Forgive me, readers, for I have sinned. It has been four weeks since my last update. :-P I've been going through a bit of a personal hell lately, but the only legitimate excuse I have for not working on this more is that I've been busy moving into a new apartment, where I now get to spend the next two weeks sleeping on the couch while my bedroom furniture is, for lack of a better term, "in transit." But enough about my sad life, let's get on to the character's sad – eh-hem – the character's lives, shall we?

Oh, and, as always, everything owned by Namco Tales Studios is owned by Namco Tales Studios, and everything else is not.

Verse 13: Catching Up

Karin's eyes steeled as she stared into the woods. "We have visitors." Her hand by nature of training reached for her pistol, and for a moment she flashed back to tucking the handgun underneath her bedroll near her head, where it still lay.

"You must be slipping if I was able to get this close without your noticing," Jade remarked to Karin, revealing a certain degree of familiarity with the gunner. "If I were the enemy, you might've been surrounded by now."

"I'm not 'slipping,' I just don't bother taking special note of every insignificant pest that comes near me." She placed a finger to her chin thoughtfully. "If I did, I'd probably turn into the sort of paranoid recluse who spends years locked away in a lab somewhere."

Guy and Natalia emerged from the woods behind Jade, the former of whom sarcastically asked their orange-haired companion for an introduction.

Karin cut Jade off before he could respond. "I doubt the Colonel could tear himself away from his ego long enough to give you an unbiased report, so allow me to introduce myself. I'm Karin Scheinvogel, and up until a few hours ago I was a mercenary working for the Original Order. Now that they've tried to kill me, however, I'm working for your friends here. Pro bono, of course."

After getting over Karin's bluntness, greetings were exchanged and the newcomers joined the camp. After shaking Karin's hand, Natalia reached out and slapped Luke. "That's for making me worry! Don't ever do something like that again…"

"How'd you manage to get kidnapped, anyway?" Guy asked.

"I'm a little curious about that, myself," Jade added.

Luke shrugged after he finished rubbing his cheek. "I wish I knew… I really don't remember much about that night." He and Tear glanced at one another then quickly looked away. "But I think I'd remember getting into a fight in any event."

"Not to mention that, even in the middle of the night, fighting in the streets of Keterburg would have left plentiful witnesses. Whether they waited until you were alone and caught you unawares or somehow managed to drug you, or some other option, we can at least safely assume that a direct confrontation wasn't involved," Jade concluded.

Luke nodded his assent and then turned to Karin. "What about you? Do you know anything about it?"

"Well, contrary to what I told you back in Chesedonia, the first time I ever even saw you in person was right there when we first met. You know that it was Crocell who hired me, and it was Vistelise who was in charge of your kidnapping, so unfortunately I have no idea who was directly involved or how they went about it."

"Once again you've proven as useful as a solar-powered fon lantern," Jade deadpanned under his breath.

"Did you say something?"

"Who, me? Nothing at all."

Guy, who had overheard his original comment, rolled his eyes – something that did not escape Karin's notice and furthermore reinforced her belief that she'd been insulted.

"If you have something to say, then by all means say it loud enough for everyone to hear – don't keep that witty sense of humor of yours to yourself."

"Perhaps it is not my volume but your hearing that is at fault. You know, loss of hearing and auditory hallucinations are common symptoms of aging."

Karin stood up. "That's it."

"To violence already? And just when our repartee was getting interesting." He materialized his spear and twirled it playfully. "I'm a bit tired, but it shouldn't take long without your weapons…"

She growled low in response, realizing he was right but nevertheless having no intention of backing down.

"Stop it," Luke interrupted. "If you want someone to fight that badly, go find some monsters. Fighting amongst ourselves won't accomplish anything and will only leave us weaker for the battles ahead."

"Luke the peacekeeper?" Guy joked, "I never thought I'd see the day."

"It would certainly seem he becomes more lucid the more tired he is," Jade added, dispersing his spear back into his arm. "That in mind, perhaps we should all get some rest."

Tear, who had remained silent until then, spoke up at this. "Yes, I'm sure we're all very tired and we have a long trek tomorrow if we intend to keep ahead of our pursuers."

"Well, as one of the senior members of this little group, I suppose it's my responsibility to take first watch," Karin begrudgingly volunteered.

"And as a 'senior member' of this group who isn't a proven traitor, I suppose it's my responsibility to make sure you don't try anything while the rest are asleep."

The promise of sleep overwhelming, Luke gave up. "Fine, do whatever you want. Just try not to kill each other, okay?" He and Tear withdrew to their tent while Natalia and Guy set about pitching their own.

"Are you alright?" he asked quietly after zipping up the flap.

Tear retreated to their bedroll without looking back. "Fine, why?"

"You tell me. You seemed pretty angry back there."

"Well, I'm not," she replied curtly.

"Tear…" he pressed.

She sighed. "Just a little…agitated is all."

Luke had meanwhile slid under the covers alongside her. "What's wrong?" he asked concernedly.

Tear sighed and looked away. At her allowance, he gently ran his fingers through her hair. Again she sighed, this time with the acknowledgment that he wasn't prying but simply looking out for her. "It's going to sound foolish."

"No it's not."

"…You asked for it. I… After everything that's happened, we haven't had a moment's peace, and maybe five minutes there that we were able to talk, just the two of us. I don't know; I guess I wanted some time to ourselves, and with Guy, Natalia and especially Jade here now–"

"–It doesn't look very likely to happen for a while," Luke finished. "But we're here right now, just the two of us. What did you want to say?"

"It's not… If it'd happened it would've been spontaneous. There wasn't something in particular I wanted to talk about…" Tear rolled her eyes at the words that had escaped her mouth. "Now I'm sure I sound like an idiot."

Luke carefully slid the hand that had been brushing her hair underneath and around her so as to hug her. As he felt her tension dissipate, he whispered in her ear, "Not at all."

After several minutes enjoying his closeness, Tear began to shy away. "Luke?"

"Hm?" he responded, already only half-conscious.

"About the cabin…"

"I told you," he mumbled, "it's not your fault."

"It's not that."

Curiosity pried his eyelids open.

Tear took this as a sign to continue. "It's about what happened afterwards."

Luke frowned. He had hoped she would let him cope with his actions in silence. She would afford him no such luxury. "What about it?"

"It wasn't like you. It's like you were possessed…"

"It wasn't. I've tried not to let it show, but even up till then I still hated killing people. But I'm sure you knew anyway." He stopped to focus his memories, playing the blur of movements slowly and watching his own actions now as an impartial observer. "But, with them…" he sat upright and looked away, unable to meet her gaze. I enjoyed it.

She sat up as well, placing a reassuring hand on his back.

"But…I understand my reaction." Tear's hand shrunk back as he turned to face her once again. "It's yours I can't figure out."

Tear could only muster a curious look – she was lost in thoughts of the implications of such a drastic change in him, regardless of its temporariness.

"They never even hurt me, only made me watch, and that was my reaction…" Despite what weighed on her mind, Tear heard his next words clearly. "How could you want anything but blood after what they did to you?"

This she had an answer to, one which she was all too relieved to acknowledge. "I'm a soldier." She paused, letting the words settle her nerves. "From a logistical standpoint, I understand why they did what they did, and I'd have done the same thing roles reversed. Besides, I've been trained to withstand far worse than that."

"So…it didn't even hurt?" he asked in a mix of bewilderment and awe.

Of course it did! "No."

A slight nod was all the indication he gave that he'd even heard her response. After what felt like an eternity to Tear, he finally looked into her eyes once again. "I guess I understand, then…and of course I'm glad if it really didn't hurt…but…"

She arched an eyebrow, unsure where he was headed.

"But you're not a soldier anymore."

Tear fell back onto her pillow and let out an exhausted sigh. "Let's get some sleep."

"What? What's wrong?"

"Nothing. We'll have plenty of time to talk in the morning, and over the next few days, really." She replied, turning away as she did.

Luke lay back and stared at the ceiling. "Tear?"

"Yes, Luke?"

"I'm sorry."

"What are you apologizing for?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure I did something."

"Relax, I'm not angry. What I am is tired." A half-truth if there ever was one. Sure she was angry, but that was hardly the dominant emotion at the time.

Luke spoke softly, already half-asleep once again. "Whatever it is, I promise to fix it, okay?"

"Mmm."

"Just…like you said, there'll be plenty of time in the morning…"

"Mm-hmm."

"Goodnight, Tear…"

"Goodnight."

Karin, meanwhile, had long since retrieved both her guns and had been walking a tight perimeter around their campsite. Jade sat on the log that had already been established as a bench, watching her walk the repetitive course with an expression mixed of curiosity and knowing. After drinking his fill of the silence, he motioned for her to join him. With less resistance than their prior arguments would've led one to expect, she complied.

"You know, I've seen a lot of fighting in my time, but your tongue is sharper than any sword I've faced down," she complimented as she sat next to him.

"I could say the same for you." Jade paused to reflect. "How many years has it been?"

For a time, she didn't answer. Finally, she prompted a question of her own. "Your friends aren't very bright, are they?"

"What makes you say that?"

"All the fighting we were doing and it didn't occur to any of them to ask how we knew each other."

"And I suppose you wouldn't allow for the possibility that they were merely respecting our privacy?"

"They're children."

"In body, perhaps," he acquiesced, "but through their experiences they've aged and become wiser of the world than most men twice my age."

"High praise, coming from you."

"Incidentally, there's really no need to keep up this charade of us being embittered enemies – I'm sure you'll find both of them quite accepting. They're far too focused on the future to concern themselves with their own pasts, let alone something that happened lifetimes ago."

"First of all," she faced him with a glare, "there is no charade. Even if you haven't betrayed me yet, just having the capacity to is reason enough for me to consider you an enemy. Second, you and your friends have killed almost everyone else that knows. Even if you're right, why would I want to add to that number?"

"Well you certainly won't have to worry about me. So long as I don't consider you an enemy, I have no reason to tell anyone," Jade smiled.

She snorted in derision. "You'll recall I've been taken in by smiles like that before. I think I'll not soon forget what happened as a result."

"Yes; as we've already established, you're not the sort to let go of the past."

"Better to let myself be haunted than to run away like a coward, Jade Balfour." She spit the name venomously.

Jade continued his smiling. "Fair enough. Just bear in mind I owned up to everything back when I resumed my research. And, though it brings me no pleasure to admit it, I owe the courage it took to do so to those 'children,' one very much in particular."

Karin gave him a dubious look, and then burst out laughing. "You'll not sway me so easily, Colonel Curtiss…but good effort! You almost had me." She stood up, readjusted the rifle slung over her shoulder, and resumed her patrol.

After a few moments lingering, Jade rose and dusted himself off. "Since you don't seem to enjoy my company, I suppose I'll just retire early."

"Are you saying you trust me?"

"I'm saying that whatever your motives, there's one person in this group whom you would sooner die for than betray," he responded, walking away.

"Where do you think you're going?"

"To the only empty tent, of course." He didn't turn around, waving goodnight with the back of his hand, then lifted the flap and slipped inside.

"My tent…" Karin whimpered.

"Looks like Jade already gave up on taking first watch," Natalia whispered after peeking through their tent flap. "Do you think we should stay up to keep an eye on her?"

"Jade's not that old. If he's going to sleep now, it's got to mean he trusts her."

Natalia looked doubtful.

"Besides, if that weren't the case, you think he'd honestly have any problem barging in here and telling us to watch her ourselves?"

This she couldn't argue with. "I suppose you're right. Still, there's something about her that puts me ill at ease."

"Well, we'll have plenty of time to talk tomorrow, but if it makes you feel any better, her weapons… The only place she could've been trained to use them is the Order of Lorelei."

"Really?"

"On the other hand…she's either an exceptional thief or she knows someone who is, because she could've been Ion's best friend and they still wouldn't have let her leave with those guns.

They both mulled over this in silence for a moment. "I think I'll keep our money under my pillow," Natalia decided.

"Good idea."

After doing just that, Natalia slid into her side of the bedroll with a sigh. "I can't wait to get back home…we've been going non-stop for a long time now."

Guy lay down next to her. "I hate to tell you, but I doubt we'll be seeing Baticul for a while yet. With the Original Order gathering presumably in the Zao Desert, going south isn't an option, and they'll be expecting us in Chesedonia, and I'm sure they'll be especially watchful of the docks." He sighed in exasperation, feeling the length of the journey ahead before he even began describing it. "That means we'll be headed over the Rotelro Bridge, across the Rugnika Plains, and through Theor Forest before we get to Grand Chokmah, which with Chesedonia barred, is the nearest city with a port."

"I wish we still had the Albiore…or at least a strong and handsome knight to carry me on his back."

Guy rolled his eyes. "Keep looking."

"You're no fun," she pouted.

He shifted closer to her. "I'll tell you what, though: if you get really tired, and I'm not exhausted myself…"

"Ooh! I was only kidding, but I'll be sure to take you up on it if you're offering."

"Only for a little while though. I won't be effective in combat if my muscles are strained."

Natalia frowned. "What exactly are you implying?"

"Implying? ...N-nothing! I wasn't implying anything! I, um, was simply saying that, although I would hate to be forced into such a decision, I would much rather see those beautiful legs of yours aching with exhaustion than see you come to harm."

Natalia smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "Nice save."

"The credit goes to you – after all, it was your dazzling radiance that inspired me."

"Alright, enough's enough. You'll have plenty of time to shower me with compliments after we're done."

Guy barely had enough time to ask "Done?" before she answered without a word.

Feh, don't give me that look. It was simply the end result of a natural progression of events, and I decided to keep it since I felt like I didn't really deliver too much GuyxNatalia material in Verse 11. This may be my last update for a while, as I need to seriously sit down and hammer out where I intend to take the plot from here, and the time-devouring beast known as college will rise from its three-month slumber once again and make writing on a regular basis immeasurably more difficult.

Oh, and while I would have loved to have had more to submit, my aforementioned sad life means this will have to suffice as a celebratory gift for the guys and gals at the Luke fon Fabre x Tear Grants Fanclub over on the Tales Series forum for reaching our 300th page! W00ts all around!