Chapter Ten
The rest of the training, I kept my mouth shut and didn't once offer to help anyone or anything. I just watched.
FINALLY, when I was almost sure that fiends would be extinct on Besaid, we headed down to the beach. I walked over to Yuna. "Hey, uh... thanks."
"Hm?" She looked over at me.
"For earlier. Uh... I guess I kinda got a little ahead of myself."
"Oh! It was nothing, really."
"Well, I could've gotten really hurt if you hadn't summoned Valefore. Thanks."
She nodded. Some people just can't take compliments or thank yous. Yuna's a really nice person, but sometimes I kinda wish she'd be a little meaner. Or at least be more straightforward and less 'humble.'
I walked up the ramp onto the boat. The others got on behind me. I watched the crowd, all of them crying and saying 'goodbye'. Boy, would they be surprised when Yuna turned up in about a week or two. I never did count the days it took....
"Goodbye," Yuna said, doing the prayer.
A little boy ran to the end of the dock, waving and sobbing.
Of course, half the group went straight to where I wanted to go; to the front of the boat. I had to wait.
So, while I was waiting anyway...
Tidus was harassing the guy with binoculars. This was going to be fun. First, he was practically riding the guy, then he did a flip and snatched up the binoculars. I knew from experience why he wanted them.
He turned around and looked in Lulu's direction.
"Lulu! Tidus is looking down your dress!" I called.
She turned around and looked at him with one of her evil looks.
"What!? I AM NOT!" He cried.
Right on cue, Yuna walked around the corner, followed by the fan club. Tidus put up the binoculars again. I saw my chance, climbed up on the rail, and jumped on him from behind in a kind of forced piggy-back ride.
"GIMME!! GIMME!!" I cried.
"ACK!! Get OFF!!" He stumbled around, trying to get me off his back. I had one arm around his neck, choking him, and with the other I was reaching for the binoculars which he wouldn't stop moving or it would've been a lot easier!
"I want a turn!" I whined in his ear.
Yuna giggled, waving at us from across the boat. The man whose binoculars Tidus stole was watching us in distress, and I could tell he was praying that we wouldn't drop them.
"HA! GIMME!! MINE!" I cried, trying to reach the binoculars. I finally just smacked him upside the head. "STOP MOVING!!" It worked; he finally moved his hand where I could reach it. I snatched the binoculars, jumped the few inches to the ground, almost fell twice trying to get enough coordination to run, and scurried to the opposite end of the boat. Tidus was whining to Wakka that I had taken his binoculars.
Meanwhile, I had some spying to do. I climbed up the stairs to the top of the boat, and then I laid down flat and looked through the rail at the group.
Someone walked up behind me. "You fool!" He cried, snatching up my binoculars. "You could've broken them!"
"Tidus took 'em first. I was being careful." I said, standing up. I had to get those back somehow.
"I can't see why Lady Yuna would put up with incompetent morons such as yourself."
My jaw dropped. "ExCUSE me?!" I was two inches and half a second from seriously maiming the guy, but I really wanted to eavesdrop on Wakka and Tidus and Yuna.
"Come to think of it, I haven't told you where we're going." Wakka said. "First to Kilika island. Then we change boats and head for Luca."
I turned around, but the guy was gone. I gave up maiming him for a lecture?
"Before that though, Yuna's gotta pray at the temple. I'll be guarding."
I scoffed. Rotten stupid lecture and his stupid Wakkas. Wait..... reverse that.
"We'll be praying for the Aurochs' victory, too, so you come along, ya?"
Lulu sighed. "Great plan." She said sarcastically.
"Hey! It is a great plan!" Wakka said defensively.
"Don't look at me!" Tidus said, stepping back. I was glaring at the three of them. Tidus walked away and headed for the crowd up front.
I walked down the stairs, looking for my binoculars. And the evil fart who took them.
"So, is Yuna's father famous or something?" Tidus asked.
I sensed another lecture coming on...
I headed down below deck. Maybe he was there.
Suddenly, one of the Aurochs ran past me, holding their mouth. He threw open a door and the sounds that came from that room made my stomach turn.
"BLEAAKHHH!!" Then a groan. "Oh, my tummy... BLEAAAAKHHHH!!"
I couldn't believe Botta still said 'tummy'. That was definitely going into my blackmail book. I walked up the stairs while Keepa nearly knocked me down running after Botta. I still think he was trying to do that on purpose.
"Wakka's a bit... lacking, in the imagination department." Lulu was talking. I nearly burst out laughing.
"Huh?" Wakka looked around.
Tidus chuckled. "Thanks, Lulu. I'll keep that in mind."
"Oh, yeah. You talked to Yuna yet? She had some questions for you." Wakka said to Tidus.
Rude ignoramus that he is, he didn't even bother to say anything to Wakka before he just walked off.
The crowd had broken up, but now Tidus and Yuna were hogging the front. I casually walked over behind them to eavesdrop, which was easy since I was downwind.
As long as neither of them farted I was fine.
I leaned on the rope, looking down at the water; or rather, pretending to.
Tidus yawned and stretched, and then he leaned in a similar fashion to the way I was leaning on the rope.
"The wind...It's nice." Yuna said.
And then they just started laughing for no reason. I never understood that. Maybe it was Yuna's partially lame boring conversation attempt. I still don't know. They were just laughing.
Then they stopped. Again, reason unknown.
"You're a blitzball player, aren't you? From Zanarkand, right?" Yuna asked. That would make for better conversation than the first comment.
"Uh, you hear that from Wakka?" Tidus asked. No duh, Sherlock. "Wakka... Wakka doesn't believe me at all."
Yuna stepped back for a dramatic effect. "But, I believe you."
"Uh?" Two guesses for who that was.
"I've heard in Zanarkand there's a great staduim... all lit up, even at night! Great blitzball tournaments are held there, and the stands are always full." Yuna said that as if it was the most uncommon thing in the world. Oh, wait... never mind.
"How do you know that!?" Tidus asked, stepping up to her.
"A man named Jecht told me. He was my father's guardian." Yuna replied.
"Jecht...Jecht..." Tidus muttered, turning away. "My father...his name is Jecht." He definitely didn't sound excited.
Yuna gasped. "Amazing!" For the extra dramatic effect, she even performed the prayer. I didn't know what was wrong with her, it's not that exciting. Jecht was a jerk, and Sin was a very ugly mean thing. "You know, our meeting like this must be the blessing of Yevon!" Or the curse of the devil. Not like there's a big difference...
"Sounds like him, but... It can't be him." Tidus said.
"You have no idea." I muttered.
"Why not?"
"My old man, he died... ten years ago, off the coast of Zanarkand." Tidus said, almost sadly.
"I'm sorry." Yuna said, turning around.
"He went out to sea for training one day, and never came back." He stood up straight. "And no one's seen him since then."
"Why, that's the day that Jecht came to Spira!" Yuna cried. "It's true. I first met Jecht ten years and three months ago! I remember that was the day my father left. The date fits, doesn't it?"
I took a deep breath of air. Why was I listening to this again? Don't answer that...
Tidus laughed nervously. "Yeah, but... How would he get here?"
"You're here...are you not?" Nope. No Tidus here. Just Yuna, talking to her imaginary friend!
I should've seen it coming, but nope. Of course not.
BOOM!!
"Oh!" Yuna cried out as something BIG hit the boat. My worst nightmare. I fell forwards, and luckily the rope was there to catch me. Water smacked me in the face. I reached madly for the rope, trying to get a grip on it. I knew what was coming. The boat shifted. I stumbled backwards, trying to grab the rope. Bad hand-eye coordination does not help in a time of panic and desperation.
You guessed it.
I missed.
A/n: Phew. No, I didn't do that by memory. I had to spend two hours looking for it on YouTube because I'm currently grounded from my game. Then I spent another two hours copying it down. So this was a tiring chapter. (insert applause and reviews here please)
Sorry for short notice, I hope my faithful readers see this. This is going on hiatus again, but I WILL finish it, I SWEAR. So, sorry, but... no chapters for a while. Probably longer than last time, but, yeah. Sorry.