This fic was supposed to be called "Everybody loves Balthier", but surprise! There is another fanfic with that exact title, but that just goes to show that Balthier is the most awesome thing about FFXII (or one of the most awesome parts at least), and I do believe that all the others characters are envious of his awesomeness, but that they love him all the same xD So, the title was changed, but one day I might change it back again.
This will be a multi-chapter fanfic. Each chapter will be about one of the other characters, and well... you'll see. The first chapter goes to: Vaan! To be honest, I think Vaan is the most stupid, annoying character ever (no offense to any Vaan fans, I just don't like him, at all! And there will be a bit of Vaan bashing in nearly EVERY chapter. You have been warned.), but this chapter was really fun to write! Yay! :D
Leave a review, it's always appreciated, good or bad. Have any thoughts on other characters to "love Balthier"? Leave it in the review, 'cause I'm open to ideas!
Now the most important part: enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything! SquareEnix does, and they are the best!
Everybody Loves Balthier – Part 1: Vaan
Vaan stretched his arms and back with a loud yawn. It was early in the morning and he hadn't been able to go to sleep until late the night before, mainly because he had talked to the princess Ashe about their lost ones, but for some reason he hadn't been all that tired and therefore not been able to sleep much. So after hours of twisting and turning, he had decided it was better to get up and look around for a moment, now that the sun was up.
The small village of Jahara was silent this early in the morning; obviously everyone else was sound asleep in the small huts which seemed randomly placed around in the golden landscape.
Vaan felt somewhat dirty, as if the sand the wind blew through the air was gnawing on his skin. So he decided to go down to the small river, which ran just as you entered the village, to get washed up for the day. Of course he didn't want to stand where everybody could see him, so he walked a little up-stream.
A large rock was placed just down by the edge of the water, and Vaan figured he could bath behind it, but as he closed the distance, he could hear someone singing with a muffled voice. The song was an old pirate song, often sung in the Sandsea back in Rabanastre, late at night when the men there had drunken themselves silly, believing themselves to be pirates who could conquer the world.
Once he got closer he could also recognize this someone the voice belonged to; the party's very own male sky pirate.
The sky pirate could sing, that was for sure, his voice clear and somewhat raw and untamed. Vaan couldn't help it, but got goose-bumps up his arms. The thought of the pirate naked really didn't help the matter. Vaan didn't feel any attraction to the 'man' Balthier, but for everything he stood for: freedom, self ruling and control, living out one's dreams, and of course he looked up to his senior and the way he always seemed to be able to get his greedy hands on whatever he wanted, be it treasures and gold, or women.
Because if there was one thing Vaan wanted: it was to become a sky pirate! (and maybe even get some women…)
So Vaan snuck closer until he stood with his back pressed against the rock. The singing kept going, faster and faster the song went, Balthier's voice steady but rawer than ever.
Suddenly the song went to a hold, before it began again with even more speed to it. Vaan would lie if he said he wasn't impressed, but he became even more impressed, and distracted, and flustered, when he heard a woman's laughter from the same spot Balthier's voice came from.
He did not recognize the voice, and concluded it belonged to one of the few other guests who spent the night in Jahara, one of them a beautiful woman who had been with one of the caravans, and had eyed the sky pirate pretty good while everyone had their dinner around a large campfire. Balthier had watched her for some time as well, until he mysteriously disappeared. Now Vaan knew to where.
The sky pirate really was a womanizer and a libertine. Vaan was nothing but impressed and a little bit jealous, but comforted himself by the fact that he too one day would become a sky pirate, which Vaan was sure was the key to all the other stuff.
"You really are something, Balthier." The woman sighted.
"Am I now?" Vaan could almost hear the grin which played on Balthier's lips. "Define something."
The woman laughed again. "You do this often, don't you?"
"What gives me away?" Balthier whispered in a seductive way, and the woman moaned slightly.
Vaan could only imagine why she made that sound, and no matter how he looked at it; the outcome of his thoughts made him blush. He would just have to run back, which he didn't manage to before the woman let out another moan, which could closer be described as a scream.
And now Vaan ran.
The party had left the village just after the sun was fully visible over the horizon. Larsa had joined them, and all seven were now walking around in the heat of the sun, which now stood high in the sky.
Vaan could not take his eyes away from Balthier, who walked right beside him. Once he even managed to walk straight into a bush because of this staring, he even fell down into a hole and stepped on a snake which alerted the entire party and engaged half of them in a short, but furious battle.
"Sorry, Vaan, but I usually do not have romantic feelings towards men." Balthier said shortly after the snake incident, his voice even and eyes still straight ahead.
"Wh-what?!" Vaan blushed heavily, though he did not know why. He really wanted another snake now, which would preoccupy Balthier, allowing Vaan to make a run for it, because he surely knew what came next.
"I have noticed the way you look at me and have been looking at me for this whole time since we left Jahara." Balthier lifted an eyebrow as Vaan was about to protest. "Do not deny it, I have noticed. And no, I do not, well, share that particular interest with you. But who knows: maybe the good captain does, being in war for months and months, surrounded only by men... who knows what the man must have gone through in order to get some satisfaction." Here, Balthier clenched a fist over his heart in dramatic effect.
Vaan could not believe what he heard. By now in Balthier's speech, Vaan's face looked like that of a Rogue Tomato's, and kept getting redder as the pirate seemingly refused to let go of the whole idea of Vaan being –he gulped– attracted to the sky pirate in a sexual manner.
"…though I might understand your lack of interest in him, especially when someone as dashing as myself is around. Basch is after all rather boring and stiff, would you not agree?"
Vaan was to embarrassed and shocked and … whatever it was he felt, to even recognize the sarcasm and mockery in the sky pirate's voice as he rambled on about how 'he after all was quite the handsome and sexy male, in leather pants of all things, and that it was normal for a boy in Vaan's age to feel that way, wanting to try different things' and so on.
"But truly, if you want me that badly, I might be willing to give you some sort of… well… let us just call it a 'life-changing experience'."
Vaan's eyes shot up to look at the pirate, startled beyond reason, and all Balthier did was to give him a smirk and a wink.
That was when Tomato-Head-Vaan ran off towards Penelo, who together with Larsa, Basch and Fran made the head of their party. Once in safety he ducked his head down, not once answering any of the questions from Larsa and Penelo. Basch was far too polite to ask, not to mention he that was not at all interested in the answer, while Fran only gave a slight smile, probably having overheard the entire conversation.
Balthier could do nothing but to grin to himself; mission complete, and he had managed to have a lot of fun on the cost of the over-hyper, blond youth while doing so.
Ashe approached said grinning, leather-clad male from her spot as the rear of the group. "Was that really necessary?" She asked, rolling her eyes at his wide grin.
"Of course, Princess, you wanted him to never ask questions about what was going on down by the river, am I wrong?"
"No," she sighted. "But now he will never be able to look at you again without turning all Tomato." Ashe pointed out. "People may come to conclusions, which involves you being eager to 'experiment' with another man." With this she hoped to faze the ever-unfazed pirate.
Instead he shocked her to the bones by grinning wickedly at her, leaning in close and whispering: "And who, dear Princess, did ever conjure the lie that I have not already?" And with that he speed up slightly to catch up with the rest of their group.
Ashe was left behind, mouth agape and head swirling with images of Balthier in compromising positions with a faceless man. Despite herself she could almost feel herself being aroused.
"Now hurry, Princess, no need for daydreaming." It was Balthier calling on her from the group up ahead. "We can always get our good captain here drunk if you want a live-show."
Ashe's face matched Vaan's, who still looked like the damned Rogue-Tomato. Penelo and Larsa looked at each other with questions in their eyes. Fran rolled her eyes, having heard it all thanks to her viera-ears and knowing Balthier and his ways of never being bored. Basch raised an eyebrow, wondering why exactly the pirate wanted him drunk. And all the while Balthier had a satisfied grin on his face, knowing that they all loved him anyways.