A/N: This is a remake of an older fic of mine with the same title. I'm leaving the older one up for archival purposes, but also for myself and others to see how much I have grown as an author. If you want to check it out, it should be the fic above this one. DISCLAIMER: I am not endorsing looking at the old version. It's trash.


The sound of the rain only got louder as Yuri descended the stairs of the echoey inn. Estelle was already asleep, all that was left to do was check the other members of his party in for some well-deserved rest. Some drops of water somehow hit him from the balcony to his right as he reached the first floor. He paused just a moment to look out at the gloomy twilight. It felt like ever since the party set foot on Tolbyccia it was raining, and not due to a modified blastia this time. The dreary weather only made him more tired.

He was definitely still sore from the ruins' collapse in Caer Bocram, even though Estelle had patched up all their wounds pretty well. But he was truly more exhausted from this millionth questioning by the knights. Even more so from listening to Adecors voice done on and on about things he was pretty sure he had already served time for. How many more times was he going to be charged with second-degree assault for pushing a tax-collecting knight into the sewer stream anyway? He played it cool when they two challenged him to a fight afterward but in reality, he barely made it through it. At least they weren't tough.

The other members of his party, Karol, Rita, and Repede, were by the check-in counter. Yuri made his way over to them with a wave.

"Ugh, I'm beat. I never want to do anything illegal ever again," Karol groaned, slouching over.

"Says the kid that broke into my house," Rita snarked half-heartedly.

"Oh Yuri, welcome back," Karol greeted, visibly trying his best to ignore Rita, "did you see Estelle?"

"No, she was already passed out. Looks like you two are about to keel over too," he replied.

"I'm so ready for a bed," Karol sighed.

Yuri had pulled out his wallet to pay for their rooms for the night, and in a flash of red and black, it was swiped from his hand. He raised an eyebrow at Rita, who was holding the tattered leather away from him with a glare.

"Oh no you don't. Did you really forget what I had said to you back in Torim?" she asked, "the next time we stay at an inn, you get to sleep outside with the dog!"

"Rita, come on, you're still mad about that?" Karol asked, "let him pay, so I can lay down and sleep for three years."

"I am NOT getting woken up in the middle of the night again because someone has a bounty. Especially not into the rain like this," the mage huffed, crossing her arms.

Yuri sighed and shrugged. He had learned quickly the mage was headstrong and stubborn, even more than he could be. There wasn't going to be much point in fighting her. "Fine, whatever,"

In honesty, it didn't bother him that much. He'd slept outside in all sorts of weather conditions before. When you grow up with only 5 Gald to your name, you get used to a lot of less than ideal things and situations. He stuck around long enough to make sure Karol and Rita were able to get checked in before heading to the exit.

Luckily for him, the inn had a bench for guests under the awning. It was better than laying on the stone underfoot, that's for sure. Just as he took his seat, Repede had come trotting up to him. His master idly scratched behind his ears, causing him to let out a big yawn.

"I guess I'm hanging out with you tonight, buddy," he said. When Repede looked at him as if asking why, Yuri rolled his eyes. "I got kicked out by a very scary person. Watch your back around her, Repede."

Repede let out a whine before curling up at Yuri's feet. "Yeah, you're right, it's not as fun when she's not around to hear it," The swordsman leaned back and closed his eyes. The sound of the rain falling was the perfect lullaby. All the events from the day left his mind and he was able to quickly fall asleep.


Yuri wasn't sure what had stirred him from his slumber, but now that he was conscious, the sound of someone approaching forced him to open his eyes. Moving silently, he gripped the hilt of his sword, ready to defend himself if necessary. He held still, pretending to still be asleep as he waited for the mystery person to get close enough.

"It isn't nice to sneak up on someone while they're sleeping," Yuri said aloud, holding his position.

The footsteps came to a sudden halt. Yuri had looked up and blinked in mild surprise. It was dark out, even darker with the rainclouds still blocking the moon, but the glow of the barrier blastia in the middle of town provided enough light for him to see. It wasn't another knight after his bounty like he had thought. Instead…

"...Rita?" Yuri asked, "what are you doing out here?"

Clearly embarrassed that she was caught, Rita coughed into her fist and shifted her weight. "What are you still doing awake? Don't you know what time it is?"

"I could ask you the same,"

Rita let out an annoyed huff but stayed silent. Like she didn't think her own question through. It was a trait Yuri picked up on, that when challenging her in return, she often didn't have a rebuttal outside of telling the other party to shut it. If he was going to be honest with himself, it was kind of cute.

His eyes dropped to the sizeable bundle of cloth in her arms. "What'cha got there?"

"…ket…" Rita grumbled.

"A what? Didn't hear you," Yuri lied. He had understood her just fine. An opportunity to push her buttons had arisen and he had felt like taking it. Why not? She had banished him to the outside after all. Not to mention it was just plain fun.

With a groan, Rita shook out the blanket in her arms, holding it up in front of her body and face.

"It's a blanket," she repeated louder, "it's for you."

Yuri grinned. "Aww, well that's sweet of you, Rita. Thanks,"

The mage balled it up again, a shade of red that matched her tunic across her cheeks. "Don't think about it too hard. I only felt a little bad for you, and I definitely wasn't losing any sleep over it."

Yuri rolled his eyes but kept the grin. Yeah, she was getting easier to figure out the more they traveled together. He watched her for a moment, feeling the minutes slowly tick by along with the gentle rainfall.

"...Soooo, are you just teasing me with that? Or are you going to give it to me?" he asked after another long minute.

Rita shuffled in place, like she was trying to decide what she was going to do. Eventually, she took a deep breath and moved to plop down on the bench next to him. In a quick motion, she spread the blanket over the two of them. It was larger than Yuri had thought and covered them more than well enough.

"What are you doing?" the swordsman asked, raising an eyebrow.

"This is my blanket, and I'm going to use it," Rita replied. She readjusted herself to get comfortable before tugging the blanket around her shoulders.

Again, fighting it was only going to prove fruitless. She definitely was a strange one. Yuri readjusted as well, shifting into a more comfortable position. Or as best he could manage without disturbing Rita too much. The last thing he wanted was to elbow her or something by accident and get a fireball to the face.

The worst part was how warm she was. He didn't even realize he was that cold until she threw the blanket on and curled up next to him. It was selfish, and it wasn't completely something he wanted to admit to himself, but he didn't want her to leave. The feeling of the young mage next to him tremble took him out of his own thoughts.

"Are you okay?" he asked after the second shiver moved a chunk of the blanket off of him.

"It's colder than I thought out here," Rita mumbled.

She curled herself up so her whole body was up on the bench. In doing so, she had moved away from him leaving his side cold and uncomfortable. But Yuri really didn't feel like going back to an uncomfortable state tonight. Without a word, he moved his arm out from the comforter and slid it around Rita's shoulders. She let out a squeak of surprise before he pulled her in close against him. Not too quickly or tight to avoid hurting her of course.

"Wh-what are- Let go!" Rita cried, pushing against him. Very lightly, Yuri noted. Like she wasn't completely trying to free herself.

"You said you were cold. Sharing heat helps with that," he said simply.

"Oh, you are insufferable! I should have never come out here," Rita growled.

"And yet you're still here,"

He glanced over at the mage in his arm with a smirk. She glared up at him with fire in her emerald eyes. For a moment, he feared he had gone too far and she would take her leave. She had moved to sit up and it seemed he would be left alone and cold for the night.

And then, she laid her head back down on his chest and huffed. "...You are so annoying,"

Yuri's smirk turned into a grin and he reached up with the arm around her to ruffle her hair a little. It wasn't long before the cold from the day-long drizzle had left. The longer they stayed there, the more he felt a new warmth rise in his chest and face. He squeezed Rita a little tighter–a little closer–with no complaint from the girl.

When they had first met and he had pointed a sword in her face, he was too angry to do anything but be suspicious of her. But he had seen her drop her guard a few times on their journey since, and every time she did, he could see the kind person she really was. Even her more prickly defenses were growing on him. He would find himself going out of his way to tease her specifically to bring out some of that strangely endearing fake rage.

Yuri glanced back down at her in his arm. Her breathing had slowed down and he could no longer feel the weak shaking from her pounding heart. Realizing she was asleep, a sudden overwhelming urge came over him. Maybe it was the cold, the exhaustion, or even his newfound comfort that brought it on. Whatever was driving him, Yuri needed to do this. He bent down and gave her forehead a light kiss. She didn't react, and he could feel relief washing over him. He'd rather not end up as barbecue. As much as he wanted to leave just one more, he didn't feel like pushing his luck any further tonight, so he leaned his head back and closed his eyes to sleep.

Before he drifted off, one final thought bounced around in his brain: Yeah. She was most definitely cute.