personalapocalypse | Ficlet Collection: FFVI (Various, see headers)

Fandom: FFVI.
Twenty-four ficlets! Written for

fic_promptly.

Title: Tempting Fate
Characters: Setzer + Cyan
Rating: SFW

The knight from Doma was clearly ill at ease.

Setzer had carried passengers who feared great heights, but it was not the sky that Cyan stared at with disdain; it was the ship itself. The very hum of the engines made him grip the railing tightly, as if they would consume him.

“You needn’t worry,” Setzer said to him on the journey, trying to soothe him. “The ship is in good repair. We’ll fly true.”

Cyan took a long shaky breath. “For a man who bows to Fate, thou art overeager to tempt it.”

Setzer had to smile. “True enough.”

Title: Where We Used To Live
Characters: Celes + Cid
Rating: SFW

"Changed a little, hasn't it?"

Celes nodded, staring at the little house that had been her home for over a year.

The island had been so desolate when she'd first seen it; the animals had been sick and dying, and only the merest handful of fish in the sea had been fit to eat. Even the plants had been dying; only the heartiest of grasses had still grown, and they were brown and withering fast. But it had been over a year since magic had been destroyed, and whatever had lain dormant on that island was coming back to life. The grass was green and overgrown, and the house itself was surrounded by trees. One of them was growing against the wall, cracking the bricks.

"That house isn't gonna be there at all much longer," Cid continued, leaning on his hiking stick. "Can't say I'll be too sad to see it go. Didn't have too many good memories of the place...."

"I know, Granddad. You told me." She was glad that she'd been unconscious for so long; she didn't think she could've withstood the isolation, truth be told. "I'm just glad that you're here with me, and not... not still here."

"Me too, child," he said, patting her on the back. "And I've got you to thank for that. I'd given up on myself, you know. I'm glad that you didn't agree with me."

"You saved my life," she said, looking away. "What else could I do?"

"What else, indeed. But not everyone could've done it." He shook his head. "Now, let's get back to the ship, hmm? Doesn't look like there's much more to see here, and all of this hiking has worked up an appetite."

She smiled down at him. "Whatever you say, Granddad."

Title: Decadent
Character: Celes (as Maria)
Rating: SFW

The flowers were fresh-cut, soft and fragrant in her hands; the dress was the finest silk brocade, beautifully worked and stitched. Maria was meant to be the beloved of one King and the bride-to-be of another, so of course she was dressed in only the best and finest of clothes.

Celes didn't understand any of this; how much had such a dress cost to make? For the money they'd spent on a costume that would most likely be worn for one performance and then auctioned off to the highest bidder, they could've fed a thousand folks in need. The money they'd spent could've kept her army safe and warm for a week, if not more.

Jidoor was a world away from the hardened life of a soldier. Celes did not think she would ever come to appreciate it.

Title: Powerless
Character: Celes
Rating: NSFW - Injury

The last time she was in this city she had been restrained - her hands and feet chained together, prodded by a former subordinate's bayonet and walking slowly in a show of quiet defiance. What did she fear from his simple weapon, when she could heal any wound that they inflicted in a matter of seconds?

She could have killed him, perhaps. She had been beaten to within an inch of her life, but she could have used her magic. She could have won. But she couldn't; the thought that she had been used, that Kefka planned to use her mission as a distraction to unleash suffering and poison upon Doma, that hurt her too much to wish to escape. She was willing to take her punishment, no matter what the cost.

The cost had never come, though, thanks to the wandering thief who had happened by and who had seen her as an opportunity, or a weapon - she still couldn't be quite sure. And now she was back in South Figaro, looking over the buildings that had been burned and rebuilt again and again, unrestrained and yet more powerless than before.

Soon, she told herself, walking into the city. She'd find the others soon enough; they would find a way to beat this together.

Title: Gambles
Character: Setzer
Rating: SFW

The gamble was never in the game itself; chips and cards and dice all followed rules, and like the rules of physics and machinery, they could be used to do things as great as suspend a ship in the sky.

No, the gamble was in the places where you chose to play and the people that you challenged; a person who was an easy mark in one circumstance could be unbeatable in another. It was all a matter of perspective, and just as much of his prosperity depended on finding the right person at the right time and place as it did on luck.

Title: The Missing Luck
Character: Setzer
Rating: SFW

His heart and luck were both gone, under the surface of the blood-red ocean.

It wasn’t nearly as melodramatic as it sounded. Setzer had put everything into the construction of the Blackjack, just like Daryl had once put everything of hers into the Falcon, and now it was gone - now it had fallen into the sea, shattered into a thousand pieces. It was washing up on the shores of a thousand shattered lands, or down at the bottom of the sea, and he would never see any of it again.

If he had not put so much of himself into it, he might have been able to bounce back more quickly, and learn to live in that world without wings. But his dreams and his soul were gone along with the rest, and so he sat and drank, dreaming of a brighter world and cursing his missing luck.

Title: Choice
Character: Shadow + Interceptor
Rating: SFW

Shadow had bought Interceptor’s collar from an old armorsmith; he’d offered it for only a few gil when he’d purchased a set of armguards. The man had been a self-professed dog lover, and had praised Interceptor’s powerful build and fierce eyes endlessly, even knowing nothing of his loyalty.

It had taken him long enough. For months Interceptor had stayed uncollared; Shadow always meant to take him back to Thamasa. That life was too rough for anyone, man or beast. But Interceptor had stayed, keeping him warm, finding game and water, until Shadow had to accept it.

He might not have wanted Interceptor, but it didn't matter. Interceptor had chosen him.

Title: Memento Ring
Character: Relm
Rating: SFW

Relm knew that Stragos didn't like it when she went through the old jewelry, but that had never stopped her before. A lot of it had belonged to her mother, right? So that meant she had more right to look at it than he did!

A lot of it wasn't very interesting, though - plain stuff, no stones or interesting shapes that she'd want to draw. The only thing that had caught her eye was a golden ring, decorated with an intricate pattern that she had never seen before. She kept going back to look at it again, wondering where it had come from; it didn't look like anything else in the box, so it must have come from somewhere else. And that made it interesting, because Thamasa was so isolated, so how could it have gotten there?

After a while, she figured that she'd just hang onto the ring herself. Her grandpa never really looked in the box, so what harm would it do? Maybe she could leave the village someday, and then she could find out where it had come from!

Title: Dance King
Character: Mog
Rating: SFW

Mog still loved the dancing, but he missed the magic. He missed being able to use the steps to remember the places he'd been, from the water rushing through the Serpent's Canyon to the windblown sands of Figaro. Back then he'd been able to call winds or beasts with a few careful steps, make the sunlight heal his friends or hurt his enemies, and it had been so much fun!

Of course, he still danced. Maybe it wasn't quite the same, but he still loved moving around and doing fancy steps. His friends still cheered at him when he pulled off a difficult move, and encouraged him when he missed a step or two.

Someday soon he'd search for more moogles; he hoped there were a few out there, hiding somewhere else in the world. He wanted to teach them how to dance too.

Title: Unspoken Fear
Character: Terra
Rating: SFW

Terra stands before the Warring Triad in her dreams. No longer made of stone, the three tower over her, beautiful and grotesque all at once.

"Would you kill a child to save the world?" they ask, speaking in unison.

Terra's answer comes quickly and violently. "Never."

"Are you sure?" they repeat. "A single child, and then no more ruin, no more fear. A thousand other children could prosper in a world created from this one sacrifice."

She shakes her head again. "It's not worth it! That one child's life is still worth something! It's... it's evil!"

"Is it?" The Triad sounds genuinely confused. "Is it not more evil to let many other children live in this world, and suffer at the hands of madness? Is it not more evil to allow the pain of millions of others to continue?"

"That's..." She pauses, not sure how to answer. "It's not my choice to make," she finally says. "Children deserve to make their own choices."

"We see," they answer, very softly. "But what about you?"

"Me?" she asks, looking down at her hands - and to her horror she sees them begin to waver and fade, as if she were mere light. "No! What -"

"What do you think will happen to your children," they finally continue as the fading continues, from her fingertips to her palms to her wrists, "if your choice takes you from them?"

"No," she answers. "No, no, no -"

She's still repeating the denial when she wakes up. She curls up in her blankets, feeling the hum of the Falcon's engines and trying to take some comfort from them.

None of them had yet spoken of it aloud, but the fear was still in their minds, especially Terra's. What would happen to her? And if she did die in this battle, or if she disappeared, what would happen to her children? Wouldn't it hurt them beyond healing, for her to give them hope and then vanish?

All she can do is hope that she is wrong, for now. What she's doing is right. She's sure of that much. She just hopes that what she has to do to finish it is worth the cost.

Title: Ascetic
Character: Sabin
Rating: SFW

Sitting in the rain in all weather, only eating what he could find - not kill, but find, because meat had become a luxury. Wearing nothing but light clothes, never speaking of discomfort, not bathing for days at a time at the worst of it....

Duncan had never said his training would be easy, but for a prince who had known nothing but luxury his entire life, it had been brutal. Still, Sabin would not do anything to make things easier on himself. Vargas could complain, but Sabin was a prince, and he would endure.

Title: Empathy
Character: Leo + Cid
Rating: SFW (references to pain)

"Are you certain about this, General Leo?"

You nod, not trusting yourself to speak; you are most certainly not sure that what you are doing is wise, but even if you are on the side of the Empire, its enemies will inevitably find a way to control its weapons. If you are ever to fight against those with magic, you must know how it feels for it to be used against you... and if you are to feel empathy for those who fight the Empire, then you need to feel the weapon that you is used against them first-hand.

Cid hesitates, but you see him step away, holding the bulky radio to his ear as he shuts the door to the testing chamber.

The beam that emerges from the Armor is fiery, blistering hot; you barely feel it at first, your senses overwhelmed, until the nerves below your skin begin to scream panic at the overloaded skin. You did not wish to scream but you cannot help yourself - is this what Kefka had ordered done to Maranda when he had it taken? Is this what the Empire has worked so hard to master?

The next is ice, the same chill that you know runs through Celes' veins, and it brings you no relief. You cannot scream; your throat is chilled through by the power that seems to slice through your veins, and as much as you try you cannot speak, cannot tell Cid that you have gone too far...

The lighting strikes you next, brushing you aside with the force of a train, and you finally, blessedly, lose consciousness.

You awaken in a small cot, one of Cid's young students casting curative magic on you, like warm water washing over your skin. That sort of power is one you've experienced before, but the memory of the others is seared on your mind. "What have we unleashed, Cid?" you ask; you cannot see him, and even when he does not answer, you are sure that he is there. Maybe he doesn't have any better answers than you do.

Title: The Other Side of the Horizon
Characters: Setzer/Daryl
Rating: SFW (canon character death)

Setzer had wanted to see the other side of the horizon. That was why he’d built the Blackjack.

At first it had been beautiful. He’d met Daryl, and together they’d been unstoppable. They’d raced through the skies, laughing together, and Setzer had thought all his dreams had come true.

But then he’d lost her, found her ship wrecked on a distant island. Life had been colder then, less marvelous. And Setzer had, in many ways, given up.

He’d never see the other side of the horizon. It would always be there, just ahead of him - as inevitable as Fate itself.

Title: Warmth
Characters: Terra/Celes
Rating: SFW

Terra is always cold after the fire goes out in her heart. The campfire or fireplace can burn as brightly as ever, but still she huddles in the blankets beside it, trying to capture some feeling of warmth in herself.

You don't fully understand how she feels, because the ice in your soul may have melted as well, but you weren't born to it, not the way that Terra was, and you do not miss it as much. She hides the chill well in front of her children, but you can always see it, and it worries you. All you can do is stay with her, wrap yourself in the blankets with her and try to share your warmth as she leans her head on your shoulder and murmurs words of gratitude.

Title: Balcony Seat
Characters: Celes/Setzer
Rating: SFW

"I thought you said you would not enjoy this sort of show," Setzer murmurs in her ear after she has been silently listening to Maria's aria for a long time.

To her credit, she does not jump. "I am merely considering her voice," she says instead. "I find it interesting, the differences between our ranges. I had some training, after all."

"Of course," Setzer says, wisely declining to comment on the fascination he'd seen in her eyes; it was best not to tempt fate, or more to the point, to tempt her. It was far better to watch in silence, and save his observations for another, more opportune time.

Title: Storm
Characters: Celes/Setzer
Rating: SFW

Their love was a storm, which should not have surprised either of them; Setzer was a free gale blowing through the skies, and Celes was an icy storm, so when the two collided they couldn't have created anything else.

Poetry aside, however, they were both strong enough to withstand each other; Celes could easily weather his capriciousness, and Setzer knew how to wait out her moods until her ice cracked. It might have been an odd relationship to those looking in - there was very little of romance in it, not the sort that was written in books and opera - but it was theirs, and it worked.

Title: Red
Characters: Kefka/Terra
Rating: NSFW (Unhealthy Relationship, Power Imbalance)

Kefka binds her hair and wraps her arms in red ribbons.

The color makes Terra’s heart swell full of joy, and sometimes she just smiles down at herself, looking at everything - her red flowered dress, her long stockings with delicate decorations, her hair brushed and smooth and tied back. She’s so much prettier now, just like he said she would be. She’s much nicer than the girl they’d kept away from everyone else, alone and afraid in her dull grey clothes.

She wasn’t as colorful as he was; every day he'd add a new touch to his outfit, green or orange or any color of the rainbow. For her, though, red would be the best - red to suit her lovely power, he'd say, giggling.

When Kefka wasn’t busying himself with giving her gifts and guiding her through using her magic, she stayed quiet; he was a very busy man, he’d said, even when it might not look like he was doing something. Sometimes he was just thinking, and he hated it so much when someone interrupted him while he was thinking. She’d had the opportunity to see just how much - a guard had made the mistake once, and even her healing magic hadn’t been able to erase the scars.

So she’d busy herself, often practicing her magic because that was what she was best at, and because he was always so proud when he saw her calling down fire. “Oh, Terra,” he’d say, “my lovely little firebug. You’ll be so powerful someday, won’t you?”

She would nod, smiling, because she liked it when he called her nice names, and when he gave her more red ribbons and red dresses to wear. She’d been alone for so long, in that cold room without a real bed, because they had all been so afraid of her burning it up. But Kefka knew what she was going through, too. He wasn’t afraid of her. It was so nice, too, to have someone who didn’t run away from her, even if she had to be careful not to bother him when he didn’t want to be bothered.

He’ll always bring her nice things, he’d promised. He’ll take good care of her, as long as she would listen to him and do what she was told. That wasn’t so bad, she thought. It had to be better than where she’d been before. Right?

Title: Training
Characters: Kefka/Terra
Rating: NSFW (Blood, Unhealthy Relationship, Power Imbalance)

Kefka watches her as she picks up the dirk, watches as hefts it and judges its weight. He can't help but giggle at her ineptitude; she doesn't know how to hold the dagger, let alone wield it. She's frowning, as if he's given her a puzzle she doesn't know how to solve.

"Why is this here?" she finally asks, looking up at him. Her eyes are wide and bright, and her pale skin is luminous against her red satin dress. All of the dresses that he'd chosen for her were red as fire, or red as blood.

"It's a gift for you, my lovely," he answered, lounging against the wall. His robes are simple today. "I had it commissioned from one of the town's finest weaponsmiths, just for you."

She was still frowning. "But why?" she asked. "I thought you said I don't need weapons." She opened her hand, let a tongue of flame leap from her palm.

"Oh, dear Terra," he said, shaking his head. "The mind grows tired, stumbles and skips, and then what? I would not see you fall, my pretty, when your fire goes out." He stood and walked to her, pulling out a knife of his own. It was not his favored weapon - a spiked mace did far more damage in less time - but she was a quick girl, and would do well with a short blade. "Let me show you a few things."

He has her follow her through a few stances; and she's slow and cautious at first, but she has always been a fast learner, and eager to please him. She blushes at his praise when he tells her she's doing well, her skin reddening with happiness; he thinks of the blood rising near her skin, wonders how it would flow if he were to gently run the blade of his own knife against it. It would be darker than her dress, and even richer in color.

Would she attack him, if he encouraged her? Would he draw his blood as well? The thought raised goose flesh along his arms - their knives at each other's throats, blood trickling slowly from their bodies and joining in a puddle along the floor, their magic mingling....

"Sir?" she asked, looking at him, and he snapped back to attention. She's looking concerned again, that last bit of human weakness that he had yet to purge. Well, his newest project would take care of that very effectively. "Are you all right?"

He breathed in and out again, forcing himself back into reality. She was not yet ready for that, he thought. There was far more work to be done. "Of course," he answered. "You're just doing so well, Terra. You'll be a master at this in no time."

She all but beams at the compliment. "Thank you, Sir!"

"Of course, of course. Now, I need to take care of a few things. I need you to keep practicing until I get back. You will, won't you?"

She nods - she's always quick to follow his instructions now - and falls back into the fighting stance.

He'd return that night, of course. It would be hours from then. Time would tell if she would obey; he was sure her mind was willing, but her body might just be unable to handle the strain. But if he did not tax her from time to time, how would she grow stronger? How would she learn?

Title: Faith
Characters: Locke/Terra, Kefka/Terra
Rating: SFW (past unhealthy relationship)

Terra wished that Locke had been the first person that she'd ever trusted.

It wasn't her fault; the Empire had manipulated her, and that became clearer and clearer to her the more her memories began to recover. She'd been isolated, hungry for contact... and then the first person who'd come to see her again and again was the person who most wanted to use her for his own purposes. And she, young and foolish, had accepted it; she'd even eagerly sat in the chair to receive the Slave Crown, because she'd believed that it was meant as a tool to purge her of her weakness and make her sadness over using her powers disappear.

Locke... he was different. He'd promised her that she'd be all right, and she'd had so few memories, no reason to believe that he could be trusted, or that he even knew what was about to happen. And yet... she'd believed him, or wanted to believe him badly enough that it made no difference. He'd been kind, earnest, everything that Kefka and the Empire were not... but she'd had no way of knowing that at the time, had she? It had all been on faith, just like before.

She was grateful that her faith in Locke had been justified. But she would not lie to herself and say that she knew it would be justified all along.

Title: Legacy
Characters: Terra/Locke
Rating: SFW

Locke climbed down from the deck of the Blackjack, leaving the others to take care of the landing. Narshe was just ahead - or just below, if he was gonna be picky about it - and there was still a lot to do. Banon and Arvis would be waiting for them to come back, and there was no way that they hadn't seen the airship's approach.

"Terra?" he called once he'd reached the living quarters, searching for her. "Are you down here?"

At first she didn't answer. Locke had been half-afraid he'd interrupted her sleep when he heard her voice. "Yes," she said, just loud enough for him to hear. "I'm back here."

"Okay, great. They're getting ready to land near Narshe, so we can give Banon a report. Are you ready to -"

He stopped as he walked into the cabin, realizing that Terra hadn't even looked up as he'd arrived. Her eyes were fixed on the pendant she carried in her hands. He'd seen it before around her neck, a golden bird on a thin chain.

He stopped for a moment, then cleared his throat. "Terra? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she said, but her eyes seemed to stare past the pendant as she spoke, off into nothing. "I was just thinking."

"Hm." He leaned against the doorway. Narshe could wait a little while longer. "About what?"

She finally looked up at him. "This pendant... it belonged to my father. But I was a prisoner, or something like one, so I don't understand. Why would I still have it?"

Locke blinked, taking a second to realize exactly what it was she was asking. He'd seen the vision of her past, the picture of her father's world; like all of the others, he'd been too surprised to say anything, had watched raptly until it had been finished, his attention completely absorbed. But Terra was right, now that he thought about it. Surely Gestahl had stolen the pendant from her mother. Who would've given it back to Terra?

"Do you remember anyone who... I don't know, might've wanted to give it back?"

She shook her head. "I barely remember anything. I just know that for a long time, I didn't have anything... I must've gotten it back when I was older, but I don't remember when, or who gave it to me. It couldn't have been Kefka... at least, I don't think so. But who else could it be?"

"Hmm." He stroked his chin, curious. "I can't begin to guess." Celes might've known, but... no. Kefka had played him, and he'd fallen right into the madman's hands and rejected her. He didn't think he'd ever see her again, he thought, trying not to sigh. He was trying to cheer Terra up, not bring her down. "But it does prove one thing."

"What's that?"

"It proves somebody there cared about you. Not just as a weapon, or whatever it was Kefka wanted of you, but as a person." He smiled, trying his best to keep his voice light. "Why else would someone give that back to you? They must've known that it was all that was left of your family, and wanted you to have it."

Terra looked back down at the pendant, and he saw her furrowed brow slowly start to relax. "You might be right," she said. "I'd like to believe it, anyway."

"Yeah," Locke said. "Me too."

"Mmm." She moved her hands and slipped the chain back around her neck, fastening it quickly, before Locke could even think to offer to help. "Did you say we were landing at Narshe soon?"

He nodded. "I figured Banon would want to know that you're safe, if nothing else."

She smiled a bit. "You're right. I still don't understand it myself." She looked like she was about to say something else, her fingers locked around the pendant, but then she relaxed and let go. "I'll be ready to go in a few minutes."

Title: Coming To an Agreement
Characters: Terra/Locke
Rating: SFW

“Terra, for what it’s worth... I’m sorry that I didn’t look for you first.”

It had taken Locke days since letting Rachel go for him to work up the nerve to make that apology to her, and he didn’t know what he had been expecting; he’d feared anger or sadness, and perhaps he’d hoped for immediate forgiveness. He wasn’t expecting her strange, quizzical confusion. “Why?” she asked, furrowing her brow. “You had to do what you did - didn’t you say you’d been trying to do it for years? I can’t be angry at you for that.”

“I... thank you, but...” He rubbed the back of his neck, shaking his head. “I mean, I made another promise too, a promise to you. And I didn’t keep it.”

“What do you mean?” she asked - but her face had brightened as realization had dawned almost immediately. “You mean, when you promised to protect me?”

He’d nodded. “I’d said I would, and then... as soon as I found out about the Phoenix I ran away. It was all I could think about. I’m sorry, I really am-“

“Hush,” she said, putting a finger against his lips and smiling. How could she be all right with this? “It’s okay, Locke. I don’t want you to protect me, all right?”

“You don’t?” he asked, taken utterly aback. “But I wanted to-“

“I know, and... maybe I wanted you to at first, but being with these children made me realize something.” She put her hand against his cheek, haltingly at first. “Love isn’t just about protecting someone from everything. I wanted to protect them too, but... but there’s so much out there. You have to teach them to protect themselves, too. And you did that, Locke. You helped me regain my strength when I needed it, and I’m grateful.”

“Terra,” he said, putting his hand over hers. “I... I mean, you’re welcome. But I still want to protect you, you know? I mean, I know I say this a lot, but I do. I care about you.”

She nodded. “That’s fine. But I want to protect you, too.” She pulled her hand away from his face, and grasped both his hands, pulling him closer to her. “So, from now on, we protect each other. We make sure we finish this, and get each other home safely. Okay?”

Home? Did Locke know where home was, anymore? He started to say so, but her eyes were so bright and honest that he couldn’t say it. Maybe he’d be able to figure it out, when this was over. Maybe they could even figure it out together. “All right,” he answered, smiling back at her. “I think I can do that.”

“Thanks, Locke. For everything.” She leaned in closer and planted a quick kiss on his lips. It wasn’t much of a kiss, not yet, but he couldn’t fault her for that either. There was a lot they’d have to figure out later, but at least now there could be a later. “Let’s finish this, okay?”

“Yeah,” he said, smiling again for the first time since Rachel had given him the Phoenix. “I think we can do this. And Terra?”

“Yes?”

“You’re welcome." The weight was off of his shoulders. He could do this. "And thank you, too.”

Title: Marriage
Characters: Locke/Terra, Terra's kids
Rating: SFW

They’d almost skipped the “married” part. Terra had the children she’d adopted, and there was no way that Locke wasn’t going to be a dad to them as much as he could, even if some of them weren’t that much younger than he was. (After all, they called Terra ‘Mama,’ and she was even younger.)

The wedding, in the end, was almost an afterthought. A good one, with lots of flowers and a pretty dress and the children laughing and cheering when they kissed, but it wasn’t the fairy tale ending people dreamed of. And that was fine with them.

Title: Burial
Characters: Locke/Celes
Rating: SFW (canon-ish character death*)

*(I say canon-ish because I can't remember ever letting Cid die - or at least stay dead - in one of my playthroughs. This might be why I don't care much for Locke/Celes anymore; it really only makes sense to me if Cid dies, and I don't want to do that. YMMV, though.)

Locke had hoped that Celes had brought him back to the island to see Cid again, but he found out quickly that she had darker motivations; she had asked him there to help her bury him.

"There hadn't been time," she'd said as they'd found him, his body surprisingly well-preserved and dried out in the island's heat; he'd been lying there, almost appearing to sleep on the little bed, with only the unnatural pallor of his skin to tell Locke that he was dead. Even the bugs and carrion birds who usually feasted on the dead were dying out on this forsaken isle. "I wanted to bury him before, but... he left a note for me. His last wish was for me to leave right away, and I... I didn't know what else to do."

This does not come from Celes the general, he realized quickly. This came from a darker place, the heart of a terrified young woman who'd lost someone she'd seen as a father or a grandfather, who'd tried to save him and failed; he could see the remnants of the fish she'd said that she'd tried to feed him, all of those discolored bones lying near the bed, and so could see how hard she must have tried. And there was nothing he could say to her to make things better, so he put his hand on her shoulder. She must have been severely upset, for she said nothing and made no move to push him away.

They worked in silence, covering him with the blankets and moving him out onto the barren island, breaking and digging up the earth with simple spades. Edgar could have done this more quickly with his tools, but Celes had asked only Locke to come with her. The others seemed to have understood.

The work was hard in the midday sun; they were both burnt and exhausted by the end. "We should've waited until nightfall," Celes muttered, wiping her brow with the back of her arm.

"I don't know about that," Locke answered, looking at her as they moved to put the body into the grave. "I know how much you needed to do this."

She didn't answer, and helped him lift Cid's body into the grave in silence. They worked quietly again as they moved the earth back over his corpse, burying him deep to keep him safe from any scavengers who might rally their strength.

She did not eulogize Cid; she did not even speak again until they'd nearly reached the Falcon again. "Locke?" she'd said, stopping and turning to look back at him.

"Yeah?"

She was not crying, but her eyes were beginning to water. It could've been tears, or it could've been the dust from the burial. He would not embarrass her by asking which they were. "Thank you," she said softly. "It would've been... difficult... to do that alone."

He nodded slowly, swallowing a lump in my throat. "Of course," he answered. "I would've helped you... even if you hadn't helped me, I would've tried. He deserved it for... for taking such good care of you."

"He would've deserved it anyway." But she nodded, all the same. "Come on. Let's get back to the others."

"Of course." He walked back beside her, and - greatly daring - put one hand on her shoulder again. She did not reciprocate, but did not push him away, and that was enough.