Their walk back to the caves was a quiet one. After making sure Tromell arrived and escorted Seymour out of Gagazet and back into Guadosalam, the summoner and her two guardians treaded through the snowy ground, making sure not to step in any icy puddles. The air was heavy with thought; there was not much to say now that the problem was settled. Tidus remained quiet most of the way back until he noticed Wakka's uncomfortable fidgeting. All the silence and cold wind was getting to him and if someone did not speak up soon, he would have to break the thick air with a stupid comment. He wanted to tell Yuna how careful she needed to be next time but he figured she had had enough confrontation already.

Yuna suddenly stopped in her tracks as Wakka moved along without noticing until he felt Tidus' hand pull back his right arm. Tidus waited patiently until she looked up at them, a thoughtfully confused look splattered across her face.

"I'm worried about Seymour," she said after a moment. Tidus crinkled his brow in surprise and then walked up to where she stood, taking her hand.

"I'm sure he's okay," he said somewhat reassuringly, brushing off the annoyance of Seymour altogether. After looking at an injured maester and realizing he was not as powerful as he seemed, he pitied the Guado. "But what I don't get is... why would someone jump at a maester of Yevon like that? I know Spira hates the guy, but an attack that serious has to mean something." He looked back at Wakka, who appeared deep in thought. Both Yuna and Tidus looked at the blitzball captain until he shook his head slowly, a look of concern replacing his once smiling visage.

"You wouldn't believe the amount of corruption that goes on in Spira at this moment, ya. I'm a believer in all things Yevon but sometimes, even I can see the loopholes. People would do just about anything for fame, ya." He was rather disappointed at his own observations, realizing how horrible the state of his world had suddenly gotten. "And maybe it's time I say that I can't stand around and leave this in the hands of Yevon. I've gotta fight it."

"Whoa there, Wakka," Tidus said jokingly. "And did you just flame Yevon? I've gotta tell Rikku about this!" The Zanarkand Abe was rather enthusiastic until Yuna cut the excitement short.

"Or the corruption could be within Bevelle's walls," she interrupted, hitting everyone with the subject at hand. The two guardians looked at her, astonished by her words but at the same time begging for a lengthy explanation. "Seymour told me that he was sure the attacker belonged to the guard of Bevelle, but... how can Bevelle do this? Who would do such a thing?" She hit a stream of ideas and opinions that could have flowed endlessly if the bitter cold did not bite them as hard as it did now. Tidus was obviously the first one to notice and offered an alternative before discussing the topic any further.

"Uh, before we get into this, I suggest we get back to camp, or else we'll freeze out here." He yanked her hand lightly and beckoned her to start moving. Wakka nodded in silent agreement and started ahead of the two, leading the way back to the caves.

They made their way further up the mountainside, silent and concentrated. Tidus' hand still clasped onto Yuna's tightly as he walked beside her, both keeping as steady a pace as possible. After fifteen minutes of climbing, the two looked up and saw Wakka waving his hands triumphantly.

"Home at last! Let's go, you two!" He disappeared into the caves a second after.

"Hey," Yuna said suddenly, stopping Tidus at the entrance. As usual, his eyes rested on her, intent and expecting. She looked at him and smiled uneasily.

"Do you think there's any way we can go back to Guadosalam?" She asked. His mind went blank for a moment, forcing him to speak on impulse.

"Well, you're the summoner. It's your call." He turned after a moment and steered his eyes to the stone floor, realizing what he just said. He shook his head disapprovingly and turned back to face her. "... I'm sorry, Yuna," he said. "I just don't think anyone would agree to the idea of going back to Guadosalam, especially since we've gone this far. But what I said before is still true -- this is up to you. If you wanna go back to Guadosalam, we'll follow your lead." He smiled faintly at her, not sure of what he had just encouraged.

"I just need to find out what's really going on in Bevelle," she said.

"What is it? " He looked at her earnestly, hoping she would express her thoughts and open up to him.

"It's just... I just need to go back," she said flatly, unable to meet his eyes, knowing that she did it again. She pushed him away like she always did and she knew it hurt him.

Moments of silence passed as the two figures stood in the snow, contemplative and unsure of themselves. As usual, though, Tidus was never one to let awkward moments last, no matter how painful or humiliating they were. He cleared his throat and took a step toward her.

"I'd say that you'd better have a lengthy explanation for going back like this, unless you want Lulu to flip and then kill me for encouraging you." He smiled the way he always did with her, the smile which signified a white flag of forgiveness and continued support. He also smiled at the thought of the black mage becoming infuriated with the idea of treading all the way back to Guadosalam.

Thus, Yuna's decision to go back was granted. She nodded and beckoned for him to head into the cave as she prepared to propose the idea to the rest of the guardianship, hoping for an acceptance.


The news of Seymour's untimely visit inevitably broke out when she rose the next morning. Wakka poured all the details onto the rest of the guardianship and threw in the question of returning to Guadosalam while he was at it, seeing as to how Tidus nudged him to do so the night before.

Lulu looked around, first at a clueless Rikku and then at a concentrated Kimahri. She looked over at Tidus and Yuna, and then steered her piercing gaze back at Wakka, determined to see if this was his idea.

"Wakka, what makes you so certain that Seymour would appreciate our help? The last time we were there, we were treated rather... rudely." She was picking out her black braids while she looked at the blitzball captain inquisitively. Yuna and Tidus looked at her, trying their best to figure out her exact meaning. As Wakka struggled with a response to her question, she sighed.

"There's not much I can do to stop you. What I can do, however, is tell you the reality of the situation," Lulu said, turning her head in the direction of the summoner. "If Yuna thinks it's absolutely necessary to go back, then we have to know ahead of time in order to gather all our belongings." They all casted surprised glances at each other, making sure everyone was on the same turf.

"So we're going back to Guadosalam then?" Rikku asked, just to be sure. Yuna nodded with a faint smile, turning to Lulu all the same.

"Auron!" Shouted Wakka, eyes wide and mouth agape. Everyone immediately turned around to see the figure that stood in the frame of the cave entrance, clad in his signature leather coat and black boots. Rikku ran up to him and pushed herself forward, examining his face to be sure it was their fellow guardian.

"What took you so long? And what were you doing?" She grew more curious by the second. Auron smiled and walked over to the fire where everyone sat, placing himself beside Lulu. Rikku now stood herself next to an upright Kimahri, crossing her arms and waiting for an explanation.

As he sat himself down with a huff, he flashed Yuna a glance -- his way of letting her know everything was all right on his part. He looked around the fire and finally starred into the flames before uttering his words.

"I had some business in Macalania. I decided to head back to Guadosalam to check up on the state of things." The legendary guardian kept his gaze steady to the fire while everyone else began to shift around, not sure of how to break the latest events to him. Lulu was the only one who sat still, watching Auron closely.

"What kept you so long?" She asked after a moment, her expression one of genuine concern.

"Seymour is missing," he said stoutly. "I came to see him a few days ago but when I arrived at his manor, he was nowhere to be found."

"That's because he was with us half the time," interrupted Tidus. Auron fixed his eyes on him, waiting for the rest of it.

"Someone from Bevelle attacked Seymour and I healed him just in time. We sent him back to Guadosalam before any of the Ronso found out, save Kimahri," explained Yuna to the best of her ability.

"Yeah, the guy's a wreck. He ran into Yuna while she was up in the hot springs," remarked Tidus unnervingly. "But I wonder who did this. I'd like to find out who's working on the inside," he said.

"It's no surprise that someone inside Bevelle would attack one of Yevon's maesters," said Auron reflectively. "The level of corruption within Yevon's walls is almost immeasurable." Wakka crossed his arms and fidgeted uncomfortably. Everyone else sat by the fire, silent and thoughtful. Auron was as calm as ever despite his initial shock of Seymour's appearance in Gagazet.

"So what do we do?" Rikku asked after a moment, looking around for answers. Moments passed before the thick silence had begun to take reign.

"Let's go back to Seymour's place and see what's going on!" Tidus exclaimed energetically, forcing everyone to suddenly turn and look his way. Auron nodded at the thought and stood up. Everyone followed suit just as he approached Yuna.

"Are you ready?" He looked sharply at her, making sure she was honest with him. She nodded as the team gathered their belongings and prepared to leave the Gagazet for the home of the Guado.

The pilgrimage aside, Auron would have thought the idea of venturing back was foolish if it were not for his unanswered questions about Seymour. After his confrontation with the maester he wanted to speak to him one last time yet when he arrived, Seymour was nowhere to be found. Even stranger is his abrupt appearance at Gagazet and his encounter with Yuna. To add to it, the alleged attack from Bevelle is a new fact that goes against Auron's original judgment of the young maester. All of this summed up to an ordeal the guardian would have to think about on the way back and in doing so, figure out Seymour's true intentions.


Author's Note: IMSOSORRY! It's been, what, four months? A lot has happened and just this past weekend, I had the chance to meet the Phelps twins and Justin Hartley! I'm still so excited. But anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. There's more to come, I promise. No matter how long I lag, I'll put something up... I've got no intention to ditch this anytime soon.

A zillion thanks for reading and supporting. :)