Hey all, I still don't own Final Fantasy X. If I did…then Aurikku would be canon…bwhahaha.

Soooo…it's another Rikku and Al Bhed chapter, and like the last one, there is both Al Bhed and 'English' (or as I call it Spiran) dialogue. I've had a few complaints about the scrolling involved to read the translated bits in the last chapter so I'm doing things a little differently for this one. Here's where you, gentle reader, come in. I really need feedback on this, so please review and tell me which system you prefer. After I get some feedback, I'll switch one of the chapters to match the other one and use that system as a standard for the rest of the story.

Got it? Phew! Okay, now back to our regularly scheduled programming.

"Hey! Al Bhed Psyches, right?

Some Al Bhed saved me the other day and…

This girl Rikku gave me food and…

Uhhh…you don't understand me, do you?

Uhhh…anyway, if you meet Rikku, tell her thanks for me!"

-Tidus

As Rikku walked authoritatively back into the cabin of the salvage ship, she paused to look at the poor sap that Brother's men had dragged in with a great amount of sympathy. Her brother's two brutish friends hadn't bothered to pick him up off of the ground, although she was certain they had the ability, and as a result the young man had been dragged none too carefully over the narrow stone pathways of the ruins, and then the somewhat rough metal surface of the deck. He lay slumped, still unconscious, on the deck while two of Brother's men watched over him.

"Fryd ec dra sayhehk uv drec?"(What is the meaning of this?) Brother bellowed as he burst through the doors that led from the bridge to the cabin.

"Fa yna hud y byccahkan creb! Fryd ev ed ec y fiend?"(We are not a passenger ship! What if it is a fiend?) He continued to shriek, waving his hands wildly through the air.

Rikku gritted her teeth in disgust and massaged her temples briefly with her fingers to calm herself down before gesturing wildly herself and screaming back.

"Yna oui cdibet, Pnudran?"(Are you stupid, Brother?) She gestured in the direction of where the stranger was slumped on the deck, despite the fact that the cabin doors were closed. "Y fiend lyh'd dyga uh risyh vuns!"(A fiend can't take on human form!)

"Cusa lyh!"(Some can!) Brother quickly retorted.

"Naymmo…?"(Really…?) Rikku dragged out the word as long as possible before folding her arms over her chest in defiance. "Ryja oui caah uha?"(Have you seen one?) she asked slyly.

At this, Brother nervously shifted from side to side, and seemed to have discovered a newfound interest in his shoes.

"Aha!" Rikku crowed. "Drao tuh'd aqecd!"(They don't exist!)

"Drao tu!"(They do!)

"Drao tuh'd!"(They don't!)

"Drao tu, yht dryd drehk muugc aqysdmo mega uha fuimt muug mega!"(They do, and that thing looks exactly like one would look like!) Brother cried out, pointing in the general vicinity of the young man.

Rikku curled her fists and screamed. "Hu ra tuach'd palyica oui syta drec ib du esbnacc ouin cdibet, cdibet vneahtc!"(No he doesn't because you made this up to impress your stupid, stupid friends!)

"Tuh'd lymm so vneahtc cdibet!"(Don't call my friends stupid!)

The two stood across from each other, fists clenched and breathing heavily, at an impass of sorts. Brother stepped back and relaxed for a moment. As he opened his mouth, Rikku presumed it was to say something, a shout was heard from the deck.

"Hey, that hurts!" Rikku heard the young man shout out in a rather piercing voice. She could hear the low voices of one of the guards, but she couldn't make out what Brother's friend was saying.

"Whoa! Okay!" Rikku heard the young man acquiesce and glanced at Brother. In an instant the two of them bolted for the door. Rikku reached it first and quickly collected herself before stepping calmly outside. Brother followed her closely, all but nipping at her heels.

"Caynlr res!(Search him!) Brother ordered the men as he motioned with his hands. Rikku growled lowly at how easily Brother had undermined her authority. She looked at the young man again. His young, but admittedly good-looking face, was scrunched up in confusion.

"Right. Whatever," the blond-haired man responded.

"Tu oui hud cbayg?"(Do you not speak?)

Rikku had to stop herself from slapping her forehead with her palm in reaction to her brother's ignorance. It was plainly obvious that Brother had no real concept of how most people in Spira spoke. She wondered briefly if he knew that other people existed in Spira. As she experienced more of Brother, Rikku began to realize why Cid had not chosen him as the next leader of the Al Bhed."I said I don't understand!" the young man whined. Which was not, as Rikku knew, actually what the young man had said; however she was now certain he assumed that none of them spoke his language. She paused again to ponder what a Yevonite was doing this far away from the main continent, and suddenly realized that he had yet to comment on their race. This confused Rikku further.

"Ehcumahla!"(Insolence!)

At this accusation from Brother, one of his faithful minions shifted to point a loaded gun at the young man's chest. Rikku sprang forward.

"Fyed!"(Wait!) she ordered. "He said you can stay if you make yourself useful," she continued nervously, hoping that if this young man could make himself useful to their operation that Brother would allow him to live.

Brother looked at his younger sister in disbelief. Rikku knew that it wasn't what she had said that shocked him, but the fact that she knew the Yevonite language.

"You…you understand me?" the young man stuttered. Not comprehending the young man's question, the guard poked him sharply in the back with his rifle.

"Alright! I'll work!" exclaimed the young man in a frightened whine. Rikku nodded at Brother who, in turn, shook his head at his guards. The two surly-looking men reluctantly stepped away and allowed the young man to rise to his feet. He made a beeline for Rikku and her mouth curved into a small smile. Apparently, all of the long hours spent learning Spiran from Cid wouldn't go to waste after all.

"Oh!" she paused before the young man reached her. "I almost forgot!" She pulled the young man aside and began to instruct him on some basic sphere techniques that he could use to strengthen himself. After seeing his awkward and rather useless fighting style, Rikku thought that she'd start with the basics.

As he listened intently as she taught him how to use the sphere grid, Rikku's curiosity about this man continued to grow. She hadn't heard of one Yevonite, or even one person, in Spira that couldn't use a simple sphere grid. With Sin, and countless fiends around, everyone in Spira, including the Al Bhed, was required to learn at least the basics of fighting. Rikku narrowed her eyes, but continued to explain the grid to him as she wracked her brain for a logical explanation of the young man's complete lack of knowledge.

Nodding in some semblance of understanding, the young man grinned and walked over to the salvage crane on the side of the boat.

"What's this, some kind of crane?" he asked. Rikku opened her mouth to tell him, but was cut off by Brother.

"Rao, oui! Kad yfyo vnus drana!"(Hey, you! Get away from there!) Brother yelled. Rikku shook her head and sighed as the frightened young man returned to her side.

"We found some ancient ruins right beneath us," Rikku stepped in to explain. "It's not active now, but there should still be some power left." The young man nodded; however, Rikku could tell that he didn't really understand what was going on.

"We're gonna go down there and activate it," Rikku said, her voice becoming more excited. "And then we should be able to salvage the big prize!" she all but cheered, raising one of her fists in the air. The young man nodded in agreement.

"Okay! Let's get to work!" Rikku said cheerily.

"Roger!" the young man responded.