No reviews again? I'm losing faith in you guys... But thanks to whoever it was who added this to their alert list. Sorry, I can't quite remember the name, but thanks, anyway!

More Vossler feuding with Balthier in this chapter, because I find it funny. And Penelo's thoughts are somehow twice as long as Basch's...


Party

706 OV, 8 days after Ashe's kidnapping

Vossler found no joy in Ashe's choice of travelling companions. This much was obvious – he would never speak to them unless they spoke to him first, and, whenever they camped, would always sit slightly away from the group. He was ever at a distance, but, just as they never got to know what he thought of them, he never got to know what they thought of him.

Vaan did not like Vossler. Ever since he had first met 'Captain Azelas' on that errand for Old Dalan, he had taken an instant dislike of the former knight. Having only Basch to go by, the street rat had never thought the 'honourable Knights of the Order' could be so cold. From the moment that Vossler had snatched the old sword out of his grubby hands, Vaan had sided with Basch, a testament to just how little the thief thought of him.

To Balthier, Vossler was a source of great amusement. It was not long after their acquaintance that he had found an almost guaranteed strategy to get a rise out of him: simply refer to the princess in a slightly less that respectful way. It helped if the comment was the tiniest bit lewd, too. Near on every time, the captain would glare at him in a less than friendly way, his hatred for the sky pirate growing. It was a dangerous game, considering how much that sword would hurt when he finally snapped, but it was a game Balthier thought well worth playing. After all, with the greatest risks came the greatest rewards.

Out of all the men and women in Ashe's travelling party, the viera Fran was probably the closest in personality to Vossler. Both talked little, and generally kept themselves to themselves, save when alone with their given partners. Fran had long since grown tired of Balthier's games, and always gave Vossler an apologetic glance when her partner got out of hand. Though she suspected he still hated all sky pirates for their lack of morals, she, unlike Vaan or Balthier, did not hold this innate dislike against him. Unlike them, she knew that the only way to gain his respect was to give him respect in turn.

She had oft explained this to Balthier, when Vossler had taken himself off on the first watch after yet another salacious comment about the princess, but it seemed her wisdom was lost on him. At times like these, she would simply shake her head, and remember that not everyone in this world could get along.

Basch and Vossler were once close friends, but, understandably, a great distance was put between them after the alleged king-slaying. Basch still trusted Vossler, with both his life and Ashe's, though he knew his former friend was yet wary of him. But he understood why, and respected Vossler's devotion to Ashe and her cause for these past two years. He did not know why he had remained true for so long, when all the other knights that remained after Nalbina had long since fled the country, but it was enough for him to place his trust in Vossler, and hope that, in time, Vossler would come to do the same to him.

And Penelo, ever cheery and pleasant, had nothing but mixed feelings about the knight captain who had recently joined their band of travellers. On the one hand, she respected him as a soldier would his superior; that's what she got for having three older brothers that had all served under him at some point. They would say he was a good captain – tough, but not too tough, and he seemed to care about his men.

Sometimes she saw that side of him, but, for whatever reason, it was a rare occurrence. It wasn't that he was mean to her. Quite the contrary. He was always polite when she talked to him, and he even took the pains to compliment her on her cooking every time her turn came. Even though she knew he would spend most of the night in the bushes, emptying his bowels of whatever meal she had made, she was grateful that he didn't complain as Balthier and Vaan did.

The only problem she had with him was that he was too much of a closed book. He never spoke about himself – the complete antithesis of Balthier, who talked about himself at every possible opportunity – and he was just too much of a soldier. The only time he ever seemed to remove the metaphorical rod up his backside was when he was alone with Ashe. That was the Vossler Penelo wanted to get to know.

Ashe, of course, knew all this. Balthier delighted in telling her of the party's (by which he meant himself and, to a lesser extent, Vaan) disdain for Vossler. On the other side, Vossler would often extol the virtues of leaving the cocky little pain-in-the-backside behind. She had given up trying to make peace between them a long time ago.

As long as Vossler had not run Balthier through with his sword by the end of the pirate's travels with them, she would consider her efforts a success. A small goal, though one that was getting less and less likely to become reality, as the two men glared at each other across the camp fire, the women at their sides exchanging sympathetic looks.