Categories > Games > Final Fantasy X > Hymns of Fayth
Where I've Been...
0 reviewsAfter a hard day of fighting Sinspawn, Lulu and Auron rest at the Mi’ihen Travel Agency and bond over a bottle of Sake.
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Chapter 2: Where I've been...
Night was beginning to fall over the Mi'ihen Highroad as Summoner and Guardian neared the Travel Agency. The trip from Djose had taken much longer than normal due to the Crusaders setting up for their new mission. Apparently the Sinspawn that attacked Lulu was not the only one to escape their grasp, so Auron and Lulu had spent most the day helping to round the rest of them up. Of course the guardian thought that it was an unnecessary distraction, stating that the Crusaders could manage on their own. But Lulu had overrode him and insisted upon helping.
Now, both heavily worn from their day of fighting , the Summoner and her guardian stopped for a well deserved rest. Auron got rooms for them both and went to rest immediately, telling Lulu to do the same. But the black mage was too wound up to sleep and headed outside to watch the sunset. She was only able to catch the final glimpse of the sun before it disappeared into the sea. The sky quickly filled with stars as Lulu watched the transformation like she had never seen it before. Her hands rest deftly at her side, her head slightly upturned to get a good view of the sky. Somehow the world seemed to fade around her and all things went inward as she thought of what lie ahead of her.
"What is it you are doing?"
The gruff voice of her guardian pulled her out of her thoughts, making her eyes fully focus once more on the surroundings. As she turned from the overlook she realized how dark it was. There was no moon in the sky and if not for the torches that lit the door to the inn she would not have been able to see Auron's silhouette. How long had she been gazing into the nothingness? Hours possibly. Auron looked fully rested so he must have gotten a good amount of sleep.
Finally gaining her bearings she managed to register what the man had said to her. "Nothing," She said, shaking her head lazily. "I was just...looking."
Auron laughed quietly and walked passed his summoner, gazing out at the blackened sea that stretched out in front of the cliff they stood on. "You must have been entranced by the scenery. I've been standing there for nearly an hour." All the humor was gone from his voice making it seem as if he hadn't laughed at all just moments before.
Lulu glared at the ground with her one visible eye, cursing herself for allowing her guard to slip. "I was lost in thought." She amended, knowing the legendary man already knew the truth. Joining Auron as he stared out at the same thing she had been looking at only minutes ago, Lulu's gaze fell fully on the man at her side. She was slightly surprised to see that he still wore his dark sunglasses even in the darkness that surrounded them. The way he wore his half-mask and glasses it made it seem, at least to her, as if he was trying to block out the world around him. Or possibly keep himself closed off from the world, allowing the glasses and mask to serve as an extra reminder that he no longer belonged here.
She had picked up the scent of the Farplane coming off Auron shortly after dismissing Ixion. It was always hard to smell the Unsent when an Aeon was near, the powerful creature's own unique scent overpowering theirs. But it had been unmistakable once she picked it up, nothing would convince her otherwise. Auron was Unsent and for some reason he felt no reason to explain to her why he stayed on. He had to know she, as a Guado, would be able to know the truth. It hadn't really bugged her, the Unsent were common in Spira. So long as he was not harming the living she had no objection to his staying.
"You're staring." Auron had steadily become more and more uncomfortable under Lulu's scrutinizing gaze and had to break the silence. He did not look at her as he spoke, not wanting to meet her gaze. Something about her ruby eyes unsettled him when they were turned solely on him. She had a special gift to unnerve him that none other seemed to possess. So he just stayed staring forward, praying she would look away.
Lulu had to suppress a flinch at the harshness of his tone, the man obviously didn't like being stared at. "I'm sorry," She turned her face from him and grasped her left arm with her right hand. "I was just wondering, where have you been the past ten years?" In truth, she wanted dot know what was keeping him in Spira, but she couldn't bring herself to ask. It was too personal a subject and she didn't want to insult him.
Auron sighed, sometimes prayers were answered. "Where I've been..." He parroted her, considering her question. With her eyes off him, he was able to look at her out of the corner of his good eye. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you." There was a little humor in his tone that he could not suppress. He knew that ten years ago, when Jecht told him that he had come from Zanarkand, he had laughed in disbelief. There was no doubt in his mind that Lulu would do the same if he told her the truth.
The laugh that Auron couldn't quite suppress at the end of his sentence dragged Lulu's gaze back to him quickly. What he said made her even more interested in his story, making her lock eyes with him. "Try me." She said, challenging him with a serious expression.
The surprise at having to look Lulu fully in the face made Auron fall silent. He just gazed into her challenging eyes without a word, not sure how to respond. It took nearly a minute to break the trance her eyes placed him under before he could speak. "Would you believe me if I said I had been in Zanarkand? Not the ruins here, but the actual thriving city of a thousand years ago. Would you be able to believe that?"
It was all Lulu could do not to gape at her guardian. It was almost ludicrous to even consider such a notion, but it would explain a few things. Like why no one had seen him at all during the past decade, or why no one had ever heard of Sir Jecht's son. She stood there, considering the idea for a long moment before nodding hesitantly. "Yes...I could." Her tone was uncertain, but slowly she was accepting the idea of it. Magic existed, did it not? There was a link to the after life, so why not one to the past?
Auron was shocked at her response, having expected her to laugh in his face. But why should he be so surprised? Braska had believed Jecht so readily that he hadn't questioned the man once on the subject. Something about being a summoner gave them the ability to believe in such thing, he supposed.
At the silence Auron answered her with Lulu softened her gaze, "But I would like to ask, if I may, what you were doing there?" She wanted him to talk about it. The idea of the ancient Zanarkand still thriving somewhere thrilled her. Maybe he was searching for answers to where Sin truly came form and what he was.
"Fulfilling a promise I made to a friend." Auron pulled his gaze from Lulu and reached for his jug of sake, pulling the cork out of the opening and taking a large gulp of it. He lowered himself onto the ground, setting the jug on the grass and resting his hand on it.
Something about how he answered her made it very clear he was done speaking about the subject. Lulu was content, for now at least, with what had been revealed . With Auron, she knew she would have to take things slow and work on getting even the smallest bit of information from him. The challenge was not unwelcome. Having a distraction from the fate that loomed over her --like the blade of a guillotine preparing to execute the condemned-- might make her journey a bit more bearable.
Lulu sank to the ground and placed her hand over Auron's on the Sake bottle then pulled it from his grasp. She took a drink of it that matched Auron's in size then set it back down. Unfortunately, she couldn't manage a perfectly straight face as he did.
Auron watched as Lulu drank that large quantity of alcohol, not even bothering to hide the smirk that found its way to his face. He half expected her to spit it out and was surprised to find that she didn't. What she did do was just as satisfying though. Her nose scrunched up, making her look remarkably childish for an instant. Auron couldn't help but laugh and his laughter only intensified when the summoner glared at him for it. But her anger didn't hold on for long and soon she was laughing right along with him.
Author's Note: Hope you like it! Just a bit of relationship building, promise things will get more interesting in the chapters to come! Reviews are welcome and I could use a Beta if anyone is interested.
Night was beginning to fall over the Mi'ihen Highroad as Summoner and Guardian neared the Travel Agency. The trip from Djose had taken much longer than normal due to the Crusaders setting up for their new mission. Apparently the Sinspawn that attacked Lulu was not the only one to escape their grasp, so Auron and Lulu had spent most the day helping to round the rest of them up. Of course the guardian thought that it was an unnecessary distraction, stating that the Crusaders could manage on their own. But Lulu had overrode him and insisted upon helping.
Now, both heavily worn from their day of fighting , the Summoner and her guardian stopped for a well deserved rest. Auron got rooms for them both and went to rest immediately, telling Lulu to do the same. But the black mage was too wound up to sleep and headed outside to watch the sunset. She was only able to catch the final glimpse of the sun before it disappeared into the sea. The sky quickly filled with stars as Lulu watched the transformation like she had never seen it before. Her hands rest deftly at her side, her head slightly upturned to get a good view of the sky. Somehow the world seemed to fade around her and all things went inward as she thought of what lie ahead of her.
"What is it you are doing?"
The gruff voice of her guardian pulled her out of her thoughts, making her eyes fully focus once more on the surroundings. As she turned from the overlook she realized how dark it was. There was no moon in the sky and if not for the torches that lit the door to the inn she would not have been able to see Auron's silhouette. How long had she been gazing into the nothingness? Hours possibly. Auron looked fully rested so he must have gotten a good amount of sleep.
Finally gaining her bearings she managed to register what the man had said to her. "Nothing," She said, shaking her head lazily. "I was just...looking."
Auron laughed quietly and walked passed his summoner, gazing out at the blackened sea that stretched out in front of the cliff they stood on. "You must have been entranced by the scenery. I've been standing there for nearly an hour." All the humor was gone from his voice making it seem as if he hadn't laughed at all just moments before.
Lulu glared at the ground with her one visible eye, cursing herself for allowing her guard to slip. "I was lost in thought." She amended, knowing the legendary man already knew the truth. Joining Auron as he stared out at the same thing she had been looking at only minutes ago, Lulu's gaze fell fully on the man at her side. She was slightly surprised to see that he still wore his dark sunglasses even in the darkness that surrounded them. The way he wore his half-mask and glasses it made it seem, at least to her, as if he was trying to block out the world around him. Or possibly keep himself closed off from the world, allowing the glasses and mask to serve as an extra reminder that he no longer belonged here.
She had picked up the scent of the Farplane coming off Auron shortly after dismissing Ixion. It was always hard to smell the Unsent when an Aeon was near, the powerful creature's own unique scent overpowering theirs. But it had been unmistakable once she picked it up, nothing would convince her otherwise. Auron was Unsent and for some reason he felt no reason to explain to her why he stayed on. He had to know she, as a Guado, would be able to know the truth. It hadn't really bugged her, the Unsent were common in Spira. So long as he was not harming the living she had no objection to his staying.
"You're staring." Auron had steadily become more and more uncomfortable under Lulu's scrutinizing gaze and had to break the silence. He did not look at her as he spoke, not wanting to meet her gaze. Something about her ruby eyes unsettled him when they were turned solely on him. She had a special gift to unnerve him that none other seemed to possess. So he just stayed staring forward, praying she would look away.
Lulu had to suppress a flinch at the harshness of his tone, the man obviously didn't like being stared at. "I'm sorry," She turned her face from him and grasped her left arm with her right hand. "I was just wondering, where have you been the past ten years?" In truth, she wanted dot know what was keeping him in Spira, but she couldn't bring herself to ask. It was too personal a subject and she didn't want to insult him.
Auron sighed, sometimes prayers were answered. "Where I've been..." He parroted her, considering her question. With her eyes off him, he was able to look at her out of the corner of his good eye. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you." There was a little humor in his tone that he could not suppress. He knew that ten years ago, when Jecht told him that he had come from Zanarkand, he had laughed in disbelief. There was no doubt in his mind that Lulu would do the same if he told her the truth.
The laugh that Auron couldn't quite suppress at the end of his sentence dragged Lulu's gaze back to him quickly. What he said made her even more interested in his story, making her lock eyes with him. "Try me." She said, challenging him with a serious expression.
The surprise at having to look Lulu fully in the face made Auron fall silent. He just gazed into her challenging eyes without a word, not sure how to respond. It took nearly a minute to break the trance her eyes placed him under before he could speak. "Would you believe me if I said I had been in Zanarkand? Not the ruins here, but the actual thriving city of a thousand years ago. Would you be able to believe that?"
It was all Lulu could do not to gape at her guardian. It was almost ludicrous to even consider such a notion, but it would explain a few things. Like why no one had seen him at all during the past decade, or why no one had ever heard of Sir Jecht's son. She stood there, considering the idea for a long moment before nodding hesitantly. "Yes...I could." Her tone was uncertain, but slowly she was accepting the idea of it. Magic existed, did it not? There was a link to the after life, so why not one to the past?
Auron was shocked at her response, having expected her to laugh in his face. But why should he be so surprised? Braska had believed Jecht so readily that he hadn't questioned the man once on the subject. Something about being a summoner gave them the ability to believe in such thing, he supposed.
At the silence Auron answered her with Lulu softened her gaze, "But I would like to ask, if I may, what you were doing there?" She wanted him to talk about it. The idea of the ancient Zanarkand still thriving somewhere thrilled her. Maybe he was searching for answers to where Sin truly came form and what he was.
"Fulfilling a promise I made to a friend." Auron pulled his gaze from Lulu and reached for his jug of sake, pulling the cork out of the opening and taking a large gulp of it. He lowered himself onto the ground, setting the jug on the grass and resting his hand on it.
Something about how he answered her made it very clear he was done speaking about the subject. Lulu was content, for now at least, with what had been revealed . With Auron, she knew she would have to take things slow and work on getting even the smallest bit of information from him. The challenge was not unwelcome. Having a distraction from the fate that loomed over her --like the blade of a guillotine preparing to execute the condemned-- might make her journey a bit more bearable.
Lulu sank to the ground and placed her hand over Auron's on the Sake bottle then pulled it from his grasp. She took a drink of it that matched Auron's in size then set it back down. Unfortunately, she couldn't manage a perfectly straight face as he did.
Auron watched as Lulu drank that large quantity of alcohol, not even bothering to hide the smirk that found its way to his face. He half expected her to spit it out and was surprised to find that she didn't. What she did do was just as satisfying though. Her nose scrunched up, making her look remarkably childish for an instant. Auron couldn't help but laugh and his laughter only intensified when the summoner glared at him for it. But her anger didn't hold on for long and soon she was laughing right along with him.
Author's Note: Hope you like it! Just a bit of relationship building, promise things will get more interesting in the chapters to come! Reviews are welcome and I could use a Beta if anyone is interested.
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