Summary: After two weeks with his unwanted backup, Abe is ready to throttle the annoying Knight of Seiros. However, when bandits foolishly try to stir up trouble in Abyss, Lucien helps fight them off, and his skills in battle manage to earn a bit of Abe's respect. Just a tiny bit.


It had only been two weeks, and Abe was already sick of his unwanted 'partner.'

"So then Lord Seteth gave us orders to check up on a village that was having a bandit problem, and I was-"

"Goddess help me, do you ever shut up?"

Abe glowered at Lucien, who chuckled, unfazed as he leaned against the wall behind them. Of all the knights that the church had to offer, why did Abe have to get stuck with the most obnoxious, insufferable one?

"Well," Lucien said, smirking as he raised an eyebrow, "If you're so sick of hearing about me, why don't you tell me something about you?"

"No."

Lucien chuckled and folded his hands behind his head. "Okay then! As I was saying, it turns out that the villagers were-"

"Ugh, fine!" Abe threw up his hands in defeat, and he averted his gaze as he crossed his arms over his chest. "If I tell you something about myself, will you finally shut up?"

"Oh, of course!" Lucien's sweet smile didn't fool Abe in the slightest; annoying bastard of a man. Sighing as he crossed his hands over his chest, he looked back at Lucien.

"So, out with it, Mr. Backup: What do you want to know?"

"Hmm..." Lucien hummed, placing a hand on his hip as he tapped his chin. Abe rolled his eyes hard, tapping his foot while impatiently waiting for the object of his annoyance to hurry the hell up and ask his damn question already.

After what seemed like an eternity of waiting, Lucien let out a 'ah-ha!' and snapped his fingers. "Got it! I'd like to know where you were born, Abe."

Abe's face scrunched up and he scoffed. "Why does that matter? I've spent most of my life here."

"But not all of it?"

"...No." Abe narrowed his eyes at Lucien, who was watching him expectantly, and he sighed and dragged a hand down his face. "I was born in Derdriu."

Lucien raised an eyebrow. "Ah, so you're from the Alliance."

"Barely," Abe said with a shrug, "I don't remember my parents, and my early childhood is a blur. Had to fight and steal to keep myself alive, until a merchant took pity on me and brought me here."

Lucien frowned and tugged at his beard. "I see...Sounds like you had a rough time."

"Better than most. At least I'm alive to talk about it."

"Indeed..."

Silence fell between them, and Abe sighed with relief when Lucien did not press him for more details. He didn't enjoy talking about the past, especially what little he remembered from his time before coming to Abyss. Thinking that Lucien's curiosity had been sated, Abe crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall, letting his eyes slip shut.

"What's your favorite meal?"

Abe's eyes snapped back open and he whipped his head around to glare at Lucien. "One question wasn't enough?"

"Oh gods no!" Lucien laughed and shook his head, slapping a hand to Abe's shoulder only to have it shrugged off immediately. "We're partners now! We should know each other inside and out by now!"

Abe grimaced at the thought of getting that close to him, but he knew by now that Lucien wouldn't drop it until he answered, so he let out a tired sigh and rubbed at his neck.

"Fine…Well, I guess I enjoy a nice, hot bowl of stew to go with my ale after a long day," he said, and his eyes narrowed when Lucien's lit up.

"Oooh, stew, eh? Good choice. I'll have to remember that." Lucien winked at him, and Abe's brow furrowed.

"What the hell does that mean?"

"Mmmm, it's a surprise~"

Abe groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. This man was the most obnoxious person that he had ever had the displeasure of knowing. Deciding that he preferred when Lucien was blabbering on about himself, Abe ask his own question:

"What about you?"

"Oh?" Lucien blinked at him, his eyes going wide. "Suddenly curious about me, Abe? I thought you were sick of hearing me talk?"

"Fuck off, then."

"Ooh, temper, temper!" Lucien wagged a finger at him, causing Abe to snort and turn up his nose. "But, since you asked so nicely, I will sate your curiosity."

"I am from a small village in Galatea territory in the Kingdom," Lucien said, smiling as he stroked his beard, "Both my mother and father were well-respected knights, so it's no surprise that I became one as well. They trained me from a young age, and I managed to impress the Knights of Seiros when they passed through the village while recruiting, and the rest is history."

Abe sniffed as he gave Lucien a once-over. He really didn't seem all that impressive at first glance; he just looked like another run-of-the-mill knight to him. Either the Knights of Seiros had low standards, or Lucien was more than meets the eye.

"As for my favorite food..." Lucien continued, and Abe raised an eyebrow; he hadn't expected him to answer that question as well, "As an avid fisherman in my free time, nothing beats a nice grilled fish caught fresh the same day."

Abe pulled a face, his nose scrunching up and his tongue sticking out with his disgust. "Ugh, fish, really? Gross, slimy things..."

Lucien chuckled and leaned close to Abe, causing the latter to lean back until he was trapped against the wall behind him. His heartbeat quickened when Lucien got close enough that their noses almost brushed, and Abe felt his face heat up as their eyes locked.

"My, my," Lucien said, his voice dropping to a whisper as he reached up to brush his fingers over Abe's cheek, "You look so cute with your face all scrunched up like that."

Abe's instincts were telling him to shove Lucien away, but something was keeping him frozen in place. His heart had leapt into his throat, preventing him from speaking, and his face felt like it was on fire. What the hells was this bastard man doing to him...?

"A-Abysskeeper, we've got trouble!"

Abe was knocked from his stupor when a panicked voice hit his ears, and he turned to see a man running up to him. Lucien's demeanor had changed in a split second, from being an annoying tease to serious and alert. Abe tensed up when the man reached them, out of breath and soaked with sweat.

"Abysskeeper," the man gasped, "Bandits have broken in from one of the abandoned tunnels! We need your help!"

"Shit," Abe cursed. What a lousy time for Yuri and the other Ashen Wolves to be out on a mission above ground. "Where are the bastards?"

After the man had told him the location, Abe grabbed his axe and rushed off as fast as his legs could carry him. He wouldn't let anyone harm the people of Abyss, not while he drew breath. The clanging behind him told him that Lucien was hot on his heels, and Abe hoped that his bulky armor and sword and shield weren't just for show.

Abe's eyes narrowed and he set his jaw when he finally spotted the bandits, who had cornered a group of children and an elderly woman. Wasting no time, he placed himself between them, resting his axe over his shoulders as he straightened up fully and spit at the ground before the bandits.

"Buncha cowards, targeting children and an old woman," Abe snarled, swinging his axe in front of him, "Try taking on someone your own size."

The bandits laughed at Abe's taunting, and he saw the children and elderly man flee out of the corner of his eye. Good, now he could focus on making these intruders pay. However, there were ten of them and only one of him...

"Might I join you, Abe?" Lucien had finally caught up, and Abe couldn't see his face through his helmet, but the cold tone of his voice told him that his anger rivaled his own at the moment. "These lowlifes could use a good thrashing, don't you think?"

"For once, I agree with you."

One of the bandits, who Abe assumed was their leader, took a step forward and grinned. "You two whelps talk big, considerin' how outnumbered ya are." Abe snorted as he watched the bandits circle him and Lucien until they were surrounded. Numbers meant nothing to Abe, and he would make these scumbags pay for underestimating him.

"Get 'im!" At their leader's command, two bandits charged at Abe, and he grinned, letting them get close. One took a swing with his sword and Abe easily ducked to dodge, while he swung his axe at the other, slicing his exposed flank open. Abe whipped around to block the first bandit's second attack, and he took advantage of their close proximity to headbutt him hard in the nose. As the bandit doubled over, Abe easily cut him down as well.

Abe glanced behind him at Lucien, who had taken down two bandits himself and had blocked a third one's attack with his shield. In his momentary distraction, Abe almost didn't bring his axe up in time to block an attack from two bandits at once. Gritting his teeth, Abe struggled to push back against their combined strength, but he was relieved of one of his assailants when Lucien bashed one of them over the head with his shield, sending him to the ground hard. That allowed Abe to easily overpower the remaining bandit, and one more that tried to sneak up on him.

As Lucien engaged with yet another bandit, Abe saw the leader trying to sneak up behind him, and he let out a yell and threw his axe in his direction. It whipped right over Lucien's shoulder just as he struck down his quarry with his sword, and the blade embedded itself right in the bandit leader's unprotected forehead.

Breathing heavily, Abe stepped around the bandit corpses to retrieve his axe, grimacing at the amount of blood that coated the blade; he'd have to clean that quickly if he didn't want it to rust.

"You alright, Abe?" He looked up as Lucien approached him, removing his helmet and letting out a whistle as he gazed around at the carnage.

"Yeah, you?"

"I'm right as rain!"

Abe smirked as Lucien gave his swords a few shakes to clear some of the blood from it. He really, really hated to admit it, but Lucien was a damn fine warrior. They had been outnumbered two-to-one, but managed to make quick work of the bandits nonetheless.

"You saved us! Thanks, Abysskeeper!"

Abe looked over to see the children that they had saved running up to them, with the old woman slowly following them. Lucien blinked in surprise when he was surrounded by some of the children.

"Wow, Mr. Backup, you and Abysskeeper were so cool!" one boy said, and a girl nodded vigorously in agreement.

"Yeah! Are you two battle buddies now?"

"Yes!"

"No."

Lucien and Abe answered in unison, and Abe glowered when Lucien laughed. The old woman chuckled as the children talked excitedly among themselves.

"Thank you both for saving us," she said, smiling as she looked between the two men, "We would be dead if not for your timely arrival."

"Don't mention it. Just doing my job," Abe said, his cheeks flushing pink as he averted his gaze.

"So bashful," Lucien said, snickering as he jabbed his elbow into Abe's side, earning a heated glare from him. The old woman raised an eyebrow at them, and she brought a hand to her mouth to stifle a giggle.

"Oh my...You two seem to be getting along now, how very nice."

"No we're not," Abe grumbled, glowering when Lucien threw an arm over his shoulder.

"Oh come on, you know we're like two peas in a pod!"

Abe swatted the laughing Lucien away, and the old woman smiled knowingly and nodded.

"You really are. Anyway, I would be happy to cook a nice meal for you two as thanks for saving us."

"Really? Thanks a lot!" Lucien beamed at the woman, and Abe was given pause at how handsome he looked in this moment.

Wait...What?

This insufferable, obnoxious, annoying, unnecessary backup of his, handsome? Abe had no idea where that thought had come from, but it certainly hadn't come from any rational part of his brain. His mind felt jumbled as he tried to make sense of his train of thought, and he barely heard Lucien's voice as he said farewell to the woman and the children. Abe decided to push his…weird thoughts about Lucien to the back of his mind, and they soon found themselves back at his post.

"Well, that was rather exciting, don't you think?" Lucien said, and Abe rolled his eyes as he scrubbed the blade of his axe with a cleaning rag.

"I guess, if you're not used to it," he said, giving his axe one more good rub before he was satisfied with its cleanliness, "Bandits and thugs aren't really a rarity down here."

"That doesn't mean it wasn't exciting. And you were pretty amazing back there," Lucien gushed, and Abe huffed as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"I didn't do anything special. Just fought like I always do."

"Well, you always fight quite well then."

"Hmp."

"And," Lucien said, stroking his beard as he turned to Abe, "If I may be so bold, I think we work very well as a team."

Abe raised an eyebrow at him. He really couldn't deny that fact, as much as he wanted to. Lucien had really kicked some ass, and he really, really hated to admit that they meshed pretty well together…on the battlefield at least.

"I guess you're...not so bad either, for a Mr. Backup kinda guy, anyway…"

Lucien let out a dramatic gasp and pressed a hand to his chest. "Wow, that's practically a compliment coming from you! I must be the luckiest man in the world!" Lucien beamed and suddenly wrapped his arms around Abe, lifting him into his arms.

Stunned and red-faced, Abe growled and tried to wriggle free. "Let me go, you obnoxious bastard!"

"As you wish." Lucien laughed and unceremoniously dropped Abe back to his feet, causing the latter to stumble, forcing him to brace himself against Lucien's chest.

Abe flushed as he quickly jerked his hands away, hiding them behind his back as he cleared his throat. This man was really pushing his luck, and Abe tried desperately to ignore the warm feeling that had blossomed inexplicably within his chest.

"You know, this whole ordeal reminds me of a time when bandits attacked my hometown..." Lucien started, and Abe sighed as he rubbed at his temples.

"Here we go again…" Abe mumbled, bracing himself for another long and boring story. As Lucien rambled on and on once again, that warm feeling disappeared, and Abe discarded it as a fluke. However, as much as he hated to admit it, Abe had gained respect for Lucien after fighting side by side with him for the first time...but only a tiny bit of it.