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OoOoO

Chapter 8

"Come on!!! Old Dalan is Dieing Larsa!!" Larsa looked between the two girls once more before squeezing his eyes shut and shaking his head vigorously. He groaned loudly and made his decision, knowing full well that his silent apology would not reach her. Larsa dashed out of the room following Kira to Old Dalan, through the crowd of people by his door whom Kira shouted after, instructing them to leave and wait for her to make an announcement.

Catherine watched as Larsa and Kira made their way through the crowd into Old Dalan's Place and clenched her fists tight as she felt the tears begin to build up in her eyes. Catherine tried her hardest to hold in her sorrow but as her knees caved under her and she fell back into the chair, bitter, tired sobs escaped her and she silently wondered if Larsa could hear them.

Larsa immediately moved to kneel by Old Dalan's left while Kira moved to his right as he lay on his futon behind the mismatched curtain of sorts made from many different towels and rugs. "Where is the doctor?" Larsa asked Kira as he noticed his absence.

"I sent him out, he kept saying there was nothing left that he could do. It was just excuses for his incompetence!! He was pissing me off so I cussed him out and sent him packing." Kira hadn't looked up at Larsa once as she answered, giving Old Dalan her undivided attention.

"I see..." Larsa said as he too turned his attention to Old Dalan. Larsa took hold of Old Dalan's left hand and waited patiently as he slowly opened his eyes to look up at Larsa.

"Larsa my boy..." he paused slightly and took a shuddering breath, "I...i am I dieing man, you are all that's left now. You must... take care of my girl." he smiled briefly before attempting to squeeze Larsa's hand for emphasis. "Take care of Kira for me won't you?" Old Dalan coughed slightly, his weak and raspy voice just barely audible. Larsa heard him quite clearly however and squeezed his hand tightly as he kept his lips sealed, not daring to make a promise he knew he could not keep.

Old Dalan smiled none the less, having more faith in Larsa than Larsa had in himself, before turning to Kira. Kira was holding Old Dalan's right hand tightly with both of her own, her head resting on their hands. "Kira, my child, you mustn't worry about this old man. I have lived a long and full life, I have no regrets." Kira simply shook her head harshly, refusing to believe that Old Dalan was really dieing.

He smiled at her before reaching into his pocket slowly, with what little strength he had left, and pulling out a big old brass key with what would've been an elegant design had it not been for the rust and handed it to Kira saying, "Only when the time is ripe..."

Kira looked up at Old Dalan and blinked. She observed the key and took it from him, his hand falling back to his chest as she examined it. "Dalan...what is this...?"

"Kirharesh would be proud to see how...you've grown." Old Dalan said with a soft, genuine smile on his face. Kira gasped, she hadn't heard that name in so long, it had been almost ten years since the last time Old Dalan spoke of her. Kira shook her head slightly, not wishing to think of it and instead looked at the key once more.

Kira looked back to Dalan to find that his eyes were closed, and upon further observation, she saw that he was not breathing either. "Dalan...?" Kira said softly as she shook him slightly, a look of panic swelling behind her eyes. "Dalan?" She said again, shaking him harder this time, before pressing an ear to his chest, listening for a heart beat and only catching the last few fading thuds before there was an echoing silence.

Larsa watched in horror as Kira continued to say his name, over and over again as she shook him harder and harder, the volume of her voice escalating. "Dalan! Dalan!! Come on you can't do this to me!!" Kira shouted as she grabbed his shirt, tear drops falling slowly but steadily from her eyes. "Dalan!! Dalan...!" Kira took a deep breathe, her body shaking slightly as she tried in vain to hold in her tears.

It was only then that Larsa noticed Catherine standing by the door. Tears were streaming from her eyes as well, whether it be due to the shock of Old Dalan's death or whether or not she was still fuming over their earlier argument, Larsa was unsure.

They made brief eye contact before Catherine looked away from him sharply and began to wipe her tears. Larsa sighed and moved over to where Kira sat with her head rested on Old Dalan's chest, tears streaming freely from her now as she mumbled to herself, trying desperately to convince herself and maybe even Old Dalan that he was not dead.

Larsa touched Kira's shoulder. She looked up at him sharply, her eyes red and puffy and full of a sorrow and pain that hurt Larsa almost more than Old Dalan's death did. "Kira...He's gone. Old Dalan's gone." He could feel the tears building up behind his own eyes as he spoke. The fullness of the event hitting him hard. His statement had woken them both out of the dream of hope.

Kira gasped loudly when Larsa spoke and began to shake her head vigorously and suddenly shoved Larsa away from her as she screamed. She flung herself onto Old Dalan's already chilled and stiff body and began to scream. "DALAN!!!!! DALAN PLEASE!!!!!!" a bitter sob racked her body, "DA-DADDYYYYYYY!!!!!!! DADDYYY!!!!! PLEASE!!! COME BACK!! COME BACK!!! DADDYYYYYYY!!!!!" Kira's screaming became incessant and Larsa had to grab her and pull her off of her father's body quite roughly and pull her into a tight embrace even as she began to scratch and hit at him, screaming for him to let her go.

"KIRA!!!! KIRA STOP!!! Stop it!!! I'm here!! I'm Here for you!" Larsa shouted into her ears, not sure if she could hear him over her own screaming. But she'd heard him quite clearly.

"YOU?! WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!??YOU'RE NOT GOING TO BE HERE FOR ANYONE!!!! YOU'LL BE OFF PLAYING KING WHILE I'll BE HERE ALONE!!! COMPLETELY ALONE!! THERE'S NOTHING! NOTHING'S LEFT!!! I'VE GOT ABSOLUTE..." Kira's screaming seemed to have finally taken its toll on her vocal cords as she suddenly fell silent, her arms still flaying around as she squeezed her eyes shut and began shaking her head wildly, the clips along her pony tail flying off in random directions one by one in the chaos of her movement as she tried desperately to make up for her sudden silence.

Larsa frowned and groaned slightly as he listened to her, saddened and vexed by her choice of words and how bitterly accurate they were. He became fed up as she fell silent and began to flay around and slapped her hard across the face before pulling her into another tight embrace. "That's not the point! I'm here for you now! Right now, this very moment is what matters! Don't think about anything else! I'm here for you right now and right now is when you need me so just shut up!" he said harshly but with a caring undertone as Kira, stunned into a new, stiff silence by the resounding slap she'd received, began to relax slightly. She clung to his shirt and buried her face into his chest as she cried, sobs racking her body and tears soaking through to Larsa's skin.

The two sat there for a good five minutes as Kira cried, both her body and mind slowly relaxing as she let the fullness of the event seep into her, as she accepted the fact that her father was gone, as she tried in vain to convince herself that everything would be alright and that she could manage on her own.

Catherine stood by the door to Old Dalan's place watching them. And as she watched them, she began to understand what Old Dalan meant when he'd said that Larsa was the only one that allowed her to be selfish. She hadn't quite understood what he meant by that when he'd said it, but now she could understand. It became even more evident when Tihana appeared at the door behind Catherine.

Catherine watched her stumble into the room, Vaan and Penelo at her heels, apparently trying in vein to catch up to the tiny racer.

When Kira took notice of her little girl at the door, she began to wipe away her tears and leaned away from Larsa just as Tihana ran over to her, completely eluding Vaan once more as he reached down to pick her up, and asked if Old Dalan was going to be ok with a frightened look on her soft, young features.

Kira nearly burst into tears again but held them in and said gently as she slowly pulled Tihana into a warm hug, "No sweety, Old Dalan...Old Dalan won't be waking up this time. He's gone to sleep forever now..." Kira took a quick glance at Vaan and Penelo then and they immediately knew the girl was in good hands and they could return to keeping the peace in Low Town while everyone awaited the verdict. Vaan paused, taking a moment to mournfully observe Old Dalan's limp and lifeless form before heading out the door.

Catherine watched in awe as Kira managed to hold in her own sorrow and her own tears to allow Tihana, her surrogate daughter, to feel warm and comforted as she grieved over her grandfather's death. Catherine watched as Kira held the little girl tightly in her arms, the picture of mother and child completely flawless. She almost envied the way Kira could love and care for a being so dearly, as if Tihana were her own child. Catherine began to understand just why and how Kira managed to take care of so many people, how she could possible think of so many before she thought of herself. Kira had the biggest heart she had ever seen in her entire life, and she had to hand it to her for that.

"Mommy, what about everybody else?" Tihana said as she looked up at Kira, tears still streaming from her eyes. "are you going to tell everybody else? Is everybody going to cry? Are you going to cry mommy? Don't cry mommy. Don't cry ok?"Tihana's voice was soft and often interrupted by her soft sobbing but Kira smiled none the less.

"I'm sorry Tihana, but I have to tell everyone else. They need to know. But don't worry, mommy's strong, I won't cry. Ok?" Kira smiled at the little girl and gently touched her noise as she hiccuped slightly and nodded. Kira then turned to Larsa and said, "Hold her for me, I'll make the announcement now. No doubt everyone is wanting to know."

Larsa gave Kira a hard knowing look before she smiled slightly and said, "I'll be fine don't worry."

"You won't be fine, I am going to worry." He said firmly as he stood then took Tihana from her and helped her stand.

Kira sighed and shook her head before saying, "You can worry tonight, but right now, I am fine." Kira spoke firmly and ensured he understood what she was saying. Larsa held her gaze for a minute or two before sighing and nodding his agreement. Tihana and Catherine glanced between the two, completely lost during the exchange. Kira then made her way out the door and into the halls where almost everyone in Low Town gathered to hear the news about Old Dalan.

Larsa sighed heavily as he watched Kira walk out the door and turned to Tihana as she sat on his arm and clung to his shoulder. "Daddy, I'm going to miss grandpa..." the child looked so sad, her large crystal blue eyes shining with unshed tears, red and puffy, her cheeks flushed with the effort of keeping her tears back. Larsa sighed and rested the child's head onto his shoulder in order to comfort her as well as to remove the sight of her sadness, it was too much for him to bare at the moment.

"I know, I know, I'll miss him too sweetheart." Larsa said softly as he moved to sit in the chair by the table. He placed a soft kiss to Tihana's temple and allowed her to cry on his shoulder as he sat there holding her. Larsa took a deep breath and sighed once more before he glanced over at Catherine. Catherine seemed to have been very lonely as she stood by the door still, her eyes red and puffy, like most others with the semi-dried streams of tears running down her face, the occasional tear re-hydrating the streams.

Larsa softened his expression as he looked at her and motioned for her to come over to him. Catherine looked away from him at first, then looked to the ground, her hands balling into tight fists before she suddenly strolled over to him and stood beside him, her head still hung low and her fists still shut tight.

Larsa waited and watched. It wasn't long before she collapsed into a kneeling position beside him and rested her arms on his lap and her head in her arms as she cried once more. Neither of them were quite sure of why she was crying, whether it was due to Old Dalan's death; coming to terms with the fact that Kira was better than she was; or if it was just the vibes in the room. Larsa sighed once more as he looked over at Old Dalan, You know Dalan...it's really not fair. She's been through so much already, couldn't you wait just a bit longer? She really needs you you know?

It wasn't long before men came in to take Old Dalan's body to the morgue up stairs in the higher class regions of Rabanastre. It was then that Kira came in and announced that she would be buying the groceries and other amenities for the kids a bit later and was wondering if Larsa would be coming with her. Larsa looked up at her and marvelled at her ability to make it seem like everything was going to be ok even though everyone in Low Town was either on their own, crying in a little corner or huddled in groups as they mourned over the death of an icon.

"So you coming?" Kira asked as she stood in front of him, somewhat amused by the his current position: one girl in his arms, the other on his lap.

"Ah...I," Larsa started before he glanced down at Catherine to find her staring up at him with pleading eyes. Larsa sighed slightly and look up at Kira with a tired smile, "I don't think so."

Kira smiled and said, "fair enough... but you!" She said, suddenly pointing at Tihana as the little girl watched her from her perch on Larsa's arm. "you young one are coming with me! Alright?" Kira said as she held her hand out to Tihana. The little girl grinned and nodded her head before hopping out of Larsa's arm unto the ground and followed Kira out the door, leaving Larsa and Catherine alone in Old Dalan's House which now housed an eerie, echoing silence.

As the two of them sat there, Catherine's tears finally on hold and Larsa's eyes transfixed on a certain squared inch of wall, the silence slowly became pregnant. Catherine dared one quick glance at Larsa's face and found that he had a very thoughtful if not frustrated expression across his features, his well defined jaw tight and even more pronounced from the angle at which she was looking up at him, his graceful yet strong features taking her breath away. She had to look elsewhere. A few moments later she dared look up at him again and this time found that he seemed more pensive if not sad. Catherine wasn't sure how long she'd been staring at him before he'd finally said something.

"I'm sorry...Catherine." Larsa turned his head to look at her as he said her name and Catherine gasped slightly as she saw the pain and tiredness behind his eyes. "I'm sorry I left you. I have no excuse for my actions."

Catherine was silent for a few moments, somewhat taken aback by his sudden apology. "It...it's alright." It wasn't really, she still felt hurt by what he had done, but how could she have said that while he was looking at her the way he was.

Larsa smiled slightly and nodded to himself before glancing at his time crystal. "The hour is late, you need your rest. I'll prepare a bed for you." Catherine lifted her head from Larsa's lap and allowed him to stand then she watched him walk over to the curtain and disappear behind it.

Night had fallen and all the orphans, Larsa, Kira and (to her dismay) Catherine lay huddled together on the floor of Old Dalan's House, where at least two occupied one futon. All the orphans had loved Old Dalan and for nearly half the night the air was full of quiet sobbing and the smell of salt.

Catherine cringed and shivered as she felt someone's foot brush against her derrière and turned her head, looking for Larsa. He was right behind her and she realized that the foot that had grazed her was actually Tihana's as as she lay peacefully between her surrogate parents, her eyes closed and her breathing even. Catherine watched the little girl for a moment before she turned to look at Larsa. He wasn't sleeping. Neither was Kira. Catherine watched silently as the two stared at each other, having a seemingly silent conversation, one which she was not allowed to participate in.

Finally, it seemed the room had quieted down to a soft hush as the breeze blew in from a near by window, all the children seemed to be finally asleep while Kira and Larsa lay staring at each other still, Catherine secretly watching jealously. At last, Larsa seemed to give up the battle and sighed heavily before he closed his eyes and relaxed as his entire body seemed to deflate, sinking further into the futon.

Catherine watched as Kira watched him before she sighed as well and took hold of his wrist. Larsa looked up at her and understood as she looked away from him, tugging his arm towards her and resting her head on his forearm, her chest pressed against Tihana's back while she clung to Larsa's shirt, her face instinctively turned upwards for a better source of air. Larsa smiled slightly and wrapped an arm around her waist, understanding that she needed him at the moment. All day she'd been holding back, it was her turn now, her turn to cry and let it all out.

Kira buried her face into the crook of Larsa's neck and began to shake slightly with the effort of keeping back her sobbing as a steading flow of tears escaped from her. Larsa smiled slightly, ignoring the hot liquid now pouring into his shirt and down his collar bone, glad that Kira was finally allowing herself to be human. He blinked slightly as he felt something shift behind him and took a side glance over his shoulder and saw Catherine turning to face his back and before he knew it she was crying as well. Larsa frowned now and realized how this must look to her. He sighed slightly and decided that he'd had enough for the day, especially considering that they would have to leave for Archadia first thing in the morning tomorrow. He'd been gone a full three days now, way over the usual time. Only God himself could take a guess at what the Senate would do on account of his extended absence.

Larsa relaxed once more and closed his eyes. In response to his new relaxed state, all three girls seemed to cuddle closer to him and he had to be grateful that he was taller than all of them, other wise he'd have been suffocating by then. Larsa sighed, however, he somehow sensed that he had a long journey ahead of him.

It had almost felt as if Larsa had only blinked before Kairos, his pet red-tailed hawk whom he'd received from his father for his tenth birthday, came flying in through the open window and landed squarely on his shoulder, affectionately, yet painfully picking at Larsa's ear. Larsa groaned and looked up at Kairos for a moment before he recognized his beloved pet and tried to reach up to pet it, only to find that his left arm was not only numb to the point of being painful, but pinned down to the ground by a rather shaggy head covered in tangled red tresses. He sighed as he looked down at Kira's sleeping form and reached up to Kairos with his other arm, careful to not knock him off his shoulder.

Kairos twittered loudly and nipped at Larsa's hand before sticking out its left taloned foot. Larsa winced slightly as his bird nipped at him, likely unaware of the pain he was causing, as per usual and took notice of his outstretched foot and the piece of parchment rolled around it, tied with a thin thread.

Larsa's heart immediately began to race. The only way Kairos would've been here with a letter for him would be if he was sent by Basch. The truth was that Kairos was a very bad tempered bird and trusted very few people: Larsa, Basch and Kira, no one else could so much as touch him without getting their eyes torn out, much less to have tied a letter around his foot, and the only reason Basch would be sending him a letter rather than just waiting for him to return, would be if there was urgent bad news.

Larsa reached out to untie the knot and felt like smacking Kairos as he flapped his wings and screeched into the chilled early morning atmosphere, his joy showing off aggressively after three days without his master. Larsa finally managed to get the letter off Kairos' leg and shrugged his shoulder, waving to the window sill, instructing Kairos to fly there and stay there until he was ready for him. The bird cooperated quietly as he flew to the window sill and landed with the click of his talons on the metal sill.

Larsa opened the letter and strained to see in the dim early morning light. He was right in assuming it was from Basch as he recognized the slanted, slightly boxy and messy hand writing of his personal guard and Judge Magister.

My Lord,

I am afraid your extended absence has brought about some suspicion. The Senate members are speaking of sending out a search party for you, deciding quite on their own that your abnormally long absence is a result of your's and Miss Catherine's kidnapping. They are planning to send out a search party, starting in Rabanastre at about noon today if you do not turn up by then, and from the sounds of things, this is no ordinary search party. I have consulted my own soldiers and they tell me that it looks as if the Senate is sending an entire platoon on this "rescue mission".

You must return with haste Larsa, things are getting out of hand here.

Basch

Larsa read the letter twice before turning to Kira and shaking her roughly. "Huh, what? What's going..." Larsa said nothing as he shoved the letter into her hands before turning over, ignoring the prickly, needle like sensation in his left arm as he shook Catherine awake.

"Hmmmm, it's too early..." Catherine moaned as she turned away from Larsa. Larsa shook her harder and whispered to her that they had to go. Behind him, Larsa could feel Kira stand up and knew she was heading to the get their things, being the only one that could really maneuver around the sea of sleeping bodies.

"Come Catherine, we must leave now." Larsa's voice had a finality and a forcefulness to it that seemed to wake her up as she opened her eyes and stared up at him questioningly.

It was only seconds later that Kira returned with their things as Larsa was helping Catherine up and trying desperately to ensure they didn't wake Tihana. "Here." Kira said handing Larsa his bag, she then bent down and gently laid the covers of their futon over Tihana as she slept peacefully.

Larsa thanked her and took Catherine's hand leading her through the sea of sleep and then out the door before she could gather enough cognitive skills to wonder where they were going. "Larsa where are we going?"

"Back to Archadia. The Senate suspects my abnormally long absence to be a kidnapping of you and me both, the fools. They plan to send a "search party"; a rather heavily armed search party at that. I have to stop them." Larsa hadn't looked at Catherine since they began walking and seemed to be so fully focused on his destination that he failed to realize that poor, half-dazed Catherine could hardly keep up with him.

"What about Kairos?" Catherine turned and realized that Kira was also coming. She frowned slightly at the thought.

"He can find his own way back to the castle." Larsa said. Up until that point, all Larsa was thinking about was how to convince the Senate that there was no need for a search party. He'd long since come to the conclusion that he would have to inform the Senate of his secret adventures as Lamont and about Kira, but how to do that without giving them reason to hunt her down was what he was trying to discern. He however, had come to another realization as he heard Kira's voice behind him.

He did not stop walking, his pace had not changed nor had his vigor, his mind however, was now in turmoil. This was the last day he'd ever see Kira again. It hit him like a ton of bricks. It was so sudden, so cruelly timed. It was now that he should really be there for them, the orphans of Low Town, for Kira, who was now herself an orphan. But Larsa was to be King in roughly a week. He thought back to Tihana and almost wanted to turn back and kiss her one last time, but thought better of it. If he did not hurry, she'd have much more to fear than the sudden disappearance of her father.

They kept walking in silence until they reached the nearest stairwell leading up to the Streets of Rabanastre. As they began climbing the stairs, Larsa heard Kira's foot steps stop and turned to look at her. She was looking straight up at him, but she had stopped just in front of the first step.

The two of them locked eye contact for a moment before Catherine noticed they had stopped and stopped as well. Larsa looked around at her and sighed as he saw her feigned confusion and took note of the pain and jealousy lieing beneath the fake expression. "Catherine, could you give us a moment please?"

She looked utterly shocked, as if she couldn't believe he would dare to ask her that. "Please..." Larsa begged her to understand his situation. She did not, but silently agreed to give them a moment as she huffed and continued to climb the stairs out of sight.

Larsa turned back to Kira and their eyes met again. They stared at each other in a moment of awkward silence before Kira sighed and broke eye contact. "Larsa, this is the last time we see each other."

Larsa closed his eyes for a moment and shook his head slightly, still unable to fully wrap his mind around it. He'd practically lived with Kira for the past four years and now he would never see her again. "...I know..."

Kira smirked slightly and looked up at him with the most fake smile he'd ever seen her attempt. He wasn't the only having a hard time he realized. "The kids will miss you."

Larsa smiled at that and said, "I'm sure they'll be fine in your hands." Even though they were speaking of the plural, he knew she was talking about Tihana, and she knew that he meant for her to take good care of her.

"Yeah..." Kira smiled a genuine smile then. The thought of their surrogate daughter always made them smile, no matter the circumstances. Kira sighed slightly and turned to leave, her red tresses knotted and messy, yet still beautifully shiny and sleek as it swayed with her motion, the swish of red always seemed to captivate Larsa.

"Kira..." Larsa called, he sounded almost desperate. Kira stopped and half turned, half of her face hidden, the half he suspected she trusted the least. "I need to know...something." Larsa could feel his heart in his throat now, pounding away as if it wished to tear itself from his body, as if his heart no longer belonged to him.

Kira stood quietly. She was listening. Larsa took a deep breathe and looked away from her for a moment before he turned back to her and said, his voice soft and expectant, "Kira...do you love me?"

Kira visibly twitched.

Larsa watched.

She balled her hands into fists.

Larsa could just about see the myst developing around her. She was running away.

She'd answered him, however, before the spell had finished. "No." She had said. The word seemed to pass into one ear and out the other as Larsa watched her disappear before his eyes in a dazzling array of colourful swirls of myst, the familiar booming sound of the teleportation magic filling his ears. It wasn't until she was completely gone and all the myst had settled and diffused that he'd taken stock of her reply.

Larsa was in shock. He had not been expecting her to say yes, but he was completely and utterly shocked when she said no, and it surprised him how hurt he felt, how betrayed and heart broken. He inhaled sharply and shook his head, "Of course..." he said to himself. Yes, this was the way things were supposed to go. That was what he needed to hear, he needed to know that he was not needed here, he was needed in his own home, his people needed him, the Senate needed him, Catherine needed him. Larsa suddenly wondered if this was how he'd been making Catherine feel all this time and felt an instant pang of guilt rush through him. He promice himself he would make it up to her, he had to, she would be his wife in a matter of days.

Larsa sighed and shook his head, "I must put the needs of others before my own." and with that reminder, as battered and bruised as he was, he was off.

OoOoO

To be Continued...