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batsutousaiTitle: Fayth
Fandoms: Harry Potter & Final Fantasy X
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
batsutousai
Beta:tsuki_no_suzu
Rating: eventual M/R
Pairings: Harry/Tidus
Warnings: OoC, AU (etc, etc, etc....)
Summary: Harry Potter defeated Voldemort, but at a price. When a new evil comes that he cannot defeat alone, he and his friends lock themselves in stone to fight it. One day, thousands of years later, Harry is freed and starts a journey with another young man who is equally lost to finish the job Harry once started.
Disclaim Her: ...
XD
A/N: So, I've started working on another HP/FFX fic. (Another one?!) Similar plot, different changes, but it is in the works. I intend to finish posting Fayth before I start putting up the next one – currently titled Twin Blades because I couldn't think of anything better.
Fayth by the way, is already finished, for those of you who worry about my tendency to start a new fic and sort of forget about my older ones, and is ten chapters long. So you've got four more chapters, then I'll start posting the next story.
So... Anybody want a summary? I still haven't bothered to post it on my bio at FFN. XD
-0-
Guadosalam
-0-
By the time they got to Djose, the party had mostly managed to shake their initial reaction to the slaughter, mostly due to Yuna's attempts to make them laugh with bad jokes. When Tidus asked why she was so determined to get them laughing, Lulu said, "Yuna always wanted her pilgrimage to be filled with good spirits, because she knew it would be that last memories she would ever have. Just because we're trying to find a way that doesn't result in her death, doesn't mean she wants that happiness any less."
"Summoners are seen as something of a pillar of strength," Harry added when Tidus fell back to walk with his two friends, wearing a thoughtful frown. "People look to summoners to defeat Sin and bring ten years of peace. A summoner who's always cheerful is a better summoner than one who lets their worry for the future show."
"Summoners pick their path early," Auron added, making Tidus and Rikku jump, as they hadn't known he'd been close enough to listen in, "Just as the Crusaders did. Yuna has long known what her fate would be, and she's already accepted it, if only it would bring peace to her people."
Tidus huffed and said, "But not anymore they won't. Not if we have anything to say about it, right?" He glanced over at Harry, who smiled and nodded. Then the teen smirked at Auron.
The unsent sighed and shook his head.
Yuna fell back at they came into view of the temple. "Harry? Would you like to go in first?"
Harry eyed her curiously. "You intend to talk to him?"
Yuna nodded. "It might take time."
Harry smiled. "Of course. If you want, we can all go through the Trials together, I should think." His eyes flickered to Wakka's quiet form ahead of them. "I'm pretty sure that's not against Yevon."
Yuna laughed lightly. "That should be fine. And it would probably be faster."
"Of course it will," Harry agreed.
Yuna gave one, short nod, then skipped back up to the front of their group to let her guardians know their plans.
Rikku leaned over and whispered, "But isn't it against Yevon for us to go in with you?"
Harry cocked an eyebrow. "It's also technically against Yevon to have an Al Bhed as a guardian," he agreed.
Rikku covered a smile and looked away. "Right."
Tidus eyed the two of them curiously, then said, "Does that mean we can still come in with you?"
Harry's eyes flickered up to Wakka again and his lips curved into a smirk. "Certainly."
"You really don't like Wakka, do you?" Tidus asked, shaking his head.
Harry shrugged. "He reminds me of my best friend, Ron, before he matured because of the war," he commented. "I love Ron like a brother, but he was such a prat at the time. If I hadn't been so desperate for a friend, I might never have forgiven him after the first time we had a falling out. But I did, and he got better. Wakka is older than Ron ever was, but he's still as immature as Ron was at eleven." He smiled sadly at his two companions. "I don't have the patience I used to, I'm afraid."
Tidus shrugged. "Okay."
Harry smiled. "Anyway, you might enjoy coming in again. One of my friends is here."
"Really?" Tidus asked, leaning forward.
"Neville," Harry replied. "He lacked confidence when we were kids, but he grew up to be one of the bravest and most loyal men I've ever known."
Rikku sighed. "I wish we could have met your friends in life."
Harry's smile turned sad. "Yeah. Me too."
-0-0-0-
In the temple, they met up with a summoner who was a little older than Yuna. He happily challenged Yuna to see which of them could make it to the Final Summoning first, then left with a wave. Harry was quite glad the young man hadn't given Yuna the time to introduce him, as Harry had no intentions of being dragged into a childish race.
"Sorry," Yuna said as they made their way up the steps to the Cloister of Trials.
Harry shrugged. "Please, feel free to draw the attention; I don't want it." He smiled at her.
Yuna nodded, though she looked troubled. Partway through the Trials, she finally asked. "You're sure you don't mind? I mean, you're a summoner too. And you've been working longer to find a permanent way to defeat Sin. Don't you deserve some praise?"
Harry sighed and turned to look at the girl tiredly. "Yuna, I don't care for recognition. If I get my way, I'll happily disappear after Sin's gone. Honestly, you can take any credit, assuming we manage it." He forced a smile. "You handle the fame far better than I ever could," he added, then turned to join the others on the platform to the second level.
Yuna shook her head, not understanding, and followed.
-0-0-0-
When they finally made their way to the chamber, Harry made for the door to the fayth, while Yuna and her party took up positions around the room. As Harry had half-way expected, Wakka complained when he realised Tidus and Rikku were going in with their summoner: "You're not allowed–"
Harry waved his staff warningly at the red-head, smiling when he immediately shut up. "As I have said before," he said softly, "I don't care for Yevon. The rules I follow in the temples are those of the fayth, and they don't mind a few extra people in their rooms, so long as those with the summoner maintain a respectful silence unless spoken to. Now, if that's all?"
Wakka nodded emphatically, so Harry turned and walked into the fayth's room, calmly sidestepping his guardians, who stood on either side of the closing door, and took his place at the other side of the crystal. There, he bowed his head and opened his thoughts to Neville.
The young man who appeared above the stone looked weary, but pleased. "Harry," he whispered.
Harry looked up at the ghost and smiled. "Hey, Nev."
Neville inclined his head. "Luna and Alexander mentioned you're alive again."
Harry's smile twisted bitterly. "In a manner of speaking."
Neville inclined his head again, then glanced back at Rikku and Tidus, who both stood a little straighter. The fayth smiled at them and looked back at Harry. "Your guardians?"
"In a manner of speaking," the summoner said again.
Neville chuckled. "I imagine Yu Yevon is rolling around in his armour at the thought that he might be defeated by an ex-fayth, an Al Bhed and a dre–"
"Neville!" Harry snapped, shaking his head.
Neville rose an eyebrow at him while Tidus and Rikku traded nervous looks. "You, of all people, should know how much secrets hurt," he admonished the summoner.
Harry swallowed and asked, "Will you lend me Ixion?"
Neville watched his friend for a long moment before nodding. "I will," he agreed, and a shadowy form slipped from his crystal to enter Harry.
Harry closed his eyes and let the new aeon settle, then looked back up at Neville and nodded. Neville nodded back and made to fade, but Tidus said, "Wait!" When the other three turned to look at him with raised eyebrows – Harry and Neville – or an incredulous look – Rikku – he smiled sheepishly and said, "Sorry. But I thought it might be nice to warn you about Yuna."
"Mmm... Good point," Harry decided, smiling at Tidus, then looking back at Neville. "There's a young summoner out there, Braska's daughter," he said, and Neville nodded his understanding. "I told her a bit about the world before Yevon, and about him being the one to end the wars. She intends to ask you about it, because I told her I'd learned about it from the fayth."
Neville nodded. "Did you tell her what Yevon has become?"
Harry shook his head. "She's still too attached. I only told her he ended the wars, but did his own fair share of damage in the process."
Neville nodded again. "I can do that." He smiled sadly. "Most of Spira isn't ready to hear the truth about Yevon."
Tidus and Rikku traded looks again, considering whether they were included in that majority or not.
"Thank you," Harry said to his friend.
"Anything else?" Neville asked, looking over his shoulder at the two guardians to include them in the question.
Harry frowned, then nodded. "One of the maesters used an aeon that I didn't recognise. She was screaming in pain."
Neville frowned and closed his eyes. "An aeon that was... Ah..." He looked back at Harry. "Do you remember the mother who joined us on the steps of Zanarkand? It was perhaps fifteen years ago."
Harry nibbled his lower lip in thought for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Jessica?"
Neville nodded. "She was about to die, and she didn't want to leave her young son alone, so she became an aeon and gave him her powers. She is called Anima."
Harry sighed. "Does she hurt?" he asked.
Neville smiled sadly. "Her son is a maester, and he's done some horrible things in his quest for ever more power," he said. "Of course she hurts."
Harry nodded his understanding. "I see. I will see if I can help."
"A favourable end to your journey is all the help she requires."
"I will do my best."
Neville smiled. "You always do," he said, then faded from sight as the door to the main room opened.
Tidus and Rikku preceded Harry out, and both stopped, eyes narrowed, when they caught sight of the newest addition to the group.
Dona looked the small group over with disgust and said, "I was under the impression that only summoners were allowed in the inner chamber."
"Clearly, someone told you wrong," Rikku snapped in reply.
"Rikku," Harry murmured, settling a hand on her arm. "Peace. Not everyone listens to the fayth as I do."
Dona narrowed her eyes. "All summoners listen to the fayth, little boy."
Harry simply smiled and waved Yuna past him. "Good luck," he told her.
Yuna smiled in reply. "Thank you."
Dona laughed drily. "Lord Braska's daughter not only needs a large number of guardians, but she also depends on another summoner? Ah, to live in the shadow of greatness."
Harry clenched his hands in fists and was about to tell the woman off, but Tidus beat him to it: "What would you know about living in the shadow of greatness? What makes you assume that shadow makes things easier for you? You understand nothing about how difficult it is to grow up in the shadow of greatness!"
Harry grabbed Tidus' arm as the teen made to step forward and, probably, start a fight he would surely lose. "Tidus, there's no reason to argue with someone who could never understand the fame of others." He smiled nastily at Dona. "After all, it's not like she'll ever achieve it. No, her sort will spend the rest of their lives looking up at the statues of the great men and women of Spira and being jealous, because she believed their paths were easy, when, really, fame is the hardest course one will ever travel, and she just didn't have the strength needed to make it on her own."
The room rang heavy with silence and Dona looked at Harry like she wasn't sure whether she wanted to throttle him or not. After a long moment of opening and closing her mouth, she said, "What do you know of fame?"
Harry smiled blissfully. "Nothing at all," he replied, then herded his two guardians to an empty space against the wall. As everyone else turned their attention back to whatever they'd been doing before Harry had come out, Rikku and Harry turned their attention to Tidus and drilled him on what little Al Bhed he'd managed to assimilate the night before. When Harry was sure no one was watching them, he quietly cast the spell he'd used to learn the language on Tidus, making the teen grin at him gratefully.
When Yuna finally stumbled out, looking troubled, Dona stalked past her, still angry at the comments Harry had made. Yuna's guardians all hurried to check that she was okay while Harry and his two guardians brushed themselves off and joined the others as they headed to the door.
Down in the main temple, the party of eight made themselves useful by helping the monks care for those who had been wounded at Operation Mi'ihen. Tidus and Rikku happened to be taking a short break – they were all ordered to take short breaks by Auron – when Dona and her guardian emerged from the Cloister of Trials.
"Hey, Dona!" Tidus called, getting to his feet.
"Tidus!" Rikku hissed, tugging on the other's arm in hope of keeping him from starting a fight.
Dona looked over at the teen coldly. "What do you want?"
Tidus smiled at her and said, "If you want to know what it's like to be Yuna, you might try caring a bit for your fellow man. Part of the reason so many people like Yuna is that she cares more for the people of Spira than she does for her own reputation. Take this temple, for example," he said, waving his arms about. "Yuna and Harry should be continuing on their pilgrimages, but instead we're spending the night here and helping care for the wounded."
"Are you saying I should end my pilgrimage at the drop of a hat to help idiots?" Dona demanded.
Tidus shrugged. "It seems silly to sacrifice yourself for people you've never even spoken to. Perhaps they brought this on themselves, but, if you listen to Yevon, didn't we bring Sin upon ourselves to begin with?"
"Hey, you two!" Wakka called, walking out of the side chamber he'd been working in with Yuna, Kimahri and Auron. "Sir Auron says it's time you two relieved Lu and me!"
"Alright, we'll go get Lulu," Tidus agreed. "Are you guys okay in there for people?"
Wakka turned poked his head back inside the chamber and asked, then looked back out and nodded. "Yuna says they'll be fine with just the three of them."
"Right," Rikku said, then dragged Tidus over to the room Harry and Lulu were working in. "Lulu! You're relieved!"
The black mage let out a tired sigh and carefully climbed to her feet. "Thanks."
"The monks'll give you food while you're out there," Tidus suggested, watching her exhausted form with concern.
Lulu offered the teens a small smile as she walked past them.
"How are you holding up?" Rikku asked Harry as she and Tidus knelt next to him to get back to work.
Harry looked even more tired than Lulu had when he smiled up at them. "I'm fine."
"Harry, if you work yourself to exhaustion, you won't do these people any good," Tidus warned him.
But Harry shook his head. "I'm fine."
Tidus and Rikku traded looks, then leaned down together and bodily lifted the summoner and carried him out of the room while he ordered them, "Put me down! I said I'm fine!"
"Every time you've ever said you're 'fine', you weren't," Rikku informed him.
Lulu and Wakka chuckled at the three friends as Tidus and Rikku dropped their summoner on the ground next to the other guardians. Harry shot them all disgruntled looks and crossed his arms over his chest.
Tidus sighed and rolled his eyes. "Harry, aren't you the person who told us that part of our job as your guardians was to protect you from yourself?"
Harry huffed and looked away.
"We'll make sure he stays here," Lulu promised as Wakka waved a monk over to get the summoner some food.
"Thanks," Rikku said with a relieved smile.
"I don't need a babysitter," Harry complained.
"We could tie you up instead," Rikku offered cheerfully.
Harry glared at the two teens until they went back to the room they'd been working in. The two stopped in the doorway and stared at where Dona and her guardian were helping the monks. One of the monks walked over to the two teens and whispered, "Whatever you said to her worked. She's quite determined all of a sudden to do her part to help out."
"Well, damn," Rikku mumbled, then clapped Tidus on the shoulder, ignoring the monk's scandalised look at her language. "Tidus, you just earned the job of talking around people who think too highly of themselves."
Tidus snorted in amusement. "Well, how about we go help her, now that we've got her working?" he suggested with a grin.
With three summoners and an extra guardian, they were able to either heal or send everyone who had made it to the temple by the time the moon rose, without completely exhausting anyone. They spent the rest of the night in rooms the temple lent them.
The next morning, the two parties met in front of the temple, all munching on some sort of pastry the temple monks had made for breakfast.
"Thank you," Yuna said to Dona, having not had the chance to do so the night before.
Dona shrugged, then glanced at where Tidus was begging another pastry off of one of the monks. "You have the blond boy to thank."
"He may have given you the idea," Harry commented, "but you are the one who acted. And that, Lady Dona, is what we thank you for. Your help was invaluable, and I honestly wouldn't have expected you to even consider Tidus' words after all I'd said earlier."
Dona frowned at the male summoner for a long moment before saying, "What he said made sense; I would make a poor summoner if I didn't stop and help where I could. Perhaps you were right, Lord Harry, when you told me I would never find the recognition that Lady Yuna seems to achieve with ease. Because you, Lady Yuna, and you, Lord Harry, both have something in you that makes you want to help others, as Lord Braska and other High Summoners did. You don't even really think about helping them, you don't ask yourself 'is this stop worth it', you just do it. And that's what makes you the better summoners."
"We're not better–" Yuna tried.
Dona shook her head. "The blond boy said it seemed silly to sacrifice yourself for people you don't even know, and I believe I understand now what he meant. While I was in there, helping those wounded, I wondered if I would have the strength needed to get the Final Aeon and use it against Sin to save people I hardly knew." She smiled bitterly. "I intend to go home to Bevelle and join the Order; perhaps, through them, I will find the same strength you seem to have been born with."
"Good luck," Harry said.
"Thank you," Dona replied, then turned and left them.
Tidus walked back over with another load of pastries, which he passed out to the entire group. "Where are Dona and Barthello going?" he asked, munching on a pastry. He'd gotten enough for them, too, but if they were leaving, he'd eat them.
"Dona's going to find herself," Harry murmured, then filched one of the extra pastries from Tidus while Rikku stole the other one.
"Hey!"
Everyone chuckled and they set out again in high spirits.
-0-0-0-
On the way to the Moonflow, they came across a couple of Ronso, who happily made fun of Kimahri. Yet, even though they were nasty to the only Ronso in their party, the two Ronso also warned them about the disappearing summoners.
"Who would go around stealing summoners?" Wakka said after the Ronso had gone.
Harry, Rikku and Tidus all traded winces while Lulu glanced at Yuna, who nodded, then said, "The Al Bhed."
"Those–!"
Harry waved his staff at Wakka and shut him up before he could start in on the Al Bhed again. When the guardian gave him a furious look, Harry sighed and said, "If you'd waited to go off on your rant, we would have also been able to tell you that Rikku and I already talked to the Al Bhed about leaving our party alone."
"Anyway," Rikku added, "they're only kidnapping summoners to keep them from sacrificing themselves to get rid of Sin. We believe–" Rikku had to stop talking when Wakka jerked forward, looking ready to kill her, but Tidus and Lulu grabbed the young man before he could manage it. "What did I say?" Rikku complained, hiding behind Harry.
Harry sighed. "You included yourself in the statement about what the Al Bhed believe."
"Oops..."
Harry sighed again.
"Wakka!" Tidus shouted in the red-head's face, "Calm down!"
Wakka moved his mouth as if he was shouting something at Tidus.
Tidus glanced back at Harry and said, "I fear for my eardrums, but..."
Harry nodded and waved his staff, curing Wakka of the silence.
"I said," Wakka snapped angrily, "why are you letting an Al Bhed travel with you? Are you enjoying mocking Yevon with your lack of tradition?"
"You know," Harry replied drily, "that might actually bother me if I cared what your order thought. But I don't. In case you haven't noticed, I don't care for Yevon any more than the Al Bhed do, which makes Rikku a fine guardian."
Wakka seemed to decide that he wasn't going to get through to the green-eyed summoner, so he turned to Yuna. "You let him bring an Al Bhed with us? Or didn't you know?"
Yuna shook her head. "Wakka, Rikku's my cousin – we wanted to travel together. But she'd already promised her services to Harry."
"And even you have to admit that she's a good guardian," Lulu added calmly, "for both Yuna and Harry."
Wakka looked between the two ladies with a torn look on his face. "You don't care that we're travelling with a heathen? Any of you?" he asked, looking to include Auron, Kimahri and Tidus in his plea, none of whom answered.
Rikku took a deep breath and stepped out from behind Harry. "My people want to find a better way to get rid of Sin, a permanent way. We don't believe sacrificing your life to Sin is worth it."
"But Yevon..."
"I know things about your Yevon that would make you cry," Harry snapped, fed up with the whole argument. "If you ever wondered why Sin was here, why don't you ask your holy scriptures? Perhaps they'll tell you about the real Yevon, the man who created Sin." And with that, Harry continued towards the Moonflow.
"That... can't..." Wakka tried to deny.
"Considering how right he's been about other things no one else knew about," Tidus said tightly, glancing at Auron, "I'm willing to bet he's right." Then he hurried after Harry, Rikku following on his heels.
"What did he mean by that?" Wakka demanded.
"Harry learned history from the fayth," Yuna said, "who lived through the war that ended with Sin, and they don't believe in spreading what they call 'Yevon's lies'. I asked, at Djose Temple, because Harry suggested I might want to. There was a man named Yevon who ended the Machina Wars one thousand years ago, but whatever thing he used to end it was what actually destroyed Zanarkand, as well as a few other islands."
"But... Sin destroyed Zanarkand!" Wakka said.
"Exactly," Auron replied.
Wakka looked around at the party, but most of them looked just as crushed as he felt.
"We should continue on our way," Auron suggested, nodding down the road where Harry, Tidus and Rikku had gone.
-0-0-0-
"Is it true?" Rikku asked as she and Tidus caught up with Harry. "Did Yevon create Sin?"
Harry stopped walking and closed his eyes. "Yu Yevon didn't just create Sin, he is Sin."
"But... Sin, is, like, a thousand years old. Right?" Tidus asked. "And, I thought you said the Final Aeon was Sin."
Harry sighed and rubbed at his eyes. "Yu Yevon created the armour known as Sin in an attempt to end the Machina Wars. He'd already had a large following at the time, and those men and women were what started the Order of Yevon. Basically, Yevon managed to stop the war, but at the cost of many more lives – he destroyed any town unwilling to destroy its own machina – and he and his people preached about the evils of machina." He glanced back over his shoulder and motioned for them to keep moving before he continued.
"Every once in a while, more machina would pop up, so Yevon kept the armour. Eventually, he realised that, with the armour, he was practically indestructible, so he decided to stay in it. I would assume, at this point, he's some sort of unsent, since it has been a thousand years."
"But, what about the Final Aeon?" Rikku asked this time.
Harry shrugged. "I'm not one hundred percent certain of this, you have to understand, because no one has ever come back from Sin intact." When the teens nodded, Harry said, "Our guess is that Yevon sort of assimilates the Final Aeon into himself, and it takes ten years to be able to fully use that assimilated aeon, so he lays low for that long. That Final Aeon, I think, is probably part of what's keeping Yevon alive. He'd have to find some sort of life-force to stay on this plane for so long." He smiled grimly. "Even the unsent can only last so long."
Rikku and Tidus kept silent for the rest of their trip to the Moonflow. When they finally got there, Tidus oohed and ahed over the simple beauty of the river, and the three friends silently agreed to wait there for the rest of the party.
When everyone else caught up, they simply stood by the bank of the Moonflow for a long time. Eventually, Yuna said, "We should head on. I would like to at least reach the far bank before nightfall."
"A not unreasonable wish," Harry commented.
When everyone had nodded their agreement, Yuna added, "And, I know it might be hard, but... remember to smile?" She tried a smile of her own, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.
Everyone else managed a smile – especially after Kimahri's own attempt, which earned a few chuckles – and they headed over to the shoopuf crossing. There, they were all further amused by Tidus' overzealous exclamations about the elephant-like beast, and both Auron and Yuna regaled them with stories of previous crossings, which made the smiles that much easier to wear.
Once on the shoopuf, they all fell silent, each spending a quiet moment to watch the passing river. Rikku got Tidus to look over the side at the sunken city, eyes sparkling, but other than that, it was a calm trip.
Once on the other side, they set up camp just outside the forest, next to the river. Over their dinner, Harry cleared his throat and said, "For what little it's worth, I hadn't intended to tell you all that about Yevon."
"Better to tell them now, rather than have them find out when keeping their heads really matters," Auron said in the silence.
Harry rose an eyebrow at the unsent. "Shall we all share our darkest secrets here, then?" he asked acidly.
"Harry," Tidus whispered, shaking his head when the summoner looked at him.
"There isn't anything else about Yevon that you haven't shared yet, is there?" Yuna asked.
Harry sighed and looked over the river, where the pyreflies danced. "There are many things about Yevon you don't know," he replied, turning to look back at the young woman. "But I don't think you're ready to hear them. Not yet."
"So you keep more secrets from us!" Wakka snapped, standing to tower over the slighter man.
"I hate keeping secrets from people," Harry ground out, green eyes flashing. "Merlin knows enough were kept from me when I was a kid, secrets that could have saved lives. But I won't sit here and tell you things that will completely break you. I will tell you what I know once I see that you're ready, and you're not ready yet. Do you understand?"
Tidus cleared his throat, drawing Wakka's attention to him before he could yell again, and he said, "Wakka, you're not ready. Accept what you already know – truly accept it – and then you'll be ready to know everything else. That's how it works."
"You're happier not knowing, anyway," Rikku commented glumly. "I don't like Yevon, but even I would have rather waited before finding out." She smiled slightly at Harry, who was grimacing. "I did ask though, so it's my own fault."
Harry shook his head and stood. "I'm sorry," he said to them all again, then walked away from their small fire to sit by the side of the river.
"We should probably all get some sleep," Yuna suggested.
Tidus scratched the back of his head and stood, glancing at Rikku. "I'll take the first watch," he said, then turned and walked over to where Harry was sitting.
The two sat in silence, just watching the dancing pyreflies, as the camp behind them moved around to get ready for bed and, eventually, fell asleep.
"Will you tell me?" Tidus asked after the camp had been silent for a while. Harry glanced at him questioningly and Tidus said, "What Neville was about to call me."
Harry let out a rather explosive breath and rubbed at his face. "I don't..." He made an aggravated noise and tugged on a lock of hair. "I don't want to hurt you," he finally said. "And it will. It will hurt you so..." His voice caught and he determinedly looked away.
Tidus considered the river for a few minutes, then said, "I've been trying to figure out what starts with 'dre' ever since we left that chamber. There's not a lot of options." He glanced at Harry. "I'll figure it out eventually, you know."
Harry let out a bitter laugh. "I've no doubt." He shook his head. "You're not from Zanarkand–"
"But–"
"No, listen," Harry admonished him. Tidus fell silent and Harry nodded. "You're not from the real Zanarkand, the one that Yevon destroyed one thousand years ago. You're part of a dream, which the surviving fayth of Zanarkand created so their beautiful city would never be forgotten."
Tidus shook his head, not sure he believed what Harry was saying, but equally unable to believe that Harry might lie to him about something that so obviously hurt him.
"Your father, Jecht," Harry continued, "was a desperate bid of the fayths' to find something that could destroy Sin for good. Jecht failed – he became part of Sin instead – so they decided to try again. They sent Sin to bring you here, to Spira, where they hoped you could find a way to do what your father couldn't."
"So I'm not real," Tidus said in a monotone.
"I'm sorry," Harry whispered.
Tidus nodded in recognition of the other's words and stared out over the Moonflow, feeling numb. It seemed right, the numbness. After all, if he was just a dream, what right did he have to feel things?
Eventually, Harry stood. "I'm going to get some sleep. You should too."
Tidus smiled without any humour. "Does it really matter if I sleep?" he asked.
Harry took a deep breath and said, "You tell me. Surely you've been tired before."
"But it's not real," Tidus replied.
"What is reality?" Harry asked angrily. "Is lying trapped in cold stone real? Is granting people the ability to call on creatures that don't actually exist real? You eat and you breathe and you bleed, just like the rest of us. Isn't that real enough for you?" he finished, then stalked over to where his sleeping bag had been laid out between Rikku and Tidus' bags.
Tidus stared out over the Moonflow for another hour before he finally got up and woke Wakka to take over the watch and went to bed.
-0-0-0-
They got up the next morning in heavy silence and cleaned their campsite before taking to the road again, headed to Guadosalam.
They were finally shocked from their quiet misery at the entrance to Guadosalam, where Seymour's personal retainer, Tromell, met them and told them that Seymour requested Yuna's presence. The whole group followed him into the large manor where the leaders of the Guado lived and were ushered into the dining room. There, Rikku happily bounced around, trying a little of everything, making everyone laugh, in spite of the revelations of the night before and the question of what Seymour wanted with Yuna.
When Seymour finally came to greet them, he admonished Tromell about praising him and was admonished in turn by Auron for suggesting that they had more time on their hands than they actually did. He called Yuna forward and, suddenly, the room disappeared to be replaced by stars and the black of the universe. Shortly after, it became a city that made Tidus want to cry.
"Zanarkand," he whispered, and felt Harry's hand land gently on his shoulder and squeeze. He looked back at the summoner and smiled gratefully.
Tidus finally became aware of others speaking as the image changed again, this time to a bed chamber where a woman sat on a bed.
"Lady Yunalesca!" Yuna cried in surprise. Next to Tidus, Harry had tensed and seemed to be having some trouble breathing. Tidus grabbed the hand on his shoulder and squeezed it, hoping to bring Harry out of whatever horror had gripped him. The man turned to him with wide eyes and Tidus opened his mouth to ask if Harry was okay, but thought better of it at the last minute and closed his mouth again. Harry, anticipating his question, gave him a sad smile that seemed to say, 'I'm not fine, but this is not the place'.
Tidus and Harry both returned their attention to where Seymour was whispering to Yuna when the images disappeared. The girl looked shocked by whatever the half-Guado had told her and she dashed for a glass of water, which she drank at record speed.
"Wow!" Rikku said, stepping forward. "Your face is beet red!"
"You okay?" Tidus asked from where he stood with Harry.
Yuna took a deep breath, then said, "He...he asked me to marry him!"
Harry's eyes shot to the maester and narrowed suspiciously while Auron questioned the man's intentions.
Seymour promised them time to think and they all started to leave. Harry, Tidus, Rikku and Auron were near the door when Seymour asked, "Why are you still here, sir?" When Auron turned to glare at him, he added, "I beg your pardon. We Guado are keen to the scent of the Farplane."
"Have you inquired about Maester Mika's continued existence as well?" Harry asked sharply, "Or do you only ask those unsent such questions when they don't dance perfectly to your tune?"
Auron and Seymour both turned to stare at the summoner, but Auron's gaze also flickered to Tidus, who simply rolled his eyes and grabbed Harry's arm. "Don't antagonise the man until after Yuna's turned him down," he suggested, then half-dragged Harry from the manor.
Harry huffed grumpily.
Rikku shook her head at both of them and helped Tidus get Harry from the manor quicker by shoving him. When the others saw their approach, Lulu raised an eyebrow at them. "Harry decided to antagonise the maester," Tidus commented drily.
"I don't like him," Harry complained. "He's up to something."
"Maesters are always up to something," Auron pointed out.
Harry took a deep breath, then said, "You remember that aeon he called at the blitzball game?"
"Is this going to be another thing we don't wanna hear?" Wakka asked darkly.
Harry glanced at him briefly, but otherwise ignored him. "That aeon was Anima, and she is Seymour's mother."
"But she's in such pain!" Yuna cried.
"She sacrificed herself so he would have a better chance to survive in the two worlds he was born to," Harry replied quietly. "Her sacrifice gave him a taste for power and he keeps looking for more, no matter the cost."
"He asked Ixion's fayth," Rikku supplied mutely.
Yuna bit her lip and looked over her gathered friends, then stood. "I'm going to the Farplane," she decided. "I would... I need to think."
"Go on," Lulu said, "We'll be right behind you."
Everyone followed her up the bridge to the path to the Farplane. Just outside the doorway to the path, Harry turned to Auron and said, "You don't have to come any closer – they will understand."
Auron eyed him for a long moment, the short summoner with ancient eyes and the two unusual guardians standing quietly behind him. After a moment, he nodded. "I will stay here, then."
Harry nodded and he went down the path with his friends.
"So, what is the Farplane?" Tidus asked.
"The Farplane is where the dead go once a summoner has sent them," Rikku explained. "But... This version of the Farplane is really just a place where pilgrims come to see their dead relatives. The pyreflies gather and form the person you're thinking of, but that person isn't really there."
Tidus nodded, then glanced at Harry. "Will you show us your family? And those two friends that died?"
Harry glanced at the teen. "You know the Farplane isn't real, not really."
"It's just memories," Rikku agreed. "But... I would like to see them too, I think." She smiled. "It would be nice to put faces with names."
Harry's lips twitched. "I suppose. It would be nice to see them again, even if it is just a memory." His faint smile was tinged with bitterness. "Assuming I can even remember what they look like."
"Your heart will remember," Rikku assured him.
Harry cocked an eyebrow at her. "That was, most likely, the corniest thing I have heard in years."
Rikku grinned and winked, making Tidus laugh.
They entered the Farplane behind the others and looked around. Yuna was staring at a couple who appeared to be her parents, while Wakka was quietly talking to a young man who had the same red hair.
Harry led them over to an empty spot along the edge of the platform they stood on and all three of them stopped to stare as the clouds cleared to show trees and rivers of lava. "Terrible, yet beautiful," Harry whispered. "This is the true form of the Farplane."
"Cheerful," Tidus commented.
Harry smiled, then focused his thoughts on his parents and Ron and Hermione. After a moment, he heard Tidus and Rikku draw sharp breaths and he looked up to find his family, smiling at him. "That's Ron and Hermione," he told them, "in the front. And..." His voice caught as he looked up into green eyes which were a mirror of his own. "My mum, and my dad," he finally managed.
Another man appeared next to James Potter as Harry's thoughts changed to the others he'd lost who were just as much his family. "Sirius, my godfather," he said, narrating the additional figures. "That's Remus and Tonks. They were married during the war and died at the final battle. Their son, Teddy, was named my godson. And that's Ron's family. Molly and Arthur, his parents. The twins, Fred and George. Charlie. Bill, and his wife, Fleur..."
Harry closed his eyes, focusing on the hands on his shoulders, rather than the dead. Invariably, thinking of the war brought one more face to mind and he opened his eyes to meet red eyes with slit pupils. "Voldemort," he hissed with feeling.
"He's... kind of ugly," Rikku offered.
Harry chuckled and the horrible face went away. "He was much more handsome as a teen," he commented, and the face from the diary appeared.
"Your brother?" Yuna asked from behind them.
Voldemort's teenaged face disappeared and the friends turned. "My nemesis," Harry replied. "Have you decided?"
She swallowed and nodded. "I know you don't like him, and you have your reasons, but until I find a reason of my own, I think I will agree to this marriage. Anything to bring joy to Spira."
Harry inclined his head. "It is your choice, Yuna."
Yuna frowned. "But you don't approve of it."
Harry sighed. "I... do not think it wise," he decided. "But I have done many unwise things myself, and so it seems foolish to tell you you can't. We must all make our own choices and, thereby, our own mistakes. It is the joy of being human."
"I understand," Yuna replied. "We should go, I suppose, so I can talk to Maester Seymour again."
"Of course," Harry agreed. But before he left, he turned back one last time for a look at his two best friends, standing there and waving at him with smiles on faces untouched by war. "Good-bye, guys," he whispered. "I miss you."
-0-0-0-0-0-
A/N: So, I feel it's only fair to warn you that, from here on out, the plot will be deviating a fair bit from the actual game. See, I've been fond of Seymour since reading Shivani's Kaleidoscope a bit over a year ago, so I don't really want to kill him. So Jyscal won't be coming back from the Farplane, and the party won't have a reason to actually kill him, though they won't suddenly start liking him, either.
You'll start seeing these changes next chapter, but I thought I should warn everyone, just because. ^.~
~Bats ^.^x
Chapters:
1 - The Beginning ||| 2 - Ruins ||| 3 - Besaid & Kilika
4 - Luca ||| 5 - Operation Mi'ihen |||6 - Guadosalam
7 - Macalania & Bevelle ||| 8 - Calm Lands & Mt. Gagazet ||| 9 - Zanarkand & Sin
10 - Epilogue
..
Fandoms: Harry Potter & Final Fantasy X
Author:
batsutousaiBeta:
tsuki_no_suzuRating: eventual M/R
Pairings: Harry/Tidus
Warnings: OoC, AU (etc, etc, etc....)
Summary: Harry Potter defeated Voldemort, but at a price. When a new evil comes that he cannot defeat alone, he and his friends lock themselves in stone to fight it. One day, thousands of years later, Harry is freed and starts a journey with another young man who is equally lost to finish the job Harry once started.
Disclaim Her: ...
XD
A/N: So, I've started working on another HP/FFX fic. (Another one?!) Similar plot, different changes, but it is in the works. I intend to finish posting Fayth before I start putting up the next one – currently titled Twin Blades because I couldn't think of anything better.
Fayth by the way, is already finished, for those of you who worry about my tendency to start a new fic and sort of forget about my older ones, and is ten chapters long. So you've got four more chapters, then I'll start posting the next story.
So... Anybody want a summary? I still haven't bothered to post it on my bio at FFN. XD
Guadosalam
-0-
By the time they got to Djose, the party had mostly managed to shake their initial reaction to the slaughter, mostly due to Yuna's attempts to make them laugh with bad jokes. When Tidus asked why she was so determined to get them laughing, Lulu said, "Yuna always wanted her pilgrimage to be filled with good spirits, because she knew it would be that last memories she would ever have. Just because we're trying to find a way that doesn't result in her death, doesn't mean she wants that happiness any less."
"Summoners are seen as something of a pillar of strength," Harry added when Tidus fell back to walk with his two friends, wearing a thoughtful frown. "People look to summoners to defeat Sin and bring ten years of peace. A summoner who's always cheerful is a better summoner than one who lets their worry for the future show."
"Summoners pick their path early," Auron added, making Tidus and Rikku jump, as they hadn't known he'd been close enough to listen in, "Just as the Crusaders did. Yuna has long known what her fate would be, and she's already accepted it, if only it would bring peace to her people."
Tidus huffed and said, "But not anymore they won't. Not if we have anything to say about it, right?" He glanced over at Harry, who smiled and nodded. Then the teen smirked at Auron.
The unsent sighed and shook his head.
Yuna fell back at they came into view of the temple. "Harry? Would you like to go in first?"
Harry eyed her curiously. "You intend to talk to him?"
Yuna nodded. "It might take time."
Harry smiled. "Of course. If you want, we can all go through the Trials together, I should think." His eyes flickered to Wakka's quiet form ahead of them. "I'm pretty sure that's not against Yevon."
Yuna laughed lightly. "That should be fine. And it would probably be faster."
"Of course it will," Harry agreed.
Yuna gave one, short nod, then skipped back up to the front of their group to let her guardians know their plans.
Rikku leaned over and whispered, "But isn't it against Yevon for us to go in with you?"
Harry cocked an eyebrow. "It's also technically against Yevon to have an Al Bhed as a guardian," he agreed.
Rikku covered a smile and looked away. "Right."
Tidus eyed the two of them curiously, then said, "Does that mean we can still come in with you?"
Harry's eyes flickered up to Wakka again and his lips curved into a smirk. "Certainly."
"You really don't like Wakka, do you?" Tidus asked, shaking his head.
Harry shrugged. "He reminds me of my best friend, Ron, before he matured because of the war," he commented. "I love Ron like a brother, but he was such a prat at the time. If I hadn't been so desperate for a friend, I might never have forgiven him after the first time we had a falling out. But I did, and he got better. Wakka is older than Ron ever was, but he's still as immature as Ron was at eleven." He smiled sadly at his two companions. "I don't have the patience I used to, I'm afraid."
Tidus shrugged. "Okay."
Harry smiled. "Anyway, you might enjoy coming in again. One of my friends is here."
"Really?" Tidus asked, leaning forward.
"Neville," Harry replied. "He lacked confidence when we were kids, but he grew up to be one of the bravest and most loyal men I've ever known."
Rikku sighed. "I wish we could have met your friends in life."
Harry's smile turned sad. "Yeah. Me too."
In the temple, they met up with a summoner who was a little older than Yuna. He happily challenged Yuna to see which of them could make it to the Final Summoning first, then left with a wave. Harry was quite glad the young man hadn't given Yuna the time to introduce him, as Harry had no intentions of being dragged into a childish race.
"Sorry," Yuna said as they made their way up the steps to the Cloister of Trials.
Harry shrugged. "Please, feel free to draw the attention; I don't want it." He smiled at her.
Yuna nodded, though she looked troubled. Partway through the Trials, she finally asked. "You're sure you don't mind? I mean, you're a summoner too. And you've been working longer to find a permanent way to defeat Sin. Don't you deserve some praise?"
Harry sighed and turned to look at the girl tiredly. "Yuna, I don't care for recognition. If I get my way, I'll happily disappear after Sin's gone. Honestly, you can take any credit, assuming we manage it." He forced a smile. "You handle the fame far better than I ever could," he added, then turned to join the others on the platform to the second level.
Yuna shook her head, not understanding, and followed.
When they finally made their way to the chamber, Harry made for the door to the fayth, while Yuna and her party took up positions around the room. As Harry had half-way expected, Wakka complained when he realised Tidus and Rikku were going in with their summoner: "You're not allowed–"
Harry waved his staff warningly at the red-head, smiling when he immediately shut up. "As I have said before," he said softly, "I don't care for Yevon. The rules I follow in the temples are those of the fayth, and they don't mind a few extra people in their rooms, so long as those with the summoner maintain a respectful silence unless spoken to. Now, if that's all?"
Wakka nodded emphatically, so Harry turned and walked into the fayth's room, calmly sidestepping his guardians, who stood on either side of the closing door, and took his place at the other side of the crystal. There, he bowed his head and opened his thoughts to Neville.
The young man who appeared above the stone looked weary, but pleased. "Harry," he whispered.
Harry looked up at the ghost and smiled. "Hey, Nev."
Neville inclined his head. "Luna and Alexander mentioned you're alive again."
Harry's smile twisted bitterly. "In a manner of speaking."
Neville inclined his head again, then glanced back at Rikku and Tidus, who both stood a little straighter. The fayth smiled at them and looked back at Harry. "Your guardians?"
"In a manner of speaking," the summoner said again.
Neville chuckled. "I imagine Yu Yevon is rolling around in his armour at the thought that he might be defeated by an ex-fayth, an Al Bhed and a dre–"
"Neville!" Harry snapped, shaking his head.
Neville rose an eyebrow at him while Tidus and Rikku traded nervous looks. "You, of all people, should know how much secrets hurt," he admonished the summoner.
Harry swallowed and asked, "Will you lend me Ixion?"
Neville watched his friend for a long moment before nodding. "I will," he agreed, and a shadowy form slipped from his crystal to enter Harry.
Harry closed his eyes and let the new aeon settle, then looked back up at Neville and nodded. Neville nodded back and made to fade, but Tidus said, "Wait!" When the other three turned to look at him with raised eyebrows – Harry and Neville – or an incredulous look – Rikku – he smiled sheepishly and said, "Sorry. But I thought it might be nice to warn you about Yuna."
"Mmm... Good point," Harry decided, smiling at Tidus, then looking back at Neville. "There's a young summoner out there, Braska's daughter," he said, and Neville nodded his understanding. "I told her a bit about the world before Yevon, and about him being the one to end the wars. She intends to ask you about it, because I told her I'd learned about it from the fayth."
Neville nodded. "Did you tell her what Yevon has become?"
Harry shook his head. "She's still too attached. I only told her he ended the wars, but did his own fair share of damage in the process."
Neville nodded again. "I can do that." He smiled sadly. "Most of Spira isn't ready to hear the truth about Yevon."
Tidus and Rikku traded looks again, considering whether they were included in that majority or not.
"Thank you," Harry said to his friend.
"Anything else?" Neville asked, looking over his shoulder at the two guardians to include them in the question.
Harry frowned, then nodded. "One of the maesters used an aeon that I didn't recognise. She was screaming in pain."
Neville frowned and closed his eyes. "An aeon that was... Ah..." He looked back at Harry. "Do you remember the mother who joined us on the steps of Zanarkand? It was perhaps fifteen years ago."
Harry nibbled his lower lip in thought for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Jessica?"
Neville nodded. "She was about to die, and she didn't want to leave her young son alone, so she became an aeon and gave him her powers. She is called Anima."
Harry sighed. "Does she hurt?" he asked.
Neville smiled sadly. "Her son is a maester, and he's done some horrible things in his quest for ever more power," he said. "Of course she hurts."
Harry nodded his understanding. "I see. I will see if I can help."
"A favourable end to your journey is all the help she requires."
"I will do my best."
Neville smiled. "You always do," he said, then faded from sight as the door to the main room opened.
Tidus and Rikku preceded Harry out, and both stopped, eyes narrowed, when they caught sight of the newest addition to the group.
Dona looked the small group over with disgust and said, "I was under the impression that only summoners were allowed in the inner chamber."
"Clearly, someone told you wrong," Rikku snapped in reply.
"Rikku," Harry murmured, settling a hand on her arm. "Peace. Not everyone listens to the fayth as I do."
Dona narrowed her eyes. "All summoners listen to the fayth, little boy."
Harry simply smiled and waved Yuna past him. "Good luck," he told her.
Yuna smiled in reply. "Thank you."
Dona laughed drily. "Lord Braska's daughter not only needs a large number of guardians, but she also depends on another summoner? Ah, to live in the shadow of greatness."
Harry clenched his hands in fists and was about to tell the woman off, but Tidus beat him to it: "What would you know about living in the shadow of greatness? What makes you assume that shadow makes things easier for you? You understand nothing about how difficult it is to grow up in the shadow of greatness!"
Harry grabbed Tidus' arm as the teen made to step forward and, probably, start a fight he would surely lose. "Tidus, there's no reason to argue with someone who could never understand the fame of others." He smiled nastily at Dona. "After all, it's not like she'll ever achieve it. No, her sort will spend the rest of their lives looking up at the statues of the great men and women of Spira and being jealous, because she believed their paths were easy, when, really, fame is the hardest course one will ever travel, and she just didn't have the strength needed to make it on her own."
The room rang heavy with silence and Dona looked at Harry like she wasn't sure whether she wanted to throttle him or not. After a long moment of opening and closing her mouth, she said, "What do you know of fame?"
Harry smiled blissfully. "Nothing at all," he replied, then herded his two guardians to an empty space against the wall. As everyone else turned their attention back to whatever they'd been doing before Harry had come out, Rikku and Harry turned their attention to Tidus and drilled him on what little Al Bhed he'd managed to assimilate the night before. When Harry was sure no one was watching them, he quietly cast the spell he'd used to learn the language on Tidus, making the teen grin at him gratefully.
When Yuna finally stumbled out, looking troubled, Dona stalked past her, still angry at the comments Harry had made. Yuna's guardians all hurried to check that she was okay while Harry and his two guardians brushed themselves off and joined the others as they headed to the door.
Down in the main temple, the party of eight made themselves useful by helping the monks care for those who had been wounded at Operation Mi'ihen. Tidus and Rikku happened to be taking a short break – they were all ordered to take short breaks by Auron – when Dona and her guardian emerged from the Cloister of Trials.
"Hey, Dona!" Tidus called, getting to his feet.
"Tidus!" Rikku hissed, tugging on the other's arm in hope of keeping him from starting a fight.
Dona looked over at the teen coldly. "What do you want?"
Tidus smiled at her and said, "If you want to know what it's like to be Yuna, you might try caring a bit for your fellow man. Part of the reason so many people like Yuna is that she cares more for the people of Spira than she does for her own reputation. Take this temple, for example," he said, waving his arms about. "Yuna and Harry should be continuing on their pilgrimages, but instead we're spending the night here and helping care for the wounded."
"Are you saying I should end my pilgrimage at the drop of a hat to help idiots?" Dona demanded.
Tidus shrugged. "It seems silly to sacrifice yourself for people you've never even spoken to. Perhaps they brought this on themselves, but, if you listen to Yevon, didn't we bring Sin upon ourselves to begin with?"
"Hey, you two!" Wakka called, walking out of the side chamber he'd been working in with Yuna, Kimahri and Auron. "Sir Auron says it's time you two relieved Lu and me!"
"Alright, we'll go get Lulu," Tidus agreed. "Are you guys okay in there for people?"
Wakka turned poked his head back inside the chamber and asked, then looked back out and nodded. "Yuna says they'll be fine with just the three of them."
"Right," Rikku said, then dragged Tidus over to the room Harry and Lulu were working in. "Lulu! You're relieved!"
The black mage let out a tired sigh and carefully climbed to her feet. "Thanks."
"The monks'll give you food while you're out there," Tidus suggested, watching her exhausted form with concern.
Lulu offered the teens a small smile as she walked past them.
"How are you holding up?" Rikku asked Harry as she and Tidus knelt next to him to get back to work.
Harry looked even more tired than Lulu had when he smiled up at them. "I'm fine."
"Harry, if you work yourself to exhaustion, you won't do these people any good," Tidus warned him.
But Harry shook his head. "I'm fine."
Tidus and Rikku traded looks, then leaned down together and bodily lifted the summoner and carried him out of the room while he ordered them, "Put me down! I said I'm fine!"
"Every time you've ever said you're 'fine', you weren't," Rikku informed him.
Lulu and Wakka chuckled at the three friends as Tidus and Rikku dropped their summoner on the ground next to the other guardians. Harry shot them all disgruntled looks and crossed his arms over his chest.
Tidus sighed and rolled his eyes. "Harry, aren't you the person who told us that part of our job as your guardians was to protect you from yourself?"
Harry huffed and looked away.
"We'll make sure he stays here," Lulu promised as Wakka waved a monk over to get the summoner some food.
"Thanks," Rikku said with a relieved smile.
"I don't need a babysitter," Harry complained.
"We could tie you up instead," Rikku offered cheerfully.
Harry glared at the two teens until they went back to the room they'd been working in. The two stopped in the doorway and stared at where Dona and her guardian were helping the monks. One of the monks walked over to the two teens and whispered, "Whatever you said to her worked. She's quite determined all of a sudden to do her part to help out."
"Well, damn," Rikku mumbled, then clapped Tidus on the shoulder, ignoring the monk's scandalised look at her language. "Tidus, you just earned the job of talking around people who think too highly of themselves."
Tidus snorted in amusement. "Well, how about we go help her, now that we've got her working?" he suggested with a grin.
With three summoners and an extra guardian, they were able to either heal or send everyone who had made it to the temple by the time the moon rose, without completely exhausting anyone. They spent the rest of the night in rooms the temple lent them.
The next morning, the two parties met in front of the temple, all munching on some sort of pastry the temple monks had made for breakfast.
"Thank you," Yuna said to Dona, having not had the chance to do so the night before.
Dona shrugged, then glanced at where Tidus was begging another pastry off of one of the monks. "You have the blond boy to thank."
"He may have given you the idea," Harry commented, "but you are the one who acted. And that, Lady Dona, is what we thank you for. Your help was invaluable, and I honestly wouldn't have expected you to even consider Tidus' words after all I'd said earlier."
Dona frowned at the male summoner for a long moment before saying, "What he said made sense; I would make a poor summoner if I didn't stop and help where I could. Perhaps you were right, Lord Harry, when you told me I would never find the recognition that Lady Yuna seems to achieve with ease. Because you, Lady Yuna, and you, Lord Harry, both have something in you that makes you want to help others, as Lord Braska and other High Summoners did. You don't even really think about helping them, you don't ask yourself 'is this stop worth it', you just do it. And that's what makes you the better summoners."
"We're not better–" Yuna tried.
Dona shook her head. "The blond boy said it seemed silly to sacrifice yourself for people you don't even know, and I believe I understand now what he meant. While I was in there, helping those wounded, I wondered if I would have the strength needed to get the Final Aeon and use it against Sin to save people I hardly knew." She smiled bitterly. "I intend to go home to Bevelle and join the Order; perhaps, through them, I will find the same strength you seem to have been born with."
"Good luck," Harry said.
"Thank you," Dona replied, then turned and left them.
Tidus walked back over with another load of pastries, which he passed out to the entire group. "Where are Dona and Barthello going?" he asked, munching on a pastry. He'd gotten enough for them, too, but if they were leaving, he'd eat them.
"Dona's going to find herself," Harry murmured, then filched one of the extra pastries from Tidus while Rikku stole the other one.
"Hey!"
Everyone chuckled and they set out again in high spirits.
On the way to the Moonflow, they came across a couple of Ronso, who happily made fun of Kimahri. Yet, even though they were nasty to the only Ronso in their party, the two Ronso also warned them about the disappearing summoners.
"Who would go around stealing summoners?" Wakka said after the Ronso had gone.
Harry, Rikku and Tidus all traded winces while Lulu glanced at Yuna, who nodded, then said, "The Al Bhed."
"Those–!"
Harry waved his staff at Wakka and shut him up before he could start in on the Al Bhed again. When the guardian gave him a furious look, Harry sighed and said, "If you'd waited to go off on your rant, we would have also been able to tell you that Rikku and I already talked to the Al Bhed about leaving our party alone."
"Anyway," Rikku added, "they're only kidnapping summoners to keep them from sacrificing themselves to get rid of Sin. We believe–" Rikku had to stop talking when Wakka jerked forward, looking ready to kill her, but Tidus and Lulu grabbed the young man before he could manage it. "What did I say?" Rikku complained, hiding behind Harry.
Harry sighed. "You included yourself in the statement about what the Al Bhed believe."
"Oops..."
Harry sighed again.
"Wakka!" Tidus shouted in the red-head's face, "Calm down!"
Wakka moved his mouth as if he was shouting something at Tidus.
Tidus glanced back at Harry and said, "I fear for my eardrums, but..."
Harry nodded and waved his staff, curing Wakka of the silence.
"I said," Wakka snapped angrily, "why are you letting an Al Bhed travel with you? Are you enjoying mocking Yevon with your lack of tradition?"
"You know," Harry replied drily, "that might actually bother me if I cared what your order thought. But I don't. In case you haven't noticed, I don't care for Yevon any more than the Al Bhed do, which makes Rikku a fine guardian."
Wakka seemed to decide that he wasn't going to get through to the green-eyed summoner, so he turned to Yuna. "You let him bring an Al Bhed with us? Or didn't you know?"
Yuna shook her head. "Wakka, Rikku's my cousin – we wanted to travel together. But she'd already promised her services to Harry."
"And even you have to admit that she's a good guardian," Lulu added calmly, "for both Yuna and Harry."
Wakka looked between the two ladies with a torn look on his face. "You don't care that we're travelling with a heathen? Any of you?" he asked, looking to include Auron, Kimahri and Tidus in his plea, none of whom answered.
Rikku took a deep breath and stepped out from behind Harry. "My people want to find a better way to get rid of Sin, a permanent way. We don't believe sacrificing your life to Sin is worth it."
"But Yevon..."
"I know things about your Yevon that would make you cry," Harry snapped, fed up with the whole argument. "If you ever wondered why Sin was here, why don't you ask your holy scriptures? Perhaps they'll tell you about the real Yevon, the man who created Sin." And with that, Harry continued towards the Moonflow.
"That... can't..." Wakka tried to deny.
"Considering how right he's been about other things no one else knew about," Tidus said tightly, glancing at Auron, "I'm willing to bet he's right." Then he hurried after Harry, Rikku following on his heels.
"What did he mean by that?" Wakka demanded.
"Harry learned history from the fayth," Yuna said, "who lived through the war that ended with Sin, and they don't believe in spreading what they call 'Yevon's lies'. I asked, at Djose Temple, because Harry suggested I might want to. There was a man named Yevon who ended the Machina Wars one thousand years ago, but whatever thing he used to end it was what actually destroyed Zanarkand, as well as a few other islands."
"But... Sin destroyed Zanarkand!" Wakka said.
"Exactly," Auron replied.
Wakka looked around at the party, but most of them looked just as crushed as he felt.
"We should continue on our way," Auron suggested, nodding down the road where Harry, Tidus and Rikku had gone.
"Is it true?" Rikku asked as she and Tidus caught up with Harry. "Did Yevon create Sin?"
Harry stopped walking and closed his eyes. "Yu Yevon didn't just create Sin, he is Sin."
"But... Sin, is, like, a thousand years old. Right?" Tidus asked. "And, I thought you said the Final Aeon was Sin."
Harry sighed and rubbed at his eyes. "Yu Yevon created the armour known as Sin in an attempt to end the Machina Wars. He'd already had a large following at the time, and those men and women were what started the Order of Yevon. Basically, Yevon managed to stop the war, but at the cost of many more lives – he destroyed any town unwilling to destroy its own machina – and he and his people preached about the evils of machina." He glanced back over his shoulder and motioned for them to keep moving before he continued.
"Every once in a while, more machina would pop up, so Yevon kept the armour. Eventually, he realised that, with the armour, he was practically indestructible, so he decided to stay in it. I would assume, at this point, he's some sort of unsent, since it has been a thousand years."
"But, what about the Final Aeon?" Rikku asked this time.
Harry shrugged. "I'm not one hundred percent certain of this, you have to understand, because no one has ever come back from Sin intact." When the teens nodded, Harry said, "Our guess is that Yevon sort of assimilates the Final Aeon into himself, and it takes ten years to be able to fully use that assimilated aeon, so he lays low for that long. That Final Aeon, I think, is probably part of what's keeping Yevon alive. He'd have to find some sort of life-force to stay on this plane for so long." He smiled grimly. "Even the unsent can only last so long."
Rikku and Tidus kept silent for the rest of their trip to the Moonflow. When they finally got there, Tidus oohed and ahed over the simple beauty of the river, and the three friends silently agreed to wait there for the rest of the party.
When everyone else caught up, they simply stood by the bank of the Moonflow for a long time. Eventually, Yuna said, "We should head on. I would like to at least reach the far bank before nightfall."
"A not unreasonable wish," Harry commented.
When everyone had nodded their agreement, Yuna added, "And, I know it might be hard, but... remember to smile?" She tried a smile of her own, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.
Everyone else managed a smile – especially after Kimahri's own attempt, which earned a few chuckles – and they headed over to the shoopuf crossing. There, they were all further amused by Tidus' overzealous exclamations about the elephant-like beast, and both Auron and Yuna regaled them with stories of previous crossings, which made the smiles that much easier to wear.
Once on the shoopuf, they all fell silent, each spending a quiet moment to watch the passing river. Rikku got Tidus to look over the side at the sunken city, eyes sparkling, but other than that, it was a calm trip.
Once on the other side, they set up camp just outside the forest, next to the river. Over their dinner, Harry cleared his throat and said, "For what little it's worth, I hadn't intended to tell you all that about Yevon."
"Better to tell them now, rather than have them find out when keeping their heads really matters," Auron said in the silence.
Harry rose an eyebrow at the unsent. "Shall we all share our darkest secrets here, then?" he asked acidly.
"Harry," Tidus whispered, shaking his head when the summoner looked at him.
"There isn't anything else about Yevon that you haven't shared yet, is there?" Yuna asked.
Harry sighed and looked over the river, where the pyreflies danced. "There are many things about Yevon you don't know," he replied, turning to look back at the young woman. "But I don't think you're ready to hear them. Not yet."
"So you keep more secrets from us!" Wakka snapped, standing to tower over the slighter man.
"I hate keeping secrets from people," Harry ground out, green eyes flashing. "Merlin knows enough were kept from me when I was a kid, secrets that could have saved lives. But I won't sit here and tell you things that will completely break you. I will tell you what I know once I see that you're ready, and you're not ready yet. Do you understand?"
Tidus cleared his throat, drawing Wakka's attention to him before he could yell again, and he said, "Wakka, you're not ready. Accept what you already know – truly accept it – and then you'll be ready to know everything else. That's how it works."
"You're happier not knowing, anyway," Rikku commented glumly. "I don't like Yevon, but even I would have rather waited before finding out." She smiled slightly at Harry, who was grimacing. "I did ask though, so it's my own fault."
Harry shook his head and stood. "I'm sorry," he said to them all again, then walked away from their small fire to sit by the side of the river.
"We should probably all get some sleep," Yuna suggested.
Tidus scratched the back of his head and stood, glancing at Rikku. "I'll take the first watch," he said, then turned and walked over to where Harry was sitting.
The two sat in silence, just watching the dancing pyreflies, as the camp behind them moved around to get ready for bed and, eventually, fell asleep.
"Will you tell me?" Tidus asked after the camp had been silent for a while. Harry glanced at him questioningly and Tidus said, "What Neville was about to call me."
Harry let out a rather explosive breath and rubbed at his face. "I don't..." He made an aggravated noise and tugged on a lock of hair. "I don't want to hurt you," he finally said. "And it will. It will hurt you so..." His voice caught and he determinedly looked away.
Tidus considered the river for a few minutes, then said, "I've been trying to figure out what starts with 'dre' ever since we left that chamber. There's not a lot of options." He glanced at Harry. "I'll figure it out eventually, you know."
Harry let out a bitter laugh. "I've no doubt." He shook his head. "You're not from Zanarkand–"
"But–"
"No, listen," Harry admonished him. Tidus fell silent and Harry nodded. "You're not from the real Zanarkand, the one that Yevon destroyed one thousand years ago. You're part of a dream, which the surviving fayth of Zanarkand created so their beautiful city would never be forgotten."
Tidus shook his head, not sure he believed what Harry was saying, but equally unable to believe that Harry might lie to him about something that so obviously hurt him.
"Your father, Jecht," Harry continued, "was a desperate bid of the fayths' to find something that could destroy Sin for good. Jecht failed – he became part of Sin instead – so they decided to try again. They sent Sin to bring you here, to Spira, where they hoped you could find a way to do what your father couldn't."
"So I'm not real," Tidus said in a monotone.
"I'm sorry," Harry whispered.
Tidus nodded in recognition of the other's words and stared out over the Moonflow, feeling numb. It seemed right, the numbness. After all, if he was just a dream, what right did he have to feel things?
Eventually, Harry stood. "I'm going to get some sleep. You should too."
Tidus smiled without any humour. "Does it really matter if I sleep?" he asked.
Harry took a deep breath and said, "You tell me. Surely you've been tired before."
"But it's not real," Tidus replied.
"What is reality?" Harry asked angrily. "Is lying trapped in cold stone real? Is granting people the ability to call on creatures that don't actually exist real? You eat and you breathe and you bleed, just like the rest of us. Isn't that real enough for you?" he finished, then stalked over to where his sleeping bag had been laid out between Rikku and Tidus' bags.
Tidus stared out over the Moonflow for another hour before he finally got up and woke Wakka to take over the watch and went to bed.
They got up the next morning in heavy silence and cleaned their campsite before taking to the road again, headed to Guadosalam.
They were finally shocked from their quiet misery at the entrance to Guadosalam, where Seymour's personal retainer, Tromell, met them and told them that Seymour requested Yuna's presence. The whole group followed him into the large manor where the leaders of the Guado lived and were ushered into the dining room. There, Rikku happily bounced around, trying a little of everything, making everyone laugh, in spite of the revelations of the night before and the question of what Seymour wanted with Yuna.
When Seymour finally came to greet them, he admonished Tromell about praising him and was admonished in turn by Auron for suggesting that they had more time on their hands than they actually did. He called Yuna forward and, suddenly, the room disappeared to be replaced by stars and the black of the universe. Shortly after, it became a city that made Tidus want to cry.
"Zanarkand," he whispered, and felt Harry's hand land gently on his shoulder and squeeze. He looked back at the summoner and smiled gratefully.
Tidus finally became aware of others speaking as the image changed again, this time to a bed chamber where a woman sat on a bed.
"Lady Yunalesca!" Yuna cried in surprise. Next to Tidus, Harry had tensed and seemed to be having some trouble breathing. Tidus grabbed the hand on his shoulder and squeezed it, hoping to bring Harry out of whatever horror had gripped him. The man turned to him with wide eyes and Tidus opened his mouth to ask if Harry was okay, but thought better of it at the last minute and closed his mouth again. Harry, anticipating his question, gave him a sad smile that seemed to say, 'I'm not fine, but this is not the place'.
Tidus and Harry both returned their attention to where Seymour was whispering to Yuna when the images disappeared. The girl looked shocked by whatever the half-Guado had told her and she dashed for a glass of water, which she drank at record speed.
"Wow!" Rikku said, stepping forward. "Your face is beet red!"
"You okay?" Tidus asked from where he stood with Harry.
Yuna took a deep breath, then said, "He...he asked me to marry him!"
Harry's eyes shot to the maester and narrowed suspiciously while Auron questioned the man's intentions.
Seymour promised them time to think and they all started to leave. Harry, Tidus, Rikku and Auron were near the door when Seymour asked, "Why are you still here, sir?" When Auron turned to glare at him, he added, "I beg your pardon. We Guado are keen to the scent of the Farplane."
"Have you inquired about Maester Mika's continued existence as well?" Harry asked sharply, "Or do you only ask those unsent such questions when they don't dance perfectly to your tune?"
Auron and Seymour both turned to stare at the summoner, but Auron's gaze also flickered to Tidus, who simply rolled his eyes and grabbed Harry's arm. "Don't antagonise the man until after Yuna's turned him down," he suggested, then half-dragged Harry from the manor.
Harry huffed grumpily.
Rikku shook her head at both of them and helped Tidus get Harry from the manor quicker by shoving him. When the others saw their approach, Lulu raised an eyebrow at them. "Harry decided to antagonise the maester," Tidus commented drily.
"I don't like him," Harry complained. "He's up to something."
"Maesters are always up to something," Auron pointed out.
Harry took a deep breath, then said, "You remember that aeon he called at the blitzball game?"
"Is this going to be another thing we don't wanna hear?" Wakka asked darkly.
Harry glanced at him briefly, but otherwise ignored him. "That aeon was Anima, and she is Seymour's mother."
"But she's in such pain!" Yuna cried.
"She sacrificed herself so he would have a better chance to survive in the two worlds he was born to," Harry replied quietly. "Her sacrifice gave him a taste for power and he keeps looking for more, no matter the cost."
"He asked Ixion's fayth," Rikku supplied mutely.
Yuna bit her lip and looked over her gathered friends, then stood. "I'm going to the Farplane," she decided. "I would... I need to think."
"Go on," Lulu said, "We'll be right behind you."
Everyone followed her up the bridge to the path to the Farplane. Just outside the doorway to the path, Harry turned to Auron and said, "You don't have to come any closer – they will understand."
Auron eyed him for a long moment, the short summoner with ancient eyes and the two unusual guardians standing quietly behind him. After a moment, he nodded. "I will stay here, then."
Harry nodded and he went down the path with his friends.
"So, what is the Farplane?" Tidus asked.
"The Farplane is where the dead go once a summoner has sent them," Rikku explained. "But... This version of the Farplane is really just a place where pilgrims come to see their dead relatives. The pyreflies gather and form the person you're thinking of, but that person isn't really there."
Tidus nodded, then glanced at Harry. "Will you show us your family? And those two friends that died?"
Harry glanced at the teen. "You know the Farplane isn't real, not really."
"It's just memories," Rikku agreed. "But... I would like to see them too, I think." She smiled. "It would be nice to put faces with names."
Harry's lips twitched. "I suppose. It would be nice to see them again, even if it is just a memory." His faint smile was tinged with bitterness. "Assuming I can even remember what they look like."
"Your heart will remember," Rikku assured him.
Harry cocked an eyebrow at her. "That was, most likely, the corniest thing I have heard in years."
Rikku grinned and winked, making Tidus laugh.
They entered the Farplane behind the others and looked around. Yuna was staring at a couple who appeared to be her parents, while Wakka was quietly talking to a young man who had the same red hair.
Harry led them over to an empty spot along the edge of the platform they stood on and all three of them stopped to stare as the clouds cleared to show trees and rivers of lava. "Terrible, yet beautiful," Harry whispered. "This is the true form of the Farplane."
"Cheerful," Tidus commented.
Harry smiled, then focused his thoughts on his parents and Ron and Hermione. After a moment, he heard Tidus and Rikku draw sharp breaths and he looked up to find his family, smiling at him. "That's Ron and Hermione," he told them, "in the front. And..." His voice caught as he looked up into green eyes which were a mirror of his own. "My mum, and my dad," he finally managed.
Another man appeared next to James Potter as Harry's thoughts changed to the others he'd lost who were just as much his family. "Sirius, my godfather," he said, narrating the additional figures. "That's Remus and Tonks. They were married during the war and died at the final battle. Their son, Teddy, was named my godson. And that's Ron's family. Molly and Arthur, his parents. The twins, Fred and George. Charlie. Bill, and his wife, Fleur..."
Harry closed his eyes, focusing on the hands on his shoulders, rather than the dead. Invariably, thinking of the war brought one more face to mind and he opened his eyes to meet red eyes with slit pupils. "Voldemort," he hissed with feeling.
"He's... kind of ugly," Rikku offered.
Harry chuckled and the horrible face went away. "He was much more handsome as a teen," he commented, and the face from the diary appeared.
"Your brother?" Yuna asked from behind them.
Voldemort's teenaged face disappeared and the friends turned. "My nemesis," Harry replied. "Have you decided?"
She swallowed and nodded. "I know you don't like him, and you have your reasons, but until I find a reason of my own, I think I will agree to this marriage. Anything to bring joy to Spira."
Harry inclined his head. "It is your choice, Yuna."
Yuna frowned. "But you don't approve of it."
Harry sighed. "I... do not think it wise," he decided. "But I have done many unwise things myself, and so it seems foolish to tell you you can't. We must all make our own choices and, thereby, our own mistakes. It is the joy of being human."
"I understand," Yuna replied. "We should go, I suppose, so I can talk to Maester Seymour again."
"Of course," Harry agreed. But before he left, he turned back one last time for a look at his two best friends, standing there and waving at him with smiles on faces untouched by war. "Good-bye, guys," he whispered. "I miss you."
A/N: So, I feel it's only fair to warn you that, from here on out, the plot will be deviating a fair bit from the actual game. See, I've been fond of Seymour since reading Shivani's Kaleidoscope a bit over a year ago, so I don't really want to kill him. So Jyscal won't be coming back from the Farplane, and the party won't have a reason to actually kill him, though they won't suddenly start liking him, either.
You'll start seeing these changes next chapter, but I thought I should warn everyone, just because. ^.~
~Bats ^.^x
1 - The Beginning ||| 2 - Ruins ||| 3 - Besaid & Kilika
4 - Luca ||| 5 - Operation Mi'ihen |||
7 - Macalania & Bevelle ||| 8 - Calm Lands & Mt. Gagazet ||| 9 - Zanarkand & Sin
10 - Epilogue
..
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Date: 14/1/10 05:06 (UTC)I'm glad you've got a strong Rikku involvement--she's one of my absolute favorites, and most fics that aren't Rikku-centered tend to marginalize her.
I also like that you're keeping the grief over Harry's lost friends as part of it. Too many fics when Harry's lost all of his friends just sort of gloss over the grief. Well done!
I'm not a big fan of Seymour, but I'll give you the benefit of the doubt--I'm awesome like that. ;)
Looking forward to the next chapter!
(This icon seemed appropriate, what with the Yevon revelations and all. Hope you're not one of those who is offended by it--that's not my intention)
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Date: 14/1/10 05:10 (UTC)no subject
Date: 14/1/10 05:57 (UTC)Oh, I love Rikku. I couldn't just leave her out. (Though, I admit, in the next HP/FFX fic I've been working on, she's not got as big a part as I might have liked.... ^.^")
Ugh, I know. I like, isn't Harry upset by their deaths? Doesn't he miss them? *grumbles* I dunno, maybe those authors just lead charmed lives. *shifty eyes*
(LOL!! Yes, I did make that one. I was about to say that it looked a little familiar. ^.~)