Shadow of Darkness
This chapter is a week late, so there will be 2 chapters this week! Review stuff is at the bottom because there were a lot for the past chapter!
Chapter 6:
"No… no!" Rikku moaned, thrashing like a cornered animal. "It wasn't me!" Her arms flew up over her face.
A pair of hands grabbed her shoulders and shook her roughly. Her eyes flew open and she shrieked. Reflexively, her hand shot out and connected to soft flesh with a sharp slap.
"Ow!" yelped a voice and the hands dropped her shoulders. "Dammit, did you have to hit so hard!?"
"Gippal?" She sat up quickly and her forehead cracked with his. "Ow!"
Gippal yelped again. "Are you trying to kill me?"
"N-no…" She rubbed her forehead with a wince. Hitting his head was like hitting a marble wall! "Where am I? What's going on?"
"You're on my airship, remember? And from the looks of it, you were having a bad dream."
"Oh… yes…"
"Did you want to talk about it?"
"No. I'm fine." The members of dream Besaid only tried to kill her, with Wakka and Lulu leading the way is all. Not to mention the darkness that shimmered around their bodies like death. No, she was perfectly fine.
Rikku forced up a smile. "So… are we to Bevelle yet?" It was still dark.
"In about five minutes. I have to get landing permission and I'll ask for one of the attendants to get Baralai. He should know where your healer woman is."
"Wow," she said with a yawn. "Behind that idiot face is an actual brain."
He smacked her head. "I could say the same for you but I've yet to see any signs of a brain."
"Watch it, or you just might get a Trust Kick to the Groin attack!"
"You don't have a boyfriend, do you? You're too violent for anyone's well being."
She growled at him. "Let's just get to Bevelle, okay?' Gippal stood and padded for the door. "And put some pants on!" she shrieked. She shoved past him.
He followed her with a huge smirk plastered on his face. "Yeah, but what if I like just going around in my shorts? It is my ship after all. I can do what I please."
She scoffed. "You do this on purpose, don't you?"
"Of course," he admitted. "It's so easy to get a rise out of you. It'd be boring if you didn't react the way you do."
Did he have to be so blatantly honest? "Have I told you lately how much I hate you?" Rikku grunted.
"Not nearly enough. You know, hate and love are the same-" The commsphere on the navigation screen screeched noisily. "Oh! Time to get permission to land!" Gippal skirted around Rikku and turned on the sphere. The woman who appeared in the sphere screen started at him in shock.
"Er… can I help you?"
Rikku giggled hysterically. He probably made this image of himself in his underwear- with an amusing chocobo print, no less- the stuff of that poor woman's nightmares.
"We'd like permission to land, please. And we would like to speak with Praetor Baralai as soon as possible. It's urgent. Tell him Gippal calls."
"R-right away." And she did as told.
"Well… she was rude," he muttered when the call ended. He scratched the back of his head, puzzled.
Rikku snorted back a laugh. "Eh, think about it Gippal. If you could see her through the sphere, just what do you think she saw?"
"Huh?" He then seemed to realize that he was nearly nude. "Oh, right. Well at least I had my shorts on!" But when he stalked past her, his ears and neck were scarlet.
Rikku now understood that this was a sign that he was blushing. How weird that only his neck and ears reddened! She snickered. "I told you to put on some pants."
''''
Rikku fell into step behind Gippal as they walked down the long, long path towards the New Yevon Headquarters, where Baralai would be waiting for them. She tucked her arms over her chest, glancing about warily. How Gippal could walk around here so confidently, even at night, was beyond her. She barely managed to conceal her paranoia- he actually noticed and asked her about it a couple of times. She didn't trust Bevelle. Too many bad things happened in Bevelle. It was the center of Spira's lies for a thousand years, after all. Perhaps there was a reason the Dark Plague was concentrated here.
"Baralai! How've you been!" Gippal called, waving casually to New Yevon's young praetor, who met them at the headquarter doors wearing what appeared to be a set of nice pajamas and a robe.
Baralai gave them a small bow. "Gippal. And Rikku." He smiled softly. "It's nice to see the two of you."
Rikku smiled, nudging his shoulder lightly with her fist. "Nice to see you too, Mr. Praetor," she teased.
Again, Baralai smiled. "Come in. To what do I owe this visit?"
Rikku and Gippal followed him through the ex-temple as Rikku explained the situation. For a long time, Baralai didn't reply. Only when they were all closed in his office did he speak.
"I wish I could offer assistance, but the healer, Marin, hasn't shown up yet."
"What? Did we beat her here then?" Gippal asked.
"Somewhat," Baralai said with a small shrug. "She was supposed to be here two days ago. And as I said before, she has yet to arrive. So, naturally, we are concerned. But it is possible she was delayed." He glanced between Rikku and Gippal. "You both could stay here for the rest of the night, if you want to wait and see if she shows up tomorrow," he suggested.
They exchanged glances and then Rikku nodded. "We don't really have any other leads anyway."
He nodded. "All right. I shall set you two up with a room. You must be exhausted."
"Rooms!" Rikku insisted. "I do not want to share a room with him again!" She thrust her finger in Gippal's direction.
"See what I have to put up with?" Gippal muttered to the Praetor.
Baralai sighed. "I can't guarantee anything. The city is full of people waiting for Marin. But I will do my best."
''''
"Dammit!" wailed Rikku after Baralai left the inn room. "Someone in the Farplane must really hate me…"
Gippal grunted in response, tossing his boots aside. "I'm sure there are plenty of people there who hate you. If I was in the Farplane, I'd hate you too."
"I'm serious! How in the hell did I get stuck in a room with you again?" she demanded.
"Hey, I'm not any happier being bunked with you, but Baralai did his best. He already told us he couldn't guarantee separate rooms, so quit whining over it!" he snapped.
Rikku gave a small whimper and sat down on her bed abruptly. She chewed her bottom lip. "You didn't have to get so mean about it.
"Yeah, well, you didn't have to act like a baby either, now did you?"
"Fine. If I bother you that much, go ahead and leave. I got where I needed to be. I don't need your help anymore," she said huffily.
"You're so immature."
"So are you!"
"Besides, what will you do if Marin doesn't show up? Swim back to Bikanel?"
"No! And don't say that. She'll show up. She has to."
Again, Gippal had stripped to his shorts. "And what will you do if she doesn't show up, hmm?"
"Then… I'll go look for her."
"Ha ha, good luck."
She glanced over at him. "And what is that supposed to mean?"
"You'll be on your own, won't you?" He stretched lazily and yawned, getting up to poke around the room.
"But…"
"I'm going home tomorrow. Remember, you said that I could if you bothered me. So… I am."
She made a face. So she had said that. "Well… I didn't mean it like that."
Gippal smirked and bent over to meet her at eye level. "Oh yeah? What did you mean then?"
Well, that was exactly what she meant but she couldn't let him know that. "Well- well… what I- I meant was-" Her brain didn't want to work fast enough for some reason. Why did she have to be so stupid whenever he was near? "Well, what I meant was- um…"
"Yes? I'm waiting." He leaned in more with a devilish smirk. "And this better be good or I'm not staying."
Rikku scrambled back until she hit the bed's headboard. "Listen… I- ugh, never mind."
"How about this? Just admit you need me." He leaned in so close his nose bumped hers.
She gulped and slid down, trying to escape under his arm. But he was too quick for her. He grabbed her wrists and pinned her back down to the bed.
"Just admit you need me," he repeated, plopping down to make himself comfortable on her hips.
"Like hell!" she screeched. "Let me go, Gippal! Let me go now!"
"Not until you admit you need me."
"Get off!"
"All you have to say is 'Gippal, I need you!'" he said in a squeaky voice that was supposed to resembled hers.
"I don't sound like that!" She tried to wrench her arms free. As a result, he pinned her more firmly. "Let me go!"
"Hey, I gave you the conditions. Come on, it'll be fun. Just say it."
"Fun my ass." Rikku scowled and squeezed her eyes shut. "Fine. Gippal, I need you," she said through gritted teeth.
As promised, he released her. "Now was that so hard?"
"You have no idea," she muttered.
He walked back to his bed and flopped down. "Goodnight, kiddo. Or good morning, if you will," he said, rolling onto his side. Moments later, she heard the scratchy breathing of an almost snore.
She glared huffily at his back. How could he do that to her? She kicked off her boots and, gathering a nightshirt, quietly padded to the bathroom. Her wrists tingled where Gippal had grabbed her. Her face flushed. "No, no, no!" Hastily, she turned on the water and splashed her hot face with the cool liquid. 'Deep breaths, Rikku. You're just tired. You always do stupid things when you're tired.' She stood there with her hands in the water for several minutes as her mind worked to reassure her. Finally, hands frozen, she was convinced. She snagged a towel, turned the water off, and began to change for bed.
Moments later, the door opened. As a knee jerk reaction, Rikku whirled towards the door. There stood a sleepy looking Gippal. But his sleepiness didn't last for long. His eyes popped open.
Rikku shrieked. "YOU PERVERT!" She hastily wrapped the towel around her. Grabbing the small wicker wastebasket, she threw it at him, followed by a bar of soap and a small bottle of shampoo, which hit him in the eye. "Get OUT! Getoutgetoutgetout!"
Gippal gripped his eye and, with a noise of surprise, blindly stumbled back. "Sorry! I didn't mean to!"
"Don't you know how to knock!?"
"It was an accident!"
"Accident my ass!" And she slammed the door. He did that on purpose, she was certain! Mortified that he had seen her stripped down to her panties, she hastily yanked her nightshirt on and stalked into the room.
"I'm probably blind now," he muttered to her, still holding his eye. "No thanks to you, you brutal freak."
"You deserved it, you peeping pervert! Well, I hope you enjoyed the show!"
"I told you before that you don't give me any thrills. Not even naked. I like my women curvy."
She picked up one of her boots and threw it at him with the intent of knocking him out. A scowl crossed her features when he caught it deftly. "I really, really hate you."
"Trust me, Young and Violent One, the feeling is oh-so-mutual."
''''
Rikku didn't awaken until the middle of the afternoon that day. She stretched lazily and, smothering a yawn, glanced at the bed to her right. It was neatly made and it's occupant appeared long gone. She sat up hastily and glanced around worriedly.
"Gippal?" No answer. She tried again. "Hey, where are you?"
Her only answer was silence.
She hugged her blankets to her chest. He'd left, just like he had said he would. "You jerk… You told me that you'd stay if I said I needed you!"
She stopped herself. Why was she getting so worked up? Gippal was finally out of her hair! With a chuckle of glee, she clambered out of bed and got ready for the day. After a quick shower and a bite to eat, she left the hotel room in search of Baralai. What she found nearly made her heart stop. She found the New Yevon Praetor easy enough, but with him was a somewhat unexpected companion- Gippal. She frowned, walking over to them.
"It's about time you got up, sunshine," Gippal said with a smirk.
"I thought you'd left," Rikku replied grumpily.
"Me? Leave you? Never. You'd get into such trouble." He looked at Baralai. "She's always like this the morning after," he said seriously.
"You wish!" she shrieked.
"Didn't we already have this conversation?" Gippal shook his head and clamped a hand over her mouth. "See? What did I tell you? She's in denial."
She glared at him and furiously contemplated biting his hand, but it was gloved and she doubted he would've felt it.
Baralai chuckled. "You shouldn't pick on her so. Despite how small she is she's tough. I know from experience."
She nodded emphatically.
Gippal laughed and released his grip on her. "You know I'm just messing with you, kiddo."
Again, she glared at him. " What were you two talking about anyway?"
"Marin," the men said in unison.
"Has she shown up yet?"
Baralai shook his head solemnly. "I'm afraid not. I was just about to send out a small search party." He began to pace. "I'm very concerned. More and more citizens of Bevelle are falling victim to the Plague."
"We'll help," Rikku said, grabbing Gippal's arm.
"We will?" he said, as though this was news to him.
She gave him a look that read 'Disagree and die!' "Yes. We will. We'll start now." She grabbed his shirt and pulled him after her. "We'll start in Macalania Woods.
"Macalania? It's a bit close so don't you think that someone would've found her there? Besides, we're not prepared to go traipsing through that winter wonderland!" he protested.
"We don't have time! People need Marin! Now come on!" And she hauled him, protesting and all, through Bevelle.
''''
"It's so c-c-cold!" Rikku said with chattering teeth. She rubbed her arms vigorously in attempt to gain some warmth.
"Y-you're the one w-who wanted to c-c-come here without p-preparation!" Gippal chattered right back. His breath came out in frosty white puffs. He grabbed her frozen arm. "C-come on. W-we have t-t-to keep m-moving."
They moved deeper into the winter forest. Suddenly, Rikku pulled Gippal back to a stop. She looked off to a small path on her left. There would be Yuna's Spring, as she'd come to know the otherwise nameless place at the end of a small, trodden path. "Let's check there." She had this feeling in her chest that the healer would be found there.
They wandered down the quiet path and emerged in front of a glittering spring. Rikku drew in a sharp gasp, abandoning her awareness of the cold. There was a small figure crumpled before the water's edge. Dropping her grip on Gippal's shirt, she ran towards the form. But before she could reach it, a monstrous fiend sprang into her path. With a shriek, she backpedaled so quickly that she lost her balance and fell.
"What the hell is that thing!?" Gippal exclaimed, running over and yanking her to her feet.
Rikku only had a moment to recover feeling in her arm. The beast gave a head-splitting roar from a towering height. It was huge and surprisingly slender, but its lithe body reeked of power. With its red scaly skin and razor-like silver claws and teeth, Rikku knew this was no ordinary fiend. She held her arms up over her face to shield herself from the blast of wind created when it flapped its powerful black wings.
"What are the odds that kitten will eat us for dinner?" Gippal muttered.
"Probably… one million to one."
"And how about odds for us kicking its ass?"
"Probably the exact opposite. No… absolutely the opposite." She whimpered when the beast roared again, challenging them to meet their deaths.
Gippal hauled his weapon of choice, a rather large gun with tremendous power, off his back. "Well, are you ready?"
"Not really…" Rikku pulled her daggers out of the holsters.
With a battle cry, they both charged the beast.
………..
milkie: Well, Gippal took of his pants to go to bed because his pants are way too bulky to sleep comfortably! (And I'm glad you liked it so much!)
kingleby: thank you for the compliment! I'm flattered you enjoy it so much!
Cute-kitty2: You think so?? Well I guess you're right! Cocky and he knows just which one of Rikku's buttons to push!
Xx rikku xX: I'm a big fan of Rikku/Gippal too! Whether this story will evolve that way, I don't know! But I'm glad you enjoy it!
Fanfic-Lover: Wow! I'm so flattered your enjoying this story so much! And thanks to your post about the barkeeper, you actually gave me an idea. Thank you!