Note: All Suikoden elements belong to Konami.

Special Note: Do your homework, fill up college papers, write in your diary, read two books...the horrors of everyday life, my friends. I'd much rather spend my time with Nash and Sierra. I love them. Yes I do.

Time: This story takes place right after the end of Suikoden III. Chris has become the Flame Champion and defeated Luc. Nash has just finished telling her that he is returning to Harmonia. By the way, this has nothing at all to do with my other story, "The End of Rain". Chris and Nash didn't do anything nasty before he left Budehuc!

However, this story can be viewed as taking part in the same chronology as my other Suikoden stories, "Always Kiss Me Goodnight" and "Pour." Read those first!

And now...

She Loves You

by ArchFaith

She was waiting for him as he came down the trail.

Her soft, slender figure, gracefully outlined in the moonlight, was very still as she stood there, her arms hanging limply at her sides, her hair gently tousled as the wind passed through it, sending strands of silver into her eyes.

He regarded her without surprise. He continued down the trail in the same, slow manner, his eyes on her the whole time. His feet scraped against the old, dusty trail; his hands were folded in front of him, in an attempt to keep the warmth that had almost completely escaped his body when he stepped out of the manor at Budehuc. He headed towards the silvery girl without hurry, and reached her within a minute of first sighting her.

They were facing each other now. Silence pervaded the air; the nighttime sounds of Yaza Plain were temporarily hushed. The breezy wind, the chirping of the crickets, the occasional sound of leaves rustling—no, no more. No sounds.

Just emotion.

He smiled familiarly. "Well if it isn't my missus herself."

Her brows furrowed. "You should have a better greeting for me than that."

"It was the first thing I thought of."

"You're a pretty lousy thinker, then."

"Hahaha." He took her by the shoulders as a scowl formed on her face. "It's really good to see you again, old girl."

She sighed. "Yes, and for me it isn't that particularly exciting to see you again."

"And why's that? Have too much fun without me?"

"It was much more peaceful when you weren't around to pester me."

"I see, I see." The grin was back on his lips as he dropped his arms and turned towards the trail. She did the same, and they soon found themselves walking side by side down the dirt path. "So tell me...why did you decide to come for me? I remember you telling me last time you visited that you'd had it with me for good? What about our little divorce?" he questioned mockingly.

"Be quiet," she answered viciously.

He loved the way her eyes flashed when she was angry.

"I came to accompany you because I wanted to know how the battle went."

"I sent Dominguez ahead with the info a few days ago."

"I wanted to hear the outcome with my own ears."

"You could've waited until I came home."

"The journey from the Grasslands to our home is a two week walk for a mortal, you imbecile. I wanted to hear the news while it was fresh."

"That's a pretty flimsy excuse."

"Are you trying to insult me?" she challenged, stopping shock still on the path. He continued walking, his conscience unshaken.

Fists balled, she caught up with him, and they walked on in silence. The noise of the plains had returned; crickets crawled up stalks of grass, singing their nighttime melodies; gusts of wind blustered through every now and then, an eerie chorus forming in the air. The moon, up above, glimmered in its half-hidden form; dark craters, seemingly in the shape of living objects, were projected onto its surface.

Of course, she could observe all these things more easily than he could; her eyes, centuries aged, could see objects a mile away; her ears could magnify sounds below the human sense of hearing; and—well, he was sure of this, anyway—if he were ever attacked by an enemy, anywhere in the world, she would smell a drop of his blood as soon as it fell.

His great and beautiful Sierra.

"What are you gawking at?" she asked, noting his eyes resting on her.

"Nothing," he answered. "Well, if you want to call yourself 'Nothing', I guess..."

She sighed again, and managed to stop herself from snapping back a rude comment. "I suppose the Flame Champion was happy to see you gone. With all that senseless flirting it was a wonder she allowed you to stay."

"You would think that," he answered. "But when I told her I was leaving she was a bit sad, I think."

"Oh really? How strange."

"Yup. She gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Pretty good for a straight-laced virgin knight, don't you think?"

Her response was a sharp jab in the side.

"Ow!" he exclaimed as she walked ahead of him.

"You, Nash Latkje, are a worm." With each step she continued her insults. "A dog. A womanizer. A whore."

"Oh c'mon! We're not that broke!" he called after her as he hurried down the path. He gingerly rubbed his side. "Ouch...that was a bit hard. You have to remember that I'm not too young anymore, Sierra."

"Heh," she answered. "I can't wait for you to pass on. Then I can be free of this marriage and continue on to greater things."

"Why not leave it now?" he asked. "I'm a womanizing, dog-like whore." The corners of his mouth twitched. "Would you really want a husband like that?"

She shut her eyes momentarily. "Every moment I share with you is excruciating."

He smiled. "But you do mean excruciating pleasure, right?"

Before she could respond he grabbed her and quickly pressed his lips to her mouth. Her chilly lips felt sweet as he wrapped his arms around her, soothing the small of her neck. Her relatively weak attempts to shove him away soon faded, and she soon gave in, responding with equal passion.

That is, until she bit his lower lip.

"Hey!" he grumbled, pulling away from her. "That hurt!" He immediately brought his hand up to his mouth. "I think I'm bleeding..."

Sierra smiled sweetly. "Ask my permission before you do such rash things, my dear. And you'd better cover up that scratch, before I start getting hungry."

"Heh...you enjoy inflicting pain on me, don't you?"

"I always have," she agreed. "It's good to know there's someone in the world who will always be by my side, and yet, will always be tormented because of it."

"You're sadistic," he answered as he fished around in his pockets for a handkerchief.

"Whatever you call it," she answered. She stood waiting as he held the white fabric over his lip, waiting for the bleeding to stop. "My! What happened to you while you in the Grasslands? You look like you've aged ten years!"

"Gee, thanks," he answered, tucking the handkerchief back into his pocket. "I guess an old geezer like me needs all the compliments he can get."

She raised an eyebrow as he grinned, and they both continued on down the path. "In any event...how did the final battle go?" she asked, keeping her head straight, her eyes slanting sideways.

Nash stretched his arms out in front of him, then pulled them back over his head. "I wasn't exactly in the final battle," he began. "Chris decided to take a knights with her—bad choice, if you ask me. They could've been a lot stronger than they actually were..."

"I know they were probably ten times stronger than you were fifteen years ago," Sierra retorted. "Continue on."

"Chris told me the battle was difficult, but they managed to pull through. Luc used the True Wind Rune to transform into some kind of flying monster...well, she didn't describe him too well to me."

"And what became of him?"

"After she defeated him, the ruins began to collapse, so she left him there."

"She left him there? Well, I would have thought that the code of chivalry would require a knight to rescue even her enemy from harm."

"Heh...guess she was tired of being a chivalrous knight," he answered. His voice grew serious as his arms dropped down to his sides. "I could almost feel sorry for him, I guess...the weight of a rune must be a pretty hard thing to bear."

"Are you forgetting that I have borne this rune for over eight hundred years?!" Sierra nearly exploded as she stopped, her face angry and scowling. "What an idiot, that bishop—to want to destroy the entire world all because of the suffering of one? He has not borne his rune for a quarter of the time I have had to bear mine!" She shook her head in disbelief. "What an absurdity!"

Nash regarded her with a soft smile. "I'm glad someone else thinks the same way I do," he said.

She put her hands on her hips. "I only think this way because it is logical," she answered. "And I'm very surprised, Nash Latkje, that you could come to the same conclusion—I thought it might be above your level of comprehension."

He laughed. "Well, I must not be very intelligent at all," he chuckled. "Apparently I didn't have enough sense to restrain myself from marrying you."

He ducked as her fist shot out at him, and she settled with a mild kick delivered straight into his ribcage.

"Augh." He sunk to the ground in pain as Sierra looked on with amusement.

"One more insult like that, Nash, and you will be in your grave within the hour," she said ominously, her eyes narrowed, a cruel little smile on her lips.

Nash clutched his chest and looked up at her. He grimaced as the pain across his chest and seemed to pound his heart, enabling him to keep only one eye open. "Well, if that's going to come true, I guess you'll be in there with me. Wouldn't want my flesh going to waste now, would you?"

"You will never stop teasing and insulting me, will you?!" she cried in exasperation as he gingerly stood, his hands massaging the area where she had so fiercely kicked him.

"Nope...never. Just because you're so much fun," he answered, his smile coming back. "Ah, the things I suffer for you, my darling...it's almost too much to bear."

He turned back onto the pathway. "But c'mon, let's keep going. I think there's a small inn a few hours' walk from here. We can spend a little time there." His smile turned into an evil-looking grin. "You know what that means, right?"

No changes occurred on Sierra's bored-looking face. "Heh," she groaned. "At least you're good at something."

Nash shook his head. "Well, at least I keep you happy. That's all that matters, I guess."

"Don't think for a second that my happiness relies on you," she answered callously.

"Well, your happiness might not rely on me...but mine sure does rely on you." He ran his fingers through his hair and gave her a lopsided smile.

She looked at him crossly and sighed. "You always say that," she said.

He chuckled. "I know. Just because it's true."

"I've told you time and time again never to depend on me, Nash. I've no time to take care of anyone's needs but my own."

"You told me that when I married you."

"No, I told you that when I married you," she said, her eyes narrowing. "After all these years, hasn't it become clear?"

"Nope," was his simple answer. "It hasn't."

She was about to open her mouth when he reached out and pulled her into his arms. Her eyebrows furrowed in surprise as he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her slivery head onto his shoulder. "What are you...?" she began as he closed his eyes.

"Ah, Sierra," he murmured, smiling into her soft silver hair. "I really missed you, old girl. You have no idea."

"Do I not?" she answered, her face still brushed up against Nash's cheek. She smiled secretly, knowing that he couldn't see her face. "I knew you would not be able to survive long without me. You are simply not as emotionally balanced as I am."

He chuckled. "I guess not," he admitted, running his hands up the curve of her back.

She was likely to pull away from him, as she always did when he tried to embrace her; but to his slight surprise she momentarily allowed him to hold her, resting her wispy-haired head on his shoulder. Around them the moonlight shone, eerie and beautiful over the plains, the grass waving in the light breeze.

"Well, shall we go, then?" he asked, releasing her from his arms. He scanned the dark horizon with an observant eye. "We might just make it to the inn by sunrise. Enough time for your beauty rest."

You must love me, Sierra.

"Heh," she responded, folding her arms over her chest. "You're the one who needs beauty rest. You look a century old."

Yes, yes I do.

Nash laughed. "I know, I know," he answered. "Well, c'mon."

He extended his hand to her. She scowled.

"Do you really expect me to hold your hand, Nash?"

"Yup." Before she could protest his hand was firmly curled around hers, and he was leading her in the direction of the forest, towards the black horizon which seemed to stretch forever in the vast eternity of the sky. "You and I have a ways to go before we reach home."

"Alright, alright," she answered, pulling her cape tighter around her slender shoulders. "Let's go."

He turned to smile at her.

I knew you missed me.

She squeezed his hand, digging her nails into his skin.

Don't rub it in.

The End

Note: Well, there we go! My second Nash/Sierra fanfic! I think it turned out alright...although grrr, though it's easy to write dialogue between them, it's not so easy when you want Sierra to suddenly turn tender and romantic...with Nash, it simply doesn't work! But please tell me what you all think!

Oh, and in case you didn't get the reference..."She Loves You" is the name of a Beatles song. I just thought it would be cute as a title. Now review!