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Chapter 45: Mines and Moonlight
Yvelle was silent, as she usually was when surrounded by her companions. She watched each member of the group, noticing what others would not or could not, and she wondered if they ever will. She noticed the way Vaan smiled easily, breathed more calmly and was more cheerful despite the otherwise unforeseen doom ahead of them. She saw the Queen allow herself chances to smile and laugh and relax, Yvelle saw the way the young Emperor try to master the Mist, tried to be strong for all of the group, forgetting that sometimes there is a need to be a child first and ruler second; she saw Penelo, trying to reach out to this Emperor, trying to bridge the gap that seemed to have formed between them of late; she saw the Captain turned Judge Majister try to be the father to them all, mustering all his strength to give strength, afraid to falter, afraid to breathe, afraid to let weakness slip. And she? Where did she fit with all of them?
How was she to tell them of her nightmares at night, when it seemed all of them were a group of insomniacs? How was she, Yvelle, to tell them of the tales she had heard of them, larger and grander than them so it would seem? How was she to tell them that she was afraid of herself, of this hidden power Penelo mention once or twice during her training, and that she would never be able to become a proper hunter? Was she to tell them that she hears the whispers of a nameless fear whether she was awake or asleep? Was she to tell them of the chills that plagued her even when the sun shined upon them?
No, she will not. Not when at last, she had found some semblance of normalcy, of familiarity within this little group. She had yet to prove to them that she was of use, she had yet to win their trust, but still, she knew that she would gladly give her life to protect one of theirs. She was in the company of heroes after all, and she would not be afraid.
Yvelle stood silent, as the group prepared to leave towards Henne Mines the next day. She stood, pack at hand, watching as around her, the Garif people prepared to bid them off. The young Emperor, ever the diplomat, was busy talking to the Great-Chief, giving thanks for their hospitality, the Judge Majister behind him, ever the bodyguard.
Vaan and Penelo stood a little at the side, ever together, thoughtful and a lot more mature since last they been here.
The Queen stood apart from the rest, cloaked once again in concealing brown, sword at hand, pack at back. Yvelle wondered why the Queen was not to go with them to the mines, but she supposed that was her business. After all, Yvelle was but a mere peasant. She had no business interfering with the queen.
And yet, Yvelle saw Vaan glance once or twice to the solemnly standing queen, her grey eyes focused on the departing scene before her. Yvelle wondered if she wanted to leave at all, to leave them on their journey while she returned to Rabanastrre, Yvelle had always thought the queen was more than invincible, with the stories she had heard of her, but now, as she stood silent, betraying no emotion, Yvelle had never seen anyone look more human.
Yvelle gripped the staff she held in her hands, the wood foreign to her touch. The staff was a gift from Penelo, saying that Yvelle would be able to wield more powerful magicks with the aid of a staff. And, if ever her Mist power depletes, Penelo also said the staff is also a very effective club and could be used to whack beasts.
Yvelle had tried to learn how to wield the staff as efficiently as she could. It was neither sharp nor piercing therefore Yvelle need not be afraid that she might poke herself. And admittedly, it was a nice feeling to be able to hold something against monsters other than her bare fists.
And yet, the staff still felt foreign to her. Though known to be efficient weapons, Yvelle had never been a strong supporter of such. But still, if it were meant to protect people, then she would relent.
Yvelle gripped the staff again, casting her eyes to the two members of their party who had arrived yesterday. Though both held the same weapons, two large gold swords each, Yvelle felt that they wielded it differently. Much like their characters. The female was open and friendly, always a smile in her face and Yvelle recognized a healer in her. The other, the man, was more reticent than his partner. Nevertheless, Yvelle sensed a strength in him, a sort of protectiveness for Aurea that his face seemed not to show.
Penelo called to her and Yvelle ran to catch up with the departing party. Falling into step beside her master, Yvelle turned to look back at the village, not knowing the next time she would ever set foot inside it again. But strangely enough, there was no foreboding. Only a silent regret.
The party quickly moved through Ozmone Plain without and little difficulty. Unlike their previous trekking through the Plains, there was a sense of urgency in their steps now, as well as a sort of caution. Yvelle did not know which she liked better.
"Are you all right, Yvelle?" Penelo asked beside her and Yvelle turned her amethyst eyes to the young woman she admired. Penelo's hazel eyes were full of concern and there was a feeling of gratefulness in Yvelle at the thought she would matter to her. Yvelle made herself nod.
"I am fine, Mistress," Yvelle whispered, pushing some of her sapphire locks away from her face.
Penelo sighed. "Please stop calling me that." She placed her hands on her hips. "It makes me feel so old. And I don't think I want to be anybody's mistress yet."
At once Yvelle felt contrite. "My apologies,"
Penelo just gave a wave of her hand. "No worries. Just promise me you won't call me by a title anymore, okay? "Penelo" would be fine. All right?" she met Yvelle's hesitant eyes.
"I—I…will try," Yvelle stammered.
"Good." Penelo smiled and nodded. Yvelle was silent for a minutes as she and Penelo walked a bit away from the others.
"It's weird isn't it?" Penelo asked after a few minutes of walking. Yvelle looked at her questionably.
Penelo was not looking at her but at the plains. "I never thought I'd get stuck in a life like this. Full of magick and political intrigue. I've always thought that I'd end up falling in love back in Rabanastre, putting up my own shop or something and living to a ripe old age." She turned to Yvelle. "Strange how the fates fixes things differently don't they?"
Yvelle nodded understandably. "My life has not been what I wanted either." She whispered and she knew her voice sounded bitter because Penelo had looked at her curiously. Yvelle shut her eyes, as if attempting to block out the memories. When she opened them again, Penelo was no longer looking at her but at the Queen of Dalmasca who was talking once more to Larsa and Basch.
They had reached the point where they would part. Larsa and Ashe were talking in earnest now, and it seemed Larsa was trying to convince Ashe to allow Aurea and Aquilis to take with her to her trip back to Rabanastre. The queen, obviously, did not want an escort, and she was making that clear. Basch and Vaan seemed reluctant to get into the discussion. Penelo tried to hide her giggles, but she soon could not hold it. When Ashe heard Penelo's laughter, the queen gave a glare and finally gave in to the idea of an escort.
When the time to part however, no one was smiling. No one was laughing.
XOXOXOX
"You know, this is why I hate mines." Vaan said out loud, his voice echoing in the cavern halls. "There's hardly any light that comes here."
Penelo sighed. Vaan had been in an unsurprising dark mood since that morning, and group need not guess the reason why. The queen of Dalmasca had not joined them in this part of their journey.
"Come on Vaan," Penelo said now, trying to calm her partner down. "It's not like we didn't live down at Lowtown during the War. There's practically no day there."
The party had been walking for hours now. They had no map of the mines and were relying purely on memory. A dangerous gamble as any mines could change radically in any given space of time, but there was nothing else they could do. So far, they seemed to be going the right way, if they just wanted to pass through the mines that is. It was much more difficult when it came to looking for something.
Vaan was silent but he rolled his eyes. "Hey Basch!" he called to the Judge Majister walking ahead with the Emperor. Yvelle held the rear. "Where do you think we are now?"
Basch looked over his shoulder before saying gruffly, "It seemed that we are somewhere in Crossover B, Vaan."
"Great." Vaan answered. "There should be a crystal somewhere up ahead right?"
"Why would you need a crystal?" Penelo asked him. "It's not like you need to restore your Mist."
Vaan shrugged and leaned in to whisper to Penelo. "Crystal means we get to stop and rest for a moment. I mean Larsa still hasn't mastered any Mist techniques and I bet he doesn't have as much Mist power as well. So Basch would call a break, which means no walking!"
Penelo gave him a curious look, but said nothing. "Sometimes, I don't think I know you Vaan."
Vaan's answer was a simple grin because they did reach the area where there was a crystal and Basch did say they should stop and take some rest.
"I thought that these mines were open for digging?" Penelo asked stretching up and down as Vaan unceremoniously dropped to the floor, yawning. Penelo looked at Basch rather than Larsa. "I thought that after the war, the mines were open again."
Basch paused in his examination of the crystal before looking over to Penelo. "The Henne Magicite Mines, though rich in magicite are also rich in danger. And since a majority of these mines are unmapped, the Emperor chose to leave the Empire's occupation in it." There was a small knowing glint in the Judge Majister's eye but Penelo chose to ignore him.
"Ohh," she said looking up at the dark almost bluish tint of the rocks that created the mines. "So we are basically in another dangerous place right?"
There was no denying Basch's grin now. "We could take a safer route."
Penelo grinned back, looking pointedly at Larsa's back. "Are you kidding? It's not as if we didn't pass this way before. I remember getting an esper here, and some marks and other random stuff…" she trailed off ticking her fingers and Vaan hid his snicker.
"You sure like to rile him up don't you?" he muttered loud enough so Penelo would hear. She in turn, looked at him scathingly.
"I am not riling him up!" she hissed, not even bothering to ask Vaan who "him" was. Vaan meanwhile just shook his head and rolled his eyes.
"Right." He said disbelievingly. He stood up and brushed his pants. "And Basch's my uncle. Come on Penelo, admit it, you just…" he suddenly stopped short.
Penelo meanwhile just stamped her foot and looked at Vaan sharply. "I'm just what Vaan?" she demanded. "I'm just what?"
Vaan meanwhile was not paying to her anymore but was transfixed at something ahead, over to the Ore Retraction shaft. His eyes were wide and staring, he was almost comical in nature. It took Penelo a few seconds to realize he was not paying attention, and she became, if it was possible, more annoyed.
"Vaan!" she yelled and that snapped Vaan to attention. Irritably, he looked at her.
"What?"
"You're one to talk." She answered huffily. "You were the one not paying…"
"There is a little girl over there." Yvelle's soft voice interrupted the hunter's and the rest of them turned to the rookie.
"What?" Penelo asked her, the look on her face saying that Yvelle probably grew another head.
The latter meanwhile just nodded and pointed to the direction to where Vaan was looking at a while ago. "I saw a little girl, dressed in white."
At her words, all of them turned to look at the Ore Separation Shaft and it was not that surprising to see there was nothing.
"Perhaps you imagined it," Larsa said soothingly, staring at his Royal Edge. "The mines are said to confuse the mind at times."
Yvelle said nothing but continued to stare before her. Even when the others set about preparing to leave she did nothing but stare ahead. Penelo soon noticed this and went over to Yvelle.
"Are you all right Yvelle?" the hunter asked her, reaching out to touch her pale arm. "Maybe you should have something to drink. You hardly ate anything when we left Jahara and.."
Yvelle interrupted her with an excited point at the Shaft. "There she is again!"
This time, Penelo bit her lip. "Yvelle, maybe your mind is playing tricks on you, because, there's definitely no way a girl could…"
The sound of a child's laughter drowned out the rest of Penelo's sentence.
Vaan stood up, sword at hand. "Maybe we should move on." He looked at Basch, and the older man nodded.
"It is not wise to stay here too long." He picked up his spear and Larsa quickly followed.
"We still have no idea where this nethicite could be." The young Emperor said despondently. "The Order of the Tournesol, though capable as they are still cannot find any information regarding this. Ortal hides his tracks well."
"Or that Scipio is adept in the art of moving through shadows." Basch added. "It seemed that maybe we should…"
His words were cut short as another little laugh came to their ears.Yvelle gripped her staff.
"She wants us to follow her." She said more firmly than before made to go to where she saw it but Vaan stopped her.
"Are you crazy?" he asked her. "Do you have any idea how dangerous wandering around the mines is? What if you get lost?"
Before Yvelle could answer, another laugh came. Penelo started to bring out her ninja blades. "Maybe we should follow her Vaan. I mean this never happened to our previous visits to the mines. You never know, maybe she knows what we're looking for and…"
Yvelle didn't need another invitation because she grabbed her pack and ran off.
"Yvelle wait!" Penelo called at the retreating back of the healer, but the latter ignored her.
Picking up her pack as well, Penelo ran after Yvelle, all the while muttering about strange girls in white and scary laughter, with Vaan, Basch and Larsa behind her.
XOXOXOX
The Strahl's engines thrummed steadily and then flickered before it died completely. It rested on its landing gear and was berthed beside a patch of trees. Balthier brought out the camouflage net from an underside compartment and with Fran's help cast it over the Strahl and concealed it completely. Now it appeared to be a patch of trees itself, almost.
'Well, let's be off. The Moogles are about their tasks and we must be to ours.' Balthier said as he placed his able hands on his waist. He was taking a good long look at his Strahl. His gaze would not wander elsewhere whenever he was about to leave his ship for a long time. There was a feeling which rattled in his bones saying that every second he threw to waste gaping at the Strahl would be well worth.
'I assume you desire stealth. Be your motives different to seek the shelter of night's shadow?' Fran spoke quietly, her distinct Viera accent a sweet tune to Balthier's ears, 'We had best be off if we are to make use of the night.' She spoke calmly as she always had.
'Right.' Balthier replied. He took his Fomalhaut from its holster and checked its chamber. There was a bullet chambered in the barrel, seeing its metallic brown sheen even in the dim light gave Balthier a reassuring feeling that no ill would befall him or Fran tonight.
'Where are we to?' Fran asked.
'Henne Mines, I have a good feeling our quarry shall be there.' Balthier could feel the guilt seeping in again. He tried to cover it up with a cough.
'A stone, you say?' She inquired again. Her inquiries were merely to receive information and not to satisfy some personal curiosity. She was not the kind to pry into things which she sensed to be classified. She trusted Balthier and she believed that would be enough.
'Yes. First one there…' Balthier cleared his throat and smiled at Fran.
'Is granted immunity from chores that would endure of a whole month.' Fran returned Balthier's mischievous smile.
'You won't win this time.' Balthier remarked challengingly. He stretched and then slowly crouched down.
'We shall see which among our races yields a faster runner.' Fran crouched down as well and shifted her agile feet into position.
'One…' Balthier counted, his blood was rushing with excitement.
'Two…' Fran whispered. Under the dim light of the moon, the superiority of the Viera when it came to running would be proved.
'Three!' They both yelled as they simultaneously exploded into a sprint towards the mines of Henne, their hearts pumping as their legs did their best to carry them as fast as they could.
Under the dim moonlight…
