Hiya! It's me again, and yet another installment of this beautiful brain child of mine. Hoping you people are liking what you're reading. From the Reviews I'd say that you are. And that makes it all better for me.
Hugs and kisses (read and Review!) and enjoy! heh heh heh I'm throwing Gippal some competition.
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Dream A Little Dream
Chapter 6: Of Memories and Heart Ache
We're here, We're finally here!. I was just about ready to drop on my knees and kiss the ground with relief. D'jose.
I was seriously considering laughing like a maniac just to freak Gippal out when three Faction members came rushing out of the Temple. (I hesitate to say "Al Bhed" because they weren't, just members of the faction, horrible with machinery. Oh goodie!!)
I was ready to hug and kiss them all for not being an Al Bhed and being horrible with Machina, but I resisted.
"What's up? We aren't having trouble with those damn Bevellian Assassins again are we?" Gippal said in a hard voice.
Whaaaaaaaat!? I didn't know it was bad enough that Bevelle was sending assassins! Damnit! No one tells me these things!
"They sent three already" The chubby one said (he kind of reminded me of Ormi)
Gippal's eye narrowed. uh-oh.
"Yeah," The thinner one chimed in, looking all for the world like a little boy who wanted to impress his idol. "they were looking for you, sir! I tol' them, I says to them 'No, he ain't here right now', and they says, they says that they wanted to see you sir, and I tol' them, "Well you gotta wait cause the boss wasn't here right now", and they says, all nasty like(he took an excited breath and I stared at him in amazement that he hadn't passed out from lack of air yet) 'well that good fer nothin Al Bhed's gotta show his ugly face here sometime and I says to him, well he ain't ugly, you should try looking a shoopuf in the eye and see if that don't render the poor creature dead, so he says to me, he says--"
"For Spira's sake man, take a breath before you pass out on the floor" The third one said, quite calmly. I looked at him, and tried not to swallow my tongue. Straight teeth, perfect smile, a dimple on his right cheek when he grinned that lopsided grin, gray-purple eyes. Lean yet muscular, tan, (obviously he'd been a digger, Probably from the Southern Expanse; they get more fiends there) dirty blond, disheveled hair , (boys, hmpth, they never use a comb), and his sense of style was to die for.
I discreetly patted my hair, and fixed my clothes (shut up, I'm not trying to impress anyone).
Gippal seemed to notice this and glanced at me (of course I was too busy trying not to lose my composure in front of what I was sure was a god.), he glanced at the last person who spoke, then glanced back at me, then glanced back at the man, and his eye narrowed some more.
If I didn't know better, I'd think he was near sighted and couldn't see the guy three feet from him.
"Faleron." Gippal snapped, (a little to sharp, the jerk). My god and future husband looked up, startled in to stopping his report.
He looked up (oooh, baby, give me some more of those pretty little eyes) and said "Yes, sir?"
Gippal's eye further narrowed. Seemingly annoyed that he wasn't intimidated by the guy. Then again, the guy was about an inch and a half taller then Gippal at his full height, and that seemed to infuriate him.
His eyes narrowed some more. I swear, with all the eye narrowing he's been doing, it's a wonder that his eye isn't closed yet. I tried not to snicker at the image of Gippal trying to look intimidating with his eye closed and failed miserably. A tiny giggle popped out.
Faleron's eyes snapped to mine (did I mention how pretty his eyes were?) and he grinned at me, (oh, be still my beating heart). He acknowledged me with a nod, and I tried not to giggle at the computational wink he sent when Gippal flickered his gaze away fro a second.
Speak of Gippal, he glared at Faleron, glanced at me, and further seemed upset. He snapped out "How's the GTO012 doing? Is it finished yet, or do you need someone to show you how to screw the bolts in?"
Ooooooh, what a meanie!! Faleron hadn't done anything! Why in Spira is Gippal acting like a someone shoved a stick up his ass?
Faleron seemed to take this all in stride, unfazed at the bad mood Gippal was in. "No sir, we finished it three days ago."
Ha ha ha! Take that Gippal!
He practically snarled, (not really, but that's what it seemed like) and said to the eager thin worker. "Gearchin, lets get inside, and I'll hear your report.(to the fat one) Matoto, give me the reports on the machina found digging in the desert, Faleron,(he practically spit out his name) go to Zanarkand, meet up with the Tri-counsel and Nhadala and assist her in gathering the parts we've been given permission to excavate there."
The thin one practically jumped. "But sir! I thought that was my job!"
"Change of plans Gear. You're reporting." then he grabbed me by the hand and bodily dragged me into the Temple.
What in Spira is his problem!?
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A while later, after wandering around D'jose and being bored to death, I saw something behind High Summoner Bliafe's statue (he was the high summoner who was the first to summon Ixion, his son formerly known as Jasu, before he gave his soul to become an Aeon. Just like Seymour's mother did with Anima).
I looked behind it and found a Macalania crystal.
How did one get here? I picked it up, and a it was like a shock flew throughout my body. Convulsively my eyes closed and I shivered. Then I saw it, in some sort of lazy dream.
The City of D'jose. Burned down by a Sin who I didn't know. It wasn't Jecht. Somehow I just knew it. Screaming. Little girls screaming. Blood, so much blood. I tried to scream. My voice didn't work. I tried to run forward and help. My feet wouldn't move. I saw a little girl. No older then me. Standing up from the ashes of her broken home. Her body trembling. "Papa!" I heard her gasp.
Saw her holding her hands out desperately to a man standing before Sin, With a sword in one hand, and a Thundaga spell uttered from his lips.
"Get back Shiiara! Get Back!" He screamed. I heard the pain, I heard the panic of wanting his little girl to be safe.
"Papa!" I saw her run towards her father, not heeding his plea to run away. I saw Sin stare his many eyes towards her.
I knew what was going to happen next. I tried to scream. Tried to make her know just how much danger she was in. My voice was broken. No sound came out. I reached out to her, maybe, I could reach her. Maybe I could help.
I saw Sin release energy from those ominous eyes of his, or hers.....saw them head towards the girl.
Saw her father screaming at her to run.
Saw her standing there, frozen, unable to move.
Saw those beams of energy get close to her and----
.........tears. So many tears. So much pain. It made my heart ache. It was Spining, spinning. It was called Spira. The spinning spiral never to have been disturbed. Never to be altered.
I saw a bonfire. I saw Summoners sending loved ones, friends, innocent people whom they didn't know. I saw them crying as they sent. Sobbing and wailing heartfelt tears for the families and friends of all those sent today.
I saw the father. Saw him hold his broken little girl in his arms. Saw him weep. Saw him rant.
Saw him pray. Beg, not to Yevon, but to the dreams, and fairytales his beautiful little girl loved so much.
He wished Sin would never return. That the dreams that created him unmade him. Wished that his little girl lived again, to be strong enough to fight Sin and win. Strong enough to make sure that no one forgot the horrors of these dreams.
And So, the Fayth granted him this wish. That someday, his little girl would be born again. As a dream, in the world of Reality. To be strong enough beat a greater evil then Sin.
And so, satisfied. The father was able to let his little girl go.
And The City of his Dreams, D'jose, was shattered that evening, decimated by the passing storm that was Sin, left him alone, without the little sunshine that was his daughter.
And for the first time in his life. He lost all hope of happiness...
That night, the Temple of D'jose was erected, as a reminder of what happened that day. For the people who died.
And the people who lived. To never forget.
I got a good look at her. Shiiara, the girl no older then me, who died trying to get to the one person she had left, after her soul was sent, and before her body burned so they didn't attract fiends.
She had my face.
I stood there. Frozen. I don't know how long. I started trembling.
"....ku! Rikku!" I heard someone calling me. The Dream shattered. Like shards of a broken mirror, each piece held a different memory, all having pain.
All of people praying to dreams.
And then I woke up.
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"Damnit Rikku! Open your eyes!" Gippal's near frantic voice reached me. "Rikku!"
I opened my eyes. Stared at his worried ones. I threw myself into his arms and cried. Sobbing for all those people, even though the threat of Sin was gone. I cried.
I understood now.
Why Summoners did what they did. I understood. And that made me sob harder. I could guess that I surprised him. But only for a moment, before his arms went around me.
"Shhhhhh.....it's okay, it's okay..." He said.
Was it Gippal? Was it going to be okay? I had to believe it.
It had to be okay. I wouldn't take it any other way.
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Three days we stayed in D'jose. In those three days I was trying to sort out my emotions. And believe me, it was a lot of emotions to go through.
Confusion, sadness, anger, depression, I could go on. But I'll stop.
I haven't seen Gippal around lately. Whenever I see him, he always throws me this I-have-a-secret-and-you-don't-know-about-it smile lately. It was really getting under my skin.
On a happier note, I butchered one of my belts. Well....I made it so the Macalania crystal would fit into the little hole. I made more holes for other Macalania Crystals that I might find. And something tells me that I'll be finding more.....
I looked in the mirror. I saw a girl with Shiiara's face. I had mostly gotten over the sadness and pain that I saw (mostly but not quite). And I guess I know what happened now.
Shiiara's father wanted his "daughter" to come back (in a sense) So he prayed to the fayth. The Fayth granted him this wish. That in due time, his daughter's likeness would be born, only there was a catch. She would be a dream, born into his world. The world of reality.
And so his daughter's likeness was reborn.
That's me.
Sigh, it was so much simpler when I didn't know what was going on.
Someone knocked on my door. I opened it.
Gippal. Drat, I really don't want to face him now. Although he looked particularly delicious today.
Don't stare Rikku, it's impolite. Maybe if I looked away he wouldn't look so good.
I looked at the bed, looked at the clock, glanced at the floor. And then I looked at Gippal again.
Nope.
Still delicious.
Damn.
And he looked......nervous....?
"uh....hey....Can I...you know, come in?" He asked
I had to make sure my mouth didn't drop to the floor. Gippal. Asking permission for something?
I had to fight not to pinch myself. I moved out of his way and gestured inside.
He seemed to be having an internal argument with himself. Finally he sighed, grabbed a box from the bag he was carrying. It wasn't a horrendously small box (I would have had a heart attack if he'd asked me to marry him, whether from happiness or horror, I don't know).
It was bigger. Like the kind of boxes that held little machina parts.
He thrust the box into my hands, then rushed out as if Shiva herself were threatening to freeze his behind.
I heisitated, stared at the box. Then opened it. A small machanical bird zoomed out and landed on my shoulder.
"birdie!" it chirped happily.
Looking at it, it looked the size of a slightly smaller falcon. Talons, made of tiny blue steel(one of the toughest metals to find) infused with a Bio spell, the supposed feathers were made of ice blue diamonds (I'm guessing for protective covering....?), I don't know how they manipulated the diamond to bend and tip like real feathers (although a very skilled black mage might have done it) there was a plume of odd gems on the head, and he tail was made of Icefire (something found in Macalania), that flowed like a pretty river. The jade green eyes shone with intelligence.
I stared at it. Not very many people would have the patience to work this kind of machina. So much beauty , so much power, in such a little thing.
Only very skilled Al Bhed could make this. I wouldn't have been able to make it if I tried. Who? who?
Gippal. This was undoubtedly his work.
Ridiculously touched, I tried not to melt into a puddle of useless goo on the floor.
Just when you think a guy like Gippal couldn't be anymore annoying and idiotic, he pulls a stunt like this.
Figures.
"Shiiara" I said. The bird blinked it's beautiful jade eyes (Very lifelike, I might add).
"Your name is Shiiara"
....Remind me to kiss Gippal the next time I see him.
Okay?
