Okay, it's 4:44 in the morning, and I suddenly got this idea to write the famous kissing scene from Final Fantasy X. All I have to say is that this was not the sweetest cake in the shop(is that even a saying?)and that I'm not entirely happy with it. I'm still deciding on whether or not it should be included in my novelization...

Enjoy... I didn't...

Spira was a perpetual spiral of death in which Sin revolved around. A creature, eternal and omnipotent, with wanton destruction, was the punishment for everyone's conceit. When he had asked her about machina and the war it produced, and why an entity like Sin appeared she couldn't give him an answer. She didn't know, or rather, no one had told her the truth. As a boy, foreign to the workings and environment of Spira, having machina—machines that simply made the hardships of life easier—didn't seem like such a bad thing to have around, in fact, they were almost a necessity. But everyone told him that machina was bad—except the good kind like the ones found in Luca to assist the sport blitzball—and that Sin, their punishment, would never go away if they didn't atone.

He had been skeptical throughout the whole journey, even after learning that Sin was his old man. And slowly, his skepticism grew when he witnessed one of Yevon's children, Seymour Guado and Maester of Yevon, baring his weapon against the guardians and their summoner, the only person who could bring about The Calm. And this, Tidus believed, was when the truth was beginning to unravel, the truth behind the teachings, behind Yevon.

Yuna and her guardians had had a swift trial after the attempted muder of Seymour, that resulted in their execution—which they all escaped—but something remained back there in Bevelle, the heart of Yevon. Since he had first met Yuna and had gotten acquainted with her, Tidus knew she was serious and ever faithful to the teachings she had been raised into. She was a summoner just as her father had been, and upholding a duty where the weight of everyone's sorrow and hope would have made anyone buckle to their knees, meant everything to her.

But, as they escaped to the Macalania woods, Yuna had lost that twinkle in her green and blue eyes. She had lost her faith in the one foundation that gave her hope, the one her father had believed in.

Tidus had thought that he was encouraging her—telling her to go beat Sin and about his Zanarkand and how they could one day travel there together. But he was a naive boy then, unknowing of the true duty of a summoner.

She was going to die upon summoning the Final Aeon.

And he didn't realize it until after the fact. After he had grown fond of her presence, her smile, and her gentle disposition. Wakka had warned him, and even Lulu, that he shouldn't fall in love with her—not that he was quite near the process yet—and he only nodded his head, but in his mind, he was thinking the opposite. He was young, she was young, they were the opposite sex, why not?

Why not?

He needed to apologize for making her pained by his words. He had encouraged her to move to the Mi'ihen Highroad where she could look at the burning evening sun and simply sigh with no worries and no Sin, just like she had said she wanted to. But she couldn't because she was going to forfeit her life for the citizens of Spira. No one had told about her ultimate fate because the truth hurt, but were they thinking of Yuna, or were they protecting their own hearts from the pain? What if she had already fallen in love? Her guardians had only assumed she wouldn't because of her task.

Standing just before the lake where tiny, sparkling shards of white crystals floated underneath, Tidus saw her figure hovering in the water, buoyed by the strength and magical connection of the fayth to the lake. She was staring into the luminous night sky, littered with small dots of stars and where the large crescent moon governed all. Crystallized ice traveled idly to the skies just beyond the alignment of trees surrounding the lake, its roots staying afloat by the power of the fayth.

She must have heard his footsteps when he approached because she began talking—not quietly to herself, but so that he could hear as well.

"I thought that this would be easier somehow," she said, "I thought that everyone would help me, with all my friends together, beside me." Her eyes dropped to the water below. "I've been trying so hard," she confided.

Tidus walked from the blue wooden bank of the lake, feeling that Yuna didn't need to explain her actions at all. She too had been naïve, like him, and he understood why she tried to do so much on her own.

"Maybe," he began, "maybe, you're trying too hard," Tidus said, the water level now waist deep. She spun around to him, a bit relieved to see Tidus, though his features were greatly grave. "They told me. . . . everything." His azure eyes slowly traveled to hers that were filled with slight shock and anticipation.

"Everything?" she asked, almost as if she were alarmed. He nodded, painfully slow. Yuna turned her back to him, watching the brightly lit skies. "Well, so then, you know." she stated, drinking in the result of him knowing. Would he distance himself from her now that he knew the truth?

"Yeah," he spoke hoarsely, the emotions he had felt when he first found out seeping back into his heart, "and I'm sorry." She simply turned to him as if to tell him that he didn't need to apologize, but she remained silent. "It's just . . ." Tidus continued, "you know, all those things I said. Like, let's go get Sin and—or about Zanarkand." He dropped his eyes. "I didn't know what you happen to you, Yuna. I guess . . . I hope it didn't make you said. Forgive me." She broke eye contact, looking away as if contemplating. Finally, she severed the unbearable silence.

"I wasn't sad," she replied, and with a stronger voice she continued. "I was happy." Once again, she gave him her back. Shortly after, Yuna heard his body delving into the lake. He wasn't behind her, and when she searched, he suddenly popped his head through the surface, gasping for air farther in front of her. He was now floating in the water and she smiled.

"Yuna, just don't do it," Tidus said to her.

"The pilgrimage?" He lifted himself.

"Yeah, that's right. Forget all about Sin. About being a Summoner. Forget all that," he told her, moving about in the cool water. He came before her. "You know, live a normal life." Her lips didn't move and Tidus had no indication of what she was thinking or feeling besides the pressure of being a teenaged Summoner. "Come on, now, Yuna. What do you say?"

Yuna touched her nose in thought, just thinking of a life without the responsibilities of a Summoner. Never having to pray at each temple and suffer the pain and exhaustion of giving her heart to the fayth. Just living how she wanted without thinking about the end. Without thinking about anything. The Summoner looked at him, saying,

"Maybe I will." Tidus, stunned by her sudden answer, came closer to her. "Wouldn't everyone be surprised?"

"Yeah, except Rikku. She'd be with you. Lulu and Wakka wouldn't hold out long," Tidus replied, trying his best to raise her spirits, and it seemed to be working.

"Kimarhi would say yes too, I know." Yuna paused, a hand reaching to the corner of her mouth. "But Sir Auron . . ." she trailed. He was her father's guardian and a determined man to defeat Sin. If she told him that she decided to forfeit her pilgrimage, she'd be a failure and disgraced in his eyes.

"I'll make him understand, Yuna," Tidus assured, quickly attempting to quell her worries. "It's the least I can do for you."

"No, I should tell him." But would she have the courage? "He deserves it." She walked forward, past Tidus and he only followed her with his eyes. She was now floating in the water like he had been, and Tidus figured she was letting the strength of the lake carry her. She was basking in the feeling of having someone else carry her weight for a change.

"What'll I do," Yuna queried after a moment, "if I give up my pilgrimage. . . . ?"

He never thought of the future and what it would be like with Yuna as a normal teenager. He was saying whatever came easiest for the both of them. As Summoner Yuna, she was going to lay down her life, but as the normal Yuna, she could watch that burning Mi'ihen Sunset forever. What more was there to think about?

Then, a thought came to Tidus' head.

"Hey! We can go to Zanarkand!"

"Huh?" Yuna replied, confused. But he soon cleared the misunderstanding up.

"Not the one in Spira, but the one I'm from!" She was silent again. Whatever comes easiest. . . . "Yeah! We can all fly there! Everyone can go." His voice was filled with so much hope and desperation, and she could only accept it. After all, his coming here ten years after his father was miracle enough. Who was to say that his Zanarkand didn't exist? Tidus continued, his mind thinking up thoughts, one after another. "We'll have a big party at my place!"

Yuna stood, feeling the same enthusiasm and excitement he felt at the mere mention of Zanarkand.

"And then we can see blitzball!"

"That's right," Tidus said.

"Your Zanarkand Abes would play."

"Yeah."

"We could all watch you play, in the stadium all lit up at night," she explained, envisioning his Zanarkand as he had described it to her on the S.S. Winno ship. "I'd cheer and cheer until I couldn't cheer anymore!" Yuna smacked her hands into the water, their excitement overwhelming her. Already, she was smiling. And the glint of a gentle and sweet young woman returned to her green and blue eyes.

"Yeah! Right on," Tidus coaxed, nodding his head vigorously. For a few seconds, the two quieted, realizing that they had been inching toward each other—very closely—while envisioning their time in Zanarkand if they ever reached it. Yuna then presented a question.

"Well, what about after the game?" she asked to which Tidus brought his head back down from the vast black sky.

"Well, we'd go out and have fun." he answered and she looked so innocent, asking,

"In the middle of the night?" Tidus bet she had never stayed out all night before.

Laughing, the blond replied, "No problem. Zanarkand never sleeps!" His blue eyes traveled to the dark blue trees where golden orbs glowed bright against the pale blue-white light of the floating ice crystals. Together, the crystals and orbs illuminated the lake, supplying it with ample shine even at night.

As Tidus' eyes watched the stars, he remembered a time during his childhood when he used to to travel to the beach alone just before the light of the morning arrived and just sit at the shore, marveling in the red sun that slowly peeked from the horizon. He had recalled how everything just blackened before lighting up with such magnificent illumination. He remembered how at home and truly at peace he felt, and that was something Yuna sought. Though she was quiet, and had been living a sheltered life, Tidus knew she hadn't felt what he had with the tyrant, Sin, still lurking in the corners of her mind. He wanted to share that experience, that personal moment with her alone. He wanted her to sigh like he had and to smile with no worries. He wanted Yuna to live.

"Let's go to the sea, before the sunrise," Tidus said, his azure eyes finding their way to his surroundings. Though ice whizzed by him, the atmosphere was lukewarm. Comfortable. And he supposed it was the fayth at the temple's doing. "The city lights go out, one by one. The stars fade. Then, the horizon glows, almost like its on fire. It's kind of rose-colored, right?" Yuna came up beside him, listening blissfully. "First in the sea, then it spreads to the sky, and then to the whole city. It gets brighter and brighter 'til everything just glows," he explained in renewed wonderment, his tone gradually becoming lower. "It's really . . . pretty. I know you'd like it." His voice was a mere whisper, the sound of a boy who wanted something for someone so bad that it hurt.

Yuna spoke. "I'd like to see it, some day," she said softly. He turned to her.

"Well, you can Yuna. We can both go," he replied. And then, he saw a single stream of tears drop into the lake. It rippled, then disappeared.

Yuna was crying, sobbing softly to herself.

"Yu—" But he cut himself off, now knowing that words could no longer pull her from the state she was in.

"I can't," she cried, twisting her locked fingers underneath the water. She wanted to wipe her tears away, but Tidus had already seen them. "I can't go," she painfully admitted. Since her father's death and his calm, she had been prepared to perform and act as a Summoner. But then Tidus happened, and her faith had been stolen from her. She thought she was strong, standing upon her own two feet, but she was bound by Tidus and his enthusiasm. And knowing that she couldn't live the rest of her life by his side hurt her more than she could possibly imagine. She thought she was strong mentally and physically, and she had forgotten about her heart and emotions. Yuna brought up her right hand defensively. Again, wanting to rub her tears away, but she didn't have the strength to. All she could think about was Zanarkand, her guardians, and Tidus slipping away from her.

Tidus moved in closer to her, feeling powerless to say or do something for her. Anything. He had always thought of her as a fragile flower that hadn't quite grown in the full ray of the sun with a few thorns that resembled her resolve, but seeing her sob and break down like this made him forget everything he knew about Yuna. That wasn't her true self, that was just a shell she used to hide, to guard the emotions she wanted to spew forth. She knew her duty and she knew she had to die, and Tidus understood that.

But now, he was witnessing the pure, broken spirit of a girl who might have known true happiness if not for Sin. Perhaps she had always been a broken spirit, and as Seymour believed, she could end her suffering through the ritualistic Final Summoning. But Tidus wouldn't let Yuna kill herself. He wanted to protect her, not as a guardian would a Summoner, but as a protector bound to something so precious and rare, as a protector who had a delicate connection and was obliged to shield it from the world.

Seeing her cry like this made him want to do something, it made him want to cry too. But what could he do? Making plans to travel to Zanarkand seemed like a mother's kiss to a child's fresh wound, and now, he had ripped it further apart. And now, it hurt.

"Yuna," Tidus whispered, feeling the urge to touch her bare shoulders, to protect her from her own emotions. Touching her seemed to make her sob even more uncontrollably. Tidus pressed his forehead against hers, grasping Yuna's damp face in his gloved, wet hands. Water trickled down from his blond locks and dropped on her nose as her cries and saddened moans began to subdue. She looked into his deep-set blue pools and her fears seemed to disperse, his warm and concerned gaze negating any negative feeling in her heart.

Yuna was lost in his eyes, forgetting that she had been crying, that he was so close to her that she could feel his warm breath against her wet skin. She closed her eyes, reveling in the soft texture of his skin against hers, his head and mind pressed firmly against hers.

She opened her eyes again and Tidus' face seemed to grow even closer to her, until she was slightly pushing back, unsure of what Tidus meant to do. Then, she understood, everything came together when his lips were on hers, so warm and soft. He was compelled to kiss her, to break the boundaries in hopes to save Yuna from a world crumbling around her.

The brunette was at first stiff, unknowing of what she should do on her part, but Tidus didn't rush, he merely placed his hand onto her back, coaxing her forward. It was a simple contact. Two lips joining together, nothing more. Then, Tidus wrapped his left arm about her small shoulders, softly pecking her lips in soft staccato motions, without leaving them entirely. With his right hand, he guided her arm around his waist, showing her the proper position for a perfect kiss. She breathed out as his lips caressed her forehead, her cheeks, her nose, and finally her lips again.

Yuna embraced him tightly, lost in the passionate moment, the gesture of love the two displayed for each other. As they floated inside the lake, submerging within the water, they broke the kiss—one that was unexpected as Tidus had just acted on his impulsive emotions—and Yuna soon began swimming on her back, letting the subtle tides carry her away. But Tidus wouldn't allow it, for he was holding onto her hands, his face passing above her, and she smiled in delight when he planted an upside down kiss on her eyelids.

The two stayed underneath the water, their bodies and joined hands lilting each other as they laughed underwater. Small bubbles sprayed from Tidus' lips and nose and Yuna fondly smiled. They soon became upright, the pale crystals swimming passed the two.

Tidus brushed Yuna's cheek, so soft and light that she could barely feel it. It was the same cheek that he didn't want to see stricken with tears again. In response, Yuna touched his face, her eyes displaying disbelief and wonderment. Her feelings for him were very overwhelming, true, but when she actually touched him, so intimately—well, at least she thought it was intimate—a whole new sea of emotions flooded her heart. And she recognized the feeling.

It was a burst of real and pure love.

Tidus kissed her hand before bringing her into another kiss, one that seemed to diminish any remaining worries in her eyes.

After a while, the two finally came to the surface, embracing each other for what felt like an eternity, before either of them thought about the journey ahead. She was resting on his shoulder, as if to fall asleep and he was breathing in her feminine scent, his nose brushing against the juncture of her neck.

"Tidus . . . I . . . uh. I . . ." But he silenced her with a warm squeeze.

"I know," he said to her.

Right now, all he wanted was silence. If she finished that sentence, then he would know for sure that he was quite—if not already there—near the process of falling in love with her.

He didn't want Yuna the Summoner.

He wanted Yuna the pure and precious.

-Fin