A/N - This is the largest chapter of the story thus far. I just could not stop writing it. I love these two together so much, and it really made this chapter a lot of fun to write. I hope that it is just as much fun to read!

Reviews are welcomed and appreciated! I need the criticism and the motivation.

Disclaimer - Square Enix owns Final Fantasy XII and the characters. That being said, if I ever come across a real-life version of Balthier, I will probably get arrested for stalking and/or kidnapping.

Chapter 7

Balthier took one last look in the mirror, and smirked at his reflection. "I do clean up rather nicely," he murmured to himself. His handmade, coal black suit consisted of a pair of form-fitting, embellished pants and a waist-length jacket. The jacket was an eye-catcher, decorated with silver stitching and brocade, which emphasized its quality and craftsmanship. He wore one of his signature white shirts underneath, leaving the jacket undone so that the silver embroidery that ran along the collar and buttons of the shirt would show. He carried one of his ceremonial, but still very functional, guns on his hip in a holster made of black leather. He heard the door open behind him, and he glanced over his shoulder to see who it was.

"You should have knocked, I could have been indecent," he stated with mock indignation.

"You are always indecent, whether clothed or not," she said with a grin that only a Viera could make.

He smirked at her joke, and then turned to face her. "You should leave the jokes to me, dear Fran. You were always better at being the stoic one. How do I look?"

She looked him up and down, and then nodded her head. "Like the leading man."

"Good. Now I just need to go get my leading lady," he said with a smile.

"It won't be easy, Balthier."

"I know, but nothing worth doing is," he grinned.

He noticed that the Viera was wearing a beautiful, green dress with stilettos to match. "You look very nice, Fran."

"Thank you. It was about time that you noticed," she teased.

He laughed as he ushered her towards the door. "Come, let us go. It is time for the fun to begin."

Ashe stood in the parlor outside of the ballroom, waiting to be announced in. She could hear the anticipatory murmur of the crowd as they waited patiently for the guest of honor. She was glad for the momentary reprieve so that she could get her wits about her. After the parade, she went back to the palace to prepare for the coronation ball. She usually hated being doted on hand and foot, but when she saw the look of disappointment that ran across Denia's face, she acquiesced. The young woman did do a fantastic job; her braided hair looked elegant, but not too over the top. Then, her lady-in-waiting helped her change into her ball gown, and sent her down to the parlor, with a polite reminder to "smile." She had rolled her eyes at that request, fairly confident that one of her advisors had put the girl up to it. She glanced down at the dress she wore. "It's so beautiful," she thought as she ran her fingers across the fabric. It was a strapless, white and periwinkle dress with silver accents. The bodice was made of white satin and decorated with silver lace and bead work. The skirt of the dress was made of satin as well, but it was periwinkle in color and there were two slits that ran up either side to her mid-thigh. She wore a pair of white sandals on her feet and a pearl choker that belonged to her mother around her neck. The necklace was the only adornment she wore, save for her crown.

She was brought out of her thoughts by trumpets that were announcing her arrival, and she walked over to the doors that were being opened. The master of ceremony yelled out, "Her Royal Highness, Ashelia B'Nargin, Queen of Dalmasca," and she processed into the ballroom to polite clapping. She admired the decoration job done by her staff, and everything looked spectacular. She smiled as she continued her walk down the aisle, and took a seat at the head table. She was joined by her Uncle, Larsa, Gabranth, Al-Cid Margrace, and a few other heads of state. She looked out at the crowd, and took note of some of the people who were there. Many she did not recognize, but a few she did. Then she glanced over at the table where her friends should be sitting, and nearly choked on the wine she had been sipping.

"How dare he show his face here," she contemplated icily to herself. One of her staff members appeared at her side, interrupting her thoughts, to remind her that it was time for the first dance. Ashe began to grin from ear to ear, as a plan formed in her mind. "If he wants to be here, I will give him a memory that he won't soon forget," she thought to herself.

It was tradition that the newly crowned monarch would be the first to dance at his or her coronation ball. Since Ashe presently had no suitors, her advisors had wanted her to dance with one of the single, male royals in attendance. She had quickly shot down that suggestion at the time, opting instead to dance with her Uncle. He was a safe choice; the advisors had no reason why he would not be acceptable, and she would not have to deal with "single, male royals" and their foolishness.

She leaned over to her Uncle Halim and whispered, "Would you mind if I danced with someone else?"

"Not at all, Ashelia," he said as he smiled at her. "It is your coronation ball."

She knew exactly what would piss off a certain sky pirate, and as a bonus, appease her advisors. She stood up, and walked down the table to where Al-Cid sat. One of his little "birds" was doting on his every word as he spoke with Larsa. She could hardly hide the huge smirk she wore as she curtsied to the Rozarrian noble.

"Al-Cid, may I have this dance?"`

He looked quite shocked, but he quickly recovered. "Definitely, my Queen," he stated as he rose.

He led her out to the dance floor, and the orchestra began to play. He pulled her close and spoke, "This is quite a pleasant surprise, my desert bloom." They began to spin around the dance floor, as Ashe forced the biggest smile she could on her face. She tried to focus on her footwork, and block out the romantic advances of the "Prince" she was dancing with. Al-Cid was a nice man, whom she admired for the help he offered to her during the journey to regain her throne. He was also very attractive, but her feelings for him were nothing but platonic.

"So, when will you come visit me in Rozarria? There are many wonderful things I would like to show you," he said with a devilish grin.

Another song began, and Ashe smiled with relief. The "Bhujerban Switch" was performed to this tune. A woman would dance for a set of verses with one man, then during the chorus, all of the women would form a circle, spin around, and end up dancing with another man. It was often performed at large gatherings to get everyone in the crowd to mingle, and it was also the perfect opportunity to politely escape from the Rozarrian prince.

"I am sure that I will visit one day, thank you Al-Cid," she said as the chorus began, signifying a partner change. She went into the circle, spun around, and ended up dancing with a Duke from Bhujerba. A few moments passed, and once again, the chorus began. Ashe entered the circle, spun around, and froze as she came face to face with Balthier. He stood there with his hand extended out to her and said, "Where are your manners, my Queen? Do you not wish to dance with an old friend?"

It was taking Balthier every ounce of restraint he had not to run into the middle of the dance floor and punch that smarmy Al-Cid right in his face. Somehow, things had gone terribly wrong. He had watched her, in all of her elegance, glide down the aisle of the ballroom and nearly drooled on himself in the process. "Faram, she is gorgeous,'' he thought hungrily. He knew that she would have to dance with someone to begin the ball, as custom required, but he never would have guessed that she would choose Al-Cid.

"Why does she dance with that foppish airhead?" he whispered to Fran.

Fran shrugged her shoulders in response. Penelo glanced at him from across the table, giving him a sympathetic smile. Other couples were beginning to get up and dance, and he watched with mild amusement as Penelo drug Vaan onto the floor. He sat there, staring at the Queen and her dance partner, scowling.

Then, he heard the change in music, and knew that this was his chance. It was time for the "Bhujerban Switch," and he joined the group of men surrounding the circle of females in the center. For the first set of verses, he danced with a charming older woman. Then, the chorus began, and he stepped purposefully behind the Queen dancing in the center, daring any other man present to try and be her next partner. She turned around, saw him, and froze in place. She looked both aghast and pleased at the same time, and Balthier was surprised by the fact that she had expressed any emotion at seeing him. He held his hand out to her while saying, "Where are your manners, my Queen? Do you not wish to dance with an old friend?"

Ashe could not bring her feet to move. "He has some nerve," she thought irritably to herself. Part of her wanted to hear what he would have to say about Al-Cid, but she wasn't sure if she wanted to dance with him. "That could lead to more trouble…" she contemplated, as she noticed how amazing he looked in his suit. She walked up to him, stiffly put her hand on his shoulder, and began to dance, while she tried to keep distance between their bodies. She kept her eyes locked on his collar, and curtly responded, "An old friend? What an interesting choice of words."

He pulled her close against him, and Ashe noticed that the action raised a few eyebrows on dancers nearby. "You do not consider me a friend? I am hurt, Princess."

She almost faltered as he drew her to him. She inhaled his scent, enjoying the smell of his cologne. She huffed, "I am no longer a Princess, I am Queen now."

"You will always be my Princess," he whispered as he took his hand and gently guided her chin up to look at his face. "Does it pain you that much to look at me?"

She realized that he had led them away from the main group of dancers towards the outside of the dance floor. Here there were several other couples who were dancing to the music, but they were not exchanging partners. Part of her wanted to escape—all of the alarm bells in her head were ringing. She knew that if she stayed, things could get heated, either angrily or passionately. The other part of her took one look at him in his suit, and wanted to stay. He was her ultimate temptation, and she could not get away from him.

"I dare say that you are ignoring me, Ashelia. I've asked two questions and I have yet to hear an answer to either."

She snapped herself out of it, "If I had to put a title to you, I don't think I would use the term 'friend'."

"I'll take that as a complement," he said with a smirk. "What about my other question?"

"It doesn't pain me at all." She looked at his face, avoiding his eyes, "I am looking at you now, am I not?"

"Yes, but I get the distinct impression that you would rather be looking at something else. Maybe a certain obnoxious Rozarrian twit?"

She laughed out loud, in spite of herself. "That could be the case. But, why would that matter to you?"

"I get a little protective when a man, especially one like Al-Cid, tries to take advantage of you," he growled.

"He may feel the same way towards you, Balthier. He may want to protect me from a certain cocksure Archadian sky pirate."

He chuckled at her statement, "Maybe so." He sighed, "Someone should be protecting you from me. I have acted like a complete ass. I wanted to apologize to you for the stunt that I pulled the other day. I understand if you are upset with me. I deserve all of your anger and then some."

She felt herself stiffen in response. "You do not need to apologize. You have no allegiance to me; you are not even a citizen of Dalmasca. You owe me nothing."

"That is where you are wrong. I should have returned the ring to you myself. I owed that to you, and more. I owed you the common courtesy of telling you that I survived. I knew you were upset, I heard it in your voice on the radio that day. I should have told you I was alive in person. I am so sorry, Ashelia."

She could feel her resentment and pain disappear as he spoke. She leaned her head against his shoulder, and closed her eyes.

He whispered into her hair, "You look absolutely stunning tonight, Princess. Every man in this room has their eyes locked on you, including myself."

"I must admit that you look rather handsome yourself, Pirate."

They continued to dance in silence, enjoying each other's company.

"Tell her you coward! Don't just apologize, tell her everything!" he screamed at himself. A few moments ago, he had apologized to Ashelia for his foolish actions over the past few days, and ever since, they had been dancing in comfortable silence. He wanted to tell her how he felt about her, but he also realized that he needed to do it someplace more private. They were already receiving inquisitive glances from just about everyone there, because they had been dancing together alone for the past several minutes. On top of that, one of Ashelia's advisors definitely frowned when she rested her head on his shoulder. "Let the disdain begin," he thought to himself with a snicker. He was enjoying the way her head fit perfectly under his chin, when his reverie was interrupted.

Al-Cid stood beside them, taping him on the shoulder. "Excuse me," he stated dismissively to Balthier. "Ashelia, may I cut in?"

He wanted to tell the egotistical jerk to find someone else to annoy, but he knew that would cause a scene. Instead, he decided to show the ignorant Prince how a real leading man operated. He looked at Ashelia, met her nervous gaze, and winked at her. He bowed very deeply, and gently brushed his lips against the back of her hand.

"Until we meet again, my Queen," and with that said, he turned and disappeared into the crowd.