CHAPTER 7: RECUPERATING
It was a disgustingly hot day and the air was thick with dread. The people of Rabanastre gathered together to witness the spectacle held in the center of the land. A man with shaggy dark hair was awaiting his death in front of the guillotine. Lord Vayne was no longer the proud consul of Archadia. He was a prisoner sentenced to death by public beheading. Ashe sat high above the crowd and had the best view of the spectacle.
"See Archadia fall! Rabanastre, behold our vengeance! Let Vayne's death serve as an example for all us! That we are not to be toyed with, that we have the power to punish our enemies and humiliate them! Let the Archadian imperialists see what happens to those who dare touch our land! They want us to be their slaves! I want them to be my firewood!" Yelled Ashe.
The crowd roared for blood and gave a standing ovation to Ashe's violent speech. Ashe basked in the glory of her power and enjoyed the cheers of her audience. She sat back down comfortably on a golden throne carried by seven strong men. Adorned on her head was the crown that once belonged to her deceased father. The once bright eyed, naive young princess was gone. All that was left was a harsh, cold queen watching Vayne's execution.
"Any last words, Vayne?" Ashe taunted the man.
Vayne chuckled bitterly and he shot a hateful gaze at the queen.
"Enjoy my death now Your Majesty, but the day will come when it's your head that's being offered to another tyrant. I'll be waiting for you in hell. "
Ashe was unamused. "Smug, arrogant ass." She growled. "Fran!"
A tall, formidable bodyguard quickly arrived to Ashe's side. The viera was clad in armor of official Rabanastre make. It covered most of her body except for her stomach and parts of her chest to let the heat escape in the scorching sun. Her face was hidden behind a frightening helmet while her hair flowed loosely from the back of it. Any trace of her wild sky pirate past was nonexistent.
"Yes, Your Majesty?" Fran asked.
"Once this is over, retrieve his head and prepare it for me. I want it mounted and placed in my trophy room." Ashe whispered to Fran.
"Yes, Your Majesty." The bodyguard replied.
Fran felt sick and wanted to throw up. This wasn't the Ashe she knew… or was she?
How did things ever become like this?
-(Was it a dream? Or an omen?)-
Fran's eyes opened wide in the darkness. She quickly got up and out of her sleeping bag.
Gods… such a strange dream…
Fran crawled out of her tent to get some fresh air. The stars in the night sparkled brilliantly as if to celebrate the party's victory against Zodiark. Fran had to laugh a bit. Her as a loyal Rabanastan soldier? Ridiculous. Still… serving Ashe like that was intriguing.
I'm not sure if I could just throw my freedom away to be her dog…
….
Ashelia…
ASHE!
Fran snapped out of her thoughts to realize that Ashe was in critical condition. She ran out of her tent to the one across from her. It was there that Ashe was being treated for severe injuries. Fran opened the flaps of Ashe's tent and went inside.
"How is she doing, Penelo?"
"She's healing. Her Highness needs lots of rest. I've tried Curaga as much as possible, but it can't heal everything, you know? We were lucky that the phoenix down worked." Penelo replied.
The little Rabanastan girl had everything ready for Ashe in case the princess would wake up. A water sac, a bowl of bread and meat, fresh bandages on the side to replace old ones- everything was taken care of. Ashe herself slept peacefully in the blankets.
"How are you feeling, Penelo?"
"Tired. Like everybody." Penelo smiled at Fran. Fran returned the smile and sat down next to Ashe. She place her clawed hand on top of Ashe's forehead.
"How are the men doing?"
"Basch and Balthier are hurt pretty bad. Not as bad as Ashe but they need plenty of rest too. They're in their own tents if you wanna check up on them. Vaan's the only one who's got any energy around here. He's on guard duty right now."
"That is good. Penelo, I'll take over from here. I had my sleep. You should get yours."
"I can't take a break now. I still gotta check on the others. Make sure they got everything they need…" Penelo yawned and then shook her head, "… sorry. I'll sleep after I make sure everyone's safe."
Fran smiled at the girl, "You worked hard today. Don't push yourself too much. We can share the work. I'll take care of Ashelia, and then I'll watch over the rest. You should take your break now. " She gave Penelo a reassuring pat on the head.
"Thanks Fran. Wake me up in case you need anything!"
"I will. Now go to sleep."
Penelo crawled out of the tent to get into her own. Now that she had left, it was quiet except for the chirp of the crickets and the crackling of the campfire outside.
Fran decided to judge the princess' condition for herself so she lifted the blankets off of Ashe to see how she was healing. Poor girl… she was naked except for the bandages and patches that covered her. Her head was wrapped several times and bruises seemed to leak out from the patches of gauze that randomly decorated her body. The most prominent injury was her arms and hands. From fingertips to elbows, they were severely burned. Penelo and Fran had carefully wrapped them after they applied cool ointments while chanting Cure.
Although her condition looked very bad, Ashe wasn't in any pain. She was sleeping like a baby. It struck Fran as odd since the princess had suffered countless nightmares since the start of their journey. If Ashe wasn't having a nightmare, it's because she was unable to sleep due to anxiety and stress.
She won't be able to hold a sword for a while. Ashelia will be most impatient…
"Mmm. Mmmmm…" Ashe stirred from her sleep. She opened her sleepy eyes. "Fran… "
"Don't get up Ashelia." Fran gently pushed the princess back on her mat when Ashe tried to pull herself up. "Take it easy, you're hurt."
"We…. won?" The princess asked weakly.
"Yes. Zodiark belongs to us now. We can command it as soon as we agree who the host will be."
Ashe broke out a big smile and gave a loud sigh of relief.
"Thank the gods! Yes! Yes!"
Fran kissed Ashe on the cheek, "Congratulations are in order, Ashelia. You are true legend now. Defeating Zodiark is worthy of the history books. Keep it up and your descendants will be calling their blood Ashelia's lineage instead of Raithwall's."
Ashe blushed and she kissed Fran back. "How did Zodiark fall? My memory is… it's all a blur before I passed out…"
"You ended the battle. Even though it seemed like we were barely touching it, Zodiark was losing its vitality. You finished off the rest of it when you used your black magicks – the most terrifying Scathe I've ever seen. So powerful, it scarred the skin of your arms… You have quite the power within you, Ashelia, although I'm not sure if you're body is able to take it…"
"Call me Ashe." The princess interrupted. "And don't be so formal with me."
"I apologize, Ashe. I thought I was being respectful... but since we know each other intimately, I suppose there's no reason to keep up the formalities..." Fran said. She was surprised that the princess was opening up to her like this.
"You're always mindful, Fran. Polite, terse, blunt... with a wonderful accent." Ashe looked at Fran longingly. "And beautiful… Well. If you want to call me by my full name, you can."
This was an all new level in their relationship. Fran was comfortable with them being flirtatious fuck buddies but this was something else. Although, now that Fran thought about it, their casual sex often took a turn for some intense moments. And the casual sex became less casual and more serious. But despite all that, the two never really had a sit down chat about the status of their relationship or a heart to heart.
"I thought I was going to die. And I had so many regrets, Fran. I'm fortunate enough to come out of this alive… but Fran, I… I just wanted to tell you that… I…I really care about you. I just wanted to let you know that."
In her head, Ashe yelled at herself,
A fool am I! It would be too strange for me to suddenly confess my "undying, everlasting" love for her. My stupidity would scare her away and with good reason!
Fran was silent for awhile. Ashe became nervous and couldn't bear the uncomfortable situation between them. Fran had a neutral expression on her face that hid any kind of emotion. The princess closed her eyes.
If only I knew what Fran was thinking… does she hate me? Perhaps I said too much…
Fran held the sides of Ashe's face. Then the viera came face to face with the princess and gave her a deep kiss.
Then Fran kissed Ashe on the forehead, then her nose, and both of her cheeks. Fran carefully chewed on Ashe's lip before she kissed Ashe on the lips again. The two shared a passionate kiss for awhile. Ashe moaned softly as they continued to taste each other and Fran let her hands travel to Ashe's shoulders.
"Turn on your back, Ashe." Fran said tenderly while she stroked the sides of her body.
Ashe did as she was told and Fran began to massage her. The viera's hands glowed blue and Fran chanted the Cure as the spell began to flow from her palms. Fran kneaded the tight knots out of Ashe's back. Ashe sighed in content from the cool feeling of Fran's hands touching all the right spots on her weary body. When Fran finished, she gave Ashe's ear a playful nibble and tucked the blankets neatly on top of her.
"I have to see if the others are okay. I will return after I make sure they have everything they need."
"Okay." Ashe whispered.
Fran left the tent, leaving Ashe alone with her thoughts. The princess' head was overwhelmed with all the recent events as well as the overall mission to stop Vayne in his tracks. She clearly remembered the very strange moment between Fran and Balthier in the battle against Zodiark. The memory made her feel awful and guilty so Ashe pushed the thought away.
So childish... I have no time to behave like a petty teenager! It is good that I didn't say anything to Fran. No matter how I feel about it... to her, I'm just another friendly face underneath the covers. To be expected. She is a sky pirate after all. Free to bed whomever pleases her. Besides... I can't even begin to comprehend the history between those two... I can't compete with that... Ugh, you're thinking too much about the sky pirates. There are more important things at hand than some love squabble.
Both women were too unsure to reveal anything to each other. Nothing important was said and the situation was left ambiguous. Ashe wondered what Fran was implying when she responded with a kiss. Fran on the other hand, knew Ashe was feeling something for her that was beyond what they established previously, but the viera was still cautious about the unpredictability of the future.
For Ashe, there was still a lot to accomplish on their journey. For Fran, she still felt a sickening feeling about the dream she just had.
