A/N: See, I told you he wouldn't stay dead for long! You can't keep a good man down ;) And it's a short chapter, I know, but it seemed like a good place to end it and the next one will be longer, I promise.

Chapter Five

The air was fresh but still warm on the cliff when the first sparkling pyrefly drifted up to the promontory. It was quickly joined by about a hundred others, all condensing to form a man. But the word 'man' didn't do him justice; this was a legend. Doubly a legend now, as he'd defeated Sin twice; come back from the dead twice. He was tall, standing at just over six feet two when he wasn't slouching against a wall, and broad; almost impossibly strong muscles bound under his skin. Thick hair, mostly dark still despite the silver that was beginning to creep in at the temples, tied back in a ponytail at the nape of his neck. A face that had once been enough to make women weak at the knees, tempered by the steel gaze that made men weak at the knees for an entirely different reason. A face that was now rent in two by the cruel slash of a scar that had stolen his right eye; his other glaring at the world around him from chiselled features in russet fury from behind dark glasses.

For a second, while he was still disorientated and a little confused, he allowed his true self to show; the core that was vulnerable, if only his enemy knew where to hurl the spear. Few did. In fact, there were only six creatures in the whole world who knew he wasn't strong all the time, and of those six, only one who knew his weakness. But he had no idea where he was, let alone them. When his blinking eye cleared from the flare of the Farplane, he found himself.

"Besaid?"

His voice could be differed depending on how he wanted it to sound. A gruff order, a booming shout, a hushed murmur, a fatigued whisper. Always deep. Only once had it been lowered for the tone of love, though the voice had never uttered the words. Brittle as wood snapping in a fire or smooth and rich as melted chocolate. Something else that used to make women go weak at the knees. Still did, in fact.

Another burst of pyreflies formed into the shape of a small boy. It did not stop Auron from relieving the full force of his anger onto the child. "I didn't ask for this," he growled.

"We know," the boy returned simply.

"So send me back," he said bluntly. "I was happy on the Farplane."

"We know."

He sighed. "Then why the hell am I back in Spira?"

"You'll see. Your friends are down in the village. You should go to them."

"And if I refuse?"

"You're alive now. Live among people who want you there or live alone. Your choice." With that, he faded into pyreflies, leaving Auron in his wake.

"Fucking fayth. Tysh ed." The Al Bhed slipped from his tongue; Rikku used it so often on the Pilgrimage that it had become second-nature to all of them. But its use reminded him of her. He looked down at the glowing lights of the village, then sighed. Rikku would be down there. He didn't even know how long it was since he'd been away. It could have been years. A decade. Though if it has been a decade, at least she will over age this time. He shook his head to try and dislodge the Rikku-shaped thoughts, then decided to make his way down to the village.

Twenty minutes later, he walked through the gates slowly, each step measured and steady. At first his presence went unnoticed among so many people. Then the first one caught sight of him and fell silent.

Within a minute of him walking through the gates, the entire village was quiet. Then Tidus exploded. "Auron! They brought you back too! Dude!"

Auron found himself enveloped in a crushing hug. If nothing else, it proved that he was indeed alive, because he couldn't breathe. "Apparently."

Yuna bowed repeatedly till he told her to stop. Wakka and Lulu both looked delighted to see him. The baby in Lulu's arms seemed to be rather afraid of him.

Kimahri gave one solemn nod that nevertheless told Auron he was pleased to see him.

When Rikku saw him, she froze. Rikku…

A/N: You know what to do!