Disclaimer : I don't own Final Fantasy : Unlimited or the characters in it. There may be a few OCs I haul off and throw in there, but not for a while.

Warnings : Yaoi which means male/male. Come on, what else do I write? Expect violence, mild child abuse/neglect, language, sexual situations, and anything else especially good. Not for the children. You don't like it, don't read.

Notes : Took me a while to do this one...this chapter sucked...But it will get better, I'm working on it. Bah. Oo

Land Of Confusion

Chapter 2 : Lucky

by Reppa

According to the group, Kaze was a lucky man that his flare had been noticed. The man of the Black Wind hardly considered himself lucky, far from it. He gave them a mildly disdainful look which went mostly unnoticed. The true focal point, despite the rescue of their brooding 'companion', was how Lisa and the others were to return to the Outer World...or Earth, whatever they wanted to refer it to. It hardly mattered to him, he knew White Cloud wouldn't be there, so he hardly cared on going. Even if it could prove to be an intriguing experience.

"Hey, mister, do you know where Makenshi-kun is?" The small, red haired human girl crouched next to him, her head tilted to one side as she looked at him. She was the cute and noisy one, he remembered that. Ai.

"No..."

She threw him what looked like an angry pout, as if he had done something wrong. In return to her glare, he stared blankly at her, maybe he missed something, "What..."

"Nothing...You'd just think the person obsessed with him would know where Makenshi-kun is, that's all." Her voice began sounded rather shrewd, a peculiar look on her young face.

Kaze didn't like what she seemed ready to imply, his brows slowly rose.

"Grown up love storms are all weird. I mean, you follow him everywhere, think of no one but him, kinda sounds to me like you're all lovesick and to think you don't even know where he is. You're as bad as Lisa."

Lovesick? Who said he was lovesick! With a grunt and his narrow eyes wide, Kaze cut off any further comments as he rose to his feet and hurriedly stalked away down a corridor, ignoring her outburst on how she knew all and that he couldn't hide the truth from her women's intuition. It was an omen for ill things to come, he prayed it didn't mean she was going to bug him with that nonsense. The man glared over his shoulder, whether or not she could see him do it, frowning in irritation. He couldn't for the life of him center just where she would get such an idea as he located and took over what looked like a vacant room.

It was empty, virtually no decoration. The bed lacked blankets and pillows, no rugs, wall hangings, nothing. If it belonged to no one, Kaze didn't see the harm in making it his own as he sat himself on the edge of the bed. The mattress beneath him took his mind off the girl's insinuations and he shifted. It had been...a long time since he could recall being in a comfortable bed. At least when he hadn't been comatose due to a battle.

Real sleep, a pleasant idea as he moved to lay on his side, using his good arm as a pillow. He felt like he needed to sleep, but his eyes just wouldn't close. Instead his brows furrowed, as if something troubled him. The dreary gloom of the air ship dormitory made him feel strangely nostalgic. It made him feel mildly depressed too, but he didn't understand why. Later, he knew he had to do something about the gloom.

"Kaze?"

The sweet voice shook him out of his dreary daydream, his blue eyes blinking rapidly as they focused on Lisa, who stood in the doorway of the room. For a second, she eyed the room with a little scrutiny, not really stepping in fully, "I guess you found yourself a new nest. Was Ai bothering you?"

"Yes." His bluntness made her laugh lightly. Kaze didn't understand how that was amusing.

"Sorry, she kept ranting about you and the others. We just didn't think you had...survived. But then again, you did make it through that battle with Makenshi before, so I guess I can't be so surprised." It took the summoner a moment to realize what she was referring to. When he had first reached Chaos, when Makenshi destroyed both him and Chaos for that brief moment in time. He remember now, the battle against Chaos, and how Makenshi had ultimately not been responsible for Windaria and Aura's death. But it was hard, remembering things before that. Things about home, family...And even though he remembered the battle, how the White Cloud wasn't to blame, why did he still have the incredible drive to track the swordsman down?

"What about Moogle? He wasn't with you?" The Moogle, no...Kaze felt surprised he had pondered Makenshi's state well before he even considered anything concerning the moogle. He frowned at himself, maybe he was truly a little obsessed with the swordsman, but that hardly meant he was lovesick. The man's unwavering silence made Lisa look on with mild concern, "Kaze?"

He blinked himself out of his thoughts, staring at the human woman who stared back with a mild blush on her cheeks. It was odd to her, how he seemed to space out like that and she wondered just what he had been thinking about. But it was pointless to ask, more than likely, she would not get an answer. Talk about Moogle and Makenshi would probably have to wait. With a brisk sigh, she waved a hand to dismiss the matter, smiling warmly, "Just don't worry about what Ai says. She's just a little girl, she's got a big imagination so it shouldn't bother you."

If Kaze understood it the way it seemed Lisa was saying it, was the little girl running around telling everyone that he had feelings for Makenshi? "She thinks I like White Cloud."

"Well..." Lisa chuckled nervously, waving her hands a little. The human woman's fake laugh when she was nervous or unsteady betrayed the truth sometimes. So Ai had been running around babbling like that. Internally, the Black Wind fumed about the ranting of a pint sized brat who had no place spouting of what she didn't know. "She was...going on about something like that. But we know that's far from it."

"Far from it?" Of course it was.

Wonderland never ceased to amaze her, surprises abounded. This had to be the most she'd actually sat there, more or less, talking with Kaze. Even if his sentences mostly consisted of one or two words. But it felt like she was on the spot, him drilling her for what her opinions or what the others thought. Something she thought didn't apply to him, but since it was about Makenshi, of course Kaze was all ears. She had to remind herself what the gunner's true train of thought focused on. Ai was probably on to something, but Lisa didn't want to admit it.

"Um, well, I know beforehand you must have hated him. For whatever reason, I don't know...But after fighting the Count, I guess the two of you are on better grounds, but not to that point. I mean, it would be strange for you to hate him one instance and then turn around and feel that way. Right?"

It was funny, the way she emphasized on the word that. But it made sense, despite how it made Kaze wonder if he had hated Makenshi or actually hadn't. It was too confusing for him to worry about, rolling over lazily on his other side, his back to her while he adjusted the Magun in his new position.

"Um, right, Kaze?"

He blinked, glancing back over his shoulder at the woman. She wanted an answer? Not answering would probably give her the wrong idea as he turned away once more. "Right..."

"Did he confess!"

Lisa winced, settling the little girl with a weary smile. Why Ai was so insistent on such a thing was beyond her. "Now, Ai...he doesn't feel that way."

"Yep, give him one ticket for the river Denial, Lisa."

Sometimes Ai was profoundly annoying, but Lisa could bear it as she turned to Cid, "Since the Phantom Train was your doing, Cid, and it was connected to our world, is there anyway you can figure out a way for us to return home?"

Since the battle against Chaos, the group had hovered in place with no true plan figured out. Yu was with his parents and Ai had been with them until the news of another survivor or more. The blond hummed thoughtfully, rubbing his chin, "Any programming that was put into Elizabeth after I made her that connected the train to the Outer World, I was not a part of. But I'm sure it's a piece of pie to do it regardless. There's a fragment of a world that's rampant with portals and the inhabitants who make the portals. They might be able to provide some clues on getting you home."

"How do we get there?"

"I don't know."

Lisa nearly fell over with a groan. That had been the last thing she expected Cid of all people to say. She threw him a slightly exasperated look as he chuckled and continued, "Ya see, this world is kind of tricky to get to. There are rabbit holes, portals laid about in whatever regions, or I have to measure out the calculations in order for us to change dimensions. We may not be in the Ocean Puzzle anymore, but that doesn't mean Wonderland is any easier to move around in. But at least challenges aren't being tossed at us that could doom everyone."

"Rabbit holes? What are those?" The woman inquired, head tilted curiously. Ai had departed back to her brother as the grown-ups spoke, not all that interested in what was said. The fruits of being young.

"They're considered symptoms of Chaos inevitably destroying the world. They were gaping holes that ended up opening in the sides of mountains or in the ground. Sometimes strange energies filtered from them and warped the surrounding environments. The closer Chaos came, the greater the holes opened up and they connected to other worlds suffering the same symptoms...It's just none of the inhabitants realized just what was going on until it was too late, they figured they were just geographical abnormalities. There are rabbit holes all over Wonderland, connecting the various worlds that have been connected since Chaos devoured them. They're just a pain in the rear to move through though, knew a guy who broke his neck falling through one..."

A spark of realization hit Lisa. That was how Kaze moved from plane to plane, always turning up where they had been. For the longest time she couldn't understand how he did it without riding the Phantom Train save for that one instance. In the world of sand, when Kaze had fallen from the sky with a thud, that had been a rabbit hole obviously. "Are they randomly connected?"

"Of course, it's not like they all have signs that say 'This hole goes...' and then a location. Though some people have gotten wise and made signs...you just have to be careful you don't end up anywhere dangerous. Or what crawls from the other side."

It felt like it would end up being another trek, like their search for Teros. But at the very least, they didn't have the Lords of Gaudium to harass them and feed Chaos with their turmoil. "I think Kaze may know something about these holes...I'll ask him later. What about any portals?"

"The portals are just as random as the holes, but not nearly as abundant or dangerous. I can put in a search for the closest and work on some calculations. Just leave it to me!" Cid's cheesy grin made her chuckle softly, the scientist making off to the bridge of the airship to resume control. Once alone, Lisa sighed tiredly to herself. They would be stuck in Wonderland for some time, it would prove best to make the best of their time.

Or make the best of your time...She smiled quietly, thinking about what she would do. Most of her thoughts revolved around the brooding gun summoner...

End of Chapter 2