A/N: I wanted to update last night, but couldn't because of some trouble with the documents section.
Oh well, it's update now, right?
I want to reply to an anonymous reviewer, under the name Yuri, so here goes:
I would like to thank you for your reviews, I had fun reading them. You're not annoying at all, what makes you say that?
Anyways, you were pretty close with a lot of your assumptions, and you even got a couple of them right! Hahaha, it was kind of funny actually.
That idea of teenage Rikku going into a time machine, wasn't such a bad idea. Actually, at the very beginning of this story, I sort of wanted to do something like that :P. But I decided against it, now I've got the entire story planned out (in some way), and it doesn't resolve around a Rikku in a time machine, sorry :).
Well, thanks again for reviewing, and hopefully till next time :)
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This chapter has been betta-read by Rikku the bluefirevixon! Thanks again for correcting my ridiculously many errors. :)
I think this chapter has worked out pretty well, doncha think?
Now let's got on with the the story, shall we?!
The present
"Oui'na sudran ymfyoc cyhk dryd cuhk, oui ghuf…" ((You're mother always sang that song, you know…)) Gippal said after Dheali stopped humming the lullaby.
The blonde girl almost jumped up from her seating position. "Fry...! Oh...syh oui clynat sa." ((Wha…! Oh…you scared me.)) Dheali placed one hand over her heart and exhaled slowly. "Tuh'd tu dryd ykyeh, bmayca." ((Don't do that again, please.)) she said with a nervous chuckle.
Gippal laughed slightly and sat beside her under the tree. "Oui kad cdyndmat aycemo?" ((You get startled easily?)) he asked her, and Dheali nodded with a sheepish grin.
Dheali bit her lip and stared over the Moonflow, admiring the reflection of the sun on the water. After a while she turned back to Gippal and noticed that he was staring at her.
Dheali's eyes narrowed just slightly, and she smiled at him. "Fryd tu oui ghuf ypuid so sus?" ((What do you know about my mom?)) she asked. Gippal raised his eyebrows surprised; he hadn't expected Dheali to ask about her mother.
"Fryd tu oui fyhd du ghuf?" ((What do you want to know?))
Dheali smiled softly and stared down at the ground, tilting her head a bit. "Cu oui ghuf drah." ((So you know then.)) she stated.
"Oayr." ((Yeah.))
"Yht dra udranc?" ((And the others?))
Gippal shrugged his shoulders. "E tuh'd ghuf." ((I don't know)) Dheali remained silent and continued to stare at the ground. "Oui muug y mud mega ran." ((You look a lot like her.))
This caught her attention. Dheali looked up from the ground and stared at him with a surprised look on her face. "Oui drehg cu?" ((You think so?)) she asked unbelievingly.
Gippal smiled. "Oac, tavehydmo." ((Yes, definatly)) His answer made Dheali grin broadly, and she stared ahead of her. She wasn't really looking at something, but Gippal could tell by the way her facial expression changed into a softer one, a dreamy one, that she was thinking of her mother.
It was silent for a while, and Gippal took that time to gather up questions he wanted to ask her so badly; questions that had been burning his mind into a pulp for the last few days.
"Dheali, E ryja y mud uv xiacdeuhc E haat yhcfanc duu. E drehg oui ymnayto ghuf fryd drao yna..." ((Dheali, I have a lot of questions I need answers too. I think you already know what they are...))
Dheali's grin faded, and her entire expression changed into a worried one. She fiddled with one of the pouches on her belt. "E ghuf." ((I know.))
Gippal changed his sitting position so he was facing Dheali eye to eyes. "E haat oui du keja sa cusa yhcfanc; lyh oui keja dras du sa?" ((I need you to give me some answers; can you give them to me?))
Dheali bit her lip and hesitated before she spoke. "Famm…ed tabahtc uh dra xiacdeuh." ((Well…it depends on the question.))
Gippal looked at her strangely, wondering what she meant, but he shrugged it of and asked the first question that had been bothering him ever since she left. "Frana ec ouin sudran?" ((Where is your mother?))
Dheali smiled and chuckled. "E ghaf oui fana kuehk du ycg sa dryd." ((I knew you were going to ask me that)) she looked at him from out of the corner of her eyes. Gippal remained silent, he was waiting for his answer. Dheali sighed and looked away. "E lyh'd damm oui." she said softly, she placed her arms on her knees and stared off into the distance. ((I can't tell you))
Gippal shook his head. "Fro hud?" ((Why not?)) he demanded, slightly agitated.
Dheali slowly exhaled and closed her eyes. "E bnusecat." ((I promised)) she said softly, not at all scared of the anger and irritation his voice had held. "E hajan pnayg y bnuseca." ((I never break a promise.))
"E tuh'd ihtancdyht." ((I don't understand)) Gippal said, rubbing his face with his hands.
Dheali just smiled. "E ghuf." ((I know)) She placed a hand on Gippal's shoulder, catching his attention. She gave him a reassuring smile. "Oui'mm veht uid cuuh. Tuh'd funno." ((You'll find out soon. Don't worry))
Gippal frowned at her, but she kept that smile on her face. Eventually he smiled back. How couldn't he? She looked so much like her.
--
Flashback:
"Gippal!" a little girl with bouncing blonde pigtails around the age of 9 yelled. Her voice echoed trough the hall she was walking in. "Gippal!" she yelled again, opening one door that let to a construction room.
In it was a young boy, about the same age, he was working on what looked like a small hover.
The girl walked in unnoticed and slowly walked up to the boy, who had no idea that she was in the room. He was so caught up in his work he hadn't heard her yell trough the hall, nor heard her come in.
She was now standing behind him and took a deep breath. "Hiya Gippy!" she yelled her loudest.
Gippal jumped up, startled as he was, and hit his head on an extension of the machina in the progress. "Fryd dra ralg! OW!" ((What the heck! OW!)) Gippal winched and shrunk down on his knees while he rubbed his sore head. "Tysh ed." (Damn it.)) he cursed under his breath and slowly looked up at the giggling girl through narrowed eyes. "Tet oui ryja du tu dryd?" ((Did you have to do that?)) Gippal asked with clenched teeth.
The little girl with the pigtails giggled and nodded her hear childishly. "Oaboab!" ((Yepyep!))
Gippal sucked in breath and stood up from his crouching position. "Fro?" ((Why?)) he demanded.
The girl shrugged and started to bounce up and down. "Palyica ed caasat vihho...Uh...cunno ypuid ouin rayt druikr." ((Because it seemed funny…Uh…sorry about your head though.))
She said with a sheepish smile and scratched her cheek with her index finger.
He sighed and turned back to his work. "Dryd'c ugyo, ed tuach'd rind 'dryd' silr yhosuna." ((That's okay, it doesn't hurt 'that' much anymore.))
"Cunno," ((Sorry.)) she repeated again and went to crouch down next to Gippal's broken machina where she watched Gippal work for a while.
"Frydlry tueh' Kebbo? Frydlry tueh'?" ((Whatcha doin' Gippy? Whatcha doin'?)) she asked him in a childish voice.
Gippal smirked at her and stepped back from his machina. "E ys piemtehk y ciban vycd rujan!" ((I am building a super fast hover!)) he exclaimed proudly. "Frah ed'c vehecrat, E's kuehk du nyla fedr dryd cdibet Dajun yht caa fru'c vycdan. E's cina E's kuehk du feh." ((When it's finished, I'm going to race with that stupid Dajun and see who's faster. I'm sure I'm going to win.)) he said with a hint of devotion in his voice. His eyes shimmered with determination, and Rikku couldn't help but smile.
"Cu, ruf'c ed kuehk drah?" ((So, how's it going then?)) she asked as she started to walk around the machina, sizing it up.
The determination on Gippal's face disappeared and was replaced by disappointment. "Hud dryd famm, E lyh'd caas du cdynd ed..." ((Not that well, I can't seem to start it…)) he said sadly and shrugged his shoulders.
The girl raised her eyebrows and giggled. "Ahhww, tuh'd pa cyt Gippal, E'mm ramb oy uid!" ((Ahhww, don't be sad Gippal, I'll help ya out!)) she exclaimed cheerfully and began examining the work Gippal had been doing before she came in.
"Ah! Rana'c ouin bnupmas." ((Ah! Here's your problem.)) she said, getting Gippal's attention. He quickly rushed by her side and looked over her shoulder to see what she was doing. "Caa? Oui vunkud du luhhald druca fenac." ((See? You forgot to connect those wires.))
Gippal nodded his head and when the girl asked him to start the engine; he quickly climbed on his hover and did so.
The hover started with ease and roared through the chamber. Gippal's face cleared up totally, and when he turned his machina off, he jumped of the hover and gave the little girl a bear hug. "Dryhgc!" ((Thanks!))
She scratched the back of her head sheepishly, her cheeks beat red. "Tuh'd sahdeuh ed Gippy. E'ja kuddy ku huf." ((Don't mention it Gippy. I've got to go now.)) she said, and bounced her way over to the exit.
"Fyed! Luimt oui ramb sa dusunnuf yc famm?" ((Wait! Could you help me tomorrow as well?))
The girl pretended to think it over for a moment, but of course she wanted to help her best friend with his hover project. "Cina! Luihd sa eh!" ((Sure! Count me in!)) she exclaimed, dancing in place.
Gippal smiled. "Oui bnuseca?' ((You promise?))
"Uv luinca," she replied with a grin. "yht E hajan pnayg y bnuseca. Caa oui dusunnuf!" ((Of course, and I never break a promise. See you tomorrow!))
--
He swallowed away a lump in his throat and sighed. He looked at the girl beside him, who reminded him so much of his childhood friend. He still had a lot of questions, but only one question she needed to answer immediately. "Lyh oui yhcfan drec drah...Fru ec Kahem? ((Can you answer this then…Who is Kahem?))
Dheali turned around and faced him. Gippal could clearly see the fright in her eyes. He grabbed the girl by her shoulders. "E haat du ghuf, Dheali." ((I need to know, Dheali.))
Dheali swallowed and looked down at the ground. It was silent for a while, and Gippal was just about to give up when Dheali started to speak.
"Ra'c cusauha E ghuf vnus frana fa mejat. Ra ufhc y machina cduna. So sus icat du fung eh dryd cduna. Cra ufc res y mud uv suhao. Ra fyhdc sa du fung vun ed. Pid E lyh'd..."
((He's someone I know from where we lived. He owns a machina store. My mom used to work in that store. She owed him a lot of money. He wants me to work for it. But I can't...))
Gippal was so caught up in what she said that he didn't hear her use of past tense.
"Fro hud?" ((Why not?)) Gippal wanted to know.
Dheali sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "Palyica E ryt du lusa rana." ((Because I had to come here.))
--
The letter
Gippal…
I know this might come to be a bit of a shock to you but…
I've liked you since I was like…ten years old.
I never told you though, never showed you either. Perhaps it was because you always got the attention of girls that were prettier then me and you seemed to like that attention.
You seemed to like pretty girls.
And I didn't feel all that pretty back then.
I don't feel pretty now either…
I never liked to act like a love-sick puppy following you around, drooling all over the place like those girls did. So I just acted normal.
You were my best friend after all.
I am glad though that I kissed you on the day you left for the crimson squad.
And I'm glad I ran into you on that party on Yuna's birthday.
And I'm glad we spent the night together…even though we were both completely drunk.
I am a little sad though…that I woke up that morning alone.
I still wonder where you had gone to, nowadays.
But I guess it wasn't such a big surprise.
You got regrets and decided to leave…right?
Nor was it a big surprise that you never called me either.
Doesn't really matter, I'm glad it happened anyway.
I would never have met her if it hadn't happened.
R and R everyone!
