Hey guys! Calm down... no hating. I promised you a happy ending...

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XXXI: The Touch of Grace

Rikku stood in shock. Yuna held Tidus's limp arm in her lap. He was gone now. He had a quiet look on his face... almost peaceful, but Yuna... she had a hollow look of despair in her eyes. She wasn't crying at the moment, and Rikku wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing. Rikku tried to go to her, but her legs wouldn't move. What would she even say?

More people began to arrive, and they all had the same reaction... shock. Men pulled their hats off and dropped to a knee. Women began to cry. Rikku was crying too. She finally went to Yuna, knowing that her words couldn't possibly give console. Rikku knelt down behind her and placed a hand on Yuna's shoulder.

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"Everyone hurry! Sir Tidus has been injured!" A young boy cried out, standing in the middle of town. Panicked faces began to rush into the woods, including those of Wakka, Lulu, and Zalitz. They hoped to help, but didn't know it was already too late.

Flitt heard the little boy's cry too, and hurried for the forest as fast as his brittle old legs would carry him.

Wakka broke through the silent crowd with Lulu and Zalitz following close behind. They found Yuna and Rikku both crying. Yuna was sprawled over Tidus's bloody chest, and Rikku knelt beside her, holding her hand.

Flitt finally made it through the woods to find a wall of forlorn faces and tears. He tried to make his way to the center, but every citizen of Besaid was there. Suddenly, his hands began to radiate a bright blue light. Once again, the words of the old prophet rung in his head... "When it is time, you will know." It was time. He looked at his old fingers, lit with intense light; the wrinkles of nearly eighty years told his story... but this man would only be a memory soon. He wasn't afraid.

People turned and looked at the old man, his hands glowing. "Please, let me through," Flitt said. The mass of people parted to let him through. The sight was horrendous; the fiend had torn Tidus's body to shreds. Blood was strewn on the ground and all over his body; Yuna's face was streaked with blood where she absently placed her cheek on Tidus's chest. Wakka, Lulu, and Zalitz all stood above Tidus's body, a tragic sadness on each of their faces. Yuna was still sprawled on top of him, sobbing uncontrollably.

Flitt stepped towards them, and as they looked up, seeing his hands afire, they slowly moved away. Zalitz looked into his grandfather's eyes in shock. 'It's Tidus?' He thought as his grandfather approached.

Flitt went to him first. "It's time." He said to Zalitz. Zalitz had a look of sadness in his eyes. He hugged his grandfather for the last time, and then stepped aside.

"Yuna, my dear, please stand aside." Yuna lifted her head from Tidus's chest, and saw the old man's hands glowing. Quickly, she rose to her feet and watched.

Flitt went to Tidus's side. The old man knelt beside him on the hard ground. He placed his glowing palms over the gash on Tidus's abdomen. His hands emitted a sphere of intense bluish-white light.

The crowd gasped as Tidus opened his eyes and drew a deep breath into his empty lungs. Yuna fainted. Rikku and Lulu caught her in their arms, and tended to her on the ground, all the while watching the radiant white light breathe life back into Tidus's body. Tidus felt a strong heat where his skin was being renewed; his arms and legs were paralyzed as he felt the pain flowing out of his body. His frightened eyes looked around at the faces standing above him... and the face of the old man through the intense light. Flitt wasn't scared... he wasn't in pain. His face was calm, and his eyes dropped slightly until they closed completely. The blinding light disappeared, and Flitt fell to the ground.

Tidus was able to move again. He sat up quickly, and scrambled backwards. He was terrified and confused. He lifted his shirt to examine his stomach. His skin was boiling hot, but otherwise flawless... not a single scratch or scar. Wakka helped him to his feet, while Lulu and Rikku watched over Yuna who was lying unconscious on the ground.

Zalitz knelt on the ground where his grandfather lay... asleep for eternity. A tear rolled down his cheek. He laid Flitt on his back and crossed his arms over his chest. "Goodbye, grandpa." Zalitz whispered.

Tidus watched Zalitz kneeling beside his grandfather's body. 'I don't understand.' He thought. He wanted to comfort his friend... but what would he possibly say? Tidus hung his head in despair and his eyes found Yuna lying on the ground. He went to her side. "Is she okay?" He asked.

"Yeah." Lulu said, mystified to be staring at a man who was not alive only a minute before. Everyone was still confused; Zalitz was the only one who knew what was going on. Some of the crowd had begun to disperse, feeling it was rude to stand and watch, but others were still in utter disbelief and couldn't move.

Yuna opened her eyes, feeling Tidus's soft touch on her cheek. "Tidus!" She yelled, rapidly throwing herself into his arms. She attacked him with a thousand kisses and squeezed him tightly; a small tear formed in the corner of her eye. She pulled away and lifted his bloodstained shirt. "I don't understand." She said. Her fingers felt his hot skin. There wasn't a single trace of injury. "But you were..." She searched for answers in his eyes but found none. He was just as perplexed as everyone else.

"Miss Yuna." The meek voice of a little girl spoke from behind her. "Mommy said you would need this."

Yuna turned to see the small child holding her staff, nearly as tall as the little girl herself. "Thank you." Yuna said as she took the wand from the girl.

Yuna watched Zalitz kneeling beside his grandfather's body. The heartrending scene brought tears to her eyes. Yuna couldn't bring herself to approach the sorrowful young man, to tell him it was time to send his grandfather to rest peacefully forever. She felt Tidus's hands grip her waist tenderly from behind. "Go ahead..." He whispered in her ear.

She nodded, and walked forward slowly. Zalitz still knelt beside his grandfather's body, tears strewn down his cheeks. The filtered sunlight from the trees above shone down, glinting off the metal of her staff. Zalitz looked up. "May I?" Yuna asked.

Zalitz took a moment to say goodbye, and then nodded and stepped aside. Yuna began to dance. Flitt's body began to dissolve into pyreflies as the fallen leaves whipped up from the ground and spiraled in the air. Yuna's dance struck silence in the hearts of those who watched. Zalitz wouldn't watch; his head bowed. She wielded her staff, twirling in the air... perfectly graceful yet somewhat disturbing all at the same time.

When she stopped dancing, Zalitz looked up. Flitt's body was gone, and left behind were dozens of pyreflies dancing among the trees. Zalitz found Tidus's sorrowful, apologetic gaze. Zalitz turned his head and walked away.

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