Touch me not [FINAL FANTASY X Fan Fiction]

This is a fan fiction novel, derivative work. It was originally written around 2000 as a gift for a blogger I was interacting with (a university student at the time who wrote and drew). If you have no objections to the genre of fan fiction, please feel free to read it. The main characters are Auron and Lulu, and the other members appear at the end.

Furthermore, I state here that this short piece is an original creation by the author and has no connection whatsoever to the original work.

The scent of the water had changed.

The curtain of water created by the "Rainbow Falls" was dissolving into the humid atmosphere. The hem and collar of the red robe, swaying in the night wind, brushed against the skin lightly, again and again. Perhaps the rain was coming sooner than expected.

The boards creaked underfoot as I crossed the wooden bridge. The light sound made by running feet would never be heard from these feet again. As if to fill that void, only the skin became sensitive.

The presence read through the skin was not to be relied upon. If there is no soul to run through without fearing tomorrow, nothing will change.

I—
The moment I could not resolve, could not give up on, the question without an answer...

Chapter 1

“...Thank goodness. You were here.”

The sound of rustling fabric and brass hairpins rubbing together overlapped, and a voice with a slightly lower tone reached me.

“...Yeah. Were you looking for me?”

“Snap, crackle”

Faintly, I heard something snap. Distracted by that sound, my reaction was delayed for an instant. A shadow fell over me. I took the gust of wind caused by gold and crimson wings on my body, and my footing faltered.

“Ugh!!”

“Auron!”

“...I'm fine. Look ahead!”

Regaining my stance, I poured my spirit into my sword and struck the giant bird.

“Shatter in the light of the heavens!!”

The Black Mage's lightning roared through the darkness.

“...You went to some trouble, Lulu.”

“No, it was me. I thought I had defeated all the Garudas. Perhaps I let my guard down.”

“I am the same.”

The man's taciturn mouth softened slightly, and the braid hanging from his tied-back black hair swayed along with the woman's refined features.

“I was distracted, which is unlike me.”

Beneath Auron's gaze, a few touch-me-nots swayed. Lulu bent down and gently touched their pods. With a dry sound, the pods burst, and several seeds scattered onto the ground.

As Lulu stood up, she asked Auron as if talking to herself.

“Do you know the flower language of the touch-me-not?”

“...No.”

“It says, ‘Don't touch me.’ I only just learned that this morning myself.”

“‘Don't touch me’—don't you think that just makes you want to touch it more? I think the person who came up with that phrase really wanted to say, ‘Please touch me!’”

“...What that child is thinking is probably something else entirely.”

“He is just as easy to read as Yuna is. ...So, what is it? You had something you wanted to talk about, didn't you?”

“Huh?”

“...Are you lost?”

“...Perhaps I am afraid to see myself unable to do anything once again.”

“When what one has long aimed for becomes reality, anyone would feel lost. Being lost is a sign of weakness. However, those who never feel lost are not the strong.”

Raindrops fell on their shoulders. It had begun to rain.

Supple fingers reached out gently toward the hand hidden in the red robe. She relaxed her combat stance and returned her arm to her sleeve. The rugged palm, accustomed to gripping a sword, briefly enveloped the white fingers,
and then, immediately pulled away.

— This person's past pain is my own frustration and...

— perhaps they overlap. However, empathy that only soothes the pain is......

I'm talking too much today. Thinking this, Auron added more words.

“Do not overlap the past with the present; face your current helplessness. Do not give up on your helpless self.”

“Give up...”

“Have you done everything you could to the point of giving up on everything?”

An indelible afterimage rises in Lulu's mind.

The figure of the person once called Ginnem, who performed the summoning of hatred with an expressionless face. The miserable form of the ancestor of the High Summoners, the St. Bevelle Cloister of Trials where all hope was denied. But that wasn't even the beginning.

The hearts of the departed awakened by pyreflies. “I would gladly offer my life. So please, defeat Sin...”

The words of the girl who accepted that. “Even if it’s sad, I will live! ...I don’t need fake hope.”

Responding to those voices, a new step was taken. It holds both unknown possibilities and an abyss that could arrive at any moment, like a double-edged sword.

Something crossed near her cheek. Thinking it was a raindrop, it carried a green light, descended to Lulu's feet, trembled faintly, rose into the night sky, and vanished into the darkness.

“Getting angry, getting lost—it’s because you’re kind. I know that. Don’t hide the real Lulu.”

...Even though you didn't understand anything. You were only good at your catchphrases, Chappu.

That's right. I should just keep walking while carrying my cowardly self. Believing that for every step I take, my weakness will turn into a supple strength. And when the battle ends and we obtain the Calm that never ends, a new battle will begin. To turn the spiral of death called Spira into a baton for the next life.

In the direction of Lulu's gaze, a red-clad back stands still.

At that moment—
Is this person truly with us?

After swallowing that thought, she wore a smile on her cheek where a water droplet traced a path, and Lulu continued her words.

“The living cannot trade lives with the dead. That is why we live until the very end. That is the only thing we can do, isn't it? ...I am going back now. What about you, Auron?”

“I’ll be right there. We have an early start tomorrow.”

After listening to the quiet footsteps fade away, Auron picks up a small seed from his feet and starts walking.

The rain began to fall harder. It would not stop until morning.

Chapter 2

The morning of the final battle against Sin. The place chosen for the end of the journey to prepare their equipment.
Yuna and her guardians gathered on the beach of Besaid. Before them, the airship led by Cid awaited.

"Alright, let's go. Wakka, are you ready?"

"...O-oh. You're in high spirits this morning, aren't you?"

Lulu, her back still turned, stood straight. Spurred on by her voice, Wakka ran off in a slight panic.

After watching him go, Auron stepped up beside Tidus.

"The time has come to settle this. Do not look away until the end."

"Yeah! ...Wait, what's this?"

A single balsam seed that Auron had placed there sat in Tidus's palm.

"Just go on ahead."

"Old man, you're as confusing as ever."

"Huh? Isn't this a balsam seed? Did you bring this, Auron? That's so unlike you!"

Rikku leaned in to take a look. She gave Auron a light poke in the side before hurrying ahead.

"Balsam?"
-- Ah, I talked to Lulu about this yesterday. But why would Auron have it? --

Yuna tilted her head as she looked at Tidus's puzzled expression.

"Um... could I keep this for you? When everything is over, I'd like to plant it next to the temple."

"...I see. Yeah, sure. I'll leave it to you, Yuna. That's alright, isn't it, Auron!?"

After calling out to Auron, Tidus gave Yuna's shoulder a light tap and they headed toward the ship together.

Kimahri follows after. He passes by Auron, glances back once to look into his eyes, and turns on his heel without a word.

This is your battle. To run through it on your own feet, to carve out that era. And I. I fight to bring it to an end. To answer the question that has run out of time.

Besaid after the rain.
The scent of green grass mingles with the smell of the tide, and in the bright morning sun, Auron's back as he takes his final steps is bathed in a deeper red than usual.

[fin]

Fan fiction is a field that requires careful handling. While it is widely recognized at events like Comiket, I personally view it as being 'tacitly accepted.' I have posted a reference site below.

Finally, I am posting an AI image that pairs with the full version of the header image (using Bing AI, AI image. This also has absolutely nothing to do with FF (it is just an image).

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#Balsam
#Auron
#Lulu
#TriedIt
#AIGeneratedImage
#BingAI
#AlmostDailyNote