Title: Yggdrasil

Author: Yukari Youkai

Rating: T… for TEEN!

Pairing: Bathier/Vaan

Summary: In exchange for a Galbana Lily, Vaan is given the key to change the universe. [AU

Chapter: 7/?: Vain thing. You make the forest sing. You fake everything… Vain thing.

Notes: Vaan's so vain. He probably thought that dream was about him. Didn't he, didn't he?

The last of them quivered and fell under Vaan's quickening. "Vaan," Balthier croaked out. The boy turned, the remnant mist making his eyes and hair glow white.

"B-balthier," he whispered. "Are you hurt?" He blinked the last of the magic away. "Can you walk?"

Balthier grimaced from where he leaned against a tree. His hand was glued to his side to staunch the bleeding of one of his more serious wounds. Damn overgrown tomatoes had sadistic tendencies when it came to inflicting wounds. The Archadian hoped he didn't have any broken ribs. "I'm more worried about you. How can you even stand?"

Vaan's brow furrowed and Balthier was vaguely reminded of the strange instance in which what one says comes true right after one says it aloud. Speaking too soon, he recalled as the boy's hands lifted to cover his ears. His soot covered face (from a Fira that came too close) scru "Oh my gaaaaaaaaaaaaawd. Shuddap!"

"Vaan, are you serious?" Balthier goggled at the swooning youth.

"Balthieer…" The blonde reached for him, swaying slightly, before he fell backward, flat on his back.

----

Again, with the idiot on his back, breathing gently on his neck. He had waited until his magic had regenerated enough for a Cura and then picked Vaan up as he wounds were still closing. He was right, his rib had been broken. Balthier briefly considered dragging Vaan back by his ankles, but wrote it off as a childish impulse. Besides, he didn't want Vaan to have any reason to follow him back; he was leaving in the morning.

He was leaving and he wasn't looking back.

From where it rested on his clavicle, Vaan's hand twitched. "Bal…" he rasped.

Balthier turned his head, so he could speak lowly. "Vaan? Are you awake?"

"…gur…"

"That would be a 'no,' then."

Balthier sighed and leaned Vaan carefully against a tree, so he could secure his grip. He felt a hand slide up from his clavicle to his neck. "Pretty hume, hume of fire."

"Excuse me?" He dropped Vaan like a biting tomato. "What did you just say?"

Vaan's back slid up the tree until he stood again. "Pretty hume, we call."

"Why are you singing?" And why was Vaan's head still down? Why wouldn't he look at him, damnit?

"We know what you seek."

Balthier stepped forward and grabbed the boy's chin. "If you think you can get… away…" Vaan's eyes were closed, but he could see rapid movement beneath them. He was still sleeping. Arms wrapped around Balthier's waist.

"Pretty hume, hume of fire. Come to where the moon is new and the stars are hidden. Come pretty hume, holder of the seed." He had to admit, even though this was terribly disconcerting, he thought Vaan had a nice singing voice. However, he had never noticed these kind of sleeping habits! Why did everything happen to him? Why??

"Vaan," he called, shaking the boy's shoulders to wake him up. He didn't like those hands on his waist, no sire. Not in the least. "Vaan. Wake up already."

The grip on his waist tightened and those smoke-colored eyes fluttered open slowly. "…hier?"

"Wake up." To Balthier's horror (not to be confused with pleasure, which made your heart beat as fast as his was beating too) Vaan leaned in, resting his head on Balthier's chest, and did not remove his hands at all.

"Mmm…"

"Vaan." He shoved him off.

"Ack!" he cried out as he landed on the ground. "Where's the fire?"

"Get up. I want to get back to that hammock and attempt to sleep before the night is done."

Vaan stared up at him quizzically. "Why am I on the floor?"

"I… dropped you."

"Why were you carrying me in the first place?"

Balthier coughed. "I performed a Curaga on you, but you didn't wake up, and I told you I was tired, so I thought that would be the easiest solution."

Vaan glared, then abruptly sighed and covered his eyes with a hand. "I guess you could have just left and let me wake up on my own. Thanks."

Somehow, even though the gratitude seemed sincere, Balthier was put off. He had half expected an argument, or at least Vaan to get flustered and start sputtering insults. And what about 'leaving him to wake up on his own?' What kind of person would do that? This was the Salikawood, not a vegetable garden! Did this mean Vaan had some sort of hist--- No, no. I am leaving in the morning, however soon it may now be.

While he mused, Vaan had stood up and brushed himself off. He froze when something growled in the trees behind them. They shared a glance, and then started to run.

-----

They fought two more myst-infected monsters on the way back. Balthier had never figured that Vaan's body could move like that. And that was just another reason he couldn't stay, because if your battle partner made your mouth go dry in the midst of a Very Serious Fight, then there really was no point to it, was there?

"Sweet, sweet home. Sweet, sweet bed," Vaan crooned, flopping onto his hammock face first. Balthier smirked at the image of Vaan's arms and legs sticking haphazardly out of that gently swaying suspended sheet as he sat in his own.

"I believe the word 'bed' is ill-used." One of the disembodied arms made a rude gesture. Balthier pulled a face, but otherwise ignored it. "How can you go to sleep with all that dirt on your face? Or did you forget your pratfall?"

"Hey!" Vaan's head popped up in a movement strangely reminescent of a Ichithon. "That was your fault! You --- ow!" The boy curled into himself, gritting his teeth.

"Vaan?"

"G-give me …a moment." A shuddering handful of moments later, Vaan uncurled, smiling up at Balthier ruefully. "Cramp."

"Ugh," he muttered, and let himself fall backward into his bed, finally settling with his arm over his eyes. "Good night."

"…Hey, Balthier?"

Said man gritted his teeth. "Vaan, I am exhausted. I understand that you seem to have a penchant for trouble, and perhaps being chased by abnormal beasts is an everyday occurrence for you. For me, however, it is not. Please, please let me sleep."

"Fine, then!" Vaan countered angrily. Balthier sighed, but thought that temper was, for once, a blessing, and slipped into sleep.

------

In the morning, Balthier woke, stumbled over to the washbasin, and mentally tallied all of his sore muscles. Stupid, stupid, stupid. He glanced over at Vaan's hammock to see the boy staring at him.

"Hey."

"Good morning."

Vaan watched Balthier stretch and caught the man's wince. "Muscles sore?"

"We did have a high level of activity last night."

"And here I figured you one for more stamina."

"I'm willing to bet my coin purse that you're more sore than I am."

Vaan scratched his head and changed the subject. "That was a lot of strong monsters, even for Salikawood."

"You imagine some conspiracy?" He sat on his knees and leaned forward, trying to get the kinks out of his back. That was hammock living for you.

"I don't know. I'm too tired to think like that."

Balthier sat on his backside, pulled his feet in and leaned down again. When he was satisfied he stood, letting his body relax. "Why are you awake anyway?"

"I didn't sleep much," he said, but his voice was the texture of gravel and his eyes were slightly red.

"That was foolish," Balthier replied flippantly. He wasn't thinking about Vaan when he had slept, the singing strange Vaan. "Well, as much as I'd like to recuperate, I have to get my work done in a respectable amount of time. So I will be leaving your lovely company today." He bent to gather up the few items he had brought with him. "Maybe you'll sleep once you're able to concentrate on something other than my handsome countenence."

"Balthier, do you want to know why I couldn't sleep?" the blonde asked, voice oddly earnest. "It was the forest."

Balthier smiled mockingly as he straightened. "The wind in the trees keep you awake, hm?"

He cast his eyes down. "Wind? …I heard things… but not wind. The forest… was saying things. To me."

"The forest was speaking to you? I see. Well, I have to get going. Important papers to read and all that. Goodbye, Vaan."

"No wait. Balthier" A tangle of vines dropped over the door as Vaan shouted after him. The Archadian reached out a cautious hand to touch one. Yes, they were quite firm, and they wouldn't grant him an inch either way, like stone. Vaan babbled on at high speed, as if Balthier could leave at any second, vinewall or not. "I - I'm not crazy. I mean I don't think I am! But how else --- I think this all has to do with this seed. Someone gave it to me when I lived back in Rabanastre, and it healed me. I---"

"Healed what? The cut she gave you? Soaked up all the blood and closed the skin?"

Vaan hesitated. "How… how did you know about that? I never told anyone."

"Because I was there," Balthier responded, lightly gripping the vines with his whole hand.

"B. vB?"

"Pardon?"

"I should have remembered when you told me your name." He tangled his hands in his hair. "I mean, it was too much of a coincidence, but I wrote it off. I pretended I didn't remember, but your initials were right on the damn napkin-!"

"Handkerchief."

Vaan looked up sharply. "What?"

"I said it was a handkerchief, not a napkin."

The blonde laughed a little hysterically, making Balthier turn away from the vines. "What does it matter? I- I'm still… I can hear trees speaking to me. I mean, I always thought flowers could speak. I thought I was pretending to hear them, making up conversations in my head when I was lonely, but it turns out I really am insane. And now I meet you!" Vaan laughed again, and there was no question about hysterics. Balthier crossed the room to stand in front of Vaan.

"I think you're taking this a bit too seriously."

"Too seriously? Balthier, I'm hearing voices!" Vaan gripped Balthier's arms in earnest. "You think I'm crazy, right? Do I still look like that little boy you helped? Would you have helped me if you knew I would turn out like this?"

Crack.

"You are still a little boy," he said gently, watching Vaan cradle his cheek with one hand. And that's why I can't stay with you. "And you aren't insane. Of all the beings in this world, with all of their differences, do you really think a hume can't be born to speak to trees? Maybe you have a little Viera in you."

Vaan hugged Balthier's waist tightly, resting his head on his navel. He laughed weakly. "I should go find where they live, maybe I have a whole family over there." Balthier let his hands stay on Vaan's shoulders and didn't answer for a while.

----

CHAPTER SEVEN END.

Okay. I'm done. Not pushing the envelope today. No sir.