FicWad

Room 4, Rin's Travel Agency, Macalania

The shower ended up lukewarm. It had to be; too much hot water was scalding to Auron, too much cold made Raine's teeth chatter.

"I'll get out," Auron said and started to pull back the bleach-white shower curtain, propping a foot on the edge of the tub. The hair on his legs looked like inky streaks.

She tugged his elbow. "No, please."

Wet hair lying flat on his forehead, Auron arched an eyebrow. "I'm ruining your shower."

"Just let me turn up the hot a little." She turned and leaned over to fiddle with the faucet controls, the bite of cool spray on her lower back fading to a bearable tepid. Over her shoulder, she asked, "How's that?"

The rhythm of water beating on porcelain changed as he approached her. His hand pressed gently on her back, fingers splayed, his other hand slid around her hip. Then there was the velvety poke between her thighs.

"May I?" he rasped, kissing her back.

She grinned. "Again?"

Chuckling, Auron rubbed his scratchy stubble on her shoulder blades. "Can't keep up with an old man?"

Her jaw dropped playfully over her shoulder, resenting the implication her stamina was below average, even though she was feeling a little tender between her legs. Mostly the soreness felt good, but it was still an ache, suggesting some superficial vaginal tearing and chafing from their rough undertakings. But she wasn't about to be shown up and nudged backward against him.

"Hold onto something," Auron warned.

*

Shower over, Raine wrapped herself in a towel and secured it in place with a strategic tuck, noticing with a faint smile how red and raw her neck and breasts were from Auron's beard. Auron stood naked in front of the sink, running his towel under his arms and his amber eye met hers in the mirror, creasing when he smiled. As she walked by, gingerly on account of the recent ramming she'd received, Auron snatched her from behind and nestled his face in the crook of her shoulder. His curling body language suggested a fourth round.

"You're insatiable," she laughed.

"Would you like me to get you a potion?"

"What for?"

"What do you think?"

Raine slowly smiled in vague wonder. "…Really? I thought those were just for fiend injuries."

She could feel him smile on her neck as he murmured, "Potions cure all types of battle wounds."

She giggled. "I think I can handle it. Besides, my body knows how to heal itself."

"Not fast enough," he said and peppered the side of her throat with kisses.

She could get used to this Auron. But before she did, there were other matters pressing on her conscience, ever since Auron mentioned the promiscuities from his early life. She couldn't respect herself if she didn't at least bring it up. "I've been meaning to ask you something."

"I'll consider answering," he said, nuzzling behind her ear.

"Consider seriously if you expect to see what's under this towel again."

He chuckled. "What is it?"

She took in a big breath to brace herself. "I might be a little late on this, but…are you safe?"

Auron pulled back.

Oops. Too serious.

Raine craned her neck to see his expression, to get a sense of what he was thinking, but she could only see the underside of his jaw. Carefully, she said, "I've never lapsed on my yearly physicals. Have you?"

He laughed. Hard. Her whole body shook with his deep chortle and she grinned uncertainly, unsure if he was laughing with or at her. His elbow came up to her throat as if to choke her, but the embrace was loose and affectionate. As he began to control his amusement, she felt the smack of a firm kiss on the back of her head. "I'm safe."

Realizing she had stiffened her posture, she relaxed against him. She was not looking forward to a follow up conversation had he answered anything different.

His whiskers prickled her cheek as he rested his face on hers. "From everything."

Before she could interpret that last part, Auron reached down and patted the towel where her belly was. She smiled dryly at her stomach. She hadn't even thought of that. Anxious to start her family, she had let her birth control run out shortly before her wedding at the Drake's house.

"That's a relief," she said, but it was perfunctory and sounded dreadfully hollow. She couldn't decide if it was because Auron was infertile or because she would be leaving the world childless. It was hardly fair to start new life when hers would be ending soon.

Auron's face shifted to look at her, no doubt sensing a change in her, and Raine rushed to change the subject.

"Did you happen to pack me anything slightly less suffocating to sleep in?"

"Nope," he said and sounded smug in spite of himself. "Go ahead and take the bed tonight."

Raine spun around. "You're not sleeping with me?"

"I'll be fine in the chair. You need your rest and I can't guarantee you'll get it if I'm in bed with you."

"We shared a bed once before and just slept," Raine reminded.

Auron started to slant his head in question, but the recollection of it hit him first and his lips quirked. "You slept," he said. "I was in my own private hell."

Little more than a year before her ocean-side wedding, Uncle Cetan died of a stroke. For the first time ever, Raine had to ask Colton from work to cover post-game interviews so she could be with her aunt at the hospital. Although Aunt Naya knew it was possible, she wasn't prepared to outlive her husband and took Uncle Cetan's death with difficulty. Raine was afraid to leave her alone until after the funeral. Raine spent so much time taking care of her aunt in those few days—the least she could do after Aunt Naya had taken her in—that she had little time to grieve by herself.

The first night back in the houseboat, Raine was prepared to cry herself to sleep, but even after she was cried out, sleep wouldn't come. She was physically and mentally exhausted from the last few days of funeral arrangements and meeting her uncle's family for the first time. It was a great relief to be home and she looked forward to going back to work and jumping back into her normal routine, but she couldn't seem to stop staring at the clock on her bedside table. Eventually she got up to make herself some tea, but found herself bypassing the kitchen and heading into Auron's room.

It had not been easy to get Auron to accept the room and she had to give most of the credit to the unusually severe monsoon season, but the room had formally become his only after they discussed the parameters of their living arrangement. On his first official night at the houseboat, Raine was going to make his bed for him, but Auron had assured her if his 21 years at the monastery had taught him anything, it was how to make a bed. Since then, Raine had only been inside the room a few times to collect his sheets for washing.

Auron was a private man, but he always left his door wide open. Better to detect noises, she guessed. Like the rest of the rooms at the time, the hard pink insulation and studs were exposed, but the brace remained for his sword and there was a hook on the back of the door for his cloak and she knew he kept the sword sharpening kit under the bed, but Auron was accustomed to living austerely and had few personal items. On the unfinished floor was a narrow slant of artificial light, which came in through the gaps in the privacy curtains. Although she had tried to be quiet, Auron rolled over in his bed when she came in. He was lying on top of the covers and still had on his leather cuirass, but his glasses were on the nightstand. It was too dark to see his expression.

She had no real idea why she was there. Probably, she would have asked Auron if he wanted tea because she was going to make some anyway, if he hadn't already grabbed the edge of the blankets and lifted them as a silent invite.

Jory had made an appearance at the funeral, held her hand during the service, but there was more to death than just the funeral. It was Auron who stood with her at the hospital, helped her select a tasteful coffin, and stayed within reach during the repast meal after the funeral. Of course, it was his job to watch her, this was not lost on Raine, but when he offered his bed to her, she knew he would have been there even if he didn't have to be.

As she crawled into his tiny bed, he scooted over to give her room and wrapped the blankets around her. His bed was warm and so was he as his comfortable weight behind her put her at ease. If she hadn't been so tired, she might have spent half the night fretting about her next move, but she was tired and fell asleep almost instantly. He remained above the covers through the night and was still there in the afternoon when she finally woke up. However, he hadn't been there the entire time. He had left briefly to call the network and inform her boss she was taking one more day off and then went to buy fresh bagels for breakfast. He had managed to sneak back into the bed without her waking, which couldn't have been easy since his side was against the wall.

"I have a faint memory of waking before it was light," Raine said, situating the towel around her body. "Were you stroking my hair, or did I dream that?"

"To be honest," Auron said, gravelly and serious, "I thought that whole night had been a dream."

Raine's laugh was nervous, sounding more like a maniacal cackle as she tried to downplay what was probably the most romantic thing anyone had ever said to her. In a million years she never thought Auron would say something like that and she distrusted its authenticity. "You finish up in here. I'm going to see what I can find to sleep in."

"Wait," he said and picked up the garter still sitting next to the sink. He slipped it into her hand. "Put this on."

She ran a hand through her wet hair to gather it for a ponytail.

"Not there," he smiled. "Put it on where it's supposed to go."

"Why?"

He darkened. "You'll see."

Raine turned to leave but was stopped in her tracks by a loud crack! as Auron swatted her ass. Smiling incredulously over her shoulder, Raine was speechless as Auron grinned at her, triumphant, and went to the sink to turn on the faucet. She definitely liked this Auron.

Dropping her towel by the dresser, Raine sifted through the top drawer, which was full of socks and underwear. Raine realized most of it was clearly meant for her, since of course Auron didn't wear underwear, and even if the brief style was practical and lacked frills, they were new and came in a multitude of colors. Coming across a bra, Raine held it up for inspection, noting it was just as plain as the other articles, but had an underwire and was curiously just her size. Raine suspected Auron had gone through her drawers back at the houseboat while she was at work. The second drawer was filled with more hastily folded pants and tunics, an abundance of wardrobe options.

"We're not taking all these clothes with us, are we?"

"We'll take only what we need. In Besaid, after you've completed your first trial, you'll be fitted for Summoner's habiliments," Auron called from the bathroom.

Raine cringed at the word "fitted," having some very bad memories involving a snug wedding dress and a particularly frazzled seamstress in Zanarkand. "One's like Dona's?" she grinned.

In the bathroom, there was only the hiss of water in the sink. Raine wasn't sure if Auron had heard her and she stopped, waiting for an answer. Was there a "hmph" she didn't hear?

Finally he replied, "Your brother would use my head for Jecht Shot practice."

Raine giggled. "What about my wedding dress?"

Another pause. "What about it?"

Surely it wasn't necessary to take, but she felt funny leaving it. It was her wedding dress. Maybe she could ask Rin if he would store it for her, but what was the sense in that? She had a Guardian who never failed a pilgrimage, so she probably wouldn't be back for it.

"Do you think Rin would buy it?" she asked.

"I don't think white is his color."

"I mean to sell in his store!"

He chuckled. "I'll bring it to him in the morning and see what he says."

"Be careful with it this time," she said, remembering how Auron had kicked it into the closet this morning. "If you feel the need to treat my dress roughly, first make sure I'm in it."

"That can be arranged," he laughed.

In case she didn't make it far enough for Summoner's robes, Raine made a point to bring versatile clothes with her. It had occurred to her plenty of times tonight she might not have the ability to claim an Aeon. What happened then? Auron would leave her and find a Summoner worthy of his time.

But she had to fight Sin. She was supposed to. Sin was her brother and it wouldn't be right for anyone else to defeat him.

If she couldn't summon an Aeon, then she would ask Auron to teach her other skills. Maybe she could learn to use a sword and become a Guardian herself. Certainly he knew of a Summoner who could use their help. Hopefully someone besides Dona, although how could Raine not support anyone who was willing to risk their life to end her brother's suffering? Of course, there was still the matter of the Final Summoning. If Raine and Auron joined someone else's pilgrimage, there was the possibility the Summoner would choose neither of them to become the next Sin and even if it happened, Yunalesca could veto it if there was a stronger bond present, like with Yuna and Tidus. Raine couldn't let another cycle slip by. How many pilgrimages did Auron have left in him?

And if somehow Auron was chosen as Sin and accepted…. Raine had learned the hard way no man was worth suicide, but she would not want to live if Auron was dead.

Finding nothing suitable for sleeping in, Raine swiftly slammed the dresser drawer, and the little vases sitting on top chimed together, the same as this morning, and Raine remembered their conversation.

Will I get a title for beating Sin?

They will call you High Summoner Raine.

Nice ring.

And then Auron had slammed the drawer so hard, the vases wobbled. He didn't want to talk about it then, either, she realized.

No more thinking. There would be plenty of time for that later. Tonight, she would only focus on sleeping with Auron. Just sleeping. She had a feeling it would take a lot of effort.

Still naked, she rotated around to pick up her towel, her eyes catching on Auron's cloak, draped over a stool by the table. With a devious grin, she shook it open and slipped into it, the fabric smooth and sheeny on her bare skin, and she worked at clasping the straps on the loose sleeve before fastening the double buckles to the sash at her waist. It was still big on her and the front did not close all the way, leaving an indecent amount of cleavage, clear down to her belly button, but hiding her nipples at least. As a final touch, she widened the garter and stepped into it, hiking it up to her thigh. She would not earnestly try to pass it off as Summoner's robe or even leave the room dressed this way, but she thought Auron might enjoy seeing her in it. She was primed for a fourth round, if Auron discovered he couldn't help himself; it was difficult to resist him when he asked so politely.

"Auron, can you come here for a sec?" she called, unable to stifle the smile on her face.

"Just a minute," he said. Auron grooming in the bathroom: so weird.

Stepping over to the full length mirror on the closet door, she blushed at her reflection, even though she was wearing three times as much material as Summoner Dona. She wasn't even sure she could manage the first few steps in a simple sending dance without something popping out and to make sure, she made a grand sweeping motion with her arms, miming the staff in her hands. It was easier without the staff, but she felt utterly ridiculous in the mirror and promptly stopped.

Auron's strangled cry from the bathroom chilled her blood.

Behind her, Auron collided with the frame of the bathroom door. His black linen trousers were on, but not tied. "Raine, stop," he husked.

Her feet tangled with the hem of the cloak as she crossed the room. When she was close, Auron fell against her, flinging an arm around her shoulder. His other hand was on the knob of the bathroom door, struggling to close it quickly, but not before she glimpsed a small swarm of pink and green Pyreflies dancing delicately on the ceiling, moments before the fan sucked them into the ventilation ducts.

"Was there a fiend in there?" she asked. Something small, she pictured, like a wasp or an iguion lounging behind the toilet where it was moist, but a fiend wouldn't make Auron scream like that. She began checking his body for injuries.

Clutching a wad of red cloak, he tugged her down to the floor with him as he sunk to his shaking knees. He was looking down to her empty hands, mystified. "Where's your staff?"

Raine's stomach made a sudden dive as she remembered the rules of the sending dance. "Oh, Auron. You said never indoors and never with your back turned…but I thought that was if I was holding the staff—"

His eye darted to the corner of their room where their weapons were leaned. "You did that without your staff?"

"Did what? The sending dance?" she asked, tears obscuring her vision. "Just the first couple steps."

As his blenched face contorted in pain, the heel of his hand flew up to his head, pushing firmly on his temple. Raine's hands flailed helplessly for a moment before she sought out the pockets in his cloak, hunting for spare potions. Auron seemed to read her mind, swaying his head no. "They won't help."

"Then what do I do?"

Lowering his eyes to hers, his almost drunken gaze lacked center. "Distract them."

"Wha—"

He interrupted her with a hard kiss, lips crushing lips, and she squeaked in protest. How could he think of sex now, when a fiend had been in the room? How did it get in? And what if there were more?

She jerked her head back. "Auron—"

"Quiet," he murmured and moved in to press his mouth on her again.

Insulted, she recoiled. "Excuse me?"

Scowling down at his cloak on her, he fumbled with the belt. "Why are you wearing this?"

"Wait, slow down—"

He opened the cloak to expose her and pushed his trousers down to free himself, "I need you. Now."

"Not until you talk to me," she said, straining with her last line of defense as Auron fought to unpin her knees. "Show me."

"Show you what?" he grumbled.

"Your card."

He looked vaguely annoyed. "What card?"

"The one up your sleeve," she said through her teeth. "The one you don't even want me to know you have."

Emoting silent agony, his fists pounded the sides of his head as some internal madness tormented him. Raine was able to sit up a little, but the spike of terror as she witnessed his anguish rendered her mute. The man had done so much for her in Zanarkand and she would do anything to ease his pain, but she could hardly see how sex—

"Fuck the cards!" he suddenly screamed and Raine flinched as if he'd struck her. "I'm coming apart, Raine, now open your legs!"

In slow amazement, Raine's chin dropped in a soundless gasp, bright orbs reflecting off the tears standing idle in her wide eyes. Propping up on her hands, she positioned herself to better see the Pyreflies as they spiraled up from behind Auron in all directions. In a state of utter shock, her body loosened, became malleable, and she was only vacantly aware as Auron shoved her legs apart. The battle waging inside him had apparently subsided and he was catching his breath, his amber eye pleading with her for consent.

With minimal comprehension of what was happening, she dumbly nodded.

"I apologize in advance," he grated, impaling her as though his life depended on it, immediately driving into a rhythm and Raine locked her teeth together to hold in a scream. Their friction was harsh at first without the lubrication of foreplay.

While Auron thrust his way to his own selfish objective, Raine found herself mesmerized by the pink and green bubbles in their purposeless drift around the ceiling. She forgot herself, everything else fading away into the background. The walls, the bed, the floor all dropped from sight, leaving only those beautifully hypnotizing balls of clear colors, innocent and almost playful in their delicate collisions. Somehow, their presence was her fault, but she couldn't piece it together. The Summoner dance made Pyreflies out of dead fiends, but there were no fiends here…were there?

"Don't look at them," he said gruffly and grabbed her chin. "Look at me."

She met his eye without seeing him, allowing her body to be jostled by Auron's tempo, her butt cheeks burning from the scuff of the rug. But now his pumps were weakening, his penis softening inside her as he made an ugly grimace, bearing his teeth soundlessly. Exhausted, he dropped forward, planting his hands on the floor above her shoulders as his hips began to lose momentum. Three more Pyreflies appeared, lazily floating up to the ceiling.

Distract them.

Raine blinked and focused on Auron with fresh concentration.

Distract them.

Clamping her vagina, Raine clinched her legs around his waist, pushing up on her elbows. "Flip," she snapped.

Collapsing sideways, Auron gripped her hips and the motion was almost like correcting an overturned kayak as Raine managed to hang on to him with her knees, using abdominal muscles she didn't know she had to swing up on top of him. Letting the cloak slide down her arms, she tossed it aside, situated for better traction, bracing against his chest with the flat of her hands. She commenced a quick, steady rhythm, commanding his eye contact.

"Stay with me," she ordered.

Another stray Pyrefly appeared out of nowhere, an extension of Auron's body, skipping a path of dry, icy kisses up the front of her, sending shivers to her spine, her skin prickling with bumps, her nipples hardening. It brushed by her cheek, whispered something inarticulate in her ear and was gone. A moan came out of her before she could stop it.

Raine didn't expect a fourth orgasm, since previous to this night they had been most commonly accidental, feigned, or self-generated, but she shifted slightly, plummeting with purpose as she felt the footing of an upcoming climax. At first she was afraid distracting them might mean an erotic performance of sorts, but as Auron followed her with a hungry eye, she knew she just needed to contribute. Soon, Auron began driving with confidence, his hips lifting off the floor, jouncing her into a solid beat, his lips parting in pant. She had not seen another Pyrefly since the last one made her moan.

Her orgasm began as shy trickle of release, followed by a wild cascade of flailing control and guttural pleas, the sight of which made Auron retreat inward to claim his own relief. The muscles bulged in his neck and his back arched off the rug. The frosty discharge was both familiar and anticipated now, yet Raine still winced when he came and her final shudder was the competing result of opposing sensations. She dipped forward in a fuss of apologetic kisses and Auron's drowsy lips struggled to keep up.

"Come here," he mumbled, the strength and authority in his voice was replaced with something lethargically fragile.

He shifted sideways under her and she tumbled to the floor, cuddling close to him, her nose buried in his chest hair. Her eyes immediately closed and she couldn't explain why she was afraid to open them. For a moment she just listened to his breathing as he wrestled to subdue it, tangling his limbs around her.

"Are you cold?" he whispered.

She realized she was violently trembling, her back muscles aching from the relentless seizing. "No."

But you are.

One of his arms left her for a moment and she heard the hiss of blankets as Auron snuggled the coverlet from the bed around them. It didn't stop the shaking.

"Auron—" she croaked.

"No questions," he rumbled. "I'm tired. Let me sleep for a bit."

Raine burrowed her face deeper into his chest and the thick wad in her throat made it hard to talk. "Don't leave."

He weakly chuckled. "I'm not going anywhere. You're my anchor."

Anchor? That sounded like a lot to live up to.

Auron's legs and arms slacked around her, his breathing relaxed and deep. Raine tried to let sleep take her, but her heart was pounding too much to unwind and another vicious tremor put a kink in her back. Auron was lousy at keeping her warm. Carefully, she slid out of his arms, dragging her legs out from under his.

Overhead, the final Pyrefly finally bumped its way around the room to join the others and they bopped around the ceiling in a loose cloud. Raine shut her eyes to them, feeling ill, but she could still hear their whispering. If she listened carefully, she could hear the rustling beat of conversation, but she couldn't understand the words.

She hunted down her pajamas, which wasn't easy. She remembered her bottoms were in the bathroom, but her top was a little more of a challenge. After kneeling down on the other side of the bed, she found it had been kicked under the bed and she wrestled it over her head right away. Her pretty white underwear was crammed underneath one of the pillows at the head of the bed, but they were a little ripe, so she hid them at the bottom of the top dresser drawer and selected another pair of the clean briefs Auron had bought for her.

She cleaned up on the toilet, realizing with a groan why Auron felt so cold inside her. It was so obvious now. She was usually smarter than this, but it was like she didn't want to see it or was suppressing it or something. Something else popped into her mind and she covered her face with both hands, propping her elbows on her knees as she whimpered in mortification. That day at her mother's funeral, she told Auron she didn't believe in zombies. She said it so arrogantly like a know-it-all and she thought she was being funny about it. But as she recalled, it was the only time that day she thought she saw him smile. Auron wasn't so thin-skinned to be easily offended. And how was she expected to know?

Flushing the toilet, Raine stepped into fresh underwear, but removed the garter from her thigh for the second time and set it next to the sink. Whatever game Auron wanted to play with it, she wasn't in the mood. She shook the wrinkles out of her pajama bottoms before jumping into them and then stood in the door way to check on Auron. His head was lying on his own arm and he was still sleeping. It was strange to see. She had never seen him sleep before, so ordinary, face drooping, lips separated. He was startlingly vulnerable.

How long was he going to sleep? She wondered if she should try to wake him but then decided against it. She needed some sleep, too. When he did finally wake up, she needed to be well rested for the conversation that would follow.

She ran the tap in the bathroom and washed her hands, avoiding her reflection in the mirror. She didn't want to face herself and she could tell from the vague outline her hair was atrocious.

Unsent, she thought, and it was like she was realizing for the first time what the word entailed. No wonder he stood so far away while she practiced the sending dance in Macalania Woods. He didn't want to be accidentally sent. Did that mean he was a fiend? No, of course not. That didn't happen until later, when they were finally overcome with envy of the living.

Drying her hands on the towel, Raine smiled. She would have to remind herself not to rub it in so much that she was alive. She wouldn't want to make him jealous and have him turn into a fiend. She giggled at the thought and wondered what kind of fiend he would be. She knew it would be something big, grumpy and cyclopean and would probably have horns with skunk-streaked patches of fur. Snickering out loud, Raine tried to smother it with a hand, but she couldn't contain it. Afraid she would wake Auron, she fell against the door to close it. The hilarity of the situation was irrepressible and she slid down the door to the floor as she continued laughing, snaking her arms around her belly to hug herself and that's when she realized she wasn't laughing. She wasn't laughing at all.

Tightening her arms around her stomach, Raine sobbed uncontrollably, trying to self-soothe the lonely ache in her, the all-too-familiar pain of loving someone who would eventually leave her.

*

Spent, Raine let the back of her head hit the bathroom door with a hollow whump. Nature's best exfoliator, the drying tears made her face taut; her eyes burned and she could feel a headache coming on from the dehydration. But it was the laughing in the next room that made her start.

Auron. He was awake.

Scrambling to her feet, she swung open the door. Auron was on the floor, still asleep. He hadn't moved an inch since she last saw him.

She heard the laugh again, an eerily cheerful sound, and the impossibility of it made her taste fear, a metallic residue on the back of her tongue. Stepping out of the bathroom, she gave the room a paranoid glance to confirm she was alone.

"You know, when I was a kid, I had such a crush on you," someone said.

Raine yelped, covering her mouth to contain her fright.

Contemplating the likelihood it was her own delighted madness, Raine heard the laughing again, this time straight above her. Raine craned her neck to look up at the butting Pyreflies on the ceiling. Through their attraction, they became agitated, jockeying for space, and an aura of colorful, embodying light filled the spaces between them with transparent images, too faint to easily see.

With an irritable glance at the lamp on the dresser, Raine approached and fumbled under the shade until she found the switch. The room darkened, except for the Pyreflies' festive mood lighting. Together, the Pyreflies became a kind of projector, skipping through parts of a movie, both the picture and sound caught in a repeating loop. The movie was of her. Sleeping, talking, smiling, laughing and one where she was making a terrible face to be funny, all shot in different perspectives, different times, different ages, different clothes.

"You know, when I was a kid, I had such a crush on you," she said to the camera, dressed in her cheerleading uniform, standing on the sidewalk at night, just outside her great aunt's house in C-South. More images flitted by, the sound of her own laughing ringing in the room.

Raine dragged her eyes away to look at Auron, lightly snoring against his arm. Was he dreaming? Was she watching him dream on the projection of his own Pyreflies?

No, no, no. Not dreams. She was just a child when Auron had told her—told Tidus, actually, while she was eavesdropping—that they were visions of the past. Pyreflies contained memories. In this case, Auron's memories, filtered in the off-white tint of his sunglasses.

Abruptly, the movie quit, the molecules becoming instable as the cloud drifted over the bed. Raine stumbled as she followed them, bending her neck rather unnaturally to see the picture as it briefly dimmed then brightened as another scene faded in. Crawling up on the bed, she kneeled in the center of it, her hands in her lap as she gazed straight up.

A smoky void of darkness emerged in the center of the Pyreflies' haze and Raine realized it wasn't emptiness, but Auron's recollection of a dark place. Human shapes darted through his vision, too fast for Raine to identify and Raine felt a dip of vertigo as flashes of yellow crossed the screen.

"This is far enough," said a voice, male, too smooth to be Auron's.

The sway of Auron's vision slowed for a moment then swung grandly sideways, through a murky cavern of collapsed, broken pillars and mounds of destruction. A small, distant cluster of people came into view, but it was just a confirmatory glance, to make sure he hadn't been followed, and the inside of Auron's sunglasses swept back to the swatch of yellow in front of him. Someone was wearing a yellow jacket with a dirty white hood, his shaggy blond hair shaking as he spun around to face Auron.

Raine whimpered and covered her mouth in disbelief. Tidus. Her older brother was younger than she was now, but it was him, from the past.

Auron's field of vision merely bobbed up to Tidus' face, as though he were unable to look her brother in the eye and Raine became frustrated, willing Auron to settle his gaze more definitely on Tidus so she could at least look at her brother. It had been a long time since she had seen him and she didn't remember her brother looking so strong. He fidgeted less, his stance near stoic. But even during Auron's too-brief peek upon on his face, Raine could see Tidus' eyes shining with emotion.

The depressing hue of Auron's sunglasses exasperated her. Is that how Auron preferred to see the world?

"You remember my sister, don't you Auron?"

"Of course." Auron's voice sounded peculiarly muffled, vibratory, what he might sound like in his head.

"What will happen to Raine when the fayth stop dreaming?"

Fayth? Did he mean the hooded boy in the book of Summoning, the boy she saw on the bus in Zanarkand? Why would that boy's dreams have anything to do with her?

Auron's gaze swiftly lifted to Tidus' face. He didn't say anything, but the silver chain around Tidus' neck shifted as he lowered his head in defeat, as if Auron had answered with a simple facial expression.

"I was hoping to find a way to bring her here, but—" Tidus swallowed hard, Auron keeping only a wedge of Tidus' face in his vision. Then Tidus raised his head, searching passed Auron, regally holding the tears as they welled in his eyes.

Following Tidus' gaze, Auron's vision swept through the dim cavern and Raine recognized the glowing tails of other Pyreflies drifting around the ruins. There was something familiar to Raine about the broken statues in the background, the ripped wallpaper, the paneled walls and the arched hallway.

Again, the picture settled on the group of people behind Auron, this time long enough for Raine to distinguish between them. Three of them crouched in mournful prayer, another was audibly sobbing as she paced and a majestic, shadowy figure, which Raine couldn't see right away, except for its glowing yellow eyes. A Ronso.

They were the people from his last pilgrimage and Raine quickly sought out Lulu, barely visible in her dark furs and strange leathery skirt with the ambiguous lattice design. She was the dark one. The one too dark for Auron. She was kneeling next to Yuna, who Raine only recognized because of her Summoner's robe, and a stocky, red-headed man in Blitzball shorts. Raine confirmed Lulu's beauty, her long, raven hair, purple lips and dark eyes and realized Auron must have been an ass-man to overlook breasts like hers.

The scene made another sickening sidelong sweep, resting on Tidus and the whole camera dipped once; a nod. "I'll find a way to bring your sister here."

"I can't ask you to do that, Auron, you've already done so much," Tidus whispered and slanted his head at Auron. "Ever consider retirement, old man?"

Old man. Tidus said it with a husk of endearment, not with the usual bitterness when he was referring to their father.

"Hmph. Never."

Tidus stared at Auron miserably, a tear dropping unceremoniously on his cheek. "Serious?"

Auron said nothing.

With a sigh, Tidus went on, shaking his head. "I have to do this. I—I can't live without her, you know?"

"Hmph," Auron said and Raine knew Auron most definitely did not know.

"And—" Tidus smashed shut his eyes, forcing a definitive nod. "It's the right thing to do."

Auron snorted. "Your father said those exact words at this junction in the pilgrimage. He had hoped becoming Sin would give his life meaning."

Raine scoffed at this. At the same time, so did Tidus. It startled her because it was like a perfect echo. Good to see they both saw their father in such high regard.

"Auron, if it doesn't work this time, if I'm reborn as Sin, bring Raine with you on your next pilgrimage."

"What shall I bring her back as?"

Bemused, Tidus's clear blue eyes were glued to Auron and it was the strangest feeling. For a brief moment, Tidus was looking directly at Raine. "What do you mean 'as what'?"

"Mage? Swordswoman?" Auron offered.

"Summoner," Tidus said grimly and the word plunged from her brother's lips like an anvil.

Auron's eye was slowly drifting away before this, but it jerked back to Tidus' dark expression. "You—" Auron paused. Raine got the impression Auron was genuinely startled. "You're sure?"

"Promise me you'll look after her. Maybe you can talk some sense into her," Tidus said and folded his arms, grumpy, glaring reproachfully. "I don't like her new boyfriend."

Raine burst out laughing, but with the hot tears in her eyes it was almost a sob. Oh, Tidus. My protective older brother, she thought.

And then something cold nestled in her chest cavity as she pictured the fleet of Sinspawn, the way they encroached the beach during her and Jory's wedding. How much exactly did Tidus not like her boyfriend? Enough to sabotage the wedding?

"I give you my word," Auron said. "I'll take care of your sister. I'll guard her with my life."

There was a loyal determination in the way he said it, but Raine couldn't tell if the devotion was aimed for Tidus or for Raine.

Pyreflies dispersing, the movie faded and Raine couldn't stop the roll in her stomach as she leaped off the bed and ran for the bathroom.

*

Scooping tap water into her mouth, Raine ignored the sewer taste as she rinsed and spit the vomit taste out of her mouth.

Raine returned to the main room. The Pyreflies were finished showing her Auron's memories and they bumped against the window, trapped, asking to be liberated. Releasing the window, Raine quickly stepped back as the Pyreflies whooshed out, swirling around the snow yard, eager for freedom, and she followed their comet tails down below, where someone was shoveling snow off the walkway. Raine leaned out the window as the Pyreflies whizzed by Rin, attracting his attention. He stood his shovel upright like a staff as he watched them go, and then turned up to the second floor. It was so quiet that Raine could hear Rin's boots squeaking in the packed snow as he walked around to face the building. He saluted her, bowed slightly. Raine slowly waved.

From a distance, their gazes locked as they shared a moment. Rin looked like he wanted to say something and with a sympathetic gesture, his head tilted, motioning inside, an invitation. Raine nodded and Rin attacked the ground with his shovel, flinging the last of the snow sideways.

Raine closed the window. She found Auron's red cloak twisted around one of his legs and she yanked it, glancing with a flinch at Auron to make sure she hadn't woken him, and gently lifted one of his bare feet to slowly unravel the garment free. She put it on just for the sake of modesty and dropped to her knees next to Auron to lightly kiss the place where his forehead met his high hairline. He stirred, nuzzled his cheek against his arm as he adjusted in his sleep, his lips smacking once.

Crawling back, Raine was about to get up.

"Choose me."

Raine froze.

"Choose me, Raine," Auron said with a drowsy lilt and smacked his lips again.

Shifting the coverlet over his shoulder, she touched his damp hair, brushing it from his face. His tail was twisted on the floor behind him, the pink, blue polka-dot ribbon still holding together his sloppy braid. "Always," Raine whispered, planting another quick kiss on his forehead and padding to the door.

It didn't occur to her until later that "choose me" meant something different for Auron than it did for her.

*

Downstairs, in the main shop, Rin was taking off his heavy coat, stomping his boots free of snow. Under, he wore a yellow jacket open to expose his bare chest and strange red choker.

"Summoner Raine," he said, throwing his coat up on a hook. "Did you enjoy your dinner?"

"I did, thanks," she said, decided against telling him how bland the meat was and flavorless the corn turned out.

His tan, leathery face wrinkled in a large smile as he promptly approached her, shaking her hand in both of his, like this morning when they first met, but then his eyes flashed in concern. "Summoner Raine, you've been crying."

"A little," she said, although she was sure her eyes were nearly puffed shut.

She thought for a moment he looked a little misty-eyed himself. He smelled good, his cologne spicy, and he cleared his throat, talking with the choppy rhythm of his Al Behd accent. "You will have to excuse me, Summoner. You look exactly like your brother. The hair, the eyes."

"You knew my brother?"

"Of course. He is very well-known. Your father, too." There was a devious glint in his eye. "You and your brother must have been graced with your mother's looks?"

Raine smiled and self-consciously ran a hand through her hair. Not today.

"I encouraged your brother to learn the Al Behd language. He became decent at understanding it, although I'm not sure how much he could speak."

"Al Behd…you must know Rikku, then?"

He looked surprised. "Sir Auron has talked about the Al Behd?"

"A little. It's difficult to get a lot out of him."

Rin chuckled.

"What else do you know about Auron, er, Sir Auron?"

Rin hesitated and motioned behind the counter to a couple stools. "Come, sit."

Raine hopped up on one, Rin on the other. He began to eye her cloak warily.

"You are wearing his coat."

"Oh," Raine said, flushing. "Yes. To cover my pajamas." She realized her reserve was probably a bit of overkill, glancing at Rin's bare chest.

Rin's eyes found the sparkle of her wedding ring and he studied it in a way that made Raine pull the sleeve of Auron's cloak down to hide it.

"I don't think I've ever seen Sir Auron without his red cloak. I don't believe many have."

"He's…sleeping."

"Ah," he said with a strange grin that made her blush again. "It appears you and Sir Auron are…close?"

"I've known him since I was little, when he was friends with Tidus." She reminded herself not to mention Zanarkand.

"I see." He gave a side nod, furrowing his eye brows earnestly and shook his head, as though dismissing an idea. "Right, you wanted to know about Sir Auron."

"Yes, please."

"Is there a certain aspect you are most curious about? I don't know much about him, either, but I can try."

"You saw the Pyreflies outside just now?" Raine asked.

Rin gave a careful nod and Raine's belly curled with dread. He knew.

"So it's true?" she whispered. "He's unsent?"

"Oh my dear, I was afraid of this." He sighed. "Well, I do not believe he told Tidus until far into the pilgrimage, either, if it makes you feel better."

"How did Auron die?"

"I believe the scar on his face was the deathblow."

"By whom?"

"Legend says Yunalesca. After Jecht and Braska died, they say Auron went back to confront Yunalesca and was mortally wounded. He made his way, somehow, through Mount Gagazet and was found by a Ronso."

"Kimarhi?"

"Correct. Kimarhi brought him to my branch in the Calm Lands and left for Bevelle to find Lady Yuna. Auron had been tasked by Braska and Jecht to take care of their offspring. Sir Auron is quite legendary, but to be in two places at once is still beyond his capabilities. He died sometime in the night."

Raine shuddered. He had nearly died again from her goof in the mirror. "Yunalesca…she gives the Final Aeon, doesn't she?"

"Summoner Raine, I don't claim to be an expert in any of Yevon's customs, but yes, that's how the story goes."

"My father was Sin and my brother was Sin and soon someone else will be Sin…when does it stop?"

"Yevon believes when the people of Spira have atoned."

"For what?"

"Various things. Mostly for relying on machina."

"That's insane."

Rin gave a sideways nod. "You are not alone in your thinking. The Al Behd have a slightly different take on Sin and Yu Yevon and their part in Spira."

"What's that?"

Rin folded his arms and leaned back more comfortably in his chair. "The sacrifice of a Summoner is a ritual upheld by the leaders of the Yevon religion. To believe something else is blasphemy, which is why the Al Behd are considered heathens by most of Spira. We don't believe a Summoner's sacrifice has to be made to defeat Sin. For good, that is."

"How do you think Sin can be beaten?"

"Oh, I could not really say," he said humbly, "but Sin is really just a mass of fiends and Pyreflies and could theoretically be defeated by a large amount of machina. Some say if the core of Sin is also destroyed, it would eliminate Sin's capability to be reborn."

"Reborn? You mean, like my brother was?"

"As I understand," Rin said.

"Auron says Tidus and my father were chosen by their Summoners. He says when I face Yunalesca, I should pick him."

Rin tapped his lips. "Interesting."

"What is?"

"That he was not picked at the last pilgrimage. Since he is already unsent, it would have spared your brother's life."

Raine sat up straight.

"Not for lack of trying, I am sure," Rin said, holding up a hand to contain her conclusions. "The bond between Guardian and Summoner must be strong, so I can see why Yuna's first choice of Sir Auron wasn't accepted. When you get to Zanarkand Ruins, it will be Yunalesca's choice in the end. I am sure this time, it will be different."

Did he say…Zanarkand Ruins? Raine squinted. "Zanarkand what?"

He blanched under his tan skin. "Excuse me, Summoner Raine. Sometimes my native tongue gets mixed in with everyday speech. I meant to say when you get to Yunalesca, it will be her choice in the end."

"It sounded like you said 'Zanarkand Ruins.'" How did Rin know about Zanarkand? Did Auron tell him?

Rin grinned, looking very puzzled for a moment. Then he leaned toward her conspiratorially. "You know, when I first saw you come in, I saw your ring and I thought Auron had taken on a wife."

Raine skewed her head at his sudden subject change and was about to set the innkeeper straight, but Rin shook his head quickly in apology.

"Of course, that was my error. Auron was not too happy when I mentioned this."

Raine narrowed her eyes, trying to sort out the misunderstanding and gave a half smile.

"Could you imagine, though? Yunalesca could never say no to a married bond, could she?"

Raine's face fell as she too realized this.

"Summoner Raine?" The innkeeper regarded her changed expression with curiosity and reached across to touch her hand. "You're as white as a wraith."

Choose me.

Auron wanted Raine to choose him for the Final Summoning, but Raine realized he wasn't about to be turned down a second time. Auron made sure to tip the scales in his favor.

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Raine dryly laughed to cover up the sound of her heart breaking. "Excuse me, I'm just feeling a little foolish."

"Oh dear, was it something I said?"

"It's just-" she said and pulled her hand out of the sleeve to show him the ring. The pear-shaped diamond sparked in the low light. "Auron and I are married."