Hello! This is again a longer chapter! It's perhaps one of my favorites, although I think I'll like the one after this the most! By the way, I just have to add this, because I just watched it for the second time tonight. If you haven't seen the movie 'Moon Child', you should really watch it. It's in Japanese, and stars HYDE and Gackt, two Japanese singers. It's an absolutely amazing movie. Anyway, sorry, I just had to put that in there! Anyway, here's chapter 6, and I hope you enjoy!

Chapter 6: Among the Confusion Comes an Apology

Yuna awoke, feeling rather weak, and she had a headache. Her mind seemed fuzzy, and she suddenly found herself sitting straight up in her bed, wondering where she was for a second. It took her only a matter of time before she realized she was in her own bedroom.

"Why don't I remember going to bed?" she thought to herself, "And why am I still dressed? And why do I smell like smoke...?"

Holding her head in her arms, she stood up, although she felt weak.

"Please don't tell me I'm getting sick," she continued talking to herself, as she walked into her bathroom, pulling out some pain-relievers for her headache, "Tonight's my performance..." Her mouth dropped open, and she suddenly dropped her bottle of pills, sending them flying everywhere.

"Oh no!" she said, looking at her watch to see that it was seven in the morning, "I had a dress rehearsal last night! Why don't I remember going to it?"

Feeling panicked, she forgot her headache momentarily, and was about to ready herself for the day hurriedly and make her way to the dance conservatory when her phone rang.

"Hello?" she cried into it.

"Yunie! Thank goodness! You had me scared! Where were you last night?" it was obviously Rikku.

"Oh Rikku," Yuna said, suddenly feeling like crying, "I don't know where I was last night!"

"Yunie, did you get drunk or something?" Rikku asked, only to hear a cry from Yuna.

"I don't know!" Yuna said, throwing herself on her bed, "But I'm still in my clothes from yesterday and—." Yuna suddenly paused, noticing a jacket that was on the floor, "And there's some guy's jacket on my floor and—."

"Yunie, what happened last night?" Rikku practically shrieked in her ear.

"I don't know, but I smell horridly of smoke—."

"YUNIE! You—."

"No," Yuna interrupted her, "It smells like I was at a bonfire, or something..."

"Yunie, what is going on?"

"Rikku, I don't know!" Yuna said, tears suddenly streaming down her face, "I can't remember anything!"

"Okay, well, yesterday afternoon you said you were going to meet Tidus someplace," Rikku said, causing Yuna to gasp.

"Yeah! I was going to meet Tidus...Because...I got a message from him...But then...I...Did I meet up with Tidus? I can't remember? Why was I going to meet him anyway?"

"Because you said you got a text message from him saying he dumped Dona and wanted to talk to you. Remember Yunie? But I called Tidus, and—."

"You called Tidus?" Yuna asked.

"Yeah! Yunie, I was worried sick about you!" Rikku continued, "Anyway, I called Tidus, but he said he hadn't seen you. He acted kind of weird about the whole deal though..."

"But...," Yuna trailed, wishing terribly she knew what had happened to her, "Rikku, what do you think happened to me?"

"I have no idea," Rikku said, "Do you want me to come over?"

"Yeah," Yuna said, almost in tears again.

"How do you feel?" Rikku asked, "And I'm on my way right now!"

"I have a headache," Yuna said, "and I feel really dizzy and out of it."

"Were you drugged?" Rikku asked, "I mean...or something?"

"I don't know!" Yuna said, but then paused, "I kind of remember waking up...and the smell of smoke...and it was really hot."

"Yunie, what are you talking about?" Rikku asked.

"I was in some kind of big building. It was basically empty...and then the roof caved in...and...and..."

"And what Yunie?" Rikku asked, "By the way, I'm almost to your place! I've been going like ninety down these roads!"

Yuna just sighed, and looked at her clothes, which she then realized were covered in ashes. She looked at herself in the mirror to find that she had soot all over her face.

"Rikku?" Yuna said.

"Yeah?"

"I think I was in a fire."

"A fire?"

"Yeah. My clothes are soiled, and my face is covered in black ashes."

"But...That makes no sense!" Rikku said, "Why were you in a fire?"

"Like, the building was on fire. And the roof caved in, but someone pushed me against the wall...so I didn't get hurt..."

"Yunie, what are you talking about?"

"But then...I kind of blacked out...I think...No...I just fell. And then, they wrapped their arms around me and pulled me into them, and said something to me..."

The doorbell rang then, and Yuna said 'goodbye' to Rikku and opened the door.

"Yunie! You really are covered in ashes!" Rikku said, amazed as she stepped inside, "You look awful!"

"I know..." Yuna just said, "And I think I missed the rehearsal last night."

Suddenly Yuna's phone rang, and Yuna picked it up.

"Hello?" she said, as she answered it.

"Yuna, you damn whore! How the hell did you get out!"

"Dona?" Yuna just said, wrinkling her nose, "What are you talking about?"

"You know very well what I'm talking about!" Dona said angrily.

"Uh...Honestly I don't," Yuna said, wondering what Dona was talking about.

Suddenly there was silence on Dona's end, and Dona said sweetly, "Oh...Uh...Never mind what I was just saying! Anyway, how are you?"

"Fine..." Yuna just said.

"Who is it?" Rikku whispered to Yuna.

"Dona," Yuna mouthed, "Uh, Dona, were you at the dress rehearsal last night? I kind of missed it."

"Wait a minute...You don't know anything about yesterday, do you?" Dona asked then.

"No...But...I..." Yuna paused, not knowing what to say.

"I figured you wouldn't!" Dona said, "I mean, why else would you miss the rehearsal? Anyway, then you probably don't know that the lead was switched to me then, either."

"What? Why? I'm made it to all of the other dress rehearsals..." Yuna didn't know what to say.

"I just am," Dona said, "I thought you were sick, or something, so we all decided just to drop you."

"Dona, what are you talking about?" Yuna said, "I'm feeling fine."

"But you're at home! Why are you at home?"

"Because I live here," Yuna said, wondering what Dona was rambling about.

"But you...How did you get out?"

"Get out of what?"

"Never mind," Dona just said, and slammed the phone off.

"What was that all about?" Rikku asked, as Yuna hung the phone up.

"I haven't the slightest idea," Yuna said, and honestly, she didn't.

"Okay, Yunie," Rikku then said, "Your performance is in like a couple of hours. What are you going to do?"

"I don't know," Yuna said, "I'm so confused! I can't remember anything but...but fire...And now Dona says I don't even have my part any more..."

The phone rang again, causing Yuna to jump slightly.

"Hello?" Yuna said nervously into the phone.

"Hello?" came a reply, "This is Shelinda. Is that you, Yuna? You sure don't sound sick. But you sound like you're crying..."

"Oh Shelinda," Yuna said, sighing, "Am I still in the performance? Look, something happened last night, and I couldn't make it."

"Tell her your cousin was sick and you needed to help!" Rikku said.

"Uh...My cousin was sick and I needed to help," Yuna repeated, "I feel awful for not calling you and telling you."

"Look, whatever," Shelinda just said, "As long as Dona doesn't have to fill in for you, we're fine. She sucked."

"So I'm still in?" Yuna asked, a smile lighting her face.

"Definitely," Shelinda said, "See you in a few hours!"

"Okay, bye!" Yuna said, and clicked off the phone. She turned to Rikku with a smile, and said, "I'm still in!"

"Good," Rikku said, "Now, what about yesterday? What happened to you Yunie!"

Sitting down, Yuna leaned her head on the arm of the chair, and said, "Well, I got a text message from Tidus on my phone. It said that he wanted to see me."

"Yeah, I know," Rikku chirped, sitting down and listening to Yuna's account intensely, "Then what?"

"I was walking to where Tidus told me to meet him."

"Which was–?"

"It was in the oddest place, really," Yuna said, trying hard to remember, "It was like some old warehouse."

"Was Tidus there?" Rikku asked.

"No. But someone..." Recognition suddenly hit Yuna's face, and she faced Rikku with her eyes shining brightly and said, "But someone grabbed me from behind and held something in my face, and then I smelled something awful! And...Well, that's all I remember."

"Ah-ha! I knew it!" Rikku said, standing up and looking at her cousin with care, "Someone really did drug you. Oh Yunie, what if someone tried to kill you?"

Yuna's eyes suddenly fell downcast, and she said softly, "I know who it was."

"What?" Rikku said, looking surprised, "What kind of crazed moron would do such a thing?"

"My best friend, that's who," Yuna said slowly, "I just know it was her. And...Tidus helped her."

"What?" Rikku said, "Why would he do such a thing! I'm going to call him up right now, and give him—."

"No, it wasn't him who really did anything," Yuna said, "I would have known. Dona would have rubbed it in my face more. I think...I think Tidus had little to do with it, actually. But I know he was there."

"So, after you were drugged, what happened?" Rikku asked, changing the subject.

"Like I said, I vaguely remember waking up, but I was still feeling the drug's effects, and I simply couldn't tell what was going on. But I smelled fire. And then the roof caved in, and someone pressed me against the wall. But then I fell, and they said something and then they helped me out. But they were injured...I think. Whoever it was. And then, they took me home, and..."

Yuna paused. Could it have been? Everything told her exactly who had helped her out. But she was just so confused. Much to confused, in fact, to even think of putting it into words.

"And?" Rikku just said.

"And I think I need to go shower and clean up," Yuna said, throwing on an enormous fake smile, "So, wait here?"

"Sure Yunie, sure," Rikku just said, and Yuna, very gladly, made her way upstairs and into the shower.

"There's a no-show from Dona," Shelinda said, writing something on her clipboard, "Nothing that will hurt us."

Yuna normally would stand up for her friend, but not now.

"Are you nervous Yuna?" a girl who was a year younger than Yuna asked, looking at Yuna with admiration.

"Oh...Not really," Yuna said, and honestly, she wasn't. Really, Yuna found herself only wishing that her father could be there to watch her.

"Or you, Tidus," she found herself thinking, although she had tried hard not to, "After all, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be standing here right now."

Suddenly the curtain went up, and, without even getting the chance to take a breath, the show was on.

The first act went by with only slight flaws, and nothing that the audience noticed. One girl was slightly off beat, Yuna had taken a landing a little hard, and Barthello had forgotten one of his solo dances. Still, it wasn't anything serious.

The last part of the performance was drawing near, and Yuna could only smile. Being the star of a performance was fun and rewarding, but it had been hard work, and after this performance, Yuna would be out of school for Yevonistmas break, and she would finally be able to just relax. She also felt that Dona wouldn't be bothering her anymore, although she didn't know why she had that feeling.

During the last scene, Yuna had a solo, where she would be out there all by herself. Standing behind the curtains and stretching quickly, and somewhat nervously, Yuna prepared herself for her big scene, and the final scene. The curtain went up, and the spotlight was on her and only her.

Smiling broadly, with her hands in a graceful arc above her head, she took two little steps toward the end of the stage, and gave a low bow, which was basically supposed be a little bow in which she held and looked into the audience and simply smiled, to show the innocence of Yevon.

Holding her arms perfectly perpendicular to her body, and holding her head perfectly straight, Yuna smiled as she stared into the crowd, which began to clap loudly. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted someone, who, unlike everybody else was still sitting.

Everybody had stood, and was clapping loudly. Except for this particular person. He leaned forward in his seat, rubbing his chin thoughtfully and staring at Yuna. Although everybody was staring at her, she couldn't help but stare back. She knew, without even having to look hard or squint, being that he was in the very back, that the person sitting way back there was none other than Tidus.

A sharp hiss of "YUNA!" rang to her ears, and Yuna suddenly realized that she was supposed to begin her dance, but had been too busy looking at Tidus. Smiling awkwardly, Yuna began her routine, although she was obviously behind. In the end, she managed to regain herself, and as soon as it had started, the performance was over.

Flowers and such were thrown on the stage as the cast took their final bows, and then they were rushed off to get pictures taken and such, and were then rushed outside to where people could come congratulate them.

"Yunie! Great job!" Rikku cried, running over and shoving flowers into her arms, "And look, Paine came too!"

Paine just gave a nod at Yuna, and Yuna smiled.

"Thanks," Yuna just said.

"So, what were you so intent on watching during your solo?" Paine just asked, crossing her arms.

"Oh, that reminds me," Yuna said, looking around, and shoving the flowers back in Rikku's arms, "Uh...I've got to go to the bathroom quick! I'll be right back!"

"Wow Paine, I guess that reminded her of the bathroom, huh?" Rikku said, as Yuna marched quickly away.

Yuna headed straight toward the parking lot, only vaguely aware that she was still dressed in complete costume, and had her face completely made up with bright makeup. The lobby area was completely deserted, being that most people had either left or were congratulating the cast.

"Oh, please still be here," Yuna whispered to herself, and then she spotted exactly who she was looking for.

He was just opening the door to leave, and, taking a deep breath, Yuna shouted, "Tidus! Wait!"

He turned around, and looked absolutely shocked, and also appeared torn between deciding to stay or run away.

"Uh...Hi..." He just said, looking away from Yuna as she ran up to him.

"Tidus!" Yuna said again, running up to him, "Tidus, I know it was you. You were the one last night! Why did you come here tonight? Why did you...Why was I...? Why...?"

"Look, you'll find out, soon enough. You did a nice job up there, on stage, by the way." Tidus gave Yuna a swift little nod, and then walked away, before turning swiftly around, looking at Yuna, who was just still standing there. "By the way," he said, from where he was, "I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?" Yuna asked, although in her own mind, she figured he had enough to be sorry about.

Tidus just looked at Yuna, before sighing and said, "Goodbye. It was nice to see you again."

He opened the doors then and left, leaving Yuna staring after him, with many thoughts running through her mind.

Then, deciding that Shelinda and the rest would absolutely freak if they found her missing, Yuna sighed, and went back to where the rest of the cast was waiting.