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: By the end of this chapter, I'm sure you'll all be able to see where I'm heading in terms of a certain couple…sniff. Hope you enjoy! Also, as you may recall if you read the Author's Notes for the first chapter, since Tidus wasn't on Yuna's pilgrimage certain things didn't happen...like the death of a certain blue-haired Maester of Yevon.


TWISTED DESTINY
by akksgurl
Chapter Eleven: Alive…For Now

She came awake slowly, each joint in her body aching separately. The bright white light above blinded her. She squeezed her eyes shut tightly to drown it out. Her head pounded. She felt so tired. Carefully, she assessed each part of her body with closed eye. Her fingers still flexed. Her toes still wiggled. Her knees still bent, as did her elbows. It was the heaviness on her stomach that she wasn't used to. Yuna slowly opened her eyes, trying to adjust to the bright light that surrounded her.

It was a small and tidy room with one flat cot on which she was laying and several pieces of equipment on either side of her. It looked suspiciously like Luca's hospital, except for the fact that Luca didn't have any of this machina around. The Lucan hospital relied solely on spells to heal their patients.

Her eyes fell to her stomach where a blonde head lay buried face down in her belly button. She giggled a little as his yawn tickled the sensitive skin that was revealed through a huge tear in her dress. There must have been so many patients that they hadn't bothered to put her into the usual hospital gown. Or maybe the hospital gown was something her Spira did, but not this Spira. Yuna supposed it didn't matter that much. It made no real difference.

"Hey…" she whispered softly, gently rubbing her fingers in his hair. His eyes blinked against her skin. They were filled with sleep when he finally lifted his head. Deep circles were under his eyes, his suit was wrinkled, and his hair was a mess. It looked as if he hadn't moved from the spot she'd found him in for several days…at least.

When their eyes connected, a sudden life appeared in his and he smiled broadly, "You're awake!" He kissed her and touched her face, arms, and shoulders, "I was so worried about you."

"How long have I been out?"

He thought for a minute, "A few hours. It was a pretty nasty hit you took."

Yuna nodded in agreement and let herself fall back onto the bed. It certainly had been a nasty hit. Who would have thought she'd survive a chandelier falling on her? That certainly didn't happen every day, "How's Reanna?"

Tidus' eyes lowered, hiding their magnificent blue under his thick, dark lashes. Yuna's heart started to pound a little harder. That reaction couldn't be good. He sighed, "They don't think she knew what hit her. At least we can be happy about that."

Yuna didn't even realize she had started to cry until she tried to speak. Her words came out in a torrent of tears, "But…I…I thought…" she stopped, wiping frantically at her eyes and trying to calm herself. Tears weren't going to change anything. Yuna had dealt with more death in her life than most people. This was just another. This was just another person she couldn't save. She sniffed, "I thought I got her out of the way. That's why the chandelier hit me."

He gave her a weak smile, "The chandelier didn't hit you, honey. You got hit with some falling plaster and ceiling beams a few feet away from Reanna."

"Oh…"

What was she to say to that? She'd survived getting hit with debris and rubble and one of his closest friends had gotten smashed by a chandelier before his very eyes. And now that the war had started, only more people would die. More people he knew. More people he loved. Yuna pouted, "I'm so sorry…"

"Don't apologize," he demanded, lifting her face to his so that their eyes connected, "You have no idea how happy I am to be able to talk to you. I wasn't sure if you'd make it and I was so damn scared, Yuna. Don't you ever apologize. You did your best. That's all anyone could do. You risked your life for my friend…for a girl you barely knew. I'm grateful that you tried, but I'm even more grateful that you're still here."

She looked at him for a while after his little speech ended. Her finger trailed along his jaw to his lips. She ran them along his mouth slowly. He was the most beautiful man she'd ever met…both inside and out.

"Yuna!"

The former summoner was shaken from her trance by the sudden entry of Auron, still dressed in his usual outfit but now with an air of panic and worry surrounding him that Yuna had never seen in the stoic man before. Tidus backed away to allow Auron room, which the taller man instantly used to hug Yuna tightly, "Lenne called and told me what happened. I was so worried."

"I'm okay, Sir Auron." Yuna replied, returning his hug gingerly. She wasn't used to this type of interaction with Sir Auron. He was usually a man of very little word and even less affection.

He backed away slowly, holding her at arms length from her shoulders to examine her, "Are you sure? Lenne said you took a pretty bad hit."

"I'm sure."

He didn't seem fully convinced. His perusal of her continued unabated for several more minutes until he grunted, "Have you eaten anything? You look starved."

"Not yet, Sir Auron. I just woke up."

Auron shook his head, "It's never too early to give the body nourishment, Yuna. It will help you heal faster."

"I'll get you something," Tidus offered, "What would you like?"

Yuna sighed. She hated having everybody make such a fuss over her. She hated it on her pilgrimage and she hated it now, "Water and a small sandwich, I guess."

"Okay," Tidus nodded, "Water and a small sandwich coming right up."

Yuna closed her eyes as Tidus kissed her. She enjoyed it but at the same time mentally prepared herself from the verbal onslaught she would receive from Auron. As soon as the door shut behind Tidus, Auron began his diatribe, "What in Spira was that? I thought I told you not to interfere in their lives."

"I'm not going to apologize, Sir Auron." Yuna replied. She knew she wasn't acting like herself. The old Yuna would have instantly been repentant, but not anymore. She liked this new Yuna. This new Yuna was going to stay.

"You're not? You might have just destroyed our Spira as we know it with that little kiss, but you're not going to apologize?"

"Did it ever occur to you," she asked, angrily, "that maybe I'm meant to be here and be with him? That it didn't change anything?"

Auron sighed, shaking his head in disbelief, "Oh but it already has changed something Yuna. Something very important." The tall man stood and began to pace around the room, finally choosing a spot next to the window, "The girl that died…I suppose you don't know who she was."

"What are you talking about?"

"That was Lady Reanna Yocun Connor who was the second person to defeat Sin."

The name echoed in Yuna's head over and over again. Yocun…Yocun…Yocun. She let out a hushed whisper, "She's…Lady Yocun…?"

Auron nodded, "Yes. When they announced her death on the television, they used her full name. It was only then that I realized the entire truth. Sometimes in the history texts, Lady Yocun was referred to as R. Yocun. She must have decided to use her middle name after becoming a summoner." He paused and looked at Yuna, "She was also one of Lady Yunalesca's guardians."

Yuna started to pant, unable to catch her breath. Her hands went to her hair and she started to tug. It was something she'd done since childhood. When she was scared, or stressed, she would tug at her hair. It happened less and less often as she grew and got used to the stress of her life, but every now and again…like right this moment…she would do it.

Then…just as quickly as it came on, her panic stopped and she felt an annoyance grow. She glowered up at Auron, "Just wait a second. Why are you blaming her death on me? I tried to save her!"

"I know that. I admire that." Auron admitted, taking a seat on the bed next to her, "However, she would not have been under that chandelier if you would have just stayed away from them like I asked you to."

"How do you figure that?"

Auron shook his head at her, "Yuna, she would have been helping Shuyin get Tidus out. Not you. You were in her place. If you hadn't been there, this would never have happened."

Yuna had always been taught to show respect to elders. She'd always been told to keep your anger hidden and to wear a smile. However, all that went out the window at Auron's implication that Reanna's death was all her fault. Her nostrils flared in her anger and she hissed, "How dare you blame this all on me! You expect me to not associate with anyone for fear of ruining Spira and yet you plan on using a giant weapon to destroy Sin and, quite possibly, the world and don't bat an eye. You hypocritical jerk!"

Auron met her gaze steadily, breathing deeply and calmly as he replied, "I'm trying to get us home. You're trying to get us killed."

"How do you figure that?"

"Name one thing you've done in the recent weeks that has had anything to do with us getting home and nothing to do with you making goo-goo eyes at Tidus?"

Yuna seethed but didn't respond. She hadn't done anything to help with getting home because the fact was she wasn't so sure she wanted to go home anymore. Auron nodded, "See what I mean? You're deliberately going against me and it's changing the future but not benefiting us in the slightest. You have to stop it Yuna. Just stop seeing him. We're going to have to make a run for Vegnagun as soon as possible now that the war has begun so just say goodbye, break it off, and forget him."

"I can't do that…" replied Yuna somberly.

"Why?"

"Because…I love him."

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Finding Maechen was beginning to feel like a new pilgrimage to Rikku. Maechen was well known for meandering about Spira with no real direction and this particular time was no different. She glared at the shoopuf and snorted, "Do we really have to cross the Moonflow again? It's been 15 times already!"

"It's only been 5." Lulu corrected her, "And yes, we do. He's apparently in Zanarkand now."

"That's what they said last time and he wasn't there!"

"We just missed him that time, Rikku." The black mage sighed, "Do you want to figure out what's going on with Yuna's vision or not?"

Rikku sighed, "Of course I do, but I just don't see why we can't ask that Baralai person. He'd probably be a lot easier to find."

Lulu ignored Rikku and walked up to the shoopuf driver with Wakka. Rikku stewed angrily in her spot. She hated being ignored; especially when her idea made so much sense. Why not ask Baralai? He'd probably know just as much as Maechen would.

"Are you coming?" called Lulu. Rikku looked up to see Wakka climbing into the shoopuf carrier with Lulu on his heels. Rikku groaned but climbed the steps and joined them. She'd never ridden a shoopuf before this excursion and if she had it her way she never would again. The creatures stank horribly and made the most annoying noises as they crossed the Moonflow. She much preferred machina to the dreadful shoopufs. She much preferred machina to anything that the Yevonites came up with.

What upset Rikku the most about having to cross the Moonflow again, was having to go across the Thunder Plains again. Although she was trying to get over her fear, she still quivered every time a bolt hit the ground anywhere near her. Her teeth started chattering just thinking about it. The Thunder Plains were horrible. And to top it off, they would have to cut through Guadosalam to get there. Rikku didn't like the idea of having to deal with Lord Seymour again. She hadn't really met him until she'd joined with Yuna's pilgrimage guardians, but she'd heard about him. The half-guado; half-human maester. She'd had to meet up with him the last 5 times they'd cut through Guadosalam looking for Maechen. She hadn't seen him when she had visited the Farplane with Gippal or by herself after that. He'd apparently been in Macalania.

Seymour frightened her. There was no other way to describe it. He'd gone insane during Yuna's pilgrimage and had even gone so far as to make her marry him. Luckily the marriage was deemed void because he had forced her, but that didn't change the fact that Seymour had some real problems. He kept comparing himself and Yuna with Lord Zaon and Lady Yunalesca; as if they were the second generation and now that Yuna was gone, he was playing the part of the grieving husband for all it was worth. He played up the fact that her guardians made it sound like he'd forced her into marriage when in reality she had wanted to be with him but they were too judgmental to let her marry a half-guado. He'd been icily cold to them since Sin's defeat and Rikku couldn't help but wonder just what he was planning.

"Let's just hurry up and cut through here, ya?" Wakka suggested as they came to the entrance to Guadosalam.

"I second that." Agreed Rikku while Lulu nodded. They quickly shuffled up the slight incline in front of the hotel and headed toward the fork to bear left toward the Thunder Plains when Seymour came from around the right corner.

He smirked at them, "My, my, my. Gracing us with your presences again today. To what to we owe the great honor?"

"Just need to get to the Thunder Plains, ya." Replied Wakka, uncomfortably running his hand through his jostled red hair. Wakka had truly respected Seymour once, back when he believed that Seymour was a good and honest Maester of Yevon.

He didn't respect him anymore…

Seymour nodded serenely, his smirk never leaving his face, "Still searching for the wise old Maechen, I take it. Whatever could be that important?"

"He's got a really good soup recipe we want!" Rikku smarted back at Seymour sarcastically. He lifted a brow to her and her sudden bout of confidence melted away like snow in July, "Um…nevermind…"

"Well," Seymour continued, "Since you're here you all might as well know that I've petitioned the Yevon Maesters about my marriage to Yuna. I feel it's only right that our marriage be reinstated legally so that Yuna may rest in peace." He sighed, "She must be tormented knowing that our wedding and our love were so quickly dismissed as unimportant and illegal."

Lulu glared at the taller man, pulling herself up to her full height to look him directly in the eyes, "Yuna didn't love you and you most certainly didn't love her and no matter what you do, nothing is going to change that."

Seymour lowered his voice to a hoarse whisper as he hissed in Lulu's face, "Maybe not, but being the widower of the High Summoner will be quite a triumph. Everyone will listen to what I have to say and take it to heart. Everyone…men…women…children…" he paused and winked at her, "Maesters…"

Lulu balled her fists at her sides, "You can't use Yuna's name to advance your sick and twisted plans. I won't let you."

"I'd like to see you try to stop me, Lulu." Seymour replied, calmly wiping lint off of his robe, "The only one who can legally stop me is Yuna…and she's dead. And once the Maesters legalize our marriage again, I'll be Yuna's next of kin and I'll be able to do whatever I want to." Seymour shrugged, "So unless Yuna figures out a way to come back from the dead, there is no stopping me." He nodded at Rikku and Wakka before condescendingly brushing a kiss to Lulu's hand, "It's been a pleasure as usual."

Seymour walked gallantly away and left the trio seething in his wake. Rikku ground out through gritted teeth, "How dare he! Who does he think he is, using Yunie like that?!"

Wakka pumped his fists in the air, "Yeah! Who does he think he is, ya?"

"He's taking advantage of a situation presented to him." Lulu said with a sigh. She leaned back against the wall of the cave Guadosalam was situated in, "A situation we presented to him. We didn't make it clear to Yuna just how dangerous he was. We didn't watch her closely enough and gave him plenty of time to force her into marriage. And we didn't report exactly what had happened to the Maesters of Yevon." She sighed unhappily, "He's right. We can't do anything to stop him."

"But we can't just give up!"

Lulu shrugged, "I don't want to either, Rikku, but we can't do anything without Yuna. Anyway, isn't that why we're here in the first place? To find out what's going on with her vision in the Farplane?"

"Yeah…"

"Then let's get going and find Maechen. Maybe once we figure out what's going on with that vision, the answer to our Seymour problem will come with it.

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Lenne swung her feet over Shuyin's lap and wrapped her arms around his chest after she hung up the phone. They'd only been back at her house for a few minutes to shower and change when the phone had rung. It was a call she had been expecting. She still wasn't happy about it, though.

Shuyin nuzzled her neck and spoke softly into her skin, "So…when do you need to leave?"

"They need me there on Monday. I'm going to be in Yunalesca's unit, which is nice. At least I'll know somebody."

Shuyin nodded with a heavy sigh. Thoughts had weighed heavily on his mind since the moment he realized they were under attack and they had continued unabated since. He pulled her closer to him, "I still can't believe Yuna was right…" he bit his lip and turned his head to focus on the far wall rather than on Lenne's eyes, "Do you think that monster will show up like she said too? Do you think Zanarkand will be destroyed?"

"Let's just focus on one thing at a time, huh?"

"I can't do that. My mind is moving too quickly to slow down." Shuyin twisted in his seat and let her slide slowly off of his lap so he could lay his head in hers. He liked to do that. He swore it helped him think. He played absently with a few stray strands of her long brown hair as he spoke, "She knew Auron. She was so happy to see him. I guess that means he's from the future too, huh? And Auron knew Dad…so I guess that's where Dad disappeared to. Maybe he got to the future the same way Auron and Yuna got to the past."

"I guess." Was Lenne's quiet reply. Her fingers laced through his own and she brought them up to the warmth of her lips, "I really don't think it makes much of a difference now, though. What happens will happen no matter what we try to do."

Shuyin shook his head, his free hand pushing blonde strands from his eyes, "That's where I think you're wrong, Lennie. I think we might be able to change things." He sat up quickly and spun around to face her, "See…Yuna and her guardians defeated Sin and she's a summoner. So why can't you and I do the same thing? You're a summoner…and I'll be your guardian."

Lenne smiled at him. His infallible ability to see the bright side was one of the things she loved the most about him, "Just one problem with that, love. Yuna said she killed that thing with the final aeon. I don't have that."

Shuyin frowned and leaned back on the sofa. He had forgotten about that bit of information. Yet there had to be a way around it. Lenne had all the other aeons. It shouldn't be that difficult to get the final one. Shuyin sat up, "Maybe Auron would know. Let's go to his house and ask him."

"He's with Yuna at the hospital."

Shuyin shrugged, "He won't be there all day. I saw him before we left and he said he'd have to go straight home after seeing Yuna. We can just wait for him there."

"Just go into his house?" Lenne questioned, her nose crinkling, "I don't know Shu. I don't think Auron would like that too much."

"Eh…he'll get over it. Especially when he hears our idea for defeating Sin."

Lenne wasn't so sure about that, but she agreed with Shuyin nevertheless. If anything, she was interested in finding out just how Yuna had gotten this mysterious final aeon in the first place. It wasn't something you could just walk into any temple and get, which was for certain.

They decided to take Tidus' car and drive to Auron's although it was easily within walking distance. Shuyin figured that they'd pick up Tidus…and possibly Yuna…at the hospital after meeting with Auron. Even if Auron knew how to get the final aeon, Shuyin didn't want them to begin the journey in the middle of the night. They'd wait until the next day. He intended on getting the final aeon the next day, Sunday. That way Lenne would be all set to battle Sin should he appear when she went to the lines on Monday.

"I think I'm going to enlist too so that I can be with you if you come across Sin." He said as he pulled into a space outside Auron's house.

Lenne shrugged, "I really don't think that's necessary. I'd rather you stay home and take care of Tidus."

"Yuna can do that."

"Yuna's recovering from a head injury."

"Eh…"

Lenne laughed at Shuyin as she got out of the car. She knew he wasn't as nonchalant as he pretended to be. He cared more about people that most others did.

The lights at Auron's house were dark when they walked up the pathway. Lenne wasn't too keen on waiting outside but figured that would be the only alternative until Shuyin pulled out a key and opened the door. He smirked at her, "Auron gave Ti and I keys in case we needed to get in."

"I'm sure he'll regret that later."

"Ha…ha." Shuyin replied sarcastically, "You're so funny."

"Aren't I, though?" teased Lenne back. Shuyin let her enter the darkened house first and then he flipped the light on. Auron's house was spic and span just as it always was and Lenne always found herself afraid to touch anything. Shuyin was the exact opposite, though. He was plopped on the sofa with his feet on the coffee table before Lenne had the chance to take a survey of her surroundings. She shook her head at him, "Don't you have any respect for Auron's property?"

"Not really. I mean, they're supposed to be used. The man has a shrine in his own house."

Lenne shrugged, "Still…" she let the word trail off as she looked around the spacious living room. She heard Shuyin moving around on the sofa and turned to find him fluffing the seat cushions, "What are you doing?"

"This is the most uncomfortable sofa I've ever sat on."

"Then don't sit on it."

He ignored her and continued to fluff, "It's like he's got a box of nails under here." He stood and lifted the cushion he was sitting on and she heard him utter an oath under his breath. He lifted something up and turned around with it. It was a large envelope that was stuffed full of things, "What the hell is this and why is it under his cushion?"

"I don't know, Shu, but I think you should leave it be."

Shuyin was always curious to a fault. He never knew when to leave well enough alone. He was a snoop and he was proud of it. It drove Lenne to the edge of her sanity and back. She'd ended up having to have locks installed on drawers in her chest so that he wouldn't poke around. He didn't do it to be malicious. He just felt the need to know everything. It was very childish and Lenne found herself getting annoyed as Shuyin dumped the contents of the envelope onto the coffee table, "He's going to come back and kick your butt!" she warned.

"Let him." Was Shuyin's response, "I want to know what this stuff is."

As much as she was loathe to admit it, Lenne was intrigued too. She couldn't understand why Auron would hide something under his seat cushions and before she knew it she was sitting next to Shuyin and rooting through the contents of the envelope with as much enthusiasm as her boyfriend. Most of it were photographs of a giant head with horns and a keyboard on top. It looked like some sort of deranged machina musical instrument until they saw Bevelle guards in one of the photos.

Shuyin lifted up a map that he recognized as the layout of the Bevelle underground beneath the temple. He remembered seeing it once before when he'd been to Bevelle on a class trip from elementary school.

"What on Spira…?" Lenne whispered, reaching for the only other content that they hadn't examined. A sphere. It just showed more of this mysterious creation that the guards were protecting. As it circled around the head, a giant gun became visible sticking out from it. The visual cut out and Lenne gasped, "It's a weapon! That thing is huge!"

"Why would Auron have this stuff?"

Lenne shrugged, "Do you think he's in cahoots with Bevelle?"

"No…absolutely not." Shuyin replied, his mind spinning with various possibilities before he hit on one that made the most sense, "Maybe he's going to use it on Sin?"

"Do you think?" Lenne asked, shaking her head, "No…they would just use the aeons, right?

Shuyin shrugged, "Didn't Yuna say she killed all her aeons fighting Sin? If that's the case then she couldn't get them all back in time. Maybe this thing in Bevelle is a backup plan?"

Lenne shivered and put the sphere back in the envelope before sliding all the other contents in as well, "What ever it is, I don't want anything to do with it. It's too creepy…not to mention dangerous."

"But Lennie, think about it. If we get our hands on it, not only could we stop this Sin thing, but we could also end the war and save thousands of lives." He smiled broadly, his eyes shining with possibility, "I think we should try to get it."

"Are you out of your mind?!" Lenne squealed, standing quickly; arms akimbo, "We can't do that! It's impossible to get into Bevelle undetected!"

"No it's not." Argued Shuyin, pulling the map back out, "See, there's a secret way into the underground by going through a cave near Nagi. We do that, and we're already halfway there."

Lenne groaned, "And then what? How would we sneak a thing as huge as that out of Bevelle?"

"Who said anything about sneaking? We'd have it. They'd have to listen to us." He grabbed her hands and held them tightly, eyes staring into hers, "All we need to do is turn it on, Lenne. We don't even need to use it. We just need the threat that we will. Auron was going to do this…why can't we?"

Yes…why couldn't they? Shuyin's plan sounded a bit too simple for Lenne, but she understood it. They just needed the threat of violence to get Bevelle to back off. That must have been what Auron was thinking? If he could do it, why couldn't they?

Lenne nodded, although her chest was constricting with tension, "Okay, Shu. Let's do it."