Hello there, everybody. This is the official 1.2 version of this chapter, with no plot changes what so ever.

I'll rename it 'Of (High) Hopes and Dreams'.

So, just so you know, the title is still a reference to a song by The Smiths, who inspired me to write this down in the first place.

Thanks for any reviews.

Disclaimer: You know it belongs to Square, so don't bother fighting for it.

There Is A Light That Never Goes Out.

Chapter 1 ~ Of (High) Hopes And Dreams.

It had been five years since everything came back to normal, and the group had gone back to what their their usual lives used to be before the whole mess ever began. Snow and Serah married as soon as they had set foot on Bodhum again, and bought a huge seaside house with gil that Snow made out of thin air. Sahz and his son Dajh were living not very far from them, and Hope stayed with his father.

The whole group met every year to celebrate the fireworks together, and that one was no different. They would always watch the show from Serah's place and laugh all night long at Snow's often stupid comments. Even if Lightning was unwilling to go, her sister would always insist on it, saying it would be for "everybody's sake".

They were one week from the festival, and Lightning was overloaded with work to cover her holiday break. GC's didn't usually got breaks for major events like that, so she convinced Amodar that she could handle two weeks of work in just one. Of course, that also meant triple shifts and two hours of sleep a day.

That same night, while trying to put her precious hours of sleep to good use, the young woman was awakened by a knock in her door. She groaned and turned in her bed, knowing that her sister had grown the habit of often knock by her door at unholy hours like that at the sake of emergencies of the kind, "Me and Snow are gonna have to stay out late tomorrow, could you pleeeeease feed the cat on your way home?".

Ever since she moved in with Snow, Serah would visit her sister at least twice a week, apparently ignoring the fact that people in general, Lightning included, have a tendency to be asleep in the middle of the night. Although, Lightning knew it was the only time she was actually home, and even if she did get few hours of sleep a day, Serah was all the family she had left.

Therefore, as much as Lightning would surely love to murder her sister at times like this, she still got up aimlessly and went to answer the door, expecting to find Serah's cheerful self jumping around sleeplessly.

Much to her surprise, the mental image of her bouncing younger sister rambling on about her god forsaken cat didn't match the one by her doorway. Moonlit silver hair and a pair of bright green eyes stood in front of her.

"Hi, Light." greeted Hope.

The soldier's expression changed from exhaustion and a very little bit of annoyance to one of concern and alert. "Hope", she acknowledged him. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, nothing's wrong, don't worry", he replied calmly, the alerted look on her face smoothing up a little. "Your sister, she said it would be easier to find you if I came in an hour like this."

Lightning couldn't tell if she was mad at her sister or glad that Hope was there by her door. She decided for the last one. Opening up a smile, she gently ruffled his hair as she used to when he smaller. He laughed lightly at her.

"What are you doing here? The festival's only in a week." she asked, her hand reluctant to leave his silver strings.

"I just wanted to talk to you before the festival. My mom always said that the fireworks make your wishes come true, so I thought I would try it at least once." he said in a low voice, the intimacy between them starting to get too personal.

Lighting gazed at the now grown boy that now stood by her doorway. In just five years, he has grown enough to be a couple of inches taller than herself, even though he was still a bit too skinny for most boys his age. His eyes were probably the only thing that hadn't change in all that time. Hope still had the same gentle green eyes; the eyes that always made her feel a strange warmth inside her, even in the old days.

She lowered her face after a while, her bangles hiding any feelings that her now caring eyes could give out. "If you say it out loud it won't come true" she said, her voice softer than she intended to.

"I don't think it will anyway…" he replied, stepping closer to her. Lightning looked up to him with confused eyes only to see him smile. Without warning, he pulled her into an embrace, covering her body with his own. She could still notice the smile on his voice when Hope spoke lightly by her ear.

"I'm in love with you… Lightning Farron."

Lightning's eyes grew in surprise and she let out a small gap. Time seemingly stopped as a strange emotion creeped up inside her chest. She could hear his heartbeat and feel his warmth, it was all too real. He broke the embrace and leaned his hand on her cheek, lifting her face until her eyes met his own. "You've always been my guiding light… quite literally, I mean!" he smiled softly as he said it, half of it because of Lightning's lost expression. "I love you, Light."

"Hope… I…" she rambled, still not meeting his eyes, only to be cut off by Hope's soft voice. "It's alright; you don't have to answer me right now. Serah allowed me stay at her house until the festival, so you can give me your answer by then."

Lightning met his eyes, barely believing that strange twist of fate, and Hope smiled lovingly at her, lowering himself to give her a light kiss on the lips.

"Good Night", he whispered to her mouth. Setting his body straight, he gave her one last smile as he turned around and walked into the night.

She followed him with her eyes until his frame was blended with the darkness as her fingers unconsciously touched her lips. "Hope…"

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PS: It is going to have a chapter 2, by the way...