Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy XII or the characters. They are property of Square Enix and the FFXII crew.


Final Fantasy XII - Fabula Ex Animo

Chapter 7 - Arcana

It finally stopped raining. Basch and Ashe were sitting in the open hut near the river, trying to get used to the thought that Fran was now a hume. Balthier was with her in one of the houses over the bridge to the west, so Basch was alone with the young Queen.

It could have been truly pleasant, just the two of them, if not for the emotions that boiled within Basch, being so close to the woman he was so fond of.

She was sitting next to him, her eyes focused on the calm fire but revealing no feelings. Though, the silence surrounding them never felt awkward at all, rather they felt safe in each other's company.

Then, finally, Balthier came back. He looked as cool and collected as he usually did, but his friends sensed the emotions inside him going haywire. Ashe immediately looked up as he entered, and asked as he took a seat by the fire:

"How is she?"

He cleared his throat before he replied:

"That change must have taken her energy many times over, so she's asleep for the moment."

Though Balthier's face expressed concern and care for Fran, his eyes also revealed shy joy. Both Basch and Ashe noticed that, and Basch took breath and asked the sky pirate about it.

"And you? How are you, after all this?"

"Well... I don't think I can say anything less than that my dreams come true. It was just so sudden and not to mention shocking."

"Will you get used to it?" Ashe asked, smiling.

"It won't be that hard. She doesn't look much different; she still has that mysterious viera-beauty."

Balthier silenced for a few moments, then his face lit up, and he continued with a smirk:

"She is the same inside as well, but I wonder if it will feel like making love to the same woman?"

"Balthier!" Ashe's eyes widened, shocked over such frank talk.

"It's only natural, my dear Queen. All men and women have their needs. Right, Basch?"

"Keep me out of this, would you be so kind?"

"No," Ashe said, shaking her head. "I know full well humes sometimes have... certain 'needs', as you put it. But they usually do not... talk that... freely, of it..."

The sky pirate laughed, mostly at Ashe for being prudish. Then he smirked and looked up.

"I will speak of it no more. I apologize."

Though his apologize wasn't convincing, Ashe nodded. Then, for some moments, silence fell around the fire. The sky darkened quickly, and Basch threw more wood into the fire, making it larger and brighter.

War-chief Supinelu then came up the three humes, almost sneaking into the hut.

"I brought you food. I thought you might need it."

Ashe looked up at the Garif warrior and smiled.

"Thank you very much, Supinelu!"

Balthier grabbed the things and nodded.

"As a matter of fact, I'm starving... I haven't eaten since this morning or so."

Supinelu nodded and then headed into the hut. He placed some more stuff beside Basch, whom leaned over and realized they were for him.

"You need to change that bandage, or you may catch diseases in the wound."

Basch nodded, and Supinelu then left them with a 'good night'.

"You want me to change that for you?" Ashe asked after noticing Basch's hesitation.

"Can you?" He replied, thinking it was no suitable task for a Queen.

But apparently he underestimated her knowledge of him, and she replied smiling:

"Even a Queen can do that, don't you think? Besides, I was the one who changed your bandages while you were unconscious."

Basch finally complied and gave her the bandages, then offered her his arm. But that she really was the one who watched over him, as the others had said when he awoke the other night while in drugged state, did make his heart beat a few times more than normal. Then she must've seen him in a very undressed state. Not that he had that much to be ashamed of, but still...

Ashe removed the old and soiled bandages, revealing the current state of the wound. It looked better than Basch imagined, though it still hurt. He held back a moan of pain when Ashe put on the new bandages with steady hands. She really had done that before, he could tell.

She finished up quickly, and smiled at him.

"It feels better, does it not?"

"Aye. Thank you, Highness."

Balthier was eating on the other side of the fire, observing the other two while Ashe changed the bandage. They didn't notice the ironic and mischievous glances he sent the couple.

"Are you going to eat something?" he asked at last, hiding what he had just learned, with his superior knowledge of women.

Both Basch and Ashe turned to the sky pirate, Basch nodding and Ashe replying:

"Yes, thank you."

Under silence the three friends ate. Darkness had fallen, and if not for the full moon, it would have been pitch-black. They finished eating and ended up observing the dancing flames, nothing said for a long while. A few Garifs were talking nearby, but that was the only sound in the night.

Basch threw more wood into the fire and about then stumbling steps were heard from the outside.

"Balthier...?" Fran's weak voice said, and they turned to the exit.

Fran was standing there, looking almost like a lost child. Balthier immediately rose and turned to her.

"Fran..." he said gently. "Should you not be asleep?"

He went up to her and grabbed her before she fell, since she was really weak. Seeing the hume Fran beside Balthier also made their friends notice that her hume feet had made Fran shorter than before. As viera she was actually taller than Balthier, but now she was slightly shorter than he was. A good guess would be that she was around the same height as Basch (which still was tall for a woman).

"I woke up again. I don't want to be alone." She replied to the sky pirate silently.

Still holding her, Balthier helped Fran over to his spot by the fire. She seemed to have lost all of her inner strength, but the others figured she would soon have it back again. The couple sat down, Fran leaning her head against Balthier's shoulder.

"You want something to eat, my dear?" Balthier asked the woman tenderly by his side.

She nodded.

"I am kind of hungry."

The sky pirate gave her some of the remaining food, which she ate quickly. Ashe had a shy smile on her lips the entire time and said as Fran finished her meal:

"Are you alright, Fran?"

The dark woman nodded and smiled.

"I am content, finally."

"You will not regret it then?" Basch asked, putting more wood in the fire.

"No. Remember that I told Jote that 'I am as them, now'. I only took the final step by using Vicissitudo."

The young Queen changed her sitting position and got almost unnoticeable closer to Basch. Once again his heart bumped a few times more than normal. Basch wondered why he reacted so strongly to her today, and he concluded it must be the whole intimate journey that influenced him.

"Where is that stone now?" he asked, struggling to sound as casual as he could.

"I still have it." Fran said. "Its power has been used up for now, but it will slowly regenerate."

"What are you intending to do with it?" Ashe asked.

Fran looked up at Balthier and he replied in her place.

"First we thought of giving it back to the viera, but we figured many viera would lust after its power..."

The sky pirate smiled and continued, looking at Ashe:

"We thought perhaps you could take care of it, hiding it inside the palace, Majesty."

"Me?" Ashe's eyes widened.

The couple nodded, and Balthier took breath again:

"You could place it among your other treasures. It would not be that sought after if you would accept it into the palace."

Ashe looked down for a few moments thinking it thoroughly. Then, she looked up, having decided.

"I shall do as you say, and place the Vicissitudo among the treasures of Rabanastre Palace."

Balthier and Fran nodded, relieved that the future of the stone had been set. It would be safe in Rabanastre.

Basch took a deep breath and leaned down against the ground, making himself comfortable. Ashe turned to him and smiled:

"Are you tired?"

"A little. I am just to rest my eyes for a moment."

She nodded and turned back to their friends as he closed his eyes. He listened to them talking about everything and nothing, but soon he could not make out any words, only voices. Then, as sleep caught him, the voices faded as well.

---

Ashe, Balthier and Fran had been speaking for some time when Ashe turned to see how Basch was doing. His open and almost vulnerable face revealed how little awake he really was.

"Basch?" Ashe whispered.

He didn't react at all. She leaned closer, hearing him breathe in a calm and regular basis.

"Is he asleep?" She asked and looked up.

Balthier's eyes met hers, and he smirked.

"Well, we did have long day, did we not? I understand him fully."

She nodded and looked down at the man beside her. He looked as if all his worries and hardships were stripped from him and all that was left were tranquility and safety. A shy smile grew in Ashe's face. He felt secure with her to watch over him.

"Ashe..."

She turned to Balthier, almost erasing her smile.

"I have one personal question for you..."

"What is it?"

Balthier looked into her eyes for a moment, as if he was looking for something. Though, Ashe had already locked most of her feelings inside.

Balthier cleared his throat and began:

"Fran and I have been suspecting you for some time..."

"Suspecting me? About what?"

The woman in Balthier's arms looked up and smiled.

"About how a man has captured your heart."

Ashe's eyes widened and she looked down, mostly to hide her blushing cheeks. Though, Balthier was ruthless with her and continued on.

"It wasn't that hard to see who did, you know, our dear Queen? You're much easier to read than he is."

The young woman looked up, realizing they really did know whom she had set her eyes on.

"Are these feelings of yours true?" Fran asked.

Ashe hesitated for a moment.

"I... am not sure..." She said at last. "But I have come to think more of him as time has passed. Wishing to know him."

She shyly looked down at the sleeping man.

"Wishing to be near him."

"Can two years apart do that?" Balthier replied and grinned.

"No. It was since before... he left."

Ashe lifted her knees and crossed her arms around them, resting her head onto them. She focused her eyes at the gentle fire and continued:

"When we met again after Archadia had invaded Dalmasca, aboard the Leviathan... I did hate him. As far as I knew at that time, he was my father's murderer, traitor of Dalmasca. A face I wanted to disappear forever. But as I realized he was innocent and one of the few we truly and fully could trust, I began see him differently. I felt safe when he was around, defending us. Defending me."

The young Queen silenced, thinking for a moment of what had passed.

"I still am not sure what I feel for him... But perhaps I should not find out at all... I would never be allowed to have him anyway."

Ashe looked down again, at the man lying by her side. The other couple looked into each other's eyes, and Fran nodded. Balthier nodded back and turned back to the Queen.

"Your Majesty..."

She looked back at Balthier, her face looking normal again.

"If I hinted that Judge of yours has admitted feelings for you, would you reconsider?"

Ashe's eyes widened again and she looked back at the man beside her, then back at Balthier.

"Are you saying...?"

"Yes. Penelo was the first to believe it and she had Vaan questioning Basch the first day he arrived in Rabanastre." The sky pirate leaned towards the fire. "He would never show it, but that man has grown fond of you. I would call it nothing else than 'love', Highness."

It seemed as if Ashe stopped breathing for a moment, not really believing what she just learned. Could the calm and loyal Basch truly have feelings for her? The man that rarely or never showed emotions.

"But..." Balthier continued. "If you reconsider, and find that you love him, do be careful. He won't be easy to deal with, as he is ever dutiful."

She gave him a slight smile, as she knew that Basch was dutiful and stubborn. A challenge if she wanted him.

Fran's head slumped back and forth of being tired, so Balthier picked her up and then turned to Ashe:

"Well, I guess this lady needs to get some rest, and so do I. Majesty, I hope everything will work out well, for both of you."

Then the sky pirate left Ashe alone in the hut. As his steps disappeared in the night, she lied down beside Basch, just looking at him. She kept staring at his face for a long time, learning every line and feature in it.

"Are you true in your feelings of me?" She whispered. "Despite us coming from such different worlds? Despite class, past and age?"

She reached for his face, caressing it slowly, careful not to wake him up. Her fingers followed his characteristic scar on his forehead, all the way back to his ear, where the scar ended. The young woman then stopped, drawing her hand back. Basch didn't even react, so deep asleep as he was.

"I lied to Balthier, you know..." she whispered, smiling. "If things were different, I would speak up what is true in my heart, that I do know my feelings. That a soldier has stolen the heart of a Queen. But why would I lie, when they already suspect me?"

Ashe moved closer to Basch, still careful not to wake him. Her smile turned sad.

"Perhaps because both the Queen and the soldier knows their love can never be. Such happy endings only occur in fairy tales."

With a sigh Ashe finally closed her eyes, and fell asleep listening to the sound Basch's breaths.

---

The next morning, Balthier woke the two of them up. Fran had recovered almost fully and it was time to travel back to Rabanastre. Quickly the four friends finished up, and though Basch was surprised to know that Ashe had been sleeping by his side, he never questioned it.

They bid the people of Jahara farewell and left early to be back in the Capital before darkness fell. But as they traveled and got closer to Rabanastre, the more Basch realized that he had to leave. He was to stay one more night, and then he had to keep his promise to Larsa and head back to Archades. He had to leave Ashe again, which would be even harder than it was two years ago. Although, he knew from before it would be, considering the contents of the letter Penelo sent Larsa before the coronation one year ago.

'How is Basch? I know he went with you to Archades "to further the cause of peace in Ivalice", but still, I hope he comes back to Rabanastre, and Ashe, soon. She has to keep up appearances now, so she would never say it, but I think she misses him.'

Basch didn't think Larsa noticed, but the few words made him feel truly happy, but also more concerned. Though, the same evening Larsa told him that they would not make it to the coronation, making Basch both feel relieved and sad.

"Basch?"

He let go of his thoughts and turned to Ashe, whom walked by his side.

"What is it, Highness?"

She smiled while walking slowly with him, looking after Balthier and Fran.

"You seemed as if you were far away."

"I was thinking of the past again."

"You think of the past much, don't you?" She said understandingly.

He nodded, having decided she deserved to get a piece of his mind. He knew how hard he could be to know in the eyes of others, since he hid many thoughts and feelings inside.

"I try to look forward, but everything I regret about the past keeps holding me back."

She looked down, thinking of what he said, but not loosing her pace.

"I believe it is hard to not live in the past. Though, I think you shouldn't beat yourself up about it. What has happened cannot be changed, so we learn to live with it."

She looked up, now into Basch's eyes.

"I lost Rasler. For the longest of time I wanted him back. But he is dead, and there was nothing I could do. I just learned to live with it, and hold his memory dear."

Basch repressed an urge to ask her if she had found another man worthy her love, and nodded instead. He looked forward again.

"I assume you are right, Highness. But I do not believe all my sins can be purged until I have made things right."

She looked up at him again, her eyes revealing that she wondered what he meant.

"When my homeland, the Republic of Landis, was conquered by Archadia's Emperor Gramis almost 20 years ago, I was living with Noah and our mother in the main capital. I hated the Empire for taking away our freedom. But I was too much a coward to stay and fight for that freedom. A failure. So I fled. I left my only family and came to Dalmasca. Noah took care of our mother but when she died he became a part of the Empire, as he had come to hate me."

He stopped, thinking back at the time. The woman at his side stopped as well, feeling honored to be told of his story.

"Why did I leave them back then? That I still ask myself. I think that I took up Noah's duties partly because I did fail them and Landis. Protecting Larsa and help him maintain peace in Ivalice somehow became my purgatory."

Ashe walked up and placed herself in front of Basch.

" 'I had someone more important to defend. And defend her I have.' That is what you told your brother two years ago, right? Am I your purgatory as well?"

Basch smiled at young woman, and replied:

"No, you are not."

"Then what am I?" She asked, not letting his eyes out of her sight.

He hesitated, then when he were to answer, Balthier had turned back and called for them both.

"Basch! Queen Ashe! Are you coming, or what?!"

"We better follow them." Basch said and Ashe nodded.

Though, she really wanted to hear what Basch was about to say, so Balthier's call was far less than welcome. But she held her slight irritation and curiosity inside and followed Basch to Balthier and Fran.

Fran, who had been a source of energy and happiness ever since they left Jahara, turned to them.

"We're about to enter Giza. It won't be long until we reach Rabanastre."

The others nodded and together they continued walking, towards the city. As they came closer to the nomad village, a large group of hyenas attacked the party.

"Here we go." Balthier said and smirked. "Can you handle this, Basch?"

He nodded, and grabbed his weapon, intent on using it with one hand, which was possible too. Though, he had to be careful as he now would have it more difficult to evade attacks. But Basch figured he would do fine, as these hyenas were not that strong.

Balthier and Fran readied themselves at distance, long-range fighters as they were.

Ashe found herself studying her friends. But mostly she observed Basch with a shy smile.

'Basch... I know the only secret you surely wanted to keep from me. We are only given one life, and I figured it be too valuable to waste. If I only could find a way for us to be.'

"Ashe! Are you going to help or stare?" Balthier smirked as he fired at one of the many hyenas.

"I'm coming."

She threw herself into the battle, fighting alongside Basch. To be where he was, she considered her greatest joy. If she only could be alongside him forever...


End of Chapter. This was more of a 'middle- landing' bofore the action that will kick off during the next chapter. Thank you for the reviews so far, and thank you for reading!