Title: Learning To Interpret
Summary: Judy had always liked to observe people from afar, and her favourite subjects just happened to be the cutest pair of childhood friends she has ever seen.
Pairings: Yuri/Flynn
Warnings: Mentions of Shounen ai/Yaoi. Nothing too deep, though, just Judy doing a far bit of character musing.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything that belongs to the Tales of Vesperia Series or franchise. But I really, really want the PS3 version...
AN: A new computer later and I'm back to writing. Whoo! Again, just a cute and fluff-filled oneshot for you to, hopefully, enjoy. I also hope I've got close to keeping Judy in character. She's just a rather complex character, isn't she?
Anyway, thanks to everyone who have reviewed my other oneshots :3 I hope you'll like this one as well.
People watching, Judy must admit was one of her favourite past times. You could learn so much about someone by merely observing and only a few people had managed to peak her interest.
However, from all the people she had silently studied from the shadows, no one had ever intrigued her as much as a certain sarcastic individual with a tendency to break the laws of social acceptance.
Yes, she was talking about Yuri Lowell.
At first it was his aloofness, sharp tongue that was attached to a sharper wit and a willingness to help those in need that intrigued her, as well as his sibling relationship with Estelle and Karol. But the more she observed him, the more she felt there was a side to him that no one knew about.
He didn't feel...complete, in a way. To her, at least. There was something missing from him, but she couldn't begin to understand what that could mean.
Until she met the ever polite, gentle, yet powerful and talented Flynn Scifo; a young man who could leave an impression on you with his presence alone without meaning to.
And she noted an immediate change in Yuri's body language. It was subtle, almost non-existent to the untrained eye, but he appeared more at ease, relaxed even when he was together with Flynn, and Flynn, she noted, always looked relieved at seeing Yuri was unharmed whenever their paths crossed.
From that moment on, Judy begin to take note of the little changes to Yuri body language whenever Flynn was around as well as his verbal communication whenever Flynn's name was mentioned. A sensation of utter affection would appear within his eyes, a smile of fondness gracing his lips.
And Flynn did as well, she had come to noticed, whenever Yuri was the one who was mentioned.
She was quickly informed at a later date that the two of them grew up together and were childhood best friends, which would explain their kinship with each other.
However, she was adamant that there was something deeper between the two of them, something that went beyond words. Friends, lovers, soul mates; they didn't seem accurate enough to describe them and the bond they share. They cared deeply for each other; they loved each other dearly.
And Judy could tell by their body language and subtly displays of friendship that they were in love with each other.
She didn't outright see any displays of affection between the two; nothing undisputable like a kiss or anything verbal like a declaration of eternal love. Just the little things like a lingering touch, a gaze across a room or battlefield, silent communication without uttering a word.
And the way they battled together as one was mesmerizing. They held so much trust and faith in each other. They understood each other in a way that no one could.
Their paths, their roles in life couldn't be more different or more challenging, and yet they still held onto each other tightly, neither one straying from the other's thoughts for very long.
Flynn was the Commandant; he excelled at keeping order, giving out commands when necessary and he just generally kept the peace when hardship filtered across the lands. He could tame any battle and slay the wildest of beasts. However, he made no attempt to tame Yuri and his wild, mischievous ways. Yes, he did request the dark-haired rouge not to cause any more trouble than he already has and has asked him on occasion to rejoin the knights, but he made no physical attempt to force him into anything, even though he still could defeat him in a physical confrontation.
Verbal confrontations, however, he would never win. Yuri had a tongue as sharp as a blade and he could cut a man down to size at six paces with a mere look alone. When they argued, Flynn usually being the one who was in the right, Yuri always, always managed to get the last word in which always, always left Flynn blushing profusely and stuttering incoherently.
Yuri certainly loved to make Flynn flustered with his sarcastic and often time suggestive words and he was very good at it. No one could leave Flynn absolutely frazzled as he could and he was more than willing to leave the handsome blonde blushing.
Judy could see why, though. Flynn was adorable when he was blushing and Yuri knew every single button to push.
Yuri, on the other hand, was nothing short of a badass rogue with a heart of gold. He would do anything and everything to help the less fortunate, even break a few (hundred) rules in the process. And if he got caught, so what? Free bed and food for the night before breaking out with little effort. No cell could hold him.
And even though he was well aware that his behaviour got on Flynn's nerves quite a bit, he did whatever he had to in order to support Flynn's dream of challenging the conspiracies of the empire from the inside. He would do the so called dirty work so Flynn wouldn't have to, so Flynn wouldn't have to taint his hands as he had once said.
Truthfully, he will admit, that he sometimes annoys Flynn on purpose, in order to get him to lose his cool and reveal some of that passionate temper of his. He does it so Flynn could expel some of that pent up tension he must deal with day to day from being the commandant.
Of course, it was always fun to watch Flynn chase Yuri out of the castle with his sword at the ready.
So, in spite of Flynn's nature to handle anything with authority and Yuri's somewhat chaos causing behaviour, Flynn allowed Yuri to have his freedom, allowed him to do whatever he wanted, forever there willing to lend a hand when Yuri got in over his head. He only scowled him occasionally when he did something really reckless like endanger his own safety.
Flynn could tolerate a lot from Yuri, but he would become really upset whenever Yuri did something recklessly life threatening, as he liked to put it. They would get into a tiff, Flynn scolding Yuri while Yuri appeared disinterested before Flynn would throw his hands into the air in a sign of defeat and practically stalk away, muttering something about why he even bothered anymore.
And Yuri, for his part, would just stand rooted to the spot for a moment, trying to look defiant as he watched Flynn's back carefully. He would then frown and look off to the side with his hand on his hip, making a tsking noise as he did so. However, as always, he would then sigh, tap his forehead with his index and middle finger before jogging off in the direction Flynn just stalked.
No matter the bitterness of the argument, Yuri always managed to apologize to Flynn; hence bringing the blonde back to the group with him a while later, both of them acting like the war of words never happened.
The term 'acting like a married couple' couldn't be more appropriate when speaking of these two childhood best friends. And, apparently, they've already have a couple of kids together.
Not literally, of course, but the children from the Lower Quarter adore both Flynn and Yuri with equal intensity. Visiting Yuri's home one day, Judy, along with the rest of their travelling companions were startled to hear a few of the children refer to Yuri as Papa-Yuri, while also calling Flynn; Mama-Flynn.
Yes; Papa-Yuri and Mama-Flynn.
Yuri explained that the name Mama-Flynn was actually short for Mother-hen, to which it rhymed. Kinda, at least. The kids had called Flynn that name for many years now so it did not bother him at all and to be quite frank, he could be overwhelmingly motherly when the chance arose.
Of course, when told this piece of information, Flynn would become flustered before turning to Yuri and demanding to know, in a cutely embarrassed tone what in heaven's name has he being telling everyone.
Yuri, for his part, would just smirk at him with humour in his eyes and reply; "Just telling them the truth."
And he wasn't exaggerating.
Judy had unintentionally witnessed Flynn in one of his infamous mother-hen mode when he caught one of the children climbing out of a third story window. He immediately ordered the child inside, claiming that it's dangerous before he sought out Yuri, only to belt him upside the head, while literally seething at him.
"Don't you dare teach our children how to jump out of third story windows when they're only five years old!"
Noticed he said 'our' children? How cute. Mama and Papa looking after their children.
Although, Yuri refused to tell her why the children call him Papa; she'll have to ask Flynn about it later when she got the chance.
Yuri often claimed that he was endlessly annoyed with Flynn's mother-henning ways, especially toward him but he could be just as bad toward the blonde. He wasn't above breaking into Flynn's room at night just to make sure he gets something to eat or to literally drag him outside for some fresh air.
Flynn would try to insist that he was fine, but he could never say no to Yuri. But let's face it; Yuri won't let Flynn say no to him.
Upon this trail of thought, it caused Judy to remember their current situation. Flynn, though a great commandant who can take care of himself, can't, for the life of him, look afterhimself. Skipping meals, staying awake for days on end, totally disregarding any injuries wasn't uncommon for him to do; which irritated Yuri to no end.
Yuri finally reached the end of his rope just the other day when he snuck into Flynn's bedroom, only to find the blonde passed out on the bedroom floor. Yuri said it appeared that Flynn just managed to remove his armour before collapsing in a heap on the floor, his face flushing with fever.
It literally took Yuri five minutes to wake him up, effortlessly cradling his slender frame in his arms only to have Flynn wake up with a start and ask him whether there was something the matter with him.
Judy believed his exact words were; "What's wrong, Yuri? Are you alright?"
There weren't many things in this world that could leave the ever sarcastic Yuri speechless, but that always did it. He must have been so mad that he couldn't think of anything to say that made a lick of sense.
So, utterly exasperated, Yuri wrote a quick note to Estelle to explain what was happening, left it on Flynn's desk and then lifted Flynn into his arms much like a bride, stealing off into the night without a sound, essentially kidnapping the Commandant.
Flynn, of course, was utterly mortified by what just happened. Even more so when he realized none of his knights saw a thing.
When Yuri brought him back to the hotel where she and the others were currently occupying, Flynn was demanding with that cutely embarrassed tone of his to be place back onto his feet, to which Yuri granted. But almost immediately, he scooped Flynn back into his arms when Flynn almost made acquaintances with the floor once again.
Flynn appeared stunned for a moment; confused even as he sat perched in Yuri's arms as his own subconsciously wrapped themselves around Yuri's neck, moving closer to him.
"You're working herself to an early grave, idiot," Yuri scowled as he leaned forward to press his forehead against Flynn's, seemingly checking his heated brow against his much cooler one.
At first the lack of a response from Flynn seemed to only heighten Yuri's belief, but then Flynn managed a shaky smile and said in a soft, weary voice; "I swear I'm ok, Yuri."
However, that appeared to be the wrong answer to give as a sign of reassurance. Apparently, Flynn swearing that he's ok was a sure sign that he was far from it.
Judy was the only one up at the time, everyone else having retired early, so promptly pointed an irritatingly concerned Yuri in the direction of an unoccupied room, not asking any questions as she knew Yuri simply would not answer them until he was sure Flynn was alright.
So, she waited patiently for Yuri to return, to explain to her the situation. Much time passed before Yuri made a flitting visit, telling her in the bluntest of terms that Flynn had worked himself into a state of exhaustion and no one was to bother him until he got better.
In 'Yuri' speak, that meant; if anyone asked, he's not here. And that Flynn's not allowed to leave either.
Since Flynn arrived here mere days ago, he has had little contact with anyone other than Yuri and Repede, Repede being the one to make sure no one disturbed his other favourite human. He would stand guard at the door, lowly growling at anyone, no matter who, who dared venture too close. He wouldn't even let Estelle pass to check on the healing process of one of her favourite men.
Now that Judy thought about it, since Flynn arrived, Yuri was rarely seen as well.
Not that it was any surprise to Judy, of course. She knew, without being there to witness it, that Yuri was watching over Flynn with a critical gaze. And the fact that Flynn was letting him, having no trouble insisting to anyone else that he was fine, showed how strong their bond, their fondness for each other really was.
They're almost like two halves of a whole, really.
Judy was pulled from her musings by the sound of a door slowly opening, breaking the early morning silence easily. Turning to look, a small smile formed upon her lips when Flynn appeared in the doorway from one of the bedrooms, wearing a pair of beige coloured shorts that reached his thighs, a white dress shirt and a dark blue knitted jumper that appeared much too big on him. His hair was slightly dishevelled as he rubbed sleep from his eyes with the back of hand, his other arm wrapped tightly around himself as he quietly entered the room.
"Good morning," Judy greeted from her position at the dining table, her arms folded elegantly upon the wooden table and her expression soft.
Flynn immediately snapped his head up, no doubt startled to realize that someone else was up so early in the morning. "Oh, good morning, Miss Judy," he returned greeting with a polite, courteous tilt of his head.
"Did you sleep well?" Judy enquired as she lifted her hand, motioning for Flynn to take a seat at the table with her.
Flynn quietly paddled across the room, pulled out a chair and then lowered himself down slowly. "Yes, I did," he replied to her question with a smile, slightly weary as he appeared still half asleep. "Thank you."
This would have been the perfect opportunity for Judy to comment on how adorable he looked while still very sleepy and worn, but decided against it. She'll leave that pleasure for Yuri to relish in.
"Where's Yuri?"
"Still sleeping," Flynn said with a soft sigh, his smile dropping a little as he wrapped his arms tighter around himself, appearing uncharacteristically delicate, fragile even. "Apparently I developed a fever during the night and he stayed awake to watch over me."
That did little to surprise her and Judy simply nodded her head in understanding. "That was nice of him," she commented.
"Yes, it was, but he really shouldn't have," Flynn said as he gave yet another sigh, this time turning to gaze at the floor to the side of him, an guilty expression marring his handsome features. "I don't want him becoming sick because of me."
Judy had been waiting for Flynn to say something like that and only nodded her head in silent understanding, still smiling gently.
"Would you like some breakfast?" she asked, changing the subject as she pushed herself to her feet, silently making her way to the kitchenette without waiting for a reply.
"I'm not really that hungry," Flynn answered. "But I better have something. For Yuri."
Again, Judy could only nod as she set about conquering the kitchen, silence falling over the two of them. However, it wasn't long before that silence was shattered when the same door Flynn appeared in moments ago was literally flung open. This time the appearance of a certain dark hair rogue was seen, his long hair tangled and messy, his postured slumped as if he just awoken from a deep sleep, his eyes narrowed as he peered through a sleep-filled haze.
It took Yuri only a matter of seconds to sense that Flynn was sitting at the table and he hastily stumbled his way over to him, yanking out an empty seat and plonking himself down on it hard.
"What are you doing up at this time of the morning?" Yuri questioned Flynn with a sleepy glare, seemingly unconcerned that Judy was nearby as he leaned closer to Flynn, his hand grasping the back of his chair. "You should be resting."
Flynn pivoted in his chair to face him, taking a moment to study him before retorting with a frown, "So should you."
"Pft," Yuri immediately scoffed, waving a dismissive hand in the air as he wore an expression that was brimming with defiance. "I'm fine."
"Yuri..." Flynn started, sounding as if he was willing to argue about who's health was more important, but instead he gave Yuri this tender look of guilt and lifted his hand to place against Yuri's cheek, looking almost pleadingly into his eyes. "Listen, please, I don't want you becoming as fatigued as I am by trying to look after me. You stayed up practically all night because I had a fever, didn't you?"
However, Yuri seemed to ignore Flynn's gentle accusation by leaning forward and pressing his lips against Flynn's forehead, lingering there for a long moment before pulling back, a slight frown on his lips. "You're still slightly warm."
Flynn uttered an exasperated sigh. "Yuri..."
"I'm not in the mood for arguing," Yuri said as he abruptly cut him off, startling Flynn just a little when he scooted his chair closer and pulled Flynn against his chest. He suddenly smirked, a bit of humour in his deep gaze. "Surprisingly."
That earned a light chuckle from Flynn as he shifted himself in his chair, moving as close as possible without actually moving to sit on Yuri's lap.
Had she not been there, Judy mused to herself, Yuri would probably have not hesitated in pulling the adorable blonde onto his lap. Not that she would have minded, of course. Watching the two of them together was very, very adorably interesting, and dare she say, utterly heart-warming?
"So how about a compromise?" Yuri said as he wrapped an arm around Flynn's shoulders. "After breakfast, we'll both get some shut eye? Deal?"
Flynn tilted his head back to look up into Yuri's face and gently, tenderly trailed a finger down his cheek, smiling softly when he let his eyes flicker into Yuri's own gaze. "Deal."
A satisfied grin immediately graced Yuri's lips and he rested his chin on top of Flynn's hair. "You sleep better when I there, anyway, right?"
"I guess I do," Flynn murmured sleepily in reply, snuggling further into Yuri's arms. "I slept like a log last night, despite the fever."
Judy tried her best to tune out the rest of the conversation as it was none of her business, but she was unable to prevent a smile from forming upon her lips when Flynn suddenly made a squeaky noise of embarrassment. She glanced over her shoulder just in time to see a deeply blushing Flynn wipe his mouth with the back of his hand while Yuri looked incredibly smug.
Ah, she thought as she turned her attention back to the task at hand. Young love is so amusing.