~~~Part 3~~~
The next morning, Freya woke up to the achingly familiar feeling of two powerful arms holding her. She snuggled up against her lover, and freed her arms from his grip to hold him herself, still at least half-asleep.
"Mmm, good morning Fratley," she murmured when he stirred slightly.
"Wrong lover," came the voice from slightly above her head, the teasing tone of Amarant's voice not quite concealing the sting of his wounded pride.
"Oh - I'm sorry," Freya said quickly, burying her face against his shoulder as she blushed brightly.
"Relax," Amarant chuckled, rubbing her back through her dress. "I could probably take a little deflating once in awhile."
"I just - I wasn't awake, I don't know what I was thinking," she groaned. "I'm sorry."
"Well, at least you didn't hit me when you realized I wasn't him," he said with a grin, shifting her head back and raising her chin so he could kiss her, teasing at her lips with his tongue as her jaws parted slightly, eagerly welcoming him into her mouth.
"I wouldn't have done that," she said as their lips parted, smiling softly at him. "Amarant - no regrets about yesterday?"
"None," he said sincerely, running his hands along her body as she shivered at his touch. "You?"
"Not as long as it happens again," she said, smiling at him shyly as he smirked slightly.
"Sometime soon," he asked, rubbing her back gently as she pressed against him.
"Mmm.very soon," she murmured playfully, nuzzling his neck.
"Maybe a nice light breakfast," he chuckled, slipping his hand under the sheets between them to run his fingers through the fur of her thighs.
"I know I have an appetizer in mind," she smirked, starting to loosen his belt. Suddenly, the door to the room started to open. She turned to look at the door with an expression verging on panic as Amarant rolled back off the bed, out of sight. Zidane's head popped in, and he looked to
"Hey, Freya, we're almost.to.Daguerro." Zidane looked at her quizzically. "Something wrong?"
"No, Zidane," she said, shaking her head slowly. "Nothing's wrong. How're you holding up after that dragon yesterday?"
"Ah, I'll be fine," the young thief said cockily, thumping his chest. "Take more than that to drop me." Freya rolled her eyes, turning over in bed.
"Well, go pick up the supplies you want and we'll get back to the training sessions," she said, faking a yawn.
"Actually, I think we're ready to hit the shrines after this. Might want to get ready - won't take long before we're on our way."
"Fine, I'll be up in a little while. Now, care to leave, or are you going to try and explain to Dagger why you watched me getting dressed?"
"Uhm, right," Zidane said quickly, the door closing behind him as Freya chuckled slightly, looking over at the side of the bed Amarant had fallen off of. A low moan came from the floor, and she frowned slightly.
"Are you okay, Amarant?"
"Remind me why I saved his life yesterday," he asked, rubbing his head where he'd hit the nightstand.
"Because we need him to help save the world?"
"At this rate, I'm reconsidering where I stand on that," the tall fighter groused, getting to his feet.
"Guess we'll have to have a regular meal," Freya said, pouting slightly. Amarant climbed onto the bed next to her, throwing the sheets back.
"Maybe," he smirked, "but I think a quick snack first wouldn't be out of line."
~~~===~~~
"Why do I have to go with her?" Zidane had just told Amarant and Freya that they'd be going into the Fire Shrine. They must have expected it ahead of time - he found the two of them practicing in the sweltering heat of the engine room, obviously preparing for any trouble they'd run into in the volcano. Which, really, was why Zidane was surprised by Amarant's protests. But it wasn't time to argue about that - they still had to get to the other shrines - and, frankly, the young thief wasn't too crazy about what he saw shaping up for the teams.
"Oh, I'm sorry," he answered flippantly, "would you have rather gone with Eiko?" Amarant just grunted, leaning back against the wall to sulk as Zidane walked out of the engine room. As soon as the door closed, Amarant felt a hand close on the collar of his vest, and Freya dragged him over in front of her face.
"What the hell was that about," she hissed, and he could sense the seething anger that she was barely controlling.
"Don't need to be distracted if there's anything down there," he said, calmly bringing his hand up to dislodge her grip on his collar. "What's bothering you about it?" She stared at him for a moment, not entirely sure where to start. Amarant shrugged and walked down to the port they'd jump into the shrine from. A moment passed, and Freya started to follow him.
"Just tell me one thing," she said when she caught up with him.
"What?"
"What happened to the man I was with this morning," she asked shaking her head slightly to shake off some of the sweat in her fur.
"We've got a job to do. Do you *really* think that the guy you were with this morning could handle it? He cares too damned much - this is what I'm like when I've got a job to do. If you don't like it, deal." The pain that flashed across Freya's face at the cold, careless tone in his voice was obvious to him, even through the shell he'd put up, and he considered trying to drop the act for a moment, his discipline faltering. She shouldered her spear and started back down through the ship - this time, Amarant was the one hurrying to catch her.
"Freya, I -"
"Shove it, Amarant," she said coldly. The difference between her cold and his, though, was that he knew hers was his fault. "If you don't think you can do your job without turning into the loser who's on the top of every bounty hunter's hit list, then fine. I can do it too - I'm sure we'll get out of this alive, and with what we need in the process. After all - that's how you've worked for years, isn't it? Just keep looking to the next fight?"
"Something like that," he said, putting his shell back up and following her to the drop point -honestly regretting what he'd become for the first time in his life.
~~~===~~~
"I expected more traps," Freya said, crouching near the entrance of the Fire Shrine.
"Wait for them," Amarant said, peering into the tunnel, the stones glowing red with the heat from the volcano. "You just can't see them from here."
"So where's the first one?"
"First things first - I'm sorry." Freya looked at him sharply, registering a moment of shock before her expression hardened again.
"You sure as hell should be. We'll talk when we get back to the ship," she said quietly, trying to keep up the anger that she'd felt on the ship. Why did he have to apologize? Well, not something to deal with now. "So, where's the first one you see?"
"Weight sensitive steps, about three blocks down. Probably set off flame jets when you hit it. Of course, if you set it off ahead of time," he trailed off, grabbing a piece of obsidian knocked off by the airship on the way down, "you don't have to deal with it after that," he finished, tossing the rock onto the steps he'd noticed. Suddenly, the opening behind them slammed shut.
"Or, of course," he said with a resigned sigh, not even looking back at the solid rock wall that had fallen behind them, "it could lock us in." Freya looked back in disbelief.
"I take it back," she grumbled, "I think I prefer working with you when you're being cold-hearted enough that you don't do things like that." She looked at the door, trying to find some sort of crack or opening. He looked at the floor, his eyes growing wide as he realized what was happening.
"Not now, Freya, we've got bigger problems," he said quickly, grabbing her arms and twisting her around so she could see the slowly rising lava seeping up through the floor.
"Shit - we've got to get out of here!"
"Only exit's on the other side - climb onto my back, and stay low." She did as he said, trusting that he knew what he was doing. She could feel the sweat dripping off of her fur as the room became even hotter somehow, but she noticed that his skin was perfectly dry.
"How can you handle this heat," she asked.
"Worry about that later," he said simply, before starting to run for the other end, praying that the lava level didn't rise any faster than it already was. He jumped over a low plume of flame, trying to adjust for Freya's added weight, and the awkwardness of carrying her. He could smell the soles of his boots burning as he ducked another gout of flame, Freya shouting something incomprehensible as he zoned out the noise around him, focusing on the exit on the other end of the tunnel - an exit that was shrinking at an alarming rate as the tunnel sank.
"Jump," he shouted, pausing on a dry rock and shifting his hands under her bare feet to give her something to push off of. Her powerful legs flexed, launching her through the air towards the opening. She caught the edge of the other floor with her hands, spinning around quickly as Amarant started running again, holding her hand out for him as he lunged towards her, grabbing hold as she started pulling him out. Just as he scrambled out of the tunnel, lava filled the bottom of it. As they watched, catching their breath, it slowly rose again, the weight re-settling.
"That was too easy," Freya joked. "It must have been disappointing for you." Amarant looked at her like he couldn't decide if she was crazy, or joking.
"Now," she continued, pulling the polished red metal disc out of a deep pocket of her dress, "I'll just put the mirror here.." She approached the altar, as Amarant watched, still not trusting how easy it looked. He noticed something moving by the ceiling.
"Freya, stand back," he shouted, slipping his claws on. She looked up, jumping back with a startled cry just as a snake-like figure hit the ground where she'd been standing. It drew itself up, revealing the flaming red length of its body as the six arms of its nearly human torso flexed. Freya felt a chill run down her spine as an ancient memory came to her, out of some primal part of her mind, telling her to run as fast and far as she could. She stayed her ground, though, and drew her spear as she watched Maliris, the Fire Guardian, moving between them and the altar.
"It's just as Kuja said," it hissed cheerfully. "He said I should expect intruders.."
The next morning, Freya woke up to the achingly familiar feeling of two powerful arms holding her. She snuggled up against her lover, and freed her arms from his grip to hold him herself, still at least half-asleep.
"Mmm, good morning Fratley," she murmured when he stirred slightly.
"Wrong lover," came the voice from slightly above her head, the teasing tone of Amarant's voice not quite concealing the sting of his wounded pride.
"Oh - I'm sorry," Freya said quickly, burying her face against his shoulder as she blushed brightly.
"Relax," Amarant chuckled, rubbing her back through her dress. "I could probably take a little deflating once in awhile."
"I just - I wasn't awake, I don't know what I was thinking," she groaned. "I'm sorry."
"Well, at least you didn't hit me when you realized I wasn't him," he said with a grin, shifting her head back and raising her chin so he could kiss her, teasing at her lips with his tongue as her jaws parted slightly, eagerly welcoming him into her mouth.
"I wouldn't have done that," she said as their lips parted, smiling softly at him. "Amarant - no regrets about yesterday?"
"None," he said sincerely, running his hands along her body as she shivered at his touch. "You?"
"Not as long as it happens again," she said, smiling at him shyly as he smirked slightly.
"Sometime soon," he asked, rubbing her back gently as she pressed against him.
"Mmm.very soon," she murmured playfully, nuzzling his neck.
"Maybe a nice light breakfast," he chuckled, slipping his hand under the sheets between them to run his fingers through the fur of her thighs.
"I know I have an appetizer in mind," she smirked, starting to loosen his belt. Suddenly, the door to the room started to open. She turned to look at the door with an expression verging on panic as Amarant rolled back off the bed, out of sight. Zidane's head popped in, and he looked to
"Hey, Freya, we're almost.to.Daguerro." Zidane looked at her quizzically. "Something wrong?"
"No, Zidane," she said, shaking her head slowly. "Nothing's wrong. How're you holding up after that dragon yesterday?"
"Ah, I'll be fine," the young thief said cockily, thumping his chest. "Take more than that to drop me." Freya rolled her eyes, turning over in bed.
"Well, go pick up the supplies you want and we'll get back to the training sessions," she said, faking a yawn.
"Actually, I think we're ready to hit the shrines after this. Might want to get ready - won't take long before we're on our way."
"Fine, I'll be up in a little while. Now, care to leave, or are you going to try and explain to Dagger why you watched me getting dressed?"
"Uhm, right," Zidane said quickly, the door closing behind him as Freya chuckled slightly, looking over at the side of the bed Amarant had fallen off of. A low moan came from the floor, and she frowned slightly.
"Are you okay, Amarant?"
"Remind me why I saved his life yesterday," he asked, rubbing his head where he'd hit the nightstand.
"Because we need him to help save the world?"
"At this rate, I'm reconsidering where I stand on that," the tall fighter groused, getting to his feet.
"Guess we'll have to have a regular meal," Freya said, pouting slightly. Amarant climbed onto the bed next to her, throwing the sheets back.
"Maybe," he smirked, "but I think a quick snack first wouldn't be out of line."
~~~===~~~
"Why do I have to go with her?" Zidane had just told Amarant and Freya that they'd be going into the Fire Shrine. They must have expected it ahead of time - he found the two of them practicing in the sweltering heat of the engine room, obviously preparing for any trouble they'd run into in the volcano. Which, really, was why Zidane was surprised by Amarant's protests. But it wasn't time to argue about that - they still had to get to the other shrines - and, frankly, the young thief wasn't too crazy about what he saw shaping up for the teams.
"Oh, I'm sorry," he answered flippantly, "would you have rather gone with Eiko?" Amarant just grunted, leaning back against the wall to sulk as Zidane walked out of the engine room. As soon as the door closed, Amarant felt a hand close on the collar of his vest, and Freya dragged him over in front of her face.
"What the hell was that about," she hissed, and he could sense the seething anger that she was barely controlling.
"Don't need to be distracted if there's anything down there," he said, calmly bringing his hand up to dislodge her grip on his collar. "What's bothering you about it?" She stared at him for a moment, not entirely sure where to start. Amarant shrugged and walked down to the port they'd jump into the shrine from. A moment passed, and Freya started to follow him.
"Just tell me one thing," she said when she caught up with him.
"What?"
"What happened to the man I was with this morning," she asked shaking her head slightly to shake off some of the sweat in her fur.
"We've got a job to do. Do you *really* think that the guy you were with this morning could handle it? He cares too damned much - this is what I'm like when I've got a job to do. If you don't like it, deal." The pain that flashed across Freya's face at the cold, careless tone in his voice was obvious to him, even through the shell he'd put up, and he considered trying to drop the act for a moment, his discipline faltering. She shouldered her spear and started back down through the ship - this time, Amarant was the one hurrying to catch her.
"Freya, I -"
"Shove it, Amarant," she said coldly. The difference between her cold and his, though, was that he knew hers was his fault. "If you don't think you can do your job without turning into the loser who's on the top of every bounty hunter's hit list, then fine. I can do it too - I'm sure we'll get out of this alive, and with what we need in the process. After all - that's how you've worked for years, isn't it? Just keep looking to the next fight?"
"Something like that," he said, putting his shell back up and following her to the drop point -honestly regretting what he'd become for the first time in his life.
~~~===~~~
"I expected more traps," Freya said, crouching near the entrance of the Fire Shrine.
"Wait for them," Amarant said, peering into the tunnel, the stones glowing red with the heat from the volcano. "You just can't see them from here."
"So where's the first one?"
"First things first - I'm sorry." Freya looked at him sharply, registering a moment of shock before her expression hardened again.
"You sure as hell should be. We'll talk when we get back to the ship," she said quietly, trying to keep up the anger that she'd felt on the ship. Why did he have to apologize? Well, not something to deal with now. "So, where's the first one you see?"
"Weight sensitive steps, about three blocks down. Probably set off flame jets when you hit it. Of course, if you set it off ahead of time," he trailed off, grabbing a piece of obsidian knocked off by the airship on the way down, "you don't have to deal with it after that," he finished, tossing the rock onto the steps he'd noticed. Suddenly, the opening behind them slammed shut.
"Or, of course," he said with a resigned sigh, not even looking back at the solid rock wall that had fallen behind them, "it could lock us in." Freya looked back in disbelief.
"I take it back," she grumbled, "I think I prefer working with you when you're being cold-hearted enough that you don't do things like that." She looked at the door, trying to find some sort of crack or opening. He looked at the floor, his eyes growing wide as he realized what was happening.
"Not now, Freya, we've got bigger problems," he said quickly, grabbing her arms and twisting her around so she could see the slowly rising lava seeping up through the floor.
"Shit - we've got to get out of here!"
"Only exit's on the other side - climb onto my back, and stay low." She did as he said, trusting that he knew what he was doing. She could feel the sweat dripping off of her fur as the room became even hotter somehow, but she noticed that his skin was perfectly dry.
"How can you handle this heat," she asked.
"Worry about that later," he said simply, before starting to run for the other end, praying that the lava level didn't rise any faster than it already was. He jumped over a low plume of flame, trying to adjust for Freya's added weight, and the awkwardness of carrying her. He could smell the soles of his boots burning as he ducked another gout of flame, Freya shouting something incomprehensible as he zoned out the noise around him, focusing on the exit on the other end of the tunnel - an exit that was shrinking at an alarming rate as the tunnel sank.
"Jump," he shouted, pausing on a dry rock and shifting his hands under her bare feet to give her something to push off of. Her powerful legs flexed, launching her through the air towards the opening. She caught the edge of the other floor with her hands, spinning around quickly as Amarant started running again, holding her hand out for him as he lunged towards her, grabbing hold as she started pulling him out. Just as he scrambled out of the tunnel, lava filled the bottom of it. As they watched, catching their breath, it slowly rose again, the weight re-settling.
"That was too easy," Freya joked. "It must have been disappointing for you." Amarant looked at her like he couldn't decide if she was crazy, or joking.
"Now," she continued, pulling the polished red metal disc out of a deep pocket of her dress, "I'll just put the mirror here.." She approached the altar, as Amarant watched, still not trusting how easy it looked. He noticed something moving by the ceiling.
"Freya, stand back," he shouted, slipping his claws on. She looked up, jumping back with a startled cry just as a snake-like figure hit the ground where she'd been standing. It drew itself up, revealing the flaming red length of its body as the six arms of its nearly human torso flexed. Freya felt a chill run down her spine as an ancient memory came to her, out of some primal part of her mind, telling her to run as fast and far as she could. She stayed her ground, though, and drew her spear as she watched Maliris, the Fire Guardian, moving between them and the altar.
"It's just as Kuja said," it hissed cheerfully. "He said I should expect intruders.."