"Ugh, it's so damn hot here! Of course, nothing is as hot as you my dearest Patroka." Exclaimed Mikhail with the utmost confidence.

"I hope you boil alive in the Geothermal Mining Plant, dumbass." Mumbled Patroka.

"Hey hey," Akhos said while pushing his glasses up on his face, "If you two are going to cause a commotion, you should exit stage left."
Patroka let out a sigh and nodded at Akhos. He was right, as much as she hated to admit being at fault. The goal was not to attract attention to themselves today. Mikhail shrugged and walked up to Malos and Jin; the two who were in charge of all of Torna. Their word was law, but so far the two of them had been oddly quiet.

"Malos, Why exactly are we in Mor Ardain today? Surely you we could've agreed some place like Fonsett Village would've been nicer to hang around in. Mor Ardain reeks and totally isn't a pleasing sight to behold." Asked Mikhail curiously.

"Don't ask me," scoffed Malos, "It was Jin's idea. You know just as damn well as me that what he says goes."

"Jin's idea? But doesn't he… you know, prefer cold weather? It's in his temperament." Mikhail queried.

"If you don't like it, then you can go back to the Monoceros, Mikhail." Interrupted Patroka.

Suddenly, Jin stopped in the middle of Ayvill Shopping District, which caused the group to abruptly halt their walking paces.

"We're here." Jin whispered.

"Huh? What was that, Jin? I couldn't hear you." Questioned Mikhail.

"…Ice cream. We're here for Ice cream." Malos interjected.

"Oh, that makes sense… Wait, what?" Said Mikhail dramatically.

"I've never tasted it before," sighed Jin, "I wanted to try it with all of you."

"Jin this is an absolute tragedy! You're an ice Blade for Architect's sake! Surely you've had something such as Sorbet!" Marveled Akhos.

"I have not, Jin sulked, "but I thought it'd fit the occasion to share the memory of trying it with my fellow members of Torna."

"For the love of," spat Malos, "Jin, what did I tell you about getting sentimental? I-"

"Oh," Akhos snickered with a sly smile, "Like you're not ecstatic for this? Admit it Malos, this is the climax of your day. You act like you don't care even though I found that list you made of ice cream flavours you want to try. Stop pretending, it's so cliché."

"Shut the hell up, Akhos!" Shouted Malos with a scowl. Malos gazed at Jin and then let out a sigh. "Let's… Just enjoy this, alright?"

"That's the spirit, my good pal!" Grinned Mikhail while rushing ahead into the shop. "Last one there is forever alone!"

"No way in hell is that going to be me!" Malos responded as he started to make a run for it. Surprisingly, Jin softly smiled and quickly ran after Malos.

"I can't have luck against me, so Patroka, why don't you take one for the team and go in last. It's not like you care about anything romantic anyway." Sneered Akhos.

"Men are such idiots." Patroka said and rolled her eyes.

"That's quite the group you have there! Hello, welcome to Alba Cavanich's finest sweets shop. How can I help all of you?"

"I've never had ice cream before," Murmured Jin, "What's your most popular flavour? I'd like to try that."

"Oh that'd be our prized Steam-Gel ice cream. It's quite the delicacy, Hun! Would you like one scoop or two scoops? And would you like sprinkles on that?"

"…Two, thank you. And yes, I would like that very much."
Jin contently took his ice cream cone and sat down next to the window. He told the others he'd wait until they got what they wanted so he could make the moment all the more memorable.
Akhos, Patroka, and Mikhail got their food with no problem. They sat down next to Jin and waited for Malos, who seemed to be taking forever.

"I said I'd take everything! All the flavours you have, woman." Malos angrily hissed.

"But sir, you do realise how much that'll cost, right? And besides, it'll melt very quickly. I insist you only get two cones at maximum…"

"You think I don't know what I want? Woman, give me all the flavours you have."

"Is he seriously doing this? There's no way he can do that." Questioned Mikhail.

"You doubt the power of an Aegis," Akhos taunted, "the realm of possibility is endless for him. Just let him do his thing. Besides, I told everyone, didn't I? He made a list detailing what ice cream flavours he wanted. And once Malos decides on what he wants, he won't budge."

"How true that is…" Muttered Mikhail.
Torna's group continued to watch Malos argue with the shop owner, until finally he convinced them to let him purchase every ice cream flavour in the joint. He came back grinning with glee, and then handed two of his cones to Jin.

"Jin, these are for you. You've got to experience more than one flavour while we're here, cause who knows when we'll have the chance to do this again."

Jin sighed and shook his head, attempting to hand the ice cream cones back to Malos. The two gentlemen got into a small scuffle of handing the ice cream cones back and forth to each other, although finally Jin gave in and took the ice cream cones Malos gave him. Jin thanked Malos for the gesture and then turned his attention the Akhos, Patroka, and Mikhail.

"For our goals and to our future." Jin said as he lifted up one of his ice cream cones as a toast.

"Jin, dude, it's just ice cream, and you don't need to really do that…" Pleaded Mikhail.

"Just let him do what he wants, seeing Jin happy is a rare occasion." Malos nudged.

"Well you're in an oddly good mood yourself," Mikhail said to himself, "Patroka! A toast! To us as a couple!"

"A toast to us WHAT? You're as disgusting as a Parisax, Mikhail! I hope you die!" Snarled Patroka. Standing up, she went over to Mikhail and knocked his ice cream cone into his face. Akhos burst out laughing, Jin turned away, and Malos scowled. Mikhail attempted to hide his anguish, but it was to no avail.

"Oh I just remembered! I have to work on something on the Monoceros. See you later!" Mikhail said as he immediately got out of his chair and ran out the shop's front entrance.

"I'm not done with you, you jerk!" Patroka cursed. She ran out the door to follow Mikhail, leaving only Akhos, Malos, and Jin at the table.

"Akhos, could you make sure those two don't do anything stupid?" Asked Malos. With a nod and a thumbs up, Akhos took his milkshake and quietly got up to go after Patroka and Mikhail. "Well, that leaves just you and me." Jin looked down at his ice cream cones and frowned. Obviously he wasn't expecting his first memory of trying ice cream to turn into a total disaster. Malos took notice of Jin's disheartened mood and set down his ice cream cones to pat Jin on the shoulder. "Jin. I will make your dream come true. And we promised we'd do this together, don't lose sight of that. I can tell what's bothering you, and I wanted to say I'm still with you all the way. So is everyone else." Jin perked up at this and with his free hand gently took ahold of Malos's hand that was patting his shoulder.

"Thank you Malos. I won't break our promise either. After all, this is something we'll do together." Smiled Jin.

"Now don't forget that again, Jin." Malos hummed. As a form of acknowledgement, Jin tightened the grip on Malos's hand ever so slightly. "Hey, another thing you shouldn't forget about is your ice cream. Just saying."

"Ah… You're right. That was the whole point of coming here." Apologised Jin. Malos simply laughed and ruffled Jin's hair. "Don't do that," Protested Jin, "You're distracting me."

"You're distracting yourself." Boasted Malos. Jin turned away, slightly blushing and hurriedly ate his ice cream.

"It's… good," Jin said, perplexed, "sweet and gentle, as if snow was a food."

"Don't get metaphorical with me, Jin. It's just food." Malos huffed. "And don't be cute like that either…" He thought to himself.

"You're right, my mistake," Jin apologised yet again, "We should get going soon since we're done here."

"Don't sweat it, you worry too much. And yeah, if you're ready let's head out."
With that, the two of them headed out of Salter Sweets. As they walked through the Ayvill Shopping District, many shop vendors tried to grab their attention. Jin looked around, examining their wares, when he then stopped to see an antiques shop selling a doll. Jin always had a soft spot for cute things, even though he'd always deny it.
"Something catch your eye, Jin? You know if you want something I can buy it for you."

"No. I don't need any material possessions. It's fine."

"Come on, loosen up. It's just us here, no one will know that you want that punk doll. In a way, it reminds me of you. I think you I should get it for you." Before Jin could react, Malos grabbed the doll and purchased it. He grinned and handed it to Jin proudly. "Think of it as a reminder of our promise. That's all it is."

"I told you I don't need anything."

"Sure," Malos said with a laugh, "Whatever you say." Malos ushered for Jin to continue to follow him back to the port so they could get back to the Monoceros and leave. Evening had fallen already, and Akhos, Patroka, and Mikhail were probably wondering what happened to Jin and Malos. When they reached the port, Jin stopped and stared at the stars for a few seconds and then turned to Malos.

"It's nice, huh? This peace, it's something I could get used to. Enjoying life as if things were normal. But there can be no peace, not with the world in this state. That's why we have to change it. We will change it, Malos."

"Getting sentimental again, eh? Though I have to agree with you. This world, it's wretched. It's a load of crap. Father created this world for what reason? I have to find out. Why were we made? Why are we here?"

"That's what we'll find out… Together." Jin replied.

"Yes, together. You and me."

With the stars of the night enveloping them, they continued to walk off towards the Monoceros. Hand in hand, side by side. Both had seen the evils of Alrest, which is why they sought to change it. And they would change it.