Disclaimer: Final Fantasy X and all related characters are property of SquareSoft.
Chapter 2: Recovery
Tidus grunted as the physical therapist forced his left leg into its bent position. "Jeez, man, why don't you just rip the damn thing off?" Lying on the floor, even on a cushiony mat, was not the most comfortable, considering he'd spent the last week or so lying in a hospital bed. The cavernous gymnasium was crowded, with many other patients being put through their motions. Their various audible responses to their therapy were not reassuring to Tidus.
"I know it hurts, sir," the therapist said, "but we have to work your legs while they're healing, so they won't atrophy. If that happens, you might never be able to blitz again."
Tidus gritted his teeth. "Okay, sorry. Just don't listen to me, okay?" He did his best to endure the torture that man was inflicting upon him, because he knew how right his logic was. Blitzing was the only real skill Tidus had. Well, in this world, anyway. If he couldn't play Blitzball, he would be essentially useless.
Tidus growled as the therapist ran both his legs through their full range of motion. It had been a few days since his bones had healed enough for him to use his limbs, and the therapy had started immediately. As much as it hurt, Tidus wanted desperately to be able to walk and function on his own. He hated not being able to move around of his own accord, and he needed to be able to search for a way back to Spira. He only wished it didn't have to hurt so much.
"You've got a visitor." The therapist continued without even looking up.
"Huh?" Tidus gasped.
The therapist nodded toward the door as he began to massage Tidus' kneecaps. Tidus turned his head, despite the stiffness still in his neck. Standing before him was Voight, with a gray suit and slicked-back hair. "Hey T, what's up?"
"What's it look like?" Tidus smirked, then grimaced again as his right leg was compressed.
"Looks like hell," Voight said, crouching down.
"Close enough."
"How's it coming?" Voight absentmindedly played with Tidus' wheelchair nearby, rolling it back and forth gently.
"Better, I guess," Tidus replied. "I've been feeling more stiff than pain… well, at least until this guy brought me down here." As if to rebuke him, the therapist bent his knee hard, quickly shutting Tidus' mouth.
"How soon do you think you'll be walking?"
Before Tidus could answer, the therapist said, "I'll have him on his feet by the end of the week."
"Be afraid. Be very afraid," Tidus muttered. Voight laughed as Tidus again clenched his jaw against the compression and stretching of his right leg.
Voight sighed. "I'm glad to hear that. I've set up a press conference for you on Friday. It'd look better for the reporters and the crowd if you can walk."
Tidus groaned. "Voight, c'mon, I don't really wanna do a press conference. I've…"
"Listen," Voight interrupted, lowering his voice, "I know how you're feeling right now, but there's a lot of despair out there. People don't care how well the war in Djose is going. Their city's all but destroyed, and they're losing hope. They need something to renew it. Seeing their star Blitzball player alive and walking, well, that'll definitely lift their spirits."
Tidus couldn't protest. Instead, he felt a sudden sense of déjà vu and stared off into space, distracted from the pain in his lower extremities. Is this what Yuna always went through? Doing things she didn't want to do, to give people hope? Yuna, did I ever really understand why you put everyone else over yourself? Man, I've always been so selfish. Even with everything I did to save your life, it was all because I didn't want to live in a world without you. And then I ended up in one anyway. But now guess I can see just what it's like, to do things for the masses, no matter how much it hurts.
"Hey, Earth to Tidus, you awake, man?" Voight was snapping his fingers in front of Tidus' face.
Tidus snapped his head toward Voight. "Sorry, just thinking."
"Well," said Voight, standing up, "make sure to give the press conference some thought. Zanarkand needs a hero now, and they want you. See you later." He waved and walked out the door.
Tidus sighed. Guess it's already been decided for me.
"Okay," said the therapist, laying Tidus' leg back down. "Time to work on your arms."
Tidus groaned. It's gonna be a long week.
*Tidus glanced around the small single room. It was small, but in a hospital crowded with patients, he couldn't have asked for more. He actually didn't remember asking for it; he assumed Voight had somehow arranged for them to set him up in a private room. He'd been assured that no one without a room was more seriously injured than he, but he still couldn't help feeling some guilt. At the same time, however, he was glad to have his own room. It gave him a chance to organize his thoughts without someone leaning over him every thirty seconds.
Tidus adjusted the bed so that he was sitting upright. He looked over the piles of "Get Well" cards in his lap, some professionally generated, some drawn in crayon. He couldn't help but smile. If Voight was right about anything, it was that he did have a lot of fans.
However, he still couldn't comprehend how he'd come to be where he was, and where exactly this place was. Despite how real it felt, there was still a surrealism to it all. He couldn't help but wonder: Was this a fayth dream, as before? Or was he in a coma somewhere in Spira, having one final nightmare before he died?
There was a knock at the door and a woman poked her head in. "Sir?"
Tidus turned to her and smiled. "Hey, come on in." He looked the nurse over as she stepped inside the cramped room. She was tall and rail thin, and was one he had not seen before. She held something rolled-up in her hand.
"I, uh…I thought you might like a newspaper," she said, walking toward him with shaking knees. She held the paper out nervously, as if warding off an evil spirit.
"Oh, thanks!" Tidus replied, accepting the paper and laying it down over the cards in his lap. He didn't remember asking for it, but it seemed obvious that she was a fan visiting. As much as he liked being alone in his room, he didn't mind visitors, either.
"And, uh…one more thing," the nurse continued. She pulled something out of her blouse pocket and handed it to him. "Could you please sign this? For me?"
Tidus looked at the object: a collector's card bearing a still image of him performing one of his trademark sphere shots. An overlaid holograph of his portrait winked when the card was tilted. He smiled and asked, "Sure, you got a pen?"
The nurse eagerly handed him a black pen. Tidus started writing on it and asked, "What's your name?"
"Shelinda," the nurse meekly replied.
Tidus looked at her for a second, his brow furrowed. No…couldn't be. Could it?
The nurse took a nervous step back and said, "I-is everything okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you mad…"
"No, no, it's okay," Tidus said. "It's just that…I used to know someone named Shelinda. She looked kinda like you, actually. Not as pretty as you, though."
Shelinda gasped, covered her mouth with her hands, and turned away. Tidus saw the back of her neck turn bright red, and he grinned. Then, he started writing on the card, and quoted, "'To my good friend Shelinda, from Tidus. Thanks for the paper!'"
Shelinda peeked around, and Tidus handed her the card. She took it eagerly and gazed at his writing. Tidus rubbed the back of his head and said, "I had to write a little small. I hope it's okay."
Shelinda looked back at Tidus, and pressed the card to her chest. "It's...perfect! Thank you soooo much!" With that, she spun on her heel and ran out of the room, nearly knocking down another orderly trying to enter the room.
The orderly barely avoided her, and then walked toward Tidus. "I'm sorry, I don't think she was supposed to be here. I'll let the shift leader know…"
"No, it's okay," Tidus said. "I guess I made her a little happier"
The orderly shrugged and went about his work preparing Tidus' spare linens. Obviously not a talker, Tidus thought. He unfolded the newspaper and glanced at the banner headline. His jaw dropped and his heart skipped a beat; he read it again closely to make sure he wasn't mistaken.
ZANARKAND TROOPS INVADE BEVELLE
Bevelle. Bevelle! That's where the Maesters were! Wait a sec… "Hey," he said to the orderly, holding up the paper. "Where's Bevelle?"
The orderly gave him a questioning look, but said, "It's the capital of the Djose Empire."
Tidus' mouth fell open again. Bevelle is the capital of Djose. Djose attacked Zanarkand. Bevelle attacked this Zanarkand. And…Bevelle attacked the real Zanarkand, the one in Spira, didn't it? Wasn't that what Seymour told us?
"Bevelle attacked Zanarkand," Tidus muttered.
"Yeah," the orderly said, his voice drawn out with confusion. "Bevelle attacked us. That's why we're invading them." The orderly's condescending tone would have normally offended the receiver, but Tidus wasn't paying much attention. He had wrapped his mind around this new important piece of information.
"Of course! It makes sense now!" Tidus practically jumped out of the bed, sending fan cards flying. He almost crumpled onto the floor, but propped himself up against the wall, with the orderly's help. "Seymour said Bevelle attacked the real Zanarkand a thousand years ago! I'm not in a fayth dream! I'm in the past!"
The orderly kept silent, keeping an eye on Tidus as he slowly helped him back into the bed. "Sir, I'm going to get the doctor…"
"N-No, wait," Tidus interrupted. "Sorry. I, uh, had a really weird dream earlier, and it's been stuck in my head. That's…that's what I was talking about. I just figured it out."
"Oh, uh, okay," the orderly said. He glanced at Tidus periodically, watching for any more strange outbursts as he finished his work. When he was done, he backed out of the room, never turning his back on the patient. Tidus picked up the newspaper and scanned the article. Okay, I'm in the past. The fayth said I was a dream based on someone that actually lived in the past, right? Now I'm here, and I'm real. An unexpected sense of relief washed over him. Maybe I'm a thousand years in the past, but I'm in Spira. That means I'm a lot closer than I thought.
*Tidus looked in the mirror and straightened his tie. He hated wearing any formalwear, or practically any clothing that he couldn't wear while playing Blitzball. Yet by Voight's constant prodding, and his desire to get the man out of his hair, Tidus grudgingly agreed to wear the white tuxedo.
He said it'd make everyone happy. Bleh. I look like a waiter. Tidus grimaced and stuck his tongue out at himself. He then checked a strap of the brace on his left leg. Despite the treatment and therapy, his left leg was still a little too weak for him to fully stand on. He gave a sidelong glance at the gray metal cane leaning against the well. I'm gonna look like some old fart hobbling around. Damn you, Voight. Hope this makes you happy.
Earlier that day, Tidus had finally remembered why he'd been angry with Voight. Voight had resigned as Tidus' agent to take an internship with the Blitzball Commission. That was the part Voight knew. But Tidus was actually on the verge of firing Voight just before he quit. Tidus was tired of being volunteered for media circuses like the one he was about to join, all for the sake of publicity.
He sighed. If Voight weren't the only person he knew that had existed, and was still living, in this time, he'd tell the "Board of Commissions" member what to go do with himself. Probably Voight's only redeeming quality was that he seemed to be devoted to Tidus, even if it were mainly for personal gain.
"Hey, T, you ready?"
Speak of the devil. "I feel like a stiff in this thing." Tidus spun the left wheel of his wheelchair, turning himself to face his "friend".
"Hey, trust me, the women'll love it. You look pretty good in it." Voight knelt down in front of Tidus and straightened his tie. "There. The press will eat you up."
"God, Voight, you're making this into just some damned publicity thing! I thought we were gonna do this to cheer up the people!" Tidus stopped, and stared through Voight to the wall behind him. I'm doing it to make the people happy again. Just like Yuna. God, I miss her.
"Hey, you listening?"
Tidus shook his head. "What?"
Voight rolled his eyes. "Gotta wake up, man. I said that publicity and the press will let us reach everyone in Zanarkand, even those that don't live in the city. The publicity will make everyone happy. You just have to do it, and I promise you'll have 'em…I mean…everyone will be feeling a lot better off."
Tidus was pretty sure what Voight was about to say, and that it had more to do with his fame and the hefty bonus Voight would probably receive once Blitzball was back in business.
"Let's just go, okay? I wanna get this thing off soon." As Voight stood, Tidus tried to wheel himself around the man. Voight, however, slipped behind Tidus and began pushing the wheelchair.
"I gotcha," Voight said. "I don't get why you didn't want a hoverchair."
"'Cause I don't want one," Tidus said flatly. "The doc says I'll be walking without a cane in a day or two."
"Glad to hear it, because we'll picking the new team soon. We're starting trials this week in the stadium in Tifa."
Tidus heart skipped a beat. "This week?" Is he gonna start it without me?
"Yeah," Voight replied. "We'll be having all our games there for a while, at least until Zanarkand Stadium is rebuilt. You're coming, of course."
Tidus felt some relief. Even if he couldn't necessarily participate in the game at first, he'd have a chance to get out of the hospital, and back to what he'd loved most of all. At least, he'd loved it most until he became Yuna's guardian. "Good, I gotta get out of here."
"I'll take care of it, don't worry."
No more words were shared between the two men as they traveled through the corridors toward the elevator. Various doctors, nurses, and patients gave Tidus good-luck waves and supportive cheers. Tidus thanked them, but tried to concentrate on what he was going to say in front of the crowd. He usually didn't have a problem speaking in public, but it was almost always when he was preparing for a game, and was already running on adrenaline. This time, he felt butterflies in his stomach something fierce.
When they finally reached the front doors of the hospital, a gaggle of hospital employees standing at the door cheered him on. He waved and smiled, finally beginning to feel more like a human being, and less of a victim.
Outside the sliding glass doors was a crowd of reporters and people pointing video cameras though the door at him, bright lights searing Tidus' retinas. He blocked his face against the light, and several employees opened the doors, pushing the reporters away so he could be wheeled outside.
Once they were outside, a group of security guards pushed the reporters further away from the doors. Voight brought Tidus' chair to a stop about three meters away from a podium that was lined with microphones. He leaned down and said, "Don't forget, after I introduce you…"
"I remember, I remember," Tidus said, half smiling in spite of himself. Voight had been acting like an overprotective mother lately. He found it both funny and at least a bit annoying.
"Okay." Voight winked as he stepped up to the podium. He cleared his throat as the crowd began to quiet down.
"Ladies and gentlemen, fellow Zanarkans, thank you for coming." Voight spread his arms wide in a gesture of welcoming. "I know we've suffered many losses over the past month. Most of us have lost friends and loved ones. Our homes and workplaces were destroyed, and our faith in ourselves shaken." He hung his head slightly. "I can only hope that it is a consolation, that we have already begun rebuilding much of what we lost. We can't replace everything, but we can show our enemies that they cannot crush our will, nor can they break our spirit!"
The crowd cheered loudly. Tidus clapped, but he suspected that Voight was more concerned with securing his place in history than cheering people up. He wasn't surprised in the least of the ovation the man received. He can really work a crowd, like always.
Voight spoke on for a few more minutes, and Tidus only paid half of his attention to the speech. He glanced over the crowd, seeing the hopeful faces staring both at Voight, and at him. He noticed one young boy in particular, staring at him from the arms of an old lady. The boy pointed at him and smiled. The old lady nodded and said something to the child. However, the boy never took his eyes off Tidus.
Tidus glanced at the old lady holding the child. She looked much too old to be the child's mother, and there were no other adults near them that seemed to be paying him any attention. Maybe his grandmother, he thought. Then another thought struck him. Maybe that kid doesn't have parents. Maybe he lost them in the attack. And he's looking at me with all that hope. His stomach grew queasy. Riding on the hopes of his fans, for the sake of winning a game, was one thing. Riding on the hopes of people who'd had their lives torn apart by war was something else. He waved at the child, but sighed sadly.
"And now, my friends," Voight continued, "I know you're all eager to hear from my good friend…" Tidus winced at that, "…and Zanarkand's star Blitzball player, truly a miracle in his own right, Tidus!"
The cheers were deafening, rising over any cheers they'd given Voight. Voight turned to Tidus and gestured to him. Tidus hesitated for a second, and then grasped his cane and began pushing himself up out of the wheelchair. An orderly tried to help, but Tidus shook him off. "I got it," he said.
He stood up fully, eliciting cheers that were amazingly louder than before. Putting on a forced smile, he slowly walked to the podium, making sure to lean as much weight as possible onto the cane in his left hand. Flashes of light popped almost constantly, forming a strobe effect that gave him a headache.
When he reached the podium, he waved. "Hi, uh, everybody!" The crowd cheered once again. Tidus scanned the crowd. He was reminded of the crowd that had met him before the last Blitzball game he'd played in Zanarkand, just before Sin's attack. Then, they'd been looking to him to win a game. Now, they wanted him to take them away from the horrors of life, if only for a few minutes.
"I know that, uh, we've had a lot of hard times recently." Tidus cleared his throat. "I myself woke up under a ton of metal, and my arms, legs, and back were broken. I was pretty, uh, run down, I guess."
The crowd began to murmur. Voight whistled quietly, signaling to Tidus to lighten his tone. Tidus ignored him. "But I've got good news. Almost everything's healed up, and I won't even need this soon." He held up the cane to show it to the crowd. "We're gonna start Blitzball again, and I promise you I'm gonna be in the first game, playing for all of Zanarkand!"
The crowd again erupted into cheers, whistles, and clapping. Tidus smiled shyly, looking over the people again. "I, uh…" he said, as the crowd began to quiet down. "I know that we're gonna have to, uh…" He stopped, and moved his eyes back to the right. He could have sworn…
There! Is that…no, it…can it be?
"Yuna?" he said in a low voice, but just loud enough to be picked up by the microphones. The crowd's muffled cheers died down into a confused murmur as they all looked in the direction he was focusing his eyes.
The young woman he saw looked around herself, and then put her hands to her chest questioningly. Tidus blinked, and suddenly, he no longer saw Yuna, but a puzzled young woman. Her hair was close, but the face was nowhere near that of the summoner he'd left. He shook his head in confusion.
Voight immediately stepped up to the podium, pulling the microphone toward himself. "I'm sorry, friends, but Tidus has had a very long recovery, and it's been very taxing on him. But I just want to let you all know that trials for the new Zanarkand team, the Vibes, will be starting this week. Of course, those trials will be held at the stadium in Tifa. They're open to the public, and there will be free shuttles to Tifa for those that wish to attend. Tidus will be assisting in the judging of the candidates, and as soon as he's ready, he'll be joining the new team in training, as their captain!"
The crowd, suddenly forgetting Tidus' moment of confusion, roared with cheers. Voight turned to Tidus and tapped him on the shoulder. Tidus turned to him, still with a blank, confused look on his face. Voight tilted his head and mouthed, "They're cheering for you."
Tidus looked back over the crowd, who began to chant his name as they clapped. He gave a smile filled with new confidence, raised his fist into the air and shouted, "Zanarkand rules!" The crowd's cheers approached a deafening level.
Voight again placed his hand on Tidus' shoulder and gestured behind him. Tidus looked around, and saw that an orderly had rolled the wheelchair up behind him. Tidus slowly lowered himself into the chair, and then raised his hand again to the crowd as he was wheeled back inside the hospital.
*Tidus sat in his room, staring at himself in the mirror. He was now sitting on the bed, and had undone his tie and the top few buttons of his shirt.
As he stared at himself, he tried to make sense of his hallucination. What the hell is going on here? I'm stuck in the past, I know that. Yuna's not here. There's no way for her to be here, unless the Al Bhed've somehow invented time travel. Yeah, right. He ran a hand through his hair. He was still embarrassed over his hallucination in front of all those people. I haven't been on the drugs for over a week now. I can't blame it on that.
Just then, interrupting his train of thought, there was a knock at the door. "Yeah?" he sighed.
The door opened, and Voight peeked inside. "Just wanted to see if you're still awake."
"Yeah," Tidus replied. "I'm tired but I can't sleep." He noticed Voight was still in his business suit, still neatly groomed.
Voight stepped in and closed the door behind him. "The crowd loved you, and I think we'll have a full house for the trials."
"Yeah, great," Tidus replied unenthusiastically. He lay back on the bed, feeling a slight twinge in the small of his back. Those muscles were still a little stiff.
Voight sighed and slid into a chair, finally loosening his tie. "So, what happened back there?"
"What happened where?" Tidus asked innocently. He pushed himself back up into a sitting position.
"You stopped in the middle of your speech, and stared at someone in the crowd, calling her 'Luna' or something." Voight folded his hands in his lap, but held his gaze fixed on Tidus.
"Yuna," Tidus corrected.
"Whatever." Voight waved his hand. "Was it someone you know?"
Tidus shrugged. "In a past life, maybe." He chose not to explain any further, as the last thing he needed was Voight thinking he was crazy. If he didn't already.
Voight leaned forward. "Well, you need to not have any more episodes like that, okay? Because otherwise people will get worried. And if they do that, they won't come watch Blitzball. You get where I'm going with this?"
Tidus sighed. "Yeah, I do. I'm sorry, it's just been rough."
"I know, I know," Voight said. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to sound harsh. I just want to make sure that you're up to all this."
"Yeah, I'll be fine," Tidus replied. He turned back to stare at his image in the mirror. He could just barely notice the gray lines under his eyes. He felt tired, but was still too anxious to lie down and sleep.
"Maybe you should talk to someone."
Tidus raised an eyebrow and turned to Voight. "Huh?"
"I don't mean a shrink, I just mean, like a counselor, or something." Voight cracked his knuckles nervously. "You've been talking about this 'Yuna' person, and some other…unusual things ever since you woke up in the hospital. I'm no doctor, but I think that maybe you've got something stuck in your head from when you were in the coma, and it's trying to let itself out."
Tidus opened his mouth to reply, but shut it again. How could he explain Yuna, and Spira, and everything else he'd experienced? Voight really does think I'm crazy, he just doesn't want to say it. "I'm fine, man."
"Are you?" Voight raised his eyebrows. "Look, I've been your friend for a long time, and I know you weren't too happy with me leaving like I did…"
Understatement of the year, Tidus thought.
"…but I do worry about you. Not just on a professional level. I want to be your friend again. Get you to trust me like you used to." Voight leaned forward. "What is it you don't want to tell me?"
Tidus gave a nonchalant smile. "Nothing, really. I'm just having trouble with…things. You know, like cabin fever. That's it."
Voight sighed and stood up. "Okay, fine. Look, the trials are starting Thursday, and the doctors said they can discharge you on Wednesday, so you'll have enough time to catch the ferry to Tifa. I'll have all the arrangements ready, including a hotel and a physical therapist there. If the doctors clear it, you can start training after the trials."
Tidus nodded. "Okay. Thanks. It'll feel good to be blitzing again. Help me clear my mind." So I can figure out how to get back to Yuna, he finished in his head.
Voight nodded and left the room. Tidus then turned back to the mirror. He could swear he saw a few more lines appear on his face since just a minute before. What the hell is going on with me? It'd be one thing if I were just dreaming about Yuna and Spira, but now I'm seeing them when I'm awake. Am I really going crazy?
Or is someone trying to tell me something?