AN: Thank you, reviewers! Your comments mean a lot to me
Disclaimer: Except for my copy of the game, my few extra characters, and Auron's OOC personality, I don't own a damn thing.
"So you did it," a woman's voice spoke behind me.
Where the hell am I? I glanced around me and found I still in Yuna's hut, but it looked different, somehow. There was a deep fog that rolled over the floor, and she was nowhere to be found.
Someone grabbed my shoulder, and I spun around quickly, grabbing for my katana. They gasped, and when I looked up, I realized that I nearly drew my sword on both Rachelle and Jenae. Rachelle had her hand on my shoulder, but she took it back, choosing instead to play with her hair. Jenae... well, she just stared at me.
"Sorry..." I mumbled. "I didn't know it was you."
"Obviously," Jenae said sarcastically. She looked at my katana, then said, "Here, let me help you out with that." Instead of grabbing at it, like I believed she would, she snapped her fingers up in the air.
Instantly, my katana disappeared into thin air.
My mouth dropped open. "How..."
"You're dreaming, sweetie," Rachelle said to me. I glared due to the use of that endearment, but I didn't say anything, and they both smiled at my expression.
"And I must say, you look really spiffy without that scar on your face," Jenae teased.
"Drop dead gorgeous, really."
They continued back and forth for a minute about the state of my appearance, but considering I had no idea how long this dream was going to take, I didn't need them to waste my time. "Why am I here?" I asked pointedly.
"The question isn't why are you here, Auron. Now ask the real question you came here to ask," Rachelle smiled.
"Ah..." I cleared my throat, then continued. "Why am I alive again?"
"There you go," Jenae grinned.
"To tell you the truth, it was rather a surprising development. We had no idea that you would get drunk off your ass, submit a song, and then disappear into thin air," Rachelle said nonchalauntly. "But, considering that you get drunk off your ass every night, I doubt it had anything to do with that. The only thing that you did the other day that was out of the ordinary was submitting that song. And there is where the answer lies, I believe."
"I heard it on the radio."
Both of their mouths dropped open. "You WHAT?" Jenae shouted.
I shrank back a bit, realizing that without my katana, these two women were far more dangerous than any fiend I had ever come across. "Yuna was dancing around in her underwear, screaming it," I said, shuddering as the image came back into my brain.
Both were so surprised that they fell silent for almost a minute. "Well, isn't this interesting," Rachelle breathed. "Shy little Yuna, screaming a song in her underwear."
"Probably the first time she's ever done that..." Jenae whispered.
"That's not really important right now, you two," I grumbled.
"Oh, but it is. If Yuna had that reaction to it, I can only imagine the reaction the rest of Spira had... Oh my God..." Jenae continued.
"What... What?" I asked uncomfortably, as they both stared at my face.
"Did you read the fine print, Auron?" Jenae snapped.
"I... um... well..." Caught in the act, I stumbled around my words for a moment.
Rachelle snapped her fingers, and the contract scroll appeared in front of us. Jenae grabbed it, unrolled it, and handed it to me, pointing at a paragraph near the end of the page.
"Although it has never been done before, in the case that a song submitted becomes famous on Spira, another chance at life will be given, but with a cost. The reaction of the inspiration of the song means everything. If they enjoy the song and it touches a part of them, life will be fully returned. But, if it doesn't touch them, or if their feelings have changed in any way since subject was in the Farplane, subject will return to the Farplane without a moments notice. But, the inspiration can NOT know that the song was by subject, and must find it touching on their own. Any persuasion with result in imediate departure to the Farplane."
"Cred... Cred cred cred vilg cred... Fryd ryja E tuha?" I mumbled.
"You've given yourself another chance, that's what you've done," Jenae smiled.
"And you really need to stop that swearing problem of yours, Auron. How ever will Rikku love someone with such a dirty mouth?" Rachelle teased.
Wounded by her comment, I looked at my feet. Rachelle instantly realized her slip, and both women grabbed my hands, talking at once.
"Don't worry, she loves you, I know it!"
"Nothing could change her feelings for you, sweetie."
Their hands started fading in my grasp, and with a look in their eyes, I knew that my time was up. I pulled them both into an embrace, thanking them for all they've done for me. They both smiled with tears in their eyes, caused by their pride for me. Amazing how these two women could take care of me, I thought.
My voice cracked with emotion, realizing that I may not see them for a long time. "How long was I gone?"
"Two years, sweetie," Rachelle whispered.
"Ev oui haat yhodrehk, zicd cyo dra funt," Jenae smiled, lapsing back into Al Bhed.
"Goodbye..." And with that last word and a nod, they both faded away.
. . . . . . . . . . .
I sucked air into my lungs, launching myself from the couch. Looking around, I saw that I was back in Yuna's hut, without even the slightest traces of Rachelle or Jenae anywhere. The air was clear, without any signs of the fog that had engulfted my mind only moments before.
I laid back on the couch, feeling idiotic. Of course it was a dream, I thought to myself. I glanced around the room, my eyes settling on a table directly in front of the couch. It had piles and piles of papers on it, but one thing didn't look right about it.
My hands came forth of their own accord, and my fingertips grazed the yellowed edges of a scroll. I picked it up, wondering why I didn't feel guilty for snooping through Yuna's belongings. But, curiosity got the best of me, and almost before I even unrolled it the slightest, I knew what it was.
Jenae and Rachelle had left the contract for me.