Author Notes: So many reviews! It makes me giggle like a school girl. Which sounds really strange, if you ask me. As always, thank you all for your reviews.

Hmmm... Not much to say about this chapter. It is slightly longer then my previous ones; don't expect a set length. Each chapter has it's each plot or points - I just keep writing until they are all shown.

As always, If you have any questions or suggestions, review, or PM me.

Enjoy.


It was an hour before midnight when the princess's carriage arrived at Dorter's southern gate; the gateway was closed, as it always was at nightfall, and it took a few minutes of negotiations, aided with a small pouch of gil, to persuade the night sentry to allow access to the town. The carriage slowly moved trough the stilled outer layer of the city, where most of the lower class residential buildings stood. Passing though the sleepy quarter, the group entered a more lively part of town, where a dozen tavern and inns were built; laughter flowed out of most of them as merchants and workers, those who had coin to spare, drank and sang their wariness of the day away.

Agrias headed to one of the quieter buildings, named the Silver Trade; the building was impressive, being a half-dozen stories tall, and the ground level occupied by a fine tavern and the five stories above being rooms and suites to rent. The establishment catered to merchants and minor nobles, so the quality of the food, drink, and rooms were better then some of the less wholesome businesses. Agrias had never been to the Silver Trade before, so she knew her face would be unknown. She stopped the carriage next to the very spacious stable positioned next to the building, calling down to a stableman, "Brush down and feed the chocobos. We'll be staying the night." The man nodded and started to remove the harness's strapped onto the two animals. Agrias and Lavian, having already unwrapped themselves from the blankets and cloaks, hopped down, leaving the carriage in the care of the stableman.

Taking a look around, Agrias noticed that Gafgarion and Rad had already headed toward the bright insides of the tavern, while Ramza had walked to the door of the carriage, opening it and starting to assist Alicia and Belle down. Agrias's eyes were drawn to the squire as he helped; something stuck out in her mind as he bowed slightly, raising a hand to Alicia to escort her to the ground. It was as if he had done this before. That's unlikely, the holy knight thought; unless he was employed as a footman before his mercenary days. That's a possibility, I guess. Shaking the thoughts away, she walked to the rear of the vehicle, taking out a sack, containing spare clothing and other necessities. Lavian had already gotten her own sack, and Alicia had joined Agrias in rummaging for hers. Ramza, saying something quietly to Belle, moved away from the carriage and headed towards the tavern; Belle hung back with Alicia, sticking close to her side. Agrias noticed, but shrugged, assuming that her knight still was in charge of the captive. It took only a few moments for the women to get their bags, and they followed Ramza into the cozy confines of the tavern.

The four women entered the building just as Ramza was joining Gafgarion and Rad at the bar; the dark knight was speaking to the owner, "What kind of rooms ya got here?"

The barkeep, a balding, rotund, older man, exaggerated his smile and spoke with a sweat voice, "Why good ser, we have the finest rooms in all of Dorter!" The dark knight wasn't impressed, so the man continued, "Our single suites are top of the line, with soft silk sheets and down mattresses. One as fine as you, great ser, should be insulted to have anything less!"

Gafgarion smirked at the barkeep's blatant flattery; but if there was one thing he liked it was flattery. He looked around, noticing that the barmaids were soft on the eye; this would be suitable for him. He had plenty of gil to treat the entire party to their own suites, but, with a glare at Ramza, who had settled himself to next to the dark knight, turned to the barkeep, "I'll take two of your finest rooms." The barkeep hesitated, glancing between the dark knight and Ramza, his silent gaze asking if he made a mistake with only two rooms, as Ramza was clearly with Gafgarion and Rad. The dark knight ignored the glances from the barkeep, and ignored Ramza completely, who was frowning. After a few seconds of silence, Gafgarion repeated himself, "Two rooms. Throw in a feast for me and my friend," he elbowed Rad, "here. We'll have your finest ale." The dark knight grabbed a large purse full of gil, much more then what was needed, and dropped it down onto the bar.

The barkeep, pleased with the pricey order, turned from Ramza and ignored him as well, "Yes good ser! Margret!" he called to a pretty barmaid, "Show these two men our finest table and get them their drink!"

The barmaid led the two men off, joined shortly by two others, all giggles and smiles to the rich men. Rad, his arm around one of the women, turned so he could sneer at Ramza, grabbing the barmaid's bottom roughly, as if mocking or challenging the other man. Ramza sighed; he should have expected this. The squire's purse was quite light; he wondered if he could even afford a common room. Everyone else had watched this act in silence; Agrias was startled at the dark knight's cold dismissal of Ramza. The holy knight, looking at Ramza's forlorn face, felt a hidden urge to comfort the man, wanting to pull him into her embrace; she actually took a step forward before she caught herself. Agrias fought off a blush as she hesitated, and then continued her steps, not to Ramza, but next to the squire, catching the barkeeps notice. Without preamble, Agrias spoke, "What other rooms and accommodations do you have?"

The barkeep, eyes alight at another customer, opened his mouth to shower this woman with praise, hoping for more single room sales; Agrias would have none of it. Before he could ooze in a good word, she barked out, "The room information is all I require!"

The barkeep deflated, and without so much as a smile he relayed, "Besides our single suite, we have a two man rooms and six man rooms." Agrias nodded, asking for prices; the man grimaced, and muttered off the price to each room. Agrias nodded again, and turned to her friends, thinking. Eyes wondering to Ramza's face, she noticed that he looked concerned, staring at the barkeep with his mouth slightly open, clutching his purse. He obviously didn't have enough for a room; making a decision, she spoke to the barkeep, "I'll take a six person room; have a meal sent up to us."

The barkeep nodded, asking, "For four?"

Agrias angled her head so she was looking at Ramza again, catching his gaze, "No, five." She was annoyed and yet somehow pleased that Ramza's reaction, his face lighting up with joy, affected her so. Catching Ramza's grin, she smiled; it wasn't until a polite cough from the barkeep that Agrias noticed that she was staring into Ramza's eyes too long. She ripped her eyes away, a blush forming on her face, and turned back to the barkeep, trying to ignore the look he was giving her, "Show us to our room, then?"

Chuckling, the man called over another barmaid and told her, "Bring 'em to their room." The group started to follow the barmaid, but Agrias was held back when the man questioned, "Your pay?" Agrias handed over a small pouch filled with the appropriate gil, then headed upstairs.

Their room was only one flight up, the more expensive rooms on the topmost floor; the barmaid, who introduced herself as Janet, stopped at a door with the number '8' painted on it. She produced a key, a match to the door, and unlocked the room, opening it for the party. The room itself was nothing fancy, but certainly spacious and comfortable enough. Probably a twenty-foot square, it held one set of bunks on the wall that contained the door and two other sets of bunks on the right wall from the door. The center of the room contained a low circular table, with six stools placed around it; directly across from the door there was a large, low copper tub, used, not for soaking, but for a quick washing. The four women looked longingly at the tub; Agrias, her voice taking a dreamy quality, pointed to the tub, turning to Janet, and asked, "Would you be a dear and get that filled?" The barmaid laughed, told everyone that she'd get hot water, placed the key in the holy knight' hand, and exited the room.

The four women headed to the right wall, each tossing their bags onto one of the beds; Ramza remained in the center of the room, his backpack resting on the table, feeling a little self-conscious. It suddenly dawned on him that he would be sharing a room with four women, all lovely in their own way. He closed his eyes and softly slapped his hand on his head, wondering if he was cursed or blessed; this action did not go unnoticed, as he heard Lavian call, "Now don't go abusing the goods; that's our job."

Ramza, eyes snapping open, looked to the knight, an eyebrow rising and a soft blush coloring his face; if he didn't know better, Lavian just flirted with him. He tilted his head a little, watching the knight, a little confused. Lavian, who giggled at the squire's expression, muttered, "Oh, that blush of yours is cute, isn't it?" The squire, who had heard worst, still felt his blush deepen as the stared at Lavian, his own confusion deepening. The face he was making must have been funny, for Lavian, joined shortly by Alicia, started to laugh softly. Ramza turned his baffled face to Agrias; the holy knight had a small smile on her face and gave only a shrug at the squire's questioning gaze. Ramza, deciding that Lavian was making sport of him, mimicked the holy knight's shrug, walked to the remaining bunk, tossed his own sack upon it, and started to remove his heavy armor.

Turning his back to the women, Ramza heard them follow his lead, removing their own armor, with the exception of Belle, who wore none. The next half-dozen minutes had sounds of clanking metal, ringing mail, and an occasional, conspiratorial whisper from Lavian or Alicia, causing more laugher at someone's expense. Ramza was perplexed at Lavian's sudden change, as he heard her complain, "I hate these gloves! They totally ruin my nails." She was suddenly very… girly. Ramza shrugged again, and as he was removing his last piece of armor, he heard a knock on their door; the squire, being closest, went and opened the door, allowing a line of maids, all holding hot buckets of water, entrance. A few minutes later the copper tub was filled with hot, clear water, and there was a large pile of clean towels and wash rags. Before leaving, Janet advised everyone that their food would be up in a half hour.

With the departure of all the maids, the room was quiet once more, all five looking at the cleaning tub. Ramza, mind wandering, was delighted that he would soon remove the blood, dirt, and smell that had accrued throughout the day; his mind slightly foggy, he took a step forward. He suddenly froze as Agrias loudly cleared her throat, asking, "And where do you think you're going?"

Ramza stumbled, looking embarrassed, as he remembered he was with four women he hardly knew; swallowing heavily, he weakly replied, "Err… outside?"

"Good answer."

Ramza, turning sharply, quickly marched out of the room and closed the door softly. Slapping his forehead once again, he reprimanded himself, Idiot. How could you forget that there are women in there? Nice job making yourself look the fool. Sighing heavily, the squire slumped down, leaning against the door, waiting for his turn at the cleaning tub, if he got one. Sitting on the hard wood floor, Ramza's eyes drooped and he gave a yawn. It was quite late, almost midnight, and he would be getting up very early in the morn. He heard rowdy noise drifting from the floor below, from the patrons who were still awake; sound from within the room also drifted to his ears – sounds of faint talking and splashing. Ramza was too tired to make out any words, but was glad of that fact; for all he knew they could be mocking him more.

Within the room, the four women, after quickly undressing, each grabbed a stool and washrag and settled next to the copper tub. There were a few moments of awkward hesitation as each of the women slyly inspected their peers; the three knights had bathed together before and were familiar with the bathing situation, but with the addition of a new person, who could easily be considered the most comely of the four, they became self-conscious. Belle had the smoothest skin betwixt the four, with little to no scarring blemishing her body; the chemist was fit but had a shapely figure, and a sensual fat covered her muscle, giving her a much more feminine appearance. Her face could be called nothing but pretty, her full, voluptuous lips dominating her other features.

Belle, also inspecting the women with side glances, as they were inspecting her, could not deny that they each had their own beauty - Alicia, being the youngest, was still developing and had her own softness; she also had the least scarring due to her limited battleground experience. Lavian was well toned and, with the exception of her ample bosom, had very little of her body fat left from four years in the royal guard; her bust was easily twice the size of the other women's, and the chemist was surprised, and slightly envious, that, with the knight's physique, it stayed so perky. Agrias, the most experienced warrior and eldest, had dozens of scars disfiguring her skin and had the brawniest body; still, Belle could not keep her eyes off of the holy knight's alluring golden hair.

The holy knight, gaze traveling over Belle's beauty and Lavian's bust, felt shameful of her own body, with its ugly scars and small chest. The wounds, each representing a battle she had walked away from, gave her a sense of pride, as a warrior, but as a woman they make her fell impure and undesirable, as if she was less of a woman. Agrias ignored a surge of jealousy, saying, "Enough gawking ladies; we don't want the water to get cold, do we? Wash up."

Outside the door, content in waiting, Ramza hummed a nameless tune as he counted the passing time; his tune was interrupted by raucous laughter coming from the stairway. Peering down the hall he noticed five figures approaching, and within a few moments of hearing their voices, recognized two of them. Ramza's face soured as Gafgarion and Rad approached, three women accompanying them, two hanging off of the dark knight. Rad, who looked drunk and had his own company, waveringly stopped within a few feet of the sitting squire. Scowling down at Ramza, Rad spit out, voice slurring, "Oh, what have we here? Bad dog left outside alone? Such a shame, that it is. Mutts like you deserve a beating, along with a cold night on the floor." Rad leered at the woman hanging on his arm, "Men like me get a warm night, filled with enjoyable company." Rad planted a wet kiss on the woman's neck, hoping to get a reaction from the sitting squire. Ramza just looked up, a dull look on his face; drunk and itching for a fight, Rad leaned down and whispered, spittle flying, "I'll just pretend she's that whore of yours while I fuck her. Though it won't be as fun like it is when they protest."

Ramza's neck hair stood up at Rad's remark, causing the squire to quickly smolder his anger, and ignored the bait. Pissed off, and sneering out a "Tch" Rad dragged his woman down the hallway, heading for the stairway, muttering darkly.

Gafgarion, who had only sampled a few glasses of liquor and was quite sober, replaced the drunken man, "It's such a shame you didn't join us this evening. The food, ale, and," he paused to grope one of the woman while licking the other, "the company were delightful." He chuckled lustfully at the women, who giggled back. Ramza couldn't hold a snort; it always disgusted him in how the dark knight treated women. They were objects, no more than toys to the man. If the squire was a gambling man, he would wager his remaining coin that the dark knight wouldn't even remember their names, come morn. Gafgarion's attitude, reacting to the repulsed look he was receiving from the squire, became cold, "I don't like your look, jackass. Remember who's in charge here: me, not that bitch of a woman in there," he nodded to the door, referring to the holy knight. "Until we're done, you follow my orders. Another insubordination will result in the removal of your head." The dark knight grinned menacingly, "I do like to keep my business professional," and with that, Gafgarion followed the path of his protégé, heading to his private room on the top floor.

Ramza swallowed at the threat; the one thing the dark knight never lied about was his opinion for business. He always kept it professional; this, in addition to his unique fighting techniques, was why he was well paid. The squire would have to tread gently until he was done with this mission. Ramza sighed heavily; he was relieved that the two had left, but also felt a slight twinge of envy. It had been a long time since he enjoyed the companionship of a woman. The topic fled as his stomach growled; he wondered when their food would be up. A few seconds later, he got his answer, as he saw a barmaid approaching the room, struggling with a large platter, atop resting a giant bowl of stew and a plate of breads. Standing, Ramza walked over to the maid, taking the platter from her wavering arms, "I got it."

Janet, he recognized, had a mixed look on her face, a smile battling a frown, not sure if she should be insulted or charmed; the smile won out at the man's manners, and she walked to the door, Ramza following. Janet never got the chance to knock; as she was about to, the door opened, showing a damp Lavian, dressed in a night slip, who called out in a light, teasing voice, "Were done here, handsome; c'mon-", the knight stopped abruptly, seeing Janet and Ramza, who was holding the platter of food, "-in?"

Janet turned to the squire, smiling, "Thank you for the help; do you need anything else, or are you all set?"

Ramza returned the smile, ignoring a slightly blushing Lavian, "We'll be fine, thank you." The maid curtsied and left; Ramza, after waiting a moment for Lavian to move, entered the room. The three women within were similarly attired, hair damp from their wash; all looked to the door as Ramza walked in, carrying the food. Without words, he moved to the table, setting down the platter, and started to distribute the food, setting plates, ladling out the stew, and even cutting the bread. The women watched in silence, all slightly confused at his docile nature; they glanced at each other, and with a few shrugs, took their seats, waiting for Ramza to finish. Once he was done, the squire hesitated a moment, deciding whether he wanted to eat or clean first; in the silence, his stomach suddenly growled loudly, causing chuckles from the girls. This decided for him, and he plopped down into his seat, armed himself with a spoon and hunk of bread, and dug in, blushing in embarrassment from his talkative belly. The light laughter died as the women also started to eat.

The meal was filling, hearty, quiet, and quick; everyone was too tired and hungry to make small talk. They finished the whole pot of stew and most of the bread, leaving only a couple rolls remaining. Ramza sighed contently, mentally approving of his choice to eat first. Excusing himself from the table, the squire went to the tub to check the temperature of the water; he was pleasantly surprised to find it still slightly warm. Hearing stools moving, and the clattering of dishes, he turned, expecting the women to leave the room while he cleaned; Ramza was mistaken. Alicia and Lavian had quickly clambered into bed, and were grinning mischievously at the squire. Agrias was still sitting on her chair, combing her golden locks, also watching the squire with mild amusement; Belle had stood and approached the door, but, noticing the attitude of the other women, quietly walked to her bed, looking slightly confused.

Ramza gazed at Agrias, arching an eyebrow in a questioning manner; the holy knight, lips curling very slightly, replied, "You don't expect ladies like us to leave the safety of our room this late at night, dressed only in our slips, do you?"

Ramza hesitated, knowing that Agrias and her knights could handle any kind of mischief, but realizing it would be very rude for him to kick the ladies out. He felt his face reddening as the girl's eyes focus on him; shrugging, and giving a noncommittal grunt, he turned so his back was to them. What is wrong with me? Every other comment from them is making my face burn; what am I, ten? Ramza lightly slapped his face, ignoring some chuckles from behind him, Snap out of it, get cleaned, and go to sleep. Steeling his nerves, the squire started to undress, feeling more comfortable without seeing himself being watched, even though he still felt eyes on his back.

Behind the squire, the four women watched Ramza intently, each with their own intentions. The first piece of clothing to go was the squire's shirt, leaving his back exposed to the girls. Lavian whistled provocatively, causing the man's head to turn around, his face flush; giggles erupted from the knight's bed. Wanting some answers, Ramza turned fully, looking at Agrias, and pointed to Lavian, asking, "Is she sick or something?"

The question caused more laughter, even Agrias cracking a full smile. The holy knight, her face slightly flushed, replied, "No, she always gets this way when she not in uniform. She's pretty bad tonight, though. It's always worse when she has a new… victim." Agrias finished with a chuckle. It was one of the things that the holy knight loved about Lavian; while on duty, she was a perfect knight - attentive, loyal, and focused. When you got the girl out of her uniform, though, it's as if she turned twelve again.

Ramza sighed, eyeing Lavian skeptically; the knight replied by sticking out her tongue at the squire. Throwing up his hands in defeat, he turned back to the tub, grabbing a wash cloth, and started to clean himself.

Agrias, along with everyone else, quieted, watching the squire clean; she couldn't help but admire the man. His back was very well defined, muscles rippling in a graceful motion as he washed himself. Scars peppered his back, from battles long ago. When he turned briefly to speak with the holy knight, she noticed his muscle definition was no less pleasing in front; the squire was built like an athlete. Agrias swallowed heavily, realizing that she had been staring at the squire too long; she gazed around the room, to see if anyone had noticed. She couldn't see Belle's face from this angle, but Ramza had her two knight's undivided attention. Realizing that she would not be ridiculed for her staring, and secretly wanting to watch more, she turned her gaze again to the squire, who had finished cleansing his torso and was in the process of removing his pants.

As Ramza pulled off his leggings, dressed now only in his undergarment, Lavian let out at another whistle, followed by a, "Take it off!" and finishing with a bout of laughter, as Ramza stumbled. Catching himself, and calming his breath, he pointedly ignored the woman and continued his cleansing. Lavian laughed when Ramza ignored her; she did enjoy making the boy blush. Watching him, she found the squire pleasing to the eye, but nothing beyond mild attraction; Lavian enjoyed her men softer. She did notice that both Alicia and Agrias were ogling the man, the former beet red and wide eyed. The knight was surprised that Agrias would stare so; the holy knight was not one to express interest in men. Not to say Agrias didn't like men – she did, having had a short lived fling a few years back. It never got far; Agrias never really fully opened up. It pleased the knight that Ramza affected Agrias so. Lavian's lip curled into a huge grin; this will be fun to dangle over her commander's head. Chuckling, she focused on the show, turning back to the man, who by this time had finished washing his legs and was staring at the bath, looking confused, as if he was puzzling something out.

Ramza had run into problem with his bird bath; finished with all easily accessible body parts, he only had his unmentionables left to clean. He shouldn't be so hesitant to clean himself; in the past he had campaigned with a co-ed troop, and many times did they have to share an area to bathe, but he knew those men and women for a long time, not just a few days like those with whom he was now. That and he knew if he dropped his shorts, it would be as a holiday for Lavian's taunts. An idea suddenly forming, he grabbed his drying towel and quickly wrapped around his midsection, holding it loose in one arm. Grinning in triumph, he removed his last piece of clothing and cleaned himself, ignoring a disappointed, "Awwww…" coming from behind him.

Lavian was the loudest participant of the friendly jeer, covering the voices of Alicia and Agrias, the former who had said it so softly she immediately denied it to herself, blushing at no one. Alicia, slightly lightheaded by the washing display, was slightly disappointed she did not see his… the knight burst into a giggle at the thought. Maybe she'd have the opportunity later. Face afire at her sinful thoughts, unable to watch anymore, and knowing that Ramza was done, the girl flung her sheets over her head to avoid a taunting from her friends.

Belle, who had been quiet for most of the evening, was the only woman not to fully enjoy the evening's entertainment; the chemist's eyes were clouded with intimidation and fear once she saw Ramza in the raw. The overwhelming aura of force she saw in the man frightened her, causing her mind to wander to darker days. She fought back against her shadows, telling herself that Ramza was not like them, that he would not hurt her. He promised. She repeated that to herself, even though another part of her told her that he could easily overpower her if he felt a whim to do so; Belle agreed with her darker self, seeing the bunching of muscles and tendons on the squire. His face, the part that she could see, caught her eye as she wallowed in doubt; it was red with embarrassment and set in a humorous concentrating face. She focused on it, and used it to reassure herself that he was a gentle man, and when he helped her, those eyes and hands were soft. She was able to trust him; much more so then she had ever trusted a man in many years. Her darkness dispelling, she was able to smile as Ramza finished, wrapping his towel around himself, and announcing, "Time for bed!"