The Fantasy Games (Final Fantasy Fanfiction)

Chapter Two: The Reaping

“Yunie, don’t do this,” Rikku sobbed into her cousin’s chest. “Please, don’t… don’t do…” Broken sobs cut off her pleas as they escaped desperately, making her slim form tremble and shake uncontrollably in Yuna’s arms.

Yuna remembered Rikku trying to comfort her when she’d lost her other half, her twin. She’d sat there with her cousin, stroking her soft chocolate hair and whispering comforting words into her ear as the distraught twin cried until no more tears would come. She remembered her twin’s body, wrapped in the finest silk that the seamstress in Besaid could find, floating in the sea, surrounded by soft lilac rose petals as the waves gently rocked the makeshift coffin. Staff in hand, Yuna had slowly walked into the sea, the soft pads of her feet causing ripples to gather on the calm sea’s surface. Coldness had washed over her, not from the water but her emotions had just suddenly balanced, she felt at peace as the fayth called her to perform her last duty to her sister. She’d twirled and twirled as she cast one last mournful look at her sister’s body, now sinking into the serenity of the ocean’s hold. The colourful pyre flies, burst beneath the surface as the water rose into a fountain, synchronising with Yuna’s constant twirling of the Sending. She’d allowed one final tear to shed in her sister’s honour as the songstress’ soul fled to the Farplane to join her lover once more.

Yuna could’ve sworn she lost half of her soul that day, she could’ve sworn she’d heard Lenne’s voice one final time as the pyre flies faded to nothing. She knew her twin’s voice from anywhere and she was positive that Lenne had apologised before she’d faded for good. Yuna had wanted to remain angry at her twin for simply abandoning her, for leaving her when they promised they’d always stay together, but she just couldn’t.

After that, she’d learned to control her sorrows, she’d learned to put on a fake smile that would fool anyone who didn’t know her too well, she even learned to laugh out loud when she was sad. She’d learned to hold back tears and to keep her face neutral and her tone of voice polite. Even when she heard villagers gossiping about the unholy sin her sister had committed she’d send them a polite warning glance and they’d talk no more. Even though her twin had only departed two years ago, she felt as though it had been a lifetime ago. The memory of that day was burned in her mind like a fiery brand on her brain. She’d never forget the look of pure peace that had adorned her twin’s lifeless face when Yuna had first found her. She felt that kind of peace now, as she held her cousin and kept her emotions down, only allowing a small bit of sorrow to seep through, she felt that peace that her twin had felt because she knew deep down that she’d more than likely be joining her twin within the next few weeks.

“Rikku… what’s done is done,” Yuna sighed, feeling tears spring at the corners of her own eyes at the thoughts of never seeing her cousin again. Her cousin who had become the sister she’d lost, the cousin who had comforted her and made her properly laugh when dwelling in her darkest sorrows. She didn’t want to let go but she knew she had to, she had to do this for her cousin, she couldn’t let her go into the Games. “You need to get out of here; you need to go home right now, okay? I promise everything will be fine in the end, but you need to stay strong for our family and let me go.”

“No… I can’t… I won’t… I won’t let you!” the blonde yelled in her fit of sorrow, tightening her grip on her cousin. Yuna could see the SOLDIERs begin to close in to separate the two girls, but some brave teenager from the boys wrapped his arms around Rikku and pulled her away before she could be punished. Rikku started to kick and scream her cousin’s name as thick tears trailed down her cheeks. Gippal, who had been the brave teenager, groaned slightly as she elbowed him hard and nodded at Yuna with gratitude giving her a rueful smile that sent her hundreds of different messages, but all with the same hidden meaning. Please break the cycle…