Title: The Naming of Cats
Fandom: Final Fantasy XII
Pairing: gen (with some implied Balthier/OC and hinted at unrequited Balthier/Fran)
Categories: Drama, Pre-Canon
Length: Long (15,472 words)
Warnings: Spoilers for if you don't know who Ffamran is

Author on LJ: ladysisyphus
Author Website: Letters from the Wasteland

Summary:
The Fantastic and Heartwarming Story of How Fran and Balthier Met.

Review:
This has become my head-canon for how they meet; there's wonderful, nuanced characterization and backstory, from the moment they meet til very close to their introduction in the game, all detailing the evolution of their friendship and partnership. Equal weight is given to both in the story, with alternation sections in Balthier and Fran's point-of-view. A fun character study story for those that enjoyed the characters in the game and want to know more about their earlier lives (though without the background of canon a reader may be at a bit of a loss). I particularly enjoyed the banter between Fran and Balthier, and the exploration of names, naming and identity.

Fran shakes her head at him. "I don't see why this decision is so difficult."

Ffamran scoffs at her. "The naming of things is very important. I once had a pet cat who went five years before we found his name. When I called him Fluffy, as five-year-olds are wont to do, he set about destroying my nice bedsheets. When I called him Eutorpe, he went wild and refused to listen to reason -- even for a cat. When I called him Clarence, he hid under the bed and came out only at night. Only when I showed Emperor Felinius III the proper respect did he have anything at all to do with me."

"But that was a cat," Fran points out, gesturing with her fork before she catches herself (of all the horrible habits she's acquired in their time together, that one is the worst, and she's determined to break it) and steadfastly wills herself to stop, "and this is a ship."

"Cats, ships, humes, viera -- it's much the same. In Archades, those who ascend to new positions -- particularly the Judges Magister, a terrifying lot you ought be glad you had the pleasure of not meeting -- regularly turn over their old names for new ones as a sign of accepting their new roles, becoming new people entirely. What people call you has a lot of power. It's very important."

"And Strahl?"

That cuts his tirade on naming short; he stares into his wineglass, eyebrows raising a fraction in surprise. "That's not one of the old ship names; why that one?"

Fran shrugs, taking another few bites of his relinquished portion, hardly one to let such a thing as conversation get in the way of eating her fill. "I liked it. It had a good sound." Once again, he's overcooked the meat, making it all unpleasantly tough. "I could say it."

The Naming of Cat (LJ, pt.1) (pt.2); (Author's Website)