Chapter 17

I lost nearly all awareness of time after Father had Auron forcibly removed from the airship. I never really thought about it much before, but it really is strange how much of an effect a person's mere presence can have on you. The world seemed darker, more dangerous without Auron around, although rationally I knew one man couldn't change the number of fiends in the world or the fact of Sin's existence. But Auron...there was something about him that radiated through the shield of cold and contempt he wrapped around himself. And I missed it, dearly. And him. Auron!

He said he'd meet us in Bevelle. That must mean he believed that's where Yuna was. I convinced Father that it would make sense to try Bevelle first, since it was the seat of Yevon's power...of course I didn't mention Auron's name. My thoughts invariably drifted to the red-robed guardian and what he must be doing right now. My red-robed guardian...I hoped he was safe, but somehow, knowing Auron, I doubted it. He had a penchant for choosing the path that would place himself in the most danger in order to protect his charges to the greatest degree he could. Why would this particular time be any different? That's why I needed to get into Bevelle without making too much of a disturbance.

That was fine for my fellow guardians, but Father took some convincing. What can I say...Father's never been a finesse kind of guy. But in the end, we both found an aspect of the plan we could identify with. Yuna's guardians would be let off the ship outside Bevelle at the earliest chance available to infiltrate the city. We were to gather information on where she was being held and find the best time to launch Father's full frontal assault, nominally in revenge for the destruction of Home. We would provide support from inside the city, opening the way for Father's most trusted men to aid us in rescuing my cousin. While in Yevon's capital, I hoped to find and meet up with Auron, both to allay my fears about his condition, and to take advantage of his knowledge.

Before our landing, I approached Lulu to ask her about the one insecurity I still had about our plan. I found her in her quarters, making the final preparations for the landing. "Um...Lulu, there's something I wanted to ask you before we get to Bevelle."

"Yes?" Sometimes I swore Lulu was the female version of Auron. She was so matter-of-fact and serious. Then again, this was her third pilgrimage. Maybe something about the journey had a way of stealing the vitality from the people who pursued it and lived to tell the story.

"How good are you at illusions?" I asked.

She didn't look up from her pack. "Most of my spells are aimed at damaging their targets rather than altering them. I do know a few illusions, but I've never had much use for them. Why do you ask?"

I decided to be completely honest. "No one's going to want to see an Al Bhed in Bevelle." I gestured to my eyes.

"Of course. So small a spell shouldn't be much of a problem. If you're ready..." She took her stuffed moogle in her hands and I nodded. She made a few quick motions with her hands, and the doll jumped out of her grasp and mimicked them. I felt lightheaded for a moment and then the feeling was gone.

"All done?"

"Yeah," she responded, picking up the now inanimate moogle from its position on the floor.

"What color are my eyes now?"

"I still see the green swirls of an Al Bhed, but that's because I know you. A stranger will see simply what he thinks goes best with your hair and complexion, if he doesn't take a close look at you," explained the black mage.

"Thank you," I said, leaving.

The landing went without incident, and we found ourselves in Macalania forest for the second time in recent memory. Though I'm not sure how Father arranged the meeting, one of his informants met us just outside the gates and outfitted the human members of our party with robes befitting various Yevon priests and functionaries. While we took up our positions in the religious orders of the city, Kimahri would make his rounds of the taverns to find out the...less savory news the city had to offer. We found out that Yuna was indeed in the city, being held in a kind of gilded cage in preparation for her wedding to Maester Seymour, which was to take place the next day.

We entered the city under cover of darkness and headed for the Palace of St. Bevelle, the heart of the city and the headquaters of the Yevon priesthood. We were allowed access to the Palace without challenge, our disguises had done their job. The group split up to better cover the substantial grounds of the Palace and I made discrete inquiries about a certain legendary guardian who may have visited the city in recent days. The name of Auron was greeted with scowls and remarks about a hero-turned-traitor. This could not be good.

After expending some effort (and gil), I eventually learned that he had been imprisoned as both a heretic and poltical dissident. A high priestess by the name of Legasa had him in her custody for questioning. I convinced a maid to point me toward the location of Legasa's quarters in exchange for the last of my money. I fervently hoped the chamber wasn't guarded, since I was not likely to be able to overcome the warrior priests who provided security in the Palace.

I arrived at the door to the lavish quarters of the high priestess, relieved to find them unguarded. I pondered knocking on the door, though it would ruin any advantage I was likely to receive. I would need every little thing I could get and burst into the room without announcing myself.

The door flew open to reveal a chamber filled with gaudy decorations, likely the most expensive the owner could obtain. The oversized bed that dominated the middle of the main room was occupied. Auron's substantial, well-muscled form lay back comfortably on the soft mattress, and the woman on top of him could only be Legasa. The high priestess sat, naked, on top of Auron's prone body, kissing his face and stroking his hair. From this angle, I couldn't see the expression on the face of the guardian, but he definately wasn't resisiting her advances.

I couldn't maintain my silence and my emotions overtook me. Jealously...rage...the pain of betrayal. Had Auron purposely sought dismissal from the airship in order to join a former lover here, away from my eyes? My anger took possession of me and I ran to the bed, pushing the priestess from her position on Auron's hips. She became aware of my charge too late, and toppled off the bed with the force of the impact.

Auron's body lay still, in the same position I had first seen him. It wasn't like Auron. He was always vigiliant and alert, as though he was challenging fate to send something his way. The guardian must be unconscious or ill, he would never allow himself to be so helpless. I was torn between remaining near Auron to protect him from the priestess, and following up on the blow that had driven her from her position. In the end, I elected to pursue my advantage against Legasa. She must have done something to Auron, or else he would have been on his feet, involved in the matter, somehow.

I tumbled off the bed, looking for where the priestess had fallen. Slowly, the events that had taken place in this room began to coalesce in my mind's eye. The priestess must have tried to rape Auron, for he would never have given himself to her willingly...and it would explain his lack of responsiveness now. I wondered how she was able to drug him...Auron wasn't the trusting type. There was definately more to this story than I knew. I landed next to the priestess, grabbed her by the shoulder and raised my fist and its attached claw, ready to strike her.

I awoke to the sound of commotion around me. Someone else must have entered the room...but who? When I opened my eye, I saw the world through a spinning haze. I was groggy, and uncoordinated, utterly unable to help myself out of my predicament. At least Legasa was no longer on top of me. Whoever else was in the room now must have interrupted her plans. Knowing the high priestess, she would be furious.

Slowly, I sat up, and was rewarded with shooting pains that originated in my head and traveled down my back. I shook my head in a vain attempt to clear my vision, but there was no improvment. I couldn't afford to wait and allow events to unfold without me, so I glanced around the room. Off to the right, I thought I caught sight of Rikku's blurry form holding Legasa at her mercy. If I didn't intervene, she'd surely kill the high priestess...and right now, much as I hated to admit it, I couldn't allow that.

"Rikku, don't!" I gasped.

The blond head turned to face me, though the Al Bhed maintained her tight grip on Legasa, and her fist in the ready position. "She was going to rape you, Auron!"

A wave of deep shame swept through my body. Men don't get raped, I thought, unless they're gullible enough to allow someone to drug them into unconsciousness. Legasa must not have gotten far, I reflected, because I was still in possession of my pants. However humiliated I felt, I willed myself to take control of the situation. "I know, Rikku. She might have succeeded if you hadn't gotten here in time...but...you have to release her. Please..."

The Al Bhed's face took on a puzzled expression. "Auron? Have you lost your mind? We can't trust her!"

Legasa had moved quickly to cover her own fear for her life with a chilly composure which had shifted to mild amusement as Rikku and I argued about her fate. "We. Need. Her. Help. Rikku." Each word was a struggle. Yevon, I hated to admit I needed Legasa for anything. She would stop at nothing to rub my face in it at every possible opportunity.

Rikku's fist fell from it's upraised position. "Huh? Why?" She'd lost all of her resolve, and her grip on the priestess slackened.

Before Legasa could confuse the girl further, I explained, "She has connections inside the priesthood. Seymour is her enemy as well. If we help her, we stand a better chance of recovering Yuna and getting rid of Maester Seymour."

Rikku's icy gaze fixed on the priestess. "You...You deserve to die for what you've done to Auron! But if he says I have to trust you...there must be a reason." She stood up and backed away. Legasa smirked in victory and bent down to regain her clothing. With more grace than I'd thought possible, she dressed herself, never showing any shame at what she'd been caught doing.

Legasa pushed past Rikku and stood at the foot of the bed, striking a regal pose. Her voice was composed and calculating, almost as if she'd planned everything this way. "This is some daughter you've got, Auron...Quite remarkable. Someone has attempted to hide her true nature, but I can see through the spell," Legasa paused. "Yes...An Al Bhed, Auron...you turned me down for an Al Bhed heathen whore? No wonder why you disappeared for ten years, I would have too, in light of a shame this great."

I was shocked! Daughter? Was I really that old? I had no defense, but to tell the truth. "She's...not my daughter, Legasa..."

The look on the high priestess' face didn't change. Though caught off guard, this woman was a master of social interaction and recovered quickly...she always seemed to have the right thing to say. "Not your daughter, Auron? What incentive would she have to find you...how would she know of you? What could she be to you?"

I stared at Legasa, trying not to betray my own fear at vocalizing my feelings for the first time. "Legasa...she is...Rikku is...the woman I love."

A sneer spread across the high priestess' vindictive face, and she snickered at me. "She's nothing more than a child, Auron! Why, she's not even as old as I was when I proposed to you. You're desperate, Auron. You're lonely. You've resorted to cradle-robbing to satisfy your 'urges,' haven't you?"

I wanted to shout at her, but I used the last of my strength to control myself. "Rikku is more mature than you can ever be, Legasa. She has seen more than you can ever appreciate. You are the very thing you accuse me of being. You would have taken from me forcefully what I would not give to you willingly. What I have with her, you can never understand..." I really didn't want to reveal that much to her, but it was the only way out I could see.

Rikku had been frozen in confusion, but after I told Legasa the truth about myself and the Al Bhed guardian, she got to her feet. She slowly walked around the bed and came to my side. Rikku steadied my still-shaking body, placing her small arms around my torso and leaning her head against my chest. I longed to carry her away from this place, to some safe location where I could ignore the world and lose myself in her...

But I couldn't. We were here in Bevelle. Legasa would not go away, nor would Seymour or his infernal wedding. I placed my left arm around Rikku, but my gaze never left Legasa.

The high priestess regarded me with a look approaching pity. Her voice was soft, hushed, and dangerously indulging. "Forget her, Auron. Whatever you have convinced yourself to see her as, she is still a child. She can't be any older than sixteen or seventeen! She wouldn't know love if it happened to her tomorrow...I will forgive your transgressions, Auron. I will accept you for what you are...for what you have become. Redeem yourself. Let go of your past, Auron. I offer you my hand again." She really did reach out to me.

In response, I clutched Rikku even closer to my body, gripping her possessively. "You've always been a shallow, manipulative woman, Legasa, why would you change now? I'm hideous...ugly...no woman would want me, remember?" I spat at her bitterly. "Your own words!"

Rikku squirmed in my embrace, she surged to her knees and planted a kiss on my cheek. In unison, the two women said, "I want you, Auron." I knew Rikku's feelings to be the genuine article. She would never feign love for any reason. She would never lie about something that could hurt a person so deeply. But...Legasa...she would say whatever was necessary to achieve her own personal goals. I couldn't help but feel that the only reason for her renewed interest was to punish Rikku for interrupting her "interrogation."

The high priestess regarded me with a gaze of pure pity. "Auron...you forget...I can help you free your summoner and finish your pilgrimage. All you need to is accept what you refused all those years ago."

I was torn. If what she presented even offered the smallest chance of Yuna's freedom and the chance to continue her pilgrimage, I was duty-bound to accept the proposal. I wished Rikku didn't have to see this. Before I answered, I leaned down and kissed her forehead and mumbled to her in heavily accented Al Bhed, "Rikku, Bmayca ihtancdyht, E ryja hu lruela." (Please understand, I have no choice)

Rikku nodded, a single tear running down her cheek. "Fa femm veht y fyo..." (We will find a way...)

I released the Al Bhed, stood, and got out of bed. My legs took a moment to support my weight fully, it had been a while since I'd walked on my own. I stumbled over to where Legasa stood, flawlessly clothed in her Yevon regalia, and knelt before her. My lips spelled out the words my heart hated to hear most. I took the high priestess' hand in both of mine, fervently wishing it were Rikku's, instead. "Very well, Legasa. I will marry you if you can keep your end of the bargain. But not a moment sooner." I swore I could almost feel the tears flowing from Rikku's eyes as her footsteps carried her from the room. She had assured me that she understood...at least she did in her mind...but what would her heart say?