(Whoops. I didn't realize that when I broke this story in two parts, I didn't include a kiss in the first half. I hope I'm forgiven in the second half, XD)
Author: Danko Kaji (fanfiction.net)
Once they finish eating dinner together, relaxing to the ease of conversation and compliments to one another, Baralai returns to the documents he brought home to read. Yuna sits across from him, coping with the silence by sipping her tea and letting her mind wander to something Baralai had mentioned earlier, about how the entrepreneur Rin provided an ostentatious amount of funding for a new project an Al Bhed child genius proposed. Because of Rikku’s love for gossip, it sounds like old news; if anything, Yuna knows more about it than the Praetor himself, and wonders how much does he know. On the day she and the girls solved the Mi'ihen Highroad crime incident, Yuna remembers how she felt all excited about Shinra’s idea of utilizing an energy source that could light the cities up at night - but suddenly, it makes her stomach sink.
"Um, I have something to confess..."
Baralai lowers the cup, sifting through the papers for tomorrow. "...yes?"
"...Shinra told me, that the energy of the Farplane... might be useful somehow."
"Useful in what context?" Yuna sees his grip on the handle tighten a margin, sees through his illusion to appear nonchalant when noticing how stiff his arm moves to lift the cup again and take another sip.
"A-As energy for machina,” she says, feeling her mouth dry all of a sudden like the guilt creeping slowly within. He waits for her to speak up again, but she doesn’t. And so Baralai sighs, and shifts in his seat to look in her general direction.
"Lady Yuna. Please, don’t be afraid to talk to me. I am your friend. If there is something you wish to say, please speak with confidence." Baralai initiates eye contact, eyes so sad and worn from the day and more, Yuna gulps. Her heart throbs, and yet she does not dare look away, not when sympathy and respect compels her to await what else he has to say. "Shinra is your friend. A fellow member of the Gullwings, unless I am incorrect."
Yuna nods. "He and Rin are, or were… I don’t know anymore, but I think they're using old parts of Vegnagun to build something new. It's called a 'Mako Reactor.’ If it works, so much could happen… Shinra said we can use the limitless energy from the Farplane to operate new machines, if we can build them to be able to do that. But, really? Limitless?" Yuna falters in her daydream, doubting its assertion.
"Limitless in theory." Baralai sighs, tapping the ceramic cup with one finger. Slow and silent, belying his true temper. "The brightest scholar from Zanarkand's golden years... Maechen, was it...? Well, he recorded many of his theories on spheres and texts, which many became lost in history. Yet from the few that scholars have managed to excavate and restore, one explored the idea of the Farplane expanding beyond that of our planet's core, or heart."
"You're right." Yuna takes a brief moment to recall the sphere she and her Guardians saw at Seymour's manor a few years back. "The Farplane extends into the universe. It's everywhere, really. But more inside worlds, like Spira."
"Yes. The Farplane may very well travel as far as eternity, however... just like we are mortal, so is this planet. Once the world has reached its time, I think this energy will migrate elsewhere. Perhaps to find another planet, if such a possibility exists."
"Then, the energy in the Farplane, we can't... it would be like using creatures’ blood."
Baralai nods in grim agreement. "Precisely. I do not blame them for taking risks. How will we learn otherwise, if we do not question the capabilities of things? But I do not approve of this cold-hearted approach. Sacrifice our world’s well-being for the sake of human knowledge? No. Spira still has much to teach us. I can only predict self-destructive results from this mad venture."
"And I cheered Shinra on." Yuna collapses back into her chair, struck pale by that horrifying realization. "Not even Sin did that."
"Cheered? What? What do you mean?" Concern and disbelief dispels the initial reaction, livid that the High Summoner would condone such a thing, but Baralai exercises patience to try and understand why she felt compelled to support it.
"I didn't know much at the time. It was just when he first told me. All I could think of were cities, all lit up, even at night. Like Zanarkand. I just... was reminiscing, I guess. But, I didn't know what it really meant. I didn't."
Yuna flinches when he doesn't suppress his glare quick enough and Baralai looks away, pretending to read words that spell complaints and transactions in need of attention. For tomorrow, given by the day of yesterday, clients trust him to create a compromise where everyone leaves the room happy. Friends and family are no different. The ice Baralai has to tread seems so thin.
"You had a Guardian who hailed from Zanarkand just like Lord Braska before you, right Lady Yuna?"
"Y-Yes. Or, rather, from a dream of Zanarkand. But, it was the dream of the Fayth, so when they faded, so did he. I... saw him, one last time, on the Farplane."
"Is that the story? I have always wondered..."
"Whether or not the rumors were true?" Yuna cuts him off, defensive.
"Ah. No." His chuckle sounds pleasant and infuriating at the same time, but it speaks so much of his apology, knowing he broached a sensitive, if not taboo subject. "In the company of fellow members, I have been told fond stories of a blonde youth always beside his lady Summoner."
"Oh. I see.” Yuna nods, feeling more justified. “...Anyway, I didn't mean to encourage something so cruel. All I wanted was a small vision of Dream Zanarkand. But, not at so lofty a price. I’m sorry.”
"Tis the human nature." Yuna watches him stand, setting papers and pens aside before rounding the table to reach her side. His hands are safe and unassuming at his back, and he equips his motive with a polite smile meant to disarm her anxiety. "Will you humor me for a moment, milady?" When Baralai offers her a hand to stand, she stares, communicating doubt with her eyes; after he conveys unspoken reassurance in turn, she allows him to pull her onto her feet.
When he doesn't let go of her hand, though, Yuna grows nervous. "How does it go... maybe... it’s something like this... Lady Yuna."
"Er, yes?"
"Can you remind me of the name of the most famous folk song in Besaid?"
"...um, do you mean 'You're Not Alone'?"
"Should be. Does it go like this? ...'Won't you take my hand?'…” Baralai chuckles, self-conscious. “We accomplished that part." His proud smile embarrasses her and Yuna blushes, knowing full well the romantic premise behind the lyrics. "Let's see... 'Share with me your tears, all your troubles... and deepest fears'..." He tugs her hand, leading Yuna to the living room and urging her to follow his tentative cue. They face each other in a wandering circle and Yuna smiles despite herself, amused by his adorable efforts to sing and dance for the purpose of lifting her spirits. "'I remember when you chased all my shadows away'... Do you remember, Lady Yuna?"
She lowers her eyes, pensive. “Remember what?”
“When you saved me.” Baralai stops all of a sudden, lowering their hands; and when he squeezes the hand he holds, he draws her eyes back to him. “You have saved me twice, from Sin, from Shuyin... and now you are saving me again, from myself. You may not be involved in the decision-making process of disbanding New Yevon, and you may feel at times you hold no effect in my daily life, but... your presence here means the world to me. I want you to know that.”
This confession of his, it catches her off guard. Water rises in her eyes without warning and Yuna ducks her head, hoping to hide the tears behind her bangs. Baralai still manages to notice anyway, because her shaking hand gives it away.
“Yuna? What’s wrong?” He touches her shoulder, concerned. She shakes her head and lifts her chin, and he sees the smile glowing on her tear-streaked face.
“Nothing. It’s just…” Yuna sniffs, wiping her cheeks. “Living with you, and… taking care of you sometimes… it made me so happy, because I never felt alone. Being with you, I learned how much you mean to me. I don’t know why, but… I like you so much and I… I-I really want to kiss you-” And Baralai silences her before she can complete that sentence. Yuna feels his lips first before his strong lean arms come around to pull her close, the familiar embrace so possessive as she loses herself in his warmth. Baralai prolongs the kiss, a kiss so romantic she appreciates the passion, because she never wants any reason to compare it to the cold, sweet touch of a fleeting dream.
The future has never felt so warm or full of promise.
On A Good Day (2/2) [Yuna/Baralai] (FFX-2, PG)
Author: Danko Kaji (fanfiction.net)
Once they finish eating dinner together, relaxing to the ease of conversation and compliments to one another, Baralai returns to the documents he brought home to read. Yuna sits across from him, coping with the silence by sipping her tea and letting her mind wander to something Baralai had mentioned earlier, about how the entrepreneur Rin provided an ostentatious amount of funding for a new project an Al Bhed child genius proposed. Because of Rikku’s love for gossip, it sounds like old news; if anything, Yuna knows more about it than the Praetor himself, and wonders how much does he know. On the day she and the girls solved the Mi'ihen Highroad crime incident, Yuna remembers how she felt all excited about Shinra’s idea of utilizing an energy source that could light the cities up at night - but suddenly, it makes her stomach sink.
"Um, I have something to confess..."
Baralai lowers the cup, sifting through the papers for tomorrow. "...yes?"
"...Shinra told me, that the energy of the Farplane... might be useful somehow."
"Useful in what context?" Yuna sees his grip on the handle tighten a margin, sees through his illusion to appear nonchalant when noticing how stiff his arm moves to lift the cup again and take another sip.
"A-As energy for machina,” she says, feeling her mouth dry all of a sudden like the guilt creeping slowly within. He waits for her to speak up again, but she doesn’t. And so Baralai sighs, and shifts in his seat to look in her general direction.
"Lady Yuna. Please, don’t be afraid to talk to me. I am your friend. If there is something you wish to say, please speak with confidence." Baralai initiates eye contact, eyes so sad and worn from the day and more, Yuna gulps. Her heart throbs, and yet she does not dare look away, not when sympathy and respect compels her to await what else he has to say. "Shinra is your friend. A fellow member of the Gullwings, unless I am incorrect."
Yuna nods. "He and Rin are, or were… I don’t know anymore, but I think they're using old parts of Vegnagun to build something new. It's called a 'Mako Reactor.’ If it works, so much could happen… Shinra said we can use the limitless energy from the Farplane to operate new machines, if we can build them to be able to do that. But, really? Limitless?" Yuna falters in her daydream, doubting its assertion.
"Limitless in theory." Baralai sighs, tapping the ceramic cup with one finger. Slow and silent, belying his true temper. "The brightest scholar from Zanarkand's golden years... Maechen, was it...? Well, he recorded many of his theories on spheres and texts, which many became lost in history. Yet from the few that scholars have managed to excavate and restore, one explored the idea of the Farplane expanding beyond that of our planet's core, or heart."
"You're right." Yuna takes a brief moment to recall the sphere she and her Guardians saw at Seymour's manor a few years back. "The Farplane extends into the universe. It's everywhere, really. But more inside worlds, like Spira."
"Yes. The Farplane may very well travel as far as eternity, however... just like we are mortal, so is this planet. Once the world has reached its time, I think this energy will migrate elsewhere. Perhaps to find another planet, if such a possibility exists."
"Then, the energy in the Farplane, we can't... it would be like using creatures’ blood."
Baralai nods in grim agreement. "Precisely. I do not blame them for taking risks. How will we learn otherwise, if we do not question the capabilities of things? But I do not approve of this cold-hearted approach. Sacrifice our world’s well-being for the sake of human knowledge? No. Spira still has much to teach us. I can only predict self-destructive results from this mad venture."
"And I cheered Shinra on." Yuna collapses back into her chair, struck pale by that horrifying realization. "Not even Sin did that."
"Cheered? What? What do you mean?" Concern and disbelief dispels the initial reaction, livid that the High Summoner would condone such a thing, but Baralai exercises patience to try and understand why she felt compelled to support it.
"I didn't know much at the time. It was just when he first told me. All I could think of were cities, all lit up, even at night. Like Zanarkand. I just... was reminiscing, I guess. But, I didn't know what it really meant. I didn't."
Yuna flinches when he doesn't suppress his glare quick enough and Baralai looks away, pretending to read words that spell complaints and transactions in need of attention. For tomorrow, given by the day of yesterday, clients trust him to create a compromise where everyone leaves the room happy. Friends and family are no different. The ice Baralai has to tread seems so thin.
"You had a Guardian who hailed from Zanarkand just like Lord Braska before you, right Lady Yuna?"
"Y-Yes. Or, rather, from a dream of Zanarkand. But, it was the dream of the Fayth, so when they faded, so did he. I... saw him, one last time, on the Farplane."
"Is that the story? I have always wondered..."
"Whether or not the rumors were true?" Yuna cuts him off, defensive.
"Ah. No." His chuckle sounds pleasant and infuriating at the same time, but it speaks so much of his apology, knowing he broached a sensitive, if not taboo subject. "In the company of fellow members, I have been told fond stories of a blonde youth always beside his lady Summoner."
"Oh. I see.” Yuna nods, feeling more justified. “...Anyway, I didn't mean to encourage something so cruel. All I wanted was a small vision of Dream Zanarkand. But, not at so lofty a price. I’m sorry.”
"Tis the human nature." Yuna watches him stand, setting papers and pens aside before rounding the table to reach her side. His hands are safe and unassuming at his back, and he equips his motive with a polite smile meant to disarm her anxiety. "Will you humor me for a moment, milady?" When Baralai offers her a hand to stand, she stares, communicating doubt with her eyes; after he conveys unspoken reassurance in turn, she allows him to pull her onto her feet.
When he doesn't let go of her hand, though, Yuna grows nervous. "How does it go... maybe... it’s something like this... Lady Yuna."
"Er, yes?"
"Can you remind me of the name of the most famous folk song in Besaid?"
"...um, do you mean 'You're Not Alone'?"
"Should be. Does it go like this? ...'Won't you take my hand?'…” Baralai chuckles, self-conscious. “We accomplished that part." His proud smile embarrasses her and Yuna blushes, knowing full well the romantic premise behind the lyrics. "Let's see... 'Share with me your tears, all your troubles... and deepest fears'..." He tugs her hand, leading Yuna to the living room and urging her to follow his tentative cue. They face each other in a wandering circle and Yuna smiles despite herself, amused by his adorable efforts to sing and dance for the purpose of lifting her spirits. "'I remember when you chased all my shadows away'... Do you remember, Lady Yuna?"
She lowers her eyes, pensive. “Remember what?”
“When you saved me.” Baralai stops all of a sudden, lowering their hands; and when he squeezes the hand he holds, he draws her eyes back to him. “You have saved me twice, from Sin, from Shuyin... and now you are saving me again, from myself. You may not be involved in the decision-making process of disbanding New Yevon, and you may feel at times you hold no effect in my daily life, but... your presence here means the world to me. I want you to know that.”
This confession of his, it catches her off guard. Water rises in her eyes without warning and Yuna ducks her head, hoping to hide the tears behind her bangs. Baralai still manages to notice anyway, because her shaking hand gives it away.
“Yuna? What’s wrong?” He touches her shoulder, concerned. She shakes her head and lifts her chin, and he sees the smile glowing on her tear-streaked face.
“Nothing. It’s just…” Yuna sniffs, wiping her cheeks. “Living with you, and… taking care of you sometimes… it made me so happy, because I never felt alone. Being with you, I learned how much you mean to me. I don’t know why, but… I like you so much and I… I-I really want to kiss you-” And Baralai silences her before she can complete that sentence. Yuna feels his lips first before his strong lean arms come around to pull her close, the familiar embrace so possessive as she loses herself in his warmth. Baralai prolongs the kiss, a kiss so romantic she appreciates the passion, because she never wants any reason to compare it to the cold, sweet touch of a fleeting dream.
The future has never felt so warm or full of promise.