Author's Notes:

This whole fanfic began simply because I played the game and my friend and I couldn't stop discussing the game and the characters. After that I was hooked. I started questioning my life choices, but I haven't done anything but write for the past three and an half months so I'm not sure how that all worked out.

And so begins my descent into Tales of Vesperia madness.

I do not own Tales of Vesperia. Tales of Vesperia is property of Namco Bandai.

Chapter 1 - Flight

Dear Yuri... he scratched that out. Dearest Yuri... he scratched that out double time and then scribbled over it quickly. He sighed. This letter was shaping up the way they always did. And they always ended the same. He crumpled this letter up like he had so many others in the past. None of the letters he ever wrote made it to the person they were intended for.

There came a tapping on the window. Flynn turned sharply from his desk to look over his shoulder. Yuri was standing on the parapet, box in hand, grinning smugly like always. He quickly stuffed the pieces of paper he had been working on back in his desk and moved to the window.

"Will you ever learn to enter through the front door?" he asked as he opened the balcony window. "You do realize that you are welcome in the palace now, right?"

Yuri shrugged, "It's not my style. I can't get used to not going straight to the stockades." He displayed the box with a smile. "Got anything to go along with this?"

Flynn furrowed his brow in question.

The dark haired man opened the box, displaying a fresh, glazed fruit tart within.

"Where did you get this?" the blond asked, and motioned for Yuri to follow him back inside.

"I made it," he replied, as if Flynn was questioning that the origin of the item could possibly be something underhanded. He set the box down on the coffee table in Flynn's state room and plopped himself down on the sofa. It was softer than he was used to, but he didn't comment as he sunk in a bit. "Shouldn't this be just about tea time or whatever you people at the palace do?"

Flynn sighed. It was just about time for tea, and he knew that the maids would be by with it any moment. "You know just when to arrive don't you?"

"I have been told that my timing it excellent," Yuri smirked.

At that moment, the tea cart arrived from the royal kitchens, heavy laden with tea and cakes and sandwiches.

"Two today," Flynn said to the maid, indicating Yuri who was still sitting on the couch, relaxed and looking out the window. He felt like he had been saying that a lot lately.

"O-of course, Commandant!" She wheeled the cart in and set the coffee table, and quickly showed herself out.

"What brings you here today, Yuri?" Flynn asked, fixing the two of them tea as Yuri cut up the tart.

"Just thought I'd stop by and see how things were going as Commandant."

Flynn thought for a moment. This job was something he had dreamed of ever since he and Yuri were children living in the Lower Quarter. He now had the power to change things within the Knights, within the government and make the Empire a better place for everyone to live in, even with the Empire and the rest of the world living in the recent wake of the destruction of the blastia. "It's been a challenge, but it's going to be worth it in the end."

Yuri smiled, not his usual smirk, but something softer and more genuine. "That's good to hear."

"But I know that's not why you're really here, is it?"

"No, not really." There was that smirk again. He took a sip of his tea, and set the cup down. His every movement was fluid like a fighter's would be and he paid no mind to the stiff sort of acrobatic manners that the nobility required of those who would be in the midst of their ranks. Flynn had watched those movements millions of times, and each time he appreciated them a little bit more.

Flynn snapped back from his thoughts as his dark haired friend continued to speak.

"I mainly came to say goodbye." Yuri was stuffing a slice of the fruit tart into his mouth in a most uncouth way, but neither of them really minded.

"What?" Flynn asked, visibly surprised.

"I'm leaving Zaphias for a while. I'm heading to Dahngrest tonight. Brave Vesperia has a job and we've got to rally the troops." Yuri waved his hand in the air as if it was nothing to him.

A knot formed in Flynn's throat. Perhaps he had grown too used to these little tea time visits. "I see," was all he could manage. He really wanted to say more. He always wanted to say more. He never had the nerve.

A loud warble shook the room and just beyond the window, a rope ladder came down.

They both rushed to the window, Flynn sword in hand, Yuri smiling knowingly.

Above the city was Ba'ul, carrying the ship, and the rope ladder descended down from him. Judith could be seen waving from the rail of the ship.

"Looks like it's time for me to make my exit," Yuri took a few steps up on the ladder.

"Yuri, wait!"

But he didn't. He merely smirked down at Flynn, and made a little nod with his head instead of waving as his hands were occupied with his sword and the ladder. After just seconds, Ba'ul and the ship were gone. He felt the rift between them grow to an immeasurable distance.

The flight to Dahngrest was a little long, but Yuri found it pleasant. Now that he had experienced flight, traveling by ship seemed like a thing of the past, even if they were still technically in the ship. The wind in his hair and the watching the scenery of the world go by them were relaxing. It was certainly a welcome break from the stagnation and suffocation that he always felt down in the Lower Quarter.

Yuri very briefly thought about how Flynn would react to flying. Sailing was one thing, but the movements of Ba'ul through the air with were very different. He didn't waste a single thought on the idea of the cool, fresh air whipping through the blond's hair, or how his oldest friend's normally calculated movements might be thrown off by the rocking motions. Or how his friend's minor sea sickness would easily become full blown, near debilitating air sickness. He certainly didn't smile softly at these ideas either.

"What's so amusing?" Judith asked from right over his shoulder, intruding into his moment of private reflection.

"Nothing," Yuri replied, leaning up against the rail of the ship.

The Entelexia above them warbled, and Judith smiled.

"Ba'ul says that you're lying," she said lightly.

Yuri changed the subject. "So what's going on with this new job we've taken?"

"Karol didn't tell me much, but it sounded like a big one." She tapped her finger against her lips and looked up thoughtfully. "When we get to Dahngrest, I'm sure that he will fill us in on the details."

The dark haired man shrugged and decided to let it be.

"So how is our beloved Commandant doing?" Her voice was light and airy which fit with her strange, detached manner of viewing the world.

From what Yuri had seen though, this seemed pretty typical among the Kritya. It was almost like they were beyond ordinary problems. The one thing that made Judith different than the others of her race that Yuri had encountered, was her love for fighting. She never backed down when in the face of danger. She seemed to have no fear, although that didn't stop her from being cautious. She had also proved to be a most cunning and intuitive ally. Sometimes more intuitive than Yuri was comfortable with.

"Flynn's being Flynn," he said, perhaps a little more tenderly than he had intended. He sharpened his tone. Judith could read him better than anyone, and he wasn't giving her any chances of making completely untrue assumptions about him. "Off trying to change the world."

"That's admirable." She was looking right through him and it made him shiver briefly. "I guess you haven't been seeing much of him, then."

On the contrary, while Yuri was in Zaphias, he had stopped in at the palace quite regularly. It had been enjoyable seeing Flynn as often as he had, although he would never admit it. She was baiting him. He wasn't going to fall for it. "No more than usual."He tried to be toneless. He continued to look at the scenery below.

After a while, Ba'ul set the two of them down just outside of Dahngrest, and then disappeared back into the skies. Yuri presumed that the Entelexia would find a place nearby to rest until Judith would call for him again.

It was dusk when they entered, the red-orange sky increasing the atmosphere of the city of dark buildings lit by candles. The Guilds and the Empire were all still working on a source of power to replace the blastia that had been used to save the world the year before, but there were very few viable replacements yet. Rita had been diligently researching alternative methods for powering the world that would not resort to massive destruction.

Yuri and Judith arrived at the Brave Vesperia headquarters, a small but cozy building which was nestled in a row of others just around the corner from the inn. They had put a sign up over the doorframe with their name and an image of the star that was their namesake. They were still a small guild compared to many others, but their reputation and enlistments had recently grown with several very successful jobs.

As they entered, Repede took his usual sleeping spot on the couch. He didn't really care much for the discussion parts of the guild. He was in it for the action.

Karol was waiting inside, and was very happy to see them.

"Hey boss," Yuri smiled. "What have we got going on this time?"

"We've got a ton of requests!" Karol said with glee. He was seated at their meeting table with a half dozen request letters in front of them. Obviously, he had been debating on which ones to take and who should take them.

"None of them are date requests this time, right?" Yuri arched a brow rather humorlessly. That had been one of the less pleasant requests that they had received, especially since it requested Yuri specifically. It had been the request of an older local noblewoman who needed an escort for a formal dress party. He still shuddered at the idea of the woman offering him more money than the original agreement for some 'special services'. Yuri politely declined.

"N-No!" the boy blushed and scratched the back of his head.

He was glad to hear that. He shoved one of the chairs away from the table and sat down. He stretched a bit, hearing a few joints pop until he was satisfied. "So, what are some of the requests?"

Judith sat down too, picking up a few of the letters, examining them carefully.

"Well, most of them are pretty small things, but there is one big one I've been thinking about," Karol started. "Some folks are wanting to make a colony on Yurzorea, and need some back up."

"Back up?"

"Yeah! They need someone to keep the monsters away at the night and they say that Fortune's Market recommended us!" The thirteen year old was ever enthusiastic.

Yuri nodded vaguely, "Nightwatchmen then? That's not so bad. How long would they need us?"

"They're asking for two weeks time," Judith replied, gently taking the letter from Karol so that she could get a better look at it. "Meals and housing are included, and the sum that they have offered is quite impressive." She turned the letter to Yuri.

That was indeed a comma before all those zeros. "Fifty thousand?" he found it a bit staggering, but this was a very sizable job. He had never been in the guild for the money, although it was nice to get paid to travel the world and do a variety of jobs. He had really been there to take his own path to changing the world, just as Flynn was right now. Flynn, the ever vigilant white knight of the empire. He pushed those thoughts back.

"What do you think, Karol?" Judith asked.

"I think it sounds like a great way to get our name out there!" he said cheerfully.

"The money's not bad either," Yuri replied. "We are getting a little worn down in funds, and this place needs some fixing up." He leaned to one side of the table and it titled very substantially, so that Karol's drink started to slide off. He returned the table to its proper position. "What about the other jobs?"

"A few deliveries, a pest control problem in the cellar of the Sagittarius, and a request to be a wedding escort," she said.

"The small ones are things that Luke and Ash can do without a problem!" Karol said cheerfully. Two of their new recruits, both young men, had been rigorously trained by the three of them, and although a bit goofy, they were both capable and eager to please.

"The wedding escort is out though," Judith said. "They've requested the three of us personally."

"Who's the requester?" Yuri asked to keep the conversation going. He had no real interest.

"Harry Whitehorse," she said, a bit of amusement in her voice.

Yuri and Karol looked at her in surprise.

"We can't refuse this one!" Karol said staunchly.

Yuri nodded, although he knew that it would require him to dress formally which he found stuffy and uncomfortable. "Harry is an important ally to us here in Dahngrest. If he needs us, then we'll be there."

"That's good ta hear." A familiar, twangy voice came from the doorway. It was Raven.

"Raven!" Karol shouted excitedly. It wasn't like they didn't see plenty of each other, both living in Dahngrest, but the ex-soldier had become almost like a father figure to the young man.

"Hey kids." He grinned, and sauntered in, and took a seat at the table. "I was stoppin' by to see if ya had taken a look at Harry's request yet."

"I didn't even realize he was engaged," Yuri said. Even though the new Don was growing in confidence with the other guilds, Yuri still saw him as a reluctant leader, but he knew that Harry was trying very hard to be a good guild leader since his grandfather's passing.

"Yeah, we've been keeping it under wraps," Raven said.

"Why?" Judith asked. "This is a joyous event."

"Well, it would be normally, but there's a small problem. Come ta find out that good ol' Harry's wife-ta-be is the daughter of a noble from Zaphias."

Yuri almost bit his own tongue in surprise, but managed to remain deadpan in front of the others. "So, he wants us at the wedding to keep things under control. Just in case some of the other guilds decide to raise a fuss."

"That's right," he said. "He figured ya guys would be the best ones for the job considering your history."

"What exactly is it going to entail?" Judith asked.

"That's the other reason I'm here. He wanted me ta go ahead and fill you in since the wedding is in two days," he cleared his throat a bit. "It won't be too bad. Her father's personal guard will be escorting her to the entrance of Dahngrest. From there, the three of you will be taking her to Guild Headquarters."

"Sounds a little fishy," Yuri said. "What aren't you telling us, Old Man?"

"Would good ol' Raven hide things from you?" he asked, feigning innocence.

They all looked at him deadpan.

"Okay alright. There are rumors that some of the guilds are really unhappy with the idea of him marrying an Imperialist. I mean, her father is a pretty big name in the capital and all, and they're worried that he might try to exude some control over the guilds. There is some talking around town about some one tryin ta take some action," the older man explained.

"I can understand their problem," Judith replied. "These people left the Empire, and now it threatens to be on them once again."

"I'm gonna place my trust in Harry for now." It wasn't surprising that he took Harry's side.

"What do you think, boss?" Yuri turned to Karol.

The young man pondered this for a moment. Perhaps he didn't understand everything that was going on, but he had a good heart and knew that Harry only had the best intentions for the Guilds. "I think that we should do it. Harry needs our help and I know that he's not going to let the Guilds down."

"I'm in then," Judith said cheerfully.

"Me too." Yuri knew that he was going to end up in dress clothes again, a thought that annoyed him.

"I'll let him know what you've decided. Come to the Guild Headquarters later and we'll go over the plan." Raven stood. He waved goodbye and ambled off into the evening of Dahngrest.

"Looks like we'll have to go clothes shopping." There was a hint of joy to Judith's voice that made him a little uncomfortable. It was no secret that she loved to dress up.

Yuri sighed.