Usual update time. This chapter is kind of boring and I apologize for that. I know things are moving slowly for our pairs. But it's all leading somewhere, I promise. Because of the nature of FFXII, as I've said before, you can't immediately rush in with romance. To make up for this I think I'll submit the next chapter sooner than what I've been doing to the others. Also if you haven't noticed I changed the story summary a little bit to make it slightly more...interesting...yeah. Only other A/N I have is to again announce my newly reworked homepage, and go check it out, blah blah blah. Anyway:

Vaan walked casually over to the Jahara guards. They recognized him immediately. "Look." One said. "Our old friend. Grown, now."

He laughed. "Yeah, I guess I have. Listen, I brought a friend along with me…mind if she comes in?"

The other nodded. "Your judgment…we trust."

"Thanks, you two. I'll be back in a sec!" Vaan ran from the guards to where he left Mjrn. As he was rounding the corner, he heard raised voices of the Bangaa he had passed earlier.

"It's her sister! The one Balthier is always with!"

"Grab the girl! Let him come to us!"

"Yeah!"

"Great plan boss! We'll have our bounty in no time!"

"V-Vaan!"

He rushed over with his weapon ready. 'Mjrn!' How could he have been so stupid? He finally managed to convince her that the outside world wasn't so bad, and now this was happening. Could he take on so many Bangaa warriors by himself? Vaan recalled the time Balthier used only his fists to best the creatures in the dungeon cell. Did he have the same resolve?

"Mjrn!" He shouted this time. The group had surrounded her; one with his hand clasped again her mouth. "Get away from her!!" Vaan aimed the weapon at the nearest Bangaa and struck. He howled in pain. They turned around.

"Well well, the girl brought a friend. Pity." A Bangaa, who was clearly the leader, spoke. "He's of no use to us. Kill him."

Mjrn wrestled her face away from the hand. "Vaan! Run away! You can't fight them by yourself! You've only just recovered-!"

"Hey!" The leader shouted back to his men. "Shut 'er up!" One gave Mjrn a swift knock against the head. Her face fell, now unconscious.

"…Bastards!!" Vaan's expression was furious. He rushed forward, only for his attack to be dodged.

The Jahara guards must have heard the commotion, because two of them were running towards the group from their usual post. The bounty hunters must not have felt like dealing with them, because one pushed a button to reveal a nearby airship, similarly to what the Strahl could do. "Archadian bounty, I can taste it now!"

"They're getting away!" Vaan shouted to his friends. "Mjrn! Mjrn!!"

The group ran inside as the hatch slowly went down. As it departed, Vaan ran straight up to the underside of it and grasped for the bottom. As it started to fly upward, he hung on desperately. In a last minute effort, Vaan threw his other hand into the air. "GRAVITY!"

The cast spell caused the airship to waver back and forth—as if something extremely heavy had just been placed on it. Vaan had no idea he could create a spell with that much power, but he didn't have time to dwell on it. The amount was probably magnified given the situation.

The vessel began to toss back and forth violently. Vaan lost his grip, and fell back to the Earth. The closest Jahara guard caught him.

"…Damn…!"Vaan watched as the airship flew away.

Penelo raced ahead a little, laughing along the way. She felt just like she did during those years ago. But this time, there would not be an end for the journey eventually. She'd keep on living.

"Slow down, Penelo!" Larsa shouted after her. Several people were staring by now—a fact he must have been fully aware. It probably was not every day that they saw their Emperor racing after a young woman in the busy streets of Archades. But she didn't care about that right now.

She stopped suddenly, and he almost ran into her. "Are we almost there, Larsa?"

"…Yes." He answered after a breath or two, perhaps while deciding whether or not to scold her. "There." He pointed. "See? One of the finest dress shops in the lands."

Penelo squinted in the direction. "Oh!" She saw in the windows the most beautiful dresses, some made with substances she remembered collecting during their travels, including one made of the fine wool dropped many times. All sorts of colors were displayed, and she did not know which one to look at long enough without gazing on the next.

From the corner of her eye she saw Larsa smile. "Archades still makes me proud. You seem to love it, true?"

"Yes." She breathed. "They all look so wonderful. I could never afford any of those, even with the money I have saved from all those Marks." She bit her lip.

He laid a reassuring hand on hers. "Don't worry about that right now, Penelo. I just want you to be happy today. Shall we?" He extended his elbow out towards her.

She blushed slightly. "Th…Thank you. Larsa." Penelo hooked her arm around his and together they walked into the store.

Immediately the people in the store stopped whatever they were doing to stare at the two. Penelo swallowed nervously. She wasn't used to this kind of attention. Not in the least.

"Don't worry." Larsa whispered to her. "Rumors fly fast in this town, it's practically all they have for fun. Anyone is eager for a bit of gossip." He turned to address the head of the store. "My friend here is interested in looking at the dresses. What is the best you have available?"

The lady gave a tiny shrill noise. She clicked her fingers and instantly the other girls working there hurried around the place, as if to complete some urgent task. She smiled, a little too widely. "It's an honor, Lord Larsa. Our selection of dresses is the best Archadia has to offer."

"Indeed, that is what I have heard." Larsa returned the smile, also a little too widely. Penelo was puzzled by such an exchange of conversation, but she only stood next to him silently. When the lady turned, he whispered to Penelo, "They don't see you or me. They only see potential customers, potential store publicity by my arrival, and potential gossip, which is worth quite a bit by itself. Yes, I expect word has traveled already."

"Oh." She responded. "Larsa, I'm not used to being treated with such attention. Will it be like this always in Archades?"

"As long as you are in my party, I'm afraid." He sighed. "It is the price of being an Emperor." Larsa glanced at her. "Does it make you too uncomfortable? We can leave, if that is what you wish most."

'So unlike Vaan.' she thought. "I'm okay, Larsa. Besides, I'm excited about what the best dress here is. Aren't you curious?"

He chuckled visibly. "Er…yes, I suppose I am. I bet you will look radiant in anything they have to offer, Penelo." She turned away, embarrassed by this.

Just then, the noblewoman approached them again. "We are ready to take measurements. Will you wait here, my Lord?"

Larsa nodded and did not face her to wave goodbye for now—probably because of her nonresponse. Penelo sighed. She didn't mean for things to be like that. In the future, she promised herself, she would try harder to thank him for his generosity that he had displayed during the last few days.

The woman led her towards the back of the store, into another room, which was probably the measuring room. Penelo took one last glance behind her as she saw barely a glimpse of Larsa sitting down on a comfy waiting chair and folding his arms. 'I wonder what everyone is saying about us now.' She thought. 'Maybe they think we're an item? It probably appears that way…' Before she could continue these thoughts, the various noblewomen ushered her in.

And then the measuring began. Another process Penelo had never undergone. When it was finished they allowed her to think over various options they brought out. She decided that she wanted something in a soft, sparkly yellow to reflect her bubbly nature. The fabrics all felt wonderful to the touch—she could not believe such luxury.

Eventually Penelo made her choice and was able to leave the room. Upon seeing her, Larsa stood up. "Well?"

She smiled. "They told me that the dress would be made as soon as possible for their "special customer"…she said we can expect for the seamstresses to finish within a few hours. By the end of the business day, certainly."

"Excellent service." He winked. "Well, shall we depart? For lunch, perhaps? Are you hungry?"

Penelo nodded. "That sounds like a great idea, now when you say it. I would love to go to an Archades place with food completely different from what they make in Rabanastre. Do you know of any place like that?"

Larsa briefly scoffed. "None of the food made here is the same as Rabanastre's. They make everything in the open bazaar, with strange ingredients hunters brought in."

"…Oh." She answered. "I suppose…that's true."

"Let's be off, then." He said brightly. "We shall return later for the dress." He led her around a street corner. As they walked past all the staring eyes, Penelo couldn't help but wonder what Vaan would think of all this…

Vaan paced back and forth furiously. He had to find another airship, and fast. But first, he needed to think of the next destination.

'They said Mjrn could make Balthier come to them.' He thought. 'So…I need to look for Balthier. Then I'll find the bounty hunters.' As he passed by Vaan remembered they let slip the best-known location of Bal and Fran. He tried to think of it. What was the location they said!? Archadia? Nabudis?

"No use." He said aloud, exasperated. "Too much happened between that moment and now." Feeling momentarily defeated, Vaan walked back to the village with the guards, where he replenished some supplies and bought some things Vaan was sure he'd need if he would ever track the Bangaa down. After that he decided it could be useful to talk with the village war-chief. They led him inside the small hut.

"Your friend…gone." He motioned Vaan to sit down. "A Viera?"

"Yes." He nodded. "I was the one who…who managed to convince her to travel outside of her village. And now she's been taken hostage." He lowered his head with shame. "Her sisters are gonna kill me…"

The war-chief chuckled. "Yes, I know of whom you speak. One of them was your traveling companion those years ago?"

"Yeah, that's right. I've gotta find her sister before Fran finds out about this. Do you know where they might have gone?"

"The Bangaa you speak of stopped by earlier for fresh supplies. They were not allowed into the village, but our trader brought some things to them. Try asking him…he may know of something."

Vaan thanked the war-chief and headed back outside. He needed to hurry…every second wasted here was another second Mjrn spent in their captivity. He had to fix this, fast.

He approached the trader; the same one Vaan remembered handing all their skins and pelts from the Ozmone Plains back in their adventure days.

"Yes, I remember Bangaa warriors stopping by not to long ago. They were in a hurry. Bounty hunters, I'm betting."

"Do you remember if they said where they were headed!?"

The trader rubbed his chin. "They asked for something to easily defeat Air Elementals with, just in case of a change in weather. Do you know such a place?"

Vaan snapped his head up. "Yes! Now I remember! They mentioned that Balthier was last seen at the Phon Coast!"

He quickly thanked the trader and left the village. After about a minute of debate, Vaan decided that he did not have time to procure an airship, and he would have to simply use his last teleport stone and hope for the best. 'Of course,' he thought, 'Bal doesn't stay in the same place for very long. What if he already left?' Well then, at least he would be able to meet up with the bounty hunters. Vaan ran to the orange crystal and cast his last stone forward. In an instant he was gone.