Blue Chapter 3

[rytings]

“How about that reward?”

Baralai turned to look at Gippal curiously. “Reward? Did I promise you a reward?”

Gippal rolled his eye - his eyes, Baralai knew secretly - and stepped forward to join Baralai at the window. Baralai turned back to his original position, staring out the open picture window at the dark Bevelle sky. The lights of the city cast a purplish glow on the heavens, and a few storm clouds shimmered in the distance.

Baralai felt Gippal’s arms around his waist, fingers tangling in his obi. For a moment, he pretended that Gippal wasn’t trying to entice him into sex and enjoyed the feeling of being held by his lover - maybe his erys, one day - and looking out the window. Baralai did not get these simple moments with Gippal very often, and - although Gippal teased him for it - Baralai was a romantic at heart.

“Reward?” Gippal whispered into his ear.

Baralai sighed. “Can’t you just enjoy some peace and quiet for a few moments?”

“I’m impatient,” Gippal said simply. “Esbydeahd vun oui, esbydeahd vun ic du pa dukadran, dyhkmat ib eh dra craadc.”

Baralai still had to take a moment to translate Gippal’s Al Bhed. He had learned the language, but he was hardly fluent - even though Gippal seemed to assume sometimes that he was. Impatient for you, impatient for us to be together, tangled up in the sheets.

Baralai had to admit that hearing Gippal whisper in Al Bhed in his ear was very enticing. Gippal’s voice somehow sounded different in his native tongue. All the so-called harsh sounds of the language acted in tandem to erode away Baralai’s defenses, much like tiny grains of sand could polish the rough exterior of broken glass tossed to sea.

He felt his rough edges, caused by a day of drama and heartache, being smoothed away by Gippal’s words. “Ouin puto ykyehcd seha, rumtehk oui, vaamehk oui, duilrehk oui eh fyoc dryd uhmo E lyh.” Your body against mine, holding you, feeling you, touching you in ways that only I can. This was Baralai’s weakness, hearing the words spoken in soft breaths on his ear, Gippal’s body still and patient behind him, waiting for him. He felt Gippal’s arms tighten around his waist just slightly - Baralai knew that, to get into this position, Gippal had to stand up on his toes to reach. Baralai also knew that Gippal did that just for him, just because he knew he liked it.

“Pa ehceta oui, hud zicd eh ouin puto pid eh ouin seht, vymmehk dukadran du y bmyla uhmo fa lyh ku.” Be inside you, not just in your body but in your mind, falling together to a place only we can go. Baralai felt his last defenses melt away at these words; now, he was entirely Gippal’s.

He turned and found himself wrapped up in his lover’s arms; his hands found their way to Gippal’s shoulders which were free of their usual armored protection. Gippal felt much more real without his armor - and Baralai knew that he was the only one who really ever saw Gippal like this. Whereas Gippal had to tear down Baralai’s defenses, his own were so freely lowered - all except one.

Baralai looked at the eyepatch -- the stiff leather that constituted the last line of defense that Gippal had. Baralai wanted to break it down, to have all of Gippal, even that secret he knew was hidden behind the barrier. All of his questions about Gippal’s past, about his eye, about his heritage could be answered right there, with a simple gesture.

He reached up, two of his fingertips lightly brushing the bottom seam of the eyepatch.

Gippal immediately pulled Baralai’s hand away, and, in his usual way, tried to distract Baralai from his original mission. He pulled those two fingers into his mouth; Baralai felt his tongue winding around his knuckles. For a moment, he was suitably distracted - Gippal’s mouth was good for many things besides speaking Al Bhed - but Baralai’s questions were not soon forgotten. “Why won’t you take it off?” he whispered into Gippal’s ear as their bodies collided with rising sexual fervency.

Gippal had released Baralai’s fingers by this point and was now fixated on his neck. “Because it makes me less sexy,” he said between kisses.

“I beg to differ,” Baralai said, pulling Gippal’s shirt off over his shoulders. “I think that if you took it off, you’d be more sexy.”

“Not gonna do it,” Gippal said, pressing his now bare chest against Baralai’s still-clothed torso. He had pushed his hands up inside Baralai’s robe, getting his arms underneath the undershirt, fingers exploring every bit of the territory - his territory. Baralai had long ago decided that his body belonged to Gippal, no matter what might become of this relationship.

Baralai somehow managed to speak the question, “Why not?” even as Gippal’s hands crossed his stomach.

“I already told you,” Gippal replied, busying his hands with loosening the waistline of Baralai’s pants. “I’d hate to lower my sexiness for you.”

“And I told you that I think you’d be sexier.” Baralai lost track of Gippal’s body, eventually finding that he had circled around him and was holding him from behind. Now Baralai’s obi and pants had come off, and all he was left with was his robe and the undershirt. “Please? For me?”

“Don’t do that tone at me, please,” Gippal replied, his hands roaming up and down the front of Baralai’s body as they stood once again at the picture window. Baralai felt his bare shins against the wide windowsill. “Someday, Lai, but not tonight.”

That was what Gippal always said. It was like a mantra that he repeated over and over, a defense mechanism that he’d taught himself; Baralai recognized it as the breaking point at which, if Gippal was pushed further, he’d snap. Baralai didn’t want to lose Gippal - not tonight, not like this.

He dropped the subject, and that was made much easier by the feeling of Gippal’s hands finally finding Baralai’s exposed length, fingers closing around and stroking. Baralai couldn’t help but gasp, finding himself being pushed down ever so gently against the windowseat.

“Good thing you have tinted windows, Praetor,” Gippal said into his ear, “or all of Bevelle would be getting a free show tonight.”

Whenever Baralai heard Gippal take that particular tone - sounding vaguely domineering - he felt the deep urge to turn the situation around on his lover. Gippal liked to think that he was in charge of their relationship, that he was the dominant one who always got his way.

Really, Baralai knew that Gippal was at his every beck and call -- however, Baralai had to enforce this every now and then.

Right now seemed to be one of those times.

He let Gippal push him down onto the windowseat, his hands still roaming hungrily across Baralai’s body. Once he was down onto the wide cushioned platform, Baralai turned himself so he could remove the last of Gippal’s clothing. His pants made the usual satisfying clink when they hit the ground, and Baralai’s hands found their way to Gippal’s hips, pulling him down to the windowseat.

“Eager?” Gippal asked as he was being pulled down. He tried to put his knee between Baralai’s thighs.

Baralai did not spread his legs.

“Tease,” Gippal accused him, leaning over Baralai and kissing his neck.

“No, just demanding,” Baralai said, his hands still on Gippal’s hips.

“Demanding?” Gippal nibbled on Baralai’s ear. “Demanding what?”

Baralai did not voice a response; instead, he lifted his knee to spread Gippal’s legs apart. He slid his other leg underneath so that Gippal was effectively straddling him.

“Gehgo,” Gippal said.

Baralai knew this word already: kinky.

--X--

The next morning, Baralai left Gippal lounging in their shared room in the Temple and went to his meeting with Rin. There was a local sphere break tournament taking place in Bevelle that day, and Rin had said he would be attending - it was very convenient, because Baralai had business to discuss with him.

Rin had gone from being a mild-mannered Travel Agency owner and Sphere Break creator to the central figure around travel and lodging in all of Spira. When the Machine Faction had excavated several airships a year and a half prior, they had sold them to Rin, who quickly turned them into the fastest fleet of transport ships in the entire world. For a minimal price, a traveler could take one of Rin’s Airships from any major city (and even some out-of-the-way locales) to any other point along a predetermined route. True, traveling from Zanarkand to Besaid took several hours, but it was far better than the weeks it took on foot or by chocobo.

Baralai found this travel system to be very efficient and much more reliable than previous methods, but his underlings had been complaining that they had been charged the same price for travel as the hoi polloi. At first, Baralai had found this complaint to be ridiculous, but then he remembered that New Yevon clergy had a distinct disadvantage to the general populace - they did not get paid to do their jobs. As part of Baralai’s cleaning of New Yevon, he had removed the “benefits” system that used to be in place - in which any gil that the temple received was placed into a “general” fund, out of which the clergy could take their monthly “benefits”. It was originally intended just to support basic food and clothing, but it turned into something corrupt in which the clergy were receiving more salary on a monthly basis than any other worker in Spira.

Baralai had expunged the whole system - any former clergyman who didn’t like it was free to leave. Many did, but more came to New Yevon to do their service in return for the moral cleansing of their souls. Positions were more temporary now - many of his priests spent a year or two with New Yevon, learning the ways and doing service, and then went back to their homes where they worked another job in addition to spreading the words of the Teachings. New Yevon was a largely volunteer organization, running on donations and the talents of its people.

That meant that the volunteers didn’t have the money to pay their airship fares when it came time for them to travel. Baralai intended to discuss this with Rin.

He approached Rin’s table. “Greetings,” he said to the Al Bhed before him, bowing his head.

“Ah, there you are Praetor,” said Rin in his characteristic Al Bhed accent. Baralai now noted that Gippal had no recognizable accent, and found it odd that he had not noticed that before this point. “You have something you wish to discuss?”

“Yes,” Baralai said, sitting down across from Rin. “About your airship fares.”

“I’ve heard the New Yevon men are complaining,” Rin said, pushing a Sphere Break grid in front of him. “If you want to talk, you must play.”

Baralai sighed. He had once been fond of Sphere Break, but one too many rounds with Gippal complaining about losing had ruined it for him. At this point, Baralai associated winning Sphere Break with consolation sex, and that was not conducive to playing the game with Rin.

“Alright,” he finally agreed, telling himself that it would be worth it - first, to get the reduced fares so his clergy would stop complaining, and second, to probe Rin for more information regarding Gippal’s past. “What are the terms?”

“Fifteen rounds,” Rin suggested, tuning the grids. “Thirty seconds per turn. Fifty coin quota.”

Baralai winced. “That’s tough,” he said. “And I am out of practice.”

“Well,” Rin said, grinning broadly, “your victory would ensure a successful business dealing, yes?”

“And my loss?”

“Depends on how I like your business.”

Baralai laughed. “Alright,” he acquiesced, “let’s play.”

The grids lit up and the game began. Baralai’s first core sphere roll was a 2, which was a lucky roll for him. As he racked up the coins, he idly said, “You are aware, Rin, that my clergy are not paid for their positions at all anymore.”

“I am,” Rin replied, and Baralai noticed that he’d already gotten a sphere break. “I was just waiting for you to make your deal.”

Baralai got his second core sphere roll, a seven, and selected his coins carefully. “You let my people ride for free, and they’ll act as healers for anyone onboard requiring it - to a reasonable extent.” Another sphere break, and a four came up next. “No major surgeries, but simple cures and esunas. Also, they can exterminate any pests onboard for you.”

“An interesting proposal,” Rin said, getting a sphere break of his own. His hands moved fast over the coins. “I think my erys would agree.”

“Has he been doing healing?” Baralai asked, trying to think of how he was going to get these coins to create a multiple of his latest roll - a six.

“No,” Rin answered, smiling. “He has been hearing the complaints of the injured to fly faster so they won’t get sick.”

“That must be irritating for a pilot,” Baralai agreed, finally settling on a total of twenty four to get his sphere break. Now he had a two again. “Have I mentioned, Rin, how much you single-handedly changed my life when you announced your betrothal?”

“I think I may have gathered as much,” Rin replied, staring at his grid for a moment.

This one was an easy break for Baralai, who next got a five. “Seriously, Rin, I do not think it was just me.” Baralai smiled over at the Al Bhed. “You have done so much for this world - the travel agencies, sphere break, the airship, the concept of the erys.” He selected his coins. “Yours is one of the names that Spira will remember forever.”

“Flattering me will not help you win the game, Praetor,” Rin warned him good-naturedly, and Baralai had to laugh. He checked his totals and he was doing well in the match - but he had no idea how Rin was doing. “I think your proposal is a good one. I will talk it over with the crew.”

“Thank you,” Baralai replied. “If there are any other terms - cred!” He immediately snapped his free hand over his mouth at the curse. This was something he had definitely picked up from Gippal - swearing when you selected the wrong coin and messed up your totals. “-feel free to let me know. I am certain something can be arranged.”

Rin laughed his amusement at Baralai’s slipped curse. For the first time since the game had begun, he glanced up from his grid to look to the other. “I see you have learned much from your Al Bhed.”

“Indeed,” Baralai chuckled with a slight shake of his head. He kept his eyes on the game, hoping that he could find a way to quickly recover from his earlier mistake. “Perhaps I have learned even more than I would like to readily admit - such as how I now seem to know all the filthiest of curses.”

“Ah, such a thing from the leader of New Yevon,” Rin shook his head in mock-disappointment. “I fear that you have not yet learned any of the better qualities of the Al Bhed.” He turned his attention back to his own grid. The Al Bhed’s fingers moved smoothly and quickly over the coins, as if he hadn’t paused in the slightest.

“Oh, I do not find that to be true at all,” Baralai countered. “I have learned more from them than I have from nearly anyone else in my life.” Lifting his hand from the grid, he placed his ring finger between his lips as he allowed a brief silence to play out. “In fact, I have just recently heard a most fascinating story about an Al Bhed woman; now, what was her name?”

Baralai allowed another silence to stretch between them as he feigned having to scour his memory for the name of this woman. Of course, this act also drew his attention away from the game at hand - but he hoped it would be worth it. “Ah! I believe her name was Aisso, but I cannot, for the life of me, remember what I was told of her.”

“Ah, Aisso?” Rin nodded, but his attention was still focused on his grid. “That name is very familiar: you may remember her as the founder of Kinu, an Al Bhed settlement on the shore of Bikanel-or perhaps you have heard that she was a star player for the Al Bhed Psyches?”

“Yes, that is exactly it,” Baralai agreed. He stored this bit of information away as he returned to his grid - unfortunately, he was having a rather hard time recovering from his earlier error. “Though it is so very tragic, how she was taken so early.”

“That is very true, but so was the fate of many who lived so close to the sea.” Rin agreed. It was with a rather broad smile that the Al Bhed sat back, revealing a completed spherebreak grid. “Ah, it looks as if I have won.”

Baralai, forced to concede the victory, shook hands with Rin - an Al Bhed custom that was taking hold in the Spiran world - and then went on his way. He was hopeful not only about his business transaction, but also the new avenue of discovery that Rin had opened up for him.

--X--

In his earlier days in the temple - when intrigue was entangled in every aspect of his life - Baralai had learned that the upper balcony leading to the Praetor’s office was perfect for spying on the temple below. Due to the structure of the building, voices carried almost faultlessly and, from this vantage point, very little had to be left to the imagination. It really was the best place to learn all the secrets of those who dealt in the trade of privileged information - though, this particular time, he found himself privy to someone who traded only in openness.

Baralai watched from above as Yuna restlessly paced up and down the long entryway of Bevelle Temple. On one step, she would clasp her hands before herself only to move them to behind her back on the next - another habit shared between them, he noted with an odd sense of affection. Catching himself, Baralai was quick to put this misplaced sensation back into perspective, reminding himself that it was only the emotional residue of a shade long departed. As if to reinforce this lesson, he watched powerlessly as the blonde blitzer so reminiscent of his past demon rushed forth to eagerly greet the awaiting Lady.

Baralai found that he was unable to watch Tidus and Yuna’s passionate embrace and so he turned with every intention of returning to his office; unfortunately, the words from below still drifted to him and his curiosity outweighed any sense of resentment.

“Oh, I’m so glad that you all came!” Yuna’s voice was bright and enthusiastic, seeming to be enhanced by the presence of her trusted guardians -- Baralai could just imagine the radiant smile she must have been wearing.

Tidus answered with his usual bravado, “You know we wouldn’t leave you to face this alone!”

“Even if she has shown, in the past, that she’s more than capable,” Lulu pointed out with her characteristic dry tone.

“But it almost feels like old times, ya?”

From his new position on the lift, Baralai watched as Wakka draped his arms enthusiastically around the shoulders of Yuna and Tidus. Though all seemed to enjoy the moment of camaraderie, the Praetor couldn’t help but feel a small pang of jealousy - he could remember, all too well, when he had such a strong bond with others, but he also knew that connection would never be fully restored. It always surprised him, a little, when he stumbled across sudden reminders of this and he still found himself unable to fully guard against the impact of such moments. Fortunately, he was able to temporarily place these thoughts at the back of his mind as he commanded the lift to descend.

He continued to listen in.

“It’ll be even better than old times!” Yuna was saying, clapping her hands together excitedly. “After all, Tidus is finally back with us!”

Lulu didn’t seem to be able to contain her skepticism, “I’m sure that will make all the difference.”

Wakka was a bit more sincere in his enthusiasm, “It was the best ending we could have hoped for, eh?”

“But was it really an ending?” Yuna mused, placing a finger between her lips.

“Not over,” Kimahri grunted. “Yevon still up to tricks -- killed Braska.”

The words were inescapably clear as Baralai stepped from the grounded lift-- but how could he argue with them? It was quite true that his Curaja had been the cause of Braska’s death and he still struggled with his inner guilt - even if Yuna had absolved him. It certainly did not help that her group of guardians - aside from Wakka - all moved closer around her as Baralai approached and the accusations were clear in each set of eyes. Still, he merely shook his head as he paused a short distance away.

“I do realize that nothing I say will convince you otherwise, but Yevon has nothing to do with this new invasion of fiends. We were as caught by surprise as anyone and we rushed to aid the populace as soon as we were able; it is a tragedy that so much life was lost and we can only regret that we were not more prepared.” Baralai sighed and bowed his head, much as one would when asking absolution. “I truly regret what has come of this, but it is because of this tragedy that I would ask - no, beg - you all to help rid our peaceful Spira of this threat.”

Lulu eyed the Praetor with due wariness. “And you would have us clean Yevon’s messes again?”

“Kimahri refuse,” the large Ronso asserted as he stepped directly in front of the High Summoner. “Yevon help self.”

“Guys, wait!” Tidus interjected, waving his hands a bit wildly. “Do you really think Yuna’d call you guys out here - after all Yevon’s done to her - if it weren’t really important?”

Wakka nodded. “That’s true, ya?”

“It is,” Yuna asserted. She turned her head to smile at Tidus and Wakka; Baralai found that he had to turn his head aside as his stomach twisted unpleasantly, but he didn’t miss her next words. “Please, at least listen to what he has to say -- for me?”

There seemed to be a grudging sort of agreement over that and Baralai moved to speak before it could pass. “I do fully understand your reluctance to offer any faith to a cause of Yevon, but it has gone far beyond affecting only us; if we do not counter this, then all of Spira may fall under attack - and I do not wish to see Lady Yuna’s Calm broken so soon.” Lifting his eyes, he reached out his hands imploringly to the group. “I have come to the realization that we, Yevon and its holy guard, cannot do this alone and that is why I feel the need to ask for your help; without you, I do not think this can be contained and stopped. Without your help, all hope of saving Spira is lost.”

The silence following his words was rather long and Baralai felt a sense of hopelessness sink into the pit of his stomach; he had clearly failed to win them over and, without the extra help, he was almost positive that first Bevelle, then the rest of Spira, would fall. The ones already recruited to the cause - the Bevellian guard, the Youth League, Nooj, Paine, and Gippal - might be able to hold them off for a time, but it would only be delaying the inevitable. Just as Baralai was about to return to the lift, he heard one of the guardians speak.

“I say we trust him.”

Baralai recognized the voice -- it was clearly Wakka, someone who had in the past year become his unlikely friend, speaking his support. “This seems like big business and we gotta do something to make sure Vidina and all the other kids get to grow up better than we did, ya?”

“Finally, an argument which makes sense,” Lulu sounded a bit amused. “If you put it that way, I suppose I cannot refuse.”

Baralai turned, but his kept his head bowed. Still, the grateful smile upon his lips could not be mistaken. “I thank you both for your kindness.”

“I knew you’d agree to help!” Yuna exclaimed happily. Again, she had that vital cheer and happiness about her and Baralai could not help but reflect a bit of her light in himself. Of course, this was unseen as the Lady High Summoner turned her attention to Kimahri. “And you?”

The Ronso, on the other hand, reflected no trace of cheer. Quite the opposite, he still seemed as skeptical and wary of Yevon as before and he made no move to mask his feelings toward the Praetor - still, even Kimahri was apparently not immune to Yuna’s charms.

“C’mon, for me?” She all but begged. Shifting her weight onto the balls of her feet, Yuna still only came up to his breastbone, but she glanced up to Kimahri with eyes widened  and hands clasped under her chin. “Please?”

Baralai could see the Ronso struggling with himself, but it was a hopeless cause - he seemed as helpless as anyone not to give into every wish of Braska’s daughter. “Fine.” Kimahri nodded. “I help.” He then turned to glare rather fiercely at Baralai. “For Yuna.”

“You know I’m in,” Tidus reminded them, draping an arm around Yuna’s waist. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“It’s decided, then!” Yuna exclaimed. She nodded firmly and, this time, her radiant smile was for Baralai alone. “So, what next?”

“Please, follow me to my office,” Baralai responded, once he managed to break his stare from the beautiful smile offered him. It took a stern mental reminder for him to remember that his fond feelings toward Yuna were tainted by phantom emotions from the past and, even with that, he knew that his resolve would be broken the next time she looked at him like that.

Shaking his head, he gestured back toward the lift. “From the windows up there, you all will be able to see with your own eyes what has happened.”

Next chapter.