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A few days later, behind a closed door in one of the cathedral's many spare rooms were the sounds of two males panting and heaving furiously with raw exertion, their hot muscles quivering with every bend of their knees groaning as sweat poured down their glistening scaled thighs. Baldwin was first to cry out as his tail thumped against the cobbled floor. "NNNNNFFF! FFFFFHHH! G-gettin' tired yet?!" "NAH!" gasped Roy. "Not...bah a bit!" "NNNNNGH! HHHHHRRRRRGH! Ohhhh you can bend yoursszhelf fuckin' DOWN like a real pro!" "HHHhhhhh! HHHHHHNNNNGH! S-same to you! Fffffuck Baldwin...thassit...come on, get down, niiiiice an' easy, lemme see your thighs go alll thuh way down on me." "GRRRRRRHHHHHH!" "YEAH! Awwwww fuck yeah thassa nice feel ain't it? Mmmmmph...f-fuck...hhhhhh...hhhhhhh...jesus..." "You...g-gettin' closszhe yet Roy?" "N-not...bah a bit." "You sszhaid that already, GAH!" Up and down their bodies went, thighs crunching, knees squatting, two silhouettes in a somewhat-dark room of Roy going down first, then Baldwin second. Groans of blissful endurance as their blood pumped hungrily, wearing almost nothing but a pair of boxers on each as Roy shuddered with: "H-hey, come on...tighten your ass up a little, lemme see that squeeze." "Nnnnkhhhh...almosszht...th-there..." "Come on man...COME ON! COME ON DO IT! DO IT, FUCKIN' PUMP IT ALL IN!" "AAAAAAAAAGH SSZHWEET FARAM YEEEEEESSZH!" "NNNNNNNGH! FUCK YEAH! OHHHHHHH! Ohhhhhhh...hhhhhhh...shhhhhit man...hhhhhh..." The two panted deeply, gasping alongside each other as they laid out fully onto the floor with hot sweat dripping from head to tail whilst gulping back lungfuls of air, the raptor asking breathlessly: "Hhhhhhh...hhhhhhh...wuz it...wuzzat good fer you to?" "Yeah...hhhhhh...hohhhh fuck yeah...hhheheheheh...that wasszh...that wasszh a real good workout, wow! You really know how to give it good to me!" "Hah, same to you! Felt mah ass almost break in half from doin' all that wit' you, ah mean ah know you said you wanted to keep up but...dahahamn son!" A knock came rapping at the door with Navarro's voice. "When you two are done physically pleasuring each other, dinner shall be ready in twenty minutes kupo!" "OKAYYY!" cried Baldwin. "What'sszh sszhe talking about?!" "Ah dunno!" shrugged Roy. "Ah dunno why she gotta make it sound so dirty but, let's git up." Slowly shifting themselves back onto their feet, they pulled up one last squat of endurance to bolster their legs, their exercise regime done with as they backpatted each other heartily. "Hundred squats in five minutes," replied Roy, "not bad Baldwin! Ah knew you could do it!" "Heh, sszhame to you! Yanno it'sszh great to have sszhomebody to train with. I mean no offensszhe but none of the othersszh got that kinda enduransszhe or even want to." "Ahm sure it's just not wantin' to see your sweaty-ass body, you'd think at least FG would have lahk'd the look of that." "HAH! Yeah, no thanksszh, if he wasszh gonna get all leery at my body I'd tell him to pay me firsszht!" "Hahahaha...yanno that's not a bad idea, if you ever hurtin' for money." "What?!" "Strippin', for thuh ladies! They got lahk uhhhh burlesque houses an' such don' they in Ivalice?" "Well...yeaaaaah." "Ahm jus' saying Baldwin, you could go for it." "Ahhhhh not really. Lawsszh of the church kind of prevent me sszholisszhiting my body for money. That includesszh sszhtripping, we're not going to judge anyone who do, but we're not gonna do it oursszhelvesszh." "Ah, righ', fair enough then. Come on let's hit thuh bathing pool and uh get all good for eatin'." Using an indoor bathing pool the church had built years ago which was only ever used during winter, the large rectangular room had been well-heated up by an engine of magicite chuggering underground. Many patrons were using it, both male and female as a communal place to relax and recuperate with their clothes at the side and three simple rules. No children, no relieving oneself and no sexual encounters of any sort, even if one knew the other person. It was rather odd for Roy to think that Baldwin was trusting enough in the place to completely disrobe and sit himself into the warm waters.

The pool had its water being constantly filtered with a rushing effect like being in a hot river, streaking from one end of the room the other through slatted holes on each side of the room to remove any dirt and sweat from the bathing bodies. Being inside a church also forced people to be respectful and one might say even chastely with the addition of the one rule despite the various naked men and women. Baldwin as a bangaa was almost androgynous apart from his wide masculine shoulders and genital slit, whereas Roy had his firm hanging black sheath as their legs sunk beneath the wondrous warmth. Various humes, nu-mou and moogles sat aside each other as the room began babbling with water and rumours of conversation as the people caught up with today's news from each other. The raptor could not help but notice with a polite casting look across the room the way that various species looked when naked. Being they were all mammalian it was very easy to tell by looking at the chest, from fluffy cotton bumps to thick smooth mammaries but his natural disposition teased him with various thoughts which he restricted as he turned to Baldwin. "Whut you gonna do after dinner?" "I'm not sszhure," replied Baldwin, "when do you go back to sszhearching?" "Maybe after a week, we got thuh rest of thuh crew to git sum rest too." "Ehhhh..." He laid back his head feeling the sweat rush off from him as he closed his eyes looking upwards, whilst Roy leaned his arms back over his head to rest on. "Three daysszh sszhould be enough for a crew don't you think?" "Ah don' make thuh decisions, that's up to Kruz an' Tennyson." "I jusszht don't...want to wasszhte any moment sszhearching for him." "Ah don' see you gettin' out there to help with us." "What could I do, apart from punching people?" "Another pair of hands is all it takes." "I'll go if Fayne wantsszh to...he didn't want to interfere with Kruzzh and hisszh dutiesszh, that and uh...well we are sszhtill in the clan sszho it'sszh really up to Navarro." "How's she doing?" "Alright...not asszh cold asszh sszhe usszhed to be, I think sszhe sszhtarted to learn that you can't alwaysszh lead like sszhe isszh...all cool-headed and sszhtuff, that may be good for dealing with a battle but...not when you're all out and being friendsszh." "Ah hear ya..." He felt himself slip into the waters for a moment, the monk slowly succumbing to the embrace of the heat whistling across his cheeks as the river came back to him. Always the river as he felt his worries simply drift from his vision and his dreams. His dreams came back to him partially but he never fell asleep, slowly surfacing as he broke through the pool's rippling soft waves. He wanted to sigh deeply and relax, but something made him rub his face trying to cleanse it free. "You tired?" asked Roy. "No jusszht...it'sszh weird, but...you ever felt...like...I don't know how to exszhplain it." "Just Try me." The bangaa turned towards Roy with hands spasmed slightly, trying to describe his words in visual. "You ever had thisszh...kind of dream that you never really sszhtop dreaming about? Like it alwaysszh comesszh back to you and you don't know what it meansszh, but it'sszh not ACTUALLY like a dream and more like you......remember sszhomething?" "...ah do." "Wait...r-really?" The raptor hunched over slightly feeling a weight upon him. "Ah have this memory...of sumthin' bad happenin', an' everytahm ah try to remember it...ah can't...ah can't get every detail but ah know it happened. It almost feels lahk it never did but you KNOW it happened, you got that...sorta thing that tells you, you ever lahk...you ever seen your own reflection in a mirror, but you also see lahk sumthin' out thuh corner of your eye?" "Ah huh?" "Now you know that it's YOU in thuh mirror, but sumthin' off thuh side you know that's just your eye goin' weird on you, that ain't anythin' cuz it's all lahk, readjustin' itself. But even though you have that sorta thing at thuh back of your mind sayin' 'did ah see sumthin' or wuz it mah imagination', you got your OWN reflection there an' it's lahk, you KNOW that you saw yourself, that's real. Know whut ahm sayin'?" "I think I do...kind of, you mean like sszhome thingsszh you remember about are not real, but you know at leasszht one part that wasszh DEFINITELY sszhomething real, right?" "Yeah, righ' exactly!"

He clapped his hands once in excitement as he got all fired up to make a connection, before realising his sombre tone and calming down once again as he leaned forwards. "So...um...ah don' wanna put a downer on today or anythin' but...thuh memory ah wuz talkin' about, wuz mah parents bein' killed." The face of Baldwin fell flat with starkness as he put a hand on Roy's shoulder with sympathy. "......s-sszhit, um, wow Roy that...I didn't know I mean...I'm sszho sszhorry." "S'alrigh', ah never told any of you. FG knew about it but uh, none of you did, anyways, ahm tryin' to remember that night...an' there's parts of it that ah don't quite get, an' then there's other parts ah DO remember, lahk very clearly. Ah remember seein' a guy, ah remember sumthin' about his face lahk a mark on him...ah remember him stompin' me on mah face with a goddamn boot lahk THICK as hell, lahk clown feet big, ah remember hearin' him stompin' his way over when we fought, ah even remember whut he said to me when ah tried to stop 'im." "What did he sszhay?" "He said 'what's the matter, can't you take a JOKE?' Lahk that's really fucked up!" "Wasszh he a big guy?" "Nah, shorter than me, sorta wiry but he had a psycho strength in 'im. But ah can't remember whut he DID sound lahk, ah remember hearin' words but not his accent other than it wuz definitely foreign. Ah don't even know whut his species wuz an' ah been rackin' mah head over it fer years. But ah know whut you mean about sorta tryin' to figure out fact from fiction. Whut about you, you got any memories along those?" "...not really." The monk rubbed his face firmly by his raw thick fingers, calloused from years of endurance. "I have thisszh dream...of being in a sszhunlit sszhmall area, like a perfect plasszhe to be alone. I remember...being really high up, like up in the cloudsszh, and I remember...falling. Like I fell from the heavensszh and down to thisszh...dark plasszhe." "Damn that's religious as hell." "And I remember the water russzhing through me, all thesszhe sszhcreaming voisszhesszh all over me consszhuming me like a thousszhand monsszhtersszh tearing at my sszhkin. I can't open my eyesszh, I try but no matter how hard I do I jusszht never manage to open them...but I sszhaw the raysszh of light above before I fell, it blinded me...almosszht robbed me of my visszhion and then a darknesszh came over me like water. I feel asszh if I've felt it before and everytime I have that dream I jusszht feel like a part of it'sszh sszhome memory I think." "Didn't Fayne mention that you can't remember anythin' that happened to you back when you two were kids?" "Yeah...he sszhaid we fell into a river but-" "Well there you have it." "But there'sszh sszhomething more to it. I feel...I hear the voisszhesszh and I KNOW what they are. There'sszh thisszh one voisszhe I hear and it breaksszh my heart, it makesszh me feel...like I want to weep, but there'sszh thisszh other voisszhe and it makesszh me feel angry. I want to fight that voisszhe, I want to beat it I want to break itsszh fasszhe but the other voisszhe isszh sszhcreaming to me to sszhtop and I can't...not lisszhten to it. And I can't recognisszhe either of them." "Whut do you think they might be?" "...I...I want to think they were my parentsszh. Maybe they were fighting and sszhomething happened. But Fayne never talksszh about it, he sszhaid that we came from a bad family and that thingsszh went......he alwaysszh getsszh upsszhet everytime we sszhpeak about it sszho, I jusszht sszhtopped talking about it. I told him about my dream a few timesszh but he getsszh REALLY upsszhet about it. I think he knowsszh what happened...but I don't want to make him relive what I can't sszhee." Roy smiled at Baldwin's look of crestfallen anxiety, giving a nod of respect. "You really care about your brother don't you?" "He'sszh the only persszhon I have that really mattersszh to me. I mean, friendsszh and mother Mariel of coursszhe but...Fayne hasszh never left me and I don't think he ever will...and I don't want him to. I think we will alwaysszh be together, and I'm okay with it. I mean if we both find a female to sszhettle with, I had thisszh dream that me and him would live on the sszhame sszhtreet and be unclesszh to each other'sszh kidsszh and we'd be great at it!" "Ha ha, awww that's cute!" "It'sszh sszhomething I alwaysszh wanted, be a family man and...well...I hope one day we both find sszhomeone that could really care about usszh to want it too, like having our own little familiesszh and...jusszht being like normal people. Maybe one day." "You could always adopt...ah mean, if you never found a lady or uh maybe you end up with sumbody that can't uh...breed." "Well if that happensszh, then sszhure we can adopt, I jusszht want a family you know. Don't you want one too, Roy?" "...part of me does." "Do you have anyone out there?" "Ah do...but...we can't have children lahk that." "Well, you can alwaysszh adopt, what mattersszh mosszht isszh you make a family, one that isszh sszhafe to be with." "Ah know...ah just hope after all this sumthin' good can happen between me an' Lizbeth."

The raptor tried to hide his own crestfallen look, biting his lip as he turned his face away without Baldwin seeing, the bangaa looking down upon his hands somewhat forlornly before deciding he had washed himself enough. The two went to lunch with their clothes back on sitting in the grand central hall where everybody was fed. Due to the Light of Kiltia's sanctimonious structure, the church was obliged to feed anyone, especially those who were destitute. However the church had a full roasting affair of food for the people of Lea Monde on winter days as a means to share the produce and keep the city alive healthily. Over six-hundred people were currently seated along five tables stretched out across the entire room, with the members of Clan Koridai tucked away into a corner down one end as a spot chosen by Navarro. Fayne was already seated along with Kruz on his left and Navarro on his right with Baldwin coming up to sit opposite of his brother across the table after a small noogie of appreciation, grappling his head to rub knuckles across the cleric's forehead. Roy sat opposite of Kruz whilst Dahlia sat beside Navarro, with Berniere lastly sitting opposite of the female moogle. Lunch was a good affair of hot soup with vegetables mixed in along with lentils followed by roasted Zu, huge portions for everyone courtesy of the hunters the city hired for such needs, lathered in sauce gravy. The hall was literally a cacophony of voices streaming from every direction as people ate, rejoiced and lived through their little stories to old friends and accomplices, family members and children of all ages packed in against each other in the row of seats. The clergy also sat with them, those that were on their break at least up to the archdeacons and matrons even sitting amongst the common folk connecting by the community. Peace in their time as Kruz waved to Tennyson on his way over to where the rest of his crew were seated, merrily cackling away to themselves. The clan regaled with stories back and forth, Fayne asking all sorts of questions to Roy about his homeworld whilst Baldwin threw in the odd dirty joke to which Kruz always responded with a knowing wink despite their intentions having completely different targeted genders. Dahlia entered a strangely fascinating conversation with Berniere on books they read recently to which Navarro was privy to as Berniere added: "You know they have these new books where you can choose your own adventure, kupo." "Oh?" asked Dahlia. "Oh yes, they've become very popular lately in Archades, you turn a page and it tells you to choose one of up to three actions, and then you turn to a specific page for taking that action resulting in something good or bad. Moral choices inflicted on the reader which make a fascinating experience." "So, you decide how the story goes?" "Indeed, in fact they are magical tomes that you have to select the choice of so it locks you out of reading any other pages you might have to skip. In fact a most recent one, I forget the name, not only has you make choices on whether to spare or slay those you meet in the story, but it also REMEMBERS what your choices were in a previous read, thereby changing the entire story before you kupo." "Really?! Oh my goodness are you...that is something amazing." "It is! I am very surprised at how far we have come since the old days of reading with one single story always the same, but now we can change the ending to all stories that we've read." "It's something you never imagine with greater standards of magicite, able to process a much more complex algorithm of determination and probability, as well as memory recording." "I have read one of those books," said Navarro turning to the nu-mou, "I found it rather strange but...ingenious, kupo. Personally I do not enjoy stories where I cannot predict the ending quite truly but I understand its appeal." "Indeed-OH!"

The table suddenly jolted with Kruz standing up, the cutlery rattling violently almost falling to the floor as he shouted: "MICHELLE! MICHELLE, HEY!" Motioning the nu-mou boatswain over she came in almost a flash before he asked: "When did we fight that sea serpent, you know the one with the wings?" "Um...four years ago I think," she answered cautiously. "Was that before or after we got Rzepka?" "...definitely before captain." "Alright good, so it WASN'T a sea serpent, it was a malboro and let's just say, nooooobody went near Cid the entire month-" "OH, YOU'RE TELLING THE SMOKING CID STORY?! OH THAT'S HILARIOUS, AMBROSE AMBROSE!" Tennyson came over next looking rather confused before she added: "Remember when Cid tried to shoot a malboro?" "Ohhhhh I do, hmhmhahaha, everytime we passed near the engine room we thought something had gone wrong and everything started burning." "RIGHT!" cried Kruz. "Because he got COMPLETELY swamped by this malboro's bad breath, hadn't realised that they can sort of shoot it out a long distance, and we all did everything we could to try and get the stink off. We had his clothes burned, we had all these things poured on him that eeeeeeverybody tried to tell us was a fine-honed recipe for bad smell. What did the crew say guys?" Both hume and nu-mou looked at each other with crumbling smirks as they tried to recount them vividly as Tennyson started: "Let's see...we had nightshade juice-" "-desert cider-" "-rotting inkplants-" "-cerobi algae-" "-wolf saliva-" "-chocobo semen-" "WAIT WHUT?!" cried Roy almost hitting falsetto. "Aw come the fuck on you makin' that up!" "I wish I was," said Tennyson chuckling, "many suggestions came through and all that time our dear swindling engineer was in a barrel with straps on most of the time. Not that it interfered with his work but he did smell like several things at the same time and well, he never left the engine room for a good few weeks. We eventually found the perfect solution...odd as it was and we never really asked HOW it was to this person's knowledge-" "Whut wuz that?" Michelle gave a fiendish look, beaming delightfully as she made an adorable noise which sent all the men gasping with laughter all around her. "Kweeeehhhhhh?" "NOOOOOOOOO HAHAHAHAHHAHAHA, HOLY SHIT YOU ARE KIDDIN' ME!" "I'M NOT JOKING!" cried Kruz. "Ohhhhhhhhh it was so embarrassing, except for when we had to GET it and suffice to say-" "Long story short," added Michelle rather bluntly, "it took a LOT of convincing of a local farm and a lot of handiwork and I was the only one that was willing enough to get down on my knees to-" "You should stop there," said Tennyson. "-do our business and...what did you think I was going to say?" "I have no idea Michelle. I truly don't." "...don't play the fool with me Ambrose." She pulled on his coat lapel enough to bend him down a little. "You were the one who called me a natural and, what was it you told me? That 'we would retire on my skill as a milkmaid alone'?" "Yes...Indeed I did...and indeed you still are." "YAIE!" With devious grope to her rump, the Archadian grinned chuckling as Michelle blushed hotly, her grinning mischief clear on her face as Baldwin cackled filthily at these connotations before Kruz rolled his eyes. "You're dismissed, thank you for the story to entertain." "Yes, sir!" The two saluted before walking off as everyone relaxed with the smallest little grins and feeble giggling dissipating, before Navarro felt the looks of everybody upon her as she stared coldly back. "Do not ask me." "Whuuuuut?" asked Roy amicably. "Ahm jus' wondering-" "If you so much as contemplate I will send this knife up your-...where is my knife?" "Here you go kupo." She felt for the knife beside her plate finding an empty space as Berniere offered his own cleaned with handkerchief. "Hm, must have fallen down, what about yours?" "I have a fork, do not worry." "Well, in any case THIS knife is going straight through your slit if you ever try to ask me about it." "Okay okayyyyyyyy!" cried the raptor. "But, you do realise ah don't got a slit, righ' baby bird?" "Whatever you have down there will be feeling this knife if you dare ask with your filthy mind!" "Woah-ho calm down ah don' wanna be Jewish today thank you, that'd be awkward here in a church!" "HAAAAH!" shouted Fayne with a guilty look. "Awwww that isszh terrible of you Roy, you sszhould be asszhamed of yoursszhelf!" "Ah know, ah know......heh, you still laughed didn't you?" "HheeheeheheheHEK!" Looking the perfect picture of a saint he gave a grin of apology with Navarro looking immensely confused by what they were referring to, before resuming her course as she neatly sliced up a leg of bird. Berniere had cut up all his pieces before giving his knife over and was stabbing them with a fork individually. "I have to say, the service in this cathedral is marvellous, this Zu is immensely prime-roasted." "OH YEAH!" snarfed Baldwin full of meat. "MMMPH...oh luv zu, ukhs zhuh bussszht!" "Don't talk with your mouth full!" replied Fayne. "Chew, then sszhwallow!" "YER NOT MUH DAD, UHM ULDER DUN YUU!" "Then ACT like it for Faram'sszh sszhake, you DO realisszhe thisszh cutlery hasszh a purposszhe don't you, not jusszht for decorasszhion!" Gulping down a thick chewy piece of bird loin the monk sucked his fingers clean with a filthy chuckle. "Eheheheh, I got all my cutlery I need right here." "Ugh, you are disszhgusszhting." "Why, you wanna clean 'em?!" "WHAT, NO!" "COME ON CLEAN 'EM FOR MISSZHTAH CLEEEAN!" He reached over teasing Fayne with sticky fingers coated in saliva. "N-NO, SSZHTOP IT YOU FILTHY BASSZHTARD! S-SSZHTOP IT OR I'LL-MOTHERRRR! HE'SSZH TOUCHING ME!" "Hhhheeheeheeheheheh-" " Baldwin." "A-AAAAAAGH!" Baldwin panicked as he nearly fell back from a cold and vitreous eminence murmuring behind his chair before the mother stopped him from falling lightly. No one had seen Mariel enter the room or even pass near them but there she was, out of the shadows like always with her hand kept firmly upon Baldwin's back keeping the chair from falling fully back. Fayne became increasingly nervous trying to apologise firstly: "Um...s-s-sszhorry, mother, I jusszht-" "That's alright Fayne. Baldwin, I warned you thirty years ago to stop doing that and every five years you end up doing this." "It wasszh jusszht a bit of fun!" replied Baldwin. "People do not appreciate sticky fingers in ANY context...most of them." "SNRRRK!" Roy nearly choked on his potato mash as everyone looked at him before he replied mawkishly: "J-just...remembered sumthin', never mind." "In any case," replied Mariel, "you might both be adults, but you are still my children." "I'm not a kid!" demanded Baldwin. "Then don't eat with your mouth full and for goodness sake, use the cutlery. Your hands are good enough to pick up roast beef so they are good to use a fork and knife." "But motherrrr-GEHHH!" An ice-cold grasp of her hand on his shoulder felt like the gravedirt upon his tomb being disturbed, the mother smiling with a glint of blackness upon her pupils as he nodded solemnly. "Y-yesszh...mother." "That's better. Also, Fayne, don't be a mother's boy, you are a grown adult and you can clearly take after yourself." "HAH! U-UH-never mind!" The look she gave him was enough to stifle any comeback he would make as Fayne nodded in turn a little deflated, but soon they were back to eating as Mariel watched them plaintively before Roy asked: "Hey uh, ah got a question uh...hope it's not too much but, why are your surnames Smithee an' hers is Underwood?" "Oh, that would be an ecumenical matter, it's so they are able to represent themselves without referring to me in business dealings." "Ah...huh, okay. So uh whut are you guys up to after this?" "I am going to check on our steeds," said Rocino, "before it gets too dark, kupo." "I'll join you!" added Dahlia. "If you want me to, that is." "I would be delighted. Come."

Both nu-mou and moogle headed off together after lunch towards the outside world, the slight crispness of the air all too perfect to keep them bristling on their cheeks. Having fur made things easy, though Dahlia kept her tail always close underneath her robe to keep it safe from cold as it laid bare beneath. With thicker coats on plumping up their cheeks, they waddled over towards the chocobo pens where their steeds had been given blankets set like saddles over their bodies. The sky had long since cleared of any grey looming clouds and was a perfect sheen of blue. Whilst everybody else was at dinner, the Clan Koridai chocobos along with Cyrus were all busying themselves by a small sparring session to keep things warming up apart from the other locals. Cadbury was busy keeping his head low to the ground staring straight-on towards Cyrus, who also was keeping his head low in preparatory charging stance as Luke watched with curiosity. Rinoa and Lightning sat beside each other, somewhat huddled in order to share their body heat as both bull males charged. "YAAAAAAAAAAH!" Cadbury's cry of playful fury stormed towards Cyrus, who waited with wingless pinions spread out before he suddenly headbutted against the black chocobo. His spiked choker glistened with ice-white studs, claws scraping into the snowy earth as their beaks clacked together, heads grinding fiercely. "GIVE IT UP YOU OLD FUCK!" "I'll give up long after you have wasted your strength, my little chick." "I ain't a chick, I'm the fucking STORM!" "A storm in a teacup." "NNNNRAAAAAAAH!" The black chocobo shoved hard as he could but Cyrus would not relent, the older steed waiting for Cadbury to try and rear back and wind up for a second strike but the moment he did, he dodged and bit down firm on the outstretched neck. His beak clasped hard but not hurting him, forcing him into the snow with one of his clawed feet planted firm on Cadbury's blanketed body. "H-HEY! YOU FUCKIN' CHEATED!" "You call dodging an obvious attack like that cheating, my boy?" "I-i-i totally had you!" "You totally didn't," replied Luke, "I could see that coming from a mile away Cadbury." "Sh-shut up redhead, you got nothin' on me!" "Except my dignity, and my sweet hair." "I can kick your ass wideboy!" "But not mine," said Cyrus, "unless you learn to truly focus on victory." "Focus?! I done nothing but FOCUS on beating you all week!" "And yet still you cannot beat me. Your enthusiasm is greatly appreciated, but it cannot match against my experience." Pulling his foot away to let Cadbury back up, the black bull shook his body clear of white as he sniffed haughtily before strutting his way around Cyrus in a circle. "What experience?!" "Being a former knightly vanguard." "Former knightly? You mean you and that black lizard gone pissing around for like what, a year?" "I have had experience before that." "When?!" "In my younger days, when I was part of the Rozarrian army. Then they retired me and I was put out to pasture and I exchanged hands. I am glad that Roy was able to see that in me after my next...occupation." "Pssh, whatever, you're just some old guy chasin' after windmills." "At least a windmill put up a better fight than you." "OH, you think I'm some pushover?!" "You always lower your guard for starters. Lower thy guard and you allow the enemy in, that is one of the first rules of combat." "Pssh, I don't need no guard if I'm WINNING a fight! Unlike you, I don't get tired and hafta sit down always mister 'further pastures'." "Aw come on Cadbury!" cried Rinoa from the side. "Do you have to get up in every bull's beak about something?" "Hey, I'm the bull leader of this clan, even if my rider's not here I've gotta keep you all in line, that's the rules!" "What rules?" The cold voice of Navarro's own steed came sternly from beside Rinoa, the pale hen standing up before Cadbury as she walked over. "Since when did YOU ever care about rules?" "What are you talkin' about?" "Do you even have a reason to fight? Look at you, all you care about is fighting and nothing more, we all have a purpose here in this flock to obey our orders and to keep protecting our riders. Your rider's not here, so where does that leave you?" The black steed strutted up towards her face firmly sneering at Lightning, their scarred beaks somewhat different with the pale hen's single streak compared to Cadbury's multiple strikes all bleakly faded. "It...leaves me without anyone to hold me BACK, you bitch." "It also leaves you without reason. Or focus. Do you know what fighting without a reason is? Nothing more than a slow suicide...but then, that's something you already knew, wasn't it?" His eyes tensed suddenly, a slight falter of being struck deep as he bristled his feathers hatefully before he delivered a grin shit-eating. "You know...you and that moogle are perfect for each other, fuckin' frigid as fuck, I hope her tongue doesn't stick when she's eating you out." "CADBURY!" cried Rinoa. "Wow that is NOT cool," argued Luke, "what's she ever done to you?!" "Haha cool," snided Cadbury, "getting in on the puns are ya Lukey-boy?" "Don't call me Lukey! If you keep acting like this then I don't want to be your friend!" "Fiiiiiine fine...so, you got something else to say to me Lightning? Or you wanna sit back down and see if the snow gets any colder than you?" "No," replied Lightning, "I think you need a lesson." They all stepped back, apart from Cadbury as the scent of battle turned eminent from her. A fierce shift in attitudes that almost everyone had noticed as the young bull grinned eagerly at the prospect of combat, claws digging into the dirt. "A lesson do ya? Hhhheheheheheheh, now that's what I like to hear." "Is it really? You don't even know what lesson it is." "Sure I do, it's called How To Break Your Fucking Ass Like A Zaghnal Bitch, one-on-one!"

The pale chocobo softly skirted her way round towards the front of Cadbury as if preparing for a joust as he grinned shortly, circling each other like sharks upon the drift. The others moved back further to give them space watching with intrigue, seeing no one else was around to stop them from this confrontation for leadership as the pale bird asked: "Do you know why they call me Lightning?" "I dunno, some dumb fucking reference nobody gives a shit about?" "Because it's something that you should be afraid of, boy." "HAH! Bitch I SURVIVED lightning strikes, I had much worse than this!" "No. Not yet you haven't." And with that she charged, like a ghost she flew towards him outstretched with wings open as a demon, her feet glistening across the snow before Cadbury almost barely dodged her beak. Streaking with a scoring hit at the base of the black bull's neck, it stung briefly before he turned and bit at her flank outstretched before she ruthlessly kicked him in the face marking across his old scars shaking his face clear. Priming his claws he waited for her to turn and strike again as he dodged left, raising his leg to scratch across her beak but the hen had swooped out her wings and buffeted him hard by a sudden gust, knocking him off-kilter as he staggered backwards. With eyes fiercely glinting along with his spike choker, Cadbury spread out his wings and barged straight forwards into Lightning's side slamming his head into her stomach, stomping with his leg to try and claw her feathers until she pushed herself out of the way. Kicking against the snow fast enough to move out of his leg's reach, the whitish female steed snapped at Cadbury's leg when he tried to pull it back forcing him to try and shake her off. But she grabbed on tight, firmly scraping her jawbeak to make it hurt as he slammed his own beak down upon her head making her let go just before he struck. Stumbling back to keep away, he waited for Lightning to stand back up ever coolly aloof, her wings beckoning him to come forwards by a mere taunting gesture as they fluffed up slightly. That set him off. "YOU GOING DOWN!" "Try me." Lunging with his beak forwards first, he snapped violently towards thin air as Lightning simply moved her head once dodging swiftly without even changing her expression. The second attack came as Cadbury stopped before her, biting for her breast before she swiftly stepped back by a small hoverjump, waiting for him to rush forth to try and knock her over but she was prepared for it. A single clawkick forwards planted right onto Cadbury's chest tore across his feathered black, downwards like an axe as he shrieked before strafing sideway to avoid her. Snapping to bite at her wing, he threatened to twist part of it harshly but the hen scratched at his underbelly with an almost tearing sidekick forcing him away, but not too deep to draw any blood just yet. He let go of her wing but almost immediately headbutted at her as she strafed sharply to turn round and face the young bull, readily slamming her head down from the side upon his like a hammer. Cadbury stumbled forwards from the sharp blow to his cheek, feeling his eyes squint sharply before he turned as they circled once more waiting for the next strike.

The others watched, with Luke and Rinoa standing to one side together whilst Cyrus stood on his own curiously attentive towards Cadbury's tactics, silently judging him for his enthusiastic bold and sheer arrogance. The red-haired flock bull shook his head sighing: "I wish he didn't have to fight all the time." "I know," answered Rinoa. "It's like he somehow got even WORSE after his rider's gone missing." "Do you think he misses him?" "I think...no, I'm not sure, what do you think?" "Huh?" The pale-winged hen looked up towards Luke with soft tender eyes of inquisitive disposition. "You've gotten close to Cadbury, over the months since Asch." "Because he...well, he understood me." "Really?" "Yeah. Heh, sorry but bull's code of honour, can't tell you anymore than that." "Alright...it's good that he's helping you, even if he is rather...pushy about things." "At least we got two hens to keep our heads straight, right?" "Hheeheehee! Oh I keep his head straight alright, he doesn't dare lay a pinion on me!" "Because you're so soft and sweet?" "Might be! He has a soft heart underneath I'm sure of it...around under sixteen layers of fury." "Like an onion then!" added Luke. "And just as many tears to go through it." "Haha, right I guess so!" "You wanna know what I think?" The sounds of battle continued as she kept watching his eyes constantly with a little grin. "I think, that he wanted somebody like James to be around just so he had somebody to be responsible for. And now...now that he's gone I think...he realised that he lost the only person that could really help him learn how to live on with life...and not burn himself out so badly with everything." "Why would he do that?" "...because he stopped caring about himself a long time ago." "YOU ZAGHNAL FUCKBITCH!" Screaming with fury, the black chocobo stormed with a blinding rush as he tore with wings of fury towards Lightning, but right before she dodged he kicked up a thick stream of snow all across her face, blinding her temporarily. It was the perfect moment to turn and bite whilst she was struggling to clear her vision, grappling her neck from behind as he forced her on her knees. His beak began to go deep, and blood started to drip finely as a thin filmy sliver turning pink within the whitish feathertips. She did not resist, allowing him to push her fiercely to the ground. "I WILL FUCKING BREAK YOU!" "Not yet." The moment he loosened his beak she slammed her head upwards by a cracking blow, snapping him backwards in turn as he staggered brutally, before she jumped up and with a flying leap, clawed across his face and neck with white whistling talons outstretched. Like the hawk catching the mouse, she streaked her fierce sabre-sharp claws down down his feathered body and almost gored through his chest if not for her restraint. But the black youngster simply gritted his beak through the pain and barged into her from the side slamming her viciously onto her back. With legs apart on top of her, he lunged for her throat's base as both of her feet went up, grinding feathered breasts against each other as her claws scratched thick into his abdominal region. Gasping sharp as he tightly strangled her with his beak, the white hen gouged into the bull's underside trying to scratch through into the skin as blood streaked down her legs. Cadbury screamed through his vicious display of violence but not with the intent to kill. He only wanted to make it hurt and force her to submit but she refused without end. Likewise, her claws sharp as they were, never had the intention of ripping his entrails, only to force him through weakness to give in as the two began a race of determination. Blood versus breath, who had more heart within to withstand the other's assault. "I RULE THIS FLOCK! I RULE YOU!" "You bleed...more sense than you s-speak." " WELL YOU'RE A FRIGID BITCH!" "And you...are a coward." " THE FUCK YOU CALL ME!?" "Who did you...abandon like this?" A cold look came over his eyes at hearing this as he felt his beak loosen from her throat. "What...did you just say to me?" "Who are you talking to?" asked Lightning calmly. "What?!" "Are you talking to me, or some ghost from your grief?" "SHUT UP, YOU DON' KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT ME!" "I know plenty about you...do you think no one was listening when you start screaming inside your head? Whenever you sleep?" "BULLSHIT!" "Do you want me to tell you what I have heard from your sleep, murmuring like a frightened chick? You pathetic little thing, wantonly holding onto your anger because you've lost everything and now you can't even be thankful for who you have now...or even had before he disappeared." "SHUT UP! SHUT UP YOU FUCKING BITCH!" "I will...after I tell you one thing."

She lifted up her beak and whispered something to him. His eyes turned blank as he deeply stared into the void of the white snow underneath them, blood gently dripping from his body before he let go fully as he simply walked away without a fuss. Not a single word uttered from him as he trotted past Luke and Rinoa back to the stables as he huddled into the hay, before Lightning went back to sit beside Rinoa calmly. The white-winged hen of Dahlia simply gasped with amazement asking: "What did you DO to him?" "Hmm?" "He...not even looked at me, what did you tell him?!" "That is up to him." "What?!" "Cadbury!?" Luke went in with a worrying frenzy trying to rouse his friend. The black chocobo laid down on the floor completely staring away from the door, not even moving or twitching with a feather out of place. The red-maned bull cautiously approached but still he did not move to greet him. "C-cadbury? Um...you alright? ...you want something?" "...leave me alone." "Huh?" "......I'm done with you today. Go off and play with Cyrus, I'm done with this shit." "Are you alright? C-come on, let me help-" " DON'T! LOOK AT MEEEEEE!" His screech echoed throughout the building enough to terrify Luke out of the stable before he rushed back to Rinoa's side with Cyrus watching still, amazed by the sudden change of the young bull's attitude. They would not speak leaving Cadbury to himself for the remainder of the night until perhaps a few minutes later, Dahlia came with Navarro rushing ahead of her at the sound of her flock screeching. She leapt over the fence towards her steed looking over her feverishly, noticing the bites and clawmarks asking: "Wh-what happened, kupo?!" "I-i don't know!" said Dahlia. "Wh-where is the stablehand?!" "She has been hurt, another chocobo must have, I-...wait, where is Cadbury?!" "He's inside the stable...I think...he must be hurt, I see a trail of blood from here to where he is." "...find Roy." "What?!" "He knows how they speak, get him to talk to them. PLEASE! I'll handle them kupo!" "Alright, l-let me just...g-gods." Frustration coursed through her but she restrained herself knowing it was more important to tend to the chocobos firstly above all else as Roy came with her after ten minutes of rushing back and forth. The raptor listened to each of them before turning to Navarro, who was currently rubbing ointments of healing potion onto Lightning's neck, courtesy of Dahlia's help with a mixture she had brought forth from her inventory. "There's been a fight," began Roy, "Cadbury challenged your Lightning to it." "A dominance struggle," said Navarro, "nothing more kupo. I should have known, he has not been the same since...James' disappearance." "Whut, you mean he HASN'T always been tryin' to pick fights with everybody?!" "No...more like he's become TOO aggressive of late, almost as if he's lost all reason...I should have had him holstered at the stable and not in the field, I was too careless. Who won the contest?" "Lightning, apparently, done sumthin' to Cadbury that totally shut him down lahk, made him stop fightin'. Dunno whut it is but ah think she mighta broke him...more mentally, ah can't get nuthin' outta him." "Is he hurt?" asked Dahlia. "Not physically bah too much, but Cyrus told me he had sum bad scratches on his underside so we gonna need to help him." "We could try and put him asleep, you have something for that don't you Navarro?" "I do not," said the moogle, "but it might just be what he needs kupo." "Ah got sum sleep powder," added Roy, "always keep a bit on me." "Why is that?" "Because Cyrus has problems sleepin', so ah give him sum for bad nights." "I see. Hand it over." He cautiously gave her a bag of powder as she approached being the quietest of them all, having experience in her previous years at the farm in knowing how not to disturb a steed at rest. Craftily touching her paws on the thinnest parts of hay to the subtlest point of not breaking, she brought a handful of powder to sweep over the bull's head without effort as he breathed in from his deadened blank state, falling asleep perfectly. Rolling him over once his eyes closed, they began to work on healing him by the soft rub of a thick medicinal lotion of Dahlia's own making. The mixture had worked in easing his wounds and staunching the blood flow, not too severe but an easy risk of infection if it had been left without attendance, to which Navarro snarled: "The stable's manager is going to have some severe words from me, kupo. I paid for a damn service for the protection of my flock, and I find TWO of them bearing wounds at each other!" "Just be glad it wuz a dominance fight," replied Roy, "an' not sumthin' worse." "Which is the only reason I am not running to the office right now and kicking that man's shins until he regurgitates his kneecaps!" "It's alright Navarro," said Dahlia reassuredly, "we managed to patch them up, Cadbury can have a nice sleep and it will all be better in the morning tomorrow, now let's go feed the ones that are still awake." "Worthless feeble stablehand, no doubt he's gone to the tavern drinking himself into a rancorous stupor, if we had not been coming who knows how long he would have been as our own flock just simply BLEED themselves to death!" "Navarro PLEASE!" She grabbed the moogle's shoulders tightly forcing her to keep still in her shaking fury, stifling her thoughts as Rocino recollected herself on noticing what she had said as Dahlia took her arm softly. "I know you're upset, but we are here and we can help them now. We can handle this, let's not ruin this day with that sort of talk, please Navarro?" The former farmhand gave a deep trembling sigh as she rubbed her head frustrated, but eventually nodded to relent as she answered: "You are right. Forgive me it's just I-...I only ask that people be responsible for our flock." "I know...I know you do, we can complain to them when the stablehand returns so let's just go be responsible for our own, shall we?" "Yes. That is good, kupo." "Ah need to get back," said Roy looking to leave, "don' wanna leave Baldwin on his own too long, who knows whut he might get up to." "Alright. Thank you for your help Roy." "No problem."

With a courteous nod giving them their time alone Roy headed back towards the cathedral once he made sure that all was clear on his chocobo who gave him assurance that there was no more need for him. Dahlia was thankful also as they began feeding the group their greens, a mixed pastel of various rooted vegetables that gave them warmth in their stomachs from the cool afternoon. Once the flock had been sated from any distress, with some food left before Cadbury himself so he could eat when he woke up, Dahlia sat down on a bench being sunlit from a wintry afternoon sky. Navarro sat with her looking tense as she slowly unwound herself emotionally, before the nu-mou checked round to see no one else was within earshot of their conversation. She rubbed her hands firmly as she steadied her voice. "Navarro...are you...are you really certain I am alright being part of the group?" The moogle looked up curiously at her. "Why do you ask, kupo?" "Because of...me and my history now that you know, I know you all said that you had been over it and that it was all under the bridge but I just...I just cannot help but feel the smallest sense of unease, like someone's watching me, scrutinising me...judging me. And I know I have that on my conscience, and I know I can never wash away the blood on my hands, but...I just want to know if you truly feel I belong in this group, and not just out of pity. But because you honestly believe that I do." She looked away sighing deeply as she felt the weight of her sins creeping along her back until Navarro put a hand on her shoulder. "...I trust you, immensely so." "Really?" "I do, kupo. Despite the past few months, I have always seen you as a bright and compassionate individual...and because I see you are still suffering with this, I am going to confess to you something." "What?" The nu-mou turned fast with a look of fear in her eyes, panic slightly risen as six thousand words poured through her mind like boiling water through a sieve, waiting to hear her response. But Navarro's words came from a place even she could not predict. "...I am not actually a knight. I never was, officially." She could do naught but blink at hearing this, trying to comprehend as she made certain her ears were not failing her. She struggled to ask further cautiously saying: "...um...wh-what do you mean?" "I meant what I said, kupo. I am not a knight, and never have been...because of what I did." Dahlia's face fell with shock, startling slightly as she tried to cast her mind back to every point Navarro gave her code of honour. Never could she have seen through it as she tried to unravel this revelation. "What you...what you did b-but...wait...wait all this time you...y-y-you said you...gods...my gods I...I can't believe it." "Are you feeling betrayed Dahlia? I understand if that is how you feel." "......I...u-um...I wanted to say yes, but then I just...realised I am also not what I claim to be." "There is that, kupo." "But I saw your permit! You had the official seal, we had it at the border crossing an-" "That is forgery." "WHAT?!" "A very good one, albeit, you do not have to look far to find forgeries of utmost use." "But why?! Why did you...how long have you been like this?!" "...since I first started all this. Let me tell you a story." Navarro clasped her hands together almost in prayer as her eyes began to close. "I was not always like this. When I was a child I was much happier, much more content without a broken heart. I had a brother. His name was Phoenix, and he was the closest friend I had, we were both born and raised together...at the same time." "R-really? ...wait, does that mean he...was a twin?" "...if he was the same species as me yes, but no." "What?" "He was a chocobo." She then took out from her shirt a large heart-shaped locket, oddly light but the size of a fist as she showed it to the nu-mou. Opening the clasp showed three small perfectly preserved amber-coloured feather, with a number tag underneath, coded "47". Navarro closed it back up but not before the scent of a chocobo's spirited youth came bristling to their nostrils, a musky peach scent that gave a sudden zest through both of them as she explained. "These were his feathers and his number tag, he was born the same day as me. My mother called it a blessing, and my father had me raised alongside him to also help me learn and understand their species, kupo. Ever since he was a chick and I was a moglet we were inseparable, always we roamed together but of course he grew much bigger than me. Which was perfect because it soon came to the day I first learned to ride on him, and I knew there and then that we would never become apart." "My...goodness but, what were you...like as a child then, with your um...brother?" "Like any child, kupo. Wild-eyed with wonder, Phoenix was like an older brother to me almost in every sense of the word, always keeping me away from trouble, protecting me from anything that might be dangerous, much more intelligent than I was at the time. Riding across the fields, streaking through the moonlit forests we searched for adventure and always he stood by me, kupo. I loved him deeply, and so too did he love me, for he always brought a smile to me even on my worst day after coming back from school and whatnot, but always Phoenix had time for me...and always would he stay by me until I felt better, whenever I was sick or in tears kupo. He was the first thing I went to see at dawn and the last thing I saw at sunset...for the first twelve years of my life." "What...happened to him?"

Navarro felt her throat turn dry as she struggled to recall, gasping hesitantly. Her fingers started trembling as she did all she could to keep sense of her voice. "...a farmhand...furious at my father for firing him because he was drinking on the job and almost caused half our flock to escape from the field, decided to come back in a sullen rage wanting what he thought was his fair share. Phoenix also acted as something of a guardian to the place, he always used to strut around outside my window making sure none would come to the house, we would always used to jest that he was my esper of a sort, k-kupo. That I was always able to summon him and he would come running back to me. ...I heard him scream that night." "N-no..." "I ran out into the snow, found father over his body. The farmhand had a fight with him, Phoenix had tried to stop him entering near the house and chased him down and his rage of drunkenness he...he had driven a pitchfork straight into his heart. I only saw his body after, as I watched his amber blood pour out of him...I watched my own brother bleed to death and I couldn't stop screaming. He was still alive...for the last few seconds that I saw him before father could close his eyes and I couldn't...I couldn't s-stop until I...passed out k-ku...H-Hhh-hhhhh!" She clutched herself bitterly struggling to contain her tears, with Dahlia latching her arms around Rocino instantly pressing her cheek against hers. "Oh...oh gods I...I'm so sorry, Navarro." "I couldn't...I couldn't deal with it. I shut down completely." She forced back her tears with a deep bristling breath. "I tried but nothing came to me, I simply put my head down and worked away at the farm doing my duties and chores. I was twelve, and for the next two years I stopped speaking, never wanting to waste my breath kupo. They tried to take me to a psychiatrist but I refused, I did not want other people to know, and my arrogance...my insistence turned in on itself and I turned bitter with everything. Eventually, my father realised that I should not be at the ranch, for I had too many memories kupo. So he suggested something. A chance to learn diligence and strength through the knight academy." "Really? I thought you wanted-" "I thought it was a good idea. I said yes, surprised them with a word for the first time in two years but I took it nevertheless. I understood what he meant kupo. I needed to get away from the family ranch but I would not forget about Phoenix, nor would I forget my duty to this family. I kept his number, in my locket along with a few pinions of his feathers so that he would always be close to me, no matter where I went kupo. I hated the first year of the academy, but I never stopped working, burying myself into sword and chivalry if only just to forget. Forget everything I had once been...until Berniere arrived." "Berniere?" asked Dahlia. "He had joined the academy two years before me, an orphan from Breekheim who had a rather positive attitude towards everything. A bright woefully optimistic mog who never stopped encouraging everyone and making friends no matter where he went, kupo. Even after my various rebuttals he never stopped trying to befriend me, we were quite surprised that we were both left-handed too as moogles, so in the end we often paired up against each other for the sake of ease. He ended up becoming my best friend, though I...wasn't as appreciative of it as I should have been." "Oh?" Navarro leaned back with her head against the post, sighing deeply with her eyes still closed. "He...he was the only one that never laughed at me, never belittled me for my sorrowful statute. Everyone else, when they had heard I was mourning for a 'pet' they simply shrugged or ridiculed me thinking I was but a child who lost its toy. Why?" Her fists began to crack ruthlessly between her fingers as her jaw tensed with bitter rage. "Why is that so fucking funny, kupo? What's so different about avenging a brother compared to one's mother or father, why was Phoenix something to mock?! Just because others might consider him a pet, well is not a pet a family member too?! Are they not practically a sibling, are they not still FAMILY?! I HATED them for it, I DESPISED them and I screamed at them, tore them down in battle whenever we faced with ruthless efficiency. But Berniere did not laugh...he...he never laughed at me when I told him, he...he simply hugged me." She broke down with a hand on her forehead as tears poured through down her cheeks to her neck. "H-he...he hugged me and said...'I'm sorry'...h-he was the first person to ever say that kupo. It was only then that I appreciated him as a friend, and so the two of us became close. We...we rose up through the ranks together, fighting to gain honour worthy of their respect as we soon had the chance of becoming the elite, amongst true knights of caliber. Fourteen years of diligence...but he rose above, whereas...I...would soon be cast out." "Cast...out?! Wh-why, what happened?!" "...I dishonoured them, grievously."

Her eyes opened as she looked towards the field, staring blankly as if death had wilted everything upon her. "When I was on field duty...I found the one who had killed Phoenix." "Wh-wh-what?" gasped Dahlia. "I recognised him, very clearly kupo. I knew precisely who had done the deed after father had told me all those years hence. But when I found him he was nothing but a worthless drunkard, more than he used to be. He had no home, he had spent his money on debts and was impoverished to ruin. But I did not care." Her fist tightly spasmed as her breathing became short. "When I told him who I was, he...he was indignant at first, clamouring me to piss off and stop bothering him kupo. But I insisted, I told him precisely what he had done and I had come to pay justice unto him. Justice for killing my brother and when he saw that look I gave him...he knew what I would do to him. And if he didn't, well...slicing his hands off gave him the message." "Oh gods..." "He begged me...pleaded me, even INSULTED me by offering to pay for 'another bird'...the worthless fucking blight upon the earth he was I gave no quarrel to my own desires of taking his life, and so I did. I slew him...a worthless defenceless drunkard, plunging firmly into his useless beer-ridden heart with my blade and I thought for once I could be happy again, that some small earning of victory or solace would come to me kupo. But when I watched his faded breath, his eyes glass over I...felt empty. I did not feel redeemed at all, no light, no justice, not anything. I felt simply empty and all I did was simply kill an unarmed man who had begged me to not do so." She turned towards Dahlia offering her hands to hold as they shook with guilt. "Your hands...are far more clean than mine ever will be, Dahlia." The nu-mou clasped them softly, trying to calm her leader's spirit as her eyes glinted with empathy. "I'm...I'm sorry. I never realised but-" "I was not able to hide it long, my guilt became overwhelming and so despite having covered up the evidence of my crime by disposing the body I could not bear myself to be in the academy anymore kupo. I told Berniere of what I had done and after I explained why I had done it he...he also agreed that I stay at the academy. But we decided I disgrace myself properly, and so we began to stage my downfall, where I assaulted him, blindly out of control with drunkenness. I became more and more uncontrollable constantly attacking him, at one point we even pretended that I was a jealous lover and I had overreacted like a foolish moogle, kupo. He was very good at playing the victim, and after enough times of assault, they banished me out of the institute and I took the exit gladly...knowing I could not stay to feel the weight of my own sins even further upon me." She turned towards Dahlia completely dead with a thousand-mile stare upon her features. "I am not a knight. I'm not even a clan leader by official proxy, I am but a simple mercenary kupo. A worthless freelancer who simply pretended to be a knight to make those at ease with my bearing. I had all the qualifications, just not the official permit. Berniere knew that my permit was forged, but he said nothing knowing that my reasons...were not so cruel as one may think. But I am also a murderer, one just as shameful as the one who killed my brother all those years ago." "I...I don't know what to say." "Then say nothing, few people appreciate that there is silence as an option." "This is not the time for silence Navarro, you've been silent for many years!" "And it was only by my actions that I caused this grief. I only tell you this story for one reason kupo. It is because I trust you, very much, and you are the only one I have told this to. If you ever doubt yourself being worthy enough to be part of our group, then just remember what I told you. What your esper has done, that was never because of your own wish, your own desire unlike me, whose sole willing blade struck down upon a defenceless vagrant just to please one's sense of right." "What do you mean?" "Justice is an unwavering blade. Revenge is an unsteady hand." She put a hand upon the side of Dahlia's waist giving a gentle honest look clear from her eyes. "You understood that far better than me, and I know that despite your past grievances you have done everything you could to try and uphold your moral stances upon things such as protecting our leader's reputation, caring about others and being a formidable colleague, kupo. I would not have had you along had you shown yourself to be incompetent, and that is not what I would call you certainly. At the very least I will say most certainly you are not a hypocrite for almost always speaking your mind with great knowledge, I am surprised how confident you have grown with us." "Well...that's more because of James really, I think that he...both you and him have made me feel rather...worth attending to, that my opinion speaks for itself and that I do matter in the world of things. But I do feel bad about Baldwin for the way I treated him." "He has forgiven you, kupo. Now please, let's relax for the while that still remains." "You are right. Thank you, Navarro."

The two settled up against each other sitting on a bench, sighing upon the afternoon breeze icy-sharp upon their whiskers and nostrils before it became too cold. The nu-mou looked down at her friend and current clan leader cautiously brushing her hand across the moogle's ear, blushing hotly. And yet despite all they had spoken, her voice remained trapped inside of her as she fumed furiously to herself before came a rapid excuse: "W-would you excuse me for a moment I...need to go to the restroom quite badly I'll be right back." "Of course. Actually I think I will return soon back to my room at the cathedral, upon being certain that they are well-treated, kupo." "A-a-alright, I'll um...just, go, to the um, see you back at the old cathedral then, bye now!" She got up hastily and ran all the way towards the nearest restroom she could see, which just so happened to be at the Equestrian not too far from the chocostables themselves. Storming in with a sudden push of her hands on the swingdoor, she had an idea and doggedly ran forwards to the bar asking desperately with hands firm on the wood counter: "Give me an applejack, straight and honest." "Righto," said Wootton. "No, wait...make it two." The bartender poured her the first glass of firm cider as she paid up from her wallet, gulping back greedily to try and drown any sense of hesitation on her lips thinking that all they needed was to loosen. She handled the first glass proficiently well despite being rather light and so took the second glass with gusto before she then suddenly burped from drinking too fast, looking queasy with embarrassment. Upon a sense of loathing burning up from within her, she slammed her fist repeatedly into the table counter before Kruz came waltzing up from behind her. "Had a rough day?" She turned before seeing the kremling sat with her chummily as he grinned, putting up his stump of a left arm into the air before he made his order. "Barkeep a vodka, citrus fruit liqueur without going easy on the grape, thank you." His drink came along in the form of a rather purple-looking drink, with elements of yellow and orange permeating from within as the bitter fruit sting ran happily through his teeth happily. She made no motion to leave but dug her hands tightly into her cranium, with dull warm fingers pressing into her skull as if trying to break it like an egg and pour out her stulted brain, before Kruz then asked: "I thought you were off with Navarro." "I needed to...go to the restroom." "And you're drinking here adding more to your bladder." She turned towards him with a sunken eye of not being in the mood for this but said nothing for a moment. "In fact you almost came in instantly without even going for the restroom so you need to lie better than that." "...did you come here to drink or to shadow me?" "Drink really...but shadowing people can be fun." "Some places would have you arrested for it." "Firstly you're not my type literally, and secondly there are a LOT of things I could get arrested for..." He gave a wink classily as he drank up next to her, with Dahlia nursing on her second drink to try and calm her nerves or at least let them be consumed well enough to stifle her thoughts. It was then she realised something with Kruz on his lonesome, asking: "Was Fayne not with you?" "Oh he went to go read, wanted to calm down after dinner, had a big meal too and everything." "I see...how are you two doing, by the way?" "We're doing great! I'm just glad to be with someone." "I noticed he's immensely more happy than usual ever since both of you...had a relationship." "That was a nice pause you did." "Well...the cider's giving me problems with my vocabulary." "Khhhahaha, you know Fayne told me you were smart but that's a good one." Gingerly blushing she allowed her enthusiasm to spurt briefly in the form of a line of inquiry out of bold new curiosity. "May I...ask you something Kruz?" "Of course." "I...wondered how you and Fayne first got so close together, how it happened." "You mean nobody told you?" "Well, yes, Roy had told me but I never knew the particulars of it, along with being in a state of meditative reprieve for those two weeks after the incident, you remember?" "Ahhh yes that uh sleep state you went all in. I didn't even know that was a thing, I almost thought you went into a coma." "Oh no, just a nice long sleep of imposed magical stasis until I was able to recuperate. Magic has its own medicinal therapy concerning the physiological and psychological effects from overuse, and well...the esper rather overused me greatly." Kruz pursed his lips not saying anything before Dahlia realised what she said and gave a blush with him, giggling curtly as he drank up more asking: "So um...I never got the full story on that, what exactly happened with you and Mariel when you got back? I'll tell you what happened between Fayne and me if you tell me your part of the story." "Alright, that seems fair. Well, after seeing I had been burned out most grievously by the esper's power I was forced into a deep state of meditation, almost to the point I could feel my heart stop beating at some points. It's basically not unlike a long sleep except I'm rather not asleep but just very um...metabolically retarded." "Woah, hold on that's a bit of uh-" "I mean retarded in the traditional sense, to slow something down, NOT in that insulting way." "OH...right!" said Kruz with eye sharpened, "of course um...anyways, so you were just slowed down like you were...maybe hibernating?" "Yes, exactly! Like hibernation until everything was alright with me and the esper was completely contained back inside me. There, now tell me about you and Fayne if that's alright." "Alright...I'll tell you since we're all friends but um...is this really okay with you?" "Of course I'm okay with it!" cried Orosco. "I love the fact that Fayne is happy now and I hope the two of you have a great relationship! I was just wondering how it came to be after all those months ago." "Well...if you insist. I mean, the first real time it happened was, well, during your sleep state, we were all worried about you but madame Mariel assured us that you were going to be alright. Is that reall something mages can do?" "Only in more strenuous circumstances," said Dahlia softly. "Well, before I first went to leave looking out for James across Ivalice, about a week before you woke up, Fayne came to me at my room on the ship, away from Baldwin...he asked me-"

"Are you leaving sszhoon?" The kremling sighed with dissolute look, standing in front of his desk with the rays of morning light streaked down his green-cloaked back. "I have to. I need to find James, I'm not letting him disappear from me again." "But...will you ever return?" "Of course I will, I'm planning to go out around the continent for at least a month, then I'll return to update you with any news. Madame Mariel gave us permission to land here anytime we wanted as uh something of our own headquarters. Or rather your headquarters." "I sszhee...I undersszhtand it'sszh...we have all been together for quite a bit, I jusszht don't...everything isszh sszho complicated, I feel asszh if my whole world isszh being completely unravelled sszhlowly to reveal sszhomething horrifying underneath. Firsszht you and Jamesszh and...Roy are all from different universszhesszh, then Dahlia hasszh an esszhper we knew nothing about and that THING that jusszht sszhimply teared usszh apart from within our own mindsszh I-i-i don't...I don't even know what isszh happening anymore." "Well...there is one good thing that came out of this for you." "What?!" A cocky glint from his teeth reflected in the morning light.. "If you could survive that, then there's no reason to be afraid about you being different, now isn't there?" The bishop blinked, feeling a punch to his nerves as he suddenly clenched within his stomach gasping before he said gingerly: "Y-y-you...you are bringing thisszh up now?! But why?!" "Because if I don't tell you now I won't be able to focus until I return in a month's sweep or so. I meant what I said before Fayne. I need someone to be with, I just need someone to feel...how can I put this? Being with someone who is hurting I feel I can do more good with to share my heart with, than to waste it elsewhere." "You...you are consszhummating with me for your sszhake of charity?!" "No, not like that I'm not...I'm not calling you a charity case Fayne, you have your own choice but...you seem unhappy everytime I meet you, back down to when we first met." "I had losszht my foot when we firsszht met," snarled Fayne bitterly in defence. "I'm sszhertain you were grouchy when you losszht your hand." "You got over it surprisingly quick." "I am more hardened againsszht sszuch cruelty than you may think, I have the light of Kiltia within me!" "And all the months after?" "YOU try coping with the fact that the one who raisszhed you for the passzht fifty yearsszh isszh the very incarnasszhion of all that isszh Dark and portent within Ivalisszhe! Haven't you ever had sszhomeone you look up to be everything you were againsszht?!" "Yes."

He had not expected that answer, causing Fayne to blink as Kruz continued. "I have, but you managed through didn't you? You even accepted her, loved her as your caretaker always and if you could handle that, why can't you handle this?" It was here that Kruz walked forwards promptly, having long set up this discussion over the course of the past week in his head. "Why is it, that after all you have gone through, you are so afraid to admit your love to Baldwin?" "I-i-i am not a coward Kruzzh! I am being tactful!" "That is really just the same thing." "NO IT ISSZH NOT BE QUIET!" "He's your brother, far as he knows, he'll understand you more than anyone." "NO, YOU DO NOT UNDERSSZHTAND, I CANNOT LOVE HIM LIKE THAT ANYMORE! That wasszh long ago, the Baldwin that loved me that way died back in that river and insszhtead I wasszh given an idiot brother, whom I love VERY much but in a platonic fasszhion and nothing more! I do not love him in THAT way, not anymore I could not, no matter how many timesszh my mind may want to manipulate my thoughtsszh treacherousszhly over unwanted territory, I could not love him like that and never again!" "I wasn't talking about that Fayne, I understood that you can't go back to that relationship with him. I was talking about your TRUE love, of your wanting to love both men and women. You keep repressing this part of you and it's just hurting you all the more." "It...it isszh not hurting me." The look that Kruz gave was the sourest he had ever given, disbelief running through him as he shook his head with hands shrugging. "You are a terrible liar, father Fayne. Trust me, I'm a captain, I deal with hearts broken from within and out of my crew so unless you actually tell me what you're feeling, with nothing but the truth, I can't help you. I need you to come forwards and ask for me to help you because I am the only one who knows what's happening with you and understands what you need. James could have helped but he...well I'm here. So when you're ready to talk, just let me know. I can't help if you keep shutting me away like this trying to deny yourself. But I won't force you either. I'll see you in a month or so." Fayne turned to walk away fully as he grasped for the door, taking his time slowly to give every second that he needed to consider. Hesitation wrought through him as Kruz turned back towards his desk waiting for it to happen. He smiled the moment he heard Fayne speak as he stopped his fingers from reaching. "I'm afraid." But the answer he heard was different to what he expected as the cleric continued. "I...I'm afraid of you." Hearing this he turned to him fully with a softened look in his eyes. Fayne in turn did the same with him as Kruz answered: "...you're...afraid of me?" "I do not know...whether you are a punisszhment of my deviansszhe or a heavenly benefactor. Are you of the heavensszh guiding me on a coursszhe to bring peasszhe to my heart...or are you of demonkin trying to lure me away from all that isszh good, to feed my disszheasszhe with more to condemn upon me?!" "Neither. I'm not a punishment, but I'm not a reward either. I'm just someone who sees you being hurt by yourself for no good reason and it makes me want to reach out. I thought that...James, being already with someone, has rather left me now afloat with...nobody else to be with. But I also did not want to settle with anyone, which is why I was being careful about you. I wanted to see if...if the feelings I had were genuine and not just sympathetic to you being a victim of your own guilt and hatred. There's enough hate in the world out there without you adding to it." "But I...K-kruzzh...what if my life-" "Was your life any worse when you found out about Mariel's darkness? Like I said, how is this possibly worse?" "DO YOU NOT UNDERSSZHTAND?! My brother cannot comprehend a sszhodomite for being the way he isszh, I have done everything to make him tolerate them but all I can do isszh make him pity and belittle them for their unwanted exszhisszhtensszhe! MY unwanted exszhisszhtensszhe, I do not know what will become sszhtronger, hisszh love or hisszh fear sszhould I ever tell him, I DID NOT ASSZHK FOR THISSZH KRUZZH! I NEVER CHOSSZHE TO BE IN LOVE WITH YOU, I WOULD HAVE GLADLY WANTED A WOMAN BUT THISSZH SSZHTUPID FEEBLE HEART!" "HEY!" Seeing Fayne start to beat himself he rushed across the room to grab at his wrought fists, upheld high to readily strike across his forehead as the kremling grabbed the bishop's wrists fiercely, despite the struggling Fayne squeezing bitter tears from his hot squinting eyes gasping. His lone hand clasped against Fayne's left with the other arm flatly pressing by the hook carefully against the bishop's right to fully restrict him from self-harm. Time stood still as they deeply gazed into each other's eyes before realising something fully. Kruz murmured softly to the long-suffering priest. "...I never chose you either." "Wh-wh...what?" "Fayne...I love you...but...I'm also afraid for you." "Wha-...y-you...afraid for me?" "Because of...you so desire to be punished that you want to be miserable forever. I'm not going to let you have that." "WH-what right do you h-h-have to-" "The right to care about you. I realised...the past few months now that...that I...want to give you my heart." In that moment, something broke inside of Fayne as shortly his resistance fell, pressing his head tightly against Kruz's chest who hugged him desperately to feel the beating of the kremling's heart throb within Fayne's ears. Tearful gasps stained on his chest, whimpering as Kruz stroked him gently down his neck. "Ohhh g-g-godsszh I don't...I-i-i don't know what I am doing h-help me...p-pleasszhe...help me Kruzzh I...I need you." "Shhhhh...it's alright...I'm here for you...you don't have to be alone anymore." "I...I won't?" "No...I'll be here for you...I'll be back...and I will love you...like you've always wanted to be loved. Do you want that?" He looked up towards the outsider, long of tooth between his snout with eyes moistening in the glint of sunset rays across his brown scaled features. Fayne could not bring himself to speak, but he did not have to. He could say everything he wanted by a kiss upon his lips.

"And the moment that he did," said Kruz with his hand on his drink, "I felt his heart lift with me...I felt this relief sweep over him once he accepted what he needed, what he wanted...I couldn't bear the sight of him hurting deeply, especially after he called out to me during the whole Breekheim case. And after all this time I had been wanting James but...well, I feel that maybe I've come to Ivalice for another reason. It might as well be with him." "That's....that's so sweet," murmured Dahlia happily, "what a sweet little story, I just wish Baldwin understood-" "That's Fayne's decision and I respect him to come out in his own time. But for now I'll just be with him, hoping to mend his broken heart as some penance for what I've done." "What do you mean?" "N-nothing, never mind." "Alright. Thank you for explaining to me." "It's fine, I know you've not been privy to a lot of things over your needs and recovery process. Must have been around, what, two weeks you were unconscious?" "I think so...I...I am sorry for everything." "Huh?" "You...your friends on the crew, some of them were killed during the esper's attack, I was not...I want to say I wasn't responsible but-" "Then say it. Dahlia, I know you weren't at fault, that Margaret bitch brought it out of you, I saw it, I was there. You do not have to apologise to me or any of my crew." "Are you sure?" He kindly brought her into a soft embrace giving a gentle hug with one arm as she blushed at such gesture. "I'm sure. I forgive you...for something that wasn't your fault. Agreed?" "Agreed...th-thank you." Moving in closely with him, she put an arm around him a little more tipsy between them before pulling back with a smile on their faces. He drank up the rest of his vodka but not before Dahlia bravely dared ask the next part of her question as her mind slowly became encumbered with alcohol spirit, her curious side starting to reveal itself. "This might be...somewhat inappropriate but um...what was his first time like with you?" "You mean like...oh. Khheh, wow um, that's an odd question from you." "I-is that too much?" "Not for me...why?" A smirk of fiendish glee came across the long toothy snout making Dahlia more nervous. "You wanna know?" "I-i-i am just...simply concerned for my friend I mean...I am almost certain that um, his first time with another male would be rather different." "And you're not at all interested in the pleasures of men getting it on with each other?" "NO! Not...in THAT Sense, though it DOES make an interesting story, I would like to know so I can be up to speed with everyone." "I understand...alright, I'll tell you since I know you're not the girl to really gossip." "Absolutely, I have no interest in such prattling on." "Khheh, fine fine, I like telling this story anyway because of how cute Fayne is. So!" He put his glass down fully drunken through with enthusiasm. "It was around a month after we confessed to each other, the first time I came back, Baldwin was out sick in the medical with that weird stomach bug, you remember that?" "I do...unfortunately, I was lucky to not get my robes stained after his um...display at the table." "And well, he was out for a while completely away from both me and Fayne so I asked him-"

"Do you want to start with...something physical?" "...I-i don't...really know what to do." "It's just like being with a woman...except I'm uglier." "D-don't sszhay that, you...I think you're very sszhweet and h-h-handsszhome in my eyesszh at leasszht." He blushed without helping himself grinning sweetly as he rubbed his neck, noticing that Fayne was quivering all over at being in his embrace once again with left arm wrapped round the prelate's back. The stump of warm steel without its hook rubbed oddly nice on Fayne's shivering spine as it began to soothe him, almost like a masseuse using a rolling ball to ease his muscles all tense. "I want to make you feel good, so I'm going to help you into it. We're going to do some things just over time and then if you are eager we can try...even more, is that okay by you?" "Y-yesszh...I would appresszhiate that very muchly." "Hmhm...then let's get started. Come here." In the light of Fayne and Baldwin's bedroom with the door firmly locked behind him, Kruz watched the sunlight of a calm autumn evening play across the skin of his new beloved. Warm scales of golden brown as they pressed their lips together softly, gasping as the kremling pressed his arms firmly against Fayne's back to keep him close. The cleric felt the slightest whimper escape from his throat as Kruz's eyes fluttered briefly hearing this, before the two separated as he pulled Fayne towards his own bed. "We can go as slow as you want," said the captain, "just like last night." "I...y-y-yesszh...that will do." "Let me take this off..." Sliding his cloak from his shoulders, he revealed his bare chest as slowly he began to disrobe Fayne with the cleric's help, slipping the bangaa's robes off piece by piece as if unwrapping a precious gift. First went the short mitre from his head, then the ecclesiastical garments of baby blue in two layers over Fayne's head before showing his undershirt. A paltry-looking body hidden underneath white cotton as Kruz walked to behind Fayne and pulled it completely off, giving Fayne a soft kiss before he did. "You won't be cold," whispered Kruz into his ears, "I'll make sure of that." "H-hoh...K-Kruzzh-" "Sshhhhh...does this feel nice?" He wrapped his arms around Fayne's waist, rubbing his sole hand against the steel stump as the silent creak of his prosthetic wiring rubbed warm against the cleric's skin. "Ohhhh...yesszh...I feel." "Good." The gentle nip to Fayne's neck sent a shudder of warmth through him as he felt himself become erect which Kruz could see. He in turn had his own greater warmth rubbing firmly against Fayne's tailcheek as he further kissed him. "Your body loves it too...mmmm..." "A-aaah...I-i-i feel...your body love it too." "Do you...want more, my sweet Fayne?" "Yesszh...pleasszhe...come into bed with me...my love." Practiced candour through and through like the past few nights, Fayne slowly moved into his bed to allow the sheets open as Kruz slid on in to neatly grind their cocks against each other. But no attention was given to them for now as the kremling pressed his lips against Fayne's lips, tender suckling as their eyes closed sweetly. The cleric threw his arm over Kruz and pulled him in moaning with gasps of bliss, the heat of love somewhat different to all the other times he had laid with women. His body was trembling with all the temptations of a fever. Before he had satisfied his body, he had sated his lust. But here he felt his heart pulse deeper than ever with much greater strength than anything that he had felt in previous encounters. A sweet sensation had come rippling through his veins as their scales rubbed against each other, the throbbing blood they felt from each other's masculinity. His breath escaped him against his own will into Kruz's mouth, kissing deep as he could like drawing water from the well to enrich his spirit, to savour his needs as Kruz's arm slid down to press against Fayne's rear. "Ohhh!" "Thaaaassit...ohhhhh Fayne..." But throughout this there was an inescapable feeling of dread that Kruz could feel from Fayne, as he grasped his body firmly against him once their lips had parted in order to breathe deeply. His entire body was shivering, constantly, his breaths now shaken like a dying man's wish as Kruz could no longer ignore this desperation of fear, his parting lips from his dearest as he held him softly. "What's wrong?" asked Kruz. "H-h-hhhhhh...I'm...I'm sszhorry, I am jusszht...thesszhe n-nervesszh rattling through me." "Are you...uncomfortable?" "N-n-no...I am jusszht...h-hoh Faram I cannot hope bu-" "Shhhh...it's okay, it's alright...I'm not going too fast for you, am I?" "No, y-y-you are not, s-sszhorry I-" "No, please just calm down and stop saying sorry alright Fayne? You have nothing to be sorry about. Do you want me to stop?" "......no." It took a firm bracing of his gut instinct as he steeled his look. "No, I...want to do thisszh, I want...to be with you. I need you. I have never needed anyone sszho deeply like thisszh before you, my Kruzzh." "Alright," said Kruz lightly, "but please...you decide how far you want to go with this, don't ever let me push you. I'm here to help, not use you." "I-i-i know...thank you...hhhhmmmmhhh..."

Their tongues danced once more into a sweetened embrace, nerves having subsided only briefly to allow Fayne his most wondrous of needs as their cocks began to leak, kissing each other with tearstreaked pre. Lips began to loosen once they felt their tongues urging them to breathe before they kissed along each other's cheeks as well as their warm chests glistening with sweat. The kremling's thicker stronger torso tasted sweet to Fayne, likewise did his own lean unmuscular body to Kruz when he licked across the ridge of the upper chest, tasting along the nipple. Fayne gasped, moaning tenderly towards the heavens as he shook with nerves throughout the whole thing but doing his best to calm his soul with every touch of the rippling male body. He let Kruz taste him further, suckling his hot lips against the bangaa's chest as he grabbed the back of the kremling's head to encourage him with moans of indecence, begging through conflict of his mind as every time he felt Kruz's tongue flick across his skin it sent an electrifying jolt of both fear and eager lust. "I...I want to go further." Kruz looked up, his eyes widening with appreciation and surprise.. "...are you...are you certain?" "I need to...I need to know what it...feelsszh like." "Alright...if that's what you want, then I'm okay with it but, may I make a suggestion?" "Prithee." "...you're the one that goes on top." Fayne gave an odd blink as if not hearing what he said properly. "I'm...sszhorry?" "I'm more prepared than you, I can take...a lot in me, but you're still rather new to this...I want this first experience for you to be wonderful, and I tell you there is nothing more amazing than what we're about to do. I know you're quite...thick, but I can take it." "Are you sszhertain of that?" The kremling gave a lewd smirk of intrigue. "I've been preparing myself since you first confessed to me. Come on, let's do it." "B-but, what if...what if I wanted to be um...the one resszheiving?" "We can handle that when you're more ready, right now you're a little unprepared for anything back there...after we've gotten through this, I can tell you how you can be able to get ready for the next time. But until then...let's get to it." Getting up briefly he pulled something out from his cloak on the floor, a small jar of some strange-looking pale liquid, almost like some sort of jelly. Fayne sat up with intrigue as the kremling scooped a small handful in his claws before sliding them over the cleric's penis. A slight cold numbing sensation came briefly before the body heat then acted as Kruz lathered the jelly completely all over his throbbing large length. "A-aaah! Ohhhh, wh-what isszh that?" "Lubricant," said Kruz, "special stuff they use up in Bhujerba, s'what the miners use in...everything." "L-lubricant!? But...I thought that wasszh for indusszhtrial usszhe!" "It's perfectly harmless, all it is is just a special liquid to really make things more slippery. Vwooooop." He perfectly exemplified this as he tried to squeeze Fayne's cock before his fingers slipped straight upwards as he began to apply some to his rear with another small dollop. Grunting as he fingered himself, he gave the cleric a good look at what he would be expecting which in turn had Fayne throbbing harder at the well-lubed anal pucker. "H-hoh godsszh...will it...go in that easszhily?" "If it doesn't, I'll give you your money back." "But...but I didn't pay you." "It's a joke Fayne, come on." "R-right, sszhorry, nervousszh." "There...now let me just get down here, off you get." Moving Fayne from his bed the kremling laid down on his back fully as he grinned up at him, patting his belly with the stump of his left as the bangaa gently moved himself on top of him. Taking care not to throw the bed covers off, he made certain that his whole body was now fully laid on Kruz before he swept the sheets over covering half of their bodies below the waist. The hands of the bishop pressed neatly on either side of Kruz as he raised his rear gently. "Just follow my tail and you'll be hitting it." "A-a-are you sszhure that thisszh won't hurt a bit?" "Oh I'm sure...come on, let me feel you in me...I want to know what those girls have been missing out on with this big beast of yours." "I-i-i am not THAT big." "You let me be the judge of that my sweet bishop now come on...take your time slowly and just push into me. I'm right here." Fayne gulped a deep breath panting harshly before he moved his hips nearer to Kruz's ass, gasping the moment he felt the winking pucker kiss against his cock pulsating with desperate hunger despite a stifling of fear in his head. But he pressed on, nervously as he shook, nearly missing the first two grinding thrusts of his cock against Kruz's thighs before he managed to push in and feel the heat. "Hhhh-aah!" "Nnngh...ohhh...that's it...you found it now just push in, take it nice and slowly, let me adjust to it." "I-i-if it ever hurtsszh, jusszht...pleasszhe tell me." "I will. I promise." Spreading his legs firm, Kruz waited for him to push as Fayne penetrated his first male, a sumptuous heat made familiar by the one or two ladies that had been wanton enough to try this. It was a strange feeling, one that he knew already yet at the same time knowing it was a male making it all the more sacrilegious to him. His face began to turn flushed as the first three inches slipped in without any hassle, other than the odd tightness as Kruz made his practiced motions within to slacken the muscle and allow Fayne deeply into him. "Ohhhhhh...ohhhh Fayne...th-that's it...hhhhoh yes..." In truth it was a bit tighter than expected even with the extra lubricant, and Kruz despite his own preparations began to find himself resisting the urge to bite his lip and grunt with discomfort. But he knew he had to put on a good face for this new experience, to not dissuade anything from Fayne's clearly torn expression of lust and horror of disbelief. The bangaa shuddered with thick breaths, rapid with hot reddening cheeks as a deeper sense of shame began to grab onto him. Every push he made turned even more hesitant, and with each thickening inch that he pressed in he started to slow down as the kremling urged him, cautiously. "Mmmmmph...ohhh that's amazing...ffffuck...fuck I missed this...that's it, you can do it, come on...bottom out, let's see how far you can get you're doing good." "H-hhhhh! HHHHHH! O-o-oh...g-g-godsszh I-" "You're doing real great, come on it's okay...just push, don't think about anything else I know you can do it-NNNGH! OH!" "O-OH, m-mersszhy are you alright?!" "I'm good, I'm...ohhh that made me spurt a little, s-see?" He gladly brought up his hand from under the covers showing the glistening pre from his throbbing cock webbed between his fingers, glistening in autumn rays. "You're already a natural at this." "I'm...I-i-i'm......hhhhh I'm sszhorry." "What?" "I can't...I can't do thisszh Kruzzh. It jusszht...feelsszh like-wh-what in godsszh' name am I doing?" "You're showing me your love, that's it." "No, no I am not I am committing a-" "Fayne. Look at me." The shame turned too great as he looked away, burning from within as Kruz felt the cock within him twitch and weaken in his faltering of bliss. "Look at me Fayne. It's alright, I just want to tell you something." "Wh-what?" "Look at me. Please." The cleric turned to look at Kruz who gave him a soulful look, his eyes sparkling with a pitiful sympathetic urge as his voice shook eagerly. "I love you. Do you love me?" The bangaa nodded almost without hesitating. "I do...I do love you, oh godsszh I do but-" "Then that's all you need to know, now look at me...I want you to tell me something...alright? Just keep your eyes on me, and tell me how much you love me. Do nothing else, just ignore everything and tell me you love me. That's all that matters right here." "But...but I-" "Just ignore EVERY thought in your head and look only at me...tell me you love me, those three words should be the only thing inside your head, I want you to not think of ANYTHING but those three words, can you do that for me? Please...let me hear those words from you, I need you...I love you Fayne." He began to weep, the cleric's fallen tears streaking upon Kruz's chest as he gripped firmly onto the bed before he looked deeply into his eyes. "......I love you." "Again." "...I love you." "Now again." "I love you." "Just keep thinking that and nothing else." "I...I love you...I love you...I love you...I love you...I love you..." As he began to think on those three words falling into place automatically, his mind began clouding itself as each ruminous thought of shame and grief began disappearing. Slowly they would fall into the background and Fayne almost did not notice as Kruz slowly began to slide Fayne into him with a raised leg, pressing him down neatly as the cleric became frightened nearly losing these words almost in his centre of thought. "A-AAAH!" "It's alright, just look at me Fayne! Look at me, promise. Promise you'll look at me and never stop saying those three words to me, please! I need you. I need you to come through for me, you can do this, I love you...I love you Fayne, I will never stop saying that I love you." "A-AANGH! I...I-i-i love you." "That's it." "I love you." "Come on Fayne, just think about me. Only about me." "I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, o-oh, g-godsszh, I love you..." His body began to work itself into a rhythm as slowly he felt the tightness turn too great pulling himself away before he thrust back in. He almost didn't realise what he was doing as his swollen desires burned thickly within his meat, pulsating once more with the fullest of love as all his thoughts began churning into a blissful seeping lustful fog. "I love you, I love you, I love you!" "That's it-NNNGH!" "I love you!" Pounding his hips with greater strength, Fayne felt his urges come to fruition as he pumped into Kruz, hearing the kremling moan gasping with eyes fluttering up towards the ceiling at the wonderful sensation. He grabbed at the pillow beside his head feeling his internal walls pulse with raw heat from the cleric's rising sensual eagerness, grinding his cock firmly into the kremling's hole. "I love you! I love you! I love you, oh GODSSZH KRUZZH I LOVE YOU!" "A-AH! AAAH! AAAAH FAYNE! FAYNE I LOVE YOU! OHHHH, TAKE ME! FILL ME, PLEASE COME THROUGH FOR ME!" The bangaa's tongue slipped free from his snout, pumping with much more ruthlessness as an overwhelming arousal consumed his very heart which burned brightly like the northern star. His words began to fade but not from his thoughts, feeling them smoulder with intensity as his eyes watched Kruz in ecstasy, writhing from every moan he made when hot thick sweating hips slapped together in carnal embrace. A passion carved deep into Kruz's eyes as he opened them once again to see Fayne staring down on him. They never hesitated to kiss each other once again. Moans of love began flowing into each other's throats, shivering with wild heat as Fayne did not stop for a second as his words of love remained wired to his thoughts. Every little inch of shame and stigma that had been carved inside his head was being slowly painted over, carefully ignored and blinded by his sweet rapturous joy, his heart lifted everytime he pounded all the way in as he felt Kruz's squeal of wanton love channel through him as he wished it could never end for this moment. But all good things had to come to an end as he felt his cock give in to its needs, thickening a hot stream of effortless white that began trickling from Kruz's rump. Tongues wrapped within each other deaf to the world around them and their own bodies' limits as their breaths became feeble, parting suddenly as Fayne breathed raspily with his last powerful thrusts using every speck of energy that he had to climax fully into him. His face twisted into a deep braying moan as he came into Kruz, jaw transfixed rigid with eyes wide shut desperately feeling every pinching muscle stand right on edge with shock and amazement at what he had done. Flooding his warmth within as his love began to fill him plentifully, leaking down his cock and along the kremling's tailbase to which Kruz gave a deep sigh of well-sated relief. In turn he had come also in the midst of pandemonium almost nearly unnoticed, throbbing his hot jizz to stain on his brown scales glistening in the autumn sunset. He felt even a little spraying upwards to lather faintly across Fayne's belly. Panting with excitement, they looked to each other softly with mouths faintly open in soft disbelief as Fayne felt his cock stutter and spritz, pumping the last seed inside of Kruz very sweetly amidst the kremling's clenching to milk every little drop out of him. He gulped with dry lips, wanting something to drink as he felt sweat covering everything to the very sheets as he looked down on himself. At first the thoughts of himself tried slithering their way in wanting to belittle him, break his spirit and fill his heart with the self-hatred he had known so intimately. But all he felt in the wake of the afterglow was a relief. A weight had come free as if the world became brighter that night before he gave a kind small grin.

"His eyes twinkled at me then," said Kruz ending of, "like something pure had awoken in him for the first time of his life, and it was then I knew...I knew that we both had love for each other truly. And all he could do was hold me, gently hold me like I was the most precious thing in the entire world to him and just never stop letting me go for the entire night. I heard him smiling alongside me, I felt him happy and I knew...that he was going to be alright from now on and that both of us would be together forever......khheh, sorry that sounds really sappy I don't know what's come over me I just can't get over how...long it felt since...um...D-dahlia, are you...are you alright?" He hadn't noticed in his musing that Dahlia was softly crying into her drink, having ordered a third applejack for the road now as she looked up at Kruz with hot tears down her cheeks. She gasped back her words before vomiting them out again with weeping melancholy: "TH-THAT! Wusssh the mossht b-beautiful s-s-sshtoooooryyyyyyyyy I ever hea-hea-heaaaaaaard!" Her face went flat onto the bar sobbing greatly, her ears out fully on either side as she went bawling full-on with muffled sounds coming from underneath. The kremling looked around awkwardly having no idea what to do as he thumbed his glass emptily. "Um...th-thank you I guess." "You...you are both insshpirasshionssh to me. I...I mussht take from that a-a-and greatly......wait, no WAIT, I've GOT IT!" She grabbed forwards at him before pressing her lips to his ear, whispering beyond all reasoning of her mental faculties. Kruz was getting scared hoping she was not thinking what he was thinking. "Both of you...a-are both a beautiful thing...both of you...are insshpiring to me to go do sshomething. _" "Um, I don't...um...th-thank youuuuu?" "_Forgive me...pleasshe I mussht...I mussht go now to do s-sshomething before the jackleapp runssh through me." "I think you're a bit late for that." "NAH-UH I'M NUT!" she shouted in his ear before whispering. "I'm not...I'm not late, not YET but I mussht go...for we...forwemusshtgo goodnight." With staggering balance and fleet of foot, she wandered her way out into the evening to leave Kruz completely confused deciding to order another drink. He wanted another go at a loosening of his lips before anything else could be going on tonight. "Thank gods she didn't wanna kiss me, I mean...uugh, bad enough when Michelle tried doing it during that party, I don't understand these females...khheh, not like I could, BARKEEP!" He slammed his glass on the wood counter. "Another vodka before I leave and let's do it without the grape! I'm feeling lucky tonight now."