Disclaimer: I don't own any characters or the aspects of any of the Final Fantasy series, or the movie.

A/N: This chapter just gives you an insight on what some of the characters are feeling and some new information. The surprises aren't over yet though, so hold tight. Thanks for the reviews, they are greatly appreciated! I love you people! traces a heart in the air Okay, here's the next chapter.

::.Chapter Seven.::

"Lenne! Ohmygosh! I haven't seen you in so-o-o long!"

Yuna noticed a familiar figure running towards them, someone she was best friends with herself. The strange part was, why had she called her 'Lenne'?

"We've been so worried ever since you an— uh?"

Oh yes, Yuna knew this voice very well. She must've realized her mistake mid-sentence because her crimson eyes widened in shock and her mouth was slightly ajar.

Tidus watched them, not daring to intrude. He hadn't really wanted to get involved with any members of this unknown family. Everything was becoming so confusing, and that fight with Yuna...well lets just say he was over that, but why couldn't he sleep well after that, why couldn't he just stop picturing her face every-time he closed his eyes? And why the hell am I still thinking about her now?!

Shaking his head to rid his thoughts, he focused his attention to the stranger. He must've missed something while he was deep in thought because Yuna was busy chatting away with this other woman, hugging each other and squealing as they spoke. It was a mystery to Tidus what on Earth they could be talking about that was so exciting, but figured it was just girls that were like that. They could make anything seem interesting. Hell, for all he knew they could be talking about politics! That was one of the many things that separated guys from girls.

For instance, a guy wouldn't have a sleep over with his buddies just so that they could gossip and cry over a guy that dumped them. He inwardly chuckled at the thought of Squall wearing rollers in his hair, applying green eye shadow and Wakka –another one of his buddies– painting his nails pink and fretting over what outfit to wear. Okay, this image was getting scary, fast.

Tidus looked her up and down and realized he'd seen this girl before, somewhere. Her eyes were such a deep hazel, they flickered with red giving her a beautiful exotic look. Long, silky brown hair was tied up in a fancy knot at the back of her head, with several strands (some braided, some straight) fell behind her. Tidus guessed if her hair wasn't tied, it would stretch to about her thigh. Her pale skin looked soft and smooth to the touch. All of these things equaled "total hottie" in his books. He only glanced at her long enough to note these things, since he couldn't help but picture that crushed look on Yuna's face that she had given him the night before, every-time he looked at another woman. But that was ridiculous, Yuna shouldn't affect his charm with women, no girl could do that to him. And why should he care if Yuna was mad at him or not? After all, she was just another ordinary girl, just his best friend's kid sister.

Tidus felt rather uncomfortable just standing there, unnoticed. He felt like screaming "I'm here you know!" but refrained. Taking a few brave steps forward, he leaned against the secretary's desk behind him casually. Maybe they were talking about something interesting. You never knew with these girls...

"—Such a jerk when he—"

The two girls stopped conversing immediately after noticing Tidus standing there. If it was one thing they hated most, it was eavesdropping. Guys didn't understand them anyway, why should they bother trying to talk to them? Most of their talking was complaining about the men in their lives, so it wouldn't make much sense anyway.

Yuna averted her eyes in annoyance, not just because he interrupted them but also because she still held a grudge against him. I mean when someone says you're 'nobody' to them, what more could he expect from her? Then again, this is probably what he wanted, so that he could stop pretending to be relatively nice to her. He probably planned this! He's probably laughing about it with his buddies behind her back. She wasn't about to leap into his arms and forgive him that easily, maybe never. Maybe if she actually believed he just said it because he was angry, and not like he meant it, then things would be slightly different. As far as she was concerned, they didn't have to socialize at all, if only for the Anizans' or Naomi. That's how things were before anyway.

Tidus remembered who this woman was now; it was his enemy's sister. Okay, so Vincent wasn't really his enemy per say, but he was his rival. It really was a shame Tifa was on the wrong end of the line, but he'd learn to deal with it. With Yuna however, she crossed every line there was to cross. If there was a friend involved, she didn't care what happened, it was almost as if she was blind to society's differences. In a way, he envied her for that. Tifa and himself hadn't really had much contact with each other in the past, but they knew of each other's existence.

Tifa just gave him a curt nod, and ducked her head from the strange silence, Tidus grunted quietly in reply. Yuna realized Tidus was spending way too much time with her brother, after all Squall was infamous for substituting grunts for actual words, but she learned to understand what those grunts meant overtime. Men were really like cavemen, the way that they communicated, at least that's what she thought of most of the guys she knew.

Both Yuna and Tifa gave him a strange look as they noticed his jacket rustling and moving around. Tidus laughed after remembering Naomi was still inside his jacket. The child's smile was bright as she noticed Tifa, both Yuna and Tidus were surprised at this. How did a friend of theirs know the Anizan family?

Tifa drew the child into her arms, and bounced her a little in her excitement. They definitely knew each other somehow. Yuna shot her a questioning look but dismissed it after she realized Tifa would eventually tell her. But curiosity was like a hunger, and Yuna was starving for it. Noticing that look Tifa complied, and invited her to go up to her hotel room. Tidus, however decided to stay in the lobby, he decided it was best if he stayed alone for a while, to sort through his thoughts.

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"Okay Teef, time for some explaining."

Yuna glanced at Naomi who was busy watching a giant purple Chocobo dance around on the television screen, and smiled at the child's simple pleasure (apparently that was her favourite show). Tidus was gone, that was good, and Naomi was distracted. They could finally talk, it had been a long while since she had spoken to her best friend.

Tifa curled a strand of her burnt mahogany hair around her little finger, a habit Yuna recognized as a form of shyness and uncertainty in Tifa.

Yuna was always envious of Tifa, she was so mysterious and shy, and beautiful. Her hair was a boring, a dull brown while her best friend's seemed to be infused with the richest browns, exotic and gleaming with playfulness. Her eyes were so dark and brown that they flickered with a flame of red. Yuna had never gotten any compliments on her mismatched eyes, after all, they weren't beautiful to her and probably not to anyone else either.

In a way Yuna and Tifa were alike in the sense that they were shy and were peace-makers, but the way guys looked at her best friend, it made her feel self-conscious and unimportant. Yuna didn't show it but she was insecure about a lot of things.

But maybe she just didn't notice the guys that were giving her a second glance because she never slowed down, for anyone or anything. She was always working and focused on her job and studies so much that the most natural things seemed to be out of the ordinary for her.

However, it was only Yuna that Tifa indulged in, told all of her secrets to; it made her feel a little special. But why didn't Tifa tell her about the Anizans'? What was so horrible that she of all people shouldn't know? Tifa even spoke to her about Cloud –her secret crush for the past couple of eternities– and even that was like the biggest secret in the universe to her. Whatever it was, it seemed important if her best friend was so stressed over telling her.

Yuna pushed further to get the conversation going, "How do you know the Anizan family?"

"Well its kind of a long story..." Tifa continued hastily trying to draw the attention away from the subject. Obviously, this topic was something that Tifa'd rather not talk about.

Yuna smiled a little to support her friend and reassure her, "Don't worry. I've got the time."

○♥○

Tidus paced back and forth on the beautiful brocaded rug of the downstairs lobby. Everything in his mind was mixing him up. No matter how much he tried, he couldn't pair up his questions with the right answer. He didn't know why but for some reason since their argument on the balcony, he kept on thinking of his mother, the mother he barely even knew anymore. It seemed as if each year he grew older, more and more memories would disappear forever. Memories were just useless though, right? What he did remember were the faint little fragments of some incidence or another in his life, the ones that didn't make any sense, but provided some comfort. But maybe he was just making those ones up to console himself, he couldn't tell the difference anymore. His mind weaved through a collection of fragments in the little collection he kept hidden away in his head.

A 5-year-old Tidus walked into his mother and father's room and briefly scanned it for any sign of life. His mother stood in front of the wooden dresser, adjusting a pearl earring to her left ear. He jumped ontop of the bouncy bed that he had always jumped on when no one was looking, and stared, fixated on his mom. It always amused him to see her dress up, he never quite grasped the subject that all that body attention was only meant for women or girls. He liked to play with the lipstick and perfume bottles, pretending they were robots or something.

"Tidus?"

The little boy looked to his mother and grinned widely as she made a funny face at him to make him laugh. Tidus made one back and they both laughed together.

Tidus scoffed a little at the memory, he hated his mother now. He looked back to the receptionist who was giving him a nasty look that read, 'what exactly are you doing here?' Tidus glared back at her and sat down on a nearby couch. Watching people walking in and out, he lifted a hand to prop his chin up. A Blitzball rolled to his feet, igniting another memory...

"Mo-o-om. Mom? Mom! Mommy!?"

Tidus drawled each word, constantly calling for his mother. Rampaging into his parent's bedroom with the family's puppy, Tiger behind him. Nobody was inside.

Deciding to be mischievous as always, Tiger dragged a clean sock from the bottom of the closet and flung it around the room. Tidus didn't bother with the dog, he was always up to something.

Examining his father's things on the top shelf, out of his reach he decided to take a closer look at the special Blitzball his father would never let him touch. He remembered his dad saying something about it being signed by one of the famous Blitzers before him when he was a little boy. That was way too hard for Tidus to imagine though...

Something that valuable and expensive was a treasure in his father's eyes. But what was the point in keeping everything to yourself? Tidus figured something this precious needed to be shared.

Pushing his back against the wall, he successfully rolled the ball from its high perch only so that it could roll under the bed. Chasing after it quickly before his father came up and saw him, he peered beneath the bed. The Blitzball was within reach but something else caught his eye. There were suitcases, two or three of them.

"What are you doing in my room, boy?!"

Little Tidus scampered away as Jecht's figure was seen near the door.

"So that's what that meant." Tidus mused to himself. He should've realized his mother was leaving, the suitcases were there. She left without saying good-bye but promised she would come back. How could he believe now, that his mother was truly dead like his father had told him a couple of days after she left? He shook his head in annoyance, his father was right: 'a promise is a comfort to a fool'. His mother was never coming back for them. It was just as well, he wouldn't be accepting her in his life any time soon, anyway.

"Hey, mister! Could you pass the ball sometime this year?"

Tidus was broken out of his thoughts by two boys off in the distance. Ignoring their stupid teasing he passed the ball to them after considering throwing a trick ball to them but decided against it.

What was Yuna talking about for so long anyway?

○♥○

"So, you're telling me, that the real Lenne and Shuyin were gone on a business trip to Zanarkand, and you were supposed to document it?" Yuna questioned trying to digest all of the information. For the past few months, Tifa had switched careers as a professional photographer to a novice journalist. Tifa only nodded in reply as Yuna frantically continued.

"And Lenne was a renowned singer in Zanarkand and Bevelle, and Shuyin owned the famous business towers in the center of the metropolitan. They left about three weeks before Tidus and I arrived, and the truth is: that they're missing. You were hired to schedule and conduct an interview with Lenne, but something happened and she couldn't make it. Ever since then, she and Shuyin have been missing because of mysterious causes, but no one has reported it because it was confidential and crucial that the public doesn't know, since they are multi-millionaires?"

"Well, you see...I'm the only one who knows. And it's a good thing I didn't tell now that you think about it, you two would be in hot water and the police might think I did something to them. I was the last person they were with...and", she sighed, "I don't know what to do. That's why I mistook you for Lenne, I was so happy when you arrived and I wouldn't have to carry that burden anymore. I guess my excitement and relief blinded me."

She smiled a little to herself, and looked at Yuna, "And those brown contacts don't help either."

Yuna traced a finger to the side of her face near her eye and smiled, "Well, if they think I'm Lenne, I have to look like her."

For the past couple of days, Yuna had decided to wear the brown contacts since every time one of the Anizan friends or family looked at her she would get jumpy and feel as if they would find out and torch her. She secretly kept a pair when she was less secure about herself in highschool, she would always get teased for it. Tidus was lucky, he didn't have to change a thing or suffer like she did. Deciding to change the serious subject into a normal conversation Yuna continued, but couldn't help the feeling that Tifa wasn't telling her everything.

Yuna sighed thoughtfully, "I just feel like going home. I'm tired of being Lenne, I want to be Yuna again. And believe it or not, I miss Squall!"

Tifa smiled apologetically, "I think I can help you with that. I have my connections you know."

○♥○

Tidus couldn't help that he was impatient, he was always like that. But what he hated most was that in his free time, all he could think about was Yuna. He vaguely thought of a phrase that rang in his head: 'It's times like these you really get to thinking.' His philosophy teacher no doubt, she was always confusing him with one of her riddles. Lulu always spoke in riddles or one of her 'philosophical virtues'. Tidus took a moment to assess the irony of the situation, something was always ready to hit him full force in the face when he least expected it.

For as many years as he could remember, they had always been so horrible to each other, how they pretended not to notice each other. There was a story behind that of course, and after all that had happened in their years of highschool...well, it was pretty hard not to hold a grudge. It was actually quite funny when you thought about it, she was always ready for an argument or snide remark, never once flinching from his teasing. Maybe that's why he kept on doing it, it was practically a normal routine. Now that he thought about it, did he mean any of the mean things he had said to her in the past and vice versa?

His mind ran wild in the rest of the time when he wasn't giving a cold glare to the receptionist who obviously didn't want him there. Some people were just so annoying! He could barely sit still, and some people were starting to stare.

He couldn't help but wonder how upset Yuna was. He had never said anything so horrible to anyone before (well, maybe his old man), and his previous actions to her throughout his whole life didn't exactly help her or him. Besides, if she really cared about what he had said, she would've shown it. But that was the part that was killing him the most. He knew Yuna enough to know that when she was upset she hid it, and well. Who knew four words could cause such damage, both to himself and Yuna?!

Sighing loudly in frustration he decided he would have to do something he didn't do for a long time, especially to a girl: apologize. Tomorrow, definitely tomorrow. Hell, he might as well do it as soon as she got down, now that he thought about it. He wasn't scared of her. Besides, it couldn't hurt his pride that much; he was just doing it so that the guilt would stop eating away at him. This was just to make things right, so that he could stop thinking about her.

I mean, Tidus Rynn, Blitzer extraordinaire (and lawyer), top-notch player did not just apologize to anyone...just the woman he mysteriously keeps thinking about.

None of those titles mattered with Yuna, it was as if she broke all restrictions and kept on going, things like that were frivolous to her. Damn. How could one, insignificant girl, do that to him? He was starting to hate himself for thinking like this. Tidus guaranteed himself, it was just pity. It had to be. As soon as he got it over with, everything would be balanced in the world. Yes, everything would be perfect.

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A/N: I really wanted to write more, but this chapter is long enough already. I have to admit this chapter was kinda boring, but I can't help it, information had to be released and past memories and feelings are revealed (plus I had writer's block) . I tried to write 3 different versions of this chapter, and none of them really worked O.o 'Cause of that, next chapter will come sooner, and will be better. Hang in there people! Let me know what you think, or just to make a comment or prediction in a review or e-mail.

To keep you going, here's a tiny snippet of next chapter (don't read if you want a complete and total surprise):

If we just let ourselves completely go, then all of the barriers would be broken. What we almost did felt so exhilarating, but deep down we both knew it was wrong. It was as if we tiptoed around the borderlines just to be safe, but somehow we knew reality would catch us just in time. I can't help wondering if crossing the boundaries, was exactly what we needed. Oh Yuna, what did you get yourself into...?

Hmm, just wondering but would you readers prefer a little 'preview' of upcoming chapters in the future?