Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction ❯ Deadly Game ❯ The Beach House ( Chapter 2 )

Deadly Game

By Maya Brisa

 

Part 2

 

The air always seemed a bit colder near Baaj Island. Which left fisherman with odd looks on their faces when they touched the water--it was always so warm as opposed to the bitter bite of the wind.

 

Seymour stood near the rear of the ship watching the water jet out from the kick of the machina beneath the water. His departure from Besaid hadn't been a very pleasant one. He felt a little guilty for leaving his mother the way he did. He barely cracked a smile when she leaned in to kiss his cheek goodbye.

 

Among the guilt, he could feel the tension rise from inside his chest as the waters began to get darker and darker--the ship was approaching the large Island. Seymour turned to face the hulking mass of land while small drops of rain began to drizzle from the overcast clouds above.

 

"We will be reaching the shore in ten minutes, Seymour." An attendant called from the cabin. Seymour smiled lightly and nodded as he took his hand off of the railing went to go inside. The trip had been a little exhausting, he didn't make the trip often, but when he did he was pretty drained by the time he arrived.

 

As said before, Seymour did have many fond memories of this place, but his fear was ever present every time he returned. As if there were a curse on the Island. The place was so far from civilization, no one ever wanted to live on the Island. The only known establishment was the beach house on the north shore.

 

It was a beautiful beach house too, though more of a three story loft. It was very spacious and well furnished. Seymour's favorite room was the kitchen area. It was cozy, and always had a comfortable setting. A large mahogany table stood against the wall on the north side, with large awning windows. One could enjoy breakfast and look down at the beach. Seymour liked it best at night with the heavy lantern--he would enjoy light fruits and read his favorite books while listening to the waves just outside. He loved it.

 

"Seymour? Seymour, we've docked." The attendant spoke, waving her hand in front of the guado's face.

"I'm sorry?" Seymour asked, shaking his head and looking at the girl with hazy eyes.

"Oh, um. We're at Baaj, it's okay to go now." she replied, showing him the door.

"Right. Forgive me, I was deep in thought." he smiled sheepishly, feeling like a fool.

"It's fine. Gippal and Naytu have already carried your luggage to the house."

"Thank you so much, Nhadala. I apologize for the short notice, I know you guys had other places to go to." Seymour said, giving her a thoughtful look.

"Seymour, it's alright. Besides, with the gil you pay us, it's always a pleasure." she chuckled stepping outside.

 

The attendant was named Nhadala. She was an Al Bhed. Her and the crew she worked with used to excavate parts on an desert Island called Bikanel, but the sand storms became too frequent for any good work to be completed, so she took up her father's job and started an ocean-wide excavation rig. Seymour found her and Rin when he'd vacationed on Baaj a few years back. Baaj Island was always on their route, so Seymour would always pay them extra to take him to and from Besaid.

 

"Give us a call when you're ready to go home to mamma!" Nhadala mused, waving at Seymour.

"Two weeks, Al Bhed!" Seymour yelled, waving in return as the ship started to back away from the dock.

"Sure thing, Guado!" she smiled, shaking her head before disappearing into the cabin. It had been rumored that Nhadala had a tiny crush on Seymour, but it was never verified--mostly because Gippal, her "second mate" had started the whole thing. What better did Al Bhed pirates have to do?

 

Seymour sighed and looked around for a moment. He took a deep breath as he eased himself away from the dock. He'd planned to stay for two weeks. One week would have sufficed, but he wanted some time to be alone and be as far away from Jyscal as he could possibly get; Baaj was just far enough.

 

He could stand the loneliness for now. Other than his grandfather and mother, that's all he'd known all of his life. He was painfully adjusted to it. Now it was just him, the beach house, and this large Island out in the middle of nowhere. With diligent steps he made his way around a path and walked up along the ridge that would lead him to the beach house.

 

When he reached the top he found his bags in a neat pile with a folded piece of paper under one of the straps. He quirked a brow and stooped down to open it up.

 

------

 

Hey, Seymour

I hope your mom is okay. Keep your chin up, it won't rain all the time, you know!

 

-Nhadala

 

------

 

He laughed when he looked at the bottom of the paper; a little smiley face was drawn alongside some Al Bhed gibberish. Seymour shook his head and pocketed the paper. Lifting his bags he ambled for the patio door and unlocked it. Sure, it was a little silly to lock the place up, considering how much traffic Baaj actually received. But, always 'better safe than sorry'.

 

The beach house was dark when he walked in and smelled of salt water. It had been a few months since the place had been touched. His first chore would be to tidy the place up a bit. Storms had a tendency to riddle the wood up some. Salt water had its tricks too when the waves really began to dance from high winds.

 

He crossed the patio area and into the kitchen. Tossing his keys onto the countertop, he dumped his bags on the floor beside the doorway. Seymour was known to be a neat freak when it came down to it.

"I think I have some cleaning to do." He said aloud, nodding his head to confirm it. With that, he was rummaging through the cupboards under the sink pulling out cleaners and sponges.

 

Anima could have labeled a neat freak too. She had a sponge of every color of the rainbow beneath that sink. It was quite a sight. perhaps she rubbed off on her son. In one hand he had dusting solution, the other a damp cloth--in a matter of minutes he was attacking that mahogany table like it was no one's business, getting every corner to emanate with a lemony fresh scent.

 

Once finished, he tossed the cloth into the sink and moved over to open the awnings. He figured the kitchen needed some fresh air. He was propped on his knees in the chair looking out onto the sea. He reached up to flip the lock when his eyes caught site of something strange.

 

He automatically passed it off as his reflection in the window. He narrowed his eyes as he lifted the window open and propped it. He blinked a few times as he tried to refocus.

"What on Spira?" he asked himself, leaning out. What he had seen was a seagull swooping close to the water's surface, and all at once it disappeared into a tuft of scattering feathers--as if into thin air. it was gone.

"It's... gone." Seymour whispered. It was simply chance. There were many fiends in the water, many sea creatures that enjoyed a bird or two... but Seymour had never actually seen one just disappear like that.

"Odd..." he murmured, shaking his head as he moved to the other side of the table to open the second window. He thought nothing more on it and eventually returned to cleaning.