Blurry

A Final Fantasy X Fanfiction

By: Celes Chere



Author's Note: Hi everyone! Well, this is my third romance novel on fanfiction.net, hopefully it will be as somewhat successful as my other ones. ^^ The title, as some of you may recognize, is also the same as Puddle of Mudd's most awesomest song ever, however, this is not a songfic. ^^;; However, it is that song that inspired the title of this fic. Anyone who knows about the song Blurry really should listen closely to the lyrics and tell me, is that not Tidus and Yuna?! "There are oceans in between us, but that's not very far..."

At anyrate, I hope everyone likes this story and has enough patience for me to finish it...heh heh heh, I know I am slow, but I will add chapters as soon as I pop them out, and hopefully people will leave me lots of reviews to encourage me?? *is not ashamed to beg, lol!* I don't really know what else to say, except that Square owns all of these characters except for the few I may make up here and there, and that Square is also god. Hai! This story takes place about a year after the game's events, so mostly everyone's age will be a year higher then the official Square one. ^_^ Oh yeah, and since I can't indicate italics, and that is really beginning to make me mad for some of my documents, inner thought and emphasis on words or ideas will be proclaimed with a set of <'s and >'s.





Vision I- The Boy Born of the Water

It was none other than a sunny day on the beautiful island of Besaid. The skies were as clear blue as the oceans they hailed over, almost the color of a crystal clear cerulean memory sphere, a popular item among the people of Spira for preserving memories and thoughts for loved ones. The ocean's waves were gentle that morning, crashing onto Besaid's white sanded beaches with a humble roar that could hardly be heard among the seagulls that chattered and squeaked to each other as they searched the beaches for breakfast, gliding with their wings spread open as they dived down to the sands. It was a lazy June morning, and the heat was already steadily climbing, which meant that any of Besaid's villagers that had outdoor business were all out doing it now, before the humidity and weather got too unbearable.

The most activity on the beach this morning was at the dock, where the workers and hired hands for the summer were preparing to welcome a ship from Luca. On the less crowded area of the beach, to the east, a few children were playing with a blitzball, laughing and shouting at each other as they kicked the ball back and forth, practicing their passing skills. However, there was one lone figure that morning who did not have work nor play on her mind, but rather nothing at all. Well, at least she was trying to keep her mind clear of any intruding thoughts, but it wasn't working too well.

<Concentrate...oh no wait, do I concentrate? What did Wakka say about concentrating? Oh dear, this meditating trick is a lot harder than he let on! This is giving me more stress than relieving it...Darn darn darn...>

Yuna let out a slight groan of frustration, but did not open her eyes quite yet and sit up from the towel that she was laying out on. She wasn't ready to give up. She let out a soft breath to try to relieve her frenzied senses, and tried once more to clear her mind, mentally blocking out the sounds of activity around her, making her skin numb to the warmth of the towel and sand beneath her body.

"Mmmm..." Yuna let out a soft sigh from her beach wind-kissed lips as she slowly undid her senses and let her spirit mentally detatch itself from Spira, the real world. Alas, she had done it! Her mind that had been swirled with cloudy images and blurred voices, was now empty of all of that, and she felt as if her senses had been heightened and atuned a hundredfold. Her hands, which had been folded across her lap slowly relaxed themselves and slid to her sides. It was not easy to confirm, but Yuna felt almost as if she were back in the Farplane.

Suddenly, the sound of a rather rough wave came crashing onto the shore, jarring Yuna's temporary state of Nirvana. Images of the beach and the ocean began to fill her mind again, reminding her of where she really was. However, her fingers twitched a little and her breath got caught in her throat when the image of a lone pyrefly floated across her closed eyes, slowly flying out into the mental ocean her mind had become filled with. It was soon followed by another, and then another, and soon a whole group more, all flying into the high waves of the ocean, becoming swallowed and gone an instant later. The crystal blue ocean began to glitter and churn wildly, as if a storm had ascended upon it. There was then the first sound Yuna could make out besides the ocean's roar-- The Hymn.

The Hymn of the Fayth.

Sung of an unknown origin, The Hymn floated over the ocean, seeming to calm it and to dull it's glittering surface considerably. As the sound of The Hymn began to fade, the water parted and a figure began to emerge from it, their head first breaking through the surface of the water followed by the rest of their body. It was a boy, that was easy enough to tell, with wide, bare shoulders that glistened from the salty water dripping down from them onto his smooth, tanned chest. His face was smiling, bright, radiating sunshine to whoever's eyes fell upon it. His cheeks were flushed with a light blush and his sky blue eyes were shining with the reflection of the sunlight on the ocean surface. Water beads dripped down from his soft, long spikes of blonde hair, the subtle highlights in it almost appearing white. Yuna felt her eyes sting and burn with tears of remembrance as the figure slowly approached her, a low wave gently lapping over his now exposed, bare stomach. The only anything the figure was wearing was a silver chain around his neck with a silver, cross- like emblem that matched the stud in his left ear, but Yuna knew. She knew who it was right away.

"....Yuna...!" His pink lips parted slightly as he called her name, climbing out of the ocean he had been born of. He began to pad across the beach towards her. In her mind, Yuna sat up and opened her eyes fully, taking in the young man's form with a small smile on her own lips as trails of escaped tears began to fall from her sapphire blue left eye and her emerald green right eye. She reached out her hand, which was adorned with one silver band around her index finger, longing to feel his radiating warmth against her skin. He smiled more and acknowledged her request, falling to his knees beside her as he reached out and firmly clasped her hand in his. Yuna felt a shiver go down her spine as she gently rubbed her fingers against his, trailing them up and down his digit's lengths as she raised her gaze from his hand to his eyes, fighting to resist losing herself in them as she had done so many times before.

"Tidus!" Yuna cried, and before she could stop herself, threw herself upon his naked, still dripping body, and began to sob heavily agaisnt his shoulder, his salty scent filling her senses and entangling them as she clutched onto him.

<I'm not sinking through his body this time...He's not fading away...>

Tidus wrapped his arms around her tightly and burried his head in her chestnut brown hair, murmuring something she couldn't understand.

"What?" Yuna asked, and pulled away a little. "What is it?" Tidus frowned a little and brought a finger to her lips as he began to speak.

"Yuna! Wake up, ya?!"

Yuna gasped and her eyes shot open, which she regreted immediately as the strong sunlight struck them, causing her to wince and look away to the beach as she coughed a little and pushed herself up on her towel. She slowly looked over to the looming figure beside her, and saw that it was none other than Wakka, the deeply tanned, flame-haired captain of the Besaid Aurochs.

He was kneeling down beside her with a concerned look in his deep brown eyes, which were partly covered by the thick blue bandana he always wore. Wakka was a young man of 25 who had been born and raised on Besaid Island, and he definately showed it with his native tongue and love for Blitzball. He had quit his job as the Auroch's captain when he was 24 to become Yuna's full-time guardian for her pilgrimage along with Lulu and Kimahri, but after they had returned home to Besaid, his team begged and begged him to return to coaching them, which he of course, accepted graciously. He was outgoing and friendly to everyone he met, and was even getting over his disapointing racism against the Al Bhed, a tribe of people in Spira who only differed from everyone else in their love of machinery, their unusual (but beautiful) swirled green eyes, their language (although many could speak fluent English) and their rejection of Yevonism. Wakka had a strong hatred against them because he felt that they were partially at fault for the death of his brother and Lulu's fiancé, Chappu.

However, times were rapidly changing. The machinery that the Al Bhed frequently salvaged (called Machina), was now slowly becoming the common way of life for many people all over Spira. The teachings of Yu Yevon once had forbidden the use of Machina, but along with his death, his more strict teachings had died with him. Of course, there were still many people, who no matter what, would always live by the teachings, even though Yu was revealed to be a fraud, and there were some places, like Besaid, that had become so accustomed to the way of life without Machina that they would probably never revert, but there was still progress, and good progress at that. Not only was Machina becoming more respected again, but so were the Al Bheds themselves, who were once hated and rejected by the other people of Spira because of their differences named previously. Wakka had been somewhat forced to get along with the Al Bhed, mainly because one of Yuna's newer guardians, Rikku, was an Al Bhed herself, and traveled with the group.

However, thanks to Rikku, Wakka slowly made the realization that the Al Bhed were not as terrible as everyone made them out to be. But not only that, Rikku was Yuna's cousin, which meant that Yuna herself was half-Al Bhed. And of course, after Wakka realized that, how could he ever say he hated the Al Bhed again?

"Yuna! You were sleepin' sound as a babe before all of a sudden, you started makin' this rukus, ya? Ya started callin' someone's name, and I came runnin' from the ocean to see if ya were hurt or somethin'!"

"The ocean...?" Yuna asked blankly, and looked at Wakka again. Sure enough, he was in his black swimming shorts, and his body was soaked with water. She then remembered that Wakka had come down to the beach with her this morning to practice his underwater breathing for Blitzball while she tried out meditation. Yuna turned red in embarssment when she realized that while attempting to meditate, she had fallen asleep.

And then there was the dream...

Yuna felt her breath get caught in her throat again as the tears from her dream made their debut into reality, threatening to overpour from her eyes as she looked away from Wakka and clutched at the sand underneath her fingers, squeezing so hard that the little grains dug into her skin painfully. Wakka widened his eyes and rested a callused hand on Yuna's shoulder.

"Are you ok??" He cried, and Yuna nodded, putting on a slight smile as she turned to face Wakka, reaching up with her other hand to rub at her eyes.

"I think I just got sand in my eyes." Yuna lied, and Wakka nodded, not really believing her, but not really sure he wanted to do anything about challenging her word at the moment.

"Ya better go back to the house and wash your eyes before it gets worse, ya?" Wakka questioned, and Yuna nodded.

"You're right...but shouldn't you be getting back soon too, Wakka? Lulu did say she wanted to talk to you. She sounded very irritated when she told me this morning."

"Awww, man, Lulu <always> sounds irritated!" Wakka tried to laugh, but Yuna smiled and poked him playfully in the chest.

"More irritated than usual...."

"Ouch! Oh man..." Wakka stood up and brushed the sand off his wet shorts. "I betta go back then...Just promise you'll be home in time for lunch, ya? I'll make us all somethin' delicious for Kimahri's return!"

"That's right, I forgot that Kimahri was supposed to return home from Mt. Gagazet today!" Yuna smiled more and clapped her hands together. "I'll be home soon Wakka, I promise."

"Awright, I wouldn't want ya to get sunburned!" Wakka warned playfully, and with that, bounded away from her up the beachline back towards Besaid Village, which was hidden in a pilliage of thick tropical trees behind the shoreline. Yuna laughed a little and wiped at her tears again as she slowly stood up herself and stretched her tired limbs.

"Wakka sounds more like my dad these days than my big brother!" Yuna exclaimed to herself as she reached back to make sure the ties on her black bikini top were still on tightly. Normally, she would just wear the black top underneath her white tie-on top that would then be fastened at her waist by a big, silky yellow ribbon that was the style emblem of those of Besaid descent, however, today was far to humid and sticky out to wear even that light of clothing. Instead, Yuna wore her black top, and matching black bottoms underneath a deep violet tie-on surong. Her hair, which she had let grow out considerably since her return home to Besaid, was now a little past her shoulders, and swept up in a high ponytail. Rolling up her towel, Yuna gazed out into the gentle sea and felt her heart skip a beat as her dream came back into her mind. Before she could stop herself, Yuna dropped the towel to the ground and found her feet carrying her out towards the shore, a shudder running through her body as the cool surf washed at her feet and then teasingly pulled away back into the ocean.

Yuna took a deep, tolerating breath, and walked further out, further and further until the water lapped at her knees. Raising her hand to her forehead, she could gaze out past the sun, but all she saw was more ocean. That's all that was around Besaid for miles and miles--endless blue ocean. A lot of people in Spira had never been able to see the ocean, let alone swim in it, but Yuna had grown up with the ocean for more than half of her life. She practically had saltwater coursing through her veins, it seemed. Yuna smiled a little as she thought of one of her favorite activities...dancing on the surface of the water with the aide of the magical pyreflies that could materialize out of nowhere at a summoner's command through the motions and prayers of the dance. However...Yuna had not danced like that since...

Since...

She couldn't remember.

There had been a specific dance a summoner had to learn called The Sending--The dance that would guide dead souls of Spira over from their home world to the Farplane, an eternal resting place, which Yuna had performed frequently over a time period of a month or so last summer while on her pilgrimage to Zanarkand to fight the living nightmare Sin...But it was not the same dancing that she had grown to love since childhood. The Sending was so much more draining, spiritually and physically, for you had to conjure up the souls of those who had died and also summon pyreflies to help meld with them to give them a living form, so that they could make the journey to the Farplane safely.

Yuna had not had to perform a sending since the 'death' of her dear friend Auron after the defeat of Yu Yevon, but she found herself too afraid to try to attempt any water-surface dance since that fateful day. It was the day that had brought peace and liberation to Spira as a whole, but also brought catastrophe and pain to Yuna's heart. Ever since that day, Yuna had been afraid to attempt to do anything that was once a normal part of her life.

<Maybe the pyreflies won't come when I summon them anymore.> Yuna had thought to herself sadly one day as she stood near the edge of a Besaid dock, staring down at her reflection. <Are my duties as a summoner truly over? The day that we defeated Yu Yevon, the evil force behind Sin, the fake God so many souls prayed and poured their hearts into... So many things ceased to exist along with him. The Aeons...Cindy, Mindy, Sandy, Anima, Ifrit, Bahamut...I killed all of them! I summoned them to their final battle so that the others could destroy them...! And then there was Auron...who asked me to send him to the Farplane at long last...Sir Jecht, who played his role as my father's Final Aeon so that his son could destroy him and wipe Spira clean of Sin...And...there was...Tidus...the living dream of the Aeons used to bring peace to my world..The living dream that faded away...The living dream...that I fell in love with...>

Ever since she had come up with the theory that perhaps some of her gifts as a summoner simply <wouldn't work anymore>, Yuna had just been too afraid to try to either prove herself right or wrong. While she had grown a considerable backbone and gained more character on her voyage across Spira to defeat Sin, there was still a deep timidness within her that always seemed to hold her back in one way or another.

Yuna sighed, and feeling desperate to make her spirits rise, she brought her fingers to her lips and let out a loud yet smooth whistle, just like Tidus had taught her how to in Luca. The clear sound cut across the sky and the water, and Yuna could hear the echo fading and fading away ever so slowly, almost like someone was whistling back to her. Almost like <he> was whistling back...Like he had promised he always would... However, this did not have the rising effect on her that she had desired, and felt her eyes begin to sting again.

"You promised you would come running when I called!" Yuna suddenly screamed out at the ocean, not even notcing that the children back on the beach had stopped their games momentarily to stare after her. As if shouting back at her, a large wave suddenly rose in the ocean and smashed against Yuna's side, causing her to cry out and fall over in the water onto her hands and knees. Instead of pulling herself back up, she began to sob heavily, finally letting everything out that she had been struggling to keep in since Wakka had left. There had been so many other days and nights like this...Where somehow, Tidus would seep into her memory and remind her how much she had truly loved him when he was by her side in Spira.

She couldn't get away from it...

The ocean smelled of his salty skin, the sky shined of his blue eyes, and the gentle, warm Besaid air made her feel calm and protected, just like when he had held her in his arms and kissed her at Lake Macalania. Yuna clenched her eyes shut as she heaved another sob, digging her fingers into the soft sands underneath the water.

She had not been there when Tidus first arrived at Besaid, like Wakka had, but she imagined her dream must of been very simular to what Wakka had told her he had seen when Tidus had made his arrival.

"All of a sudden, like a dolphin, he leaps out of the water and returns the Blitzball back to me while doin' a magnificant backflip!" Wakka had exclaimed excitedly. "I tell ya man, it was one of the most awesome moves I had ever seen! It was like he was one with the ocean, commanding it what to let him do and not do...There was a magical air about him, I knew that from the start..."

"You promised to take me to your Zanarkand...you promised you would always protect me...you promised everything would be OK!! But you lied! Tidus, why did you lie?! Why did you lie about being a dream...? Why did you....Oh, Mercy, Yevon!" Yuna shook her head and suddenly plunged her head underneath the water to make her snap out of it. The salty water had a slight tingling effect on her hot skin from lying out in the sun, but the coldness of the water also brought her body into slight shock and made her wake up and realize that she was crying over something that could never be helped, never, as long as she lived. Her keen sensibility came into play once more, causing her to finally resurface and pant for lost breath.

"....I'm sorry...Tidus..." She murmured softly, as if the ocean were his messenger, and would carry her words back to him immediately. "It's been nearly a year since we said good-bye....But I do still love you..."

~*~*~*~

"Aha, look who has finally managed to crawl off the beach." Lulu smiled a little as Yuna slipped through the open doorway of their home in the small main hallway that led into the parlor, where Lulu was just replacing a bouquet of Besaid wildflowers. Well, actually, she was getting one of her magical dolls to do it for her while she sat on the small cushioned love seat, fanning herself with a petite paper fan. Yuna laughed a little and took off her now soaking surong, waving a hand at Lulu in reply.

"Can you give me a clothespin so I can hang this outside?" Yuna asked, and Lulu nodded, looking over at the doll arranging the flowers.

"Onion Knight!" Lulu commanded in a cool tone, and the doll looked up, blinking it's adorable blue eyes as it reached up to adjust it's soft yellow helmet. "Get Yuna a clothespin, would you please?" The Onion Knight nodded and hopped down off the coffee table, scuttling into the kitchen. Yuna couldn't help laughing at the wiggling Onion Knight as it walked off, and turned back to Lulu. However, Lulu's smile had faded, and she suddenly looked very exhausted. Yuna frowned in concern and crossed into the parlor, sitting down beside Lulu.

"Are you alright Lu? You look sort of ill." Yuna said, and Lulu turned back to the younger girl, smiling again as she reached up and pushed her dark black bangs out of her eyes, the ornaments in her hair letting out a little rattle as she nodded.

"It's very hot today." Lulu said, somewhat avoiding the question. Yuna made a face and put her hands on her hips.

"Lu, if you didn't wear such a heavy gown, you wouldn't feel the heat as badly." Yuna tried to protest, and reached out, tugging on the heavy belted skirt Lulu always wore. Lulu looked down at Yuna's hand and didn't say anything for a moment, which would make anyone else suddenly very nervous in the Black Mage's presence, but not Yuna, who had grown up with Lulu for most of her life.

Much like Wakka, Lulu was like an older sibling to Yuna. She was a tall, elegant woman who had just recently celebrated her 23rd birthday. She, like Wakka, was born on Besaid Island, although to any outsider of the village, she actually looked foreign to the people there. She was not tan at all, but rather very pale and not nearly as outgoing as the islanders. She had a cool attitude to go along with her cool exterior, and to people who didn't know her, she was cold and appeared rather mean. But her best friends, Yuna, Wakka, and Kimahri, knew that deep down, Lulu was actually a very caring and warm-hearted woman. It was her difficult past that really accounted for her attitude, although Yuna noticed that even Lulu had begun to open up a little more recently. Yuna herself had only learned last year of the accidental death of a summoner Lulu had been charged to protect as a guardian, although she already knew about the painful death of the only man she had ever seen Lulu ever become affectionate with, Chappu. But really, Lulu's change had begun when Tidus had come around...

"...Well, perhaps I'll change later." Lulu finally replied, and turned away from Yuna as Onion Knight ran back into the parlor and hopped onto Yuna's lap, handing her the clothespin.

"Thank you." Yuna smiled and patted Onion Knight on the head before he bowed and hopped away back to his flower arranging. Yuna gave Lulu one last glance as she stood up and went back outside, around the back of their small home to where the clothesline hung. Their home was much like all the other little shops and homes on Besaid, simple and yet well-built to survive any tropical storms or the now null Sin attacks.

The front side was nothing much, considering it was right on the main cobble-stoned road that went through Besaid, but the back was much more personalized and beautiful, thanks to the four people who resided in it. There were well-tended gardens, with brightly colored plants and fruits, and tall tropical-like trees, two of which had a hammock tied onto their trunks, and another two that held up the clothesline. The little home had actually originally belonged to one of Lord Braska's friends who had passed away while Braska was still alive, and left the home to his family while Braska was still living in Belvelle. However, when Yuna was 7, Braska had died from sacrificing himself to Yu Yevon to bring the Calm, and Yuna had become an orphan.

However, Sir Auron, one of Braska's best friends and guardians, had already been informed of the home, and when he brought Kimahri the young girl, he told him to take her there in Besaid to live. But Yuna had already decided that she wanted to follow in her father's footsteps, and instead chose to live in the Temple of Besaid to train to become a summoner herself. Thus, the house remained discarded until just last year, at the end of Yuna's journey. Upon returning to Besaid, Yuna decided that she no longer wanted to live alone in the temple, and that she wanted to be closer to her friends. Wakka had the idea that they all live together in the home left to her name, and everyone agreed that it would be a great idea. There were just enough rooms for the 4 of them, and at last, Yuna felt as if her little family had become complete. Every once in a while, her cousin Rikku would come to visit as well, and stay with Yuna in her room.

Yuna carefully hung up the wet surong so that it wouldn't wrinkle after it dried, and took a step back to make sure she had hung it up straight. Nodding her head in approval, she turned to go back inside and change into something less wet. As she slipped in through the front door, she felt her heart skip a beat when she heard distinct yelling coming in from the kitchen. It was Lulu, who hardly ever rose her tone to anyone, even when she was angry. Yuna blinked and wondered if she should just turn around and go back outside, but when Wakka started yelling too, her curiousity won over her conscience, and she planted her feet onto the floor, clutching her hands together.

"You KNOW how it happened Lu, and there is really nothing I can do about it now!" Wakka yelled, his friendly voice now much deeper and gruffer. "I can apoligize a hundred times, but it won't fix a damned thing!"

"You can apoligize a hundred times, and I still won't forgive you!" Lulu screamed back. "And, you act as if this is a disaster! Have you no sympathy?"

"I DO have sympathy, and I don't necessarily think it is a disaster..." Wakka trailed off. "...I don't know what to think, Lu...I'm sorry..." Yuna blinked and raised a hand to her forehead. She didn't know what to make of what was going on, and she had no clue in Spira what they were arguing about, but she knew that she couldn't take the hurtful yelling much longer.

"Wakka, Lulu, is lunch ready yet?" Yuna suddenly called, as if she had just walked back in through the door. Wakka burst in from the kitchen, and put on a fake smile that Yuna could see right through, however, she did not act like anything was wrong.

"Hey kiddo, lunch will be ready in a little while yet, ya?" Wakka smiled more and put his hands on his hips. "So ya decided to take a little swim?" Yuna blinked and remembered that she was still wet, and laughed a little.

"Yeah, the ocean was just too tempting for me." Yuna smiled back and gave a small wave. "I'm going in my room to change, I'll help you guys as soon as I'm done!"

"You don't have to Yuna, Wakka is taking care of everything." Lulu called from the kitchen, her voice hoarse from yelling. "Just relax until Kimahri comes back."

"Alright Lulu!" Yuna called back, and with that, retreated into her bedroom. It was a small room right between Kimahri's and Lulu's, decorated in mostly white and light blue, Yuna's favorite colors. Her bedspread was a pale cerulean, which complimented her soft white canopy spread and pillows. A tall floor-length mirror framed in silver leaned against one wall, across from her pale white colored wardrobe. Against the wall next to the mirror were two of Yuna's staves. One was the one her father had given her as a birthday gift, the last gift she had actually ever received from him, a tall purple staff with a golden emblem at the top end that had intertwining pieces to make it appear as the shape of a water lilly. Beside that was a Celestial Weapon that Yuna had managed to acquire while on her pilgrimage, a beautiful staff with a deep blue handle and a golden, almost butterfly-shaped emblem that had several pink ribbons and beads dangling from it. Yuna had named it Nirvana.

On a small white dresser, Yuna had displayed a few pictures she had had taken of herself and Rikku on the deck of her Uncle Cid's airship, encircled in silver and ivory frames. The tool that the pictures had been taken with was called a 'camera', a type of Machina device that had the ability to freeze moments in time onto a piece of glossy paper forever. Yuna still couldn't get over some of the wonderous things Machina could do, and highly treasured the beautiful pictues Rikku had developed for her. Someday, Yuna wanted to burrow Rikku's camera and take pictures of all her friends. Somewhere inside, she also secretly wished that she could take a picture of Tidus. But the most she had ever had of him picture wise was a sphere that he had tossed over the edge of Rikku's airship before an aerial battle against Sin.

"You don't need it anymore, right?!" Tidus had called to her. At that time, Yuna had believed him-- She had learned that she didn't need to sacrifice her life in order to slay Sin for the final time, and that a sphere containing some of their journey's memories and her good-byes was no longer necessary. However...

"No! I really must stop thinking of him so much." Yuna sighed to herself, and collapsed backwards onto her bed, the cool sheets below her sending a shiver down her spine. "It's been getting worse and worse lately...but why? Because it is the anniversary of his coming to Spira...? Things are no different then they were after he left... I mean, I cried for a few days, and the others left me alone while I also mourned Sir Jecht and Sir Auron... But after that...I was ok..." Yuna closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Of course...I was perhaps a little too busy to think about everything that had happened...Shelinda and the others on the Yevonian Council had me so occupied with Sin's affairs...."

Yuna blinked and realized that she still needed to get dressed, and quickly, just in case Kimahri came home. She wanted to welcome him as soon as she could! Throwing open her wardrobe doors, Yuna quickly searched and found a long, deep red tie-on skirt with a golden colored flower at the tie part, which had dangling ivory colored strings decorated with glass crimson beads. The matching top was a white triangle-cut piece that tied around Yuna's back in a criss-cross, with a v-neck cut on the front and the image of a crimson flower matching the one on the skirt. After searching for suitable undergarments, Yuna quickly changed, but decided to keep her wet hair up for now. It would dry on it's own eventually.

As she was adding on her usual pair of bracelets and the rest of her jewels, Yuna heard a loud stomping sound coming in from the front of the house. Blinking, she turned from her mirror and suddenly broke out into a huge grin as she heard a familiar gruff voice burst out.

"Grrr...Kimahri remember how hot Besaid Island is."

"Kimahri!" Yuna exclaimed happily, and ran out of her bedroom, tearing through the hallway. As soon as she spotted him she laughed and took a little leap, throwing her arms around the surprised, tall, blue Ronso. Kimahri laughed deep in his throat and hugged Yuna back gently as Lulu and Wakka emerged from the kitchen.

"Welcome home!" Yuna smiled, and Kimahri pulled back a little, looking Yuna up and down for a moment.

"Yuna grow only prettier while Kimahri away."

"Oh Kimahri!" Yuna blushed and patted his arm. "So, how did everything go at Mt. Gagazet? Are the Ronsos recooperating nicely?"

"Yeah...Ronsos do well." Kimahri nodded and looked back to Wakka and Lulu. "Kimahri miss you all. Kimahri not like being away from Besaid."

"Well, we're very happy you're home." Lulu nodded, and crossed her arms over her chest. "Lunch will be ready soon. You arrived just in time."

"Good!" Kimahri exclaimed, and rubbed his stomach. "Kimahri not eat since breakfast!" With that, Kimahri began to walk to the kitchen, but suddenly stopped and turned to Yuna with a slight smile on his mug.

"Yuna!" He called, and Yuna turned back to him.

"Yes?" She asked, and Kimahri pointed towards the doorway.

"On ship from Luca, Kimahri meet young man who wished to see you." Kimahri said, and Yuna blinked, a little confused.

"A young man...?" She trailed off. "Kimahri, did you know who he was?"

"Kimahri know, but not tell Yuna! Surprise!" Yuna blinked again and felt her pulse suddenly quicken. The way Kimahri was smiling...maybe...just maybe it was...

"Is he at the port?!" Yuna cried, and Lulu and Wakka looked at each other worriedly. They knew exactly what Yuna was thinking now, and they didn't like it so much.

"Yeah." Kimahri replied, and with that, went into the kitchen. Yuna looked to Wakka and Lulu, clasping her hands together.

"I'll...be right back!" She exclaimed, and with that, turned to run out of the house.

"Yuna!" Lulu called, but stopped, knowing that there was no way Yuna could of heard her low tone. Wakka looked to Lulu, and she stared back at him, concern filling her deep red-brown eyes.

"Shouldn't we stop her, Lu?" Wakka questioned, and Lulu shook her head, turning away.

"Let her see who was asking for her. I know who she wants it to be. I've noticed the way she has been acting lately."

"You have..?" Wakka scratched his head, and Lulu nodded.

"It's been nearly a year...he came the day she became a summoner. It was her 17th birthday, although we were the only ones who acknowledged it, remember? Everyone else in the village was too excited over her becoming a summoner. Yuna's birthday is next week. She'll be 18...and I am sure that the villagers will be going to the council in Belvelle to get Yuna to be named High Priestess of our temple. Hopefully that will put him out of her mind once again."

"But we can't help keep her preoccupied forever." Wakka said gently.

"I know." Lulu snapped. "And that's why she needs to go to the dock right now. She needs to go and see that it's not Tidus." She sighed and pressed a hand to her forehead.

"And then she will see...that Tidus is <never> coming back."