The Joker and the Thief
Prologue
So, this is my first attempt at following through with a story, any feedback is much appreciated. Feedback received determines if I will continue. I'm aware that much of this is very "colloquialized", however that was what I was going for. Opinions on whether it helps or hurts and how to improve on that aspect are welcome and encouraged.
Enjoy!
"We made quite the couple," he joked, as though it didn't matter that I was gonna catch all kinds of hell from my friends as soon as Gippal was out of earshot, the likes of which the priests in Bevelle have never seen. Yuna'd be genuinely curious- Paine, genuinely...a meanie, she'd badger me just because she can.
"Fryd yna oui cyoehk?" I said, frantically trying to salvage some dignity for a little damage control, but it was hopeless. Gippal completely ignored my embarrassment, and as I glared, he continued. I could have kicked him in the teeth! Hard! What the heck did that mean? "Rikku's always good for a laugh." I definitely was not in on the joke, but by the time I'd relearned how to talk, the conversation took a more serious tone, and despite being the youngest of our crew, I knew when to keep my mouth shut since we were talking about fiends pouring out of the temples and the impending doom of Spira, again, and how Yunie was going to have to stop it, again- well except for the fact that Gippal didn't want our help, but he was just a stupid boy who liked to play with machina, and of course by "play", I mean sell them and make a LOT of gil, but, as usual, I digress. Yuna knows about the temples and we know a thing or two about fiends. He'll ask for help. Hmph. Just because we grew up together doesn't mean the roles haven't switched. Yeah, he'll ask for help, alright. Insufferable ass. And we'll charge him extra. Lots extra. That'll show him.
"Well, there were fiends here too, right? Want us to clean up for you?" I knew better, but you know? I thought I'd be nice. Needless to say, I was ignored.
"Fiend hunting? What, you guys give up the sphere gig?" Ha! As if. Gippal has no concept of fun if he thinks that's the case.
"Temporarily. Right Now, we're helping people out. Maybe... you'd like to hire us?" Oh Yunie, don't look at him like that. So not worth going there.
"Nope."
See what I mean? So much for manners.
After The-Embodiment-of-Male-Pride went back into his temple, I wondered why we even showed up in the first place. "I watch my own back." So? What, did the Celsius get a signal so he could just show- oh never mind. With Gippal, the most illogical answer is usually the right one.
No wonder Paine never talked about her past. Surviving the Crimson Squad isn't exactly a walk through the Moonflow. That's a lot of personal trauma to have to go through. I can definitely see why she joined The Gullwings. You know, she's not as different from Yunie as she lets on. I guess she just wants her answers and closure too. That connects so many dots though. Like only every weird comment she's made the entire time we've been dealing with this Vegnagun debacle. Like saying that Baralai was stronger than he looked. What did that mean? And then, when we gave the (somewhat anti-climactic) awesome sphere to the Youth League and she told Yuna not to let Nooj push her around. It was so bizarre. I thought she was just being cautious, as usual. But it makes a lot more sense now. Looking back, her reaction to Gippal was priceless. I should have pretended not to know him too. I'm not gonna lie though, I have to hand it to Gippal. It takes a certain... something not to hold a grudge against the person who shot you in the chest. It was like he hadn't changed at all when we saw him that first time in Djose. Any difference I saw in him I attributed to not having seen him in over two years. But I'd never realized just how much he had changed- how he was forced to change. To watch Shuyin do what he did... that's gotta change a person. Looking back now, it made so much sense. He's gone through just as much as Paine had, and yet somehow still managed to have that nonchalant attitudehe's always had. But then, he's always taken things in stride. It's just strange, what can happen in two years. I would know, I suppose. Looking back it's funny to picture the trouble Gippal and I always got ourselves into when we were younger. But, I suppose we all have to grow up some time, whether it's by kidnapping your own cousin to save her life or being shot by one of your closest friends. And, even though I knew it wasn't him down there in the Den of Woe, it was surreal to have to take down his...memory. The same with Yunie and Paine too, of course, but there's just something about the memory of your childhood friend trying to kill you that can be a little unnerving.
Ugh. Why did I go on a tangent about him? As I was saying, we know about Paine's past, I didn't lose any more respect points, and despite having his lung capacity significantly reduced by a guy who walks with a cane, Gippal's still as boneheaded as ever. Also, lots of pyreflies in a cave is not natural.
Geez, this thing really is a colossus. I shouldn't be surprised, after seeing the ginormous hole it left in Bevelle, but still! Who has the time or the motivation to build a machina like that? I mean really, no wonder Sin came along if there were things like that being used a thousand years ago. This is just another reason for me not to visit the Farplane any time soon. It's creepy enough without Shuyin and his pet weapon going crazy down there. Leave it to Gippal to go down there, guns blazing, just to get his butt kicked. Not like I was worried about him or anything. Seriously.
I'm so restless these days. It's like time goes by in slow motion while my mind races at full speed. I don't what to do with myself. I'm beginning to get on my own nerves. The reconstruction of Home is coming along pretty smoothly and I've been trying to occupy myself as much as I can with that, but the problem is exactly that: there are no problems. I feel like I can't be content when things are going right, of course, not that I want problems just for the sake of staying occupied, it's just that I feel so out of place now, like I've seen and done too much to be here for too long at a time. I mean, come on! What I just said was all one sentence. That's how my thought process has been over and over again for months now. Same thoughts, same speed. But don't get me wrong. I don't mean to sound like I'm unhappy. It's really not that at all. Yunie and Tidus are spending some much deserved time together, Paine isn't even the same person who originally joined the Gullwings thanks to Baralai, and the safety of the world is not in question. So, I'm anything but unhappy. I dunno, maybe unfulfilled is the right word? I just feel like my life is stuck on pause and that I have all this potential and all this time and nowhere to spend it. Things are too easy right now to be getting stressed but I just can't help it! I seriously need a hobby, or a change of scenery.