Disclaimer: Camelot owns Golden Sun.

Author's Note: I'm a huge Golden Sun fanatic, and when Dark Dawn was released, I rushed out to buy it. After playing through a few times (Dullahan still kicks mah butt) I've decided to shine some light on a portion of the game I was rather... displeased with. Hurricaneshipping.

Second Author's Note: WHAT! No Sveta\Karis! Impossible! You guys don't know what the hell you're missing! I mean! It's Karis! And... and Sveta! It's like being a furry, but not!

When I Need You The Most

Sveta watched as Belinsk shrank further and further into the horizon, the image of her brother staying behind in Luna Tower forever burned into her mind. Her earlier cries for Eoleo to turn the ship around and go back for him now mere echoes on the wind. Matthew, Tyrell, Rief and Amiti were all discussing tactics and the 'what now's of their journey with Kraden, while Karis kept the ship in a steady direction, making sure it went out of the eclipse, and not further in. This left Sveta alone to cry over how dishonorable of a death her brother was given, not even allowed to fight.

And so, she cried. The culmination of all that had happened finally snapped inside her, making it almost impossible for her to hold in her feelings any longer. The usually calm, reserved Morgan exploded into a cascade of tears and sobs as she let everything out. The boys were down below, as stated, speaking to Kraden for advice, leaving only Karis to hear Sveta's mental breakdown. Taking one look over her shoulder, Karis hesitatingly released her grasp from the ship's tiller and went over to where Sveta sat.

"Hey..." She began uneasily, unsure if this was a personal moment for her, or if she needed a friend. "Sveta? Are you okay?" She slowly dropped to her knees just to Sveta's left, watching her eyes pour salted tears unending. It was a moment before she would answer, with a tone that would betray her true feelings.

"I'm alone in the world now..." She began, punctuating the sentence with a heavy sniff. "Volechek was all I had left... the only family I had... and now he's gone..." Karis couldn't help feeling sorry for Sveta. Sure, she was an only child, but she still had her father, as well as Matthew and Tyrell, not to mention all the new friends she'd made on the trip, including Sveta. Karis paused, not truly knowing how to handle this situation. Whenever she was sad, her father would always hug her, and tell her that things weren't as bad as they seemed. She fought with this idea for a while, thinking out every possible move, and the potential reactions Sveta would have to each.

"Sveta..." She began, sidling up to her. "You're not alone." She began, putting a tentative arm around her neck to comfort her. "You've got all of us to call your friends. We're here for you." Reacting to her information-hungry eyes, Karis continued. "Volechek was your brother, family, I know... He made a few mistakes at the end, but you know what? He was a man about it. He stood up to what he did, and went down facing it. He was an honorable man, a beloved king, and a loving brother. He gave you that orb, knowing it will help you undo what he did." The beastgirl sniffed once again, watching as Karis spoke, her words ringing some truth to her ears, which twitched some in the stiff wind.

"Karis..." She began, trying to find the right words herself. "When I met you all in the Teppe Ruins... I wasn't sure if you'd be friend or foe... but when I read your minds... I could see only friendship there... No hostility, no malice, and not even any uncertainty." She cuddled up to Karis some, finding sheltering warmth in her body. "Even... in not knowing me... you opened your hearts and minds to me... welcoming with open arms." She stood, Karis still holding on to her. Moving to the edge of the ship, the pair stared out as Belinsk made one last attempt to be seen, before disappearing completely. Sveta holds her composure well, still unsure if this would be the last time she'd see her beloved city ever again. Karis' hand drops, brushing briefly against the other's tunic tails.

"Hey Karis." A male voice comes from the deck below, Tyrell's head poking just over the floor as he stands on the stairs. "Mat'n I are gonna crash for a while." He mutters, sluring his words through his fatigue. "Rief'n the others are gonna be up for a little while longer. When you'n Sveta get done up here, just... ya know... find a place to crash down below. It's been a long day." He looked to Sveta, an uncharacteristic softness clear in his eyes. "But I'm sure I don't have to tell you that." Sveta offers a weak nod and Karis smiled to Tyrell.

"Thank you, Tyrell." She answers, giving him a nod. "Tell Matthew and everyone I said good night." He gives a salute and walks back down, muttering a 'will do' before shutting the door. "Tyrell... even he knows your sadness." Sveta puts her back to the gangrail, looking Karis in the face. She clasps her hands together, and closes her eyes. Moments pass as Karis feels Sveta poking and prodding about in her mind. She offers very little resistance, still unsure of what she's really looking for in there.

"You're right." She finally speaks, opening her eyes, having found what she was looking for. "We can't cry over everything that's happened. My brother died so we might be saved. So that means we have to do everything within our combined power to set things right. End this darkness." Closing her eyes again, she re-entered Karis' mind. "The cold of this eclipse... it pierces anything you've felt. It's bone-biting and cruel, nothing like you are used to." Opening her eyes one more time, Sveta wraps her arms around Karis, at first as a sign of good faith, and to keep the other Jupiter Adept warm. "A cold no one should have to suffer through alone. A friend in need, needs only another friend's touch."

"Sveta..." Karis began, the Morgan closing her eyes again, but Karis raising a protest. "Don't... don't read what I want to say... let me say it... it'll have more meaning then." Sveta's eyes opened and she cocks her head to the left. From her sides, Karis raises her arms and pulls Sveta into an embrace, this one meant to show only dedication, trust, and affection. "Sveta... I..."

"Hey Karis! You still up here!" A brash, forceful voice comes from the stairs.

"Yes... Eoleo... I'm still here." She answers, her eyes never leaving Sveta. The fire-haired man pokes his head up from the stairs. "Tyrell told me you were still awake and..." He stares at the two, hugging, trying to think of what to say.

"She's cold." Sveta begins.

"I'm cold." Karis continues almost at the same time, pushing any suspicion aside. Crossing his arms against the chill, Eoleo nods.

"Makes sense. Is pretty damn cold..." He shakes his head. "Reif and I are gonna get some sleep. Don't be up too late. Kraden's already asleep, and Matthew and Tyrell crashed a few minutes ago. Good night. See you both in the morning." Sveta and Karis nod. "And uh... sorry about the interruption..." Ducking back below deck, the door closes. As the interruption ends, Sveta nods for her partner to continue. Karis pulls Sveta closer, the three inch difference between the two amounting to just over nothing in the long run, Karis the taller of the two. Sveta's ears twitch again involuntarily, from either instict or nervousness.

Leaning closer, Karis opens her mouth to speak, but words stay hidden, the woman's functions stalled a few inches in front of Sveta's face. Leaning just a bit closer, the green-haired wind Adept nuzzled Sveta some, her nose rubbing the other girl's cheek. Unsure, and a little confused, Sveta simply watches and waits. "I was told once... that we can't allow our friends to take precident over ourselves..." She began in a soft whisper, so only Sveta and she could hear. "That do to so... is suicide. But right now... I want nothing more then to make you happy... to do whatever I can to make your sadness disappear..."

"Karis, don't you think this is wrong?"

"Wrong? What's wrong about being a friend?" She continued, still holding her.

"What will Matthew and Tyrell think if they find out they're friend's... gay?"

"If they're really my friends, they won't care." She nuzzled the other some more, the soft fur on Sveta's face tickling her nose. Sveta gives a little nod and smiles.

"Okay." She states simply, soft and quickly at first.

"Okay?" Karis responds, more sarcastically at first. "Of all the words you could say, 'okay' is the only thing you can think?"

"What would you perfer?" Karis shrugs some at her question.

"'Shut up and kiss me', maybe?" Sveta laughs a little.

"Fine. Shut up and kiss me." Karis smiles at the open invitation and nods.

"Yes, ma'am." Brushing her nose once more against her fur, Karis completes the fantasy in her mind and locks lips with Sveta, her body heat rising from the action. As the edge of the eclipse passes the boat, the ship breaking out into fading sunlight, it was greeted by two Jupiter Adepts, locked in the beginnings of a long, loving relationship.

From across the ship, Matthew looks on with a mix of happiness and sadness.