Chapter Seven

When Gippal got to Besaid – over an hour and a half after Auron's arrival – he looked for Rikku the first thing he did. He'd been trying to get in touch with her for the past few days, and she'd not answered any of his calls, which meant only one thing – that she was getting very drunk somewhere. Gippal had long ago come to terms with the fact that their constant flirting wasn't going to lead anywhere else, and they'd already had their time as a couple. Rikku's heart had never been in it, and there was no reason to think that it would be any different a second time. Besides, Gippal was a guy – he wasn't going to be complaining about good-friends-with-benefits. He was there for Rikku when she needed someone, Rikku was there for him. Even if they did wind up in bed together, the mornings-after weren't that awkward.

Gippal might have been a consummate flirt, but he cared about his friends, especially when they were in trouble. And Rikku was in more trouble than anyone else he knew.

It wasn't easy to spot at first, and it was really only after they broke up that he was able to spot it. Or rather hear it, because it was the slightly raw edge to her voice that first alerted him. The note that wavered on the knife-edge, ready to tumble into hysteria at a moment's notice. It wouldn't take much to make her shatter into a million pieces. When they'd been dating, his favourite part had been the time between slumber and being awake, when she wasn't a hundred percent sure where she was, or who she was with, and her voice was soft and heavy with sleep, and it was happy. Contented. Then she did come fully back to consciousness, and that was the worst part. Seeing the part-ecstatic joy and part-wild hope in her eyes die, and then seeing her physically make the choice to be happy that day, like every other day, and hitching the by-now perfectly-tuned fake smile onto her face. In truth, while Gippal would have held out longer before ending the relationship, he too could see its end coming. He tried, he really did. But it had taken him a year to distinguish between her real happiness and her fake happiness, and he wasn't sure he could spend another decade – he was sure it would take at least that long – in an attempt to uncover the reason behind the fake happiness. Whatever it was that had caused her heart to break- he wasn't the one with the cement to stick it back together, and he was too terrified of being the one that caused her mind to follow.

But he swore to the fayth that if he couldn't stop it happening as her lover, he'd at least try as her friend.

Yuna saw him immediately, and clutching Tidus's hand, she ran over to hug him. "Gippal! I'm so glad you could come!"

She drew back and he grinned. "Nice to see you too, superstar."

"This is Tidus," she said, pulling her boyfriend forward. "Tidus, Gippal is the leader of the Machine Faction, I told you about them, right?"

Tidus stuck his hand out. "Good to meet you, man."

Gippal shook it. "Likewise. Rikku used to talk about you all the time."

He blinked. "Really?"

"Yeah, mostly about the pranks the two of you pulled."

Tidus laughed. "Yeah, mainly on Auron."

"Oh!" Yuna exclaimed. "You haven't met Sir Auron, have you, Gippal?"

He frowned. "Um, isn't he dead?"

"Not anymore! Sir Auron!" Her cheery expression faltered when she saw who her former guardian was sitting with, but flickered back when he stood up. "Sir Auron, this is Gippal. He's a good friend and helped a lot with the fight against Vegnagun."

Auron nodded once to the young Al Bhed standing in front of him. "We've met, I think."

Gippal rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, in the desert once. You told me to go change the world."

"Glad you took the advice."

"Hey, I always do as I'm told. Can't say I heard a lot about you since then though."

"Can't say I'm surprised."

Gippal nodded. "Well it's an honour to re-meet you," he said. "If you'll excuse me there's a couple other people I should go say hi to."

He walked toward where Nooj was busy resisting being hand-fed by LeBlanc, hiding his laughter. "Havin' fun, Noojster?" he inquired cheekily. LeBlanc deigned to give him a curt nod, whereas Nooj opted for a wide-eyed smile that could have been a greeting or a silent plea for help. Gippal chuckled and gave wave before walking over to where Paine and Baralai were sitting – rather close, he noticed.

Walking over to them, neither of them looked up from each other. He cleared his throat loudly. Nothing. "Hi." Nothing. "Helloooooo?" Nothing. "Hey, Dr P!"

Paine turned away from Baralai with an expression of annoyance. "Don't call me that."

He grinned briefly. "Where's Rikku?"

She pointed to one of the tents. "In there. Sleeping off a gallon or so of sake."

Anger and concern boiled up inside him. "And you've just left her to choke on her own vomit?" he demanded.

"She'll be fine," Baralai said peaceably.

"You still shouldn't have left her!" he said, getting up and walking over to the tent. Paine shrugged and turned back to her boyfriend. Only two pairs of eyes followed Gippal into the tent.

--

Giia danced inwardly. Turns out even Al Bhed scum have good timing sometimes. When Auron turned back to her, expression very carefully blank and betraying nothing, Giia gave an overly sweet smile. "It's cute that he cares about her so much."

One eyebrow quirked up one fraction of one centimetre, and Giia knew she'd won. "They're together?" he asked, in a colourless tone.

Giia nodded convincingly. "They made quite the couple."

"Made?" She just about caught the ever-so-slight tightening of his mouth behind the high collar. She took it as a wince at giving himself away.

Nevertheless, she still smiled. "Well, until High Summoner got her long-lost love back anyway."

Auron's eyes flicked once over to the tent that Gippal had just disappeared into, then back to Giia. "I see."

--

Gippal sighed as he stood by the bed that Rikku was lying on. He couldn't say she looked at all adorable – all her limbs were spread all over the bed, her hair was covering her face and her mouth was open, a little puddle of drool forming. Whoever had carried her there apparently hadn't bothered with cleaning the vomit from her clothes – or rather her skin, since she wasn't wearing a lot – and she still had it on her stomach. (A/N: I know it seems like Auron wouldn't have just left her there with vomit on her, but it works better for the rest of the story if he did) He couldn't in all good conscience just leave her now. "Alright, first things first – clean clothes."

The only thing he could think of was his shirt, and it wasn't as though Besaid had a cold climate, so he partially undressed quickly, laying his shirt down and sitting next to Rikku on the bed. "Hey, wake up, kiddo," he said gently, a hand on her face.

She stirred. "Gip? What is it? Wanna sleep, go 'way."

"No, you're covered in sick, and it's not good for you to sleep like that. C'mon, Cid's girl, let's get you changed."

"Ok…" she mumbled. She tried to help, untying her bikini strings and letting the top fall away, revealing her breasts.

It wasn't anything Gippal hadn't seen before, and he only raised an eyebrow. "Ok, I was just going to suggest we put the shirt on you first, but whatever." Once he'd wiped the vomit from her stomach, he slid the shirt on to her body and buttoned it. "Ok, you're done."

She gave a sleepy smile. "What would I do without you?"

"Wake up with puke on you," he grinned, kissing her forehead gently. "Go to sleep, Cid's girl."

"I have…a name…" she yawned. Without thinking, she put an arm around his middle and her head on his chest, then fell asleep straightaway, her breathing settling into the deep slow breaths of slumber.

Gippal rolled his eyes – he had wanted to go back and join the party, but tysh ed she looked so peaceful lying there that he just didn't have the heart to wake her. Besides, he'd been in Bevelle in another all-the-leaders-of-all-the-factions-in-Spira-are-working-together publicity exercise all day. Machines he could handle; people and politicians knackered him. One arm crept around the woman lying against him, idly stroking her back. "Night, Cid's girl."

Once he'd spread the blanket over them both, he too closed his eyes and allowed himself to rest.

--

Outside, Giia was busy digging her claws a little deeper into Auron. Quite possibly she could use someone of his abilities. There were a few spheres that it was basically impossible to get to – her organisation just didn't have the strength. Her lackeys weren't bad, but there were some fiends that even sheer force of numbers wouldn't defeat. Someone with Auron's experience would be invaluable. Added to which if he was with her, she could get on with the business of seducing him as soon as possible. She had a feeling that though stupidly stoic and on the rough side, he was probably a good guy. And good guys pissed her off. They insisted on helping people and following rules and not being at all interesting. She wanted him around about as much as she wanted a hole in the head. But unfortunately…if she was ever going to kill Rikku she needed Auron for a while.

"So what are you going to do now?" she asked him.

One corner of his mouth twitched up. "I really don't know. There's no point in me being here." His voice wasn't wistful, it was annoyed.

Giia pasted a pretty frown on her face. "Don't say that, Auron. There has to be some reason for you being here. Maybe you're supposed to do something else."

He gave a short laugh. "Something else besides helping to save the world twice?"

She grinned. "Then maybe the fayth sent you back to have a little fun."

One eyebrow lifted a fraction. "Fun?" He sounded as if the idea wasn't one he'd ever considered before. He hadn't had true fun since he was about seven, and Sin had killed both parents shortly after that. The idea of having fun certainly did sound different. Appealing, even. Just one problem…he'd forgotten how it felt to have fun. He'd thought that perhaps Rikku…no, best not to think about Rikku. At least not until she was conscious. There were too many questions now.

"Yeah," the dark-haired woman beside him. "Travel. See the world." He shot her a sceptical look. "Well ok, see the world not on foot. Try hover, or airship." Her next words were carefully chosen. "The Gullwings have one, maybe you could tag along with them for a while." Key words 'tag along'. Not a phrase that anyone liked, especially enormously strong twice-dead Legendary Guardians.

"Not sure flying agrees with me," he said, a half-smile lifting his mouth. "Tried it once before."

"I know what you mean. I always get nauseous. I prefer ground-based missions."

That caught his attention. "Missions?"

"Yeah, sphere hunting. Though now my choices are getting limited."

"Why is that?" he asked.

Giia smiled. This was the way she preferred to operate. It was like playing poker – the key to a good bluff was that occasionally you had to be telling the truth. That way your opponent never could be quite sure if you were lying this time. So she told some of the truth. And she always won her games of poker. Just as she'd win the great big one that was life. Specifically Rikku's life. "To be honest I just can't get to the remaining spheres. They all must be really important, but there are so many fiends defending them…" Cue for sweet little sigh. "We're just not strong enough to get through them."

Deciding to leave the hint-dropping there, she gestured to her followers. "Well, we'd better be going. Long way back home." She turned to Auron and offered him a hand. "It was good to meet you, Auron."

He shook it firmly. "Likewise."

She smiled warmly and got up, pulling out a card and pointing to the Commsphere. "Call me, if you ever need a ride. Or just want to have some fun," she added.

He nodded thoughtfully, but didn't say anymore. She was almost positive she saw him watching her as she left the firelight, though. "What was that about?" one of her lackeys asked.

She waved her hand dismissively. "Possibly nothing. But maybe something…"

The other woman sighed and shrugged. There were some things about her boss she'd never understand. But with Giia heading the operation, you learned quickly not to question too far. She had a plan. She always did.

A/N: Review. I think it's pretty obvious where I'm going with the next chapter... but after that... well, who knows?