Disclaimer- I do not own Final Fantasy Tactics or anything associated with it other then this fan fiction, written by me.

Essence

She snores softly, like the whisper of the wind through the leaves on a cool autumn day. I breathe in her scent, the sweet aroma of cherries bombards my senses to the point in which I can almost taste them like a fleeting dream which I try desperately to grasp only to have it slip through my fingers in the end. Her silky milk chocolate brown hair glides through my clumsy callous ridden fingers. It's so incredibly soft I begin to think it can't be real, that this must be a dream or hallucination. It's almost as if I'm running my hands through the full pure white clouds that hover above us. I feel so unworthy, someone as hard and jagged as myself should not be capable of even being this close to such perfection.

A cool breeze blows and a small mist splashes up from the clear sparkling water in front of us. The feeling of the springy grass underneath my skin itches slightly, but it is not enough to make me relinquish my euphoric spot. I gaze into the clouds one again, and the clear blue sky that reflects like a mirror off of my dark brown eyes. I run my free hand through my messy and stringy blond hair trying to get it out of my eyes, but to no avail. I eventually give up and resign myself to looking at the rich vibrant gold's, and red's of the lilies sprouting up within the wide open field in which we lay.

I run my battle scarred hand over her sweet and supple hazel skin. I can hardly believe it, but her skin is actually softer than her hair. I run my blocky, course skinned hand down her smooth , slender, and velvety arm as small Goosebumps start to arise due to the ice like coldness of my bitter hands. She moans softly, like a child being roused out of its peaceful slumber. Her beautiful doe like eyes slowly flutter like a birds wings before it takes flight. Upon opening her eyes I immediately feel my stomach jump and grow weightless. I feel myself consumed by the radiance of her intense chocolate brown orbs.

"Ramza," she says with a small smile as she releases a silent yawn, "How long have I been asleep?

"Not long," I respond as she slowly raises her head off of my shoulder and rubs the sleep out of her eyes using her slender right hand.

"I had a dream," she started softly as though trying to avoid the subject but she pressed on. "Ramza, we should tell them you know?" she said as she turned to face me with eyes full of concern.

"What's there to tell?" I inquire as I eye her with a hint of glee in my eyes as I pick up smooth round pebble and skip it along the shimmering deep blue lake in front of us. As I gaze at the sparkling water and watch the pebble make small ripples as it skips across the water, I can't help but to feel like a child who knows a secret they cannot tell.

"What do you mean?" She asks as she furrows her brows in confusion and adopts a small pout with her full strawberry red lips.

"You don't think your brother and the rest of them are that oblivious, do you?" I ask as I chuckled into my now leather gloved hand.

"You mean they already know!?" she responded seemingly flabbergasted as she sucks in the cool air with sharp gasp cupping her hands over her mouth.

"Of course, if they didn't your brother wouldn't even let you out of his sight," I respond as I push myself off of the ground with my hands as I exhale with a low grunt due to the fact that my legs feel as stiff as a board.

"Ramza," I her call my name with her wispy voice. Turning to face her I see an devious grin plastered on her face. "Oh no!" I think with faux dread as my eyes widen to the size of saucers.

Before I can even raise my arm in defense I am mercilessly tackled to the ground and pinned down by my forearms. She grins smugly exposing her near perfect pearl white teeth before she swoops down and captures my lips with her own. It feels as though the air has pressed itself to my lips as the tender sensation engulfs my senses bringing all thoughts to a halt. She deepens the kiss further with her tounge, slightly bumpy but otherwise as soft as feather with the taste of kiwi. 'This must be nirvana,' I think to myself as I allow everything to fall away and disappear. After what seems like a few brief seconds she breaks the kiss panting softly, apparently out of breath. I myself feel a little light headed but think nothing more of it. She sits up and pushes herself off of my chest with a light grunt as she goes and reaches for her pure white headdress.

"Well," she starts after taking in a deep breath that seems to satisfy her need for air, "We should get going."

"Right," I respond in a somewhat sarcastic tone of voice mixed with a hint of displeasure.

She giggles lightly before asking, "I have to save something for later don't I?"

"I suppose," state dejectedly as I start to push myself off of the ground before a feel a feather light warm sensation on my cheek. She then smiles at me one last time before she heads back toward the camp.

As I watch her fleeting form I swear to myself once again, "I'll never let anyone hurt you again, not like he did…..that's a promise Rafa, and one I'm going to keep even if it kills me." With my promise reaffirmed with in the confines of my own heart I feel determined to see things through to the end, and ensure that there is a future. A future for her, and a future for the people of Ivalice.

The End

Well what do you guys think? I thought this kind of pairing would be interesting, but maybe not. Anyway, PLEASE REVIEW! ;)