Bring Me Home
by tir-synni
Chapter VI: Inspiration
"I awoke
early the next day to Kuja stroking my hair again. I raised my head--it was kinda laying on his
chest--and looked up. He smiled back at
me, but his eyes were sad.
" 'The
moogles have been in here, and they checked on your side,' Kuja said
softly. 'You slept all through it.' He nodded beside the bed. A bottle of potion rested on the table. 'They didn't have anything stronger. Something to do with the Iifa Tree's
roots. I have drank one already.'
"I
nodded, and Kuja grabbed the bottle for me.
Ha! You should've seen him. I guess he thought I was an invalid or
somethin', because he held the bottle to my lips like I couldn't do it
myself. I drank it, nice and obedient,
never looking away from Kuja's face. He
looked so sad and worried.
" 'I
drank the potion,' he mused, putting down the bottle and petting me again. I would have started purring, but Kuja looked
so depressed. I just cuddled, instead. 'What's the point, though? I am as good as dead, anyway. Why try prolonging my life now?'
"I have
to admit, I was surprised. I thought the
answer was obvious. 'Because you can't
die until you've lived,' I answered promptly.
'Lived without worrying about
"Kuja
looked at me, and his hand stilled on my head.
I couldn't help it. I kinda
meowed and kept shoving my head into him until he started again. Like I said, I couldn't help it. You and Kuja are the only ones who do heavy
petting, so I was milking it for all it was worth. By the way, keep petting. That feels good. Purrrr....
"Ahem. Anyway.
He started petting me again, and he kept studying me. He had this...look in his eyes. I couldn't figure out what it was then, and I
can't figure it out now. Then he
smiled. Kuja still looked sad, but not
as bad as he was before.
"
'Zidane...' he whispered. I wish I knew
what he had been thinking. The tone of
his voice...the look on his face...Sometimes, people do that to me, especially
you, but I don't understand it. 'Zidane,
I...You can't compare me to you.'
"Yeah, I
was insulted. The guy kept saying that
he was hopeless and everything, but he still through he was better than
me! He still kept looking down at
me! Pissed off, I pushed away from
him. I landed in a heap on the floor,
but I didn't care. I'll admit, I was hurt. Just because I was a thief and he was this
all-powerful, beautiful mage. I told him
that, too.
" 'Yeah,
I forgot,' I spat out bitterly, 'we're on two totally different levels, aren't
we? I'm just some scoundrel--' Ugh, I
can't believe I used one of Rusty's words! '--and you're a high-and-mighty
lord. I keep forgetting, the rules that
apply to me don't apply to you. I guess
I'll keep my advice to myself from now on.'
"I know I
shouldn't have struck out like that, but at the time, I didn't care. During the whole trip, Rusty kept shoving it
down my throat that I was nothin' but a worthless thief, that everyone was too
good to be around me. In the end, he
changed his tune, but it didn't change what he had done the rest of the
time. I was sick and tired of it, and
coming from Kuja, it was a low blow.
"I huffed
and jumped to my feet. I felt a twinge
in my side, but I just ignored it. I
figured, after two potions and a night of rest, my side couldn't be that bad. I lashed my tail and stalked off. I heard Kuja yelling after me, but I ignored
him. Fuck him, I thought. Surely he doesn't need a lowly thief's help!
"I
ignored the moogles' squeaking, too, and headed towards the desert. I was only trying to help! I missed you so bad then, Blank. You would have understood; you would have
helped. You would have been able to keep
everything under control. I wanted you
there.
"I stayed
out in the desert for a while. I heard
Kuja shouting for me, but I just said hell with him and sunbathed. I waited until my temper cooled and my skin
warmed before I returned to the house. I
felt kinda tired, but I guess it made sense.
I hadn't eaten for a while, and my side hurt.
"The
moogles must have read my mind, because I returned to a table full of food. The moogles couldn't really cook, but I was
starving, so I didn't give a damn. It
wasn't until I finished that I noticed Kuja was silently watching me. I froze.
" 'Your
side still isn't healed,' he told me quietly.
'You must rest.'
"I
sniffed and lashed my tail. 'We don't
have time to rest,' I retorted haughtily.
'We must find a way to get to
"Kuja
blinked, startled. '
"It was
on the tip of my tongue to make some smartass remark, but I couldn't do
it. He looked so vulnerable standing
there, and he had been hurt enough. I
couldn't add to the scars.
" 'The
Black Mages and the Genomes live peacefully in the village,' I reassured him
quietly. 'The Black Mages even have a
chocobo. Its name is Bobby Corwen.' I grinned at him. 'Funny name, eh?'
"Kuja
cracked a smile at that. Why they name a
chocobo Bobby Corwen, I'll never know, but it always gets a good response.
" 'I can
teleport us there,' Kuja offered, 'but...'
A shadow passed over his face. 'I
am not welcome there.'
"I beamed
at him. 'To the Genomes, you're a hero,'
I reassured him. 'You defied Garland,
became independent. You started a
movement. And with the Black
Mages...' I shrugged. 'You gave them life. By your example, you gave both them and the
Genomes hope. You'll always be welcome
in Black Mage Village.'
"Kuja
still looked uncertain, but the sadness in his eyes had faded. I pressed my advantage.
" 'No
other Genome had rebelled before you,' I continued on. 'You showed the Genomes that they could be
their own person. You inspired them,
Kuja! You inspired the Black Mages!' I
took a deep breath. 'And you inspired
me, too.'
"Kuja...shell-shocked. You should have seen it, Blank. Kuja doesn't look nearly as dignified with
his jaw hangin' loose.
"
'Wh-what?' Kuja whispered disbelievingly.
" 'You
inspired me,' I repeated truthfully.
'When I first learned the truth about myself...when Garland attack me
and brought me under his will so easily...I was lost. I...I had always fought so hard to defend the
people I love, and he told me I was created for nothing but destruction. He used some spell on me, and it felt like he
had broken me.'
"Kuja
nodded. 'It was a spell he used to keep
the Genomes under control,' he verified.
'He always liked to tell me, what he gave the Genomes, he could so
easily take away.'
"I
shivered in my chair. 'It shook me up
real bad,' I admitted. "I felt
totally hopeless. My friends helped
bring me back, but the memory of you helped the most. You had known all your life, and you had
refused to let it beat you. You fought
back. So I fought back, too.'
"Kuja
gaped at me a lot like you're doing now.
While I was waiting for him to recover, I started preening my tail. It had gotten dirty in the desert. You know how hard it is to clean sand out of
fur? It's hard as hell, let me tell you.
"About
when I had cleaned most of the sand out from my tail, Kuja decided to quietly
bask in my words and not to bring it up aloud.
Instead, he just asked, 'When do you want to go?'
"I shrugged. 'Now.' "