A/N: Thanks to my reviewers: omegarulesall, Drink. Juice, chiharu-tanaka, Feeny, and Puggles Master. :)

This one's definitely different than the other ones, but I had this idea the other day and it would leave me alone. Though it was originally all supposed to be very lighthearted, it ended up taking a definite turn away from being lighthearted. Oh, well.

Prompt #43 - Conspire

Penelo's parents had been gone a lot lately. Her father worked night shift and her mother had been working late into the evenings. Overall, Reks would not have considered this a problem. He, Vaan, and Penelo were plenty old enough to look out for themselves. And on this night in particular, it gave him time to figure out how he was going to tell all of them that he had joined Dalmasca's army. He hadn't even told them he had been thinking about it, because he had been partly afraid if he did tell them he was thinking about it, they would have talked him out of it. He didn't want to be talked out of it. This was something he needed to do.

So it was kind of nice to be able to shut himself in his room for a few minutes, lie on the bed, and mull over possible approaches to opening the discussion.

Well, it would have been nice had he not been thoroughly distracted by the sudden noises coming from his brother's bedroom on the other side of his own wall.

It started with a loud thump, which Reks dismissed as Vaan possibly dropping something, or tripping and falling to the floor. But this thump was followed by a loud giggle that most certainly had come from Penelo. This in itself was not odd, either, but it was followed by a steady thumping noise that was definitely the sound of the bed-or rather, of someone on the bed, making it creak rhythmically. At this, Reks sat up and narrowed his eyes in the direction of Vaan's room. Surely they weren't-

When Penelo giggled again and Vaan murmured something, and then let out a long, low groan, Reks sprang off his bed and ran for his brother's door, eyes wide and disbelieving. The door was firmly shut, but…there was no way they could be doing what it possibly sounded like they were doing, could they? Gods, if they were, he was going to kill Vaan. And then Penelo's parents would find a way to bring him back to life and kill him again. What were they thinking? Penelo wasn't even fifteen!

Reks found his hand on the doorknob, but he didn't quite dare open it for fear he was see something that would give him the desire to pluck out his eyes and burn them. However, when Vaan made a loud gasping noise, followed by Penelo's name, Reks settled with pounding loudly on the door. The wretched creaking of the bed did not stop, but Penelo's voice called, "Um…yeah?"

She sounded rather breathless, and Reks gritted his teeth. He was going to kill both of them. Didn't they stop and think? He knew they had been best friends forever and he had always expected, especially as he had watched them get older, that they would end up together, but this was just-just not at all the right time for-

"We are going to have a serious talk, so you two had better come out here right now!" Reks told them through the door.

His words were met with the steady noises of the damn bed. He was going to have to burn that too, and Vaan could just sleep on the floor. Or outside. But how would he explain that to Penelo's parents? Why was he left to deal with his hormonal brother, anyway? "Vaan, I swear-" Reks began, but Vaan's sudden laughter drowned him out.

"Reks, you can come in!" Vaan managed to get out, as the sound of the noisy bed ground to a halt.

Reks stared at the door in trepidation, and then tested the knob. It was unlocked. He slowly pushed the door open, worried about what he might see. Vaan and Penelo naked under blankets? Did they expect he would be approving?

He looked into the room, fully prepared to slam the door or start ranting, but the sight that met his eyes stopped him and he blinked in surprise. Vaan and Penelo were both standing on Vaan's bed, completely dressed, holding onto each other for support because they were both laughing so hard.

"See?" Vaan said, getting a hold of himself and grinning at Penelo. "Told you he'd fall for it." And he started jumping on the bed, immediately starting the loud, steady creaking Reks had been hearing. Vaan wiggled his eyebrows at Penelo. "Though you didn't really have to punch me."

Reks realized then that the groaning he had heard had been Vaan complaining because Penelo had, in fact, hit him.

Penelo joined Vaan in his antics of springing on the bed. "Well, then," she gasped between bounces, "you shouldn't have said what you did."

Reks hit the palm of his hand against his forehead and gave a groan of his own. "What is wrong with you two?"

"Hey, you're the one who assumed we were up to something besides jumping on the bed," Vaan said.

"Yes, apparently we're hormonal teenagers who can't restrain ourselves at all," Penelo told him cheerfully, but she leapt gracefully off the bed and walked over to Reks, her eyes twinkling with mischief.

He folded his arms and looked at her sternly. "Was this really necessary?"

"Nah, but it was pretty fun," Vaan said, jumping off the bed with much less grace than Penelo. He walked over to her and slung an arm over her shoulder. "Think Reks would feel better if we actually started making out?"

Penelo elbowed him and rolled her eyes.

Reks glared at them both. "Haha."

"Oh, come on, Reks, we were just messing with you," Vaan said.

Penelo nodded her agreement, her smile fading and her eyes growing serious. "We've been worried about you," she told him.

Reks unfolded his arms and frowned. "Worried? Why?"

"You've been acting really distracted and serious," Vaan informed him.

"More than usual," Penelo added.

"Marisa says you've been distracted, too," Vaan put in.

"You've been talking to Marisa?" She was his-maybe not quite his girlfriend, but she definitely had the potential to become that. After he did what he could to protect his family and his home.

"She ran into us in the bazaar earlier and asked us if we knew what was going on with you," Penelo explained.

Reks sighed and leaned against the doorframe, studying Vaan and Penelo's concerned expressions. "I was going to wait until Penelo's parents were here to tell you," he said. He paused for a moment, and then sighed again. "I joined the Dalmascan army today."

Penelo's eyes widened and Vaan stared at him, stricken. "You what?" they both exclaimed.

"The army? Why?" Vaan demanded.

"Because I can, Vaan," Reks said. "With the way things have been going lately, I want to do what I can." To keep you safe, he added silently. Nabudis had already fallen. He did not want Dalmasca to fall as well.

Vaan and Penelo were still staring at him in disbelief, and then Penelo abruptly started crying. She choked and covered her face, trying to hide her tears, and Reks stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her snugly and resting his cheek on her head. "I'll come back," he said, his eyes taking in Vaan as well.

"That's what my brothers said!" Penelo cried into his shoulder. "You can't say that! You can't know!"

Vaan kept gazing at him in horrible silence, and then he pushed past Reks and Penelo and ran from the room.

"Vaan!" Reks called, but he heard the front door slam.

Penelo pulled away from Reks, tears still sliding down her cheeks. She sniffled and wiped her face. "Go talk to Vaan," she whispered.

He didn't need her to tell him to do that; he was already heading for the front door, but he gave her a look and said, "I'll be right back."

He didn't have to go far. Vaan was sitting on the front steps, leaning against the railing as if he had collapsed there because he couldn't make it any farther. Reks sat down beside him and clasped his hands loosely in front of him. "I knew you'd be mad."

Vaan's jaw tightened and he swallowed. There was a long silence before he spoke. "You could die."

"We could all die if the Archadians take Dalmasca."

Vaan finally looked at him, and Reks hated the emptiness in his eyes, the fear that was there. "Then let's go! Let's just leave Rabanastre. Leave Dalmasca. There has to be somewhere safe!"

"And what? Take Penelo and her parents too? Run away?"

"If that's what it takes," Vaan said stubbornly.

"Vaan, this is our home. And even if we did run away, do you think that will stop Archadia from advancing? Or Rozarria from clashing with them from the other side? We could end up in a war wherever we go. I'm going to do everything I can to defend our home-and my family."

Vaan looked away again, and they sat there in silence for quite a long time, watching the Rabanastrans walking up and down the street. Finally, he said, "I just don't want anything to happen to you."

"I know." Reks squeezed his shoulder. "I don't want anything to happen to me, either, but I especially don't want anything to happen to you."

Vaan nodded briefly. "Yeah. I know." He glanced back at Reks. "You'll be okay."

Whether he believed it or was just willing it, Reks wasn't sure, but he nodded in return. "So will you. You'll do great. And I know you and Penelo will keep an eye on each other." He paused, their earlier antics still fresh in his mind. "But about Penelo-"

"Reks." Vaan gave him a 'please don't tell me you're going to give me this talk' look, which Reks pointedly ignored.

"I know you and Penelo were just pulling my leg with the bedroom thing, but you understand how that's-it's really serious. Not pulling my leg, but-"

Vaan closed his eyes and groaned. "Yes. I'm not stupid, Reks!"

"You just make sure that when you do-you know-"

Vaan looked completely mortified, and Reks half-expected him to cover his ears. Reks plunged onward. "-then you had better have committed to have and to hold forever, Vaan. Penelo deserves that."

"Nothing's happened, Reks! She's just-she's my best friend!"

"I know. You just remember-"

"Yeah, yeah, to have and hold, committed forever," Vaan said hastily. "I've got it." Then his expression turned sly and he said, "Is that what you're telling Marisa? No shmoozling until you've gone through the to have and to hold?"

"Shmoozling?" Reks echoed, chuckling, but feeling immensely relieved because he knew by Vaan's teasing that he was forgiven for joining the army.

"You're not answering my question," Vaan said pointedly. "Are you planning on marrying Marisa?"

"I'll think about that after I'm out of the army," Reks said slowly. "I would like a family someday, you know."

Vaan nudged him. "What, I'm not enough for you?"

"You're a handful, that's what you are." Reks grabbed Vaan in a headlock and ruffled his hair.

"Hey!" Vaan protested, but he was grinning when Reks released him.

"C'mon, let's head inside," Reks said. He stood and pulled Vaan to his feet. "Gotta cheer Penelo up-maybe without jumping on the bed. We don't want to send her parents into seizures when they come home."

They went back inside, where Penelo was waiting fretfully, and she threw herself on both of them the instant they walked in the door, squishing them together as she hugged them both at once. She then stepped back and looked in their faces, giving a brave smile. "I, um, started supper!"

Reks and Vaan exchanged glances, already conspiring as to how to get rid of whatever dinner Penelo concocted without offending her. She could not cook to save her life. "Why don't I help?" Reks said quickly.

With Reks's help in the kitchen, the dinner ended up being edible, and they sat down together to eat it. During the meal, Vaan and Penelo were doing some conspiring of their own. Reks saw it in the way they exchanged glances and nudged one another. They were no doubt trying to figure out if there might be any way to keep him from going off to war, but he had already made that choice. They would figure that out soon enough. And they would be all right while he was gone. They had Penelo's parents, and most especially, they had each other.

Reks smiled a bit at the two of them as Penelo gestured silently to Vaan and Vaan shook his head. He knew that as long as they had each other to hold onto, they could make it through anything.