Chapter 49

Rikku's Heart

We made our way through the Farplane carefully. We found Gippal. He was on the ground and he looked beat up.

"Gippal!" Rikku cried.

"Are you alright?" Paine asked.

"I could use... a nap."

I smirked.

"Dobelym." (Typical) I said.

He winked at me I heard sound of heels.

"Guess she couldn't stay away." Rikku said.

Of course Leblanc followed.

"I never said where I would wait!"

"Well, then please take care of Gippal!" Yuna said.

"You dare give me an order?" she growled.

I took a few steps closer.

"Look we'll tell Nooj you're waiting like a good girl and doing your part for the team." Paine told her.

She thought for a minute before saying,

"Alright, I'm in."

Ormi and Logos looked down hopelessly.

"Hey, Dr. P."

Gippal was talking to Paine. He held up a sphere.

"A gift from Nooj."

She took it and looked at it.

"It's from four years ago. Said it was inside the sphere camera."

"I'll watch it later." she said.

"Paine."

She looked over her shoulder at me.

"You should watch it now. Just in case."

"Yeah. Think about it, you won't be able to fight your best as long as it's on your mind." Yuna told her.

"You're right."

She played the sphere. Gippal was recording, he was on a ship with Nooj, Paine and Baralai. Paine and Baralai stood beside each other. I could see how happy he made her. They were all talking about having an airship. Paine as pilot, Baralai the navigator, Gippal the engineer and Nooj would be captain.

"You'd let an amateur be captain?"

"Chill out Noojster. All you gotta do is shut up and look important, you'll fit the part." Gippal told him.

"Like a glove." Paine agreed.

I saw Nooj smirk.

"I'll work you like dogs."

They all started laughing and I myself couldn't help but chuckle.

"What happened to that Paine, I wonder."

"She's inside you, sleeping." Yuna said.

"Well wakey, wakey! Time to set sail!" Rikku said.

"Your captain and your navigator are waiting." Yuna told her.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Rikku kneeling down next to Gippal.

"Cdyo rana fedr sa. Zicd keja sa y vaf sehidac yht fa'mm vummuf dra udranc." (Stay here with me. Just give me a few minutes and we'll follow the others.) he told her.

She took his hand.

"E lyh'd. Yht oui lyh'd aedran, oui luimt kad gemmat." (I can't. And you can't either, you could get killed.)

He actually reached up and touched her cheek.

"E tuh'd fyhd du muca oui ykyeh." (I don't want to lose you again.) he said softly.

She smiled at him.

"Oui hajan mucd sa dra vencd desa." (You never lost me the first time.)

He sighed.

"Teth'd E? E bid ajanodrehk pavuna ic, pavuna oui. Ajah druikr oui'ja paah dra uhmo uha E luimt drehg ypuid vun dra bycd drnaa oaync. E hajan dneat du veht oui ajah druikr E fyhdat du. E's cu cunno. E teth'd drehg E tacanjat oui yvdan ajanodrehk. Ymm oui ajan fyhdat fyc zicd du cbaht y meddma desa fedr sa. Yht E luimth'd ajah keja oui dryd." (Didn't I? I put everything before us, before you. Even though you've been the only I could think about for the past three years. I never tried to find you even though I wanted to. I'm so sorry. I didn't think I deserved you after everything. All you ever wanted was just to spend a little time with me. And I couldn't even give you that.)

I smiled to myself. He stroked her cheek softly.

"Keja sa uha suna lryhla? Keja sa uha suna lryhla du cyo oui'na seha?" (Give me one more chance? Give me one more chance to say you're mine?) he asked her.

"Keja sa y kuut naycuh." (Give me a good reason.)

I rolled my eyes.

"Palyica E muja oui." (Because I love you.)

My eyes went wide and so did Rikku's.

"E muja oui." he said again.

He leaned forward and kissed her.

"E muja oui."

Yuna and I looked at each other and smiled. Paine had a smirk on her face.

"Mycd lryhla." (Last chance.) Rikku told him.

He smiled and then kissed her again. She wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly. Leblanc was smiling with Logos and Ormi pretended not to notice.

"Right, hate to interrupt, but we do have some pressing business to attend to." I said.

Rikku looked frustrated but leaned back.

"Please stay? Just until my headache goes away? Then we can go together."

"Nope, besides, I won't be able to fight if you're there hurt like you are. I'd be too worry about you."

He sighed but then smirked.

"Fair enough. But I'll be following soon enough."

She winked at him and we went on ahead. We stopped just before we found the the road to Vegnagun.

"I got a hunch that once we go on ahead, there's no turning back." said Rikku.

I looked at her with an arched brow.

"A hunch?"

"That's it?"

"Yeah."

We all looked at each other.

"A hunch it is then." said Paine.