Hello, again. Sorry for the lateness of this chapter. I had a hellish week
at work and have been stumbling over a minor writers block. Thanks for
reading.
Enjoy!
Secrets we Share
Fanfic by Degone-gin
Chapter 11
Light streamed through the window accompanied by a light breeze. The wind stirred the chimes outside the curtained opening. Auron sighed, letting the morning slip past him. A strange lassitude was running through his limbs. He felt a wet cloth being wiped across his face. A soft childish voice was humming a nonsensical yet lyrical tune. With a deep sigh he tried to open his eye, too find he could not move.
Mirri looked down at her brother, he was sleeping uneasily, sighing and fluttering his eyelid. She had not seen him do this before. Perhaps he was finally waking up again. Excited she began to talk to him.
"Wake up sleepyhead. You didn't stay long enough last time and mom and dad are really missing you. Dad talks about how strong you have become all the time now and mom keeps wishing you could just rest with us. Are you there? Please tell me you can hear me. I miss you too and I wanna hear more of your stories."
Auron was in a mild state of panic. He was paralyzed, his mind wide- awake but his body was unresponsive. He could not even convince his lungs to take a deeper breath for a chance at a moan. He heard the words spoken to him. Mirri was chattering on, speaking as if he could hear her. The warrior stopped struggling in his own mind, and concentrated on the sounds he could hear and the touches he could feel.
"Braska says you may be joining us real soon. He says your mission is almost complete… I'm a little confused by that. Aren't you done once you die?"
Mirri sighed and shook her head. With gentle hands she finished cleaning her comatose brother's body. She leaned over the older mans face and planted a soft kiss on his unmoving cheek. Auron managed a sigh and felt a tear form.
"Hey! You're crying!" the little girl reached with a shaking finger and caught the crystalline drop. "Please, Auron, don't feel bad. We can wait as long as you need."
The Warrior-monk felt a deep sleep coming over him. Like moving from one dream to another, he faded from the peacefulness of his Farplane home. With a last falling tear, Auron found himself remembering and dreaming of the past.
Meanwhile, in the Spira of the present, Tidus walked out of his room at the start of the day. Having just spent the night getting ready for this last race. If he didn't beat the clock and the trainer this time, he was through. Even blitzballers know when to call a time out! If he could not beat the woman in three days of trying, there was just no way to do it. With his usual carefree smile he walked up to the rooms where the rest of the party was staying.
He paused at the door to the girl's room, and before knocking; he glanced at the sickroom at the end of the hall. His grin faltered as he thought of his mentor's distress, the fever, and the horrible results of the man's delusions. It was hard to think of Auron as even remotely able to be harmed. It just didn't feel right to think that. It was strange enough that his guardian for ten years was really from this other world. But Auron had possessed his calm strength even in Zanarkand. Tidus shook his head, like a dog, trying to remove the weight of depressing thoughts. Carefully replacing his smile he rapped the door with his gloved knuckles.
"Come in." spoke a low feminine voice.
Tidus let himself into the large bedroom. Sitting at a table, munching on fruits and cheese were Rikku and Lulu. They looked up at the intruder and the young Al-Bhed smiled. Lulu's expression did not change, but then, when did it ever?
"Be very quiet, Yuna is sleeping." Whispered Rikku in a stage whisper so loud as to wake up the dead. She was trying to be quiet, he could tell, it must be quite the strain.
Tidus nodded and sat down at the third chair at the table. With wink and a smile he snatched up an apple and started in on it. Lulu, trying very hard not to be amused, watched his antics with a raised eyebrow. Rikku giggled and then nibbled on a piece of cheese.
After finishing his apple, the blitzballer spoke softly, "I'm going for the win today at the open field to the north. I think I have a strategy that will work against the trainer. Wanna come and watch?"
Rikku nodded enthusiastically and Lulu continued to stare. Tidus grinned and wiped his face with the back of his hand. "Good." He stated, taking the dark mage's silence as an affirmative. "I'll see you out there then, around dusk?"
Rikku smiled and nodded again.
"Can you tell Yuna if she wakes up? I'd like to have her cheer for me." He added as he stood, making it seem a casual question.
Lulu shook her head negatively. "Yuna is resting from the ordeals of trying to keep a stubborn fool from dieing. I don't plan on waking her for quite some time yet."
Tidus looked crestfallen for all of ten seconds before he smiled at the two women again. "Then I'll just have to work hard for you instead!"
Rikku giggled and blushed.
The blitzballer stood and nodded to the women. He left the room with a flourish, taking the time to bow. With his grin firmly in place he walked down the hall to the room Kimahri had appropriated. He listened for a moment but could detect no sounds of sleep, if the large man-beast made any such noises. He knocked on the door and received a deep grunt, hoping it was the "come in" grunt and not the "I will have you for lunch" grunt he opened the door.
Auron was falling into his memory, he saw Kilika as it was over thirty years ago. He felt the sand of the beach under his cheek and body. With a start he realized he was very young, his memory gone. Nearby were a man and woman, holding onto a young girl. All had raven black hair. With a start he remembers his name, but everything else is clouded. Sighing he stands and moves to the people. They seem important, but removed from him. Like dolls that have been left out in the sun too long, they are pale. He sinks to his haunches near them and watches, hoping they will get up.
Behind him, walked a pair of warrior-monks. One wore a deep green cloak that covered his armored chest and flowed down to his mid-calf. Adorning his boots are bits of armor plating. He had armguards on both arms and you can see a bow and quiver upon his waist. Dagger hilts can be seen just above the edge of his boots. With deep brown eyes he scans the beach. It is with surprise he sees the young boy standing up near a group of dead. He turned his chocolate colored head to his companion.
"Hishen. Look." The younger warrior points out the boy to his partner.
"Interesting, Rassu, he seems aware." Replied the other man; his voice is gravely, deep in tone and weary from the day's events. Silver tinges the brownish red hair and goatee, showing the long mileage clearly. Upon the man's chest was a deep brown leather armor plate with silver accents. Flowing in the breeze was a silver and blue Kimono, stained and a bit ripped, it still retained the sheen of good strong silk. Blue cotton breeches covered the legs and were tucked into the knee-length brown leather boots. The belt contained a long sheath and on the opposite hip a large leather bag of water. He walked with graceful strength and purpose. In his gloved hands rested a sword and shield, a blue and silver dragon painted in glorious detail upon the polished metal of both.
"He looks very young. Let me handle this, old man." Rassu shot his friend a smile and walked up ahead, light on his feet and barely disturbing the sandy ground.
Auron was confused. Who were these people? Had he ever seen them before? He grasped his head and shook it, trying to disperse the brain freezing fog. With a growl of frustration he spied a fishing knife near his feet. In a fluid movement he scooped up the knife and took a crouched stance. With no training as of yet, he was more feral looking than disciplined. Hishen hissed a warning to his young partner and flashed the finger sign for "go carefully".
Rassu nodded and the green warrior-monk slowly spread his hands away from his body. Fingers spread in the universal sign of peaceful motivation. Young Auron was having none of this and waved his knife with threatening intent.
"Don't get any closer." The boy growled; he was a mess, sand in his raven locks and a dull look to his russet eyes. He had been struck in the head and it bled with the gusto of such wounds. "I don't know who you are, but I will not let you disturb these people."
"Brave words young one" Stated Rassu with a grin, "But instead let me introduce myself." He stops a few feet from the armed child, arms still raised and trying to keep his gaze on the boy's eyes. With a prayer bow to Yevon, he speaks again, "I am Rassu, chosen of Yevon and warrior of the church. What do you call yourself?"
Hishen watched with experienced eyes. Sin's toxin made even a pacifist priest violently confused. With no memory or training, the affected could fight as fiends, bestial and with little care for their own welfare. He cared many a scar from such an encounter as this. With a tired grunt he tapped on his shield, checking the straps for tightness.
Auron was getting really angry; these strangers were coming too close for his comfort. With a growl he took a step forward and brandished the fish knife again. It felt like an extension of his arm, a big claw to tear the intruders flesh. With bared teeth he stood his ground, ignoring the question.
"Careful, greenie." Called the blue and silver clad warrior to his friend. "This one is feral."
"It's a fish knife. I'm not that worried."
"That's what concerns me, Rassu. Just be careful."
The bowman shrugged and turned back to the child. With slow careful steps he walked up to just outside of the boy's reach. Auron smiled with a bestial glint in his eyes, and leapt at the man. Knife found arm and Rassu looked down at the child-beast growling on his chest. With a small struggle, the warrior-monk managed to take the knife away from the boy.
Hishen grunted again and casually walked up on the two struggling figures wrestling in the sand. With a cynical grin he raised his sword hand and smashed down on the raven-haired boy's head. With a sickening thud, the boy flopped still. With Sin's toxins flowing through his veins he would not remember the hit, if he survived.
"That's almost cheating, Hishen." Chastised the green bowman as he pushed the now unmoving child to the sand beside him.
"Desperate times such as these do not allow the niceties of life. Get up, gather your weapons and bring the boy. He fought well for someone so young. He could have promise."
The bowman glared at the older monk, knowing he would do what he was commanded. With a sigh he poured a potion over the deep knife wound in his off arm and then picked up his bow, arrows and the small child. Settling the boy on his shoulder opposite the bow he turns and bows gravely to the three bodies in the sand. Hishen, already moving back to the HQ on the far side of the beach, shakes his head at the Temple's choice of partner for him. He can hear the young monk praying to Yevon for the souls of the dead. The silver haired man shrugs; he has larger concerns it seems. Auron stirs on the green-cloaked shoulder of his captor and groans. With soft hands the younger monk pours a potion over the boy's head and then casts a sleep spell. Blackness over takes the raven-haired child and he sinks into unconsciousness.
Kimahri was curled up on the bed, his head raised and looking at the door. A loosely hanging paw was resting on a lance on the floor. Still unsure as to the Ronso's mood, Tidus walked up to the bed. In nervous habit, the young guardian rubbed the back of his neck.
"Kimahri very tired." Stated the Ronso in his bass voice, tiredness blurring the edges of the tone.
"Um, yeah." Tidus caught himself imitating Jecht and with a frown stuck his hands in his pockets. "I'm going after the win this evening. I was wondering if you wanted to join the girls and cheer me on?"
"Kimahri not like chocobos. Tidus win with out Kimahri there. Kimahri sleep."
"Ok. Yeah. Fine." Tidus chuckled nervously. "Have a good sleep."
The blue furred guardian nodded and settled his head back on his arm. The paw resting on the lance did not move.
The young blonde jock got the hint and left the room. With a sigh he leaned against the wall separating the hallway from the rooms. He wondered, knowing that Auron had requested some privacy today, if disturbing the older man was worth it. The scarlet warrior seldom if ever evidenced any interest in sports, except where his young ward was concerned. Deciding to be discreet, he shook his head and walked back up to the room he shared with Wakka. An uncharacteristic frown deepening the lines of his young tanned face.
OK. There you go, back on track see you soon.
Enjoy!
Secrets we Share
Fanfic by Degone-gin
Chapter 11
Light streamed through the window accompanied by a light breeze. The wind stirred the chimes outside the curtained opening. Auron sighed, letting the morning slip past him. A strange lassitude was running through his limbs. He felt a wet cloth being wiped across his face. A soft childish voice was humming a nonsensical yet lyrical tune. With a deep sigh he tried to open his eye, too find he could not move.
Mirri looked down at her brother, he was sleeping uneasily, sighing and fluttering his eyelid. She had not seen him do this before. Perhaps he was finally waking up again. Excited she began to talk to him.
"Wake up sleepyhead. You didn't stay long enough last time and mom and dad are really missing you. Dad talks about how strong you have become all the time now and mom keeps wishing you could just rest with us. Are you there? Please tell me you can hear me. I miss you too and I wanna hear more of your stories."
Auron was in a mild state of panic. He was paralyzed, his mind wide- awake but his body was unresponsive. He could not even convince his lungs to take a deeper breath for a chance at a moan. He heard the words spoken to him. Mirri was chattering on, speaking as if he could hear her. The warrior stopped struggling in his own mind, and concentrated on the sounds he could hear and the touches he could feel.
"Braska says you may be joining us real soon. He says your mission is almost complete… I'm a little confused by that. Aren't you done once you die?"
Mirri sighed and shook her head. With gentle hands she finished cleaning her comatose brother's body. She leaned over the older mans face and planted a soft kiss on his unmoving cheek. Auron managed a sigh and felt a tear form.
"Hey! You're crying!" the little girl reached with a shaking finger and caught the crystalline drop. "Please, Auron, don't feel bad. We can wait as long as you need."
The Warrior-monk felt a deep sleep coming over him. Like moving from one dream to another, he faded from the peacefulness of his Farplane home. With a last falling tear, Auron found himself remembering and dreaming of the past.
Meanwhile, in the Spira of the present, Tidus walked out of his room at the start of the day. Having just spent the night getting ready for this last race. If he didn't beat the clock and the trainer this time, he was through. Even blitzballers know when to call a time out! If he could not beat the woman in three days of trying, there was just no way to do it. With his usual carefree smile he walked up to the rooms where the rest of the party was staying.
He paused at the door to the girl's room, and before knocking; he glanced at the sickroom at the end of the hall. His grin faltered as he thought of his mentor's distress, the fever, and the horrible results of the man's delusions. It was hard to think of Auron as even remotely able to be harmed. It just didn't feel right to think that. It was strange enough that his guardian for ten years was really from this other world. But Auron had possessed his calm strength even in Zanarkand. Tidus shook his head, like a dog, trying to remove the weight of depressing thoughts. Carefully replacing his smile he rapped the door with his gloved knuckles.
"Come in." spoke a low feminine voice.
Tidus let himself into the large bedroom. Sitting at a table, munching on fruits and cheese were Rikku and Lulu. They looked up at the intruder and the young Al-Bhed smiled. Lulu's expression did not change, but then, when did it ever?
"Be very quiet, Yuna is sleeping." Whispered Rikku in a stage whisper so loud as to wake up the dead. She was trying to be quiet, he could tell, it must be quite the strain.
Tidus nodded and sat down at the third chair at the table. With wink and a smile he snatched up an apple and started in on it. Lulu, trying very hard not to be amused, watched his antics with a raised eyebrow. Rikku giggled and then nibbled on a piece of cheese.
After finishing his apple, the blitzballer spoke softly, "I'm going for the win today at the open field to the north. I think I have a strategy that will work against the trainer. Wanna come and watch?"
Rikku nodded enthusiastically and Lulu continued to stare. Tidus grinned and wiped his face with the back of his hand. "Good." He stated, taking the dark mage's silence as an affirmative. "I'll see you out there then, around dusk?"
Rikku smiled and nodded again.
"Can you tell Yuna if she wakes up? I'd like to have her cheer for me." He added as he stood, making it seem a casual question.
Lulu shook her head negatively. "Yuna is resting from the ordeals of trying to keep a stubborn fool from dieing. I don't plan on waking her for quite some time yet."
Tidus looked crestfallen for all of ten seconds before he smiled at the two women again. "Then I'll just have to work hard for you instead!"
Rikku giggled and blushed.
The blitzballer stood and nodded to the women. He left the room with a flourish, taking the time to bow. With his grin firmly in place he walked down the hall to the room Kimahri had appropriated. He listened for a moment but could detect no sounds of sleep, if the large man-beast made any such noises. He knocked on the door and received a deep grunt, hoping it was the "come in" grunt and not the "I will have you for lunch" grunt he opened the door.
Auron was falling into his memory, he saw Kilika as it was over thirty years ago. He felt the sand of the beach under his cheek and body. With a start he realized he was very young, his memory gone. Nearby were a man and woman, holding onto a young girl. All had raven black hair. With a start he remembers his name, but everything else is clouded. Sighing he stands and moves to the people. They seem important, but removed from him. Like dolls that have been left out in the sun too long, they are pale. He sinks to his haunches near them and watches, hoping they will get up.
Behind him, walked a pair of warrior-monks. One wore a deep green cloak that covered his armored chest and flowed down to his mid-calf. Adorning his boots are bits of armor plating. He had armguards on both arms and you can see a bow and quiver upon his waist. Dagger hilts can be seen just above the edge of his boots. With deep brown eyes he scans the beach. It is with surprise he sees the young boy standing up near a group of dead. He turned his chocolate colored head to his companion.
"Hishen. Look." The younger warrior points out the boy to his partner.
"Interesting, Rassu, he seems aware." Replied the other man; his voice is gravely, deep in tone and weary from the day's events. Silver tinges the brownish red hair and goatee, showing the long mileage clearly. Upon the man's chest was a deep brown leather armor plate with silver accents. Flowing in the breeze was a silver and blue Kimono, stained and a bit ripped, it still retained the sheen of good strong silk. Blue cotton breeches covered the legs and were tucked into the knee-length brown leather boots. The belt contained a long sheath and on the opposite hip a large leather bag of water. He walked with graceful strength and purpose. In his gloved hands rested a sword and shield, a blue and silver dragon painted in glorious detail upon the polished metal of both.
"He looks very young. Let me handle this, old man." Rassu shot his friend a smile and walked up ahead, light on his feet and barely disturbing the sandy ground.
Auron was confused. Who were these people? Had he ever seen them before? He grasped his head and shook it, trying to disperse the brain freezing fog. With a growl of frustration he spied a fishing knife near his feet. In a fluid movement he scooped up the knife and took a crouched stance. With no training as of yet, he was more feral looking than disciplined. Hishen hissed a warning to his young partner and flashed the finger sign for "go carefully".
Rassu nodded and the green warrior-monk slowly spread his hands away from his body. Fingers spread in the universal sign of peaceful motivation. Young Auron was having none of this and waved his knife with threatening intent.
"Don't get any closer." The boy growled; he was a mess, sand in his raven locks and a dull look to his russet eyes. He had been struck in the head and it bled with the gusto of such wounds. "I don't know who you are, but I will not let you disturb these people."
"Brave words young one" Stated Rassu with a grin, "But instead let me introduce myself." He stops a few feet from the armed child, arms still raised and trying to keep his gaze on the boy's eyes. With a prayer bow to Yevon, he speaks again, "I am Rassu, chosen of Yevon and warrior of the church. What do you call yourself?"
Hishen watched with experienced eyes. Sin's toxin made even a pacifist priest violently confused. With no memory or training, the affected could fight as fiends, bestial and with little care for their own welfare. He cared many a scar from such an encounter as this. With a tired grunt he tapped on his shield, checking the straps for tightness.
Auron was getting really angry; these strangers were coming too close for his comfort. With a growl he took a step forward and brandished the fish knife again. It felt like an extension of his arm, a big claw to tear the intruders flesh. With bared teeth he stood his ground, ignoring the question.
"Careful, greenie." Called the blue and silver clad warrior to his friend. "This one is feral."
"It's a fish knife. I'm not that worried."
"That's what concerns me, Rassu. Just be careful."
The bowman shrugged and turned back to the child. With slow careful steps he walked up to just outside of the boy's reach. Auron smiled with a bestial glint in his eyes, and leapt at the man. Knife found arm and Rassu looked down at the child-beast growling on his chest. With a small struggle, the warrior-monk managed to take the knife away from the boy.
Hishen grunted again and casually walked up on the two struggling figures wrestling in the sand. With a cynical grin he raised his sword hand and smashed down on the raven-haired boy's head. With a sickening thud, the boy flopped still. With Sin's toxins flowing through his veins he would not remember the hit, if he survived.
"That's almost cheating, Hishen." Chastised the green bowman as he pushed the now unmoving child to the sand beside him.
"Desperate times such as these do not allow the niceties of life. Get up, gather your weapons and bring the boy. He fought well for someone so young. He could have promise."
The bowman glared at the older monk, knowing he would do what he was commanded. With a sigh he poured a potion over the deep knife wound in his off arm and then picked up his bow, arrows and the small child. Settling the boy on his shoulder opposite the bow he turns and bows gravely to the three bodies in the sand. Hishen, already moving back to the HQ on the far side of the beach, shakes his head at the Temple's choice of partner for him. He can hear the young monk praying to Yevon for the souls of the dead. The silver haired man shrugs; he has larger concerns it seems. Auron stirs on the green-cloaked shoulder of his captor and groans. With soft hands the younger monk pours a potion over the boy's head and then casts a sleep spell. Blackness over takes the raven-haired child and he sinks into unconsciousness.
Kimahri was curled up on the bed, his head raised and looking at the door. A loosely hanging paw was resting on a lance on the floor. Still unsure as to the Ronso's mood, Tidus walked up to the bed. In nervous habit, the young guardian rubbed the back of his neck.
"Kimahri very tired." Stated the Ronso in his bass voice, tiredness blurring the edges of the tone.
"Um, yeah." Tidus caught himself imitating Jecht and with a frown stuck his hands in his pockets. "I'm going after the win this evening. I was wondering if you wanted to join the girls and cheer me on?"
"Kimahri not like chocobos. Tidus win with out Kimahri there. Kimahri sleep."
"Ok. Yeah. Fine." Tidus chuckled nervously. "Have a good sleep."
The blue furred guardian nodded and settled his head back on his arm. The paw resting on the lance did not move.
The young blonde jock got the hint and left the room. With a sigh he leaned against the wall separating the hallway from the rooms. He wondered, knowing that Auron had requested some privacy today, if disturbing the older man was worth it. The scarlet warrior seldom if ever evidenced any interest in sports, except where his young ward was concerned. Deciding to be discreet, he shook his head and walked back up to the room he shared with Wakka. An uncharacteristic frown deepening the lines of his young tanned face.
OK. There you go, back on track see you soon.
