DISCLAIMER: I do not own any locations, characters, or names associated with Final Fantasy X or Final Fantasy X-2. I do, however, own this story J
Author's Notes: I hope everybody likes this chapter. I wasn't sure if I wanted to have something like this happen but the more I thought about it, I decided that this is the direction that I want the story to go in.
Below is chapter 12. Leave a review and let me know what you think J
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SILVER WINGS
by akksgurl
Chapter Twelve: Blood on the Carpet
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The incessant ringing of his cell phone woke Shuyin and Lenne around 9am the next morning. The young couple lay wrapped in each other's arms and Shuyin had to gently pull his arm out from under the songstress to reach his jeans – and therefore, his cell – which were lying on the floor. Blinking the sleep from his eyes, Shuyin pushed the TALK button and said groggily, "Hello?"
"Good morning, sunshine." Came Zaon's overly cheery voice.
Shuyin smiled and sat up letting the sheet fall away from his toned torso, "Good morning, Zaon. To what do I owe the pleasure?"
"Well, I just wanted to tell you about the weirdest dream." Zaon said, a small laugh in his voice, "I dreamt that you and Lenne were outside of her house in your underwear yelling at Allyn who was sitting in a mud puddle. Do you have any idea what might have caused that dream?"
Shuyin's laugh caused the half-asleep songstress at his side to jump, "What is so funny?" she asked.
Her boyfriend put a hand over the receiver and replied, "Zaon saw us last night with Allyn."
"Did Yuna see?!" Lenne cried, louder than she wanted to. The young songstress was not in the mood to have a lecture from her best friend about how stupid it was to sleep with a man that – just the day before – was having sex with his ex girlfriend.
Shuyin relayed Lenne's question to Zaon and then said to the woman, "No, he said she was asleep by then."
"Yuna's getting groceries." Zaon said, once again gaining Shuyin's attention, "Why don't I come over and we'll talk. I've got at least 30 minutes before she's due back." Shuyin could feel the smirk on his best friend's features as Zaon asked, "You are at home, aren't you?"
"You know damn well where I am, you dork." Shuyin replied, "That's why you called my cell and not my home."
"That's true!" cried Zaon, "So, interested in some company?"
After gaining the okay from Lenne, Shuyin and Zaon hung up agreeing that the blue haired husband of Yunalesca would join them in 10 minutes which gave Lenne enough time to quickly make some pancakes. By the time Zaon joined the duo, breakfast was being served and he took his seat across from Shuyin. Smiling broadly, Zaon asked, "So why was Allyn here and sitting in mud?"
Lenne giggled a little as she downed a gulp of orange juice and Shuyin smiled before saying, "I don't know where to start on that one."
"Starting at the beginning is always a good idea." Suggested Zaon with a wink.
"The beginning," Shuyin replied, "has too much information that you don't need to know. I think I'll start at the middle."
Taking a sip of the juice before him, Shuyin began his detailed description of just what happened from the moment he noticed the shadow at the window to when Allyn was dropped into the mud. He especially took great care to describe how a furious Allyn had pounded the ground next to her but only succeeded in splashing more mud upon herself.
Zaon's laughter was joined by Lenne's and Shuyin's at the sheer lunacy of the entire scene Shuyin's description had painted. After Zaon finally caught his breath, he said, "Sounds like I missed a fun filled evening. I would have paid to see that close up."
"She deserved it." Remarked Lenne as she reached down to clear the dishes left on the table. She smiled at Shuyin before turning to Zaon and saying, "I'm sick of her interfering. Maybe she'll get the hint now."
"Yeah. Hopefully she'll see I don't want anything to do with her." Shuyin added.
Lenne cocked her eyebrow at him, "Well, if she's getting mixed signals it's hard to blame her…"
"I thought you forgave that." Said Shuyin.
Lenne smiled, "I do, but you have to admit that last night was entirely your fault. You caused her to think there was hope."
"I agree with Lennie." Zaon said.
Shuyin threw his hands in the air in fake exasperation, "Everyone's against me!"
The trio laughed a little and chatted about unimportant topics until Zaon looked at his watch, "Well, Yuna should be getting home any minute now. I'd better get going." He stood and kissed Lenne on the cheek, "Don't worry. I won't tell Yuna that you…uh…forgave him." He said with a wink, "Your secret is safe with me." Shutting the door behind himself, Zaon left the couple alone.
The blitzer followed his girlfriend into the kitchen with a handful of dishes to help her clean. She pointed to the counter, "Just put them there. I'll take care of it."
Shuyin shrugged and backed up, bumping a spiral notebook off of the counter. He picked it up and noticed some scribblings on the front page.
I know that you're hiding things
Using gentle words to shelter me
Your words were like a dream
Lenne let out a little squeal and ripped the book from his hands, "No! That's private."
"What is it?" asked Shuyin, his interest peaked.
"It's a song I'm writing."
Shuyin smiled, "Can I hear it?" Lenne shook her head and shoved the book into a nearby drawer. Shuyin laughed a little, "I'm going to hear it when you sing it at the game anyway. Why can't I hear it now?"
"First," Lenne replied, putting a hand on her hip, "It's not finished. Second, I'm not writing it for a game."
"What are you writing it for then?"
Lenne blushed and turned away as she whispered, "It's a song I'm writing for you."
Shuyin grinned, "Well, I suppose I could wait to hear it when it is finished." Lenne looked at him with her broadest grin of the morning and Shuyin wished he could lock that look on her face in his mind forever. She was happy, peaceful. If he was unsure of his love for her at all, he was sure now. "I've got to get going, babe." Shuyin said as he kissed her softly, "If I'm late to practice again, Wargna's going to kill me."
Lenne smiled, "Do you have to go?" she asked with a suggestive wink.
Nodding, Shuyin replied, "I'd much rather stay with you, but I have a job to do."
"I really wish you didn't have to leave." Lenne confessed, "but if you must, you must."
Shuyin kissed her forehead, "I must, but I will be back."
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Shuyin had been gone for about a half hour when the doorbell rang. Lenne thought it was Yunalesca and Zaon although when they'd asked if she wanted to join them for a walk near the blitzball stadium she'd declined. Maybe they were there to try and change her mind.
Lenne reached for the door and opened it while saying, "I told you guys that I'm not interes…." The person before her wasn't Zaon or Yunalesca. Whoever it was, was wearing all black – including a ski mask – to hide their features. Their hands were covered in leather gloves but it was the knife in the person's hand that sent alarm bells off in Lenne's head. Instinctively, Lenne made a move to slam the door but her unwanted visitor was faster and forced their way inside, brandishing the knife like it was a toy.
Her assailant kicked the door closed behind her as Lenne made a dash toward the kitchen in the hopes of getting a knife for herself but her assailant was faster and grabbed the songstress's hair, pulling her backward until Lenne lost her balance and fell to the ground. Lenne saw the knife heading toward her and she turned on the ground as quickly as she could but the assailant's aim was true and the knife penetrated deeply into Lenne's left arm.
Lenne screamed out in pain and was just dazed enough to not see the next attack until the knife was firmly in her left side. Her scream seemed to echo off of the walls as the attacker continued to cut and stab her. Finally the assailant backed off. All Lenne could feel was the pain as her blurry vision tried to find where her assailant had gotten to. She saw the person throwing some old vases into a bag before he stared long and hard at her photographs that were lined neatly. There were a few of herself with Yunalesca and a few of herself with Zaon. The man ended up grabbing the one of herself with Shuyin and throwing it into the bag. Lenne tried to say something but all she got for her trouble was the realization that blood was coming from her mouth as well as the other wounds that had been recently inflicted.
"Still alive, are we?" her assailant hissed. It was a man's voice but it wasn't one that she recognized. He leaned down closer to her face, "Well, you won't be for long. You'll bleed to death long before anybody finds you."
Lenne coughed the blood from her lungs and let out one final scream before the man balled his hand into a fist, and smacked her hard against the temple and Lenne's world went black.
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The blitzball connected with the back of Shuyin's head, but the blitzer didn't seem to notice. Something was wrong. He could feel it. A cold sense of dread came over his body and soul and he'd learned to listen to it.
The last time he'd felt like this was when his parents had died.
Ignoring the confused looks of his teammates – particularly those of Skirpa and Bruttam – Shuyin swam out of the sphere pool and ran over to Wargna, "I need to leave, right now." He said.
"What?!" shrieked Wargna, "You were late to the last practice and now you want to leave early!"
Shuyin's eyes took on a desperate light, "I really need to leave. Something is wrong. I just know it." The blitzer didn't wait for his coach's response as he ran, dripping wet, from the stadium. He ignored Skirpa and Bruttam's shouts to wait up and plunged into the daylight outside of the stadium where he ran right into Zaon and Yunalesca.
"Practice is over already?" Zaon asked but his friend didn't answer. He ran around his best friend and his wife and into the direction of Lenne's house. His heart was pounding and his breath was ragged.
Something was wrong….
Shuyin could hear footsteps and shouts behind him. Yunalesca, Zaon, Skirpa, and Bruttam were following him. Normally the blitzer would have stopped and waited for them, but he couldn't this time. Something told him that every second he wasted would have dire consequences.
The outside of Lenne's house looked fine. Her front door was closed and her lights were on. Nothing appeared to be out of place on the outside, but when Shuyin put a shaking hand on her doorknob to open it, he noticed a small drop of blood near his foot. His heart nearly jumped through his throat as he threw the door open and screamed.
Lenne was lying in a pool of her own blood. The songstress' face was pale and a bruise was forming near her temple. Shuyin dove to his knees, unconcerned that he was lying in her blood. He lifted her gently in his arms and started screaming, "Lennie! Lennie! Wake up!"
"Lenne!" Yunalesca's scream was almost as loud as Shuyin's and the blonde female knelt on the other side of her friend and stroked her hair. Skirpa, Bruttam, and Zaon didn't move. It was as if they were frozen in place. The blitzer was screaming and crying, trying to awaken his girlfriend while the blond summoner was stroking her hair and talking to her as if she could hear.
Zaon took a tentative step toward the scene and gently placed a finger on Lenne's neck to feel her pulse. He was sure there wouldn't be one and wasn't sure how he was going to tell Shuyin and Yunalesca, but to his surprise her pulse was there. It was weak, but there. The blue-haired man turned to Bruttam, "Call an ambulance, now!"
The next hour was a blur for Shuyin. He saw police and ambulances. Sirens and lights flashed from outside as people came and went. Doctors attended to Lenne and tried to stop her bleeding as they hooked her up to IV's and put her on a stretcher for transportation to Zanarkand Memorial Hospital. This entire time, Shuyin didn't move. His eyes were focused on the huge puddle of blood that was staining Lenne's white carpet. The color seemed to be taking up the entire room and drowning out every other color. Everything that reminded him of Lenne seemed to be drowning in red.
"This place looks much better than when Yuna lived here. Less pink…"
"I hate pink. Blue is my favorite color."
His hands were covered in blood and it dripped down his shirt and pants like water. He vaguely felt a hand on his shoulder and heard Zaon say something about going to the hospital. Shuyin let his friend lead him from the blood filled room and out into the yard where Yunalesca was rinsing her clothes off with a hose and offered to do the same thing for Shuyin.
The cold water didn't faze him. Shuyin didn't move or shiver or shake as it connected with his bare face and rinsed Lenne's blood from his clothes. He barely acknowledged movement as Zaon led him to his car and proceeded to drive himself, Yunalesca, and Shuyin to the hospital.
The trio was quickly ushered into the emergency room where the doctors were giving a synopsis of Lenne's condition. Shuyin, however, wasn't listening. He was drawn inexplicably toward the window curtain that sheltered Lenne's emergency room cot from the waiting area. Gently pulling the curtain aside, Shuyin had to hold back a sob at what he saw.
Lenne was hooked up to three IV needles that each seemed to be pumping a different kind of clear liquid into her veins. Her face was taking on a yellow color that was offset only by the purplish bruise just next to her left eye.
Why had he left her alone?! She hadn't wanted him to leave. He shouldn't have left. Why did he leave her? He'd promised her that he wouldn't leave her and he did.
"You'll never be alone as long as I'm alive."
"Shu," Zaon's voice was like a shot in the dark and Shuyin jumped when his friend put a hand on his shoulder.
"What?" Shuyin said, more harshly than he wanted to. His nerves were frazzled and he hated feeling like this was his fault. Knowing that this was his fault.
"The police are done at Lenne's. They said it looks like a robbery gone bad because some vases and picture frames were taken." he gave Shuyin a caring smile, "I'm going to take Yuna home. She's really upset and there's nothing more we can do here right now. Do you want me to drop you off too?"
Shuyin shook his head and looked at Lenne again. She seemed so helpless in that bed. Helpless…tiny. He could feel his heart literally breaking and the pain was enormous. The blitzer shook his head, "I'm going to stay here with her."
Zaon nodded, "Okay." He whispered as he wrapped an arm around Shuyin's shoulder and gave his best friend a half-hug, "Call me if you need anything. I don't care what time it is."
Shuyin stood staring into Lenne's room for almost an hour after his friends had left. It was dark outside but the blitzer didn't care what time it was. He didn't care that the wing of the hospital was practically empty as family and friends of the other patients were going home.
He just wanted to be with Lenne.
The sound of her heart monitor was both frightening and comforting. It scared him that she was like this but it comforted him that her heartbeat was strong. It gave him hope that she'd open her eyes and look at him again. Taking a seat next to her bed, Shuyin laid his head upon her stomach and let himself drift into a dreamless sleep.
The first beams of daylight woke Shuyin a few hours later and he blinked the sleep from his eyes as the realization of where he was dawned on him. He stood slowly and stretched his weary muscles and walked over to the window. The sunrise was breathtaking as it always was in A-East.
"The city lights go out one by one. The stars fade, then the horizon glows, almost like it's on fire. It's kinda rose-colored, right? First in the sea, then it spreads to the sky, then to the whole city. It gets brighter and brighter, till everything glows. It's really…pretty"
"It is beautiful. You can't see it so well in C-South. The smog tends to hide the skyline."
"That's exactly why I'd never want to live there. In A-East you can take a deep breath and not worry about what organisms you just inhaled."
A single tear streamed down his face as he turned back to Lenne. She hadn't moved and was breathing steadily through the tubes they had sticking up her nostrils. Her beautiful body was covered in bandages from the multiple stab wounds she'd received and the bruise on her face looked worse than it had just a few hours before.
Who could have done this to her? Why would someone have done this to her? Robbery or no, Lenne wouldn't have struggled with the person. They could have just taken what they wanted and left. It just didn't feel right. It made no sense to attack this woman over vases and picture frames!
Something wasn't right….
Shuyin ran tired fingers over his hair and turned his back to the window still thinking about this when his breath caught in his throat.
"This isn't over, bitch."
Allyn! Allyn had threatened Lenne. She'd done it before but there was something about her threat last night that seemed much more imminent. Allyn wouldn't have done it herself. No, Allyn wouldn't have wanted to risk it herself but she could have hired someone to do it. Someone in her father's army, perhaps? Did Reiber know anything about it?
Shuyin growled angrily in his throat at the mere thought that Allyn would do this to Lenne. Taking one last look at Lenne, Shuyin stormed out of the hospital. Bevelle held the answer and that was exactly where Shuyin was headed.
