20: Fancy Footwork

Rikku looked up from her perch on the steps as Jecht stooped over the rough-cut sign. Braska had retreated into the building to dry off once the blitzer made his appearance and gave them the all-clear.

Rikku was grateful for that, feeling subdued and uncertain in Braska's presence. Jecht was as oblivious as ever; his newfound serendipity was due in part to the large bottle of Al Bhed paan he was currently nursing. He'd gravitated to the public notice posted just outside the door.

Bored, but not yet willing to relocate indoors, Rikku kicked her heels against the soggy ground. "What's it say?"

"Dodge and Win," Jecht read out loud. "Says here the more you dodge, the more you can win. You just gotta register with that Hypello inside." He smiled toothily, polishing off the rest of his drink before tossing it over his shoulder and letting the empty bottle roll down the hillside. Rikku squeaked in protest, then shrugged in resigned dismay.

"So are you gonna do it?" she asked.

"Why the hell not?" Jecht replied, making his way back into the building. Moments later he emerged again, this time with Auron, Braska and a Hypello trailing after him. The Hypello paused upon seeing Rikku, taking in her crop of blonde hair and swirled pupils, then gave a small shrug and continued shuffling - as if seeing an Al Bhed on Pilgrimage was an everyday occurrence. Rikku grinned. Sometimes she just loved the Hypello.

"Yoo jump the lightning?" the Hypello crooned, blinking at Jecht.

"That's right!" Jecht boasted, puffing out his chest. "Just you watch, I'm gonna win ALL them prizes!"

"There are no adoring fans to impress here, Jecht," Rikku pointed out.

Unperturbed, Jecht cracked his neck and rubbed the back of his head. "Who cares? We'll get free stuff, won't we? Just call it pullin' my weight. 'Sides, I made Auron buy the beer."

"If just to shut him up," Auron explained sourly. "Before you start playing any more of your ridiculous games, there's something we need to discuss. Alone," he added, shooting a glare over his shoulder at their extra guest. The Hypello blinked and wandered towards the sign, uninterested in whatever it was they had to talk about.

"Auron!" Rikku hissed, glaring at him. "That was rude!"

Auron shrugged, unconcerned. "Hypellos don't waste time with useless frivolities. Neither do I." He frowned. "However I called this meeting because we have a slight problem."

"Problem?" Braska asked. He had pulled down his hood to replace the helmet on his head, and for a moment Rikku mourned the loss of his braid. He seemed smaller and more human without the ritualistic trappings of Yevon that he chose to wear.

"Yes. There's another group of travellers staying at the agency tonight, and there was only one room available. It will not be comfortable." All three sets of eyes swivelled to look at Rikku. Jecht was the first to respond with a widening smile.

"Finally," he snorted. "The little princess has to share digs just like the rest of us. Welcome to the real world, Blondie."

Auron glowered at Jecht. "Perhaps we should just let you sleep outside. You are the one who snores, after all."

"It's not a big deal," Rikku said. "I'll sleep on the floor; I'm used to roughing it. In fact, if this works out maybe we can save a little money later on and just bunk up together whenever we stop to rest at an inn. It's not like we don't camp together already, right?"

Braska looked as if he was on the verge of objecting, but Auron cut off his protest with a firm shake of his head. "They don't have the space and we don't have the money to negotiate. Unless you want to sleep in the rain tonight, it's this or nothing." Thunder cracked, and Rikku found herself nodding.

"Say 'yes' already!"

Braska still looked hesitant, but after a short internal struggle, he sighed and dropped his shoulders.

"It seems we are determined to break every rule on this Pilgrimage. Very well. Though I apologize for any harm that may come to your reputation, Rikkma."

Rikku rolled her eyes. "I'm Al Bhed. I can take a few hits; stop worrying already."

Braska looked down in quiet dismay and pushed to his feet. "Do as you will," he said, moving away from them.

"Great!" Jecht waved a lazy hand as he wandered towards the Hypello. "Just don't pull any of that dress shit on us. We've had enough of them lucky charms for today." His tone was light, but Rikku hesitated, thinking back on Braska's good-luck kiss and odd behavior outside of the agency. How much was there really behind Jecht's simple demands?

Is he trying to protect Braska? She shook her head.

No matter what his intentions, Jecht's advice was sound; she didn't need Lady Luck's confidence - or libido - not when she was going to be spending the night sandwiched between her three companions.

"Did something happen between you and Braska?" Auron's question cut through her thoughts.

"He asked me what my name was," Rikku replied as she watched their two companions talking in the rain. "I didn't tell him." She paused. "He didn't really want to know."

Auron remained silent, pressuring her to continue. It only took a mere moment to break her indecision; she was confused, and he would listen. Simple.

"It's just... well, you know, we're here, and it's Al Bhed, and I thought maybe I could cheer him up, but it backfired, and then he asked about me, and then he thought I was Unsent, and then I cut myself and he healed it and told me to run away if I could but I think he was really asking me to stay and I don't know anything anymore!"

Rikku inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. "Except that he's sad. He doesn't want to be alone, but he doesn't want to hurt us... and he definitely wants to - " She choked. " - to fight Sin."

"He won't be alone," Auron assured her. "I will remain by his side until the end."

"That's what I told him!" Rikku exploded. "I told him we'd all be there for him, but he didn't want us to be. It's like he's already dead inside!"

Auron's face was grave. His words were unexpectedly gentle, all things considered. "He was right to tell you so. You can't promise anything for the others. You can't always promise things of yourself," he added. "Would you deny Jecht the chance to reunite with his wife and son for Braska's sake? Would you really want to take that choice away from him?"

Rikku scowled. But he won't leave, she wanted to say. He can't leave. Stumped and frustrated, she let out an angry snort and dropped her head onto her knees. "Don't say a word," she groaned into her kneecaps. "I know you're right already, so don't rub it in."

She listened to the faint strain of voices blending together with the falling rain as Braska, Jecht and the Hypello conversed, and realized with a sharp pang how much she hated this Pilgrimage. Not for the first time, she found herself wishing that Bahamut would have also stolen her memories, not just her future. It was easier to worship legends from afar; getting to know them was fraught with all sorts of unexpected dangers. The desire to change time, to change history itself pulled at her; the ever-present horror of Sin's ravages reminded her of what that bit of selfishness would ultimately cost.

I'm going to miss them, she realized bitterly. It's going to hurt more than watching Tidus and Auron leave the last time.

Desperate, Rikku lifted her head and scrabbled through her pouch. Auron eyed her, wary of the inexplicable burst of energy after her obvious depression. Intent on her mission, she ignored him and pulled out another one of their blank spheres. "For making memories," she said when he jerked back.

"I am still uncomfortable with those... things," he admitted.

Rikku frowned. "But you don't believe that they suck your soul or anything anymore, do you?"

Auron frowned. "I do find myself re-evaluating some of my beliefs," he told her. "But old habits are hard to break."

Smiling, Rikku offered him the empty sphere. "Now's a good time to start, don't you think?" She nudged him. "You said it yourself. Pilgrimages! New beginnings! Turning over a new leaf as a chronicler!"

Auron accepted the sphere from her with a skeptical expression. "Hnn," he grunted.

"... or not," Rikku added with a small laugh. "I think chroniclers need to have more than a three-syllable vocabulary."

Ignoring her in favor of studying the sphere, Auron jabbed at it with a fingertip. "Leave the editorials and just tell me how they work," he grumbled.

Smiling, Rikku pointed out the controls. "You press this darker part here to activate the recording." She motioned towards a specific spot on the sphere.

"Like this?" Auron pressed his thumb roughly into the delicate controls. With a gasp, Rikku reached over and grabbed his hand before he could shatter the device.

"Not so tight!" she scolded him, repositioning his fingers. "Spheres can take a lot of abuse, but they're not exactly blitzballs. You have to be a little careful!"

Frowning, she leaned in closer and covered his hand with her own; she marvelled at how much larger it was than hers. Even alive and warm, his skin was still ghostly pale by comparison.

Feeling shy, Rikku adjusted his grip on the sphere, wondering why Auron wasn't objecting, or at the least delivering some sort of scathing retort about her teaching abilities and the sanctity of his personal space. Not that she doubted the former; it was more that brutal critique was something she had come to expect from him. His silence, she was finding, was much more unnerving than his sarcasm.

Clearing her throat, Rikku slid her hands away from his. "You have to leave room for the sphere to capture the images you want to record, too," she managed to say, proud that her voice hadn't completely deserted her. "Try to cover as little of the surface as possible with your grip. And face the brighter side forward."

"Am I doing it properly now?" Auron asked, turning the sphere around in his hands.

"Yeah, exactly!" Rikku gushed, pleased at his quick adaptation to the foreign technology, but moreover relieved that he wasn't commenting on her strange behavior. A small part of her was glad that he was either dense or blatantly unwilling to pick up on her discomfort.

"Just press that spot to start recording. You can pick anything, really. Wait, I got it! Why don't you try recording Braska? You know, for Yunie!"

"Hnn," Auron grunted in reply, standing and aiming the sphere towards the man in question. He paused, his forehead wrinkling as he observed the tableau before him. "What in Yevon's name is he doing?"

Confused, Rikku looked at Braska. Comprehension dawned when spotted Jecht over his shoulder. The blitzer was hopping from one foot to the other under the open sky. He lifted a telling finger to the rolling clouds overhead with a cocky grin.

"Oh, that," she said with a bored sigh. "Jecht's trying to see how many lightning hits he can take before his hair burns off."

Auron snorted. "I knew I shouldn't have bought him that paan. Your people's beer makes Yevon's holy wine seem like rosewater. He doesn't need the lightning to lose his hair. Just give him another few bottles of that poison and it'll fall out on its own."

Rikku shrugged; it wasn't as though she was about to deny anything Auron had just said. Al Bhed beer was almost as world-famous as their technology. It was still considered a controlled substance in Bevelle.

"Hey, tough people need tough drinks. Besides, it happens to be a handy fuel replacement if you find yourself in a tight situation. Always practical, that's another one of our mottos!" she cheered.

"And Spira finally discovers the true cause of your unique pupils," Auron sniped with some amusement. They watched Jecht leap too slowly from a lightning strike, only to land sprawled on his back. "At least it should numb some of that pain."

Rikku waved Jecht's shock-injury off. "Look, Braska's healing him already. He'll be fine! … I think."

Jecht picked himself up off the ground and approached the observant Hypello with a look of pleasure. There was some kind of exchange, and then Jecht handed Braska a few bottles of what appeared to be hi-potions. Sensing Auron's curiosity, Rikku piped up.

"It's a contest," she explained. "Dodge-the-lightning, or something like that. You can win prizes."

"Hmm, so he can be useful after all," Auron mused.

Privately, Rikku was glad Jecht volunteered. It was a chance for fresh supplies that they couldn't afford to turn down, and she didn't think Auron would be fast enough to avoid the lightning on his own. Braska's heavy robes wouldn't have helped either; besides that, he was their Summoner. There was something inside of her that just rebelled at the thought of allowing their leader to willingly electrocute himself while his Guardians stood by and watched.

Which left only her or Jecht to do the jumping. And there was no way in Spira - scratch that, in the entire Farplane - she was going to start lightning-dodging for fun.

Noticing his audience, Jecht waved them over. "Hoo-ie!" he yelled, shaking his shaggy mane out and sending fat water droplets flying. "Did'ya see that? I'm gonna nab that two-hundred dodge prize in no time flat!"

Rikku's mouth dropped open. "Two hundred? Are you nuts?" The last time anyone had tried to dodge that much lightning, it had been Tidus accepting the agency's challenge. Afterwards, he hadn't needed to use Wakka's hair gel for days. They'd only gotten him to relent after Lulu agreed to do the prize jumping, much to everyone's surprise - until they saw her sending out one of her stuffed cactuars into the rain in Tidus' place. She'd kept the hard-won prize to herself, too, not that anyone had dared to question her. Even Tidus knew better than to pester a mage with a cactuar that crackled lightning needles.

"I'm not crazy, I'm good," Jecht replied, all confidence. "And I want you to get this on the record," he added, noting the sphere in Auron's hands. "For the fans!"

"What fans?" Auron asked smugly.

"Well I can name at least one, 'bout seven years old. I think you might know her." Jecht smirked.

"C'mon, you said you wanted to try it!" Rikku urged, ignoring the fact that he technically hadn't said anything. Silence without protest was just as good as implicit agreement in her book, prompting her to give Auron a nudge with her elbow. "Look, you've got a willing audience, too!"

With a patient sigh, Auron shook his head in disbelief and pressed his thumb against the sphere. It glowed with telltale soft blue light; he flinched, but managed to keep his grip on the sphere. Swinging it around, he peered through the blue water as Rikku had instructed.

"Hey! Hold it steady!" Jecht shouted.

Auron rolled his eyes. "Why am I doing this?" he ground out, his thumb moving over the power button. The light of the sphere died out, and Jecht shouted in protest.

"Aww c'mon Auron, I haven't even started yet!" Seeing how little effect his words were having, he beseeched Rikku instead. "Blondie! Make him do it right!"

Rikku sighed and crossed her arms. "Auron," she muttered under her breath. "I didn't teach you all that stuff about spheres for my health, you know."

"This is completely ridiculous," Auron replied in a disgusted voice, trying to push the sphere back onto her. "It's nothing more than child's play and a waste of our time."

"It's not a waste of time!" Rikku replied too loudly, drawing Jecht and Braska's stares. The Hypello was still oblivious to their banter, but she toned her volume down anyway. "Maybe it is child's play," she hissed at Auron. "But just who do you think these spheres are for, anyway? Jecht? Braska? Think again!"

Auron fell silent, glaring at the sphere in his hand. He looked up and caught a glimpse of Braska's profile, which seemed to cement his decision. With a deep frown, he stabbed at the controls once more. Jecht whooped in victory, but Auron ignored him and focused the sphere on Braska instead.

Braska's face was turned towards the heavy thunderclouds in the distance. His expression was just as shuttered as it had been when he spoke to Rikku alone.

"What do you see there, my lord?" Auron asked.

Braska turned and stared in faint surprise, observing the glowing sphere in Auron's hands. His eyes flicked to Rikku, lips stretched in a thoughtful smile. "Oh, I was just... thinking," he replied.

Rikku shivered, feeling the mood dampen from Braska's melancholy in ways all the rain in the Thunder Plains couldn't manage. Clenching her fists, she forced herself to look away. Thankfully, Jecht was more than willing to provide a much-needed distraction, whether he knew it or not.

" 'ey! This is important!" Jecht hollered at Auron over the sound of rolling thunder. "No foolin' around," he added, glancing up at the sky in anticipation. "You're gonna spoil it!"

Auron spun the sphere around just as the lighting struck; there was a bright flash, then - "Whoa!" - and the all-too-familiar smell of singed hair was rising above the acrid scent left in its aftermath.

Blinking, Rikku sought out Jecht; he sat up slowly from where the blast had thrown him, shaking his head. If she squinted, she thought she could see a little smoke coming from his ears.

Braska was already issuing the next healing spell, waving his staff.

"Are you all right?" he asked, kneeling by Jecht until the other man's eyes came back into focus. Auron, who also approached, was much less sympathetic.

"Now there's a scene for posterity!" he interjected in a smug tone.

Jecht looked up in irritation, rubbing his head. "Yeah, yeah..." he grunted as Braska laughed. "Just stop that thing and give it to me already, alright?"

In an unusual show of charity, Auron shrugged and allowed Jecht to have the sphere without argument. "Not much of a display for your fans," he observed. "Unless you're trying to lose them."

Jecht scrambled to his feet and tossed the sphere to Rikku, who caught it by reflex. "I'm not making a new costume out of this," she declared.

"Much as we'd love to see that," Jecht replied amidst the groans, "it ain't for you. Just put it with my stuff. I'll give it to my boy later! I bet he'll like seeing that." Embarrassed, he straightened and rubbed the back of his head. "I'll make another one for Yuna, you'll see!"

"Perhaps later," Braska added, still grinning. He nodded at the Hypello, who bobbled towards the agency doors. "It has been a long day. I believe we should all retire to a dry room and warm food."

"As long as the paan ain't warm, too," Jecht added.

Rikku scowled. Not that she didn't appreciate Jecht's good humor, but his addiction was, as Auron delicately put it, worrisome.

"How about not including any paan at all?" she suggested.

Jecht ignored her and brushed by, and then Auron stopped at her side. "We can argue this point later," he murmured in a low undertone. "Braska is exhausted, we all need rest."

With a reluctant nod, Rikku sighed and followed the others inside.

.x.x.x.

They retired to their lone bedroom soon after entering the agency; the frosty reception Braska received was enough to drive the entire group from the lounge in a show of solidarity.

And cowardice - or caution, as Rikku preferred to call it - on her part; she kept her hood up and her head down, careful to hide any sign of her outfit or coloring that might have hinted at her Al Bhed origins. Braska was a convenient, if a bit unfortunate, distraction. To Rikku's great relief, Rin wasn't there; she remembered hearing he'd been trying to open a shop at the foot of Mount Gagazet. The Ronso were a proud, stern people, however, and Rin's contract had taken months to finalize - long after Braska's Pilgrimage was over, Rikku realized with a twist in her gut.

The room turned out to be larger than expected, but still a shade too small for comfort. With only two beds to share, Braska insisted Rikku claim one - over Jecht's loud protest - while Auron relegated Braska himself to the other. The remaining bedrolls were spread between them, and a moody silence broken only by the occasional thunderclap settled over the group.

Even Jecht was more subdued than usual, despite the easy access to alcohol; it wasn't hard to see why. Surrounded by the hostile darkness outside and cramped, dull grey walls inside, the small room reminded her too much of their incarceration in Bevelle.

If she could have escaped from the pressure cooker, Rikku would have. More than ever before, she felt the grip of shame overtake her; shame for her family and her clan.

They, the Al Bhed, wronged by Yevon for too many years, had grown so used to prejudice and hatred that they unwittingly took to heart the very lessons they claimed to abhor. It cut her to the quick to see Braska suffer the hostile stares, and a small whisper of conscience reminded her that once, she herself had been no different from the agency personnel.

But I am different now... aren't I? She tried to focus on the work at hand. I hope so.

When Auron left the room to gather food for an evening repast, Jecht trailed after him with the more lascivious intent to seek out a specific choice Al Bhed beverage. That left Rikku alone with Braska, and she busied herself with the duty of synthesizing some of the hard-earned loot onto their equipment. It was difficult to keep her concentration on the delicate metalwork needed to graft materials onto Auron's bracer, though; her mind kept straying to Braska's distant look, and the feel of his fingertips on her lips. She blinked and stared at the bracer in her hands.

I like Auron.

Unbidden, her eyes flew to Braska and she flinched. Wiping some sweat from her brow, she tried her best to ignore the hairs standing up on the back of her neck. Braska's unerring gaze had been locked on her from the moment she started working. She caught him staring every time she snuck a glance up, and wondered if he bothered to blink. It was a little creepy. Well, a lot creepy. Most of the time it was like he didn't even really see her. She was tempted to snap at him, as she would have at Jecht or Auron had they been doing the same.

"You're afraid of lightning," Braska said, breaking the monotonous silence.

Rikku started and looked up. At least the misty, distracted expression was starting to fade; she supposed an uncomfortable interrogation was still better than Braska's distance.

He gave her an appeasing smile at her wary expression. "I don't mean to criticize. Actually, I'm rather impressed. You're afraid of the lightning, but still you managed to overcome your fear."

"Same as you," Rikku replied without thinking. Her eyes widened and her hand flew to her mouth as Braska looked away. "I - uh, I mean..."

"You would paint me a hero," Braska said. "I thank you for that. But it's not quite true yet. I don't know that I'll pass the final trial when the time comes," he admitted.

Rikku's eyebrows lifted. "Auron doesn't doubt you," she said, careful to keep her voice steady.

"He's a good man," Braska answered just as neutrally.

Rikku nodded. Didn't she have this conversation with Auron already? I didn't like it then, either. She fiddled with the bracer. "Um, listen. I don't mean any disrespect here, but, uh. If you're going to say what I think you're going to say, could you maybe just not say it?"

Braska looked surprised, and Rikku pressed her advantage.

"Just because I'm the only female on this Pilgrimage doesn't mean you have some kind of duty to hook me up with Auron. And it doesn't mean he has the right to force me onto you either! What if I don't like either of you that way?"

Braska gave her an amused smile, and Rikku felt transparent. Maybe the wrong argument here. Feeling her cheeks turn red, she refocused on the bracer. "Well, okay, but let's say neither of you like me that way?" she grumbled.

Braska smirked. "I'm fairly sure I can assuage at least some of those fears. But," he added, holding up a hand as Rikku stiffened, "I take it you mean that Auron is not returning your affections the way you want him to. You shouldn't give up all hope."

Rikku's frantic polishing of the bracer slowed down. "Why are you telling me this?" she asked, looking up at Braska. "I mean, don't you, umm... well, you know, you... and me, and well your wife and all," she said in a rush, forcing herself to meet his gaze.

The corners of Braska's eyes crinkled as he smiled at her. "Seeing you here is a great inspiration to me, Rikkma. I'm trying to overcome my own doubts and fears. I think of it as a challenge. One I must best."

"Oh," Rikku said, deflating as she mulled over his words. Braska didn't want to fall in love again, that much she could gather. Maybe he feared he would forget his wife - Raenn was foundation for his Pilgrimage and supplied him with the will to drive it forward.

Well, pardon me for not helping you figure out less painful ways to kill yourself there, was what she wanted to tell him. But even Rikku knew it was a dumb idea to air. Really, really dumb. It would be like taking Yuna's Gunner sphere and practicing Trigger on myself. Yep, it would definitely be a disasterrific thing to say to Braska right now. She bit down on her tongue to keep any sharp retorts from spilling out, just in case.

Braska frowned at her. "You shouldn't hurt yourself that way," he warned her. "Unless you want me to heal it again."

Rikku released her tongue instantly, her face turning bright red. Braska finally dropped his gaze. The ensuing silence wasn't only pregnant, it was having triplets.

"My intents are pure, but at times I find my will lacking," he murmured. "I apologize for my... indelicacy. Please, let us forget it for the moment and continue our conversation," he said, his tone pleasant.

Rikku winced; Al Bhed were known for being brutally honest and outspoken when it came to their emotions. She could see why Braska generated such irritation within her family during his visit and subsequent courtship of Raenn. "Umm, sure. Just... leave off the Auron bits off for now. Let's talk about something else instead, okay?" Braska seemed relieved at her acceptance of their charade, and Rikku smiled uncomfortably.

"Tell me... how did you overcome your fear of lightning? As inspiring as I would like to think this Pilgrimage may be, I suspect we are not to blame for your courage."

Rikku couldn't help but laugh a little at that. "Courage?" she giggled. "Umm, not really. You should've seen me the first time I came here! I grabbed onto my friend's leg and wouldn't let go no matter how much he tried to shake me off! Afterwards, the others told me I looked like a desperate monkey. I was so scared I didn't even care." Rikku stifled another laugh. "Eventually one of my friends got fed up with it and suggested that I camp out here for a week."

That would've been putting it nicely. After one particularly embarrassing brush with a Larvae during a sphere hunt and their subsequent loss to Leblanc, Paine privately threatened to skewer her if she didn't get over her astraphobia. Rikku was grateful the taciturn warrior hadn't ever actually told soft-hearted Yuna just how much of that camping trip had been inspired by sword point rather than bravery. The end result was the same, after all.

"I see," Braska was saying. "You seem rather well-travelled."

"Oh!" Rikku fidgeted. "Well, yeah, I guess you could say that." She smiled in relief as the door to the room slammed open and Auron stomped in, balancing a tray of food in one hand and a tight grip on Jecht's arm in the other. "Dinner!" she cheered, grateful for the distraction.

"Get in there and stay in there," Auron growled, shoving Jecht to the floor.

"Aww, man - " Jecht said, his voice pitching to a near-whine.

"You are NOT dodging lightning for paan," Auron ground out. "Don't make me repeat myself. I promise that you'll regret it." He slammed the tray of food onto the small table pushed up against the wall, sending soup slopping over the sides of the bowls. "Your dinner," he told the others. "If the soup seems a little thin, it's only because our brilliant companion over here overshot our budget with his addiction."

" 'ey, I didn't know I'd drunk that much!" Jecht protested.

Auron glowered at him.

Jecht shrugged and reached for one of the bowls, but Auron thunked his sword onto the floor, cutting off Jecht's progress before he could reach the food.

"Not for you," Auron grunted, his eyes narrowing. "If you want to sustain yourself on beer, that's your choice. But you will not steal nourishment from the mouths your companions as well."

Jecht slouched back onto his bedroll and sulked.

Braska sighed and shook his head, ignoring the two bickering men and claiming his bowl of soup; Rikku followed him in turn. It was only after Auron also procured his own bowl and they begun their meal that Braska broke the silence.

"So then," he said to Rikku, putting down his spoon. "Are you a Blitzball player, by chance?"

Rikku choked on her soup.

Jecht snorted, sitting up and hunching over his bent knees. "What, her? Are you kiddin' me?" He laughed. "Look at them skinny little arms! I bet she couldn't even toss a blitzball across a sphere pool!"

Insulted, Rikku sniffed. "Shut up! I so can play Blitzball! I'll have you know I'm one of the best passers in the league! Nobody passes like the Rikkunator!"

Auron frowned. "I don't remember seeing you in league games," he said.

Rikku blushed. "Well, I, uh, I don't play professionally anymore. You know, falling out with the Al Bhed and all that." She didn't think Auron was buying her story, but fortunately the mere mention of Blitzball was enough to whet Jecht's interest.

"No kiddin'! You, a blizter! Who would've thunk it?" Jecht muttered. "What position do you play?"

Rikku stuck her tongue out at Jecht. "I prefer the midfield, but I can do backside defense too," she answered. "Oh ye of little faith! I bet I could block some of your passes!"

"But not my shots," Jecht bragged.

Rikku snorted. "Well, if you wouldn't knock the defenders unconscious with a ball to the head, we might have more of a chance. I swear, the Jecht Shot is the worst thing to ever happen to Blitzball!"

Jecht stared at her. "How would you know? I ain't never done the Jecht Shot on you."

Rikku shrugged. "My friend Paine practiced the Mark III on me once, and that was more than enough," she groaned.

"There's a chick doing my shot?" Jecht yelled. "There ain't nobody who can do a Jecht shot! That's why it's called the Jecht shot!"

Rikku rolled her eyes. "You keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better," she sang with a smirk. It dropped after a moment of consideration. "You know, I don't think you'd get away with calling Paine a chick, either. She might not look it, but I bet she's got more muscles than you. And she knows how to wield her sword."

Jecht grinned. "Sounds like Auron's dream girl to me. Even got the right name."

Rikku blinked and came out of her fantasy. She snuck a glance at Auron, who up until then had silently endured the conversation. Now he was glaring at Jecht once more.

Was it because Jecht was right? Paine was the serious type, and so was Auron. And Paine was a fighting machine - you only had to look at her in Full Throttle mode to see that much. Was that the kind of girl Auron would go for? A warrior? She cringed even while kicking herself for not grabbing the warrior dressphere before her journey began.

"Don't presume to know anything about me or my tastes," Auron grunted. "Especially when you yourself have none," he added with a disgusted curl of his lip. He focused on eating the rest of his soup, stiff posture daring Jecht to make another comment at his own peril.

"Hit a nerve, did I?" Jecht replied, undaunted. "Well if I'm so wrong, why don't you tell us what you like in a woman, eh? I'm sure we'd all love to hear it." Apparently the beer feud he lost was still fresh in his memory. Or the paan was running high enough in his blood to make him forget caution. Tension in the room skyrocketed, and Auron dropped his spoon into his bowl with a loud clatter.

"Jecht, shut up," Rikku hissed.

"I'm just tryin' to help you out here!"

"You call this helpful?" Anger and embarrassment warred for domination.

"Rikkma." Braska's voice cleanly snipped the taut emotional wires that had grown between them. "How did you manage to travel so far, if not through professional blitzing?"

Her fury deflating in a rush, Rikku smiled at Braska gratefully. "I've... uh... been on some trips." The relief faded when Braska tilted his head in thought.

"The Al Bhed usually travel in numbers for safety. And as much as it pains me to say this, they wouldn't always be welcome in certain places, no matter how large or small their group might be."

He paused, and Rikku smiled past the sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach. Braska was good at defusing tense situations... but at the moment, she was more concerned with the cost of their latest truce.

"The only two exceptions of this rule which come to mind are the professional Blitzball League... and Pilgrimages, of course."

Auron was now paying complete attention to the conversation, his curiosity waked.

"I... um... well, I... huh, you know it's funny, but - "

"You've been on Pilgrimage before," Braska concluded, surprise registering in his voice. He only had to look at her with those Yuna eyes, and Rikku found herself nodding against her will. She could feel Auron's stare burning into her. "Who was your summoner?"

Rikku studied her hands, trying to maintain her outward poise. Her mind raced in panicked circles. I need to name a summoner, and quick! But who's a summoner they'd believe? A flash of inspiration struck her; what about Lulu's old summoner? Lady Ginnem, wasn't that her name? She opened her mouth to spit out the answer, and froze. What if Lady Ginnem hadn't even started on her Pilgrimage yet? Or worse yet, what if she had? Would Braska had heard of her? No, she thought, booting Ginnem's name out the metaphorical window. C'mon, Rikku, thinkthinkthink! What about the other summoner they'd met on Yuna's Pilgrimage? The dead one? She'd said she was the guardian of a forgotten temple. What was her name again? Belgie... Bella...

"Belgemine!" Rikku blurted out in triumph, before moderating her tone. "Lady Belgemine, I mean," she repeated. "She was... unique." Ain't that the truth.

"Belgemine," Braska repeated. "Strange, I've never come across that name in my studies before."

"That's because her Pilgrimage failed," Rikku said. "At the Calm Lands." At least that much was truth. Her words had an immediate and profound effect on Auron and Braska; their expressions grew sober at her revelation.

"Failed?" Jecht repeated. "What, like she didn't pass a test?"

"... something like that," Rikku told him. In a strange way, she had liked Belgemine despite her eccentricities. She wasn't in the mood to pander her story for a paan-buzzed Jecht; it seemed too disrespectful.

"It means she died in the Calm Lands, Jecht," Braska answered for her.

"Hold up a minute, died?" Jecht sat up straight. He gave Rikku a confused, helpless look. "But weren't you her Guardian?"

Auron slammed his bowl of soup on the floor, nearly cracking the ceramic. "Shut up, Jecht." For once it was a relief to see such serious displeasure directed at someone besides herself; it was actually a little embarrassing to consider that maybe - just maybe - he was getting so worked up on her behalf.

It took a few more extremely awkward moments for Jecht to process the command. "But if Blondie here was her Guardian, and the Summoner died, wouldn't that mean she - oh. Oh, I get it! Ooh..."

Auron was looking angrier by the syllable, and Braska for once didn't seem to be coming to the rescue. Rikku, for her part, tried to act like a disheartened, emotionally scarred Guardian who had failed at her duty as best she could. It wasn't that hard, considering she really did have plenty of scarring Guardian experience; still, it felt a little uncomfortable to lay claim to such a sensitive role when it wasn't really hers to play. At least this will throw Auron and Braska off the scent for a little while.

"It's all right," she ventured, taking pity on Jecht, who was now rubbing his head and looking no better than a whipped chocobo. "It was a long time ago."

"You must have been so young," Braska said with a note of sorrow.

"Fifteen," Rikku admitted. "But you know... it was a learning experience. Helped me grow, I guess? I'm way better at this now than I was then," she reassured Braska.

She looked at the three men and nodded to herself. Some of her internal tension, at least, had eased - it wasn't so much the unexpected reprieve Belgemine's convenient Pilgrimage provided, more because her conclusion sounded so right. Content to let the trouble Jecht stirred lie, she cleared the surface of her bed. Flopping down, she shut her eyes and tried to ignore the rumbling of the storm outside. "We're all tired. Let's just stop arguing about this and get some rest," she said out loud.

Auron grunted in agreement. Though her eyes were closed, she was willing to bet he was looking at her and forced herself not to shiver. How long it would be before he sniffed out her latest in the huge tapestry of lies she was weaving together? The strange, complete confidence she placed in him - that he, of all of them, would figure it out in a matter of time - almost made her smile. She cracked her eyes open, and to his credit he managed to not look surprised when she met his stare.

"Thanks," she mouthed silently.

His eyebrows lifted in surprise at her acknowledgement - with all the confrontation crackling in the room, doubtless he'd expected her to add to the mix. The lines on his face softened, and for Rikku it was even better than one of his wry smiles.

She stomped out the guilty mental droning of her prophecies of doom and gloom and rolled to her side instead, Auron's expression lodged comfortably at the forefront of her mind. The way he had looked at her just then had been relaxed, and more importantly, honest. At least there could still be moments of simple, comforting honesty in this Pilgrimage full of deception and lies.

edited 7/16: changed Rikku's field position in Blitzball