DISCLAIMER: I do not own FFX or FFX-2 or any of the characters or places associated with it. I do, however, own the twisted idea for this story.

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.

I have had problems with my fics being stolen. Reviewers of the Silver Wings trilogy know all about the situation. Please keep an eye out for this story or any of my others posted on any other sites. I only post here and I only use the name "akksgurl". If you think my story has been stolen, please contact me so that I can look into the situation. Thanks a lot in advance for your help.

Author's Notes: This chapter has some FFX-2 details in it so if you haven't played the game you might be a little spoiled. Nothing major, though, which is why I still have this in the FFX section. The only FFX-2 stuff you'll see are some characters and…well…you'll see in the first section the other thing I'm talking about.


TWISTED DESTINY
by akksgurl
Chapter Six: Aftermath

The rain pelted him, cascading down his brow like a waterfall. His boots clomped louder than he had wanted as he made his way down the darkened alley. In his hand was the 10,000 gil he'd agreed upon to buy him the information. He had no way to know for sure if the information he was going to buy would prove useful or not, but it was a chance he had to take.

He heard movement from behind him and casually slipped his hand into his thick jacket, gripping the handle of his weapon in a practiced movement.

"You got the money?" came a raspy voice from the vicinity of the noise.

He turned slowly, his hand still caressing his weapon, "Yes. Do you have the information?"

The shadow nodded, "Show me the money and I'll give you the info."

"And how do I know you won't bolt after I pay you?"

The shadowy figure seemed to contemplate that question for a moment before he finally said, "I gave you my word. That'll have to be good enough."

The rain was getting harder, slanting to the left in hard pellets. He didn't like having to rely on the stranger's word, but he had no other choice. If the man's information was useful, it would be worth every cent he had to pay. If it wasn't…well, he didn't have to eat every day. With a slowly deliberate movement, he extended the wad of money toward the figure in front of him. The figure accepted it greedily. The sound of him counting it greeted him, "The information?" he asked, impatience lacing every word.

The man stopped counting. He could see the moonlight reflecting off of his teeth as the man replied, "Bevelle's got a big surprise for Zanarkand this time. A big surprise." He made a sucking noise as if he had a piece of food stuck in his teeth, "In the basement of Bevelle. They're calling it 'the Zanarkand killer'."

"The Zanarkand killer?!"

The man nodded in the dark, "Although, most people just call it Vegnagun. They're still working the bugs out, but they're hoping to have it up and running by December."

"How powerful is it?"

"They say it'll be able to blow Zanarkand off the map with one shot." Was the man's reply as he quickly shoved a brown envelope into his hands.

He stood there in stunned silence as the words sank in. A machina with enough power to destroy Zanarkand in a single shot? He opened his mouth to ask another question when he saw the man turn tail and run the opposite direction. For a split second, he thought they'd been spied, but then he realized that the man just wanted to get going before he was caught. It was treasonous for a Bevelle citizen to be caught exchanging secretive military information with a Zanarkand resident. Luckily for him, this particular citizen knew a lot about military goings on through his job as a mechanic for the country of Bevelle and he was easily bribed.

Vegnagun…

If it was as powerful as the man said, then it would definitely be quite helpful. He just needed to get to it. Sneaking into the Bevelle underbelly wasn't going to be easy, but it would have to be done. There was no way around it. He simply couldn't sit back and do nothing. A weapon that powerful would be quite useful when Sin appeared.

Yuna wouldn't be able to do anything without her summons.

It would be up to Auron. He would get her home if it was the last thing he did. He owed that much to Braska.

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A beautiful tune played eloquently on the piano greeted Yuna as she walked up the pathway to the house that evening. Tidus had dropped her off on the corner and drove away so quickly he almost took her arm with him. He had acted very stiff and uncomfortable after the almost-kiss in the water. Yuna wondered if he was disgusted that he'd almost kissed her, or angry that they'd been interrupted.

With her luck, she figured it was the former.

Yuna let herself in quietly and let the door shut with equal silence behind her. Slipping her shoes off in the corner, Yuna tiptoed quietly passed Lenne, trying not to disturb her, but it was no use. Lenne stopped playing the piano quickly and turned to her friend with a grin, "You're dripping on my carpet."

Yuna blushed and looked down at the puddle forming in the rug at her feet, "I'm sorry. I'll go change quickly."

"You'd better!" Lenne called after her with a laugh, "And then come back out here. I want details!"

Details? There weren't any details to give. Tidus had tried to show her how to hold her breath underwater and she'd failed the test miserably. Then, just when it seemed as if he was going to kiss her, Lord Zaon had shown up and interrupted.

Lord Zaon…

It was such an honor – and a shock – to meet him. He looked much younger than the history books had said he was. He'd always been painted as a mature older man who was wise beyond his years and so deeply in love with his wife that he was willing to sacrifice his life because she asked him to. Yet, the Zaon she'd met was complaining about buying his wife an anniversary present and didn't look a day over twenty-five.

It was very strange indeed.

Slipping out of her wet clothes, Yuna slipped on a pair of grey sweatpants and a white t-shirt she'd gotten when Lenne had taken her shopping for clothes. Yuna had never seen such clothes before. They were so comfortable and relaxed. When she put them on for the first time, Yuna felt like her age rather than decades older than it.

"So? What happened?" asked Lenne excitedly as Yuna re-entered the main room. The songstress sprang up from the piano bench and jumped over the back of the sofa, landing perfectly flat on her rump upon one of the cushions.

Yuna shrugged, "There's nothing to tell." And that was the truth…

Lenne wasn't daunted. She rolled her eyes and crossed her legs under herself, "Of course there is. You went on a date with Tidus Bacohl. There's always something to tell." Her brown eyes lit up with excitement as she leaned in and whispered, "Did he kiss you?"

Yuna felt herself blushing and tried to fight it but knew it was a losing battle. She'd been prone to blushing her entire life, but she'd never hated it as much as she did now. She lowered her gaze to focus on her feet as she whispered, "No…it wasn't like that."

"Then what was it like?" questioned Lenne with a smirk, "I mean…you were gone all afternoon. What did you guys do?"

"He showed me how to hold my breath underwater."

Laughter was the response to Yuna's remark and Lenne struggled to regain her breath after the sudden bout of mirth, "Oh for goodness sakes." She rolled her eyes, "Tidus really needs to brush up on his romance if he thinks that is a good first date. Shuyin won't ever let him live that down."

"It wasn't a date." Yuna replied quietly, wishing with all her might that it had been but knowing it wasn't. Sure, maybe she'd never been on an actual real date before but she certainly hoped she'd know if she really was on one as opposed to just hanging out with a guy. Aside from the near-kiss, there was nothing remotely date like about the entire afternoon. She hadn't gussied up and put on her nicest dress. He hadn't even bothered to completely dry off after blitzball practice. They didn't go to a restaurant or watch the sunset during a romantic beach stroll. All they'd done was go swimming.

Yeah…that was romantic…

Lenne sighed, "Oh sweetie. That's Tidus for you. He didn't have the guts to ask you out so he takes you somewhere he feels totally safe and secure just so that he could hang out with you. It's easier for him that way. He's really a little wimp at heart."

Figuring it would be best to steer the conversation into another direction, Yuna said, "I got to meet Lo…" she stopped and cleared her throat. She had to be very careful about how she referred to people from now on. Lord Zaon and Lady Yunalesca were just Zaon and Yunalesca. She didn't like referring to them as that. It felt disrespectful, but since they weren't dead where she was she figured that she didn't have to show them any respect just yet. She stopped her fake coughing, "Excuse me. Anyway, I met Zaon today. He was looking for Shuyin."

Lenne smiled, "He found him. Shu called me after he got out of his extra-long practice to say he was going out with Zaon to find Yunalesca a present." Rolling her eyes, Lenne propped her feet onto the coffee table and leaned back, "Zaon always puts stuff off. I mean, when he was dating Yunalesca, he'd wait until the night before to buy her birthday present. I think he still does."

"He seems rather young to have been married a year." Came Yuna's next statement. That was the honest truth too. The books always said that he'd married Yunalesca at 30 and helped her defeat Sin a year and a half afterward. He certainly didn't look like he was bordering on 32.

The songstress stretched on the sofa, "Well, he's really not all that old. He's only a few years older than us." She laughed and absently twisted a strand of her hair around her finger, "21 isn't exactly old, Yuna."

Twenty-one? Yuna had to try not to laugh. Zaon had gained a decade because of a typo? Then it occurred to her that he was celebrating his one-year anniversary with Yunalesca. In less than 6 months, the war with Bevelle was going to start and then…

Sin…

"…be able to meet Yunalesca later this week." Lenne was saying when Yuna came back into the conversation, "We're throwing them an anniversary party on Saturday."

Yuna conveyed her happiness at being able to meet Yunalsca, but her mind continued to wander. She was going to meet Lady Yunalesca, the first person to ever defeat Sin and she was going to spend more time with Lord Zaon. This was the things dreams were made of. She never thought she'd get to do this and still be breathing when it happened.

She was still breathing…right?

Casually lifting her hand to her mouth, Yuna felt the steady stream of oxygen escaping her nose and knew the answer to her question. She was still alive. This wasn't a dream. It wasn't exactly like she believed it was anymore, but it was worth double-checking on occasion.

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The tires on Tidus' car squealed as he came to a sudden stop on the road outside of his boat-house. He turned the car off with a furious twist of his wrist and slammed the door behind him. Taking the jump over onto the boat with ease, Tidus was inside the main room before he realized he'd even crossed the deck.

Why was he so mad?

It certainly didn't make any sense to him. There was no reason for him to be feeling this way. So what? He'd almost kissed her. Big deal! He'd almost kissed – and had actually succeeded in kissing – lots of girls. What made Yuna so different? Why was he feeling like this over a girl he barely knew?!

Damn Zaon! If he hadn't shown up, Tidus might have actually succeeded in kissing Yuna as well.

Oh, who was he kidding? It wasn't Zaon's fault. Why blame Zaon? It was his own fault. He shouldn't have let a little thing like Zaon keep him from kissing the lips he hadn't been able to get out of his mind since they'd first smiled at him. He hadn't been able to get Yuna out of his mind for more than a few minutes at a time from the moment his blitzball connected with her head. He'd never felt this way about a girl before. Nobody had ever gotten to him and stayed like she had. Sure, he'd been infatuated before but it never lasted long. Out of sight; out of mind had been practically his motto. That was part of the reason he'd tried to avoid her for the past month. He'd been afraid of just how strong his feelings were in such a short amount of time. But his motto hadn't worked this time. He'd only ended up missing her more.

Tidus kicked off his shoes and shuffled into his bedroom, trailing clothes as he went. He was down to his boxers when he reached his bed and collapsed down onto it. He fought with himself to stop from wishing Yuna was laying next to him. He smiled ruefully at himself. He certainly did have a one track mind.

Rolling onto his side, Tidus stared at the phone. Should he call her? Should he call and apologize for his behavior after Zaon left? Should he call her and see if she wanted to hang out tonight? Should he call her just to talk; just to hear her beautiful voice? Tidus lifted his arm and reached for the phone when its sudden ringing gave him a shock.

He reached for it quickly, hoping against hope that it was Yuna on the other end, "Hello?" he said, a little to excited for his own liking.

"Hey there, sexy."

Tidus felt an immediate let down as he heard the voice on the other end. It was female, but not the female he was hoping would call, "Hey Reanna."

"Don't sound so excited." The girl scolded playfully.

"I won't." replied Tidus. They'd played this game numerous times but tonight he didn't feel like it. Reanna Connor was the only female player on the Zanarkand Abes – a damn good player if Tidus said so himself. It only stood to reason that if Tidus was going to date anybody, it'd be Reanna. It had only lasted three months. Both of them were too pigheaded and stubborn for it to work out. Tidus had been surprised the 'lets be friends' routine had actually worked for the two of them.

"You sound down." Stated Reanna.

He lied, "Not really. Just tired."

"Oh poo." Was her reply, "I wanted to see if you wanted to catch that new action flick at the Sphere Theater tonight."

Tidus did actually want to see that movie. And he certainly didn't want to lay around the house moping over Yuna. He sat up slowly and put his feet on the floor, "I'd need to get dressed first."

Reanna giggled, "No, you should go naked. Give the girls a thrill."

"A thrill?" he rolled his eyes as if she could see it.

"You look pretty good naked, if I do say so myself." Teased Reanna. She clicked her tongue on her teeth and sighed, "How about I drive myself on over there and we go from your place? I'll be there in about 10 minutes."

"Sounds good."

"See you then!"

"See you." Replied Tidus as he clicked the receiver. Heaving a heavy sigh, he quickly slipped on dry clothes, ran a brush through his tangled hair, and hoped Reanna would help him take his mind off of Yuna…

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Rikku was tired of parties. She was tired of people congratulating her on defeating Sin. She hadn't done anything. Yuna had and Yuna wasn't there to enjoy it. After a month of back to back celebratory parties, Rikku had convinced Wakka and Lulu to go with her to Bikinel. Her father had set up a temporary Home and invited the trio to stay. Al Bhed's weren't given to throwing parties just because they could. The guardians could get some much needed respite – and an opportunity to mourn – on Bikinel.

The temporary Home where Rikku currently found herself wasn't anything like the Home she'd lived in for most of her life. All that was left of that wonderful place was a pile of rubble, thanks mostly to the Guado and to her father's inability not to blow things up. It was early yet; the sun barely peeking over the horizon, but Rikku was wide awake. She hadn't been able to sleep much since Yuna died. Guilt and sadness mingled together to make her sleep a restless one.

Sliding on her green shorts and peach colored top, Rikku padded quietly out of the guest room and into the main hall that led outside. Yuna had never gotten to see Bikinel, having been taken by Seymour and almost forced to marry him instead. That was the one thing Rikku really regretted. She had really wanted her cousin to see Bikinel. She knew Yuna would have loved it.

"So the rumors are true." Came a voice from behind her, "Cid's little girl is a hero."

Rikku spun around, putting her hands on her hips in an angry motion that was well practiced around the tall man standing near her with an ever ready smirk on his face, "I have a name, Gippal."

Gippal shrugged and reached forward, rubbing her head as if she was a petulant puppy. Rikku squirmed out of his reach and he laughed, "I'm impressed. Didn't think you had it in you."

Rikku snorted and glared at him, "You're just jealous because I am going to be part of history."

"We're all going to be part of history, Cid's girl." Gippal replied, "It just depends on whether people remember us or not."

It was then, in that light, that Rikku realized how much he'd changed. This wasn't the arrogant 15 year old that had stormed out of her life – and her heart – daring to defy everything if necessary in order to fight and defeat Sin. Gippal had left as a little boy with dreams of being a member of the Crusaders and came home as a man who'd seen battle and had grown up several years in just one.

"That's pretty deep, coming from you." Teased Rikku. She was desperate to keep things the same between them. She couldn't take the thought of things changing any more than they had. She'd lost her cousin, her home. She just wanted some things to remain the same. She wanted Gippal to stay the same.

"Eh, well…traveling with a wanna-be priest will do that to you."

"You traveled with a priest?"

Gippal nodded, scratching the skin under his patch, "He wasn't a priest yet, but he wanted to be. That was all he talked about. That after Sin was defeated he was going to join the Yevon priesthood and see if there was a way to permanently defeat Sin."

"But if there was, wouldn't they have done it already?" Rikku asked.

"That's what I told him, but Baralai just wouldn't listen to me." Gippal shrugged, "No big deal. He'll be safer as a priest than a soldier anyway."

Rikku sighed and turned her back to him, "I wish it was permanent already. Then Yunie wouldn't have died for nothing."

His hand rested heavily on her shoulder then, and Rikku unconsciously leaned into it like she'd done a hundred times before, "I'm sorry about your cousin. Cid told me. I would have liked to have met her."

"You would have liked her." Rikku said quietly, "She was great…"

Gippal rested his chin upon Rikku's head and wrapped his arms around her waist, "She's in a better place, though, Rikku. I'm sure she's happy."

Rikku's eyes lit up and she extracted herself from Gippal's arms and spun around to face him, "That's it! You can still at least see her!" she grabbed Gippal's arm and pulled him toward the large airship that had carried them to safety when Home exploded, "We can go to the Farplane and see her!"

"Woah, woah, woah!" Gippal cried, skidding to a stop and dragging Rikku with him, "Al Bhed do NOT go to the Farplane."

Rikku frowned and her shoulders drooped, "I know that Gippal…but I really want to see her and make sure she's okay. Is that so bad?"

"Of course not." Gippal replied, running a finger along her jawline softly, "But you're gonna have to go by yourself. Memories are nice, but that's all they are."

She stuck her tongue out in a sudden act of spunk, "Fine. Stay here and be stupid. I'm gonna go check on Yunie!"