The Blitz Ace Meets the Summoner

[Deleted]

(ooc: September 2nd. Closed to Yuna and Tidus. Apologies for the awful title.)

Perhaps a bag would have been more appropriate...

Yuna truly wasn't used to this sort of environment. After leaving Bevelle and growing adjusted to the peace of Besaid, it was safe to say that she didn't have the first clue about how to fare in a school. She'd had the freedom to go about as she pleased with Lulu, Wakka, and Chappu... At least as long as Chappu had been alive. Now what did she have? She had a big pile of books in her hands and no real idea of where she was going. Some day of classes this was turning out to be. The brunette was struggling to make it through the halls with her books and bemoaning the fact that she hadn't thought to get a bag. At the very least, though, she could take pride in the fact that her uniform didn't appear to be a complete mess. That was little consolation when she was having difficulty making her way through the halls in the first place.

It would have been so easy for Yuna to ask for help, but she didn't know anyone. Not yet. Had Wakka and Lulu accompanied her, that might have been a different story. As it was, though, Yuna wasn't sure who she could ask without seeming particularly awkward. Besides... Yuna wasn't the type who asked for help. Even still... Maybe this should have been an exception. Yuna didn't really like the prospect of falling over with all the books in her grasp. Maybe if she just...

Suddenly, Yuna became aware of the fact that she had met with another student. Rather, she had quite literally bumped into them. The realization became more apparent when she felt her body and books go up against a form roughly about her size. Maybe a bit bigger. With books blocking her vision, it was kind of difficult to tell. Regardless, the collision had occurred and the brunette gave a cry of surprise. Some of her books tumbled from her pile and onto the floor beneath her and the unknown student, and after a moment spent collecting her thoughts Yuna decided to speak.

"I am so sorry! I didn't see you... Oh, no, my books..."

Who had she even collided with? In Yuna's present state of fretting over whether she had apologized enough or not, she didn't really think to look over the one she'd collided with properly. Not quite yet, anyway. As soon as she took her eyes off of the books that had fallen, dual colored eyes saw blond hair... Blue eyes...

[Tidus]

A blitzball star like him... going to a school like he was still a little kid?

It struck Tidus as a little ridiculous. Then again, so was Zanarkand getting attacked by a giant monster called Sin and waking up to discover that his home had apparently been destroyed a thousand years before, so weird and ridiculous seemed to be the way things were playing right now. The youth shook his head, still unwilling to accept what Rikku had told him. It wasn't as though he believed she'd been lying - what reason would she have to? - but more... that she was mistaken or something. There was no way Sin could have catapulted him a thousand years into the future; even if it had brought him to another world.

As such, the blonde adolescent was a little preoccupied as he strode down the school's corridor. A tattered book bag was slung over one shoulder, and, frankly, Tidus looked the complete picture of a scruffy mess in his uniform. His shirt was untucked, with one sleeve pushed up to the elbow and its top four buttons open to expose a slice of his otherwise-bare chest and his necklance of the Zanarkand Abes emblem, while his sky-blue tie was only sloppily tied and sat low enough that he'd already got into trouble for it at least once.

It wasn't so much a desire to appear rebellious as an effort to be comfortable. Tidus had never even known such constricting clothes existed before now, and he really wasn't keep on being made to wear them. Really, he'd much prefer his blitzball uniform, which had the style and comfort that this outfit lacked.

Tidus' thoughts were still on Zanarkand, his old clothes, and his current predicament, when he rounded the next corner and walked straight into a girl. Tidus reeled backwards, caught by surprise and jerked back to the present as she staggered, dropped some of her books everywhere, and spluttered an apology. Tidus had to blink a couple of times.

While a good number of his female fans back in Zanarkand had been attractive, none of them had exactly been cute in the way this girl was.

"Oh, uh... here, let me get those." Hastily covering his surprise, Tidus bent down and scooped up the books the girl had dropped. He didn't, however, hand them back to her immediately.

"Hey, don't you think you're trying to carry a few too many?" As he straightened, Tidus allowed himself a moment to take in her looks. Hair of a dullish-brown, that fell just to her uniform's collar, surrounded a soft face with dual-colour eyes; her uniform was worn much neater than his own, as though it didn't cause her such discomfort as it did him, and the tie was a navy blue. The blitz star rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand for a moment, then gave a noncommital shrug.

"Um, who are you, anyway?"

[Deleted]

"I... I suppose I am. I didn't think to get a bag," Yuna admitted. As well as she could with her hands still full of what books remained in her grasp, she moved a hand to try and brush some stray brown hair out of her eyes. Tidus was certainly something... Interesting to behold. Unlike her own uniform, his was unkempt and it looked as though he was intent on being a sort of rebel in the school. It didn't necessarily help that his chest was visible for all to see, at least to a degree. Yuna couldn't deny that he looked... Attractive. There was something familiar about his appearance, though. Was it the fact that he vaguely reminded her of Wakka's fallen brother, or the fact that his necklace had the same sort of emblem that had been on Sir Jecht's chest?

"But I do not know anyone here that well yet. It would be strange to ask for help from someone you don't know well, wouldn't it?" she asked. That was she had thought, anyway. On the other hand, Yuna didn't really like asking for help if she could help it. Of course she would find the idea a little bit strange. She almost wished she had asked Wakka and Lulu to come to the school with her. Or maybe Kimahri would have wanted to come. The Ronso was one of her close friends, too, and he'd been completely willing to protect her back home... But he would have stuck out like a sore thumb here. Yuna couldn't even imagine the broken-horned Ronso in a uniform.

It was only then that it occurred to her that Tidus had asked who she was. Yuna ducked her head down a bit sheepishly before finally answering that particular question.

"I... I am Yuna. Pleased to meet you..."

There, she trailed off. Yuna didn't know Tidus's name and he hadn't actually introduced himself. Hopefully, he would be able to rectify that much soon. Maybe then he'd be able to tell her why he had the same emblem as one of her father's guardians had.

[Tidus]

"Well... here, let me help. I'm in no hurry to get anywhere anyway." True enough; Tidus did plan to attend his classes - eventually - but the blitz star didn't care all that much if he ended up a bit late. The only place he really wanted to get to was back to Zanarkand, and that still didn't look like happening anytime soon. Besides, the girl looked like she could use a hand; and like she said, she didn't really know anyone else. Tidus gave another shrug at her question of whether it would be odd to ask for help from someone she didn't know. Perhaps, he guessed; but since back home, everyone knew him, that hadn't really been an issue for him before.

Was it his imagination, or did her mismatched eyes linger on his necklace for a moment?

"It's Tidus." Tucking Yuna's books under one arm, he stretched his other out in what would probably have been called an exaggerated manner; and though he didn't have a clue if the game was something that existed in whatever world he'd been thrown into, Tidus couldn't resist a boast. "I'm a blitz player. Star of the Zanarkand Abes."

Hadn't Rikku told him not to mention Zanarkand? The thought belatedly flittered across Tidus' mind, but he didn't make an effort to correct himself. If Yuna reacted badly, he supposed, he could just blame it on Sin's toxin - that seemed to be an acceptable excuse, even if he didn't really believe it.

[Deleted]

"Oh... Thank you," Yuna said. She couldn't help but smile a little at his offer to help with her books. Others might have offered if they knew she had wanted to become a summoner, but she hadn't actually gotten to obtain the first aeon on her pilgrimage. She'd had to leave Besaid just before she could start her pilgrimage. Not that Tidus needed to know. While it would have been nice if anyone knew Yuna as the High Summoner's daughter, somehow there was a kind of appeal to the idea of no one knowing her straight away. Maybe this was another good reason for her to not have started her pilgrimage. Wakka, Lulu, and Kimahri all knew the other obvious good reason well enough. It had been why the former two had been so adamant about trying to keep her from actually doing it.

Tidus... It wasn't a name she could say she had heard before, but what caught her attention was his mention of Blitzball. He was a blitz player! Yuna's smile grew a bit more fond at the mention of it.

"I didn't expect to meet another blitz player. One of my friends back home played it. He and his brother..."

There, Yuna trailed off again. Tidus had mentioned the name Zanarkand. Just like Jecht. Recognition flickered through green and blue eyes, and she tilted her head to the side in a bird-like manner. She didn't appear offended like some others from Spira might have. Quite the contrary; Yuna appeared rather in awe about the whole thing. This just meant it would be easier to ask if he had known Sir Jecht.

"Zanarkand? You... You are from Zanarkand?" Yuna asked. The obvious statement to follow would have been something related to how the city had been destroyed 1000 years ago. The question didn't come, though. Yuna wanted to know just what kind of followup statement Tidus would have. Not just anyone would claim to be a star player of the Zanarkand Abes, after all.

[Tidus]

"No problem!" He shifted a few more books from Yuna's stack to the pile tucked beneath his arm - it made sense for him to carry more of them than just the few she'd dropped, right? - using the nearness to take a closer look at her. For some reason, something about this girl fascinated him in a way Tidus couldn't explain. She seemed... he didn't even know how to begin to describe it. Different, he guessed?

He wouldn't claim to be attracted to her, of course; but nor would he deny that it wasn't hard to imagine that happening at some point down the road.

"Well, Blitz is-" Whatever else Tidus was about to say was cut off abruptly as Yuna echoed the name of Zanarkand, and he found himself blinking a little stupidly.


"You actually believe me?!"

Tidus wasn't sure why he was surprised. Sure, Rikku hadn't bought his story, but she was only one girl; Tidus hadn't really believed she set the precedent for all of... Spira, had she called the world? Or was this yet another different world? He wouldn't pretend to know. Somehow, though, the ease with which Yuna accepted where he was from had caught Tidus off-guard. He ran a hand around his open collar, almost unconsciously flexing his neck muscles in the process.

"I- the last girl I met told me Zanarkand was destroyed a... thousand years ago. I'm a bit disoriented."

[Deleted]

Free of some of the extra weight of books, Yuna found it a bit easier to tuck some hair behind her ear and let the beaded earring in it become a bit more visible. A grateful smile wasn't that far behind the action, though it turned to one of amusement when Tidus sounded as surprised as he did. He'd apparently told someone else that he was from Zanarkand, and gotten the reaction he'd have expected. Everyone knew that Zanarkand had been destroyed all that time ago. Yuna knew it to be true, but her father had gone there just as any summoner would have. The twist in the tale was that Yuna had gotten the opportunity to meet Sir Jecht before he, her father, and Sir Auron had gone on their way. That was why Yuna believed Tidus's story.

"I do. It is true that Zanarkand was destroyed, but... My father went on a journey there ten years ago. He was accompanied by a man who said he was from there, too. He... He had the symbol your necklace has on his chest," Yuna explained. It would be impossible to forget Sir Jecht. The man had his fair share of scars, he'd worn a headband, and no shirt... The lack of a shirt had made it easy to see the tattoo he sported. This seemed like as good a time as any to ask whether or not Tidus knew him. ...Or was it? Maybe it wasn't... Yuna wasn't altogether sure of why she even was going out on that limb. It had to be remarkable enough knowing that she even believed him. It couldn't have been something people would blindly believe. Still, she couldn't shake the wondering thought of whether or not Tidus knew Jecht. She just had to ask.

"He told me, before he left with my father, that his name was... Jecht."

[Tidus]

"My... my old man?"

Yuna's books almost slipped from his hold as his grasp involuntarily slackened; the blitz star grabbed for them before they fell.

No, it couldn't be. Tidus gave his head a firm shake. Still, it sure sounded like his father. It wasn't everyone who went around with the symbol of the Zanarkand Abes tattooed across his chest; it was even more unlikely that there were two people with the exact same name sported that look. But that was ridiculous. Jecht had been lost out at sea, everyone knew that. He wouldn't have been here... or, well, wherever it was that Yuna was from.

Tidus looked away from her for a long moment, not at all sure what to say or how to respond. Finally, he sighed.

"It sure sounds like my father. His name was Jecht, he wore the team's symbol just like you said..." Tidus stared at the blank wall to his right, not trusting himself to look back at Yuna. The thought of his father stirred unpleasant memories, and he didn't want Yuna to see the hate in his eyes when he thought of his old man.

The hate... or anything else that might be there.

"But it can't have been him. My old man, he died. Ten years ago." Tidus shook himself. What was he doing, spilling any of his issues all over a girl he'd just met like this? Sure, she'd mentioned Jecht, but there was no way it could have been the Jecht he knew; getting worked up over his father here and now wasn't going to do any good whatsoever.

"Forget it, okay? Didn't need to burden you with that."

[Deleted]

Could it have been...? Sir Jecht being Tidus's father was something Yuna never would have guessed. It seemed, however, that Tidus was more willing to deny it than she had thought. The idea that the Sir Jecht she knew could have been a father, too, was a bit mystifying to her. But she didn't really feel like pursuing the issue any further now. Tidus sounded as though he didn't want to talk about it. As much as Yuna wanted to argue that it made sense, that she had met Sir Jecht ten years prior just like how the Jecht Tidus was referring to had been lost, she didn't want to upset him.

"No, it is all right. I... I should not have assumed as I did. I'm sorry," Yuna said. She bowed her head for a moment, and in that moment tried to think of something else they could talk about. ...Blitzball. They could talk about Blitzball more. That was something Tidus clearly was an expert with, and she had a friend who was a player as well. Truthfully, Yuna wanted to hear about Tidus's exploits as the blitz ace he claimed to be. It could have been as interesting as those she had heard from... Well, you could guess who. Jecht had told her a bit about what all he had done, and he'd even shown her a special shot he had patented. Did Tidus have a special goal shot, too? Curiosity bubbled in Yuna's eyes, and she moved a bit closer to Tidus after a moment.

"So... Star player of the Zanarkand Abes. That is quite the title. You must be an excellent player," Yuna said. She'd only ever really seen Wakka and Chappu play, pushing aside what Jecht had shown her, so she couldn't claim to know any expert players. Her curiosity of Tidus's expertise just didn't seem to want to quit. Not yet.

[Tidus]

"Ah..." he dismissed her apology with a wave of his hand. "It's nothing. I just don't like talking about my old man. He... he wasn't such a great guy."

The world's better off without him. That was what Tidus wanted to add; for once, however, he held his tongue. Anyone who didn't know Jecht the way he had would probably think that was an awful thing to say; and since Yuna seemed to be taking a liking to him, the last thing Tidus wanted was to scare her off. Especially not since she actually seemed to believe him, in spite of echoing Rikku's statement about Zanarkand's destruction. Could it be... true? Had he somehow been catapulted into the future by Sin?

And even if that was the case, what would a man who sounded like his father have been doing here?

It was almost a relief when Yuna changed the subject. "Yeah, you got that right!" he enthused. It was true, he'd never been able to manage some of his father's tricks - like the stupidly named 'Sublimely Magnificent Jecht Shot Mark III' - but in spite of that, Tidus still felt he was a worthy successor to the title of Star Player. And the crowd agreed too, so that wasn't just idle boasting on his part.

"I guess that's the one good thing I ever got from my old man. He was a star blitzer too. It took a lot of work to step out of his shadow."

...and there he went, talking about his parent again to a girl he'd only just met. Somehow, though, Yuna seemed to invite his confidance even in spite of the fact that he'd only just met her. What was with that?

"So what about you? Where are you from?" Deliberate attempt to change the subject might have been obvious; but there was genuine curiosity beyond the simple tactic of steering the conversation away from reminding him of father.

[Deleted]

Apparently, Tidus had felt trapped in his father's shadow. She wondered, at least for a moment, if she was in a similar situation. When she had voiced her desire to become a summoner, some had already begun to compare her to Braska. It might have been a good thing that she hadn't been able to begin her pilgrimage just yet, if only because it saved her from being compared all over the place. Still... She almost wished she had been able to begin her journey properly. Yuna had to wonder if she and Tidus were similar in that regard. Yuna hadn't hated her father, granted, but he had left quite the legacy behind after becoming High Summoner. 

She was almost thankful that Tidus had asked about her. Not because she thought Tidus had been talking about himself too much, but because it gave her an opportunity to inform him a bit more of what it was that made her... Her. Starting with her point of origin, that is.

"Originally, I am from the city of Bevelle. I lived there until I was seven, and after I was left alone... A friend came and took me to live on the island of Besaid. I've lived there for the past ten years," Yuna answered. It wasn't the most clear explanation of events, but Yuna didn't think Tidus needed to know how her mother had been killed by Sin and how her father had ultimately been sacrificed in the name of bringing about the calm. She'd only touch on them if asked. Besides, her thoughts were more concentrated on what it was like in Besaid anyway.

"Besaid is... It is a small island. I know it cannot be as exciting as a big city, but it is nice. We have a temple there, too, where summoners can obtain an aeon... It is the place where I was to begin my journey as a summoner," Yuna explained. Did Tidus know what summoners even were? Yuna wasn't entirely certain, but she felt like she had to mention it anyway. There was a sort of strength in her eyes now that she had mentioned what she had wanted to become, but it faded into longing after just a moment. Yuna had wanted so badly to become a summoner, to bring about the happiness Spira so desired, but she couldn't. Not while she was here.

"My friends, Lulu and Wakka, did not want me to become a summoner. They were the ones that told me to accept the invitation to this school instead."

[Tidus]

Bevelle... Besaid... neither of them were names that meant anything to Tidus. Until recently - until Sin - he had never been outside of Zanarkand other than to do a bit of training at sea, so his knowledge of the world beyond it was limited, at best. He was sure that world hadn't been Spira - or whatever Rikku had called it -, though. He scratched at the nape of his neck as she spoke, again feeling the unfamiliar shirt collar beneath his fingers. Irrelevant it might have been at the moment, but Tidus was still finding the uniform awkward even as scruffily as he wore it; he couldn't help but wonder how come Yuna was able to wear it fully done up without similar discomfort.

That wasn't to say he wasn't still listening anyway.

"Summoner? What's one of them?" Tidus tilted his head as Yuna finished, frowning at the unfamiliar term. He felt weird, being so ignorant of Yuna's world, and... of everything hereabouts, really.

"So, you didn't really want to come here either, huh?" he added a moment later, at her mention of her friends telling her to come here. In his own case, Tidus hadn't been so much made to attend against his will as simply not having anywhere else to go; still, if he'd had any real choice in the matter... it sounded like Yuna might have felt the same way. He suppoed her friends probably meant well and all; but why were they trying to stop her from fulfilling her dream? Tidus felt he must be missing something; rather than pursue it immediately, however, he waited for the answer to his questions, propping one hand up behind his head as he did.

[Deleted]

"You don't know?" Yuna asked, almost naively. Maybe she should have expected it since Tidus was from a different sort of Zanarkand than the one everyone in Spira knew, but it still seemed a little bit surprising. How did she go about explaining what summoners did? She didn't exactly want to mention the whole thing of them essentially being sacrificed in order to defeat Sin. Explaining that they were the ones who went on journeys to defeat Sin should have been good enough, though. Yuna would have to be careful not to mention the final summoning, though. Even though she'd only just met Tidus, she didn't want him to worry about her like Wakka and Lulu had. Yes... That was a good plan. She'd just leave that part out.

"A summoner is... A person who goes on a journey to defeat Sin. My father was one, and he defeated Sin ten years ago. The defeat of Sin would bring about great happiness to Spira, and I wish to bring it as my father did before. I was about to begin my journey when the letter to this school came," Yuna explained. She had to shake her head in answer to Tidus's question. Truth be told, Yuna really didn't want to be there. She wanted to be elsewhere... But she couldn't. Not when she had accepted the school's invitation.

"I know my friends had good intentions, but I really did want to try and bring the calm to Spira... As my father did."

[Tidus]

Tidus shook his head, but didn't have time to offer an excuse before Yuna had spoken again. Tidus shifted her books to his other arm - didn't she have somewhere to go with these? Was he holding her up? - as he listened.

Wait, she knew about Sin too? Tidus scratched his head of blond for a moment; then after nodding his understanding of her answer, decided to ask. "I think I was kind of brought here by Sin. It attacked Zanarkand and I woke up in some ruins; then it attacked the Al Bhed ship that rescued me and I ended up here. Do you know how that works?"

It was probably a shot in the dark. But if she was preparing to defeat Sin, she had to know quite a bit about it, right? Maybe she'd even know if another run-in with it might take him back to Zanarkand before he got too homesick. A long shot, perhaps, but she didn't think he was a lunatic, or hallucinating from Sin's toxin, so it was worth an ask.

"It sounds like it's a pretty big deal to you. Why would they want to stop you?" Tidus frowned for a moment as another thought occured to him. "Wait, if your father defeated Sin, why's it still around? What good does beating it do if-"


(ooc: Tidus, you are being an oblivious butt and that makes this way too much fun XD Also, feel free to cut him off there, Yuna ^^)

[Deleted]

It was true, Yuna did have someplace to be... But if she was being honest, she'd gotten herself rather lost and didn't know where the appropriate classroom even was. She could have pulled out her class schedule if she'd really wanted to, but the thing was stuck in one of her books and she didn't feel like troubling Tidus to retrieve it for her. Honestly, Yuna felt a bit silly about the whole thing. She normally wouldn't have asked anyone to help her with her books at all... And that much obviously had gotten her into trouble already. But on the other hand... She wouldn't have met Tidus if she hadn't been having trouble with her books. That had to mean something, didn't it?

Tidus's questions about Sin could easily have been answered, but something he'd said had caught Yuna's attention and refused to let go. He'd mentioned being rescued by an Al Bhed ship. If that was the case, maybe... Could he have met her uncle? Yuna hadn't seen Cid in what must have been an eternity, and she only vaguely remembered him and her two cousins from when she was a small child. But there was a possibility that Tidus could have met them. She simply had to ask.

"What good does beating it do if-"

"You mentioned an Al Bhed ship. That the people onboard rescued you, I mean," Yuna said, cutting Tidus off quite effectively. She normally wouldn't have liked doing that, but her curiosity simply wouldn't let go this time. Yuna just had to know if Cid had been seen or not.

"Was... Was there a man named Cid with them?"