Gomen ne, minna-san! *bows* I had really hoped to get this chapter out sooner than this…but it's quite long, so hopefully that'll make up for the wait!
Japan was lots of fun ^_^ I was able to buy two X/1999 manga (one for me and one for Aihoshi), and a huge yaoi manga-thingy ^__^ I would've liked to buy more…but I ran out of money! T_T And time. Sigh.
Hi Sage! I never would've guessed that you were a fan of Wakka/Tidus o.O Wow, I learn new things all the time…. But then, I didn't know that you were a yaoi fan to begin with…so, I guess I had it coming ^^'' heh
By the way, this chapter has a slight hint of Auron/Rin… *cough* It was just too tempting to keep out! ^^'' *points at Yaoi Junkie* You can blame him for getting me into that pairing! Hehe ^^
Obviously (or so I should think) I don't own Final Fantasy X or any of its characters, and now that I've kept you here long enough, onto the fic! *hop*
~*~*~*~
"Tidus! Wakka!!" Yuna shrieked as she watched her friends fall over the ledge. "No!" She ran over to the edge, oblivious to her protesting guardians and the fiend looming near the cliff. It was too late to do anything to help, as the duo had already fallen nearly out of sight. The summoner stepped nearer to the edge cautiously, trying to spy a path down into the overlooking valley, but it was of no use. The cliff fell nearly exactly strait down from top to bottom (probably man made _). They would have to find a different route to find the two guardians-in-distress. Yuna shuddered, 'Tidus…he was so badly hurt before the fall…I hope he'll be okay…Wakka too…' the girl sighed and took a last look over the cliff.
"Yuna!" Kimahri's guttural voice split into her thoughts, and she realized with painful reality the situation she was in. She gazed quickly around for any sight of the imposing fiend, but was hoisted up over the Ronso's shoulder and carried away from harm before she could find it. A blush threatened to creep into her cheeks as she was set down gently after her ungainly escape, but she forced it back and watched as the blue catman and Auron ran towards the monster and began to beat it back once more. Yuna sighed and leaned against a nearby rock, and then turned to Lulu. The mage had used a potion on herself, and was now swiftly walking towards the battle to be an aide. The monster soon fell backwards, compliments of a fire spell from Lulu; Auron ran in and struck its unguarded body swiftly, directly followed by Kimahri's lancet attack. The force of the blows caused the beast to slide backwards, the abused grass glistening with sweat and drool in its wake. It forced itself upright, stumbling drunkenly before grinning sinisterly and pointing towards Lulu. Yuna shivered; it almost seemed like the monster had selected the mage as prey, mocking and daring her to escape. Lulu simply tightened her bangles in response, glaring at the ugly sod before letting loose a particularly nasty fire spell. The beast stumbled, teetering dangerously before regaining balance and swinging at the gothic guardian. Lulu dodged, leaving the monster vulnerable to an attack. Auron surged forward, shouting, "This ends now!" and stuck the beast with terrific power. The monster groaned in pain before stumbling back into the opposite side of the gorge. Pireflies soon rose, coloring the midday horizon with transparent rainbows.
Yuna hurried forward, casting cure spells on her three guardians. The four sheathed their weapons, breathing slowly returning to a normal pace. Yuna wasted no time; as soon as the other three had gotten their breath back, she ran towards the inn, calling for assistance.
~*~
Wakka started as the limp teen in his arms shifted and moaned quietly. He stared at Tidus, eyes widening in shock as the younger boy rose up and weakly kissed the underside of his jaw. A blush quickly engulfed Wakka's face, reflecting his sudden embarrassment at the situation. Seeing that the boy was still mostly unconscious, he held Tidus tightly and continued on his way. The kiss must have simply been caused by some dream, he figured. However, his mind continued to throw hopeful fireworks, and his blush stained cheeks refused to return to their natural color. He soon became very conscious of a warm forehead resting on the crook of his neck, and warm breath tickling his breastbone. He walked on, trying to keep a steady pace. What if Tidus had known what he was doing, but only used his half-asleep state as an alibi? No, he wouldn't do that…would he? Tidus couldn't possibly share his feelings, right? Right?
~*~
Rin hurried towards Yuna.
"I saw your friends fall," he exclaimed as he met with his four guests. "We must get to them quickly; the fall from this cliff is precarious, and they could be gravely injured." His expression was serious. "There is a path to the area that they have fallen to, but it is twisted and steep."
Yuna clenched her fists in determination; they would rescue Wakka and Tidus, no matter how dangerous the journey. She looked up at Rin, "How long will it take for us to get to them?"
"A day and a half, more or less depending on walking speed." Rin replied.
"Let's go," Auron stated, allowing Rin to take the lead before following him along with the others. The beginning of the path was hidden behind a large rock, and they walked single file into the opening. Rin led the way, holding back branches for Auron and warning of loose stones along the way. Lulu and Yuna followed him, with Kimahri following close behind. They walked in silence for nearly an hour before resting. They had become hungry, and the women prepared a make-shift lunch with the provisions that they happened to have. Kimahri sat above the four humans, keeping watch for any imposing fiends from a nearby tree. The four ate quickly in comfortable silence, enjoying the warm afternoon in spite of their imposing task. Finishing simultaneously, they stood and stretched before continuing on. Kimahri, having followed Yuna and the others, suddenly stopped. Yuna halted the others, looking in concern at the Ronso.
"Kimahri?" The Ronso held out his spear, answering her unasked question.
"Fiend approaching," he stated before wrinkling his nose, "Smell like raldo." He gazed about warily before the raldo appeared. It charged him, and he dodged the attack, pushing Yuna behind him. Lulu stepped in front of Yuna as well; guardians had to protect their summoner at all costs. Surely, Yuna could protect herself fairly well, but there was no harm in being cautious. Rin backed away from the fight slightly as he was unarmed and had little means to defend himself with. The raldo looked from person to person, trying to find the best place to attack. Kimahri rushed the fiend and slashed at it with his spear, but the attack did little damage, as its armor was extremely hard and thick. The raldo shook as if trying to shake off the discomfort, and then turned to look at Rin. The Al Bhed stepped back, alarmed, and rose his arms in a weak defense. The raldo rushed towards him, and Rin closed his eyes in expectancy of the impact. It never came. He looked up, just in time to see Auron finish slicing through the fiend and pireflies gather into the afternoon breeze. He found himself staring at the man, and then blushed slightly at the revelation. He stepped forward to thank him, but stepped on an unseen loose rock and lost his balance. He began to skid down the steep side of the path, but was saved from falling more than a few feet by a firm hand. Auron pulled Rin back up, the latter slightly speechless and feeling awkward. He finally looked up with an amused grin.
"Thank you, I believe that that's the second time in a row that you've saved my life." The red shade coloring his face grew slightly darker and he turned and began marching down the path again before Auron could respond. Auron simply stared after him before continuing after the Al Bhed with the others.
~*~
A short time passed until Wakka reached a suitable place to set up camp. He stopped and sat down carefully with his back against a tree trunk, still holding the unconscious boy. He gazed down at Tidus; the boy's wounds were healing progressively, though they were still deeper than his own almost healed ones. Within another hour, perhaps two, both guardians would be in fine condition once more. The younger guardian slept peacefully, his head still resting in the crook of Wakka's neck. It would be a shame to wake him now-there was no reason to do so. Wakka personally had no problem sleeping in the same position that they currently held, but as Tidus was sure to awaken within the near future, he would not look forward to explaining it. What could he say? 'Oh, I just thought that you might want to continue sitting on my lap?' Yeah, right. He carefully shifted the boy to a laying position, resting Tidus' head in his lap while he stretched out his legs. Should the boy wake, he would simply explain that he hadn't wanted to disturb him and that the ground couldn't possibly be comfortable (not that he minded having a blonde angel sleeping on him). Thus satisfied, he crossed his arms and went to sleep.
Nearly an hour later Tidus yawned, stretching lazily as he gradually woke up. He opened his eyes and was immediately confused; the last thing he remembered was being hit by the chocobo eater, and now he seemed to be lying in a dark forest on something soft. Soft? He looked up, becoming even more confused when he discovered that his head was lying on Wakka's lap. A blush immediately lit up his face, and he attempted to come up with an explanation for his situation. He got nothing. He turned a bit so that he was facing Wakka's stomach and began tracing little designs onto it with a finger. 'Oh well,' he thought, 'It doesn't matter.' He grinned secretively, 'Not as long as I'm with Wakka.' He'd been attracted to the older man for a while now, but as he thought that Wakka could never possibly return his feelings, and the fact that he was attracted to Yuna as well (albeit not as strongly as to Wakka ^^''), he had decided not to act upon his emotions. He had decided to form a close friendship to the blitzball captain, and flirt with him when it seemed inconspicuous, but to go no further than that and reap whatever satisfaction he could get. Tidus yawned again, feeling sleepy, and curled up against Wakka as well as he could in his current position. Should the other wake, he'd simply blame it on being cold. He smirked and fell back to sleep.
Wakka felt Tidus shift and gradually woke. He looked down at the boy, and was surprised to see that the younger guardian had curled up against his leg and was still sleeping peacefully. He smiled, 'Cute…' He leaned down, running his thumb over the boy's bottom lip. He then sat up jerkily, self-conscious. No, it wouldn't do to kiss Tidus. What if he woke? Now that would be fun to explain. Not. Wakka sighed and looked up at the waning moon, deciding that he might as well get some more sleep. A rustling in the nearby bushes made him tense, and he gazed about warily. He reached for his blitzball, and held it ready in preparation for a fiend attack. He wouldn't wake Tidus…yet. There was a possibility that the fiend wouldn't attack them at all. Wakka started as a condor burst out of the brush, and he slid Tidus' head off of his lap quickly (yet carefully) and stood up to defend. The bird rushed him, but the redhead dodged-barley. He turned and hurled his blitzball at the fiend, hitting it and causing it to devolve into a cloud of pireflies. He caught the blitzball and turned back to Tidus, glancing about for the presence of other fiends. The boy was awake, startled out of sleep from the sounds of battle. He looked up at Wakka in groggy concern.
"What was it? Were you hurt?"
Wakka sat by Tidus, "No, it was only a condor." Tidus looked vaguely relieved, but then gazed about in obvious confusion.
"Uh…Wakka, where are we?" Wakka smiled at the confused boy before explaining about the fall. Tidus glanced warily about. "Well, as we're obviously awake now, we might as well continue walking," He scratched the back of his head. Sure, he liked being with Wakka, but the others were certain to be worried. Besides, he was hungry and was starting to want to be back at the traveling agency. Wakka nodded and held out a hand to Tidus; Tidus stared at it for a second before realizing that the older boy was trying to help him up, and took it gratefully. He was beginning to feel the sores that still swamped his body, and once he was standing, he leaned lightly against Wakka.
They had walked for about ten minutes before the younger guardian stopped, blushing darkly. He had only just realized that he had never let go of Wakka's hand. Wakka looked at him, and Tidus simply looked about while trying to seem both innocent and inconspicuous. His blush didn't seem to want to help him, however. He silently cursed his embarrassment and continued walking, not meeting Wakka's eyes. He felt his heart rise in his chest as Wakka's hand gently tightened around his own, and he glanced at him. Wakka met his gaze and seemed about to say something, but was interrupted by the squishy sound that could only mean the approaching of a water flan. Wakka let go of Tidus' hand, pushing the boy slightly behind him as he reached for his blitzball. He threw the ball at the Jell-O-like creature, but it simply rebounded, causing only little damage. Tidus rushed towards the fiend, sword in hand, but his attack seemed to be just as futile at Wakka's. The flan reared, ready to spit a water spell at the two, but Wakka pushed Tidus out of the way before it could hit him. The spell hit Wakka in the stomach, and he doubled over, momentarily winded.
"Too bad Lu's not here…" He gasped, throwing his blitzball once more at the fiend. Tidus started forward to help Wakka, but was stopped by a familiar voice….
"Burn!" Lulu cast her fire spell with deadly accuracy, and the water flan had soon disappeared into the darkness. Yuna ran to Tidus, casting cure spells on both him and Wakka. It was about midnight, and the girl looked ready to fall asleep in the next few moments. The others soon joined with them, chatting happily with one another. After a few moments, the group headed back up the cliff. Yuna stumbled more than once in the next half-hour, and eventually Kimahri simply picked up the girl and carried her. She was soon asleep in his arms, but the Ronso seemed to not be delayed in any way by this added weight. Tidus swung his arms while he walked, and every so often Wakka felt the boy's hands make a brief contact with his own. He didn't know if there was any hidden meaning to this contact or if Tidus had no intention of hitting him with his actions, but he smiled to himself anyway. Perhaps there was hope in this non-existent relationship. Perhaps. The group continued to walk in silence.
~*~
Dawn came and went, and the sun was well on the way of its daily tour by the time the group reached the travel agency. They were all exhausted (with the exception of Yuna and Kimahri, naturally. Yuna had had a nice long slumber in the Ronso's arms, and Kimahri…well, Kimahri had the ability to stay up for days without getting tired. Or had gotten used to insomnia [*cough* like the author _]. Or had had an excessive amount of coffee before traveling down the cliff. Or tea. Something. [Can you imagine Kimahri on a hyper rush? Yeesh.]), and they trudged into the inn. Rin spoke with his assistant for a couple of minutes before turning to them.
"We have a slight problem." The group perked up and listened, in spite of being tired. Rin looked concerned, "It seems that the crusaders have filled up my traveling agency, and his room had to be given away," He pointed at Tidus. "However, if one of you wouldn't mind sharing a room with him, an extra bed should be able to be put into that room for him to sleep on." Tidus looked around, wondering who would lend him a room. Auron wouldn't do-the old man would probably be a nightmare to stay with. Kimahri probably wouldn't be much better. And the girls? He could never ask to stay with either of them, the prospect made him blush while he was thinking about it. Besides, Yuna deserved her privacy and Lulu would probably burn him with a fire spell were he cheeky enough to ask. That left…Wakka. He felt his throat constrict once more as he looked towards the redhead. The blitzball captain grinned at him.
"Tidus can bunk with me," He stated, then put the younger boy into a headlock, "Just as long as he lets me sleep, ya?" Tidus fought his way out clumsily, face warming in embarrassment.
"C-cut it out, Wakka!" He freed himself and glared lightly at the redhead, trying to revive his dignity. Rin smiled.
"It's all settled then," He announced, "An extra bed should be brought up by nightfall." The Al Bhed glanced about, "But before we sleep, how about we get something to eat?" Tidus grinned.
"Right on; I'm starving!"
~*~
They had eaten a luncheon of sandwiches, an interesting red fruit called yuzu, and juice. Now that everyone had retreated to their respective rooms, Wakka and Tidus faced an interesting prospect. An extra bed had been ordered, promised to be brought by nightfall, but since the current bed was large and situated in the center of the room, there was no way for another to fit inside. Both guardians were exhausted and filthy from hiking and fighting, so Wakka decided to push the bed to one corner of the room while Tidus cleaned up. They didn't plan further than that. Tidus walked into the bathroom, stripped from his sweaty clothes and got into the shower. The water was scalding at first, but soon it became comfortingly warm, washing away the day's grime. He closed his eyes and let his mind wander. The water soothed him, and by the time he deemed good to get out, he was about half asleep. He sleepily dried himself off and clothed himself with his boxers and one of the inn's complimentary robes, and walked back into the room. Wakka had pushed the bed to the far side of the room by this time, and Tidus flopped onto it. Wakka walked into the bathroom, about to take his own shower, and Tidus snuggled under the covers. He knew that he shouldn't be sleeping, at least on the bed, since it was Wakka's room, but he was just so tired…. His mind gave up protesting as he was overcome with exhaustion, and the boy was quickly asleep.
Wakka walked back into the room, nearly as tired as Tidus had been. He spotted the boy on his bed, sleeping, and a blush invaded his features. Surely Tidus wouldn't mind if he shared the bed with him, it was, after all, his bed and it was large enough for both of them to have ample room. He climbed into it and slid under the covers, overly aware of the smaller boy next to him, but too tired to let his embarrassment do anything about it. He was soon asleep as well.
~*~
Rin knocked on Wakka and Tidus' door before opening it gently and peering inside. He had finally managed to find an extra bed, and he had simply gone to check with the boys before bringing it in. He spotted them, and then suppressed the urge to giggle. The two guardians were sleeping peacefully side by side on the one bed, cuddling gently. He smirked and closed the door quietly. There was no need to disturb them; he'd bring an extra bed if they wanted it the next day. Smiling knowingly, Rin walked off to his own room, prepared to delve into some much-needed sleep.
~*~*~*~
Whee! Wasn't that fun! ^_^ Review, review, shoo, shoo! I'll give you strawberries! And Pocky! Mmmm….
Now I'm never going to update, ever again!
April Fools! ^__^
What?! I had to do something to celebrate it, ne?! ^^
-Miniji