Chapter Six
Oops! I did it again!
A/N: I LOVE YOU PEOPLE :D You're the only reason I update so much :D I'm glad you like the ficcy!! The song "Anything for Love" by Meat Loaf isn't mine, it's theirs :D And the lyrics are in italics :D
It had been a few hours since Baralai knocked out Tidus, and since then almost everyone had calmed down. Everyone but Yuna, who was still either in shock or angry, but either way, she still had every right to be either. A few minutes after Baralai socked Tidus, Rikku had came over and just sat down with them, and nobody felt like trying to get her to leave. She seemed to be enjoying herself anyway, playing with the table napkins, then laughing at the occasional joke. But for the most part, the table was quiet.
"Sooo..." Le Blanc said, then looked around and sighed. "Don't Noojie-Woojie and I get to sing?"
"Well...do you really want to?" Baralai asked, and Nooj shook his head. But Le Blanc was more than happy to, and was literally jumping up and down at the opportunity. Then, she realized that it wasn't exactly flattering to do so, and stopped, looking at Nooj pleadingly.
"Damn. Watch my beer." he said, and took Le Blanc's hand as they went up to sing a song. Paine picked some lovey-dovey song to shut her up. They were busy singing, then, when Gippal reached for Nooj's beer.
"Hey! You're underage!" Baralai yelled, and Gippal shrugged, then chugged the last of it.
"We both got smashed in the Crimson Squad, a couple of years ago." he said, and Baralai was still frowning.
"That was before I was Praetor. Now, Gippal. Give me Nooj's beer." he said, and Gippal shook his head, then turned to Yuna with a fiendish grin on his face.
"Don't tell me you want ME to drink that?" she asked, and he shook his head.
"Nahh, I drank the last of this one. I want you to go get another one and drink it." he said with a chuckle, and Yuna playfully hit him.
"I don't think so." she said, and he shrugged.
"At least go get one for Nooj. This one's gone."
"You drank it." Yuna said, then smiled innocently at him. Swearing, Gippal climbed over them all, and stumbled into the kitchen, where he got Nooj another beer.
"Hehe...you're the first girl I've seen him stand up for in a while." Paine said, and Yuna laughed.
"It's the innocent look. Gets 'em every time." she said, then formed a fake pistol with her hand.
"Here he comes." Baralai said, and at that moment, Gippal was back, putting a near-full can of beer on the table, then sitting down next to Yuna and putting an arm around her. Tidus was coming-to, though, and sat up.
"Look who's up? Hey Re-Tardus, did you have a nice nap?" Gippal asked, and Tidus frowned.
"You're not funny." he said, and Gippal laughed.
"On the contrary, my...not so friend." Baralai said, and Tidus frowned, then looked at Rikku.
"See ya, wouldn't wanna be ya!" she shouted, and he frowned.
"You too?" he asked, and she nodded.
"Maybe you should've just...left him wherever he was." Paine said, and Tidus frowned, then started to turn red.
"Don't tell me he's going to cry..." Gippal said with a snicker, then Tidus made a sniffling noise.
"You guys...are cruel." Yuna said, then sighed and stood up. "Whether I like him or not, it's still not right to make him cry!"
Baralai seemed to agree with her, considering they both stood up and escorted Tidus to the door, sniffling all the way. Both Gippal and Paine were fighting to hold their laughter, and Rikku wasn't even bothering to try. Finally, Baralai and Yuna came back, and Yuna was pissed as hell. And so be it, her anger was directed right at Gippal.
"I thought you were more mature than that." she snapped, and he crossed his arms.
"Obviously, you don't know me very well." he said, careful to keep his voice monotonal in an attempt to keep himself under control.
"Obviously not, considering that I decided to go out with you. Even if it only was for three hours." she snapped, then turned on her heel and left. Gippal stood up to follow her, but Paine shook her head.
"Give her a minute. She needs some time alone." she said, and Gippal nodded, then sat down. "And you need some time to figure out what to say to her."
"Yeah..." he said, then stood up. "I can't take it anymore."
The wind had developed one heck of a chill to it, and it seemed to be even worse to Gippal because he'd been inside for so long. Yuna must be freezing, then, due to her wardrobe-or lack thereof. He started to look for her immediately, unable to find her for what felt like over ten minutes. When he finally did spot her, she was standing alone, shivering, looking out at the water from Kilika port. She must have sensed him walking up behind her (either that, or she heard his boots) because she began to speak.
"This was where I did my first sending." she said, and sighed. "I wonder...I wonder if I've still got it in me."
"You want to know what I think?" he asked, and she nodded, then turned to face him, her cheeks wet with tears. "I think you can do anything if you put your mind to it."
"You...mean it?" she asked, then wiped her cheek absently with the back of her hand.
"Yes." he said, then walked over to her and wrapped her in his arms. "Yes."
"Should...should I try?" she asked, and he smiled.
"The practical side of me says no, considering if you can't do it, you'll be soaked, and I don't want that to happen, considering in that outfit you'll get sick as a dog." he said, and kissed her cheekbone. "But the unpractical side of me wants to see."
"I...I think I'll give it a try." she said, and he nodded. Then she pulled out her staff and stepped onto the water. It held her weight. Cautiously, she looked back at Gippal, who was standing on one foot and eagerly watching her.
Will you help me down?
Will you help get me right out of this Godforsaken town?
Will you make it all a little less cold?
Will you hold me tight?
Will you colorize my life,
I'm so sick of black and white!
Can you make it all a little less old?
"Yuna..." he said, and she smiled.
"...maybe someday she'll stop dancing." she mumbled, then allowed him to pull her close.
"How do you do this?" he asked, amazed. She smiled at him.
"My little secret."
Can you build an Emerald city with these grains of sand?
Can you give me something I can take home?
"Come on..." he teased, and she smiled, then began to twirl her staff again, willing the water to come up around them in spouts. Laughing, Gippal put his hand on her face.
"Yuna..." he said, then kissed her. "No matter how romantic this is, it's still damn cold outside."
Yuna grinned. "Aw, come on. Don't tell me you can't take a little cold."
"I can. I'm worried about you. Plus, I'm a desert dweller, remember?" he asked, and she grinned.
"Tidus and I made out at Macalania. In the water." she teased, and he sighed.
"You win."
Will you hose me down with holy water if I get too hot?
Will you take me to places I'll never know?
Suddenly, for some reason, Yuna lost her grip on her staff and they both fell into the water. Thankfully, they both knew how to swim.
"Ah, I see. The staff!" he joked, and she smiled at him.
"Nope." she poked his nose, then shivered.
"Hate to say I told you so." he said, and she grinned at him.
"No you don't. You love every minute of it."
"Guilty as charged." he joked, then wrapped his arms around her and held her to him.
"Let's...get out of the water." she said, and he sighed.
"All right. But I'm gonna up one on Re-Tardus when it's not so cold." he joked, and she playfully hit him. His laughter faded, then, after he realized her lips were turning blue. They swam out of the water, then, and stood on the still new wooden boardwork in Kilika, as he wrapped his arms around her and began to lead her back to her house, where he'd probably wrap her in blankets and worry.
Damnit.
Oh I would do anything for love!
I would do anything for love!
But I won't do that!
No I won't do that...