Rikku was happy that dinner was finally drawing to a close, having finished her eel without thinking of anything but the ecstasy of having Auron there. The evening before made her wonder if he had changed his mind about what he said on the hover ride at the carnival. The possibility of it made her excited to go take walks around the installation; three times today she had caught a glimpse of him carrying metal around and taking a closer look at Al Bhed primers scattered all about.
"Rikku? Cemmo kenm! Ynah'd oui byoehk yddahdeuh? Silly girl! Aren't you paying attention?" Cid barked, startling her by rapping his canteen of water against the table.
"Hm? Fryd fyc ed What was it?" she asked, playing with her fork and the way it distorted the reflection of her face at different angles.
"Tuh'd oui lyna ypuid syhykehk dra acdydac frah E's kuha? E fyc cyoehk dryd jano cuuh, pudr uv so lremtnah femm ryja lusa uv yka. Dryd sayhc oui dinhehk aekrdaah. Ryjah'd oui getc druikrd ypuid synneyka? Don't you care about managing the estates when I'm gone? I was saying that very soon, both of my children will have come of age. That means you turning eighteen. Haven't you kids thought about marriage?" Cid spoke crossly, looking at his plate as if he could smash it to pieces telekinetically.
"WHAAAAAAAAAT?" Brother yelped in the common language, choking on his fourth helping of eel. "Marriage? Me? Rikku??? Are you crazy?"
"Lraf ouin vuut, yht tuh'd cbayg du sa mega E's lnywo! Oui ghuf tynh famm fryd E's dymgehk ypuid, pudr uv oui. Acbaleymmo Rikku. Paehk y kenm yht ymm, oui haat du synno cu E lyh bycc dra pyca yht uin bydlr uv cyht tufh du cusauha amca. Oui pudr cruimt ryja nekrdc du dra ehcdymmydeuh, E's hud kuehk du lruuca padfaah yht cdynd yhudran ynkisahd, hu cen. Rikku! Frydajan rybbahat du oui yht dryd puo Gippal yhofyo? Chew your food, and don't speak to me like I'm crazy! You know darn well what I'm talking about, both of you. Especially Rikku. Being a girl and all, you need to marry so I can pass the base and our patch of sand down to someone else. You both should have rights to the installation, I'm not going to choose between and start another argument, no sir. Rikku! Whatever happened to you and that boy Gippal anyway?"
"Um... fa pnuga ib we broke up."
"Fryd What? Rikku!! Fro Why?" Cid's eyes widened and Rikku only became sickened by the thought.....
"Oui'ja kud du pa gettehk sa. E's hud synnoehk Gippal, cunno. E ghuf oui uhmo fyhd sa du synno yhudran Al Bhed, pid caneuicmo... E't cuuhan synno Buddy dryh Gippal. You've got to be kidding me. I'm not marrying Gippal, sorry. I know you only want me to marry another Al Bhed, but seriously... I'd sooner marry Buddy than Gippal."
"Rikku," Brother said softly, leaning over and setting the straps of his overalls back on his shoulders, "oui tu ghuf Buddy ryc y kenmvneaht, nekrd? you do know Buddy has a girlfriend, right?"
"Ur Oh . Heh. Famm, E'mm veht cusauha ajahdiymmo Well, I'll find someone eventually, Pops," his sister replied without really meaning it. How could she think about marriage now? She was so close to a relationship that rocked out loud! Surely life would be a lot more fun if she just continued chasing a new kind of love, for now.
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Of course he missed her. It was senseless to try and focus on anything else. But he just didn't think their being together made much sense, either. They came from two different worlds, and when he thought about the fact that he'd already kissed her, it felt like a whirlwind romance about to begin, one that could hurt them badly in the end no matter how wonderful it felt. And it frightened him.
Not that going completely ballistic when she got hurt helped much, either.
He tried going back and retracing his steps mentally, thinking of how and when these feelings formed. The furthest back he got was when he imagined the Farplane, stewing over all his memories and thinking he was relieved to have reached the afterlife to stay permanently. And everytime the smallest trace of Rikku appeared in the picture, Auron longed to go back, to the point where he had planned escaping more than once.
With his overcoat lying there beside him, he was on his hard makeshift cot in his dimly-lit room, for which he would be paying a considerable amount of Gil starting next month. There were shelves in here, too, just a few with manuals written either completely in Al Bhed, or bilingual and translated very poorly. His katana was in the corner, resting against the wall, not to be used for the longest time. Auron felt like he was eighteen years old again and trying to figure out what to do for the rest of his life, with a bare apartment room.
One thing he did have, though, was a very old model of a sphere-player that he borrowed from one of the technicians. Only one sphere sat in it, though, one that he got recently from Shinra on the Celsius a few weeks ago. Watching it, he rested his chin in his hands and stared on with a look of longing on his face, though he did not realize it. What he wanted the most in the whole world right now was to relive the moment playing in the hologram before him.
It was him, twenty-five years old, or so was the illusion from the spherewaves, and Rikku, slow-dancing together literally in the Moonflow. Moonlilies engulfed glowing pyreflies of pastel colors and released them, and he had never imagined Rikku to be so beautiful. He was only wearing his usual clothing, but she was a breathtakingly pretty sight in a long emerald gown that matched her eyes. With the exception of two braids hanging at the sides of her face, all her long hair spilled down her back, the ends of it in the water. The sphere was taken from far away and he could only hear what was being said inside his mind, remembering it all on his own. He watched as their steps slowed down and his lips met hers in perfect timing. Auron leaned in closer and almost felt the touch of Rikku's lips on him again. The dream, the memory, everything, was so real. And the sphere of it became his most prized possession.
After he had watched it three times, he wanted so badly to get up and wander the corridors searching for her. In his mind she became a fantasy maiden again, and represented the only thing he wanted to live for all over again.
But a light rapping at his door cut him off, and he jerked it open furiously.
And wouldn't you know, there stood Rikku, in a pink silk robe but with her braids still held up with that silly blue headband.
"Hey," she said quietly.
"Do you know it's past eleven?" he asked her in a hushed voice, fighting back his urge to snatch her in his tight embrace. "Is something wrong?"
"No, I... I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come." She looked at her bare feet and even in the near-darkness Auron could see her cheeks coloring the same magenta as her robe.
"Rikku, it's okay. I'll listen. What can I do?" Auron looked down at her with kindness in his eye. "I usually don't sleep until much later anyway."
"I just... couldn't sleep. And I don't know why I came here because of that, but I guess I just wanted someone to go walking with...." Rikku tried to concentrate on talking, but instead her attention was diverted to Auron's huge muscular arms. The way his chest looked from that semi-solid armor vest underneath helped the picture along, too. Rikku had never known a longing to touch a man's chest and arms like this, and that strong neck... just amazing. This, and the smell that came from him... not light cologne or brandy this time, but the smoky masculine smell that suggested hours of hard work... it awakened a hunger within her.
"Okay, then. We'll go walking."
"Really??"
"Are you coming or not?" He offered his arm to her and she followed, out into the dark corridor. "Can you see?"
"A little."
"I'm taking you to the galley."
"For what?"
"That cactus drink you Al Bhed like so much. Maybe if you have something to drink, you'll be able to sleep."
They were nearing her bedroom, Rikku noticed sadly, holding her drink can in one hand and barely realizing that Auron's hand was in her other. There was a streak of pale light coming from inside, from the window in the corner that only brought in natural light from the stars and moon. This was one of the best nights she'd ever had, and soon it was all going to be over.
"This is it, isn't it?" he asked her.
"Yes," she said. "Would you like to come in?" she asked suddenly.
"I don't think I should--"
"Just for a little while? How about until I fall asleep?"
"Alright, alright, fine. But we've got to be careful about this." Stopping at the doorway, Auron removed his boots before coming inside and slowly breathing in her sweet scent that was everywhere in this room. Instead of a bed, she had a large rope net hammock stretched across the walls with a few blankets and pillows. He wasn't exactly sure about the mixed colors in the dark, but knowing Rikku, he doubted very much of anything matched. He also noticed a small machina puppy in the corner that had been built for her, an awesome TV set with a sphere recorder and player, and a chest of drawers that weren't completely closed and had shorts and bikini sets spilling out.
Setting her drink on a small table, she hopped up onto her hammock and beckoned him to follow. "Up here. The view out the window is great from this angle!" she whispered.
This was the last thing they needed, he was thinking as he found himself up in the net with her and his arm around her as they rocked back and forth an inch at a time. It didn't matter if he was once a maester of Yevon; if Cid ever found out about this, Auron would most certainly be a dead man. But surprisingly, this was only the second thing on his mind. He was also thinking about what an interesting story they were putting themselves into, staring into each other's eyes and wanting to find they were sharing the same thoughts. Could it really happen, the two of them making out in the dark in a girl's bedroom like lonely or curious teenagers?
'Rikku still is a lonely and curious teenager,' he reminded himself, moments too late as he already found his lips brush across hers, caressing tenderly. In a split-second he saw those young and flirtatious eyelids flutter down, and felt a pair of velvety-soft hands curl around the base of his neck. Like being pulled into a dream, guilt flickered at the bottom of his heart from not wanting to resist. But the attitude of a former warrior monk took over once he felt a gentle nudge, the end of her saccharine nectar tongue slide across his bottom lip. Panic rose within him when the desire to push back her robe snapped into his mind.
"Rikku," he stopped her, pulling away. The girl only blinked sleepily in response, only half-trying to understand. Auron sighed, holding one hand at her back and resting her head on his chest. Gradually he could feel her growing more tired, and falling asleep in a way that made the process seem wondrous rather than something natural that everyone did. As he thought over his behaviors that frightened him that night, somehow it occurred to him that not everyone could do it this way, emanating such heartwarming peace and purity in the way the softness of her heaved when she breathed tranquilly. Trying foolishly to fight the allure of sleep himself, he made a final note that in all his years there was nothing that made a purer happiness than this. Not even the coming of morning, and the knowing that this night risked so much for both of them, could break it.