Wow, I haven't done anything in ages. Oh well. This is another Balthier/Ashe one-shot that I dug up from somewhere deep in the bowels of my laptop and realised was actually worthy enough to post. Hope you enjoy it! It's pretty short, but I think it's quite sweet.

Disclaimer: Yadda yadda yadda. No, I don't own Balthier. I wish.

One month later and she is standing on her balcony, addressing her citizens with a smile on her face

One month later and she was standing on her balcony, addressing her citizens with a smile on her face. Her fingers rested lightly on the sides of the podium, and she absently-mindedly stroked the rings adorning the finger of her left hand with her thumb. She refrained from glancing down at her hands; she must be strong now. The rings were her past. This… this was her future. She belonged to Dalmasca now, she reminded herself. She belonged to Dalmasca and all its people, and she struggled to keep from smiling as she remembered that that means that she must belong to him as well, for he was made an honorary citizen of Rabanastre since the crash… Forcing all thoughts of the past to the back of her mind, she raised her head to address the crowd.

"Citizens of Rabanastre!"

A cheer erupted from the people beneath her, and this time she did smile, widely, showing her teeth. She ignored the fact that she will receive a good telling off for this later from her Etiquette-Counsellor ("Royalty are elegant. Royalty are poised and graceful. Royalty should smile like so… and so… Royalty, Your Majesty, never show their teeth!"), who was the only member of her personal advisors who would dare address in such a manner, however annoying it may be. And she didn't see why she needs an etiquette counsellor anyway; she may have spent two years in the sewers but that didn't make her any less of a Queen.

"Citizens of Rabanastre!" she continued. "Citizens of Dalmasca! Citizens of Ivalice!"

More cheers. She didn't really mind the Etiquette-Counsellor. It was a refreshing change, actually, to be well and properly scolded for once instead of the polite deference that she had become accustomed to. The last time anyone had treated her like that…

"Today is the dawn of a new age in our history! And yet I would not talk of history today. Today, I would talk of our future!"

Well, actually the last time anyone had treated her like that had only been a month ago, even if it was only in a letter. She had almost been tempted to write back and tell him on no uncertain terms that she wasn't Queen just yet, and if he'd been alive for the past year, he might have noticed that. But she didn't, because she'd had a sneaking suspicion that that was exactly what he'd expected her to do. Because, of course, Queens were meant to conform to all expectations.

Ashe fought the urge to broaden her smile further into a wide grin.

"A year ago, this country was on the brink of war." She sobered as she said it and the crowd quietened. "I swear to you, that will never happen again. In the memory of our dead (for Rasler) and for the future of our children, I will not fail you."

Cheers again, and Ashe felt herself buckling under the expectations. Did they really trust her so much? To cheer when all she could give them was a promise? Promises were so easily broken.

"Princess! No need to worry. I hope you haven't forgotten my role in this little story; I'm the leading man. You know what they say about the leading man? He never dies."

She forced herself not to search the crowd for a familiar face, unable to stop her mind drifting back to a year ago, when she was still a Princess, and Basch was still Basch, and Vaan was still a bit of an idiot.

"Woohooo!! Go Ashe!"

Well… maybe some things never changed. Ashe's gaze was wrenched back into the crowd as she (maybe, possibly) heard a familiar voice. She saw him, running through the edges of the crowd, dragging Penelo behind him… And behind them, sauntering along like he owned the place…

A quiet cough sounded from behind her and Ashelia gave a start, suddenly remembering her speech.

"Let the Bahamut stand as a monument to our past." She searched him out in the crowd and found him. She met his gaze, and he raised an eyebrow slightly.

Again, she fought from grinning.

"And let Rabanastre stand, and look forward to our future. I have given my heart to Dalmasca, and today, as your Queen, I give it to you."

She met his eyes again, and smiled demurely as she stepped away from the balcony. Yet she didn't move so quickly as to miss his mouthed words;

"I'll see you later, Princess."

Maybe being Queen was better than a Princess after all. She would tell him that tonight.

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