A/N: Why so long for such a "boring" chapter? Well, I've been thinking a
lot lately as to the direction of this fic and I've changed and reverted
and changed some more as to what I want to do plot wise. Originally, this
was going to be the second to last chapter. As you can see, that's
certainly not going to be the case. I've written an outline of events to
follow and the next few chapters, this chapter included, are going to be a
bridge between major events. The first is Weston's arrival, of course, but
I've steered the direction from a character central plot to a more event
central plot. Sure, all of the characters are going to be just as important
and focused on, but the main focus will be on the events that shake and
rock Spira this way and that over a certain span of time. And yes, watch
out for numerous pairings to appear (the first of which is obvious in this
very chapter). Lukka fans rejoice, eh? ~No One
Chapter 4: Climate
"I cannot accept those terms, sir. Spira is not something to be divided up among rulers. We are one people, united by our love for the land we inhabit."
"You may think so, Maestress, but the Bevelle council fears that the fissure of Spira's people, the Yevonites and the...other group, will eventually turn into two separate governments. One based on faith, the other based on...whatever it shall be based on. The Council urges you to reconsider. If we separate this world into two governments -now-, we'll avoid war and still be a united people, just through trade and common goals."
Yuna sighed and let her head fall. She gathered herself and looked back up to the robed Council member, who was known simply as Fagan. He was tall and dark haired. His skin was a tad pale, and he was young to be in such a position, his wardrobe white with gold trim, marking his esteemed rank.
Yuna shook her head. "I cannot divide the people anymore than they already are-"
She stopped as the large wooden door to the small temple's library opened with an audible groan. Wakka's red hair, then stubbly face, peeked in the small crack between the door and jamb.
"Sorry to interrupt, but dinner is served. The Councilman may come too, ya?"
Yuna looked to the tall figure. He nodded and gathered the parchments, sliding them into a leather satchel. With a quick turn on his sandaled heel, he exited the room with Wakka, leaving Yuna to her thoughts. A few moments later, she immerged from the Temple's granite walkway.
There was a cool wind in the night air, and Yuna's hair was freely flowing in it. She smiled as she smelled the salty ocean sent coming in on the breeze, the starry sky overshadowing the lit torches. With her eyes closed, she slowly twirled in a circle, remembering the night of Tidus' arrival, and their short, yet entertaining introduction. When her eyelids finally opened, standing a few feet in front of her was the tank top and fatigue clad figure of Weston. His head was cocked, an eyebrow rose, and his eyes were curious. She smiled.
"Pleasant memories."
He simply nodded and walked towards the Crusader's lodge. She watched him as he did so, seeing that he was in excellent physical condition. He was probably a tad bit more fit than Wakka, since the former Blitzer had cut down on his exercise routines. With a hmm, she followed a ways behind.
--------------------------
When Yuna entered, she was greeted by a hug and cheek peck from Rikku, who as Yuna could tell from the girl's lips, had sampled some of the food. Wakka waved and Weston, who was leaning against a pole near the main table with arms crossed, nodded in her direction. Lulu was setting the table and waved after setting the last plate down. Yuna gave her usual smile and nod. The only one not to greet her was the Councilman, who sat near Weston. The man's eyes were studying Weston quite closely.
Lulu smiled. "I'll get the food. Take your places, everyone. Doesn't matter where, just find a plate."
Yuna smiled and complied, remarking that Lulu was a bit more cheery when entertaining guests.
Weston moved forward slowly and took a seat near the end of the table. The Councilman sat next to Weston, eyes still locked on the stranger. Weston gave him an odd look and the bureaucrat looked towards Yuna, as she sat down at the south end of the table. Wakka sat opposite of Yuna's left, facing the young politician.
From her perspective, Yuna could see all of the people gathered there. Rikku chose the seat across from Weston, and Lulu had begun setting the food down.
"Just veggies tonight, I'm afraid," Lulu remarked as she sat the final bowl down.
Fagan smiled, waving a hand. "No problem, madam. It looks wonderful."
Weston looked to the bowls and hmmed, recognizing none of the smells. He sighed and once again told himself that he'd have to adapt, even if it meant reprogramming his taste buds.
Wakka smirked. "Lulu's grumpy, but man can she cook!"
Lulu sighed and gave the lummox a cold stare, immediately wiping the smirk off of his face. Afterwards, she placed large wooden utensils into the bowls and smaller ones next to each plate. "I hope you enjoy it."
Rikku grabbed a bowl of a green, mossy substance that resembled spaghetti.
Weston inquired as to what it was.
"Seaweed," Rikku replied, smelling a leaf of it, "boiled in freshwater and a bit of chopped bell pepper."
Weston gave a less than satisfactory look as he replied. "Ah."
Wakka blinked. "Don't like seaweed, bud?"
Weston shook his head. "We never really ate it much in my country. In other countries, they do...but not in mine."
Wakka nodded. "Well, you like potatoes?"
Weston smiled. "Yes. Finally something I recognize."
Wakka grinned. "You'll have to go to Luca for them. We can't grow em here."
Rikku laughed and Lulu scolded the red-haired behemoth. "Wakka!"
Wakka looked down, staring at his already empty plate. "Sorry..."
Weston sighed. "No need to be sorry. I'll take a bite of everything, and see what I like."
Lulu smiled and nodded. "Have at it."
As Weston bit into a white, chewy substance, he learned he'd have to adapt to quite a bit.
--------------------------
Lulu tilted her head, a sorrowful look on her face. "I'm sorry that we didn't have much to give you to eat. But you did like the Moonflow beans, right? You ate quite a bit of them."
Weston smiled. "They were excellent. They remind me of Navy Beans, which I love."
Lulu hmmed. "Well, I'm glad. Now, I have to go find that thickheaded Wakka..."
Weston laughed, pointing towards the Temple. "He went that'a way."
She smiled and turned on her heel, quickly walking towards the large stone building. Rikku and Yuna were chatting it up in the entrance of the lodge. Fagan was sifting through some papers on the step of the temple's walkway. He looked flustered.
"Something wrong?"
Fagan looked up to the strange young man. "Er...no. Just getting these papers in order."
Weston hmmed and grabbed them quickly from the Councilman's hand. "Hey! What are you doing?"
Weston grinned as he quickly read the cover sheet. "What is this?"
"A proposal."
"Or a declaration?"
"It is only a proposal. The Maestress refused to sign."
"I don't blame her. From what this rhetoric states, she'd be given the smallest amount of land to rule as possible. I doubt you used that line when you tried to sell her the idea, eh?"
"It is nothing of your concern! You are not even a legal inhabitant!"
"I'm here, am I not?"
"But are you welcome here?"
"So far, so good."
Fagan growled and reached for the papers, to which Weston quickly snatched them away. Once again the Councilman reached, only to be stopped once more. After a few more tries, the struggle caught the attention of Rikku and Yuna, who began walking towards the two.
"Something the matter," asked Yuna.
"Nothing I cannot handle myself, Maestress," came Fagan's curt reply.
Yuna looked to Weston.
"What? You know this entire proposal is pure bull...lies, right?"
Yuna nodded. "He did not let me read it, but I could gather that much from his words."
Weston nodded and once more Fagan tried for the papers. Weston shrugged him off and began walking towards one of the torches that lit the village's main road. He held the corner of the cover sheet to the fire and immediately, it began burning.
"If she doesn't sign it, what use is it to you?"
"The Council would revise it in negotiation."
Yuna spoke up. "And what if I refused -that- revision?"
"Then we would revise it once more. We will not give up, Maestress. With or without a war, this world will have to be divided one day."
Weston laughed and dropped the burning page to the ground, stomping it out with his heel. The fire had left only the title of the document intact.
Yuna cringed, trying to stay calm as Weston defied some of the most principal laws of the new Calm's government. She witness Fagan charge Weston and closed her eyes, not wanting to see what she thought would happen next.
Weston's laughter hit its peak when the young Councilman slid into one of the torches that lit the path, his head making a loud thock sound as it hit. Rikku, too, was laughing and pointing. Yuna sighed and tried to keep herself under control. She didn't know how this little episode would affect her relationship with the Council, but she knew it would not have a positive outcome.
Fagan pushed himself up and growled, brushing off the front of his robe. "Your friend's treatment of me will not bode well for you, Maestress. I pray that Yevon forgives you in your infidelity and your treatment of me, but I doubt he has much care for you -and- your heathen friends. Now, if you wouldn't mind sir, I have to be back in Bevelle within two days."
Weston smirked and handed Fagan the rest of the document, who then stuffed it in the satchel and curtly turned around, hurriedly heading towards the trail that led to the docks.
Weston wiped his ashy feet on a patch of grass and started heading towards his tent, only to be stopped by the grasping hand of Rikku.
"Hey, Yunie needs to talk to you!"
Weston grunted and turned around. Yuna was slightly to the left of Rikku.
"I'm going to have to ask you not to do anything of that sort again. He may have deserved it, but the Council must be respected, no matter what you may have against them. I, as a Maestress, must represent all that is good in Spira." Yuna said in a soft, yet commanding voice.
Weston nodded. "Yeah. I understand. But you do realize the "Council" or whatever it is -will- try again, and again, and again, until they'll even threaten your life. That's just how those types operate. If you're the 'ruler' of this world, why do you even need them?"
"For advice. I was only a summoner. I had no experience in ruling and a group of men was selected by an elder in Bevelle to help me. They're my counsel, but they are a Council."
Weston grinned. "The power behind the power. You should watch what they do. Never trust the brain trust."
Yuna shrugged. "I do what I must."
Weston sighed. "Yeah, and so did Hitler."
"What...?"
"Nothing. Good night." And with that, Weston once again turned towards his makeshift dwelling, popping his neck before ducking into it.
Yuna sighed and looked to Rikku. "Not very diplomatic, is he?"
Rikku laughed. "He's going to get all of us in trouble bullying a Council member around like that."
As Yuna headed for Weston's tent, she mumbled under her breath, "That's what I'm afraid of..."
--------------------------
Lulu found Wakka in the Temple's library, reading through some old documents. Surprised, she stepped forward a little bit, bending over to glance at what he was reading.
He must've sensed her questioning gaze, for he quietly said, "Old summoner tales..."
She hmmed and leaned back, looking for something to sit on. Next to a small shelf, she found a flat pillow. Quickly, she shuffled it over with her foot and next to Wakka's pad. She bent down, knees first, and rested her elbows on the table, head resting in her palms. Wakka didn't really notice with his nose buried in the manuscripts.
Finally, she asked, "And why are you looking at these tales?"
Wakka shrugged. "I...won't lie. I miss it Lu, ya know?"
She sighed, nodding. "I know. I miss Tidus' cheery banter and Auron's insights."
"And I miss all the battles. I know that we were all in danger, but I 'spose nothing will ever really compare. All the places, too. We visited a whole lotta places, ya?"
Lulu nodded in response and closed her eyes, remembering the events of the previous year. "Things certainly have changed since then."
"Ya. For one, I ain't got anything to do around here, what with all the summoner business stopped. The Eternal Calm isn't all it's cracked up to be, ya?"
"True, Wakka, but we have to be thankful we don't have to worry about Sin any longer. No more senseless killing. No more destruction."
"Ya, that is a good thing. The world isn't what it used to be and we aren't going to be the same people in a few years. We have a buncha stuff to get used to."
Lulu sighed as Wakka put down the papers and turned towards her. "What do you think the future has in store for us, Wakka?"
Wakka shrugged. "Hard to say really. With all this Council crap and the New Yevon movement with its Youth Alliance, ya can't just go around pointing towards the future of Spira."
Lulu nodded and opened her eyes, looking directly into Wakka's. "And of -us-?"
Taken aback by the question, the only legible sound that came from his mouth was "I...I..."
She smiled softly and stood, returning the pillow to its original place. She headed to the door without a word and put her hand on the knob. She turned it and pushed the heavy door open, and faintly heard Wakka's hushed and mumbled words.
"A lifetime of happiness, I pray..."
--------------------------
Yuna quickly turned around at the sight of Weston is only his boxers. To this, Weston had only laughed as the red-cheeked Yuna kept mumbling her apologies.
She had caught him shaving with his army issue knife. Half of his beard was gone, the other half with a foamy substance covering it. A bowl of water was on a medium-sized stone, Weston's makeshift table.
"I really need a door on this hut and a damn mirror, as you can see," he remarked, pointing to the bloody nicks on his face.
She cleared her throat and nodded. After a few moments, he told her to turn around. He was still sans shirt, but his fatigues were around his waist.
"Come to chew me out some more," he asked.
"Just to inform you of some things. I haven't explained the full situation to you, and I apologize. But I feel now that I must warn you, for your actions tonight would have gotten you landed in confinement in some areas of Spira."
"Darn. And I so looked forward to incarceration."
Yuna hmmed and tilted her head, obviously not getting his sarcasm.
He shrugged. "Go on."
She sighed. "The Council is mine, of course, but as you can tell, they do not like the idea of me in power."
Weston nodded.
"But there is another movement that I fear even greater than the Council."
Weston hmmed and raised an eyebrow. "And that is...?"
"The New Yevon movement. Its leadership consists of the ousted Maesters and the Guado. They're ranks are rather large and are still growing. The majority of the people in Bevelle are New Yevoners. They appeal mainly to teens."
"About your age?"
"Yes, and younger. The younger teens were confused once the religion fell. Misguided and without anything to put faith in, they started the Youth Alliance in Luca. It was just an organization helping teens face their problems. But, slowly, the New Yevon party seeded the teens with the ideals of the rebirth of Yu Yevon and the second coming of Sin. The teens readily accepted it because of their want to believe in something not of this world. Now the Youth Alliance has moved shop to Bevelle and is the main recruitment for the New Yevon party."
"And let me guess. The New Yevon party wants you out of power and is probably controlling your Council as well."
"Evidence would suggest that, yes. Therefore, I cannot trust the actions of the Council because I feel they are against me as much as the New Yevoners are. And I'm constantly bombarded with invitations to join the Youth Alliance and New Yevon party."
"And you deny them politely."
"Yes."
"But they still hold hostilities against you because, simply put, you're everything they stand against."
Yuna sighed and nodded.
"That helps quite a bit to know."
"So I must ask you to obey any and all laws in any given area and to watch what you say about the climate of politics here in Spira."
"Ten four."
She raised an eyebrow.
Weston laughed. "I understand."
She smiled. "Thank you."
He bowed mockingly, but she didn't catch it. "No, thank -you-."
With that, she ducked out of the tent and Weston plopped onto his cot. While closing his eyes, he put out the small candle on the floor next to the cot. His first conscious day was tiring, and sleep came fast for Charles Weston.
Chapter 4: Climate
"I cannot accept those terms, sir. Spira is not something to be divided up among rulers. We are one people, united by our love for the land we inhabit."
"You may think so, Maestress, but the Bevelle council fears that the fissure of Spira's people, the Yevonites and the...other group, will eventually turn into two separate governments. One based on faith, the other based on...whatever it shall be based on. The Council urges you to reconsider. If we separate this world into two governments -now-, we'll avoid war and still be a united people, just through trade and common goals."
Yuna sighed and let her head fall. She gathered herself and looked back up to the robed Council member, who was known simply as Fagan. He was tall and dark haired. His skin was a tad pale, and he was young to be in such a position, his wardrobe white with gold trim, marking his esteemed rank.
Yuna shook her head. "I cannot divide the people anymore than they already are-"
She stopped as the large wooden door to the small temple's library opened with an audible groan. Wakka's red hair, then stubbly face, peeked in the small crack between the door and jamb.
"Sorry to interrupt, but dinner is served. The Councilman may come too, ya?"
Yuna looked to the tall figure. He nodded and gathered the parchments, sliding them into a leather satchel. With a quick turn on his sandaled heel, he exited the room with Wakka, leaving Yuna to her thoughts. A few moments later, she immerged from the Temple's granite walkway.
There was a cool wind in the night air, and Yuna's hair was freely flowing in it. She smiled as she smelled the salty ocean sent coming in on the breeze, the starry sky overshadowing the lit torches. With her eyes closed, she slowly twirled in a circle, remembering the night of Tidus' arrival, and their short, yet entertaining introduction. When her eyelids finally opened, standing a few feet in front of her was the tank top and fatigue clad figure of Weston. His head was cocked, an eyebrow rose, and his eyes were curious. She smiled.
"Pleasant memories."
He simply nodded and walked towards the Crusader's lodge. She watched him as he did so, seeing that he was in excellent physical condition. He was probably a tad bit more fit than Wakka, since the former Blitzer had cut down on his exercise routines. With a hmm, she followed a ways behind.
--------------------------
When Yuna entered, she was greeted by a hug and cheek peck from Rikku, who as Yuna could tell from the girl's lips, had sampled some of the food. Wakka waved and Weston, who was leaning against a pole near the main table with arms crossed, nodded in her direction. Lulu was setting the table and waved after setting the last plate down. Yuna gave her usual smile and nod. The only one not to greet her was the Councilman, who sat near Weston. The man's eyes were studying Weston quite closely.
Lulu smiled. "I'll get the food. Take your places, everyone. Doesn't matter where, just find a plate."
Yuna smiled and complied, remarking that Lulu was a bit more cheery when entertaining guests.
Weston moved forward slowly and took a seat near the end of the table. The Councilman sat next to Weston, eyes still locked on the stranger. Weston gave him an odd look and the bureaucrat looked towards Yuna, as she sat down at the south end of the table. Wakka sat opposite of Yuna's left, facing the young politician.
From her perspective, Yuna could see all of the people gathered there. Rikku chose the seat across from Weston, and Lulu had begun setting the food down.
"Just veggies tonight, I'm afraid," Lulu remarked as she sat the final bowl down.
Fagan smiled, waving a hand. "No problem, madam. It looks wonderful."
Weston looked to the bowls and hmmed, recognizing none of the smells. He sighed and once again told himself that he'd have to adapt, even if it meant reprogramming his taste buds.
Wakka smirked. "Lulu's grumpy, but man can she cook!"
Lulu sighed and gave the lummox a cold stare, immediately wiping the smirk off of his face. Afterwards, she placed large wooden utensils into the bowls and smaller ones next to each plate. "I hope you enjoy it."
Rikku grabbed a bowl of a green, mossy substance that resembled spaghetti.
Weston inquired as to what it was.
"Seaweed," Rikku replied, smelling a leaf of it, "boiled in freshwater and a bit of chopped bell pepper."
Weston gave a less than satisfactory look as he replied. "Ah."
Wakka blinked. "Don't like seaweed, bud?"
Weston shook his head. "We never really ate it much in my country. In other countries, they do...but not in mine."
Wakka nodded. "Well, you like potatoes?"
Weston smiled. "Yes. Finally something I recognize."
Wakka grinned. "You'll have to go to Luca for them. We can't grow em here."
Rikku laughed and Lulu scolded the red-haired behemoth. "Wakka!"
Wakka looked down, staring at his already empty plate. "Sorry..."
Weston sighed. "No need to be sorry. I'll take a bite of everything, and see what I like."
Lulu smiled and nodded. "Have at it."
As Weston bit into a white, chewy substance, he learned he'd have to adapt to quite a bit.
--------------------------
Lulu tilted her head, a sorrowful look on her face. "I'm sorry that we didn't have much to give you to eat. But you did like the Moonflow beans, right? You ate quite a bit of them."
Weston smiled. "They were excellent. They remind me of Navy Beans, which I love."
Lulu hmmed. "Well, I'm glad. Now, I have to go find that thickheaded Wakka..."
Weston laughed, pointing towards the Temple. "He went that'a way."
She smiled and turned on her heel, quickly walking towards the large stone building. Rikku and Yuna were chatting it up in the entrance of the lodge. Fagan was sifting through some papers on the step of the temple's walkway. He looked flustered.
"Something wrong?"
Fagan looked up to the strange young man. "Er...no. Just getting these papers in order."
Weston hmmed and grabbed them quickly from the Councilman's hand. "Hey! What are you doing?"
Weston grinned as he quickly read the cover sheet. "What is this?"
"A proposal."
"Or a declaration?"
"It is only a proposal. The Maestress refused to sign."
"I don't blame her. From what this rhetoric states, she'd be given the smallest amount of land to rule as possible. I doubt you used that line when you tried to sell her the idea, eh?"
"It is nothing of your concern! You are not even a legal inhabitant!"
"I'm here, am I not?"
"But are you welcome here?"
"So far, so good."
Fagan growled and reached for the papers, to which Weston quickly snatched them away. Once again the Councilman reached, only to be stopped once more. After a few more tries, the struggle caught the attention of Rikku and Yuna, who began walking towards the two.
"Something the matter," asked Yuna.
"Nothing I cannot handle myself, Maestress," came Fagan's curt reply.
Yuna looked to Weston.
"What? You know this entire proposal is pure bull...lies, right?"
Yuna nodded. "He did not let me read it, but I could gather that much from his words."
Weston nodded and once more Fagan tried for the papers. Weston shrugged him off and began walking towards one of the torches that lit the village's main road. He held the corner of the cover sheet to the fire and immediately, it began burning.
"If she doesn't sign it, what use is it to you?"
"The Council would revise it in negotiation."
Yuna spoke up. "And what if I refused -that- revision?"
"Then we would revise it once more. We will not give up, Maestress. With or without a war, this world will have to be divided one day."
Weston laughed and dropped the burning page to the ground, stomping it out with his heel. The fire had left only the title of the document intact.
Yuna cringed, trying to stay calm as Weston defied some of the most principal laws of the new Calm's government. She witness Fagan charge Weston and closed her eyes, not wanting to see what she thought would happen next.
Weston's laughter hit its peak when the young Councilman slid into one of the torches that lit the path, his head making a loud thock sound as it hit. Rikku, too, was laughing and pointing. Yuna sighed and tried to keep herself under control. She didn't know how this little episode would affect her relationship with the Council, but she knew it would not have a positive outcome.
Fagan pushed himself up and growled, brushing off the front of his robe. "Your friend's treatment of me will not bode well for you, Maestress. I pray that Yevon forgives you in your infidelity and your treatment of me, but I doubt he has much care for you -and- your heathen friends. Now, if you wouldn't mind sir, I have to be back in Bevelle within two days."
Weston smirked and handed Fagan the rest of the document, who then stuffed it in the satchel and curtly turned around, hurriedly heading towards the trail that led to the docks.
Weston wiped his ashy feet on a patch of grass and started heading towards his tent, only to be stopped by the grasping hand of Rikku.
"Hey, Yunie needs to talk to you!"
Weston grunted and turned around. Yuna was slightly to the left of Rikku.
"I'm going to have to ask you not to do anything of that sort again. He may have deserved it, but the Council must be respected, no matter what you may have against them. I, as a Maestress, must represent all that is good in Spira." Yuna said in a soft, yet commanding voice.
Weston nodded. "Yeah. I understand. But you do realize the "Council" or whatever it is -will- try again, and again, and again, until they'll even threaten your life. That's just how those types operate. If you're the 'ruler' of this world, why do you even need them?"
"For advice. I was only a summoner. I had no experience in ruling and a group of men was selected by an elder in Bevelle to help me. They're my counsel, but they are a Council."
Weston grinned. "The power behind the power. You should watch what they do. Never trust the brain trust."
Yuna shrugged. "I do what I must."
Weston sighed. "Yeah, and so did Hitler."
"What...?"
"Nothing. Good night." And with that, Weston once again turned towards his makeshift dwelling, popping his neck before ducking into it.
Yuna sighed and looked to Rikku. "Not very diplomatic, is he?"
Rikku laughed. "He's going to get all of us in trouble bullying a Council member around like that."
As Yuna headed for Weston's tent, she mumbled under her breath, "That's what I'm afraid of..."
--------------------------
Lulu found Wakka in the Temple's library, reading through some old documents. Surprised, she stepped forward a little bit, bending over to glance at what he was reading.
He must've sensed her questioning gaze, for he quietly said, "Old summoner tales..."
She hmmed and leaned back, looking for something to sit on. Next to a small shelf, she found a flat pillow. Quickly, she shuffled it over with her foot and next to Wakka's pad. She bent down, knees first, and rested her elbows on the table, head resting in her palms. Wakka didn't really notice with his nose buried in the manuscripts.
Finally, she asked, "And why are you looking at these tales?"
Wakka shrugged. "I...won't lie. I miss it Lu, ya know?"
She sighed, nodding. "I know. I miss Tidus' cheery banter and Auron's insights."
"And I miss all the battles. I know that we were all in danger, but I 'spose nothing will ever really compare. All the places, too. We visited a whole lotta places, ya?"
Lulu nodded in response and closed her eyes, remembering the events of the previous year. "Things certainly have changed since then."
"Ya. For one, I ain't got anything to do around here, what with all the summoner business stopped. The Eternal Calm isn't all it's cracked up to be, ya?"
"True, Wakka, but we have to be thankful we don't have to worry about Sin any longer. No more senseless killing. No more destruction."
"Ya, that is a good thing. The world isn't what it used to be and we aren't going to be the same people in a few years. We have a buncha stuff to get used to."
Lulu sighed as Wakka put down the papers and turned towards her. "What do you think the future has in store for us, Wakka?"
Wakka shrugged. "Hard to say really. With all this Council crap and the New Yevon movement with its Youth Alliance, ya can't just go around pointing towards the future of Spira."
Lulu nodded and opened her eyes, looking directly into Wakka's. "And of -us-?"
Taken aback by the question, the only legible sound that came from his mouth was "I...I..."
She smiled softly and stood, returning the pillow to its original place. She headed to the door without a word and put her hand on the knob. She turned it and pushed the heavy door open, and faintly heard Wakka's hushed and mumbled words.
"A lifetime of happiness, I pray..."
--------------------------
Yuna quickly turned around at the sight of Weston is only his boxers. To this, Weston had only laughed as the red-cheeked Yuna kept mumbling her apologies.
She had caught him shaving with his army issue knife. Half of his beard was gone, the other half with a foamy substance covering it. A bowl of water was on a medium-sized stone, Weston's makeshift table.
"I really need a door on this hut and a damn mirror, as you can see," he remarked, pointing to the bloody nicks on his face.
She cleared her throat and nodded. After a few moments, he told her to turn around. He was still sans shirt, but his fatigues were around his waist.
"Come to chew me out some more," he asked.
"Just to inform you of some things. I haven't explained the full situation to you, and I apologize. But I feel now that I must warn you, for your actions tonight would have gotten you landed in confinement in some areas of Spira."
"Darn. And I so looked forward to incarceration."
Yuna hmmed and tilted her head, obviously not getting his sarcasm.
He shrugged. "Go on."
She sighed. "The Council is mine, of course, but as you can tell, they do not like the idea of me in power."
Weston nodded.
"But there is another movement that I fear even greater than the Council."
Weston hmmed and raised an eyebrow. "And that is...?"
"The New Yevon movement. Its leadership consists of the ousted Maesters and the Guado. They're ranks are rather large and are still growing. The majority of the people in Bevelle are New Yevoners. They appeal mainly to teens."
"About your age?"
"Yes, and younger. The younger teens were confused once the religion fell. Misguided and without anything to put faith in, they started the Youth Alliance in Luca. It was just an organization helping teens face their problems. But, slowly, the New Yevon party seeded the teens with the ideals of the rebirth of Yu Yevon and the second coming of Sin. The teens readily accepted it because of their want to believe in something not of this world. Now the Youth Alliance has moved shop to Bevelle and is the main recruitment for the New Yevon party."
"And let me guess. The New Yevon party wants you out of power and is probably controlling your Council as well."
"Evidence would suggest that, yes. Therefore, I cannot trust the actions of the Council because I feel they are against me as much as the New Yevoners are. And I'm constantly bombarded with invitations to join the Youth Alliance and New Yevon party."
"And you deny them politely."
"Yes."
"But they still hold hostilities against you because, simply put, you're everything they stand against."
Yuna sighed and nodded.
"That helps quite a bit to know."
"So I must ask you to obey any and all laws in any given area and to watch what you say about the climate of politics here in Spira."
"Ten four."
She raised an eyebrow.
Weston laughed. "I understand."
She smiled. "Thank you."
He bowed mockingly, but she didn't catch it. "No, thank -you-."
With that, she ducked out of the tent and Weston plopped onto his cot. While closing his eyes, he put out the small candle on the floor next to the cot. His first conscious day was tiring, and sleep came fast for Charles Weston.