Title: The Window People
Status: 2/2
Rating: K+ - T
Pairing(s): Is supposed to be mostly friendship but can be seen as RitaxEstelle.
Warning(s): Minor spoilers, I guess. Some hintings and maybe a curse or two. Maybe.
Note: This was inspired by the ending of Tales of Vesperia. You can see this as a spoiler but not by much.

The castle was usually quite lively, now that she thought about it. Estelle glanced out the window, looking down at the surrounding area. Ever since the Adephagos had been defeated, everything had went back to how it was before. Well, with a few changes.

Flynn was busier than ever now since he was the new Commandant. She hardly saw him anymore. Raven had joined the Knights indefinitely, helping with any matters that involved the guilds. He was still Captain of the Schwann Brigade after all. Karol had gone back to Daungrest, working to help protect the people from the monsters now that the barriers were gone. That was his dream, as he had once told them. Judith had disappeared somewhere, presumably wandering the world with Ba'ul. She did visit though.

Yuri still lived in the Lower Quarters, still causing enough trouble as possible. It was a bit of a hassle for Flynn. Repede helped whenever he wasn't playing with the children of the Lower Quarters. She was a bit jealous of them since the canine still didn't let her pet him, even after all their time together. The trouble always kept the Knights on their toes, especially Sodia, who had brought it upon herself to try and straighten out the ex-Knight.

Looking back at the book she was reading, the princess flipped a page. It was a rather fascinating book on the history of blastia. Though the castle library had one as well, this was the original and retained all the true facts. This one had not been tampered with by the Empire. Rita had given it to her.

The thought of the younger girl brought a small smile onto her face. Rita had been the first friend she had made that had been close to her age. During their journey together, the mage had watched over her almost insistently, making sure she was okay and didn't feel any discomfort. Though, she had been rather cold in the beginning.

Estelle moved to flip another page, intent on continuing when something caught her attention. She looked up, blinking a little. Ever since the journey, Estelle had found herself more in tune with her surroundings. She noticed things she wouldn't have noticed before.

Closing her book, she placed it down on the table and stood up. Moving over to the window, she glanced out, trying to find what was making the sound. Estelle tilted her head in confusion, finding nothing. Maybe it was just her imagination. The princess thought for a moment before unlatching her window and pushing it open. A slight breeze immediately blew at her face and she had to tuck her hair behind her ears so it wouldn't get in the way.

"Estelle!" Said female nearly jumped, startled by the sudden voice. Steadying herself and looking up in the direction it came from, Estelle's face brightened.

"Rita!" She called. Rita waved at her from above, some sort of strange contraption strapped to her back. Estelle stared at it, eyes wide in amazement. Somehow, it was keeping the mage up in the air. Amazing.

"Can I come in?" Rita questioned and Estelle snapped out of her daze.

"Oh, of course!" The princess exclaimed and hurriedly moved out of the way for the younger to enter. Rita did so, maneuvering onto the windowsill and climbing in. Estelle watched her so in awe. "What is that?"

"Oh, this?" Rita glanced back at the thing almost nonchalantly before taking it off. It hit the floor with a thud and Estelle blinked. Now that she had a closer look, it looked pretty heavy. She was a little surprised the younger girl could even carry the thing. "You remember how we were able to go everywhere with Ba'ul? I thought we could make something we could fly on. It seemed much more convenient than boat."

"That's a great idea!" Estelle nearly shouted, eyes sparkling. "You're amazing Rita!"

"It wasn't anything special," the genius muttered, looking away. "Anyone could have thought of it."

"I still think you're amazing, Rita," the princess insisted, smiling brightly. Suddenly, she gasped, a hand moving to her mouth.

"What's wrong?" the mage immediately asked, a hint of worry lacing her tone.

"I don't have any tea!" Estelle replied, looking worried. She couldn't believe her horrible manners. "I'll go get some right now."

"No, it's fine," Rita stopped her just as the older female turned to leave, feeling a little uneasy. She had just popped in uninvited after all and now she caused the princess some trouble. "I didn't tell you I was coming anyway. I'll be leaving soon."

"What?" Estelle frowned, surprised. "But you just got here!" The princess stepped forward, suddenly in the other's face. "I insist that you stay. It's been a long time since you last visited and I want to know how you're doing."

"Alright," Rita silently sighed, knowing that she wouldn't be able to get away from the princess now that the older one had made up her mind. But she didn't mind. Even though she had some research she had to be doing that couldn't be missed, seeing Estelle smile like she had just received the best present ever was entirely worth it.

And that's the second chapter. Didn't come out as well as the first but hey, I did this during my Computer Science , I have edited some parts and added what I could. I'll probably edit this some more in the near future unless I see that there's nothing for me to add on. Tell me if you find any typos. I'll be sure to fix it. Also, tell me your opinion. Thanks.

Good-bye.