Disclaimer: I don't own anything relating to or of Final Fantasy.

a/n: Well, here is the second chappie!! Thank you by the way to those who reviewed! Happy Readings!!

Vaan's POV:

"You kept us waiting Balthier!" said a scraggly voice from behind us.

We all turned around to the intruder and saw the ugliest group of...things that I had ever seen. Four of them total.

"You slipped away in Nalbina. We missed you!" the scariest and ugliest of them all (obviously their leader) yelled scruffly. Suddenly, he pulled a giant saw out from nowhere, it's circular blade wirring loudly and menacingly.

"First the Judge, and now this boy. The whole affair has the smell of money. I may have to wet my beak a little." he continued, him and his brigade stepping closer and closer.

Balthier said, a look of humorous digust on his face, "Keep your snout in the through where it belongs. This thinking ill befits you, Ba'Gamnan."

The aligator looking creature snarled, brandishing his weapon, "Balthier! Too long have I gone unpaid! I'll carve my bounty out of that boy!"

I couldn't stand being silent any longer. I called out, stepping forwards slightly, "Where's Penelo? We're taking her back!"

"The girl? Why keep the bait when you've landed the fish? We cut her loose on the way here and then off she ran, cryin' like a babe!" Ba'Gamnan grumbled back, giving his saw a little tweak in my direction.

I was just about to sock that demon right in the face, despite the dangers, but something beat me to it. From out of nowhere a glowing blue orb hurtled at the creature's face, and thumped him right in the eye. Just then, Lamont went dashing out between Balthier and I, running around Ba'Gamnan and scooping up the Nethicite into his arms.

I called out, "Hey," but he was already halfway to the exit of the chamber. I dashed forward, and everyone crowded after, Balthier pushing Ba'Gamnan to the ground as we passed.

I heard him call out a momment later, "After them!"

We dashed after Lamont, heading through the storage room and into the tunnel once more. And once I saw that Lamont wasn't stopping I called out to him, "Hey, wait up!"

"We'll not be able to take them all! Fight who we must, leave the rest." Balthier yelled from behind me from several feet away.

It seemed like we ran for hours. Pushing and shoving our way through undead and bones to get away fastest. Occasionally I would have to draw my sword, but the rest of the time I tried to catch up with Lamont. Truthfully, I was worried about him. What was making me worry so much about him alone, I don't know. But, all that mattered to me was that I made sure he was going to be alright.

When I rounded the corner into the last tunel before the exit tunel, I noticed that Lamont was heading down the flight of stairs off to the left. This was bad. He must have thought that that was the way out, but when the group had gone through this area, I checked down there. First of all, there was a trap. I managed to dodge it, but, I didn't think Lamont knew about it. Plus, it was a slower path, so the gouls were more than likely going to catch him, and 'carve' their bounty out of him.

"Wait! Lamont!" I tried calling to him again, but he wasn't going to listen. So, I picked up the pace, even though my legs were already burning with the stress of going this far anyways.

I dashed down the stairs after him, gaining slightly as I jumped down them. He was only two feet away when I reached the bottom of the stairs, and as I reached out my hand, the tips of my fingers were kissed slightly by a few strands of his hair flowing behind him. My heart skipped a few beats, but it didn't phase me. I saw that the unnoticed trap was comming ever so much closer.

Now or never Vaan.

Reaching out even further, I clasped my hand over his shoulder, and wrenched him back. He whirled around with a gasp and fell into my chest. And when I caught him, I didn't have time to explain. I tugged him over to the wall as soon as I heard the clumsy footfall of the goons and prayed to God that none of them would come down here. I held my free hand over his mouth and made sure he didn't say a word.

After a few momments of tense waiting, I could hear the far away voices of Ba'Gamnan and his crew saying, "We can't go on. We'll have to get them another time."

"Are you sure boss?"

"Shut up! We can't follow them into the city you git! We'll just have to get them another way!"

My heart was still beating furiously as I stood with Lamont clasped to my chest. But, it nearly stopped again when I heard a harsh clattering fall away from us across the floor. I looked down quickly and saw that Lamont's Nethicite had slipped from his hands and was skittering loudly away from us. I glanced at him and saw that his eyes were huge.

"What was that?" I heard someone say harshly from above.

There was silence and then, "Where did those two young boys get to, eh boss?"

Another silence, and then, "...They're still here."

My heart seemed to jump start back to life. I took my hands off of Lamont, and looked around frantically. It would only be a matter of time before they looked down here. I heard from up above the sound of evil laughter, and then the voice of Ba'Gamnan cooing menacingly, "Come on out! We won't bite ya pretties!"

Shit! There wasn't anywhere. But wait, what was that? I saw, from the corner of my eye a hole behind a crumbling pot in a dark corner by the stairs. That's it! I quickly grabbed onto Lamont's hand and pulled him over to it silently. I then pushed him gently but hurredly into it as I heard the raspy voice of Ba'Gamnan from above.

"Come on then! Show yourselves you little gits!"

As soon as Lamont had slid inside, I dropped to the ground and squeezed myself in next to him. That was when we heard Ba'Gamnan again say, "Oh...don't worry now. I knows where you're hidin'."

Lamont pointed silently to my right, and when I looked down, I saw that there was another little opening that was hidden. I quickly slid inside, and saw that in here was about as high as the stairs, it was dark too. No glowing blue stars dotting the walls, like in the Magicite chamber, just black. I turned back and saw that Lamont was pulling himself through the hole just as we herd the dull thuds of someone comming down the stairs. I helped Lamont up, and again held him to me. Both of our breaths had caught in our throats as we stood stock still in the dark, listening to the slow, dull footfall heading lower and lower down.The first footfall was followed by three other's, and as soon as they reached the bottom it became dead silent.

"Ah..."said the voice of Ba'Gamnan. "So that's where you are ya heethens."

Oh no! This is the end! He knows where we are, and when he finds us, he'll cut us into little bits! I glanced down at Lamont, and saw that he was shaking. The fear finally showing itself. This triggered something in my mind. Not even understanding this new feeling, I quickly pushed Lamont behind myself, and unsheethed my sword silently. Turning back I saw that his eyes had gone wide, and he was looking at me with a wierd expression on his face. I smiled slightly and said to him with my eyes, "Don't worry. I'll protect you."

I turned back, and waited. Waited for the momment that would probably be my last. Ba'Gamnan's footsteps ringing in my ears as he came closer and closer. All of a sudden I felt two quivering hands place theselves on the small of my back. His touch seemed to give me more courage, and as I saw the monster's shadow cross over the entry into our little hideout, I stood up taller. I wasn't going to let anything harm Lamont, even if it meant that I would get hurt instead.

"Got'cha!" Ba'Gamnan yelled suddenly, his shadow blocking out all light.

I was stunned. He must not see the other opening. Thank goodness. But, the danger wasn't over yet. We still had to stay even more silent than silence in order to stay hidden. I turned back around slowly and faced Lamont, I held my fingers to my lips and made it a point to get the message across, "BE QUIET!!"

He nodded, his eyes still as wide as dinner plates. I stepped up slowly to him and pushed him slightly so his back was to the wall and I had my arms on either side of him. I shut my eyes, and made sure that I didn't breath at all. Lamont was as stiff as a board, and didn't move a centimeter.

"What is it boss?" one of the goons asked tentatively.

I heard a loud smack, followed by a cry of pain, and then, "You idjits! They were never here! I just wasted valuble time in trying to find them!"

"Sorry boss, it's just-" the poor fellow said, his emotions clear even from this distance.

"Shut up! Just be quiet and let me think, you fool!" Ba'Gamnan interrupted.

The thundering of feet climbing back up the stairs came from overhead, which was soon followed by many others. Letting out a sigh of relief, I opened my eyes. What I saw nearly had me jumping into the celing. Lamont was starring up at me, still completely still, but his eyes didn't tell me he was scared. They were closed slightly, and he had a strange expression on his face. And when I looked at him closer, I saw that he was blushing.

I sprung back again, and threw my hands up to cover my face, and what gave me an even bigger surprise, was that I felt myself blushing as well. My face turned into a hot ember, burning brightly and clearly. What the hell was I doing?! He pushed himself from the wall and stepped closer to me.

I backed away slightly, but then I heard something. All embarassment forgotten, I launched myself at him, and placed my hand over his mouth once again.

Listening even harder, the faint sound of voices reached my ears. They said, "Are we staying here tonight then, boss?"

"I suppose we'll have to since a group of idjits that I know keep messin' up plans." Ba'Gamnan's harsh voice said loudly.

"Alright then, we'll set up camp for ya boss."

"Good."

Shit. I thought as I heard the distant sounds of clanking equipment, and mumbling voices. Now we'll never be able to get away. I glanced down at Lamont and saw that his expression was devoid of any kind of whatever emotion had been there before. Letting him go, I sighed and moved past him and to the opposite wall. The one that was furthest from our exit. Lamont followed shortly, sitting by me, but far enough away that I had a good three feet between us. Looking over at him every now and then as the light that was streaming in through the little opening grew dimmer and dimmer.

It was almost pitch black before I did anything. And I wouldn't have done anything if I hadn't seen something else out of the corner of my eye. It was so dark in this place, that it was no surprise to me, to find out that I hadn't spotted this before hand. But, the last bit of the sunlight illuminating the door in another corner of the room. Glinting off of the doorhandle and into my eyes. I stood up slowly and walked over to this new discovery.

I can only imagine what could be behind this door. An army of monsters, or something worse. I didn't know, and as my hand hovered over the handle, I thought about all of that. But, I wouldn't know until I tried. So, pushing past all my doubts I entered into the unknown.

I was glad I had. My breath escaped from me as I witnessed the marvel in front of me. Thousands upon thousands of tiny blue orbs dotted the walls around me. The magicite it seemed was not only located in the chamber seven away, but here as well. This one, however, took the cake. It was by far the most gorgeous thing I had ever seen. A gasp came from behind me, and as I turned around I saw that Lamont had followed me into this newfound mystery.

His eyes reflected all of the blue light and seemed to make it look like he himself had a tiny galaxy inside of them. And I found myself starring into his abyss instead of the one surrounding us. But, then I saw his gaze shift over to me, and I immediatly felt myself blush furiously and look away quickly. Why was I acting like this? I was never anything like this! What was going on? Why did he make me feel like this? What was 'this' exactally?

Sitting down again, I starred up at the 'stars' around me. Trying with all my might to only focus on that. Soon, I felt Lamont sit near me, and we both watched with rapt attention the beauty.

It was odd. I must have dozed off for a momment. When I opened my eyes once again, everything looked the same, but the temperature had decreased greatly. Shivering, I saw my breaths come out in plumes before me, and I marveled at until I heard something. Looking beside myself, I saw that Lamont had fallen over in his sleep and was shaking from the cold on the frozen earth. How inconciderate was I?

Jumping to my feet, I pulled from the pack that I had three blankets. One large one to put on the ground, and two regular sized ones for him and myself. Laying the larger blanket down first, I then went back over to Lamont and tried to wake him. But, he didn't. His eyes seemed to be glued shut by the cold, and his lips were starting to turn a slight shade of blue. And that wasn't just from the glowing of the Nethicite either.

Picking him up, I carried him over to my makeshift bed, and set him down gently upon it. Drawing both his and my blanket over him, I lifted up one side and lowered myself in beside him. He mumbled something that sounded oddly like my name and I stopped dead. But, all he did was keep shivering and drawing quick breaths. It didn't matter I suppose. Maybe I was just hearing things that I wanted to hear. Brushing that aside however, I focused on the task of getting him warm again. I couldn't believe how stupid I was. Only worrying about what had happened, and not thinking about the future.

To get him warm again, I realized that he would need more than blankets. Wrapping my arms around his small frame, I felt his chilled body shaking under me. Why was I such a cruel person? Why did I only have to think of myself? Pulling him closer, I felt a tear squeeze itself from the corner of my eye to fall down my cheek, and drip onto the top of Lamont's head.

"I'm sorry Lamont. I'm truly sorry." I whispered, feeling my chest tightening with the strain of keeping my emotions in. I've learned how to do that over the years. Ever since...well, ever since I became an orphan, I've never shown anyone that I was hurt. I always try to look on the bright side, and make sure everyone knows it. Even though, on the inside, I'm screaming. Cursing myself into oblivion for it.

And just when I thought I would start to actually cry, I felt a cold hand place itself on the small of my back. It startled me so much that I stopped moving and gasped. Then I heard the boy's small voice that I had clutched in my arms.

"Don't worry about it. I shouldn't be so airheaded."

I pushed him from me, so I could get a better look at this impossible person. I said still shocked, "What?! You, airheaded? I'm the one that really needs to apologize."

I turned my gaze away from his still blue lips and felt another silet tear slide down. But, before it could fall, I felt a small slightly cold hand catch it. My eyes grew wide as I turned back to Lamont. He lay next to me smiling, his eyes filled with laughter. I could even see some color starting to flush his cheeks. It was odd, the warmpth that was radiating was melting my heart. Wrapping my arms around him once again, I pulled him into my chest, his head nuzzling me slightly. I nearly cried. He had that much of an affect on me.

"By the way..." he mumbled clutching slightly at my vest. "...my real name isn't Lamont."

I looked down at him questioningly, but he wouldn't meet my gaze. Instead, he continued, "My actual name is Larsa. I didn't want you guys to know who I really am. I ran away from home to find out where the Nethicite came from. But, I couldn't go inside. You see, I would never last. That's when you came along."

"So that's why you were so eager to know where we were going then, eh?" I asked smiling slightly.

He nodded sheepishly, and then mumbled, "When I saw you, it was like there was something there pulling me towards you. It was odd, I've never felt like that before."

I was shocked. I said, "I felt that too."

He nodded knowingly and whispered, "Do you know what that feeling is Vaan?"

"No." I said softly.

He took a deep breath and whispered even quieter than before, "It's...love."

"What?..." I asked, confused. Love? Could it really be? Is that what I've been feeling all along?

When I looked back down at him, he had that odd expression on his face. His eyes were shimmering, and he was blushing furiously. I reached a hand up to my own face and realized, that I was no different. I felt like running, and then a great realization occured to me. I was afraid. Since I've never felt like this before, I didn't know what it was, so I wanted to get away from it.

He turned his head up to me slightly, and his eyes fluttered slightly. I mumbled, "Lam-...Larsa...I wanted to say...I feel the same."

He smiled, and slowly I felt my own head lean down to him. The gap between us growing smaller and smaller by the second. Finally, we were only centimeters apart, and I could feel his hot breath mingling with my own. I snaked a hand behind his neck, and carressed his cheek with my thumb. Savoring the smooth touch of his skin. He closed his eyes, and leaned into my touch. Not wanting to wait any longer, I tugged slightly and our lips met.

It was like a great explosion went off in my head. Fireworks blasting every where. It was magical. Just our lips, suspended in space. But, it wasn't enough. I wanted more of him. Pulling on his neck again I deepened the kiss. Making sure there was no more space between us. I felt his arms slide over my shoulders softly, wrapping themselves behind my neck as well. It was ammazing how our little kiss had turned into something so...lustful. We were groaning, and groping each other through clothing.

But, before it got any further, Larsa pushed away from me and gasped, "We can't!"

"Why not?" I asked innocently, kissing his jawbone, and nuzzling his neck.

"Ba'Gamnan." he said out of breath.

I pulled away reluctantly, sliding off of him as slowly as I possibly could. That way he'd know what he was missing. His eyes fluttered for a momment, but he held his position. Bitting his lower lip as I finally left him. Laying on my back, I chuckled. Looking at his distressed expression. I pulled him into my chest and snuggled up to him, caressing his hair and whispering sweet nothings.

"Larsa...when we get out, will I ever see you again?" I finally asked the question that had been on my mind for a while.

He thought for a momment and then replied quietly, "I suppose we will."

"And...when we do...what then?"

He giggled, and said mischeviously, "What do you want to happen, Vaan?

My cheeks felt like they were on fire. I was definitly blushing. And all he did was chuckle, scooting in closer to me under the blankets. He was definitly not cold now, and niether was I.

a/n: Vwala. I changed the rating to M because of this chappie. R&R