AU fic

Xonelel: Much to popular belief, I'm NOT dead!

This is the result of a short replay of Final Fantasy X. :

The pairing is Yuna/Tidus with some one sided Seymour/Yuna I guess, and it is an AU (Alternate Universe, for those who don't know) fic. Yes, I do realize that Yuna has never been to Zanarkand, or a regular high school dance for that matter. That's kind of the point. :P

It's just what I think might happen if Yuna and Tidus were to chance across each other in the big city of Zanarkand.

Italics: Yuna's thoughts

Bold: Tidus's thoughts

IMPORTANT: An aeroway is something I made up. It's similar to a subway.

Anyway, enough rambling. Enjoy the fic!

--

The clock chimed eight times.

Oh no… I'm already an hour late!

Yuna stepped clumsily onto the Zanarkand aeroway, grabbing the hem of her flouncy dress in a futile attempt to keep it from snagging. She could barely withhold her disgust as she sat down on the yellowing cushion, finding it warm from it's former occupant.

Public transportation… ugh.

She shivered at all the strange, lower class people on the vehicle, counting down the seconds in her head until her stop. This sort of situation should have made her angry. Her prom date, Seymour Guado, had promised to pick her up for the prom in a hover-limo, and yet, here she was, gazing out at the lights of the city through the window of a grubby aeroway car.

Instead of being angry, all she could do was mentally kick herself.

Stupid, stupid, stupid! Damn Seymour was probably just leading me on. Well, I don't even like him anyway, so I suppose it's good that he stood me up. He was the only one to ask me to prom though, what else could I tell him but yes? Yuna continued to muse over her unpleasant situation as the tram lurched forward in a grinding motion.

The aeroways of Zanarkand were very unique. They traveled through the air suspended magnetically over tracks, sort of like a monorail. Only there were tracks crisscrossing all over the city, so it was easy to get in the general area of where you wanted to go.

However, Yuna's destination was at least a 45 minute ride across half the city.

Just my luck.

She fiddled with her unruly dress with little else to do, smoothing out the purple silk. It really was a beautiful gown, with a deep violet halter top fading to a lilac trim around the bottom. And at the deepest part of the neckline was an ornate golden hibiscus blossom.

I wouldn't have bought this if I'd known it would be trashed in the community transport system, she thought bitterly. It was unlike her to be so pessimistic, but who wouldn't be, after watching what was supposed to be an amazing night slowly going downhill?

And then she saw him.

Or rather, he saw her.

--

The boy's crystal blue eyes were wandering aimlessly around the cabin. Ugh, I am so sore from practice. I just have to wait a little bit longer, and I'll be home, in bed, asleep. He smiled dreamily at the thought, running a hand through his tousled spiky blonde hair, still damp from the rigorous Saturday night blitzball practice he had just finished. In the corner of the cab was a girl. She was glancing moodily down at her dress, a heartbreakingly sorrowful look on her face.

Looks like she could use some comforting, heh. Wonder why she's so sad?

The boy waited on the edge of his seat until the next stop, then transferred over to the open seat next to Yuna so swiftly, she didn't even notice his sudden appearance.

He watched her looking out the window for a moment, eyes lingering on her rosy cheeks, full pink lips, and the blue eye visible to him

Finally deciding that it was about time she noticed him, he gave a very audible cough. People's heads turned, and Yuna's snapped. She gasped when she saw him sitting beside her.

"Wha… how… who?" Yuna spluttered incoherently.

The boy grinned at her strange facial expressions. She obviously had been so engrossed in whatever she was thinking about that she lost touch with reality for a bit. He noticed with surprise that the eye that had not been facing him was actually green.

"Tidus." He chuckled.

"Huh?" She retorted intelligently.

"That's my name."

"Ah."

There was an awkward pause for a few moments.

"So, are you gonna tell me yours?"

"Oh! Yes, sorry. Um, it's, ah, Yuna."

Well, there goes all hopes of having a decent conversation with this guy. Why oh why can't I speak coherently right now?

"Pretty name."

"Thank… you?"

Am I making her nervous or something?

"You know, I won't bite you or anything. Well, unless you want me to."

Her face changed to one of pure alarm, and he started laughing. It was a contagious, cheerful laugh that couldn't help but evoke some giggles from her as well.

"Kidding, kidding!"

They let their laughter fade and sat in comfortable silence for a bit.

Yuna summoned up her courage and decided to try and initiate some dialogue.

"Hey, why haven't I seen you around school before? I mean, you don't look much older than me. But if you are, well, that's all right too."

At least I didn't ramble too much that time. Phew.

"I'm on the pro blitzball team, and students on the team have to be home schooled. You know, cause of our crazy practice schedules. We don't have time for stupid stuff like homework!" Tidus stuck out his tongue.

"So that would explain the wet hair and clothes."

He nodded violently, intending to fling some water onto Yuna, but she just giggled and squirmed away from the reach of the drops.

"But what I don't understand," he suddenly looked genuinely curious, "is why you're wearing a dress. Isn't it getting late to be going somewhere?"

Yuna sighed. This was the question she had been expecting.

"It's my prom night. And my date stood me up."

"What?" Tidus jumped up in his seat. "Why would someone stand you up? They should be GRATEFUL that they have a date like you!"

Yuna blushed furiously, and Tidus realized what he had just shouted to the entire cabin. He sat back down sheepishly.

"Well, he's a grade older than me. I don't really like him at all, to tell you the truth. But he's really popular, and everyone thought we'd look cute together, so when he asked…" She trailed off.

"Ugh, he sounds like bad news." Tidus scowled. Yuna smiled coyly.

"Is someone getting jealous?"

"NO!" He snapped, looking guiltily at her.

"Well…" She put a finger delicately to her chin and looked towards the ceiling, thinking.

Tidus observed her as she sat in thought, hungrily taking in her appearance. After all, he probably wouldn't see her again after this. He began to panic as she realized that his stop was only a few minutes away.

"What if you would… um…" Yuna's voice brought him back to earth.

"What?"

"Be my prom date?" Her cheeks turned a bright red as she said this.

"Oh! Wow, uh, well…" Now it was Tidus's turn to blubber like an idiot. "I'm not really dressed for it." Her responded lamely. The disappointment in her eyes almost tore him apart.

"I see. Well, if you don't want to go, I won't force you." Tears were beginning to fill them.

"Wait, no! No, no, no, no! I didn't mean that I didn't WANT to go with you!" He said hastily. "Please don't cry."

Yuna sniffed.

"In fact, I'd love to go with you." He said more firmly.

"Then why were you making excuses? For all I know, you're just as bad as Seymour."

"Because I was nervous, I guess. And I really do feel completely underdressed next to you." He admitted. She smiled a bit.

The subway screeched to a halt at his stop, and a few seconds later the doors closed. They continued along the rails towards the Zanarkand Teen Recreational Center (ZTRC)

"That was my stop," he smiled

"So… does that mean you're definitely going with me, then?" A smile lit up Yuna's face as he nodded.

Finally, the ride was over, and Tidus grabbed her hand.

"Come on, we don't want to miss the slow dance!"

They ran off the aeroway and away from the stop, laughing as they approached ZTRC. Lights and steam leaked through the doors, and the grounds around the center were pulsing with soundwaves.

Yuna's smile froze as she saw a tall figure emerge from the door.

"Yuna, I'm so glad to see you made it," He purred, pulling her away from Tidus and into a tight embrace.

"Seymour, get off!" She hissed, attempting to wriggle out of his grasp. His arms were like stone, unmoving and strong. Her back was against his torso, and his arms interlocked over her chest. Yuna couldn't break free, and she fell limply against him.

"Let go of her, you asshole!" Tidus yelled, eyes narrowing dangerously.

"What makes you think a pitiful sports player like yourself has any right to my beautiful flower?" Seymour drawled, his voice like silk.

"She's not a flower. She's a person who you've been treating like shit, from what I hear. So let her go!" Tidus snarled, lunging towards them. Seymour shifted out of the way, taking Yuna with him, chuckling as Tidus nearly crashed into the wall of the building.

The blue haired boy turned his attention to Yuna, held captive in his iron grip. "You look lovely tonight, my little flower. So… so… lovely." His lips grazed her neck, and a shiver shot down her spine.

"Stop." She whispered.

"Why should I? You're my date. I can do what I will with you."

And then she felt light again as a crack resounded through the area. Tidus's fist connected with Seymour's jaw, and he toppled to the side.

"Are you okay?" Tidus asked, giving Yuna's shoulder a squeeze.

"Yes. At least, now I am." She blushed. Did I really just say that?

There was a roar of thunder from the heavens as a thin layer of rain began to fall.

Seymour groaned, but did not move from his position sprawled across the ground in front of the door. Mud was beginning to stain his tux, and Tidus resisted the urge to spit on him. He deserved it.

"You know what, I don't want to go to prom anymore." Yuna muttered as she took a few steps forward, tilting her head back and letting the rain hit her face. Her hair was beginning to stick to her forehead from the moisture.

She looked up at Tidus and smiled at him so warmly and genuinely that he was almost stricken to the spot in awe of it.

"I've always wanted to dance in the rain."

He walked towards her and hesitated. She closed the distance and wrapped her arms around his neck, laughing softly. "I guess that means I'll have to dance with you, Tidus." The corners of his mouth curled up slightly as he placed his hands on her waist. The faint sounds of the dance were muffled by the rain, which was beginning to pour down with more force.

They swayed back and forth, lost in the pitter – patter of droplets against the courtyard of concrete, their faces illuminated by the streetlight above them.

"This is so weird. We just met, and look at us." Tidus's voice was quiet, in an unconscious attempt to keep the mood. Yuna giggled.

"Maybe it's fate, Tidus. Maybe it was destiny. But I wouldn't take back anything that happened tonight."

Tidus stiffened. "Except the Seymour thing, right?"

Yuna sighed. "Except that. I don't want to think about it"

She leaned her head against his chest. "This just feels right."

Tidus lowered his head so his nose nuzzled her hair.

"It does."

They danced a little longer in silence. By now, their clothes were soaking and Yuna's dress was pooling around her feet in sodden bunches. The rain had drenched the two, but they didn't really notice.

Tidus raised his head, and Yuna looked up at him.

Without a word, he bent down and pressed his lips against hers. She responded in kind, standing up on her tiptoes to kiss him back. It was a simple kiss. Gentle, curious, and as serene as the environment around them.

Yuna leaned back and exhaled, pink splotching her wet cheeks. Tidus smiled and kissed her forehead.

Fate, destiny, whatever did this… thank you.