The Junon Fair
by: Yuri
     The world was green and blue and white and brand spanking new.  It was the first day in weeks that Mrs. Kisaragi and her daughter had left Junon, and the smell of grass and ocean were exhilarating.  Matching hats protected mother and child from the sun, but Yuffie Kisaragi's vitality glowed with more energy than any that mere solar fusion could provide.

     "Mom, look!  The sky is so blue!  And there are flowers everywhere!"  Mrs. Kisaragi couldn't help but laugh at the sight of her daughter with two fists full of daisies, though the grass stains on the girl's dress made her mother wince.

    The Kisaragi family wasn't in the best financial shape.  But this was just once a year...

     "Yes, Yuffie, I know.  Now why don't you run ahead and see the fair for me?"
 
    The flowers were immediately distributed over the surrounding ten feet of ground.  "Really?  All by myself?  Wow!"
 
    "All by yourself--but meet me back here in two hours, all right?  Yuffie?  Don't forget!"

     But it was too late; Yuffie was travelling at the speed of thought, on  another planet entirely.

     "Oh well... she'll be back."
 
    Mrs. Kisaragi lay down on the soft grass and closed her eyes.


     Yuffie had found the Promised Land.  Her neck seemed perpetually craned, eyes wide even for a kawaii lass like her:  the Junon Fair had everything that a nine-year old girl could possibly want, and vastly much more.  Popcorn and cotton candy laid siege to her nostrils, and her five gil were clutched tightly, a little bit sweatily, in her hand.

     "Pretzels!  Hot, fresh pretzels!"

     "Fish and chips, fresh this morning!"

     "Two gil for a Fair t-shirt, one gil for a hat!"

     "Magic!  Genuine white magic!  Try it yourself, for five gil only!"

     Yuffie's eyes went even wider.

     "Do you really have magic, mister?"
 
    He glanced around the fairground.  "What's that?"
 
    "It's me!  Down here!"
 
    The salesman looked down, blond hair falling into his eyes; his friendly ace spread into a broad smile at the sight of the little girl.  "Hello, miss.  Can I help you?"
 
    Recovering from a fit of giggles--as if anyone should call her miss!--Yuffie held up her gil.  "You have magic, right? I want some."
 
    The shopkeeper nodded, raising a monocle and examining Yuffie through it.

    "You look like you could manage to cast Cure, young as you are.  Here."  And he covered Yuffie's hand with his for a moment, slipping her something round and hard and slightly warm.

 Yuffie slowly opened her fingers, and a gentle green light limned her face... in her hand was a green glassine marble, swirled with opaque and translucent threads that seemed to move slowly in the warm sunlight.
 
    "What's this?"

     "A harmless byproduct of Mako reactors.  It allows people to cast magic, somehow... though no one's quite sure what it is.  I hear some people even say that it's the crystallized knowledge of people who lived centuries ago, who could cast magic whenever they liked."  He laughed.  "Pretty crazy, huh?"
 
    Yuffie's amusement mingled with his.  "Pretty crazy!  How does it work?"
 
    "Just hold it in your palm, lightly... that's right.  Now clear your mind... just relax, let your thoughts drift... and think, 'Cure'.  Just say that word to yourself, and--"
 
    The green globe flickered, then flared into momentary brilliance.  A modest magical lightshow danced around Yuffie's small frame, encompassing her in warmth--and then was gone.

     Yuffie opened her eyes slowly, reflections of the orb dancing in her pupils.

    "Was--was that..."
 
    "That's all there is to it.  You've cast a spell!  It's surprisingly easy, once--wait a minute, look!"  The salesman's voice was hushed and reverent; Yuffie didn't even pause long enough to ask one question, just watched in curious silence.
 
    Gentle beams of green radiance poured from the sphere, tracking like searchlights or fireflies over Yuffie's rapt face.  Within the green glassy surface, the swirls of light and dark were moving slowly, curling in on
themselves, coiling in the center.
 
    "What's--?"
 
    "Shh!"

     Slowly the core rose, trailing wisps of green turbulence behind it; the ball was at body temperature in Yuffie's hand, still as hard and unyielding as ever despite the changes taking place.  The perfect sphere changed shape as the core reached the top, bulging out... and then there were two globes in Yuffie's palm, the original looking slightly smaller.

     "Wow... what was that?"
 
    His voice was still reverently soft.  "Materia isn't only formed in Mako reactors.  If it's used long enough, and expertly enough, it can 'give birth.'  in fact--" his voice regained its jocular good humor-- "since it was your spell
that caused it, I'll let you have this for free."  Long, slender fingers plucked up the larger globe, leaving the daughter in Yuffie's small hand.
 
    "Oh my... thank you so much, mister!"
 
    "Oh, of course.  It was my pleasure!  Materia doesn't 'give birth' often.

    By the way, you needn't call me 'mister'... my name's--"
 
    "YUFFIE! Yuffie Kisaragi, what are you doing?"
 
    "I'm terribly sorry, ma'am.  Is this your daughter?"
 
    "You're darn right it's my daughter... who was supposed to meet me twenty minutes ago!  I've been worried sick!"
 
    "Please, ma'am--I've been keeping an eye on her.  I know you wouldn't want your child wandering through the Fair unattended, so..."
 
    Yuffie's eyes were fixed on the pea-sized sphere in her palm.; a small smile crossed her face, reflected deep within the globe.
 
"Materia... so that's what it's called..."

The End


Back