Disasters
The ocean sparkled in the light of the sun as the S.S. Winow swept into Luca Harbor. Tidus stood at the very front of the bow, holding on to the rigging as he tried to take in everything at once. Luca had turned out to be a bustling city filled with people that seemed to be rushing around everywhere and no one wanted to stay still. It was like an early version of Zanarkand, before it had grown into the bustling metropolis he’d been born in. Now this was more his style. Back on the boat to Kilika he’d tried to get comfortable but now with the hustle and bustle around him he was back in his element. The peaceful islands had been almost painful to be on.
He caught sight of the stadium ahead of the boat and a smile crossed his face. Even though his need to play had dampened since he’d met Harry he still got a buzz from it. As they moved closer he caught a glimpse of the rigging for the sphere pool and noted that it was an older model. It used a generated electrical field to hold the water in a clear sphere with the only way in or out being a shielded area behind the goals at either end. It was different from what he was used to but he could live with it. All it meant was that he could no longer tackle the other players and send them into the crowd like he usually did. The sphere pool back at the Zanarkand Dome had been a marvel of machines and magic. It was the reason he’d known about magic in the first place.
Some of the designers had been mages and they’d come up with a type of magic called grav or gravity magic. Incorporating charged crystals into the large rings that where suspended within the dome it would activate and draw in water from the surrounding air. With a little help from the water cannons on hand the effect was instant, producing a sphere pool that normally would have taken hours to fill, and since the gravity magic was holding it together you could breach the outsides as much as you wanted with no ill effect.
He closed his eyes and turned his face toward the sun, soaking in the light before he heard a shout from behind him.
“TIDUS!” He looked around with a smile to see Harry standing on the other side of the railings waving to him. The blonde let go of the rigging and slid along the sloping plank of wood he’d been standing on. Harry stepped back as he clambered over the rail, nearly falling on his face.
“We’ll be arriving soon.” Harry told him as they walked side by side to where Rikku waited. “It’ll be good to finally get off his boat!” Tidus rolled his eyes. The green-eyed teen didn’t like sailing; he said he preferred to fly.
“Yeah, yeah!” Tidus waved his hands dismissively and Harry pouted playfully. Tidus guessed he didn’t even realize he was doing it because he jumped when Rikku laughed again. Of course she had found the entire situation totally hilarious. Being female and seeing everything from an external view, their attraction to each other was glaringly obvious. It was all she could do to watch them as they messed up or let their masks drop with ‘oh so cute’ results. The boat was just pulling up to the dock when O'aka found them.
“HEY!” He scrambled across the deck, dodging other passengers and sending up a brief ruckus when he crawled between Kimahri’s legs. Still apologizing to the Ronso he bumped into Tidus and turned around with an embarrassed grin.
“Hello there!” He said brightly, giving a nod to Rikku and a quick. ‘Master Summoner’ to Harry, which baffled him to no end. It was a recent trend among some of those who had come with them from Kilika and to Harry it was the ‘Chosen One’ business all over again. “I’ve decided!” O’aka declared. “That since you helped me out, I’ll help you out! So here I am!” He stood there before him smiling and Rikku had to repress more laughter. This was only getting better and better.
“Huh?” Harry and Tidus said in unison. O'aka bounced on the spot.
“What I mean is that I’ll go with you!” He said jogging on the spot for a moment before stopping. “I started out to be a merchant because I had a sister who was a Summoner.” A brief flicker of pain flashed through his eyes. “She died trying to beat Sin and I wasn’t there to help her so I figured I’d help the other Summoners by selling them supplies since I don’t have the abilities needed for a guardian.” He cheered up again and bounced on the spot while Harry snapped out of his daze.
‘So that’s why he’s been hanging around us so much.’ The dark haired Summoner thought. ‘Tidus must have helped him out.’ He looked at his guardian who shrugged and Harry focused on the smiling merchant with a thoughtful expression. Blocking out everything else he opened up to his magic and thought ‘SCAN!’
The effect was almost instantaneous and messages began to scroll through his mind telling him all about O’aka. It didn’t show him his thoughts like Legilimancy did. Instead it showed rather what he had the potential for. He was very fit, used to walking long distances and could handle heavy loads, but what surprised Harry was the potential he had for magic. It wasn’t very obvious, but it was there. In a way it reminded him of Neville. His former guardian had come late into his magical abilities and up until then his magic had been hard to access and difficult to use as it had been buried away. O’aka’s magical core had been almost completely sealed away but the size of it was astounding.
Harry stopped the spell with a thought and shook his head to clear it of the jumble of thoughts that where rushing around his head.
“Alright, you can come.” He said as the gangplank was lowered. “But stay close, I still have something to talk to you about.” O'aka nodded and skipped over to Rikku as they prepared to disembark.
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The dock was covered with busy people all running around yelling, talking and laughing as they waited for the players. Tidus was surprised to hear someone talking over loudspeakers that where rigged up all over the place.
“AH, over there! The ships carrying the players are arriving now! This would be dock number two, and all the way from Kilika, it’s the Kilika Beasts! High Summoner Ohalland used to play for them – a big name to live up to. Their hometown was recently attacked by Sin. Isn’t that right, Jimma.” A new voice spoke up.
“That’s right Bobba, but there where rumors that a Summoner somehow gave them warning of the attack, but still, they’ll be pulling out all the stops to try and bring back the cup this year!”
“Exciting isn’t it folks? Our next team off the ramp is…” The announcer trailed off for a second. “Well, well, well! If it isn’t the Besaid Aurochs!” There was an all round cringe from everyone around Tidus as he hung back from the group now getting off the boat. There where only a few cheers from some really diehard fans and for the most part people where laughing, even they could see the team was a joke.
“They’re a living, breathing statistical impossibility.” Bobba the announcer went on. “I’ve never seen a team this bad! That’s right! In twenty-three years they’ve never made it past the first round! Only a few die-hard fans in the audience today.” He repeated the blonde’s exact thoughts as Harry took the ramp a few steps before Yuna’s group. There was a muttering that went through the crowd when some realized he was a Summoner.
“Best of luck to them, and a safe journey back to Besaid.” Jimma had the last word over the Aurochs before Bobba picked it up again.
“Right Jimma. Moving right along, out next team is… Here they are, folks! Our very own Luca Goers!” There was cheering from all over the dock as the team that had been picking fights with the Aurochs all the way to Luca disembarked. “They’ve got power! They’ve got speed and they’ve got teamwork! They’re an all-around first-class team! And they’re back home in Luca!”
“Without a doubt, they are the favorite this year, Bobba. And after the way they dominated last year, it’d take a miracle for them to lose today.”
“You can say that again, Jimma. Look at the crowd, folks! Look at the crowd! Looks like all of Luca has turned out to cheer the Goers on! They know, I know and you all know folks! The Luca Goers are number one.”
Tidus was getting irritated and was ready to turn back and give them what for when Harry placed a hand on his arm. Putting a hand in his shoulder would have been awkward as he was about a head shorter.
“Don’t get mad.” He said quietly, straining to get close to his ear. Tidus leaned down to hear the last bit. “Get even.” He continued. “Totally destroy them during the game like you did back in Zanarkand.” The logic sunk in and a wicked grin broke over his face. He remembered that even if he couldn’t tackle them out of the sphere pool he could still do a heck of a lot of damage. It was about then that Yuna ran past them, calling back to her guardians.
“Hey! This way everyone!” She waved her arms as her lagging guardian’s caught up. “Maester Mika is arriving at dock three!” There was a huge fan fare over the loudspeakers as people moved off the dock. Caught up in the crowd Tidus grabbed Harry and O’aka, trusting Rikku to stay close on her own.
“Who’s Maester Mika?” He asked her when they’d settled in at the back of the crowd against a pile of crates where they could see the gangplank of the boat that had just arrived. Rikku’s nose wrinkled again as a huge blue haired man made his way to the dock.
“He’s the leader of the Yevonites.” She said sourly. “He lives in Bevelle with all the other old stuffy people. They said this tournament was for him, he’s been a Maester for fifty years.” Tidus smirked.
“It sounds like he should have retired by now.” Rikku covered her mouth to muffle the giggle that threatened to erupt. Ahead of them he could see the man who had disembarked. He wore purple robes that fell open in the front, revealing a tattooed chest beneath. His blue hair stuck up in an unnatural way, three long spikes shading his face like bars, almost as if they where there to cage him in. He faced the dock once more and went down on one knee, going through the movements of the prayer. Almost everyone went down and did the same. Harry however remained where he was. O'aka had crouched below the man’s sight, followed promptly by Rikku. Even if they didn’t bow they knew when to slink off.
Tidus leaned back against the crate and crossed his arms over his chest, totally unimpressed with the pomp in which the old Maester disembarked from the ship, surrounded by priests. He’d seen better receptions for the Abes when they made it to the finals back home. Mika hobbled past the kneeling man and waved an arm through the air almost dismissively.
“People of Spira, I thank you for you generous welcome. Rise, Maester Seymour, and all of you as well.” His voice was weak and wavering as everyone stood. Yuna was the last to return up right. Seymour, as he’d been named, rose to his feet in a single graceful move and turned toward the people.
“I present to you…” Mika spoke up once again in his weary tone. “The son of Maester Jyscal Guado, who departed for the Farplane a fortnight past. As some of you already know, he has been officially ordained a Maester of Yevon.” From his place in the back of the crowd Harry instinctively stepped back into Tidus. The aura of the Guado was nothing less than evil as it swirled around him like a dark tide. Tidus felt it to but everyone else was oblivious as it slid through the crowd ensnaring people in its sinister hold. Seymour nodded toward them graciously, oozing charm.
“I am Seymour Guado. I am honored to receive the title of Maester.” Harry shivered. He knew a Slytherin when he heard one, and this new Maester would probably have outstripped Voldemort in terms of evil. “In life, my father Jyscal worked to foster friendship between man and Guado. I vow to carry on his legacy, and fulfill my duties as Maester to the best of my abilities.” Mika and his priests all turned to leave, followed by most of the crowd while Seymour remained where he was. He looked over the crowd and pinpointed Yuna amid the bustle. She was still looking at him. He mentally scoffed at the attention but gave a minute smile he knew the girl wouldn’t miss. She shivered under the intensity of his stare before he broke eye contact and walked away. Naturally it had happened fast enough that few noticed their interaction and Wakka called above the noise of those still on the dock and the shouts of the sailors.
“ALL RIGHT! Last meeting before the match! Hustle!” The Aurochs gathered quickly and they walked toward the locker rooms. Tidus watched them go before he looked at his companions.
“Well, what are we going to do about that?” Rikku gave him a quizzical look and tipped her head to one side.
“About what?” She asked. Tidus rolled his eyes.
“I don’t know about you but Harry did have a point when he said bad things happened last time I played Blitz Ball.” The blonde waved a hand toward the stadium. “I don’t feel to good about this either and I’m not about to leave him on his own especially with you two.” Rikku’s cheeks puffed out as her face twisted into an affronted expression.
“HEY!” She protested loudly. O'aka snickered but Tidus had a perfectly straight face. He looked around and his eyes settled on the next dock. A boat that looked very similar to the one that the Al Bhed used was docked there and figures where scrambling all over the deck.
“Hmmm, Rikku, didn’t you say your people had a team playing in the tournament?” The fifteen year old who had been about to chew him out stopped suddenly and blinked.
“Oh yeah…” She said slowly, remembering what she’d told him before. Her face began to brighten up. “OF COURSE!” Rikku jumped up and down energetically; grabbing Harry’s hand she sped off down the dock making Tidus and O'aka run to keep up with her pace.
“RAMMUUUUU!” (Hellooooo!) She yelled when she got close enough for the Al Bhed on the ship to hear her. Some dropped what they where holding and ran to the side to stare.
“Rikku?” One asked. The hyper guardian nodded her head and bounced over, finally letting go of Harry who dropped like a stone, worn out by the exposure to her exuberance, luckily Tidus caught him before he could hurt himself.
“Fryd yna oui tuehk rana? Dra Lybdyeh cyet oui fana fycrat ujan puynt po Sin.” (What er you doing here? The Captain said you where washed over board by Sin.) Rikku made a pose as she reached the top of the gangplank.
“Oui fuh’d kad net uv sa cu aycemo!” (You won’t get rid of me so easily!) She chirped and leapt at one of the men standing there.
“Pnudran!” (Brother!) Behind her Tidus and Harry both wondered just how many brother’s she had. Her brother looked around her and his eyes widened in surprise behind his goggles.
“Y Summoner!” (A Summoner!) He gasped out. Rikku looked around at Harry and beckoned him over, letting the other Al Bhed out of the strangle hold.
“This is Harry.” She said, switching back to normal language forgetting Harry could understand them. “He is a summoner…” She admitted. “But he’s alright, he made a deal with the others, he isn’t going to go after Sin or the Final Aeon.” Her brother gave her a skeptical look but nodded all the less.
“Are… oui coming… Home?” He said in rather broken speech, he wasn’t a fluent as Rikku was. The girl shook her head.
“No,” She replied. “I’m going to go with Harry for a while, he said he wouldn’t try to get the final Aeon and I believe him. But that’s why we’re here. Tidus is going to play Blitzball and I was wondering if you would help me guard Harry until the tournament is over?” She looked up at him with wide pleading eyes and her brother threw a hand over his eyes with a groan. Nobody could say no to the puppy dog eyes.
“Ymm nekrd, ymm nekrd! Fa’mm tu ed!” (All right, all right! We’ll do it!) Rikku jumped on the spot and clapped her hands excitedly as he waved forward two men.
“Drao femm ku fidr oui.” (They will go with you.) He said as Rikku put him in a strangle hold hug once more.
“Thank You!” She chirruped before she abruptly became very serious.
“Drana ec ymcu cusadrehk oui cruimt ghuf,” (There is also something you should know,) She began, switching back to Al Bhed. “Yhudran Summoner ec eh Luca.” (Another Summoner is in Luca.) Murmurings went around the deck at her words and O'aka and Tidus both looked at Harry for translations.
“She’s telling them about Summoner Yuna.” He clarified and Tidus nodded in understanding. O’aka’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Why is she doing that?” He asked, panic and confusion lacing his voice. Harry patted his arm and discreetly cast a calming charm.
“Apparently the Summoner’s here sacrifice themselves to defeat Sin.” Harry explained, knowing full well that he was telling a stranger that he didn’t come from Spira. “The Al Bhed don’t like that tradition because they think it’s a waste of life. They believe a solution can be found without sacrificing more lives to defeat Sin.” There was still a trace of his emotions showing in O’aka’s face, even with the calming charm.
“Oh.” Was all he said as Rikku finished up her conversation and they made their way back toward the stadium, Tidus going to the locker rooms while the others went to the stands. Even as they sat down a short way from the goals Harry couldn’t help but feel a slight sense of foreboding. Something was going to go wrong and Harry desperately hoped he was wrong.
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The atmosphere was tense as Tidus entered the locker room. Most of the Aurochs looked like nervous wrecks and Yuna had been waiting for him.
“Where ya been?” Wakka asked as most of them looked away from the screen they’d been studying. “You missed going o’er the basics.” Tidus gave him a slightly condescending look.
“I had to see to Harry’s safety before I came down here, he didn’t feel right about the crowds.” Wakka rocked slightly as he remembered the other Summoner. He didn’t seem to remember the altercation last night, although Kimahri’s dark looks told the blonde that his memory was still crystal clear. Yuna was smiling at him in a strained way but smiling nonetheless. Tidus gave them all a disbelieving look.
“So do you know who we’re playing first?” He asked the room at large. A blitzer named Datto answered.
“We’re playing the Al Bhed Psyches, and since we got seeded we only have to win this round and the next in order to win the cup.” The blonde’s lip twitched before he burst out laughing. Oh the irony! Rikku most certainly wasn’t going to like this! He calmed down at last when Yuna stepped forward.
“I was wondering where you went!” She said oblivious to his sudden dark mood. “Someone said they saw Sir Auron in the café!” Tidus stared at her in disbelief.
“Sir? Auron?” The skepticism in his voice went right over the female Summoner’s head as she nodded eagerly.
“Yes, Sir Auron! Lets go find him!” She grabbed his hand to pull him out of the room but with a twist he avoided her grasp.
“I don’t have time for this.” He caged. “If he wants to find me he’ll find me, but I have a game to play. You can look for him yourself.” It was cold but he didn’t really care. Ignoring Kimahri’s growls he followed Wakka’s directions and found himself in an attacking position. That suited him just fine. A bell went off to signal the players to get in position nearly ten minutes after Yuna had left but just before they entered a man Tidus recognized as an Al Bhed ran up to their opponents.
“Fa ryja dra Summoner.” (We have the Summoner.) Wakka, not understanding the speech gave them a dirty look, as if it was a crime to speak in his presence. Tidus hung back and quickly faced the two men.
“Yna oui kuehk du dyga ran cdnyekrd du ‘Home’?” (Are you going to take her straight to ‘Home’?) he asked quietly in the same language. The two looked surprised for a moment before one nodded.
“Oac.” (Yes) he answered. “Fa femm dyga hu lryhlac.” (We will take no chances.) Tidus nodded and quickly turned away before anyone else could realize what had been said. Even through the water in the Sphere pool he could hear the roars of the crowd as he swam out amid the Aurochs to take his place. He could hear the announcers as they shouted out the teams.
“Well Bobba it looks like there’s fresh blood in the Aurochs rank’s this year.” Jimma called out gleefully when he noticed Tidus in the sphere pool.
“That’s right Jimma, according to Captain Wakka this kid ain’t no rookie and he’s a Summoner’s guardian no less.”
“Whoa!” They went on to comment on other things but the blonde’s face was burning red in spite of being completely submerged in water. He could hear a laugh ringing through the silence of his mind and looked to one side on instinct to see Harry seated in the stands about mid way between the goals. He sent him a cocky grin and a small wave, in spite of his earlier worry about leaving him. Just as long as he could see him it didn’t matter so much. The siren went off and Berrik, the player on center for the Al Bhed leapt forward and grabbed the ball. Tidus shot at him with all the speed he could muster and smashed into him as hard as he could.
There was an roar from the crowd as he dropped the ball and Tidus scooped it up, sending a no-hard-feelings look aver his shoulder before he made a loop around a defensive player and made for the goal, the moment he was in the clear he pushed the ball ahead of him and did a flip, slamming his feet into the blue and white orb causing it to shoot toward the goal. The keeper surged up to meet it but he was to slow and the ball slipped by him setting off sirens.
“GOAL!” One of the announcers roared out as Tidus grinned and did a small twirl in victory. The crowd had been stunned at first but they burst out in cheers as they finally noticed that it was the Aurochs that where currently winning. The blonde gave Wakka a thumbs up as he passed, returning to his starting position. The red head was giving him a shocked look, as if he hadn’t even seen him move. When the players had returned to their starting positions a new ball was thrown into play. As per the rule’s a wincing Berrik caught it and promptly loaded it off onto another player. This time it was to far away for Tidus to use his tackle so he got into position to take a pass as Wakka and the others went to intercept. They didn’t quite make it as an Al Bhed player slipped past them and scored.
On the next throw in Wakka caught the ball and made straight for the goal, Datto on his right and Tidus on his left. An Al Bhed took out the bald player when he intercepted a tackle meant for Wakka. The red head, lagging slightly now, threw the ball to Tidus who was in the clear. One of the other players made a bid for it but only managed to slow it down. Deftly catching it Tidus lined up for a shot when Berrik slammed into him from behind. He cringed and let the ball go to grab his ribs.
‘Okay, I deserved that.’ He mouthed to Berrik. The other blonde grinned and swam off toward the other end of the Sphere, the crowd going wild at the sudden turn in the Auroch’s playing technique. Tidus floated there, winded, until the siren went off for half time. He quickly made his way to the exit behind the goals and took a large gulp of fresh air when he was free of the water. It wasn’t pleasant having the air knocked out of you in the middle of the game and luckily the Psyches hadn’t scored again. When Wakka came out of the sphere he was grinning.
“Oh Man! I can’t believe it!” He cried out, putting Tidus in a playful headlock and letting everything go to his head. “We’re really playing for once, we might just have a chance at this, ya?” The Aurochs let off a cheer as they got their breath back quickly and took care of any injuries the Psyches had managed to inflict. Tidus had flopped onto a bench when Lulu came charging into the room.
“Wakka! Yuna has been taken by the Al Bhed!” She cried before anyone could even register her arrival. Tidus kept his face blank as he listened in. He knew what it was about already.
“WHAT!?” Wakka blew up at the news. “Why those dirty…” He mimed trying to choke thin air.
“They want the Aurochs to throw the game.” Lulu continued, “Or they won’t give her back.” Wakka suddenly looked torn.
“But the game…?” He trailed off weakly.
“Just come Wakka!” Lulu snapped ill temperedly. “Tidus can take your place on the team for now.” Wakka hesitated then nodded.
“Alright, Jassu, you back in the game. Tidus, you take center, keep them playing as long as you can and go for the victory when you see the signal, okay?” Tidus gave a nod, accompanied by a bored yawn.
“Yeah, yeah, I know Wakka.” He waved him toward the door as the bell went to call the players back to the sphere pool. “Alright guys, lets go.” Tidus waved the Aurochs out the door and into the hall. Back in the sphere things went slow for the first few minutes while Tidus and Berrik continued to butt heads. It wasn’t until the last minute of the round that a bright light lit up the stadium and Tidus knew it was the signal. He waved Jassu and Datto ahead while he made a run right up the center. Dodging Berrik for the five hundredth time he took aim and pounded the ball with his foot. It smacked into the face of one of the defenders and rebounded at chest height. The blonde punched it back at the second defender before going into a spin that hit the Blitzball and flew toward the goal. The keeper didn’t even try to stop it as it shot into a corner of the goal just seconds before the final siren went off.
The crowd went ballistic.
“THIS IS INCREDIBLE!” Jimma exploded. “FOR THE FIRST TIME IN NEARLY TWENTY YEARS THE AUROCHS HAVE WON A GAME! FOUR TO THREE!” Tidus couldn’t help but feel proud of himself as he swam over to the sulking team and stuck out his hand to their captain. Berrik looked at it before looking up at his face and shaking it. Outside the sphere the watching Maester Seymour narrowed his eyes and traced the player’s movements as he left the sphere. It was unusual for any of the teams to shake hands like that, the rivalries between them where nearly legendary. This incident needed looking into.
Back in the Aurochs locker rooms Tidus wasn’t joining in the celebrations. It had struck him just as he was leaving the sphere pool that something had just happened. Paying no heed to the celebrating Aurochs he left the room. He had to find Harry and check something out before the finals started in an hour’s time.
As he walked back into the main plaza he passed Yuna, Wakka, Lulu and Kimahri on their way down. Wakka was bent over holding his chest in pain but yammering away anyway.
“We sure showed them didn’t we…” Wakka’s voice faded behind him as he ignored the look he got from Yuna and began to take the stairs nearly three at a time. He was only slightly relieved to see Harry, Rikku, O’aka and their guards waiting for him at the top.
“Something went wrong!” Rikku yelped out the moment he could hear her. The Al Bhed with they shifted uncomfortably. Tidus waved them off, unconsciously falling into the role of the leader.
“Ku lralg dra creb.” He ordered. The two men and one woman snapped to attention before running off into the crowds. A quick look told him Harry was fine so he turned his attention to Rikku.
“What’s up here? I saw Yuna on the stairs, and why did the team ask them to throw the game in the first place?” The blonde asked. Rikku was as distressed as the others.
“It wasn’t a part of the original plan!” She wailed. “It was something to throw them off out trail but they came anyway.” Harry frowned.
“I think we should go to the ship as well.” He suggested looking at the entry to the locker rooms with his green eyes narrowed. “Our help will be needed if they did take her back by force.” With that agreed to they made their way through the crowds and pushed past those watching on dock four as the Al Bhed picked themselves up. It was a mess. The deck was covered in pieces of a large machine that had been wasted by the Guardian’s rescue. O’aka and Harry went straight to those still wounded while Rikku hovered over them.
“Will they be alright?” The young girl asked, hopping from foot to foot in her nervousness. The three who’d been with them at the time of the attack brought more from below deck.
“They’ll be fine.” Harry said rather absently as his forehead creased in concentration. He needed to learn more healing spells. Back in his world… or time, Luna had been the resident white mage. Her entire arsenal of spells had been completely light, not one dark or grey spell to be seen. Being a fully trained healer meant Harry had never really had to learn more than the basics of healing and since no one else in the group really knew any really good white magic he’d have to learn himself.
As it turned out O’aka was very good with the potions in his pack. He knew just what to use on each of his patients while Harry went around stabilizing them with spells. Their hour crawled by before Tidus had to return to the Aurochs for the last match. It was hardly a surprise to see that they where playing the Goers. The team had been playing like demons since the first round. Another thing that didn’t surprise him was the fact that Wakka wasn’t going to be playing. He’d been crippled on the stairs before, so Yuna was going to stay with him and her other two guardians. Tidus was going to play center again. The blonde didn’t really feel like playing, but he did keep his word. He was going to help them go out with a bang.
Even, if he was starting to resent Wakka.
Tidus was tense as he swam out into the sphere pool. Harry was in the stands once more sitting behind the Goers goals. The blitzer wanted to be able to get to him right away if anything went wrong. The Aurochs swam toward the center to meet the Goers only to find themselves on the receiving end of taunts. Tidus crossed his arms over his chest and gave them his most unimpressed ‘are you a child or an adult?’ look. The announcers where blaring something to the crowd but Tidus wasn’t listening as he turned his back of the childish players and made a few jerky hand signals to the Aurochs. They split up and went to their positions while the Goers seemed to deflate slightly, reluctantly getting ready themselves as the starting siren went off.
The blonde didn’t waste any time in grabbing the ball and making for the goals. He had a few narrow misses when some of the defenders nearly took his head off in their efforts to get the ball. Tidus didn’t even stop swimming as he hurtled it past the keeper and into the energy net. It was a fast goal and it had put them in the lead but Tidus didn’t expect it to happen again. The opposition would focus on him now, and hopefully the others would manage to get a few shots around him. The next round the center for the Goers, a man named Grav, took the ball and threw it to a player called Doram. The woman swam around the edges of the Sphere pool toward the goal and took the shot; fortunately Keepa was able to stop it. The large goal keeper threw it back into play and Jassu took it before speeding away. He threw it ahead to Datto, he caught it before taking a shot of his own.
The goal keeper lunged for it but the ball slipped through. The crowd was going wild. The impossible was happening, the Aurochs where actually wining and the Goers had yet to even score. Tidus smirked as they lined up for the next play, infuriating their captain. The blonde Blitzer could hear Harry shouting out and as he cheered the people around him picked up his chant. If it was possible the water around the opposition began to boil. No more mister nice guys. The blonde’s smirk grew wider as the beast inside him came out to play. Now this was his kind of game! The siren went and everything went to hell. The Goers got the ball but Tidus was having the time of his life beating into them. They managed to get a goal before halftime and it was two battered teams that went down to the locker rooms. Wakka was waiting for the Aurochs, his expression stormy.
“I know where winning ya, but, WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?” Tidus just smirked infuriatingly as the pumped Aurochs slapped each other on the back.
“That was Blitzball Wakka.” He said as calmly as he could with adrenaline still pounding through his system. The red head growled.
“I know that!” He ground out, wincing as he put pressure on his ribs. “But why ya playin’ like that?” Tidus shrugged in response.
“That’s what I call fun.” The blonde guardian wondered idly if the red head was going to have an aneurysm as he went a shade of red that clashed with his hair.
“Dat’s it, you out of the game!” He declared loudly. Throwing up his hands. Tidus didn’t have time to protest as the bell called the players to the Sphere Pool. The Aurochs left and Tidus, not wanting to be cornered by the hopeful looking Yuna, took off after them. He wasn’t paying attention to those around him so he was taken by surprise when a gloved hand grabbed his shoulder.
“Whaa?!” He let out a faint shout of surprise as somewhere above them the second half of the match started. He looked around and followed the red clad arm back to its owner. “AURON?” He got a few looks from the crowd as he shouted out the old fighters name. Auron smirked faintly.
“I knew you’d come here eventually.” His deep voice was at its usual monotone, but this time it had a triumphant undercurrent. “You never could resist the chance to play.” Tidus threw his arm off and began stomping toward the stadium’s public entrance. None of the guards tried to stop either of the guardians as Tidus stomped up the stairs.
“Took you long enough to get here.” He scowled at the smirking old man. Auron gave him a lofty look.
“I’ve been hearing some interesting things.” He said knowingly. “That you’re in the service of a Summoner.” Tidus stopped on the stairs and turned around, giving him a deadpan look.
“Duh! I wasn’t about to just give up on Harry you know.” Auron eyed his defensive posture.
“I was expecting you to go after Yuna, she has, after all, met your father.” Tidus’s expression immediately turned cold at what the man was implying. There was no way he would have gone with Yuna, for any reason.
“Like I said, I won’t give up on Harry.” He ground out the words, trying to stay as calm as possible but failing as an invisible aura of power started to leak into the air around him. Auron waved a dismissive hand and walked past him on the stairs only to stop and look around, his eyes narrowing behind the small dark tinted glasses. He reached into thin air and pulled out his gigantic blade before resting it over his shoulder.
“You’d best be ready.” He said beginning to walk up the steps as the first screams started. “I smell a fiend.” Tidus barely thought as he dashed up the stairs to find the stadium in chaos. In the few minutes he’d been ‘talking’ with Auron hundreds of fiends had appeared. Tidus looked up at the sky, fearing that Sin might be behind it, but the sky was clear and there was no sign of the gigantic destroyer.
So where did all the fiends come from.
Tidus took the lead and dashed toward the place where Harry had been last. Behind him Auron brought his Broadsword down on the head of a fiend, which exploded in a spray of gore before vanishing. Leaving nothing to prove that a fiend had even been there. The blonde found his Summoner just in time to see him begin a summoning.
He held his staff high above his head and the stone under his feet rumbled. A spell circle appeared below him and vines shot out of the ground. Harry took hold of his staff about mid way and span it around his body like a cheerleader’s baton at an extremely fast pace. Above him the vines twisted into a ball before he came to an abrupt halt, the ball of vines mimicked him, stopping and exploding into billions of flowers that floated out over the crowd who stopped running to watch as the Aeon landed on the ground. It was a green skinned girl, clad in a dress made of pink blossoms with grass like leaves extending from her head in the plant equivalent of hair. Silvery waves of power eddied around her like strips of cloth and her eyes glowed with power as she tipped her head back, opened her mouth and screamed.
Tidus dropped his sword to put his hands over his ears as all around the stadium fiends just dropped dead. When the scream had died away Tidus looked around to see that a few of the fiends had survived the attack. They where disorientated and quickly dispatched as up on the Maesters balcony, Maester Seymour summoned an Aeon of his own to take them out. Silence fell as everyone turned his or her attention to Harry. The dark haired boy waved a hand in dismissal to Oddish and the plant girl bowed deeply to him before she exploded into hundreds of tiny white flowers that vanished before they could hit the ground. Then he took a step back. Seymour noticed and in a split second his face twisted to a frown.
“Get him!” He commanded and none of the warrior monks or the Guado hesitated as they leapt at him. As if the shout had been the signal he’d been waiting for Tidus dashed forward and grabbed Harry by the waist, picking up his sword from the ground as he went, and swinging the surprised Summoner over his shoulder in order to run faster. A moment later Auron overtook him and Harry’s other new guardians took up flanking positions on either side. Just before they exited the stadium Rikku stopped and turned, she reached into a pouch attached to her thigh and pulled out a small red gemstone. Crushing it in one hand she threw it at those following.
“Take that!” The dust combusted as the spell contained within was released, halting the mob. She took off after the others once more even as they listened to Seymour’s amplified shouts behind.
“GET THEM! THEY’RE TRAITORS! THEY SUMMONED THE FIENDS! GET THEM!”
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They reached the stairs that lead to the highroad well ahead of the monks and where just about to exit the city when a voice stopped the rag tag group from behind.
“Tidus! Wait!” The blonde slowed to a stop only a few steps behind Auron and looked back a Lulu, letting Harry down off his shoulder as he looked suspiciously at the black mage. Lulu saw the distrustful look and winced.
“I’m not the enemy here.” She said. “There is something very wrong with this situation and I know that it wasn’t you that summoned the fiends like Seymour claims. Wakka was all to ready to believe him, as was Yuna. I believed they would know better but they refuse to listen to reason.” Harry was staring at Lulu vaguely shell shocked.
“Aren’t you her guardian?” Tidus asked incredulously. The woman gave the group a sad look, focusing on Harry and Tidus, who where oblivious to the fact their hands where still clasped loosely between them. “Shouldn’t you be siding with her?” Lulu shook her head.
“When I saw you the first time I thought you where Chappu, but I soon realized I was mistaken. My love will never return from the dead but helping you will give me a chance to finally leave that part of my life behind.” Harry could tell she was being honest and nodded solemnly. While she’d been speaking the noise of those searching for them had gotten closer. Tidus tugged on Harry’s and began to back away toward the stairs when Lulu held out a book.
“I’ll hold off the others.” She said as Rikku took the book from her. “Please make good use of this. It’s a spell book, one passed down through my family. I know it by heart and I have the feeling you will need it more.” Rikku waved to her as the group turned and ran for the highroad. In their wake Lulu sighed and turned to take up a guard position. She could pretend she’d been guarding the gate and no one would know the wiser.