DISCLAIMER: I do not own FFX, FFX-2, FFVIII or any of the characters and locations affiliated with it. I do, however, own the story "Silver Wings", "Silver Wings 2: 1000 Confessions" and all references to dialogue not originated by Square-Enix.

DO NOT COPY MY STORIES!!

If anyone wants to post my stories anywhere else, please just ASK and then give me credit for writing it. Email with any requests.

PLEASE NOTE: "PaineOfBevelleSairysSkyeWind" is a fic stealer!! Watch out for her. She is also known as "Paine" and "Paine of Spira". She has also taken to stealing my name "akksgurl" so for future reference, I am the one and only "akksgurl" and I have never posted on any other site besides this one, so if you see my stories floating around out there and they are not directly linked back here then they have been stolen and I'd appreciate if you'd report them to the webmaster for removal. Thanks a lot in advance! I am also sure I am not the only one she is stealing from so be sure to keep an eye out for my fics as well as others on other sites.

Author's Notes: Okay, I know I said the story would be over in one chapter after this one, but I was wrong. So here's how it's going to work. This chapter is part one of the end. The next chapter (which I'm currently working on) is part two. The chapter after that will be the final chapter. Which brings me to another important piece of information. There will be TWO different endings to this story. I had these two in my head from the moment I started this story, and I figured that once I got to this point it'd be easy to choose between them, but it's not. So therefore I will post both of them on the same day and you can read them both and decide which one you like best for yourselves. Sound good? Good! Thanks for your support and your reviews. I love you all!

SILVER WINGS 3: Back Into My Arms

by akksgurl

Chapter Thirty-Three: Awakenings, Reunions, And A Vengeful Al Bhed

With Gippal's ridiculous theory and the doctor's less than enthusiastic outlook on his recovery, the fact that his blue eyes were gazing into hers gave Yuna a real reason to smile. He seemed a little confused, but she was expecting that. Without his prompting, Yuna explained everything that had happened – omitting Gippal's outlandish theory. He leaned back onto his pillow and seemed to be digesting everything. She kissed his fingertips gently, "You're gonna be just fine, Shu."

He looked at her with almost a startled look but it was quickly gone. He gave her a weak smile, "I guess you saved my life, huh?"

"Yeah," she replied with a light blush. She hated when people made a big deal over her actions. To her, she was just doing what anyone with her ability would do if they were put in her shoes, "I used Curaga on you several times. The doctors said that's probably what kept you alive until we got you here. It also helped to heal the organs that were damaged."

His eyes scanned the room and finally fixed on the window at the far side. The sun was shining through the blinds that were half opened to allow in the daylight. He took a deep breath, "When do you think I'll be able to get out of here?"

"I don't know." Replied Yuna as she got to her feet, "I haven't even told your doctor you're awake. I'll go do that now. The sooner we get you out of here, the better. We need to handle Seymour as soon as possible."

He didn't say much while the doctor probed him and poked him. He just allowed the examination, never once taking his eyes off of the window. Yuna began to notice that he seemed to be avoiding her gaze. She tried to convince herself that it was just her imagination, but when she stepped into his line of view for the fifth time and for the fifth time he looked away, she realized that it wasn't a coincidence.

Something was wrong…

"You're in surprisingly good shape, Mr. Rayor." The doctor said, catching Yuna's attention as he spoke, "I'd like you to stay for observation, though."

"Do I have to do that?"

"No."

"Then I'd like to leave. I've got some things that I need to take care of."

The doctor frowned but nodded, "If you insist. Just don't aggravate the wound. I'm surprised it healed as quickly as it did. Must be Lady Yuna's magic that caused that." The doctor smiled at Yuna, "I'll have his release paperwork ready within the hour. I'll need it filled out before we can let him go."

Yuna nodded at the doctor as he walked out of the room. Blue eyes focused on her for the first time in over an hour, "Did you register me as Tidus Rayor?"

"Yes," Yuna replied, "I figured there would be less questions asked. It would be a little strange to say that Shuyin Bacohl is currently inside the body of Tidus Rayor and they've been stabbed…" she giggled a little to herself, "It was hard enough explaining what happened without mentioning Seymour."

"Why didn't you mention him?"

"I didn't want to start a panic." She responded, sitting down on the mattress next to him, "Rikku's already going on about flesh-eating zombies. I didn't want the entire world to start thinking like that."

"Understandable." He replied, eyes focusing back onto the window.

Yuna frowned and scooted closer to him on the mattress, "Shuyin, are you angry with me?"

His eyes flickered over her face for a brief moment before going back to the window, "No."

"Then what is it?"

"I've just got a lot on my mind."

"Tell me. Maybe I can help."

He shook his head, "No you can't. I don't even understand it myself."

Yuna knew when to stop pressing for information. Shuyin was closed off to her for some reason and she'd have to be patient. He'd come to her when he was ready to talk. Until then, she'd have to just wait.

It certainly wasn't going to be easy, though. Something was obviously bothering him, but instead of talking to her, he shut her out leaving her to assume that whatever it was involved her in some way.

Was he upset because she hadn't told him about Seymour? Was he upset that she was – although only in name – married to the blue-haired devil?

She sighed and stood, "I'm going to go and see about your release papers. If you're up to it, I'd like to go to Zanarkand and get the book I borrowed from Dona. I'm hoping it might explain why Seymour is back."

He nodded, taking his eyes from the window long enough to ask, "Where are my clothes?"

Yuna had forgotten he was currently clad in a standard issue hospital gown. His clothes had been badly bloodied in the aftermath of his stabbing. Gippal had taken them to see about getting the stains out. She walked to the closet and pulled the spare clothes that Gippal had dropped off for Shuyin to use in lieu of them, "You'll have to borrow these until we get the stains out of the others." She replied, laying them at the foot of the bed, "Gippal's a bit taller than you so they'll probably be long, but they should be okay otherwise."

"Thanks." He replied softly. She could feel his eyes on her as she walked to the door and as she touched the knob he suddenly asked, "If Tidus never came back, would you be happy?"

She spun on her heels, eyes wide with shock, "What kind of question is that?"

"Just answer it."

"I'd be heartbroken." She said, honestly, putting a hand over her heart, "He and I may be having our problems, but I still love him."

He smiled warmly, "I was hoping you'd say that."

"Why? I mean…I thought…" she stopped, biting her lower lip as she did.

She stood frozen in place as he gently slid himself out of the bed, placing his feet firmly on the floor. He gripped the table for support as he rose slowly and stiffly. He shuffled toward her until he was mere inches from her. She could feel the heat radiating off of his body, his breath gently caressing her face. He trailed his fingers softly through her hair and along her cheek and jawline. Lips touched lips gently at first, and then more demanding as he pulled her body taut against his own. Yuna didn't respond at first, but soon found it beyond her to deny him. His heart pounded in time with her own and she found herself caught up in the kiss.

Then suddenly his lips were gone from hers. She opened her eyes slowly to find him backing slowly back to the bed and sitting on the edge. His eyes seemed to probe into her and she suddenly felt as though he'd seen all of her secrets. For having wanted to avoid her for so long, he was certainly making up for lost time. His eyes flickered from her lips to her eyes several times before he whispered hoarsely, "Are you sure you love him?"

Yuna's spine stiffened, "Of course I'm sure."

He shrugged in a nonchalant way and leaned back on his elbows, "Okay." He said, "Don't you have some paperwork to fill out?"

Yuna frowned, but didn't reply. She didn't trust what she'd say. As angry as she was by his audacity, she was afraid that she'd unwillingly admit what he had been implying. It was a feeling she'd been trying to hide deep inside of herself for the past few months. She wasn't about to admit it now. Once this mess was solved, Tidus would be back with her and this thing with Shuyin could stay buried.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Clunky green hands and feet.

A big fake green head.

Paine stared dejectedly at Tromell's "idea". For some reason he thought a dime-store Guado costume would fool the people she and Seifer would have to pass on their way to Yuna. She desperately wanted to thank the man, but turn down his idea. However, the thought of tipping Seymour off frightened her. She couldn't risk that mad-man doing something drastic.

And so she would suffer the costume. If only her counterpart was as diplomatic.

"You've got to be joking!" shrieked Seifer as he gawked into the mirror, "I look like fiend vomit!"

"Nobody will suspect you." Tromell retorted, motioning toward the other costume in the corner, "Or would you rather go as a moogle?"

Seifer frowned in thought for a moment, "I suppose vomit isn't too bad…"

"I thought so."

Paine sighed and took the mask off to get a clearer view of Tromell, "Are you sure Yuna is at Luca hospital?"

"As far as I know. That'd be the closest hospital to take Tidus to. If she's not there, you might want to check around Luca. I know Nooj has a town home there. They might be using that."

"Lord Tromell…" came a sheepish voice from the doorway. A young Guado woman was standing there, ringing her large hands together in nervous consternation, "The Al Bhed leader, Cid, is here to see you, sir."

Tromell nodded, "Tell him I'll be with him in a few moments."

The girl nodded and left the room. Paine slipped the mask back on, "I think we'd better get a move on. Cid will squeal if he sees us and that'll just give Seymour a heads up."

Seifer glared at the mask in his hands before sliding it over his head, "Let's go. The faster I get out of this thing, the better."

Tromell said his goodbyes to the duo of faux-Guado and then buzzed the young woman, "You can send him in, now."

Cid sauntered into the room like he owned the place. Tromell wished that he was living in a larger home instead of the small three room house just northwest of Lord Seymour's old home and LeBlanc's current chateau. However, there was nothing he could do about it at the moment so he resigned himself to accepting the man's less than impressed glances about the room. Tromell rose to greet his visitor, "What can I do for you today, Cid? You don't usually come to Guadosalam."

Cid snorted, "With good reason. You destroyed Home and killed my brethren."

"Then why are you here?"

"Gots a question for you." Cid replied, spinning the chair in front of Tromell's desk and sitting down backward upon it. Tromell sat down in his own chair across from Cid and waited for Cid to speak. It didn't take long, "I got a strange phone call earlier."

"What does that have to do with me."

"Well, I'm looking into finding out who's behind the attack on Home. I know the Guado carried it out, and that Seymour came up with the idea, but there had to be someone who gave them directions to Home."

Tromell's hackles rose and he leaned back in his chair, "What do you want?"

"The person who called said you could tell me who it was that led the Guado to Home. Is that true?"

"Perhaps." Replied Tromell. He was trying his best to be evasive in the hopes that Cid would give up. It wasn't Gippal's fault that Seymour had the Guado follow him. Gippal hadn't done what Seymour had demanded. Only Tromell and Seymour knew about the order which meant that Seymour was the one who called Cid. Of course, Tromell couldn't tell Cid that.

"Who was it?"

It was a direct question. Tromell's first instinct was to lie, but then he'd have to come up with a name and when Cid went after that person, Tromell would have to deal with the guilt that came from framing an innocent person. Yet, if he told Cid the truth it would destroy Gippal's life. Tromell didn't know Gippal well, but he knew him enough to know that he was a good person and one of Nooj's closest friends. Tromell swallowed hard, "I'm afraid that's classified information." He replied, hoping that would be enough.

It wasn't.

Cid leaned in closer, tilting the chair up on its hind legs, "It was Gippal…wasn't it?"

That was something Tromell wasn't expecting. Cid had figured it out on his own. He didn't know what to say. His mind was racing wildly. It wasn't until Cid stood that he realized his chance to deny the accusation had passed him.

His silence had condemned Gippal.

Cid twisted the chair back to its original position, "Thanks for your time, Tromell. I found out all I needed to know."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Nooj's head was pounding, but he found strength enough to stand and try the door. It was locked just as he knew it would be, but it had been worth a try. The room was dark but he thought he could hear breathing, "Is anybody there?"

A small gasp, followed by some scuffling and the sound of chains connecting with the stone walls answered him. He saw a shadow move, "Noojie…?"

"LeBlanc!"

"Noojie!"

Nooj bounded toward the sound of her voice and fell to her knees before her, reaching out in the darkness to touch her hair and face. He pressed feverish kisses along her forehead and cheeks, "I was so worried…I thought…"

"Another guest for the party, I guess."

Nooj spun to the sound of the voice and saw another shadow, "Who's that?"

"Squall."

"What are you doing here?"

Squall's shadow shrugged in the darkness, "I don't know. Rinoa brought me here. Psychotic bitch."

"Rinoa?"

LeBlanc touched his arm gently, "She's working with Seymour. Seymour brought me here under her orders. She got Squall and then Seymour, obviously, got you."

Nooj felt the chains on her feet and wrists as he kissed her again and he frowned, "Are you chained up too, Squall?"

"Yep."

How was he supposed to get them out when he was the only one not chained? He didn't have a key or anything to pick a lock with. This wasn't looking good. He asked, "Can you guys free yourselves?"

"Don't you think we would have done already if we could?" snapped Squall. He growled in his throat, "Sorry, I'm just edgy right now."

"Understandably."

"So what do we do, Noojie? We can't just sit here and wait for them to finish with us."

Nooj nodded, "That's true. I'm not sure what to do, though. I don't have my cane and Seymour stole my phone. Even if he hadn't, I doubt I'd get service down here. Shouting wouldn't work."

"So we're stuck, then?" Squall stated, the chains clanging as he squirmed.

Nooj thought for a moment, "We can just wait until they come for us. They'll need to untie you in order to move us. We'll make our move then."

"And if they just kill us without unchaining us?" questioned Squall.

"Let's just hope that doesn't happen." Nooj replied. He could feel LeBlanc tremble against his elbow and he wanted to comfort her, but there was nothing he could say that would take the fear away. He was afraid too…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Gippal sighed, "Are you sure, Wakka? Okay. Thanks."

"What is it?" Rikku asked as Gippal hung up the telephone and collapsed on the sofa, "We can add Squall and Rinoa to the missing and presumed dead list."

"Oh no…" Rikku wailed, sitting down next to Gippal and putting her head on his shoulder.

"And nobody has been able to get in touch with Nooj for the last three hours." Continued Gippal, "So…"

"We don't know for sure what happened. He might just be taking a well deserved rest."

"Or Seymour got to him…"

Rikku frowned and pulled her knees to her chest, "This is freaking me out, Gippal." She whispered, hoarsely, "It's like Revenge of the Body Snatchers or something!"

Gippal smiled at her, "What is it with you and horror movies lately?" he asked, "Zombies? Body Snatchers? What's next, Dracula?"

"Are you making fun of me?" she cried, feigning a wounded expression.

"Never m'lady!" joked Gippal.

"Good!" she announced triumphantly, curling up closer against his body. He wrapped a protective arm over her shoulders and she sighed contentedly. If things weren't so messed up, life would have been perfect. But, it was as perfect as it could be at this point so she was willing to take what she could get.

A pounding at the door ruined the mood and Gippal removed his arm from Rikku and rose to answer it. He raised an eyebrow at the sight of two grotesque Guado staring past him and into the house, "If you're planning to case the place, it's usually done when the residents aren't home."

The smaller of the two Guado's head shook in disagreement, raising the large hands to lift the head off. Gippal was about to let out a shriek when a familiar shock of gray hair caught his attention. The taller Guado did the same – but this time it was blonde that seemed familiar.

"OMIGOD!!!" came Rikku's shout from just behind him as she shot passed him and jumped into Paine's arms, embracing the girl in the tightest hug Gippal had ever seen in person. But just as quickly, Rikku pulled away and backed up to Gippal. She eyed Paine, "You're not a flesh-eating zombie, are you?"

It was then Paine's turn to eye her friend strangely, "What?"

"Ignore her." Gippal said, reaching out to poke Paine's arm, "I can't believe this…"

"Believe it. You can thank Baralai for us not being burnt to crisps."

Rikku asked, "What did Baralai do?"

"He pulled us into the Farplane Glen when everything started to explode around us," Paine explained, "We waited out the situation down there."

Seifer leaned against the doorframe, scowling he asked, "Can I get the fuck out of this suit or am I going to have to be a Guado forever?"

Without waiting for an answer, Seifer marched into the room and stripped out of his Guado costume in the middle of the floor. Gippal was eternally grateful he wore clothes under it. Otherwise that image might be scarred into his memory, and not in a good way.

"So, care to tell me why you went to the Farplane in the first place?" Gippal asked Paine once she had taken off her costume as well and was sitting across from him and Rikku.

"Well…" Paine began. It was an exceptionally long story, but she knew he needed to hear all of it. She explained about Seifer's cryptic message from the fayth and their need to discuss things with their fayth, "He said the merger wasn't real. That there never was a merger. Then we heard this strange chanting and Baralai pulled us into the Glen."

"No merger?" whispered Gippal, "Then what's going on?"

Rikku rolled her eyes, "What, already given up on your theory?"

Gippal opened his mouth to retort when Paine interrupted, "What theory?"

"Gippal thinks Tidus has multiple personalities!" she sighed, "Isn't that stupid?"

"Not at all." Paine replied, "It's actually really close to what's going on."

"It is?!" cried Rikku, shock in every word she uttered as she stared wide-eyed, first at Gippal and then Paine and then back to Gippal again.

Paine nodded, "The fayth didn't want to talk to us, but we kept going at him until he finally relented. He explained that the "merger" we thought was occurring isn't exactly what's going on. There is a merger, but it isn't between Shuyin and Tidus and it has nothing to do with their souls." She paused, squirming to get more comfortable, "1000 years ago when Lenne was killed, Shuyin was thrown into that cave and left to die."

"And he got pissed and tried to destroy Spira…we know that already!" interrupted Rikku, "Tell us something we don't know."

"I'm trying to!" Paine snapped, effectively quieting her disruptive friend. She sighed and continued, "It turns out that Shuyin didn't do anything to us. He was in the Farplane the whole time. Jecht, Auron, and Braska backed that up. All three of them met Shuyin quite a long time before Vegnagun was activated."

"Then what happened?" asked Gippal, "Who was the guy that activated Vegnagun?"

"The fayth says he doesn't have a name. He's the shadow." She looked pointedly at Rikku, "Do you remember just before we reached the Glen, the fayth spoke to Yuna and said that Shuyin's feelings began to act on their own and that he's now only a shadow?"

"Yes."

"It was the shadow that we were fighting." She explained, "The fayth said that when Shuyin was trapped in the cave, he was so angry and guilty and upset that he forced himself to forget everything that had happened so that he could focus on trying to survive. However, those feelings had to go somewhere so the shadow was created in the deep recesses of Shuyin's mind."

"Like another personality…" Gippal spoke, quietly.

Paine nodded, "Exactly, but it's not another personality. This shadow only feels anger and guilt and hungers only for revenge. When Shuyin died, his spirit went to the Farplane, but the shadow stayed behind – bent on getting that revenge."

"So it wasn't Shuyin that attacked us in the cave that day…" whispered Gippal.

"No, it wasn't."

Rikku bit her lip in thought, "So…then Shuyin is Tidus?"

Paine shook her head, "Not exactly." She stopped to think for a moment before continuing, "Tidus is a dream of the fayth just like we were told. That wasn't a lie. He was created with the intention of defeating Sin because by that point Sin was the biggest threat to Spira. The shadow wasn't. The fayth said that if Shuyin hadn't died, he would have been the one to defeat Sin. He and Lenne's original destiny was to face Sin and defeat it, but hardheadedness and stubbornness changed that so they had to do it again 1000 years into the future."

"But I'm still confused." Said Rikku, "How come Shuyin killed Baralai? How come he knows about all the stuff the shadow did while he was in the Farplane? Why is he inside of Tidus' body? Why'd they create Tidus instead of just bringing Shuyin back?"

"I wondered that too," admitted Paine, "but it actually makes a lot of sense. Shuyin was destined to defeat Sin, but Shuyin was split into two – the good Shuyin in the Farplane, and the shadow. The fayth knew that there would be too many problems bringing Shuyin back at that point. He'd merge with the shadow, remember Lenne…it just wasn't something they could deal with at that point. Sin needed to be defeated first. So they created Tidus as a duplicate of Shuyin. This way he was fulfilling his promise to Lenne as well as completing Shuyin's destiny without screwing anything else up."

"Then what happened?"

"When Sin was defeated, the fayth stopped dreaming and Tidus disappeared. It was then that the shadow started to really act up. When we defeated him, he calmed at the sight of Lenne since both he and Shuyin feel the same way about her. Then he went to the Farplane and he also merged with Shuyin. This way Shuyin was complete again. Shuyin then remembered all the things the shadow did and convinced himself that he had done them. He hadn't, but he thought he had."

"But wouldn't Shuyin be able to remember Tidus' stuff too?"

"Well, no…" explained Paine, "What happened was that when Yuna asked to have Tidus back, he was sent almost immediately. Shuyin, at this point, hadn't met the shadow and didn't really care but once the merger with the shadow had take place, that evil part of him was furious that Tidus was getting to live again. The shadow was the one in control of Shuyin's body when he was doing all those horrible things, but the difference was that this time Shuyin was consciously aware that he was doing these things, he just didn't know why. He couldn't control himself."

"So Shuyin did kill Baralai…" Gippal muttered.

"Indirectly, yes."

"And that explains why he'd want Yunie turned back into Lenne." Stated Rikku.

"Well, Shuyin would have wanted that too, but he wouldn't have done anything about it. The shadow would have. The fayth said that the shadow did the things Shuyin didn't have the guts to pull off himself. It's his…his evil side. We all have one. His just manifested itself into something he simply can't control."

Seifer cleared his throat and spoke for the first time since this conversation had begun, "Why don't you tell them the really fun part?" he asked, sarcastically.

Paine sighed and frowned, "Oh yes. The shadow is becoming stronger than Shuyin and Tidus combined. The fayth said that he wouldn't be surprised if the shadow overtakes Tidus eventually and makes him do things he wouldn't normally do."

"…like hit Yunie…" Rikku said in a whisper. She blinked firmly several times and leaned back against the sofa cushion, "This explains so much…"

"He hit Yuna?" Paine repeated, as if testing the words for truth, "I'd say that was definitely the shadow's doing."

"Is there a way for them to overpower him?" Gippal asked.

"The fayth said that only Shuyin can defeat him. He exists because Shuyin can't forgive himself for what happened to Lenne. He's there because deep inside Shuyin wants him to be there. He has to forgive himself, or the shadow will remain and will keep getting stronger."

Rikku wrinkled her nose, "Well that's just dumb. I don't like that ending! I was hoping for some serious blood-shed!"

Gippal laughed, "Now we've entered the genre of action movie…"

"Meanie!" Rikku cried, sticking her tongue out at him.

Paine laughed at her friends and then nodded, "I agree, Rikku. I don't like it anymore than you do. I'd like it a little more cut and dry, but look at it this way. We still have good old Seymour to deal with."

Rikku grinned broadly, "Blood-shed here we come!"