Quote Originally Posted by Ouch! View Post
If you want to, there are many little things that you can read into. Ashe and Balthier are among the only characters who interact privately about personal discussions (Balthier revealing that his father is Doctor Cid at Phon shore, for instance). In the background of some scenes when either Reddas or Al-Cid flirt with Ashe, you can see Balthier reacting with grimaces and annoyed looks, which some people might interpret as jealousy. Additionally, Ashe is the one shown to have the most emotional reaction when Balthier stays behind to save Fran. Balthier returning Ashe's wedding ring and Ashe crying at the reveal that Balthier is still alive also gets pointed out.

Aside from the canonical pairing of Vaan and Penelo, the Ashe/Balthier has more "evidence" than most other pairings, but at best it's a subplot, and never a fully-realized one. They bicker in a way vaguely reminiscent of how children tease each other when they like one another, and there's some pretty good evidence for at least a mutual attraction, but pushing much further than that is strictly in the realm of fan fiction, I think.
While I see your point, I disagree. I believe that she may have just warmed up to him as a person, not necessarily a love interest, due to some common ground in their backstory. At best, she could have been attracted to him, but in an unrequited way. Remember how he gives her back the ring? He leaves it in a letter. After rewatching some of the scenes, I got the impression that the letter might be saying "Sorry, I'm just not that into you." However, during the ending, Penelo says Ashe misses Basch a lot, so...

Some scenes have also further reinforced Balthier/Fran for me. Besides the Pharos scene I put up earlier, there was the ending sequence and the scene right before entering Eruyt, where they do behave like a long-term couple. Also, whether we like it or not (and I know we mostly don't ), Revenant Wings is canon. I remember some NPC mentioning Balthier often takes Fran on the Strahl to go stargazing. Plus, there's the whole Feol Viera thing. I remember them being quite personal about it.

But again, RW aside, FFXII is subtle about its romance and while I still believe there is more evidence for Fran and Balthier, I can now see where the Balthier/Ashe thing comes from. Thanks, Ouch!