NEW YEAR 2012 ONESHOT

Summary: In Bodhum, there is a legend; if you wish on the fireworks, your dreams will come true. Features the whole main cast, main pair: HopeLight. Happy New Year Guys!

A/N: Set the fall of Cocoon. Fang and Vanille still haven't decrystallized. Excuse the typos lol. Just tell me where they are and I'll correct them. I wrote this at 3AM on New Year's day. The Fireworks inspired me! Hahaha. Half of the story got corrupted (wtf right?) So I had to change a few things. But it's still kind of the same. Enjoy! Happy New Year. :)

It was that time of the year again- December 31st, New Year's Eve.

In a few hours, it would be the first day of a new year. It would be a fresh start for all the inhabitants of Gran Pulse. Besides, this would be their first New Year's celebration after the fall of their dear Cocoon- that fact, alone, made everyone all the more excited about the upcoming celebrations. There would be lots of food, of course. The buffet would never disappear from any celebration. There would be lots of noise- fireworks, screaming, laughing. The people weren't only celebrating the coming of a New Year, but the event was also a form of thanksgiving to the Gods for helping them overcome all the obstacles in the past. They all had the right to be happy, after facing so much danger and feeling so much anger and sorrow. Everyone had the right to smile, and they should- especially the former L'cie who were the main heroes of the fall. They were the ones who suffered the most.

It was time for them to have fun.

To smile.

And that, they would do.

Everybody was busy preparing for the town fiesta in New Bodhum. Since it was their first new year together, all of the former Cocoon citizens- now scattered around Pulse in their different self-established towns- would meet up at one place to celebrate the first new year together. Of course, New Bodhum, was the designated place. Since most of the people were already there it would be easier. It was bigger than Oerba and Paddra wasn't fully restored yet, so that would be the most reasonable option. Plus the beach would be the perfect place to start a big celebration.

Since the day before the celebration, everybody began lining up at the waystones nearest to them- even causing minor problems with the magical passages. When the problem was resolved, however, the military had to bring some of the people to New Bodhum using the airships that still functioned. It was a great idea. If truth be told, it was faster and the airships could bring tons of people at the same time. That just made it easier for everybody. Of course, the peoples' safety was the military's top priority. Now, the could defend the citizens freely- not like in Cocoon where they would purge their own friends and family just because a Fal'Cie said so. The welfare of the people meant nothing to the Primarch, but those days were long over. It was all in the past now.

"It's nice to go back into the past sometimes, isn't it?" The voice of a twenty-year-old Serah Farron chimed as she entered the living room were Sazh was looking at a wallet photo of him with his wife and their son Dajh. Sazh lived inOerba and was currently staying in the Farron sister's -plus Hope and Snow's- house since they lived in New Bodhum. It was convenient that Sazh had a place where he was welcome to stay anytime.

"Yeah, memories are nice, even though they're only meant for...remembering," The old man replied as he set the picture down on the side table and turned to look at the young Farron.

Serah tried to smile, but the worry and sadness that she felt could easily be seen in her eyes. "Memories can be relived, you know," she said in an attempt to ease the man's pain. He smiled back at her.

"Some of `em, Serah. Some of `em," he replied.

Serah opened her mouth to counter his statement, but whatever she was about to say was forgotten and the words slipped out of her mouth the moment she realized that he was right.

Everybody knows you can't bring the dead back to life.

"Hey now! Stop with the drama!" A loud voice accompanied the sound of footsteps and the shadow of a burly man descending from the stairs. "It's new year," the blonde man named Snow said, "Cheer up."

Sazh stared at him in awe, wondering how somebody like him could manage to stay to optimistic and cheerful. Sazh was more of a realist; and reality? Well, it's not so bad...No one said it was that great either. Then, the older man smiled. "I guess you're right, Snow."

"Hehe, I was merely saying what I felt," Snow added, somehow flattered at Sazh agreeing with him. He turned to his soon-to-be wife and wrapped his arms around her tiny waist before kissing her on the neck, "Good Morning Serah."

She giggled a sweet "Good Morning, Snow," and kissed him on the head. Sazh smirked.

"Daddy!" A childish voice was heard and soon after, Dajh was running towards his father with a chocobo plushie in his hand. He hugged his father and greeted him a good morning.

"You see? It's the present that actually matters,"

Everyone looked in the direction of the stairs, where a pink-haired lady stood leaning on the wall with her arms crossed over her chest. Beside her was a silver-haired teenager who yawned as he straightened his black t-shirt. Both of them descended down the stairs and greeted everyone a good morning.

It was Lightning who said that the present was what mattered.

She was right, actually.

They all had each other, and they were all alive and happy? What more could they possibly wish for?

The group of former l'cie smiled at each other and laughed, they've become so close in such a short time. It seemed like it was only yesterday when they were beating the hell out of the Fal'Cie Orphan and Dysley. Before this they were all strangers...did they possibly regret anything?

No.

Of course not.

And the day began.

Surprisingly, the day passed by so quickly. Everyone was done with their assignments by the afternoon. Serah, Sazh and Dajh had finished preparing their food contribution for that night's buffet. Hope, Lightning, and Snow finished shopping early and they helped clean up and prepare the place for the gathering. NORA was there too, and everyone seemed to be excited about the celebration that was going to take place in seven hours. All they had to do was wait.

At 11:00 PM people began piling in near the beach. There was a long table where all the food would be placed and a small stage with a huge clock that would tell everyone how close it was till the celebration. The digital clock developed by the scientists in the town worked perfectly and everyone seemed to be getting along well. The citizens engaged in light conversations and talked about their life stories over glasses of wine and beer that that they ordered at Lebreau's bar. Lightning looked around as she listened to Gadot's jokes to see that all the others were busy conversing with their newfound friends. One thing caught her eyet though. She noticed immediately that Hope was just standing next to Maqui -who was talking to someone else- and not doing anything.

She apologized to Gadot quickly, telling him she remembered she needed to tell something to someone. He nodded and went over to Yuj to have a drink.

"Hope," Lightning put her hand on his shoulder. He jumped a little in shock and looked at her with wide eyes. When he realized that it was just Lightning, he gave out a sigh of relief.

"Are you alright?" Lightning ask the silver-haired boy. "You're not talking with anyone, is something bothering you?" she asked, her hair dancing in the light sea breeze. "I- it's not like that!" he defended. "I just...can't...Ugh!" Hope groaned and let out a sigh. She waited, knowing he was trying to find a way how to explain his situation to her. "I'm just not social."
Lightning's lips upturned in a smile, a mocking smile. "And you think I am?"
Hope laughed. and so did she.

"Come then. Walk with me."

Both of them loped down the beach together silently, either one not speaking to each other for one didn't know what to say to the other. They eventually reached the shoreline after what seemed like a decade of slow walking, their feet leaving prints in the white Pulsian sand. Lightning sat down cross-legged at the edge of the shore, her drink still held in her right hand. She motioned for Hope to sit beside her with her left. He sat down beside her, his legs stretched toward the shoreline, feet almost touching the water.

"We're alive," Lightning said, taking a sip out of her drink. "Smile for change."
Hope scoffed jokingly. "Says the woman who always held a straight face," he looked at her with a jesting expression, and laughed.
Lightning rolled her eyes playfully, "The avenger has spoken." "Whatever!" Hope replied, and they both laughed,

"That's better." Lightning looked at him, smiling as well. The silver-haired boy flushed a deep shade of red. He mentally thanked the sky for being so dark right now, and for saving him from further embarassment. His gaze tore away from Lightning, and his green orbs were focused on the Pulsian sea instead. Then, he caught sight of Cocoon's crystal pillar in the east. It made him wonder how Fang and Vanille were doing. If they were ever watching or anything.

"You know Light, I wish Fang and Vanille could be celebrating with us right now...I always liked it better when we were complete..." Hope said, his eyes still on the pillar.

"Yeah," she replied, looking in the direction of Cocoon's crystal pillar as well. "I wish that too," she closed her eyes, feeling the breeze run through her. She could feel her pink hair dancing on her shoulders to the wind's simple melody. Hope did the same, feeling refreshed and as the wind ran through him gently like he was liquid being penetrated by something. They could hear the music getting louder from the distance and the people were now dancing to it's tune.

"I wonder when they'll wake up again..." Hope said as he opened his eyes.
"No one knows, I guess. Maybe in another 500 years...or 10 or whatever."
"That's gonna take forever..." Hope sighed. "But we'll wait, won't we?" the pink-haired lady stood up to dump her empty bottle in a nearby trashcan. Hope stared after her, watching as she strode gracefully towards her destination. She popped the bottle in the bin, and turned around. Hope's head snapped in another direction. He didn't want her to think he was stalking her or something. Lightning noticed this, but seeing as he was trying so hard to hide what he did, she chose to ignore it instead. She sat back down where she was positioned before, trying to fight back a smile. Her gaze shifts over to Hope, who was still busy looking somewhere else and avoiding Lightning's baby blue eyes.

"What are you looking at?" she asks, feigning curiosity. Hope turns to her abruptly, apparently taken aback by the question the soldier girl just asked him. "O- oh I wasn't really looking at anything...Just waiting for you to come back," he smiles, or rather forces himself to do so and looks in the direction of Cocoon's crystal pillar.

If it was Fang he was supposedly "stalking" or if she caught him looking at Lightning like that, she would never let him live that one down. In fact, she would've prattled on about it until her mouth dried up. Of course Hope wouldn't want that to happen, but yes, he did miss Fang very much.

Lightning raises and eyebrow at him as he gets lost in his thoughts. She was about to ask him what he was thinking about, but it was so..."un-Lightning-like" to get into stuff that wasn't really her business.

Instead Lightning looked at him quizically. "Hope? Are you okay?" she said with the slightest hint of worry in her voice. His eyes were on her the next minute and she smiled. "Do you want to go back already? Sorry for keeping you."
Hope was quick to answer. "Uh! No, it wasn't like that! It's really fine. I was just...Fang and-"
"Oh," was all that came out of her mouth. "I understand, Fang is definitely someone to look up to."

And admittedly, yes, Lightning did miss Fang. She missed her cheeky attitude and her sarcastic remarks- as well as her 'no giving up' attitude. She was fierce, brave, fearless- things about her that Lightning greatly admired. She felt like she had some sort of connection with the Pulsian lady, although they barely talked when Fang finally found the person she was looking for.

As for Vanille, Lightning barely spoke to her during their journey. But hell, she did miss the young girl's optimism. This positive outlook she had on life, it was endearing and admirable. It was the person Lightning would love to, but would never become.

Lightning smiled, but her train of thought was interrupted five minutes later when she heard the citizens' voices getting louder.

"What's that?" Hope asked, looking back at the beach where they gathered first.
"I don't know, it's..." Lightning trailed off, she spotted the clock; twenty seconds `till the year comes to a close. "The countdown! Hope, you wanna run back there now...Maybe we can make it to five seconds...I doubt it thought..."
"Well we-"

*BANG*

"YEAH!"
"HAHAHAHA!"
"Hey! Let's make a wish!"

"What was that?" Lightning looked around like a super agent, scanning the area for any gunmen or Cie'th."
"Light, look over there!" Hope pointed to the sky above the Pulsian sea.

Beads of little lights hiked up to the velvet sky, exploding into colorful flower-like shapes when they reached the top. The little lights illuminated the night sky. Lightning's eyes followed them from where they were shot, to the spot where they would burst into a rainbow of beauty. The lights, iridscent and vibrant, flew in the night sky like rocketships. This sight was truly remarkable.

"Fireworks..." Lightning trailed off, "It's...beautiful," she said as she stared in at the sky in awe, her eyes beholding a dazed expression as she admired the lights.

A smile found it's way to Hope's face, and he turned to Lightning. "Do you remember that night, Light? The one two days before the purge?" He manages to say above the booming of the fireworks in the background.

"I..."

"We we're all together that night...under the same sky, watching the same fireworks."

And he was right.

It was that night that Lightning was on duty near the beach. Amodar, her superior, suddenly approached her and told her she could get off work early. And together, they watched the fireworks. Then there was Snow entering the bar and asking Lebreau- who was entertaining Fang because she was looking for someone- if she knew were Serah was. The lady directed him to 'the usual spot' and he found her. He asked for her hand in marriage and gave her an engagement pendant. With this they rode off into the night filled with spectral lights.

In Bodhum, there is a legend; if you wish on the fireworks, your dreams will come true. Serah told Snow her wish was to have the courage to tell Lightning that she's become a L'cie, while Snow told her his wish was to hear Serah's sweet "yes."

And his wish came true.

While somewhere else on the beach, Sazh and Dajh were watching the light show. They both made wishes. And when Sazh asked his son what his wish was, the boy answered, "Well, you're never happy. You never smile...So here's what I wished; I wished that you'd cheer up and be like your old self again. And Sazh, well, he had a wish of his own.

Hope and his mother Nora were watching from another vantage point. The older woman wished something, while her son thought that it was absurd- why would she believe in childish legends? Wishes...they don't come true. And he thought it was even more ridiculous that the wish was for his dad to come with them next time. Well, his dad? That guy never really cared...didn't he?

And the person Fang was looking for? Well, Vanille was just somewhere else on the beach making a wish- she wanted a real miracle to happen.

Lightning watched Hope as he swam in his sea of dreams- in his memories. A smile was still painted on his face, although his body stiffened as he felt her eyes on him.

"Do you regret it?" Lightning asked, not making eye contact with him. "Being purged and all that...the whole l'cie thing..."

"No," came his firm answer. "I mean, why would I be? Sure I lost mom...but I have you guys now. It's the present that matters right?" He quoted her, and she laughed.

"Fate has a funny way of working out things..." Hope mumbled.

"Sure does..."

"In Bodhum, there is a legend; if you wish on the fireworks, your dreams will come true."

Is that really true? Lightning doubted, although she heard stories of the legend from her mother many times. She was never one to believe in superstitions, but thinking back at the whole l'cie experience, it occured to her that a lot of things are possible.

"Then, let's make a wish."

Silence took over the two of them for a moment. In the background, the fireworks still boomed and the people still cheered on and laughed. Hope and Lightning only looked at the sky, then they closed their eyes for a few seconds. Their heads were downcast, and they made their wishes.

Lightning opened her eyes slowly. Soon after, she could see Hope's eyes flutter open as well. She turned to the teenager and smiled at him softly.

"Well, we should probably head back. Everybody will be looking for us," Lightning said as she stood up gracefully and dusted her shorts off.
"Y- yeah, well...Light?" "Yeah?"
"What did you wish for?"

Lightning looked surprised, but she answered anyway. "That we'll all be together one day. All us former l'cie- Snow, Serah, Dajh, Sazh, You and Me, and Fang and Vanille..." She gazed up at the sky before turning back to him. "You?"

"Well," Hope inched closer to Lightning, making her heart skip a beat. Her eyes were wide with surprise, and her lips trembled- even she didn't know why. "I wished for the same," Hope said. Slowly, he moved his face closer to her, and planted a kiss on her left cheek.

Lightning was too busy being immobilized by the shock she felt from the kiss, and she touched the cheek where Hope left the ghost of his lips. She was too busy to notice that Hope was already ten feet away from her.

"Hey Light!" He called out and her head snapped in his direction. "That wasn't the only thing I wished for!" He smiled sheepishly and turned in the direction of the party, running.

Lightning was shocked at first, for she knew what he wanted to tell her. But then she smirked. "You really think you're going to be able to outrun me?"

Five Years Later...

A group of eight stood near the shoreline of New Bodhum beach. It was the fifth anniversary of Cocoon's fall, and the whole city was gathered at the beach to remember the event. After all, it was not only the fall of the utopia in the sky, but also the day they survived it.

The fireworks shot up in the sky, and cheers erupted from the crowds back at center of the beach.

"Just like that night, Lightning," Hope said and smiled. Everyone wore happy expressions on their faces, as each had a memory of that day with the fireworks back at the original Bodhum.

Snow and Serah, already married, had their arms wrapped around each other as they watched the fireworks climb up the velvet sky. Sazh and Dajh- who rode the fully grown chocobo- were simply amazed at the fireworks and they watched the spectral lights burst. Fang stood next to them, hands on her hips and Vanille at her side. Both were wonderstruck at the colors and the flower-like shape the fireworks created after the burst. Hope and Lightning were there as well, hands intertwined and the woman's head was on the man's shoulder- Hope was now taller than her. They both gazed at the sky as the fireworks disappeared one after the other.

And yes, his wish did come true.

Both his wishes, actually.

"Hey guys," Vanille said enthusiastically, "Let's make a wish!"
"A wish?" Fang scoffed. "We don't need no wishes, lady luck's on our side!"
"In Bodhum, there is a legend; if you wish on the fireworks, your dreams will come true," Serah quoted for the millionth time. "You know, Snow wished I'd say yes...and I did," she said bashfully, planting a kiss on the blonde man's lips.
"I think Hope did the same with Lightning," Serah chuckled. The older Farron and the silver-haired boy blushed simultaneously. "Psh," Fang huffed and cocked her hip. Vanille turned to her, "please" written all over her face. She curled her lip into a pout and batted her eyelashes, caushing Fang to give a sigh of defeat.

"Fine. I guess there's no harm in trying," Vanille smiled as Fang said this.

Vanille made a sign with her hands. Her pinkies crossed and the tips of her pointer fingers touched while the thumbs stuck out in opposite directions and the ring and middle fingers were kept folded.

She closed her right eye and looked at everyone before opening it again.

"Come on, do this with me!" she said, holding up her fingers. Everyone imitated and closed their eyes.

"I wish..."

In Bodhum, there is a legend; if you wish on the fireworks, your dreams will come true.

And guess what?

They really do.