A/N: Shorter than the last one, but I needed to get things rolling.
Yeul, Noel, Serah, and Mog were all relaxing in the living room, waiting for the rain to cease. It had been raining hard for a few hours already, and they had run out of things to talk about. Mog was flitting about, Yeul was leaning against Noel with his arm draped loosely across her shoulders, and Serah was observing everyone else in amusement. A single thought was bothering the pinkette though. Ever since Noel had explained that the Yeul in this timeline was 'his Yeul,' something had been scratching at the back of her mind. For the sake of all those present, she decided to keep her suspicions to herself. If it was true, then it would be found out eventually.
"So then, what was it that Caius wanted to talk about," Serah asked, finally breaking the silence.
"Nothing much, he was just making sure I was doing well," Yeul replied, thought she couldn't seem to make eye contact with the pinkette.
"Okay, you just looked a little down after you came back inside," the traveler commented.
Noel looked at Serah with a raised eyebrow. Where were all the questions coming from? Why was she suddenly so curious? If Yeul had something to hide she would have told them by now surely. He wasn't quite sure what to say as Serah asked more questions. His travelling companion seemed to be trying to get information on something, but what could it be? Yeul seemed tense next to him, increasingly so whenever she was asked a new question. He should have seen it coming, it seemed so obvious, thinking back, but he didn't get it until Yeul finally broke under pressure. Well, that is, if breaking under pressure is calmly standing up and revealing something no one is sure they want to hear. At first, Noel wasn't even sure he believed it himself.
"What?" he found himself asking.
"She is the paradox Noel. A person existing in two timelines is like an object in the wrong timeline. I've been thinking about it for a while now. There must be a reason each Yeul is slightly different in every timeline right? She isn't supposed to exist in this timeline because she came from yours," Serah explained quietly. "So to correct to timeline…"
"I have to die," Yeul finished. "The timeline is righting its wrongs, and with my death it can be rid of the paradox and my visions at the same time."
Noel looked back and forth between the young women in disbelief. "No. That can't… You can't just… I finally got you back," he murmured, grabbing Yeul's hand and holding it tightly. She just looked at him, trying not to show emotion. As they stared at each other Serah silently exited the room with Mog, leaving the two alone.
"Noel, we both knew this would happen eventually," the seeress began quietly.
"That doesn't make it any better," he shot back.
"What do you want me to say? I can't change my fate. You're making this more difficult than it needs to be-,"
"For who?! Who exactly is this so difficult for?! Everyone seems to agree that-,"
"For me! You're making this more difficult for me!" she exclaimed. "You don't understand! I've waited for you for so long, dreaming of freedom I can never have! I've tried to change the future before, and people died! Do you understand? People died because I tried to avoid my fate Noel!"
Yeul stood up and turned her back on him. She had never been so angry in all her life; usually negative emotions just seemed useless, so she'd thrown them to the side. Having him beside her made her feel and she wasn't sure whether it was better or worse.
"All I'm trying to say is that you don't have to give everything up for once. Maybe, just once, you can be happy," Noel said quietly.
"I don't believe that's something I have power over," the seeress answered before leaving the house. Noel stared at the closed door for a while. After a few minutes Serah re-entered the room, with Mog floating closely behind her.
"Aren't you going after her?" the pinkette asked.
"Not like this," he answered simply. He was too angry to think straight. If he tried to go after her now, they'd argue again. They both just needed some time to cool off. Serah seemed to recognize this, whispering to Mog. The moogle nodded and exited the house quietly. Sitting across from her travelling companion, Serah finally asked the question. "So tell me what happened."
…
Fuming, Yeul walked along the riverside. She'd only wanted to see Noel happy and smiling. Instead, both of them were angry. It was obvious he just wanted to keep her safe, but he didn't have to be so stubborn! Sighing, she crouched on some rocks by the river, relaxing a little. After a few moments she was finally calmed down. Looking back, she realized that she had walked pretty far downstream.
"I guess… I should go talk to him," she whispered, smiling slightly. She stood and turned, ready to head back when her foot slipped on the surface beneath her. It was slick from the earlier storm, and she didn't even have time to make a sound as she hit the water. It was colder than usual and the current was stronger after such a large storm. She tried to reach for a rock, the shore, anything that she could grab on to, but the current was pulling her too quickly. Yeul slammed up against a large rock; she managed to cry out as her vision blurred. Her struggle to stay up grew more difficult as everything around her began to fade. She managed to gulp in one last breath of air before the water pulled her under.
…
Noel was ranting, extremely agitated that he'd gotten so angry at Yeul in the first place. He shouldn't have yelled at her, but she didn't have to be so infuriatingly stubborn. Serah was watching him with a raised eyebrow as he let off steam. Breathing in deeply, he ran a hand through his hair.
"Are you done?" the pinkette asked, feeling slightly annoyed at her companion.
"Yeah. Yeah, I am," he answered, calming down. "I guess I should go find her then."
"I sent Mog ahead to look. I figured you'd both take a while, so I wanted to keep her in sight until you got over your issues."
Noel blushed lightly and nodded, ready to follow the trail to find Yeul again. Serah walked out after him, biting her lip. She hadn't heard back from Mog yet and couldn't help feeling as though something bad was going to happen.
The pair walked along the riverside for a couple minutes, finding no trace of Yeul or Mog. Both of them were beginning to worry.
"Wait!" Noel shouted, crouching by the edge. There was mud on the rocks that had clear stripes leading to the water. A small piece of white fabric was clinging to the rocks, torn from clothing. Noel dipped a hand in the water, quickly pulling it out as his arm was quickly covered in gooseflesh.
"The rocks are slippery because of the storm," he choked out. "The current is strong and the water's freezing…"
"You mean she fell in?!" Serah gasped. Noel's eyes were hardened as he nodded.
"We need to find her fast."
"Serah, Noel Kupo!" a breathless moogle shouted, heading towards them. "She needs help, Kupo!"
"Mog, you found her? You're sure?" Noel asked fervently.
"Yes, Kupo! Hurry, Kupo!"
Noel and Serah ran after Mog, both trying not to imagine what the seeress's condition was.
A/N: So yeah, that just happened. I'm sorry! Blame the playlist not me! I apologize for my slight cliffhanger, I couldn't resist!
I need to finish writing the next chapter and it'll be up soon.
Please review! It will guide me on the path of becoming the best writer I can be!
