AN: Welcome to my very first FFXII fanfiction. Intertwined Destiny I: Dereliction is part one of a trilogy and will take place before the game. Part two will take place during the game and part three will take place after the game. I've not played Revenant Wings, so it will not follow along with that story line. The main pairing for this story is Balthier/Penelo, but there will be others. This chapter is a test run to see how well it is received.

Most of the names used are original due to the fact that official names are never mentioned in the game or on any site that I've checked. Also, it is a fact that Penelo had at least one brother, but I have chosen two since it said that her "brothers" taught her how to fight, meaning plural. This is a story years in the making and I hope that you enjoy.

Disclaimer: Final Fantasy XII is the property of Square Enix. I do not own the copyright for the game and its characters, locations, etc. This is a work of fiction based on the story and earns no profit.

Intertwined Destiny I: Dereliction

Chapter 1 – Magicite Mayhem

689 Old Valendian

The sound of rustling paper echoed in the large room as a man flipped through the pages of a journal. Today had been a long day at work, and yet he had still not finished his report. Power sources continued to deplete, and now he had others biting at his heels to get him to come up with a more permanent solution. If only things were as simple as that.

Knock Knock

The door opened to reveal a young maid. Her hair was disheveled and she was quite obviously on the verge of a panic attack as her eyes landed on the man at the desk. Clutching her chest in relief, she hastily explains the situation.

"D-Dr. Cid, it's about your sons. They have been playing with the magicite again! I've tried to stop them, but they refuse to listen. I need your h-"

CLASH

As if on que, the sound of glass shattering startled the occupants of the room. Cidolfus momentarily froze in panic at the thought of his children being harmed and, without a moment to spare, he darted out of the room with the maid following from behind and headed towards the area where the noise came from. A quick swipe of his keycard granted them access to the magicite lab and he took a few steps inside before freezing at the sight that greeted him.

Ffamran, Dr. Cid's youngest child was nearly covered from head to toe in soot, his clothing singed as his older brothers laughed at him. In his hands was an incomplete piece of magicite that they had been using to test power samples with. Luckily, they keep the lethal ones locked up. Had they not, Cid was sure that at this moment he would have lost at least one of his children on this night. Still, incomplete or not, the magicite was dangerous.

"I have asked you to stay away from the labs yet you insist on being disobedient by going against my orders!" In a quieter voice he added. "Your mother will hear of this."

All three boys jumped at the sound of his voice before hanging their heads in shame.

Cidolfus held out his hands, a silent command for them to hand over the magicite they had been using and the three boys complied, not wishing to anger him further. Their father cleared his throat while throwing a meaningful glare at Kiden, who let out a childish groan before offering the keycard that had been tucked into his pocket. After pocketing the items, Cid turned his gaze to his youngest as the child spoke.

"I-I'm sorry, father. We never meant to cause any harm..." Ffamran looked at his father, tears glistening in his eyes. With a sigh, Cid knelt on the ground in front of him. "You must know that I do not like yelling at you, but you need to learn that what I say must be obeyed. The lab is a dangerous place to be, even for adults. You could have died... Do you understand?"

When Ffamran nodded his head, Cid stood up and used his free hand to gently ruffle his young son's hair before turning to look at the maid. "Please escort them to Beldina and inform her of what has happened. Also, contact their tutor and request for their school work to be doubled for the next three weeks. Perhaps some extra work will deter them from any more destruction." At the looks of horror on their faces, it took all his willpower to keep himself from laughing, and soon his children began to protest.

"Please, father! We''ll be good, honest!"

"I haven't even finished today's work!" This earned Kiden a quick look of disapproval from his father.

"But the work is so hard! We won't even be done in time for dinner..."

"Enough! This is not up for discussion. My decision is final, so be good boys and follow her to your mother." He said while gesturing to the nervous maid. Looking dejected, the boys did as told and all four were soon gone from sight. With yet another sigh, Cid turned to survey the damage. Table, chairs and even the walls were scorched and there was glass on the floor from broken jars and beakers, which had, fortunately, been empty. It was luck that they had chosen one that would not harm flesh.

'Now I have to contact the Craftsmen and Apothecary... It seems that my day shall be even longer.'

Had he been a lesser man, he was sure that he would be banging his head against the wall by now. As he reached to push the intercom button by the door, which was thankfully unharmed, a sudden realization came over him.

'I haven't even finished my paperwork yet!'

With no one looking, Cid felt little shame for giving into temptation and proceeded to bang his head against the wall.

'Why me...?'

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Beldina was a fair woman of average height at 5'6" with long, blond hair that reached the small of her back and expressive hazel eyes. Her oldest children, Rolan and Kiden, resembled her while Ffamran, her youngest, looked more like his father.

Rolan Dubel Bunansa was 10 years old with brown eyes and and medium-length blond hair that he kept bound loosely at the nape of his neck. On most days, he was the responsible one of the three children. It was only when Kiden managed to talk him into joining in on the mischief did he get into trouble.

The second son was Kiden Perob Bunansa, the mischievous one. Kiden became well-known throughout the Draklor Laboratories at only 4 years old, and this year marked his 7th birthday. Each day he seemed to find something new to cause trouble with. Like his older brother, Kiden has brown eyes and blond hair. The difference was that his hair was short and messy. No matter how many times she tried, Beldina could not keep his hair straight so eventually she left it alone, something Kiden was very happy about.

Being the youngest at five years old, Ffamran Mied Bunansa was rather shy, especially when he has been caught by his parents while doing something that they deemed bad. Other than those moments, he is usually a confident young boy who looks up to both his father and his older brother Rolan.

A peaceful smile settled onto her visage as she thought of her beloved family, the journal that lay open across her lap forgotten. Of course, all things must come to an end as a sudden noise in the hallway broke Beldina out of her thoughts. Moments later a knock sounded on the door, followed by a voice calling out, "M'lady? Dr. Cid has asked me to bring the boys to you. May we enter?"

'What mayhem do you bestow upon this building now, boys?'

"Enter."

Closing the journal, Beldina sets it down atop the small table and turns her body towards the door while remaining in her seat. As the door opens, the three boys enter and approach her with their heads hung in shame, a familiar sight. After glancing over each of them, her gaze comes to rest upon the soot covered Ffamran. An exasperated sigh passes silently through her parted lips.

"Magicite?"

Three nods.

"Your punishment?"

Rolan grimaced as he answered honestly, "Three weeks of doubled course work."

Beldina gave him a critical stare that lasted only for a few seconds before nodding.

"Very well. Off to your rooms, the lot of you. You're to be confined to them for the rest of the day. Ffamran, you will need to bathe as well. Do not sit or lay upon any surface in those soiled clothes. If any of you complain, your punishment will be doubled and your free time shall be filled with chores. Do I make myself clear?"

Another round of despondent nods followed her orders. Satisfied, Beldina stood and placed gentle kisses atop each of their brows, ignoring the possibility of getting soot on herself.

"Off you go, children. Olida, please make sure that they get there safely and lock the doors behind you. I don't want any more mischief."

"Yes, m'lady."

The maid ushered the children out after they bid their mother goodnight. As the door closed with a muted click behind them, Beldina returned to her seat and picked the journal up as well as the pen that had been discarded long before the interruption. Moments later, the sound of a pen gliding across paper filled the otherwise silent room as the latest events were added to a new page in the book.

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AN: I hope that you enjoyed this taste of a story that once bounced around in my head. If it is well received, I want to continue it. Each story was planned to have at least 20 chapters and would span many years of the characters' lives. The romance progress will also be slow and won't receive any real development until the middle or end of the second story. Please leave a review and let me know what you think. Constructive criticism is always welcome, but flames will be ignored.

Thanks for reading!

~ Cerys ~