Disclaimer: Yes, I own Final Fantasy X, two copies, in fact. But the ideas behind it… well they belong to some lucky bastard somewhere else whom I worship and thank daily.

Chapter 14 : To calm the storm in my heart

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Auron opened his left eye slowly, trying to make the fuzzy figures in front of him clear. "Where are we?" He demanded at once, sitting up.

Yuna, who was sitting over him, trying to apply medicine to his head wound, exchanged worried glances with Lulu. "What do you remember?" She asked him, biting her lower lip.

Auron paused a moment to think… the mountain… the weather… the fiend battle… the blizzard… walking… cold… waking up in a cave. He shook his throbbing head, not answering Yuna's question. Why did his head hurt so badly? He tried desperately to remember what had happened.

Yuna furrowed her brow, now worried that he had sustained a major head injury. "Do you remember anything that happened?" She asked again. When Auron still didn't respond, and only continued to massage his head, Lulu explained:

"From what Tidus says, you were attacked by a giant mountain ogre and knocked unconscious. Tidus and Rikku attempted to carry you here, but were again assaulted by that fiend. Rikku apparently volunteered to act as bait while Tidus took you to safety. She was only going to distract it until then, but no one has seen her since."

Auron's gaze darted around the cave where they were located. Rikku really was nowhere to be seen, and neither were Tidus, Kimahri or Wakka, for that matter.

Lulu continued, "We sought shelter in this cave on the side of the mountain. It's not big, but it does provide a refuge from the storm outside."

"Where…" Auron started, rubbing his pounding head with his hand.

"Rikku is still missing. But the boys went out to search for her awhile ago."

Auron attempted to stand up, but dizziness overcame him, forcing him to remain lying uselessly on the cold floor of the cavern. "Sir Auron… you should try to rest a bit. I'm sure they will be okay."

Auron was frustrated with himself. Not only had he allowed himself to be put into careless danger, but Rikku had basically sacrificed herself for his well being, and now she had gone missing. He cursed aloud and; against his will, he slipped back into unconsciousness.

//Rikku had collapsed to her knees, sinking in the fallen snow, more continued to rain down upon her as she sat shivering. She was battered, bruised, blood dripped from a gash on her temple, staining the pure white snow. 'Help… someone… Auron…' she called, desperately, weakly, before falling face first into the blood-stained snow…//

Auron's eye snapped open immediately, his heart racing, insides numb and frozen. What a vividly horrible dream… he shut his eye again, trying to calm himself down. He laid silent for a few moments, and soon he heard voices speaking softly nearby. He kept his eyes shut and listened carefully.

"Any sign of Rikku?" The voice came from Lulu.

"We found this." Tidus spoke.

"That's Rikku's targe!" A female, probably Yuna, exclaimed.

"No sign of her though… you don't think…" Wakka trailed off.

An uncomfortable silence spread over the cave before Auron finally stood up, using the wall to stabilize himself to the best of his abilities. Everyone was huddled around another small fire, and Yuna was doing her best to cure the ones who had just come back from their search. Wakka and Tidus both looked extremely cold, their clothes and hair were covered in snow and ice and they both shivered violently. Even Kimahri, with all of his thick fur, seemed blue-er than usual.

"Sir Auron!" Yuna said, noticing that Auron was standing. "You shouldn't try to walk, with your injuries."

"We need to find Rikku." He declared, his dream replaying clearly in his mind.

"Me, Kimahri, and Tidus, we just went out looking, but… we only found this, ya?" Wakka presented Auron with Rikku's targe. "That's it…"

"Where did you find it?" Auron spoke in a barely audible whisper.

"Look, man, we searched all over this mountain--" Tidus was interrupted.

"I said; where did you find it?" Auron repeated darkly.

"Out to the north a ways." Tidus answered, slightly intimidated. Auron took Rikku's armor and made his way to the cave's exit, still feeling a little unbalanced.

"Uhh… Sir Auron?" Wakka began. "This may not be the right time to ask, but, uh, does Rikku mean something…I mean, do you… err… Are you and Rikku--"

Auron shot him a death glare out of the corner of his eye, causing Wakka to shut up instantly. 'Yeah, this definitely isn't the time to ask.'

"Sir Auron… I don't think you should go out there, it's dangerous." Yuna advised.

"That's why I'm going." He replied, giving Kimahri a 'look' before walking out into the frozen abyss. It wasn't a look like he had given Wakka, instead, an understanding silent communication between two friends. Kimahri nodded solemnly.

Everyone else gaped at Kimahri, expecting an explanation.

"Kimahri hope Rikku stay warm." Was all he said.

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end chapter 14:

So what will happen next? The betting pool has opened!