Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ A Time for Reflection ❯ A Dream No Longer ( Chapter 6 )

Chapter VI: A Dream No Longer

Tidus awoke early. Sleep continued to elude him, as thoughts of Yuna continued to deprive him of desperately needed slumber.

"It's ok… she can't help she's beautiful!"

Making sure that he had Yuna's ring with him, he walked out of his bedroom and into the kitchen.

Tidus was… hungry. He knew that he needed some nutrition for the journey ahead of him. Deciding that he would make some food for him and his dad, he haphazardly threw some logs in the wood burning stove. After clumsily getting a fire started, Tidus cracked open a couple of chocobo eggs. He decided to have them scrambled, like his mom used to make. Of course, there were no chocobos in Zanarkand, but he quickly concluded that an egg is an egg.

Jecht awoke to the smell of eggs cooking and heard them crackling happily on the frying pan. His rumbling stomach urged him to get out of bed, and Jecht tossed on some clothes and headed out of his bedroom.

"Watcha got cookin' there, boy?" Jecht asked curiously.

"Scrambled chocobo eggs," Tidus replied proudly, motioning for his father to sit at the table. He scooped some eggs onto a plate and handed it to his father. Upon taking a bite, Jecht proceeded to jokingly make choking and gagging noises. Tidus laughed and smacked his dad on the arm playfully, taking his own seat at the small dinner table.

"So, son, today's the big day, huh?" Jecht said calmly. "You've been cryin' about wanting this day ever since you got here. Do you still want it, boy?"

"Yeah," Tidus replied sheepishly. "But I'm really going to miss you… Auron and Braska too. I'm sorry I have to leave everyone."

"Like I said last night, you don't belong here. I could be selfish like the bastard I am and tell you that I can't make it without you here, but that just ain't true." Jecht proclaimed loudly.

"I… I want you to be happy, son. I want you to experience what true contentment is. That'll make me happier than anything. I wouldn't feel like much of a father if I kept you here. I'm sure Braska and Auron feel the same way."

"Thanks dad," Tidus replied with a smile. "These past six months haven't been that bad. I… I've enjoyed being with all of you. I'm glad… that I found out what a great dad I had."

"I don't know if that makes me want to gag or if it makes me a happy man," Jecht replied solemnly. "I think it's the latter."

He picked up the dishes and took them to the small sink. Not bothering to wash them, Jecht looked in Tidus' direction. "It's time to go."

"Right on!" Tidus replied eagerly, following Jecht out the door. At the threshold, he turned around and looked at his house one last time.

"I'm gonna miss this place."

He shut the door behind him, knowing that it was the last time he would see his home on the Farplane.

About fifteen minutes later, they arrived at Auron's house. Braska was already there, sitting on the couch.

"Are we ready?" Auron asked curiously, looking at the group around him.

"We're ready!" Tidus replied enthusiastically.

"Let's go. Master Kaemon awaits us," Braska said solemnly.

Upon reaching the temple, Abram was waiting at the entrance once again. "Everyone, it is time to perform the ritual. Are you ready Sir Tidus?" Abram asked expectantly.

"Yes," Tidus said bravely. They followed Abram into the inner chamber, as they had yesterday afternoon. Tidus found that the room was dimly lit, with only a few torches lit. Yesterday, at the council, it had been much brighter.

"Sir Tidus," Master Kaemon acknowledged. "Are we ready to begin?"

"Just one second, Master. May I say one last thing to them?" Tidus asked, looking in the direction of his father and two friends.

"Of course, Tidus, take your time," Kaemon kindly proclaimed.

Tidus approached Braska first, with Braska initiating the conversation. "Tidus, I'm so grateful that Yuna found someone like you to be with her. I'm so happy, for both of you. Please, be there for Yuna, always," Braska said earnestly.

"I will… I swear I'll be there for her," Tidus replied emotionally.

"Thank you Tidus. Will you tell Yuna and everyone else hello for me?" Braska asked.

Tidus looked at him and smiled. "Will do!" Tidus yelled excitedly.

As Tidus walked away from Braska, he inched himself closer to Auron. "Hey Auron, I wanted to say good bye, and tell you thanks for everything."

Auron looked at him thoughtfully for a moment. "No, I thank you Tidus. You helped me, and everyone else, liberate Spira. You are… a hero. Go be happy with Yuna," Auron replied unemotionally.

"I will," Tidus replied sadly… he embraced Auron tightly. Little by little, the older man reciprocated the hug. After a moment, he let go of Tidus. Slowly walking away from Auron, he approached his father… one last time.

"Bye dad… umm, thanks for being there for me these past few months." Tidus said thoughtfully.

"No problem!" Jecht replied boisterously. "You are my son, after all," Jecht continued.

"Yeah," Tidus replied sheepishly.

"Son," Jecht continued, "Let me know how Spira is. Tell everyone hi." Tidus looked sadly at his father for a moment.

"No problem." Tidus said, smiling slightly. "I'll send you a post card, or something." Jecht looked at Tidus for a moment.

"I'll be looking forward to it."

"I love you guys," Tidus yelled at the three of them, and with that, Tidus walked slowly to Master Kaemon.

"Are you finished, Tidus?" Kaemon inquired.

"I'm ready!" Tidus proclaimed loudly.

"As you wish," Kaemon said solemnly. "Let us begin."

Kaemon waved his staff and concentrated. The entire room was filled with an awe inspiring light, and the flames on the torches turned an intense blue, as they did when Yuna performed the sending in Kilika. As Kaemon concentrated, holding his staff high in the air, Tidus was enveloped in bright light. He had to tightly shut his eyes to avoid the intense white luminosity.

The light faded for a moment, and Tidus opened his eyes long enough to see them for the last time. "Everyone," he said just loud enough for them to hear. "Later!"

With that, Tidus disappeared in a tremendous flash of radiance. Tidus was… gone. Thanking Master Kaemon, Jecht, Auron and Braska left the temple, remembering the young man that was returning to his love.

~~~~~
In Spira
~~~~~

Tidus opened his eyes slowly, stretching exaggeratedly. The voyage for Tidus was much faster than he had expected it to be. All he remembered was a flash of bright light; now he was here.

Where was here?

It was dusk, which was strange, considering he left the Farplane early in the morning. Could it have been that he was unconscious for that long? He had no idea. Looking around, he finally realized where he was.

He was surrounded by a forest full of tropical palm trees. He was finally here... he had made it to Besaid, in the woods northwest of the temple. He walked slowly, following the peak of the temple to guide him to the village of Besaid. He hoped that he would have a chance to clean up a little before he saw her. If he looked as bad as he smelt, he had a feeling that Yuna would run off screaming.

On the way to the temple, he saw a familiar face. It was Wakka, idly tossing a blitz ball around. Tidus smiled at him as he humorously mumbled inaudible utterances under his breath.

"I really am here!"

"Wakka!" Tidus yelled excitedly. His head snapped around quickly, apparently very surprised and terrified at what he had just heard. He almost keeled over in shock when he saw him.

"T-Ti… Tidus?" Wakka stammered, terrified that he was seeing an unsent soul.

"Wakka, chill! It's me… they, uhh, sent me back! I'm home."

Wakka wasn't buying it, and Tidus sighed audibly.

"Come on! Don't make me kick the blitz ball at you to prove it!" Tidus joked.

Wakka decided to attempt speaking coherently. "Is… is it really you, brudda? They really sent you back? Wait a minute, back from where?"

"I came back from the Farplane, Wakka. I was there, with Auron, Braska, and my old man. The ruler of the Farplane thought, for some reason, that I deserved to come back, to be with her."

"Yuna," Wakka said softly. She's on the…" Wakka was interrupted by Tidus.

"She's on the pier, Wakka, crying. I saw her there every day on the Farplane. I need to talk to her," Tidus proclaimed passionately.

"Tidus, you really are back! Come here, ya?" Wakka ran to Tidus and hugged him tightly, but let go of him and made humorous gagging noises.

"Phew… you smell pretty bad. I hope you're not planning on seeing Yuna like that."

"Sorry Wakka, I guess it was a tough trip… but I don't remember any of it!" Tidus recalled, laughing slightly.

Wakka chuckled and pointed out that there was a nice pond to bathe in, further down in the forest.

Tidus nodded and made his way to the crystal clear body of water. He hopped in happily, not bothering to shed his clothes, and savored the cool, soothing water that splashed on his skin and washed the grime away.

Tidus inhaled sharply, and swam to the bottom of the pond. Suddenly, he remembered the dream that he had.

Smiling slightly, Tidus humorously decided to mimic his dream. Curling into a ball, exactly like a fetus in a mother's womb, he closed his eyes for a moment. Suddenly opening his eyes, he stretched and swam to the surface, with a huge smile plastered on his face.

"It's good to be back."

Upon exiting the pond, Tidus followed Wakka to his hut. On the way, he noticed a beautiful but simple home that had not been in Besaid before.

"That's Yuna's house," Wakka, said answering Tidus' unasked question. "Everyone pitched in and built if for her after we defeated Sin."

Tidus looked curiously at the house once again; he wondered if it would be the home that they would start their lives together in.

"Wakka, where's everyone else?" Tidus inquired curiously.

"Oh, they went with Rikku to help Cid out. He tried to fly the airship through the Thunder Plains. Needless to say, there were a few problems. Kimahri and Lulu went to give Rikku some moral support, ya?" Wakka said. Tidus chuckled loudly at this as they approached Wakka's hut.

When Tidus entered the hut, Wakka offered him some simple, but dry clothes, consisting of a pair of shorts and a white shirt. Tidus readily accepted. Eager to see Yuna, Tidus excused himself, and Wakka bid him farewell and good luck.

"Be careful with her," Wakka said, "She's been hurting inside. Ease her pain, ehh brudda?" Tidus nodded.

He headed to the pier, where fate awaited him. As Tidus walked away, Wakka looked at him thoughtfully. "Thanks for bringing him back," he whispered incoherently.

__________________________________________________________ _________________

It had become dark outside… a cool breeze came from the beach, and the stars were breathtaking.

He found her sitting on the edge of the pier, her feet dangling lazily in the water. She was… beautiful. Not wearing her summoner attire, she was wearing a white shirt with a modest dark blue skirt. He looked at the small of her back for a moment and listened to her closely.

She was crying. It had hurt Tidus bad enough to see her crying from the Farplane. Here, seeing her in person, seeing her sadness, was heart wrenching.

He couldn't think of what to say to her. Taking his gloves off of his hands, he walked to her and placed a gentle touch on Yuna's shoulder. She leaned into his touch somewhat and slowly turned around to face her unknown comforter.

He realized that she was surprisingly calm, at first. She blinked a few times, closed her eyes, and slowly opened them once again.

"Yuna… hey."

Her eyes widened in surprise, his voice escalating her emotions. "They sent me back, to be with you," Tidus murmured softly.

"Please tell me," Yuna whispered softly. "Please tell me this isn't a dream... I couldn't survive if it was. Please, tell me!" Yuna pleaded, losing her calmness, her eyes filling with tears.

He embraced her… he wasn't about to let her keep crying like that. It was not a time for tears of sadness.

He held her tightly. Finally… he didn't have to worry whether or not he would disappear into her. He was a whole person, with his love in his arms.

"It… It really is you. Tidus! How, Why, When?" Yuna asked between sobs, tears pouring down her face.

"Shh… Yuna, I'll tell you everything soon. I'm not going anywhere, okay? I'll be here for you… don't cry."

Tidus and Yuna stayed that way for a while. They held each other lovingly, with Tidus slowly stroking her hair soothingly. Both of them subconsciously feared the moment would end, that each of them would be left alone once again.

After some time, Tidus shifted away from her to look at her. Her tears had dried, but she looked spent. She was still incredibly beautiful, but her face seemed worn from the nights of endless sorrow. Tidus intended to change that immediately.

"Yuna please," Tidus begged. "Please promise me you won't cry anymore. It hurts me to see you like this."

"I'm sorry," Yuna whispered lovingly. "I promise I won't, not anymore… not with you here." Yuna smiled sweetly at Tidus, still wanting to know the details of how and why he came back.

Tidus looked at Yuna, his crystal blue eyes staring into hers: one of them emerald, one sapphire. He always thought that was so cute about her. She looked at him questioningly, and Tidus finally said what was on his mind.

"Yuna… ever since I left I've felt bad about telling everyone it was my story. It wasn't just my story… it was our story, you know? I hurt you when I left like that, and I'm sorry.

She withdrew herself deeper into Tidus' arms, waiting for him to continue.

"I never got to say I loved you back. I wanna say it now, Yuna. I want to say I love you."

Yuna looked up at him and smiled slightly. "You didn't make me sad, you left me wondering. It was not being with you that made me sad."

Looking at Tidus for a while, the realization that he was here with her finally sunk in. "I love you too… always have."

Tidus stared at her lovingly, his face inching closer to hers. Yuna reciprocated, and their lips met, ever so gently. The kiss was comforting, to both of them; it spoke more than words at this moment in time. Locked in a tight embrace, kissing each other lovingly, they knew nothing could get in the way of their love. Yuna broke the kiss for just a moment and stared at her dream no longer. He would be with her now, always.

Yuna returned her soft lips to his and happily proceeded to shower him with kisses. Tidus chuckled happily at her display of affection.

"Now that's what I call kisses!"

Deciding to return the favor, Tidus lovingly planted small kisses all over her lips, cheeks, nose, and any other neglected area of her face. She laughed happily and rested her head on his shoulder.

When the kisses subsided once again, Tidus and Yuna's gaze found each other. Yuna spoke first. "For the first time in six months, I'm happy. Thank you so much for coming to me again."

Tidus continued to smile, and said "Hey, I'm your guardian, right? I made you a promise. I'll be with you, always. I intend to live up to my promise."

The night continued with various displays of tender affection. Smiling at each other, and kissing. They talked about their lives without each other a little, and continued kissing. Loving embraces continued to abound. They fell asleep on the pier that night, with their arms encircled around each other tightly. They were together, and they would not be torn apart again.

He had made up his mind… tomorrow, Tidus would ask her to marry him.