Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Final Fantasy x-2.
A/N: Hello peeps. (peeps! Don't ask) omg, the reviews you guys are giving me…(laughs) there are so dawned funi! Lol, im still chuckling over it…
Nwaiz, I just have a tiny question. I know that OOC means Out of character, but what does lemon mean? (clueless) lol, I have no idea….and I really wanna know. So if you know, PLEASE TELL ME!
On with the fanfic!
Chapter Six
Claret is the liquor for boys; port for men; but he who aspires to be a hero must drink brandy
Gippal raised his silver flask of brandy and drank deep. Instant warmth hit his stomach and he didn't move for a long moment, savoring the feeling. He turned his head and saw the closed room.
His wife was inside that room. His wife.
He closed his eyes a moment, still disbelieving that it was done. He didn't feel married, not even slightly.
He thought of his father, as he did many times every hour, an automatic prayer on his lips that the old fellow still clung to life. Suddenly it occurred to him that his father might just take one look at Rikku and kneel over from the shock. He resolved that before he took his wife into his dad's bedroom, he would make her get rid of the glasses, perhaps remove the bilious cap she would probably be wearing. It didn't matter if she couldn't see his father clearly. It did matter that his father didn't kneel over at seeing a living nightmare that was his daughter-in-law.
He should have married Sister. No, he should have married Rielle. Younger, more agreeable, more pliable.
I must have been insane to attach myself to Rikku.
He wasn't being fair, he knew it, but somehow it didn't make him feel more than a bit guilty.
He heard Grunyon shout and turned his head to look at him from his spot at the front of the airship.
"What is it, Grunyon?"
"It's gonna be night soon." He said. "We need to stop the ship so that we can rest and eat with your wife."
Gippal looked at the darkening sky overhead. He didn't want to stop, not yet. He wanted to keep going until they reached Djose. He wanted to keep going until he reached the end of Spira.
Yevon, why didn't they bring extra crew men with them?
"I also want to relieve myself." Grunyon said. He nodded back toward the closed room. "It seems likely, sir, that your poor wife must want something to settle her teeth into as well."
"Ok." He said finally. "Let's stop the craft now."
Rikku leaned back against the comfortable squabs, her lips drawn in a thin, furious line. Miserable bastard! She was cold, hungry, and yes, she wanted to storm out of this awful cabin and yell at her husband, she did need to relieve herself.
She wished she had brought some prickly Qactuars to place in his bed. His bed. Holy cow, he wouldn't, would he?
Rikku squared her shoulders. No, he wouldn't. She wouldn't allow it. She found herself hoping her pitiful husband caught a chill, then quickly reversed that thought. No, she wanted him to remain disgustingly healthy. He would leave her all the sooner.
It occurred to her that her anger at her husband was keeping her from feeling utterly heartbroken about leaving Bikanel.
There was a knock at her door and she looked up as Grunyon slid open the door and smiled into the din interior. "Lady Rikku?"
Rikku, stiff-legged, cold and in a foul humor stood up and exited the room.
Gippal walked slowly toward the cloaked and hooded figure.
"We're gonna stop for the day." He said.
Rikku didn't look up. She'd forgotten to put her spectacles back on.
"Alrighty." She said, her voice just as clipped and cool as his.
"Dinner'll be served pretty soon."
"Great." Said Rikku.
The tone was slightly acid, and Gippal frowned a bit.
After ten minutes, Rikku, having scraped her hair into a ferocious bun, adjusted her spectacles and marched into the Bridge. She paused, sniffing delicious smells. Her stomach growled loudly.
Gippal looked up and caught himself smiling at the sound.
"Rikku." He said, rose, and pulled back a chair for her.
Rikku kept her head down and seated herself.
So much for a polite greeting.
He poured some amber liquid into her goblet, and watched her wrap her fingers about the blunt stem. He found himself frowning a bit. Her hands were slender, the fingers long and graceful. The fingernails were buffed and short. Without thinking, Gippal reached out and took her hand in his. He turned her hand over. There were calluses and a few scratches. It was a strong hand, a capable hand.
Rikku yanked her hand away and raised startled eyes to his face. For a moment she forgot to squint.
"You've lovely hands." Gippal said.
"Oh?"
There was a wealth of sarcasm in that one word, and Gippal found himself surprised at it. He repeated again to himself that she tired, and kept an equally stinging comment to himself.
Grunyon entered carrying two huge trays.
Rikku's stomach growled again, and Gippal laughed.
"I'll leave you two to enjoy your dinner." Grunyon set down the trays, revealing what was hidden and left them alone.
"Here you are, Rikku. Enjoy your meal." Gippal said as he served Rikku's plate.
"What are they, sir?"
He took a gingerly bite of the food and nodded. "It passes. But I don't know what it is. I must ask Grunyon when I see him."
"Ah."
"Maybe you should call me Gippal."
Rikku's hand halted its process to her mouth. How kind of him. His highness giving the pitiful savage permission to call him by his given name.
"Maybe I will." She said sometime later.
"Very good."
Silence again.
Rikku was licking her lips free of the think sugar from her dessert when Gippal said suddenly: "After you have seen my dad, we'll buy you some new clothes."
Rikku stiffened as straight as a board. She swallowed at least three thoroughly insulting retorts. So now she was the poor little girl whose husband didn't want to be embarrassed if someone saw her with him. She chose to say nothing.
Gippal found himself wondering aloud. "Both Sister and Rielle dress beautifully. I'm confused, why do you—
"I'm very fatigued." Rikku said, pushing back her plate. She carefully schooled her features, her brain working furiously to say something, anything that was absurd. Finally she said coldly: "I don't like lovely clothes. 'Tis sinful to turn oneself out in a gawdy fashion. Even though Yevon is not here anymore, it still goes against all the… teachings that I have been taught."
Holy Yevon. I've got a religious bigot on my hands!
He felt ill, and was uncertain if it was from the food or the frightful realization of the real woman he had married.
Take that, you big BIG meanie!
Rikku rose slowly and said: "I'm going to my cabin now. I'm guessing you wanna leave early in the morning?"
It was nearly painful to look at her, but he did. Odd, he had thought during the visual passage up to her face, but her body was really quite acceptable. She was slender, indeed, his hands could span her waist…and her breasts looked nice and well-formed.
Rikku wasn't stupid, nor that unaware. She understood that look, indeed had seen it on many male faces, and sucked in her breath, backing away. "Good night, sir."
His eyes were on her face then and he saw the fear and panic.
"Rikku." He said, his voice gentle now. "We're husband and wife. I know too that we are strangers. We will complete this marriage—
His very calm orders made her forget herself. "Why? I can't think of a reason for you to wanna…well, you know."
"Like I said, we're married."
"No! I won't let you! I—
"Rikku, stop it! We'll carry out this marriage, but not tonight. You are tired and so am I." He saw the utter relief make her shoulders sag and smiled ruefully to himself. Never in his life had a woman not wanted to share his bed when he wanted to.
Rikku turned without another word and bolted toward the door. She didn't stop bolting until she reached her small cabin.
She was huddled in the soft bed within five minutes the cabin door slid smoothly closed.
Gippal toyed with his drink. She was nervous about sex, something to be expected from one's bride, he supposed. Well, he'd be kind to her, get it over with quickly, not embarrass her more than was inherent in the act. He'd spoken to enough married gentlemen, and all of them agreed that wives were meant to be treated gently, not plowed with enthusiasm. They're to be treated with thoughtful respectability until they conceived, then left alone. He'd give her another day to get used to herself to the idea. He won't embarrass her by speaking of it again. He would simply do it. He downed the rest of his drink. He simply couldn't imagine making love to Rikku in a lighted room. The thought of her squinting up at him made him shudder.
He did wonder, though, what she looked like naked, from the neck down.
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At least it wasn't raining…
Rikku stared out at the passing scenery from her cabin window, wishing she could walk instead of being a prisoner in this bloody airship. She could already feel a headache beginning.
Gippal had said over breakfast: "We're gonna continue until its night for today. Grunyon says we've a great chance of reaching Djose if we don't have any accidents."
Just how many more hours would that mean?
Her headache came on in earnest.
It was dark when Grunyon called her out into the bridge again to dine with Gippal. Rikku felt so ill that she wanted to vomit. The only thing that saved her from that humiliation was her husband's abrupt voice coming from the bridge.
She felt dizzy and befuddled when Grunyon assisted her from the cabin.
"Lady Rikku?" he asked, seeing her paleness.
"I'm all right." She managed.
Her husband, curse his energy, strode over to her and announced in a unbelievably enthusiastic voice that a neat dinner was ready for them.
"I'm not certain…" Grunyon began, only to be cut off by Rikku.
"I want to dine in my room."
"Do you feel sick?"
"Yeah, I do. A headache."
Gippal's lips thinned. Damnable excuse for a wife to present a husband on their second night of marriage. Well, it wouldn't do her any good.
"Ok then." He said, and strode into the room.
A few moments later, he found himself watching her exit the room.
"You're pushing too hard, sir." Said Grunyon.
"We're on an airship! There is everything you need here and more! What do you expect me to do? Stop every hour and let her smell the daisies alongside the road?"
"There ain't any daisies?"
"Dammit, Grunyon, you know what I mean! Do you so easily forget about my dad?"
He saw that his valet would argue futher, and raised his hand. "No, no more. I'm gonna eat now, then I'm gonna see my bride. Bet she doesn't know that her cabin is also mine for tonight."
Grunyon stared at him and Gippal suddenly realized that such a speech was most inappropriate. He cursed under his breath and strode toward the table.
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Rikku stared at the tray of food and quickly covered it. The headache was fierce, one of the worst she'd ever experienced. She had no idea where it came from, but it hurt really badly.
She didn't like to dose herself, but the thought of sleep induced a potion was appealing. She searched through her satchel and unearthed a small vial of a potion. She poured several drops into a cup of now lukewarm tea and drank it down.
She undressed quickly, donned her night gown, and staggered to her bed. She fell back against the soft pillow, too sick to think about anything.
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Gippal finished off his meal in fine style. Every few minutes he found himself thinking about the woman in his cabin room. He had to get it done tonight. He had no idea how many times one had to have sex to bring about conception, but he couldn't be so lucky to manage it the first time. No, he had to get started tonight and keep it up.
He drank three more glasses of brandy. It was close to ten o'clock when he finally made his way up the elevator toward his cabin room. He was pleasantly drunk, but not too drunk to do his duty.
He paused a moment outside the cabin, aware that there was a light coming from beneath the door. So, his bride was awake and waiting for him. He started to slam his hand down on the door panel, and paused yet again. What the hell was that noise? He frowned, then doggedly pressed the door panel and waited until it slid open.
He stepped inside, scanned the room and walked toward the bathroom and came to an urgent, appealed halt.
Rikku was on the floor, on her knees, vomiting into the toilet. Her white nightgown flowed about her and a thick braid fell over her shoulder hazardously close to the toilet. He felt like a monster. He'd believed her blasted headache all an act.
"Yevon, what's the matter with you?"
He strode toward her.
TO BE CONTINUED…
A/N: There we go, another chappie done. (wipes sweat off brow) lol, I'm making Gippal seem like such a big meanie, am I not? Lol, I couldn't really think of another reason why he should wed Rikku if she's ugly. Ah well, frustrating, but fun to write.
I'll see you guys next week then.