Folie à Deux

Chapter 2: In Search of Answers

-x-X-x-

Despite the dreadful imbalance of wealth and the awful, supercilious inhabitants of the noble quarter, Zaphias was still a place Yuri called home. The castle stood tall, reaching up into the clouds above the rest of the capital. For all its glory and beauty, he had hated the building and all it stood for. A few notable exceptions, though, had since changed his mind – the fearless commandant who would risk everything to protect the people, the kindly emperor with nothing but good intentions, and of course…

Repede growled at his companion, nudging him forward as he hesitated at the city entrance. "Yeah, yeah. I'm going," Yuri drawled, slowly making his way there.

It had been nearly a month since Estelle had left them and returned to Zaphias with Flynn. Her departure had been the loose thread, so to speak, that had unraveled the team – after that, one by one they had gone their separate ways. …That or his sour attitude had turned everyone away. He had fallen into one of his dark brooding spells, and this time the princess wasn't there to dispel the darkness; if anything, the thought of her made it worse. He was dangerous, he realized, and it was best that she stayed away from him.

"Why am I here again?" he wondered to himself. He had no guild job at the moment – Karol had business with the Hunting Blades, and Judith was off traveling with Ba'ul. Rita was occupied with research and Raven was busy smoothing things out between the Knights and the Union, leaving Yuri to his own devices. He had told himself he was just going to check on the Lower Quarter, but found himself inexplicably drawn towards the castle.

The courtyard was meticulously groomed as always. Yuri didn't fit in here, but Estelle had made a point of enabling him to visit the castle as he pleased. They had spent several lazy summer afternoons in the courtyard, talking until the Sun went down. It felt as if that had been ages ago. Everything looked the same, but it felt entirely different.

Repede barked, alerting Yuri of someone's presence. Caught off guard, he realized now that a sword was drawn and pointed at his throat, the tip of the sharp metal blade lightly touching his neck. Yuri raised an eyebrow. "Oh. Hi, Flynn."

His best friend lowered the sword only to punch him squarely in the jaw. Yuri staggered back from the impact of the blow, pain flooding the left side of his face. "Okay, seriously. What the hell?"

"That was for upsetting Lady Estellise," Flynn growled. Yuri briefly wondered if this was some sort of joke, but the steely glare on Flynn's face – and the strength with which he had punched him – suggested otherwise.

"What are you even talking about?" he glared, regaining his balance.

"I'm talking about that night in Halure. For whatever you did to make her so upset that she begged me to bring her back to Zaphias!" Flynn seethed, yelling now. He'd never seen him so protective or, in Yuri's opinion, irrational.

A perplexed look briefly passed over Yuri's face before he narrowed his dark eyes, nonchalant mask firmly in place. "Well isn't that what you wanted all along?"

"I would never have wanted for her to return in tears," he hissed. "What did you say to her?"

He hadn't said anything at all. He had been avoiding her to make sure of that, trying to keep this darkness at bay. But that look in her eyes… had that been fear? Perhaps she had sensed it and had given into her instincts to run away. Regardless, it seemed she wanted nothing to do with him anymore. And that's a good thing, he reminded himself, though it certainly didn't feel that way.

Flynn's blade was at his throat again. "I asked you a goddamn question, Yuri. What the hell's wrong with you?"

"Now that's a better question," Yuri muttered under his breath. "But if you don't mind, I was just leaving."

Flynn withdrew his sword but the glower on his face remained. "What were you doing here at the castle? Were you going to see Lady Estellise?"

"Of course not," he immediately retorted. "From what you've said she doesn't want anything to do with me. And since when do you care so much, anyway?"

Flynn hesitated before opening his mouth to speak. "I don't want to see her so upset ever again. …I only want the best for her," he said evenly but with such conviction that it was absolutely clear, at least to Yuri, how his best friend felt about her. He wondered briefly how long he had felt that way and whether they had some sort of history, but forced the thoughts from his mind as they shouldn't and didn't matter.

"Well then, Commandant. You should go tend to your princess and let me be on my way," Yuri said harshly, making for the exit. Repede cast Flynn a glance, almost akin to an unvoiced whine, before following.

-x-X-x-

Yuri let out a sigh, sitting sideways on one of the marble benches in the courtyard. He'd never noticed how hard and uncomfortable they were until now. He drew his knees up towards his chest and rested his arms upon them. He was well aware that he stuck out like a sore thumb but he couldn't have cared less. He wasn't sure what he was still doing here, but something inside of him wouldn't let him leave.

He sat there, still as a statue, until from the corner of his eye he saw movement – a flash of carnation pink and ivory. It then became apparent that he had subconsciously chosen a bench not far from Estelle's balcony window. He quickly moved out of sight behind a shrub but kept his eyes fixated in her direction.

He felt absolutely ridiculous, hiding like this, but confronting her wasn't an option. And neither was leaving.

She was a vision made up in silk and lace, her hair ornately twisted and pulled out of her eyes. It doesn't suit her, he found himself thinking. But nonetheless, the sight of her familiar face brought back a flood of memories and emotions he had been keeping from himself. A hollow emptiness expanded in his chest and he realized why he had been so reluctant to see her in the first place.

-x-X-x-

"Yuri was here?" Estelle blinked in disbelief. The name lingered on her lips. "Why?"

"I'm not sure, to tell you the truth," Flynn shook his head. He seemed tense. "It seems as if something's been bothering him though."

"What do you think it could be?" she asked lightly, doing her best to sound curious and nothing more. Certainly it couldn't still be her fault – he hadn't even seen her in almost a month. And if it had been her doing, Yuri would at least have confronted her. He wasn't the sort of person to just let things go.

"He didn't really say. But he seemed… off," he sighed. "I wonder what he's done this time. There haven't been any reports of any higher ups being murdered lately, though, so that's good news." He said it lightly as if it was a joke, but Estelle knew Flynn still couldn't quite come to terms with what Yuri had done. She wondered if there might be something wrong with her for letting it go so easily.

"Well… what if it's what he hasn't done?" Estelle wondered aloud. Yuri kept up a nonchalant façade but everyone knew he was happiest when he could do things for other people. It was when he felt as if he couldn't do things that he would fall into an angry despair. He must be feeling restless now that things had settled down, she surmised. Brave Vesperia's jobs would seem rather trivial by comparison – surely nothing could rival fighting for and protecting the world.

Flynn followed her unspoken thoughts – they both knew Yuri quite well. "Now that you mention it, he was alone. He can't very well play hero if he doesn't have anyone traveling with him – no friends to protect, no beautiful princess to save from danger…"

"Are you calling me beautiful, Flynn?" she asked earnestly. Her soft lips curved slightly; beautiful really was a nicer prefix than tomboy, as Yuri had teased her once.

The Commandant's face had turned a brilliant shade of crimson. "Wh- I… no! I-I mean, y-you are, of course, but that's… I… I meant-"

"Flynn, you look flushed. Are you feeling okay?" she asked, knitting her brow. She lightly put her hand to his face and felt it grow even warmer.

"Of course… I-I should go," he muttered weakly. "Check in on the Knights…"

"Okay, I'll see you later then. Don't overwork yourself!" she called as he left, a faint smile lingering on her lips as she too went back inside.

-x-X-x-

He hadn't been able to overhear their conversation, but he had seen quite enough. He saw the way she had playfully tugged on Flynn's arm, leading him to the edge of the balcony. He saw the way Flynn had obviously said something to compliment her and then how she had touched his face, gently and affectionately.

"Let's get out of here," he said to Repede, tearing his gaze from the balcony.

I should never have come here, he thought to himself, heading towards the gate. Of course she wouldn't want to see him. And even if he had made his presence known, what would he have even said? What had he hoped to find here?

He knew he should have taken comfort in knowing that she made it back to the capital safe and sound – and that she was happy here with Flynn – but seeing her had proved to be anything but a remedy for his dark spell. The ache in his chest seemed to have magnified tenfold in the brief but drawn out moments she was present and had gotten even worse now that she was gone.

The edge of the city stood before vast rolling plains, and he hoped the open landscape might clear his cluttered mind. "So where to now?" he asked quietly, not sure where to go. All he knew was that he wanted to move. He could see what looked like monsters in the distance and his fingers itched to spill their insides.

"Dahngrest? Nordopolica? Maybe Mantaic? …Or maybe you want to stay here with Flynn too," he added darkly as Repede cast him a wary glance. The canine growled, and Yuri sighed. "Sorry. Let's get going."

He headed in the direction of looming dark clouds in the distance, finding something of a mild comfort in the fact that at least the skies felt the same way.

-x-X-x-

Judith had spent the last couple months flying with her longstanding companion, traveling for the sake of traveling. As paradoxical as it was, she felt most at home when she was on the move. She was presently staying in Mantaic, a quaint and placid retreat from the scorching hot desert. She quite liked it here and stopped by frequently during her travels.

Thanks to Ba'ul she had seen the vast majority of Terca Lumireis by now, and she figured she should return to Brave Vesperia soon to do her part to help others. As much as she had grown to embrace solitude from an early age, she had to admit that being with others was a nice change. She thought fondly back to when she had taken Rita and Estelle with her to travel abroad after defeating the Adephagos. Traveling with them had certainly been different from now, but that hadn't been a bad thing. They had matured since she had first met them, and traveling without the men had created an even more relaxed and cohesive setting. Without Raven or Karol to constantly set Rita off the mage had been much calmer, and without Yuri…

She frowned slightly, wondering what had happened to him. He had become cold and angry seemingly overnight after Estelle had left with Flynn. It didn't make sense that he would be so angered by her departure: comparatively, he had barely batted an eye when she and Raven had left before, and both of them had betrayed the party. By contrast, there had been no real need for Estelle to stay, and while she hadn't said goodbye, she had still left a brief message with the innkeeper telling them exactly where she would be. There was no need for him to be worried for her wellbeing; she was with the Commandant.

If it were any other man she would have chalked it up to jealousy, but it was Yuri. Yuri, who had not-so-subtly evaded Estelle's not-so-subtle hints and advances and had distanced himself from her presumably not to lead her on any further. He had distanced himself to the point that Judith thought it necessary to tell him to go easy on the poor girl and talk to her. In any case, regardless of the source his mood had taken a toll on the party, and without Estelle's cheery presence they had all in time found reasons to leave.

Sooner or later though, Judith was sure, they would find their way back to one another.

-x-X-x-

The sky was dark when she saw him arrive. At first she thought it must have been another man sporting long hair and a sword in his hand, but the canine at his side left no question as to who it was.

"Yuri? What are you doing here?" she asked, standing up from the wooden porch she had been sitting on while gazing up at the vast canopy of stars.

He glanced at her but did not reply, his eyes like ice boring into her. It was an intense stare, but it wasn't something she took personally. She wasn't sure what was eating at him, but it seemed to have gotten even worse since she had seen him last. "What's wrong?" she asked pleasantly.

He exhaled shortly, as if that were an answer. She looked at him curiously, and then beckoned for him to come with her back to the inn. He followed her wordlessly back to her room while Repede waited outside.

She had never been one to hold her tongue merely to spare one from discomfort. She spoke usually for her own amusement or for curiosity's sake. "So have you seen Estelle lately?" she asked innocently, taking off her boots.

He exhaled harshly again, though this time he did speak. "She's fine. She's with Flynn," he said gruffly in that deep baritone voice of his.

"Oh? So then you can relax," she crooned, sitting down next to him on the bed. "But something's on your mind."

"It's nothing," he said firmly.

"Well then… let me ask again. What brings you out to Mantaic?" she asked softly.

"Just… traveling," he said, though the look in his eyes told her more. He was traveling to keep his mind off of whatever it was that was bothering him; he needed a distraction. As it were, so did she.

"Well then. Would you like to have sex?" she asked lightly.

The look he gave her was hesitant… but it wasn't a no. "…You know that it means nothing," he warned.

She merely smiled and took off her fitted bolero jacket, revealing that much more of her flawless skin. She leaned forward and kissed him roughly, his knees between her perfect legs, then began to unbutton the rest of his shirt.

And then she stopped.

His hands were still at his sides; he didn't kiss her back. "You're not very good at this, are you," she sighed. "Unless, of course, it's that you're in love with someone else…"

He evaded the allegation. "If you're looking for someone a little more fun, I'll bet the Old Man would be happy to oblige."

"Oh not at all," she shrugged, sitting back down on the bed. "And in any case, he's all the way in Dahngrest."

"Dahngrest," Yuri echoed quietly to himself. "Judy…"

"Ba'ul and I can give you a ride to Dahngrest," she said, anticipating his question and cutting to the chase. Clearly his aimless travels weren't helping him; maybe the lively city of Dahngrest could get his mind off of things. In any event, she wouldn't mind paying a visit to Raven. It was something of a game the two of them played, analyzing the often bizarre and unpredictable actions of their fellow party members. Yuri had lately proven to be quite the puzzle, but it seemed now that she had some solid leads.

She looked into his dark eyes and realized how tired he looked. She vaguely wondered how Yuri and Repede had managed to get all the way out here – even with a ship they would have had to traverse the harsh conditions of the desert. "We can leave tomorrow; you should get some rest first. You can have the floor," she offered sweetly.

He obliged, his dark hair falling around him as he lay on his side. "Thanks, Judy."

"Of course," she replied as she lay down on the bed, turning to face the window. Brave Vesperia was clear in sight. All for the guild, she couldn't help but think with a light smile tracing her lips.

-x-X-x-

A/N: Thank you all for your kind reviews – I know the fan base isn't very big compared to others so it's nice to know that people are interested! The next part of this story came to me in a dream.