(A/N: Maaaan, WRITERS BLOCK SUX!!!! Jees have I had some problems with this one! I hope it's worth the wait! By the time I forced myself to sit down and write something it was very late and I was very tired so please forgive any screw ups! I suck, I know! I actually started writing the main part of this Chapter on a whim to appear as a stand alone one off like 'A Trip To Djose…' under the title 'An Intimate Moment'. But then I ended up liking it that much that I wanted to include it in this fic and I think (I hope) I managed to tie it in with the existing storyline. Unfortunately then I was stuck scratching my head and trying to pull idea's outta my ass! Not good. As a warning, Rikku may seem a little OOC and probably has in previous chapters but please remember, she is feeling a little depressed, lonely and is really missing the other female Gullwings. Have no fear, this is going somewhere, I just hope you like where its going! Any major boo-boo's or just pointers to improve this … thing, drop me a line! Thanks - love ya Doms x)

An Ending

Chapter 6

Rikku sat quietly in a corner of the Shoopuf's carriage with an arm hanging over the side. Every so often, the Shoopuf would reach a dip in the river bed and her fingers would lightly brush the water's cool surface. Beneath them, the ruins of a city long lost to time rippled as if looking through murky glass. 'A window into the past' Rikku thought and smiled to herself, glancing up to see a young girl sat beside her Mother and holding on to her hand tightly, smiling back at her. Rikku briefly widened her smile and gave the little girl a small wave before turning back the water and her thoughts. Was this just a glimpse of what Tidus had known in his Zanarkand? The dead and buried version of what Maester Seymour had shown them on the sphere of Lady Yunalesca in Guadosalam back when Yuna's fate was already written. Rikku looked up to see the Shoopuf from the North Wharf passing them by in the opposite direction - half way already.

Rikku's footsteps gently crunched on the sandy path leading from the Moonflow North Wharf toward Guadosalam. Pausing before the bridge, she turned to face the banking where, over two years earlier, she had reunited with a rather surprised Tidus after her mistaken attack and attempted kidnap of Yuna and had joined the Pilgrimage journey. She sighed sadly, those events seemed like a lifetime ago now as she stood reminiscing alone.

Narrowing her eyes and peering out across the water, Rikku reached up to the scarf around her neck and loosened it, pulling it off and coiling it on the ground beside her feet. Pulling her gloves off, she then unfastened her left sleeve and dropped that followed by the right, unhitching the belt buckle around her waist that held the pockets on her right hip she dropped them too. Looking down at the pile of clothes she slipped her boots off and stood them beside the heap before reaching for the fastening of her skirt and wriggling free of it dropping that on top of everything else. Stepping forward she waded into the water down the small incline crouching down and reaching up to her bandana untying it and loosening her ponytail. Blond hair rippled down her back in waves like gold thread, braids and beads intertwining with the free strands. Tossing her bandana and hair band behind her, she took a deep breath and glanced down at the small yellow and orange bikini before raising her arms above her head and pushing herself into the water in a perfect mini dive.

The water was cool at first, a slight shock to the system but it soon became very pleasant as Rikku slowly kicked her legs, propelling herself into deeper waters. Closing her eyes, she allowed herself to drift along, wondering if anyone would notice if she never returned. Never in her short life has she felt more alone than she did right now.

Unbeknownst to Rikku, the sudden splash she had created resonated up the river and had drawn attention from those gathered on the banks. Despite people craning their necks for a view of what could have happened, only one figure showed enough interest to actually go and investigate. He sighed, rolling his eyes and headed down the path to see what was going on.

"Yevonites... still as indifferent and non-committal as always…" He muttered to himself strolling away toward the small bank. He instantly recognised the items left at the side of the water and squatted down, lifting one of the white bowed sleeves. He smiled and looked out into the water where a figure could be seen beneath the water heading for the surface.

Rikku broke the water's smooth surface and gasped for air, flinging her head back and sending sprays of water in all directions from her long hair. She took a deep breath still facing the distant shore and closed her eyes laying back in the water.

"I'm guessing there's some reason behind this." Gippal's voice carried across the water. Rikku's eyes shot open and she instantly straightened, spinning around to face him as thought she was a child caught doing something they shouldn't be.

"Whatcha doin'?" Gippal grinned at her holding up her skirt on one finger.

"Put that down!" Rikku ordered raising her hand out of the water and wagging a finger at him. He chuckled and swung the item of clothing around on his finger.

"You caused quite a stir up river y'know… those Yevonites were cranin' to see what was goin' off…" He rest his arms on his knees and watched as she drifted around effortlessly in the water.

"Not that much of a stir obviously…" She replied distantly, looking at the lack of an audience on the shore.

"So why are you skinny-dipping in the Moonflow?" He asked with a smile, quite obviously craning his neck for a view.

"I'm not…" She replied flatly without looking up. "If you look you'll see a few choice items are missing from that pile!" Gippal looked down and nodded making a little positive noise in his throat.

"That's a shame..." He teased quietly.

"What're you doing here anyway? You're supposed to be at Djose temple aren't you?"

"Excuse me, we've still not discussed what you're doing here…" He reminded her.

"I don't really know…" She replied distantly.

"Hmmm… you get stranger kiddo!" Gippal chuckled softly. Rikku shrugged as she drifted ever closer to the bank. "What? No argument? No... 'I am not!'? What's up? Hey... where are the others?" He asked looking around curiously.

"Buddy and Brother are over at Djose Temple waiting for you." She said bluntly.

"And Yuna and Paine?"

"I dunno…" She shrugged again, standing in the water and walking up the incline toward him.

Water droplets chased down her tanned skin as she moved. Moisture from her hair ran in small rivulets around her neck and down her cleavage as she closed her eyes, flipped her hair back and shook her head gently. Opening her eyes she looked straight at Gippal who, for the time being, seemed temporarily lost in her last movement, his eyes quite clearly somewhere south of her face.

"A-hem!" She cleared her throat watching him.

Gippal realised that his mouth was hanging open and quickly snapped it shut, he eye quickly focusing on her face. Rikku looked quite obviously peeved, but there was something underlying in her expression too.

"Want to memorise it some more?" She asked, hands on hips.

"Uh…" Gippal managed eventually as he snapped out his stupor. "Sorry, you just... you look different with your hair... I didn't realise it had gotten so long..."

"Yeah, uh-huh, sure! Whatever!" She rolled her eyes and stepped closer, crouching next to her clothes.

"Wait… What do you mean you don't know where they are...?"

"I mean I don't know where they are!" She replied sharply. "The last time I saw Yunie she was vanishing into the distance on Besaid beach and as for Paine, she was disappearing into the distance wandering about the Calm Lands…"

"The Calm Lands?" Gippal repeated. "What would she be doing there?"

"I... don't... know!" Rikku repeated slowly, her tone harsh.

"Oh... okay!" Gippal said, genuinely surprised by Rikku's reaction.

Rikku sighed, her furrowed brows smoothing as her words repeated in her head.

"I'm sorry..." She said softly. "It's not your fault, I just... well I'm feeling kinda... weird right now."

"This I can see." He nodded.

"Sorry!" She repeated thinking quickly to change the subject. "So, you never did tell me what you were doing here..." She began, trying to sound more like her usual self as she lifted her skirt and shimmied into it, fastening it and reaching for her boots, pulling them on one by one.

"No, I didn't..." He replied watching as she stooped to pick up the rest of her things.

"Hold these..." She said dumping everything over his arm before he could react. She swung the belt around her waist once more and fastened it, positioning the small pockets over her right hip again. "So, you were saying..." She prompted lifting one of her sleeves and threading her arm through it.

"Yeah..." He nodded managing to peel his eyes away and look at her face. "Cid was at Djose... I had to escape!"

"Uh-oh! He's gone now though, right?" Rikku looked up sharply, biting her bottom lip.

"I couldn't say." He shrugged his shoulders as she removed the other sleeve from his grasp and pulled it into place.

"Well I've not had Brother yelling at me through my intercom... but I'm not sure whether to take that as a good sign or a bad sign!" She cringed pulling her gloves out of his hand, balling them up and shoving them in her pocket before taking her bandana and finally her scarf, folding it to make it easier to carry. Gippal watched her and smiled nodding.

"Well, how about we get you back to the Temple anyway. You can get dried off properly there too!"

"I don't know what you mean!?" Rikku laughed and grinning.

"There's my girl!" Gippal smiled back.

"Yeah well we'd better hurry before the pissy one comes back!" Rikku replied, nudging him playfully and looking out across the water.

"Good point!" He nodded leading the way toward the Moonflow's South Wharf.

Rikku sat once again in the corner of the Shoopuf carriage, this time with Gippal sat beside her as she stared out across the water. Every so often she would turn back to look down at her hands folded neatly in her lap and catch him watching her, looking quickly away when she noticed. Rikku smiled into the distance.

"Couldn't really get further from where we used to live, huh?" Gippal asked after a while. Rikku looked back at him and smiled, watching the blues, pinks and purples of the mysterious Moonflow and haunting Pyre flies reflected back in the silvery blue of his good eye. Her mind quickly raced back to those days … Home … when everything had been so much simpler. Before all this began. When he hadn't had 'a good eye' and she had been happy bubbly Rikku.

"You think that's what Zanarkand used to look like?" He added nodding to the sunken ruins Rikku had admired on her way across. Perhaps they weren't so different after all!

"Nah…" She shook her head, her wet hair swinging across her back. "Zanarkand was much grander!" She replied without thinking of how her words might be overheard. A few fellow passengers seemed to notice and the Yevonites amongst them gave her a look of disgust. Gippal also spotted this and narrowed his eyes, glaring at them until they turned away before her turned back to Rikku. If they only knew what this young Al Bhed girl, shunned by their fellow believers had done for them, for everyone…

"And how exactly would you know about Zanarkand?" He asked in a harsh whisper, watching the other passengers. Rikku leant closer to him with a coy smile and replied in a similar tone

"Because… I saw it!" She grinned at him.

"You saw…" Gippal stared at her.

"In Guadosalam, under Maester Seymour's reign, we visited during Yunie's pilgrimage. You remember the stories of Lady Yunalesca and Lord Xaon?"

"Kinda… I never really studied as such what with being damned to the deepest darkest hells an' all!" He replied sourly.

"Well, I saw them too!" Rikku smiled. He looked stunned once more. "On a sphere obviously."

"Obviously!"

"It showed Zanarkand over one thousand years ago…"

"Wow, you… you really get about, don't you?" He smiled at her admiringly. Rikku giggled and nodded.

They arrived back at Djose Temple after the walk from the Moonflow's North Wharf and headed toward the door. The Celsius still hovered where it had been when Rikku left so at least Brother hadn't seen fit to totally abandon his little sister. Walking in, Gippal looked around suspiciously, cautiously waiting for Cid's voice to boom after him.

"All's clear I think!" He whispered back to Rikku as they headed back to what used to be the chambers of the Monks and Nuns.

"Help yourself to… whatever…" Gippal said opening the door and leading the way in.

"Thanks!" Rikku smiled back at him pulling off her boots once more as he paused in the doorway before quickly hurrying out and closing the door after him, turning away shaking his head.

"YOU!" A loud voice came right in front of his face as he looked up to see Brother bearing down on him, his arms folded tensely across his chest and a frown set firmly on his face.

The younger Al Bhed backed up sharply with a sharp intake of breath, banging his head on the door, his entire body pressed against the wood.

"Why is Rikku in there?" Brother demanded jabbing a finger at the door.

"She's, uhh… sorting herself out." Gippal replied innocently.

"Why?"

"She went swimming in the Moonflow…" Gippal replied watching him cautiously.

"You!"

"No!" Gippal shook his head, holding his hands up in front of his chest. "No, no, no! Not me! Alone!"

"Cut the guy some slack will ya, she ain't a kid anymore y'know? And Gippal knows she'd kick his ass if he ever tried anything!" Buddy chuckled.

"You saw Rikku swim!"

"Well… yeah, but just a little - not for long!"

Brother raised a clenched fist.

"Hey! Cool it! I didn't see anything, I didn't do anything. I don't think about Rikku like that!"

Brother growled at him, lowered his arm and stormed off heading for the door.

"Relax man!" Buddy placed a hand on Gippal's somewhat tense shoulder as they watched Brother walk away. "You know how he gets when he and Cid have had a thing. He's just told the old man to shove it - he's not having anything more to do with his hair-brained schemes so you can imagine the reply he got from Cid after that!"

"Yeah…" Gippal nodded.

"He knows how you and Rikku are, don't worry about it."

"Right!" He smiled as Buddy headed after his old friend. 'How we are' he nodded to himself. 'So why, since I saw her in the water, is that all I've been able to think of when I look at her!'

A click suddenly came from the door and Gippal felt himself falling back. He stood up sharply and whirled around.

"Sheesh, you're jumpy!" Rikku chuckled. "What was all that about?"

"I think you'd best take it up with your brother!" He replied walking away backwards. "I'll catch you later Rikku…" He added heading quickly away.

"Huh? Gippal? Gippal!" Rikku called after him from the doorway. "Well that was weird!" She mused before shrugging and heading back to get herself sorted.