Chrono Trigger 1. Prologue

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

Disclaimer: I do not own Chrono Trigger or any of its characters. Though if I did, I'd take the Mystics. All of the original characters are of my creation.

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Prologue

The difference that the darkness can do is astounding. A bright blue sky changes into a black void with not even the light of the stars to fill it. The green landscape turns into quiet, deadly territory. And a beautiful castle can be made to look like a haunted palace that no visitor is welcome to.

The lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating the castle. The forest surrounding the ancient building looked unfriendly and forbidden to enter. Though the forest was indeed safe to venture through, there was something about that night that would give a person chills if they thought about it. Something was wrong this night, and it was not just the thunderstorm either.

A cloaked figure was running through the forest, as though their life depended on it. Their breathing was haggard and sharp, as they looked around, clutching the small bundle in their arms. The bundle squirmed and a small cry arose from it.

"Shh. Don't cry my dear," the figure murmured fearfully. The voice belonged to that of a woman, fearful and hurt. She clutched the bundle close to her, trying the forget the pain she was feeling. She knew she had to hurry; she didn't have time to waste.

She glanced up and saw the castle close at hand. She allowed a small smile to appear on her lips. They were almost there. Her blue eyes gleamed in triumph, knowing that, even though she would perish, she would win.

_You may have given me my death, but my hope still survives._

With a cry of joy, she found herself at the front gates of Guardia Castle. She threw back her hood, letting her sapphire hair cascade down her back. She pounded on the gate with such force; it was sure to wake up all the inhabitants of the castle. She would have screamed for entry, but her strength was fading quickly now. All she could was pray that someone would hear...

The castle doors flew open and a man stood there, carrying a light. She could barely make him out, but the spiky hair gave him away immediately.

"Crono?" she whispered.

The man hesitated, than nodded slowly. He approached, his eyes alert. He took one look at her and gasped.

"Schala?" He could hardly believe it, but there was no one else that had that blue hair, or those gentle eyes.

The woman laughed quietly and shook her head. She was not surprised he said that. A little sad maybe, but not surprised.

"Aurora," she murmured. "I... I need you to..." She struggled to continue; she was almost finished.

Crono waited for her. Whatever this woman wanted was important. He could tell that this woman was a gentle spirit, like Schala had been.

Aurora took a breath. "To look after... My daughter Brianne." She held the bundle to Crono, who took it, looking apprehensive.

"Your daughter? But what about her father? And how do you know me?" he asked, looking at the bundle. He looked at her and gave a cry of alarm.

She had fallen to the ground. A small smile was on her face, as though she knew she would be at peace. Her eyes were closing. The time was now.

"Thank... You..." she breathed. She took a final breath and was gone.

Crono stood there, looking at her. He didn't know what to do, or say. He didn't even notice the rain falling heavily. How did this woman know him? He didn't know anyone named Aurora; certainly not an Enlighten One if the hair was any indication. After all, they didn't exist anymore.

The bundle in his arms moved. Crono snapped out of his trance. He stared at the child that was now his responsibility. The baby looked up at him and started to giggle.

"Well, at least you like me," he grinned. "Let's go inside and take a look at you, hmm?"

He headed back to the warmth of the castle, than stopped and looked at Aurora. He would send some servants out and take the body to be buried. After all, he wasn't cruel and the woman deserved to be laid to rest.

"After all, you have right to know who your mother was," he smiled sadly. "And because I don't think I could take it if you called me Daddy." Holding the child, he continued into the warmth and light that was the castle.

He looked at the baby, Brianne, if he heard correctly. He pulled the bundle away from her head and examined her. She had the same blue eyes that her mother had, wide and glittering with a strange light. She had a thin layer of dark hair on her head. At this point it was hard to tell if it would be brown or black. Her skin was oddly pale for such a small child, and she had...

Crono stared at her more intently. He slowly moved his hand toward her ears.

Her long, pointed ears.

_A Mystic? It doesn't seem possible, but only those ears_ _belong to a Mystic. That woman, Aurora, wasn't a Mystic, so the father must be._

Crono pondered the identity of the father, but he didn't know any Mystic men besides Magus. And there was no chance that Magus would have a wife or child.

Shaking the thought from his head, he took Brianne back to his chambers. Marle was in for a huge surprise.


	2. The Leader, the Sidekick and the Girl

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

Disclaimer: If you want to see it, read the prologue.

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Chapter 1: The Leader, the Sidekick and the Girl

Darkness. All he could see was darkness. And that was fine by him. It was peaceful here; everything in the world seemed right. It was quiet, and he liked it like that. No one to annoy him, no one to give him orders. There was only darkness.

"Darien..."

He shifted uncomfortably. No, he wanted the quiet and the dark. Couldn't she understand that?

"Darien."

He began to frown. He wanted the quiet for a little while longer. Just a little longer.

"Darien!"

He felt something hit his head. He groaned. Why couldn't he be left alone? Than he felt it again. And again. And again.

_Okay, that's it!_

He opened his eyes with a start and glared up the girl standing over him, who had that annoyingly sweet smile on her face. The green fire of his eyes met the cool ice of hers. He continued to glare, trying to get her to leave him alone. It didn't work.

Sighing, he resigned himself to his fate as he sat up. He turned to the girl, who was still smiling.

"You couldn't let me sleep for another five minutes, could you?"

She simply smiled. "It's time you got up anyway, _big brother_."

Darien Triggera glared at his so called "little sister." His little sister that wasn't really his sister. Brianne knew that Darien wasn't her brother, or that Crono and Marle weren't her parents. She was only a year younger than himself, but she was a lot shorter than him. Than again, he was 5'9", so that was hardly surprising.

Darien groaned as he swung his legs over the bed. She was right, as always. They had things to do today. Things that he actually wanted to do today. He noticed he was only wearing a pair of boxers. He glared up at Brianne.

"Could I have some privacy so I can change?" he snapped.

Brianne just grinned and left without a single snicker.

Darien just snorted as stumbled around, trying to find some clothes. She was sweet and kind all right, but she was also annoying and could easily get on his nerves when she tried. But that was not surprising. They had grown up together, shared in many things. They were practically brother and sister.

Of course, since she wasn't really his sister, she didn't have to study all those boring books on how to rule a country. Lucky her.

Darien found himself a pair of black pants and a plain blue shirt. When going out in public, he had to look normal, not like the prince he actually was. He stood in front of his mirror as he got dressed.

He had the same spiky hair that his father had, only it was blond, like his mother's. He was not only tall, but fairly muscular as well. All that training he did paid off. His skin was a bit tanned from the usual hot weather this place got. And, of course, there were his green eyes that always had a mischievous look to them.

Looking at himself in the mirror, he nodded with satisfaction and left.

Brianne was waiting outside his room. Darien couldn't help but look at her. Even though they were practically siblings, he couldn't help but think about how beautiful she looked.

Her long black hair flowed down her back like a river of obsidian. Her skin, while by no means white, was very pale. She was average height and had a lithe build. Her blue eyes always had a strange glow to them, but he had grown used to them. The feature he really liked, though, was her ears. They were extremely long and pointed at the end. Of course, she was a Mystic, so of course she would have those ears.

"It's about time you got up," Brianne chided. "We'll miss breakfast."

Darien rolled his eyes. "Oh perish the thought," he exclaimed. "We all know how much you love breakfast. After all, you eat so much."

Brianne stuck her tongue out. Darien smirked at his own sarcasm.

"C'mon, you should say good morning to Crono and Marle," she replied.

She had never called them Mom or Dad. She was told what happened when she was old enough to understand. Her mother had died bringing her here, while her father was completely unknown. She respected both Crono and Marle, but she knew she only had one set of parents. Darien was pleased that she accepted this fact so easily. Most people could not accept the parents that left them or else their adopted ones.

"Yeah, you're right," Darien agreed. "Let's go get some food."

* * *

Breakfast at the castle was never really normal. Crono was half listening to the Chancellor prattle on about some problem that one of the villages were having. The other half of his attention was focused on eating toast. His green eyes were half closed, as he wished he could go back to sleep. It was times like these that he found it hard to believe that he had saved the world. 

He glanced at his wife. Marle seemed to actually be interested in what the Chancellor had to say. Of course, the minute the Chancellor turned away, Marle rolled her eyes at the old man. Crono suppressed a smirk; that was the Marle he knew and loved.

She had been right beside him when he had gone out on the slightly insane quest to destroy Lavos. If it hadn't been for that, him and Marle wouldn't be together this day. Than again, if it he hadn't met Marle, he wouldn't have traveled through time and ended up saving the world. But the two of them were hardly alone.

Lucca had been Crono's best friend and had invented the device that began this grand adventure. She always stuck by Crono, no matter who much they annoyed each other. And you could almost count on her inventions, when they didn't blow up.

Crono smiled slightly as he remembered the others that had been there. Unlike Lucca, however, he hadn't seen them since Lavos' defeat. They were his allies, his comrades in arms, his... friends.

Frog, a former knight from the Middle Ages. He had been Glenn, until a sorcerer had turned him into a frog. He had been a swordsman like Crono and showed the younger man the ways of the sword. Frog had always been polite and honorable, but had low confidence in himself. Crono wondered if he had become a knight again, or if he still lived in exile?

Robo, a robot from the Future that Lucca had repaired. After she had fixed him, Robo was found to have emotions. He had formed a close relationship with the inventor, as well with the other members of the group. He even fought with them when his own family of robots tried to kill his Human friends. However, the Future had been changed and there was a chance that Robo did not even exist anymore.

Ayla, the leader of her tribe from the Prehistoric time. She was a strong individual who had taken a quick liking to Crono. Though her vocabulary was limited and she didn't have worldly knowledge, she gave valuable advice to her friends. It was quite a surprise for Crono to learn that Ayla and her boyfriend Kino were Marle's ancestors. He often wondered how Ayla was getting on.

And than there was Magus, the brooding sorcerer from the Middle Ages. He had been Prince Janus from the Dark Ages, but Lavos had sent him to the Middle Ages. There, he became the Mystic leader, Magus. It had been very hard to accept, but he proved to be an invaluable assent. Though Crono never got along with the wizard, he sometimes wondered how he was. And if he found Schala.

Crono closed his eyes and thought back to 14 years ago. When he found a woman outside the castle with a child barely a year old. The child had been Brianne and the woman was her mother, an Enlighten One named Aurora. Aurora had died and had left Brianne to be raised at the castle. Both Crono and Marle couldn't help but think of her as their daughter. Crono had always wanted a son, while Marle wanted a daughter; and they had both Darien and Brianne.

Speaking of which...

"Oh good, I thought I'd miss breakfast."

Crono couldn't help but roll his eyes. He looked up and saw his son and adopted daughter sit down at the table. Darien grabbed several things, while Brianne just poured herself some orange juice. Marle smiled at her son.

"You know you'd never be able to miss any meal of the day," she said with a smile. She turned to Brianne. "Brianne, you really should eat something."

Brianne shrugged. "I'm not hungry."

Darien smirked; he knew how to get her to eat something. He picked up a plate of bacon and held them up to Brianne.

"How about some bacon?" he asked sweetly.

Brianne turned a sickly green as she smelled the meat in front of her. She reached for an apple, glaring at Darien the entire time. Crono tried to hide the grin on his face. Marle, however, frowned at her son. Darien looked at her with an air of innocence.

"What? I was just making sure she ate something," Darien commented. Crono covered his laugh with a fit of coughing, while Marle was trying to hold back a smile. Brianne simply smirked and threw her eaten apple at Darien's head.

Brianne was a vegetarian, but not in the normal sense. She couldn't eat meat of any sort, it made her extremely ill. Just the smell of it made her gag. She had tried meat once, just once, and she had been bedridden for two weeks.

"I only ate something so you'd get that meat away from my nose," Brianne retorted. She finished her drink and stood up. "If you're done, we should really get going."

"Yeah." Darien stuffed his last piece of toast into his mouth. "Let's go, before he thinks we've stood him up."

Marle smiled warmly. "Going to go see the inventor, are you?"

"Yeah," Darien replied. "He has a new invention he wanted to show us. And since his mom isn't home today, he thought it would be a good time."

"Remind me to tell Lucca that," Crono said with a laugh. His expression changed as he surveyed his son. "Be glad that you can still do stuff like this. You don't have to worry about the responsibility yet."

Darien nodded, his expression serious. "Yeah, I know Father. When the time comes, I'll take responsibility." The grin returned. "But in the meantime..."

He turned to Brianne, who was already standing by the door. "Let's go Bri." He nodded to his parents. "See ya guys later."

Brianne inclined her neck. "Crono. Marle. We'll be back later tonight." With that said, the two teenagers left.

Marle watched the two of them leave. She smiled mysteriously. "So, what do you think?"

Crono nodded. "You were right; they're starting to see each other as something other than brother and sister."

"Wonder when they'll finally see?" Marle mused.

Crono shrugged, grabbing another piece of toast. "Dunno, but I hope it's not too long. It's starting to drive me crazy."

Marle grinned and leaned over the table. "You poor dear," she said as she kissed him.

* * *

"Hey! Open up already! C'mon, you lazy ass, open up!" 

Darien glared at the door, urging it to open up. Brianne was standing behind him, trying to keep from laughing.

They were standing outside of a small house on the peninsula. While the size of the house was unimpressive, it was still a sight to see. There were dozens of strange contraptions situated on the roof. It was regular to see multi-coloured smoke coming from the windows, or to hear loud bangs emit from inside the building. It was obviously a house made for inventors.

Darien took a deep breath, than continued with the pounding.

"I'm warning you! Open this door right now, or I'll..." Just than, the door flew open and a boy stood there, wearing goggles over his eyes.

"For crying out loud Darien. I heard you, I just had to turn off the electromagnet. You really have to learn patience."

Darien growled as the boy removed his helmet and goggles. "Shut up, you little shrimp."

The boy rolled his eyes as he placed a pair of glasses on his face. "Yeah, yeah, heard it all before. Oh. Hi Brianne." He noticed Brianne and smiled.

Brianne returned the smile. "Hello Carlos."

Carlos was fairly short for a teenager of 15; he stood at Brianne's height. He had shoulder length purple hair and dark brown eyes. He wore a pair of metal glasses on his face. He was dressed in a simple red T-shirt and black pants. At his side was a small handgun.

"You're looking wonderful today," Carlos commented. Brianne blushed; she was wearing a black and blue blouse with a long black skirt.

"Thank you," she answered with a smile.

Darien rolled his eyes. "If you two are done, could we see this new invention you were raving about? And I'm telling you right now, neither of us are going to be used as test subjects this time."

Carlos grinned. "You don't have to worry, I've already tested it and it works perfectly. I just want to show you."

Darien allowed himself a sigh of relief. "Then let's go take look."

Carlos nodded and led Darien and Brianne into the depths of his house.

* * *

A/N: So there's the first chapter. Hope you liked it and the prologue. Read and review! 


	3. Inventions are Meant to Explode Or Somet...

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

Disclaimer: I said it before. I don't own CT, no matter how much I demand to.

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Chapter 2: Inventions are Meant to Explode... Or Something Else Bad

Light was all they could see. It was almost as though a star had been contained inside the room and was giving off enormous amounts of light. All they could do was blink, wondering how long it would take for them to go completely blind.

"Um, Carlos? Could you turn off a couple lights, if you don't mind?"

"Oh sorry..."

Sounds of switches being flipped were heard, until only one light was left on. Both Darien and Brianne rubbed their eyes, trying to remove the spots that were before them.

"That's better," Darien muttered, still furiously rubbing his eyes.

"I'll say," came Brianne's muttered reply.

"Sorry guys," Carlos apologized. "I was working on a new experiment and it was to be under extreme light when out in fresh air. I put it away, but I forget to turn the lights off."

"It's okay," Darien assured him. "Now let's see this new invention of yours."

Carlos grinned and led them to a small table. On it was a pyramid-shaped device. There were several buttons on the side. The pyramid itself was a gold colour.

Brianne looked at it and tried to look amazed. Darien just snorted.

"This thing? And what the hell is that thing supposed to do? A light or something?"

Carlos scowled at Darien. "This _thing_ as you call it was a portable teleportation device. Just punch in several co-ordinates and this little beauty can take you anywhere in the world." He patted the pyramid with longing.

Brianne peered at it in interest. "So how do you make sure you don't teleport into the middle of the ocean or something?"

"Not possible," came the reply. "I've marked out which co-ordinates aren't safe and inputted them into the teleporter. Even if you punch them in, the device won't take you there."

"So, this thing is ready anytime?" Darien questioned.

Carlos nodded. "Of course."

"Then let's go."

Carlos glanced around. "Yeah. Luckily, Mom isn't here, so it was the best time to do this. Let's hurry before..."

But at that moment, the door swung open. Carlos looked and his face paled.

"Mom!"

A purple haired woman stood there, carrying various objects in her arms. Sh was wearing a green shirt with a black vest and a pair of green shorts. On her face was a pair of huge glasses, almost magnifying her eyes to twice their size. Not as beautiful as some woman, but then again, a genius like Lucca didn't have to be.

Lucca grinned at her son. "What? Am I not allowed to come home early once in a while?"

"Um, no. I'm just surprised that you're home, that's all." As he said this, he tried to hide the pyramid from view. However, it was to no avail.

"What are you trying to hide? C'mon, let me see." Lucca snatched the pyramid from her son's grasp. She frowned as she examined it.

"You weren't going to use this, were you?" she inquired.

"Well, um, yes actually," Carlos stammered. "Why? Is something wrong?"

Lucca shook her head. "No. Did you test it already?"

Carlos nodded, his face beginning to turn red.

"It's all right, I suppose."

Carlos could hardly believe his ears. Lucca was smiling at her son. "Really?"

"Yes." Lucca suddenly grinned evilly. "If you go and get the groceries."

Carlos let out a groan, but grabbed the basket anyway. "You two stay here," he said to Darien and Brianne. With that, he headed out the door.

Lucca dropped the stuff on the floor with a loud thump. She turned her attention to the two teenagers. "So what have you two been up to lately? I've haven't seen you in a couple weeks."

"Eh, not much. Learning politics and economy. You know, all that crap that royalty has to learn," Darien replied as he wandered around the room. It was a habit of his that he did when he was bored.

"Learning new spells," Brianne said with a smile. "After all, what kind of Mystic would I be if I didn't have magic?"

Lucca rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway. "And what spell would that be?"

/Mental telepathy./

Lucca gasped aloud and looked around. She looked at the young Mystic. There was a mischievous grin on her face.

"And for future reference," Brianne stated. "That is type of magic is classified as a technique, not a spell."

Lucca just gaped at her like a fish. She shook her head, trying to regain her composure.

"Okay..."

A burst of laugher distracted the two females as they searched for the source. Darien was in a corner of the room looking at a large sheet of paper. His face was a picture of ill concealed glee. He was looking intently on whatever was on that paper. Brianne, now very curious, walked over and glanced at the paper. Her eyes widened and she gave Lucca a strange look. Now Lucca was confused.

"Okay, what are you two looking at?" She didn't have to wait long; Darien turned the paper for her to see. Lucca felt her cheeks become warm. It was a picture of Frog.

It was very well drawn, capturing every detail of the amphibian knight. His large yellow eyes, his shiny green skin, the clothes he would always wear. Even the Masamune, the legendary sword that was his.

"This is good Lucca," Brianne complimented. She herself was an artist and knew good art.

"Yeah, well," Lucca coughed. She snatched the paper from Darien and stuffed it into her vest.

Darien smirked. "Have a crush on the frog knight?"

Instead of blushing or glaring at Darien, she got a dreamy expression on her face. She looked out one of the windows. She sighed happily.

"He was so very polite to me. Such a gentleman. When we first met, he was such a dear to me; even thought I was horrible to him."

Brianne and Darien exchanged looks. "I'll take that as a yes?" Darien responded.

Lucca turned to the two. "I want to see him and see how he is. Maybe even..." She looked away, ashamed. "That's not right though. I mean, I have son and I'm married."

"Were," Brianne corrected. "I don't think your husband would want you to be lonely."

Lucca's husband had died in an accident when Carlos was nine. She had grieved for a while, but still continued to work with machines; even though they did kill her husband.

Lucca still didn't look convinced. "It still seems wrong. Falling in love with someone else. I feel like I'm betraying Paul by loving Glenn."

Darien looked confused. "Glenn?"

"Frog's real name," Brianne explained.

"Oh." He turned to Lucca. "Well, you shouldn't feel guilty. You're not cheating on Paul or anything. Lots of people find new love after their spouse dies. And Brianne's right; he wouldn't want you to alone and unhappy."

Lucca just sighed. She looked at the two teenagers before her. She offered a little smile.

"That may be true," she admitted. "But who says he wants me there? He could have found a way to become Human. He could be married, have a wife, have kids. I mean, he has a life of his own." She now looked throughly depressed. Neither Darien or Brianne knew what to do.

Luckily, Carlos came back that very moment. He put the fruit and vegetables on the table. "Groceries are done. Now can I show them the teleportation device?"

Lucca gave a quick, fake smile. "Of course Carlos. I'll be downstairs if you need me." Before anyone could say a thing, she made a run for the stairs. Carlos shook his head sadly.

"She's been talking about Glenn again, hasn't she?"

"You knew?" Darien inquired.

"Yeah." Carlos sighed unhappily. "I've gotten good at telling when she thinks about him. I haven't said anything to her about it though."

"Would you mind if you're mom was with someone else?" Brianne questioned him.

Carlos shrugged. "If it makes her happy, no." He grinned a little. "Besides, from everything I've heard about him, he sounds great. And... He could always show me how to be knight." Carlos loved inventions, but there was something about being a knight that was intriguing.

Darien laughed. "Well, you'll have to talk to your mom about that. Now." He grinned. "Are we going to stand here all day? Or are we going to be doing some teleporting?"

Carlos grinned happily. "Definitely teleporting. C'mon, lets head to the backyard."

* * *

Darien and Brianne looked on anxiously as Carlos muttered to himself about procedure. He was pacing back and forth, the small device clutched in his arms.

"At least it's nice out," Darien remarked. "If it was raining, I'd say do it another day."

Carlos stopped pacing. He ran a nervous hand through his hair.

"Okay, it goes like this: You two have to make physical contact with me, or you won't teleport. I'll key in the coordinates. Do not let go of me for any reason whatsoever. Got it?"

Both of them nodded. "Just asking. Where are we going?" Brianne inquired.

"Choras," Carlos responded. "There's a type of metal there I've been wanting to get my hands on. The food's supposed to be good as well."

"Good thing I brought some money with me," Darien murmured to Brianne; Brianne grinned.

Carlos sighed. "Okay, you guys ready?"

Two nods and two hands on his shoulders were the response. Carlos punched several buttons and waited. The golden colour brightened and shone like the Sun. The light grew with such intensity, until it reached a peak. It just shone extremely bright after that.

Darien looked around and frowned. They were still in Truce. "Hey Carlos. Why are we still here?"

Carlos frowned. He looked around as well. "This isn't right," he muttered, worry deep in his voice. "We should have teleported already." His gaze drifted to the ground. "Something's wr..." His face turned white as he stared at the ground. Darien and Brianne looked down as well. They too paled considerably.

A blue hole with black swirls was underneath them. If that wasn't scary enough, all three of them were slowly sinking into the pit.

"What's going on?" Brianne cried, gripping Carlos' shoulder harder.

"I... I don't know," Carlos gasped. "I've never seen this before in my life." He started to shake. "This isn't supposed to happen! Something's wrong, we have to move!"

To everyone's great horror, they couldn't move. They just continued to sink deeper.

Darien's tried to think. He remembered hearing about something like this, but he couldn't grasp it.

_Blue portal, blue portal... Father mentioned a blue portal before, but when? And what did he mean? Blue portal, blue portal... Oh crap..._

"A Gate!" he screamed. "It's a Time Gate! We're in a Time Gate!"

Carlos bit his lip to keep from screaming as he fiddled with the device, hoping to fix the situation. The device, however, was unresponsive.

"It isn't working!" Carlos wailed. "It won't turn off!"

"What are we supposed to do!" Brianne shrieked. In a fit of panic, she let go of Carlos. Darien saw this and made a grab for her. To his alarm, his passed right through her, and second later, she vanished altogether. Carlos and Darien weren't far behind. Darien screamed out one word before he had completely disappeared.

"BRIANNE!"

* * *

A/N: Ooh, a cliffhanger! What era do you think they'll end up in? Read and review! 


	4. Not Quite a New World

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

Disclaimer: Six words. I... Do... Not... Own... Chrono... Trigger...

* * *

Chapter 3: Not Quite a New World

Wind was the first thing that she heard. A powerful gust that had come from the north swooped down toward her, touching her skin. This wind did not have much warmth, only a bitter chill to it.

Brianne pushed herself off the ground, her eyes opening. The first thing she saw a large black castle looming in the distance. She blinked, hoping that she was dreaming, or hallucinating. There was only one castle in the world, and that was Guardia Castle; and it certainly wasn't black.

_Where... Where am I? This isn't home. Did we teleport?_ _Or did we..._

She remembered what Darien had screamed before she had disappeared. A time gate, which meant that she was in a different era.

_But which era?_

She stood up, suddenly scared. "Darien? Carlos?" She walked a few paces, her head lashing from side to side. "DARIEN! CARLOS!" She slumped against the ground, head in her hands.

"I'm all alone," she whispered to herself. "What do I do? Where do I go?"

She looked up and saw the black castle. Dark and foreboding, though it was, it was the only place she could go to.

"Might as well," she decided. "There's nowhere else to go."

That decided, she started off to the castle.

* * *

A far distance away, in a canyon north of a village, two young boys were waking up. One with spiky blonde hair, the other with long purple hair. 

Darien got off the ground, wincing slightly. "Ow, that hurt." He turned to his friend, who was still on his stomach. "Hey Carlos! What the hell happened?"

No response; Carlos was still unconscious. Darien snorted slightly and nudged Carlos with his foot.

"C'mon Carlos, get up. You got us into this, you will get us out."

Carlos groaned and raised his head slightly. "Huh? What? Where are we?"

"Not where, it's when," Darien corrected. "And I was hoping you'd know that."

"No idea." Carlos got off the ground, looking around. "More importantly, where's Brianne?"

Darien's eyes widened. "Brianne?" His head whipped around. "Brianne! Where are you?" He went off into the bushes, knocking them aside. "This isn't funny Brianne! Brianne!"

He sank to his knees, staring up at the sky. "Brianne. Where are you? Why aren't you here? What happened to you?" He continued staring up, wishing he knew what happened.

He was worried about her. She was his sister; maybe not in reality, but he cared about her. Maybe even more than he thought...

"Darien?" Carlos pushed his way through a bush. He peered at his friend. "Did you find Brianne?"

Darien looked at his friend, his throat tightening. He shook his head slowly. "Where is she? Why isn't she here?"

Carlos shrugged. "I don't know. But she let go of me, remember? She could be anywhere."

Darien's skin paled. "Anywhere?"

Carlos noticed his friends expression get worse. "She's probably not that far away," he reassured hastily. "Most likely, she's in the village."

"Yeah," Darien agreed. "You're right. C'mon, lets go." He gestured to the path leading to the village. He managed a weak smile. "Brianne was never one to wait."

* * *

Brianne shivered slightly; it was getting cold outside. She glanced up and noticed the castle was closer now. She sighed in relief. Hopefully, the people there would take pity on her and let her stay. Or if it was empty, all the better. 

She rubbed her arms, trying to restore the warmth to them. She couldn't recall a day in summer that had been this cold, but that was in her time.

The sound of rustling made Brianne stop in her tracks. She looked around, trying to place where the sound was coming from. She pushed through part of the bush she was wandering through. As she pushed a branch away from her, she stopped and stared.

A young man was standing by the bush in a clearing, swinging a sword around. From what Brianne knew, he looked to be quite good with it. She stepped closer, hoping to get a better look.

From close up, she realized that he was not a man; not a Human man at least. His skin was a dark purple and devoid of any hair, including his head. From the looks of it, he was quite tall as well. He was wearing a simple black shirt with black pants. Brianne wondered what colour eyes he had; she was still too far away. He wasn't extremely good looking or anything, but there was something about him that intrigued her. After all, she had never seen another Mystic before in her life.

She cleared her throat. "You're really good."

The Mystic stopped and stared at her in surprise. His eyes narrowed slightly as he observed her. She could now see that his eyes were pitch black. Brianne could feel herself beginning to sweat, this was not good.

"Um, sorry. Didn't mean to disturb you," Brianne uttered. She smiled at him and approached him, hoping to make a good impression.

Obviously, it didn't work too well. The Mystic still glared at Brianne. "Who are you?" he demanded. His voice was quiet, but still harsh; and his mouth was filled with sharp teeth.

Brianne's smile faltered. _This isn't going well._

"My name is Brianne," she replied. His expression changed slightly. Instead of viewing Brianne with hostility, he looked at her with suspicion.

"I've never seen you here before, and I know all the Eto Mystics here," he said, approaching her.

Brianne wondered briefly what Eto meant, but that wasn't important. She could always tell him that she wasn't from this time, but the chances of him believing her weren't good at all. She glanced at him. He was standing not that far from her now. Now that he was up close, she could see just how tall he was, completely towering over her. He was still glaring slightly. She had the feeling that he wouldn't believe any story she could come up with. She sighed; time to get this over with.

"I'm not from this era. My friends and I had an accident and we warped to this time period." She rubbed her face. "And I have no idea where I am, or what time period this is, and I have no idea how to get home."

She expected him to laugh at her, or grow angry and kill her. What happened surprised her; he smiled. The air of suspicion was gone. Brianne sighed in relief.

"Well, that would explain it," he responded. He laughed at the astonished look Brianne was giving. "My friend's mother is from another era."

"Oh." Brianne looked around, a little uncomfortable. She wasn't used to talking to other people, especially not men her own age. "Um, if you don't mind me asking: who are you, and what time am I in?"

"Oh, forgive me," he said with a smile. He bowed to her. "I am Prince Slade, and this is the year 618 AD."

There was an intake of breath. "Wow," Brianne breathed. "400 years."

Slade grinned slightly. "So what era are you from? I've wondered what Mystics have been like, or what they will be like."

Brianne swallowed nervously. "Um, well, I'm from 1018 AD, but I've never seen another Mystic before; I was raised by Humans." She closed her eyes quickly, willing herself not to scream when the pain hit. She opened one eye and was slightly surprised to see him standing there. He was looking at her with an almost pitying look, and she swore she heard him mutter, "Poor girl."

"That's too bad," he commented. He tilted his head slightly. "I wouldn't make a Mystic live with a Human for any reason. So..." He grinned again. "Which Humans do you live with? Anyone I might know?" He snorted at his comment.

Brianne opened her mouth to respond, but she remembered something she had heard a long time ago. Crono had been telling her, Darien and Carlos about his adventures; and one of them had to deal with fighting Mystics in the Middle Ages. Four Mystics to be exact, one of which that was extremely tall, had blue skin, no hair and wielded a katana with great proficiency. A Mystic who looked exactly like Slade, but with a different name. Brianne looked at the young prince, her eyes slightly bigger.

Slade noticed the strange look he was getting. "Something wrong?"

"I'm dead," was the response. Slade blinked.

"Why do you say that?" he said curiously.

Brianne backed up, making a sound that sounded like a whimper. "You're going to kill me when I tell you who raised me."

Slade just stared at Brianne. He didn't know why, but he felt worried about her. "Why do you say that," he said as gently as he could. "Why would I? I won't, just tell me."

Brianne twisted her hands, glancing up at him. "... Crono and Marle."

Slade's mouth opened slightly. Brianne looked frightened and backed up. Again, she was expecting him to be angry and hurt her. What he did next shocked her; he shook his head and he looked quite sorry for her. He laid a hand on her shoulder and squeezed it gently. Brianne went numb; no one had touched her like that before.

"I pity you," he said with complete sincerity. "I really do. What Mystic would leave their daughter to be raised by Humans? Especially Humans like that? Only **he** would do that..." Slade's eyes narrowed and Brianne could see anger and hate in their deep depths. It passed though and Slade was looking at her with kind eyes.

Brianne felt the need to defend her adopted parents; after all, they did raise her. "They aren't that bad," she protested. "They were very kind to me and raised me like I was their daughter."

Slade looked doubtful, but let it go. "Anyway," he exclaimed. "You have nowhere to go and there's no way I'd turn you away. So why don't we go up to the castle and get you settled in. You could be here a while."

She didn't like the sound of that, but smiled nonetheless. "Sounds lovely."

Slade offered his arm with a smile. "Shall we?"

Brianne grinned and took it. "Of course, Your Majesty."

He began leading her up to the castle. He looked at her and had to resist the urge to give her another gentle squeeze.

"Don't call me Your Majesty."

* * *

"It looks a lot like Truce Village, but something's different..." 

Darien looked to Carlos, then to the village. There were quite a few houses that hadn't been built yet, and there were many he had never seen before; but Carlos was right, it did look like Truce.

"A good thing?" he suggested. "Maybe we haven't gone that far in time."

Carlos shrugged. "If I had to make an educated guess, I'd say we're in the Middle Ages; looks too much like our time, but with differences."

Darien smiled, despite feeling uneasy, "Talk about strange, your mom was talking about Frog before we left."

Carlos chuckled a little. "Yeah, a little weird I guess."

They both fell silent as they looked around them. There weren't many people out. A few women were buying food at an outdoor market, and a few people were mulling around. For mid afternoon, it was unusually quiet.

"So where should we go?" Carlos said at last.

Darien didn't answer at first. He looked around again. There was an outdoor market, a shop that sold tonic and other medicines, and a...

"Weapon shop," Darien replied.

"Huh?" Carlos looked around. "Where? Why?"

"There," Darien replied, pointing to a building with a sign shaped like sword hanging from it. "And because I need a weapon. Don't know what we could be facing here. Want to be prepared just in case."

"You worry too much," Carlos muttered, but followed him anyway. Darien pushed the door open and gestured for Carlos to follow; Carlos just shook his head and stood with his back against the building. Darien shrugged and entered by himself.

The shop was small, but full to the brim with weapons and armor. Breastplates and full sets of armor hung on the ceiling and off the walls. Numerous weapons were on tables, some quite plain, while others were exquisite.

Darien found himself drawn toward the spears. He picked up a simple one and examined it.

"Ah, welcome."

Darien turned to the shopkeeper, still clutching the spear. He nodded politely.

"I'm looking for a spear. Not an expensive one, but one that won't break on me."

The shopkeeper smiled. "I know just the one." He went to back of the store, returning shortly with one. It was fairly long, with a bright blade and golden brown handle. There were several markings on the handle as well.

"A fairly simple weapon, but it is well made and will do you well," the owner explained. "Yours for only 100 gold."

Darien dug into his pouch and extracted the correct amount of coins. He handed it to the shopkeeper and took his new weapon. The shopkeeper looked at Darien, but Darien was busy studying the spear. It was light and very easy to use. It would do.

"Excuse me sir. Have we met?"

Darien looked at the shopkeeper, resisting the urge to grin. _Don't think so, never been to this time before._

Instead, he said, "Sorry, but I don't think so."

"I'm sure you're right," the owner nodded. He smiled suddenly. "I know. You look like that young lad who fought for the kingdom nearly a decade before. He and the Legendary Hero fought against the Mystics and won. Because of them, we live in peace."

Darien had to bite back the laugh. The shopkeeper didn't know how close he was to being correct.

"I'll that as a compliment."

Meanwhile, Carlos was standing outside the shop, fiddling with the teleporter. He sighed sadly. Something was wrong with the power supply, but he didn't know what. They couldn't return until he figured out the problem and fixed it; nor until they found Brianne.

"Interesting little thing you've got there."

Carlos looked up from his invention. A tall, somewhat muscular, boy was smiling at him. He was wearing clothes of green and silver; silver pants with a silver shirt with green patterns. A large broadsword was at his side. He had bright blue eyes, and dark brown hair streaked with green.

Carlos stared a while before looking back at the pyramid. "Yeah, but the thing's busted."

The boy tilted his head. "Can't you fix it?"

Carlos shook his head. "I wish I could, but I don't even know what's wrong with it."

"Too bad," the boy replied. "I'm Michael, by the way."

Carlos smiled. He liked this guy, he was polite and actually seemed a little interested in the pyramid. "I'm Carlos."

"If I may?" Michael said, pointing to the teleporter.

Carlos handed it over and Michael looked it over. Several moments of silence insured as he examined it.

"Do you know what's wrong?" Carlos blurted out.

Michael looked up. He grinned sheepishly and handed it back. "No idea. I don't even know what it is. I'm interested in stuff like this, but I never have time to learn how to fix them."

Carlos beamed. So he was interested in inventions, but before he could ask him questions, Michael started talking again.

"I've never seen you here before. Are you from one of the southern villages or something?"

Carlos gulped nervously. "N-no, not really," he stammered. "I'm from a far off place." _Wow, does that sound corny._

"Hmm..." Michael didn't comment on it. "If you need any help, feel free to drop by my house. It's the manor on the edge of the woods." He gave a slight wave and set off in said direction. Carlos stared after him, like he was missing something important. He didn't even notice Darien poking him in the shoulder.

"Hey Carlos, you okay? Was something there?" Darien looked at the spot where Carlos was looking.

Carlos snapped out of his trance. "I'm fine, but we really should go to the inn now."

Darien nodded. "Yeah, and who knows. Brianne might be there."

Carlos smiled suddenly. "And tomorrow, I think we might have help." He started down the path to the inn.

Darien stared at him, confused. _Huh? Now what does he mean by that?_

* * *

A/N: Well, really hoped you liked that. A little bit longer, but not by much. Don't forget to review now. 


	5. Getting Settled In

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

Disclaimer: I do not own Chrono Trigger. Only my characters, and only my characters.

* * *

Chapter 4: Getting Settled In

The coldness hung all around them. It was a constant guest in the chamber. Though it was always cold, it did not once touch the two new arrivals. A strange thing to happen, but not an unpleasant one in the slightest.

Brianne looked around at her surroundings. Numerous torches lit the otherwise dark chamber, adding a bit of brightness to it. Doors all over the wall led to places that led to different rooms. And a huge staircase that led to the upper floors of the castle.

"It's... different," she said at last.

Slade stood close behind her, watching her reaction to all this.

"I mean, it's so huge, I hope I don't get lost," she elaborated.

"Someone will guide you around," Slade assured her. "It's not that big once you get used to it."

Brianne chewed on her lip. The way Slade talked, it sounded like she would never get home.

"How... How long do you think I'll be here for?" she asked, almost whispering it.

Slade shook his head. "I don't know. For all I know, you're friends might not even be in this time. Right now, there's little chance of you finding a way home. Most likely, you'll never get back to your time."

Brianne closed her eyes, desperately trying to keep the tears from falling. In a softer tone, she heard Slade say, "It's not so bad here. Give it time, and you'll feel more at home here."

Brianne smiled feebly. She highly doubted that, but didn't want to hurt his feelings.

"So, where are we off to?" Brianne asked.

"My parents," came the reply. "They have to know that we have a guest."

It made sense. As they made their way up the stairs, a slight commotion caught their attention. Sounds of shouting and glass breaking could be heard from one of the side rooms. A moment later, a young girl threw open a door, screaming, "I'm warning you, you bastard! If you even look at another girl, I'll..." She stopped at the sight of Slade, who looked like he was trying not to laugh.

"Slade!" she screamed. "Do something about that so called friend of yours, before I strangle him!"

"Not my problem, sorry!" he yelled back.

The young girl was fairly short, like Brianne. She was wearing an exquisite pink dress, with purple sleeves and purple trim on the hem of her skirt. The skirt came just above her knees. Her hair was a near rainbow, having nearly every color imaginable. Her eyes were a dark violet colour. And, of course, pointed ears.

The strange girl approached the pair, scowl on her face. "Do you know what he did?"

"Yes, but you'll tell me again anyway," Slade replied, sounding as though this conversation had happened many times before.

The girl scowled harder. "That jerk, he..." Sudden realization appeared on her face as she spotted Brianne. The expression changed just as quickly as she looked like a little kid at Christmas.

"Whose this?" she exclaimed, a grin on her face. Brianne was taken aback by how quickly this girl's mood could change.

"This is Brianne," he introduced. "Brianne, this charming person is Selena."

Selena stuck her tongue out at Slade and giggled. "You make me sound terrible." She turned to Brianne. "Hi!"

"Um, hello," Brianne said hesitantly. She wasn't sure what else to say to Selena.

Selena noticed the strange expression on Brianne's face. "Oh, I'm usually in a good mood, but some people just rub me wrong." She gestured to the room she came from.

Slightly intrigued, Brianne leaned forward. "Whose in there?"

"My idiot boyfriend."

"Boyfriend?" Brianne asked.

"Yeah," Selena frowned. "He is without a doubt, the biggest pervert you will ever meet. Any girl he comes across is his type. And he flirts with all of them."

Brianne looked at her in disbelief. "If he's really like that, why are you still with him?"

Selena shrugged unhappily. "Because there's no one else here that is any good."

Brianne's eyes strayed towards Slade. She didn't think he was so bad. Not extremely handsome, but he wasn't bad looking either; and he seemed nice enough. Selena saw what Brianne was looking at and laughed.

"Whose not related to me," she corrected. "Slade's my cousin."

Brianne grinned a little. Selena's eyes gleamed oddly as she looked between Slade and Brianne. Just than, a voice yelled, "Selena! For your information, I was not flirting with her! She just... Hello! Whose this?"

Before Brianne knew what was happening, someone's arm was thrown around her shoulders. Her mouth dropped and her face was scarlet. If she wasn't so surprised, she would have hit whoever was holding her. She turned her head to see who would dare touch her like that.

It was a Mystic male, looking to be about the same age as her. He didn't tower over her like Slade did, but he was still tall. His skin was an bright emerald colour, almost looking like it could reflect light. His eyes were just as bright, only they were red; almost ruby in colour. His mouth was pulled back in a smirk-like grin, showing his fangs. He was wearing an assortment of black and red clothes over his fairly muscular body. A long green tail was moving periodically.

The Mystic pulled Brianne closer. "So my dear, what's a girl like you doing here?"

Brianne turned to face him, looked at his face and slapped him before retreating behind Slade. Slade's eyes flashed with anger.

"Ozzie, stop flirting with every girl you come across. Especially since you're going out with my cousin. And especially since she's standing behind you."

Ozzie's grin faltered as he looked behind him. Selena was shaking with rage.

"You... You..." she spluttered, not being able to speak.

Ozzie tried to say something, but not before Selena gave him an uppercut. Not enough to hurt him greatly, but enough to send him sprawling on the floor.

Selena smirked over her boyfriend. Ozzie looked at her and muttered something that sounded like "Just kidding."

"Hmm?" Selena purred, her smirk widening. "Did you say something?"

"No," Ozzie muttered. He pulled himself off the ground. He faced Brianne, who was still hiding behind Slade.

"Sorry," he said to her. He turned to Selena. "Sorry."

Selena smiled again and wrapped her arms around him. Brianne just shook her head. _These people are really strange._

Ozzie untangled himself from his girlfriend and gestured to Brianne. "So, really, who is she?"

"This is Brianne," Slade replied. "She's actually from the future, but she had an accident and ended up here." He smiled at Brianne, who was looking at the floor.

Ozzie looked at her differently. Almost as if he remembered her from somewhere. Selena just looked delighted.

"Ooh," she exclaimed. "So, who are you parents? Do you think they might be our descendants?"

Brianne looked at them before shaking her head slowly. "I don't know. My parents died when I was really young. My mother died after giving me to the people who raised me, and I have no idea who my father is."

"And if that wasn't bad enough," Slade interrupted. "She was raised by Humans."

Ozzie looked disgusted at the news. Selena wrinkled her nose slightly. "Ew," she expressed. "You can't get much worse than that."

"Oh no?" Slade placed a hand on Brianne's shoulder. "The Humans happen to include the spiky haired moron that defeated us all those years ago: Crono."

The expression on their faces worsened. Brianne was reminded of how Slade's looked after she told him: loathing and anger. Fortunately, the looks passed. Ozzie shook his head dejectedly. Selena walked up to Brianne and flung her arms around her. Brianne, too shocked to do a thing, just stood there.

"You poor thing," Selena consoled. "Having to live with those... things. It's a good thing you ended up in this time." She released Brianne and smiled. Brianne just stared back, too numb to make any facial expression.

"So you're going to see your parents?" Ozzie guessed.

Slade nodded. "Yes. Do you know where they might be? I think I might know, but I'm not too sure."

"As a matter a fact, I do," Ozzie said grinning. "They're in the study with Father and Mother, discussing some sort of new law, or something."

"Well, lead the way."

Ozzie gestured to Selena and wrapped his arm around her as they headed up the stairs. Before Slade could move, however, Brianne grabbed his arm. Her eyes were blazing.

"Why did you..."

"Because I couldn't very well lie to them," Slade stated, matter-a-factly. "The people here need to know that you lived with Humans, so they don't think it's odd that you don't know many things about your own kind."

Brianne didn't look convinced. Slade sighed. "Anyway," he continued in a softer voice, "You shouldn't have had to live with them. We hate those particular Humans, but that doesn't make it your fault."

Brianne stared at him for a moment before releasing his arm.

"They might not hate me," Brianne said bitterly. "But your parents will. They'll see me as a traitor to our kind."

"No, they won't," Slade said firmly. "You weren't raised by Humans by choice. They won't hate you for it."

He smiled a little. "We should go. They'll be waiting for us."

Brianne looked at him. He was right, and she would have to start getting used to the fact that most Mystics hated Humans. With a tiny sigh, she followed behind.

* * *

Stale air and the smell of alcohol was the first thing he noticed when he entered the inn. He glanced over at the bar. Quite a few men and women were there, each drinking various liquids, and talking in loud voices. All of this barely fazed him.

"Not as bad as I though it would be," Carlos commented, his nose wrinkling slightly. "But still..."

Darien didn't say anything. He merely walked up to the innkeeper to inquire about a room. Carlos stared at him. He had been acting strange ever since they had arrived here. Even more so as they headed toward this inn. He had not said a word to his friend, no matter how many times Carlos tried to talk to him.

Carlos looked around the combination inn and bar. _Maybe we can get help here?_

"Aren't you a little young to be here?"

A barmaid carrying drinks was looking at him funny. Carlos tried hard not to blush.

"Inn," he said quietly.

The woman nodded and walked off to serve some customers. Carlos looked nervously around. Where had Darien got himself to?

Fortunately, Darien came back not too long after. He had a strange look on his face.

"The room on the end is free," he said gesturing to stairs.

Carlos nodded. "Good. This place is starting to unnerve me and... Where are you going?" Darien had started heading toward the bar section.

"What's it look like? It's still too early to sleep," Darien replied irritably. "You can go if you want; I'm not stopping you."

Carlos sighed and followed after. He couldn't leave Darien alone, not in a place like this. Even with all the people in the bar, Darien was able to find them a table. Darien left to get drinks, while Carlos sat there, looking extremely nervous. People were looking at him strange looks before returning to their conversations.

One day already and Carlos was beginning to worry about Darien's sanity. Worrying about Brianne was part of it, but that couldn't be all. Carlos was worried too, but he wasn't acting anymore different than usual, though that wasn't saying much.

Darien came back with their drinks. Carlos was glad to see that Darien had brought him water, But Darien...

"Um, what is that?" Carlos pointed at the tankard of yellowish-brown liquid in Darien's hands.

"Ale," he grunted as took a swig.

"Darien, how the heck were you able to get that?"

"Easy," came the reply. "I asked and the barkeep gave it to me. They're much more lax on stuff than in our age. You couldn't do something like this in our time."

"With good reason," Carlos muttered to himself. Aloud he said, "You really shouldn't, you know."

Darien didn't reply, just took another swig of ale. Carlos just watched him as he sipped his water. This wasn't good. With a sigh, he put the glass onto the table.

"Darien, what's wrong?" Carlos asked suddenly. "You've been acting strange since we got here."

Darien glared at his friend. "I wonder... Maybe because Brianne isn't here?" He took a longer drink.

"It's not just you," Carlos snapped. "I'm worried about her too, but I'm not drinking."

Darien looked away. He instead focused his attention on a couple of patrons talking away animatedly. He turned back, lifting the ale to his lips.

"I'm just really worried about her."

Carlos frowned in concentration. That wasn't the only thing; it couldn't be. He kept saying he was worried about Brianne. Worried about the girl he teased, made fun of, picked on; but protected, cared for and loved...

Carlos' eyes widened in realization. "You like Brianne, don't you?"

"Well, duh. Of course I do," Darien sneered slightly. "She's my adoptive sister, and my friend."

"Not like that," Carlos replied quickly. "I mean, you _like _her."

Darien's face flushed slightly, but he didn't say anything. He looked at Carlos' now triumphant face. He sighed as he pushed his drink away.

"Yeah I like her. I have for a while, but never really knew. Not until we came here and she was... missing..." Darien's throat began to tighten.

Carlos' grin slid off his face. "We'll find her," he said seriously. "No matter what; we'll find her."

Darien nodded. More to stop the wave of grief threatening to overwhelm him, he asked. "So, what about help? You said that tomorrow we were going to get help."

"Oh right. I ran into guy our age while you were in the weapon shop. He said if we needed help, we could visit him."

Darien frowned. "Are you sure that's a good idea? I mean, we don't know anyone here, and no one is going to believe our story, not without thinking we're nuts."

Carlos looked a little put down. "It was just a suggestion," he said quietly. "Besides, it's not like we have anything else."

"You're right," Darien admitted. "Might as well try." He got to his feet. "C'mon, lets get some sleep."

Carlos gestured to Darien's unfinished drink. "Don't you want to finish that?"

Darien shook his head. "Nah. Anyway, you were right: I shouldn't be drinking."

As the headed up the stairs to the room, Darien stopped and looked down. Things had gone so terribly wrong, and he had no idea how to fix anything. He didn't know how to get back to their own time, and he didn't know where Brianne was.

"Hey Darien?"

Carlos was standing on the landing, looking concerned. Darien shook his head and forced a weak grin. "We'll fix things, won't we?"

Carlos hesitated, but nodded. "Of course we will." However, he too wasn't sure how they would such a thing.


	6. Shocking Truths

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 5: Shocking Truths

Fear is a like a little worm that will eat a hole through you if you leave it unattended. The only way to deal with fear was to face it. At times, though, it was not an easy thing to do. At this moment, Brianne was finding that out.

She and Slade were standing in front of a large door. Slade's hand was poised just above of the handle.

"You'll be fine," Slade assured her. Brianne shook her head.

"I was raised by Crono and Marle. I was friends with Humans my age. They'll remember Crono and hate me for it."

"No they won't. Let's go already."

Brianne had to resist the urge to grab onto Slade's arm, so she settled for nodding instead. The door opened and Brianne stepped in, shaking every step.

It was supposed to be a study, according to Slade, but to Brianne it looked more like a library. Rows and rows of books filled the room. She couldn't see what each book was about, but she could guess that there was enough to cover any subject. Right in the middle of the room was a large round table, various books and papers scattered on it. Around it were six people. Two of them, Ozzie and Selena, were standing, smiling at the two near at the door. The other four were sitting, also looking at them, though mostly at Brianne. The two male Mystics were eyeing her critically, but Brianne could see one of them smiling slightly. The two females were merely looking at her, almost like she was a puzzle that had to be solved.

Brianne could easily tell who Slade and Ozzie's individual parent's were. Well, the fathers at least. As Brianne had guessed, Slade was almost an exact duplicate of his father, who Brianne remembered was named Slash. The only real difference was the skin color, where Slash's was blue instead of Slade's purple. It surprised her, however, to see that Slash didn't look that much older than his son. In fact, Brianne could easily mistake them for brothers. The eyes, however, held much more knowledge than Slade's, showing that Slash was indeed the older one. Ozzie's father, who was named the same, was exact. She almost bet that there wasn't a difference in height or weight. This confused Brianne; she remembered Crono telling her that the elder Ozzie was short and extremely fat. She wondered for the first time if Crono lied about them. The older Ozzie was the one who was smiling at her, almost like he recognized her.

Who their mother's were was a little bit more difficult; but by the way Selena looked similar to the red haired woman, she guessed that she was Slade's mother and Selena's aunt. Brianne could not see any resemblance between her and her son. She also guessed that this was Flea, if Crono's story was true. Again, Brianne was amazed at how young she looked. She certainly looked a lot younger than Brianne would have thought. The other woman Brianne didn't recognize from Crono's tales about the Mystics. For a minute as Brianne looked at her, she didn't seem to be a Mystic at all, what with the non-pointed ears. From what Brianne could recall, she was probably an Enlighten One, what with the blue hair and pale complexion.

/I heard the older Ozzie was extremely fat. I guess I was misinformed./ She was glad that she had taken the time to learn that spell. At least this way she could ask Slade questions and not let anyone else hear her.

Slade smirked slightly. /No, you weren't misinformed. He really was that fat, or at least that's what my parent's told me. His lovely wife used a spell that caused him to become taller and much more fit./

Brianne bit her lip to stop from laughing. She didn't think it would be appropriate to.

"So this is Brianne, is it?"

Brianne turned to Flea; she didn't know whether she should bow or simply nod her head. Luckily, Slade answered for her.

"Yes, this is her."

Flea studied her a moment before continuing. "You were raised 400 years in the future by the Human Crono?"

This time Brianne nodded, her cheeks burning. She could already feel them judging her. When she looked at the four of them, she noticed all three Mystics were giving her pitying looks. The Enlighten One smiled brightly. Brianne hoped that was good thing.

"Not her choice," Slade injected.

Both Slash and Flea gave their son a look before turning their attention back to Brianne. She, however, was greatful for Slade's interruption. The tension in the air seemed to break.

Slash snorted slightly. "A good thing that you came to this time than." Selena snickered at that, only having uttered that a few moments before.

The Enlighten One frowned at Slash. "That isn't very nice Slash. I remember him from when he was younger. He was quite gentle and polite. I always hoped that he had survived Lavos' attack."

Brianne looked startled to hear that. She had of course heard that Crono had died and was brought back to life, but she didn't think any of them knew. Did that mean she had been there?

Slash simply rolled his eyes, while Flea covered a smile with her hand. Ozzie shook his head slightly. "How you remember him and how we remember him are two different thing, my dear. You try being on the receiving end of his attacks and have good memories of him."

All of the Mystics except for Brianne snickered at that. Brianne cleared her throat slightly.

"Excuse me, but did you actually see that? I didn't think anyone really knew about that," Brianne said quietly. The Enlighten One smiled.

"Yes, I was there actually. I don't know if he had mentioned me, but my name is Schala."

Brianne's eyes widened and she nodded vigorously. Of course she had heard about Schala. Being the sister of one of the seven warriors was not something that Crono or Marle would leave out. Especially when she had been told more than once that she looked a lot like her.

/Keep that up and you're head will fall off./

Brianne resisted the urge to turn and glare at Slade. The four adults all had similar looks of amusement on. Brianne smiled, feeling that she wouldn't have anymore problems.

Schala stood and walked up to Brianne, examining her. Again, she saw the look of familiarity was in someone's eyes.

"If I may ask, who were your parents? Do you remember them at all?"

Brianne shook her head slowly. "I was too young when it happened. My mother died giving me to Crono and they never found out who my father was."

"Did they find out what your mother's name was?" Schala asked.

"She told them before she died," Brianne nodded. "Her name was Aurora."

Schala let out a squeal of delight that startled everyone. "I knew it! I knew it! Oh, you look so much like her!"

No said anything until the younger Ozzie responded in a stunned voice, "You knew her mother?"

"Of course I did! Aurora was one of my closest friends! I would never forget her!"

Brianne's shock was starting to turn into happiness. Someone knew her real mother! She could finally find out everything about her mother!

"And you would probably know how she would pick to be her husband?" Slade said, grinning at Brianne. Brianne returned the grin.

Schala calmed down and looked embarrassed. "Well, yes, most likely."

Raised eyebrows were exchanged between everyone else. Slade looked to Ozzie and Selena, silently asking them if they what had brought about her sudden embarrassment. Both shrugged back at him. Slade frowned, he had a feeling he wasn't going to like the answer.

"Well?" Flea said after a long pause. "Who would it be Schala?"

Schala looked at Brianne, than at the ground. Brianne was suddenly dreading the answer.

"...My brother."

Dead silence followed. Everyone but Brianne and Schala looked horrified at that. Magus was, after all, a traitor. Not even the mention of his name was uttered here.

"Of course," Schala said quickly. "I always did want a niece. And I had always hoped Janus found someone nice..." Schala went back to smiling again.

Brianne couldn't do the same. The fear she had before coming into the room was back tenfold. She could tell that by the silence everyone was still distressed about it. She didn't want this man to be her father. Schala may accept that fact, but the others certainly wouldn't.

"How can you tell?" Brianne asked in a very small voice.

Schala looked at her thoughtfully. "Well, Janus was Zealian, of course, and Zealians could understand the ancient language from birth." She smiled at Brianne. "I'll simply say something in Zealian and if you understand it, than you're Zealian, thus making you his daughter."

Brianne did not smile back. No matter what Schala said, even if Brianne understood it, she would not react. She did not want the majority of the room hating her.

_Especially not Slade,_ she thought, not even knowing why she thought of him.

Schala tilted her head slightly. "Tu oui ihtancdyht sa, tyikrdan uv so pnudran?"

Brianne fought to keep her eyes from widening. She understood that! And that meant, she was Magus' daughter, the Mystic who had betrayed his kind and helped her adoptive family. She, however, would be the only who knew. Doing the best she could, she put on her best puzzled expression, hoping it worked.

It did work. Schala looked disappointed to see that Brianne hadn't understood a word. "Oh well. I guess Aurora married someone else."

The Mystics, on the other hand, were all smiling. Brianne figured it was because a crisis had been averted. Not thinking she could take it anymore, she faked a yawn. Slade noticed that.

"If it's alright, I'll go show Brianne where her room is," he informed his parents.

"Of course," Slash replied. He smiled at Brianne. "I hope you feel comfortable here, Brianne."

Brianne faked a smile and followed Slade out the door. They were walking down a corridor when Slade spoke.

"I told you they wouldn't hate you," he stated, taking her arm. "You worried for nothing."

Brianne didn't say anything. Her mind was in turmoil. Knowing that she would be hated if they knew the truth. She didn't feel as comfortable as she did before. She was now wishing more than ever to be back with her family.

Slade pushed open a door and walked Brianne through. A medium sized bed with black blankets was situated by the wall on the far side. A large window shoed the ocean in the distance. A desk, a dresser and a closet were also in the room. Brianne didn't bother to look around; she just flopped down onto the bed, burying her face into the pillow.

"Will this be all right?" Slade asked.

Brianne looked up and nodded. She gave him a smile; a small smile, but at least it was a real one.

"Thank you," she said sincerely.

Slade smiled. "I'll come by here tomorrow to show you around the castle. You rest until then." He began closing the door. "Good night Brianne."

"Good night Slade"

The door closed and Brianne looked up at the ceiling. She knew the more she thought about this, the more it would drive her crazy. She wouldn't be able to relax and with her being here for a while, it wouldn't be good. Instead, she thought about home. About Crono and Marle. About Lucca. She wondered if they noticed they were gone. She wondered where Carlos and Darien were, if Darien was worried about her, if he was looking for her...

She furrowed her brow. Why was she worrying more about Darien than Carlos? Darien could take care of himself. Chiding herself, she felt her body drifting off to sleep.

* * *

He could hear snoring from the bed on the other side of the room, but that wasn't what was keeping him awake. He had too much on his mind to sleep, too much to worry about. He rolled over onto his side and stared at his friend in the other bed. He was sleeping soundly, not a care in the world. 

Darien smiled despite his thoughts. Carlos was out to the world, usually that was what Darien was like when slept. Not tonight though; tonight he would stay awake.

Darien's thoughts strayed to his parents. Did they even notice that they were all missing? Were they looking? Would they even think about the small chance that they were no longer in their era? Darien shook his head. He knew that he would have to depend on himself.

Darien looked at the ceiling. He still wasn't entirely sure about Carlos' plan to get help. They had talked about it more before going to sleep. Even if he was unsure, it was the best bet, so he was ready to follow through with it.

He rolled onto his side, hoping that sleep would claim him. No such luck; he just continued to stare off in the darkness. He tossed and turned a bit before deciding he would go and get something to drink. Making sure he didn't wake Carlos, he headed downstairs, back to the bar.

Even at this time of night, there were still people hanging around, though not nearly as much as earlier. He slid up to the counter, waiting for the barkeep to notice him. It didn't look for the man to notice Darien. He was an older man, with a few specks of gray in his hair. He smiled kindly at Darien.

"What can I get you son?"

"Just a glass of water," Darien replied.

The barkeep hand him one and Darien looked around the room, taking an occasional sip. The people that were there were laughing hysterically or singing drunken songs. Darien smirked, it was quite amusing to listen to.

He took another sip of water. He really wished that he could do something to make everything alright again. Even better, he wished he could turn back time and stop himself and his friends from using that device. He laughed at that thought. Turning back time? Time had been turned back to about 400 years.

"Hey," he called suddenly to the barkeep. "Do you know who lives in the manor?"

The barkeep looked up from cleaning a glass. "Which manor do you mean?"

"The one by the forest," Darien answered, wondering if there was more than one.

The barkeep looked at Darien with shock. He slowly put the glass down. "You don't know?"

Utterly bewildered, Darien shook his head. Was he supposed to know?

"Living in that manor," the barkeep continued in the same stunned tone, "is the greatest knight Guardia has ever seen; Sir Glenn, commander of the knights."

Darien's jaw dropped. Glenn! The same Glenn that had fought the Mystics and beaten them? The same Glenn that had been a companion to his father, mother and Lucca?

"Glenn?" Darien whispered, feeling completely numb.

The barkeep nodded fervently. "Yes. The great knight that brought peace to this land. Because of him, we've had an agreement with the Mystics for almost two decades."

Darien had to resist saying that his father and mother helped. He handed the glass back the barkeep, thanked him, and rushed back to the room. Once there, he started to shake Carlos, trying to awake up.

"Wake up Carlos," he said as quietly as he could, so he wouldn't wake up others in the inn. "There's something important I have to tell you!"

Carlos made a strange noise, but didn't awaken.

"Carlos!" Darien hissed. "Get up now!"

Carlos turned to face Darien, looking more than slightly annoyed. "Whatever you want to say better be important!" He still sat up though.

"Do you know who lives in that manor by the woods?"

Carlos rolled his eyes. "Well duh! Michael, the guy I met earlier, does. The same guy we're going to see tomorrow. Anymore stupid questions?"

"Do you know if anyone else lives there?" Darien demanded.

"No," came the annoyed response. "Does it really matter who else lives there?"

"Glenn!" Darien exclaimed. "Glenn lives in that manor!"

Carlos' annoyed expression changed to shock. "Glenn? He lives there too?"

"Apparently," Darien sat down on his own bed. "That's what the barkeep said."

Carlos shook his head, confused. "Then what would Michael being doing there? Glenn's son maybe?"

"Either that or he would be Glenn's squire or something," Darien lied down. "But at least now I think we might actually get help."

"You didn't think so before?" Carlos asked, feeling a little hurt.

"No, it's not that. It's just now that we actually know who we're going to talk to, we have a better chance of being believed. After all, he has traveled through time as well."

Carlos nodded. "You're right. Anyway, we should probably get some sleep." Carlos lied back down and began falling back asleep.

Darien looked at the ceiling, a small grin on his lips. Now things were finally going their way.

* * *

A/N: Not a whole a lot on Darien and Carlos this chapter, but there will be more next chapter. 

For the Zealian language, I used the Al Bhed language from FF10. I didn't have time to think one up myself. You don't need to understand it for the plot, it's just something extra. But if you want to know what Schala said, then go to the ffextreme website for the translator.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far. Please keep reading and review. Thank you!


	7. Conflicting Emotions

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 6: Conflicting Emotions

The sun is the life of all things. Without it, there would be no life, just a desolate world. It does not just bring life, it can also bring joy to people. Just feeling the sun on their skin can brighten even the darkest of moods. It's warmth can make a person feel better.

Selena was grinning as she walked a brisk pace down the corridor. She was carrying several articles of clothing with her, all that would fit a young girl. She stopped, a slight frown appearing now.

_I never found out which room it is._

She shook herself mentally and started to grin again. She'd find the room, she knew she would. Lucky for her most of the doors were open. All she had to do was find a room with a closed door and she would probably be right.

Selena was never up this early in the morning; she would usually sleep until late morning or early afternoon. Today, she wanted to be up early. She had plans for today.

She finally found a door that was closed. Raising her hand slowly, she knocked. There was no answer, so she tried again. Again, she got no answer. Selena just shrugged and opened the door.

Lying in the bed was the person she was looking for. Still wearing the clothes from yesterday, the person was lying on top of the blankets, clutching the pillow tightly.

Selena looked at Brianne as she continued to sleep. Looking at her, Selena almost didn't want to wake her up; Brianne looked so peaceful there. But Selena had plans and they wouldn't wait.

"Good morning!" she called out.

Brianne awoke instantly. She looked around in panic, not knowing where she was. Selena guessed that the memory of her staying here wasn't taking hold yet. She cleared her throat, making Brianne turn to face her. Brianne's panic disappeared and was replaced by slow realization. She pulled herself into a sitting position.

"Not used to being here yet?" Selena asked.

"No," Brianne said quietly. She looked at the clothes in Selena's arms. "What's with all of those?"

"They're for you!" Selena piped, showing her a dress; a long violet and black one. "You can't go around wearing that thing all the time."

Brianne grinned sheepishly and took one. She stood there, holding it out. A few minutes passed and Selena started to get impatient. "Well? Go on! Try it on!"

"With you watching me?" Brianne arched an eyebrow.

Selena snickered a little; Brianne was a the modest type. "I won't look," she promised.

Time passed as Brianne tried on the different outfits and Selena commented on them, as well as using magic to make them fit Brianne. In the end, Brianne settled on the dresses that didn't have pink or extremely bright colours.

"You know," Selena commented, once they were done, "you're a lot like Slade."

"In what sense?" Brianne asked, adjusting her skirt; she was wearing entirely black, with her hair hanging loose.

"He only wears dark colours as well. You never see him wear anything bright."

Brianne smiled, something she had in common with Slade.

"Well," Selena proclaimed, clapping her hands together. "Time to start!"

"Start what?"

"The tour, of course!"

Brianne turned a little pink. "A-actually, Slade said..."

But before she could say anymore, Selena had grabbed her arm and dragged her out of the room.

* * *

The castle wasn't as large as Brianne had originally thought. A little bit larger than Guardia Castle, but not by much. However, while Guardia was full of people, the castle seemed very empty in comparison. 

"Um, Selena?"

"Yeah?"

"Are there anymore people in this castle?"

"Only the Chancellor," Selena replied, brushing back a strand of blue hair; or was it purple? "He gets on aunt and uncle's nerves all the time. Even more so on Slade's."

Brianne laughed. "Like all Chancellors do. But is there..."

"Nope. Everyone else here you've already met."

Brianne raised an eyebrow. "So no servants, or anything?"

"Nope," Selena replied. "We do everything with magic, so we don't need anyone else." She looked at Brianne. "Haven't you done anything with magic before?"

Brianne blushed. "Yeah. I tried cooking once with magic and was forbidden to ever do it again. I don't know why though; it tasted better than anything the cooks ever made."

Selena snorted. "Figures that a Human would be afraid of a Mystic's superior ability. Anything a Human sweats to do, a Mystic can flick their hand and do it twice as fast and twice as good."

Brianne didn't say anything. She always figured it was because she was supposed to be princess and wasn't allowed to do work. Selena seemed to catch on because she changed the subject.

"So what do think of this castle? Think you'll get used to it?"

"Most likely," Brianne replied, glad for the change, "It's not that big after all."

They were almost back at Brianne's room when they took notice of someone standing by the door. Brianne felt the warmth in her face; it was Slade.

"Hello dear cousin!" she called out, waving. "What are you doing here?"

He nodded toward Brianne. "Wondering where Brianne went. I was supposed to show her around today."

Selena rounded on Brianne. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I tried," Brianne answered, trying to keep from rolling her eyes, "but you dragged me out the door before I could say anything."

"Oops." Selena grinned sheepishly at both Brianne and Slade.

Slade shrugged. "It's no problem; I only just got here anyway. The Chancellor insisted on some early morning studying." He turned to Brianne. "I would have been here much earlier."

Brianne shook her head. "Don't worry about. Why don't you come outside with me. I need some fresh air."

"Sure," Slade smiled. "That sounds fine." He gestured to Selena. "Care to join us?"

"Maybe later," Selena said, smiling mysterious. "I think I'll wait until Ozzie's awake. You two have fun." She rushed down corridor, a smirk on her face.

Slade just shook his head. He turned to Brianne. "Shall we?"

Brianne smiled. Maybe she could get used to this. "We shall."

* * *

Carlos was finding it hard to swallow the porridge he was having for breakfast. The food itself was good, it was Carlos himself. He glanced up at Darien; he wasn't eating anything himself. Carlos tried to bring the spoon to his mouth. He looked at, then set it back down with a sigh. 

"Worried as well?" Carlos guessed.

"I don't know why," Darien groaned. He put his head in his hands. "I mean, last night I was eccentric about the idea, but now..." Darien shook his head. "What happened? Why am I so worried?"

"Maybe 'cause there's a chance he won't believe us?" Carlos nodded. "Yeah, that option keeps going through my mind too." He forced a shaky smile. "At least you look like Crono."

That did cheer Darien up a little. He stood up, his face set. "C'mon, let's go. Time to see if we get help or not."

They left the inn, but not without a few odd glances. Walking gave Carlos a chance to think. If he thought it through rationally, he couldn't see why Glenn wouldn't believe them. I mean, was it so hard to believe that two kids got lost in time and was stuck in the past? Well, okay, most people wouldn't believe that, but Glenn wasn't most people.

Carlos was also curious about Michael. He was pretty sure that Michael was Glenn's son, but there was the off chance that he was his squire or apprentice. He actually hoped Michael was his squire, because that would mean Glenn might not have married and Lucca could have a chance with him...

Carlos felt guilty at thinking that. It wasn't up to him who his mother fell in love with. He just wanted her to be happy.

"Whoa. This place is huge."

Carlos looked ap at the manor for the first. It took a little work to hide his amazement. It was quite large, almost like a small castle. Though the manor had an old type of design, it was still fairly new, looking only to have been built a few years ago.

The pair approached the large door. A knocker shaped like a dragon hung there. "Do you want to knock?" Darien asked

"Go ahead."

Darien banged the knocker several times, waiting to see if someone was home. Several seconds passed and the door opened. Standing there was Michael, hair tousled and clothes rumpled; it looked like he just woke up. He smiled as he spotted Carlos.

"Hello," he said kindly. "Carlos, right?"

"Yeah," Carlos smiled shyly. "You said if I needed help, I could stop by. Well, we need help." He gestured to Darien, who tried to look friendly.

Michael turned to Darien; his eyes widened slightly as he took in Darien's unruly spikes. He stared a moment before turning back to Carlos.

"I'm sure I can help you. If not, then my father certainly will. Come in, come in." He led them into the house, past several rooms. Darien looked around as they walked. He though he saw a couple of bedrooms, as well as a small library. They finally stopped at a small longue. It was held a few comfy looking chairs as well as a large round table. They all took seats in various spots. Michael looked expectantly at the two. Carlos cleared his throat.

"Well, how to explain this. Um, we're lost and we have no idea how to get home. We had an accident and before we knew it, we were north of this village and, um..." He looked at Darien helplessly.

Darien rolled his eyes, but turned serious at a look to Michael. "The truth is, well, we're not from this era. We're from about 400 years in the future." He looked, half expecting Michael to start laughing.

To their surprise and joy, he smiled slightly. "Well, I thought so. Taking one look at you," he nodded to Darien, "told me you had to be Crono's son. The whole hair thing gave it away."

Darien grinned while Carlos breathed a sigh of relief. "So you are Glenn's son?" Carlos asked.

"Of course," Michael said with a smile. "Why else would I believe you?"

Both Darien and Carlos laughed. They would get help; somehow, Glenn would help them. Carlos smiled; he knew this was a good idea.

"If I may ask," Darien started. "How did your father become Human again? Did he find a spell or something?"

"As a matter-a-fact, Magus stopped by here, trying to find his sister. He decided to be nice and turn father back to a Human." Michael scowled slightly, showing his feelings toward the blue-haired Mystic.

Darien looked shocked. "He can still time travel? I thought all the Gates closed!"

Michael smirked slightly. "So than why are you here?"

Darien grinned, feeling a little foolish.

"Whose you mother?" Carlos asked, frowning a little.

"Wait, before that," Darien insisted, recovering quickly, "where are they? Are they here?"

"Father is at the castle, speaking with His Majesty. He should be back in a little while. My mother..." Michael shook his head, suddenly sad. "My mother is no longer with us."

Darien suddenly regretted saying anything. He hadn't meant to bring forth bad memories. He knew, because Carlos went through something similar and even now Darien didn't like mentioning it.

"I know how you feel," Carlos said softly. "My father died as well. An accident with one of the machines. Mom was so distraught about it."

"You're Lucca's son?" Michael asked suddenly, his eyes strangely bright.

"Um, yeah..." Carlos looked to Darien, who just shrugged.

Michael had a strange smile on his face. Like he was suddenly happy, but trying to control it. He nodded slightly. "Anyway, Father might be gone for a little bit. He should be back later this afternoon."

Even if it wasn't until later, Darien couldn't be happier. He stifled a yawn. He hadn't slept most of the night. Turning to Michael, he asked. "Is it okay if I sleep? Didn't get much sleep last night."

"Go ahead," Michael replied with a wave of his hands. "All the bedrooms down the hall are free. Make yourself at home."

Darien, glad to get some sleep, walked to the door. He looked pointedly at Carlos, who shook his head. "I'll stay here for a little."

Darien half shrugged and disappeared. Carlos turned to Michael and was surprised at the look that was now there. His eyes gleamed with a mischievous light and he was grinning slightly. Carlos was forcibly reminded of Darien when he got an idea in his head.

"So, Lucca is a widow as well? Did she ever mention that she wanted to remarry?"

* * *

A few hours had passed and it was nearing the evening. Darien and Carlos were playing a game of chess, with Michael looking on. Darien had never played before, but Carlos and Michael were only too happy to teach him. He frowned slightly as Carlos took his bishop; he still wasn't good yet. This was their sixth game, but Darien was not going to give until he won at least once. He was thankful for the advice Michael gave him, he would have lost twice as badly without it. Michael was all right, once you got to know him; albeit, he was as strange as Carlos. 

Upon waking up, Darien had returned to the lounge, only to find Carlos and Michael muttering quietly, on the table that was scattered all sorts of paper. Darien caught a few phrases, such as, "that'll never work," and "now how would could we make them?" When Darien had cleared his throat, the looked up at him sheepishly and cleared the paper away. After he had asked them several times what they were up to, Michael had insisted that he learn how to play chess.

Carlos smirked as he moved his queen to check Darien's king. "Checkmate. That makes six to nothing. Are you finally gonna give up?"

Darien opened his mouth to reply when the sound of the front door opened. Michael smiled. "Father is finally home."

He went out to meet his father while Carlos started putting the pieces away.

"So now we get to meet Glenn," Carlos commented with a strange smile.

Darien thought about asking him what was going on, but thought better about it. Darien had always wanted to meet the companions that his father and mother spoke so highly of; and now he would see Glenn. He briefly wondered what his real from looked like, only hearing about his frog form.

Darien heard two voices talking quietly. They were coming closer toward the lounge. Next moment, Michael entered with an older man that could only be Glenn.

Glenn was fairly tall with a slight muscular build. His hair was slightly spiky; not anywhere near as much as Darien's. It was a shade of dark green, almost like the colour of moss. His eyes were a light hazel, but the intensity of them was overpowering, almost like they could peer into your very being. His skin was lightly tanned and he had a small smile on his face.

"So you are Crono and Marle's son?" he said in a quiet voice. Darien expected him to sound more powerful. "I trust they are well?

"Yes sir, I'm Darien, and they are just fine," he replied politely. "And this is Carlos, Lucca's son."

Glenn turned to Carlos. There was an unreadable expression on his face, but he was still smiling.

"How is she doing?" Glenn asked him. "I've been wondering what she's been up to."

"She's fine sir," Carlos replied, the beginnings a smirk appearing. "Just working on her machines."

Glenn nodded and made to sit down. Michael and Carlos exchanged devious looks.

Darien frowned at them. _What is the matter with them?_

"So, you have no idea how to get back?" Glenn asked, turning to Darien.

"No sir," Darien replied. "One of Carlos' inventions didn't work properly and sent us back through time. Now it's broken and he doesn't know how to fix it."

Glenn sat there, contemplating the problem. Darien stared at him, hoping he might know something. Finally, Glenn sighed.

"There is nothing I can do to send you back to your time. I'm not a magician after all," he said with a shake of his head.

The word magician sent a pain through Darien. _No, that would be Brianne..._

"Um, sir? There is something else I'd like to ask you."

Glenn looked at Darien, curious. Darien sighed; he had to try.

"Did you see a young girl that doesn't belong here? She came through with us, but she got separated and we don't know where she is."

Carlos and Michael looked over at Darien; Carlos sorrowful and Michael puzzled.

"You two never mentioned that there was someone else," Michael said slowly.

"I just didn't want to think about it," Darien said miserably. "Besides, I didn't think you would have known anything."

Michael looked offended that they didn't ask him, but Glenn said, "What does this girl look like?"

"She has long black hair, it goes to about the middle of her back. She's got real pale skin, almost like she's never seen the sun. Her eyes a bright blue, like sapphires," Darien described. "And she's most likely a black and blue shirt with a black skirt."

Michael, despite being bitter, was impressed at Darien's description. He could tell that Darien cared about this girl a lot. But there was one slight problem...

"There are a lot of girls that probably fit that description," Michael pointed out. "That isn't going to work."

"Actually," Carlos said in a voice almost a whisper. "There is something else about her."

"That is?" Glenn asked.

Darien and Carlos exchanged a quick glance. "She's a Mystic," Carlos mumbled.

Glenn looked uneasy while his son looked like he had gone numb. "C-could you repeat that?" Glenn said in a strangled voice. "I'm not quite sure I heard correctly."

"She's a Mystic," Darien said, a slight edge in his voice. "You know, the magic users with the pointed ears? Yeah, we're friends with a Mystic. Got a problem with that?" No matter what, Darien would always defend his adoptive sister, even to his father's friends.

Fortunately, Glenn shook his head. "No. There's nothing wrong with that. I'm just a little surprised that you, of all people, would be friends with a Mystic."

"No kidding," Michael muttered, but he didn't sound hostile in saying it.

Darien was still glaring, though he too was a bit calmer. "Father adopted her, as a matter-a-fact. I've known Brianne all my life."

"So have I," Carlos added.

Glenn looked like he would have like to say something, but decided against it. "In any case, we would have known if a Mystic was in the village. Most people still don't take too kindly to Mystics."

Darien's annoyance was instantly replaced with fear. "They'd kill her!"

"No!" Michael exclaimed quickly. "If any Mystic is sighted and they're not known, people are to report them to us knights. We would have already known about her!"

Darien sat back down, taking deep breaths. Carlos looked like he nearly had a heart attack. Both had been worried that Brianne would have been killed.

"We've just been really worried about her," Carlos started to say. "I mean, when she let go of me, I feared the worse."

"She let go of you? You mean, when you went through the Gate?" There was a tone in Glenn's voice that Carlos didn't like.

Darien caught in it too. He felt his heart sink. "Yeah. Why?"

Glenn sighed and rubbed his eyes. He looked at the two sadly. "There is a very good chance that she's isn't in this time at all. Most likely, when she let go, she landed in a different time."

Darien looked at Glenn in horror. He only thought she would be in a different location, but a different time? Before he could stop himself, he left out a howl of misery and his head sunk into his hands.

"I could be wrong," Glenn replied, trying to reassure Darien. "She could have very well ended up here."

Everyone looked at Darien, hoping for some sort of response. He didn't move or to anything to show that he had heard Glenn. Carlos looked helpless.

"So there's nothing you can do?"

"I never said that." Glenn's calm expression returned. "I can't return you to your time, but there is something I can do." He turned to Michael. "Could you get me some paper and a quill?"

Michael rose up. "Of course father."

While Michael rummaged around the room for the items, Carlos shot a glance at Darien. He had lifted his head up, but his expression was still woebegone. Carlos didn't like the idea of Brianne being in another time either, but someone had to stay together; and it wasn't going to be Darien.

With a cry of triumph, Michael returned to his father, the paper and quill in hand. Glenn moved to the table and began writing. What he was writing, Carlos had no idea. After a few moments, Glenn stood back up, paper in hand. "This should do it. I'll send bring it to the castle tomorrow."

"May I see?" Carlos requested. Glenn handed the paper over and Carlos read. A smile was on his face as he finished. "Darien. Come read this. I think it'll make you feel better."

Darien shuffled over, taking a glance at the paper. He finished reading it and glanced at Glenn. There was smile on the knight's face. Darien looked at the paper again. He too was beginning to smile.

"As miserable as I am right now," he stated, "I think this may just work."

* * *

A/N: Wanna know what's on the paper? Heh, well, you'll just have to wait until a later chapter. 

Solten, thank you for the review, but I did not make a mistake with Flea's gender. In the game, they never clarified what gender Flea really was. I've read fanfics with Flea as a man, as a woman, and in very few; as both. I'm one of those authors who writes Flea as a woman. But thank you for pointing that out so no one else gets confused.. If any of you readers have a problem with Flea being female, there's nothing I can do about it.

Remember, review after you read. I have not seen any flamers yet, and I would like to keep it that way.


	8. Struggle of the Heart

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 7: Struggle of the Heart

People are strange creatures. They are all capable of destroying and hating each other. They can also create and love each other. Not only that, but they have the capability to make their own decisions; and to change their opinions on matters. They often do this at the drop of a hat and without reason, or there can be an explanation. They can love something one minute, then hate it the next. They can also hate something, than love it.

It had taken a bit, but Brianne had finally settled into her new environment. There were some misgivings about the place and the people, but they had all vanished. As a matter-a-fact, now that she had been there more than a week, she couldn't see her life without these Mystics.

The other Mystics, for their part, were interested about her and her life with the Humans. They were polite to her and treated her kindly enough. It was quite easy for Brianne to forget all the rather nasty things she had heard about them.

The elder Mystics were only too happy to have her around. Slash had insisted that Brianne tell him what Crono had told her when they had fought each other. As he was irritated by Crono's explanation of what happened, he told Brianne what really happened. Brianne knew that Slash's side of the story was just as biased as Crono's, but she didn't mind. She liked hearing the story from the other side. She found Slash to have strange sense of humor, but he was really gentle around her.

Flea was quite impressed that Brianne had learned all the magic she had while with the Humans. She had begun to teach Brianne how to do everyday things with magic, such as cleaning and doing laundry. As Selena had told her, it made the work twice as easy; and she surprised how good a job it did. Flea was a bit more serious than her husband, but was kind hearted.

Ozzie didn't speak to her often. He would gaze at her sometimes, but that was about it. Brianne, finally fed up, had asked why he kept staring at her. He just said that she looked a lot like Schala. Brianne, for fear of him finding her out, never commented on that, but at least she was able to have a few conversations with him after that. Brianne found him odd at best, but he was nice to her.

Schala would talk to Brianne about her mother, Aurora. Apparently, Aurora loved flowers and had tried growing some before the Queen found out and forbade her. That never really stopped and that made Brianne respect her mother all the more. Schala was so sweet to Brianne that Brianne often felt guilty about not telling her she was Magus' daughter. Fear of the others' reaction was the thing that kept her from talking.

As for the Mystics her own age, Brianne hadn't found better friends since Darien and Carlos. Selena was the female friend she never had. The two of them were near opposites. Brianne was more quiet, dressed less extravagant and preferred reading. Selena was more outgoing and could talk a mile a minute. Her dresses were often outrageous and inappropriate at times. She liked to gossip and, although Brianne was never interested, she listened. Despite the differences, the two got along very well.

Ozzie was about as odd as his father. He would still flirt with Brianne every so often, but Brianne had been told to swat him if he did. It disturbed and disgusted her to know that he was her cousin and he was flirting with her. When he wasn't flirting with her, Ozzie seemed to be more fun-loving, like his girlfriend. The two of them together always confused Brianne. One minute they were all over each other, the next they were at each other's throats.

Brianne, however, found a wonderful friendship with Slade. He was quiet and kept to himself, but he still spent a lot of time with her. Brianne tried her hardest to spend as much time with him as possible. She had taken to helping him learn to be a ruler, having done so with Darien so many times before. As she spent time with him, however, she couldn't help but notice that she was feeling differently about him. The more time she spent with him, the more she noticed. She also noticed that Ozzie and Selena would sometimes make excuses to leave the two of them alone. If Brianne didn't know any better, she could swear they were up to something.

Brianne spent most of her time alone in the library. Unlike the study, there were thousands upon thousands of books. She thought the study had a lot of books, but that was before she saw the library. There were books written in many strange languages, even a couple dozen in Zealian. As much as they looked interesting, she wasn't going to read them. She couldn't risk someone coming up behind her seeing her read them.

So like most of the times in the last week and a half she spent alone, she was in the library, reading. She was reading a book on spells, trying to learn how to teleport. Usually, she loved reading and learning spells, but today, she just seemed bored. After reading the same line for the seventh time, she shoved the book away.

_Bored, so very bored. Need something to do._

As if to answer her, Selena came bounding into the library, carrying some things.

"Knew I'd find you in here," Selena said cheerfully. "You're in here almost all the time. You need a life."

Brianne rolled her eyes, but smiled. "I have a life, thank you very much. You could do with a little reading yourself."

"I do so read!"

"Books with pictures don't count."

Selena stuck out her tongue and giggled. Brianne shook her head in amusement. Hard to believe they were the same age.

She also noticed the stuff Selena was carrying. "So what's with all that?"

Selena smiled and showed her two towels and bathing suits. "I thought maybe we could go swimming. There is a small pond near here that's perfect for it."

Brianne considered it for a minute. She really wanted to, but she wasn't too sure if she wanted Slade or Ozzie to see her with so little clothing on just yet.

"Are the guys going to be there?" she asked quietly.

Selena snorted slightly. "No way. I never allow them near the pond when I'm swimming. Of course, there might be someone there, spying on us, but I usually know when Ozzie's there."

Brianne looked thoughtful as she looked over her choice of suits. One was bright yellow, the other was black.

With a grin, Brianne said. "I'll come, so long as I get the black one."

* * *

"So what do you say? Huh? Huh?"

Slade slammed his book down as he glared at his hyperactive friend. "Ozzie. Staring at my cousin while she's swimming is not my thing. That would be slightly sick, don't you think? Besides, you shouldn't do it either."

Ozzie smirked. "Oh, I'm not asking you to stare at Selena."

"Really," Slade said, rolling his eyes. He grabbed his book and opened it back to where he was before. "Anyway, I am trying to study here, but just for the sake of asking; why do you want me to come with you?"

"Brianne's going swimming as well!" Ozzie exclaimed, looking at the prince.

Slade said nothing, but continued to read.

"You and me watching the two girls down there having fun," Ozzie continued. "Besides, would it kill you to take a break from studying?"

Slade looked up and slowly set the book down. "I still don't think it's a good idea," he said, though not with as much conviction. "Watching the girls swimming, I mean."

Ozzie smirked, he knew exactly what to say to get Slade to come with him. "If you don't want to, fine. I'll just go down there myself to watch. I wonder what Brianne looks like in a bathing suit?"

The reaction was instantaneous. Slade was up and had grabbed Ozzie by his shoulder. He pulled Ozzie close enough for their faces to almost touch. "You will not look at her. If you do, you suffer very painfully. Do you understand?" he hissed. Slade never yelled when he was enraged, but his hissing in a low voice was just as frightening.

Ozzie, of course, was used to it. He merely gazed back at Slade. "Don't want me to look at your girlfriend, huh?"

Slade's grip tightened, beginning to cut into Ozzie's skin. He could barely keep from wincing. He had forgotten just how strong Slade really was.

"Brianne is not my girlfriend! What are you, an idiot!" Slade never yelled when he was enraged, but he did when he got defensive.

"You're getting mighty defensive over someone who isn't your girlfriend," Ozzie replied, a slight whine in his voice. He did not want to cry out outright, but he couldn't stop the whine.

Slade, with a strange expression, dropped Ozzie to his feet. Slade looked crossed between being enraged and looking panicked. It was rather funny to see, but Ozzie knew better than to laugh.

"It is kind of obvious that you like Brianne. A lot," Ozzie replied quietly.

Slade continued to stare at Ozzie. His expression relaxed and looked slightly tired now. He fell back into his chair and stared at the ceiling. A moment passed before he said anything. "Is it that obvious?"

"Yeah," Ozzie responded.

A few moments of silence passed. Slade continued to stare at the ceiling, Ozzie at Slade. Finally, what seemed like an eternity, Slade stood up, a small smile on his face.

"You win, I'll come with you." The smile changed to a frown. "But if you get caught like always, you're taking all blame."

"Oh please," Ozzie smirked back. "They won't see us."

* * *

"You really have to relax. You're all tense."

Brianne continued looking over into the nearby bushes. She was a little nervous. "Are you sure nobody's there?"

"For the last time, yes!" Selena rolled over off her back. "I told you, I'll know when he's there."

Brianne nodded, but still looked at the bushes.

The pond was refreshingly cool on such a hot day. Selena was determined to enjoy herself and make Brianne as well. Brianne was quite content worrying however.

Brianne finally turned her gaze away from the brush and ducked underwater. She came back up, shaking the excess water out of her hair. Selena sighed slightly as she swam toward Brianne.

"Something's up and it's it not just the prospect of being spied on," Selena guessed. "C'mon, you can tell me."

Brianne shrugged. "Just worried about the others."

"Oh they'll be fine," Selena snorted, not trying to disguise her disgust for Brianne's two Human friends. "Knowing who their parents are, a little thing like time travel isn't going to hurt them."

Brianne shook her head. "I know, but... Nevermind."

"Is there something else on your mind," Selena asked, her tone kind toward Brianne.

"Yeah, but nothing you can help me with me with."

"Oh c'mon! You can ask me!"

Brianne rolled her eyes. She could ask, but she knew how Selena would answer. "If you had to choose between Humans and Mystics..."

"Mystic," Selena said promptly.

"See! I knew you would say Mystic!"

"Brianne," Selena said, rolling her eyes. "Of course I'll always say Mystic. I am a Mystic. If you asked a Human that, they would say Human."

"I know," Brianne sighed, splashing a little water onto the grass. "I just want an unbiased opinion on the matter."

"Not in this world and you know it. You're one of the only Mystics who can get along with Humans."

Brianne frowned at that. _And the other one is Magus, my father._

Selena dived under the water and back out, squeezing water out of her hair and muttering about it's condition. Brianne smiled a little. Selena was lucky to have known her real parents. Brianne wished she could have that chance.

"You're so lucky," Brianne said, "to have known your parents."

Selena let go of her hair, her face falling. This surprised Brianne. Selena was always cheerful, nothing seemed to bother her. Had she said something wrong?

"I can't remember my parents," she said finally. "I was told that my mom died when I was three. My father couldn't raise me and left me with her sister; my aunt Flea." She looked up at the sky, a smile returning. "It doesn't bother me like it used to. I'm happy here, and that's all that matters."

Silently, Brianne agreed. If you were happy where you were, that was all that matter. But she said, "Don't you want to meet your father."

"No," Selena replied flatly. "He didn't care about me, so why should I care about him?" She suddenly brightened up and a mischievous grin appeared. "Hey. Why are we talking about such depressing stuff? We're here to have fun."

Brianne did not like that look, but before she could do anything, Selena had splashed a lot of water on Brianne. She retaliated by splashing Selena. Soon a large water war was happening between two squealing, giggling girls.

* * *

"So? Was I right?"

"Right about what?"

"About coming here to watch them swim?"

"Still debating."

Ozzie gave Slade a hard look as he adjusted himself on the branch. Slade had said that levitating would have been easier than sitting in a tree, but Ozzie had said that this was tradition.

"So," Ozzie said after a moment. "Still debating?"

Slade snorted as he watched the two girls try to drown each other. A small smile appeared as he saw Brianne laughing, her long hair sprinkled with droplets of water. "Yes, you were right."

Ozzie grinned in triumph. "Told you so." As he watched his girlfriend in the water, the same that was on Slade's appeared on his.

"I always like watching Selena swim. She looks so beautiful, so graceful. Reminds me why I feel in love with her. Flirting is just something I do to see if still loves me. I know I should stop, but I can't help it. I even like it when she's mad at me."

Slade muttered something, but was still smiling. "Yeah, well, you two are lucky."

Ozzie glanced sideways at his friend. He really did like Brianne, as far as Ozzie could tell. Just by the way he watched her proved it.

"You know, you could have something like that with Brianne."

The smile on Slade's face faded a little. It had been a little over week since she came here. It was too fast to start anything like that; in Slade's eyes anyway.

"Maybe," he said quietly.

Ozzie shook his head, but didn't reply. They both continued watching the girls in their water fight. It didn't look like the two of them were giving up anytime soon. They watched as Brianne used a little magic to create a small wave that overtook Selena, making her go underwater for a minute. She back up, spluttering, then used her magic to create a bigger wave that she sent to Brianne.

Ozzie, getting annoyed with the lack of conversation, said, "Well why don't you talk to her?"

Slade's snapped back to his friend. "What? Talk to who?"

"Brianne," Ozzie sighed. "About you two in a relationship, like what me and Selena have."

Slade didn't say anything for a moment, then opened his mouth.

A loud noise stopped Slade from saying anything more. Both of them looked around.

"What was that?" Slade demanded.

"No idea," Ozzie replied, "but it sounded like..."

Before they knew it, the branch they were sitting on was broken and they were both on the ground. Slade moaned slightly and rubbed the back of his head; it was slightly sore from impact.

Another noise caught Slade's attention: the sound of two people coming toward them. It didn't take a genius to figure out who it was. Slade got to his feet and made his way back to the castle as quickly as he could.

Ozzie watched as Slade ran. He was confused as to why he ran. Before he could stand up, however, the sound of something hissing made him turn.

Selena and Brianne were standing there, wrapped up in towels. Brianne was red in the face and annoyed. Selena, on the other hand, was livid.

"You were spying on us," Selena hissed. "How many times do I have to tell you to NOT SPY WHEN I'M SWIMMING?"

Ozzie wasn't scared at his girlfriend's rage; he was annoyed. "I wasn't the only one out here! Slade was here as well!"

"Oh please!" Selena shrieked. "You think I'd believe that Slade would do something like that! How dare you blame my cousin!"

Ozzie clammed up, knowing that there was no way Selena would believe him. And he had other things to worry about now. Like the punishment Selena thought of.

* * *

Slade was pretending to read his book when he heard the sound of footprints. He looked up to see Selena walking by, dragging Ozzie by the tail. Selena looked slightly miffed, but wasn't as angry as she was. Ozzie, on the other, gave Slade a very nasty look as they passed. As much as Slade felt sorry for his friend, he wasn't about to confess to being there.

He returned back to his book, trying to concentrate. He really needed to get some reading in before the day was done.

He noticed a slight shadow on his book a few minutes later. He looked up, this time seeing Brianne standing a few feet away. She was dressed, but her hair was still damp. Slade put his book down.

"What were you doing?" Brianne asked him.

"Studying," came the reply. "As the prince, I have to study on how to rule a kingdom someday."

"Oh that," Brianne said with a snort. "I thought you'd take a break today." She took a few steps closer to Slade, observing him. He looked back at her.

"Ozzie was saying that he wasn't the only down at the pond, watching us," Brianne was in an offhand voice.

"Did he now?" Slade said in what he was hoping was calm tone. "And what was he saying?" As calmly as he could, he picked his book and pretended to read it again.

Brianne began playing with her hair. "He was saying that you were there with him. Is that true?"

"Could be."

Brianne peered at the book and began to smirk. "You must be really good, to read a book upside down."

Slade closed the book, smirking as well. "Well, of course. It does take a lot of skill." He stood up. "Not just anyone can do it."

Brianne's smirk wavered for a second. He sounded completely serious, but he couldn't be. "You joking... Right?"

Slade just shrugged. "I could be, or I could not be."

Brianne was really unsure what to think, until she saw the gleam in his eyes. She started to laugh. "You had me almost believing you."

Slade grinned. "What can I say? I'm really good at acting."

Brianne continued to laugh. She couldn't remember a time when she had this much fun. She truly felt at home here.

Brianne looked up to tell Slade this, only to notice that Slade was now standing a few inches away. He looked extremely nervous about something. His hand was twitching slightly.

"Slade? Is something wrong?"

Slade shook his head. He opened his mouth to say something, but closed it quickly. He couldn't seem to look Brianne in the eye. Hesitating slightly, he placed his hands on Brianne's shoulders, trying not to put too much pressure on them. Brianne didn't know whether she should be curious or frightened. Looking at him, she saw a strange expression in his eyes. She had never seen anyone look at her like that before.

"Brianne," Slade finally said. "It's... It's taken me a little bit to figure out what I've been feeling. But I found out and..." He stopped, looking extremely uncomfortable.

Brianne didn't know what it was he was trying to say, but it couldn't be bad. What little fear that she had was gone. She was, however, very curious now.

Slade lifted Brianne's chin up and forced himself to stare into her eyes. Brianne's eyes widened slightly, but that was it. Slade felt a little more confident.

"I... I care about you. A lot. And I... I..." Slade stopped. He couldn't say anymore. Lowering his head to hers, he pressed his lips against hers.

Brianne felt numb. She had never been kissed before, not like this. She didn't know whether to return it, or push him away. It didn't take long, though, for her to relax and begin to return the kiss.

Slade took this as a good sign and pulled her closer to him. Wrapping his arms around her, he deepened the kiss. Brianne moaned ever so slightly as she reached up to wrap her arms around his neck. She was enjoying this, she was enjoying being so close to Slade. It felt... right.

_I wonder if Darien would ever do this..._

With a sudden gasp, she wrenched herself away from Slade. That thought had brought forth some rather strange feelings toward her adopted brother. Feelings not unlike the ones she held for Slade.

She looked up at Slade. He was giving her a strange look, imploring her to tell him why she did that.

"I... I'm sorry," she gasped. "I just don't think I'm ready. I like you, a lot. But I'm not sure if I'm ready." That was complete lie, but she wasn't about to tell him the real reason why she had pulled away.

Fortunately for her, Slade believed that. His face fell slightly and he looked ashamed. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I didn't know..."

"No," Brianne replied. "No, it's not that. I just need more time. A little bit more time, please?" When Slade nodded, she kissed him lightly, than as calmly as she could, she walked out of the study.

She made absolutely sure that Slade couldn't possibly hear her, than she ran. She bumped into someone, but didn't stop when they called out to her. She reached her room and flung herself over the threshold. She lied on the bed, her mind a complete mess.

She was falling for Slade, no question about it; but she also had feelings for Darien. Why she realized these feelings for Darien now was beyond her, but she couldn't be with either one until she figured out was going on in her mind, and her heart.

And that could take a little bit of time.

* * *

A/N: Finally! I have finally updated again! Aren't you all happy? Yes? No? Maybe so?

I'm so sorry for not updating as much as I usually do. I can only say that I lost my creativity for this story for a while. But I got it back and I WILL try to get another chapter up much more quickly! For everyone whose still out there, thank you for waiting, and don't forget to review!

Now, onto the reviews from next chapter. I have now decided to reply to all the reviews I get for my chapters, unless there are too many to reply to. (Mot likely.) So here we go!

**Moonraker One:** Can't say anymore? Aw. Thank you for your review!

**Shootski:** I'm slightly worried about flamers. Okay, maybe not a whole lot, but still. As for Glenn speaking Olde English... No one but Frog spoke like that, not even Glenn when he was Human. So I assumed that he only spoke like that to further his disguise as Frog. That, and I can't write Olde English to save my life! Thank you for this review, as well as your other ones!

Thank you to the other people who have reviewed, and please review again!


	9. There and Back Again

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 8: There and Back Again

Loneliness is a horrible feeling. It is an empty feeling thatleaves a person miserable. Often, it can easily be remedied by the company of others. If no one does something, however, it becomes a deeper, and very much more of a problem. This, fortunately, only happens in extreme cases.

Darien hadn't really had anything to do since he had arrived. Glenn spent most of his time at the castle. It was to be expected of the Commander of the Knights of Guardia. What annoyed him was that Carlos and Michael were always off somewhere. Darien had no idea what they were up to. Whatever it was, it took up a lot of time. The only time he wasn't bored and lonely was when Michael was up at the castle as well. He would at least have Carlos to talk to.

However, it was only partly their fault. Darien had a hand in his own loneliness. He was sure that if he went to join them, he wouldn't be like this. He didn't though; he was feeling depressed because he was being ignored. It was a vicious cycle.

He was also missing Brianne. He had no idea where she was, or if she was even in this era or not. Realizing that he was falling for her didn't make it any better. After a little more than a week, he wasn't feeling the pain as much as he had been, but it was still there.

At the moment, he was in the lounge of the manor, staring at a wall. Usually, he would have been bored by now, but he didn't care; he was lonely and depressed. In fact, he didn't even notice when the door opened and Glenn walked in.

Glenn shook his head at the sight of Darien. The boy was depressed; there were no two ways about it. He needed to do something before something drastic happened. Glenn cleared his throat, causing Darien to turn and look at him.

"Darien? Would you mind finding Michael for me. I need to discuss something with him."

Darien shrugged. "Yeah, okay." He stood up and stretched.

As he reached the door, Glenn said, "You know, you can join those two in whatever it is they're up to. I'm sure they won't mind."

Darien said nothing, just continued to walk. Glenn sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

He would never understand teenagers.

* * *

"So, you think that might work?"

Michael shook his head and fell back into the chair, looking exhausted. "No. But this is the best chance we have."

Carlos was looking just as tired. "Nothing is going to work."

They were sitting at the kitchen table, looking tired and annoyed. For the past week, they had been planning and scheming, but so far, they had nothing that would successfully work.

They were trying to get Glenn and Lucca together. Besides the obvious fact they were in different eras, they would never admit their feelings for each other for fear of rejection. Carlos and Michael had come with many different ideas, all of which were futile as the last one.

Carlos had just let his head fall to the table when he heard a small coughing noise from the door. Darien was there, looking just as bad as the other two.

Turning to Michael, Darien said, "Your father wants you in the lounge. Says he needs to discuss something with you."

"Oh. All right." He got up and went to see what his father wanted. Darien took the vacated seat, looking drained. Carlos looked at him from his position.

"You're not looking well," he commented.

Darien said nothing, just stared at the surface of the table. Carlos lifted his head up to examine his friend. Darien really wasn't looking well. His face was pale instead of it's usual tan colour. His eyes were looking bloodshot and there were bags under them.

"Is it Brianne?" Carlos asked.

"Partly."

Carlos knew it was probably because he was being ignored slightly. It wasn't like Carlos was doing it on purpose, but he was pretty sure that Darien wouldn't be interested in helping to set his mom up with Michael's father.

"You know," Carlos commented, lifting his head up slightly, "we're not trying to ignore you, but I'm sure you wouldn't be interested in what we're trying to do."

"Oh really?" Darien replied with a bit of bitterness in his voice. "Try me."

Carlos sighed slightly. "Me and Michael are trying to find a way to get my mom and Glenn together."

Darien raised an eyebrow at that. Carlos smiled ruefully. At least Darien was showing some expression now.

"And how," Darien inquired, "are you going to that?"

"That's our problem. We have no idea. None of our plans sound like they'll work."

Darien looked at his friend, his eyebrow still raised. A ghost of his usual grin appeared. "You know, you could have asked me. I might have been able to help."

Carlos looked at Darien. Already he was looking a little better. Being included in their little scheming was already helping.

"Might? You still can, you know."

The first real smile in a week had appeared on Darien's face. He leaned forward slightly. "Well, we'll wait for Michael, than we'll start."

Carlos agreed and forced himself to sit upright in the chair.

It didn't take long for Michael to come back. When he walked back into the kitchen, his eyes were gleaming strangely and his smile was looking more like a smirk.

"So, what did your father say?"

"He needs me to do an assignment for him. It'll take a about four days, five days tops," Michael explained. For some odd reason, his smile was almost a smirk now.

"So you'll be gone for a couple of days," Carlos commented. "We'll find something to do in the meantime."

No doubt about it, the smile had now become a smirk. "Oh, but I won't be going alone... I'm taking two companions with me."

* * *

"I absolutely protest this! This is not fair! I should not be forced to do this! You will pay for this, you hear me? You will pay!"

Michael just rolled his eyes and adjusted his sheath. "Enough with the dramatics already," Turning to Darien he said, "Is he always like this?"

Darien allowed himself to grin a little. "He hates physical activity in every shape and form. He'll stop after a while."

It was the day after and all three of them were ready for a trip to the village of Porre in the south. There were reports of thieves in the area and Michael had been dispatched to take care of them. It was allowed that he could take two people with him to help him.

And those two happened to be Darien and Carlos.

Darien's mood of the past week had almost completely disappeared in one day. He still looked a little tired, but he was smiling and cracking jokes again.

Carlos, on the other hand, was in a rotten mood. He was rather scrawny and despised doing too much physical activity. And walking for a day to a day and a half constituted as too much physical activity.

Darien tightened the strap of his pack. "So, tell me again what it is we have to do?"

"Simply put, we're to track down the thieves that have been active in the village and stop them."

"How?"

"Capture them, or kill them, if they resist."

Darien looked slightly green at the notion of killing a person. "Uh, will that happen?"

"Not very likely," Michael assured him. "That will only happen in extreme cases."

"Aren't there any knights down there?" Carlos grumbled.

"No, they're all at the castle." Michael stretched slightly. "Well, the sooner we go, the sooner we have this done."

A few groans later, they were off.

* * *

It wasn't bad for the first few hours. Both Darien and Michael were in good shape and could keep up a fairly good pace. Even Carlos wasn't faring too badly. After a few muttered curses, he had quieted down and concentrating on the path. That was in the morning. When the afternoon rolled around, they were more than halfway to Truce, but it was also getting hotter.

Carlos, surprisingly wasn't complaining about the heat and how sore he was. That was mostly due to him being too tired to talk. Darien was walking more slowly now and even Michael was looking a little tired. It didn't take long after for Carlos to collapse. It took a moment for Darien and Michael to notice. Darien looked back, then to Michael.

"I really think we need a short break," Carlos told him.

Michael looked like he wanted to object, but one look at Carlos made him decide against it. "Not too long though." He took a seat beneath a tree.

Darien helped Carlos walk to the same tree and deposited him into the shade. Carlos' breath was ragged. He took a long drink from the water he brought. "This is not fun."

"It is pretty hot out," Darien agreed. "Hey Mike! How long until we reach Porre?"

Michael gave Darien a dirty look. "Call me Mike again and I'll have your fingers removed. As for Porre, it'll only a few more hours. We'll stay at the inn, than head to where the thieves are said to hide out in the morning."

"Works for me," Darien replied. He took a drink of water and stood. "Well! I'm ready!"

Michael nodded and turned to Carlos, who looked most reluctant to stand. "Are you going to be alright?"

"...No. But I'll go anyway," Carlos shook his head. "But I really hope we get there soon.

* * *

They had indeed made to Porre by nightfall. They were almost at the inn when they heard someone scream.

"Someone help me!"

Behind a building, a dirt covered man had a knife pressed to a young girl's throat. The three of them watched as the man pressed the knife tighter to her throat. The girl whimpered; Darien almost went after him, but Michael held him back.

"Wait," he mouthed. "Don't do anything yet."

Darien glared, but kept quiet. The man sneered at the woman, showing his decaying teeth.

"Scream like that again, and you'll pay woman," he hissed. "Now be a good little girl and leave your gold with me."

The woman shook her head and cried out; the knife was almost cutting into her flesh.

"Don't be stupid!" he snarled. "Your life means nothing! Give me the gold or you'll die!"

Darien couldn't take it anymore. He needed to do something, but he couldn't get to him without the woman getting hurt. Mentioning to Carlos, Darien made a small gun gesture toward the man. Carlos nodded in understanding and took aim with his handgun. Very carefully and very quickly, he released the trigger and the bullet hit the man's hand. The man cried out and dropped his knife to clutch his hand. Darien took the chance and charged at the man. He swung upward, leaving a large gash on the man's chest. The man cried out and fell to the ground.

Darien stood over him, breathing heavy. He couldn't believe he had just done that; and that he was still alive. Than again, that wasn't as hard as he thought. He checked the man's pulse; he was still alive, but with a wound like that, he wouldn't be for long.

Michael was attending to the young woman. Darien went to check as well. He couldn't help but wince. She looked a lot like Brianne; the same shade of blue eyes, only without the glow. Long hair, but instead of black, it was brown. She stood up and embraced Darien.

"Oh thank God! I thought I was going to die! Thank you, sir knight!"

Darien had half amind of telling her that he wasn't a knight, but decided not to. The woman was fumbling with a small bag.

"Here! Please take some this! You deserve it!"

Darien gently pushed the gold back into her hands. "I don't need it. You being alive is all I care about."

The woman beamed at Darien and continued gushing praise to Darien. Darien couldn't help but grin a little.

"Are you going to be alright going home?" Michael asked her.

The woman nodded. "I live very close to here. That brute just surprised me. Again, thank you for everything, you wonderful knight." She hugged Darien one last time and ran off. Darien couldn't seem to wipe the stupid grin off his face.

Carlos, whose face was white as chalk, pointed to the thief. "Do you think he'll live?"

Michael looked at the body for a moment. "Without medical attention, no."

That wiped the grin off of Darien's face. He hadn't meant to dothat much injury to him. He wanted the man to be injured, not to die.

"Isn't there anything we can do?" he said in a strange voice.

Michael snorted. "He would have killed that woman. What's the point in keeping someone like that alive?"

Darien was shocked to hear Michael say that. He seemed so calm and forgiving, but than again, he had only met him.

"If we do that, wouldn't we be just like him?" Darien asked in a small voice.

Michael stared at Darien for a moment. He let out a sigh of frustration. "Damn, you sound like my father." Muttering to himself, Michael walked up to the thief and ripped his shirt apart. Looking through his bag, he pulled out a bottle, uncorked it and poured the contents onto the man's wound. It shimmered slightly, than began to mend itself. The man groaned slightly.

Lifting the man to his feet, Michael half dragged the man down to the main road. "There's a small holding cell on the other side of the village. They can keep him there until they figure out what to do with him."

As they walked off, Michael turned back to Darien with a small smile. "And you were right. Thank you."

Darien smiled back. "No problem."

* * *

Very late into the night and neither Darien or Michael could sleep. They had gotten to the inn after dropping the thief off. Carlos was out to the world, but the other two were wide awake.

"You're still awake, aren't you?" Michael asked quietly.

"Yep. And so are you obviously."

The went silent for a moment. Than Darien asked, "So, you're trying to get your dad with Lucca, huh?"

"Carlos told you didn't he?" Michael said dryly. "Yeah, I am." He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling.

"Father was so lonely after mother died. It... wasn't sudden or anything; she was sick for a while. It still hurt my father when she died. I... I can't really remember her all that much, to tell the truth. But it really affected him. It took him a full year to get over it. Than he started talking about Lucca. Mostly about how she was, and if she was happy. Normal stuff. But than he started wondering if she was married or if she had children. That kind of made it obvious."

"I actually never noticed Lucca liked Glenn until a few minutes before we came here," Darien replied. "Do you actually think it'll work out?"

"I hope so. I really hope so."

"Well, I'll help you get the two of them together."

Michael raised an eyebrow. "And why would you do that?"

"Because Carlos is my friend and I want to help him. For that matter, so are you."

Michael smiled softly. "Thank you. And I promise that somehow, I'll help you find your friend."

Darien nodded, a small lump forming in his throat. _My friend, my sister. And I want her to be much more..._

He rolled onto his side, staring at the wall. _But how can we be more than that if I can't find her. Brianne, where are you?_

* * *

The morning after had Darien and Carlos waiting in their room at the inn. Michael had went out to get information on the thieves' hideout. That was early morning; that had been an hour ago. After he had the information, the three of them would move in, scope out the situation and if it was possible, take them out.

Carlos was fiddling with the gold pyramid. He was still determined to fix it, even though he had no idea how to do so. He had opened the bottom and was mixing wires.

Darien looked over. "Even if you fix it, how will youknow?"

"Test it."

Darien considered the idea. He shuddered at what could happen if it wasn't fixed. "No thank you."

Carlos made a face and closed up the pyramid. "When is Michael coming back?"

"No idea." Darien flopped onto the bed. "Whenever he gets information on the thieves. That could be soon, or a few hours from now. In any case, we have to wait here and I am getting-"

Whatever Darien was getting, Carlos never found out. Michael had entered and sat on one of the beds. He had peculiar look on his face.

"What's up?" Darien demanded. "Did you find out anything?"

Michael didn't say anything. The corners of his mouth began to twitch.

"So I take it you didn't find anything out?" Carlos ventured.

"No... I found something out," Michael replied slowly. He was shaking his head.

"Well, where are they?"

A small grin was on Michael's face. "...Going to the dungeon at the castle."

Both Darien and Carlos' mouths dropped. "How the hell did that happen?" Darien exclaimed.

"Apparently, the young woman we saved last night was telling the village folk about her rescue. She described you perfectly. An old man heard and thought that you were Crono. The thieves heard this, walked up the holding cell and gave themselves up." Michael was laughing now.

Darien was confused. "Why would the idea of my dad make the thieves give up?"

Michael rolled his eyes. "You have no idea, do you? Your father is a hero right alongside mine. Everyone in the kingdom knows him, and a few people know what he looks like. You looking like your father has just made our mission very much over."

"So there was no point in coming here?" Carlos grumbled.

"Actually, if we hadn't come, the thieves would still be terrorizing people. More to the point, if Darien wasn't here, they would have had to been confronted," Michael replied rationally.

"Yeah, yeah. You're welcome." Darien was looking irritated. "Can we head back now?"

Carlos blanched. They had walked all this way for nothing, and now they had to walk back. No doubt about it, Carlos was having a bad day.

* * *

A/N: There you go! To make up for not updating for a couple months. Please review, I really like it when you do...

**Almighty God of Paper:** Yeah, but school work is boring ;) Magus is unattractive? Suuure... Hehe. As for Brianne meeting her father, she will, but maybe not the way she wants to. And as for Lucca and Glenn... Well, you'll have to keep reading, now won't you?

**Niki:** Thank you and I will try.

I'll try to update as soon as I can, but I've got a lot of stuff that needs doing. Bye Bye!


	10. Lost and Found

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 9: Lost and Found 

There are two types of worrying in the world. There is the needless type of worrying. That is where people worry for little or no reason at all. In almost all of these cases, the situation works out and worrying was not needed at all. Then there is the type of worrying that has merit. That is when a person can worry, and there is good reason too.

Crono looked out over side of the tower on the left side of the castle. It was almost dark and Darien and Brianne still weren't back. It didn't worry him too much; they were probably staying at Lucca's tonight. They did it so often. Still, he wished that they would at least tell him where they went.

Marle came up behind. "Not back yet?" She looked worried.

"No," Crono replied, turning to face his wife. "But they're probably at Lucca's. They probably forgot to come back and tell us."

Marle's expression didn't change. "Darien would, but not Brianne."

Crono shrugged, trying not to let it bother him too much. "Brianne isn't perfect, she's bound to forget something sooner or later."

Marle didn't look happy, but she knew he was probably right. "I'm just worried, but, you're right." She smiled suddenly. "We better get inside, looks like it's going to rain."

The low rumbling of thunder proved her right. Crono allowed her to lead him inside the castle. He didn't know why, but he had a feeling of foreboding. Something felt wrong, but he didn't know what. He shook his head. He was just being paranoid; they'd be back in the morning.

* * *

The morning came and went. The storm of the previous night had blown itself out. The clouds were covering the sun, but it was still warm and comfortable outside with very little wind. The day was working into a good one. At least, outside it was. Inside was a different matter. 

Both Crono and Marle were getting annoyed. It was early in the afternoon and their children still weren't back yet. Crono was tapping his fingers against the table he was sitting at. While that seemed to calm him slightly, that just made Marle more aggravated. A few minutes of this and Marle couldn't take it anymore.

"Would you stop? If it's bugging you that much, go get them."

Crono considered that for a second before standing. He really needed to get fresh air; he hadn't been out in such a long time. In any case, he wanted to see what Lucca was up to. It was always her that came to visit, and not usually the other way around.

"You want to come with?"

Marle grinned. "One of us has to stay here. You go out and have a talk with Lucca before dragging those two home. And say hi for me!"

Crono grinned and waved good-bye. Even when they were annoyed, they both managed to keep their sense of humor. But when he got a hold of those two...

The rain had made the forest look quite stunning. The sun was beginning to come out of hiding. The light was reflecting off the water droplets, creating a dazzle of colours; it was quite beautiful. Crono couldn't remember that last time he just stopped to admire nature.

He laughed. _Probably never._

And now wasn't the time either. He needed to go get his kids. As he reached the other end of the forest, he caught sight of something that made his stomach drop. Lucca was making her way toward the forest, looking annoyed. Crono just stood still; he already knew what was happening, but didn't want to believe it.

Lucca saw Crono standing near the trees with a pained look on his face. It confused Lucca for a second; she didn't have time to wonder what was wrong with her friend. She needed her son home, now.

As she approached she said, "Crono, as much as I'd love to know what your problem is, I need to get Carlos. I know he spent the night there."

Crono, who had gone very pale, just looked at his childhood friend. Lucca looked back, slow realization beginning to appear on her face. The stared at each other before breaking into a run back to the castle.

* * *

"They're GONE!" 

Marle did not take the news well. Crono and Lucca had ran back to the castle, alarming Marle slightly when she met them near the entrance. She knew something had happened when she saw them, but she hadn't expected this.

And she still didn't believe it. "Are you sure?"

"Positive," Lucca said grimly. "The invention Carlos and I made was a teleportation device. Capable of taking a person anywhere in the world, and others so long as the have contact with the device or the people touching it. Of course, there could have been a malfunction or something." Lucca's brow furrowed. "But Carlos can fix anything that could have went wrong with it..."

"I don't want to know what could have happened," Marle snapped. "I want to know what we can do!"

Crono thought about that. The only thing that could really be done was to look for them.

"Lucca, I don't suppose you have another one of those things?"

"Lucky for you I do," Lucca replied, a small smile appearing. "So I guess that means we look for them."

Crono nodded and turned to his wife. "Marle, stay here in case any of them come back here. If they do, tell them to stay here."

"I'll go home to pick up the device and to leave a note saying to come here. Crono, you should probably check Porre, since you can use the ferry. I'll check Medina and Chroas." Lucca explained.

"It works," Crono agreed. "Okay, let's go!"

Marle watched as her husband and friend left quickly. She was worried about her children. She was worried that it wouldn't work. And she was worried that something would happen to Crono and Lucca. She knew there was more to it; there must be.

* * *

Night had fallen and the small ferry was almost at Porre. Crono was on deck, his arms resting on the railing. He couldn't stop worrying about them. They were his kids after all. 

Darien was his flesh and blood; his true son. Like any father and son, they connected instantly. They were so much alike: they both hated being royalty, they were fun loving and they both liked to fight. They did get into arguments, a lot, but he still loved his son. Darien could be compulsive at times, but he really was a caring person.

Then there was Brianne. He always considered her his, even if she really wasn't. The girl was so sweet and gentle at times; at others she was cunning and sarcastic, but he didn't mind. She was so bright, it shocked him at times. And there were times that she did things that were odd, but he didn't care; she was his.

And then Carlos. He may have been Lucca's son, but he hung around the other two so much that Crono had learned his habits too. Usually quiet and shy, Carlos could be a little condescending when it came to machines; he knew so much. It was him and Brianne that kept Darien from doing something truly stupid. And Crono felt a responsibility to keep him safe too.

Crono allowed his head to droop onto his arms. He had an adventure already, he didn't want another one. And he didn't want his kids to have one either. He snorted; this wasn't an adventure, his kids were just lost.

He sighed as the village came into sight. Time to do a little searching.

* * *

Lucca blew a strand of purple hair out of her face. She had just appeared in Chroas and it was almost completely dark out. Not to mention she was tired and didn't want to do anymore teleporting; she was getting a room. 

She trudged toward the inn, her eyes nearly closing. She had checked the Mystic village of Medina and found nothing. The Mystics were still wary of Humans, but Lucca had mentioned that Brianne was one and they helped her search. Of course, they came up with nothing.

Lucca made it to the inn, payed for a room and collapsed on the bed when she got up there. She lay there, just staring up at the ceiling. It took a little, but she finally grabbed the bag she brought with her and rummaged through it. She was looking for her notebook. All the plans for her inventions were in it and she wanted the one for the time machine.

With the Epoch being destroyed and the Gates having closed, Lucca was looking for another way to travel through time. She hadn't told anyone about it; she wanted it to be a surprise. As it was, though, she had come up with minimal. In fact, the reason she wanted Carlos home was to have him help her with that. They always had a different idea of thinking about things, so maybe he could have come up with something.

Lucca missed her friends from the other eras. Well, not Magus, but he was hardly her friend. During their travels, she had argued with him about everything. The arrogant sorcerer would not be missed. She did miss her other friends. Ayla was a bit dim at times, but was always reliable. She wondered what Ayla was doing for the up coming ice age. As for Robo, she missed him a lot. Lucca couldn't help but worry that her mechanical didn't exist in the future and wanted to find out.

Lucca put the note book down with a sigh. And of course, there was Frog, or rather Glenn. She had fallen in love with the knight. It wasn't that she hadn't loved her husband, she did and was very sorrowful to have lost him. She hadn't started to think about Glenn that way until after her husband died. A few months after the accident and Lucca had recovered. She began to remember the frog knight and how kind he was to her, even when she wasn't. More thoughts like that, and she couldn't help but begin to love Frog.

She took her glasses off and pulled the blanket toward. Right now wasn't the time to worry about her love life. Right now, she had to worry about her son and his friends.

* * *

It took another day for Crono and Lucca to get back to Guardia Castle. Crono had decided to walk back from Porre, jsut in case the three kids were somewhere in-between. Lucca had searched Chroas, than searched Medina again. By the time the two got back, it was nearing the evening; and they were both tired. 

Lucca met Crono outside the doors to the castle. "Nothing?"

"Nope. I hope they turned up here."

The pushed the door opened and found themseleves face-to-face with Marle. She looked anxious and was twisting something in her hands.

"I take it they're not here?" Crono ventured.

Marle swallowed slightly and stopped twisting the thing in her hands. "No... But I know where they are."

Crono and Lucca exchanged looks as Marle handed her husband the paper she was twisting. He read with Lucca looking over his shoulder.

_My friends Crono, Marle and Lucca,_

_I hope that all of you are well. This may seem a little odd that I am sending you a letter, but it is very important and I hope this letter is not destoryed before you are able to read it. You children are here, 400 years in the past. I am looking after them until you find a way back to this time. I know you, Lucca, will find a way._

_I hope to see you all soon_

_Glenn (Frog)_

Crono just stared at the note, not comprehending what he had read.

"Well, at least we know they're safe," Lucca said weakly.

Crono shook his head and looked at Marle. She was still looking like she was in pain.

"When did you get the message?" he asked.

"The Chancellor gave it to me this morning," Marle replied faintly. "He said that it was supposed to be delivered to you or me today. It was downstairs all this time."

Crono just shook his head. "This should be bizzare, but it's not. Not really..." He sighed slightly. "Well Lucca, I hope you can make a time machine."

* * *

It was amazing what a little incentive could make a person do. What Lucca couldn't figure out in a few years, she did in a few days. She had found that the teleportation device could be used to transcend time. It took a little to figure out, but she wasn't called Lucca the Great for nothing! 

Crono and Marle took turns keeping Lucca company and trying to help her, which they really couldn't.

At the moment, Lucca was sitting in her kitchen, switching some of the wires around. Crono had suggested that she work at the castle, but Lucca said she worked better at home. She heard the door open and someone walking toward her.

Without looking up, she said, "Your turn to babysit me, Marle?"

The loud thump sounded beside Lucca, signaling someone had sat down beside her. "How'd you know it was me?"

Lucca rolled her eyes. "Seeing as Crono just left and you two don't want to leave me alone..."

Marle laughed a little. "You know, if you really want us to, we can leave you alone."

"Nah, I enjoy the company."

"So... How close are you to finishing?"

Lucca removed her glasses and rubbed her nose. "Not much longer; a day or two I'd say. I just have to put in a new power source and it should be ready."

There was silence as Lucca worked on the device with Marle looking on. She had no idea what Lucca was doing, but she still wanted to be here.

Moments passed before either of them spoke. "Are we coming right back, or are we going to stay and visit?"

"Visit," Lucca replied promptly. "I've been trying to make a time machine for the longest time, so we could visit all our friends. After I gave that son of mine a talking to, we'll do just that."

Marle grinned. "Magus included?"

Lucca surpressed a shudder. "Only if you really want to."

"No, I'm just curious if Brianne is his..."

Lucca laughed. "There is no way Brianne is Magus' daughter."

Marle laughed too. "You're right. Magus doesn't seem the type to get married and have kids."

The both laughed at that thought. Magus having a daughter was funny, but not going to happen.

Marle slowly calmed down and turned to her friend. "Going to be happy to see Frog again?"

Lucca sighed softly. She was, and she wasn't. What if he was married and had a child? She didn't think she could handle it if he was. But... She had to know and she did want to see Glenn again. More than anything.

"Yeah, but it's not Frog anymore. It's Glenn."

* * *

It was two days later when Lucca proclaimed that it was finished. It couldn't be tested, either it worked or it didn't. 

Crono was giving the device a suspicious look. "Are you sure this will work?"

"For the last time, no," Lucca sighed. "Of course I don't know if it will work. The only way we know is if we use it."

Crono rubbed his head; this was already giving him a headache. "Just checking."

Marle was as apprehensive as his husband. "So what do we do again?"

"Just make sure you don't let go of me until I say so. If it does work and you let go, you could end up anywhere, anytime."

"Lovely," Crono moaned. "Another thing to worry about."

Lucca gave him a hard look and cleared her throat. "Okay people, lets do this."

Crono and Marle each gripped Lucca's shoulders, their hands shaking. Lucca spun the new dial on the device to 400 years in the past and pushed a few buttons. They waited for a moment before Crono sighed in aggravation.

"It's not working..."

Marle glanced around, her eyes finally settling on the grass. Her eyes widened very slightly. "Look at the ground."

The other two did and saw a blue portal under their feet.

"Okay, so it does work."

Lucca grinned cheekily. "Remember not to let go of me."

It only took a few more minutes, but they had vanished without a trace.

* * *

A small portal opened in the canyon behind the village of Truce. Three adults fell out; the only man landed on his feet and caught one of the women. The other landed neatly on her rear. 

"Oh thanks a lot," Lucca said sarcastically.

Crono grinned. "Sorry, but you are not my wife." He set Marle on her feet.

Lucca muttered something about idiot men and dusted herself off. As she looked around, a large grin appeared on her face. "But it worked, didn't it? This is Truce Canyon!"

"Yep," Crono replied, the same grin on his face. "I can't believe it, but you did it. This is amazing!"

"No kidding!" Marle exclaimed. She was acting like a teenager again, jumping up and down. "Now it's go get our kids and visit Glenn." With that, she took off, running toward the village.

"Hey!" Crono cried out. "Wait for us!" And he took off after his wife.

Lucca just stood there, shaking her head at her two friends. They were beahving like they had when they were younger. Another look around, however, had the same effect on her. She took off after them, yelling for them to wait for her.

* * *

A/N: So, how's that? I would have updated earlier, but there's been a lot on my plate lately. I'd tell you all, but I don't think any of you really want to know. So, anyway... 

**Shootski:** There's what happened to the paper! A note that was to be left for 400 years and read by Crono and the others. Thank you for liking my story so much!

The main action should be picking up in about two chapters or so, so stay tuned! Please read and review!


	11. All Together Maybe

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 10: All Together... Maybe

Fate can work in mysterious ways. People believe that it is simply a coincidence, but it is fate. People try to fight fate, but it is to no avail. If things happen, than they have happened for a reason; it was meant to be. Couples meeting and joining together is fate. Good friends meeting for the first time is fate. And people: friends and family, being reunited.

Darien was staring off into the distance. It had been a day since they got back to the manor and he hadn't had much to do. True, he was included in the discussions to get Glenn and Lucca together, but those were few. At the moment, he was outside, getting some air and waiting for some guests that the castle was having.

Carlos was sitting nearby, fiddling with the teleportation device. He was determined to make it work somehow. Darien didn't see why he bothered; they needed something to take them back to their time. Both Michael and Glenn were wearing armour; Glenn's purple and Michael's gray. Both were looking very unhappy.

"So, tell me again who these guests are?" Darien said to the two knights.

Michael kept stroking the hilt of his sword. It was a nervous habit of his. "Just some people that come by the castle every couple of months. They talk with His Majesty about some things. Not too sure what about though."

"So why are you looking like you drank some spoiled milk?" Darien asked.

"They're not exactly nice," Glenn sighed. "They're people we'd rather not deal with. But for the good of the kingdom, we have to. And Michael and I are the ones that meet them and escort them to the castle."

"Sounds like a bunch of jerks," Carlos said distractedly.

"No kidding," Michael muttered.

Glenn gave his son a stern look before going back to being depressed again. Darien didn't know what the big deal was. It wasn't like these people were their worst enemies.

Darien stared across the land. The more time he stayed here, the more he believed that he would never get back home. It could have been worse, though. He could be dead by now, depending where the portal sent him. If he never saw home, he could always become a knight. Carlos could...

He turned to the inventor. "Anything?"

Carlos shook his head and set the device down rather hard. He looked like he wanted to destroy the thing. Darien chuckled weakly.

Carlos would find something to do. At least, Darien hoped he did. Carlos was smart and everything, but would he be able to use it here, in this time?

"You know, it's seems kind of useless."

Darien turned to his long-time friend. Carlos had leaned in close so Glenn or Michael couldn't hear.

"What is?"

Carlos shook his head. "Trying to get mom with Glenn. I mean, we might never see her again. Or your parents. Or Brianne." His eyes were looking a little over bright.

Darien was taken slightly aback. Carlos was sensitive, but not this sensitive. "Why are you thinking about this now?"

"It's been over a week, almost two. At first, I had hope that I could find a way back, or my mom. But..."

Darien sighed. Those had been his exact thoughts. "I know what you mean. But we'll be okay. You know we will."

Carlos nodded and quickly wiped his eyes. "So, do you think they know we're missing?"

"They should," Darien scoffed. "If not, then there is something wrong with them. They would have noticed the first the next day when we didn't go back to our homes. Not to mention the letter that Glenn wrote. They know where we are."

"Mom is probably trying to find a way here. She'll exhaust herself, trying to find a way to make a time machine."

"And mom and dad will try to help her, but will only get in her way," Darien finished with a smile. It was a comforting thought, even if it may never happen.

Carlos nodded, a small smile on his face. They both looked out, their thoughts on their parents. Michael came and sat down beside them.

"You two okay?"

Darien shrugged slightly and Carlos nodded a little. Michael looked toward the village with a sigh. A minute later and he raised one of his eyebrows. Darien noticed it. "What?"

"There's a blond hair girl running in this direction," Michael replied. "Kids these days." He gave Darien a mocking look. Darien didn't bother the return the look.

What did he care if some girl was running over here. It wasn't his concern.

"And there's someone with red hair not that far behind him."

Again, it wasn't any of Darien's concern.

"And..." Michael's look changed from annoyed to amazed. "A girl with purple hair."

Now that got Darien's attention. Both he and Carlos stood up quickly. He turned and found himself enveloped in a hug. He already knew who it was.

Marle was smiling, tears caressing her cheeks. She clutched her son closer to her. "You're alright. I'm so happy you're alright."

"Mom..."

Crono came up behind the two, a huge smile on his face. Lucca came shortly after, grabbing her son and clutching him close.

"I'm so happy you're alright. You are in so much trouble, but I'm happy you're okay."

"Lets leave the punishment until later," Crono suggested, the smile getting bigger.

Michael was looking at the small group with his eyes wide. Glenn had come over to see what was happening. He just smiled at his old friends.

Marle finally relased Darien. "Where is Glenn? I want to thank him for taking care of you."

Glenn cleared his throat. Everyone turned their attention to him. The new arrivals' mouths all dropped, in particular, Lucca's.

"Glenn?" Marle ventured. "But you're..."

"Human; yes I know. You will have to thank Magus for that."

Nobody said anything for a moment; they all just stared at Glenn. Glenn looked at the ground; he didn't like all this attention.

To his surprise, Marle threw her arms around him and embraced him tightly. "It's so good to see you again! And to see you normal at last."

Glenn said nothing, but turned a little pink. Michael tried to smother a snicker.

He was still a little pink when Marle let go, but he was smiling again. "It is good to see you too."

Crono stepped forward and took Glenn's hand. "It really is. I never thought I'd see you again."

"The feeling is mutual, my friend." Glenn smiled, letting go of Crono's hand.

Than he turned to Lucca. She was still staring at him, her mouth still slightly open. She couldn't believe that this... handsome creature was Glenn. She finally noticed that Glenn was looking at her and she closed her mouth. For his part, Glenn was surprised at what time had done to Lucca. The awkard, teenage inventor had become a beautiful woman. Her husband was so lucky to have her; Glenn couldn't help but feel slightly bitter about that.

"Lucca... It is wonderful to see you again."

Lucca nodded, her throat tight. "Yeah... You too."

If they hadn't been lookng at each other, they would have seen the three exchange smirks. Or the two other adults exchange knowing looks.

Lucca and Glenn continued to stare at each other until Marle said, "You must be Glenn's son."

Michael smiled politely and bowed slightly. "Yes, I am. My name is Michael. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Marle smiled at such a polite response. She turned to her son. "You could learn a thing from him."

Darien rolled his eyes, but he was grinning. They were all back together, and they would be going home soon.

Crono looked around. "Well, someone is still missing. Is Brianne inside the house, Glenn?"

Except for Brianne.

Glenn blanched slightly and Michael immediately looked at the ground. Darien and Carlos looked at each other, wondering who would tell them. Crono and Marle was starting to look concerned for their adopted daughter. Lucca was looking put out about something, but she looked confused as well.

"Brianne isn't here," Darien said at last.

Marle looked like she might pass out and Crono turned pale. Lucca's eyes went big.

"Before she fell through the Gate, she let go of me," Carlos explained.

"And she wasn't with us when we woke up," Darien finished.

Crono took his wife's hand as tears began to form. Lucca, however, looked determined.

"She might just be somewhere else in the era. So we'll just have to look. And if she's not, we'll try another era. She has to be somewhere, and we will find her." Her looked dared anyone to challenge her statement. Everyone just looked at her. Crono broke into a grin.

"One thing I like about you, Lucca, is that you never give up. And you're right: we will find her."

Crono began talking to the other the other two about how they would do this. Glenn said that he would help as much as he could. Even Carlos and Michael were talking. Not Darien; he had tuned everything out.

The sorrow he felt was back. What if the never found her? What if they did, but it was only her body? He wouldn't be able to take it if she...

_It's my fault, it's all my fault. If only she hadn't come with us. She would still been at home, safe and sound. I wanted her to come with me. I should have known something would have happened. Brianne, I'm... I'm so sorry. I couldn't protect you._

"Darien!"

Darien bit back a sob. _I can hear her. Her voice inside my head. Why? Why was I so stupid?_

"Darien!"

"Darien..." Carlos was tapping his shoulder, his face nearly splitting from the grin.

Darien looked up. And for the second time in a short time, someone had thrown their arms around him. And these were familiar as well.

_No way..._

He held the person at arms' length to get a better look at them. Brianne was looking at him, tears mixed with her smile.

With a cry, Darien embraced her again, holding her as tightly as he could. The feeling in his chest was no longer tight and he couldn't stop from crying this time. He had to resist the urge to kiss her.

"You're here," he muttered happily. You're okay. Brianne... You're..."

"I missed you, big brother," Brianne whispered.

"And I missed you. So much..."

Darien let go of Brianne, only for her to be embraced by Marle. Marle was laughing and crying at the same time. Crono started just looked at the two, smiling all the while. Carlos and Lucca got close; Carlos telling Brianne how much he had missed her and Lucca grinning like a madman. If any of them had looked somewhere other than Brianne, they would have seen the horrified looks on Glenn and Micahel's faces.

A few moments after all the embracing was done, Lucca looked at her son. "As soon as I get that device of yours fixed, we'll be heading back home. At least, for a little bit."

"Can't wait for it," Darien said with relish.

Brianne's smile, however, began to fade. She started to quick dirt from the ground. Crono was the first to notice her glum expression.

"Brianne?" he asked as the noise died down. "Is something wrong?"

Brianne just continued to look at the ground. Everyone looked at her with concern. Finally, she looked up.

"I... I don't know if I want to go back," she said quietly.

Darien stared at her with a aghast look. "Why? Why don't you want to come back?"

Everyone was looking at her, except for the two knights, who were still looking behind her.

"Brianne," Crono said, with a bit of a stern edge to his voice. "Why don't you want to come back with us?"

"Because she's found a place she'd rather be!"

Crono's gaze shot behind her to tell whoever that was to be quiet, but the words died on his lips. His face went as white as a ghost. The others looked as well; similar expressions of horror were there.

Standing there were some people that Crono had never thought he'd ever seen again. He had been there when all three had died. True, he never actually saw them bite the dust, but still... It's wasn't possible. Crono blinked, trying to clear his vision, but Ozzie, Slash and Flea were still there, all with expressions of disgust on their faces.

So many comments came to Crono that he wanted to throw at them. So many things he could say to them. But what came out of his mouth was, "You're not dead."

That caused all three to break out in near hysterics. Everyone, including Brianne, winced at Crono's words. He did notice that those three weren't the only ones laughing. He noticed three other Mystics that he hadn't seen before. The girl, Selena, was almost rolling on the ground, tears falling from her eyes. The other two, Slade and the younger Ozzie, were trying to keep from falling.

Darien turned to Michael and mouthed, "THESE are the guests?"

Michael just nodded miserably.

It only took a moment for the laughing to stop, but Crono was angry.

"What the hell do you think you're doing here!" he yelled. "And why was Brianne with you!"

Slash sneered at Crono. "We're here to meet with the Human king. Have been ever since the war ended."

"And Brianne was on the island when my son found her," Flea contined. "She's been with us the entire time."

Crono looked at Brianne to see if the story is true. She looked up and nodded.

He grit his teeth. "She will not be staying here. Certainly not with you. She's coming back with us."

Crono noticed that it had angered the Mystics. In particular, Slade. He was giving all of them a look of utmost hatred.

"Why should a Mystic stay with filthy animals?" the older Ozzie hissed. "She shouldn't have been with you in the first place."

Marle was the one to retort. "We've raised Brianne ever since she was a baby! I am not about to let any of you near her!"

"You will not anymore!"

"Don't you dare-"

"QUIET!"

Everyone turned to Glenn. He was rubbing his head and glaring at all of them. Brianne had migrated to his side, her head lowered. Michael was looking apprehensive.

"You," he said to the Mytics, "shut up. These people have been her family. You have no right to tell them that they cannot be with their daughter."

Darien looked at the Mystics. He was impressed with Michael's father. They all glared at Glenn, but didn't say anything. Darien couldn't help but grin.

"However..." Here Glenn turned to his friends. His expression was slightly softer. "A Mystic does belong with other Mystics. They are a being apart and they get along better with people of their own kind."

Darien wanted to mention Magus, but decided it was not the time. Crono didn't look happy, but he nodded. "So what should be done?"

"Let Brianne decide." He turned to the young Mystic, who seemed interested with her nails. "Brianne?"

She looked up, looking extremely distressed. Darien felt his heart clench.

"Who would you rather be with?" Glenn asked in a gentle voice.

Brianne looked her adopted family. Darien could have sworn that it was him that got most of Brianne's attention. Than she turned and looked at the Mystics. Again, her attention seemed to be mostly on Slade. She whispered something that Darien couldn't hear. Glenn nodded.

"Would you know by tomorrow afternoon?" he asked.

"I... Believe so," she said quietly.

Glenn nodded and turned to the two groups. "You heard her. She'll give her answer tomorrow. Now," he turned to Crono's group, "I want you all to stay tonight. I won't take no for an answer."

Darien smiled weakly, along with the others. Crono nodded. The Mytics, however, looked angry with that. Glenn turned back to them.

"I will make sure that no one tried to influence her decsion," he assured the Mystics. Or rather, Darien thought, one Mystic in particular.

"That's fine Glenn. I'm not worried either way."

Darien noticed a woman he hadn't seen before. She was smiling at Glenn, her blue hair blowing slightly in the breeze. There was an intake of breath from Crono, Marle and Lucca.

"Schala?" Marle asked faintly "Is that really..."

Schala smiled. "Yes, it is. It is wonderful to see you all again."

Both the Ozzies snorted at that, but one look from Schala shut them up.

"Why are you here?" Lucca asked quietly.

Schala gestured to the older Ozzie. "I'm here with my husband." He smirked and wrapped an arm around her. Both Darien and Carlos felt a little ill.

"We should probably go. We'll be back tomorrow." All of the Mystics either nodded or smiled at Brianne, and scowled at everyone else. And without so much as a flash, all seven were gone.

Nobody moved or said anything for a little bit. They were all taking in everyone thing that had happened. At least, Darien was. Carlos was just numb; he couldn't think.

Michael cleared his throat. "Father. I think we should go."

"Yes, of course." Glenn snapped out of his daze. "Come, there's enough room for everyone."

He started walking, but he seemed to be shaking. Michael grasped Brianne's arm gently. She looked up in surprise, but Michael smiled softly and she let herself be led to the manor. Lucca stared for a second, than followed after. That seemed to bring Crono and Marle back and they too, left toward the house. Darien and Carlos just stared at each other.

"I guess things aren't supposed to get easier," Carlos commented.

"Guess not," Darien said in a flat voice. He sighed. "C'mon. We better go."

Carlos did, but Darien stayed for a second. Why? Why did this have to happen?

Darien shook his head. All he could hope now, was that Brianne stayed with him. That was all he could hope for.

* * *

A/N: I am so sorry for not updating. There is no excuse for it and I apologise. I hope this chapter makes up for it.

**Lightning-Mage-Betrayal:** How is this? Not as soon as I wanted though. Glad you like it so much!

**ShadowCatYumi08:** Thank you! I'm glad you like this. Hope you like this chapter.

**Shootski:** I hope the long wait hasn't deterred you at all. And I'm glad it makes sense. How long it continued to make sense... Well, we'll see.

**Thamior:** Glad you like it, but I've never seen "6th Day."

I will try to have the next one up MUCH sooner than this one. Til next time!


	12. Nothing is Ever Easy

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 11: Nothing is Ever Easy 

Fire is the life of the people; they use fire for everything. To cook food, to forge weapons; even light the darkness that puts fear in many hearts. But fire can be taken away, it is not eternal. People, though, tend to cling to it, as at times it is the only hope. Their only light.

Lucca was staring at the single candle in her room, her face showing no expression. Her thoughts, however, were raging.

_He's married. He's married, and he has a son. I really shouldn't be surprised, but... It's not fair! He has someone that he can love and I'm stuck all alone! It's not fair! I fell in love with someone I can never have. It's... not fair._

Lucca glared at the candle, almost like it was it's fault. She was in a room of her own, Glenn had enough space for all of them. She was glad for that; she didn't think she could stand anyone at the moment.

She punched the pillow, not feeling any better. All she wanted was a nice visit with an old friend. An old friend who was single. But no, nothing like that ever happened to Lucca; she was never that lucky. Instead, she, as well as the others, were on pins and needles waiting for the decision of a certain Mystic girl. And they were staying the manor of an old friend. An old friend who wasn't single.

The door to her room opened and Lucca looked up. _Speak of the devil..._

Glenn took a seat on the nearby chair, staring at her. Lucca chose to ignore this, she didn't want to talk to him at the moment. A minute of silence passed and Lucca couldn't ignore it any longer. She pulled herself in a sitting position an returned said stare.

"What do you want?" she asked after a moment.

"Just checking on you."

Lucca made a noise in her throat. She continued looking at Glenn. At his untamed green locks, at his wonderful brown orbs, at his muscular arms...

_Stop it, stop it, STOP IT! I cannot think like that. There is no way I can think like that!_

"Is something bothering you, Lucca?"

Lucca nearly snorted at that. _Oh no. I'm just deeply and madly in love with you, and I can't have you. No, nothing is wrong._

What she said was, "Why did you support those... Mystics? I can't believe you'd actually say someone should live with them, even if she is a Mystic. Why didn't you tell them Brianne belongs with us, and stop at that?"

Glenn looked at her, slightly surprised. "That's what's been bothering you?"

Lucca didn't say anything. Glenn sighed. "I didn't want to. I would have gladly just told them to leave and let you all take Brianne home. But, doing that would have angered them to no end, and I don't want to the one who starts the next war with them."

"But we could have taken them!" Lucca protested. "We did two times and beat all three of them!"

"But now there's six of them," Glenn replied, his eyebrow raised slightly. "And... I didn't want to upset Schala..."

"Oh..." Lucca looked down. "Yeah, I guess if you had said that, she would have gotten upset."

"I don't care about the other Mystics, but Schala..." Glenn just shrugged. "I got to know her a bit better when she first appeared here, with the woman who became my wife."

Lucca winced at that, but Glenn didn't notice.

"I don't know why, but Ozzie began courting her, and... she began to fall in love with him."

"Brainwashing, or under a spell?" Lucca suggested.

Glenn laughed a little. "I thought so at first, but no. She actually truly loves him."

Lucca shook her head. She didn't think anyone could fall in love with that. A thought occurred to her. "Hey, didn't he used to be extremely fat, or something? At least, that's what you all told me; I never actually saw him until today..."

"He was, but I have no idea how that changed."

Lucca couldn't help but smile a bit. It felt good to smile.

Glenn was pleased to see Lucca smile, even if it was a small one. She looked so beautiful, especially with her long, violet hair, and her deep green eyes...

Glenn blinked, than shook his head of those thoughts. _It doesn't pay to have thoughts like that toward a married woman._

"So Glenn," Lucca said, as casually as she could, "where is this wife of yours? I would love to meet her."

Glenn's expression went blank and stood, quickly turning toward the door. Luuca was alarmed. "Wait! What did I say that was wrong?"

"...My wife is dead..." Glenn muttered as he reached for the handle.

Lucca eye's widened to saucers; she felt like hitting herself. "I'm, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to sound mean by saying that!"

Glenn said nothing as the door opened.

"It was stupid of me," she rambled on. "I should have known better. I've... I lost my husband too." She looked down at the bed, feeling very stupid and ashamed of herself. She hadn't meant to upset him like that.

When she looked up, she expected him to already be gone. To her surprise, and relief, he was still standing there, an oddly familiar expression on his face.

"If I may ask," he said quietly, "how did your husband die?"

Lucca looked at Glenn, a sad expression now on her face. She looked down. "It... It was a few years ago. We were trying to make a machine that would put nutrients into the ground. You know, help plants grow better." Lucca smiled in remembrance. "It was a good idea, and we had finished it, but..." Lucca stopped, feeling tears in her eyes. After all this time, it still hurt.

She felt someone take her hands. Glenn was kneeling by the bed, looking deeply at her. She took a breath.

"There was a bug in the system, wouldn't allow it to operate for long. So Paul, my husband, took it apart to try and find out what was wrong. Told me to head back to the house and take a break. Said he'd get me after he was done."

"I don't know what he did, and I've never found out, but, shortly after I was back at home, I..." A few tears fell down her cheeks. "I heard the explosion and ran to him. The machine was destroyed and he... he had been hit by the shrapnel. He'd died instantly, and I wasn't there..."

Not being able to take it, she let a sob escape her. She just wanted to turn away and cry. Glenn, however, pulled her close to him and let her sob into his chest. Luckily, he had changed out of his armour. It took a while, but she finally stopped crying and began drying her eyes.

"Are you alright now?" Glenn asked softly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she offered him a smile. Talking about it helped. A little bit.

"What about you?" Lucca asked after a moment. "How did your wife... die? Unless you don't want to talk about it," she said quickly.

Glenn considered for a minute. "No, it's fine." He moved back to the chair.

"She caught a disease a few years ago, when my son was extremely young. The healers did everything the could for her, but they said she would die from it. They just didn't know when."

"Every month that went by, she got worse. She couldn't eat or sleep much. It became difficult for her to walk. She was in great pain. After a while, the healers said it might be kinder if..." Glenn's face turned pale. "I couldn't do that. I wanted to believe that there was chance that she could be saved."

"I tried everything I could think of. But in the end... She died in her sleep. It was the one time she actually slept and she died. I was... devastated I knew it was going to happen, but still..."

Lucca has taken Glenn's hands. There weren't any tears in his eyes, but his face showed great sorrow.

"You did do everything you could..." Lucca said quietly.

"Yes," Glenn said with a slight bitter tone. "I even asked the Mystics if they knew if anything could be done..."

Lucca felt rage building inside her. They couldn't be that cruel... "They refused, didn't they?"

"No actually. Aishia was an Enlighten One, and the Mystics hold respect toward them. They couldn't find a way either."

Lucca just continued to hold his hands. Glenn smiled and stood up. "I should leave you so you can get some rest."

"I don't mind," Lucca protested slightly. "I like your company."

Glenn just continued to smile. "Good night Lucca."

She sighed sadly. "Good night." She continued to stare after him until he had closed the door behind him. She turned her attention to the ceiling.

_Well, at least I know now that he isn't married. Not anymore. But do I really want to have him. Her death still hurts him. And... what if he doesn't love me?_

Outside her room, Glenn was having very similar thoughts.

_Should I try? I... have no idea really. Her husband's death is still on her mind, it wouldn't be right. But still..."_

He turned to go to his room, but stopped, surprised to see someone else in the hall.

"What are you doing out here?" he asked, eyeing the person.

Crono shrugged innocently. "Just getting a glass of water."

"And you had to bring Marle with you?" Glenn added, now looking suspicious.

"I needed some water too," she replied rather lamely.

Glenn eyed the two with suspicion before heading on his way. Crono and Marle looked at each other.

"That wasn't the brightest thing to do," Marle stated.

"I know, but we did have to find out," Crono remarked.

Marle shook her and sighed. "This is going to take a bit of work."

"True, but those two have a good chance together."

Both smiling, they headed back to the direction of their room.

* * *

Night had long fallen outside and there wasn't a soul outside. Everyone was inside, getting ready to sleep. 

Brianne stared outside, an aura of gloom surrounding her. She held a sketchbook in her hand, trying to draw the landscape. But lack of light and interest made it impossible.

Her mind was in more turmoil then ever before. She had not expected to see her family here; all of them. It wasn't that she wasn't happy, she was; but it still... She put the sketchbook down and turned away from the window.

Where would she go? She still didn't know, and that was almost all she thought about. To everyone, it seemed that she was deciding if she wanted to stay with her adopted family or the Mystics. But... It was a choice between two boys.

Darien or Slade. Which one did she want to be with? She wasn't even close to figuring it out yet.

The door opened and she looked. She had been avoiding everyone, even though people had been trying to talk to her. She resisted the urge to groan; it was Darien.

Darien walked to her, no expression on his face. Brianne couldn't recall a time she had ever seen him like this.

"Can I sit down?" he asked, gesturing to the bed.

Brianne nodded, her throat tightening now.

Darien just continued to stare at her. Brianne stared back. Usually, this would have caused Darien to make some sort of comment, but not tonight.

Darien's expression turned sorrowful as he stared. "Why?"

"Huh?" Darien had said it so quietly, she didn't hear it.

"Why? Why do you want to stay here? With... them?"

Brianne thought about that. She didn't know yet if she wanted to stay with them. But for the reason why she wanted to stay with them... She couldn't tell Darien that. She couldn't tell anyone why, but Darien especially.

"I... I enjoyed the time I spent with them," she replied. "For the first time, I've been with people who are a lot like me. It made me feel... Better in a way. And... I never thought I'd see you, or the others ever, so I was already thinking of-"

"But we're here now!" Darien exclaimed suddenly. Brianne was taken aback. Darien took a few calming breaths.

"Brianne, we're your family. We care about you, love you. If you leave, you would devastate all of us."

Guilt. Brianne could feel the tears beginning to form, but she wouldn't let them fall. "I know, but..."

"Brianne, please, please, come back with us." He moved off the bed and kneeled beside her. He took both her hands into his. "We can time travel now, so you can visit the Mystics if you want, but... Please, stay with us."

_Stay with me._

Brianne looked at him, her eyes staring into his. "I don't know. I really don't know..." Moisture began to form in her eyes.

Darien didn't say anything, but nodded slowly. He couldn't say anything else that could convince her.

Brianne tried to smile. Needed to change the topic. "So, what have you been up to?"

Darien allowed a small grin himself. "We're trying to get Lucca and Glenn together."

Brianne nodded; she remembered the talk that they had with Lucca before the great time travel incident. "And Glenn...?"

"Oh yeah, he does, but he won't admit. Carlos, Michael and me are trying to find a way to get them together. We... Haven't come up with anything yet."

Brianne thought back to her little talk with Michael. She had found him to be polite to her; maybe a little too polite. He had asked a lot of questions to her, mostly stupid little things. She just noticed that he seemed to ask a lot about Lucca. She actually hadn't thought about it than, but now it all made sense.

"I hope you find a way," she expressed. "Wish that I could help."

Darien's smile vanished slowly, and he looked sorrowful once again. "You can..."

Brianne shook her head. She couldn't do this agian. "Darien, I... I need to think. I need-"

But Darien had already stood. "I know. I'm sorry that I'm annoying you. I'll go." Before he did, though, he leaned close to her and kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Sleep well." And with that, he left.

It wasn't until he closed that the door that the tears fell on Brianne's face.

Darien leaned against the wall. He didn't want to upset her, but he couldn't let her leave him. He would do anything to keep Brianne with him. Maybe he was being selfish, but he didn't care at all. He loved her and he wouldn't let her go.

He looked up. "I thought you were supposed to keeping us from influencing her?"

Michael shrugged, stepping out of the shadows. "My father said that, I just don't follow. Anyway, he wouldn't stop any of you either. Do you really think he wants to see Brianne with them?"

"No," Darien replied, smirking a bit. "This is probably the one time I'm glad you aren't listening to your dad."

"Oh believe me; what he says and what he means are two different things. So..." Michael leaned a little closer. "Any ideas on how to get father and Lucca together?"

"I think I may have come up with something new. Let's go find Carlos and I'll tell you both."

Both smirking, the prince and the knight set out to find the inventor.

* * *

It was quiet outside that night; nothing was stirring, it was absolutely quiet. 

Well, almost.

A small shadow was travelling over toward the forest, hunched over. It let a small sigh as it sat down by a tree.

Brianne couldn't sleep tonight at all. All she could think about was her situation, and she wanted to figure it out, now.

Her little talk with Darien had made her feel a little guilty about thinking of staying here, but she needed to decide what would make her happy. Or rather, who would.

She looked up at the stars. They were so beautiful, always shining, always there even when they were hidden. She shook her head. She had to stay focussed. She had to think about the qualities of both of them.

She had known Darien since she was small. There was really nothing about him that surprised her anymore. He was loyal and had always been there for her. He had a great sense of humor, knew how to make her laugh. And he was good looking on top of that.

Brianne allowed a small chuckle at that. All this time she spent with him, she had just begun to notice that he was handsome.

At the same time, though, Darien was immature and could be a brat. He had picked on her a lot when they were younger. He wasn't all that bright; dim at times. She could never really talk to him about important matters. He was, in many ways, still a child.

_Not when he came to see me tonight, _she reminded herself. _He seems to have grown up. So... I don't know._

Slade, on the other hand, was extremely mature. He could be serious, but still have fun at the same time. He had been so kind and sweet toward her. He too seemed to be loyal would always help her. He was also intelligent, probably around the same lines as Carlos.

But she still didn't know much about him, and he was slightly above average looking, and...

Brianne thought for a moment, trying to come up with something else negative about Slade, but... Nothing.

_Well, it really should be obvious that it's Slade, but there's still... My father_.

Nobody but Brianne knew that Magus was her real father. She knew that the Humans wouldn't hate her for it. But the Mystics...

Darien wouldn't care either way who her father was, but Slade would. And she couldn't stand the thought of being hated for something she didn't do.

_But you don't know that,_ she scolded herself._ You don't know if Slade will actually hate you for it._

She shook her head, trying to clear her thoughts. Though she couldn't sleep, she was still tired and she was losing her train of thought. Rising, she decided to try to sleep and figure the rest out in the morning.

She had made it half-way back to the manor when she heard footsteps behind her. She stopped, but didn't turn around. The sound stopped as well. She tried to keep her breathing slow.

_Just imagining it..._

But when she continued, she heard it again. She sped up her pace, wanting to get back to the manor as quickly as she could. The footstep, however, still sounded like they were right behind her.

She couldn't take it; she whipped around. Her eyes went several sizes bigger and her voice died in her throat.

A tall figure dressed completely in black was standing only a few feet away from her. The only thing visible was their eyes, but even they were a dark colour. Even with her heightened eyesight, Brianne could only just make the figure out in the darkness.

She slowly began to back up, keeping her eyes on them. She wished she had brought a weapon of some sort with her. Never could be too careful...

The figure got into a fighting stance. Brianne raised her hand slightly and began chanting under her breath. A faint red aura surrounded her hand. They charged at her before she could finish. Brianne flung herself to the ground. The figure raised their foot and brought it down. A fireball erupted in their chest and made them lose their step. Brianne rolled away, thankful she could get that fire spell out.

It didn't stop her opponent for long. They lunged at her, a hand outstretched. She kicked out at them. Not a good idea, as they grabbed her leg and flung her a far distance.

Brianne was dazed. She wobbled as she tried to stand. Her opponent came from behind her; they pulled her close, grabbing both her arms in the process.

Brianne struggled slightly, but she had never been a good fighter physically. She has alway relied on her magic.

She cried out a little as her opponent twister her arms some more. The way this person fought made it look like they weren't trying to kill her. Injure her, maybe.

She now wished more than ever that she had paid attention when Crono had taught her and Darien how to fight. Right now, she could think of only one thing to do. She crushed her opponents foot with her own, hoping she had applied enough pressure. Sure enough, they loosened their grip on her arms. Pulling one of her arms free, she drove it back as hard as she could.

She heard a slight moan, very masculine. _It's a guy. Why am I not surprised?_

He released his grip completely, grabbing at his injured side. Brianne backed away, breaking into a full fledged run to the manor. Her opponent, however, had other ideas. He raced after her, gaining on her step by step. Brianne concentrated she ran; she was attempting to teleport.

_Inside the manor. Please let me teleport inside the manor!_

She released her magic and saw the world fade in front of her. As she it came back into focus, she fell to her knees, completely out of breath. She just stayed there, trying to get her breath back as quickly as possible. She looked up, a confused expression on her face that switched to pained.

She had teleported to the wrong location, she was still outside. But, at least, the man was nowhere in sight. The minutes passed, and she was still having a problem breathing. She wasn't in that bad a shape, so what was wrong. She stood up and took a look around. To her surprise, it looked like a lot of the ground was missing.

Walking slowly to where the ground disappeared, Brianne saw the castle far in the distance. Casting a look down, she took a quick step back. The ground was far below! She had teleported herself onto a mountain!

She sat as far from the edge as she could, weighing her options.

"Maybe I should stay here for the night, than try to teleport back in the morning," she muttered to herself. "I don't think I should try now." Decided, she settled down.

A branch breaking made her jump to her feet. She turned to the source of the noise.

Brainne was a naturally pale girl. Even being out in the sun didn't make any difference. But now, her face was pure white. The man was standing there! He took a step toward her, his hand glowing.

Brianne walked backwards. What was this guy? Was he Human, or Mystic? Right now, she didn't care, all she wanted to do was get out of here. She prepared to teleport again. She hoped that she warped to the right place.

She continued watching the mysterious man walk toward her, still backing up. Suddenly, the man lunged at her. It looked like he was wanting to grab her and pull her. And the reason why became apparent to her right away.

Her next step back missed the ground completely. She had forgotten that she was on a mountain! Before she could jerk herself the other way, she felt herself fall over the edge.

Fear took over her. She let out a scream as she plummeted toward the ground. She felt a familiar sensation spread through her body, but it didn't register to her. All that registered was the sensation of falling, and than... Darkness...

* * *

A/N: Wow... This took a little bit to get out. I'm so sorry! I've been working on this for some time, but it was hard to write, especially the fight scene. If I promised that I'd get this out sooner... I'm so very sorry! Please don't hurt me! 

Okay! Onto the reviews!

**Shootski:** Glad you liked it! And the tension isn't about to go down anytime soon. The action is finally picking up!

**ShadowCatYumi08:** Yes, Ozzie and Schala are together. It was first mentioned when Brianne meets them all in Chapter 5. But! He isn't as hideous as he was in the game! I also explained what happened to him in Chapter 5... I think. But, glad you liked it anyway!

I am not going to promise that the next chapter will be out soon. Because if I do, it won't. But I will try! Bye bye!


	13. How to Fix Something

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 12: How to Fix Something 

Water is the life source of the planet. It is like blood inside the body. It is from water that all life spawned, and it is because of water that they continue to survive. People need to consume the liquid to survive. If something were to happen to the planet's water, the people would all fade away and perish.

Carlos stared dazedly out of the window, sipping a glass of water. He hadn't gotten a lot of sleep last night. A lot of it was spent talking with Darien and Michael. Mostly, it had been about an idea on how to get Lucca and Glenn to realize that they loved each other. A small bit, though, was dedicated to Darien whining a little about Brianne. Carlos had laughed; he had become a matchmaker for his mother and counsellor for his friend.

It was almost noon and nobody but Glenn was up. It was almost time for the Mystics to show, and for Brianne to make her decision.

Carlos personally didn't mind all that much what Brianne chose. They could time travel; even if she stayed here, they could still see her. It was for Darien's sake that he hoped Brianne stayed with them.

Speaking of Darien...

Darien had come downstairs, blurry eyed. His hair was dishevelled, making it look more spiky than usual. He sat down at the table, muttering a "hello" to Carlos. Michael followed not too far behind. His appearance was better than Darien's, but he looked more tired. He just collapsed into the nearest chair, his head on the table.

"Didn't have a good night's sleep?" Carlos asked cheekily.

Michael muttered something impolite into the table. That just made Carlos grin widely. "How about you Darien?"

"No," Darien mumbled. "Been worried about what Brianne's decision will be."

"You have to relax," Carlos sighed. "No matter what happens, life will go on."

Darien didn't say anything, just stared at the table.

They all sat in silence for a while. Both Darien and Michael had gotten something to eat and were waking up a little more. Carlos just continued drinking his water.

"I think it's time," he said finally.

"Time for what?" Darien asked.

"Time to get Brianne up."

Darien winced, but nodded. Michael looked up.

"Well, go ahead."

"I can't though," Carlos replied, trying not to laugh. "Remember? We're not supposed to have any contact with Brianne. Only you and your father. It would look bad if the Mystics came and one of us was escorting Brianne."

"He's got a point," Darien replied, a grin emerging.

Michael glared at the pair of them, muttering something "lazy, good for nothings", but he stood and went to get her.

Up the stairs, he passed Crono, Marle and Lucca. The all exchanged greetings before continuing on their separate ways.

"You two are up early," Crono remarked, grabbing a seat.

"I'm always up this early," Carlos responded, "working on machines and such. Right mother?"

Lucca mumbled unintelligently; she was looking as tired as Darien and Michael were.

"Didn't you sleep well Lucca?" Marle inquired.

"No..." came out the raspy reply.

Marle frowned. If anything, it should have been her and her husband who couldn't sleep well. "Why not?"

Lucca turned her head away from everyone. Good thing too, or else everyone would have seen the red tinge on her cheeks. "None of your business."

Crono and Marle exchanged smirks; Darien and Carlos just exchanged looks.

The door opened and Glenn walked in, a smile on his face. "Good morning everyone. Is Michael still sleeping?"

Oddly enough, Lucca jerked her head from the table. She no longer looked tired, but cheerful. "No, he's awake. He just went upstairs to get Brianne."

Crono gave Glenn a look as he took a seat. "How can you wake up at such a horrible hour?"

"Actually, I seem to recall a few times, about two decades ago, when you my friend, would wake up earlier than me." Glenn tilted his head slightly. "Clearly, age has taken it's toll on you."

Crono leaned over and gave a lame attempt of a swipe at Glenn. The laughter it caused stopped when Michael came back downstairs.

He looked calm, but his eyes were darting all over the place in a panic. He took a very deep breath. "We have as problem."

Everyone felt their stomachs drop. "What is it?" Glenn asked tentatively.

Michael didn't answer right away; he was wondering how to phrase it. Did he want to mention the almost untouched bed, or the fact that the shoes were missing? Instead he said...

"Brianne's missing."

* * *

They had no idea when she could have gone. They checked the village and the surrounding forest and area, but no sign of her at all. 

Darien was frantic. He was breathing strangely and his eyes appeared to have gone wide and was stuck like that. He couldn't think of any reason why she would run away...

Well, maybe all the pressure of having to choose...

Darien just fell to the ground, hand over his face. He had made her feel guilty about staying here. If anything had happened to her, it was his fault...

"Where could she have gone?" Michael muttered. They were outside the manor, planning their next move. All the adults were grouped together, talking quietly. Michael was scanning the area, his eyes narrowed. Carlos was trying to be calm.

"Anywhere," he replied. "I mean, magical ability and everything. She probably teleported somewhere."

"Anywhere," Darien moaned quietly. "She could be anywhere. She could be hurt, she could be dying..."

"Does this sound familiar to you?" Michael asked Carlos as Darien whined.

Carlos just shrugged. "Anything concerning Brianne's safety and he turns into that."

Michael nodded. Darien cared, but, it was getting annoying. "Hey! I hope you can still worry about us at the same time!"

"What do you mean?" Darien demanded.

"Don't forget who's supposed to show up here anytime now."

Carlos blanched, looking around wildly, as if expecting to see the Mystics there. Darien just moaned louder.

"This is going to end very badly," he stated, standing back up.

"You don't need to tell me, I know," Michael replied grimly

"But they're intelligent beings," Carlos argued. "Surly they wouldn't think we were lying..."

"They're intelligent, but they don't like Humans. At all. Any reason to blame us and they will."

"So with Brianne missing, they'll think we hid her away, or something?" Darien guessed.

"Exactly," sneered an unfamiliar voice.

Darien felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. Something, or someone forced him to turn around and he stared up to see a pair of immeasurable black eyes. The Mystics had arrived.

Slade was glaring at all of them, his hand tightening on Darien's shoulder. The younger Ozzie was also glaring at them all, his arms crossed. Selena was turning her head to observe something in the distance, a frown on her face. The other Mystics were with the other Humans, apparently arguing from the looks of it.

Darien tried to pull away, but to no avail. "Well, we haven't," he growled. "We don't know where she is."

"You really don't expect us to believe that," Slade sneered. His eyes narrowed.

"Why not?" Darien snarled. "It is the truth after all."

"You are lying."

"I am not!"

"You are-"

"Slade," Michael said as calmly he could, "he is not lying. We have no idea where she is. We were out looking for her."

Slade turned his attention to Michael, his expression not changing. A moment passed and he released Darien's shoulder. "If you say so, Turner."

He glared at them before turning on his heel and striding off toward the arguing. Selena followed after, Ozzie stayed a moment, giving them all an evil look before turning away.

Darien rubbed his shoulder. "Idiot," he muttered. "What's his problem anyway?"

Michael shrugged. "Slade just isn't someone you really get along with."

"And the other two?" Carlos asked, eyeing them cautiously.

"Selena and Ozzie are pretty much the same."

They too went to where the arguing was taking place. The quiet, but heated battle had turned into an all out shouting match. Darien was surprised that weapons hadn't been drawn already.

"This is your fault! All your fault!" Slash was yelling. "You did something! I know you did!"

"We didn't do anything!" Marle shrieked back. "We don't know what happened or where she is!"

"You are LYING!" Flea raged. Her face was almost as red as her hair. "You're nothing but a bunch of filthy Humans! You," she pointed a shaking finger at Glenn. "You said you wouldn't do anything! That they wouldn't do anything! You are nothing but lying piece of-"

"Shut up!" Glenn hollered. The usually calm knight had his fist clenched and small vein throbbing on his forehead. "We didn't do anything, but you did, didn't you? You blame us, but it was YOU, wasn't it?"

"Idiots," Ozzie hissed. "Imbeciles, disgusting animals. You have no idea what you're saying. How dare you-"

"Isn't it sad," Carlos said in an undertone, "when the children are more mature than the adults?"

Darien nodded as he watched the fight. Still no weapons were drawn, but it wouldn't be long now. Turning to Carlos, he said, "I'm not that bad, am I?"

"Sometimes. But... C'mon, look at them." Carlos shook his head in slight disgust.

Michael was watching the fight, looking elated. He was probably hoping the Mystics would get killed. The younger Mystics, too, were rather entertained by the fight. Carlos shook his head, wondering if him and Darien were the only sane ones left. He smiled a little as he looked to the Mystics. _Maybe not._

Schala was silent, her eyes closed. A very pale, blue aura, was encasing her. She had been like that as the fight had started taking place. Her eyes opened slowly and the aura faded. She had a troubled expression on her face.

She looked up at the fighting. Now they had started to go for their weapons. She just shook her head, a sad smile on her face. Putting two fingers into her mouth, she gave a loud, sharp whistle. Everyone froze and looked at her.

"If everyone is finished..." Here she gave the elders a pointed look. The Humans all turned a bright red and muttered apologies under their breaths. The Mystics looked abashed and turned away. Darien and Carlos both grinned at each other.

"I think I know what happened to Brianne." Here, Schala's face fell. "But you are not going to like it..."

* * *

It was dark; very dark. But she couldn't do anything about it. She couldn't seem to open her eyes. 

"She wake yet?"

A voice, the one she had heard many times already. Always asking if she was awake.

"No, she still sleep."

And there was the other one that always followed.

"When she wake up?"

"Not know. She found by cliffs. Might have fell..."

"But that not what..."

"No. She from different time; that what..."

A small moan escaped her through her lips.

"Look! She awake!"

"Put this on her head. It help with fever."

She felt something wet placed on her forehead. A wonderful cold feeling went through her.

"You okay? What your name?"

She moaned again, but said, "Brianne."

"Brianne... That nice name. You open eyes?"

Brianne tried to, but something kept her from doing so.

"I can't," she mumbled. "Something's wrong with my eyes."

"Nothing wrong, you just have fever. But you must open eyes."

Brianne moaned again. She wasn't sure if she wanted to now, but she didn't think she should argue with the voices. With a lot of effort, she forced her eyes open. The first thing she saw was light, and it was bright. She immediately closed her eyes again.

"Too bright..." she muttered.

"Sorry, forgot to mention about light."

If Brianne had her eyes opened, she would have rolled them.

"But you must open them. It hurt, but you need to."

Brianne sighed, but did as she was told. The light hurt, but she strained to keep them open. What she saw was two people looking at her. A woman and a younger girl to be exact.

Both had the same shade of golden yellow hair. The older's was a bit more curlier than the younger's, while the younger's was a bit longer. Their eyes were the same forest green, both pairs sparkling. Both with the same tanned skin, almost similar faces... It was obvious that they were mother and daughter.

The older woman nodded approvingly. "Good. It hurt now, but it get better."

Brianne tried to turn her head, but that was painful. "Where am I?"

"Ioka Village," the young girl replied. She looked to be about the same age as Brianne; maybe a bit younger. "We find you at cliffs south of village. You had bad fever, so we take you back here."

"Thank you," Brianne uttered. "I'm very thankful you found me."

The woman took the cloth off Brianne's forehead to dampen it again. The girl just stared at Brianne. Brianne stared back. A moment passed before she asked, "Is something wrong?"

The girl shook her head. "No, nothing wrong. Wondering where you from. You have strange furs."

Brianne allowed herself a little grin. _Ioka Village, wearing furs, strange talking; it's what I thought. I'm in the Prehistoric era._

"Where you from? There are no village near here. And you not look like Laruba."

For the second time, Brianne felt a little apprehensive about their reaction. Again, she wondered if they would believe her, laugh at her or even try to kill her.

_I already went through this, _she scolded herself. _And nothing bad happened._

"I'm from a different time," she stated. "I have no idea how I got here though..."

"Thought so," the woman exclaimed. She placed the cloth back on Brianne's forehead. "You not from here, and you look like old friend."

"I look like an old friend?" Brianne questioned. "Who?"

"Not old friend," the woman amended. "Person who helped long time ago, but we not get along. His name Magus, you know?"

Brianne felt her heart sink. _Not again._ She really wanted to forget that Magus was her father, but somehow, she was reminded of the wonderful fact.

At least she was sure of the woman's identity. It had to be Ayla, the cave woman that had been in that group so long ago. She really didn't want to say that she was Magus' daughter, but... What harm would it do?

"Actually," she mumbled. "Magus is my father, but I was raised by Crono and Marle. You must be Ayla, right?"

The woman gave a huge smile. "Yes. I Ayla, and it nice to meet you. Ayla wonder how Crono and Marle are."

"They're doing okay. So is Lucca and Glenn too."

"Glenn?"

"I mean Frog," Brianne corrected. "But he's not a frog anymore."

Ayla looked a little confused, but she smiled and nodded anyway.

"That good. Ayla wonder, but not able to find out..."

She smiled at Brianne, than turned to the young girl. She had a rather dazed look on her face. "This Ariel, she daughter."

Brianne offered the girl a small smile, and got a huge grin in return.

"How you here?" Ayla asked. "Gates not open anymore."

"I... I really don't know. It just happened." Brianne's face fell. She could tears beginning to form. "And I don't know how to get back."

"It okay!" Ariel piped up. "You stay here as long as you want! So long as you help out, it no problem!"

Brianne looked up at the two blonde woman. Both were smiling at her. Brianne felt like smiling herself.

"I'll do what I can."

* * *

"This cannot be happening..." 

Carlos gave Darien a look before turning back to Schala.

"Are you sure that it was a time gate? You're positive?" Lucca inquired.

All of the Mystics gave her a dirty look. Lucca shut up immediately.

"I know that time gates opened, but..." Schala shook her head sorrowfully.

"Alright, let's hear this again," Crono stated. He was starting to get the beginnings of a headache.

"As I said, I am able to sense different types of magic, time gates opened by magic included. Three time gates opened, by the feel of the residue, last night. One entering this era, two leaving. Both have different magical signatures."

"That means two different people," Flea said with a slight sneer to the Humans.

"And those three gates led to, or came from: 64,999,982 BC, 11,982 and 2018?" Crono asked, ignoring Flea's jab.

"Yes."

"But you don't know which gate connects to which time?"

Schala shook her head. "No, I'm afraid not. I know that there were three gates. I know which ages they led to. But I don't know which ones led to which times."

"Great, simply great." Taking a deep breath, Crono continued. "Okay, we'll just have to go to all three and check them out."

"I'll go with you."

Crono looked at Glenn. "Are you sure?"

Glenn nodded. "Of course. You're going to need all the help you can get."

"But... You've already helped! You don't have to do anything more."

"No..." Glenn smiled. "But I want to."

Crono turned a little red, but smiled gratefully. "Well, thanks. Need all the help we can get."

A rather loud cough got Crono's attention. He glared at the Mystics, who returned said look. "What?"

The Mystics smirked; Crono didn't like that look one bit.

It was Ozzie that spoke. "We're going as well."

"No." Crono tried not to look disgusted, but it was hard.

"Why? Don't you need all the help you can get?" Flea mimicked.

"Not from you!"

All of the Humans glared at the Mystics. The Mystics just continued to smirk. Schala just stood there, looking disheartened Carlos almost rolled his eyes. _Here we go again._

"I'd like to know; how are you able to travel through time?" Schala inquired.

Lucca showed her the pyramid-shaped device. "This is little thing. Carlos has an exact copy of this."

Schala looked at it for a moment, than began to smile. "You only have two though. Wouldn't it better if you had three?"

Lucca exchanged a look with her friends. "Yeah, it would," Marle agreed, "we could search all three times at once."

"But it would take too long to make another one," Lucca argued. "And I don't have the right equipment anyway."

"Well..." Schala's cheek turned a little pink, but she smiled.

"Yes?" Glenn asked politely.

"I can... Open a time gate with my magic." Schala looked a little sheepish. "I found it in a book a little while ago. I tested the portal, and it seems to work fine. I could... You know..."

Crono and Lucca's mouths dropped open, Marle's just stared and Glenn blinked.

"This is going to get ugly," Michael muttered so only Darien and Carlos could hear. Darien nodded.

"They look happy." Carlos pointed to the younger Mystics. All three had looks of extreme glee.

"Good for them," Darien muttered.

No one really said much. Everyone just kind of stared at everyone else. Finally, Crono thundered, "Alright! Fine! Come with us! But you better be here early!" With that, he turned on his heel and left.

Everyone just stared after him. Even the Mystics looked a little shocked.

"Yes... Well..." Glenn wheeled around to face the Mystics, trying to recover his composure. "We will go early, so make sure you're here."

"Oh we will," Slash assured him. "You can count on that."

"Be better if I knew we could trust you," he muttered. Aloud, he said, "Just show up."

Schala nodded with a smile; Slash, Flea and the older Ozzie barely inclined their heads before all four disappeared.

Michael turned to his two friends. "Well, that was interesting to say the least."

"Oh was it ever."

Slade stood at Michael's shoulder, a grin-like smirk firmly on his face.

"Go away!" Darien commanded. "You're coming with us, do you still have to torture us?"

"Of course!" Selena piped up, standing behind Slade.

"You are Humans, after all," Ozzie stated, looking at them like they were dirt on his shoe.

"That's no reason!" Carlos spoke up. All three looked at him, and he began shaking.

"Would you please just go?" Michael said in exasperation.

"Fine fine." Slade crossed his arms. "See you... _creatures_ in the morning."

And with all three laughing, they disappeared.

"Why? Why? Why are we stuck with them?" Darien whined.

"Despite the fact they're nothing but insulting little creeps, they are useful." Michael rubbed his head. "Surely you don't want to waste any time finding Brianne?"

"Well, no, but..."

Michael ignored Darien's blustering and turned to Carlos. "Do you wonder why we're not going now?"

Carlos was calming down, but he was still shaking. "I think it's because my device isn't working. I think mom wants to fix it first."

"That, and we need to prepare," Darien put in.

Carlos frowned. "That is a type of preparing."

"Okay children," Michael chided. "Let's go back inside."

As they headed back to the house, Darien sighed.

"Do you think we'll find Brianne?" he asked.

"We better," Michael responded, "or I'll bet none of us will make it out in one piece. Whether it be the Mystics, or each other."

"Yeah, I'm surprised dad reacted like that," Darien professed.

"And yet everyone was acting like that a few minutes before hand," Carlos said dryly.

"I don't think anyone expected him to give in that quickly. Or that loudly." Michael reasoned. He grinned. "It did freak the Mytics out, even though it was only a little bit."

They all laughed. Darien smiled as he looked up at the sky. The sun was beginning to set into the horizon.

_I'm coming Brianne. And this time, I will find you._

* * *

A/N: There. Finally. The next chapter. I tried to get it out earlier, but... At least I didn't promise this time! 

Well, the little love triangle between Brianne/Darien/Slade will be over soon. So... DO any of you know who will get the girl? Do you care at all? Either way, submit a review:D

**Shootski :** Just something I do if I don't want my reader to figure out if they're male or female. Don't know if it's really correct or not... but hey. It worked... I think? Anyway, thank you for the review!

**ShadowCatYumi08:** Thank you for the cookie! I tried to finish as soon as possible, but it didn't work out like I wanted. Thanks so:D

Okay... I hope I get the next one out soon. Again no promises. I don't want to promise and than not have the chapter out for another month. Really have to get them out earlier than that.

Til next time!


	14. Time Hopping We Will Go

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 13: Time Hopping We Will Go 

Sleep can be a wonderful thing. It allows the body to rest after a day of work. Sleep lets the person gather the energy they lost the day before. Of course, sleep also leads to dreams, or nightmares. While dreams are amazing and can bring forth your most wildest desires, nightmares are often your worst fears given form.

Darien rolled onto his side, his mouth slightly opened. The sun was pouring in through the window, but he was out to the world.

Some rather horrible nightmares had plagued him last night; all of them had involved Brianne in some way or another. It was a miracle he got any sleep at all.

A light knocking jolted Darien into near awareness. He barely glanced at the door before rolling over again.

The door opened and Carlos walked in, frown on his face. He poked Darien on the shoulder.

"C'mon Darien, it's time to wake up."

Darien didn't move.

Carlos poked him a little harder. "I know you're awake Darien, now c'mon."

Darien moaned slightly, but still didn't move.

Carlos made a noise of impatience in his throat and shook Darien hard. "Darien! This is serious! The Mystics are already here!"

Darien jerked and sat up, blurry eyed. "Is it that time already?"

Carlos nodded, still frowning.

Darien suppressed a sigh and got out of bed; he had fallen asleep in his clothes from the day before. He rubbed his head. "Am I the only one still not ready?"

"No, I believe my mom is still sleeping."

"So whose the poor soul that's gonna wake her up?" Darien had once helped Carlos wake up Lucca. He vowed to never do it again.

"Glenn."

"Well good luck to him." Darien stretched his arms over his head. "He's going to need it."

* * *

Glenn knocked on the door. He had heard about Lucca's behavior when it came to waking up. He had even seen bits of it when the two had traveled together. But he had never been the one to wake her up. 

There was no answer. Glenn's brow furrowed; he really didn't want to enter, but Lucca had to be awakened.

Steeling himself for the inevitable, he pushed the door opened.

Lucca was snuggled deep underneath the blanket, clutching a pillow. Without her glasses on, she looked like a different person. Her skin was so pale and her hair hung around her like a violet curtain.

Glenn smiled as he approached her. He wanted to caress her cheek, but resisted the urge; it just didn't feel right.

"Lucca, time to wake up," he said softly

Lucca made a soft noise, but stayed sleeping.

"Lucca," Glenn said again, "it is time for you to wake up."

Lucca's face shifted a little before a smile appeared. "Hmm... Dear, I'm not quite ready yet..."

Glenn looked confused; was she actually awake, or was she still asleep?

_Must be sleeping still, and she's dreaming about her husband._ Glenn felt the sadness and jealously build up inside him, but he forced it away.

"Lucca," he said louder. "You have to wake up."

She shifted again and frowned. "I'm still tired from last time. Give me a minute."

His cheeks flushed a bit and he felt a burning sensation in his chest, but ignored it. He made a move to grab her shoulder and start shaking her.

"Just one more minute, Glenn," Lucca murmured softly.

Glenn felt his jaw drop to the floor as he backed against the wall, causing a loud bang. His face had now turned a rich tomato red as he stared at nothing.

_She was dreaming about me. Lucca was dreaming about me. She..._

As Glenn tried to collect his wits, Lucca's eyes opened. She had been having an interesting, but good dream about her and Glenn. And now, a sudden noise had awoken her.

She rubbed her eyes, already feeling irate. She could hear the heavy breathing of a person; a man most likely. Oh, was he going to get it.

"What do you think you're doing!" she half screamed. "You've got a lot of nerve..." Her voice died as she looked upon her trespasser. Glenn's face was still a brilliant crimson, his eyes still unfocused.

"Glenn?" No answer. "GLENN!"

Glenn's eye's focused on her, but his face went even more red. "L-Lucca? I-I came to wake y-you up. It's t-time."

Usually, Lucca would rant and rave at the person who dared to wake her up, but... The man in her dreams was in her room, staring at her. And her dream... A bit of red crept into her cheeks.

"Oh yeah, sure, I just need to get dressed," she mumbled.

Glenn turned a deeper red, if that was even possible. "I'll wait outside for you by the door!" Stumbling, he made his way to the door as quickly as possible.

Lucca stared after him. _Why was he turning red? He didn't have my dream._

Glenn stood by the door, trying to calm himself and rid himself of all thought, but to no avail.

If he hadn't been embarrassed, he would have realized that he was quite pleased. Lucca had been dreaming about him, and it was a very good dream. But right now, all he could think about was the content of said dream.

Lucca stepped out of the room just as Glenn's blush was going away. Lucca was wearing her usual style of clothes and her glasses, but Glenn could feel his cheeks beginning to redden.

Lucca peered at Glenn. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine," he replied, his voice surprisingly steady. "We should go meet the others."

Lucca nodded and fell into step behind Glenn. It was quiet for a second before Lucca smiled and asked," Did you sleep okay?"

Glenn blinked. "Yes, I did."

"I slept wonderfully," Lucca remarked, a blissful expression on her face. "I had such a wonderful dream."

The brilliant shade of red returned to Gleen's face instantly. Lucca looked at him, confused. "Are you sure nothing's wrong? You've gone all red again."

That just made him go a brighter shade.

* * *

/When are we going again/ 

Slade cracked his neck as he looked at Ozzie. /When all of the Humans show up./

Selena looked up from her nails. /It would be so much easier if we knew the spell to go through time./

/Well, only mom knows it/ Ozzie looked at his mother and grimaced. She was talking to Marle, looking like she was enjoying herself. /And she gets along with them./

/Must run in her family/ Selena replied. She grinned at her aunt and uncle. Flea and Slash were glaring at the Humans, the elder Ozzie looked rather upset, watching his wife. /Glad our relatives aren't like that, right Slade/

/Hmm/ He had a small flower between his fingers, bringing it to eye level. He stared at it as it began to solidify. The flower completely froze and Slade dropped it, watching it shatter.

/You're worried about Brianne/ Selena said knowingly.

/Of course I am./ He plucked another flower from the ground, this time lighting in on fire. He watched it burn to ash with a satisfied smile.

"Do you have to be so destructive?" Michael was glaring at Slade. He returned the look with a sneer.

/Is there any way we can shut him up/ Selena wondered.

/Kill him/ Ozzie suggested.

Selena looked like she was considering it, but shook her head. /Too many would see./

/Just put up with him than./ Slade set himself on the ground. He looked expressionless, but the other two knew him too well.

/Don't worry/ Ozzie told Slade/we'll find her, no matter what./

/Yeah.../ Slade didn't sound too sure though.

/And when we do, she'll come back with us and we'll never see these Humans again/ Selena exclaimed cheerfully.

Slade raised a nonexistent eyebrow. /What makes you so sure Brianne will come back with us/

/I just know/ she replied in a smug tone.

Slade couldn't help but smile, although he made it look more smirk-like. Had to maintain the look for the Humans.

The sound of a door opening and closing made all three look. Darien and Carlos were approaching, neither looking very happy. Slade's eyes narrowed.

/I don't like him./

/Which one? The scrawny one with the purple hair/ Ozzie guessed.

/No, the idiot with the spikes for hair./ His mouth pulled into a snarl. /He annoys me more than the others./

Both Ozzie and Selena looked curious. /Why's that/ Selena asked.

/I think that's the one Brianne likes/ Slade muttered.

/That would do it/ the two exclaimed in perfect unison.

Slade ignored them and turned to the three Humans. They were speaking quietly, but he caught every word.

"...and it would be best to go with those three, but I don't like them."

"And we don't like you either; what's your point?" Slade sneered.

The three Humans stared at them. Darien looked furious, Carlos looked apprehensive and Michael looked unimpressed.

"That even though we'd rather not, we're going with you three to find Brianne," Michael stated.

"Probably because you knew you would screw up, and that you need someone competent with you," Ozzie said knowingly.

Selena laughed. "So true."

Darien blushed furiously. "It's because we don't trust you. At all."

"If you say so," Slade said off handedly. He wasn't paying attention anymore; he wanted to have a word with Slash.

/Oh Father.../

/Hmm/ Slash turned his head slightly to show he was paying attention. He was half sneering at Glenn and Lucca, who had just arrived.

/Just wondering, but are we all going with Humans/ Slade asked.

/I really don't want to, but there are advantages./

/Like being able to watch them, and having someone there to talk to Brianne./

/Exactly./

Slade mentally sighed, but allowed himself a small grin. /So which Humans are you going with/

Slash pursed his lips. /You mother and I are going with the frog and the geek./

Slade nodded. /Which leaves Ozzie and Schala with the moron and the ditz... I really despise Humans./

/Most of us do./ The corvers of Slash's mouth turned upwards. It was the closet thing to a smile without the Humans noticing. /Just watch out for yourself, and don't take any orders from them./

/Do I ever/ Slade laughed, turning his attention to Carlos talking, who was holding the pyramid.

"...So that's pretty much it," he finished.

"Just how are all of us supposed to use that?" Selena demanded.

"Just have physical contact with Carlos," Darien stated.

All the Mystics looked disgusted and Carlos looked slightly uncomfortable.

"Actually, if one of them held onto the teleporter too, the other two could hold onto them instead."

"Better," Slade muttered.

Carlos held out the device for someone to grasp. Slade grimaced at it for a moment before taking a hold of it. He tried hard to not have his fingers anywhere near Carlos'.

"What age are we going to?" Michael asked, grasping onto Carlos' shoulder.

"Prehistoric Era," came the reply.

/Uh, that's when it's really hot all of the time, isn't it/ Selena asked her cousin.

/I think so./

Selena didn't say anything else, but her mouth twisted horribly when she took Slade's shoulder.

"Okay, this should work, it better work," Carlos muttered, checking it over one last time.

"Just don't let go, or you'll end up anywhere." Darien gave the Mystics a pointed look.

"We are not as stupid as you," Selena snapped.

Carlos looked up, sweat on his forehead. "Is... Is everyone ready?"

He received five nods; three of which were rather reluctant.

Carlos punched a few buttons, the device flashed and died.

The three Humans immediately looked toward the ground, the Mystics looked everywhere else.

Ozzie snorted. "It doesn't work, nothing's happening."

Darien rolled his eyes and gestured to the ground. The familiar blue portal with black swirls was there. The Mystics looked mildly surprised, but they hid it well.

"Yes, well... That's interesting..." Ozzie muttered.

"So we just wait to go through, or something?" Michael inquired.

Neither Darien or Carlos said a word, but looked pointedly at their hands; they were both transparent. Michael held up his to see the same result.

"Huh..." he murmured.

"You're taking this better than we did," Darien commented.

"Let me guess... You panicked like a little child, screaming and crying," Selena drawled.

Darien scowled as the Mystics laughed. _Just you wait until you're unconscious from the trip, than I'll have the last laugh._

* * *

Sweltering heat, tropical trees and flat plains. This was the first sight that they saw as the portal dropped them. Darien and Carlos landed fine, except Carlos did land on his rear. Michael landed the same way as Carlos; only Michael was green faced and looking like he would pass out. The Mystics had begun to levitate once they fell out of the Gate; only Selena looked pale. 

"Everyone alright?" Carlos asked, rubbing his backside.

"I'm good," Darien answered.

"We're fine, we're all fine," Slade replied, rolling his eyes.

"I... Will be," Michael gulped. He stood, still looking sick.

"We could just sit for a moment," Carlos suggested.

"No." Slade had land and was standing right by them. "The longer we wait, the more danger Brianne is in. We're going. Now."

Carlos turned to Darien, hoping he would agree to sit for a bit. Darien, however, had a strange expression on his face. As the Mystics left, Darien followed.

Carlos just stared, feeling angry that nobody cared about Michael. A hand fell onto his shoulder; Michael was smiling at him.

"I'll be fine, I've felt worse. We should go before we can't catch up with them."

Carlos gave a small smile. He was right; it was time to go find Brianne.

* * *

A/N: Well, there it is. I've had a lot happening in my life, so I've had no chance to write really. I am trying a new method of writing. Hopefully that will speed up the process. 

**Almighty God of Paper:** Cliffhangers are fun to do. As for the evil guy, you'll find out soon, if you haven't guessed already.

**shootski:** It may take a bit for an update, but I will finish this story no matter what. That is a promise I intend to keep! Thanks for staying all this time! As for Brianne with Darien... You'll just have to wait and see.

**ShadowCatYumi08:** Glad to hear it. And I do like ice cream.

Well, I hope the next one is sooner than this. Thanks to everyone who reviewed. Til next time!


	15. Stealing in the 24th Century

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 14: Stealing in the 24th Century

Machines are the way of the future. Humans design and build them for everyday use. Machines have made life easier. However, machines must be used in moderation; too much can have horrible consequences. One must always use balance.

A small blue portal had appeared in the park. Nobody paid much attention to it, even when four people came through it; two Humans and two Mystics. A green-haired Human landed first, stumbling a bit, but still on his feet. A purple-haired Human fell next, but was caught by the green-haired one. The bald and red-haired Mystics were levitating, glaring down at the Humans.

Lucca blinked up at Glenn. "Good catch."

He didn't say anything, just looked down at her in his arms. A small smile appeared on the knight's face. Lucca was confused, but she couldn't help but grin a little. She felt warmth spread through her body.

_This is nice, I wish he'd never let go._

"Are you two finished? You're making me sick."

_...Damn them..._

Glenn set Lucca down, shooting the Mystics a dirty look; Lucca didn't look too happy either. The Mystics were looking annoyed.

"In case you've forgotten, we're here to look for someone," Flea snarled.

"I know that," Lucca muttered.

"Well than, get your act together! We have to find her!"

"Who ya looking for?"

All of them turned to the voice. Two small girls were standing there, looking at them with large eyes. One was Human, the other a Mystic. Slash and Flea just stood there, gawking at the children; Lucca had to stifle a grin.

"We're looking for a young girl," Lucca said kindly. "She's... kinda lost."

"What does she look like?" the Mystic girl asked.

"Well, she's a Mystic," Glenn explained. "She has long, black hair, pale skin, and the same kind of dress on that she has." He gestured to Flea, who still looked like she was paralyzed.

The girls looked at each other. "Is she our age?" the Human girl asked.

"No, she's a bit older than you two, a teenager," Lucca replied.

Both girls looked to be deep in thought before shaking their heads at the same time.

"Nope, I haven't seen anyone like that."

"Me neither."

Lucca sighed, she hadn't expected them to. "Okay, thanks anyway kids..." Before she could do anything else, the Human girl tapped her on the arm.

"If she's lost, maybe she went there." She pointed to a large dome not too far away.

"What's that?" Lucca inquired.

"They make machines there, and do a bunch of other stuff," the Mystic girl piped up. "It's the biggest in the world!"

"It's run by a robot. Promo, or Prome, or..." The Human girl turned to the Mystic girl for help.

"It's hard to say, but a lot of people just call him Robo."

Lucca could not believe her ears. Robo was here and he was okay! She could hardly suppress the huge grin that was trying to reach her mouth. And judging by the way Glenn's eyes twinkled, neither could he.

"Thank you children," Glenn said softly.

Both girls grinned brightly and ran off to play. Lucca turned to Glenn.

"Do you think we should?" she asked.

"Go there? The girls did mention that people usually go there if they're lost." Glenn shrugged slightly. "We don't know where anything is here and it would be a good start. Besides," he smiled, "I know you want to go see Robo."

Lucca grinned sheepishly. "Sounds about right."

They only took a few steps before they realized... "Hey! Are you two coming? Or are you gonna stand around all day like statues?"

That jolted Slash and Flea back to their senses. They both looked greatly disturbed by something; they didn't even try to keep up their usual appearance around the Humans.

"Is there something wrong?" Glenn asked, even though he had a pretty good idea what was bothering them.

"A Human and Mystic were... getting along," Flea said faintly, still not believing what she saw.

Lucca exchanged a look with Glenn. "Yeah, well, this is the Future. We've had almost two millenniums to get used to each other."

Neither of the Mystics liked hearing that. "You must be kidding," Slash insisted.

"No, I'm not," Here, Lucca got an evil grin on her face. "Even 400 years has done wonders to the relationship between our two people." She had positioned herself so she was right in front of Slash.

The Mystic swordsmen snorted. "Oh, I highly doubt tha-" Whatever he was going to say was never finished because at that moment, Lucca had flung her arms around Slash and pulled him into a tight hug.

"Don't worry," she chirped. "We'll soon be the best of friends!" She released him, cheeky grin on her face. Slash looked like he would very much like to impale her, or at least strangle her. However, he also seemed to have an inability to move. His wife looked much the same way.

Lucca turned to a shocked Glenn and winked. That seemed to help his composure, but he still whispered, "Why did you do that?"

"They were annoying me, she whispered back, her tone smug. "This will shut them up for a bit."

Glenn did a quick glance; they did look they weren't going to say much for a while. He allowed himself a small chuckle. "We should probably get going," he said aloud.

"That's right! Can't waste time! We need to find Brianne!" Unfortunately, Lucca and Glenn both burst out laughing as they turned away, the Mystics keeping their distance.

If only the Humans had turned around; they would have seen the devious looks Slash and Flea exchanged.

* * *

The outside of the dome looked quite large; that is, until the group went inside. The main room was enormous, with elevators leading to both upper and lower floors. All the floors were on the edge of the walls, leaving the middle completely open. Even though the building was made of metal, there were a variety of plants everywhere; even what appeared to be a small stream. Looking up at the ceiling was as good as being outside itself; the splendor of the sun and sky could been seen through the dome.

Lucca was beyond amazed; she had resist the urge to go over and examine everything. Glenn stood beside her, looking a bit dazed. Slash and Flea glanced here and there, an odd look on their faces.

"Technology mixed with nature..." Lucca murmured in wonder. "It's so beautiful... So different from 18 years ago..."

"Wonderful," Flea muttered, growing impatient.

A few minutes passed, and Lucca was still staring around. Even Glenn was getting a little tired of waiting.

"Lucca? Perhaps we should go ask someone?" he suggested.

"Huh?" Lucca blinked. "Oh, right. I'll go ask at the desk." She strode off toward the an information desk with a robot working at it.

/You are useful for something./

Glenn growled at Slash, who simply smiled smugly. He turned on his heel and followed after Lucca, not wanting to be anywhere near the Mystics.

Lucca was standing at the desk, waiting for the robot to notice her. A couple minutes passed; Lucca got the feeling the robot was ignoring her. She cleared her throat and the robot looked over.

"Yes? How can I help you?" the robot asked. The voice box was definitely female.

Lucca paused; she didn't know what to ask. She could always ask here about Brianne, but something felt wrong about asking some stranger. Robo, on the other hand, was someone who would care. It didn't seem so bad...

"Yes, we'd like to see Ro- Uh... Prometheus."

"Do you have an appointment?" the robot asked.

Lucca turned to Glenn, confused. Appointment? Glenn shrugged, he didn't know either.

"Um, no we don't, but we're old friends of his, I'm sure he'll see us," she said with a shaky smile.

"If you say so," the robot replied. If she had been human, she would have rolled her eyes. "He's on the very top floor . I'm sure he'll have a moment for you." With that, the robot turned away to other business.

Glenn shook his head. "Interesting, I believe that robot was being sarcastic to you."

"Yeah, someone should work on her programming," she muttered. She brightened. "Ah well, let's go see Robo."

Glenn smiled; the Mystics just blinked at her.

Using the elevator was an interesting experience. Slash and Flea did not want to enter the small room with the other two; the whole idea of said room moving didn't help any. Glenn wasn't too sure of the elevator either, having a slight fear of machines that moved.

"Where did you get that fear from?" Lucca had asked him.

"Being in the Epoch when it crashed into Lavos."

Lucca had finally got the three into the elevator after much persuasion. Once inside, nobody said much, although judging by the way the Mystics' eyes were moving, they were using telepathy.

Once they reached the top floor and stepped out, they were faced with a new problem.

"Now which room would he be in?" Lucca wondered, looking at the numerous doors.

That didn't go over well with the Mystics. "You stupid woman!" Slash hissed. "You didn't bother to get the room!"

"Hey, that robot wasn't volunteering any information," Lucca retorted.

"We'll just check the rooms," Glenn said quickly. "Come on."

However, after searching several rooms, they came up with nothing. The Mystics were close to losing their tempers.

"This is ridiculous!" Flea exclaimed. "We're not going to find that friend of yours!"

"And you think that's my fault?" Lucca demanded.

"Lucca..." Glenn had tapped Lucca on the shoulder, but she paid him no heed.

"Yes!" Flea stood merely inches away from Lucca. "If only you had asked that... that... whatever it was, we wouldn't have wasted all this time!"

"Lucca..."

"If you want to go back down there, go ahead," Lucca said through gritted teeth. "Because I am not going back and talking to that robot."

"Why you..."

"Lucca!" Glenn had grabbed her by the shoulders and swung her around to look down the hall. A few people were standing there, conversing with a robot. A robot that looked very familiar...

Lucca just stared as the people bowed slightly to Robo and left. Robo turned toward them and just stood there. A voice said quietly, "Lucca?"

"Robo!" Lucca ran up and threw her arms around the plated robot. "I never thought I would see you again..."

"It is wonderful to see you again Lucca," Robo replied.

"I thought you wouldn't exist here..."

"I am here, good as ever."

Lucca let go of Robo, beaming; he turned his attention to Glenn. There was a moments silence.

"It is good to see you, Frog... no, Glenn.

"How... how did you know it was me?" Glenn asked, stunned.

If Robo could, he would have smiled. "You may look different, but your DNA did not change. That is how I knew who you were."

Glenn looked confused, but still smiled. Robo looked over at the Mystics, who were glaring at him. There was another moment of silence, more uncomfortable than the last.

"Well, this is a surprise," Robo finally said. "I never thought we would meet again."

"The feeling is mutual," Slash sneered.

Lucca looked confused, they had met? Lucca hadn't even met them until a few days ago. She gave Glenn a quizzical look.

He leaned close to her. "Robo was the one that helped Crono and I defeat these two, remember?"

She did now; it hadn't seemed like a big deal at the time, but at least she knew why Slash and Flea were giving her robotic friend such nasty looks.

"If I may ask Lucca, why are you all traveling together?" Robo inquired. "There must be an important reason for it."

Lucca sighed; down to business. "Yeah, there is, and it's very important..."

* * *

All of them were sitting in a rather comfy room. Robo wasn't sitting, he was standing, observing the others. Slash and Flea were sitting as far away from the Humans as possible. Glenn was sitting beside Lucca, who was telling him about the situation.

"...So you think she may be here?" Robo said at last.

Lucca nodded, chewing on her bottom lip.

"Well, she is not at the center, and someone would have sent her here if they had found her."

"She's not here..." Lucca murmured.

"How could you possibly know if she's not here?" Flea demanded.

"Her name would have been entered into the data banks if she was here. I check them everyday, and the name 'Brianne' didn't turn up."

"So... no one would take advantage of a young girl?" Slash asked shrewdly. "Everyone would be willing to help her?"

There was an unpleasant silence before Robo said, slowly, "That... is very true..."

Lucca put her head in her hands and groaned; Glenn grasped her shoulder gently.

"Don't worry Lucca, I'm sure she's in a another era."

Flea made a noise, bot otherwise kept quiet.

Glenn sighed slightly. "When are we going to meet the others?"

"Sometime tomorrow, in the Dark Ages," Lucca muttered into her hands.

"Then we should probably find someplace to go for the night."

"If I may." They all turned to Robo. "There is a hotel right next door, I can get rooms for free."

"That's great Robo. Just..." Lucca grimaced slightly, "don't put me in a room with those two." She pointed to the Mystics.

"My sentiments exactly," Flea muttered.

"No, of course not," Robo said, "but you will have to share rooms with someone else; I will likely only be able to get two rooms."

"Seeing as we're married, it shouldn't be a problem," Slash pointed out with a sneer.

Robo nodded as he turned to Lucca. "Lucca? Will you and Glenn be alright sharing a room together?"

"Y-yeah..."

"Y-yes, it's fine..."

If only they had been looking at each other, they would have seen each other's bright red faces.

* * *

The hotel was quite exquisite; three floors of beautiful rooms, all decently priced. Again, Lucca was gazing around in wonderment. She was so busy admiring everything that she didn't notice someone tapping her on the shoulder. At least, not until the tapping became harder.

"Huh?" She turned to Robo. "Sorry, did you say something?"

"I was asking if we could talk in the lounge, before you turned in for the night. Just you, Glenn and myself."

"What about the rooms?" Glenn asked.

Robo didn't pause as he turned to the Mystics. "Would you two get the rooms? Just get them under my name."

"Have fun, we'll be back," Lucca called out.

It wasn't until the three were out of sight that Flea let out a cry of frustration. A patron passing jumped and hurried by.

"Stupid Humans," she seethed. "Stupid little Humans, think they can tell us what to do."

"I know dear," Slash said, trying to placate his wife. This was odd as it was usually Slash who lost his temper, and Flea was the one to calm him.

"I want to get revenge," she snarled. "But how do we do so? Without killing them I mean."

"No idea," he replied. He turned to the receptionist, who had just noticed the. She was, luckily, a Mystic. "I know you'll think of something though."

They were silent as the receptionist rattled off the different rooms and their features. One of those made Flea burst into a wicked grin.

/I've just thought of something./

/Enlighten me./

/You know how those two reacted to being in the same together/

/Yes.../

/How about we make sure they go the next step up/

/Now this could be fun.../

* * *

What Robo wanted to talk about was simply how they had been all these years. They told him about their families and their lives in general; Lucca also told him about Crono and Marle.

Robo had been doing very well. He was the head of the center, in charge of all the happenings inside the center. It was unusual, since robots didn't get into positions of power often; and this was an important center. As Lucca kept saying though, Robo wasn't an ordinary robot. Lately, though, he was having problems.

"Someone has been stealing equipment from the labs for the last few weeks. We've had no luck catching, or even finding out who they are."

"Haven't you taken any measures to stop them?" Glenn asked, frowning.

"We've set up surveillance devices and sensors; every time, they've either been disconnected, dismantled or destroyed."

"What about having someone stand guard?"

"We tried that." Robo shook his head slowly. "You... wouldn't have wanted to see the remains."

Glenn blinked in response; Lucca frowned, deep in thought.

"What kind of equipment was stolen?" she inquired.

"Machines that monitored life signs, as well as life support machines. They're taken in bits and pieces."

Both the Humans looked puzzled. "Why would someone take those kinds of machines?" Lucca wondered.

"And why only pieces of them?" Glenn added.

"I'm not sure," Robo responded. "These machines were specially made for large scale life forms. I have no idea why anyone would want them."

"Is there anything we can do?"

"It's fine Lucca, you have your own problems; I've decided to try something anyway. I've set up my own surveillance device, one they shouldn't be able to find. With some luck, I should be able to find out whose behind this."

"Are you sure it will work?" Glenn asked.

"No, but it is the best I can do," Robo glanced at a nearby clock. "It is getting late, you should get some rest."

"Yes, and I don't trust those Mystic to not cause any trouble," Glenn said as he headed toward the door.

Lucca turned to follow, but... "Lucca, may I ask you something?"

"Sure, what about?"

"What are your feelings toward Glenn?"

Lucca just stood there, speechless. How did you know? "Uh... Well... I..."

"You care about him deeply, even to the point of loving him." At the look on her face, he added, "During our travels, I saw the beginnings of something between you two. It wasn't able to happen than, but maybe it can now."

Lucca looked at her friend with a flushed face, but she smiled brightly. "Yeah, I hope so too."

Going out to the lobby brought a curious and unbelievable sight to the two: the Mystics were smiling brightly at Glenn.

Lucca stared, a little surprised and more than a little suspicious. She was sure she had the same look of suspicion on her face that Glenn had on his.

"What's going on?" Lucca demanded.

The Mystics turned to her, those eerie bright smiles still on their faces. "Simply handing over the keys to your room," Flea replied sweetly, almost too sweetly.

Lucca didn't trust her, or Slash for that matter, but she couldn't figure out what they were up to.

"Very well," Glenn said, examining the room key. "We'll see you in the morning than."

"Have a good sleep," Flea said.

"Goodnight," Slash added, as the Mystic couple departed.

"What do you think they have planned?" Lucca asked once they were gone.

"I have no idea, but I doubt it would be something terrible," Glenn guessed, though it sounded like he didn't it himself.

"I wouldn't worry too much about them," Robo told them. "They won't do much until after you find Brianne."

"You're probably right," Lucca agreed. She stifled a yawn. "Hmm... I'm getting tired."

"We should probably retire ourselves," Glenn said.

Robo nodded. "It's fine, I'll stop by here to try and see you off tomorrow."

"You... aren't coming with us?" Lucca said, crestfallen. She had been hoping that he would come with them; he certainly would have been welcome.

"I have too many things to do at the moment. Besides, it shouldn't be too hard to find a teenage girl."

"I don't know about that..." Lucca said slowly. "She is friends with my son, as well as Crono's. Those three always could find their way into some sort of trouble."

Loud, but gentle laughter came from Robo. "Everything will be fine. Things have worked out before, they will now."

Lucca smiled a bit. "Yeah... Anyway, I'm tired and I'm going to bed." Pointing at Robo, she added, "You better be here tomorrow." Giving a cheerful wave, she jogged off.

Glenn and Robo just stood there for a moment. "When do you think she'll realize I have the key, or that she doesn't even know where the room is?" Glenn asked.

"She probably realized it already, but she won't come back," Robo responded. "Lucca will just remain nearby, waiting for you. She always had a hard time admitting she made a mistake, even if it was a small one."

"Yes..." Glenn smiled softly, remembering Lucca when she was younger. Robo allowed him a moment, before waving his hand near Glenn's face.

"You should catch up with her now."

Glenn snapped to attention. "Yes, you're right. Well, we'll hopefully see you tomorrow."

As Glenn disappeared, Robo watched him, shaking his head. If he could have, the robot would have been smiling brightly.

* * *

Lucca had indeed been waiting near the lobby, looking only the littlest embarrassed. Neither of them said anything, they just went their room on the top floor.

"I want to get some sleep tonight," Lucca was saying as they reached the room. "I'll worry about tomorrow when it comes."

Glenn nodded as he opened the door to the room.

Inside was beautiful; there was a small living area and kitchen. Two doors leading to a bedroom and bathroom; it was like a small apartment. Lucca grinned in delight.

"Too bad we're only staying here for a day," she commented. "It's a really nice, don't you think Glenn?" She frowned when she got to response. "Glenn?"

Glenn was standing by the bedroom door with an odd expression. His lips were pressed together, his cheeks turning pink.

Lucca looked at him with concern. "Are you alright?" She followed him to the bedroom and peered around it. It was nice: a small dresser with a mirror, a closet a queen sized bed... She stopped when she realized that there was only one bed.

"Oh... there's only one bed..." she stated unnecessarily.

Glenn nodded, his face going brighter.

Lucca frowned before shrugging. "No big deal, we'll share."

Glenn whipped around, wide eyed. "I-I'm sorry, did you just say we would share?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Yeah. Why? Is that a problem?"

"Yes," he replied. "It... it wouldn't be proper."

Crossing her arms, Lucca gave him a steely look. "There's more than enough room for the both of us." She sighed. "It's not like anything is going to happen." Her tone sounded almost sad.

Glenn didn't notice anything, he just continued to stare at Lucca. "I would gladly take the floor, or the..."

But Lucca wouldn't have any of that; she shook her head vigorously. "Oh no you don't! There is no way, I won't allow it!" She glared at him.

Glenn shook his head, but said, "Alright, you win Lucca."

She nodded in satisfaction and began removing her vest. "What are you doing!" Glenn exclaimed.

Lucca couldn't help but roll her eyes. "I'm just taking off my vest, as well as my socks and shoes." She did so and stretched slightly. "I'm just gonna go wash up, you get ready for bed." She left with Glenn staring after her.

Once she got there, she just stared into the mirror. She knew it really wasn't a good idea for them to sleep in the same bed, but she wanted to be close to him. Maybe than...

_What am I thinking? Robo said there was something between us, but that was years ago. We already moved on with our lives. Maybe I could go back, but... he doesn't want to..._

Feeling throughly depressed, she wandered back to the bedroom. Maybe tomorrow would be better.

Opening the door, her eyes strayed toward the bed. Her eyes widened at the sight before her.

Glenn was sitting on the side of the bed, looking forlorn. His emerald looks were hanging limply, his skin seemed to turn gold in the dim light. However, it was his bare torso that caught Lucca's attention.

He wasn't extremely muscular, but he certainly wasn't scrawny by any means; it was a perfect combination. There were a few scars on his chest and arms, but being the Knight Commander, it was no surprise.

Lucca couldn't take her eyes off of him, no matter how much she tried.

_I am not a teenage girl anymore, I am a grown woman,_ she repeated to herself. _I am not a teenager, I am..._

"Lucca?"

Glenn was peering at her curiously; she flushed a bit. "Y-yes?" she squeaked.

"Why are you staring at me?"

"I'm, I'm not," she stuttered. "I mean, I wasn't, I mean..." Lucca stared around helplessly. "I'm... going to bed." She climbed into the bed making sure she was as close to the edge as possible.

With her back turned to Glenn, she pulled the blanket over her. "Don't you dare try to sleep on the floor," she threatened.

She thought she heard him mutter something about the living area, but he said, "Yes Lucca."

She could feel the bed move slightly as he got in the other side. Like her, he chose to remain close to the edge; she didn't know if she should be grateful or disappointed.

She placed her glasses on the bedside table and switched off the lamp. "Goodnight Glenn," she said quietly.

Equally quiet, she heard, "Sweet dreams Lucca."

* * *

Morning came and Lucca awoke slowly to the growing light.

_Where am I?_

She tried to move, but a pair of strong arms held her in place. That jolted her awake.

_Paul...?_

She knew he was dead, she knew her husband was dead, but feeling someone hold her again...

As she was now completely awake, the events of last night came back to her, and see knew who was beside her. She tilted her head upward to look at Glenn.

He looked peaceful, still sleeping; he was even smiling a bit. Lucca wondered what he was dreaming about that was making him smile so.

_Probably his wife,_ she thought bitterly

She tried to wriggle free, but he just held on tighter.

"Lucca..." he murmured.

Lucca stopped moving and looked up, expecting to see Glenn looking at her. His eyes, however, were still closed and his breathing still deep; he was still very much asleep.

Lucca just lay there, very confused. Glenn had said her name in his sleep; did that mean he was dreaming about her? And what did that in itself mean? Why was he dreaming about her? Did that mean that he...

_Is Glenn... Is he... in love with me?_

Before she ponder the situation, Glenn began to stir. His hold on Lucca weakened and she wriggled free, moving away slightly. Slowly his eyes opened, blinking at her.

"Lucca...?"

"Good morning," she said smiling. "Do you mind if I use the bathroom first?"

Glenn simply blinked in response; he was still waking up. Lucca gathered her things went to freshen up.

As she cleaned and got ready, Lucca's mind was racing. She was sure now that Glenn had strong feelings for her; that he was over his wife's death. It would be easy to tell him... but something held her back; what could it be?

Fully dressed, she came out to see Glenn out of bed, but still shirtless. Turning her head so she wouldn't stare, she addressed him. "I'll wait for you downstairs in the lobby, alright?"

"Do you remember where it is?" Despite looking tired, he was completely aware.

"Yes, I remember where it is," she said dryly. "Really, I'm not that forgetful."

Without looking, she waved and left; she never saw the huge smile on Glenn's face.

Down in the lobby, Robo was already waiting there. He looked up as he heard her approach.

"I knew you would still be here. Something happened last night that you might find interesting."

Lucca blinked. "Are you going to tell me?"

"It would be best to show you, but we have to wait for the others."

"Alright..."

"Are you alright Lucca?" He peered at her. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Oh, I slept fine... Just..."

"Just...?"

Lucca shrugged and grinned sheepishly. "Glenn and I had to share the same bed."

She had been expecting him to nod and say he understood; instead he said, "You mean you only had one bed in your room?"

"Yeah... why?"

"Well..." Not for the first time, she wished Robo could show facial expressions. "You have to request upon checking in. Otherwise, you get the standard room with two beds."

Slow realization began to dawn on Lucca. "Request? At the front desk?"

"Yes."

Lucca's face contorted. "I'm going to kill them!"

"Who?"

"The Mystics! Slash and Flea! They were the ones that got the rooms, they did this!"

"That would explain why they were so happy yesterday," Robo mused.

Lucca was spluttering incoherently. Robo observed her; he was torn between being worried for her, or amused by the whole situation. This is what Glenn walked down to a few minutes later.

"Good morning," he greeted.

"Good morning," Robo returned.

"I'll kill them!" Lucca finally got out.

Glenn gave her a mystified look. "Who?"

"The Mystics," Robo answered. "It is their fault that you two only had one bed."

Glenn's smiled slowly faded. "It was because of them?"

"Yes," he replied, waiting for Glenn's reaction.

Glenn only flushed slightly, but that was it. Lucca was still muttering under her breath, about what she thought about those Mystics.

Speaking of the Mystics...

They were coming downstairs, the same eerie smiles on their face that were there last night. Their eyes, however, had a strange glint to them.

"So! Did you two sleep well?" Slash inquired. His smile, as well as Flea's, were slowly turning into smirks.

Glenn only looked mildly annoyed and while Lucca glared angrily, she didn't make an other move.

"I guess not," Flea replied sounding gleeful.

Glenn's expression did not change and Lucca bared her teeth. Before anything else could happen, Robo held up a hand.

"May I say something? I have something that to show you that may interest you. And," here he turned to the Mystics, "it is useful."

The four exchanged glances, the fight somewhat forgotten,

"Very well," Glenn said finally. "Let's take a look."

* * *

Back at the center, Robo was ushering them into a room full of screens and video equipment.

"Where are we?" Lucca asked, examining some of the machines.

"The security room of the center."

"And why are we here?" Flea demanded.

Nodding to Lucca and Glenn, he started. "I mentioned yesterday to Lucca and Glenn that we had intruders stealing equipment from the labs. Well, the hidden camera worked, I was able to get them on video.

Lucca nodded. "Sounds good, but-"

"What does it have to do with us?" Slash interrupted.

"You'll see." Pushing a button on the panel, Robo added, "You may not like it."

The video started and they all crowded around to get a better look. There were a few complaints, but they were mostly quiet.

The video showed one of the larger labs in the center. The lights were all out, but the lights from the machines kept the lab well lit; it also made it easier to see the thieves. They were taking apart machines, breaking some and leaving others alone. It was the thieves themselves that shocked the viewers. They weren't humanoid in the slightest; they were giant heads with gaping mouths full of fangs and long arms.

Lucca looked at the others, eyes wide in shock. "Those were... I mean, those had to have been..."

"Golems?" Glenn finished.

Lucca just nodded.

"I was surprised to see them, the first time I watched this," Robo told them. "It's still difficult to believe..."

Lucca furrowed her brow. "I only know of one person who used Golems... That was..."

Before she could finish, a man walked on screen in the video. Unkempt, orange-brown hair fell past his shoulders, almost the ful length of his back. He was wearing an assortment of orange and brown clothes including an orange cape. When he turned to face the camera, they saw a sneering face and one eye, the other was covered by an eyepatch. Making a sweeping motion with his hand, he hollered, "Hurry it up! We ain't got all night!"

Lucca and Glenn both visibly recoiled. "Dalton!"

"How is he still alive!" Lucca demanded. "He fell through that portal!"

"And why doesn't he look any older" Glenn asked quietly, already feeling a sense of dread.

The Mystics, who had been looking bored, suddenly looked on with interest. "That's Dalton?" Slash asked.

"Heard about him from Schala?" Glenn guessed He was looking ill now.

"Yes, Schala said that he was... well, that doesn't really matter," Flea answered looking at the Dalton on screen with disgust.

Lucca shook her head. "This is... interesting and disturbing Robo, but what does it have to do with us?"

"Yes." Flea glared at the robot. "We have places we have to be, why do we need to know about this?"

Robo didn't respond right away, he pressed another button and the video sped up. "I think there is something you might want to hear."

A few minutes passed and it showed nothing new, just the Golems taking machines and Dalton standing there, sometimes shouting out stuff. Everyone but Robo was starting to get irritated. Robo pressed another button just as Slash opened his mouth to speak.

"This is what I wanted you to hear," he said, gesturing to the screen.

Another figure was on screen now; this one was covered completely in black. Dalton had turned and nodded at the newcomer.

"You're back, did you get the girl?"

"Girl?" Lucca asked, a note of dread in her voice.

Slash and Flea exchanged looks, already understanding.

Though the black figure said nothing, Dalton seemed to know the answer. "You don't have her, it figures. How many times have you messed up already?"

The dark figure crossed his arms.

"Why my Lord insists on using you is beyond me," Dalton sneered. "It took us years to find that girl after her mother hid her. And you keep screwing up. Our Lord won't be pleased."

The black figure continued to stand there; Dalton laugh humorlessly. "We have almost everything we need, this is one of the last runs. Soon, we'll have everything... So long," he suddenly snarled, "as you get that girl!"

The figure shook his head slowly.

"Yeah, yeah, go back already, I don't need your help here. Go report, and tell our Lord how you failed. Again."

The black figure stood for a moment before vanishing soundlessly. Dalton simply snorted and went back to ordering his Golems.

The video stopped and Robo turned to the quiet group. Lucca seemed to be in a kind of trance, staring at Robo. Glenn looked like he was thinking, his face very pale. Both Slash and Flea looked grim.

"Well?" Robo inquired. "Was that useful?"

"Just because," Lucca said slowly, "they talked about a girl, doesn't mean they mean-"

"They probably did," Flea interrupted, sound deadly serious. "You don't have the ability to sense magic, otherwise you'd know that Brianne has a strong magic signature, one of the highest I've ever seen."

Lucca stared at the ground, shaking badly. _This can't be happening. Please let this be a dream._

"We should go," Glenn said quietly. "The sooner we get there, the better."

Lucca lifted her had up and nodded.

"I will try to find out everything I can," Robo promised. "It might be very important."

She nodded again and went to embrace her robotic friend; he returned the embrace.

"Don't worry Lucca," he said so only she could hear." Everything will be fine."

Not really believing that, she said, "I really hope you're right Robo. I really do..."

* * *

A/N: I am not dead! I am still here!

Excuse me... Sorry for the long delay, looks my new method isn't working out too well. I've been struggling with this chapter for a bit, trying to get everything to sound right. And yes, it's a bit longer than my usual chapters, but I really couldn't take anything out or move it around. Anyway...

**Shootski: **I'm glad you liked that "waking Lucca up" part. Hopefully you'll find some part in this chapter that's just as interesting. The teenagers getting along, well, they have no real reason to hate each other, beside the fact that Humans and Mystics are supposed to hate each other on principal. Ah well.

**ShadowCatYumi08:** No, my writing style is the same, I mean, I had decided to write it out on paper, than transfer to the computer; sorry if I confused you. Thank for the review.

Well, hope everyone likes this one. See you all later!


	16. Love Will Save You

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

* * *

Chapter 15: Love Will Save You

Emotions can be wonderful and deadly. Joy, excitement; those are emotions that people like to feel, those are considered good emotions. Sadness, anger, fear... These are considered bad emotions and people prefer not to have them, yet they still do. In order to feel the good emotions, you must also endure the bad ones.

Brianne was sitting cross-legged inside one of the huts, feeling restless. There hadn't been much for her to do in the past day and a bit. She did help to gather water and picked fruit and other plants, but that was it. She didn't try to go hunting, seeing as she couldn't eat any meat.

When she was bored, she would always find a book to read, but there were none in this era; all she could do was sit and stare at stuff.

_I suppose people found ways to keep themselves entertained... Still haven't found a way yet._

As if on cue, Ariel bounded into the hut, huge grin on her face. Ariel seemed to be perpetually happy, always had a smile on her face. She was quite energetic, never could sit still for very long. Brianne didn't seem to mind all that much, she was quite friendly and enjoyed talking, although Brianne had a bit of a hard time understanding what she said.

"You're back," Brianne remarked. "Did you finish hunting already?"

Ariel bobbed her head. "It go quick, catch lot. Me come and see if Brianne wanted any."

"I can't," came the reply. "Thanks for the offer, but I can't eat meat."

Ariel tilted her head, looking concerned. "You not eat lot. Me worried that you get sick."

"It's all right," Brianne replied with a smile. "I never did eat much anyway."

Ariel didn't look convinced, but didn't push it. "Me also came to show Brianne something. We eat, than we go."

"What do you want to show me?" Brianne asked, sounding interested.

Ariel grinned. "It a surprise."

Brianne laughed a bit. "All right, you can keep your surprise." Her smile faded. "Will we have to walk far to get to it?" She had only been there for a day, but she knew all about the tropical heat, and she didn't like it.

"No, it not far."

"All right than." Her smile returned. "Sounds like fun."

* * *

"How much further?" 

Carlos wiped a large amount of sweat off his face, frowning in disgust as he did so. "I've no idea, I've never been here before. I just hope it's not much further."

He received a scowl in response, but Slade refrained from making a comment.

Darien was only too glad for the silence. It was sweltering outside and none of them were too happy. Darien and Carlos were used to a fair amount of warm weather, but this was too extreme. Michael and the Mystics were used to a cooler climate, and thus were faring worse.

"I'm glad I decided not to wear my armour," Michael muttered. "I'd be dead already if I was."

Darien allowed a bit of a grin to come to his face. It was a good thing Michael and Carlos were there with him; their comments made the trip all the better. The Mystics, on the other hand, were constantly shooting the Humans dark looks, but were remaining silent. Selena, especially, was giving them all scowls at regular intervals. Interestingly enough, she was also giving Slade and Ozzie these looks, though not as often.

Than again, it might be because they were all males and had removed their shirts a little while ago; Selena had no such option.

"This is nuts," Michael grumbled. "How can people stand living in this heat? It's insane."

"I'm sure we'll be okay," Carlos assured him.

"Once we find out where we're going," Michael muttered. "And I don't think that will happen for a while."

"You really are in a bad mood, aren't you?" Darien inquired cheerfully.

Michael stared at Darien incredulously. "How can you possibly stand this heat?"

"Just my luck," Darien replied with a grin.

Michael didn't reply to that, but he began cursing under his breath at the spiky haired teenager. Darien raised an eyebrow.

"I wonder what your father would say to hear you say such words?"

"If it wasn't so hot, I would be beating you into the ground right now," Michael growled.

"Temper temper."

Michael opened his mouth to retort, but someone else beat him to it.

"Shut up, shut up! Both of you shut up! I'm tired of listening to you two idiots natter on! The only time I want to hear you speak is if it's something important, and seeing as you never have anything important to say, I shouldn't hear you speak at all!"

Selena's eyes were blazing at them, her teeth bared. Not used to seeing someone looking like that, Darien could only stare in shock; Carlos and Michael had similar looks on them. Even Ozzie and Slade looked mildly apprehensive.

Assured that no one would be making any noise, Selena walked off in a huff. After a moment, the boys followed, the Humans keeping a fair distance from Selena.

"So... Still feel like complaining about the heat?" Darien asked quietly.

"No, not really," Michael mumbled.

"I'm glad, you two were getting on my nerves with that," Carlos stated. "I was almost ready to tell you two to be quiet."

"So why didn't you?" Michael wondered.

"I figured one of them would do it for me before long. Although... I didn't think it would be done like that."

They looked ahead, the Mystics were ignoring them completely, not even bothering to turn and sneer at them; though Selena still looked like she was smoldering.

"Yeah..." Michael shrugged slightly. "That didn't surprise me... all that much."

* * *

"You said it wasn't far!" 

Ariel turned to Brianne. The young Mystic's face was glistening with sweat, her eyes glaring. They had went a long distance from the small village and still had not reached Ariel's secret destination.

Ariel frowned slightly. "What you mean? It not far at all."

Brianne pursed her lips, but didn't say anything. It had occurred to her that her definition of "far" was not the same as Ariel's, especially in this heat.

"How much further is it now?"

"Not much, we almost there now."

Brianne resisted the urge to ask what she meant by "almost there", but she kept that remark to herself. She knew that if it wasn't so hot, she wouldn't have minded the walk. She hadn't gotten a lot of exercise in a long time.

She glanced around wearily; there were creatures here that could easily kill her in the blink of an eye. Luckily, Ariel was here; she could handle almost any of the wildlife.

As they continued walking, Brianne wondered if she would ever see home again.

_Home... What is home? Is it with the Humans, or is it with the Mystics? Or will I have to stay here? Will this be my home? Will I ever see any of my friends again?_

"Brianne?" She had nearly bumped into Ariel. "You okay?"

"Huh...? Oh, I'm fine. I just... wish I was home..." She added under her breath, "once I find out where home is."

Ariel smiled at her, hoping it would reassure Brianne. "You get home Brianne, Ariel know."

Brianne offered a small smile, but at least it was a real smile. "I hope you're right." She stared around, realizing that they weren't moving. "Uh... Why have we stopped?"

Ariel grinned and pointed ahead; there was a clearing with a small, but beautiful spring. Exotic fruit grew on numerous trees around the spring; trees that also provided ample shade. All Brianne could do was stand there, with a dumbfounded expression on her face.

"We here."

* * *

/You do realize they're talking, don't you?/ 

/Yeah.../

/Aren't you going to say something?/

Selena glared at her cousin, but didn't say anything in return. Not out loud, at least. /Shut up./

/Touchy, aren't we?/ Slade smirked, looking superior.

/I'm dying from the heat, leave me in peace./

/You are not dying./ Slade smirk faded a little. /It's a little hot, I know-/

/A little?/ Selena gave Slade a look.

/A lot,/ he amended/but complaining about it won't make it any better./

/I have a suggestion,/ Ozzie piped up suddenly.

/If you tell her to take off her shirt, I will hurt you,/ Slade snarled.

/I wouldn't do it anyway,/ Selena exclaimed. /Even if the Humans weren't here, Slade is my cousin, and there's no way-/

/I wasn't going to suggest it!/ Ozzie said defensively. /I was going to say that we should rest in the shade until it gets darker, and cooler./

Neither of them replied to that. Slade glanced at Selena, than stared at the ground. He looked like he was considering it, but something else was on his mind.

/...Or do you want to find Brianne as soon as possible?/

No verbal response was given, but the way Slade discretely avoided Ozzie's eyes were answer enough.

/So, that's a no to stopping?/ Ozzie asked.

/I want to say yes,/ Slade said at length/but I want to keep going, I need to know as soon as possible if she's here./

/I guessed that.../

There was silence for a while, both out loud and mentally. They just continued to trudge on, getting hotter as the day wore on. Everybody just concentrated on the walk, but for how much longer, no one knew.

They had went a good distance for a long time. Just suddenly, Michael stopped moving altogether; Darien and Carlos noticed and stopped as well. The Mystics, not having looked behind them, kept on walking. Darien frowned slightly, and called out, "Stop! We have to stop!"

The Mystics turned around, looking tired and hot, but annoyed. "Why?" Slade snapped.

"Because if we keep going, we're going to die," Michael retorted. "You can't very find Brianne if you're dead."

Slade's eyes narrowed very dangerously and even Darien grimaced a bit. Selena looked hesitant; she waned to stop and rest. Ozzie was further down the way, concentrating very hard on something.

"Just for a little bit," Carlos added. "Besides, you look like you need it." He nodded to Selena.

Slade and Selena exchanged looks. /What do you say cousin?/ Selena inquired.

/What I said before still stands, and I couldn't care less if we leave the Humans here. Unless... do you really want to?/

Selena tilted her head. /I'd really like to./

/Alright./ To the Humans, he said, "Fine, we'll stop, but only for a little while."

"It doesn't matter if we stop or not," Ozzie said suddenly.

"Why's that?" came Darien's irritable reply.

"There's people over there."

* * *

Ozzie was right; there were people, a village full of them. A lot of them were outside of the hunts, sharpening weapons or skinning animals. The majority of them were staring at the group, pointing and whispering at them. Some gave hostile looks, but these were only directed toward Slade and Ozzie. The group looked around, wondering where to go. 

"Okay... what next?" Darien wondered, looking around in apprehension.

"I don't care," Selena muttered, "so long as I can rest."

Carlos looked nervous from all the stares they were getting while Michael just stood there looking overheated. Slade and Ozzie snarled at the people giving them nasty looks.

"Maybe we should talk to someone?" Carlos suggested quietly.

"No one will talk to us with the two demons here," Michael replied with a look to Slade.

Slade whipped around, eyes blazing and teeth bared. "What did you call me?"

"You heard me well enough."

Slade's hand twitched, and he began reaching for his sword; a lot of people stiffened at that. "You might want to take that back, if you want to live."

Michael merely glared back and went for his sword. "You think that scares me?" His voice did betray a slight tone of fear.

Darien shook his head and held up his hands. "Whoa! No fighting! We really don't need to upset the locals anymore than we have!"

"Look whose talking, you idiot!" Slade snarled.

Darien looked confused for a moment, until his eyes darkened. "What?"

"You're the type to get into a fight, just like that fool that calls himself your father."

Darien fists clenched, his fingernails digging into his palms. "Why you...!"

"Not to mention you have no idea what you're doing, you just stumble around blindly."

Darien drew out his spear, shaking violently. "Than I'll show you!"

/And he just proved your point,/ Ozzie told Slade as he wielded his axe.

Selena just stood there, sweating but looking amused; Carlos watched on with wide eyes. Darien and Michael against Slade and Ozzie.

_This is really going to end badly._

They were all slowly approaching each other, weapons poised and eyes blazing, when...

"What you doing?!"

They all froze and turned to the speaker. A very muscular blond woman was glaring at them with hands on her hips; she vaguely reminded Darien of his mother.

She looked them all over, stopping at Slade and Ozzie, than again at Darien. She relaxed slightly, but her eyes were still watchful.

"Never see you before, and you wear..." she trailed off mumbling to herself; she seemed to be considering them. Finally she nodded, coming to some unknown decision. "Come. We talk inside hut, it not hot in there."

Looks were exchanged as they followed her.

The hut was indeed a lot cooler than being outside. Both Carlos and Selena both collapsed onto the ground with Michael not too far behind. Darien and Ozzie slowly sat down, Slade remained standing. The woman watched them all.

Darien cleared his throat. "Uh, well... um..."

"You Crono's son," the woman stated without hesitation.

Darien was taken back by that pronouncement as were Carlos and Michael. It took a moment for Darien to gather his wits before he could speak.

"That's... right. You... you're Ayla, right?"

She smiled and Darien felt a rush of relief. He was finally coming upon some luck for once. He felt a little more confident.

"We're looking for someone, a girl with black-"

"Brianne?"

Darien stopped in mid-sentence, looking surprised; even the Mystics looked up.

"Where is she?" Slade demanded.

"We find her by cliffs, she stay with us. Now, she off with Ariel; they be back soon."

Darien breathed a silent sigh of relief; at least things were starting to look up.

"You stay here, wait for them to come back," Ayla continued. "There many things Ayla want to... Where you go?" They all turned to Slade, who was standing by the entrance.

"In which direction is she?" he demanded.

Ayla gave the Mystic a hard look, almost assessing him. She did gesture in a vague direction, although it was with a frown.

Slade nodded curtly and headed outside; Darien called out to him. "Why not just stay here? They'll be back."

Slade gave him a dirty look that silenced the spiky-haired teen. He noticed that Ozzie was making to stand. /You want us to come with you?/

/No,/ he answered immediately. /It would be better if you two stay here, and watch what those Humans do. If they leave, follow them. I do not want Brianne to be with them without one of us with her./

A bit of silence, than Ozzie sat back down. /Not a problem./

/Good luck cousin,/ Selena said earnestly.

Slade nodded slightly before moving through the opening.

Everyone stared at where he had stood, each in their own thoughts. Michael's eyes narrowed. "Now what do you suppose he's trying to do?"

"No idea," Darien muttered. He glared at Ozzie and Selena, who returned his look. "But I don't like it."

* * *

Brianne sighed happily; after walking in the hot sun, relaxing the shade with her feet dangling in the water was just what she needed. Ariel had tried to get her to go swimming, but she declined; she'd have to get energy back before she tried that. 

Ariel was doing laps around the spring easily, grinning the entire time; Brianne couldn't help but smile. She had never met anyone like the blond huntress before, the people she usually met were either loud-mouthed or serious. Well... Selena reminded her of Ariel, only Ariel seemed more pure and didn't have a perverted boyfriend.

Brianne's shoulders sagged as her smile vanished. Thinking about Selena made her think of Slade, which in turn made her think of Darien. Even though she didn't want to, she began worrying all over again.

_I should be trying to relax_ _and have fun. Worrying is not going to help anything. There's nothing I can do now..._

"Brianne?"

Ariel had swam up beside the Mystic, pulling herself out of the water. "What wrong? You not look well."

Brianne tried to smile, but it looked rather faked. "I'm... fine, I just..."

"You worry about going home."

Brianne looked down, staring into the water. "It's not just that. If I get back, I have to choose between two places to stay, and..." she blushed a bit, "between two guys."

Ariel looked at Brianne, confused. It made the young Mystic wonder if Ariel was a lot younger than she looked, or if it was something else. "Why you choose? Ariel not understand."

"Well, I..." Brianne swallowed hard, "love them." She blushed once the words were said. Did she really mean that? Or was she just trying to get Ariel to understand?

Lucky for her, the blond did understand; she grinned. "Ariel understand. You choose one to be mate."

Brianne's face flushed bright red. She hadn't meant that at all! "No! I mean, not quite, I mean..." She honestly didn't know what she meant to say. Did she want to actually think that one she chose, would in fact, one day be her husband? She covered her face. "I don't know what I mean."

Ariel laughed at her friend's obvious embarrassment. "It okay," she said, patting the other girl on the shoulder. "Maybe Ariel help?" She pulled her legs under her. "What they like?"

Brianne, though still red, began to calm down. "Well... Darien is a little bit like you; he's really active and has a great sense of humour. He knows how to have a lot of fun... But at the same time, he's still childish and doesn't think before he acts." She smiled reminiscently. "I've known him since I was baby. We were raised together, so it's no surprise I know him so well..."

"On the other hand, I've only known Slade for a few weeks... but it feels longer. He's a lot more serious, and he's more studious..." Brianne shrugged slightly. "I guess you could say he's the opposite of Darien. I feel, though, that we connected somehow."

Brianne pulled her legs to her chest. "I sometimes wonder if my feelings for either of them aren't misplaced. What if I just missed Darien and I don't really care about him in that way? Or, what if Slade was just a substitute? I don't want to hurt someone if my feelings aren't real."

Brianne glanced up at Ariel. "I lost you, didn't I?"

Ariel grinned sheepishly. "Ariel not understand everything Brianne say, but she understand enough." She tilted her head. "So, you no know who you be with?"

"Well... Before I suddenly ended up here, I had been shifting toward Slade more, but..." Brianne frowned. "You know Magus is my father, right?"

"You say so," Ariel confirmed.

"You and your mom are the only ones who know, no one else. Darien wouldn't care at all, but Slade..."

"You think Slade not like you if he find out who father is?" Ariel guessed.

Brianne nodded. "I... lied, in a way, when they were trying to find out if Magus was my father or not. I just... can't stand the thought of being hated for something I didn't do."

There was a silence as both girls went into deep thought, both thinking over the situation. Ariel clapped her hands together. "Ariel know what Brianne do."

"What do I do?"

"You tell Slade who father is."

Brianne's eyes widened in horror. "What?! I can't...!"

"You only find out if you tell Slade," Ariel explained. "May be upset you lie to him."

"I would expect that, and I wouldn't mind," Brianne said, nodding. She paused. "But... what happens if he's angry because of who I am?"

"Than he nothing but big jerk," Ariel simply replied, "and you do better. Than Darien right person for you, since he like you no matter what."

There was another silence as Brianne thought this through. Ariel was absolutely right; she'd just have to tell Slade the truth and see his reaction. It would be hard, but she had to do it.

"You're right. It's the only way I'll know for sure." Her shoulders sagged. "But... it won't be easy."

"It not easy, but it something Brianne must do."

"I know." Brianne forced herself to smile. "We're supposed to be having fun, right? Anything you want to do?"

Ariel smiled widely, glad that her friend was finally willing to relax. She opened her mouth, but a loud crunch made her close it. Both girls turned to look. Ariel's expression was one of shock, but Brianne's... hers was one of utter terror.

The mysterious man was back.

* * *

"So... tell me again why we left the coolness of the hut to go outside?" 

Darien barley spared the knight a glance. Michael turned to Carlos, who sighed heavily. "He's worried that Slade went out to look for Brianne, so he went out to try and find her first. We're out here to make sure he doesn't do something stupid; and the other two... Well, I don't know why they're here."

"And don't expect us to answer either," Ozzie called out.

Carlos glanced back; the Mystics were keeping a steady watch on them. Carlos had a feeling he knew why they were, but he didn't want to voice it, since Darien was already in an agitated state.

Selena was not happy; she had been looking forward to staying out of the heat, but Slade had asked her and Ozzie to stay with them. She didn't know why she always listened to what her cousin said, but at them moment, she really wished she hadn't.

/You know, even in this heat, you still look beautiful./

Selena had to stop herself from smiling. /Really now?/

/Of course, you're the only one for me./

/Uh huh... Says the one who flirts with anything in a skirt that has a pretty face./

/You know I don't actually mean it. You're the one I love./

Selena couldn't help the blush that spread to her cheeks. /Ozzie! If those Humans see me like this.../

/Blame it on the heat. They don't know better./

Even though he was a flirt and a pervert, Selena cared a lot about Ozzie. And it was times like these that made up for all the other times. /Maybe when we get back, we could-/

"Hello? I asked you two a question!"

So wrapped up in their own silent conversation, the couple hadn't noticed Darien was glaring at them.

"Yeah?" came Ozzie's irritated reply. "What's that?"

"Where is Slade?"

Selena had to laugh at that. "Are you that stupid? That cavewoman told us. It's not our fault you can't catch up with him."

Darien gritted his teeth. "What's he up to?"

"That... is none of your business!"

With a snarl, Darien turned back around, increasing his pace. The Mystic couple glanced at each other.

/Even in this heat, seeing him flip out like this makes it all worthwhile./

Ozzie laughed at that. /Without a doubt./

* * *

Ariel was watching this newcomer very closely. She didn't know who it was; his smell wasn't someone's she recognized. The man was just standing there, his arms crossed. She didn't think he was a threat; at least, not yet. 

Beside her, Brianne was shaking madly. _Why won't he leave me alone?_ She had half a mind to turn and run as fast as she could.

As if sensing her thoughts, the man rushed at her, hands glowing a faint yellow. He didn't get far, as Ariel had jumped forward, landing a punch to his chest. He was sent flying, landing in a heap.

"You not hurt Brianne!" she cried out. "Brianne okay?"

Brianne, still watching the man, gave a cry, "Watch out!"

Ariel quickly dodged to the side, just missing the lightning bolt by mere inches. The man was back on his feet, the glowing now red. She gave a cry and charged him.

The man unleashed a torrent of fire at the young blonde. She expertly dodged them all, but was forced back when the fire became like a whip. She eyed the man, waiting for his next move.

"Ariel! Just get out of here! It's me he wants! He won't hurt you if you leave!"

Ariel didn't move from her position. "Me not leave! He hurt you if Ariel leave!"

"And he'll kill you if you don't!" Brianne retorted. "I'll be fine, I promise!"

Ariel didn't reply, but charged again. The man threw several lightning bolts. This time, one did land, making Ariel give a soft cry. She stopped, glaring at the man, even with the pain.

"Please Ariel! I don't want you to get hurt!"

Ariel stared at Brianne for a minute. The Mystic was looking at her friend, almost in tears. Ariel groaned, getting to her feet.

"Ariel go and get help, not gone long. Brianne be okay?"

Brianne barely nodded, watching the now unmoving man.

Ariel hesitated a minute longer, before running off faster than anyone Brianne had ever seen. She stared at the spot her friend was standing. _I hope I can fight him off until you get back._

"Very admirable, but you won't be here by the time she gets help."

Brianne's eyes widened. The man actually spoke! And there was something about that voice that resonated in the back of her memories.

"What do you want with me?" she cried. "I've never done anything to you!"

"You'll find out." The man spoke with no emotion in his voice; it scared her. "Give up, and I won't have to hurt you."

Brianne, still very scared, faced him, looking defiant.

"Very well." The man let loose numerous balls of fire. Brianne wasn't able to dodge many of them, but was able to shrug off the ones that did hit her. Her hands glowing blue, she flung a few ice crystals in his direction. He stumbled back, but before Brianne could do anything else, he disappeared.

She looked around in a panic. Where had he gone? She didn't have long to wonder before she received a sharp blow to her head. She fell to her knees, her eyes watering.

"Magic does little to you, but being physically struck causes you great pain. Just like I thought..."

Brianne rolled just before his foot came crashing down. She faced him, her head still pounding.

_Please come back soon Ariel. I don't know how much I can take._

* * *

With every step he took, Darien's mood worsened. Slade had indeed gotten a large head start; he had probably already found Brianne by now. He could very well be leading his friends and the Mystics into being lost. It was getting hotter, and they could quite possibly die from the heat. 

No, Darien was not in a good mood.

"Darien, we should just go back. Slade's most likely found her, and even if he hasn't, she'll be back at the village, if she isn't already there."

Darien turned; Carlos didn't look happy, and neither did Michael.

"He's right, there's no point. Let's just go back before we die of heat stroke."

That made Darien stop. He was being extremely selfish, wanting to find Brianne no matter what. And it wasn't good for the others. Giving an inaudible sigh, he opened his mouth to tell them that they were right, and they would go back.

"Yes, don't worry about Brianne. Slade will take very good care of her."

With that, Darien closed his mouth angrily and continued his blazing pace. Michael whipped around to face the smirking Mystics.

"Why did you say that?! You don't want to be out here anymore than we do!"

"Watching that pathetic fool suffer more than makes up for this heat." Selena remarked.

Carlos' jaw clenched. He was still a little scared of the Mystics, but this was too much. "You heartless monsters!"

"Such big words for such a little kid," Ozzie drawled.

Carlos had the insane urge to strike the green Mystic with everything he had. Whether he would have done it or not was undecided, because at the moment, there was a commotion in the distance, followed by, "What the hell!?"

Carlos and Michael shot off in the direction that Darien's voice came, Ozzie and Selena a few steps behind them.

Darien was flat on his back, trying to push a strange girl off of him. The girl was babbling at a rapid rate, her blonde curls shaking. Michael hauled the girl away from Darien. She grabbed him, still babbling.

"Slow down," Michael commanded calmly. "What are you trying to say?"

The girl took a few deep breaths before talking again. "Need help. Friend, danger. You help? Please?"

Darien had gotten off the ground and was staring at the girl. She was shaking quite badly, staring at all of them with wide eyes. "We're looking for someone, we can't-"

The girl released Michael and grabbed Darien; he tensed at that. "Please! She die! And me not get to village in time! You help, you help! Please!"

Darien hesitated; the girl was on the verge of tears, staring at him. She was making a terrible risk, asking complete strangers. But than again, he and Carlos and placed their hopes in Michael, when they hardly knew him at all. And in any case, he knew deep down, he wanted to help.

"Where's you friend?"

The girl pulled him in the direction she came; Darien was surprised that she was actually dragging him. "This way! Hurry! Brianne need help! Man hurt her!"

Darien's felt his breath hitch. "Brianne!" Now he was almost dragging the girl behind him. Carlos wasn't far behind them.

"Wait!"

"Excuse me?! Brianne's in trouble!" Darien all but screamed.

Michael looked back calmly. "Maybe not. Did the person look anything like him?" He gestured to Ozzie.

"No! Strange man, not see body or face!"

Michael was taken aback. "Uh... well..."

"Move it, you idiot!" Ozzie snarled, who was trying, and failing, not to look worried.

All of them ran off, hoping to get to Brianne in time.

* * *

Brianne landed on the ground hard. Her head was swimming, she couldn't see straight anymore. She couldn't hit him with her magic anymore. Every time she tried, the man would simply disappear, and no matter what, always find a way to pummel her backside. 

"Give up." Again, there was no hint of emotion, not even arrogance in that voice. "You can't win."

Brianne struggled to get up; she only managed to get to her knees. "N-no..." she gasped.

The man said nothing else, only raised an arm to strike down. Brianne closed her eyes. _I'm sorry Ariel. I couldn't hold on..._

She expected to feel the blow that she knew was coming. What she didn't expect was the sickening sound of skin being sliced, followed by a hiss of pain. Brianne opened her eyes.

The man was clutching his stomach, blood seeping from his fingers; but that wasn't what surprised Brianne, it was the person who caused that.

_Slade...?_

Indeed, it was the Mystic swordsman that was standing in front her, sword held out. He looked beyond enraged.

"Don't touch her," he hissed.

The man merely struck at Slade with a whip made of fire, ignoring the wound on his stomach.

Brianne watched as the two fought; neither one seemed to gain any ground. The man would fling the whip at Slade, only to have Slade block with his sword and counter with bolts of lightning. If Slade tried to rush him and strike out, the man would simply dodge and throw handfuls of fire. Overtime, the man began slowing down, the loss of blood finally taking it's toll. He fell to his knees as a rain of ice colluded with him. The man, still not given up, began chanting under his breath.

Slade took note of this and lunged at him. It was too late, as the man shot a black mist at him. The mist hit Slade full force, and though he was still standing, he clutched his chest in pain, coughing.

"I will not lose to the likes of you!" the man bellowed. Now he was actually showing emotion.

Brianne, slowly recovering, began chanting quietly, though no aura was visible around her.

Slade was watching his opponent, trying to stop from coughing, when he noticed something strange was happening to his sword; it was starting to glow yellow. Smiling sadistically, he straightened up and brought his sword above his head.

"But you will." With that, he brought his sword down. Numerous shockwaves erupted from his blade, surging along the ground. The man tried feebly to move out of the way, but they were moving too fast. An enormous amount of electrical coursed through the man's body as the shockwaves cut through him. The man collapsed to the ground.

Slade slowly approached the still man, expecting the man to pull off on last attack. The man slowly struggled to his feet, hand raised; Slade readied his sword.

But the man didn't attack; instead, a blue portal appeared behind him. Still watching the swordsman, he slowly backed into the portal as it closed.

Slade stared at the spot for a few moments before moving toward Brianne; she was watching him with wide eyes.

"Slade..." she breathed.

He knelt down beside her. "Brianne... Are you alright?"

"You came for me..."

"Of course I did. I'm sorry I didn't get here sooner."

Brianne was having a hard time breathing; her chest felt too tight. "Why? Why did you come for me?"

Slade gave her a funny look. "Because I care about you, because I want you to be safe, because..." He looked suddenly uncomfortable. He took a few deep breaths before looking her in the eye. "Because... I love you."

Brianne felt her chest constrict even more; his words echoing in her head: _"I love you."_ She collapsed against him, wrapping her arms around him. She had to tell him now.

"Slade... I'm so sorry,"

"About what?" His words were soft, but cautious. His hold around her tightened.

"For lying to you, to all of you."

There was a pause; Brianne couldn't see his face. "What do you mean?"

Brianne took a deep, shuddering breath. "When we first met, you all thought that I might be Magus' daughter. Schala asked me something in that language that only a Zealian could understand and I didn't... Well, I did." She was shaking now. "I could understand what she said. I am... the daughter of Magus." _There, I said it._

She was expecting Slade to push her in away in disgust. Instead, his body shook just a bit. "That's... it?"

Brianne glanced up at his face; he was smiling, suppressing laughter. Brianne was astonished. _He thinks it's funny!_

"Schala is Magus' sister, Ozzie is Magus' nephew. If we were worried about that, they wouldn't be there." His body shook more. "Besides, if anything would have made us kick you out, it would have been that you were raised by Humans that my parents truly hated." With that, he actually started to laugh.

Brianne, while that pain in her chest was gone, didn't know if she was angry, hurt, or just confused. Slade saw the look on her face and immediately sobered up.

"This was really bothering you, wasn't it?" Brianne nodded; Slade sighed. "I don't care, no one else will care. Yes, we would have been a little shocked, but we won't reject you. You're one of us, and we won't let you go."

Brianne felt herself beginning to breath faster. _"I don't care." "You're one of us."_ She felt exhilarated. Slade didn't care whose daughter she was; more so, he _loved_ her. Without thinking, she eagerly pressed her lips against his.

He returned it with the same passion, pressing his tongue against her lips. She allowed him entrance, moaning as she felt him explore her mouth. She ran her hands down his back, sending thrills of pleasure through him. Slade held Brianne tight against him, his free hand stroking Brianne's hair.

They broke apart minutes later, both out of breath; Brianne looked up at him, almost crying with happiness. "I don't want to leave you," she whispered.

The barest of smirks was on Slade's face. "Good," he replied before attacking her lips again; she purred in delight.

She couldn't remember being this happy in a long time. Only one thought went through her head as their tongues twisted together and their hands stroked each others bodies. _I hope he never stops..._

* * *

Darien's mind was in a panic. Would they get in time? What if... He didn't want to think about what would happen if they didn't get there in time. So wrapped up in his thoughts, he didn't notice that he had almost run into Ariel, who had stopped. "Are we...?" 

"We here. We fight, make bad man pay." She pushed the bushes apart and stopped, a look of complete shock on her face. Darien, as well as the others, gathered close to see what Ariel was staring at.

Of all the sights Darien had expected to see, this was not one of them. No matter how much he wanted to, he couldn't tear his gaze away. He didn't notice the soft, feminine squeal beside him, nor did he see the look of pity his old friend was giving him.

The girl he cared about, the one he wanted to spend his life with, had her arms wrapped around another, kissing him passionately.

He hadn't thought it was possible, but at that moment, he could feel his heart breaking in two.

* * *

A/N: I really don't know what to say. I'm very sorry for taking over a year to update this story. All I can say is that I had lost my inspiration to write anything, as well as a few things that have happened in my life over the last little while. 

But here it is. And no matter how long in takes, I will finish this story. And I really hope the next chapter won't take as long as this.


	17. To Where It Began

There's Something in the Air

By Lilly Blitz

Chapter 16: To Where It Began

No matter what, family is very important. They're always there for you when you need them, and they're always close, no matter how much they fight. Father, mother, brothers and sisters; even grandparents, uncles, aunts and cousins. Family will stay by you.

"How much further is it to the village?" Schala inquired.

"I don't think it's that much further, but I'm not sure," Marle replied, tightening the cloak around her. They had luckily thought in advance to bring something to help with the cold. Though the Dark Ages weren't as cold as it used to be, it could still catch you if you weren't prepared.

"For all you know, we could end up lost," Ozzie muttered, though not quietly enough that he wasn't heard. "How can you not know where it is?"

"Well, it's been around twenty years since we were last here," Crono answered testily. "Seeing as Schala wasn't here than and I was... dead," he looked slightly disconcerted about talking about it, "Marle's the only one who has the slightest idea where it is."

Ozzie didn't respond, at least not to having his question answered. "Why couldn't you do us a favour and stay dead?"

Crono didn't have to waste his breath with a retort; one look from Schala shut the green Mystic up. He tried and failed to suppress a grin. Out of all the arrangements there could have been, he was quite content with the group he was with. Schala genuinely liked them, and she was able to keep the comments from her... husband, down to a minimum.

In which case, he had to wonder how Lucca and Glenn were making out, being put together with Slash and Flea. He wanted to think they were fine, but with everything that was happening lately...

Crono's expression turned sombre. And than there was his son, who he had just found, but was off in another era trying to find his adopted sister. His son, who was with three Mystics that could rival their parents in temperment and a knight that, though Crono did trust Michael simply because he was Glenn's son, he didn't know at all. Carlos was the only one Crono did know quite well, and that still didn't reassure him.

_I should have told Darien to just go home._ He knew, though, that Darien would have done no such thing. _He_ certainly wouldn't have, and it certainly ran in the family. He just hoped that one of the groups would find Brianne, and that would be that.

"Schala, if I may ask, why do you want Brianne to stay with you?"

_Except for that..._ Crono looked at Schala, wanting to hear that answer.

"You mean, besides the fact that she's a Mystic who should be with her own kind, and not you pathetic Humans?" Ozzie answered, sneer firmly on his face.

Marle bit her cheek from to keep from lashing out at him; Crono gritted his teeth. "Besides that."

There was a moments pause before Schala answered. "There's something about her. I can't explain it very well, but, it made me think that I'd like her there with us."

Marle exchanged a quick look with Crono; he understood it. "Is she related to you? I mean, is she Janus..."

"No, I'm afraid not." The Zealian princess looked truly dismayed about it. "She didn't understand the language of my people, that both myself, my son and my brother can understand."

"Well, if she was, than the other Mystic's probably wouldn't have wanted her around," Crono pointed out, with a significant look to Ozzie.

The Mystic actually looked insulted at that. "What are you, stupid? Unless it's Magus himself, I don't care."

This shocked Crono; he was expecting Ozzie to carry the grudge over to Magus' relatives. Though, if he did...

Schala smiled softly as she felt an arm snake around her waist; both Crono and Marle turned quickly, both giving the other looks of disgust. One thought went through both their heads.

_Out of everyone Schala could have been with, why the imp?_

* * *

The group had finally come across the village. It was slightly larger than Marle remembered it; more people were moving about. The group received more than a few stares, though these were all focussed on the Mystic. 

"Do you think you could change forms or something?" Crono demanded quietly to Ozzie.

Ozzie just smirked smugly. "You think I care what anyone thinks? Deal with it."

There were, however, a few looks from the elders that were directed at Schala. Probably because they remembered the gentle woman, and were hoping that it was indeed her.

"Do you think we should to talk to someone?" Marle inquired looking around.

"Probably," her husband replied, "before we freeze, or get attacked." Ozzie pointedly ignored the spike-haired Human.

Surprisingly, they didn't have to find anyone, because at the moment, Schala felt a soft tap on her arm; she turned. Standing there was a man just entering the late stages of his life, his beard and hair slightly sprinkled with grey.

"Pardon me," he said gently. "I've been watching you since you entered this village, and I wanted to know... Are you..."

Schala smiled, waiting patiently for the question she knew that would be asked.

"That is to say... Could it be... Miss Schala?" the man finished, looking hopeful.

She nodded. "Yes, that's right."

"How wonderful!" the man exclaimed, frightening a few people passing by. "We had always hoped you would come back, seeing how kind you were to us all those years ago." He gestured to a nearby hut. "Please, I would be honoured to have you in my humble abode."

The hut was actually bigger than it looked on the outside; all of them were able to fit into a sitting area comfortably.

The man took a seat, the others followed suit; Schala sitting close to the older man with Crono and Marle taking seats across from them. Ozzie chose to stand behind Schala, rather than sit.

"I wish that the former Elder was still alive; he was very fond of you, Miss Schala," the man said with a smile. "As it is, I have taken up his duties. It can be quite exhausting, especially trying to create a peaceful coexistence between my people, and the Enlightened Ones.

Crono had to stop himself from snorting. _Just wait a few thousand years..._

The Elder turned to Crono and Marle. "You two do seem familiar, though I can't quite remember how..."

"They're the ones who freed Melchoir from Mount Woe," Schala supplied.

"Of course! I remember now!" He smiled brightly at them. "Do forgive me, I only saw you once, before the whole event happened. But now that you mention it... Weren't you one of the three that was captured by Dalton in the Blackbird?" He was gesturing to Marle.

She grimaced slightly. "I'm afraid so."

"But you also destroyed that accursed ship, and got rid of him?"

She grinned cheekily. "I'm afraid so."

The Elder laughed at that. "It was a good thing you did, a very good thing." Now his attention turned to Ozzie. "Now I know I've never seen you before. You are...?"

"That's my husband," Schala answered, a slight fondness in her voice.

"Husband?!" The Elder's eyes bugged out slightly, as he looked from Schala to Ozzie. "Are... Are you serious Miss Schala. You're married to... him?!"

"You have a problem with this?" Ozzie growled.

The Elder quickly composed himself. "No, of course not. So long as Miss Schala is happy..." He received an affirmative nod. "Good, than it's... good." He quickly turned away, so not to attract anymore attention. Crono had a hard covering up his snickers; Marle did no such thing, earning herself a blazing look from the Mystic.

"But I suppose there's a reason why you're here, Miss Schala?" the Elder asked, once everything had calmed down.

"Yes there is. Two things actually." Crono and Marle exchanged confused looks. Two things? Crono looked over slightly at Ozzie; he was shaking his head, looking weary.

"Have you seen a girl with long black hair and pale skin?"

The Elder thought for a moment. "There are a few girls that match that description. Is there anything else you can tell me?"

"She has long, pointed ears," Marle put in.

"Than, I'm afraid not." The Elder sighed. "I'm sorry, but I'm sure I would have remembered seeing her." He suddenly looked thoughtful. "Though..." He shook his head. "No... never mind."

Marle clenched her fists until they were white; Schala looked equally saddened.

"She... might be in another era..." Crono said softly, though he didn't sound very hopeful about that.

"Or she could be stuck somewhere in this frozen wastleland, dying if not already dead." Ozzie muttered. Despite his words, he sounded worried about her as well.

The Elder bowed his head. "I'm truly sorry I couldn't help you. Now... was there something else you wanted to ask me?"

Schala, still looking troubled, nodded. "Yes. Is..." She swallowed a bit. "Is my brother here?"

Crono could not keep the disbelief off his face. _After all these years, she still wants to see Magus?_ Marle had a similar look on her face. Ozzie rolled his eyes; he had known she would have asked that.

"Janus?" The Elder suddenly looked sorrowful. "I'm so sorry, he was here... but that was years ago..."

Schala looked really crushed. "Did he..."

"I'm not sure if he died or just disappeared again," the Elder explained. "He was here for a few years, than he was just... gone. So were his wife and daughter."

This made all four of them were shocked and disbelieving. "He had a wife?!" Crono exclaimed.

"He had a daughter?!" Marle cried out.

The Elder looked slightly amused. "He did, though it is indeed hard to believe. You knew him?"

"Enough to know that it's impossible," Marle stated firmly. "I mean, we always used to joke that..." She closed her eye; she couldn't even say Brianne's name. "But that's just..."

The Elder just smiled; he glanced at Schala. "You knew his wife, Miss Schala."

"I did?" Schala replied faintly.

"Yes, it was Aurora. She was a good friend of yours, wasn't she?"

There was a shocked silence. Marle who was already pale from earlier, turned more white. Crono seemed to be at a loss for words; his mouth moving, but no sound came out. Schala was looking at the Elder in disbelief, not believing what she had heard. Ozzie had no expression, but he squeezed Schala's shoulder in comfort.

"It's can't be," Schala was whispering. "It just can't be."

Marle seemed to be mouthing the same thing; her husband had gathered enough of his wits to address the Elder. "What was his daughter's name?"

"It was Brianne."

The first bout of silence was discomfiting; the seocnd one was even worse. Schala's breathing had become sharp, haggard. Crono and Marle looked worse than before. Even Ozzie's green skin paled a bit.

"No, it's not true." Schala wrapped her arms aorund herself.

"Miss Schala?" The Elder looked concerned; she was looking quite sick.

"She can't be," Schala repeated, mostly to herself. "She would have understood the language."

"She could have just pretended she didn't," her husband replied, being the voice of reason for once.

"By why? Why would she not want me know?" She sounded very sad, and a little hurt.

"It was probably them," Crono stated quietly, slightly regaining his composure. He pointed to Ozzie. "She was probably afraid of what their reaction would be."

Schala shook her head. "Would she have really thought that...?"

"Listening to all those ridiculous stories about us, I'd say there was a really good chance." Ozzie sneered at the two Humans. "We knew she was scared of meeting us, because of who raised her. It's quite easy to see that it's true."

The Elder had been quiet the entire time, observing all of them. "So, the girl you are looking for is Brianne?"

"You met her?" Marle asked, her complexion still looking sickly.

He nodded. "Yes. Aurora brought her around a few times before they all disappeared." He smiled, reminiscing. "She was a beautiful baby. Would have only been a year when they were gone, perhaps a bit younger."

Crono smiled a little, remembering the night when he first saw his adopted daughter. "Yeah, she was. She looks a lot like her mother now."

"Is Aurora well?"

"No." Crono shook his head sadly. "She died, right after entrusting Brianne's safety to us."

"You raised her than?" The Elder looked a little surprised. "I wold have thought Miss Schala would be the natural choice to raise her, if her parents weren't around."

"I don't think Janus knew I was alive," Schala replied sadly.

"We certainly didn't until a little while ago," Crono agreed.

The Elder nodded. "Yes, that would make sense." He looked at all of them. "Janus seemed to be on the verge of suicide when he first came back here. If he hadn't met Aurora again and they fell in love, he probably would have died a log time ago. Being a husband, and a father made him very happy, from what I can recall."

"It was strange seeing him again. When I last saw him, he was still a small child; than only two years later, a full grown man. If it wasn't for his uncanny resemblance to Vexacon, no one would have ever believed it was him."

"Vexacon?" Crono inquired.

"That would be, or was, our father," Schala answered, frowning a little. "He was very odd, but he treated both Janus and I with kindness. It was after his death that Mother began changing."

The Elder nodded. "I thought that it was Vexacon at first, but he was too angry to be the former Zealian ruler." He sighed. "I truly wish I could in finding the young lady, but there is nothing can I do. I can offer you shelter for tonight, if you'd like."

"That would be nice," Crono said with a nod. "Everyone will be meeting here tomorrow anyway. Hopefully, one of the other groups found her."

The Elder gave them directions to an empty hut they could use before bidding them farewell. "I hope the next time we meet, Miss Schala, will be more happier times."

Schala was able to produce a tiny smile. "I hope so too."

The four walked in silence for a while. Marle was the first to say something. "It's strange, how we used to joke around about the possibility of Magus' being Brianne's father. But now that it's true, it doesn't seem so funny anymore."

Schala nodded, but smiled a little. "I'm just happy that Brianne is my niece. It makes it better, in away, even though both Janus and Aurora aren't with us anymore."

There was another silence. They had reached the hut and were about the enter, when...

"Schala?"

Schala looked at Crono; both him and Marle looked unhappy. "We've been both thinking, and..." He took a calming breath. "If we find Brianne, and she'd rather stay with you, than it's fine with us."

Schala looked a little surprised and Ozzie looked downright shocked, though he tried to hide it. "Are you sure?"

"We're sure," Marle repeated, her eyes misting a little. She managed a smile. "Besides, I'm sure Magus would have wanted you to raise her anyway."

The blue-haired princess was stil taken aback, but was also touched. "Thank you. Than means a lot to me. And if Brianne would want to be with you, I'll make sure the others understand." She gave Ozzie a side look with that; he merely shrugged slightly.

With that said and done, they got ready for sleep, hoping that tomorrow would be a better day.

* * *

A/N: Well, this didn't take as long as my last one, but still longer than I had hoped for. I hope you enjoy this one, even though it is shorter. My next one will be longer, and the action begins to pick up a little. And I hope that one doesn't take as long. 


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Chrono Trigger, Adventure, Romance