Yuna felt truly at peace, for the first time since the whole journey began. She had been having fun at the festival, before the tragedy had occurred, but it was different from this feeling. She felt calm and refreshed. All thanks to Tidus' consideration.
It was dark now, as evening set in. The two of them had spent the entire day there, relaxing in their temporary paradise. Yuna sat with her back to a firm tree, in moss so thick she couldn't feel the ground beneath it, gazing dreamily up at the emerging stars. Tidus was preparing a fire, now that it was dark enough not to fear having their smoke seen from their followers.
The mare was lying in the moss next to Yuna, her silver-haired head nestled close to her onyx-hued body. Yuna reached down and pet the creature affectionately. This horse had borne them through danger and was always loyal.
"I think you need a name, my friend," Yuna said softly. The horse's ears flickered at the sound of the woman's voice, but she let her eyes remain closed lazily.
"What do you think, Tidus?" she called to her companion. "Shall we name this beauty of ours?" He looked up from his flint stones.
"Good idea. I'm terrible at thinking up names, though," he admitted, striking up a spark. He immediately nursed it to life, adding fuel to it skilfully. In moments, a small blaze appeared. Yuna paused to think. What name was worthy of such a fine animal?
"What about Kyrida?" she suggested after a moment of contemplation. "It's a word in one of the Old Tongues, meaning 'Born of Thunder'."
She watched as Tidus stood up from the fire and went to the rocky pool. He dipped his fingers in the water and then strode towards the sleeping horse. Kyrida opened one eye and regarded him languidly. Tidus flicked a few drops of water on her soft black pelt theatrically.
"I christen thee, Kyrida, noble steed of Sir Tidus and Lady Yuna," he said in a dramatic voice. Yuna giggled as the mare flinched indignantly at the offending drops. She snorted and shook her mane in irritation.
Yuna was taken aback, however, when Tidus suddenly crouched down to her eye-level.
"It's nice to hear you laugh again," he said with a combination of deep sincerity and delight. Yuna, momentarily breathless at his unexpected proximity, could only stare back at him.
"I'll try to do it more often then," she managed to reply, smiling at last. He grinned back and rose to his feet again, turning back to the fire. Yuna watched him root through their haversack that Mistress Lulu had restocked. He froze, and then pulled out a crossbow.
"Wow, Lulu really knows how to provide," he said with astonishment, turning the weapon over to get a closer look at it. "I was just thinking how much I wanted a bow and arrow to hunt with!"
"Maybe she foresaw the desire," Yuna suggested, stretching luxuriously against the tree trunk. Tidus found some arrows to load into the crossbow and then shouldered the weapon, as well as taking up his cobalt blue sword.
"I'll be back soon. I'm in the mood for some fresh meat tonight," he said with a festive wink. Yuna nodded and watched him go with a content smile on her face. Fresh meat did indeed sound like a good choice for the night.
"If you need me, just whistle!" Tidus told her as he began heading towards the trees. Yuna blinked at him.
"Whistle?"
"Yeah," he said, pausing. "You know how, right?"
She shook her head, embarrassed. The priests had never liked loud noises in the temple, and outside it had been too awkward to make such sounds in the company of solemn bodyguards who would find no amusement in it as she would. Thus, she had never learned how to whistle. Something so common and simple had been denied from her childhood. Up until now it had never been a large concern of hers.
Tidus set the crossbow down on the ground gently, and then jogged towards her with a spring in his step. His face was kind, yet amused.
"Well, I won't leave you here defenceless. Put your two fingers in your mouth . . . li' dis," he said, promptly demonstrating with his own fingers. Yuna frowned and tried to copy him.
"No, no, like this." Tidus reached over and adjusted her fingers. Yuna felt the heat rise to her face as his hand folded over hers, gently correcting her position. His nearness was tantalizing, his warmth soothing.
"Now blow," he instructed. Yuna questioned the idea of making a loud sound when they were possibly being pursued, but she didn't want to ruin the fun. Obediently she blew against her fingers, only to hear a breathy silence. Tidus laughed at her attempt.
"It's not funny!" she protested, punching him lightly. She was grinning through her embarrassment.
"You'll get the hang of it, you just need practice," Tidus said, sobering up as best as he could. "Now, I should be back soon." He paused, and then added, "Remind me to teach you how to use your dagger. There may be a time when I won't be able to come running if you whistle for me."
Yuna smiled and watched him go, waiting until he was out of sight before she tried practicing the whistling technique one more time. The full impact of his words did not hit her until after he was gone.
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She awoke with a start. Something had stirred her from her light nap, but what she was not sure. A short time ago, just after Tidus left to go hunting, she had dozed off, lulled by the gentle sounds of rushing water. Frowning, Yuna sat up and looked around the dark clearing. Her senses were buzzing with danger, but she could see nothing.
Nearby, the mare, newly named Kyrida, was standing rigidly with her ears flickering around to detect any threatening noises. Her tail swished in agitation.
Yuna recognized the horse's body language. She felt a nervous sweat break out over her skin, and she moved to stand near the alert animal as if for comfort. Aside, from the water splashing into the pool, the dark forest was eerily quiet.
"Tidus, hurry back," Yuna whispered, resting her hand on Kyrida's sable fur. She did not like the suddenness of her voice interrupting the disturbing silence.
'I need to keep calm,' she thought, reaching for her dagger. It had been strapped to Kyrida's saddle, which Tidus had graciously removed for the animal to relax. It was lying close by. Yuna felt slightly more in control now that she had a weapon in hand, even though she barely knew how to use it.
For her own peace of mind, she tried swinging the blade around experimentally. It made a satisfying swishing noise, cutting through the air gracefully.
"That won't protect you from us, missy," a deep voice said gruffly.
Swallowing a startled shriek, Yuna whirled around. Her blade swung with her, and clanged to a sudden stop against someone else's sword. The sword's owner was a seasoned-looking warrior wearing a dark crimson uniform.
It didn't register what she was seeing. She couldn't speak or move. All Yuna could do was stare numbly at the triumphantly grinning Yevonite Warrior, who held his blade against hers.
And then, she reacted purely on instinct. She whistled.
She moved faster than the warrior had expected. In the blink of an eye she had her fingers in her mouth and blew as hard as she could, expelling an ear-splitting whistle that pierced the night. Kyrida neighed shrilly and reared up as another warrior materialized and tried to grab her halter, bringing her powerful hooves against the man's skull. He crumpled to the ground soundlessly, darkening the moss around him with blood.
The horse's actions spurred Yuna into action. She thrust forward with her knife tip, but the move was clumsy, and the Yevonite Warrior before her easily sidestepped it. Yuna lost her balance and staggered forward, but she swung outward as she moved. The man parried it, a cruel smirk on his lips.
Desperately her eyes searched the forest around them for an escape of some sort. Which direction had Tidus left in?
"Don't try to run, milady," the soldier said in a condescending tone, knowing her intent. "There are more of us waiting just beyond the trees. They'll catch you before you take ten steps. If you come peacefully, we promise we'll leave you unharmed."
"Liar!" Yuna snapped, dropping to one knee and shoving the blade downwards. The soldier's eyes widened as his foot was impaled to the ground. His ragged scream was bone chilling as he tried to grab at her, but she had already pulled out the dagger back and drove it into the man's throat. His hot blood poured out onto her arm, flooding her all the way up to her shoulder. He fell forward with a faint gurgle, landing soundlessly in the moss.
Another scream rang out behind her, but it was cut short. Yuna turned around to face the trees, bloodied knife held out at the ready.
One more cry sounded out, but it too died quickly. Other voices began gathering in panicked shouts, and then there was the harsh clang of metal sword against metal sword.
Yuna was more than confused, but she kept her eyes on the dark trees with frightened determination.
At her left, a Yevonite Warrior came dashing out of the tree line, twin blades swinging wildly. His face was twisted with anger and fear. Yuna watched him run at her, frozen in place with shock. When he was only six feet away from her, an arrow shot out from the trees and imbedded itself into the man's back, ending his life with a dull thud. He fell to his knees, wide-eyed, and then collapsed. He did not move after that, nor would he ever.
There was then a moment of terrible silence, more horrifying than the screams of the dying villagers from last night. Yuna stood motionless in the pale starlight, her arm burning with spilled blood, her hands trembling at her sides.
"Yuna?" a hushed voice called out. She nearly sobbed with relief as she saw Tidus slowly emerge from the forest. His spectacular blue sword was coated with something dark and shiny. There was an angry-looking cut across his chest. The crossbow hung limply in his hands, empty of any more arrows.
She sagged to her knees and sighed heavily, not realizing how long she'd been holding her breath. Tidus hurriedly moved towards her and dropped his weapons before he kneeled down in front of her.
"Are you all right?" he asked, panting softly. She nodded her head, but they both knew she was lying. Tidus' knowing eyes fell to the dead soldier behind Yuna, and the blood drying on her arm. Carefully, he helped her stand up again and led her to the rocky pool. Kyrida stomped her hooves and tossed her head, alarmed at the heavy smell of death in the air.
Tidus guided Yuna into the water and helped her scrub off the blood with a handful of sand. She seemed to be in a daze, her awareness focused completely on the fresh corpse. She had turned a living man into a heap of dead flesh. She had never killed anything in her life. Even as a child she never stepped on any insects or went fishing.
A man was dead because of her.
The gentle fingers cleansing her arm seemed to reawaken her mind. Her eyes shifted from the body to Tidus' understanding face.
"I . . . he . . ." she stammered quietly, gesturing vaguely to the corpse. Tidus nodded.
"I know," he said soothingly, pulling her out of the water. Yuna noticed him wince with pain, and she realized for the first time that he was injured.
"Here, let me help you," she said, politely forcing him to sit down on the moss. Her senses were returning rapidly now. She banished all thoughts of the crime she had committed and kept her attention on the task of healing her companion.
Yuna helped him remove his green tunic and inspected the gash in his chest. She did her best not to secretly admire the firmness of his muscles, her fingers itching to touch them.
"It's not too deep," she said at last. "I can heal it quickly."
He nodded and sat still as she positioned herself in front of him, placing both her hands against the cut. His blood was warm under her palms, and she was momentarily mesmerized by the rhythm of his heart.
As she had done during her training at the temple, she closed her eyes and concentrated her healing energy through her hands and into Tidus' chest. She heard him sigh softly as the coolness entered his wound, eliminating any infections and filth before fusing the skin back together.
It took only a minute to fully heal, and Yuna was slightly reluctant to pull her hands away from him. She was keenly aware of how close she was sitting to him. In fact, she was placed right between his bent knees, and her arms brushed against the inside of them. Her face heated slightly and she stood up.
"Thanks," Tidus said, also standing up as he slipped his green tunic back on.
Now that her task was out of the way, Yuna found herself staring down at the Yevonite Warrior's newly decaying body. She swallowed thickly and rubbed her arms as if for warmth. It was unsettling, the way the man's jaws hung open slightly, how glassy his brown eyes were as they stared up at the sky.
"You didn't have a choice," Tidus said quietly from behind. His hand was resting kindly on her shoulder. "It was either your life or his. You did the right thing, Yuna."
Odd, how pleasant the sound of her name was on his voice.
With a weary sigh, Yuna turned around and leaned her forehead against Tidus' shoulder, wanting to feel its solidity. His arm came up around her neck and he rested his chin on top of her head.
Yuna was already accustomed to the feel of his embrace, but the sensation never ceased to touch her deeply. She never felt safer anywhere than lost in his arms. Gradually, as it always did when she was placed so intimately in his hold, the universe seemed to narrow down until it stopped just beyond their two joined forms.
Neither of them said anything more that night.
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Yuna did not sleep well for the remainder of their little 'vacation'. She tossed and turned beneath her cloak as she lay nestled in the soft moss, her mind swirling with bad dreams.
Occasionally she felt Tidus' hand touch her hair. It calmed her down, and for a time her slumber would be untroubled. But she could not fight back the demons of her subconscious for very long. They would always surface from the darkness of her mind to haunt her. She dreamed of fire, of screaming people being burned alive while convulsing under a rain of bullets. She dreamed of the blood coating her arm spreading over her body and then filling her lungs with its sick sweetness, drowning her slowly. After these images overwhelmed her, she would jump awake, sweat-soaked and trembling violently.
When at last the sun rose, she gave up all hope of getting a good sleep and waited until Tidus awoke. He slept closer to her than usual, no doubt fully aware of her tormenting nightmares. His concern for her warmed her heart, and she smiled at the tranquility of his face. She rarely ever saw him sleep while she was awake. Usually he was the first person to rise, considerately allowing her to sleep for an extended amount of time.
His bronze skin was smooth in the light of dawn, so inviting to touch. The light danced off his flaxen hair, and his lips were parted slightly. What a vision he made, like a fallen god of old.
Yuna shivered in the early morning chill, aware of the dew soaking through her cloak. She shifted closer to Tidus and revelled in his body heat, the smell of him.
He stirred suddenly, unexpectedly. Yuna watched him closely for any signs of awakening. His eyes were still closed, but his face was drawn slightly with a look of concern, or perhaps fear.
"Mother . . ." he murmured. His breath wafted over her face gently, and he then lay still. So he was still asleep, and dreaming as well.
Lightly, Yuna reached up to touch his face. She smiled slightly to see his expression softening, and finally relaxing. Were his dreams as troubled as hers? If so, what did he see? Did he have visions of his tortured mother, lying weakly for Sin's taking?
"Sleep on, Tidus," she whispered. "I'll keep your demons away, just like you did for me."