The trip back to Bevelle was ominously silent. Tidus was visibly fuming due to the setback that was going to delay them by a day. Gatta and Barthello elected not to speak out to avoid irritating him any further. They also intentionally walked a few paces behind the guardian.
The sun was setting by the time they reached Spira's largest city again. The cloudless sky was vividly filled with bright oranges, pinks, purples, and scarlet. The colors were spread out evenly, as if the scene had been painted. Tidus stared up at the sky, pensively thoughtful. He wondered if he would actually be able to see Yuna before she married the Grand Maester.
His anger had faded during the journey, and it had been replaced with depression. The blitzball ace knew he should confer with his comrades about their next move. He stopped at the city limits, and the other two suddenly halted in their tracks as well. He turned around to face them. Gatta had expected to see contempt in his eyes, but instead found sadness lurking within them.
"What do you think we should do?" Tidus inquired, depression evident in his voice.
"…We could probably reach the end of the Macalania Woods before the Calm Lands by nightfall," the Crusader replied.
"Sounds good. Let's go."
They navigated through Bevelle in a relatively short amount of time, and found themselves once again in the forest. The vast gathering of foliage encompassed Bevelle and the frozen areas of Macalania. A large chunk of the forest was removed in order to construct Bevelle, and even though the two sections of the wooded area were separated, both were collectively known as the Macalania Woods. The true boundary of it was at the entrance to the Calm Lands. However, that region had also been previously covered with lush greenery before the machina war in which Bevelle decimated Zanarkand and the surrounding areas. The subsequent battles with Sin and a summoner's Final Aeon made the land even more destitute and barren.
Once darkness had fallen, Gatta suggested setting up camp. They did, and then the Crusader and Barthello decided to go to sleep. Tidus couldn't doze off and remained outside of the tent. He wandered around the area aimlessly. Soon he came to a place he recognized. It was the spring where he had spent his only intimate moment with Yuna. He remembered every single moment of it. There was no way he would ever forget that time.
He had been trying to convince Yuna to quit the pilgrimage after he had discovered the truth about it. She had been so distraught since her disastrous wedding to Seymour and then having to confront him a second time in battle. The Zanarkand native had wanted to cheer her up and offered to take Yuna with him to his hometown. Tidus wished to get her away from a fate of certain death because he felt she deserved better than that, and she shouldn't have to sacrifice herself.
He could tell she wanted the same thing as well, but realized she couldn't have it. Her will and her desire to protect the people of Spira were too strong to overcome. When the summoner began to weep uncontrollably, Tidus couldn't contain himself any longer. He kissed her, and she gladly returned it once she had gotten over her initial shock. Yuna was so beautiful that night, bathed in the moon's gentle glow. The blitzball ace hadn't expected her to reciprocate, but was ecstatic when she did. The moment was over far too soon, and the reality of the situation dawned on them when the journey continued the next day.
Tidus knew that it was likely the only romantic moment he would ever have with her, but the circumstances that led to their eventual separation were drastically different than any of them had expected. He had been the reason that their relationship had been terminated before it had even gotten a chance to start, and not Yuna. The former Abes star hoped that things could start anew once they were reunited. Perhaps the same scenario awaited him once he rescued her from a wedding with Adonijah like when he had saved her from Seymour's clutches after their so-called wedding.
The guardian waded into the shallow waters. The moon was reflecting off of the surface, shining down magnificently as it had that night. After proceeding deeper into the spring, he dove under the water and began swimming around. Tidus had always loved to swim, and it came naturally with his blitzball skills.
After a while, he rose up and floated on the surface, lying perfectly still. He gazed up at the blanket of stars that covered the heavens. He glanced over at the lone tree that overlooked the spring on the bank. He was still wondering how his friends would receive him. He knew he would need to protect Yuna from the threat of assassins as well. Then the guardian's mind drifted back to the Ronau group.
(What was Dalan doing in the temple anyway? What was he looking for? Then he ran in the opposite direction of Zanarkand. Why would he do that? I wish I knew what was going on here. There's still do many things I don't understand. How did I end up back in Spira in the first place? I thought I was just a dream of the Fayth. Now they've been sent, and yet I'm here.) Tidus thought.
He began swimming back toward the shore. He realized that there was no use thinking about it. He wouldn't find his answers. He stepped out of the water, and slid his hands through his wet blonde hair. It stuck straight up in the air. He returned to the campsite and went to sleep as well.
It was sunrise in Zanarkand, and Yuna was already awake. Sleep had been hard to come by for the past few days, and she would stroll around the ancient city. She was still impressed by how well it had been restored. The high summoner was sure he would've been pleased with it. As the sun was creeping over the horizon, she stood in front of the three statues erected in honor of Tidus, Auron, and Jecht. The sunlight bounced off of the bronze, causing it to gleam brightly. Yuna shielded her eyes as the light was reflected into them.
"Yunie!" exclaimed a cheerful voice far behind her. She turned around to see Rikku heading her way. The Al Bhed waved frenetically, which the summoner returned with a casual wave and a grin. "You're up early, as usual!"
"Yeah, but…what are you doing up so early?" Yuna inquired curiously.
"I couldn't sleep either. I'm so excited! Tomorrow's the big day! I gotta admit, Adonijah's not so bad…You know, for a Yevonite."
The brown-haired woman giggled. "Yeah…"
Rikku stared up at the bronze statue of her friend Tidus. "You know, you spend an awful lot of time here. You're not having second thoughts or anything, are you?"
Yuna shook her head negatively. "No…I just…miss him," she replied.
"Me too, Yunie. We all do, but we gotta move on, you know?"
The summoner nodded slowly. "Yes, you're right," she agreed.
She saw her fiancé, Adonijah, approaching from afar off. The Al Bhed looked back to see who was coming as well. "Aren't you gonna go to him?"
"O-Of course!" Tossing one final glance at the statue of her cherished guardian, she dashed off to greet the Maester.