Notes:

This story takes place after FFIX and a little before Order of the Phoenix starts.

It obviously contains a large amount of SPOILERS.

It is only implied that Tantalus returns to do the play on Garnet's 17th birthday (she is supposedly born in January 15th 1784), but for the sake of this fic, this won't be the case. Meaning Zidane who was born in September (it's not specified but will be celebrated on the 9th)1783 will turn 17 years old in this fic.

While warp isn't available to the players in FFIX, Kuja does use a teleportation spell to get your party out of the Iifa Tree, so it is assumed it does in fact exist.

In FFIX there are certain status ailments that stay after battle, but can be cured with magic or certain items, one of them is 'Blind'. In this fic the effects of such spell are considered "long lasting", but not permanent.

There will be several references to some of the side quests within FFIX, if there is anything that is not understood, either ask me or search for it online, I highly recommend using the FF wikia, same goes for the Harry Potter wikia.

"Something" Will be used for speech.

'Something' Will be used for thoughts.

'Something' Will be used for telepathy

When everything is in italics, it means you're looking at a flashback. Sometimes I use bold or put everything on caps just to emphasize something.

As always reviews are greatly appreciated!

Chapter 1: Accidents happen.

…

It was a beautiful day in the kingdom of Alexandria. Spring had graced the previously war torn country, making it rise from the ashes, and prosper under the monarchy of Queen Garnet til Alexandros XVII. The sun was out, its rays striking the large, rebuilt, crystal obelix and making it resemble a glorious beacon. The sky was clear with the exception of a few wispy clouds in the sky, and the weather was perfect. In fact, many of the various people in the kingdom had taken the day off to rest under the gentle shade of trees and enjoy the aromatic scent of the blooming flowers. The winter´s biting cold was gone and many knew that now was the time to enjoy themselves before the asphyxiating heat of summer made its appearance.

Everything was perfect, or so it would seem. But as they say, appearances have a tendency to be deceiving. Indeed the war might have been over, but not all was well.

Queen Garnet paced nervously around her chamber, dragging behind the soft fabric of her dress. She had soft chocolate brown eyes, and held her now longer hair clasped in a low ponytail. Similar to how she had worn it before cutting her hair during the war. Outside in the hallway she could easily hear the metallic clanking of many frenzied knights. She nervously bit her thumb nail, although she realized what an unlady-like gesture it was, she honestly didn´t care. She was much too preoccupied for that.

'How could this happen?' She thought as she walked over to the nearest window and saw, with great sadness, the great plumes of smoke that were rising to the air from one of the castle courtyards and beyond.

'How could things turn this way? We finally got out of that horrible war, we were finally together.' Garnet asked, while unconsciously fidgeting with the ring on her finger, her thoughts trailing to that day.

…

Her heart seemed to skip a beat as everything around her slowed down and became less significant. For a moment she thought she was dreaming as she saw that figure on the stage dramatically remove his cloak to reveal him. But how could it be him? She spent so long searching for him in the ruins of the Iifa Tree. It took her several months to finally give up the search and accept his death, but she was really never able to move on. Sure she did her duties as queen, but on the inside she felt like a part of her soul had died.

Things didn't improve when she heard of Vivi's death. It had come as a massive blow when she found out that the timid little black mage that had accompanied them on their adventure and helped save the world had 'stopped'. The last time they saw each other was only a week before when he came to the castle all the way from the Black Mage Village. Vivi seemed ecstatic, saying he found a way for his kind to live longer and even reproduce, he even said his solution could even help the soul-less genomes. At the end of his visit, he surprised her by solemnly thanking her for everything and asking her to pass the message to the others. She didn't understand what was going on then, but afterwards she realized that Vivi must have known that he didn't have long.

Garnet took in every detail of the figure before her, half expecting it to be a dream or maybe a very bad joke. But he was just like she remembered him. The shoulder-length blonde hair, held back in a low ponytail, with long bangs at either side of his face. His playful blue-green eyes that sometimes seemed to glow an unnatural cyan color, much like some animal´s eyes in the dark. That crooked smile that always lifted her spirits, yet teased her at the same time. And of course, the long, blonde monkey-like tail that swished gently behind him, the mark that identified him for what he was. Garnet couldn't deny it any longer, the person before her was no other than Zidane Tribal.

That same night we had a large feast to celebrate Zidane´s so called 'return from the dead'. We laughed and told stories. We cried, and gave a toast for those who had left us and moved on. In truth, it was unfair to say they 'left', for their memory lived on, and their presence amongst us that night was all but tangible. Apparently Zidane was half-dead when dragged out of the Iifa tree by Mikoto, his 'sister' and fellow genome . He did not mention what happened to Kuja, which was still a very delicate subject for everyone. What he did say is that all this time he had been recovering from his extensive injuries, so that once fully healed, he could come back to the Mist Continent and be reunited with everyone. He insisted that his performance tonight was pure coincidence, but she thought otherwise. If Zidane Tribal was coming back, then she knew he would do so with a bang, and what better way than portraying the hero of her favorite play?

Yet, apparently his miraculous return was not the last ace up his sleeve. Indeed there was one more surprise, one that was revealed to her right after the feast disguised as a walk through the castle gardens.

….

"Dagger, wait up!" A voice called her by the name she adopted during their journey. Dagger turned and saw the trotting figure of Zidane approaching her.

"I see you still have that habit of disappearing on us, eh Dagger?" Zidane said with that playful laugh of his that melted her on the inside. How she had missed that laugh.

Garnet pouted a bit, then crossed her arms and turned away feigning displeasure. She had spent enough time with the Genome to learn to how to respond to his jabs. "Well, if you only came to make fun of my habits and have nothing else to say, then I'll just leave."

"Ah, come on. Don't get mad, I was just wondering where you ran off to after dinner. There's nothing wrong with worrying about someone is there?" Zidane said with a teasing smile, and a hint of…nervousness?

"No, Iguess there's not." Dagger said, this time pretending that she was deep in thought.

"Well, the night is still young, the sky is clear, the moons are bright and the stars are shining. It's the perfect night for a walk. Would you care to join me?" Zidane said as he held out his hand and gave a mock bow; a ridiculous imitation of what a high class noble would do.

Garnet rolled her eyes at Zidane's antics, but she couldn't help but smile. The monkey-tailed blonde had a very contagious sense of humour. She took his hand anyways, but not without a comment. "You know, any nobleman would be very insulted."

"Well, then I guess my job's done." He said with a chuckle, and then once again adopted that mock-noble tone. "Anywhere in specific you'd like to go my lady?"

This time Garnet just gave him a playful, un-lady-like shove.

"Hey!" Zidane said, nearly falling over, before his tail helped him regain his balance.

"You know you had that coming. And yes, there is somewhere I'd like to go." Dagger said.

Zidane gave a knowing look before intertwining both their arms and leading her in the direction of the old queen's memorial.

Dagger walked at a leisurely pace alongside the thief. He was right, it was the perfect night for a walk. The temperature was not too cold or too hot and the moons did look beautiful. The light they gave off made Zidane's eyes glow an ethereal blue, and his hair shine an almost silver sheen. It was a bit too much like his brother in her opinion, but nevertheless, it looked simply beautiful. Besides, it was understandable that they look alike since most genomes held similar appearances.

'At least Zidane doesn't have the same…taste in clothing as his brother.' Garnet thought with relief.

At the moment though, aside from the wings and lack of tail, Zidane looked a lot like an angel. She winced a bit, since she knew he was supposed to have been the 'Angel of Death' and everything, but there was nothing else that came to her mind when she saw him.

She was caught out of her thoughts when the more lady-like side of her made her realize she was staring, though Zidane apparently hadn't realized it yet. In fact, it was quite strange that the usually loquacious genome was now silently walking, as if deep in thought. Upon closer inspection, Garnet also noticed the occasional twitch, swish, and curl of his tail. During their journey she discovered how the furry appendage had the habit of showing Zidane's mood. From a calm swish, to furious thrashing, to a happy wag, even the fur on his tail would bristle when afraid or angry. If the current movement of the tail were any indication, Zidane was currently a bit nervous and fidgety. How strange.

Soon they reached the memorial: the place where her mother, Queen Brahne, rested. Though she was not really her real biological mother, she was still very important to her. Her love for her even endured the queen's insanity that led to her grave. Yes, maybe she did at one point order her death, and she did extract her eidolons, but in the end she came to her senses, even though it was moments before her death.

She sat down with Zidane for a while, her hand in his own gloved one, watching the stars together. This place always brought her peace. The stars and moons also soothed her. Zidane however seemed a bit distracted, and instead or looking up at the twin moons, he would turn to look at the skies near the castle. Was he planning something?

After a while, Garnet decided it was about time to leave. That is, if the feeling of stinging needles in her legs were of any indication. Steiner would probably be looking for her right now. Zidane seemed a bit reluctant at first, but then seemed to give in.

They once again walked in a calm silence, the sound of their footsteps accompanied by far off laughter of people and the songs of the various creatures that inhabited the castle's moat. Zidane had his hands in his pockets while Garnet had hers folded in front of her dress. They were nearing the moat now, and with every step they took, Zidane's tail would droop lower. He really looked like something was bothering him, but then, why wasn't he saying anything?

"Is something wrong?" Dagger asked.

"Wha- no! It's just…well I…" Zidane nervously stuttered much to Garnet's surprise. "I'm not making sense am I?"

Garnet shook her head.

"Uhh, well…you see the thing I'm trying to say is…" Zidane said, this time nervously backing away, only to be stopped by the back of the fountain that was between the moat and the path to the castle.

"Zidane Tribal!" Garnet said in a no nonsense tone while putting her hands on her hips and approaching the retreating blonde. She thought she heard a stifled gasp but ignored it and instead focused on Zidane.

She was about admonish the blonde and force him to tell her what was wrong, when she heard a loud whistling sound and an even louder boom. Startled, she quickly turned to see the source of such noise, only to see a very large, very colorful, and very beautiful arrange of fireworks in the sky, their light being reflected on the surface of the water.

"Phew, here I thought they were never gonna fire them." Zidane said with evident relief.

"What are you talking about? Is this what it was all about?" Garnet asked, part of her own worry gone.

"Well, yeah…mostly. There is just one more thing now." Zidane said and Garnet didn't miss the slight twitch of his tail. Taking a deep breath, Zidane moved to stand directly in front of her and then bent down on one knee. Out of his pocket he fished out a small velvet box which he held towards her. "I know the circumstances in which we met weren't exactly the best, but ever since we met that fateful night, that moment I laid my eyes on you, I knew my life was complete. We've been through so much together, so much good and so much bad. And through the bad, while I was there for you, know that you were always there for me too, even though you may not realize it. It was your words that helped me overcome my past back in Pandemonium. It was your song that kept me from dying in the Iifa Tree. It was our promise that made me come back." Zidane then opened the velvet box to reveal a beautiful golden ring that had a large, shining garnet surrounded by seven gleaming diamonds. "This here garnet was once upon a time just another ordinary stone... The stone made a wish... 'I want to shine!' The stone traveled from person to person, in keeping with its wish... And now, it's shining in your hand, Dagger, just like you are today. Garnet til Alexandros XVII, my beloved Dagger, will you marry me?"

Garnet just stood there in complete and utter shock. Any thought process in her mind before now had come crashing down to a stop, much like two Lindblum air cabs smashing right into each other. Zidane seemed to wait in an unnerving silence, his tail twitching and curling under the pressure. Slowly her mind tried to go over the information before her critically, first eyeing the blond and then the ring as if to make sure she was not imagining things.

Zidane noticed her shifting gaze and tried to make sense of it as well. His words however, caught her of guard. "It's okay, it's not stolen or anything I used some of the remainders of gil I got from our journey, and worked hard for the rest. A couple of run-ins with the ragtime mouse did help thou-"

"It's not that." Garnet said, and to her surprise she felt warm tears start to run down her cheeks. She quickly brushed them away with her gloved hand.

"Huh, what's wrong? Dagger…Listen, if you don't want to…I…understand…I'm sorry." Zidane said, his eyes looking down at the ground, his hand scratching the back of his neck in a nervous habit while his tail actually drooped on the ground behind him.

He was about to just turn away in rejection, when he felt a large force collide unto him and nearly take him down. To his surprise, it was Dagger who now had him enveloped in a crushing embrace, tears still rolling down her face.

Dagger sniffed before wiping the tears from her eyes."Don't be silly, of course I want to marry you! You just took me by surprise that's all."

Zidane froze, looking just as shocked as she had moments ago. "Are you…do you really mean it?"

Dagger nodded eagerly, causing Zidane's confused frown to turn into a brilliant, full blown smile. He quickly put the ring on her finger and then almost immediately, much to her surprise, lifted her off her feet and spun her around while laughing with mirth. The fireworks around them continued to dazzle her as Zidane then shouted at the top of his lungs, as if letting the whole world know.

"WE'RE GETTING MARRIED!"

Almost as if on cue (and much to Garnet's embarrassment), cheers erupted from around them as their friends appeared from their respective hiding places. Everyone of their comrades were there, including Amarant, much to everyone's surprise, and even Zidane's brothers from Tantalus. Quickly after all the congratulations and best wishes, another party was in order. It lasted well into the late hours of the night and ended only at the earliest hours of the next morning.

If Garnet had to look back in her life, there was no doubt about it; that was the best day of her life.

...

Garnet smiled at the memory. Since then, Zidane had been staying with them in Alexandria Castle, only leaving occasionally to visit the Tantalus troupe, help with the repairs in Lindblum, and also help out in Alexandria. He even participated in some plays Tantalus put up for the sake of charity. Of course Zidane was aware that marrying her would then by default make him king of Alexandria. She knew for a fact that he loathed the idea, rather than enjoy it like any other normal person would. He just wasn't the type to hunger for wealth and power. He disliked the aristocracy just as much, which was expected since he spent the better part of his life stealing from such nobles to make a living. He most likely saw them as a bunch of snobs whose greatest problems were what to spend money on. And in a lot of cases, he was right. She was a bit moved by the fact that he was willing to accept the responsibilities and deal with the pompous nobles if it meant being a part of her world. Indeed accepting to be a king, meant saying goodbye to the problematic, yet simple life of a thief, and she knew he would miss that freedom.

The nobles however didn't react as well as her soon-to-be-husband. While she had some support from Regent Cid, and therefore many of the nobles from Lindblum, a large number of high ranking aristocrats were completely against her union with Zidane. She had received more than just one complaint about the matter, and even more thinly veiled threats. The biggest problem was that Zidane was not of noble birth (or actually normal birth), and therefore their marriage would 'taint' the noble line of her ancestors that dated back to generations, which was just a nice way of saying they didn't want a peasant ruling, and which was completely untrue since she wasn't really a direct biological descendant of the royal line, seeing as she was secretly adopted for her resemblance to the late Princess Garnet. But, those nobles didn't need to know that. And even if they did know, it didn't matter since she had gained the support of the people of Alexandria after facing the worst that came from the war.

And when it came down to it, as queen, it was still her decision.

It was actually the people that seemed to take to Zidane the most, which was understandable, since he had quite the humble upbringing and therefore understood the struggles of everyday life. And most important of all, and the reason a lot of the nobles had reluctantly agreed in the end was that Zidane really wasn't just a common thief anymore. No, after fighting in the war, Zidane became known as one of the eight brave warriors that saved Gaia, and more than that, he became a hero.

Again, Garnet though it would be best to avoid mentioning that Zidane was originally from Terra, and that his brother was the one that wrought chaos across the Mist Continent and the world as a whole. Not to mention his 'father' was the real villain. Even now, the only people outside their group that knew of Zidane's status as a genome, were Regent Cid, his wife Hilda, her dear friend and scholar, Doctor Tot, the gang from Tantalus, and of course the other genomes and black mages that now lived together in the Black Mage Village. And judging by the seclusion the village found itself in, the chance that the secret got out was next to none existant, at least for the foreseeable future.

And so, after a couple of months, it finally looked like their life had been set to a new routine. While Dagger spent most of her time busy, the plans for their wedding was well under way. For the sake of tradition and chastity, she and Zidane still slept in separate rooms, much to his chagrin. But then again, that didn't seem to deter him in the slightest, meaning she usually found herself with his arms and tail wrapped around her waist in the mornings and in the best case scenario she still had her clothes on, unlike Zidane, who apparently slept in the nude. She didn't really mind much, she knew they were eventually going to sleep together in a bed and then eventually going to 'make some heirs to the throne'.

Steiner however, completely disagreed. Though he had gained something of a grudging respect for the thief, that did not mean their relationship was all rainbows and butterflies. Zidane still had the habit of making Steiner blow his considerably short fuse, which usually ended with exchanged insults and threats of bodily injury, usually from Steiner. And as it was still his sworn duty to protect her, when it came to her chastity, he was going to make it damn sure that she would not be touched in any way of form until after the wedding. Zidane had made sure to steer clear of him after their first little accidental encounter that happened while the knight was out on patrol. Indeed, Alexandria Castle would never be the same after the incident that resulted in an hour long pursuit all over the castle with a fully stripped Zidane running from the loud clanking wrath of one Adelbert Steiner. She could only be so thankful that only a handful of people had bared witness to the event and by the end of the day, it was only a 'baseless' rumor. After that, Zidane had cleverly decided to avoid the halls, instead resorting to enter her room through the unguarded balconies. He claimed it was a lot more romantic that way.

After many and such incidents, Garnet came to learn something very important about Zidane. Zidane did not believe anything was impossible. But the difference between him and many others that shared that same tenet was that Zidane did not accept or even reject warnings from others. No, the blonde thief took them as a personal challenge. She guessed it had something to do with the bets him and his brothers from Tantalus had the habit of partaking in. It certainly would explain why one night she found him swimming naked in the cold waters of the moat, while the rest of the guys cheering him on.

Another thing she had discovered in the past few months was there is NOTHING more dangerous than a bored Zidane. When bored, the blonde usually came up with ideas that were both potentially dangerous for himself and those around him, and those ideas were not limited to just irresponsible drinking. The last time he got bored, she found him literally jumping off the highest tower in the castle, a flimsy rope being the only thing that kept him from falling to his untimely death (and empty rum bottle in his right hand, but that was beside the point). And even before the bungee jump incident, as Zidane decided to call it, said blonde had snuck inside the royal bandersnatch quarters just to see if he could outrun them. Bandersnatches were large dog-like monsters with curly tails, long floppy ears, flat faces, small green eyes, large mouths with razor sharp teeth, and long slobbery tongues. Normally they were used by the castle to ward off intruders. Needless to say, although Zidane was very fast, he was not THAT fast. But much to everyone´s surprise, after having to wrestle them down because of his apparent lack of weapons, he apparently got the dog like creature's respect and loyalty by asserting his dominance. Said creatures would now follow him whenever he was in sight and would obey his every command (though most of the time they were limited to ´fetch´).

But Garnet felt that she simply couldn't stand by any longer and let her future husband partake in these seemingly idiotic ways of endangering himself. As a result, she knew she would have to find ways to keep him busy. At first she convinced him on taking classes on proper etiquette. While he did well enough, after a while he just got bored again and completely lost interest. Then she thought about having him privately tutored on everything from math, astronomy, to politics and geography. While he did enjoy anything related to writing and literature, and did fairly well in math (much to her surprise), Zidane greatly disliked politics, and particularly hated the stuck up scholar that taught geography. In his own words, Zidane called him a "stuck-up bookworm with all his tomes up his ass", and said he didn't even believe him when he said Gaia had actually three other continents besides the Mist Continent. After a particularly nasty jab at Zidane's background, Garnet found herself quickly dismissing the man.

One by one Zidane made it his personal mission to get rid of his tutors, and after a while the number of applicants dwindled dramatically until there were none left. Since the only scholar Zidane could stand was Doctor Tot, and because she really had no idea what else to do, Garnet decided to give her old teacher a call. The old scholar was quick to answer, and soon enough, he was tutoring Zidane like he once tutored her. By far, he had the best results. He was kind, caring, and treated others with respect. He even admitted his wish to learn from Zidane, just as the genome would learn from him. After a while, the old scholar had become something of a counselor. And as his unofficial counselor, it was Doctor Tot's opinion that continuing the lectures would prove to be unwise. He stated that Zidane lacked that sort of interest and it would only make Zidane more likely to try his 'stunts'. What he needed was a more hands-on activity to pursue, something that he would recognize as useful, or maybe even a hobby.

And after that, Zidane's stunts decreased dramatically. Doctor Tot suggested he trained daily with the Alexandrian guards which did prove highly beneficial, and while Zidane refused to become an Alexandrian knight (much to Steiner's relief) he was often found sparring against them and usually winning (much to Steiner's displeasure). Doctor Tot also decided to teach Zidane what he knew about brewing certain healing potions and elixirs, but much to the amazement of both, Zidane was actually quite good at it. Garnet could still remember just how shocked she was when she found out.

…

After an afternoon filled with discussions of the new measures taken to incorporate steam powered engines to the previously mist run ships, Garnet could honestly say she was glad it was finally over. And now that the queen finally had some time to herself, she decided to check in with Zidane and Doctor Tot.

She walked through the halls, occasionally encountering a servant or two, and made her way to the study that she had provided for the sake of Zidane's lessons. Once outside the closed door, she was surprised at just how quiet it was. Normally you could at least hear Doctor Tot's lectures. Maybe they took their lesson outside today? She thought about just turning around and looking for them at the library or maybe the courtyard, but then settled for checking out the room first to be sure.

She gently knocked the door twice before opening it. Inside, the first thing she noticed was the good doctor sitting down on a chair in quiet observation. He motioned her forwards but then brought a finger to his lips in a gesture to be quiet. Garnet nodded and then turned to look at what the scholar was looking at, only to almost fall over in shock.

On the desk a whole chemistry kit was set up and in the middle of it all was Zidane, his face completely screwed in concentration while he was gently adding some thinly crushed powder into a bubbling flask. The liquid inside the flask turned into a clear blue, making Zidane's concentrated frown break into a smile. He turned to look at Doctor Tot, only to see a shocked Dagger making him ask the obvious.

"What?" Zidane asked with a small pout. "You know, just cause I was raised by thieves doesn't mean-"

"I didn't mean anything, it's just, where did you learn that?" Garnet asked, more than just slightly surprised.

"Well, you know. Boss wanted us to know this kind of stuff. Blank was actually the one that taught me. You remember that medicine he gave us when we crash landed in the Evil Forest? Well yeah, he made it. Who else do you think taught me how to use sleeping weed?"

"Oh." Was all that Garnet could say.

…

Zidane learned a lot of things from Doctor Tot and it was great while it lasted. But much like anything good, eventually it had to come to an end. Doctor Tot simply could not stay in Alexandria for too long since he still had his research waiting for him in Treno. And when the time came for him to leave, Zidane was ready to once again mock death right in the face. Garnet tried to find him something to occupy his mind with like a hobby, maybe collecting something or participating in some kind of sport or event, but she couldn't really think of anything. Zidane already collected a wide variety of daggers and thief swords (all of which he had mounted on his room´s wall). When it came to sports he would most like choose something dangerous like jousting or monster hunting. The only safe activity she could think of was playing Tetra Master, and Zidane was already kind of a professional at it. The answer to her problems came later in the form of a visit from the dragon knight, Freya Crescent.

Freya is Burmecian Dragon Knight and was one of the eight warriors that helped save the world. Burmecians were a proud race of anthropomorphic rat-like beings that lived in the permanently rainy city of Burmecia and, up until it was completely destroyed, also the hidden city of Cleyra.

…

"So how's everything been?" Garnet asked before elegantly sipping her tea. Freya had come to visit as a well deserved break from her duties in Burmecia, and now both women found themselves seated comfortably in one of the rooms used for greeting visitors.

"It's been all surprisingly well. Burmecia is steadily recovering, Prince Puck of course still wants to travel the world so obviously nobody has seen him, but I'm sure he is fine, and well, it looks like Sir Fratley has been slowly regaining his memories. They said he probably won't recover everything, but that's more than I can possibly hope for. Falling again for each other is almost like a dream come true." Freya said before sipping her own tea through her thin muzzle.

"That's great Freya! I'm really happy for you. It would be a real shame otherwise." Garnet said remembering when they first got a glance at 'Iron-tail' Fratley.

"So how are your duties as queen so far? And what about Zidane, how has he been? Knowing him it must be hard since he is hardly the type to sit still." Freya said with a light chuckle.

"That's the problem." Garnet said with a sigh and proceeded to tell the dragon knight everything.

"I didn't know he could brew potions." Freya said with some surprise.

"Neither did I, but I just don't know what to do. I don't want to walk down the halls one day and see him swinging naked from the chandeliers or something of that sort." Garnet said as she massaged her temples.

Freya couldn't hold her laughter at the thought, making her chuckle in a rather lady-like fashion. "Well I am certainly no expert. But you are a white mage, correct? Maybe you should try to teach him magic. It may certainly teach him a thing or two about concentration and patience, and besides, since it would prove to be helpful combat-wise, I am sure he would at least try to learn it."

…

Garnet remembered how she thought about what Freya said. Despite the popular belief, anyone could do magic. It was just very hard to accomplish in most cases. For starters, it required a lot of concentration, self control, and perseverance. Not to mention you needed to at least learn some incantations before learning to do a spell wordlessly. There were, however, some exceptions to the rule. Black mages for example, they simply had the innate ability to cast spells. Monsters as well, for them it was something basic and instinctive. But there was one thing that was common for all magic users. Knowing magic was a great advantage in combat, while swords or daggers could not penetrate a tough shell or reach a flying opponent, magic still could. And even if not used offensively against a foe, magic could still be used to heal or protect the caster.

Some of Zidane's attacks did rely on tapping into magic, the same went with other none-mage members of their group, but given that the magic was used without a traditional incantation and was therefore used more as a catalist to strengthen a physical action, it wasn't really considered a spell; not in the traditional sense, at least.

But then there were still several things that worried her. First and foremost, that magic could be dangerous if not properly controlled. Not to mention the sheer destructive force of some spells. Whenever she thought about it, she couldn't help but remember Kuja and his devastating Flare Star attack.

Zidane didn't use magic simply because he was never taught, but since he was created to succeed Kuja then chances were he probably could become a more than decent mage. While she was a bit reluctant to have Zidane learn magic, since it would therefore remind her of his brother, she had to admit, it would be best for his own safety. The more spells he mastered, the lower the chances of the Iifa Tree incident repeating itself. And with that thought in mind, she made a decision she would come to regret.

They started with simply black magic, nothing more powerful than fire, blizzard, and thunder spells. But after Zidane nearly blew up the entire left wing of the castle, only then did they realize what they had gotten into. Zidane simply had the habit of putting too much power into spells, most of the time resulting in things blowing up spectacularly. A simple misfire fire spell had turned Steiner into a human canon ball, whose only relief was landing in the moat rather than hard stone. The mage that was charged with tutoring the genome quickly resigned after a blizzard spell somehow blew a wall to smithereens. Garnet had simply no idea how Zidane even managed to do that. After those incidents, Dagger decided that for everyone's safety, they should just focus on white magic.

At first, Zidane had great problems when it came to self control. But thankfully, it looked like the genome was actually interested in the subject. So interested in fact, he actually made a trip to Daguerro's famous library, and then after a week away, he returned with a couple of books on magic and spells for beginners and also one book he got from his sister Mikoto after stopping by the Black Mage Village. Needless to say, if that book included the Flare Star spell, she was going to have a serious talk with Zidane's sister. But on the other hand, it looked like the blonde had finally found a real challenge, one that would surely keep him busy.

In little less than a month, Zidane managed to improve greatly, mastering spells like cure, dispel, esuna and scan. Those were the spells Garnet was more insistent on, since they were likely to save his life if he ever got into a bind. He had also grasped the basics of vanish, reflect, haste, and status inducing spells like blind.

But now it looked like things took a turn for the worst.

Garnet was brought back to the present as she heard a loud, familiar clanking approaching her, the tell tale signs that Steiner was coming. Garnet quickly opened the doors for the knight, not even waiting for the man to announce his presence by knocking. Now was simply not the time for such formalities.

"M-my Queen!" Steiner said making the effort to salute, Garnet simply couldn't wait longer.

"Steiner! What happened, is he okay?" Dagger asked trying to keep her worry in check, but failing miserably.

"W-we don't know yet, Beatrix should be back any minute. We put out the fire and stopped it from spreading …but, the courtyard, the training grounds, and most of the west wing are completely destroyed. We've confirmed that the explosion that caused the fires…they were of magical nature…most likely an attempted spell gone wrong. I'm very sorry." Steiner said with genuine sadness, but it was lost to the queen's shock.

Garnet felt like she couldn't even breathe. It was like a heavy weight was now pushing against her ribcage with intentions of crushing it completely. The reason? That courtyard was where Zidane had taken to practicing his magic. There had been accidents before, part of the west wing had to be partially rebuilt, but it was NEVER this bad. It was complete chaos. But, it couldn't be could it? Zidane simply wouldn't, couldn't succumb to such pandemonium. He had made it out of several more dangerous situations before, why was this any different? Garnet tried to reassure herself with those facts, but still the fear clung to her, making her tremble slightly; dread sitting heavily in her stomach.

And then came the knock.

Garnet quickly looked towards the door to see General Beatrix standing there with a grim face.

"Did you find him?" Garnet asked, dreading and desperately wanting the answer.

Beatrix grimly gave the verdict, her each and every word echoing deep within the queen's heart.

"Your Highness, he is gone."

Without looking back, Dagger dashed through the castle to confirm her fears with her own eyes, but once she reached the decimated remains of the once beautiful courtyard, she found nothing but ash and rubble.

Zidane Tribal had disappeared off the face of Gaia.

To be continued...

...

A/N: Okay here's the deal. With exception to the second chapter that will likely be uploaded later today or tomorrow, this fic will be updated at least once a week. Most of the writing is done , but the editing and proofreading may take some time (considering I may not always have as much free time). In case I am absent or away for longer than a week my partner in crime (read beta) Crystal will be in charge of updates.