clanked against the rocks as he lowered it and shook his head, watching dinner be made before him. "What'd you expect of him? Zidane's always off on the next grand thing. You can't expect him to settle."

"He's changed, Amarant."

"Maybe so," Amarant shrugged. "But not always how you envision."

Garnet took the bottle from Amarant's hand and took another swig before she pursed her lips and looked at him. "You have no idea what's happened in the last few years."

His dark eyes gleamed at her beneath his mop of hair as he took the bottle back. It hovered just a few inches from his lips before he chuckled. "How much have I missed?"

"A lot. An insurrection," Garnet looked back to the flames. "I was supposed to get married but I jumped off a cliff instead."

"Seems reasonable," Amarant joked as the amber liquid burned down his throat. He then set the bottle between them and hung his large arms over his knees. "So, you're telling me that the same bullshit we put to rest years ago is on the rise again?"

"It's not exactly the same but…"

"Pretty much," Amarant scoffed, shaking his head. "When will people just learn to move on with their lives?"

"They're dead, Amarant," Garnet replied without any rhythm to her voice. "They have nothing to move onto." They were both quiet for a few beats. Garnet looked at the slumbering baby swaddled in wool and the tilting young boy in his own pretend world. Garnet hugged her knees and looked to her old friend. "Your family is beautiful, Amarant. And they're worth fighting for."

Amarant took a swig out of his bottle and pursed his lips, slowly looking to Garnet. "Just tell me what I've gotta do."

…

The cauldron bubbled and ruminated over the large fire. The tired travelers sank into their chairs with blankets and pillows as they awaited Mikoto's stirring to come to a stop and her to call it perfection. Steiner hadn't realized how hungry he was and his stomach growled in discontent. Freya sat patiently, watching the wooden spoon go round and round. Eiko was nearly ready to pass out against her feathered pillow. She hadn't known something so soft in quite awhile. Liam sat stiffly in his chair, Zidane beside him. The two had a hard time looking at each other. For Liam, he tried to tell himself it wasn't jealousy, mostly discomfort. For Zidane, it was a bitter reminder of what he'd let passively slip him by. How dearly he just wanted to kick himself. Idiot, he kept calling himself in his mind. Mikoto finally clanged the side of the pot with the spoon and began heaping servings into bowls, which she passed around the circle. Zidane sat back in his chair, feeling the steam rise against his chin. His poor friends looked so tired and weary. He remembered everything he put them through in the past five years and lowered his eyes, pushing chunks of potato around in his stew. Mikoto ran her hands along her apron, looking to the silent gathering.

"I hope it is enough," she said, pushing her blond hair from her face. It had grown long down her back and she kept it in a loose braid. "I know you still have a long journey ahead of you."

"Mikoto, thank you," Freya said, lowering her spoon. "This is the best meal we've had in quite some time."

Eiko yawned over her bowl. "Yeah, for sure. I think I'll finally get a good nights rest here. Sleeping on a boat is so difficult."

"You came by boat?" Zidane sat forward now, his stew untouched. "Was Blank with you?"

"Of course," Freya nodded. "He's moored beyond the beach, ready for anything." Zidane's blue eyes were intense in the light of the flames beneath the cauldron as he stared at Freya. The Dragoon stared back for a few beats before she stirred her bowl. "He's safe, don't worry."

"It's not just that…" Zidane shook his head. He piled some food into his mouth as a means to stall. Everyone looked at him as he chewed through the fish and carrots and potatoes. It burned down his throat. "I just… I haven't seen him in so long. I'm surprised he came."

Eiko looked up from her stew, where she was wrapped up like a cocoon in her blankets. "What, did you think we all gave up on you?"

Zidane shrugged. "I figured you'd would. I've been nothing but misfire after misfire."

"That has no bearing on how much we care for you," Freya told him, shaking her head. "We understand, Zidane."

"Well, I hope Dagger does…" he muttered as, again, he lamely pushed his stew around. "I promised to write. I told her an ocean was not anything like a barrier. And yet… I didn't keep a single promise, after all."

"That doesn't matter to her!" Eiko replied, her cheeks tinging red in passion. "Dagger understands, too, Zidane. Why don't you think she went through the wedding?!" In the next beat, Steiner cleared his throat and clanged his spoon against his bowl. Eiko's entire face grew red as she realized she had let her mouth run away. Liam promptly set his bowl to the side and excused himself, pressing into the darkness of the Black Mage Village. "I'm… I'm sorry…" Eiko muttered, hunching over her stew. "I got caught in the moment."

Zidane put his bowl down, too, and stood, following after Liam without another word. He found him at the the graveyard. Liam was looking to the scarecrow made to resemble the Mages. Its straw hat was frayed as it wavered in the misty night air. It's long robe, which had once been a rich navy blue, had faded from the sun, though it must have happened before the mist invaded. Liam looked at all the graves, admiring to the epitaphs painstakingly engraved with tender love and devotion. Zidane was silent, his hands dug into his pockets, as he watched the engineer look at all the details of the lot they considered sacred in the Black Mage Village. He then tilted his chin down and cleared his throat. Liam looked over his shoulder, his dark hair clawing across his forehead. He pressed his lips together and turned back to the scarecrow.

"You didn't have to come talk to me," Liam said with his back to Zidane. "I get it. I understand why Eiko said it. Your friends think the world of you and so does Garnet. I just wanted some alone time, that's all."

"I'm sorry," Zidane replied, not making a move to enter the graveyard. "You've done so much, Liam. It shouldn't go unnoticed. You came all the way here. You don't deserve to be undermined."

"I'm just here to support Garnet's friends," Liam looked over his shoulder, his olive eyes glinting in the blanket of mist. "I've come to know them well in my engagement to Garnet. And you weren't there when everything went terribly wrong."

Zidane scuffed his boot against the stone beneath him before he came a bit closer, his shoulders hunched. "I wasn't there. What happened?"

Liam sighed and raked his hand through hair, shaking his head. He paced a few steps before he turned to Zidane, his lips pursed. "We were going to be married, Zidane. Come the wedding day, we were both dressed to the nines. She appeared at the end of the aisle and gods… she looked so beautiful…" Liam closed his eyes. Zidane could only feel regretful and antsy as he spoke. "Just when I thought everything would be okay, she takes only a few steps towards me and then… and then she ran. She bolted. Garnet ran without stop across all of Alexandria, tearing her dress up, overturning carts, shoving people out of the way. She went all the way to the cliffs edge and do you know what she said to me?" Liam slowly turned towards the quiet and stunned Zidane. The young man could only manage a shake of his head. Liam let out a scoff. "She said she'd rather die trying to recapture what you two had than stay and waste away with me."

Zidane swallowed roughly. "And then what happened?"

"She leapt," Liam told him, evenly. "From the waterfall. It was the last time I saw her."

Zidane closed his eyes and lowered his chin. "I wish it could have been different, Liam."

"Oh yeah?" Liam held his arms out at his side now, his nerves raw. "How so?"

Zidane blinked for a moment before he looked back to Liam. "I wish she had married you. You're way better for her than I am. Ten fold."

Liam was somewhat stunned for a moment and his boots scraped along the dirt as he slowly came to the top of the uneven stone staircase leading into the graveyard. "We can't change the past or how people mean to us, Zidane. I just know that when we finally find her, she'll run straight into your arms. Not mine." And with that, he brushed by Zidane, walking tensely back into the village.

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