The second chapter, I worked on this all afternoon. It doesn't really get the plot moving yet. The next chapter I'm working on will reveal a little chunk of it though. This one just has interaction between Tidus/Rikku and Brother/Rikku. Look for chapter three in a week or so.
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Night went by very slowly for Rikku. No matter how hard she tried to sleep, she couldn't help but get excited at the thought of seeing Brother again. Despite the way she badmouthed him, she really did love her brother more than anyone. And she knew that he loved her more than anyone else as well. They didn't need to say so...they just knew. It had been so long since she had hugged him last, or yelled at him, or made fun of him; and it was driving her absolutely crazy. She knew that before the summer was over, she'd most likely end up going crazy from being stuck with the guy, but it would be nice to see him for a little while at least.
She tossed and turned in her hammock all night, and even got up to pace around the room several times. Mostly she was excited about seeing Brother and Buddy again, but she was also a tad bit nervous at the prospect of seeing Gippal again as well. It had been six months since she had seen him last, and even when they had seen each other the last time, they weren't exactly acting like old times. Of course he still called her "Cid's lil girl", which pissed her off just about more than anything, but other than that...things were different between them. Maybe he was right and things could never be the same after their little "relationship" back when she was thirteen.
It was just a stupid puppy love type relationship. She had a crush on him, and she was pretty sure he only agreed to be her boyfriend because she was Cid's daughter. And being Cid's daughter automatically made her the best. And Gippal...he always wanted the best, no matter what it's cost was. No matter what his reasoning for being her boyfriend was, their relationship was a very short lived one. It lasted about three months, off and on. They were constantly arguing over anything they could think of, and they even got in a few fist fights. Of course these fights consisted of her trying to beat the shit out of him and Gippal standing there taking it...but still.
Things slowly fizzled down to nothing when she left to be Yuna's guardian, way back when she was fifteen. When she returned to the destroyed Home after Sin had been defeated, he was gone. He had just up and left her. It had hurt then, but she had gotten over it surprisingly quickly. After all, there was always work to be done trying to start rebuilding Home, or Al Bhed children to teach how to work with machina. And then there was her most recent adventure with Yuna and Paine that pretty much made her have her fill of adventuring for a while. Now she was just ecstatic to be going to Djose and spending three blissful months doing nothing but spending time with old friends and doing one of the things she did best: salvaging and working on machina.
It was about six in the morning and Rikku still hadn't fallen asleep. She knew it was six because she could see the sun rising through her little makeshift window she had cut out of the tent, back when she first moved in. A smile started to form when she remembered the day she had moved in with Tidus and Yuna. They had just come home from their honeymoon and just came inside and collapsed on the hammock, they had been so busy traveling and doing newlywed things the past two weeks. She just barged in, made herself at home, and they didn't mind.
"Well, they apparently regret not minding now. When I talk to Lu, I'd better hear that they're spending a LOT of time together in here...alone." She mumbled, and rolled off the hammock.
She didn't plan the roll very well and ended up getting caught up in the netting and landing flat on her face on the ground with a loud thud. After whining and pouting for a few minutes, she slowly made her way to her feet. She took one last look around her tiny room before grabbing ahold of her backpack and trunk and making way to leave. Brother was a bit off his rocker, but the guy was always very punctual. And if Rikku wasn't outside waiting for him, he'd most likely leave without her.
She tried to tiptoe through the tent, so she wouldn't wake Yuna or Tidus. She really wasn't in the mood for goodbyes right now. Especially since she basically felt like Yuna was making her say goodbye. She managed to get outside without making much noise at all, and with a triumphant smile, she started the slow process of dragging her trunk down towards the beach, figuring that's where Buddy would probably land the Celsius.
She was about halfway there when she felt someone lightly place a hand on her shoulder. Figuring it was Yuna, she gritted her teeth and kept on walking.
"Hey! You aren't even going to say goodbye to me? My first friend in Spira? Fine then..." Tidus' whiny voice called out after her, causing her to stop dead in her tracks.
Of all the people she expected to see her off, Tidus wasn't one of them. Well, she knew that he'd come and say goodbye, but she figured it was only because Yuna was going to. Ever since they had met, she had a little thing for Tidus, but knew that little thing could never be anything more than that. She could sense from the beginning that she was little sister material to Tidus, and probably not even that. Just cute, sidekick material to him. Well, now he was Yuna's husband, so he was really off limits now.
She could feel a blush creeping up on her cheeks at thinking about Tidus, and quickly willed it to go away. Now was not the time for her stupid girlish feelings to return to her. Once she felt she had the blush under control, she looked back at Tidus over her shoulder with a smile on her face.
"I didn't figure you wanted to say bye to me. You and Yunie want all that alone time...and...I'm getting out of your hair now so you two can be happy." She said rather sadly, before hastily trying to run off towards the beach.
She felt the trunk grow very heavy and it anchored her to a stop. With an annoyed growl, she spun around to see Tidus sprawled out across the trunk. He had that annoying "I'm better than you because I'm a star player for the Zanarkand Abes" smile on his face, and she wanted to slap him to wipe it off.
"What are you doing? I'm not strong enough to lug your dead weight around, now get off!" She demanded, stomping her foot like a little child would before throwing a fit.
The blonde blitzer let out a loud laugh before rolling off of the trunk. Rikku was priceless, she really was. She always knew how to make him laugh, even if she wasn't meaning to. It was a shame that she didn't show any intrest in him before he had hooked up with Yuna though. He would've loved to see if he could keep up with her in a relationship. But now, the two were stuck at friendship status, which also worked just fine for him. Rikku was cute and beautiful, and sweet and funny. She made a great friend...just one that needed to leave so he and his wife could spend some freaking time together without having to worry about Rikku popping in on them.
"Hey, Rikku. Don't leave upset with us. You need to go out, and see what's best for you. You're still just a kid...don't stay here and waste your life away in Besaid. Go out there...find love, adventure. Have fun before deciding to settle down in a place like this..." He finally stated, reaching out again to place a hand on her shoulder.
She wanted to flinch away from him, because she was upset. Mostly at herself, for staying around so long and annoying all of her friends. She knew that she was a lot to put up with at times, and forgot that her friends probably needed a break from her. Maybe she'd come back in the Fall and see how everyone was...but until then, she just wanted as far away from Besaid as possible.
"You're barely old enough to not be counted as a kid, Tidus. So don't start lecturing me on stuff you don't even know anything about." She snapped, then proceeded to drag off her belongings towards the beach again.
Tidus shook his head and followed after the petite girl. He really didn't want her to leave on bad terms, at least not with him. He really did care about her, even if he didn't have the best ways of showing it.
"Rikku...come on. I don't want you to be mad at me just for wanting to spend some time alone with Yuna... you could've stayed here, just in another tent or something..." Was his brilliant suggestion, which earned him a glare from Rikku.
"Stay here? And know that everyone thinks that I'm annoying and bothering them? No thanks Tidus...I don't stay in places where I'm not wanted for very long. Especially when it's my own family and friends not wanting me." She tried to remain calm, but tears kept threatening to form in her eyes and her body had begun shaking in hurt and anger.
Tidus noticed this, and reached out to her. When she tried to pull away from him, he just grabbed ahold of her wrists tightly and pulled her in close to him. Before she had time to react by punching him or anything, he embraced her in a tight hug. He rested his cheek on the top of her head, taking in the scent of her hair.
"Rikku, I never said I didn't want you. Ever. I love having you around, I always have. You're my Rikku... and I'll always want you around, no matter who else doesn't." He whispered in a soothing tone, hoping he was comforting her and not causing another one of her horrible anger fits.
She tried to hold it in, she really did. But no matter how hard she bit her bottom lip or squinted her eyes shut, she couldn't prevent the sobs or tears from coming out. She hated feeling not wanted and alone. That was the thing she hated more than anything, being alone. She thrived on being around other people, she needed it to function properly. And now that she felt like the people she wanted to be around most felt she was a nuisance to them, it really was hurting. And the sweet hug and words from Tidus was not helping her feel any better about it, even though she did like being in his arms. It felt nice.
Wait a minute...did she just think that? With a surprised gasp, she pulled away from Tidus and looked up at him with scared and tearful eyes.
"I'm sorry, Tidus... I...have to go. Brother'll be here soon." The blonde shook her head and didn't waste another moment in grabbing her things and running off with them as fast as she could.
She managed to quickly get to the beach in a short period of time, and thankfully Tidus didn't follow her again. She had found that hug of his to be just a little bit too comforting, and that bothered her. She couldn't think that way about her own cousin's husband, could she? That would make her a bad person, which she didn't want to be.
She sat down on her trunk for a few minutes, thinking this over, until she heard the familiar sound of an airship landing. With a large smile, she rose from her place and got up to wave hello to the incoming ship. They didn't waste any time in formalities, and just landed long enough for Brother to leap out and carry her things on the airship and help her inside. She gave one last look at Besaid as the hatch closed, and then didn't give the little city or the people who lived there one more thought.
Once they were up in the air again and Rikku had her stuff secured, she plowed into Brother's arms and embraced him in a tight hug.
"E'ja seccat oui." [I've missed you.] She softly told him, on the verge of tears again. Only this time, they were happy tears.
Brother grinned and wrapped his large arms loosely around his tiny sister. He was always so afraid of crushing her if he tried to hug her back the way she hugged him, so he never did.
"Brother miss Rikku too. Oui caas cyt. Fryd'c fnuhk?" [You seem sad. What's wrong?] Was his concerned reply, and he pushed Rikku away from him slightly so he could look down at her.
Yes, she seemed very worried or upset about something. She was about to cry, he could tell. Her usual smile was replaced with a tiny frown, and her shoulders were hunched over. Rikku never stood with her shoulders hunched over unless she was very very tired, or she was extremely upset.
The Al Bhed girl seemed to avoid answering the question for several moments, and opted to put on a semi-genuine grin and straightened up her posture.
"Hudrehk. Ed'c aynmo yht E's hud icat du kaddehk ib drec aynmo. Yht E's cyt du mayja so vneahtc." [Nothing. It's early and I'm not used to getting up this early. And I'm sad to leave my friends.] She lied, and reached up to punch him playfully on the shoulder as she made an effort to bounce around like she usually did.
This seemed enough to appease Brother, and with a smile, nodded his head and led her to his room. He made a motion for her to sit down, and the girl proceeded to plop down on his bed.
"What?" She asked, raising a brow in suspicion. Brother never let her in his room, for anything. No matter how long they had gone without seeing each other. Something was up.
Brother fidgeted for several long moments before clearing his throat. He seemed to be thinking about what to say, because he had his thinking face on. It was very easy for Rikku to recognize this face. His eyes were looking up at the ceiling and he had the tip of his tongue sticking out as he bit his lower lip. Yes, he was definitely in thinking mode.
"Well...Brother and Buddy have other work to do for two months. Machina work. Not in Djose...understand?" He struggled with his English, and spoke in broken sentences. He had no idea why Rikku even bothered speaking English. It was such a hard language, although it did come in useful when dealing with other people.
She didn't see what the big deal was. So they weren't going to Djose...big deal. She'd still get to work with Machina, just not at Djose. She gave Brother an odd look, as if asking what the point was.
"E dumt Gippal oui fuimt cdyo yht ramb res, ajah ev fa teth'd. E yldiymmo bnusecat res oui fuimt cdyo...un amca E femm ryja du keja res dra Lamceic. Oui ryja du ku! Oui lyh'd syga sa muca so creb!" [I told Gippal you would stay and help him, even if we didn't. I actually promised him you would stay...or else I will have to give him the Celsius. You have to go! You can't make me lose my ship!] He shouted out, giving her a warning glance that said not to argue with him.
Of course Rikku never backed down from an argument, no matter what kind of glances she was getting.
"Oui tet FRYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYD? E's kuhhy gemm oui!" [You did WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT? I'm gonna kill you!] Rikku shrilly screamed, and lunged at her older brother.
She tackled him down to the floor and began to strangle him, claw at his face, and try and rip out what little hair he had left on his head.
"HOW COULD YOU DO THAT TO ME?! PAWN ME OFF ON SOME ARROGANT, POMPOUS, JERK WHO THINKS HE CAN BOSS ME AROUND ALL SUMMER?! "She continued screaming, to which Brother just shot her an irritated glance.
He had expected this kind of reaction from the girl, and was prepared for all of her screaming and verbal assaults. But he also knew that Gippal meant business about him getting her for the summer, or getting the Celsius forever. And it would be a cold day in Hell before he gave up his ship because his baby sister didn't want to work with an ex-boyfriend for a few months.
"Rikku. ..lyms tufh. Ed'c uhmo vun drnaa suhdrc, yht fa'mm pa pylg vun dra mycd suhdr. Zicd fung rynt...yht E syta Kebbym bnuseca du pa kuut du oui un amca E't lusa yht cgeh res socamv. Bmayca...ku. E cruimth'd uv syta y bnuseca fedruid ycgehk oui vencd...pid E druikrd oui't pa rybbo du fung uh Sylrehy yht caa umt vneahtc." [ Rikku...calm down. It's only for three months, and we'll be back for the last month. Just work hard...and I made Gippal promise to be good to you or else I'd come and skin him myself. Please...go. I shouldn't of made a promise without asking you first...but I thought you'd be happy to work on Machina and see old friends.] Brother let out a long gasp for air as he managed to get all of that out on one breath.
He didn't want his sister to be mad at him, and knew she'd eventually have a good time in Djose. And if she didn't...she could suck it up and learn to accept that she can't be constantly having fun just because she thinks she's some special princess.
With a defeated sigh, Rikku moved off of ontop of Brother. She knew that Gippal really would take the Celsius if she didn't agree to work with him and his Faction for the rest of the summer. It was only a few months, she could handle it. She had spent just about six months in Besaid and time had flown by. She just kept repeating "things won't be bad..." in her head as she refrained from lunging at the glunkhead beside her once more.
"Fine...three months. But you two had better show up for the last month. And if you ever promise someone that I'll spend time working for them again without my permission... I'll never speak to you again. Got it?" She growled, and stormed out of the room.
"Cecdanc... tuach'd cra ghuf Brother ghufc pacd?" [Sisters...doesn't she know Brother knows best?] He mumbled, and ran a hand through his minimal hair before walking over to his door and slamming it shut for an angry effect.
Of course he wasn't actually angry with Rikku. She had every right to be furious with him, and knew it would probably take her both months of being at Djose Temple with the Faction to calm down and be able to want to see him again. One thing was for sure, he wasn't ever going to take Rikku for granted and just assume she'd do whatever he told her to again. Something about the look in her eyes told him she was serious about not ever talking to him again.