Disclaimer: I own nothing and no one in Xillia, although if I did, there would have been a Wonder Chef in it!

Redemption

Pic-Disclaimer: I do not own the pic I used for this story. It belongs to Sayachanxx on Deviantart.(link is on my profile)

Setting: Tales of Xillia - Mid-game. (Hopefully everything is accurate. I wrote this a year ago.)

Genres: Hurt-Comfort/Romance/Friendship/ (I wasn't really sure what to place this under, since there's not much romance here, though I wish there was)

AN: This project was originally intended to be a chapter-based story but it sort of died after the first chapter... Anyway, I altered it into a one-shot with the potential of becoming a drabble series if the inspiration hits me, otherwise it remains as Complete status. Enjoy!

Jaded sunlight stretched across the pale blue sky as the party set off from Trigleph into the Torbalan Highroad for the Helioborg Fortress. After everything that had happened, from Alvin's betrayal, his reconciliation, Milla's return, and finally the party's relocation to Elympios, no one was really in a talkative mood, aside from the rare bits of chatter concerning recent events.

Jude was simply beside himself with relief at having Milla once again by his side. His mind occupied, absorbed by his problem solving state of mind.

Milla was her usual self, not wasting her breath or joining in on any non-essential chatter. Her focus always on their current mission, her senses alert to any dangers along the way.

Rowen too was silent, his thoughts a labyrinth of mystery as he strode along with a vigor not unlike the young people surrounding him. The only suggestion to his thoughts shifted when he would glance from Jude and Milla to Alvin, Leia and Elize, a line of amusement flashing in his eyes when he noted Elize's glare every so often directed at Alvin.

Elize was the only one to have really been considered speaking, though she refused to hold a civil conversation with the "big fat liar" after hearing what he had done to Leia. She would periodically glance between the two, her face fading from a frown to a glare in tandem.

Leia was unusually quiet, her thoughts frustrated and unsteady as she managed to keep her pace even, following closely behind Rowen and Elize. She hadn't said much of anything since Alvin's apology, and didn't seem to be in much of a hurry to break the pattern.

Alvin brought up the rear, trailing behind a ways to give Leia her space. He knew things still weren't right between them, and how could they be? A simple apology wasn't going to make up for what he did. He knew that. What he didn't know was how to fix it.

As the group trekked over the rolling plains Alvin watched the blond teenager from behind, noting how she would observe their surroundings for a moment but then return her gaze downcast as though she were miserable. Alvin frowned, this was definitely not average Leia behavior. When was the last time she even spared him a glance? He heaved a weary sigh. Great, so this is what the doghouse is like. It wasn't hard to imagine himself with ears and a tail, both of which would be drooping pathetically as the lowly omega of the pack.

How had things transpired so radically in such a short period of time? Everything was going so well, they were going to save the world from an extremely bloody war, yadda yadda yadda, but then that damn booby trap had to go and screw everything up, resulting in an avalanche of devastation.

Watching Milla sacrifice herself had been a shock for everyone, but when the group had scattered due to their terrible grief, Alvin had lost the stability that his friends provided. He still couldn't understand how the loss of that stability could have affected him so deeply.

Without Milla to guide them, without his friends, there was no direction for him, no compass. He was without a mission, without a purpose. He could remember his thoughts had been so desperate. If only someone could tell him what to do, anyone, it hadn't mattered anymore. So when Muzét had tasked him with that murderous intent, it was like her madness had flowed into him, possessing him. Her panic and despair had been overwhelming, overtaking his own and turning his mind into a chaotic mess. It was like a wild animal had seized his consciousness, and all he could do was watch as his body seemed to move of its own accord.

Then there was Jude, oh how the teen had angered him so, only seeming to add fuel to the fire that his soul was enduring. Perhaps if the boy had shown even a hint of conviction then he might have come to his senses, there was no way of knowing really. But as it happened there was no holding back that flowing burst of anger and confusion as the first shot range out.

There was only Leia.

She had fended him off so well, if only she had known the more she resisted, the more intense his attacks would become. Recalling the account now, it was like a bad dream, a thing he wished could be removed from memory. Yet it persisted in the darkest part of his being, taunting him, as if saying, "don't forget what you did you bastard!"

Alvin's pace hitched and he grimaced. Knowing how he felt about the matter was bad enough, but he still didn't know how she was feeling about the whole ordeal. Though he could make an educated guess just by her body language alone. Simply put, she wanted nothing to do with him now, avoiding any interaction that wasn't necessary. All of it at the cost of her natural exuberance. The whole situation seemed to be bringing her down.

Thinking back on their first meeting, she had been so vibrant with life and always calling him goofy names. She was still so much a kid, forced to grow up too quickly. Reminding him bitterly of his own childhood. It wasn't fair that she had to be so miserable on his account. Enough was enough, and it was time to fix this. He clenched a fist and drew a determined expression. He was the adult here, everything was his fault so it was his job to make it right. At least, that's what he was going to keep telling himself.

Since time travel was out of the question, he would just have to settle for what he could do, and that was keeping her safe for the remainder of the journey. If he couldn't take back the pain he had caused then he would just have to keep anyone or anything from causing her more. Surely he could manage that.

With another weary sigh, he fixed her in his sights and moved closer. She at least ought to know what his plans were.

As the party continued to march across the wilderness Elize had started whining about being hungry and of course Milla harmonized the statement. Same old Milla, same old poor fuel efficiency. Rowen and Jude concurred, deciding to take a lunch break after crossing the bridge up ahead.

The others were considering a lunch break, and Leia found herself nodding her head when they turned to her in question. When their concerned eyes remained on her she managed to muster up a brave smile. "Lunch sounds great you guys," she chirped, though there was little to no exuberance in the syllables. Even so, her friends seemed satisfied with her answer and continued forward, either choosing not to press the matter or in Milla's case, completely oblivious to the problem at hand.

The teen wasn't feeling like her usual peppy self, her stomach was in knots, her normally bright outlook overshadowed by a dark cloud of doubt. She hadn't been sleeping well either. Recent events had just been too chaotic; first Milla sacrificed herself, Alvin went crazy, Milla came back, and then this whole ordeal getting spirited away to Trigleph, all in such a short period of time. It was all she could do to keep up with so many dramatic events. And what didn't make sense was that things were starting to return to normal again, Milla was back and Alvin was on their side again. She felt like she should be energetic and positive again, but it just wasn't there, and unfortunately she knew what was holding it back.

It was him.

She needn't look behind, she knew he was there, could hear his heavy footfalls, felt his eyes on her back. She knew Alvin could feel the great distance between them was more than just the physical kind. They had yet to reconcile the situation and very little had been exchanged between them since the incident. Sure he had apologized, and that was good, but was she really expected to just ease right back into their old routine? The idea seemed impossible, but she knew she wasn't making it very easy for him to try and mend the grievous wound between them.

She also knew they had a job to do, the worlds were counting on their success, but even so she couldn't help but feel a bit selfish at the moment. Unfortunately selfishness didn't run very strongly in her veins, and it was always so quick to submit to sympathy.

She was contemplating turning to face her problems head on, like she always did, and looked up to see that Jude and Milla were leading the party onto a bridge which crossed over an impossibly deep chasm. Rowen and Elize had just stepped onto the first planks while Leia herself had just been about to do the same when she felt a hand wrap around her slim left arm, freezing her in place.

Surprised, she turned to see Alvin staring at her, a worn and broken look in his eyes. "Leia," he started, his tone low and serious. "Can we talk a minute?"

Rowen and Elize paused for an instant to glance back and Teepo growled from the girl's arms at the sight of Alvin's hand on Leia's arm. "Leave her alone already you big jerk!"

Instantly, Alvin retracted his hand as though he had just been burned and rolled out a hasty apology, although whether it was directed to Leia or Elize no one could tell. Regardless, Leia shook her head. "It's alright Elize, go on ahead, Alvin and I will catch up."

Elize watched them for another instant, glaring at the mercenary, but when Rowen murmured something and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, she yielded and turned to follow Jude and Milla across the bridge.

Thinking this was her opportunity to give him a second chance, Leia turned back to Alvin and nodded. "I'm not much for conversation right now, but we can try it." Her eyes not really meeting his, her gaze at a constant downward tilt as they started forward at a slower pace, taking only a few strides onto the metal yet somewhat dubious bridge.

She thought he had been about to say something when she felt his powerful right arm wrap around her waist and then there was the piercing feeling in her core as he leaped backward with such an intense velocity. Only after they had stopped skidding on the dusty ground a few feet from the bridge did the scene unfold in her minds eye.

They were under attack.

Alvin was still forming the sentence in his mind when he heard the wing beats, felt the killing intent that he knew so well. His brown eyes flashed to Leia, his new determination sparking his instincts to action as his body moved to protect her. He wrapped his sword arm around her, knowing his gun arm would be more effective for combat in the situation.

Two giant birds seemed to materialized out of nowhere, one dived at Milla and Jude, the other one set its steady hunter's gaze on Alvin and Leia.

Alvin had leaped back and off of the bridge to solid ground, hoping some distance would give him an advantage. Drawing his pistol he unloaded the cartridge within seconds and the giant bird faltered and fell to the ground only a few meters away, its wings full of holes.

As the monster fought to stand, Alvin could feel Leia struggling in his grip and he realized he was still holding her firmly. Releasing her he muttered an apology, unsheathing his great sword with his newly empty right hand as Leia readied her staff. Things were about to get close-ranged.

"Leia!" He shot her a determined look and she met his gaze for the instant it took to link. It seemed that in the heat of battle their differences were moot, a truce was formed, and she seemed to already know what he had in mind. "Let's light 'im up!"

Leia nodded agreement and crouched into attack position, both their lilium orbs blazed to life as they chorused, "Spinning Thunder!"

With a dying cry the great bird dropped to the ground with a crash. Leia and Alvin looked up from their stances to see the other huge raptor assaulting their friends on the bridge. It's sword like talons slicing at Milla and the bridge supports alike as Jude tried to get into position to strike at it to no avail. Fighting on such unsteady footing was too much even for his tactical mind.

Alvin cursed and Leia cried out their names as she started at the bridge again but before she set one foot on it, Alvin grabbed her arm once again. She shot him a dangerous glare, but he merely gestured to their friends, an intense look in his eyes. When she took an instant to see what he was going through himself and looked to see why he had stopped her, she understood.

The monster had shredded the bridge to ribbons in the center and it was starting to collapse, with their friends still on it. They all grappled for a handhold as the bridge was rent in two. The giant bird hadn't given up and dived at Milla, catching her in its talons and managing to pull her away from her grip on the bridge, only to have her sword plunge into the beast's throat. Blood sprayed everywhere and the bird gurgled its dying cry. It was too late though, as the two plummeted down at a sharp angle and crashed into the opposite rock wall where Milla no doubt was knocked unconscious.

The entire ordeal lasted only seconds and Jude shouted her name in response, jumping down after her without a second thought, free falling deep into the chasm towards a blue river far below.

Leia dropped to the edge of the chasm, leaning over to peer after them in shock. A few breathless moments passed and she could see Jude had caught up to and revived Milla. Shortly thereafter Leia noted a flash of green mana which she assumed Milla had summoned Sylph to cushion their descent. Relieved, she breathed out a sigh and stood up again. She knew Milla would summon Undine when they hit water and both her friends would be unharmed. She looked to see how Rowen and Elize were fairing. She noticed Alvin had been watching them, his worried eyes set on the little girl on the other side of the chasm.

Rowen and Elize had been on the side of the bridge that collapsed on the other side of the chasm and they were being forced to climb up the bridge as if it were a ladder. Elize seemed to be doing well with Rowen's coaching, and the two made quick progress.

Once the two had pulled themselves to safety on the other side, Alvin released his own sigh of relief and he turned to Leia, a sideways smirk on his face. He didn't need to say anything, she could guess at what he was thinking. "We make a good team."

Rowen's shouting interrupted that thought before it could be voiced, he was calling to them over the great expanse and they both turned to him to listen, to no avail. They were too far away for their voices to carry coherently. Alvin and Leia watched the other two with a hint of hopelessness. Alvin threw his hands behind his head, eyes aimed at the sky. "Oh great, now how are we supposed to get over there?" he grumbled, his tone bothered as though the matter were as trivial as stepping into a mud puddle and thus required meticulous cleaning of his attire.

Leia ignored him and concentrated on Rowen's efforts to communicate. She thought she seen Elize tug on the elder's sleeve and he appeared to turn to her. Moments later a purple blob was headed their way, floating across the chasm where the bridge should have been.

"It's Teepo!" Leia exclaimed, surprised yet somehow she felt like she shouldn't have been.

Alvin stood to attention, his eyes narrowed regarding the purple doll as it plunged itself at Leia with a jovial greeting. "I'm so glad you're safe! That was so scary!" Teepo turned to the mercenary and mirrored Alvin's expression right back at him. "Glad the liar is safe too."

Alvin grabbed the puppet and shook him vigorously, whether out of frustration or revenge was unclear. "We know you have a message, so spit it out Spud."

Teepo groaned and growled but seemed to know better than to goof around at the moment. "Rowen says we should head downstream and meet up with Milla and Jude."

"But that could take a day or more!" Leia nearly cried. Traveling a day or two with Alvin... Alone.

Forming a truce in the heat of battle was one thing, it just felt so right to be fighting beside him, but any other time she just felt so insecure around him, as if that fresh wound of betrayal simply refused to mend. This situation, it was just too much, and she wondered how she could be expected to cope with it.

Her thoughts must have been written all over her face because when she looked to see his response to the situation, he looked as though he had read her mind. It wasn't a hurt expression exactly, more like... regret? She didn't have time to contemplate the matter though as his face grew stern and he focused back on the puppet in his hands. "Go back, tell them we understand," he said and released the little purple messenger.

"Yes sir!" Teepo confirmed and would have saluted if he could before hovering off a ways. He turned back around a moment later, beady eyes narrowed with suspicion. "Make sure you don't do anything creepy to Leia you... Creep!"

Leia just about fell over from embarrassment. She didn't need anyone giving him ideas! She chanced a glance to Alvin to see her worst fear realized, that arrogant smirk on his face before deigning his reply. "Define "creepy"."

"No, don't define it!" Leia flustered while making a shooing motion to Teepo. "Just go already!" Contradicting herself as she had just moments ago fretted about being alone with the man.

Teepo obeyed and continued back toward his master, though there was much grumbling involved with his departure.

Leia couldn't bring herself to look at Alvin as she fought the slight coloring on her cheeks. If this was a preview as to what their trek was going to be like then it was going to be a long and awkward one.

Alvin must have noticed her discomfort, since he remained silent after the doll left. Then by her peripheral vision she thought she seen him stiffen, right hand shifting to his holstered pistol. Leia turned to see what had caught his attention and took a wary step back. They were soon surrounded by a pack of wolves of some breed or another, all of them snarling and poised for attack. All the commotion from the previous battle must have drawn them in and now the pair was pinned between the monsters and a sheer cliff.

"There's too many," Leia whimpered as even more emerged from behind boulders and trees all around.

"We'll be fine," Alvin reassured her and stepped closer so they were almost back to back, his focus shifting to the dead bird behind them. "They're after our kill, and we're just the bonus. If we run they might not engage."

"Might not?" Leia squeaked, dubious as her grip on her staff tightened.

"Run," Alvin instructed, tossing his head in the direction downstream. "I'll cover you."

Leia didn't budge, her stubborn streak shining through. "But what about-"

"I'll be fine," Alvin nearly growled, annoyed as some of the wolves feinted a lunge. "I'll be right behind you."

Leia took an unsure step, her instincts telling her to run fought with her loyalty to her friend. "But-"

"Go!" Alvin barked, not entirely unlike the beasts surrounding them and gave her an assertive nudge, adding in an almost pleading tone, "trust me."

That was it, she had hoped for an opportunity to give him a second chance, and she imagined this was the first step. For an instant their eyes met, with so many emotions passing between them that there were no more words. Leia set her jaw, her eyes focused intently, her legs tensed to spring. When she bolted is when Alvin's pistol rang out with multiple flares.

As she ran, Leia willed herself not to look back, a determined look on her face. Trust. She had to trust that he would be ok. Just from that silent exchange it was so painfully obvious how much they had yet to work through together. Mending their wounded friendship was hard, but losing another friend, losing him completely wasn't something she felt she could live with, not again. She heard more gunshots somewhere behind her, the sound nearly drowned out by her heavy breathing and the pounding heartbeat in her ears.

Doubt settled in her heart for a few tense seconds, the shots sounded farther away now. Trust him! her mind shouted and she did not slow her breakneck pace, her eyes sternly focused on the path ahead of her. With a sheer drop on her left and giant boulders and trees lining her right she didn't have to think about her route.

Finally, after what seemed like endless moments of running she could hear his heavy footfalls from somewhere behind... They seemed unusually quick for him, even in such a situation.

"Leia!" Panic, she could sense it in his voice as if it were her own, the effect of a failed link. Why was he attempting to link at a time like this? She slowed her stride and would realize later that slowing her was all he had intended by the failed link attempt.

The mercenary was upon her before she could even turn around completely.

Trust me? How could he possibly expect her to, after what he'd done? To his thorough surprise and relief however, she did. She obeyed and bolted for the path. Without wasting a second, Alvin followed, blasting a shower of wild shots at the wolves as some lunged at him, while the majority went for the freshly slain bird. His bullets discouraged all but two of the beasts, both of them snarling and snapping at him as he ran. He could see Leia was keeping a steady distance ahead, never looking back. Good girl. He knew he could handle two wolves on his own without too much trouble. She would be safe, and that's what mattered.

Alvin cursed when one of the wolves broke off and ascended the barrier of rocks and trees on the right and disappeared on the other side. A sickening dread fueled his movements and with a mix of desperation and adrenalin he brought his pistol to bear right when the remaining wolf lunged, he fired, ending said lunge and wolf for good.

Unhindered and running headlong as fast as possible, he prayed he could catch her in time. "Leia!" He cried desperately, willing her to slow down and attempting a one-sided link. Relief flooded his system when it worked and he was able to catch up quickly. Not taking a single second for granted, Alvin holstered his gun, used that hand to seize her, pin her against the rock wall and barely managed to whip out his great sword in a glorious arc just as the wolf sprung its ambush from the boulder above their heads. It had all been so perfectly timed and lasted all but a few seconds as the beast now lay at their feet and unmoving.

The pair stood there for a moment, breathing heavily and staring at the corpse as if in a daze.

After the chaos had cleared in his mind, Alvin realized he was still gripping her shoulder with one hand and promptly released her, stepping back to give her some space. "You ok?"

Leia merely nodded wordlessly, her eyes distant from exhaustion as shock finally settled in. He could expect her to be a bit overwhelmed, seeing as she had been so close to being mauled, the graphic outcome no doubt playing through in her mind.

He wasn't however, expecting it when she took a tentative step forward and carefully grasped his coat with both hands, mimicking something akin to an embrace. With her head angled in slightly and her nose just barely brushing his disheveled scarf, her face was hidden just enough that he couldn't decipher her emotions. If he didn't know any better, he'd have thought she was crying, but she made no sobs and her body didn't shudder.

She was just... there.

Alvin knew there was more going on here than a reaction to a hard battle. They had been through so many on their journey together, with countless close calls before, that this alone shouldn't have effected her so much. Was she... trying to tell him something?

After a poignant hesitation he returned the gesture, loosely wrapping his arms around her shoulders and giving her the option of being the one to break contact.

When she didn't, even after a moment of standing together like that, Alvin's curiosity had gotten the better of him and he craned his neck down to flash a teasing smirk. "Well this is a new victory pose."

"What?" Leia's head twitched up at that, as if she were just now noting their intimate position. She let her hands drop to her sides and he did as well, though neither opted to move away. "I was just waiting."

Alvin chuckled at that, amused by her rare and shy behavior. "Waiting for what?"

"What was it?" Her emerald eyes darted to him for an instant but then back down again, as if she were afraid to get caught looking at him.

"Hm?" Alvin was thoroughly confused at this point, yet equally intrigued. They honestly didn't seem to be on the same page at the moment.

"Before the monsters attacked, you wanted to talk."

Oh.

Alvin balked and took a step back to scratch at his head awkwardly. He had completely forgotten about telling her of his intentions. At this point it just seemed immaterial, since he had gone out of his way to protect her through that entire battle and she either didn't notice or was waiting for an explanation. "Yeah, about that..." He didn't know where to start, his thoughts had been scattered when the monsters attacked.

He felt his throat constrict when the words began to flow, a torrent of guilt washing over him. "I know things have been difficult for us ever since I-"

"You don't have to explain it," Leia cut him off, a gloss flashing in her eyes. "Just tell me what's on your mind."

"Right," Alvin agreed, mentally kicking himself. Of course he didn't need to explain it, she no doubt thought about the incident just as much as he did. "I realize there's nothing I could ever say to make it up to you," he said, pausing with a sour expression and wondering how he could possibly be about to say anything so cheesy. "So I've decided the only thing I can do is try and keep you safe, for the rest of our emboldened quest." He had kept an all serious look on his face through most of the sentence but when he reached the end he struck a poetic pose and an elevated tone, just hoping beyond hope that he could joke his way through it.

Leia stayed silent, her gaze focused and patient for a moment. She finally blinked a few times, staring at him as if he just said something in another language that he expected her to understand. "You what now?"

Oh boy. Alvin sighed inwardly. She wasn't taking it well. It was time to roll out the charm. "It's my new job now," he paused long enough to flash his irresistible one-eye-closed grin. "You've officially got a handsome new bodyguard at your service. And I won't charge you a single gald."

The teenager continued to stare at him, tipping her head in that cute, confused way of hers. "You mean," she started, his words finally clicking in her mind and a sudden blush resulted. "You're going to protect me until the end of our journey?"

Alvin threw his hands behind his head to feign his nonchalant pose. "In a nutshell? Pretty much."

"But I can defend myself just fine, Alvin-" She frowned mid sentence, his name felt strange on her tongue, and she realized she rarely ever used it. They never really had a conversation in such a serious light before. "You don't have to do this, honest."

"It's not about what we can or can't do," said the mercenary, closing his dark eyes solemnly for an instant before pinning her own green ones, his tone deep and weighty. "It's about what we're willing to do."

Leia's mouth hung ajar, any retort she had prepared was delayed by a deja vu. Those had been similar to Jude's words, and Alvin most likely didn't know she had heard them back then. Hearing him take those words and implement them in his life so quickly made her heart swell with pride. She stared at him in amazement for a long moment, and he simply stared right back, waiting earnestly for her reply. It was at that point she decided he was definitely worthy of another chance, not because he earned it, but because she believed in him as her friend. Regardless, what he was proposing was unethical and frankly, just plain silly. He would just need to think of something better... "What do you plan to do, follow me around all over the battlefield?"

"Yep."

Leia blinked at him, a moment of disbelief passed over her face. With a mock cuff to his arm she nearly screeched. "That's just creepy!"

"Don't care."

She could only glare at him.

"Still don't care."

"Fine!" Leia huffed and turned away, deciding a defenseless tree was better deserving of her foul expression. "But if you get in the way I'm whacking you with my staff."

"Fair enough."

AN: I thrive on feedback, so any reviews would be lovely. I realize this might have seemed incomplete in some ways, so I apologize. Also, just a shout out to Tsukasayuki for encouraging me to post this instead of just leaving it to rot on my laptop. This pairing is so adorable and it needs all the support it can get!