AU. Spoilers. I don't own FFX. Rated T. Seymour x Yuna.
So, there's a bunch of spelling errors in these, I realize that. Most of them are like, add an s, so I don't worry, but the more I read things, the more I'm like, that's ridiculous. So I'll fix those soon (I think.) There's some things I want to change... minor things... some bigger things... but like, I need feedback, before I go and change something that's actually good =)
This chapter is fun. Well, exciting. So is the next. Hopefully there's not too much going on at once. =)
"Yuna, it's time to wake up." It was him, in my room, standing there, already dressed in his robes and ready for the day. The light is blinding, I rub my eyes painfully.
"It is?" I know it is. It's always time to wake up, time to send someone, time to rush off to Zanarkand.
"You have a ceremony to attend." He says matter-of-factly. Does he wake up like this? Ready? No bags under the eyes? No yawning? He didn't get any more sleep than I did.
I roused, and fingered through my hair, and flattened my skirts.
No breakfast yet, I suppose.
He extended his long, spindly fingers to take my hand. I obliged.
The sun is brighter than the room, illuminating the beautifully colorful city. Bridges glow orange and blue and white, banners of bright purple and pink decorate the ledges, amazing artistry decorates the walls and walkways. The whole image of the city pays homage to Yevon with their design.
What time is it? Seven? Six? It still seems so early…
Children are the main population at the moment, another indication of the time. They're running and playing and holding streamers and pinwheels. Mothers can be seen and heard calling for them, making breakfast. I smell it… Must we wait to eat?
"Maester Seymour and Summoner Yuna!"
"First comes love, then comes marriage!"
"My mom says Maesters and Summoners make a power couple! Uh… I don't know what that means, but it sounds cool!"
We do see adults though, and then,
"Maester Seymour and Lady Yuna! On your way to the inauguration?"
"Yes, we must haste." He answers.
The man snaps a picture before we can blink. "That's great! Can I get a kiss for the papers as well?"
My mouth drops. It's too early for this. Seymour meets my eyes, questioning expression.
He takes my silence as a lack of objection and takes me in his arms. I mean, there's no reason to object, he is my husband. I did marry him for Spira's happiness, so this kind of exactly fits the bill.
His lips are warm this time, following the suit of the summer sun. He kisses me tenderly and his arms around mine are comforting, pleasant. Falling into the moment, I put my arms around his neck as well, ignoring the flashes.
"Hey, thanks!" The man runs off, presumably to the presses, and we break our kiss.
It was nice.
Why don't I do that more often? Or, why haven't I done that more often? I replay the moment a few times before we get to the Church.
And then I straighten up. The sight of Priests and Priestesses always bring me back to my center, back to my senses. The rooms dimly lit by candlelight helps as well.
"Summoner Yuna, welcome, right this way." Seymour lifts my hand and kisses it then.
"You're not coming?"
"No, Yuna. This part I cannot attend." It genuinely surprised me… that's all.
I turn away and follow the Priest into the lecture hall, the last door on the right. I don't look back to Seymour again.
"We are gathered here to inaugurate our dedicated brothers and sisters into the Priesthood of Yevon. On this day, 74 of year 1000 PS."
"That's Post-Sin," one of the other students whispered to me. Hey, who said I didn't know?
"We have seven worthy candidates of Priesthood with us today. Please stand at attention. Sir Jehru of the Guado, Lady Yuna from the isle of Besaid, Sir Hiran of the Ronso, Sir Froloch of Macalania, Lady Relia of Djose, Sir Genga of Kilika, and Sir Barthus of Bevelle. We shall now take vows." Everyone is from all over, it's amazing. "Please answer in the order from which you were called. Do you solemnly swear to serve Yevon in all that you do?" Resounding 'I do's' were heard in order, myself following Jehru, the one who gave me the hint. "Do you swear to uphold moral standards and the teachings of Yevon, no matter what situation you find yourself in?" Resounding I do's again. "You are called to be an example, you are called to answer their questions and idolize the proper lifestyle, you are called to serve your leaders and follow orders. This position is not to be taken lightly; it is to be treated as dependent to the entire salvation of Spira. I ask of you, dear brethren, do you accept this responsibility, and swear to strive for morality and servitude for all of your days?" Resounding I do's. "Then I will now don you your respective robes, and grant you your books. Sir Jehru, please step forward." He is donned with a green robe, circling the neck and coming together at the breast, with symbols of Yevon throughout.
"He's got green robes because he's studied the 5th precedent and tested into it." Hiran whispers to me.
"I swear to uphold Yevon's teachings and be a beacon of wisdom to all who come to me." Jehru says with his right hand on his robes and his left on the book.
"I now ordain you an Accomplice Priest of Yevon." The Priest caresses Jehru's forehead with an oil, and he returns to his position beside me.
"Lady Yuna, please step forward."
"You gotta say that, too," Hiran whispers to me again.
The Priest places the blue robes around my neck; I bow slightly. They feel heavy, not so much literally but metaphorically… maybe it's this whole ceremony thing.
"I swear to uphold Yevon's teachings and be a beacon of wisdom to all who come to me," I repeated, my hands mimicking their places, feeling light and feminine compared to the bassy one before me.
"I now ordain you a Priestess of Yevon," and he draws the oil on my forehead as well. I return to my position and respectfully observe the rest of the inaugurates.
"We should study together. It can be tough being a girl during one of these things." Relia says to me after the ceremony closes. Her voice is dark, deep, strong; completely unlike mine. I can't help but admire her thick black braids and flawless skin.
"Yes, thank you," I bow. She laughs a little to herself. Well, what am I supposed to do? Is this the 'after class' goofing off part? I don't know anything about that.
"My name's Relia, but you knew that. And you're Yuna, Seymour's bride. Not so outgoing, for a wife of a Maester."
My cheeks turn red, I feel it.
"Hey, I didn't mean it as an insult. He did good, we could use more… sensitive people, in the clergy."
"It sounds like you've been in the study of Priesthood, before?"
"I failed my first time testing for Priestess."
"I'm sorry."
"Hey, you didn't say anything wrong. It is what it is." Her ebony skin glistened in the candlelight. She's so calm, so much more confident than I. "Djose doesn't have many study tools. Well, I suppose any town far from Bevelle is lacking. What about Besaid? That's an island, so like, how did you study at all?"
"We have plenty of books and Priests on our island." Our Temple's Priest came right from Bevelle.
"Sorry, didn't mean to offend."
"You didn't… But I… never actually studied for this. It's kind of a… while I'm here, thing, you know?"
Relia's face scrunched a little.
Oh no.
"Yuna… Priesthood isn't a… 'while I'm here,' thing. This is important to people. We do really important things for people, you know?" She taps her finger to her chin for a moment. "You can't just… waltz in here, play Priestess for a while, just because you're a Maester's wife. This isn't a game."
"It's not like that. I'm a Summoner, I've sworn to do as much good as I can for Spira, that's what this is about for me."
"You can't just swoop in here and play a game for a little while just because you're a Summoner either. This is a serious position. You can't just… play everything."
I look in her face for a moment, looking for something more… but there's nothing. She walks away from me and begins talking to someone else.
Is that how people are going to see me? Have I made a mistake?
Well, the ceremony's over; I can leave.
"Oh, everyone!" The Priest calls. "We are having a celebratory breakfast in the Banquet Hall! Please attend."
I find myself alone, then, standing there. And then, I'm angry at Relia, for downplaying my position as Summoner. I'm not 'playing' as Summoner. I'm dying, that's the least playing thing I can think of in the world.
Well… except for maybe… living, as an example?
Still, I'm mad.
But, I'm alone, standing there. So, who cares if I'm angry?
I walk out of the lecture hall, into the main (huge) hallway. Seymour is still there. It makes me happy in a place I didn't really know existed before. His head is tilted upwards a little, and he smiles.
"Well, did they eat you alive?" My mouth drops. Today is mouth-dropping day, apparently. (Maybe I should make a calendar? Two-tone day, never-a-dull-day-in-Bevelle-day, mouth-dropping day?)
"You… you know?"
"Apprentice-Priestship is competitive to extreme degrees." He still has that smug look on his face. After the morning I've had, I'm not in the mood. Screw that, I'm angry. Again. His face changes to concern, then, and I think that he's finally going to come around. "What did they say to you? Did they call you an amateur? Did they call you a harlot?"
"A harlot?!" My blood boils, my fists ball, is he the stupidest man on the planet?! "As a matter of fact, they said they could use someone like me around, someone sensitive. They called me valuable, maybe you should take a note!" And with that I stormed back into the lecture hall.
To my misfortune, they were just about to file out of the lecture hall, to the banquet. To think, I was hoping he would attend the banquet with me, to give me some comfort, despite being a sort of handicap. How could I be so… so needy? I'm not, I can do this, I will, and I chose to do this, on my own strength, not because I'm married to a Maester or because I'm a High Summoner's daughter or even because I'm a Summoner.
"Hey, need some company to the banquet?"
"I don't need any company!" I retorted, still thinking of Seymour.
Wait, but that wasn't Seymour talking.
Bright white teeth and tan skin flashed at me, then.
"Oh, ok, well, do you want some company to the banquet?" Teeth flashed again, with cool, confident eyebrows. It's Barthus, from Bevelle. I could use someone to sit next to… someone that actually wants to sit next to me, anyway. "I'll take that as a yes," and he throws an overly muscled arm through mine before I have a chance to react.
We walk out of the lecture hall, arm in arm, and I immediately look for Seymour. Barthus holds his head high, and makes absolutely zero effort to spot my husband. I hold Seymour's gaze for several moments, inclining my head, staring behind me. He moves to follow, to attend, to… be there for me. But I remember, and I turn my head swiftly, holding my head high next to Barthus. I don't need him to babysit.
Well, we ate, in celebration of the inauguration. I'm guessing I'm not the only one who was hungry, as there wasn't much talking after the food was served. Barthus peeked at me from under his lashes a few times. Relia peeked at me from atop her lashes a few times. After everyone had eaten, small talk began.
"It's kind of amazing, you know, everything you're doing." Barthus says to me, leaning on one elbow.
"Th-thank you. Not everyone thinks so."
"Hey, they're just jealous, or worried about themselves. You gotta know that." He says, inclining his dark eyebrows. He's quite the spectacle, Bevellian, corded muscles, chiseled face…
"Perhaps. What about you?" Did you always know you wanted to be a Priest, since you were a little boy? (I talk to kids too much…)
"Yeah, I've pretty much been training my whole life. My dad's a Priest, my mom was a failed Summoner." He said it like out of a book.
"I'm so sorry, that must be tragic." He shrugs his shoulders.
"She's the one who failed." Cold… "Besides, it was forever ago."
A loud bell sounded, ten times. Ten o'clock?
"Time for the mid-Priests meeting, we shall meet back at 1 o'clock sharp, after lunch! Don't be late!" The Priest announced.
"Hey, come with me." Barthus said, taking my hand, giving me little choice.
He led me to one of the healing/studying rooms. I didn't see my husband when I scoped while we were moving.
Once inside, he looked into my eyes for a moment, his head inclined slightly, brunette hair falling around his forehead, and then…
He's pushing me into the wall behind me, placing warm lips on my lips, on my cheek, on my chin, on my neck. I'm pushing him away, but he thinks I'm pushing up on his shoulders and lifts me up and kisses my chest, first in between my robes, and then moving my robes with his chin. He stops and looks me in the eyes again, how does someone do that when they're doing this to you?!
"I'm here if you need a little… stress relief."
"No! I don't need that and I don't need or want that from you!" I shake my head and try to push him away again but he, he's laughing, and I'm scared and then angry and does he know what I'm capable of?!
I grab his shoulders this time, instead of trying to push, and look him in the eyes,
"Listen, boy, you wanna stop what you're doing right now."
"Why, gonna call your husband on me?" He smirks.
The floor trembles, it catches fire, he's not smirking anymore.
A thousand pieces of debris explode as Ifrit twists through the floor, grabbing my waist in his wake, sending burning chucks flying. He takes a deep breath and roars a deafening roar, deafening even if it wasn't right next to my ear. Fire is coming out of his nose as he fumes; he was just waiting for me to call him to rectify this situation.
Barthus scrambles backwards, eventually to his feet, and makes for the door. He shouts, "You crazy bitch!" before exiting.
Ugh.
It doesn't take long for guards and Priests and, eventually, my husband, to arrive. When his gaze finally falls on my face, I see his eyes harden for a brief second, and then return to their normal stoic state. He silences the gasps and whispers and promises to handle the situation. He approaches me, speechless for once. I furrow my eyebrows unconsciously. I'm not about to feel guilty for this. He sighs, and deflates a little.
"Let's go somewhere private to talk." He finally says. For the first time, I notice the charred remains of the room I… destroyed.
He takes me by the hand and leads me, walking wordlessly. The rooms and roadways seem to fly by me in a haze; I see them but I don't really see them. I switch from looking around us to watching the blue robes before me, my beacon through the crowd and sunlight and walls.
Finally he sits us on a bed in a room, one arm propped behind my back. An Inn? Another healing room? I really couldn't tell you what time it is anymore. It might be 10:01, it might be 4PM. His garish blue locks feel comforting now, like a shield around me.
"I was scared," I say after a few moments.
"May I hold you?" he asks, almost… professionally. I look up and give a small nod, sucking my bottom lip in a little. He really only puts one arm around me, the one that was propped on the bed. We stay like this for a few minutes, I think. I'm beginning to regain my ability to feel time. "I'm sorry we had to go through all those people to get some privacy," he says simply. I lay my head on his shoulder.
A few more minutes go by.
I look up at his face, he turns to look down at mine.
"Where were you?" I can't hide the concern, the criticism, from my eyebrows.
"The mid-Priest meeting,"
"But you're a High Priest,"
"We monitor and sometimes lead such things."
I look at my hands in my lap for a moment, turning my fingers over in my palms.
"But, you knew you were going to it, didn't you? You couldn't have told me?" His face is unreadable. I turn a little, making more space between us, "You would say such horrible things to me, when you knew you were going to be away for the rest of the afternoon?"
"Horrible?" He laughs. I think he tried to restrain it, but nonetheless.
I scrunch my face, "Yes horrible, you don't think so?" He hiccoughs a couple laughs, still finding some sort of humor in this…
"Yuna, my dear, that apprenticeship can be very competitive, even violent. I truly thought they said such things to you already, or worse."
"Actually, they appreciated me," at first… "like maybe you should do." I crossed my arms at him, which is apparently funny as well.
"I do appreciate you," he takes my reluctant hands in his, "I value you, more than you will ever know." His eyes… his green, or blue, or grey, I'm not sure, eyes are bright, bottomless circles of bright color, that I think I could fall into forever. He puts my hands down on the bed, and inclines his head downward a little, looking at me through his lashes, "If they hadn't spoken to you so harshly yet, I hope it was a little easier hearing it from me first. I'm glad to be the one for you to be angry with, to take it out on. I hope I can give you more comfort that way."
So I told him everything, how it started off well, both times actually, and turned awful. Recounting the story, I felt foolish, like I could've prevented it. He assured me that that was one of the better word-twisting and taking advantage situations that he'd seen, and that I really didn't do anything wrong.
"It's dog-eat-dog, Yuna.
"After all, only one apprentice will be accepted into Priest training." What? I feel like I really should have known this before this moment. How is that right? "Trust me, it weans out the… well the wrong candidates, to say the least." I leaned into him a little. I wonder if this is screwing up his day. Out of nowhere, he laughs, a throaty laugh. "Believe it or not, that's not the most eventful first day we've had."
I look up at him, corners of his mouth pulled into a real smile, a real laugh. Maybe it's at someone else's expense, but it's truly a unique sight. A few blue strands find their way onto his face.
I reach up, bracelets clanking a little, to put them back in place. You know… I could use a kiss that isn't forced from a stranger.
His hand comes up to cup my face, and he leans toward me.
Did I actually say that? I'm pretty sure I just thought it…
He kisses me, kisses me differently than he ever has before. He kisses me deeply, slowly, making all the other kisses seem like little pecks. My hand is still lightly touching his face where I put his hair back, and I slide it around the back of his neck, blue locks tickling my wrist. He moves closer to me, pushes his face harder into mine, wraps his other arm around my waist, pulling me closer, smooshing my bow and his robes… it's exhilarating, and I've never…
He takes my jaw in between his thumb and forefinger, and looks me in the eyes, smiling… His smile is like a rare gift, so seldom on his face. Of course, he smiles plenty often, politely, convincingly… but real smiles, real emotion, is an infrequent visitor to his face. For a moment, I forget about all else.
For a moment, I want this. This man, who speaks about his own life like some sort of history book, rigid, but soft to me, opens up slightly to me. This marriage, respected and celebrated by all, bringing happiness to all, giving me a title I never thought I'd have. And these eyes, purple in this moment, cutting through me, and I never want them to stop. For a moment, I want this, all of this, completely, and I reach up to touch his face again, part my lips to tell him, and…
"We have classes to get to," he smiles more, but it turns into that polite smile, eyes focusing on me…
My face falls, involuntarily. A slew of emotions rush to me, longing, sadness, an underlying but fierce anger… mostly, dissatisfaction. He looks to me, still with that… that almost condescending smile, but there is concern in his eyes. He kisses my forehead.
"My dear, we really are on a tight schedule, you and I both." I hear the words but my emotions are still warring, evenly matched enough so that I am speechless. "Yuna," he finally drops the smile, looking down for a moment and then back to my eyes, "I will see you later tonight." He looks down for a moment again, and then straightens himself up, "If you would allow me, I'd like to take you on a date." My face perks up. It's not that it's, I don't know, what I was looking for, but it is intriguing.
Have I ever been on a date?
I smile contentedly, and nod. We'll see how this turns out.