I looked out over the water and the overcast sky as we rode the shoopuf to the other side of the Moonflow. My arm was around Alex's shoulders, and her hand rested on my leg.

"So… does this mean we're a couple now?" I inquired.

She shot me a quizzical look. "Why do you ask?"

"Well after last night, and that kiss, I figured…" I laughed nervously. "I'm sorry. I've never done this before; I don't really know how it's supposed to work."

"I'm no better!" she insisted. "I mean, I've dreamed, but I've never… well, nothing like last night's ever happened to me."

"So, are we a couple?"

"Auron," she began, grabbing my hand. "I think we were from that first day, back in Besaid." She leaned upward and kissed me. "You know, not to get all lovey-dovey or anything, but I don't think I'll ever get tired of that."

"Neither will I," I replied.

We sat together in the cart on the shoopuf's back for a few more minutes before it arrived on the opposite bank. I helped her onto and off of the lift and we began to walk toward Guadosalam.

"We'll be able to visit the Farplane in Guadosalam," she said as we walked down the path, trees towering over us on either side. "At least, I know I'm going in. Do you want to come in with me?"

"I… I'm not sure," I answered.

"You'd be able to see your parents," she noted. "It wouldn't really be the same as meeting them, but you could at least see what they looked like."

"You think they'd really appear if I don't know what they looked like?"

She nodded. "I believe that there are peoples' souls there—parts of them, at the very least. Enough to create an image. I think they'll come. So, are you in or out?"

"I'm not sure," I repeated. "I mean, I've gone without knowing for so long… I don't know what I'll do…"

She put her hand on my shoulder. "I'll be right beside you. And then you can meet my parents, too."

I smiled. "Well then… I suppose I will."

"Great." She slipped her hand down my arm to my hand and clasped it. "I'm glad."

Before long we reached the entrance to Guadosalam. We touched the healing sphere at the inn, then started toward the manor at the far end of the city to introduce ourselves to Lord Jyscal. It had not been my idea; Alex said we should, to be respectful.

"Greetings, summoner!" a deep voice exclaimed from our left. We turned lo look for the source, finding a fairly short and stout Guado looking at us.

"It is a pleasure to meet you," Alex said politely.

"I am Tromell, assistant to Lord Jyscal," the Guado said, bowing deeply. "What brings you to Guadosalam? Most summoners just continue on through, perhaps stopping at the shop."

"I regret to inform you that I am not staying long," she said. "But I'd like to meet Lord Jyscal, if he is not too busy. I feel it is only proper, as we'll be visiting the Farplane before departure."

"Actually, you've come at quite a good time," he said. "Lord Jyscal has some leisure time at the moment. I'm sure he will be honored to meet and converse with you. I will let him know you are here. Please, come inside the manor."

I looked over at her, and she nodded at me, smiling. We followed Tromell through the grand double doors of the manor, and he showed us to a room where enough food to satisfy every crusader in Spira was laid out over multiple white-clothed tables.

"I shall go inform Lord Jyscal that he has company," Tromell said, bowing to us. "Please, help yourselves to food and drink in the meantime." He exited the manor, leaving us alone.

"He seems nice enough," Alex commented, sitting down on one of the cushioned benches on the perimeter of the room.

"I have a bad feeling," I murmured, sitting beside her.

"Ssh!"

"Not about him," I clarified. "I just have a bad feeling."

"Mm," she nodded. "I… I know what you mean."

"You too?"

Another nod.

"Well, it matters not—I'll protect you from anything. I promise. I will never let you fall." I kissed the side of her head, and she took my hand.

"I know."

We sat in silence for a few minutes before the doors opened and Lord Jyscal walked into the room. We both stood and presented him with Yevon's prayer.

"Thank you," he said, returning the prayer. "I am pleased to have you stopping by; it is so nice to actually converse with a summoner."

"I thank you, Lord Jyscal," Alex said. "I am the summoner Alexandra, of Besaid Island, and this is my guardian, Auron. I just felt it was appropriate to ourselves to you before we approached the Farplane."

"I appreciate it, truly," Jyscal said. "I think it is—"

"Father!" a fairly high-pitched voice called from the hall. Lord Jyscal looked over in the direction of the double doors as a moderately tall boy who looked about twelve walked into the room. Like Jyscal, his hair was a shade of blue, but he looked slightly different from him, as well—different from all the rest of the Guado, actually.

"Seymour?" Jyscal inquired, looking at the boy.

"Father, I have returned from—" he cut off when he saw us. "Oh, you are entertaining. I shall wait, then."

"Nonsense," Jyscal said, waving his hand dismissively. "Please, come in. Lady Alexandra, this is my son, Seymour. Seymour, I would like to introduce you to Lady Alexandra and her guardian, Auron."

"Hello there, Seymour," Alex said, smiling at him. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

"You as well," he said, presenting her with a very elegant version of the prayer. I could not help but notice that my bad feeling intensified when he walked into the room. I made sure I could feel the warmth of Alex's skin against mine; I would not let anything happen to her.

"Father, if I may borrow you a moment?" Seymour asked, implying that he wanted to speak to his father outside.

"Certainly, my son," he said. He turned to us and bowed. "I beg your pardon, my lady."

"Go ahead," she said, smiling genuinely. "Family first."

"Thank you." Jyscal left the room after his son.

"I think I've discovered the reason I had that feeling," I murmured to her.

"Later, later!" she urged quietly.

"When?"

"Just not now," she said as Lord Jyscal came back into the room.

"I apologize for the disruption," he said. "My son usually spends his time elsewhere, coming back to Guadosalam once every few months. He just wanted to tell me he was home."

"Well, I'm sorry we had to disrupt the reunion," I said.

"Really, it's no trouble at all," Lord Jyscal assured us. "I truly am glad that you stopped by, but I'm sure you must be in a hurry, so I will let you get on with your pilgrimage. Please, let me know if there is anything I can do for you while you are in Guadosalam."

"We will," she said. "And it's been an honor meeting you, Lord Jyscal. I admire the bond you're fostering between the humans and the Guado; it's really a step in the right direction, I think."

"I am glad you support it," Jyscal grinned. "I do what I can."

"Well, I hope to talk to you again," Alex said as all three of us left the manor.

"As do I," Jyscal said, giving us the prayer once more. "And my lady?" He grinned. "Good luck."

"Thank you, Lord Jyscal," Alex replied, nodding her head. She turned to me. "Shall we?"

"Yes," I agreed. With one final bow to Lord Jyscal, we headed up the path to the Farplane. I took her hand as we approached it.

"May I speak now?" I inquired on the steps up to the Farplane.

"Yes," she said. We sat on the steps, our hands still clasped. "What was it?"

"Seymour," I replied. "I don't know what it was about him, he just… I wanted to draw my blade then and there."

"Did you?" she asked. "But he's only a child!"

"I don't care. It felt like he was a threat."

"Well, we won't have to deal with him again, so let's just go, shall we?" Alex asked, standing up and pulling me up with her. "To the Farplane?"

"To the Farplane," I nodded. We entered, and what I saw before me was astounding.

We were surrounded by wispy clouds, tinted pink. Below the platform on which we stood, there were many waterfalls and a little floating island full to bursting with vibrantly colored flowers. The sky looked like sunset, and there was a giant orb that seemed as if it was directly across from me; despite this, I couldn't tell if it was a moon or a sun. Beyond the platform lie and endless body of water, darkness just above the horizon, as if it faded into night.

"Whoa," I breathed, taking everything in. "This is… whoa."

"Whoa indeed," Alex nodded, looking around with me. "It's so beautiful. My mom must love it here."

Just as she finished speaking, an image of someone appeared at the edge of the platform. Awestruck, Alex let go of my hand and walked over to it slowly, as if she couldn't believe her eyes.

"Mom?" she asked. The image just floated there. "I know… I know I can't really interact with you or anything," she said, looking down. "I'm just… I'm just so happy to see you again, I…" She put her face in her hands, and I could hear her sobbing softly. I walked up to her quietly, unsure whether or not to speak. I looked at her for a moment before taking one of her hands in my own and giving her a sympathetic glance. She nodded at me, and looked back to her mother. The image of a man appeared beside her.

"Mom, Dad, this is Auron," she told them. "He's my guardian. I'm a summoner now. Maybe Grandma told you… but he's going to keep me safe on my pilgrimage," she explained, her tears slowing.

I waved at the floating images, and even though they weren't, I could almost feel them looking at me. "Hello," I said. "I'll keep your daughter safe. She is the world to me."

"You see?" she said, smiling. "You know, Auron and I care about each other deeply… and I… I…" she looked at me. "I know you'd like him."

"Alex…" I murmured, looking at her. Her eyes were glazed over again, and I took her in my arms.

"Oh, Auron, I miss them so much!" she sobbed into my shoulder. I could only hold her tightly.

"I know, I know," I said, stroking her hair. It was all I could do; what else could I really have said?

"So," she said after a moment, pulling back from my shoulder. "How about we meet your parents now?"

"My parents…"

I looked down. I had always had this image of my parents in my head, of them being loving and good and happy together… but what if it turned out they were nothing like that?

"Auron, look."

I followed her gaze to the edge of the platform, where the images of two people floated. The man was serious looking, with tufts of gray hair at his temples. The woman was beautiful, and had a serene face.

"My parents?" I asked, looking at the images. "This is who they were?"

"Must have been," she nodded. "They look good. You look quite a bit like your father, you know."

"Minus the gray hair," I chuckled.

"Well, I think I might see one or two strands…" she smirked, pulling a little at my ponytail.

"Wait, what?" I exclaimed, putting my hands over my head. "No way!"

She laughed whole-heartedly. "Most definitely." She began to walk away.

"Hey!" I began to chase after her, and we ran around the Farplane for a while. I finally caught up to her and held her in my arms, the mood between us suddenly much more romantic.

"Gray hair? Really?"

She smiled. "It suits you. And even if it didn't…" she caressed my cheek. "You're always handsome, gray hair or no gray hair."

"And I will never compare to you." I leaned down slightly and kissed her before I noticed more movement out of the corner of my eye. My parents were still floating at the edge of the platform. Alex and I both turned around to face them, and it looked almost as if they were… smiling and holding hands. I mimicked them.

"Mom, Dad," I began, looking between them. "This is the summoner I'm guarding. Her name is Alex, and she… well, she is the sunlight."

"Your son gives me too much credit," she informed them, blushing.

"Actually, he doesn't give you enough. Or so he thinks."

"He's a real sweetheart," she smiled.

"I wish you could really meet her," I said, looking into their eyes. "I know you'd love her as much as I do."

"Thanks, Auron," she said, squeezing my hand.

I felt a tear slip down my cheek as I continued to gaze at my parents. "I wish you could be here to see me now. I wonder…" I hesitated. "I wonder what you'd think of me."

"I'm sure they'd be very proud of you," Alex assured me, placing her other hand tenderly on my shoulder. "I don't see how they couldn't be."

"You really think so?"

"Absolutely." She kissed my cheek.

"Well, then…" I looked over at her, and my parents' images faded away. "Shall we head for the Thunder Plains?"

Alex nodded. "Yes, let's."

We turned away from the platform and headed back along the path into Guadosalam. Tromell greeted us at the doors.

"Will you be departing, m'lady summoner?" he inquired.

"We will," Alex confirmed. "Thank you so much for your hospitality."

"Oh, you are quite welcome," he said with a deep bow. "We Guado all wish you well on your jouney, summoner. I know Lord Jyscal sees great promise in you."

"Lord Jyscal sees promise in me?" she asked, surprised.

"Indeed, my lady," Tromell said.

"Please tell him that I am deeply honored," she said, giving the Guado the prayer. "I shall do my best to defeat Sin."

"Thank you, my lady," he said, stepping aside so we could pass through. We bought a few last-minute supplies at the shop, and then with my hand firmly grasping hers, we left Guadosalam for the Thunder Plains.