Pen and Bal
He finally gets to be the leading man and she will be his damsel in distress. Feelings are revealed and promises are kept.
She walked through the empty streets of Rabanastre. It was night and the sky was black, without any stars to shine down on her. Also the wind had been laid to rest, so no leaves rustled in the trees, and making her at ease.
The only thing she could here, was her own steps and her breathing.
She thought to herself that she should never had been walking out at this hour. There might be peace in Ivalice, but that wouldn't stop the evil beings from behaving badly.
"Stupid" she said to herself.
"You full well know that you shouldn't be out here this late" she thought. "You are smarter then this, you know?"
She had been out with Vaan, Balthier and Fran. She hadn't seen Balthier for so long that it was great to sit with him and talk to him for a little while.
The reason for there gathering was Ashes' coronation in a couple of days. Ashe had asked all of them to come to Rabanastre and live in the castle with her as her guests of honour.
This night the four of them had decided to get out on the town to catch up on things.
Penelo had missed Fran and Balthier, and it looked like the feeling was mutual. She had been sitting across Balthier and listened to his stories about pirating.
Balthier talked to the whole group and made them all laugh, but once in a while, when Vaan or Fran was talking, she peeked over at Balthier and catched him staring at her. She quickly looked away, but when she looked at him again she saw that he was still looking at her. He smiled at her, and the surprise in her eyes produced a quiet laugh from him. Neither Fran or Vaan noticed as they were both in deep discussion about airships, and both of them had been drinking a lot at this time.
Suddenly he reached over and took hold of her hand and squeezed it. Penelo again looked up at him as he said: "I'm glad to be back. I have missed this place Penelo. I have missed you"
The first time she met him, he was a charming daredevil who could fool any one with his smooth talk. He had blocked her way to Vaan and given her his handkerchief. Probably saving her from being captured herself. She had looked up and in to his eyes, and seen the compassion. He knew that Vaan meant something to her, and with that look he gave her, she knew that he would make sure that Vaan would be okay.
And so their journey had begun. Their fight to save Ivalice from ruin, began in Rabanastre and ended in Rabanastre. The group dispatched and went in different directions. Larsa and Basch to Archadia. Fran and Balthier out to find a new treasure and Ashe, Penelo and Vaan in Rabanastre towhere they began picking up the pieces.
But Penelo's thoughts had never been far from Balthier. He had treated her as a grown up, even though she was only 17 at the time. They had had long conversations, where she had gotten to know the real Balthier. But no sooner, would he, when they got back to rest of the group, be the same know-it-all charmer, that could be quite irritating at times.
But Penelo still remembered their talks about family and friendship, and she had developed a small crush on him, which she had been trying to hide since then. But tonight when he had been seated across from her and said that he had missed her, it all came back again.
"How have you been Balthier? Have you found any treasures lately" Penelo asked to divert her mind from his touch and her own troubling thoughts.
A small grin crossed Balthier's face as he said: "Not yet little Penelo, but the world is big, and I intend to find my treasure soon enough. Don't you worry, this sky pirate has never lost at treasure hunting" He said in a triumphant tone which made Penelo grin at him. "Oh? Is that so Balthier? Not having any luck finding gold and diamonds yet. Are you slacking off from your role as the leading man and sky pirate?" She said in a voice trying to imitate Balthier himself, when he said he was the leading man.
His face turned serious for a moment "Treasures are not all gold and diamonds Penelo. This you will learn when you get older" he said, making Penelo a little worried of his seriousness, when she was used to his casual way of living.
She thought about this as Vaan nearly pushed her off her stool with his movements. Forcing Penelo to pull her hand out of Balthiers grip to steady herself.
Vaan was really drunk, and that annoyed Penelo immensely.
"Dammit Vaan, I am not walking you home in your condition." She was just about to shout at him when Fran stepped in. "Don't worry Pen I will see to it that he gets home safely. If you want to go home now, it'll be okay." Penelo shot daggers with her eyes at Vaan, which made both Fran and Balthier laugh out loud.
"Very well" she said with a heavy sigh. "he is your responsibility. I think I will head home then. It is getting late and I'm tired." She stood up as Balthier reached over to take her hand once again.
"Do you want me to walk you home Penelo? It is very late and I don't want any harm come to you."
Fran was stunned by his words, and only stared at him for a couple of moments before bursting into a fit of laughs viera-style before saying: "What the hell is with you Balthier? Don't you think Penelo can take care of her self? Do you love her or something?" Balthier didn't respond to her question, but just kept staring into Penelos eyes.
Penelo ignored Fran's outburst also and stared into his eyes. Surprised over his statement, and the feelings she saw glimpses of in them.
"N-no I'll be fine Balthier it is only a couple of blocks away" she stuttered as she pulled out her hand and backed away from the table still locking eyes with Balthier, until she turned around and rushed out the door.
As Penelo walked in between buildings and alleys to get back to the castle her head was filled with so many thoughts. She was angry at Vaan for ruining a special moment she had with Balthier. She didn't really know what was going on with him. Since him and Fran had gotten back from their adventures he had been a lot more serious. And the last couple of days when they had all been together, she would catch him, watching her from across the room. She would try and smile at him, but their wouldn't be any great response from him. His brow would furrow a little and then he would look away again. She just couldn't get it. And tonight he had been himself as she knew him in the old days. Charming and funny. Most of the time.
She promised herself that she would try to talk to him in the morning.
She was deep in thought so Penelo didn't realise until it was too late that someone was following her. It was when she heard quick footsteps behind her, she was pulled out of her thoughts. She tried to run when she was suddenly grabbed out of the dark night from behind and hurled into an even darker alley, where she was thrown to the ground.
When she was able to steady herself on the ground, she looked up at two faces. She tried to detect any recognisable features, but it was all to dark. All she could see were two couples of eyes gleaming down at her. She shivered at their expression, and that produced a laugh from one of them.
"Looks like she's scared, huh, Jack?" He said.
"Mmm… Yes it does. I think she will be of great company to us both, don't you think?" The guy called Jack answered back. The other guy without a name just grinned widely.
She squared her shoulders and glared directly into the two faces as she said:
"If you think you will get away with this, you better think twice before I punch your faces in."
That only produced a laugh from the two guys towering over her. "Oh, you are a feisty one aren't you? I think we are going to have a lot of fun with this one.
"If you two don't let me pass, I will personally see to it myself that you will get such a beating that you will never forget." She knew she was lying. And they did to. She couldn't possible take on these two, and as she was about to scream for help, she was pushed hard against the wall, where they pinned her to it by pulling her hands up over her head, so she couldn't fight back. She tried to scream, but was quickly gagged with something. She tried to use all her fighting skills she had learned after the deaths of her parents. She had in a young age been forced to take care of herself, and in a land that was suffering, you had to fight to live.
With Vaan by her side, she had been able to get by.
But Vaan wasn't here and, and she was slowly, but steadily getting drained of all the strength in her body as she tried to fight off the two men. She squirmed as much as possible, but they soon found a way to get rid of her strength and reluctance.
She felt a blow to her abdomen which had her kneeling to the ground in pain. Tears sprang to her eyes as she felt the pain sere through her body, and again as she felt another blow against her stomach. This time it was a boot that had connected to her. Her mind was completely avoided from any thought capacity. She could only feel the great pain in her body and the realization of her situation. These guys was going to do things to her, and there was nothing she could do to stop them. She slowly tried to pull out her dagger as she felt two hands gripping at her arms, hurling her up from the ground. A backhand slap to the cheek had her tripping against the cold wall that kept her from running away.
She slowly slid to the ground again as she felt hands going over her body. She whimpered in pain and mortification as she tried to squirm away, but was held down buy a set of gruff hands. She tried again with as much strength as she could muster to get free, but that only provided her another blow, this time a fist to her cheek. "Now be still sweetheart. We promise you a good time if you behave nicely." One said with a smooth voice that made her shiver in fear.
She was ready to face her fate as she suddenly heard a gunshot just a few feet away. One of the men fell to the ground just next to her. She tilted her head to the side and stared into eyes that were completely blank. A trickle of blood began dripping down his cheek. He had been shot right in the face. Probably as he looked up to see what caused the shadow.
Penelo raised her head and saw the other man attacking the gun shooter, but he was quickly driven off buy a shot wound to the shoulder. Penelo heard him stumble off as she laid her head down and drew a sigh of relief.
But she didn't know who her rescuer was. What was his intentions? Would he start up where the two men ended or were he really her rescuer? She listened for a while as she heard a rustle of footsteps just a few feet away. Then someone kneeled down beside her face and dragged her up and into a tight embrace. She lifted her head and was met with chocolate brown orbs with sorrow in their expression. Tears popped into her eyes and down her cheeks as she just looked up at Balthier. He quickly undid her gag and threw it away, before he embraced her in his strong arms again. She had never felt this save in her life. Not even with her parents. This was where she wanted to be. Needed to be.
"My god Penelo, what have they done to you.?!" He pulled away a little to look down at her again. "I should never have left you to walk alone in the dark. I will never forgive my self for this."
Penelo again saw the deep sorrow and guilt in his eyes. She reached up to caress his cheek, as he drew his own hand to hers, pulling it to his mouth so he could kiss it gently.
"How did you find me? I took short cuts through the alleys, to get home quicker. How did you know where to find me?"
Balthier positioned her in a more comfortable embrace as he said. "When you left I thought to myself that I shouldn't have let you walk home alone. So I got up and went after you. Good thing I came. I would never have forgiven myself if you had gotten hurt."
"You came" She said. "When I thought all hope was gone, you came. It is my own fault. I shouldn't have gone home alone. I will never be this foolish again." She smiled a little to try and ease the pain she could see in his eyes.
"Please Balthier, this is not your fault. Because of you I am unharmed and…"
"Unharmed?!" Balthier interrupted. "Look at yourself. You have red marks on your arms and on your beautiful face, and you say you are unharmed, and how can you smile?!"
Penelo looked up at him as new tears threatened to burst out. "You called me beautiful. No one has ever called me that."
Balthier looked down at her with a surprised look on his face. Then he bend down and seized her lips with a gentle kiss filled with relief and guilt. Relief because she was okay, and guilt because he hadn't gotten to her sooner.
She kissed him back with every emotion she had in her body vibrating out through her lips.
When they broke to take in air, Balthier buried his face in her hair and drew in a long steadying breath.
"Say it again Penelo. Say that you are unharmed. I can't take it." Penelo wrapped her arms around his shoulders and squeezed him tight. "I am okay Balthier. You came for me and I am unharmed because of you." He raised his head and looked deeply into her eyes. He was just about to say something when his hand grazed her stomach and produced a winze from Penelo.
Balthier pulled up her shirt to see the bruises that were forming on her stomach.
Rage again filled his eyes as he said: "We must get you home to bed. I will not have you catching a cold after what you have been through."
He stood up, and as Penelo stretched out her hand to on to her feet, a 'yelp' escaped her lips as Balthier lifted her up in his arms, and began walking out of the alley and down the street.
"Balthier, I can walk by my self. I don't need you to carry me."
Penelo looked into his eyes and saw defiance. She knew he wasn't going to give in to her, so she let the subject go.
As they entered the castle, there were only little light left on in the rooms and hallways.
When they finally after a long walk up stairways, through a great ballroom, which had been decorated for the festivities that followed the coronation, they reached Penelos room. Balthier pushed the door open with his shoulder and walked into the room towards her bed. There he laid her down as gently as if she was a little white feather. Then he turned on the night lamp so he could see her properly, as he sat himself down on her bed. Penelo saw him twitch his eyes as the light burst out into the room and onto her beaten body. Then he reached up and caressed her cheek where she had been slapped.
"You are going to have a bruise there, and you have dirt on you. I will get something to wash you with."
He stood up and left the room to walk into the bathroom that was situated right next to her bedroom where he retrieved a bole of water and a cloth. He sat back against her bedside, and dipped the cloth in the water. Steadily he began to wash her face and arm.
She could see as the dirt from her body was rinsed away, that the bruises on her body became much more clear to the eye. She glanced up at Balthier and saw anger in his expression. She knew it was because of her appearance right now. She lifted her hand and laid it on the hand that was about to wash her other arm. Her movement stopped his, and he looked up and into her eyes.
"I will be fine Balthier. I am glad that you are here to take care of me." She sent him a grateful smile, and he gave her a small smile of his own. But she could detect real sadness behind it. "What is wrong Balthier? Please tell me."
He looked at her for a long silent moment, before he drew a deep sigh. He laid the cloth in the bole and sat it on her nightstand. Then he turned to her again, grasping her hand and just held it in his, brushing his fingers over her knuckles.
Penelo was about to get a little impatient because of his stalling. He saw this and a small chuckle from him, bursting the silence.
"You have never been the patient one, have you Pen? All right I shall tell you what bothers me. You do."
"I?!" She looked dumbstruck at him. "How can I trouble you. It is not what happened tonight. I know it's not that" She sat up in the bed so she could look directly into his face. She wanted answers and she wanted them now. "Something has been troubling you ever since you and Fran got back to Rabanastre. I have been watching you, you know? And I want to know what is wrong."
"Oh you have, been watching me, have you? Well Pen I must admit that I have been watching you also."
"Why?"
"Because you have been the source to my trouble, but tonight everything became quite clear to me, and I will explain what has been troubling me for a long time now."
Penelo remained silent, waiting for him to explain his odd behaviour.
Balthier looked into her eyes, but suddenly he lost his nerve and diverted his gaze to their connected hands. Did he have the guts to tell her what had been stirring in him ever since he got back to Rabanastre. Back to her? Penelo squeezed his hand and by that showing him support and comfort.
He sighed deeply and raised his eyes to hers. "We have known each other for a long time now Penelo. Almost a year, all though we have been a part for quite some time. But I have not forgotten the friendship we developed upon the Strahl." He had her full attention now. Their was no going back. He took a deep breath and locked eyes with her.
"But for me it was more than friendship Pen. We connected in so many levels when we talked together. And I felt that you got me in so many ways. I have known Fran half my life, and I love her dearly, but she doesn't always understand what is inside me. "He laid one hand on his chest right above the heart. "How I feel. And I got the feeling along our journey that you understood me somehow, in a way no one has ever done before."
A small smile creped its way to Penelos face. "I know how you feel Balthier, I feel the same way. But I must admit that I'm not quite sure where all this is going. You have been so angry and serious at times this past week, that I have been afraid to get near you. Please explain Balthier. I don't want anything ruining what we have, and…"
"I love you Penelo." Balthier interrupted her. "This is what has been troubling me for the past week, or the past year so to speak."
Penelo sat in chock and just stared at him. After a couple of moment she was flung out of that state of mind as Balthier stood up and began pacing the room. "I know that you might not love me, or even like me for that matter, but you have touched something in me, and gone places with me, I have never been.
You were always there throughout the entire journey, and I want you to keep being there. For me."
He hadn't noticed Penelo getting out of bed and walked over to him. She put her hand on his shoulder, and immediately, he turned around to face her. She could se the anguish in his eyes and wanted no more than to ease his pain, so she lifted her hand and laid it gently on the his cheek. Then she stood up on her toes and gave him the sweetest kiss he had ever experienced. When she backed away a little her cheeks had become a charming red that, in Balthiers eyes were the most beautiful thing, and she looked down onto the ground, afraid to face him head on.
Balthier couldn't believe his luck. Could it be possible that this little nymph could love him back? This rake, this pirate? He thought. He took a small step towards her and grabbed her hands. As he squeezed, wanting her to look up at him, he didn't expect to see the love shine out through her eyes. A big lump developed in his throat, and with a thick voice he told her what he needed. "Say it. Say it Penelo, I need you to say it to me."
Penelo stared up and into his beautiful chocolate brown eyes, she had grown to love, and her confidence grew by the second, they just stood there and looked at each other. "I love you" she finally said. "So much that there is no other word that can describe what I feel for you. It is only love."
Carefully Balthier wrapped his arms around her so he wouldn't put to much pressure on her sore body. He let out a deep and heartfelt sigh that told Penelo that he was deeply relieved by her answer, and that he was happy. Slowly he dipped his head so their lips could meet in the sweetest caress. But no sooner had their lips connected before the kiss became more passionate. For a couple of minutes they just stood there. Holding each other. Loving each other.
Finally Balthier lifted his head and took a deep breath. "You must sleep now Penelo. You have been through quite and ordeal, and I won't cause any more unnecessary anguish to your mind or your body."
"You could never cause me pain Balthier. Just standing here with you makes me the happiest woman in the world. I wish never to leave this exact spot again" She said with a smile. Balthier returned her smile, but in a determined manner, he lifted her up and carried her back to the bed and tucked her in. "You must sleep now Penelo. I will come to you tomorrow, and see how you are doing." He lifted the duvet over her body to make her more comfortable. Then he gave her a small kiss on her forehead, and was prepared to leave her that instant, so he wouldn't be tempted to stay, when she grabbed his hand.
He had already raised himself up from the bed and was about to storm out the door, when he saw the fear and the unshed tears lingering in the corners of her eyes. "Please don't leave me. I can't stand being alone. Not even here where we are protected by guards and high walls." Balthier needed no more persuasion. Those tearful eyes had made up his mind. He laid down on the bed next to her, and carefully drew her to him, wrapping his arms around her. Penelo turned in the bed so she could rest her head on his chest. His hand made soothing movements on her back, and soon she was sound asleep.
But Balthier had a little more trouble getting to sleep. How could he possible fall asleep, when the woman of his dreams was pressed up against his body? He knew he could never take advantage of her, but his fantasies had gone crazy the last couple of days, and the fact that he finally was laying in bed with her, did little to help his current state of mind.
Finally after what would have seemed hours, Balthier fell as sleep, dreaming of the lady beside him.