Filling In The Blanks
Disclaimer: I don't own FFIX or any of its characters.
Chapter 126: The Longest Hour
"Are you alright?" his voice was quiet, tentative. As he approached, she heard his footsteps on the stone, and she felt herself go tense. He must have noticed, because he stopped his advance.
"I'm fine," she said simply, wrapping her arms around herself.
"Eli… You have hardly spoken to me in weeks."
Elouise turned around, staring at the elf in front of her. His pale skin looked paler out in the crumbled stone of the city, and his long blonde hair waved in the mild breeze. It was getting colder; the mornings left dew drops on all of the brokenness of the city. She hadn't noticed before, but she hadn't been out in the ruins either.
"I've just… had a lot on my mind."
Avalanche knew exactly what she was thinking. Her encounter with Quina had scared her. And he knew from her lack of company that she was still mulling over it. Others were starting to wonder where she had gone, and he tried to keep it quiet so that it didn't reach Kuja. The last thing she would need is him questioning her.
He noticed she spent a lot of time out in Alexandria now. There were a lot of crumbled and abandoned half-structures, but if you pushed that out of your mind, you could still certainly see a city. He walked it himself a couple of times, just to see what she was seeing, and found that not everything was the same as it was when he walked the streets of their Alexandria so many years ago, destruction aside.
He sighed, frustrated that she was shutting him out. He had hoped she would come to him calmer and talk to him about it, and while he didn't worry in the least of her ratting out his change of loyalty to Kuja, she was staying away from him. That wasn't a good sign when it came to changing her allegiance.
"Will you talk to me about it?"
"I don't really want to talk about it at all. I need to sort it out for myself."
"I can tell you from first-hand experience that it's incredibly difficult to sort out for yourself."
She turned, her eyes narrowed. "You did, didn't you?"
He hadn't ever told her this part of the story. He had meant to, once she had talked to Quina, but realized fast she was going to keep avoiding him.
"No. I found out from Zidane."
"What?!" She whirled around then, not caring that they hadn't talked in weeks. She all but stomped up to him, accusation in her eyes. "When did you meet with him? How did you do so?"
He shook his head, "I talked to him when he was a prisoner here. I…" here went nothing, "helped him escape."
She slapped him, of course. That much he was ready for. Elouise was never good at hiding her emotions through physical interaction. He calmly looked at her again, feeling the sting on his cheek.
But to his surprise, he didn't see a lot of betrayal in her eyes. Her expression was angry, but her eyes seemed relieved. Instead of lashing out or trying to talk to her, he took her hand, ever patient.
"Eli…"
She turned away, knowing she'd been caught. "Don't," she warned.
"Why do you have such trouble accepting this?"
"Why don't you?"
He thought about her question honestly for a few moments. He wasn't sure why he went along with what Zidane had said so quickly. Maybe it was because all of the pieces started to fall together when he told his side of the story, or because something in Avalanche told him that his long-lost friend was right. But he knew Elouise and knew she wouldn't listen to these types of feelings. Not now, when she was so confused herself. Still, it wouldn't stop him from trying.
"All of the pieces… they match up now. Things make more sense with a different perspective." He wanted to tell her to just try but knew it would make her angry. "I know that's hard to believe, but something just tells me it's true."
"So true that you're willing to betray your allies?"
That stung, she knew. His face crumbled for a moment before he smoothed it back out, squeezing her hand. "I want justice for this city. And I will follow whoever will give it."
"Then what are you doing?" she whispered.
"Exactly what you know in your heart you should be doing too."
There was fire.
Everything in his vision was burning, and his skin felt hot to the touch. He wanted to run away, but he couldn't yet.
He had just watched Zidane die. With the utmost gore and revenge, Kuja had struck him down in such an annihilation that Blank had to look away. The rest of the resistance had fled – he watched Dagger run off, not looking back to see who was left behind.
That's why it was his job to find her.
"Ruby!" he screamed, his voice feeling raw. He turned in a full circle, seeing nothing but death and fire. "Ruby!" he tried again, his voice failing him a little more this time.
"The repercussions of an up rise are mighty," he heard a voice, though couldn't locate the source. "Any resistance member I find will be thrown into the fire," his stomach leapt into his throat. He had to find her. He had to get out.
There.
He found a path that was clear, though fire roared dauntingly on either side of it. He ran with all of his strength – pulling out all of the speed and agility he had left after the fight. The temperature of his skin dropped and despite all of the flames around him, he shivered.
Around the corner he went and came to a running halt when he saw Zidane dead on the ground. He couldn't see the genome's face but recognized the theater armor and unruly blonde hair. The cobblestone around him was covered in blood.
But there was another body there, half underneath his best friend. Long blonde hair stained red was splayed out in the pool of blood, fingers gloved with lace brushed the hilt of a dagger.
"Ruby," he mumbled, his body hesitating. His eyes kept sliding back to Zidane, looking worse every time he took another peek. His mind was screaming at him to get Ruby, because even though he couldn't see it, he could feel the impending doom of being caught. It was coming like darkness – intangible and sudden.
He forced himself forward though every limb on his body creaked and protested. It was physically painful to move towards the two bodies.
Getting to Ruby didn't make it any better.
Her shirt was bloodstained, her skirt ripped all the way up the side. Blood was everywhere, but he couldn't tell if it was hers or the fallen boy next to her. What startled him the most, however, what was the most protruding detail of the whole scene was her deep brown eyes, still gazing up at him with the most daunting expression.
He took a step back, frightened.
Before the most horrible breath came from her and her whole body shuddered. He fell to the ground and crawled to her.
"Blank," she wheezed, her eyes still wide and blood in her mouth. "Help me."
Tears pricked his vision and the fire flared larger and louder than before. He could feel his own blood pumping in his ears, and was suddenly so conscious of just how alive and well he was, while the two most important people in his life lay before him.
"Time's up," the same voice from earlier spoke again, and with fear in his chest he looked up.
There in front of him was the same creature that had abducted Zidane seven years ago, wrapping its long arms around Ruby. He was suddenly paralyzed, unable to move as that thing lifted her up.
Its jaw opened to reveal a million sharp, tiny teeth, all rotating as it leaned its head towards Ruby. Her eyes were still on Blank, still wide and familiar and scared. "Help me."
Blank woke with a start, his whole chest heaving. He felt sick to his stomach as he flopped over on the uncomfortable dirt and stared around him.
It had just gotten dark before he'd fallen asleep. The group was agonizingly quiet and boredom had overtaken him. What he hadn't anticipated, however, was just how worried he was about Ruby.
Tantalus had volunteered to be the last group to leave from qu's marsh, so Blank had said his goodbye to the blonde haired thief before they'd left. It was brisk – a curt "see you soon" and a hand squeeze. But now he was thinking he should have at least kissed her.
He sucked in a deep breath, laying back down at the dirt and hoping to take comfort in the stars. The redhead scowled when he realized there weren't even any stars out. Actually, the night was painstakingly black – it would be entirely difficult to move without fire, but he tried to stay optimistic and remember that the darker it was when they moved to the next mountain, the less likely they'd be seen.
That dream.
He hadn't had a nightmare like that in a long time. He knew that the most terrified he'd ever been in his life was the night that Zidane was abducted, and no amount of time would make his terror of that creature, or that situation, go away. Blank wasn't scared of much, but he would full heartedly and openly admit to being frightened by that.
And of course, there was Zidane's death. He'd had dreams about it before – especially after they got back from Terra and he wasn't even sure that his best friend was still alive. But the worry behind his death was not new; it didn't surprise him that as they walked into a suicide battle he would dream of his best friend's demise, no matter how morbid that might have seemed.
What startled him the most was Ruby's appearance in the dream. While he had thought about how many people they might lose in the battle against Kuja, Zidane was always the prominent one in his mind. Maybe that was selfish, or a bit boar headed, but he hadn't cared. However, this dream brought up the very real fact that he could lose anyone during this fight. He could lose Ruby.
His stomach churned again, remembering the daunting look on her face. Now he knew that seeing her was the only thing that could calm him down. The overwhelming desire to see her soft brown eyes, alive and moving, with color in her face and a hand that could sweep the hair off of her mouth and slap him on the shoulder was stifling.
Nearly ten minutes went by, and Blank groaned outwardly. He knew he needed to be resting – to be sleeping so that he wasn't up for any mistakes that night or beyond. But every time he shut his eyes, all he saw was her face.
Deciding to chance it, he stood up, wobbling on his feet. He definitely wasn't used to sleeping on this kind of terrain. The one upside to him behind awake and staring into nothing for a tiny bit, was that his eyes had adjusted to the dark and he could see, if only a little. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was glad that the chickens they were riding had such big, nighttime eyes or this would be a really difficult venture.
His eyes went to the west, knowing he wouldn't be able to see them coming. He cast his gaze up the mountain, straining his ears to hear anything. Who knew how long he was asleep, so who knew it if would even be Tantalus coming down the mountain next.
"Blank?" the voice was so hushed, but he recognized it.
He whirled around, eyes wide. "Ruby," he whispered, not able to keep the relief out of his voice.
"What are you doing awake, darlin'?"
Not bothering to answer her, he stumbled towards her, realizing she hadn't been far away the entire time. He wrapped his arms around her torso, squeezing her. She let out a little gasp of air but didn't protest. His hands clasped on the small of her back, and he ran his left hand up her spine, just to feel that she was there. He listened for one quiet moment to her breath.
"What in tarnation's –"
"I love you," he told her hastily, cutting her off with a desperate whisper. "I need you to be the most careful you've ever been during this fight. Rubes, I can't lose you."
"Nightmare?" she guessed.
He almost stepped away from her, but his body refused to let go. "How did you know?"
She smiled, "That's why I was awake, too."
"How long have you been here?"
She shrugged; he felt the motion more than he saw it. He'd finally pulled away but didn't step back. She was still in his arms, and her hands had found their way around his neck as she searched his darkened face. "A lil' while. Not long 'nough for any amount of rest, but Freya said we're ahead of schedule by a couple hours, so we could stop for just a bit."
"I'm glad," he told her earnestly.
"Do ya want to talk 'bout it?"
"No," he told her gently, not having to try to keep the bite out of his voice. He might not have wanted to talk about it, but he certainly needed her close in that moment. He was happy – delighted even – that she cared enough to ask.
"This is weird for ya," she mumbled to him, leaning forward to place a well-aimed kiss on his lips. "I ain't used to ya bein' so… needy."
Something in him didn't have the energy to argue, so he just chuckled. "Lay with me, while we still have the chance."
"Don't got to tell me twice," she whispered back to him as they settled down again. He made sure to feel for his dagger before they got too comfortable.
It was silence for a while, and even though Blank couldn't fall back to sleep, he felt far more relaxed than before. The steadiness of her breathing was lulling him, and he thought for certain she was asleep.
"I had a dream you died," she whispered slowly.
Hearing those words made him wrap his arms around her tighter. Ruby hardly ever showed any sign of fear, though she was fully capable of showing sorrow and remorse. It was a little uncanny to him that they'd had the same dream, but his guess was that many people were probably dreaming something of the sort if they could capture any sleep at all.
"Me too," he whispered back, feeling like if he could make no promises to her about the battle, she might feel better knowing that he held the same worry.
"Be careful tomorrow, sugar."
He smiled into her hair, squeezing her, "Don't call me sugar."
They were off again.
The night had gotten darker and all of Gaia seemed to be sleeping. The crickets had stopped chirping and there was no wind around them. It was unnerving and exhilarating all at once.
Beatrix's eyes were wide as she patted herself down, double-checking for supplies. Freya was beside her doing the same. The bermecian's silver hair shone brighter in the darkness, though still very dim. It was going to be a tough journey, except Beatrix was optimistic. The land in front of them was flat, and they knew the area fairly well. Instincts would take over, she was sure.
The only thing (or person) they could hear was Steiner. Everyone else – Zidane, Blank, Dagger, literally everyone else had on leather armor. They crept quietly, afraid to be yelled at, afraid to be found out, as they woke up and got ready to go. This was their final leg, nerves were high. And yet, Steiner's armor clunked as it always had, each step making her eyes twitch like her whole body wanted to flinch. It sounded especially loud in the night.
If they won this battle, she would definitely be talking to him about suggesting new armor.
She turned to see Dagger mount her chocobo, and in the darkness she could still see the stress lines on the girl's face as she ran her hand through her hair. It was just past her collar bone now – but she no longer had the clip to hold it back with.
Beatrix moved forward, placing a firm hand on the girl's leg, squeezing her shin in hopes of giving her a little bit of comfort. Dagger's eyes shifted down to her, giving her a small smile of reassurance.
The raven haired rebel stared over the rest of her team. Her eyes had adjusted nicely in the dark, and she could see everyone standing near their chocobos. They were really ready to take off. She knew they would have another moment resting on the other side of the mountain waiting for the rest of the resistance, but everyone would be anxious about the battle they would walk into. That moment could be the last she saw them in peace.
She gnawed on her lip as she stared at the others, seeing Vivi's bright eyes the best in the darkness. He looked afraid, but Eiko was hanging close to him and without speaking, they exchanged a few brushes of their hands, and she put her hand on his shoulder once, to share some small comforts. Dagger couldn't help the smile that blossomed on her face after seeing that.
There would be good left in this world, that much she was sure of.
Steiner finally mounted his own steed and thanked heavens his armor didn't rattle on the chocobo like it did when he walked. He felt himself flinch every time he heard the noise even though that probably just made it worse. His thoughts were jumbled and he'd lost his formal ideas and words; what was left was raw fear for the family in front of him. But also, maybe, a small amount of exhilaration. They were finally doing something. They were walking into a battle. He was a knight, he was trained for this kind of thing, he just couldn't forget that.
The hair on the back of his neck stood up, and he recognized the feeling from all those years ago. His eyes shifted to Beatrix, then to Freya. They must have felt it too. Freya was still now, and he wondered for a moment, if she wished she had Fratley by her side like he was grateful to have Beatrix.
The Bermecian was fully alert. Despite having the least amount of rest out of anyone, she was ready to go. Her impatience had been building; it was time they made a move, no matter the outcome. While she rooted without a doubt for their win, she was at a point in her mind where she accepted her fate either way. If they made a last stand – that was all she wanted.
She rolled her lance in her hand, feeling the familiar weight of the wooden handle in her long, slender fingers. Her eyes were sharper in the dark than the others' and she knew that because of this, she may essentially be the only one seeing any dangers along the road. Freya tried to shake the feeling from her body as she mounted her chocobo. Her eyes shifted when she felt someone staring to see Amarant already on his own ride, staring at her.
He watched the Bermecian and the small nervous ticks he had noticed about her. Her ring glinted annoyingly in the small amount of light they had. Amarant had never been the romantic, nor the dramatic so his desire to watch the Bermecian in perhaps their last few moments together was foreign to him. Eiko cleared her throat and he looked away, down at the girl. She grinned up at him with wide, seemingly unaffected eyes. How she managed to stay so optimistic and unafraid at such a young age was really beyond him. He truly was amazed by her. He looked forward to watching her settle in as a child again after this war was over, though knowing her (as he rolled his eyes openly at this) she wouldn't want that at all.
"Make sure you have all of your things," he told her softly as to not wake anyone around them.
She nodded and reshuffled through the things on her person.
Vivi stepped away from her to give her space to search for her things and stared around. The others seemed almost completely ready. Zidane was getting on his chocobo trying to share side glances with Blank, but the redhead stared wideyed, straight ahead. The mage tilted his head, confused at the thief's peculiarly threatened expression.
Blank was still feeling it. He lay with Ruby for as long as he could, and even as he heard his team getting ready and her breathing was heavy and steady to signal she was asleep, he lay with his eyes open, staring at her shadowed face. It was only when Dagger came by and placed a quiet hand on his shoulder that he finally got up, untangling himself from the girl.
The visions from his dream were still vivid in his mind.
Zidane must have known something was up, because he continually tried to snap the redhead out of it. And he knew he would have to. He swore to himself he wouldn't let it bother him when they finally set off into the night, but for just this moment he was allowing himself to feel fear to the full extent.
Get it out of your shitty little systems.
That's what Baku always said to them, even when they were young. Let yourself be afraid fully so that it leaves your body and you can focus. He smiled. He wanted to say thank you to Baku one last time before this whole battle started. He made a note to do so, even though he knew that he would see all of Tantalus one last time before the final battle.
He exhaled, finally making eye contact with the genome.
It was time.
Freya's chocobo made a kee-wah noise as she pulled back on his reigns to steer him forward. It was eerily quiet as the others moved forward, and they were off, nobody making a sound.
The night was quiet. The clouds broke every few minutes or so and revealed a sliver of the moon. That's when Zidane saw the most. The long grass of the prairies laid out in front of them brushed against the rough, thick legs of the chocobos. Everything was painted silver as he cast his gaze out across the field. He was the last in line, his chocobo maybe feeling the strange tension in him and knowing he shouldn't race forward as fast as he could.
The stars did nothing to help their lighting when the moon disappeared. The world plunged into darkness and Zidane could watch the blanket settle over them, starting in the distance as the clouds slowly covered their flashlight. Freya, who was in the front, ran into the wall of black and it reminded him of something being sucked away.
He shuttered.
This might have been his last chance to enjoy the soft greens, the saturation of color extracted from his surroundings. Beatrix's long hair rushed out behind her, the wind flattening her usually large curls. Vivi had one hand tightly on his hat so it didn't blow away. Amarant could probably reach the ground despite sitting atop his chocobo if he stretched out his legs.
Zidane smiled. Just as Blank said in Fossil Roo, he refused to let these last moments of peace be bad.
Knowing he didn't have to give the chocobo any sort of direction, he let himself close his eyes and listen. The crickets sounded far off, silencing their song when the riders got too close. There was a quiet pat from the chocobo trots, melding altogether until it sounded like the chorus of a stream flowing.
He had plenty to think about. The dreamers. Kuja. The resistance. Would he come up against Elouise again? Would he be able to fight her this time? What kind of progress did Avalanche make, if what the others said was true? Was Quina okay? Would they find him? There were so many questions – too many questions.
So he did what anyone would do to keep their sanity: he kept himself in the present. With the wind whipping his face and his hair flying back, the feeling of the yellow feathers of his chocobo and, if he put his hands in the right position and leaned forward, he could feel the hard thrumming of his ride's heart. He let his eyes wander to the team in front of him who seemed so much more focused than he felt. His own heart hammered with exhilaration and nervousness in his chest. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he felt his leg throb in anticipation.
And he let these feelings live in him. His pounding chest and the raging winds, the shift from black to silver in the light around him. He allowed the atmosphere to consume him – to take all of his mind and body away from this place and live only within his five senses.
It was only when, who knew how long later, the wind died down from his face. His eyes fluttered open, his eyelashes tickling his cheeks. The moon had just peeked out for a moment and his neck craned. Blue eyes traveled upward, looking at the rocky mountain in front of them.
"We're here," Freya mumbled, her voice barely above a whisper.
With a thick breath, she tugged gently on the reins of her chocobo and he ruffled his feathers, giving a chirp before he leapt to the first rock. When she was a little way up, Steiner's chocobo started his ascent, flapping his wings a little to get the same momentum and grace as Freya's.
Each chocobo followed just about the same pattern, save for Eiko and Vivi's chocobos, for they were a bit more petite and had to take smaller leaps. But they made up for it with speed, hopping from rock to rock and keeping up with the rest of the crew.
For just a moment when the moon broke through the clouds once again and the elites were at the top of the mountain, they were able to see Alexandria in the distance. It was still crumbling – just a shadow of the city it once was. However, from further away, it looked a little more structured and Zidane could, just for a moment, remember the Alexandria he saw in his dream world. It showed a lighter grey in the moonlight, looking less savage when the dark clouds didn't cover the sky. The Evil Forest to the left of the castle looked greyer than it had the last time they traveled through the Ice Caverns – whether it was due to its petrified state or the silver lighting of the night, he was unsure. To the right of the city was the grand lake, looking quiet on such a still night.
But just as fast as it came, the moment was gone. They were hopping down the mountain now, and the clouds shrouded Alexandria once more. Zidane's stomach flip flopped. They were close now. After the rest of the resistance was with them, they would make their battle formations and storm the castle. He gnawed on his lip, watching the ground shift underneath him as his chocobo scratched in the dirt and trotted from rock to rock. He felt anxious and nervous. Zidane felt like he was walking to his death – and maybe he felt like that more than everyone else because the entire resistance had doubts that he would survive. Hell, he didn't think he would.
The genome had contemplated this many times, and never quite understood why he felt so nervous when everyone knew what outcome was most likely to be. But tonight, as he stared hard at the ground, he realized that it wasn't so much that he would be leaving – it was the people he'd be leaving behind. He didn't want Blank to fall into his depressed-like state again, and he couldn't imagine what it would do to Dagger as she tried to rebuild a kingdom. He didn't care much what happened to him, but… the damage he would do if he was gone.
"Snap out of it," he whispered to himself, barely audible. These were not the thoughts he should – could – be thinking tonight.
In no time at all, they reached the bottom quarter of the mountain. The chocobos bowed to allow their riders off and poked around at some of the grass growing between the rocks for a quick break. Amarant helped Eiko and Vivi off of their chocobos, though the mage tripped after and fell on his face. He stayed quiet though; Zidane thought if he could see the boy's face, he'd be blushing.
Dagger swung off of her chocobo and stroked its feathered neck. It knew not to chirp loudly, and so just nuzzled its large, orange beak into her palm. She smiled, breathing out a laugh. Zidane watched her lovingly, relishing in this small moment he had. After several more seconds, his own chocobo cooed at him, ruffling his feathers in hopes to get his rider off so he could get a proper break.
"Oops," he whispered, patting his new friend on the head, "Sorry buddy." He got down and turned, staring at the creature. Its eyes were wide and brown, not a single threatening feature drawn onto his face, even hours before battle. Zidane smiled; innocence was rare, and it was still just as beautiful. "See you in a few hours. Stay safe," he muttered.
"Keh," the chocobo seemed to sigh, and even though Zidane didn't know how to read these creatures very well, he knew it wasn't the best reaction. But he could relate to the chocobo's feelings on the matter.
Once his small interaction with Zidane was over, he meandered over to his friends and they all stared at each other, not making a sound but communicating all the same, cocking their heads back and forth and ruffling feathers. Freya seemed to be the only one not settling down.
"Are you sure you'll be alright without much of a break?" Beatrix mumbled. "I could go back –"
"I see better in the dark," she countered, shaking her head. "Besides, this keeps my mind off of the battle. Keeps me focused."
The brunette gave a slow nod, looking entirely unconvinced, but choosing not to say anything. It was Freya's decision, after all. And if she was being honest with herself, the bermecian was everyone's best bet on reaching the mountains safely. She was a good leader.
"Be careful," was the only advice Beatrix felt she could give.
Freya nodded, taking a drink out of her canteen before screwing the cap back on caringly and securing it to her waist. "I will."
Steiner ushered her away then, knowing that if he didn't get Beatrix away from the bermecian, she would only keep pestering her and eventually try to take her place. And as biased as it maybe sounded, he knew that with her recent injuries, Beatrix needed the rest more than Freya did. Though that didn't stop him from wondering if he should take Freya's place for a run or two. Howeer, if she shot Beatrix down, there was no way she would let Steiner go in her place.
He frowned. He hated admitting that, even in his head. He steered the woman to sit down and they nibbled silently on some dry food they had packed, sitting close enough to touch and enjoying the presence of the other, waiting for sleep to take them.
Blank and Amarant immediately hunkered down, and Eiko and Vivi soon followed suit. Eiko wore a heavy frown on her face, mostly due to the uncertainty ahead of them, but when she fell asleep next to Amarant, her face relaxed and her slumber was a good one.
Zidane was just about to follow suit, plopping down next to Blank, with a boulder-sized gap between them. Sleeping positions were sometimes awkward on the side of the mountain, for some patches were grassy and comfortable, and some were simply not.
However, Dagger put a glove on his shoulder, staring at him with doe-like eyes. "Can I speak to you for a moment?" she whispered to him softly.
He nodded, "Of course." He leaned on his left arm and hopped back up, following the girl a little way away from the group, so as to not disturb anyone. "Is everything okay?" he scratched the back of his neck, "Considering."
She nodded, though continued to stare at him for a long moment. The silver lighting shown as slivers in her brown eyes, illuminating their color. Her long eyelashes brushed against her cheeks as she blinked slowly, looking like she was trying to fully take in the moment.
He took her hands, hoping to give her some encouragement. Leaning forward slightly, he planted a light and tender kiss on her forehead. "What's up, Dagger?"
She took in a sharp breath, as though she just pulled herself away from her thoughts. Detangling her hands from his, her fingers slipped around her neck, underneath her hair. It was too dark to see what she was clutching. Taking in another breath, she pulled off her necklace – a long cord with the colorless garnet in the middle.
"Do you remember the last time I gave you this necklace?"
His eyes were wide, "I left for Terra."
"Do you remember anything else?" she held the necklace still, but the jewel dangled in front of him.
The words came to him slowly and he narrowed his eyes, a little fester of worry in his gut. Maybe he knew where she was going with this, "You told me that you would get it back from me when I returned."
She allowed a thin smile on her lips before she slipped the necklace gently over his head. His hands immediately rose to hers, freezing them there. "Dagger, no."
"I insist," she told him.
"Dagger, if this was your mother's like Beatrix said when she gave it to you, it's one of the only things you have left from her. And this time…" his voice faded.
She objected. "When you left for Terra, we were just as unsure about if you'd come back."
"This is different," he said gently, lifting her hands gently to his face. The leuco sat nearly at eye level. "Dagger, I don't want you to lose this piece of your heritage."
She ignored him though and continued talking. "When the battle is over… the first time we talk, the first time we stand here like this again, give it back to me. I won't lose it." Her smile was tight, but her eyes were hopeful. "Promise me I won't lose it."
"You know I can't promise that."
"Promise," she whispered to him, "even if it gets broken."
He sighed, knowing that in the end, he was going to lose this fight. Just like Terra when he'd objected the first time, but that was before he knew this was her mother's! "I promise to bring your mother's garnet back to you… the first time I stand in front of you after the war is over."
Her smile softened and she lowered her hands slowly, resting the jewel on his chest. It looked good on him, touching just above the first button of his vest. It looked familiar on him, just as it had before. She lowered her hands, his never leaving hers.
Zidane thought her smile was significantly brighter than it ought to be, but he sighed and smiled back at her anyways. She reached up on her tip toes and kissed his lips, lingering there for a moment before rolling back onto her heels.
"Until next time," she whispered to him, her voice full of life.
"Until next time."
A/N: Well… I definitely didn't think there was going to be enough to fill this chapter, but here we are, at normal chapter length.
Here it comes guys. We are here. I have been thinking about the next portion – whether just a chapter or two - for a very, very long time. Here's to hoping it goes as smoothly as it always does in my head.
Thanks so much for sticking with me! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
-zesty-
