The Day I Died.
Chapter 9. Diamonds of brightest of colours.
It was all so confusing.
Yuna was a person, who believed in second chance, she believed that everyone had goodness in their hearts, no matter how corrupted one´ s thoughts would be.
And because of this, Yuna just simply could not believe Karis´ words about Seymour's treachery.
Had he not saved her many times from trouble during their journey? Had he not shared his thoughts, his smile, with her?
And if Seymour would leave her now, lie to her, she would be utterly alone.
"No, Seymour would not betray me." With this thought, she glanced at Karis, who was deep asleep, therefore not noticing her faint smile, as memories of Seymour flooded in to her thoughts.
"My gosh…what is happening to me? After he had admitted that he had murdered his father, I never, ever, thought that I could actually look upon Seymour as a…friend, not as an enemy.
If there would not have been that incident with Sin and his father, I could have fallen for…for what? For him? Seymour? That is out of the question…but did he not save me from trouble before? Yes, he did. Had he been ever unkind to me? No, he did not. We were just in the wrong sides of the battle. Oh, what in heaven Tidus would say, if he would found out how I thought of Seymour. Gosh, what would everyone say?" Yuna was partly amused, partly terrified about the idea. And so, her dreams drifted off, to the fluffy dreamland of Yuna´s psyche.
After a long moment of silence between Yuna and Karis, the carriage came to a sudden stop. In bewilderment, Yuna peeked from the tiny window, and saw the soldiers getting off from the carriage. Not soon after, the door was opened and a soldier clothed in black was staring at her impatiently.
"Wake that sleeping beauty. The Lord requires your presence." The man blurted harshly, and Karis startled immediately from his slumber.
"Oh, so we have arrived. Good. This little doll began to bore me, after all." He sneered, and the soldier chuckled.
The Inquisitor removed the shackles of Yuna´s wrists, and observed the girl with distaste.
"I trust that your journey was quite…eventful, then?" The soldier drawled and Yuna glanced him coldly.
"…Extremely. Now, can I go outside from this cabin, or must I be forced to listen more of his tedious babbling?" Yuna spoke to the soldier, and could not hide her delight as she saw Karis, whose face was now scarlet red from fury and embarrassment.
"Certainly." The soldier replied, and got out of the doorway to allow her descend the stairs.
She did so, and Karis soon followed her.
"Watch your tongue, Summoner." he hissed to her ear, and Yuna turned to look at him.
"Not in a million years, traitor." she replied, and the tone of her voice was cold as ice.
Instead of bouncing off the walls, he just chuckled and smiled again his all-knowing smile-- and Yuna was already thinking the idea of slapping the arrogance out of him.
But, for her dismay, her opportunity to assault him was close to nothing as the soldiers started to escort them to the mansion where all the Grand Maesters had been living in the time of their rule.
As Yuna began walking towards the beautiful building, she caught a glimpse of Seymour, who was standing near his carriage. He noticed her presence, and opened his mouth to say something to her.
But as if to coming to other thoughts, he closed his mouth, and shifted his lilac gaze to the ground.
Yuna did not understand.
Why didn't he want to speak to her? She furrowed her brows, but couldn't say anything as the soldier was now shoving her forward from behind. So she continued her walk towards the dragon´ s lair, and hoped that the fear dwelling inside of her would not overcome her.
Knowing, that Seymour was right behind him, Yuna felt a little safer in this hostile place.
As they walked forward, Yuna could do nothing but to stare in awe at this mansion, where Spira´s new Lord was living in. Everywhere were beautiful statues of summoners and maesters, the floors were the finest black marble and rows of marble pillars greeted them. The house didn't seem to be fitted for a normal everyday life, but it seemed to be more of a museum. Or a palace. But certainly not a normal house, where a normal family would have lived in.
As they walked past the rows of pillars, the sound of their footsteps echoed in the huge hall. Seymour, Yuna and the Inquisitors walked inside a slightly smaller room than before trough a sturdy looking, heavy, dark wooden doors, and the soldiers who were escorting them now vanished behind the door from where they came from. Seymour and Yuna now stood in a beautifully decorated room, and Yuna spotted a figure in front of a huge, and ridiculously tall, window.
"We are here." Was the only thing what Seymour stated, and stared at the standing figure with an expression, what Yuna could not read.
"Ah. Such a smooth, oily voice. A politician's voice." The figure, a man, drawled with a similar, educated and noble voice than his. The man turned to look at them.
"Seymour." He stated, as if to point out the half-Guado´s name, like it was not a name at all. Perhaps a new style of furniture. Perhaps a name of a newest sphere-movie.
Not a person's name.
"Serian." The same half-Guado stated with a same cool, ascertain voice than his, and nodded to his direction. "I trust, that your journey was comfortable?" The man asked with a cool courtesy, and walked closer to greet the two summoners.
The man was exactly the same height than Seymour; he had silky, smooth, raven-black hair, which was combed backwards with care. His lilac, bluish eyes were strikingly penetrating, and his noble appearance was nothing of hideous. No, far from it.
His straight nose, his full lips and pale, flawless skin made him look somewhat of a male-model than a politician. Although his face was not so wide than Seymour's, Serian´s appearance resembled his.
Even his body was not of a politician, what would have been slender for the lacking of physical power, but instead it was highly muscular, and tall. Very tall.
The man was clothed in a black cape, very similar to the Inquisitors, and a wide, scarlet-red belt was keeping the cape fixed firmly to his waist, but his chest was left bare, and beneath his navel was to be seen black tattoos, which seemed to describe fire of some sort.
Remember Seymour's wedding wardrobe? That white belt of his, which had a long piece of narrow cloth running vertically to the ground? Serian´s belt was highly similar, although it did not have the markings of Yevon in it. Instead, it had other decorations in it, the same kinds what Seymour's green belt, obi, had.
Serian´s dark outfit, red belt, black gloves and black, knee-high boots made him look more of an soldier, than a scrubby, mummified politician.
Suddenly Yuna startled, and jerked to Seymour's sleeve in horror.
"Seymour- h- he's the man from my nightmares!" Yuna whispered in a very loud voice, and she stared at the man with wide, terrified, eyes.
"What?" Seymour asked in confusion, and Serian chuckled without mirth in his voice. He waved his hand as if to brush the matter aside, and gazed the Lady Summoner in mild interest, like a person would watch a butterfly, in fascination, what was landed in the back of one's hand.
"Oh, that…well, I believe you would had to see something like that in time…I'll tell you everything. But not now. Later. Oh, please forgive my bluntness. I have not yet introduced myself to this charming lady. I am Serian Honoré, son of Commodus Honoré, the head of the prestigious Honoré Family. I believe…" He walked closer to Yuna. "-That we have more important matters to attend to." He smiled at her with politeness. "I trust that you are high Summoner Yuna, the Daughter of Braska, yes?" Serian asked, and Yuna nodded once."Splendid. Let me…take a look at you." Serian came even closer to her, and Yuna glanced at Seymour, wanting to hear words of comfort, but there came none.
Serian took a slack grip of Yuna´s chin, and eyed her with mild interest, like she was some kind of a pet to be measured. He looked straight to her eyes, and a familiar burning feeling in her soul presented itself once again.
Suddenly, Serian pulled his hand back, like it was on fire. The corner of his mouth was twitching, and he glared her like she was something what a chocobo would throw up. "You-- You are…you are a Mudblood! Your eyes…A Crossbreed! Karis!! Why did you not tell me about this atrocity?" The other man, who had been lying in a sofa near a fireplace, far from them, now stood up and strolled closer.
Yuna could sense Seymour's hands closing to fists and opening again in suppressed anger. She too, had enough from the prejudices already. She did not need more of that childish behaviour, at least not from a man, who seemed to be the exactly same age than Seymour. "Men of his age should know how to behave properly…" Yuna thought grimly, and observed Karis, who was now standing beside Serian Honoré.
Karis shrugged, and gave a drawling answer. "I dunno.".
"What do you mean, "I dunno"?! What kind of a spy do you think you are? Hmph. Go tell the maids to put the guest rooms ready. I´ll deal with you later." Serian ordered with a stony face and voice colder than ice, and if there would be Hell in Spira, the devil should be now skating there, so blood freezing his voice now was.
Karis, once again, seemed to have lost his arrogance, and was now rushing out of the door like there would be no tomorrow.
"Now, where were we? Oh, yes. I did not counted on such an foul idea, that the High Summoner would be a Mudblood-- that she would have Al-Bhed blood in her veins, but I think I can make an exception, this time." Serian seemed to talk himself over something, and Yuna had to bite her lip and stop herself from shouting something foul at him. Instead, she only lifted her chin ever so slightly, and eyed the tall man with the utmost distaste. "I cannot imagine, how amusing it is for you to mock my ancestry, but could you most kindly explain why we are here?" She asked with the most false politeness she could muster, and Serian turned to look at her with amused expression on his delicate and noble face.
"What? Seymour didn't tell you? I somehow imagined so…oh, well. It does not matter. I tell the reason why you are here at tomorrow noon, when your work begins." Serian answered in cool tone. "Trust me, when I say that our friend Karis told me some…interesting things about you and your journey here. Very interesting things indeed." Serian continued, and a small smile crept to his lips.
Yuna started to have shivers from that man, who implied something horrible with a hint of malice in his voice. Seymour crept silently closer to Yuna, and brushed his hand against her own for encouragement.
This small gesture, invisible to Serian, was enough to give her strength.
"If you are a politician, why is it possible that I haven't heard anything about you? You are a complete stranger, who has kidnapped me. And that's it." Yuna questioned calmly.
Serian turned his cold, lilac eyes to her own.
"I have been…busy. That is the reason why I have been in darkness from Spira´s masses. But now, when Yevon is at the verge of collapse, The Faction has been granted the honour to decide the people's faith and their political stability. You see…Now that everyone knows about the true face of Yevon, thanks to us, I have created an political void, big enough for me to be the leader of the mindless masses. Yes. And by deleting the corrupted blood of Mudbloods, blood traitors and other races, I am purifying Spira.
When there is nothing to be afraid, people can be finally content.
Even destroying Sin, You can not achieve it." Serian spoke with some sort of frenzy.
"Hmm…"deleting" and "purifying" are such a…classy, fine words for something, for what I know as "murdering" and "getting rid of". You are not a politician. You are a murderer." Yuna said in disdain and glared at the man.
For a nanosecond, something glowed in Serian´s eyes. The corner of his mouth twitched again, and a second later, he hit Yuna hard by the back of his right hand.
Her head jerked to the side, she couldn't help it. Yuna didn't even realize that her feet had betrayed her, and she fell to the floor from the sheer force of Serian´s blow.
"What are you doing? Just what the hell are you doing?! She's the High Summoner, for Yevon´s sake! Don't you dare to hit her again like that, ever!" Seymour hissed, and rushed to Yuna´s aid.
"…I'm afraid, that you have no power over me, Maester." Serian said with a mocking tone, and Seymour glared at him. "What do you mean?" Seymour asked, and didn't remove his gaze from the Lord.
But Serian just smiled, and continued his rambling. "You should have not let that pet of yours speak so freely to me. You know what happens, if someone opposes me." He spoke with carefree tone, as if nothing could bring him down.
Seymour didn't say anything. Instead, he only touched Yuna´s cheek gently.
Serian noticed this. "The summoner is capable of walking by herself. An Inquisitor is to escort her to her room. You have your own rooms, which you can exit to go to the lavatories, whenever you need to go. After all, you are not our prisoners. …However, access to other parts of the mansion other than the guest's quarters, are forbidden of you. The Inquisitors make sure that the restrictions are to be followed." Serian instructed with a playful smile in his lips, and waved his hands as a signal for the Inquisitor to escort, partially drag half-unconscious Yuna to her sleeping quarters.
"You may leave now." Was all what Serian Honoré said, and in a moment, an Inquisitor had crept behind Seymour to escort him to his own room.
Yuna, the High Summoner, was thrown to her new bed by two strong arms, and she was so confused and dizzy that she didn't thought why Seymour didn't say anything to the man. She didn't thought why the man did not accuse Seymour for being cross-breed. She didn't thought why Seymour felt like knowing the man from before.
She had not thought of anything like that. And now, a searing, throbbing pain consumed her mind, as she tried to wake from the blow. She carefully got to sit in the edge of her huge bed, and put her head between her knees ever so slowly. That man sure did know how it would hurt the most…
After the dizziness was disappeared, Yuna decided to walk few steps to the nearest mirror. She sat in front of the vanity table, and gasped as she saw her reflection on the mirror. Her whole left cheek was burning red, and the place, where Serian´s knuckles had met her skin, was white. Pale as death…
She simply sat there, not knowing what to do. She could always try to escape. But Seymour was there too, and it would be difficult to escape, as she had no aeons with her, she was powerless. Yuna wasn't sure, was Seymour like her, too? If he were, it would be completely foolish to try escaping without any guarantee of safety.
She would be killed, naturally, if they would find about her escape.
And so, Yuna fell to apathy, just staring at the grim reflection before her. An unknown, sad and desperate young woman stared back at her with tired eyes.
Suddenly, a knock on the door startled her, and she lifted her gaze to the doorknob, which now turned down, and the door opened with a small squeak. Yuna got up from her chair with such speed, she did not know she had possessed earlier. She eyed the door warily, which was now open, and a petite woman stepped inside.
The woman was beautiful, with her long, chocolate brown hair, her big blue eyes, delicate lips and her oval shaped face was almost a copy of Yuna´s. they both stood there a while, while eyeing each other in astonishment. The woman wore a pretty dress, which was blue as sky, leaving her arms and shoulders bare. She carried silver jewels in her neck, and she had an impression of a wealthy Lady. The woman got closer to her, and she blinked few times, and Yuna realized, that they had barely any difference in height, weight, body structure or even in their faces. The Lady only seemed older than Yuna, she was perhaps in the mid of her twenties.
"You were the one they brought in here earlier? Are you Lady Yuna, the High Summoner?" The woman asked in reserve politeness, and eyed Yuna curiously. She nodded, and the woman gasped. She bowed to her, and looked at Yuna directly to the eyes. "Please forgive my bluntness! I am Laetitia. Laetitia Honoré. You do not know how pleased I am to see you!" She smiled voice filled with kindness, but soon her face saddened as she saw Yuna´s face.
"W-What happened? Did He….?" Laetitia gasped again as she saw Yuna´s hand-marked face, and Yuna gazed at her in wonder. "Honoré? Are you married to….?" She asked, and Laetitia gave a small nod.
"Yes. He is my husband. I came to warn you, Lady Summoner…No, it would be better, if I started from the very beginning…please, M´Lady, hear me carefully.
My husband, Serian, is a fierce man. Especially to those, who he sees as a threat, a threat from a cross-breed. I once supported him in this.
After our son…passed away.
He died in the hands of a Guado. Now, my beloved husband seeks revenge. Like I should do too…he says that it is the right thing to do. But I, now, at the moment of my weakness, I have begun to hesitate. I know, that if you would not have been a Summoner, you would be dead by now.
It is only your destiny that saved you from your doom.
And I must plead for you to run. Run far away from here, this nest of evil thoughts as this palace have come. You are not guilty. You are innocent." Laetitia said all this with a voice, which was the sorrow itself. "Laetitia…why are you telling me all this?" Yuna asked in a quiet voice, and looked at the sad woman in front of her.
" I have been hidden away, living in fear, for those long years I still hold dearest of my life…and I can not escape by claiming that I was innocent, by that I did not know.I did. That is the reason why I am here.
My husband…I love him more than anything else left for me in this shadow of a world. But he will soon plunge this world into darkness, blinded, by his own arrogance and absolute devotion. His devotion to his dream, to me, to our son.
I cannot shed even a single tear for my husband, anymore. I have no tears left to cry. But because I know, that his quest for retribution will bring him his untimely death,
I have also come here to plead for his soul.
There were so many times I prayed for them to take my life, my soul, in order to save his. To save my son's. Yevon…did not hear me. My husband does not deserve, what he is going to endure.
He has suffered enough."
Laetitia spoke with broken voice, her voice and hands shaking, as she continued her life's story. A whole human life, compressed to few lines of words, with the strength this woman did not find from within her anymore.
"…The day, when Sion, our son, was murdered, a part of my husband's soul died. He has been like a ghost ever since… And ghosts are looking for a place to die." She took a shaky breath, and silvery tears made finally their way to her eyes.
"I know that you do not understand me now, you may even think of me foolish, as I weep for my husband…but you may understand soon. Take these." Laetitia handled her a small, dark-blue pouch of satin. Yuna opened the pouch and small spheres rolled to her hand, all with different colours. One was bright white, two others were crimson in colours, two black, and one, the most brightest and most tempting of them all, was deep of purple.
Not even half of the size of a normal sphere, these were like diamonds.
Diamonds of brightest of colours.
"They are all, each and everyone, pieces of his family history. The recreated thoughts, no, memories, of his lost past and present. See the brightest of them? It is the newest memory of them all… I believe that I am correct, if I say that it was recorded only few days ago…it will aid you in your thirst of knowledge.
I do not know why he keeps them; they are only to rip open the wounds that took so long to heal… Every different colour resembles his feelings, his long buried emotions.
His joy, his pain, his wishes are all there.
Serian does not know I took these; hide them well. If he knows you have seen them, he will end your life." Laetitia continued, with whispers to Yuna, and took a small picture off from the vanity table, and touched its silver framework in deep thoughts, as if to remember the long lost day of her life, when that picture was taken. "Did you have a friend with you, no? How are you going to escape with him?" She asked, and Yuna lifted her head to her direction, and a smile was to be seen, once again, in her lovely lips.
"My friend? Seymour? Why, of course! Have you heard any news of him?" She asked in enthusiasm.
Laetitia´s body froze.
"Seymour? The son of Maester Jyscal Guado?" She asked in shrill, broken voice, and her hands were now shaking.
"Yes, the very same." Came the quick reply, and suddenly the picture what Laetitia was holding, dropped to the floor with a sharp noise of shattering glass.
"I--I must leave you now. Lady Yuna, stay safe." And with these words, she left her.
Hours went by. In the dawn of the night, a knock on the door was the only thing what awaked Yuna from her journey of Serian Honoré´s sorrowful, and in the end, dismal past. Silent tears dropped from her cheeks, forming waterfalls of silver drops out of compassion, mercy, sorrow and hatred.
She has seen more than she would have ever imagined, and only one more sphere was to be watched, the sphere of purple…but a knock to the door, more demanding this time, startled her. Yuna collected the spheres in haste, and hid the pouch inside her summoner´s robes.
But she did not see as the small purple sphere, the brightest of them all, rolled under her large bed silently.
Yuna walked to the door, and opened it quietly. A tall figure was waiting at her to open the door, and Yuna´s face brightened immediately, as she saw who the man was.
"Seymour." She simply said, smiling at him, but Seymour's face was dark, filled with uncertainty and worry. "Can I come in?" He asked, and Yuna opened the door more to let him come.
In an instant, he was already inside and had closed the door firmly behind him.
Yuna sat on the edge of her bed, but still smiled at him. Seymour's face darkened even more as he saw her red, slightly swollen cheek, and his eyes softened, as he saw her tears. He kneeled in front of her, and caressed her cheek gently. "What is this? Why have you shed tears?" He asked with shaky voice, his eyes full of compassion, and the smallest amount of fear.
Yuna had forgotten to wipe her tears away, and refresh her face in the bathroom, but she had forgotten it completely, as she hid the spheres in haste.
Her hand now rose to dry her tears, but Seymour's gentle hand stopped her.
"No…" He muttered, and gently lifted his finger to caress her beaten cheek, and down to her lips. He reached more closer, and Yuna could feel trough her closed eyes, as he planted an comforting kiss to both of her closed eyes, to dry away the remaining tears.
He planted a longing kiss to her left cheek, to banish the last remaining tear of sorrow. And finally, he kissed her lips with such an emotion; he poured all of his longing, all of his love and all of his despair into her. And Yuna did not see, as a one, single silver tear escaped from the back of his eye.
They sank to the floor, each in other's embrace, kneeled on the ground.
But for Seymour's surprise, Yuna did not draw back from him, expression of the utmost disgust in her face…she kissed him back.
It was now He, who pulled off from the kiss. "What are you doing?" His trembling question was no louder than a shaky whisper, and he was completely helpless. If she continued this, he did not know what he might do.
"I think…I think that…" Yuna whispered back with an equally same tone of shakiness in her voice.
"Don't say it. You do not…love me." In the last two, meaningful words, he whispered them with such painful emotion, what he had never know before, and was not allowed to him now.
"But I do…" She whispered to him, voice now more confident.
"I do love you."
A/N:Ahh. Drama. Who can live without it?……I can't.
The suspense is getting more pressing…revelations are to be made…
But are YOU up to the task? Are you able to review my story?
I write. You read and review. Hard? Nope. ; )
Sure, getting response such as "OMG!!!! Wazzup?? Yur fic rulz 4-eva!!!!!!!!11" is sure nice and heart warming, (but I can't guarantee, that I understand all of it ; ) ) but there are others, more constructive ways of giving feedback.
Please, in order for this fic to evolve in to a better story, tell me what parts you liked in this chapter, and which parts you didn't. What you thought was good, what parts would need more work. Like that. And in the previous chappies too!
PS. and no, Laetitia is not a ghost-clone of Lenne. Nope, it isn't.
Disclaimer: Seymour, Yuna or the world of Spira is not mine. It belongs to Square-Enix. But I do own characters Serian Honoré, Laetitia Honoré, Commodus Honoré and Karis. The first three of my characters are borrowed from a novel I'm writing, which will be hopefully published someday. Maybe. Perhaps.
BUT! (ta-daah!) If you steal the plot of my fic, any quotes from it, or my original characters, you'll know where you are going. So, nyah! ; )
WARNING. Do not read further, if you happen to fancy the main Hero in FF X.
Thee be warneth!
Another Pathetic Use of Space by: the Author. (tm.)
I Hate you, you disgrace of a teenager!
I Hate you, little Blond Boy!
I Hate your cheery moods!
I Hate your constant whining!
Have you already guessed who is it? Why yes, you were right. Why if it isn't (TA-DAAAH!)….Tidus.
Ahh…the blond boy, who waves back at the teletubbies.
The Wonder Boy who talks all the time, and has nothing to say.
The Golden Hero, who certainly is not the brightest candle in the cake.
See how much I simply…hate him?
Okay, now the readers are either;
a) fallen to sleep by my childish rambling.
b) are out to get my head on a platter for bashing their favourite bishounen.
Heheh…More on the latter, I suppose…
I am sorry. I really am. It just that my school is about to start again soon, and I just had to, needed to, share my anger and frustration with the Golden Boy, which everyone seems to love. ; ) I promise to you that I shall not let my obsession affect my writing.
Tidus-fan 1.: Ack. The nerves of that author!
Tidus-fan 2.: Let's go get her!
Tidus-fan 1.: Yea!!
The poor, poor Author: Nooooo! Have mercy on my soul! Ngyah…not in the face! NOT IN THE FACE!!
Heh. More to come, I suppose… ; )