Eternal Love (Final Fantasy X/X-2)

Chapter 4: Indebted to the Ferryman

There'd been several instances during Yuna's pilgrimage when she'd wondered what it would be like to die. After all, she was a summoner back then and death was supposed to be her fate. Sometimes, she figured it would be uncomfortably cold. Other times, she imagined it would resemble being enveloped in a blanket of warmth. But she hadn't experienced either of those scenarios when the darkness came. Instead, she'd felt an eerie sense of weightlessness, accompanied by what seemed like a vast stretch of empty space. There was this odd feeling as well—that she wasn't alone. It was as though she could hear her own voice, echoing inside her head...calling out to her.

Then, she heard it—a faint buzzing, growing louder, and louder, until...

"Yuna!"

Her eyes fluttered open at the sound of her beloved's voice. Before her vision could focus, she felt a pair of strong hands tightly grasp her own.

"Yuna!"

Slowly, the white-haze thinned to reveal a very exhausted version of her fiancé with a hopeful look on his face. "Tidus...?"

His eyes glossed over with unshed tears as a relieved smile etched across his lips. "Man, I thought... Don't ever scare me like that again, okay?"

This man of hers looked wrecked. His eyes were bloodshot with dark rings underneath, indicating he'd been not only fighting back sleep for several hours, but his emotions as well. She must've been out for some time and had given Tidus quite a fright for him to look this horrible.

"The doctor is on his way," she heard what sounded like Paine speaking from the other side of the room.

"She's awake, she's awake, she's awake!" gushed a voice that could only belong to none other than her animated cousin, Rikku. "Can I go sit with her now—huh, huh, huh?"

Yuna's eyes darted over to where she'd heard all the chatter. And sure enough, Rikku bounced in a seat between Gippal and Paine, still in her cocktail-dress, looking too excited to contain herself.

"Think you'd better hang tight for now and finish this coffee," Gippal suggested, handing her a Styrofoam cup.

Paine snorted and rolled her eyes. "She can't sit still as it is. Any more coffee and she'll be literally bouncing off the walls."

Yuna noticed the gothic warrior had shed the red, vomit-stained dress and was now sporting her usual leather attire. The corner of her lips curled up in amusement. Knowing Paine, she most likely had the dressphere stashed in her purse the entire night.

"Do you know where you are?" Tidus asked, rubbing a thumb over the back of her hand.

Still a bit disoriented, Yuna grunted from the dull ache in her head, and surveyed her surroundings. She was lying propped-up on what felt like a gurney with Tidus sitting on the edge by her feet. The room, though, was brightly lit with white walls and medical machina neatly tucked away in the corners. Now, it was all coming together. "An infirmary?"

"Yeah—I, uh..." Tidus gestured with his head over to their three friends occupying the chairs near the wall. "I called Paine not long after I got you here. She went over to the inn to get Rikku and Gippal. I hope you don't mind."

Just then, a middle-aged man with spiky, black hair, dressed in white and red robes, barged into the room, holding a clipboard in his hand. "Good, you're awake. Lady Yuna, I'm Doctor Swartz. You were admitted here, at the Luca Infirmary, about six hours ago. How are you feeling?"

Six hours? She really had been out for a while. "A little groggy to be honest. And I have a slight headache."

"That's to be expected," he replied with a nod. "Do you remember the events leading up to your visit here?"