Vaan awoke when a ray of sunlight shot through the window and onto his face, heralding the coming of morning. After a few yawns and stretches, he sat on the side of the bed and put his feet on the cold stone floor of the hotel room. Remembering the crazy night before, he gasped out loud. Had he really got down and dirty with Fran and Penelo?
After looking around and seeing neither Fran nor Penelo in the room, he figured it was some crazy fantasy dream he had had. Oh well, he wasn't completely disappointed. As long as he could have more of those types of dreams again, he'd be happy.
He washed up and got some clean clothes on and headed down to the lobby. Everyone was already waiting and it looked like he had slept in. Balthier was sipping an unknown beverage while leaning against a wall. Basch was reading a newspaper, still in a bathrobe with his hair combed back, which made him look like some kind of rich, secret agent. Ashe was showing Penelo how to properly put on nail polish, and Fran was munching on an apple. Nobody seemed to pay any attention when Vaan entered. It was always like that, and he hated it. For once, he wanted to be the center of attention.
"Hey guys, I'm up now. Sorry for keeping you waiting." Vaan shouted to the group, which responded with murmers and grunts and half-enthusiastic nods. Vaan couldn't help but look at Fran and Penelo, and think about his crazy sex dream he had the night before. To his suprise, they looked at him, then at eachother, and silently giggled. Huh? Had it been real, after all? He brushed it out of his mind and sat down on the nearest couch.
After the whole ordeal with Vayne and the wars were over, everyone had taken up small jobs (or in Balthier's case, tomb raiding and treasure hunting again) and settled into relatively quiet, peaceful lives. But, now that the autumn season was here, it meant a month of vacation for everyone in Ivalice. The whole month of October, to be exact, by the decree of the International Ivalice Government.
"Okay, now that everyone's up, let's decide how to spend the first day of our vacation." Basch said, slowly walking around the room. He, along with Ashe, were always the ones to naturally take up the leader-of-the-group position.
He was met with shouts of "Chocobo racing stadium!" and "Beach party" and "The Archades circus".
"Okay, okay; Let's do this the fair way. We'll let each person pick an activity every day, starting with the lady of the hour, her royal highness Ashelia. Lady Ashe, what do you propose we do today?" Basch said, looking charmingly at Ashe, whom he'd become rather loyal and smitten to over the past year.
"Me? Well...I suppose it would be fun to go to the waterpark in Nalbina..." She responded with a smirk on her face. Since she had no enemies of the empire around anymore, she had really loosened up and learned not to take life so seriously all the time.
"Waterpark it is!" Balthier cooed from the corner, raising his glass of unknown mead.
"It's certainly not a mystery as to why you would be so enthusiastic about the idea..." Fran said towards Balthier.
"What can I say? I'd enjoy the company of lovely ladies in semi-clothed apparel any day of the week. Wouldn't you agree, Vaan?" Balthier said, diverting the malicious attention to the least manly of the bunch.
"Me? Well, I uh...You see..." He replied, scratching his head, as if an answer would appear.
"Then it is settled. We'll leave for Nalbina in thirty minutes." Basch announced, as everyone got up and went to their rooms to prepare.
Vaan was the last to leave the lobby. Before he went up the steps to his room, Fran stepped in front of him, blocking his way.
"Oh, uh, hey Fran." Vaan said, blushing at her, unsuccessfully trying to force the fantasies from his dream the night before out of his mind.
Fran relentlessly stood there, staring at him; not saying anything. Vaan started to get nervous, and started thinking maybe Viera could read minds and was about to beat him to a pulp because of what was floating around in his head at that moment. Then she did something very unexpected.
She leaned in and whispered in his ear, "Tonight, you and me are going to have a little rendevouz again. I need more of you..." then she licked his earlobe and turned around and went up the stairs, her curvy behind swaying left and right with each step.
Vaan stood there, rooted to the spot and in a daze. Either last night wasn't a fantasy, or he had just become the prey of a sexual predator. Either way, he was very excited in more ways than one, and more than a little nervous. He headed up to his room to get his swim trunks and prepare for the day ahead, his mind still swimming with possibilities.
-------
After everyone was ready, they all got in a sky tram headed for Nalbina. It was around 11AM , so the sun would be just perfect for a day at the waterpark.
Vaan always loved being in the sky, whether it was on an airship, or just a simple taxi sky tram like this one. He walked down the aisle and found a vacant booth and sat down, eager to get the window seat. The black leather seats and dark cherrywood interior always made the passengers feel like they were royal.
It was five minutes to departure, so Vaan just sat there, looking out the window at the busy streets of Rabanastre; people scurrying about on the cobblestone streets. Then, he felt a weight beside him, and turned his head to see who had joined him. It was Penelo. She was smiling reverently at him.
"Hey, sky pirate!" She said, poking him on the nose.
"Oh, hey Penelo. Isn't this view great! It never gets old to me." He said, pretending to be completely occupied with the window view. He was, in reality, transfixed on the beautiful girl beside him.
"Hmm, iunno...Lemme see for myself." Penelo said, leaning over his lap to look out the window. Her soft, developing chest squished against his lap and her silky, golden white hair brushed against his chest, and he smelled her familiar strawberry scent as she peered out. He wanted her to stay like that, but she sat back normally and giggled.
"Looks like the same ol' Rabanastre to me." She said, shrugging.
He loved that strawberry scent she always had. Wait a second...He recognized it from the night before! Yes! She had taken a shower and used strawberry shampoo, which he remembered admiring last night. It had to have really happened!! Suddenly, he found himself blushing fiercely.
"Penelo....did-" Vaan slowly asked as..
-Buzzzzzz- -Vrooooommmmmm- The sky tram engine had started up and, a few seconds later, they lifted off into the sunny blue skies.
--------------------
"What's that you were saying?" Penelo asked him, tucking some hair behind her ear.
"Oh..it's uh..it's nothing." he said, scratching his head again without realizing it.
The twenty five minute trip was rather uneventful on the way to Nalbina. They saw a few adolescent Avion flying by, and a few other sky trams headed back towards Rabanastre. When they finally reached east Nalbina, the sky tram slowly descended and landed perfectly on the landing zone.
"Eastern Nalbina City, all passengers leaving must exit on the right side of the vehicle. I repeat, Eastern Nalbina City, all passengers-" The intercom was shouting. Everyone got off and stepped out into the city. It was rather warm for an autumn day, but that was a good thing for them since they were going to be playing in water.
"That never gets boring." Baltheir sarcastically said, stretching his legs. "We could've made it here in four minutes tops with my airship..."
"Balthier, the two flux generators are acting up and are being repaired right now. We did not have a choice." Fran replied.
"Yeah, yeah. I just hate having to pay a good arm and leg for the repairs. Damned moogles charging twice what they used to for repairs, nowadays." Balthier said, kicking a nearby pebble, one hand on his hip.
"They are probably aware of your reputation for finding rather expensive treasures." Fran countered. She loved to bicker with Balthier lateley, just to see him get flustered.
"Well they can take their miniature wrenches and-" Balthier started saying.
"Let's go enjoy some water, why don't we?" Ashe said, cutting him off while she started walking towards the waterpark.
It was going to be a long day...