I tried a new approach to this chapter. Since it's mostly just Shuu, Zev, and Ku on Mi'ihen Highroad, I strung a few scenes together where they interacted and everything. Not really sure how effective it was…

I didn't mean to make Berrik sound the way he does… I wanted him less serious, I think. Well, Blappa's the weird one anyways. Always running around in circles, constantly yelling pointless advice… (Although I did have him on my blitzball team once.) I tried to trip him once (for what reason, I don't know. Probably for the entertainment of my easily amused mind.), but it didn't work. Not even if you stand in front of him and push him. Meh.


Kirei na Kanjou

You are sure this is a good idea?

Ku looked up at Leviathan. It was refreshing to see him again, following his absence in the last few days. "Yeah," she replied. "He'll be happier in Luca."

But what about you?

Ku, slightly puzzled by the question, answered simply, "I'll be fine. I have Shuu and Zev to protect me now, so I don't really need him."

I do not mean protection. I am sure your other guardians will help you on your pilgrimage greatly. But… will you be happy without him?

Ku, pushing herself up with one hand, stood. She glared at the Fayth in front of her. "What are you suggesting?"

Leviathan only smiled mischievously.

Nothing that you have not already said yourself.

Ku turned her head. "I'm going to ignore that…"

Moving away from the seething girl, Leviathan sighed. Quietly, so she wouldn't hear him, he said,

I only hope that everything falls into place at the end…

******************

Ku stretched lazily in the morning sun shining through the window. She was laying on a medium-sized bed in one of Luca's inns. The white and blue sheets engulfed her like the ocean's waves, and she found it hard to pull herself from the comfort of the bed into the harsh reality of life. After a few minutes, she slid herself off the bed, made an attempt to pat her morning hair down, and walked out of the room.

Ku clutched the counter and rubbed her half-shut eyes. She had never been a morning person, but she had promised her two guardians that they would leave early. "Thanks for letting me stay here," she mumbled as she dropped 100 gil in the innkeeper's outstretched hand. The innkeeper simply nodded and went to attend the other waiting customers.

Ku walked out into Luca's main square, scythe gripped in one hand. "Shuu and Zev said they'd wait where?" She stood dazedly as she searched her mind. "Oh, the Mi'ihen Highroad entrance. Right." After buying a small snack from a nearby booth, Ku went up the stone steps that led to the highroad.

"Ku!" Someone in a bright-lined maroon shirt was waving at her spastically. The aforementioned one ran towards her, revealing herself as Shuu, and dragged Ku to where Zev was standing nonchalantly. He regarded her with a slight nod of his large cat-like head.

"So," Shuu said, "Are we leaving soon?"

The Summoner nodded. "We can leave now."

Shuu gave her a curious look and craned her head to look behind Ku. "Where's that other guy? The Al Bhed?"

"Him?" Ku shook her head. "He's not coming. Decided to stay in Luca."

"Well," Shuu said energetically, "We'll do fine without him, right?" She pointed in a random direction. "Onto the Mi'ihen Highroad!" She then bounded in the opposite direction she had pointed to, up to the awaiting highroad.

Ku sighed. She looked up-way up-to the calmer of the two guardians and said, "Guess we'd better make sure nothing happens to her…" Without another word, the two followed up the steep stairway.

Ku and Zev reached the top of the stairs, where Shuu was waiting. Ignoring her, Ku walked to the side of the dirt road. A bright green leaf brushed her arm as she leaned down. She picked a round gray rock up and dropped it into her accessory pouch.

Shuu raised an eyebrow. "You collect rocks?"

Ku faced her guardian. "Not really… it's just a souvenir."

"A souvenir? A rock from Mi'ihen Highroad?" Shuu shrugged. "Whatever." She took off down the long path ahead.

Ku started walking as well, and Zev came up beside her. "Zev will see great mountain Gagazet on pilgrimage?"

"Of course," she answered. "We have to pass through there to get to Zanarkand. You want to go there?"

Zev looked to the ground. "Ronso Fangs say Zev Ronso not real Ronso until see Mount Gagazet. If Zev see great mountain, maybe Nuvy will…" His voice drifted away before he finished.

"Nuvy?"

Zev's visage became dreamy as he spoke. "Nuvy… she is one of Ronso Fangs. Nuvy is most beautiful of all Ronso Zev has seen. Nuvy very smart. Can talk in Spiran tongue." He sighed wistfully.

Ku hid her smile at her guardian's plight. Strange, how one so large and intimidating could be affected by such a common dilemma. "I'm assuming you like this Nuvy a lot?" Another sigh emitted from her companion. "Have you told her how you feel?"

"Zev has tried to tell her," he replied. "But other Ronso Fangs laugh at Zev. Say Zev is not real Ronso. Nuvy never like stupid Ronso, they say. So Zev never tell Nuvy."

Ku crossed her arms irritably and said, "Just ignore them, Zev. I'm sure Nuvy would like you the way you are. But we will see Mount Gagazet on the pilgrimage, if that'll make you feel any better."

Zev laid one hand on her head kindly, and she shook it off. "That makes Zev happy. You are good Summoner." He looked up at the cloudless blue sky above. "Ku feel special about anyone?"

She shook her head. "I haven't found anyone worth the effort."

Zev nodded his understanding. "Can be very hard. But everyone have someone in world for them."

Ku smiled. She glanced around for a second; something seemed to be missing. "Hey… Zev? Where'd Shuu go?"

A scream and a rustle from behind the bushes ahead was their answer. Ku slapped her forehead.

"Better go help her…"

******************

Brother yawned as he picked himself off of the locker room floor. He had stayed here with the other Al Bhed Psyches the night before, and had slept in one of the corners. Needless to say, it was not the most comfortable experience ever.

"Should have stayed in an inn," he said in Al Bhed. "I knew I shouldn't have listened to Berrik…"

Upon mentioning of his name, Berrik, the blitzball team's captain, walked into the locker room.

"Brother!" he said, in the same language as the other. "You just got up?"

"Yeah…" Brother sat down on one of the benches. "I'm still tired from the pilgrimage."

Berrik laughed and opened one of the lockers. Searching through it, he asked, "About the pilgrimage, shouldn't you be meeting that girl soon? Ku, right?"

Brother frowned and shook his head. "No. She said she didn't need me anymore, and that I should stay in Luca. Then she tries to make me feel guilty about it!" He slammed the bench with his hand. "Can you believe her?"

Berrik successfully pulled out a pair of goggles and sat down next to his friend. "She seems like a nice person."

"She's foolish and naïve."

"But you still care about her, don't you?" At Brother's confused look, he continued, "You wouldn't be talking to me about it if you didn't care. Even if you only think of her as another sister or friend, you're still worried."

Brother paused and looked thoughtfully at the floor. "Why would I care about her?"

"Because, she seems to care about you." At the other's silence, he added, "She wouldn't have told you to stay if she wasn't concerned about something."

Brother glared at him frigidly. "And how can you be so sure?"

"Brother," he sighed, "You're just being ignorant. I'm not deaf, you know. I could hear your conversation yesterday. Were you even listening to what she said?"

"Of course I was!" he shouted, unintentionally raising his voice. "She just blamed everything on me!"

"No," Berrik explained, struggling to fit the goggles over his hair. "She wasn't blaming you… She just doesn't want you to be hurt."

Brother opened his mouth to say more, but stopped. "She said… she said I wouldn't understand her until someone dies for me. But…"

Berrik halted in his attempt to put the goggles on. "…You do understand. Your mother…" Resuming his previous efforts, he finally managed to put the object over his eyes. "Finally…"

Brother leaned back and rested his weight on his arms. "Do you think that means that Ku…?"

Berrik shrugged and stood up. Making his way to the door, he questioned, "Why don't you ask her yourself? She shouldn't be too far up the Mi'ihen Highroad yet."

"But-"

Berrik opened the door and stepped outside the locker room. Before leaving, he called back, "If you need an excuse to go back, tell her Cid wouldn't let you go back to Home without her. I have to get back to the team now." He pointed to a non-existent watch on his wrist. "Game in ten minutes." He waved goodbye, and walked away down the corridor.

Should I go back? Brother asked himself. Do I even want to go back? He laid his head in his hands. I don't know…

******************

Ku turned her head to the cerulean sky. You never get clear days like this in Zanarkand, she thought. It was always so cloudy and dark there… I don't want to forget today.

She reached into the pouch at her side, searched through it, and pulled out the small blue recording sphere. She found the Record button on its side and pushed it down.

"We're on the Mi'ihen Highroad now," she said to the sphere. "Two new guardians, both from Luca." Turning to face the first of the said guardians, she continued. "There's Shuu. She actually stole all my money, but she's decided to come with us. And of course, you can't forget Zev." Another turn of the camera followed, and the screen was soon blocked off by the Ronso's hand.

"Zev," she laughed, "stop!" She paused again, trying to find something else of importance to record. "Let's see… Um… Can't really think of anything else to say…"

"Hey, Ku!" Shuu, who had previously gone off on her own, was now running towards her, the golden chain at her neck bouncing uncontrollably.

Did she have that necklace before? Ku wondered about the thief.

Shuu had now caught up to the Summoner. "What'cha doin'?"

"This?" Ku motioned to the sphere in her hand. "It's a sphere I bought in Luca."

"Ooh…" Shuu ogled at the object. "Can I see it?"

"Well, it cost a lot of money… I mean… Hey! Shuu--" She reached out to reclaim the sphere as it was taken from her by the younger guardian.

Shuu focused the sphere's camera on Ku. "Heh," she said, "I feel like some kinda reporter!" Trying to mimic the newscasters she had seen in Luca, she said as seriously as she could, "So, Ku. Um… Oh, I know! You said before that Brother's still in Luca, right? How do you feel about that? We all know you miss him!"

Shuu stepped back instinctively as Ku grabbed the sides of her head. "What is it with you people? First Leviathan, now you…" Ku shook her head vigorously. "Brother's more like family than anything else! Like a…"-a pause- "erm… brother. I don't have any--" She stopped again and started waving her hands at Shuu, making the other just walk faster. "Shuu! Stop walk--"

Shuu, still thinking that Ku was crazy, felt herself step onto an uneven patch of land, where a hole had been dug. She gave a high-pitched yelp as she fell.

"--ing…"

Shuu glared at Ku while pushing the Stop button on the sphere. "Geez, thanks, Ku…"

Ku only grinned at the dirt-covered guardian. "I did warn you. Isn't that the second hole you've fallen in now?"

"Yeah, yeah," she grumbled as she pulled herself out of the pit. "Don't have to remind me…"

******************

The small group of three had been walking for almost half of the day now, though it usually only took a few hours to get through the Mi'ihen Highroad. Their tardiness was not due to the attacks of fiends; in fact, they had had very few encounters with any, and the ones that did attack were weak. Ku was happy that they had less to worry about, but she regretted that she was receiving very little fighting experience.

Cid would say that I'm getting lazy, she thought to herself, laughing inwardly.

The reason they had taken so long was their leisurely pace. The three companions took everything in, imprinting the calm landscape in their minds as well as they could. Zev and Ku had talked for the majority of the walk, and had gotten to know each other fairly well. The energetic Shuu, on the other hand, was constantly leaving the other two and getting herself into mischief. Whether it be stealing someone's necklace, falling into pits, or taking random treasures off the side of the road, she always seemed to be doing something wrong. Ku couldn't help but grin at the younger's antics; Shuu was like the best friend she had never found. It had soon become obvious on their journey, however, that Zev and Shuu were not the type to be mixed together.

Ku watched the bright afternoon sun for a moment, then turned back to her guardians. Ku sighed as she saw them arguing for the fourth time that day, and started walking a little faster. She thought she saw a building in the distance.

"Zev, Shuu?" Ku shouted back. She pointed to the building a few yards away from them. "What's that building?"

"That?" Shuu asked, running up to her Summoner. "That's the Al Bhed Travel Agency. It's like a shop and an inn all in one! Why don't we stop by?"

Ku remembered hearing about a travel agency from someone, but she couldn't think of what the conversation had been about, or with whom. She quickly shook it off and nodded. "Yeah, we might as well stop for now. I'm getting pretty tired from all the walking…"

"If Shuu not fall in holes and steal treasures, we not walk so long," Zev muttered.

"He-ey!" Shuu shouted at him, pouting. "Maybe if you didn't walk so slow, we would've been here a lot sooner!"

Ku shook her head, a slight grin playing on her lips, and started walking again to the travel agency.

This is going to be a long journey…


I was going to add more to this chapter, but I figure that should be enough. And it's a decent place to stop. Plus, I'm just really lazy. Meh.

A fairly uneventful chapter… I'll try to make the next one be a little more interesting. ^^