Disclaimer: I do not own them (wish I could have Auron, though). Suppose I never will (pouts).

All right, chapter 9!

Warning: Spoilers! Well, sort of.

Note: took a little longer than expected, but here it is! Hope the corniness of the title won't put you off. I just couldn't resist.

Enjoy!

Beauty and the warrior

How do I get myself into these sorts of things?

How?

Why did I go along with Lulu instead of Yunie?

Right, because Yunie wanted to bring Tidus for dress-shopping. But I should've just gone with them, anyway. Even if I would've been 'the third wheel', and all. I should've realised Lulu was going to make me wear a dress that she picked out.

Let me tell you, a dress like Lulu's isn't very good for that little called breathing. The corset-thing? Yeah, it's really tight.

Pops and Brother are gonna love this.

Grr.

I have to admit, though, Lulu really made me look really nice. My hair is down, with a cherry blossom flower behind my ear. Lulu put the lightest bit of make-up on my face, and it's not as awful as I had originally thought. I'm manicured, clipped, plucked, waxed and all the other things the kids these days can think of. But the dress really makes me look all… woman-y.

It's a light two-piece green silk dress, sleeveless, with pretty pink cherry blossoms embroidered in the skirt that reaches just over my knees. The corset that goes with it is made of a darker green fabric, and all my curves are emphasised in all the right places. And it makes my breasts look like they grew three sizes. I'm telling you, my cleavage comes close to Lulu's. It's unbelievable. Plus, Lulu is making me wear heels, which forces me to walk like someone who wasn't brought up in a desert running after malfunctioning machina and stealing people's wallets just for the hell of it.

I wonder what Auron'll think…

No! Stop it! Can't think about that now, I'll still be standing here tomorrow.

Now, I may look pretty, but that's really all that's good about this. We have a saying in Al Bhed, which roughly translates into 'those who desire beauty must suffer'.

So true.

I can't breathe, my feet are starting to hurt, my skin is still tingling from where Lulu brutally pulled out innocent hairs, I have to sneeze because of the perfume but I'm afraid my corset will burst when I do (Lulu would be pissed) and did I mention I can't breathe?

You might be wondering why I'm all groomed and dressed up. Just as much as I am wondering who 'you' are. But that's beside the point.

You see, it's some weird Besaid holiday. And apparently, they have this cracked-up tradition there that everyone has to dress up when this holiday comes along. I tried to talk them out of it. I mean, we're not on Besaid! We're on an Airship, okay! There are only three people from Besaid here! But noooo, 'traditions are important, Rikku'. When I ask why I get no response. Figures. And I don't even know what we're celebrating.

I walk towards the elevator carefully, making sure to walk straight. It's really tough, you know? There should be a manual with this stuff. Why couldn't she give me a pair of sneakers, I would've been okay with that. But noooo, 'you'll do fine walking on these, Rikku.'

No, I won't!

The 'party' is out on the deck, and Brother put the Airship on automatic pilot for the occasion. Which raises the age-old question of what in Spira Brother does around here.

Oh, well.

I take the elevator to the deck, taking a deep breath (useless, it's still hard to breathe) before stepping out when I reach my destination.

I glance at all the people nervously, everyone dressed up in suits and dresses, with glasses of some kind of alcohol in their hands (I bet Auron won't let me have one of those…). Everyone stares at me when I walk past, and I hear someone behind me dropping their drink in shock. They return to their conversing and joking when I look at them, though I can tell they're still surprised as can be.

What are we celebrating again?

I know I usually love being the centre of attention, but this is pushing it.

I jump when I bump into someone accidentally, gasping when I almost twist my ankle, and I grab the person's shoulder to prevent landing unceremoniously on my butt.

Heh, that would have been just neat.

"Are you ok-…", the person I walked into, who turns out to be Tidus in an awful brown suit, starts to ask, but his words die somewhere in his throat the moment he recognises me. He stares at me for a long moment, speechless, and he's trying desperately to keep his eyes on appropriate places (for he fears the wrath of Auron, obviously. He probably heard what happened to that guy in Luca a few weeks ago…heh).

I cough pointedly and he snaps out of it, his dumbfounded expression changing to a dumb grin instead.

"You look wonderful, Rikku! Wow, I can't believe you let Lulu put this on you!"

Me neither, Tidus. Sorry I'm not answering, I'm afraid this corset will snap if I speak. I'm saving that risk for speaking to Auron.

I nod at him with a pained smile on my face. He grins again and walks off when he spots Yunie.

Thank machina.

Tidus kept his word about not telling anyone about me and Auron. Nice of him, I have to say. But really, who would he bother telling? No one would care, anyway. I know he won't tell Yunie, he'd rather do other stuff to her.

That came out wrong. With her.

That's not really right either, is it?

Oh, whatever, let's drop it.

I take this minute of no one paying attention to me to look for Auron. I really feel like seeing him.

When I spot him the catch in my breathing and the sudden light-headedness has nothing to do with the corset. The increase in speed of my heartbeat and the rise in temperature of my skin has nothing to do with the crowded atmosphere.

Holy machina.

He's wearing a wonderfully tailored black suit, his powerful, muscled chest and arms emphasised by the plain yet stylish fabric. His hair and sunglasses are just the same as always, but there's something today that makes him look even more amazing than usual.

Maybe it's because event though everyone is looking their best, Auron still makes them look like lowly Flans without any trouble.

Sigh.

I snap out of it when I realise I've been staring at him for at least ten minutes, and that it might look a little weird.

I take a deep breath (still useless) and walk towards him, shooing Brother away (who is harassing Auron with his horrible accent) with the evil-sister-glare I use quite fondly.

I tap Auron's broad shoulder when I reach him, and his jaw almost drops when he turns to look at me (note the 'almost' in that one. Auron is quite good at hiding what he thinks. But I know his jaw almost dropped, and that is what matters).

"Hi, Auron!", I greet in a chipper voice, grinning at the now pleasantly surprised look on his face.

"Rikku,"- he smiles, and I can tell he's having trouble keeping his eye on my face – "you look" – he swallows, giving in by running his eye up and down my body slowly – "nice."

Giggle. It's really weird, but now that I'm with him, I feel totally confident.

"Nice? Is that all you have to say? Meanie, I even put on heels! And it hurts to breathe with this thing, you know?", I scold playfully, pointing at my chest, and he grins that incredibly sexy 'I want you now'- grin of his.

"I apologise. You look beautiful, Rikku."

Blush.

I smile shyly up at him.

"Thanks. You don't look so bad yourself, mister."

What am I saying? He looks drop-dead gorgeous! And I didn't even mean for that to be a (sort of) pun.

"Thank you. Lulu managed to get hold of me too. But I suppose it could've gone worse, have you seen Kimahri?"

I glance around to see Kimahri skulking near the exit, a blue ribbon tied around his broken horn and a tie around his neck.

I bite my lip to keep from sniggering, looking back at Auron to see him smiling at me. It's small, 'cause there's a lot of people, but it's there.

My heart flutters.

Before I can say anything, a slow melody starts playing, and all around us people start to dance.

You're kidding!

Why in Spira would Al Bhed dance willingly? Where has this world come to?

Auron raises his eyebrow at me questioningly, and my heartbeat speeds up.

"Uhm… I don't really know how to dance… you know… fancy-ish.", I mutter, a blush burning on my cheeks.

"I see."

He takes my hand and puts it on his shoulder anyway, taking my other one in his and pulling me closer.

"Auron! My Pops is right there!", I whisper, motioning towards Pops, who is talking to Yunie and Tidus on the other side of the deck.

"I am aware. I am merely teaching you how to dance, Rikku.", he answers innocently (as far as Auron's voice can go 'innocent').

I grin.

"Yep, and that's why your hand's on my butt."

He smirks and moves his hand upwards slightly, which makes me pout in regret.

"I apologise. Couldn't resist."

I bet you couldn't.

He shows me how to move to the music, and it turns out it's really not that hard. And since I'm quick on my feet and reluctant to hurt Auron, I manage to do it without stepping on his toes once. How's that?

Auron brushes a strand of hair out of my face, chuckling quietly at the probably proud look on my face.

"You're a natural, Rikku."

Blush.

Say hello to the pile of Rikku-mush. Why do I always get like this when he compliments me?

My knees get a little weak and I cling to his shoulder to keep from falling, but now my body presses against him in a highly unhelpful way.

I swallow, smiling up at him shyly. My eyes turn big when I feel something press in my lower belly.

"Auron, is that what I think it is? You really like this dress, don't ya?"

"I like what the dress is supposed to hide, my little thief."

That's it!

I already got used to breathing like there's not enough air to go around, but now that I'm supposed to dance and everything ('everything' meaning Auron and his darn sexy voice are making my heart beat so fast my body needs to cut back on breath to keep from malfunctioning or going into overdrive), it's getting harder by the second.

"Auron, you have to get me out of this dress!"

Yeah, I can see why that would make him raise his eyebrow like that. I didn't mean it like that… not until I said it, anyway. It doesn't sound like a bad idea, actually. I mean, a girl can only last so long with her super-hot lover twirling her around, you know?

Apparently, he thinks so too.

"We're leaving now.", he orders, motioning me to follow and making for the elevator quickly in the subtlest way possible. The moment the doors close, he kisses me fiercely, his hands disappearing under my skirt as he grips my butt and presses me against his hardness roughly.

Ooh, I like where this is going.

The button of the door beeps, and we stumble out of the elevator hastily, me panting like I just ran a mile, Auron making sure there's no one around.

"Your room or mine?", I ask breathily, staring in his dark eye.

He opens the door closest to us, pulling me inside and locking it behind him before laying me on the bed.

"This one."

I giggle, but I get cut off by a searing kiss, which I happily return, kicking off my shoes. I rid Auron of his jacket and shirt without breaking the kiss

He loosens the lace of the corset like he's opening a present, slowly and with a pleased expression on his face, his rough fingers freeing my body from its prison. I take a deep breath in relief, and Auron shakes his head.

"You shouldn't have let Lulu bind it so tightly."

"You're telling me? It hurts a lot, you know? You should really kiss it better."

Wow, the suggestiveness of that one deserves at least a blush. Come on!

He doesn't, of course (Auron doesn't even know how to blush), but he smirks instead, leaning down to press his lips on my breasts obediently, massaging them in turn, his attentions hardening my nipples in no time, and I moan and gasp at the heat that's increasing rapidly between my legs.

He kisses his way lower slowly, and his hands work on loosening the skirt from my body, pulling it down with my panties carefully to leave my naked body bare to his greedy eye. He takes his sweet time observing my heated body, only returning to kissing my belly when I say 'Auron, please…' in so horny a voice he growls hungrily in automatic response.

He throws my legs over his shoulders and leans his head down to kiss me in my most secret of places (not so secret for him anymore…), his tongue exploring me cruelly slowly, massaging and kissing and licking enjoyably. I try desperately to keep from moaning too loudly, gripping the sheets so tightly my knuckles turn white. The inevitable scream when he makes me come suddenly is painfully loud, the pleasured shriek that follows it as Auron pounces on me to kiss me as he slides into me with one quick stroke even louder. I taste myself on his lips, and that and the feel of him inside me makes the euphoric feeling increase even more.

He moves inside me achingly slowly, going deeper with each thrust, and he kisses my neck to muffle his groans, while I try my best to keep the screams as quiet as possible, which isn't really working that well.

"Auron!", I scream louder than ever when he makes me see the Farplane for the second time, powerful waves of pleasure crashing down on me, and the rough moans from Auron in my ear make my heart swell in happiness.

My lover lands heavily on top of me, and I embrace the weight gladly, running my fingers through his silver-streaked hair lazily.

Our breathing steadies after a while of just laying together, taking in each other's presence, Auron pulling out of me when we both remember the party outside at the same time.

We start to get dressed, me slightly panicking when I realise I don't know how the corset works.

I notice suddenly something is missing, scanning the room for a tiny piece of dark green fabric until my eyes land on a deeply amused, fully dressed Auron watching my half-naked form with a sexy grin gracing his already sexy features.

"Auron! What did you do with my underwear?!"

He chuckles as he magically makes my panties appear from his back pocket, a very… boyish grin on his face.

Catch me, please.

"I was wondering when you'd ask. Though I wouldn't have minded to keep it for you."

I bet.

"Give me that, meanie. Now, do you know how I put this thing back on?", I ask sheepishly, holding the cursed corset up to him.

He chuckles and helps me get dressed, and he's considerably more gentle than Lulu (and touchy-feely-er… heh heh, score).

But seriously, it's like he can do everything! Where does he learn this stuff?

We walk back to the elevator together, very subtly standing on either side of the little room when it opens to reveal everyone staring at Yunie on the other side of the deck, the sunlight shining on only her (I never understood white magic) so everyone can see her clearly.

Ooh, Yunie's speeching! Cool! I shush Auron by putting my finger on his lips (he wasn't even saying anything, I just wanted to touch him), and strain my ears to listen.

"Everyone, thank you for being here. We worked really hard the last couple of weeks, training, mentally and physically, searching for the strongest equipment, getting ready for this moment."

Huh? What moment?

"I thank you all for standing by me, and for giving me the strength to do what I set out to do since I left Besaid. Tomorrow, my Guardians and I will face Sin."

What?


Hope you liked it!

Yay, I made a semi-long chapter!

Yay, I made a cliff-hanger (sorta)!

Yay me!

Note: I know it's rather strange that Rikku doesn't know that she's gonna fight Sin in a day… But it adds drama, so there.

Another note: So, the idea was that on Besaid, everyone dresses up when a Summoner goes to face Sin, for good luck and stuff.

Yet again, a note: During the dance, I know they were being quite obvious, but just take it from me that nobody caught on. For later chapters.

Thanks, reviewers!

Wow, you still like me after this and I'll bake you a cake (I make a killer chocolate cake).

Jem Tiers: I'm glad. See, it's slightly more sort of serious now :P

AmazonTurk: Hihi, you're welcome. Hey, you know me, giving you that mental image was exactly what I was going for. xD You just made my day.

Drachegirl14: Thanks! (grabs Auron and grins evilly). Two chapters it is. I'll definitely read your story, sounds very interesting… but first I need to finish a new chapter for this fic. I'm totally addicted to writing these days. Plus, I want that key!

Losttoxichope: Ooh, a make-out session in the rain, I like that… if you have any more ideas, feel free to share, I take requests and everything :P

Fireworkmage: Wow, two reviews! Thank you! I'm glad you like it!

Foxygirlchan: no, I meant Yuna would freak out as in 'ooh, get the champagne and confetti', that sort of thing. You should play X-2, you'll see what I mean. This chapter was with spoilers for the game, and next chapter most certainly will have a lot of spoilers, so if you want to beat the game before reading my fic, I understand… but I'd prefer if you read it anyway, it's not a total spoiler. And I just love that you like it so much!

Share your thoughts! I love thoughts! They're my favorite!