He reaches for her hand once she's settled next to him and just holds it, relishing the closeness. A moment that still feels surreal and ethereal sometimes, considering everything they went through to get here.

He can't help the little smirk at her confirmation. He's heard about how she trashes the other trainees. It's no surprise. Even untrained, she had kept up with Squall and the others on their journey. She's a veteran, just not in name.

He gets a faint sense of embarrassment from her but doesn't understand why so she just gets a curious look while he ponders the question. Does he burden her with the things he's dealing with? Things he's not so sure he should be qualified to deal with.

He shakes his head slowly.

"Politics. Galbadia wants to send a message to Esthar through us."