So I wrote this in about a day. After I explained how busy I was. To be fair, this was my last free weekend until Christmas break.

This chapter is dedicated to grandshadowseal, because I laughed a little at your review. In truth, this entire idea was inspired by that scene. So I finally put it to paper. Sort of.

I was 1500 words in before I was finished describing the battle with the Demon Walls and the i really just didn't wan't to write the entire tomb. So yeah. This.

As the light of dawn touched the Sandsea, Vaan, Penelo, and Fran were packing away what they could of the campsite. As the early-risers of the group they'd taken on the job from the beginning. This particular morning was more significant than the others, Vaan thought as he watched Penelo rouse the rest of the group. Today, they ventured into Raithwall's Tomb.

Toward Raithwall's treasure.

Toward the Dawn Shard.

Toward Ashe's birthright.

Toward Vaan's only hope of being able to touch R again.

He had to admit he was excited. If he managed to liberate some gil or valuables while he was there then that was just a bonus.

He sat back and waited for the rest to pack up and get ready to enter the tomb. Vossler's armor took forever. When they were finally prepared, they all ascended the steps.

Ashe stopped halfway up and they all stopped with her. "Long ago, the gods granted their favor to King Raithwall… who would oversee the subjugation of a territory spanning from Ordalia to Valendia. Here he forged the Galtean Alliance. Though he is called the Dynast-King… upon establishing the Alliance, he demonstrated compassion for his people, and disdain for needless war. A philosophy passed on to his successors. One that would bring peace and prosperity for hundreds of years to follow. It was during this time of peace that the city-states of Archadia and Rozarria, each members of Raithwall's Alliance, took root and flourished. Raithwall left three relics signifying descent from the Dynast-King. Of these, the Midlight Shard was given to what would become House Nabradia…" Here, R turned away from her monologue to look at the entrance of the tomb. "And the Dusk Shard to my ancestors, the founders of Dalmasca. The last of these relics was the Dawn Shard. It remained hidden here, known only to those of royal blood."

Vossler added, "As though the Dynast-King foresaw the very plight before us now."

Ashe spoke as if she hadn't heard him. "None save descendants of the King are suffered within. If we attempt to enter without proof of such lineage-"

"There's no guarantee we'll make it out alive." Balthier interrupted from behind her. "Vicious beasts. Fiendish traps. Something like that?" He spoke as if such things were commonplace. They likely were for a wanted sky pirate.

Ashe nodded. "But you must consider the prize. The Dawn Shard lies within. And Raithwall's treasure."

Balthier stepped up beside her. "And here was I thinking this was going to be hard!"

Vaan shot R a look as they all continued up the stairs after the history lesson but the ghost was pointedly looking elsewhere.

At the top of the stairs there was an absolutely ancient looking thing. Vaan wasn't sure what to call it. It didn't look mechanical. It didn't look overly magickal but he supposed it probably was. He had absolutely no idea what it did. He did notice the teleport crystal, which he touched, and the lack of a door. "How do we get in?"

Fran spoke up from near the ancient thing. "Magics stir within the device."

Ashe stepped forward with her hand already outstretched. The moment her skin touched the device an intricate glowing pattern appeared under their feet and they all vanished.

Vaan was not expecting to appear in large open room with two of the devices and a bridge leading to the only door in the room. The only lights in the room were magick torches but it was extremely well lit. "What was that thing?" he muttered. He was asking R but apparently Balthier was close enough to hear him and answered instead.

"A contraption you'd find in all but the most rudimentary ancient ruin. One touch, and off you're whisked to you know not where. The finer points of their operation elude me, but they're handy all the same. What more need a sky pirate know?" They all headed further into the room leaving Vaan and Penelo next to the device.

He wandered over to the other device and Penelo followed. He reached out to touch it and wasn't surprised when nothing happened. It was if he could feel where the magick was supposed to be. "I didn't realize earlier but that device felt… charged, almost?" He pondered. "Why isn't this one active like the other one?"

Penelo also reached out to touch it. She touched various parts, as if she were inspecting it. "I wonder how they're made. I've never seen one."

R was floating beside the two teens that were as interested in magick as he had been as a teen. "They're enchanted. A lost discipline from when magick wasn't as common as it is today."

"Keep up, you two." Vaan lingered for a moment with the device before he caught up to the others. They'd just started across the bridge when there was a grinding noise behind them. The gigantic stone-carved figure of a demon was moving and bringing the wall with it! It had lethal claws dragging it forward and twin swords.

R was floating around it. "This is interesting. I've never seen this happen before." He paused. "Then again I have…" He trailed off.

Vaan was just about ignoring the ghost's nonsensical chatter as he cast Slow to give them more time. He saw the wall or statue or demon or whatever it was cast blind on Ashe and hurried to cast Blindna and then Reflect on her. He proceeded to cast Protect on the close-range fighters, Basch and Vossler, and then proceeded to cast Reflect on everybody. "Fight or run, we better decide fast!"

Basch put forward his vote. "There's no telling what's on the other side of the door. If we run and it's another one of these, we're trapped!"

Nobody argued with him.

Vaan felt helpless. He wasn't of any use in the fight. His dagger didn't allow him to get close enough to score any hits without taking some major hits himself. When reflect wore off, he cast Shell on everyone so that he'd actually be able to heal them and just used White Magick to fix whatever the Demon Wall cast at them. After the first time healing Fran, she requested that he wait to cast Protect or heal her until she asked for it. He thought she was ridiculous but obeyed.

Basch and Vossler were tanks, giving as good as they got.

Balthier stood out of the way with his gun, occasionally using Shades of Black to fire a random Black Magick spell, Souleater, which always hit and kept Vaan busy healing him, and Shear to chip away at the wall's resistance to magick.

Fran stood beside him firing her bow as rapidly and accurately as she could. She seemed to be planning something.

Ashe had deduced that wind was the best element to use against stone and was casting Aero when she wasn't darting forward to slice at the Wall's legs.

Penelo didn't know Aero and just cast Dark, the strongest spell she had.

Vaan, at the back of the group, looked behind him at the diminishing distance between them and the door. "We're running out of bridge!"

Fran grunted as she fired another arrow. "I'm almost ready."

"Ready for wh-"

Vaan didn't finish his question, as the Demon Wall had taken that moment to swing its sword at Fran and he was alarmed to see her fall and blood splatter on the ground.

"Fran!" he cried, with a hand outstretched and a spell on his lips.

"Wait!" She yelled back. She struggled to her knees with one arm over her wounded torso. She reached her hand out to point at the Demon Wall. "Balance." She intoned. She stayed on her knees long enough to see the spell hit and the Wall to finally reach it's limit and stop moving before she fell back again.

"Fran!" Vaan ran forward, pushing Balthier out of his way to get to her. Ashe had frozen when Fran was hit and Penelo had started to panic. Vaan fell to his knees beside the wounded viera. The first thing he saw was the gaping wound that stretched from just below her right breast to the top of her left thigh.

She put her fingers over his mouth just as he was about to cast. "Just enough to keep me alive. The spell is more effective when the caster is gravely injured. If there is another one of those behind the door, I need to be able to use that spell."

Vaan didn't like it but he listened. He cast the weakest Cure he could. He saw the bleeding stop and a thin layer of skin cover the wound. "If there's something else in there, I'm fixing you." He threatened.

Balthier supported her as they all entered the next room to see another Demon Wall awaken and start crawling toward them.

They all kept up the strategy from the last Demon Wall, with the absence of Fran. Vaan was keeping an eye on her where Balthier had propped her up by the door.

Basch glanced back at them. "I might be able to hurry this up." He backed off a little. He stood still and focused for a second. Dark Magick came into existence between his hands and was condensed into a ball. With a motion, Basch sent the magick at the Demon Wall for a crushing impact.

"That's a Quickening." R observed.

Vaan ignored him, watching the battle. "Fran, I think it's weak enough for you to cast your spell now."

She looked up and readied herself. She cast balance again and it took only a few blows from Vossler after that to stop the Wall.

Penelo curiously walked up next to Vaan as he prepared to heal Fran. He glanced at her and then at the rest of them. They could all use some healing. He changed his choice of spell. He splayed one hand over Fran's barely closed wound and one back toward the general location of everyone else. He focused on making the spell as potent as possible. "Cura."

The wound on Fran's abdomen closed seamlessly. Everyone's bruises and scrapes were gone and they all felt refreshed.

At that point, they decided to have a short rest before carrying on into the temple. Penelo sat next to Vaan. "How did you do that? Before you were arrested you couldn't even do magick."

"What?" That was Ashe. "That was the best Cura I've ever seen. I had just assumed that you'd been apprenticed to a White Mage."

Vaan scratched the back of his head. "I couldn't do magic until a couple days ago. Well I could but I'd never tried. I tried with basic spells anyone could cast before I went on those hunts and it goes on from there."

"But how is your White Magick so good?" Penelo demanded.

Vaan shrugged, a little uncomfortable. "My mother was a White Mage. I guess White Magick is in my blood."

Penelo frowned. "I don't remember that."

"She worked from home. The sick came to her. You remember how my parents died during the plague, in the beginning?" He waited for her to nod. "Well my mother died trying to revive my father. She had the plague too but her magick was keeping it at bay. When she tried to revive my father her magick… she died too."

Ashe frowned. "If your mother was powerful enough to revive someone, why didn't you learn magick?"

"I didn't say that I didn't learn magick. I knew I had the ability; mom tested me for it when I was little. She told me I'd be a great White Mage, just like her. Then she died. I was a runner for a couple years. I spent a lot of time at the Magick shop. I know my fair share of spells, mostly Black Magick spells since I thought they were cool. I learned the theory. I know how they work; I just never practiced. White Magick on the other hand is all pretty new to me."

"Why didn't you practice if you knew you could do it? And why not learn White Magick?" Ashe honestly seemed as if she thought he was just a lazy kid not applying himself; a waste of talent.

Vaan scowled at the often self-centered woman. "Magick, White Magick in particular killed my mother right in front of me. Why would I want to practice it?"

Penelo frowned at Ashe and not very subtly stepped in front of her, blocking her view of Vaan. "I'm sorry Vaan. I remember that happening, but why practice now?"

The thief's scowl fell from his face and a warm smile took its place. "A good friend convinced me to try it."

The girl took that at face value. "Then will you help me with my White Magick? I'm not very good at it. What about your Black Magick? I could help you with that if you need it." She paused. "Although you said you learned a lot of Black Magick so-"

Vaan was shaking his head at her. "I can't use Black Magick."

Penelo laughed. "Everyone can use Black Magick, Vaan. You probably just need more practice."

R frowned. The girl was a novice talking like she knew everything there was to know about magic. Anyone with any training would tell her different. He assumed she was self-taught.

Vaan, Fran, and even Ashe were frowning at her. "Who told you that?" Ashe demanded. "It's a blatant lie. Magicks follow bloodlines as much as hair and eye colour. Not everyone can cast every type of magick."

Fran nodded impassively. "The Princess speaks the truth. The magicks of my people are Green Magick, Time Magick, and Arcane Magick. Of those I am unable to cast Arcane Magick and my Green Magick is much weaker away from the Wood."

R's eyebrows were in his hair. Fran's Green Magic was the strongest Green Magic he'd ever seen. If what he'd seen was weak he could only imagine what her spells could do if they were strong.

The princess shook her head at the girl. "Nevermind. Seek me out once we've acquired the Dawn Shard and have left this place. I'll teach you what little magick I know."

After that conversation and a short rest, they continued into the temple. They opened the large door and stepped into the next room. The door they'd used was at the top of a giant stairwell.

Vossler took a couple steps forward. "Incredible…" He glared over at Balthier and Fran where they were gazing down at the rest of the tomb. "It wounds me to look on as they pillage so solemn a place."

R and Vaan were scowling. The only reason Vaan wasn't over there with them was to give the pirates some privacy. The two were in some sort of relationship from what R had told him, yet they hadn't had any time together in days. They hadn't even been able to sleep in the same tent.

Ashe laid a delicate hand on the man's arm. "Yet without help, you and I are as nothing. Is this not so?" She also looked at the pirates. "He thinks ever and always on his own profit. Assure him of it and he shall remain true to our cause."

Vaan was outright glaring at the two of them from behind. Balthier was a pirate. He was free. The ties he made were to his ship and his partner. He went where he wished in search of riches and adventure. He was here for the same reason as Vaan: it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity too good to pass up. The chance to raid an ancient king's tomb for his treasure, with other untold riches inside? Who wouldn't jump at the chance? Maybe Balthier put up a shallow front but he was a good man. Vaan respected him and would be informing him exactly what the princess was saying about him.

Vossler dismissed Ashe's beliefs. "I do not share Your Majesty's trust."

Vaan ignored the rest of what she had to say. "How could she say that?" He muttered spitefully to an equally incensed ghost. "She fights with Balthier. They trust their safety to each other and she says that?" He scoffed. "This is why I don't like women."

R shook his head. "No Vaan, some women are wonderful; I like Fran just fine. This is why I don't like her." He sneered at the royal. "She's selfish and manipulative and childishly naïve."

They didn't get a chance to continue their conversation because the group started moving. At the bottom of the first flight of stairs were three devices and an urn containing a Moogle-made map of the tomb. Ashe recklessly activated the device closest to the stairs and they were all whisked off to another room. Vaan glanced around.

"This is the first room in the tomb. This is the second device that wasn't active earlier." His hands brushed the various places where they had previously been no magick but were now glowing with it. He didn't notice Fran glance at him scrutinizingly but R did.

Basch caught the princess' wrist as she reached out to activate the device again. "Majesty, perhaps warn us the next time."

They continued through the tomb. Ashe wanted to follow the pull directly to the Dawn Shard but Vaan and Balthier convinced her to look around a little more. Mainly just by going where they wanted and everyone was forced to follow. Vaan loved it. They were killing Seekers, and Lost Souls and Lesser Chimeras and Skull Warriors and Ragohs and there was gil everywhere. They even got to fight some Liches, which were more challenging than the rest of the run of the mill monsters in the tomb but not as formidable as the Demon Walls. Then they fought some Zombies and some Zombie Mages. Finally, they let Ashe guide them to the Dawn Shard.

After they walked for a half hour, they reached a door. Ashe took a deep breath. "I feel it behind the door."

The door was pushed open and Vaan's eyes widened. He didn't know what Ashe felt but all he could feel was magick.

Penelo spoke up. "Fog? Underground?"

Now that she said it, the room did seem a little hazy.

Fran cleared it up. "Not fog – Mist." Her sharp gaze shot to him for a split second.

"You can see the Mist? With your eyes?"

The viera nodded. "Where it is thick enough, you may. The nether runs deep in this place."

Vaan tuned them out. He heard something about powerful magicks but he was a tad preoccupied. Was it the Mist he'd sensed in the device at the start of the tomb? How? He'd thought that humans couldn't sense it. Now he wasn't sure. He heard Penelo say he couldn't be trusted to remember whatever Fran had told her and rolled his eyes. Sure, he tuned out whatever Fran had said but he had a lot on his mind. There was this whole journey with the princess, him impossibly sensing the Mist, the fact that there was a ghost following him that might be his closest friend, and that somewhere in the tomb was a Dawn Shard which was Ashe's birthright but he had to get it away from her to see if It would allow he and R to touch again.

Ashe's voice broke him out of his thoughts. "Down the stairs, at the bottom."

At the bottom of the stairs was not the Dawn Shard. At the bottom of the stairs was a huge ram-human hybrid monster with a battle-axe. Who caused all the torches to flare when he stomped.

Vaan hurried to cast Slow on it, then Protect and Shell on everybody. "What is that thing?" He shouted. He'd finished casting Protect and was about to start casting Shell when he saw Fran already casting it on the others. He left her to it since her Green Magic was stronger than his.

"That is Belias, he guards the Dawn Shard." Ashe called back.

"Sorry, Vaan!" R called from the middle of the battle field, watching the fight and looking for any wounds that Vaan needed to heal. "I forgot about Belias. I remember he's a creature of fire though."

Forgot? How would he have known in the first place? "Got it." Vaan muttered. "Water spells if you can!" He shouted to everyone.

Penelo and Ashe immediately backed off a little from it to start casting. They were ready to defend themselves if it came their way but their primary focus was casting.

After only a few minutes of the water barrage, Belias cast an exceptionally powerful Fire Spell at them Vaan was certain it was more powerful than Fira or even Firaga. He was also grateful for Fran's foresight to cast Shell on everyone and the Mist clouding the room for making her strong spells even stronger than usual.

Then the pain hit him.

He threw both his hands out making sure to focus on everyone, especially those closest to Belias who were probably worse off than him. "Curaja!" He gasped.

R swallowed and ignored the fact that he'd been about to have a panic attack at how badly everyone was burned as they healed before his eyes. "Well," he shouted over to Vaan, "Aren't you glad I convinced you to use magick?"

Vaan couldn't help but grin as he darted into battle.

Vaan looked at everybody. They all sat on the floor after defeating Belias and Fran's and Ashe's retelling of old legends. Espers. Who knew they'd face anything like that?

Still, he was annoyed at Ashe that she'd promised them treasure when it turned out that the Esper was the treasure. She would probably keep it for herself.

R examined the glowing glyph that floated at eye-level where Belias had been resting when they entered. None of the party had touched it. "Hey, Vaan. Is anyone going to touch this thing or what?"

Vaan glanced over at it and bit his lip. "What are we going to do about the glyph?"

Ashe sighed. "I suppose we touch it and see what happens." The woman looked exhausted.

Balthier's expression was one of unholy glee. "And say this treasure of immeasurable value chooses one of us as its bearer? Or perhaps more than one of us? Then what?"

Basch and Vossler both bristled. "The Esper is the Lady Ashe's birthright! Only she is worthy!" The dark-haired former knight exclaimed. Basch said nothing but his disapproval was evident.

Fran abruptly stood, silencing everybody. "The Esper is a proud and mighty force ruled only by time and bound to the Mist. Only he may choose who is worthy." With that, she went to stand by the floating glyph.

Everyone else slowly followed.

Penelo quietly glanced at everyone. "What now?"

Ashe reached out a hand. "We touch it."

Six hands reached out to touch the glyph with only a ghost as witness. While four hands withdrew, disappointed. Vaan and Ashe made sounds of distress. Ashe screamed as the glyph burned itself into the back of her right hand. Vaan contained himself to a low groan as the same thing happened to him. Ashe was ushered away, cradling her hand, to find a healing crystal. Vaan stayed where he was, with R. The pain was not overwhelming so he was able to put it out of his mind. He waited until everyone was out of earshot. "What just happened? Why me?"

The ghost seemed baffled. For once, he had no answers. "I couldn't say. As Vossler said, the Esper is Ashe's birthright. I have no idea about you. Maybe it's your natural affinity for fire and heat. Maybe it's something about your magic. Maybe it's your personality. Maybe it's because you're wearing an armored vest. The workings of the Mist are a mystery to me." He chuckled at his play on words.

Vaan chuckled too. "Yeah, I guess." He held up his hand and looked at the black glyph that seemed to shimmer at a certain angle. "It's pretty cool though, right?"

R allowed himself a full, hearty laugh. "Yes, Vaan. It's very cool."

Vaan waited for the others to come back so they could finally get the Dawn Shard. When they finally returned, Vaan was the first one to open the next door.

He wanted that shard.

They went down another absurdly long staircase and up another shorter staircase.

Then they saw it.

"Vaan!" R floated over to the softly glowing light purple-grey sphere. It was hanging suspended in some sort of gold sconce on an altar. "I wonder if it will work?" There was silence behind him. "Vaan?"

The silence spoke for itself. R could see that Vaan wanted to talk to him and maybe grab the Dawn Shard himself but the room was silent. He had to restrain himself.

R floated down to the ground just in front of the Dawn Shard. They were all just standing there staring at it. Were they going to move?

Basch seemed to notice something off about Vossler. "What's wrong?"

Vossler shook it off. "Your Majesty, we must go."

Ashe nodded and solemnly moved forward, up the stairs to the altar, then right in front of him she stopped. He noticed that the Shard's glow had become overwhelmingly bright as she approached. She was staring through him. "What?" She let out a shaky breath. "Rasler…"

His eyes darted to Vaan. She could see him? Since when? She hadn't seen him before, why now? He decided to take a deep breath and leave as calmly as possible. If she could still see him outside the room, maybe away from the Dawn Shard, he'd deal with it then.

Vaan's breath left him in a whoosh of air. He took a couple steps forward. Looking at him now… Yeah, he sort of remembered the Royal Wedding. R sort of looked like the Prince. A lot. Just like him. Identical, even. Vaan had no idea how to react, what to do. R was royalty. Somewhat recently dead husband of his princess travelling companion royalty. R was Ashe's husband. The Prince Consort to her eventual Queen. He would have ruled Dalmasca beside her. He was royalty and they… Vaan had kissed R. Kissed Rasler.

Rasler had kissed him first.

Then last night they'd both done a lot of kissing. They'd talked about feelings. They'd talked about wanting to touch each other. Vaan had…

It didn't matter.

R, his ghost, was Prince Rasler Heios Nabradia.

Rasler sent him a pleading look as he walked past him but Vaan couldn't reassure him. Vaan watched him walk out of the room, shocked. Well now he knew who R was.

He wished he'd never found out.

He turned to face the altar to see Ashe watching him, the Dawn Shard in hand. She'd seen him watching Rasler leave. Well, shit.