"Rikku!"
The Al Bhed turned her head, her braids falling in front of her brilliant green eyes. She reluctantly pulled herself from her chosen seat: the floor in the very back corner of the engine room. She stormed angrily toward the door.
That good-for-nothing father of hers! She had spent the morning scouring the Celsius for a place to think, and he had just ruined it for her. It was his fault the place was so crowded, anyway; Cid's brilliant plan to make money had turned a vessel of absolute freedom into a ferry—a freaking cruise ship.
Rikku was about to give her vydran a rather large piece of her mind when she stopped, her mouth stuck hanging open.
"What're ya doing here?" Cid scolded in his husky voice, pushing past her. "Can't a man show another man the engine room of his airship without interruption? Hmm?"
Rikku was so outraged she collected herself in a second and began yelling in tones to match her parent's. "Can't a girl find a place to think without her idiot father bringing in—!" She pointed an accusing finger at her father's guest but could not conjure an insult worthy of her frustration. "Agh!"
She marched out, not giving her former boyfriend a second's eye contact on her rather angry way.
*
Rikku fumed in her small bedchamber until dusk laid its darkening fingers over the sky. She then snuck up onto the deck, just in time to greet the last cloud-gazing passenger on his way down to dinner. She greeted the man, a fake grin of hospitality plastered on her face.
The deck was cleared. She had an entire night to pretend that the Celsius still meant complete freedom, that it still was the center of never-ending adventure. Perhaps she would close her eyes at one point and pretend Paine and Yuna were next to her, laughing with her—or even at her, it didn't really matter.
Those times were already old times, and it had only been a year and a half since they had all defeated Vegnagun together. The other two were settled now, having found their happiness down there on the surface. Yuna with Tidus and Paine working with Baralai and Nooj to further bind the Youth League and New Yevon.
Rikku peered over the edge of the airship. She squinted her spiraled eyes and saw through the clouds to a sparkling city below her. Was it Luca? It had to be Luca.
No one was playing blitzball there now; it was the off-season. Instead, surely, plenty of clever players were going mind-to-mind in endless games of Sphere Break. She hadn't picked up the game again since her humiliating defeat at the hands of Shinra. It took someone smart and patient to work at a game like that. Someone…like a person she used to know…
The thief withdrew a faintly shimmering sphere. In a few seconds and with a lot of sparkle, her attire changed. She felt stronger and more capable.
The Al Bhed pulled up the baggy red sleeves of her coat and hoisted the large sword into action. She began to fight invisible enemies all across the deck, swinging the impossibly heavy blade from right to left. In fifteen minutes she pushed herself to the point of exhaustion. She collapsed happily, feeling safely alone.
It started raining, but, as the Celsius flew above the clouds, Rikku only felt the cold drizzle the wind swept up around the ship. She set her sword down and removed the samurai head armor. Then she curled up on her side and pulled the coat tightly around her body.
The smell of the coat and the gentleness of the water droplets running over her cheeks were enough to relax the girl, lulling her into a dreamlike state. She was at peace until she felt a toe nudging her shoulder.
"Mmm…what…?" she murmured. She turned over. The first thing she noticed about her visitor was that he had an…eye patch?
The girl vaulted up, instantly awake, aware, and defensive.
"Cool down," Gippal laughed. "What, this deck's not big enough for the two of us?"
"Exactly," Rikku spat out. "Now, if you'll excuse me—" She grabbed for the sword and headgear, and fumbled them.
The spiky-haired man bent down and retrieved the sword for her while Rikku tried to arrange the awkward helmet over her free hair. She wore it in a ponytail and braids so much that usually it was nice to have it falling down her back in gentle, blond waves. But today…
"I can take that," Rikku declared, grabbing the hilt of the katana. She pulled the blade up and leaned on it like it was an oversized crutch, and glared up into Gippal's amused face.
"You're so cute when you're angry."
Rikku pulled up the sword and began walking away. She didn't have time to stand there and blush for him just because he wanted her to. There were probably tons of girls across Spira that had been stupid enough to fall for his lines, too. Well, she wasn't going to make the same mistake again. No way!
Gippal's fingers were wrapped around her sleeve already.
A rumbling arose in the Al Bhed girl's throat.
"Aw, don't be mad with me, my little lidea."
Rikku found her body freezing at the sound of the old nickname. She tried to will her muscles into motion again. No, that's probably what he calls all his other girlfriends. I'm not that special to him. Not like I used to let him be special to me…
"What's with that dirty old coat?" Gippal wondered, letting go of her for a moment.
She spun and prepared to start shrieking at him. The mixture of satisfaction and amusement on his face told her that he had been looking to get a rise out of the girl. She felt even angrier, knowing she had fallen into his trap. She gave up her shrieking and faced away from him once more.
"You wouldn't understand," Rikku said as coolly as possible. Something about the coat and the sword made it easier to talk to him like she was a good ten feet taller than usual. "I wouldn't expect you to." She really wanted to carelessly carry the sword on her shoulder and give him a sideways, cocky look, but she possessed no strength for such a feat and wasn't about to make an idiot of herself trying.
"So you found yourself a new guy," Gippal observed with a light chuckle in his voice. "After what we meant to each other," he teased with mock disappointment.
"You're the one who broke up with me."
Gippal began a three hundred and sixty degree inspection, pacing around the girl and looking her up and down. A true Al Bhed he was, studying her just as he would an unfamiliar machina!
"What a weird guy this lucky fellow must be," Gippal muttered under his breath. "Got you in old samurai getup!"
Rikku leaned on her sword again and lowered her face. He always knew how to get to her! No way he would get the satisfaction of seeing her face twisted with anger and frustration.
"At least people don't confuse me with a pirate," she snorted suddenly, quite pleased with herself.
"I'm hurt," he lied, his eyes grinning as his mouth fought to keep itself in a frown. "You know it wasn't my fault."
"It was too!" She could hardly believe this guy! "You were ten and stupid enough to be experimenting with mixing bomb fragments without any goggles on!"
Gippal pushed his lips into a boyish pout and crossed his arms. "You were mixing up bombs then and I never saw you with any goggles …"
Rikku beamed. "I'm just that good."
"You are that good," Gippal said in a low voice, his arms around her waist and climbing. The katana clattered to the airship deck.
The girl inhaled sharply as her system began to cope with the sudden release of hormones. It took her a moment to remember how much she hated him. "You meanie! Get—offa—me—!"
The more she struggled the tighter his grip became.
She began trying to jab him with her headgear. That would teach him!
"Ow! What're you doing?" Gippal let go of her long enough to pull off the dangerous helmet. He inspected the pointed thing with one rather intrigued eye. "So this is why you've got that new outfit—you're armed with weapons to keep other guys from getting to those sweet lips of yours."
Warm blood gushed through Rikku's body. She drew back, a little frightened but a lot excited.
"You're pretty good with those lines," she accused, taking small, cautious steps backwards. "Just how much practice have you gotten with them?"
"If I've been practicing," Gippal replied, smirking as he began to pursue her, "it's only so I have the perfect words to woo you, lidea."
"Meyn," Rikku grumbled, folding her arms across her chest. The wind caught her loose hair and whipped it wildly to the side. The lights from the front of the airship highlighted her silhouette against the blackening night sky. She appeared much like an untrusting angel whose heart had been broken once too many times.
Gippal looked like he might crumble before her. Either that or melt.
"Why would I lie to you?"
"You lied before."
"When?"
Rikku bit her lip. She didn't want to start sniveling in front of him.
"I never lied to you, my lidea—"
"Stop calling me that! And you did lie! You said you loved me and then you broke up with me!"
"Rikku…E tu muja oui," he whispered softly.
"Meyn!" she screamed. "You're lying again!"
Tears were in her eyes but they were not permitted to trespass any further. She never cried, at least not over stupid stuff like this. She'd cried when she'd lost people important to her. People stronger and kinder than this lying jerk in front of her. People like Auron, who had looked after her…
Rikku fell to her knees and began to sob softly. Gippal didn't react at first—he was probably too shocked to see her cry for the first time. Then he gently descended to his knees and put his arm around her.
"Rikku, I'm sorry I hurt you."
"I'm not crying about you!" she protested, burying her face in the fabric of her sleeves. "What kinda sissy d'ya think I am?"
"Then what's got you upset? That samurai guy? I'll go beat him up for you!"
She punched his shoulder, and hard. The tears stopped as suddenly as they had burst forth, so she glared at him with a wet, red face. "Even if you could do that, I wouldn't let you. He was much more of a man than you. He knew how to…protect someone…"
Gippal rubbed her back and stood up. He let his head droop slightly as the now icy rain washed over his sun-darkened skin. "I finally got to use my lines on you, but I guess I waited too long." He chuckled hollowly. "Sorry it took me all this time to grow up and get my act together. I was too busy worrying about the Machine Faction and then Nooj and Baralai and Vegnagun. I wasted so many chances I had to get you back into my life."
"I didn't want to break up," Rikku reminded him, standing up and straightening out the coat. "It was you who 'needed your space.'"
"I could never see you! You and Brother started the Gullwings and you were always on some mission away from me! I was tied to a girl I never got to be with!"
"There's no use dwelling on it now. You already gave up." She shrugged, pretended not to be hurt, and moved past him to get her head armor and sword.
"You have another guy!"
"A guy I wish I could have spent more time with, but he's been gone a long time…"
Gippal stalked across the deck as if the harsh wind that was blowing didn't affect him at all. The gusts certainly threatened to topple the much lighter Rikku over. "What're you talking about?" he demanded of her.
"The guy who was so wonderful to me…whose coat this was…" She massaged the fabric between her fingers. "He died three years ago—well, ten years before that, actually… It's hard to explain." Rikku righted the armor on her head and grasped the sword's hilt firmly. She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. Then she touched the sphere within her pocket. After a cloud of sparkles she was clothed in the warm robes of a white mage.
Gippal was just watching, his expression revealing the confusion under which he suffered.
Rikku adjusted the white hood over her long blond hair. "During the final battle, he talked to all of us, he talked to Yuna…but never specifically to me. Even though I wore his clothes and used his sword." Rikku sniffled and pretended to herself that it was just the cold. "Even if he never felt like I did about him, I still would have liked to have him in my life."
"So you're going to cling to the memory of a dead guy…" His sentence went unfinished for a reason. Auron's memory was more loveable than a leaving, breathing Gippal?
"I liked you, Gippal," Rikku said. "I liked you for a long time. After we were together for three months I felt like I loved you, too. You said you loved me—I was so happy—and two weeks later you were saying goodbye!"
"I'm sorry," he told her earnestly, coming forward and taking her gloved hand.
"You're sorry?" she growled, trying to retrieve her hand but discovering his grip to be very strong. "You broke my heart! It's unforgivable!"
"And I've regretted it all this time. No apology could ever be enough so I was scared to try." He laughed, gently mocking himself. "I got up the courage to tell you how much I need you, my little lidea, and I find you've been dreaming about some long lost samurai."
She succeeded in yanking her hand back from him. "He's not just some guy. He wasn't…! He was someone special—someone who could have protected me…"
"The Rikku I used to know never needed any protecting."
So she wasn't allowed to have that special need? That secret desire to have a devoted protector of her own, as Yuna had Tidus, as Lulu had Wakka—hell, even as Leblanc had her Noojie-Woojie!
Rikku made to stomp away from that jerk, that insensitive pig Gippal. She could go against her nature and cling to a memory of a dead guy if she couldn't have someone real right there.
She was always on the move and full of energy and what she truly needed was somebody strong and happy who could keep up with her. For a few months two years ago she had foolishly believed Gippal could be that somebody for her.
"But I'm glad," Gippal said.
She stopped and turned. "What?"
"I'm glad Rikku changed. I never felt as close to that Rikku because she was so independent. I wanted to take care of her, but she would never let me."
Rikku let her anger gently leak out of her into the drizzly night sky. She looked into Gippal's illuminated face. His features told her he was being sincere with all he was.
"But this Rikku wants to be taken care of," Gippal mused. "That's interesting…" One of his hands returned to her waist and he pulled her body against his. He used his other hand to reach into her hood and stroke her hair.
"Oui muja sa?" the girl whispered, reaching her mouth up to his by balancing on her tiptoes.
"Vunajan."
***
Glossaryvydran – father
lidea – cutie
meyn – liar
"E tu muja oui" – I do love you
"Oui muja sa?" – You love me?
vunajan – forever