helloooooooo! Miss me! haha so to cut a loooong story short the reason why I never updated is because my email account linked to this account was hacked into and frozen by their admin, I couldn't remember the password for my fanfiction account and therefore was stuck. I toyed with the idea of making a new account and reposting but I rather like seeing the 44000 hits on my traffic stats :(. So anyway, I know that I've probably lost all the fans of this story that I had back when I left it 2/3 years ago? or perhaps more, think it was 09 or 08 that I last updated but you'll be able to see that! (Edit: oh I just checked it was 9/1/07 :S oh dear)

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Due to this story being written when I was still at school (o.O) I will be doing a re-write more than updating this one. This will probably be the last chapter I do to update this story (written before I lost my password). I plan to make this a much better story now that I have years more experience in writing. I hope some of the people who loved this story and always reviewed are still around to see the end. Thanks and my apologies :)

"I-I…you're such an idiot,"

"Thanks," he replied dryly and when she wasn't forthcoming with a reason why he was an idiot he murmured, "Well, night then," before leaning down to kiss her on the cheek as usual, he however did not count on her turning her head…

The Journal

…Dagger broke the kiss and stepped back, "Yeah, night then," she murmured before opening her door and disappearing inside.

Zidane watched her go, bewildered, before slowly turning to open his own door only to find it, not only already open but also with Alex leaning against the doorframe, arms crossed and smirk on his face.

Zidane sighed, one hand reaching up to scratch his head.

Zidane smiled. It had been running around his head like a song on repeat, he was never going to get to sleep at this rate but he couldn't bring himself to care. The clock nearby flashed 4:30 at him, he'd been in bed for a good two and a half hours and hadn't even come close to dozing off.

Alex snores were drifting across the room; he'd been asleep before his head could touch the pillow after they had both decided that, at two in the morning, they had better leave further discussion until the morning.

He rolled over with a sigh and the next thing he knew he was being hit over the head with something soft. He opened his eyes slowly to see Alex grinning with a pillow in hand.

"Come on, up! We're going to the girls room."

"No we're not." Zidane said flatly.

"Yes we are! I promised to wake up Jess so we could have breakfast and not brunch and you have talking to do with a certain project partner."

"I'm sure it could have waited until I was awake, you know."

"It's only 9 not the break of dawn." Alex retorted as he opened the door forcefully and disappeared into the hallway.

Zidane groaned and threw his duvet over his head, burrowing deep into its folds. A moment later he heard Alex's voice again, "He's over there, the big lump in that bed."

Zidane sighed softly; he was probably going to set Midnight on him, that's what his mother always did.

"Zidane?"

Nope, that wasn't Midnight. He reached up and threw the cover off of his head and glanced warily across the room. "Yeah?"

"Alex said to get you up for breakfast," Dagger began, he groaned softly, "and it would be a good idea, you know, to get a head start on that journal."

He stared at her, comprehension dawning on him slowly. With all the drama afterwards, all of which was directly related to him and not some long dead king, he'd forgotten all about the musty old journal that was barely still in existence.

"Right," he replied, a sudden energy filling him, and bounded from his bed and over to the corner of the room where his clothes were spilling out of a half opened suitcase.

He tugged a t-shirt on over his head paying no heed to Dagger who had carefully averted her eyes away from him. It was only when he picked up a pair of jeans that he stopped, "Erm…"

"Oh, I will – er," she hastily turned her back on him, facing the door.

"Thanks," he replied somewhat sheepishly.

Breakfast was a quick affair, for Dagger and Zidane at least. They were so filled with excited energy over the diary that they had eaten their breakfast – that was an equivalent size to Jess and Alex's – and left before their friends were half way through.

"Do you think this is it?" Zidane asked, watching the wooden planks beneath his feet.

"I'm not sure," she sighed, "I mean he mentions him, true, but someone who is not him cannot possibly know the whole story, you know."

"Yeah," he opened the door of the inn for her, "yeah…"

The innkeeper looked up at them, a delighted expression on his face. "Come in, come in. I've reserved a table in the dining hall for you, perfect for reading."

He led them through into a fairly large room that was painted a slightly nauseating mustard yellow and over to a table in the corner.

" `Boss brought another kid into the gang today. He must only be 13 years old, says his name is Zidane. Boss says he found him down at the harbour looking for something. Boss wont tell me what but will give me another clout to the head if I ask again. None of my business or anyone else's but his." Dagger read out, "So Zidane was 13 on…" she flipped back a few pages to the beginning of the entry, "9th February 1680."

"Uh huh," Zidane murmured as he scribbled the date down. Before Dagger could continue reading he had pulled his bag up onto his lap and was rummaging through it. He eventually brought out a photograph. It was one of the ones that were taken of the portraits.

"1685" he frowned, "so that would make him 18…and he already knows her…"

"Well…" Dagger frowned too, "that's something. We knew the Legend was wrong somewhere. We now have something to present if we fail to find anything else."

"Hmmm," he agreed distractedly, he shook his head, "carry on, I want to know how old he was when he did meet her!"

"Ok, this might not tell us though," she flipped through the pages back to the beginning of the next entry.

Zidane's name was often mentioned, as were all the Tantalus members, but for nothing more than everyday activities or amusing events. They were worryingly nearing the end of the journal and the day too considering the rapidly fading light outside.

Zidane reached up to turn on the light just as Dagger said suddenly, "Here! 1683. `Boss says he has orders from regent Cid to kidnap the princess Garnet from Alexandria. We're to perform a play for the queen to both, get us into the grounds and then distract her. He's given the special job to Blank and Zidane whilst the rest of us have to bust our backs acting so that they can go unnoticed."

"16," Zidane said once she had finished, "he was 16."

"…he was sent to kidnap her?" Dagger frowned, "How did they end up married? Surely she wouldn't fall for someone who kidnapped her?"

Zidane shrugged, "It happens." He leant across the table, "Anything else? Come on, come on."

"Ok, ok." Dagger turned the page and frowned, "what with the whole kidnap going completely wrong all because the princess wanted to be kidnapped. The queen would never have found out our way, if everything went to plan. The ship went down, burnt to a crisp in the middle of the evil forest of all places…urgh…awful place. Sends shivers down my spine. Not too many casualties, the bloody tin man survived unfortunately. We lost the princess briefly… Zidane's been kicked out by the boss, says he's going after the princess and nothin's stopping him. I know he likes pretty faces and all but seriously…ditching his bros for her, a girl with blue blood. He's a thief, what in the hell does he think will happen. Anyway, Blank's gone to see him, he'll knock sense into that idiot's head alright! Don't think boss will be having him back this time, I really don't. A lots happened since then, Zidane escaped the forest after saving the princess and went his own way, us lot-` that's all there is about him."

"Ahem!" they turned to see the inn keeper, "It's dinner time, would you like to order anything or return tomorrow to continue reading, I'm afraid I'd need the table if you don't. Dinner is my busiest time."

"Food! Food sounds good!" Zidane said hurriedly.

"Zidane!" Dagger hissed worriedly, "this place isn't that cheap."

"Don't worry, my treat."

"I'll get your menus." The Innkeeper said before hurrying off.

Zidane yawned and stretched his arms above his head. "My back is killing me." He groaned.

"Yeah," Dagger murmured still flipping through the pages, "mine to, my eyes are tired, the lines are blurring together."

He dropped his arms down, "Want me to read it for a bit?"

"Please," she sighed pushing the book across the table.

"Menus!" the portly innkeeper placed the menus onto the table jovially, bowing his head as he did so and revealing his balding patch.

"Thanks." Zidane replied, picking one up warily. He hoped the food was decent stuff not unpronounceable Conde peti mush and delicacies. It was close to the Black Mage Village after all. "Oh good, it's actually food!"

Dagger glanced across at his grin puzzled, "What else would it be?"