Kisses
Second Kiss
Their second kiss was indirect. At least that's how Penelo would like to think of it.
Ever since Balthier kissed her hand a few days ago in the Aerodome, Penelo couldn't help but feel something inexplainable around the sky pirate. First off, she felt surprised at his sudden actions. What in all of Ivalice had possessed Balthier into kissing her hand? They barely knew each other. Such familiarities were still considered to be brazen, even to a young woman like her.
Maybe he felt they knew enough of each other already. He had been the one to give her his handkerchief in the first place, promising to take it back when he returns with Vaan. At the time, Penelo appreciated the sentiment. At least she didn't have to worry about Vaan as much. That's the only reason why her actions stilled as she calmly watched her best friend and some dashing stranger be taken away by the Empire. She absolutely was not swept off her feet by the spontaneous, somewhat romantic proclamation.
No, in fact Penelo prided herself for keeping a level, clear head when the bangaas had kidnapped her, mistaking her to be Balthier's lady love. Unlike other girls her age who would enjoy entertaining the idea of love at first, especially if it's with an older, handsome man; Penelo continuously denied their relationship. Clutching the delicate piece of cloth in her hand, she explained repeatedly that they had misunderstood. She only just met the man! How could he possibly care for her? But they refused to believe her, telling her she was the one that didn't understand. A man would rarely stick their neck out for a woman they didn't know, much less a wanted sky pirate like Balthier. "The evidence of his affection is in your tiny hand, girl," the one they called Ba'Gamnan chortled as he jabbed a pointy claw near her face. "If not, then the Fates look most unkindly on you."
They must indeed, she had thought as she sat in the dank cave. However, when she heard news of his arrival, she felt her heart skip. Not that she believed he had come solely for her; she knew Vaan must have a hand in it. Therefore, Vaan must be with him. Vaan, her dear friend was safe and sound. She knew he wouldn't let her down. Of course he's the reason why the bangaas were setting her free and pushing her out of the cavern. She longed to see him, as she raced blindly out of the mines, legs pumping wildly beneath her. She needed to thank him...
Thus, when they arrived at the Aerodome, she finally decided it was time to give the handkerchief back to Balthier. It was only suppose to be a simple sign of gratitude and nothing more. She just needed to hand it to him, clean and neatly folded, and return promptly to Vaan's side for the next part of their adventure. She hadn't expected him to speak those words to her, nor to gently caress her hand with his lips.
So now, as she explained before, she was definitely surprised and perhaps confused. Maybe a bit lost in her own thoughts even. Her mind kept replaying the scene over and over again as she observed the sky pirate out of the corner of her eyes as they trekked across the Giza Plains. Nor could she swallow her sense of wonderment as she watched him pierce through the hides of Wooly Gators with such deadly accuracy. She blamed her infatuation on the whole experience. She also enjoyed seeing Basch hack his way through enemies with his axe, learning worldly wisdom from Fran and admired how the princess carried herself with such royal grace even when they were trudging through mud.
But it still didn't explain why her heart would do flips when he was near. Why his very presence would seem to overwhelm her and make her pause in awe to watch him do the most insignificant of things. These type of feelings were only reserved for Vaan, not for some nobody she just met. For all she knew, he could be spouting pretty words to the princess as well. She did see him whispering in hushed tones to Ashe at the outskirts of the Jahara village not too long ago. Taking a deep swig from her cup, she sighed to herself, staring despondently into the bonfire. On closer inspection, the kiss meant nothing. Nothing at all. Not to him, not to her. Nothing to everyone.
"Mind if I have a sip?"
Pulled from her thoughts suddenly, Penelo looked up and met the eyes of the sky pirate himself. "Sure," she softly answered, stunned as she handed her cup to him. She watched as he brought the same rim that she had been drinking from to his lips, taking a long drink from it.
Balthier passed the cup back to her. "Most refreshing. My gratitude Penelo," and he gave her that same smirk from the Aerodome once again. He then proceeded to sit next to her on the log, counting out the remaining ammunition he had left in his pouches, occasionally bumping his elbow into hers.
Penelo sat deathly still. Was that what she thought it was? He placed his lips exactly where hers were, not to mention drank from her cup. Certainly other girls her age would think so and immediately blush at the implication. But she wasn't the type of girl to jump to conclusions so hastily. He was just thirsty and drank from her cup because there weren't any left. But she does see one right next to the water kettle. Interesting...
"Something on your mind?" Penelo heard Balthier ask in that smooth voice of his. She shook her head vigorously, his lips curling once again into a smirk.
Yes, she was one of those girls, she realized as she stared down at her cup, running her thumb over the smooth surface.
Because that definitely was an indirect kiss!
Author's Note:
Yay! Another update! Three for me in a week. Thanks all around to my kind reviewers once again: Priestess of Groove, Madj, Zaz9-zaa0, squisshumms, Keyblade Mistress Hikari and Banelo fan.
Well I wrote this one a bit differently from the others. I just followed a train of thought, hopefully Penelo's, and kept typing randomly whatever came to mind. Sorry if it goes off tangent or seems to rattle on and on at some points. I just feel that a girl like Penelo would probably over analyze everything. Also, a lot of times I just said "he/him" because I felt that Penelo would think internally of Balthier and Vaan as just "he/him." Most of the time it's Balthier, but other times it's Vaan depending on how you read it. Hopefully it wasn't too confusing.
Hope you enjoyed this exercise once again.
Until next time!
