Gippal sat up in bed and wiped his eyes. Bad as the right one was, he could still cry from it. Damn you Rikku. He thought to himself. He hated to lose her, and maybe he wasn't really mad at Baralai… maybe he was mad at himself for screwing it up and taking her for granted. Maybe there was Calm in the world, but not in his heart. In his heart he ached to be loved by someone who understood him.
There was a knock on the door. A soft strange knock that seemed strangely familiar. Intrigued, Gippal approached the door. A smiling Al Bhed woman stood there, Purple hair, dazzling eyes, full lips. He caught himself staring.
"What can I do for you?" He plastered on his trademark smile
"Gippal… Do you recognize me?" she stared into his one good eye… and what a gorgeous eye it was. It made her stomach turn in knots… and his smile… strong, but sweet…
She watched as he tried to figure out who she was. "It's… Laelu? Oh My God, Laelu!" He hugged her. "I thought I'd never see you again!" he couldn't believe it… the girl from his dream… only now she was beautiful. So very beautiful…
Gippal let go of her and took a step back. "You want to come in?' he asked.
Laelu entered the room and took a seat on the end of Gippal's bed. Gippal discreetly locked the door and sat next to her.
"Last time I saw you, I had two eyes." He smiled at her. He was subconsciously wringing his hands.
Laelu laughed and leaned on his shoulder. She felt attached to him… like she had never left . She felt his strong arm enclose around her and she closed her eyes.
They both felt a warmth surround them… like this was meant to be. The world fell away and they sat together, on the bed in a small room at Djose Temple. Gippal stroked her hair and hummed a soft song; not realizing it was the song the three of them (the 3rd being Rikku), used to sing as kids.
Gippal daydreamed as he held her there, remembering childhood games. He remembered "borrowing" digging tools to play treasure hunt. He remembered playing in the water at the Oasis and singing silly songs of gibberish. And he remembered the day he lost his eye… the last time he played with Laelu. The Fiend… he had never really killed it, only wounded it. It was still out there, somewhere. Somewhere in the Bikanel Desert, it waited. Gippal was the only one to know that it sought only Laelu, and he was afraid to say.
Still, he didn't know why it wanted her. What powers she had, what her "purpose" was. He only knew that he had to protect her, now that she was back. The Fiend would not attack while she was alone. It dare not, for Gippal, Rikku, and their friends had far too many resources (Yuna, for example). When would it come again? What was it's purpose, and why did it want Laelu?
Baralai beat heavily on the door. "Gippal! Gippal! Come quick!"
Gippal woke, but Laelu slept on. He got up and answered the door. "What do YOU want?" he demanded.
"It's Rikku… she's been hurt bad, and I don't have any potions on me…" he started.
"Where?" Gippal interrupted before he could finish.
Baralai told him where Rikku was and they were off, leaving a sleeping Laelu in the Temple.
As Gippal gave Rikku the potion, she smiled at him. She seemed not to notice Baralai was there. "Oh Gippal, I miss you." She purred, touching his lips.
He pushed her hand away, but she still stared at him. Gippal stared back, a tear in his eye as he remembered their times together. He leaned in to kiss her, forgetting Baralai was there… forgetting everything. She kissed back, but it was brief, because Baralai kicked him in the head, hard.
"Fuck!" Gippal held his head as he bled on the floor of the Temple. He got up to hit Baralai back and was knocked down by an unseen force. He found himself drawn to Rikku again, though he couldn't explain why.
"What's going on?" a voice came from the direction of the Temple steps. It was Laelu.
Suddenly, the pull Gippal felt towards Rikku was gone, and he collapsed on the floor, finally feeling the pain of the kick to the head. Laelu kneeled next to him and held him.
"What is going on here!" Laelu demanded.
"He just kissed Rikku, that's what!" Baralai yelled. Rikku was now in his arms.
"Fuck the both of you!" Gippal groaned. Yelling hurt his head.
Miroka grinned. This was perfect. They had no idea who she really was or where the real Rikku was at. All she had to do was get Gippal to sleep with her… just one time, and he would be unable to make Laelu 'Whole'. Of course, they had no idea of this Prophecy. All the more easy to stop it from happening. It was, of course, unfortunate that the seduction spell was so tiring and was useless in Laelu's presence. She only hoped that Laelu would not realize her power any time soon, or it would be much more difficult, and the Mo-tai would have to corrupt Gippal's soul another way. She must corrupt the key, or the Mo-Tai and their dark plans would never rule.