Shorter then most, but not sure where I want to go next with this. Too much scene shifting makes me sick..and it began doing just that. So it's better I stopped here. In one of the past chapters, I gave Rikku the last name of Mizushima. I looked for a name that would fit with what I had in mind for her. The name is a clue to how Seymour and Yevon find the island.
--
Rikku kept a low profile for the next hour. Every time she tried to look out and see what was happening on the roads ahead, Auron was quick to reach over and push her back down. She soon learned not to try and peek. Besides, whenever he made her hide again, she noted that the vehicle would begin to swerve. While many thought her to be crazy, she wasn't suicidal.
When they finally did stop, Rikku dared not chance looking until Auron came around and opened the door for her.
"Where are we?" She asked as she held her hands close to her body and looked around.
"Cabin." Was his simple answer before he stumbled away and inside.
Rikku's jaw dropped. That answered nothing for her. He was already gone, so she took the time to glance over the new place. It wasn't in the best of shape, but it was still standing. Closing her mouth, she scratched her cheek in thought. "I wonder. Pops taught me a lot growing up, this shouldn't be too hard." She nodded to herself and walked around back. There she found a shed, the inside filled with basic tools and whatnot.
--
Amazingly he managed to remain calm. Doctor Auron had left early in the morning, but he managed to take something with him. Something that did not belong to him. Yevon held his elbow in one hand as he used the other to tap his chin.
"Seymour, are you sure there is anything here that would explain Auron's actions? I knew the man for many years. This is not like him."
"Perhaps so, doctor. But I assure you, he has taken the girl, and hidden her." Seymour stood up from the chair he had been sitting in. He had been behind Auron's desk rummaging inside it. He came up with something small in his hand. "This will give us the answers we are searching for."
Yevon moved closer to see what it was for himself. "And this is...?" He questioned.
Seymour smirked as he turned the recorder on. "Simple."
"Rikku, when you are ready, we can begin."
"Sorry about that. It's just been so long."
"Rikku, how about we begin with something easy? Can you tell me your full name? Even Doctor Yevon could not tell me."
"You promise not to say anything? It's supposed to be a secret." (a long pause before Rikku went on.)"I am Rikku Mizushima. I come from a long line of Al Bhed who remain in hiding. My father told me we have to stay hiding because the world hates us."
"So if you have to stay hidden, then why did you visit so often on the island of Besaid?"
"I wanted to explore the world like my aunt did. She used to tell me stories of what the world was like every time she came to visit. It sounded so wonderful, I just had to see it for myself."
Seymour stopped the recording there. He stared at Yevon waiting for him to say something.
"Mizushima, is it? Three years I had been working on finding that one detail out. Yet, in three weeks, doctor Auron had done what I could not. I should think we aught to be thanking him, do you not agree?"
"That may be so," Seymour agreed before continuing his thought, "But you do not know where he may have gone. Also, he has taken off with the girl. Knowing her name now is pointless." He paused as if a thought hit him. "Yet I believe that name has meaning, does it not? We may not need her after all. I believe if we search for an island, we may find more then we need."
Yevon caught on quickly. The two men smiled at one another at all the possibilities they had just been presented with.
--
Rikku was shocked that with all the pounding, her doctor did not wake up once. At least not until several hours had passed. She had just finished sealing a window when he emerged from the room he had locked himself into. Rikku turned from the job she was doing and smiled at him. When he did not respond she waved and greeted him with a quick hi.
"What are you doing here?" He snapped.
Rikku's smile fell along with her dreams of finally being free from the asylum. "Don't you remember?" She asked him in a soft voice hoping that it would upset him less.
Auron stared at her for another moment before the dullness in his eyes faded. "Rikku?" He questioned as if unsure. "This is my family's cabin. No one has ever been here besides them. How have you found it?" He was back to being stern and controlled, but when he took a step closer, his stumbling proved otherwise.
Rikku didn't even think about what she was doing. She dropped the sealant in her hand and rushed over to try and keep him from falling. But his body was so much larger then her own, and he only ended up taking her down with him. By the time it was all said and done, Rikku was laying on the floor while Auron's body was pressing her deeper into the wood. She struggled to breath and push him off.
"Wanna move?" She rasped. "Kinda hard to breath here."
Not even bothering with an apology, Auron used one arm to push himself up and back to his feet. He teetered for a moment before regaining his balance. "You still haven't answered my question." He pointed out.
She was attempting to brush the dust from her clothing but stopped in mid-swipe. "How rude can you get?" She shouted. "I can't believe you. It's your fault you know!"
"My fault!" He roared so loud Rikku had to cover her ears. She let out a squeak before crawling under the table nearby. Leaning heavily on the table, Auron calmed himself. "Forgive me, but I fail to see how this is my fault." He explained.
"You don't remember coming into my room this morning and telling me to get ready?" A small voice drifted from under him.
Auron sighed before closing his eye and trying to think back. The last thing he remembered was a quick confrontation with Doctor Yevon before he went out to have a... Suddenly everything came back to him at once.
He had needed a drink, but in the stressful state he was in, it was hard to stop. After leaving the bar, he had gone back and allowed himself into Rikku's room where he preceded to take her away. But the question still remained as to why. He moved away from the table and flopped on a couch. He rubbed a temple as he tried to think.
Meanwhile, Rikku refused to come out. Something was up and she dared not intervene. She stayed silent until she heard her name.
"Rikku. You can come out now. I will do nothing to hurt you. You have done nothing wrong."
Still hesitant, she did as he said. She made her way over until she was standing in front of him. Auron stood and stepped closer. "Look at me." He told her gently.
Rikku wanted to. Really she did! But something deep inside told her not to.
"Show me your face, Rikku." He said as he brought his right hand under her chin and gently forced her face up. "I want to see your eyes." He whispered.
Butterflies fluttered in her stomach. This was the same type of scene she had read about so many times before in her mother's old novels. She knew what was going to come next. He was going to kiss her. Not that she minded the idea. Truth be told, she had fancied the idea of an affair with her doctor on more the one occasion. But now that the chance was presented, she was scared. Biting her lip, she took a step away from him and turned her body. "I can't." She explained in a weak whimper.
She heard him sigh once more from behind her. A hand then rested on her shoulder and she shrugged it off. "You ever have a day when you wish you could change the course of history? To have the chance to change the world?" The hand was removed and Auron walked away. Seconds later she could hear the door closing behind him.
Letting out the breath she did not know she was holding, Rikku followed him out. "What was all that about?" She shouted to his retreating back.
"Simple. In order to change the world, you need to begin with one person."
--
Two men walked into the city trying to appear as if they stumbled upon it by accident. However, that would be an easy task had the city not been hidden away from the rest of the world. The taller of the two flicked his head back as he inspected the tall buildings around him.
"I would say, Yu, this seems to be the right place. What say we call in the guards now?"
"Indeed it is, but let us wait for a moment. Perhaps we can meet with the city elder."
As if on cue a bald man was heading in their direction. Surrounding him were seven blond men. All of them looking capable enough to hold their own in a fight.
"It would seem as if this could be him." Yu said quietly enough for only Seymour to hear.
"When I heard there were strange men in my city, I never thought the rumors were true. But it would seem oddly correct. Now who are you and when are you leaving?"
"You certainly are a man not to beat around the bush. Forgive us our intrusion. We are merely travelers who have lost our way during a storm at sea. It seems as if our craft was blown off course and we arrived here to seek help." Seymour spoke up managing to remain calm.
"I'd no sooner believe that had there been a storm around here to begin with! In case you hadn't noticed, this is a desert. We don't see too many storms out this way. Now. Tell me who you really are." He crossed his arms over his chest and stared down the two intruders.
Yu cleared his throat before speaking. "We are travelers, but what my friend neglected to say was the one bit of information we have. Several years ago, I took in a young girl. She had no family or friends. I found her on a distant island lost and confused. I have been working with her for three years now trying to help her to fit back in with Spiran society. However, all my plans had been thwarted a fortnight past when she was kidnapped. I am on a search to find her once again."
"So you come here? An island known to only those who live here? You think you might be able to find her here?" The man questioned in an accusing manner.
"We are unsure of that information as of yet. The young girl I am referring to was named Rikku. Perhaps you have seen her?"
The bald man stuttered for several moments for regaining his composure. "Forgive me. I am named Cid, and this girl you are talking about. Did she perchance have blond hair? Tied up into a ponytail I assume?"
Yu smiled gently. "Actually when I did find her, yes. You have seen her then?"
"No, I ain't seen her! Not in three years. She took off one day leaving us to believe her to be dead. Foolish girl never could stay put!" Cid formed fists at his side in an attempt not to explode. "You see, Rikku is my daughter."
"Is that right?" Seymour took his chance and spoke up. "Then it is good we have come. Perhaps you would be interested in helping us search for her?"
Cid scratched his head in thought. "I might. But I would like to know more about you first. Please come this way We will have lunch and talk."
--
The two of them ate in silence. It was hard to find something to talk about given what had happened between them just that morning. By now, Auron's hangover had worn off, but he was still somber. He was thinking over the fact as to why. Why had he brought Rikku here to begin with? No one outside of his family had ever set foot inside this cabin. Yet, he had chosen her to be the first. What would his parents say if they were to have seen him now?
Rikku's thoughts centered more around what he had told her about changing the world. Did that mean he believed her? She always knew she wasn't crazy, but did that mean she changed the thoughts of one person? She was so deep in her thoughts that his voice almost startled her when he spoke.
"You could have run."
"What, huh?" She responded so eloquently.
"Today, you could have left and I would have been none the wiser."
"Well yeah, but.." Why didn't she run? She tried once before and failed. This time even with all her pounding and work, he never noticed. If she would have left he never would find out where she had gone. She set her fork down in shame. "I guess I could have run, you know. But I never thought about it at the time."
Auron continued to eat as he watched her inner debate. He had caught her last attempt. Perhaps she feared that happening over again. "Rikku, let me ask you a question." She lifted her face and waited for him to ask. "If you had once chance to do whatever it was you wanted without fear of criticism, what would it be?"
Rikku thought over the question carefully. The doctor liked to ask things like this from time to time to test her. She supposed this was another one of those times. "I..I don't know. I never feared that before. I guess that's why they took me away. I'm really not scared of anything."
"And that is why you were hiding under the table from me?" He set down his own fork and focused all his attention on her face and most of all, her eyes.
Rikku recoiled at his stare. "You make me nervous." She confessed.
"Is that right? Then you would never be able to fit into the world of Spira. You should have stayed back on your home and never left." Ignoring her glare, he went back to eating.
"That was so rude! I can't believe you would say something like that!" She huffed before storming away from the table and into a random bedroom.
Auron watched her before making a note to her as if she never left. "As rude as it may have been, I meant every word."
--
"So you're saying that you had found my daughter? So why didn't you try and bring her back sooner?" Cid had invited the two visitors into a nearby building meant for this purpose. He was so foolish to allow them into his home. He had already passed out drinks hoping to find out more information from then when they were more at ease.
"Forgive me, but even if we wanted to, we would have been unable to. Rikku would tell me nothing while I took care of her during the three years of her absence."
"She always was a stubborn one." Cid agreed as Yevon talked.
"Yes, I will agree. But then I brought in a friend of mine. In only a short few months he managed to get her to a point I was unable to. Surprised us both." He added indicating to Seymour.
"But then he took off with her." Seymour said. Yevon winced, that wasn't how he would have phrased it, but Seymour wasn't a man who cared about that. He had his own agenda. "Indeed, no sooner then we had the required information, our acquaintance left without a word. We had not seen him since."
"And how long ago was all this? You didn't even try and track him down to get my daughter back?"
"We did try, I assure you, we did all we could. It was through his notes we were able to find you sir."
Cid opened his mouth as if to say something. He closed it again before rubbing his chin. "His notes you say?"
"Yes, it seems he was doing a lot of studying with her. I have them with me if you would like to see them." Seymour held out a manila folder and offered it over the table to Cid. Cid stared for a moment before taking it from his hand.
The room was silent for many minutes before Cid spoke again. "This man, the way he writes sounds like he was some sort of shrink. But I have a feeling you knew that, didn't you?"
The two visitors looked at one another slightly ashamed. They had been caught in the middle of the lie. But Yu had an idea. He winked at Seymour before speaking up.
"Yes, we found that detail out after the fact. We thought we knew the man, but he was keeping secrets. And while now we pay the price for our ignorance, we ask for your aid in our search. We want to retrieve Rikku as badly as you do." He sounded very sincere, and was about to give his acceptance, but then another man came into the room. Goggles hid his eyes, but most likely they were swirled underneath. He leaned over and whispered something into Cid's ear before standing next to him.
Cid looked up at him as if asking if what he said was true. The newcomer nodded once and Cid turned his attention to the guests. "It seems as if something has come up."
--