Once Amal walked away Ethan fixed Harris with a cold stare. "I'll take you as a protector, but that was just... wrong, Harris." He glanced over as the mage paused to speak to the red-haired man, then back at the blitzer. "I already decided not to involve her in this, unless she decides on her own." He sighed and shook his head, rubbing at his face with both hands. He was too tired to be dealing with this sort of thing--the drama, the tension, it was all beyond his ability for the time being. He had already chosen to sacrifice everything he had in this world, the last thing he wanted was to argue with someone he should call friend. He set aside his tray, mostly uneaten, but took the water as he stood. "I'm going to take a walk. Try not to get half the island pledged to my service while I'm gone."<br/><br/>He made his way through rubble and trees alike until he reached the beach, where he found a nice large rock to sit on and watch the sun sink the rest of the way under the horizon. He sipped his water and tried to find some peace within himself, some semblance of balance, but his efforts were interrupted by footsteps in the sand coming his way. Ethan stifled a sigh and looked over to see the young warrior from before, the one who had been swinging the bright blue sword that looked like it was made of crystallized water. He stopped nearby and folded his arms as he watched the sun set, silent for the moment.<br/><br/>Ethan let the silence linger before he spoke. "You helped fight the Sinspawn, right? Brave of you."<br/><br/>"Hey, least I could do. Thing was tearin' up my home. Had to do somethin', ya?" He glanced at Ethan. "Not that I gotta 'splain that to you."<br/><br/>"No, you don't." The priest sighed. "Look, I don't want to be unkind, but unless you need something specific..."<br/><br/>"No, I get it. You been workin' hard this whole time. I just wanted to thank you myself. For savin' Besaid, and for givin' me a direction to take." He drew the blue sword and held it in both hands, turning it so the sunlight glinted off the blade. Ethan glanced at the weapon, at the strange hook at the end, and smiled tiredly.<br/><br/>"A lovely blade. A sword to be proud of."<br/><br/>"It is. My brudda made it for me, ya? Him and Lu." He fell silent, then turned the blade point down and thrust it into the sand. "But it's 'cause of them that I can't keep it. A good sword ain't enough to fight Sin. Only one group in Spira knows all what it takes... and I'm gonna join them."<br/><br/>"The Crusaders," Ethan guessed softly.<br/><br/>"The Crusaders." The man looked at Ethan, who made eye contact this time before he stood up on his rock and held his hand out.<br/><br/>"I am Ethan of Bevelle, Summoner, pledged to stop Sin by the grace of Yevon."<br/><br/>The man grasped his hand tight. "I'm Chappu of Besaid, and I'll stop it with the force of man's fury."<br/><br/>The two nodded and held for a moment, then released each other's arm and looked back to the sunset. "If I were you," Ethan said slowly, "I'd break the news to your friends and family a bit more gradually. The people of this island already lost much today. Let them have a few more before you leave them, too." He sighed and tried not to think about how much more Spira would lose before he could complete his pilgrimage. If he could. "I need to rest. Good luck, Chappu. Wherever your path leads." With that Ethan turned to trudge back through the jungle and ruins, back to the village to look for a soft place to lay down and go numb for a few brief hours.