Part Seven

Yuna,

My, I must say that receiving a letter like that from you was quite a surprise. How did I know? Love is a fickle thing, Yuna, and it's not easy. There are always circumstances, always problems, always hardships to endure. When you find love, though, all those things seem… less of a problem than they would otherwise. How do you know who it is that you love is quite another matter, one far more difficult. The one you love… is the one you can live with, who makes all those problems seem like an adventure and not a hardship.

This probably does not answer any of your questions, but I can't tell you what love is like for you. It's something you have to find out for yourself.

Please take care, and let us know how it goes for you in Bevelle.

Lulu

Yuna averted her eyes from Baralai, Lulu's words coming back to her mind almost instantly. There he was, the man who had proclaimed his interest in her, who she wasn't sure if she loved.

Lulu had been absolutely no help!

"Lady Yuna," Baralai said, bowing his head politely. "I am sorry for the… disturbance yesterday."

Disturbance? Yuna looked at him, baffled for a moment, before it came back to her. The incident with Gippal in the hallway was what he meant, and she should have known that instantly.

It must have hurt for Baralai to see her like that with Gippal. Yuna could see the look of disappointment in his eyes, even though he masked it so well with his sweet endearing smile and the way he bowed his head to her. The disappointment was another secret that Baralai kept well.

Was he keeping it from her so that he wouldn't hurt her?

"Baralai," she said, reaching out and putting her hand on his arm. "Don't be sorry. I am… thankful," she smiled, "that you came when you did."

"I did not want to disrupt—"

"I'm grateful that you did," Yuna interrupted him, keeping her voice low. "It kept me from making a mistake."

Baralai finally lifted his eyes to look at her. "A mistake?"

Yuna nodded, taking her eyes off of Baralai for a moment as she thought about how she wanted to say what she had been torturing herself over for the past few days. "I… didn't want to let Gippal persuade me to do what he wanted."

Baralai's eyes widened. "Was he…?" He didn't seem like he was able to say the next words of his question.

"Yes, but please don't be upset," Yuna said quickly, running her hand up Baralai's arm to his shoulder, and then letting her palm rest on his cheek lightly. "After all, that is just how Gippal is. I haven't learned how to handle him yet."

Smiling almost imperceptibly, Baralai replied, "I'm not entirely sure anyone ever learns how to handle Gippal."

"He is a problem, isn't he?" Yuna took her hand off of Baralai's cheek, dropping it down to her side again. Had she just made a mistake, bringing that subject up with Baralai again?

"Of course, but he prefers it that way." Baralai paused, looking up at the tall orange and red stained glass window next to them. They always seemed to have these conversations in the long, windowed hallways… and Yuna was comfortable with that. "If he was any other way, he wouldn't be Gippal anymore."

"Less egotistical," Yuna mused, looking over her shoulder at Baralai.

"More polite," Baralai added with a slight nod of his head.

"Perhaps a little more humble."

"A quieter voice."

"Less forceful."

Baralai laughed lightly, a musical sound that bounced off the windows back to Yuna's ears. It was a lovely thing to hear from Baralai. "Why do you laugh?" Yuna had to wonder.

"Thinking about how Gippal would react if he heard us," he admitted.

Yuna grinned. "Perhaps he should hear us," she said, putting her finger to her chin thoughtfully. "Maybe that would be beneficial to all involved."

Baralai shook his head, still smiling. "I wouldn't want to change him, though," he finally replied. "I would hope he knew that we were simply teasing."

"Of course," Yuna replied, looking away shyly. Maybe she had offended Baralai now by making these references to one of his best friends – a former lover, she had to remind herself at that most inopportune moment.

"The world needs people like Gippal," Baralai said, and Yuna could feel his hand lightly graze her elbow. "They make it exciting… and give us things to smile and laugh at."

"But there are many things to smile and laugh about," Yuna added, looking up at him as he drew nearer to her.

"Of course," he replied, paused, then continued, "Though not all are so… easily accessible."

Yuna didn't know what to make of his comment, so she just looked at him for a moment, hoping for clarification.

Her clarification came as she felt Baralai's hand sliding down her arm, to her wrist, then her palm… and she felt his fingers, delicate and gentle, slide between hers.

She looked down, seeing his fingers intertwined with hers, dark olive crossing light tan, and couldn't help but to smile.

Lulu,

Thank you for your letter. At first, I didn't think you were being helpful at all, but now… I see the truth in your words. You gave me a lot to think about… thank you.

Yuna