They said there was a summoner come to the village, and Yuna had never heard the words said with such disdain.
Summoners were great people, deserving of respect, people like her Father who journeyed to save Spira. So it was a curiosity that that the people of Besaid disliked this summoner, this stranger traveling from afar to pray at their temple. They were always treated with the greatest kindness, allowed to stay in the temple, given the greatest comforts.
But Yuna watched as the summoner and her two guardians entered the village, and already she could see this summoner would not have that treatment.
The village elder greeted her with the prayer, but his look and tone held none of the awe and devotion it usually showed to summoners. If the summoner realized, she seemed unbothered. Her smile was gentle, and even, her look betraying no unease. She returned the prayer, and the two exchanged a few words before the elder stepped aside, allowing the summoner into the village. No one approached her; no one moved towards her as she made her way across the plaza. Yuna, transfixed by the oddity, had made half a step towards her without realizing when a hand on her shoulder stayed her.
"Yuna, don't!" Spinning, the girl turned to face Lulu. A good head taller than her, the younger had to strain to look up to her friend. "It would not do to speak to her."
"But, why?" The girl allowed herself to be guided away, back to the hut. "She is a summoner is she not?"
"Yes… but…" Sighing, Lulu stepped in and pulled the curtain closed, giving them some privacy. Chappu and Wakka were out, undoubtedly playing Blitzball on the beach, and Kimarhi was likely in the woods somewhere. "Not all summoners are of equal standing." Yuna's gaze fell; her eyes darkened. A hand gently lifted her chin. "Yuna, your father was a great man no matter what anyone says. I did not mean to… bring back bad memories."
Shaking her head, the girl grinned, wiping at her eyes a little. "No, it's fine, I'm okay."
Lulu smiled, dropping her hand. "Just – stay away from the summoner, won't you?" When it was clear Yuna was still confused, the elder sighed. "Not all summoners have the best intentions. Perhaps they begin that way, but in becoming summoners, they become distracted by the power it affords them."
"What power?"
"The aeons." Lulu explained, sitting on the bed. "Bonding with an aeon is said to be a – profound experience, and it obviously gives the summoner great power. Some summoners become so entranced by this, they forget the fight against Sin, and care only to obtain more aeons, and revel in the power."
Yuna for silent for a moment. "I don't suppose that's so bad, now… since Sin is gone? Maybe this summoner is just preparing for the future, in case it comes back. And besides, if the aeons accept them, they must be good, right?"
Lulu gave a fond smile. "Just… be wary. She has a bad reputation amongst the temples. I don't want you being dragged into anything scandalous."
Yuna smiled and gave a soft promise, keeping her own thoughts to herself. She loved Lulu like a sister but the girl was over-protective sometimes. Surely there was nothing so dangerous about the mysterious stranger.
Emboldened by the strange circumstances surrounding her arrival, Yuna became determined to speak to the summoner. There was a part of her heart that was almost, quite sure she would follow that same path… only, she had yet to say it aloud. Inside she had accepted the duty with grace, but it was telling others that was placing a strain upon her. Wakka, Lulu, Chappu, Kimahri… how could she tell them?
And for herself, she did fear, a little. The idea of such a journey was daunting, and as for what was to come after… but how could she not do all she could for Spira? For her friends, for Besaid? If her father could do it, then so could she. If Sin ever comes back, I shall be ready to face it! Yuna was determined to make it so.
But in the meantime, she simply wanted to speak to the odd summoner who had everyone walking on eggshells. Which was how she found herself hovering outside the woman's campfire, near the edge of the village, towards the temple. She stood there for a few minutes, arguing with herself and trying to calm the pounding of her heart, when she heard a gentle chuckle and saw the summoner glance up. A hand beckoned her forward.
"Come, little one," The woman smiled, warm and welcoming. "Do not be afraid."
Timidly, the girl stepped forward, walking barefoot through the grass towards the woman. She was tall, broad shouldered and full bodied, with dark skin and her hair pulled up into rolls on either side of her head. "My name is Timere, little one," The woman began when Yuna came to stand by the fire. "And these are my guardians, Hosen," She gestured first to an older man dressed like a crusader, "and Josen," then a younger man with a scar running along his nose. He smiled when Yuna looked to him, and she shyly smiled back, hands clasped tightly in front of her as a blush rushed to her face.
She bowed, the heat rushing to her ears as she tried to speak. "I – I am Yuna, of Besaid. I – um – I am sorry for –"
"Yuna? Daughter of Braska?" The summoner's eyes widened, and her smile became a grin. "It is an honor, Lady Yuna." That only increased the girl's blush. To be called a lady, by a grown woman who was a summoner already, and she was not even an apprentice? "You need not be sorry. I am happy to have you here."
"I, um, thank you." She stammered. "I just – I was wondering if I could ask you about being a summoner."
"Ask away." Timere replied easily. At the simple acceptance, Yuna balked, for she was suddenly unsure how to ask her questions, or if it was even appropriate to ask. But the look on the woman's face was so kind and open, she managed to find her courage.
"What is it like?" The little girl asked quickly and quietly, as if afraid she would be overheard. "Summoning, I mean."
"Mhm." The woman's grin stretched into a smirk. "It is a wonderful feeling, almost – impossible to describe. When you join with an aeon, it is as if you have become complete, when you never realized you had ever been incomplete. And summoning that aeon…" A soft sigh escaped her mouth. "It is truly bliss. A greater happiness than I have ever known." Her soft eyes drifted to Yuna. "I can see that the path of the summoner is before you. If you chose to take it, know this: the temples will try and tell you what summoning must be. How it should feel, what you should allow it to be." Leaning forward, her fiery stern eyes held Yuna's, and the girl could not look away if she wanted to. "Don't let them. Whatever you want summoning to be, let it be that. Let it be what it is, not what they demand it should be, austere and cold and selfless." The woman leaned away, back towards the fire.
"They say you are a bad summoner." Yuna managed to whisper, a nervous admission, almost an appeal to give less credence to her powerful words. "They say you are an affront to Yevon."
The woman glanced away, and shrugged. "Perhaps I am." She admitted. "The aeons do not seem to mind."
Years passed, and the words of the Summoner Timere faded into the depths of her mind, drowned out by the dry preachings of monks and maesters. Yuna began her training when she was twelve years old, took her oaths as an apprentice summoner at thirteen, and began to learn the ways of summoning that very day.
The aeons serve the summoner, the summoner serves the people, the people serve Yevon. That was the way of things in Spira. Only through strict adherence to this structure, through prayer and atonement, could Spira repent and be free of Sin once and for all. Thus the summoner was guided through strict teachings how to interact with the aeons, how to control them, what to allow them to do and see. Joining with an aeon was allowing the creature into the heart and mind, bonding two spirits which once done can never be undone. Such a thing had to be done correctly or it could have grave consequences.
Yuna kept all this in mind as she ascended the stairs to the Chamber of the Fayth. Heart pounding in her chest, she whispered a short prayer under her breath, before leaving her guardians behind, and entering the hall. What awaited her she did not know. None of the teachings told of what was in the Chamber, and they gave only the most technical explanations of what would happen.
Slowly, carefully, she edged forward, coming to kneel before the stone. This she knew she would find, the stone which held the spirit of the fayth. But seeing it was much different from studying it. To her horror and amazement, she could see where the human body began and ended, where it melded with the stone, and at places where it became bestial, almost like a fiend… an aeon. A person, submitting to the stone, submitting to the will of Yevon, the will of the Summoner… for all eternity. It was more than she could comprehend.
Swallowing dryly, Yuna pulled herself together, holding tightly to her will, remembering all she had been taught of control, of drive… and she knelt in prayer, and opened her mind to the fayth. She kept up all the appropriate borders, the walls of propriety, allowing only the shallowest gaze into her mind. The aeon could not be allowed to overcome her, or danger might follow. She had to be in control.
And so she prayed, once kneeling, then sitting up to perform the prayer, then kneeling again. So she continued, for some time, awaiting a sign, any sign, that her prayers were heard…
Time began to blur and blend… an ache started in her lower back, in her knees as they pressed hard into the cold ground. Her thoughts wavered, her control shaking. This was harder than she could've imagined. Biting her lip, Yuna shut her eyes, ignoring the sweat building on her brow, uttering her prayers incessantly… gripping the teachings like a lifeline, hoping beyond hope that the aeons would hear her…
And it was then, in that moment, that a whisper from the past came to her.
When you join with an aeon, it is as if you have become complete, when you never realized you had ever been incomplete.
The thought jolted her out of her discomfort for a moment, making her wonder where in the world it had come from. It felt so familiar, yet so out of place, as if her past had been jumbled and tossed about. What was it from? It was on the tip of her tongue…
Perhaps I am. … The aeons do not seem to mind.
Yes, this… this was familiar to her exhausted mind but she had not the energy to figure it out. Yet in her attempts her control had wavered, her enduring resolve fluttering, her barriers slowly slipping down. And in that moment, something touched her mind.
"Ah!" Leaping to her feet, Yuna gasped, shocked at the alien feeling the likes of she'd never known. For a moment sheer terror overtook her, instinct driving her to step back. What had happened?
When she'd calmed enough to think rationally, it came to her – the aeon. The aeon had touched her mind. At that she only became more panicked, thinking that in her momentary fear she'd chased the creature away, ruined her chances… throwing herself prostate on the ground immediately, Yuna returned to her prayers, hoping beyond hope that she had not lost her chance.
But exhaustion and emotion had worn her down, and her defenses were not as the monks had told her they should be. Her mind was open, her heart laid bare, all her thoughts and feelings clear as the eyes on her face. The monks had always said such things were dangerous. Aeons were tools, not beings – they were not meant to be liked, or to be known, and as such they should not know the summoner. Only Yevon should know the hearts of his worshippers.
Yuna's heart was open… and the heart which touched hers was laid bare as well.
The next time the presence touched her Yuna couldn't help but gasp. It was – there was nothing else like it. Suddenly, she was not alone in her own mind. On the edges of her consciousness, skirting around her thoughts was another presence, another being with thoughts of its own. She… this creature was a she. Aeons are not beings aeons do not have genders. Somehow, the voices of the monks were easily swept away, as the aeon's mind slipped further into hers.
It was slow, and gentle, at first, and then – all at once, like a river tumbling over a waterfall. Yuna gasped, head thrown back, as giddiness rushed through her mind and set her veins alight. Two minds became one, two hearts beat together, and the aeon known as Valefor stretched itself out inside Yuna's body.
Heat flooded her, head to toe, as the spirit skipped about her mind, looking through all her years like it was flipping pages in a book. She was overwhelmed by the feelings, by the memories the aeon was pulling up that she could not even recall, the thoughts it was finding she could not even remember. You've lost control! Panic threatened to take her over, but it could not take a foothold over pleasure.
Yes, this was pleasure. The heat rolling through her in waves was growing, and growing. Her skin tingled to the touch. Fallen against the barrier above the stone, Yuna writhed, gasping for breath. She felt so very hot, sweat pouring down her, limbs grasping for some invisible lover she couldn't feel. Between her thighs felt so – so – strange and alive, and wonderful, and so terrible because it kept growing and threatening to take her over, stealing her clarity away.
The aeon did not seem to realize her anxiety, for it was overjoyed. The more it saw of Yuna's spirit, the happier it became, until it truly became One with her, and allowed her to see into itself. Into herself. Valefor, the aeon of the skies, answered Yuna's prayers, accepting her as a summoner and the girl barely bit back a scream.
She writhed, held in place by the creature's spiritual embrace, having lost all control over the encounter. Valefor's power and consciousness seared her, soaring through her like a bird on the wind. Heat exploded at the apex of her thighs and she could only gasp and arch her back, fingers twitching and breasts heaving with her lungs. Valefor seemed satisfied, sending a few little electric jolts racing down her limbs, her spine, a soft gentle run of what almost felt like feathers caressing her breasts. Valefor was pleased, to have a summoner so kind hearted, so open, … yet how tragic, that she was so young.
When Yuna could feel her limbs again, she barely managed to crawl to the hallway, haul herself up the wall, and stand. Her strength gave way soon enough; she'd barely managed to make it out of the Chamber before collapsing, Kimarhi's strong arms catching her. She hoped beyond hoped he didn't realize anything was amiss.
She was a summoner… oh yes, she was. And she had made a terrible mistake.