Since he was a kid, Flynn always set a resolution of what he would achieve for the day.

Help the elder people with their groceries.

Teach the younger kids how to read.

Make sure Yuri didn't get into trouble. …a feat he never accomplish to this day actually…

He liked to think that it would help him accomplish his dream to make Lower Quarter a better place. His dream grew alongside his own growth and so were the amount of his resolution.

To protect the weak and to bring justice to those who deserve it. It was a dream he shared with his best friend when they first entered the Knight. And even now, when their path separated, Flynn knew they still shared the same dream.

But today, he had set a different resolution-of-the-day than his usual ones. Oh, it still had to do with justice and protecting the weak. It also had to do with the best friend he was so proud of.

Yes, today he would kill (or at least, maim) said best friend into oblivion.

"Yuri, I have something to talk to you." He found his long-haired friend on the Middle Quarter, holding bags of food, with Ted and other kids, each one of them holding their smaller bag. So intent he was on his resolution, he forgot the usual ritual when it comes to him and children.

"Hey, Flynn! It's been a while!" Ted tackle-hugged him and the other followed his lead, dog-piling the poor man under the weight of total eight kids of various size. "Where have you been?! We miss you!"

Yuri laughed as Flynn tried to (unsuccessfully) stand and answered the barrage of questions thrown at him. After a few minutes of snickering and glares thrown at him, Yuri finally relented and pulled two of the heavier kids off of Flynn. "Hey, guys, come on. You're going to kill the pride of the Lower Quarter if you keep it up."

Few minutes and a promise to visit the children later, Flynn was finally able to properly glare at his best friend. Yuri just raised one of his eyebrows in amusement. "So, what brings you here, Flynn? Been a while since you have enough free time to go to the city."

Flynn heaved a sigh and without another prompt, unsheathed and swung his sword towards his best friend with the speed befitting his rank.

"What? Hey!" Yuri dodged the first attack and the second and the third, yelping indignantly at the fuming Commandant. "What did I do this time to deserve this?"

That question seemed to aggravate the blond further. "You!" Clang "Still." Dodge. "Dare." Swish. "To ask THAT?!" Flynn swung his sword down heavily, and Yuri parried the sword coming onto his head with his own. Yuri hid his grimace as Flynn's sword came a bit too close to his comfort.

"Oookay." It must be something big if Flynn was this upset. Yuri racked his mind to find what he did to warrant the (probably not) unjust wrath. "Is it about the last time when I left you with that scary gardener?"

Flynn frowned and Yuri winced when the force behind the blade strengthen. "No, it's not it. But thank you for reminding me of that one."

"Or is it about that time I hid your paperwork in Estelle's study?" There was another frown and "No." from the blonde. Yuri shrugged. "Just so you know, it was Estelle who thought you need a break. So just what is it that you're angry about?"

Flynn sheathed his sword. "Yuri, do you remember what I said when you and Lady Estellise were traveling around the world?"

"Yeah? What about it?"

"I told you to take care of her and to respect her, didn't I?" It was a rhetorical question and Yuri wondered where it's going. Flynn fished a piece of paper from his pocket. "So please tell me, WHY the Heliord's Knight was abuzz with gossip like this when I went there to inspect?!"

Oops, was the first response when he saw what that piece of paper is. Or to be more precise, what was drawn on that paper. It was a photo of Estelle wearing her Enchanting Belle costume when they were trying to seduce the guard. That Knight in Heliord must have an amazing artistic skill to redraw her so perfectly (or maybe he had something for the princess since the drawing was very detailed). Damn, he should've hit that useless Knight harder; Yuri scowled inwardly.

"Wow, that girl looks like Estelle, doesn't she." Yuri grinned. This is exactly the time where he had to use all of his skill to survive. Flynn looked angry enough for murder. And an angry Flynn was more dangerous than an angry Entelexia. He didn't want to remember the last time he made his best friend furious. "Flynn, you ought to discipline the Knight. What were they thinking, drawing their princess in such a skimpy getup."

"Yes, rest assured they are going to be…retrained. However, Yuri, I inspected the matter more thoroughly because things like this doesn't just pop out of nowhere." Here, Flynn fixed a penetrating look at his dark-haired friend. "And I found out from one of the guard that this girl is indeed real. She appeared in Heliord a day after you and Lady Estelliseleft Dahngrest which is more or less the time you needed to travel between the cities."

"It's just a coincidence." Yuri tried not to wince, knowing that this is exactly the time when he should run to either Dahngrest or…

"Then I asked a shop owner at the inn. And guess who came to his shop, asking for clothing to seduce all kind of men."

Estelle's study, here he comes.

Yuri heaved a sigh before he grinned impishly and took the picture from Flynn's hand, "Well, you got me. But Estelle looks good in those clothes, don't you think? It's too bad all her dresses are too stuffy. She should try exposing her skin a bit more."

"YURI!" Flynn yelled, embarrassed and scandalized at the same time. "You will NOT talk about Lady Estellise in that way!"

"Oh, dear me. Is the Commandant getting shy? Can't think of a pretty girl in sexy clothes?" He waved the picture mockingly in front of the blushing Flynn. "You're not going to get any girlfriend if you keep being a stick in the mud."

A moment of silence. One, two, three…

"YURI! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" And thus, volcano Flynn erupted and Yuri had to run for his life for the rest of the week.

Fin