Ba'ul gave a roar as he took to the skies, the Fierita dangling out of his mouth. Brave Vesperia was on its way to Zaphias to explain the sudden absence of blastia to the commonfolk. Estelle had hoped to discuss the issue with Ioder and the council as soon as possible and make an understandable public announcement. She stood at the bow, the wind whipping through her hair and rustling her dress. From behind, Yuri approached her and made his presence known by placing a friendly hand on her shoulder. The princess turned to look at him and smiled.
"Good evening, Yuri," she greeted, "What are you still doing up?"
"Same reason you're still up," he answered.
Estelle gave a small giggle before sighing and looking back out into the horizon. "I hope people can accept the blastia loss…there's bound to be a few people that will be very mad about it," she sighed.
"They'll have to deal with it, won't they?" Yuri grinned.
His simple comment turned Estelle's cheeks pink. "Y-yes, I suppose so."
After looking out into the starry sky with her for a few more moments, Yuri turned around. "I'm going to get some sleep. There's no doubt that everyone in the Lower Quarter will want to party their asses off when we get there."
They bid their farewells and Yuri headed back to the middle of their ship. He started for the cabin door to get some rest when something red caught his attention. Rita sat on a storage box, her back to the wall of the living quarters. As Yuri got closer, he noticed her green eyes were glazed over as they stared blankly at Ba'ul's underbelly.
"…Can't sleep either?" he asked, stopping before her.
It took a couple seconds for the mage to respond. When she did she blinked to acknowledge his presence and answered, "No…not really."
"Wanna talk about it?" the male asked, taking a seat next to her.
Rita sighed and turned her focus to her lap. "It's nothing," she mumbled.
Yuri was quiet for a moment before he chuckled to himself. "You suck at lying."
"Sh-shut up," she warned, glancing over at him, "If you really must know, I'm thinking."
"About?" Yuri asked, raising an eyebrow.
"About what I'm going to do," she answered curtly, "I'm pretty much out of a job, I'm out of a home, the only belongings I have left are what's on me and…" She trailed off at the end.
"And…?" Yuri pressed.
"…And after this, we're all going to spilt up. I'll be out of friends, a family, and…" she trailed off once again into a barely audible mumble.
The ex-knight sighed. It was obvious he was not going to get much more out of her now. He leaned his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. She was right. Tarqaron destroyed her house and possessions and the group was indefinitely going to part ways.
"Weren't you going to study that Mana stuff and make it practical for humans to use?" he asked.
It was not very good, but it was his attempt at cheering her up. Yuri never really knew what to say around her. Rita had a very short fuse. It apparently was the right thing, for a small smile appeared on her face.
"Yeah…that's true," she said, looking back up at Ba'ul's belly, "but that doesn't solve my house problem. I guess I could live in a research facility…"
Yuri stayed quiet. He put his hands behind his head and looked up as well. "…The tavern I live at usually has spare rooms," he said simply, "Or His Majesty might be kind enough to grant me a real house." He now turned his attention to Rita. "I wouldn't mind having a little company."
Rita blinked a couple times and looked over at him. "Just what the hell is that supposed to mean?" she asked cautiously.
"What do you think?" he asked.
Rita contemplated his offer, her face growing a brighter and brighter red as she pieced it all together. For the first time on their entire journey, he saw her fidget. He turned away and instead looked at the stars that flew by. "Unless you don't want to stay with me of course."
"I…I don't care," Rita grumbled, turning to face away from him, "Just give me my space while I'm there, ok?"
He nodded turning to look out at the stars with a small smile on his face. "That might be thinking a little too positively though. I don't think I'll stay in Zaphias for very long after all this. I'm part of the Captians guild."
Rita nodded slowly, "Right. Brave Vesperia, or whatever…" she mumbled.
There was another long pause. Yuri spoke up first once more. "You haven't joined up with us yet, have you?" he asked.
The mage turned to look at him. She raised an eyebrow with a partly curious look on her face. Yuri returned it with a partial smile.
"What does that have to do with anything?" Rita asked cautiously.
"Well, I for one would miss your pleasant attitude. I've grown used to it, and it would suck to have it disappear," he shrugged.
Rita smiled and found looking at him much more appealing than Ba'ul or the starry sky. She smirked with a small laugh. "Maybe I'll stick around."