The Prince and I
Chapter 10: Prelude to a Storm
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters you see here. Final Fantasy XII is a trademark of Square Enix. All Rights Reserved.
Vaan peered deeply into the picture of his young lover in the arms of the sky pirate.
Larsa… and Balthier? But how? When? What is this? How could Larsa keep something like this from me? Were they together? Why wouldn't he tell me? Unless… What if he still has feelings for him? And why did Balthier never say anything? Why did he act like he didn't know who Larsa was back in Bhujerba? Maybe it's because Larsa looks different now. In the picture, his hair is much shorter, and his face is a bit bigger. He was really young here, maybe somewhere around 10 or 11. That would make Balthier 17. But how could this be possible. Is Balthier from Archadia? He must be someone very high up to be with Larsa like this… But such a difference in age… and Larsa looks so young… What were they doing together? Were they just friends, or… That's… Larsa could never be a part of something like that… right?
Vaan had never questioned Larsa's integrity before, but now everything seemed to be in discord once more. A million and one questions spiraled relentlessly in his mind.
What could this mean? Had Larsa been in love with someone else? And with Balthier of all people? Why? How?! I have to ask Larsa about this. But… lately he's been acting weird. Could it have anything to do with this?
Vaan picked up Larsa's golden saber out of the ground and held it tight in his hand, his grip fixed just below the hilt. He looked up towards the moon, his grip on the blade ever tightening. Blood began to run down the edge, falling into the water. Vaan was angry, but he couldn't understand why. He had been hurt, and not because of Larsa and Balthier, but because Larsa had kept a detail so important a secret.
Can't he trust me enough yet to tell me something like this? Why would he keep it to himself? I haven't hidden anything from him. I trust him completely. I... I love him, but… I don't know… I'm not sure if the feeling is mutual anymore.
Vaan stared at Larsa's second blade. It was much sharper than the one he held in his hand. He began thinking estranged thoughts. The anger he felt was clouding his judgment, and he was about to do something rash.
It was raining, and Larsa was lying face up on the grass. He was thinking about his past. Today was the anniversary of the day Balthier left Archades and went on to become a sky pirate. It was the day he'd left Larsa to fend for himself in the world, alone and unloved. He hated Balthier for leaving him with no warning. His hatred grew and grew until he pushed everyone that tried to get close away. Everyone, that is, except Vaan. When he'd first met Vaan, he'd only approached him to see if Balthier remembered who he was. Balthier had obviously forgotten him, and Vaan reminded him so much of his past love. Maybe Larsa had been looking at everything the wrong way. Vaan wasn't Balthier. He was so much more. No one had ever been so caring and understanding as Vaan, and all Larsa could think about was Balthier… He felt guilty.
The rain fell down his face, and woke Larsa from his daze. He decided he would go apologize for the way he'd been behaving lately. It wasn't fair to Vaan, who loved him unconditionally, that he was thinking of someone else. Larsa stood up and walked back over to the watering hole. The rain was getting harder, and lighting sparked across the sky. He could barely make out something on the ground ahead. The lightning flashed once more, and Larsa got a clear view of what it was. The little boy ran as fast as he could to the scene, barely stopping to catch his breath. He slid on the mud and fell in front of what he was running to. It was Vaan, lying unconscious with several wounds along his arms. He'd been attacked by a werewolf, but it didn't look like he'd fought back. Larsa stood over Vaan, trying to heal him with Hi-potions and Curaga spells, but Vaan wouldn't wake up.
"Vaan… wake up! Wake up! Why didn't you fight back?!" Larsa said as he held back the tears. He put his head on Vaan's chest and began to cry, the tears being lost in between the raindrops on his face. "Vaan… wake up… please."
"Balthier…" Vaan weakly said as he came back into consciousness.
"What?" Larsa asked as he raised his head to see Vaan's face. His eyes were fully open, and he lay staring at Larsa emotionlessly.
"Why didn't you tell me about Balthier?" Vaan asked, his voice regaining its strength.
"Vaan what are you talking about? What happened to you?" Larsa said with a surprised expression on his face.
"What happened between you and Balthier?"
"Vaan, just what exactly are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about this!"
Vaan sat down and held Larsa's locket to his face. Larsa gasped slightly as his eyes widened at the sight of the old gold locket. He started to breathe heavily, seemingly frightened by the object in Vaan's hand.
"Where did you get that?"
"I found it on your saber."
"I don't remember that being on my saber… I don't know what you're talking about."
"Larsa, stop lying to me! Just tell me what this picture means to you!"
"Vaan. We can talk about this later. Right now we have to get you out of the rain."
"Answer me, Larsa! What does this picture of Balthier and you mean?!"
"It's nothing. That's not even Balthier! Why are you being so stupid Vaan?! You're wounded and we don't have time for you to go all 'jealous boyfriend' on me. Now get up and let's go before we get attacked, or catch hypothermia, or… something worse happens!"
"You're lying to me."
"Stop being so selfish and listen to me! We have to dress your wounds before they become infected. Now let's go! I can see the monsters in the distance coming this way."
"If you're not lying, why are you avoiding the subject?!"
"I'm not. I don't have any reason to. And besides, I would never lie to you."
"I can tell when you're lying. You're nostrils flare when you lie."
"Vaan, shut up and let me heal you before we get killed."
In attempt to lift Vaan off the ground Larsa continued to tug at Vaan's arm but Vaan's reluctance would make this a hurdle.
"I'm not moving until you tell me what this thing is."
"I already told you, I don't know what it is!"
"If it didn't mean anything to you, you wouldn't have it with you!" Vaan said, pulling back so hard Larsa fell to the ground beside him.
"It's… nothing Vaan. Right now we have to worry about your injuries. It's raining, too. If we don't get out of here..."
"Forget the monsters and my wounds! Tell me why you kept this a secret? Don't you think I'm trustworthy?"
"Vaan…" Larsa was shivering, and it wasn't because of the cold. He was at a loss for words, staring at the raindrops, confused.
"I… I don't know. I don't know why I kept that thing secret," Larsa said in a disgusted tone, staring at the locket. "I didn't know how you'd react if you knew about him."
"So it does mean something to you. You were lying…" Vaan looked highly disappointed. "It wouldn't have mattered what happened in the past. But…"
"Vaan… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I was afraid."
"Afraid of what?! Of trusting me? I trust you with my life, but you can't tell me about your past?"
"Vaan, I don't know what I was thinking."
"You were obviously thinking of Balthier."
"Vaan, that's enough!" Larsa yelled out at the top of his lungs. "You don't know what happened. You can't judge me if something like that's never happened to you. I'm tired of apologizing to you. I was too scared to tell you okay! You would be too, and I knew you would overreact like this. How could you have expected me to tell you? You scare me when you're like this. I was afraid I would lose you… I was scared to tell you…"
"You're carrying this locket. Why would you have it if it didn't mean anything to you?!"
"I have my reasons Vaan! Weren't you the one that said you wouldn't force me to do anything I wasn't ready to do?"
"That was before I knew about this. If I'd know you were…"
"Were what, Vaan? What do you think I am? What were you about to call me?"
"I…" Vaan began with a dumb expression on his face.
"Is that really what you think of me? You can really call me that… with no guilt… without knowing anything that happened? Well I don't want to hear it. I thought you were different Vaan, but you're just like him. I was a fool to think…" Larsa's voice grew softer as he stood up. The thunder again crashed, revealing the anger that lay on his face. "How could you…" He let out a small whimper, walking slowly into the rain.
"Larsa… Wait! Come back! We're not done." Vaan yelled out into the distance.
"Yes we are Vaan." Larsa said in a voice that was eerily calm for what was going on. "I'm through arguing with you…and I'm through with you."
A/N: WTF just happened? I don't know! Why are you asking me? It's not as if I wrote this story. Oh wait, I did!
With love,
Your Pimp Kuja