Filling In The Blanks

Disclaimer: I don't own Final Fantasy IX or any of its characters.

Chapter 65: A Hasty Retreat

Dagger couldn't get the right footing as she fled down the narrow alley leading to the water. She could smell the salt in the air, and felt the breeze grow stronger and icier the further down they got. Ruby and Cinna were at the docks, staring around in a panic, unsure of what to do.

When they spotted Dagger they ran to meet the stumbling girl, Ruby gripping her arms tightly. Fear tightened in all three of their throats. "Where's Zidane and Steiner?" Cinna asked, choking on his own words.

Dagger shook her head, unsure of what to say. "They didn't leave at the same time as us… I have no idea what we're supposed to do…"

"You've got to go," Cinna told her, wearing a rare expression of seriousness. "We've got to get you and Lady Hilda out of here first." The girl peered around her two teammates to see a man lift Hilda into the water, her dress floating up around her.

The storm was almost upon them now, making the water lash around nastily. The waves would be tricky to get through to where Marcus and Baku waited to assist, and the longer they waited, the more difficult it would be.

"What about Zidane and Steiner?" She was hoping to buy some time – distract Ruby and Cina into letting her stay on solid ground as long as she could so she could at least get a glimpse of their faces before she moved. Tears threatened to spread in her eyes, but she forced the feeling back, trying to put on a brave face.

"I'll wait up for them," Cinna wasn't buying into it. He knew there was nothing his good friend and superior would want more than for Dagger to keep moving. "Go with Ruby."

"Cinna –" The blue haired thief tried to argue, but he put a hand up, taking on a brief leadership role.

"I don't want to hear about it," He snapped at them. "You need to move now!" He shoved both of them towards the docks, where the cluster of people swept them up and moved them closer to the water's edge. The man who had helped Hilda stayed to lift others into the water, and soon, he was gripping Dagger's waist to lower her.

She squirmed, trying to wriggle around to get a glimpse of the tall alley before she was plunged into the icy water, but couldn't do it fast enough. The lack of seeing the two pushed her over the edge, and though she didn't bend over and heave sobs, tears streaked her face.

"Come on, child…" A woman with sandy blonde hair gripped Dagger's hand suddenly. She remembered her – it was the pregnant woman they had said goodbye to just before Adriana had rushed in. Her voice was kind, one hand gripping Dagger's tightly, the other on her bulging belly. "They'll follow us, don't worry!"

With Ruby on her other side, they slowly started trekking under the docks, dodging the harshest waves, and slowly began scaling the natural stone to the side of them, slipping and stumbling to get around it onto the narrow patch of sandy grass where Blank and Baku were waiting.

There were shouts as people were told to hurry it up behind them, and her chest constricted. One look at Ruby said that the older girl was thinking the same thing.

Had the soldiers rounded the corner, coming into view of the ocean? Had they reached the docks?


Finally, the narrow alleyway came into view. After taking an agonizing detour due to the soldiers lining more streets than they initially realized, by some miracle, they had made it to the docks first.

But it didn't come without a price however. It was void of all people, forcing Steiner and Zidane to realize they'd taken a lot more time than they'd originally planned. Angry waves rolled over the wood, causing the old docks to groan in the harsh winds.

Zidane's messy hair whipped around his face, causing him to squint his eyes – trying to get a good idea of what to do.

"This is not my forte," Steiner proceeded to admit, "Running, hiding, and sneaking are not the things that I am skilled at –"

"Leave it to me, Rusty!" The blonde was surprised at how confident his voice sounded. They rushed forward, down the slippery cobblestone, his piercing blue eyes moving quickly over the rainy, nasty scenery.

As soon as they reached the water's edge (rather – the new water's edge, far higher than they'd seen it before, salty ocean lapping easily over the wooden docks) a voice rang out to them.

"Zidane!" Whipping around, they spied Cinna crouched behind a large stack of abandoned cargo, the rain pelting him no longer making him flinch. He was shivering, but his eyes were still alert and all of his limbs were mobile.

"Cinna?!" Said thief spluttered. "What the hell are you still doing here?!"

"I promised Ruby and Dagger that I'd wait up for you guys –" he grinned, "- you didn't seriously think that even if you were dead, I was going to let you get taken by Kuja's scum, did you?!" He chuckled, "I was trying to give you the benefit of the doubt, but you were down to five minutes before I started looking for you."

"Soldiers are flooding the city," Steiner threw in, and Cinna took in his friends' company.

"Who's he?"

"My name is Dr. Tot –"

"Good enough for me!" Cinna said, deliberately cutting him off because he knew they didn't have time for formalities. "Let's get out of here! I don't want to see what those soldiers look like!"

"Neither do I!" The others agreed. Zidane and Cinna took the lead, scampering to the water's edge, and taking one glance at each other, before diving in. They would have to swim the current in order to get around – the water level was too high to scale the stone.

"I cannot swim!" Tot suddenly exclaimed, taking a step back, "I-I never learned and I don't want –"

Steiner interrupted him cleanly, "Then you are about to find out how!" Grabbing a hold of the man's arm for safety, the ex-knight threw both of them into the water, giving the two thieves his full trust, and never for a moment, second guessing it.

Though the water was stingingly cold, and the current seemed to tug them in all different directions, it was easier to navigate the lower they descended. Dr. Tot's eyes were squeezed shut, unwilling to open, but he did meekly kick and thrust around, hoping to be a help.

It had been unspoken between them to go up for air only when they absolutely needed to. The closer to the surface, the more you were thrashed around, and breaking above the water meant even rougher circumstances. Cinna, knowing exactly where the others would be around the corner (if they were, by any chance, still there), traced the underwater wall with his glove, feeling the chalky rock beneath his touch.

For the most part, their thoughts were relatively focused on the swimming situation, though for a few panicked moments every once in a while, all of their minds would wander, and they hoped the remaining Lindblum citizens, Hilda's double, and all of the resistance members – old and new – who were caught outside during the raid on the city were okay.

Though out of the way from immediate threats, they would have to be quick. Once out of the water, it was a long haul to the marshes, and in this rain it would be even harder. The chill from the water was crushing, and each of them knew it wasn't going to get any better once they got out of the water. All of the blankets were drenched, attached hastily to Zidane and Steiner's packs, but maybe it would provide wind protection, if nothing else.

Eventually, Cinna started to angle them upwards, and ever so slowly, their heads poked out of the water, each gripping a jutting stone to keep themselves in place. Each pair of eyes strained in the looming darkness to see the ledge, if it was safe, and if there was anyone lurking there – good or bad.

It seemed though, they waited too long. A sudden rush of wind had the water in its command, and yanked them violently from the wall, only to smash them back into the rocks again. They were thrown up into the air, and though all tried to stay silent, Dr. Tot was shaking and whimpering when they finally connected with solidified stone.

"Everyone okay?" Cinna turned slowly, wincing as his tired and cold limbs protested.

Zidane gave him a shaky thumbs up, and was met with Tot's whimpering for a reply; he at least seemed relatively unhurt.

"Where's Steiner?" The tech-savvy Tantalus member suddenly panicked, looking everywhere for the knight.

"Steiner!" Zidane hissed, and soon echoes of his voice in hushed whispered were bouncing up and down the rocks.

"Here!" He called, a little lower to the water. He shifted and tried to wave at them; the only reason they saw him was because his armor was glinting in the highlights of the vanishing light. Not even the moon would be out to guide them, and if they didn't get a clear path of the marsh before they were completely blind, they would be stranded for the night – not interested in walking mindlessly into something in the dark.

"You okay, Rusty?" Zidane peered over his rock, clutching it with all his might. Water dripped annoyingly into his eyes as he strained to see the knight.

"I believe –" he cut off, grinding his teeth together as he pressed off the wall with his right side. His shoulder joint ground together unnaturally, and his eyes squeezed shut. "I believe," he started again, though fully aware he would be stating his injuries instead of saying he was alright, "I have dislocated my shoulder."

"We're coming to get you!" Cinna called, sliding down the smooth stone, trying to get some sort of a grip. Though freezing and wet, Zidane was much more nimble, and reached him first.

"We'll get you up and on the way to the marsh. Dagger will fix you when –"

His good arm clutched Zidane on the shoulder. "I need you to move it back into socket."

"What?!"

"If we leave it until then, my arm might lose some of its mobility… You must pull it hard so it can readjust naturally when you let go, and then massage out the kicks."

"Steiner, this is all so sudden!" He joked, trying to keep the mood light, but Steiner hastily shook his head, knowing very well that Zidane was trying to improvise some way to get out of doing it.

"Do it, Zidane," he gave the nod and wiggled the right side of his body. Zidane clutched the man's forearm and wrist, wincing before he even tugged. "Go!" Steiner commanded, and with a hitched breath, the blonde wrenched with all his might.

The man let out a howl, sucked up in the storm, until it settled back into place. The bones popped and groaned together in such a way that the blonde felt he might be sick. A majority of the overwhelming pain was gone, but it still throbbed. Zidane was quick to move his soaked hands to the man's shoulder, trying to peel his chain mail apart so he could get a proper grip. It was a hasty massage, and Steiner knew without moving it that his shoulder would probably screw up again if he messed with it.

The blonde pulled his pack around the front and unclipped a blanket from his bag. It was soggy and the once soft fleece was mangled, feeling strange beneath his touch. But he tore an angled piece from it, letting the rest flutter away in the wind, ruined. With Cinna's help (when he finally arrived, puffing and panting) the two tied the makeshift sling around his neck, and proceeded to almost literally carry him off the rock.

"Good thing we're passed the water part," the hairless teen joked, the grin crinkling the thin line of his beard.

"Dr. Tot!" Zidane called up the rocks, wincing now when his voice echoed. "Come down!"

"O-okay!" The man cried out, scampering down the rocks. It took him awhile, but he was surprisingly more agile than they originally gave him credit for.

"We have to be quiet now…" Cinna grumbled, moving around the rest of the corner, unsure of what they would find.


Some time earlier.

When over half of his body finally became concealed in the weeds, he finally let out a relaxed sigh. There was nothing more stressful than escorting the first nervous group of new rebels over an open plain. The trek was quicker than he had expected, but still painfully slow for his liking.

He recalled moving from Dali to Alexandria with Zidane, and being able to run it within the night. A grin overtook his face. Everyone would be together again soon – now that he knew they'd be able to make it.

As the weeds got taller, the prickly grass swaying in the wind, chatter picked up within the group around him. It started as faint whispers, but grew into a sort of rumble of low voices after awhile, the sense of danger dissipating from all of them.

He unconsciously extended his arms from his sides, and let his gloved fingers slide over the cattails, gripping them just enough to feel the texture of the cigar-shaped seed head at the tips. Their rustling would hopefully be enough to alert the scouts, and help them find where they needed to go.

Through the denseness of the marsh, he saw a faint white smoke in the air – completely invisible against clouds, darkness, or too much sunlight. He smirked; this was his first time in one of the Qu Marshes of the world, and he had to admit, he finally understood just why Kuja never bothered with these places.

With Fossil Rue decided as a myth a long time ago (though Steiner and Fratley learned from Quina it certainly was not), there was no reason a man as impatient and angry as Kuja would try to bother with the Qus. Even the most patient of people in the resistance still got a little flustered whenever Quina tried to have a full-fledged conversation with them.

This was the perfect hiding spot.

All of the grass, no matter how itchy was a good change from the dying leaves and patches of grass so short you couldn't run your fingers through it. Along with the bogginess of the ground, squishing uncomfortably underneath his feet, and the sounds of frogs (a lot of frogs) croaking, and crickets chirping all around him, he realized he wouldn't mind being here for a little while. It certainly wasn't going to be as easy as it had been in the city to get supplies, but here was more of the resistance's natural habitat anyways, and there weren't people to recognize them, or slow them down wherever they were going.

The sound of water caught his attention. It sounded like a stone had just plunked into a hazy pond not too far away, and suddenly, his hair was standing on end. It wasn't so much because he thought they would be captured, but because of the anxiety of just what he'd find – not who – lurking around them.

"Blank!" The strange accent of his name gave him realization almost instantly about who was upon them. The group behind him recoiled, unsure of who had spoken.

It was none other than Quina who had waddled quickly out of the bushes after being given the correct signal by the guard that these people were good.

"Quina!" Honestly, the redhead had never thought he'd be more excited to see the Qu in all his life. Before he could stop him, said teammate almost plowed him over, enveloping him in a huge bear hug.

"You make trip!" He grinned, though his tongue continue to hang limply out of his mouth. As soon as he talked again, it swung up and splattered Blank with spit. For once, he didn't even mind.

"We made it," he nodded, "and we're the first of a lot of groups! You should have seen all the people Quina!" He grinned and suddenly pulled the pack from his shoulders. "We found some food we thought you might like."

"Food?!" If the Qu could have gasped, he probably would have. "You bring food?!" There was no mistaking the enthusiasm in his voice.

Blank only had to shuffle through his things for a moment before he came upon a small pouch. The Qu's pudgy hands went to open it, peering inside with his star shaped eyes. Blinking in curiosity, he jumbled it out onto his hand and gazed at it with such intensity, the redhead was sure he was frozen.

"What this?!" He demanded.

"Try it," Blank urged with a grin, "You'll like it… It's chocolate."

"Choc…o…late?" He parroted slowly, as though hearing the word for the very first time.

Lindblum had been the first place that the resistance had had access to chocolate since before the war. Only in such a populated city such as Lindblum would there be such special delights. And each resistance member decided to buy a couple of pouches (or steal in Tantalus' case) to bring to everyone else.

In one blinding swipe, his tongue had cupped around the candy and slurped it into his mouth, single-handedly frightening everyone behind the redhead. He was the only one who didn't flinch when Quina's long tongue completely crumpled into his mouth for a moment, before a satisfying pop of his lips signaled he had eaten his treat.

"Mmmmm!" The Qu praised, eyes sparkling. He gave one big nod that wracked his whole body. "Choc-o-late good!" He broke down the word further, causing Blank to grin.

A rustle ahead of them had everyone's eyes on the grass, and before they could register it, Freya appeared, looking a little more excited than she normally would have. The usually calm Bermecian rushed to Blank, sweeping him up in a brief hug. Lysandra and Amarant weren't too far behind her.

"You've made it!" Her grinning tone caused him to shrug a little sheepishly. "We were beginning to worry something had happened!"

He jerked his thumb backwards, stuffing his other hand in his pocket, "There are a lot of recruits… We also found someone else…"

"Who?" She tilted her head in confusion.

"The Lady Hilda is alive and preparing to come back with us…"

Freya's eyes widened, though nobody else around them had any idea what the redhead was talking about. To the Lindblum citizens who had just joined, they hadn't known a time when Hilda was not around, and the two standing behind Freya hadn't any idea what the story revolving around this woman pertained to.

"I cannot believe it," she muttered, her eyes turning distant. "You are certain?"

He nodded, "Plus, you know…" He grinned, "We didn't lose anyone on our way in, either!"

Freya straightened, as though she just remembered she was no longer being professional. "I am relieved to hear this!" She told them, though she couldn't completely swipe the smirk from her mouth. "But come… we must get you settled… There is much we much brief you on, and after a meal and a little rest… these new recruits will be put right to work…" With a nod, he followed her, gesturing to the rest of his group. He was secretly glad his leadership role was over – he never liked that anyways.

His eyes continually darted around the marsh, peering at the strange moss hanging like curtains over the bare trees, flowers blooming from the spider web-like plant draped over the tall, ancient trunks. Small creatures of every kind hid from them, enveloping the path after they had left, and their noises hummed around the group like a private orchestra.

For a few days at least, Blank would be able to take his mind off of the pressure of what was coming soon… Tantalus – Zidane – would be heading ever-closer to Alexandria… Back to Dali, back to Treno, and this unnerved the redhead like nothing else…

But for now, they were safe… And everything was okay.


Lightening flashed, illuminating the scenery around him for a brief moment, the next duo of thunder and lightening almost on top of the one that just flickered and boomed. The rain pelted him at weird angles and strange sized drops due to the moss overhead, but he hardly even flinched.

"Where are they?" Blank mumbled to himself. He hadn't moved from this position in awhile, loyally waiting for the rest of the members of his team to get here. He had left them almost two days ago now, and they said that tonight would be the cut off…

He shook his head – no group had come into the weeds since the heavy rain became a full-fledged storm, and that had his stomach flopping uncomfortably over itself.

If something had happened, there was nothing any of them could do but wait simply because nobody was allowed to go back to Lindblum after they'd left for fear of recognition and such – on top of the dangerous storm that crackled over the open fields.

He squinted his eyes, hoping to see, but to no avail. The darkness reduced his vision to about an arm's length in front of him. Frustrated, he kicked at the grass caked with mud and water, splaying it in all directions. He grunted, bending down to wipe off his bare leg.

Somewhere around him, more look outs were stationed to report any people coming into the grass. He knew his shift had ended more than a few hours ago, and yet, he continued to stand in the same spot, dismissing his replacement and telling him to come back at the next round and see if Blank felt like leaving.

Before he could think anymore on the subject, his strained hearing picked something up on the far end of the weeds. His senses spiked, and he moved a little forward, putting a hand up to halt an assault. He was instructed before being let out on guard-duty that when he heard something to put a hand up. He was to keep his hand up, and only let it drop to his side if it was a threat. If it was more resistance members coming into the marsh, he was to put two fingers up and keep his hand raised. The redhead wasn't about to make the mistake of accidentally dropping his arm and killing his own people.

He hoped that it was Dagger more than anything else. He was worried about Zidane and Steiner, Cinna and of course Ruby, and yet, he knew that they would take care of themselves more than the raven. Everyone was worried that something had happened to her and Hilda simply because they had wanted to stay back until the bitter end.

And as soon as he saw the group of shivering, hovering bodies, Dagger's garnet necklace glinting strangely in a far away chain of lightening, two of his fingers stretched high in the air, straining as though doing that would make them more visible.

"It's Dagger!" He yelled, too impatient. Immediately, grass crunched and water spewed from many different directions, and even Blank, who had been staring so intently on the horizon towards Lindblum – just a dot in the distance – hadn't known how many sentries were lurking in the weeds.

"Blank!" Ruby's face lit up dimly in recognition and she stumbled forward into his arms. The rain might have been piercing him in all of his concentration, but she was positively shivering. He held her tighter, knowing that he had no body heat to give but trying regardless. "The w-water after the s-s-stor-rm hit-t wa-was t-too d-damn c-c-cold!"

"It's okay," he told her, glancing over her shoulder at the others. "Lady Hilda!"

She came forward, her hair plastered to her pale skin, her dress clinging closer to her than before. Blankets had been reattached to sacks – too loaded down with water to be of use, and so heavy and large that they were getting in the way to the point that they were no longer useful in even blocking the wind.

More and more people appeared from the dense darkness around them, clutching people's arms and shoulders, ready to leave them away. The son of the pregnant woman was curled in his father's arms; he already looked severely ill, and if they didn't get him back to their shelter soon, he would die.

Blank grasped Dagger's hand when she came forward, waiting as everyone else filed ahead of them. Ruby continued to cling to the redhead, happy that nothing had happened to him.

"B-Blank," the girl started to explain when he had turned to her, about to ask where Steiner and Zidane were. "S-soldiers… They ent-tered the city… St-st-steiner and Zid-dane stayed be-behind to make sure we were-weren't found o-out… They weren't with us…" She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping to fend off a second round of tears.

Maybe…

Maybe he should have been more worried about them than Dagger. Of course they wouldn't let anything happen to Dagger… Themselves on the other hand… His breath hitched in his throat.

"They'll be here…" He grumbled, "For now, let's get you guys back…"

"Back to where?" Ruby asked, ducking closer to his arm, somehow finding his chilled body warmer than the air.

He grinned suddenly, forcing his worries to the back of his mind as he thought about the bizarre place he'd been introduced to two days ago. "Quale's place!" He would ask exactly what happened after they had warmed up.

Despite his attempts to keep the girls' mind off of their three missing teammates, all of their minds reached behind them, and each had to resist the urge to turn around and stare into the overwhelming darkness. They just had to believe the others would be alright…


A/N: Well I didn't think I would stop there, but that's okay! :) I hope you all enjoyed that chapter! To whoever is still reading this YOU ROCKS and Thanks!

-zesty-