Chapter 19- Cold Delay
Inside the cloister of trials Seymour stood next to Yuna, his large figure dwarfing the tiny Summoner. The cloister was a Summoners trial, so he did not help her with the puzzle but rather watched and assisted her by pushing the large sphere pedestals for her in the direction that she wanted.
Yuna took hold of a glyph sphere and held it in her hand daintily; the sphere glowed a faint green and emitted a small hum. Lines of light on the wall disappeared as she took it. Yuna held her tiny chin in her hand thoughtfully and walked to the side of the room and down the ramp to the lower level. Seymour watched her and followed, his footsteps crunching in the snow behind her. Yuna observed a freestanding pedestal and then saw where it could be realigned to complete the last portion of the bridge.
"This pedestal must be moved to the right." She said standing next to the stone pillar.
Seymour nodded with a gentle smile and walked up to the pedestal. With a slight push from him the pedestal slid across the floor and underneath the remaining column, locking into place.
Yuna then walked back up the ramp to the upper floor.
"Nearly done." Yuna said as her pink toned sleeves swung back and forth as she walked. Yuna placed the last glyph sphere into the slot on the remaining middle pedestal. White lines of light swirled upwards in the column and the last piece of the bridge appeared.
"Very impressive, lady Yuna." Seymour said with a bow to her. "The Fayth awaits you."
"Thank you." She said looking down with her eyes slightly. Yuna hurried to the ramp leading to the upper level so she could finally cross the bridge she had worked so hard to assemble. She heard a clack as her shoe hit a bare patch of ice beneath the snow and her foot slipped on the glassy surface sending her flying backwards.
"Oh!" she cried bracing herself to feel the impact on the hard surface of the floor. She felt herself stop suddenly as she was falling, soft walls of purple enveloped her as she realized Seymour's strong arms had caught her. For a second Yuna didn't move, in shock that she had almost had a bad fall and also feeling incredibly dazed by being in the strong Maester's arms. As she looked up she saw Seymour's face with his long azure hair spikes and twisting forelock overtop of her.
"Are you alright?" he asked her as he loomed over her.
Yuna blushed, embarrassed from her near fall and hurried to stand back up, as she did one of her hands landed on Seymour's bare abdomen. As Yuna stood up straight she realized where her hand lay and pulled it away quickly with a sharp breath.
"I-I'm sorry." She said turning her head away from him in embarrassment.
"It's quite alright." Seymour said in his gentle tone. "I do not mind."
Yuna's eyes darted between the floor and the walls as she held her hand nervously, feeling as if she had committed a mortal sin.
Seymour reached out and grasped her delicate hand comfortingly. "We are engaged after all." He said smiling down at her.
"Doesn't….the cold bother you?" she asked him sneaking a peak at his exposed chest with its ornate tattoos and strange Guado muscle groups.
Seymour paused for a moment with Yuna's mention of the cold, a memory of Baaj flashed through his mind. He remembered huddling together with his Mother in the cold and wet, both of them enveloped in the dark mist, fearing unseen fiends.
"…I… am used to it." He said as his blue eyes drifted off in his memories. "Let us not keep Shiva waiting." Seymour said snapping out of his past. He walked on, passing Yuna up to the path of the bridge, his purple robes dragging behind him in the snow.
"…Maester Seymour?" Yuna said timidly from behind him.
"Yes?" Seymour said turning his head slightly back to her.
"I've been meaning to ask you, back in Luca, you summoned an Aeon…it was so powerful…what was the name of that Aeon?"
A cold soft sigh came from Seymour as he paused for a moment with the question, he closed his eyes briefly.
In a puff of smoky breath that was visible to the cold he responded to her. "…Anima…"
"I have never seen or heard of that Aeon until now." Yuna commented curiously.
"There are many Aeons throughout Spira," Seymour said simply as he kept walking trying to make light of the subject.
"Oh…" Yuna said stretching her hand out as if to ask again about the subject. She watched as Seymour kept walking, ignoring her curious interests in his summoning abilities. She decided not to insist on the subject and followed him, watching as his purple ornamented robes fluttered with his confident gait as he walked ahead of her. Looking down she tried to clear her mind of all that was going through it, focusing on the task at hand, obtaining Shiva.
Meanwhile back in Guadosalam Meena rifled through bottles on a store shelf. Gently, she pushed aside bottle after bottle as she searched for what she needed.
A brown haired Guado woman noticed her struggling and walked up to her.
"Is there anything I can help you with Milady?" she said courteously.
"Oh, um, yes actually." Meena said looking at her list. "Dear Trommel sent me to pick up supplies for the manor and I can't seem to find your writing ink."
The shopkeeper looked to the shelves looking past bottle after bottle. Finally she pulled a small black bottle out from the back and handed it to Meena.
"You are lucky, this is our last bottle." She said.
"Thank you." Meena placed the bottle into her basket as she continued to look over her list she noticed the shopkeeper had a confused look as she searched on the shelves. She touched her hand to her face thoughtfully; her earth toned patterned veins on her face glowed dimly.
"Is there something wrong?" Meena asked the Guado woman.
"Well…it is strange, there was a shipment due to come in yesterday, I thought my son already put out the stock, but it looks as if it hasn't yet arrived."
"Perhaps there was a delay in shipping?" She suggested curiously.
"Maybe so, curious though, we've never experienced any delay in our shipments. I suppose there is a first time for everything though." The Guado woman said with a shrug.
"Hmm, it is probably as you say, in any case, I will let Trommel know about it."
"Thank you, Lady Meena." The shopkeeper said with a slight smile and turned to continue with her tasks.
Inside the Manor Meena's small figure walked into the alcove leading to the office. With her basket in hand she pushed open the door to the Maester's office. Inside, Trommel sat at Seymour's desk looking over papers that lined the top of it. He looked up with a sigh as Meena entered.
"Hello my dear," he said in a somewhat somber tone.
"You sound distressed." Meena said giving him a concerned look as she walked in. Placing her basket on the writing table Meena started to replenish the supplies within the desk and opened the drawer placing inks and pens inside.
Trommel rubbed his forehead with his large hand tiredly.
"There may be a slight problem," He said looking to her.
"What?" Meena said looking to him with alarm and surprise.
"Calm down Meena, it is probably nothing." Trommel said raising a hand, sensing her emotions. "Some shipments have not arrived that were due in yesterday,"
"Oh yes, a shopkeeper I talked to said her shipment had been delayed." Meena said recalling her recent shopping trip.
Trommel nodded. "I've had some merchants come to me complaining of the same thing, there's a slight rumor going around that a path into the city may have been blocked. I sent out some scouts to go and assess the situation and check the footpaths for trouble."
Trommel looked down and rubbed his head slightly.
"I just hope…" he said hesitantly.
"What?" Meena said curiously awaiting the rest of his statement.
"…nothing…it is probably nothing. How are you feeling my dear?" Trommel asked looking up at her with a smile.
"I…feel fine." Meena said speculatively at her husband wondering what was going on in that Guado head of his.
Trommel got up from the desk and walked around to Meena and embraced her lightly. He put his large hand to her stomach gently which to Meena's small frame almost enveloped her whole torso.
"You know, I've been thinking. I know of your love for your nephew and how you wanted to attend his wedding. Watching his wedding from the sphere is not nearly the same as actually being there and well… I would like for you to go to Bevelle, as much as it pains me so to send my pregnant wife off so far. I've arranged for a Chocobo drawn carriage and some guards to accompany you there and back…if you would like."
Meena looked to Trommel with watery eyes.
"Oh…" she said looking down and back up quickly. "Trommel I…I couldn't leave you." She said touched by his gesture.
"No Meena, by all means please go and see the fruit of your labors. You deserve to see the child you raised get married. I know you want to without you telling me." Trommel said looking down at her with a smile placing his hands onto her shoulders warmly. Meena looked up at him with unsure eyes.
"Are you sure?" She asked him hesitantly.
"Meena please, before I change my mind." He said with a slight laugh in his voice.
"Trommel…I…I love you, thank you." Meena said wrapping her arms around him and placing her head against his green coat with a sigh.
Back at Macalania Yuna's guardians awaited her return in the temple's main room. Tidus watched as he saw Seymour and Yuna emerge from the door of the cloister.
"Hey, they're back finally!" Tidus said happily smiling towards Yuna. The other guardians focused their attention forwards as they observed the Maester and Yuna. A priest rushed up to Seymour and started chatting insistently as Seymour calmly listened to him. Yuna walked up to them as Seymour continued to talk with the priest.
"He…is answering a few questions for the priest who will be acting in his stead while he is gone. Maester Seymour says it should only be a moment." Yuna said holding her Summoners staff in her hands loosely.
"So how'd it go in there?" Tidus asked her curiously.
"It went well, I received the Aeon." Yuna said nodding slightly with a warm smile towards him.
A Guado man approached them carrying a black case. Yuna recognized the Guado as one of the escorts from earlier. He walked up to them and said nothing but stood looking towards Seymour, his hands fidgeting slightly as they held the case.
"Whatcha got there?" Tidus asked curiously trying to make conversation with the Guado.
In what seemed like an unusually long response time the Guado finally answered him.
"Maester Seymour's belongings." He said in a lowered tone as he grasped the case slightly tighter in his hands.
"Wow, that's all he has for luggage? For a guy like him I'd think he'd have a lot more, y'know cause his robes are like…huge." Tidus said laughing nervously.
Rikku giggled with Tidus' comments and Lulu shook her head in disapproval.
The Guado, not amused, ignored Tidus and stood with the case in his hands awaiting his Maester's orders.
Seymour's large frame loomed up behind Yuna as he approached them.
"I apologize for the delay," Seymour said placing his hand over his chest.
"We leave now." Auron said leading the way anxiously out of the temple. Seymour watched as they funneled out of the doors ahead of him. He looked beside him to the waiting Guado holding his case.
"Thank you Zazi." he said taking the black case from the Guado. "Maybe you aren't as useless as I thought you to be." He said with a smirk as he exited the temple following the group.