A/N: Here's Chappie 2! Yay for inspiration! Anyway, this chap is basically just fluffy nothingness, because it involves the guys getting acclimated to being back on Spira, among the living. Lots of good stuff to come, I promise. Just so you know, the Seymour stuff ... I'm going to build up to that, because I don't want this to be all anti-climatic and stuff. So there won't be any major battles or anything any time soon. Anyways, hope you guys enjoy! Reviews make me write faster (wink wink, nudge nudge)!
Chapter Two
The Reality of Living
Cid's Airship
"Hey, why didn't we have one of these babies on Braska's pilgrimage?" Jecht asked Auron as they sat around the bridge, making the three-hour trip to Besaid.
"Perhaps because we didn't know any Al Bhed?" Auron said dryly. "Or perhaps because there were no airships at that time? Take your pick."
Jecht glared. "What is your problem, man?" he asked his friend. "We're back! This is good news."
Auron shook his head. He often wondered if Jecht would ever learn. "Somehow I doubt that the Higher Powers just decided to let us go," he said sarcastically.
"Why not?" Rikku asked, rejoining the men on the bridge. She carried a tray of snacks, which she set down on the small table that they were sitting at. "I mean, you guyswere heroes, after all." She looked at Jecht. "Well, sort of."
"The world must be kept in balance," Auron explained, looking up at Rikku, still amazed at the transformation. Any hint of the teenager of Yuna's pilgrimage was almost completely gone. Instead, she was a confident, capable young woman, who regarded them with seriousness behind her still-mischievous green eyes.
And gods, she'd been cute when they'd been on Yuna's pilgrimage, but now … she was absolutely beautiful. Her golden hair was waist-length now, but she kept it tied back from her face, which still held the same remarkable spiraled green eyes, the same impish smile, but now also held maturity and responsibility.
And her figure … she'd gotten a bit taller, and she was all lean muscle and gracefulness and strength. She wore a bit more clothing now than she had on Yuna's pilgrimage, as well. Part of the maturity, Auron supposed. She had changed from her working clothes when they had gotten to Home. She was now dressed in a long, bright orange flowered skirt made out of a gauzy material that seemed to float around her – while clinging to her legs at the same time – and a simple white sleeveless shirt that showed off her tanned and toned midriff. Her feet were bare.
"Balance?" Rikku asked, and Auron realized he'd been staring. Immediately, he looked away and focused on the food that she had brought. Jecht snorted and Auron shot him a dagger-filled look.
"Uh, yes, balance," Auron said, trying to regain his thoughts. "If we were brought back, that means that a person or persons of equal strength on the other side of things is also back."
Rikku sat down in the empty chair and regarded Auron seriously. "So … someone – or more than one someone – who is pretty bad is back? And this is a certainty?"
"Nothing is ever certain, Rikku," Auron said in his usual fashion, eliciting a smirk from Rikku. "What?" he asked, noting her expression.
"You haven't changed a bit," she told him with a teasing grin. "Still a grouch."
Jecht laughed out loud at that. "That's about right," he said. "Grouchy old Auron."
Rikku turned and smiled quickly at Tidus' father, having forgotten that he'd been there all along. She then turned back to Auron. She'd gotten so absorbed in listening to him. She had forgotten how much she had liked his voice back on Yunie's pilgrimage. Everything about Auron had been soothing to her back then. She was pretty sure that she had had the exact opposite affect on him, however.
"Ahem." Jecht broke into her thoughts, and her head snapped up.
Oh, gods, I was staring! The color rushed to her cheeks as she looked down at the table.
"Geez, am I interrupting something?" Jecht said jokingly.
Rikku's cheeks flamed. "N – No!" she stammered. She looked at Auron and smiled quickly. "I just … I can't believe you're back, you know? And you're like – the same!"
Auron returned the smile. "It is a bit of a shock, seeing you again, as well. Although, you are not the same."
"Hmmm," Rikku said, tapping her chin in mock-thoughtfulness. "Is that a good thing? Because I can always revert!" She bounced up, put one hand on her hip, and waved the other one in the air, like she had always done after battles four years ago.
"Yevon help us all if you do," Auron teased gently, though he couldn't keep the twinkle out of his eye at her antics. She rolled her eyes and smacked him playfully on the arm. He had removed his signature red coat and was sitting there in his black shirt, his muscular forearms exposed to Rikku for the first time. Her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Luckily, he had turned to Jecht and they were discussing possible reasons for their return.
Rikku sat back in her chair and listened to them, basking in it all. Maybe there was some big, terrible thing coming. But this … having them back … was amazing. It was strange … she hadn't even thought about him all that much since the defeat of Sin, but now that he was back, she couldn't keep her eyes off of him. Maybe it was because she was older now, but he didn't seem so – untouchable, detached. He almost seemed, well, accessible to her.
Not to mention sexy as hell. Yeah, she'd had a crush on him before, but in that "he's older and can protect me" sort of way. Now, she looked at him and was just completely overcome by his presence.
Well, she thought to herself as she made her way across the bridge to talk to her father. This could get interesting. She looked over her shoulder and noticed that Auron was looking at her.
Very interesting indeed, she thought with a giddy feeling rising in from somewhere deep inside.
Besaid
The airship arrived on the beach later that night, and there was a large group of people on the beach to meet it. Yuna, Tidus, Wakka, Lulu, and their son, Vidina, and, of course, Braska.
"Sir Auron!" Yuna cried, rushing at her former guardian. They embraced, and then Yuna pulled away. "Sir Jecht. It is good to see you again. And under much more pleasant circumstances this time." She smiled a little.
Jecht nodded. "Agreed," he said amicably.
Rikku stepped out from behind the two men. "Hi, Yunie!" she said, hugging her cousin tightly.
"Oh, Rikku! It's so nice to see you again!" Yuna grinned. "Bit of a shock, wasn't it?"
Rikku looked at Auron and Jecht and smiled to herself. "Little bit, yeah," she said. "I mean, they're supposed to be dead and all that." The two girls giggled, and then Yuna nudged Rikku.
Rikku turned and grinned, watching the reunion between Jecht and Tidus.
"So," Jecht said, as if he were uncomfortable around his own kid. "Still a crybaby?"
Tidus just shook his head and rolled his eyes, pulling his father into a bear hug. "All the time, Old Man," he said quietly, and Rikku could see the tears sparkling in Tidus' impossibly blue eyes as Jecht returned the hug.
"All right, all right," Jecht finally said, pulling away. "That's enough of this mushy, sissy-boy crap!" But everyone could see the tears in Jecht's eyes too.
Rikku squeezed Yuna's hand. "Now see? That is more like it!" she said with a bright giggle. She made her way over to Vidina and scooped him up into her arms. "Isn't this fun, Vidina?" she asked the four-year-old, who was the spitting image of his father. Vidina nodded and laughed out loud as Rikku twirled him around. "Everybody's back and it's perfect!"
After a few more minutes of spinning with Rikku, Vidina ran off to play with some in the water with some of the Aurochs, who had "adopted" their Captain's son as something of a mascot for the team.
Rikku walked over to Lulu, who was watching him with her keen eyes. "So, what do you think of all this?" Rikku asked the mage.
Lulu regarded the younger girl thoughtfully. "Not sure yet," she said honestly. "It seems … too good to be true."
Rikku nodded. "Auron said the same thing," she replied. "He said that if they are back, then there might be some evil people who came back as well." She shuddered involuntarily at the thought.
Lulu smiled reassuringly. "I'm sure there's nothing to worry about, Rikku," she said quietly. "I really don't think that there is anything here that the nine of us couldn't take."
Rikku nodded. "You're right, Lulu, as always." She looked over at the others. Yuna, Tidus, and Wakka were all gathered round Braska, Jecht, and Auron, talking animatedly and laughing. "Look at Yuna," she said. "She looks so happy. Like everything is just perfect for her now."
Yuna waved them over and Rikku gave Lulu a grin and trotted toward them. "What's up?" she asked her cousin.
"Nothing, we just thought you guys might like to be sociable, ya?" Wakka said jokingly as Lulu joined them.
"We were being sociable. With each other," Rikku said nodding authoritatively, and the others laughed.
The group sat around the beach until the sun began to set. Yuna turned to her father. "We would love to have all of you stay with us tonight, but our hut is small. We have room for you and for Sir Jecht, but Sir Auron …"
"It's nothing to worry about," Auron said kindly, waving his hand dismissively.
"You can stay on the airship!" Rikku sang out before she had really thought it through. Oh, that's just great, Rikku! she scolded herself. Hey, Auron, come back to the airship with me, heh heh heh. She felt like smacking herself in the face. "I mean, if you want. There's a lot of room, and you don't have to sleep outside." She shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant.
Auron just smiled at her. "Thank you, Rikku, for the kind offer," he said. "I believe I will accept. It's been … a long day," he added tiredly.
"I'll show you the cabin," Rikku said quietly. She turned to the others. "See you in the morning." As an afterthought, she ran back across the beach and threw herself at her uncle. "It's nice to finally meet you," she said softly.
Braska laughed gently and returned the hug. "And you as well."
Rikku pulled away from Braska and gave Jecht a goofy grin. "And you …" she began, shaking her finger at him. "It's nice to meet you when you're not trying to destroy Spira."
Jecht laughed. "Couldn't agree with you more, Al Bhed," he told her good-naturedly.
"Okay, we're really going now," Rikku told them. "See you tomorrow!" She waved and skipped back across the sand to where Auron stood waiting. "Braska's pilgrimage must've been something else," she said when he was in earshot.
"You could say that," he said with amusement, following her into the airship.
She led him through the main corridor of the airship and stopped at one of the doors, entering a code on the keypad. "Hopefully this is okay," she said as the door slid open, revealing a spartan room that contained only a bed and a nightstand. "It's not … fancy or anything."
"It's fine. You should know by now that I don't need much to get by," Auron told her kindly.
Rikku looked away, not meeting his eye. "I just … wish I had more to offer you, is all. You guys are back from the dead for some reason that is totally beyond all of us, and this little room is the best I can do." She shrugged. "It just … doesn't seem right, somehow."
"Rikku," he said, looking down at her.
"Uh, the bathroom is the next door down, just enter 5064 and the door will open. And my room is on the other side of that." She paused. "Knock if you need anything."
"Rikku." Auron was confused. Why wasn't she looking at him?
"See you in the morning!" Rikku said quickly, taking off down the hallway toward her own cabin. This was all a little crazy. And now … now Auron wasn't just some heroic crush figure in the eyes of a silly and flighty teenager. He was a heroic crush figure in the eyes of a strong and capable young woman. And he was back from the dead. And it was all a little bit too much for Rikku to take in at the moment.
She punched in the code to her cabin as quickly as she could, hoping to get well inside the confines of her room before …
"Rikku!" That was Auron's "not gonna take any more shit" voice.
Uh-oh. Rikku steeled herself for the inevitable. She turned around and looked down the hall at him meekly. "Uh, yes?" she stammered, forcing a megawatt smile.
"Thank you," was all he said before disappearing into his cabin.
Rikku felt deflated. That's ALL? She didn't know why, but she felt … disappointed somehow. Sighing, she entered her own cabin and sank down to the floor, leaning against the wall.
"Gods, I really don't need this right now!" she said aloud, stomping her feet on the floor for emphasis. Sometimes talking things out to herself really helped. "And when did he become so gorgeous? How come I never noticed that before? Aaargh! Why the hell is this happening?" She shook her head and stood up. "Doesn't matter, doesn't matter. He thinks that they are here for some big evil thing … if that's true, then they will probably just … disappear after we fight the thing."
She paused. "Well that doesn't seem right." Why bring people who were special to so many people back, if you were just going to rip them away again? Wouldn't that just cause moreproblems than it solved?
Shaking her head, she changed into her nightgown and crawled into bed. Too tired to think anymore, she drifted off to sleep.
Back in Besaid Village, Yuna and Tidus were up all night, talking to their fathers, and feeling blessed to have them back.
And far away in the forgotten Omega Ruins, another man was meticulously preparing to shatter their world.
