I know, it's been ages since I wrote. I actually sat down and FINISHED FFX over winter break, go me, lol...beat it in under a year. Would've gotten it done in a month or two if I actually played every day...but it was more of a weekend "I've got time to kill" thing. Ah hell, on with the story...
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Chapter 5 - Nature's Confessional
The tree is nature's confessional. Declarations of love have been carved into their trunks, secrets whispered among their branches. The trees of Macalania Woods were no different, including the particular one that now served as a temporary shelter to the evicted Tidus and Wakka. Luckily for them, the normal nightly rain had ceased to come that evening and the branches were relatively dry, serving as a solid, yet unreliable place to spend the night. However, it was their only choice, as they definitely didn't want to intrude on the happily reunited couple...no matter what they were doing.
True, it was the question of what WERE they doing that made the choice of a tree for a sleeping place so unreliable, as Wakka shifted nervously on the branch every ten seconds or so. Finally, as Tidus was jarred from a state of half-sleep for the seventh time, he decided to speak up. "Wakka, what's the deal? How am I going to get any rest with you shaking me all over the place?" Wakka sighed and slumped back against the trunk, "Ah, it's nuttin'...just...I'm worried, ya?" Tidus hooked his legs over his branch and flipped down to look at his companion in the face. "Worried? What the heck are you worried about? I know Lulu can get scary once in a while, but it's your brother...he can handle her." Tidus laughed. Wakka turned away, "I'm not worried about Chappu..." he mumbled. Tidus could've sworn he saw the other man's face flush red for a minute, but ignored it. "So, you're worried Lulu won't be able to handle your brother? Too much energy in your family, is that it?" He grinned and chuckled a bit, causing Wakka to flush brighter. "That's not it, you idiot!" he growled, slamming his fist into Tidus' branch and sending him crashing to the ground.
Landing with an audible thud, Tidus sat up on the forest floor holding his head. "Ow! Man, what didja do that for? I was kidding! Sheeh..." Wakka jumped down and sat next to Tidus, leaning against the base of the tree. "Sorry, it's just...I'm not comfortable with all this." he mumbled, running a hand through his hair. Tidus scooted next to him and leaned back against the tree, "You're in love with Lulu, aren't you?" Wakka stared at him; Tidus was a true blonde, but once in a while he would put all the pieces together and come up with a true insight. In this case, he hit the nail on the head, and Wakka was worried that he was actually transparent enough to let this secret show through. Tidus grinned a little, "I knew it! And now you're worried that Chappu's return is just going to screw up any chance you had with her. She'll forget all about you and go back to being obsessed with him! And you don't want to be left out in the col-" Wakka clamped a hand over Tidus' mouth, "Shh! You wanna go waking everyone else up? Keep quiet about it, ya?" He signed again and looked up at a patch of sky peeking through the canopy. "Ya...I am in love with her. I just couldn't handle seeing her so heartbroken over my brother's death. I promised him I'd protect her...guess I took that vow a little too seriously now, ya? But, she's Chappu's woman now...always was..." The Besaid man stretched out, placing his arms behind his head, and drew in a long breath. "It's not like I can do anything about it...she's happy with Chappu...let them have their happiness. I'm happy, too, to have my brother back..."
As Wakka drifted off to sleep, Tidus sat there letting this new information soak into his head. The "brother and sister" relationship he had noticed between Wakka and Lulu was really more complex than he thought. A quick glance over to their former tent showed little more than blurry shadows that grew weaker with the dying fire. Not that Tidus was looking for a free show or anything, but he WAS curious as to what they were doing in there. Was is just idle talk, or were Lulu and Chappu really that involved when he was alive? It was sort of a situation that paralleled his own...there was Wakka, in love with a woman who was already bound to another. In Wakka's case, his love interest was bound to another man, not the fate of the world, like Yuna. Still, he had total sympathy for his comrade. Love triangles are tough to handle...especially when family gets involved.
Meanwhile, in another tent, Rikku was just as restless as Wakka, stirring about and flipping around in her sleeping bag. Yuna mumbled and poked Rikku in the back, "Is everything ok?" Rikku sat up and nearly screamed at her cousin, "Of course everything's not ok! Auron is over there, doing god knows WHAT to Lulu, while all of YOU think he's Wakka's dead brother! Dead! Do you hear me? Chappu is dead! That's AURON!" Yuna sat up and clamped a hand over the screaming Al Bhed's mouth, trying to drown out her hysterics. "Shh! Do you want to wake everyone up?" Yuna whispered, trying to hold her back, "You need to get over Sir Auron. He'll be fine, he's probably just keeping watch on the outskirts of the camp, that's all. Now, try to get some sleep and stop worrying about Lulu...Chappu's a nice guy, he won't make her do anything she doesn't want to." Rikku huffed and glanced out toward the adjacent tent, watching the shadows inside shift slightly. "I don't know what's wrong with you, or Tidus, or Kihmari, or Wakka, or even Lulu...but I know one thing...that is NOT Chappu, and I'll prove it!"
Before Yuna could react, Rikku was standing and out of the tent, heading toward the other one. She threw open the flap to find a half naked Lulu being embraced by Auron...or at least Auron's body. Lulu looked up and growled, "Rikku! Get out of here, NOW." Rikku ignored the black mage and grabbed Auron's shoulder, pulling him from the tent. "Just what the HELL do you think you're doing? If anyone should be putting the moves on Lulu, it's Wakka, not you!" she shouted, pointing a finger at the exact spot where Wakka used to be, before he dove into the bushes. Yuna caught up to her cousin, grabbed her arm, and began to drag her back to the tent. "Chappu, forgive me...I'll try to keep her under control from now on" Yuna muttered as she tried to restrain Rikku. "That's not Chappu, that's AURON! Can't you people see?!" Rikku protested as she was dragged back to the tent, "You're all sick, playing this kind of sick joke on me! This isn't fair! I know Auron when I see him!"
Inside his own mind, Auron's spirit floated, detached from the real world except for sight and sound. He saw Rikku, screaming in his defense...she knew it was his body, but she thought it was still his spirit in control. At least he still had one thing going in his favor, she knew that the body was not Chappu's.
/If I could only communicate to her...to let her know it's not me controlling my body…maybe I'd have a chance.../
His only choice at this time was to sit back and formulate a plan. His soul was detached from what was left of his physical being, so he could come and go as he pleased. Unfortunately, any step outside his shell would leave him vulnerable to the pull of the moonflow, trails of which sprung from the ground all over Macalania Woods. He was going to have to wait until the party moved on to the Calm Lands before he could try any out of body travel. Auron closed off his senses to the sight and sound of what his body was doing at the moment. Lulu was not of any romantic interest to him, and he felt it unnecessary to intrude on his possessor's misconduct while borrowing his form. The night was going to be long, and trying, but he was resolved to figure out a plan before the party left the woods in the morning.
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Next time the muse strikes, I DO know what I'm going for next...promise!
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Chapter 5 - Nature's Confessional
The tree is nature's confessional. Declarations of love have been carved into their trunks, secrets whispered among their branches. The trees of Macalania Woods were no different, including the particular one that now served as a temporary shelter to the evicted Tidus and Wakka. Luckily for them, the normal nightly rain had ceased to come that evening and the branches were relatively dry, serving as a solid, yet unreliable place to spend the night. However, it was their only choice, as they definitely didn't want to intrude on the happily reunited couple...no matter what they were doing.
True, it was the question of what WERE they doing that made the choice of a tree for a sleeping place so unreliable, as Wakka shifted nervously on the branch every ten seconds or so. Finally, as Tidus was jarred from a state of half-sleep for the seventh time, he decided to speak up. "Wakka, what's the deal? How am I going to get any rest with you shaking me all over the place?" Wakka sighed and slumped back against the trunk, "Ah, it's nuttin'...just...I'm worried, ya?" Tidus hooked his legs over his branch and flipped down to look at his companion in the face. "Worried? What the heck are you worried about? I know Lulu can get scary once in a while, but it's your brother...he can handle her." Tidus laughed. Wakka turned away, "I'm not worried about Chappu..." he mumbled. Tidus could've sworn he saw the other man's face flush red for a minute, but ignored it. "So, you're worried Lulu won't be able to handle your brother? Too much energy in your family, is that it?" He grinned and chuckled a bit, causing Wakka to flush brighter. "That's not it, you idiot!" he growled, slamming his fist into Tidus' branch and sending him crashing to the ground.
Landing with an audible thud, Tidus sat up on the forest floor holding his head. "Ow! Man, what didja do that for? I was kidding! Sheeh..." Wakka jumped down and sat next to Tidus, leaning against the base of the tree. "Sorry, it's just...I'm not comfortable with all this." he mumbled, running a hand through his hair. Tidus scooted next to him and leaned back against the tree, "You're in love with Lulu, aren't you?" Wakka stared at him; Tidus was a true blonde, but once in a while he would put all the pieces together and come up with a true insight. In this case, he hit the nail on the head, and Wakka was worried that he was actually transparent enough to let this secret show through. Tidus grinned a little, "I knew it! And now you're worried that Chappu's return is just going to screw up any chance you had with her. She'll forget all about you and go back to being obsessed with him! And you don't want to be left out in the col-" Wakka clamped a hand over Tidus' mouth, "Shh! You wanna go waking everyone else up? Keep quiet about it, ya?" He signed again and looked up at a patch of sky peeking through the canopy. "Ya...I am in love with her. I just couldn't handle seeing her so heartbroken over my brother's death. I promised him I'd protect her...guess I took that vow a little too seriously now, ya? But, she's Chappu's woman now...always was..." The Besaid man stretched out, placing his arms behind his head, and drew in a long breath. "It's not like I can do anything about it...she's happy with Chappu...let them have their happiness. I'm happy, too, to have my brother back..."
As Wakka drifted off to sleep, Tidus sat there letting this new information soak into his head. The "brother and sister" relationship he had noticed between Wakka and Lulu was really more complex than he thought. A quick glance over to their former tent showed little more than blurry shadows that grew weaker with the dying fire. Not that Tidus was looking for a free show or anything, but he WAS curious as to what they were doing in there. Was is just idle talk, or were Lulu and Chappu really that involved when he was alive? It was sort of a situation that paralleled his own...there was Wakka, in love with a woman who was already bound to another. In Wakka's case, his love interest was bound to another man, not the fate of the world, like Yuna. Still, he had total sympathy for his comrade. Love triangles are tough to handle...especially when family gets involved.
Meanwhile, in another tent, Rikku was just as restless as Wakka, stirring about and flipping around in her sleeping bag. Yuna mumbled and poked Rikku in the back, "Is everything ok?" Rikku sat up and nearly screamed at her cousin, "Of course everything's not ok! Auron is over there, doing god knows WHAT to Lulu, while all of YOU think he's Wakka's dead brother! Dead! Do you hear me? Chappu is dead! That's AURON!" Yuna sat up and clamped a hand over the screaming Al Bhed's mouth, trying to drown out her hysterics. "Shh! Do you want to wake everyone up?" Yuna whispered, trying to hold her back, "You need to get over Sir Auron. He'll be fine, he's probably just keeping watch on the outskirts of the camp, that's all. Now, try to get some sleep and stop worrying about Lulu...Chappu's a nice guy, he won't make her do anything she doesn't want to." Rikku huffed and glanced out toward the adjacent tent, watching the shadows inside shift slightly. "I don't know what's wrong with you, or Tidus, or Kihmari, or Wakka, or even Lulu...but I know one thing...that is NOT Chappu, and I'll prove it!"
Before Yuna could react, Rikku was standing and out of the tent, heading toward the other one. She threw open the flap to find a half naked Lulu being embraced by Auron...or at least Auron's body. Lulu looked up and growled, "Rikku! Get out of here, NOW." Rikku ignored the black mage and grabbed Auron's shoulder, pulling him from the tent. "Just what the HELL do you think you're doing? If anyone should be putting the moves on Lulu, it's Wakka, not you!" she shouted, pointing a finger at the exact spot where Wakka used to be, before he dove into the bushes. Yuna caught up to her cousin, grabbed her arm, and began to drag her back to the tent. "Chappu, forgive me...I'll try to keep her under control from now on" Yuna muttered as she tried to restrain Rikku. "That's not Chappu, that's AURON! Can't you people see?!" Rikku protested as she was dragged back to the tent, "You're all sick, playing this kind of sick joke on me! This isn't fair! I know Auron when I see him!"
Inside his own mind, Auron's spirit floated, detached from the real world except for sight and sound. He saw Rikku, screaming in his defense...she knew it was his body, but she thought it was still his spirit in control. At least he still had one thing going in his favor, she knew that the body was not Chappu's.
/If I could only communicate to her...to let her know it's not me controlling my body…maybe I'd have a chance.../
His only choice at this time was to sit back and formulate a plan. His soul was detached from what was left of his physical being, so he could come and go as he pleased. Unfortunately, any step outside his shell would leave him vulnerable to the pull of the moonflow, trails of which sprung from the ground all over Macalania Woods. He was going to have to wait until the party moved on to the Calm Lands before he could try any out of body travel. Auron closed off his senses to the sight and sound of what his body was doing at the moment. Lulu was not of any romantic interest to him, and he felt it unnecessary to intrude on his possessor's misconduct while borrowing his form. The night was going to be long, and trying, but he was resolved to figure out a plan before the party left the woods in the morning.
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Next time the muse strikes, I DO know what I'm going for next...promise!