Well, plot bunnies came. :) Here's another friendship chapter on a favorite trio of mine. Enjoy!

For disclaimer, check the first chapter.

Ultimate Technick

Mixed Results

"Really, they were fussing over such a trivial matter," he told the man striding beside him, venting pent-up frustration. "How can the legality of chocobo racing even begin to compare with the importance of enforcing court justice?"

"Perhaps because some stand to profit from the former, while the latter produces no gold," Basch commented.

"I suppose. Small matters for small minds -- oh, hello Vaan." Larsa broke off as Vaan appeared through one of the many doorways in the hall before them.

"Hey, Larsa, Basch!" Vaan shifted his armload of groceries and cookware, careful of the more fragile items. "Finished with today's work?"

"For the time being," Larsa replied, eyeing the mixture of platters and foodstuff in the older boy's arm.

"It's Gabranth," Basch warned, giving Vaan a pointed look. They could never be sure who was wandering the palace halls, and it wouldn't do for someone to find out who Larsa's bodyguard really was.

Vaan winced and looked contrite, then jumped into the gap with hardly a pause. "Yes, yes, I know that's your noble official name and all that, but can't I call you by your given first name?"

"If you must," was Basch's stiff reply.

Larsa sensed a chance to change the subject and satisfy his curiosity at the same time. "By the way, Vaan, what are you doing with all those... items?"

"Oh, these?" Vaan grinned. "Penelo and I decided to commandeer one of the smaller kitchens one level below. We're making cherry tarts."

"Hm, cherry tarts." Basch smacked his lips, then looked at Vaan and raised an eyebrow skeptically. "You can make cherry tarts?"

"Hey, that's not fair," Vaan complained, looking hurt. "Just because I couldn't cook over an open fire at first doesn't mean I don't know how to bake."

Basch just crossed his arms as the other eyebrow joined the first. Vaan sighed in defeat, his shoulders sagging while the stuff in his arms rattled dangerously.

"All right, I give. Penelo's doing the cooking. She learned a bunch of stuff working for Migelo." The Dalmascan turned to Larsa. "Hey, why don't you come with me? It'll be fun -- we could use an extra hand and this way you get them hot out of the oven."

"Well..." Larsa hesitated and glanced up the soldier.

Basch smiled and pushed the boy forward. "Go with him, Lord Larsa. I am sure Penelo will welcome some refined company."

Vaan stuck his tongue out at the knight. Larsa barely managed to swallow his laughter. "Thank you. Please call me if anything comes up. Here, Vaan, let me help you carry some of those things before you drop them."

Vaan gratefully allowed Larsa to take some of the more delicate items while Basch had him explain exactly where the kitchen was. Only once the captain was satisfied that he'd be able to find the young Emperor quickly did he allow the boys to leave.

Vaan bid Basch good day and promised to save him some cherry tarts, then led Larsa down the hall to a small stairway.

"Like I told Basch, the kitchen is just one level down," Vaan explained as they walked rapidly down the steps. "I had to get supplies from this level's main kitchen and storeroom because the little one isn't used often, so they don't keep it stocked. Lucky for us."

"Does Lady Ashe know about it?" Larsa questioned, curious as to her reaction. After last week's banister incident, he wouldn't have been surprised if the soon-to-be-official-queen had refused to let Vaan touch anything in the palace. They reached the landing and Larsa hurried forward to open the door for Vaan.

"Thanks. And no, I don't think she does. She's been kind of busy lately, like you. Penelo and I just talked to the cooks and they said that as long as we didn't bring Ifrit or Shiva along to help, we could use the small kitchen."

"How kind of them." Larsa had to pick up his pace to keep up with the taller boy as Vaan lead him through several doorways without hesitation. Larsa suspected that the street orphan, no longer fearing Imperial pursuit, had spent his first week here prowling the palace hallways from top to bottom.

"And here we are," Vaan announced, leading him through one final doorway tucked at the end of yet another hallway. It opened into a small, homely looking kitchen with enough room to hold ten people comfortably. Penelo stood at one of the counters with her back towards them, absently stirring the contents of a large mixing bowl. Vaan went suddenly light on his feet in a way Larsa had never yet been able to imitate and walked silently up behind Penelo before greeting her loudly.

"We're baaack!"

Penelo shrieked and whipped around, her mixing spoon sweeping up defensively. Dough flew off and splattered across Vaan's face. He sputtered, freezing in his tracks with his eyes closed for protection.

"Penelo!"

"Oh, oh Vaan!" Penelo lifted a hand over her mouth in shock, though Larsa could see her eyes dancing with laughter. "I'm so sorry! You startled me!"

"That's obvious," Vaan agreed calmly.

"That was excellent marksmanship, Lady Penelo," Larsa teased as he set the basket of eggs and other ingredients on the table dominating the middle of the room.

"Whose side are you on, Larsa?" Vaan licked the dough off his lips. "Were you skilled enough to miss my eyes, Lady Penelo?"

Penelo giggled and leaned forward to inspect Vaan's face. "Yup, it looks like I missed them. It's safe to open up."

"Thank you – gah!" Vaan opened his eyes just in time for Penelo to grind more dough into his face. "Penelo!"

"Don't you want to taste it?" she asked innocently as she took the rest of his supplies and set them next to Larsa's pile.

Vaan, distracted, wiped some dough off his cheek and licked the finger clean. "Mmm, this is tasty! Good thing I decided to wash up this morning."

Penelo wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Vaan! That's just... ewww!" She flicked a measuring spoon at his face and went back to stirring. "Are you going to help, or just gross us out?"

Vaan adjusted his sword belt, wiped most of the dough off and stuck it in his mouth. "Help, of course!"

Larsa found a white dishcloth and dipped the corner in a nearby washpan so Vaan could clean his face properly, then turned to Penelo. "Where do you require my assistance?"

With Penelo in charge of the operation, they soon had more batter and filling mixed and laid out in neat trays. Meanwhile, Vaan lit the oven and kept a watchful eye on it, not wanting either of his friends to burn themselves. He even kept a bucket of water nearby for emergencies.

Larsa had never done any baking before and soon found that it was harder than it looked. He made several mistakes. How was he supposed to know that it wasn't a good idea to dump all five cups of flour in at once? And really, it was Vaan's fault that a can of chili pepper got dumped into the first batch of cherry filling. Larsa couldn't help laughing when Penelo recovered enough from her first taste of tart a la chili to chase Vaan around the kitchen. While the two of them were thus occupied, he availed himself of the chance to snitch some dough.

He wouldn't dare say so in front of Penelo, but he agreed with Vaan. Her face had turned the most interesting shade of red.

Twenty minutes later and too many near collisions with someone carrying cherry filling, Larsa decided to take Penelo's advice and pull off his long-sleeved dress shirt. It had already acquired several flour streaks and a charred sleeve end where he had brushed too close to the oven before Vaan chased him away. He slipped into the dining room attached to the kitchen and laid the dress shirt over a chair, then tucked his pendant into his undershirt where it would be out of the way and went back to shaping dough and spooning filling, no longer worried about kneading his trailing sleeve ends into the stuff.

Vaan did a fine job of sliding the metal trays into the oven, seeming unaffected by the heat despite the sweat running down his back. Under Penelo's direction, he pulled the finished trays back out and set them aside to cool before sliding the next batch in. The kitchen filled with the aroma of pastries, and Larsa suddenly wondered how they would manage to save any for Basch. They had already consumed one tray before it even finished cooling.

"Last one," Vaan finally announced, gingerly sliding the hot tray out of the oven. Penelo shoved the rest of her tart into her mouth as she finished stacking the dirty dishes next to the sink. Larsa, with newly acquired deftness, used a spatula to scoop the last of the tarts off the trays and into a woven basket.

"Good." Penelo swallowed and wiped the crumbs off her face. Her cheeks were flushed from the hot kitchen. "The dining room has a balcony; let's go eat out there. Vaan, you got the fire?"

"Yeah, I got it." Vaan closed the oven and opened the chimney so the fire could safely burn itself out. He stepped away and brushed his hair back with a floury hand. "All done. Hey, we got anything to go with the tarts?"

"Yes, we do." Penelo wrung out a wet washcloth and draped across the back of her neck to cool down, then wrung out another and tried to tame the flour and batter mess. "Larsa? The cool box to your left."

"I see it." Larsa put his spatula aside and knelt to pull open the elaborately carved cabinet door. Cool air washed over his face, almost frigid after the warmth of the kitchen. He pulled out two containers and held them up. "These?"

"That's them. All right, let's go out where it's cool!" Penelo grabbed the basket of hot pastries and led the way through the dining room and onto the balcony.

xXxXxXx

Basch stretched and sighed in satisfaction, enjoying the freedom of being out of his Magistrate armor. He understood the necessity of wearing it, and it made dealing with people much easier. But the stuff weighed more than a battleship by the end of the day.

The knight wandered over to the window and spent several minutes just watching the twilight sky. The sun had already set and it was getting too dark to see inside clearly. Oh, but how wonderful it was, to be free again to enjoy the beauty of something as simple as the sky.

Ah, but he should check to see if Lord Larsa was safely back. He hadn't seen the boy since leaving him with Vaan earlier in the afternoon. Basch wasn't sure whether he should be relieved or worried that he had heard nothing from either of them since then.

He lit a lantern from his bedstand and made sure his sword was secure, then headed for the guest room assigned to Lord Larsa during his stay in Rabanastre. The lamps in the hallways had already been set with small light crystals and Basch had no trouble finding the door across the hall from his.

He decided against knocking and quietly pushed the door open instead, shielding the flame from his lamp in case his charge was sleeping. But the room was empty, and the bed was still made.

Basch backed out and closed the door, frowning slightly. He couldn't still be with Vaan and Penelo, could he? Shaking his head and hoping that they hadn't wandered off to the far reaches of Rabanastre on a whim, he set out for the kitchen Vaan had described earlier.

He got lost once or twice on the stairways before finding the kitchen. He knew it was the right one because of the lingering smell of warm cherries. And, he noted with amusement as he held the lantern high, the enormous mess they'd left in their wake. A stack of dirty dishes was piled near the sink while spilled ingredients decorated every counter.

The center table, though, had been cleaned up, and a covered basket sat primly near the edge. A slip of paper on top caught his eye; Basch picked it up, holding it closer to the lamp to read the writing. The curved lines were in Larsa's hand writing.

For Basch.
From Larsa, Vaan and Penelo.

He chuckled silently, setting the note down and peeking underneath the cloth. Sure enough, there were about a half a dozen cherry tarts inside.

"They remembered," he whispered to himself, warmed by the gesture. Smiling, he followed the sounds of a lit fireplace to the next room over.

The balcony doors were closed against the chilly desert night, and the fire was burning merrily. A game board and its pieces were scattered across the hearth along with three empty mugs, a book, and an empty basket, all surrounded by a dusting of pastry crumbs. Three of the five couches were occupied by sleeping youngsters, all except Vaan covered by blankets.

Basch set his lamp down on the nearest table. The metal casing thumped softly against the oak wood and Vaan twitched in his sleep, drawing the knight's attention. It was a good thing too, or else Basch would never have noticed the orphan's fingers slowly curling around his sword handle.

"It is I," he whispered, holding still. Vaan might be a social klutz, but his reflexes were nothing to mess with.

Vaan opened his eyes, blinking owlishly in the light. "Basch?"

"Yes." Basch confirmed. Only after Vaan relaxed did Basch move to Larsa's couch and straighten the blanket that was threatening to slide off.

"Oh," Vaan rubbed his eyes, stretching and yawned before turning on his side. As he closed his eyes he sleepily slurred, "…Blankets at fireplace."

"Thank you, Vaan."

Vaan was already asleep. Basch didn't have the heart to wake any of them up again. He maneuvered around Penelo's couch, laid another log in the fire and picked up two blankets from the stack on the hearth. He spread one of the blankets over Vaan, who snuggled under it in his sleep, sighing contently.

Picking the couch closest to the door, he shook the other blanket across it. He would make sure no one else disturbed them for the rest of the night.

But first, there were some cherry tarts with his name on them.