Notes: Whew! This fic turned out VASTLY different from what I had intended. It was supposed to have an odd POV(beer bottle/Moogle) and end up around 1,000 words between only Lulu and Dr. Lantis. As usual, that didn't happen. This is my crossover-EVER. It's more like an AU, but it's a mix of Star Ocean 2 and Final Fantasy 10/10-2 characters, and it's little more than plopping the latter group into the former's universe. I still treat Dr. Lantis and Gabriel as two separate characters because I am stubborn like that, but I do believe that they look exactly alike, except for the hair. I used to imagine Dr. Lantis with dark eyes, but not anymore. My kinks are showing up here too, but that should be obvious. This is for "A Ficathon Walks Into a Bar" challenge on both Livejournal and Dreamwidth. FTR, this is the first time I've written Lulu or anyone that wasn't in the Crimson Squad/Isaaru and his family. Anyway, enjoy! I liked this challenge a lot even though it was very difficult.
Whenever Lulu graced a bar with her presence, she often ordered a Bloody Mary on the rocks. She'd listen to her bartender friend, Yuna, talk about her exploits in collage, watch some television, and drink the right amount of shots. Lulu never got drunk, but she enjoyed the occasional buzz. This early evening proved no different from any other evening in Nedian city of Phynal.
"I'm not going to stop living my life because of some terrorists," Yuna said while mixing some drinks for other patrons. "I can handle myself."
"I know that, Yuna," Lulu replied between sips, "but you have to use your head. Schools don't shoot back. Where do you think the terrorists will strike next?"
Yuna shrugged. "No one knows, but I know where they wouldn't attack." After finishing the drinks, she handed them over to a small group of patrons far from Lulu.
She knew what Yuna meant. The most logical target, a Symbological Weapons Lab in the center of Phynal, was armed to the teeth, defended with powerful shields, and headed by one of the most accomplished Symbological Scientists in Nedian history. Everyone who even knew his name did not dare mess with him or anyone around him. Lulu never paid much attention to the who's who of that lab, but she knew that the Director was universally renknowned, and very powerful. She remembered seeing him on the news as he proposed the Ten Wise Men project and while the media glossed over just about everything, Lulu knew that he dazzled them quite well in more ways than one. Beyond that? She never gave the project a second thought. To her, they were just more weapons for an inevitable war.
"Do you think they should attack the Lab?" Lulu asked when Yuna stood in front of her.
"Of course not. I don't think they should be attacking anything. It just makes things worse. Things are already bad enough as it is."
Lulu nodded in agreement, but she knew better than to assume that peace would be happening anytime soon. The frontier planets didn't want peace and Lulu wasn't sure if she could blame them. "Maybe things will get better with the Wise Men." Lulu sipped more of her Bloody Mary, not believing a word of what she just said.
"I'm not so sure about that."
Lulu would have asked her friend to elaborate, but the door swung open and broke her concentration. In walked a Nedian male more than capable of turning the heads of every seeing being in existence. He had long black hair and the features of an angel, but she couldn't see his eyes. She still recognized him and noted with amusement that no one in the bar seemed to care who he was. No one cared about scientists unless they invented something that convenienced society or introduced yet another way to resolve conflict. Lulu turned back to Yuna, who tried in vain to hide her giggling.
"What's so funny?"
"Oh, it's nothing. I was just thinking of him and here he is."
"Speak of the devil?" Lulu raised her eyebrows.
"No, not really. He comes here way more often than you."
When he walked past her, Lulu noted the strong lavender scent and his black clothing, save for a red shirt. She finished her Bloody Mary when he stood beside her to order his drink.
"I'll have Cream Coffee." He spoke softly, like someone who carried a big stick. He wore a white headpiece on the back of his head, but she still couldn't quite see his eyes. When Yuna returned with his order, he paid her and sniffed at his steaming drink. "This is how coffee should be: strong as death, sweet as love, and hot as hell."
"Like you?" Lulu blurted out. Yuna's eyes almost fell out of her head. Lulu couldn't even believe herself. He turned to her. His sharp eyes were green, very green, like a deep emerald sea. Lulu didn't blush, but she almost wished she didn't say anything.
"Excuse me?"
Yuna covered her face, but Lulu still looked right at him, studying him the way one studies a distant star.
"I meant, like you," Lulu finally answered.
He took a step forward, but she did not flinch. She theorized that he bathed in cologne. "If that was a pick-up line, then I suggest you look elsewhere. I am taken, and I prefer the company of other males."
Lulu shook her head. "No, I have no intention of picking you up. I'm happily taken. I was just being honest with you. I'm surprised I said what I did. I usually don't pay compliments to people I don't know."
He narrowed his eyes. "I see." He took a step back, and eased himself on a bar seat next to hers. Yuna had gone to tend to other customers. Lulu didn't blame her. He drank his coffee slowly, but surely, like someone who treated caffeine like life's blood. "I have not seen you here before. You're not a regular, are you?"
"It depends on what you mean by regular. I come here a few times a month if I want a certain kind of drink. I prefer other places." Lulu shrugged.
"Are you in school? You seem wise beyond your years, but you do not seem much older than Yuna."
"Not anymore. I graduated a couple years ago."
He nodded as if he already knew everything about her. He looked down at her dark dress full of belts and lace. "You also wear such odd attire. Do you model?"
"No. Not my style."
"I see." He took a few swigs of his Cream Coffee. "I have a little girl. She's around your age and will be graduating in a few months."
"Then how can she be a 'little girl'?
He smiled. "When you have a child, I am certain you'll understand."
Lulu smiled back. "I already do have a child. A newborn." She found it odd that she'd be saying all this to someone she didn't know personally, and yet here she was, talking about parts of her life usually reserved for her closest friends. Then again, the person she was talking to wasn't just anyone. "I hope to raise him in a world without war. I even named him Vidina."
"Future . . . " He chuckled. "I thought my daughter's name meant 'flower.'"
"What's her name? I understand if you don't want to say."
"Philia," He answered. "And since we're talking about names, what's yours?"
"Lulu."
"Ah. I am Dr. Gabriel Lantis. It is a pleasure to meet you."
"It's an honor for me," Lulu replied. Yuna walked past her with a smile. She waved at Dr. Lantis and he acknowledged her with a nod. "I like speaking with accomplished symbologists."
"I'm not surprised you are one. I actually thought you were both a model and a sorceress. One out of two isn't so bad, eh?"
"No, not at all." She looked down at her empty drink. "I should be going."
Dr. Lantis finished the last of his drink. "I can take you home, if you wish."
Lulu blinked. She didn't care who he was, but she knew better than to accept such offers from someone she didn't know personally. Yuna, however, nodded vigorously and mouthed 'do it! Do it!'
He fished his car keys out of pocket. "I can understand if you do not wish to."
"Okay. I'll go with you." Lulu waved at Yuna and followed him out of the bar.
She watched him closely, how he carried himself as one who commanded whatever he wished, especially respect. She listened to his boots echo against the pavement, the jangle of his keys, and the distant hum of traffic. Lulu began to wonder just whom he was taken by, but she opted out of asking when they reached his white car.
He opened the passenger's door for her, and she held up her dress as she got into the car and knew to buckle up. Her nose wrinkled slightly at the scent of smoke mixed with high quality leather and lavender. She noted from the gear stick and the pedals that the vehicle was an 'old style manual' type, and somehow wasn't surprised. Most Nedians didn't drive such a car, but Dr. Lantis was not most Nedians. The lavender scent grew stronger when he sat beside her and put the key in the ignition before he took out his cell phone and read the text message.
"My daughter," he said simply.
"From the dorms?"
"No," he put the car in gear. "From home." He sped out of the parking lot.
Lulu relaxed against the seat while she discreetly watched him drive. She noted that he had beautiful hands. Lulu didn't doubt that those very same hands created as many weapons as they did spells and gods knew what else. He wove around other cars, speeding past them like a comet, and somehow Lulu didn't mind. In fact, she found herself biting her cheek to avoid grinning. She had to admit that he did indeed look hot, like somehow who always knew what he was doing, and seldom lost control. When she looked down at his booted feet, she wondered if she could be those pedals he was stepping on whenever he shifted. She threw her hands to her mouth to stifle her sudden laughter.
"Is there something wrong?" Dr. Lantis asked.
"Oh, no." Lulu shook her head. "I just never thought I'd end up here. I never thought I'd be anywhere near you."
"Hmph." He looked straight ahead, licking his supple lips. "Likewise, I didn't expect to meet someone like you. So, where do you live?"
"Beseid street. Third building on the right."
"About twenty minutes from here." Dr. Lantis smirked. "I'll get there in less than ten." He accelerated past everything that moved, and what didn't move looked like elongated lights.
Lulu had no idea when exactly they reached her apartment, but she knew it certainly less than twenty minutes. "Thanks. You didn't have to do this."
"It's no problem." Dr. Lantis took out a pack of cigarettes. "Will you be going to the bar tomorrow? I'll be bringing my daughter with me after I pick her up from school, and I'd like you to meet her. I'd like to see you again." His green eyes sparkled. "I'll even buy you a drink."
"I can't guarantee anything," she stepped out of the car, "but I'll see what I can do." She shut the door and waved at him before heading for her apartment. He didn't leave until she was inside the building. The aftertaste of the Bloody Mary told her that she wasn't dreaming.
When Lulu heard about the terrorist attack the next morning, she had a feeling that Dr. Lantis wouldn't be at the bar. Not when the university his daughter attended had been targeted. When she arrived at the bar, she found that she was right. He was nowhere to be seen. Instead, Yuna sat on one of the stools, quietly crying into a towel. Rikku and Paine consoled her, but they weren't much better off than she was.
"Why are you here?" Lulu asked. "Your school was attacked and you're at work?"
Yuna looked up at her. "I told you that I wasn't going to stop living . . . "
Lulu sighed. "This place is practically empty." Given the situation, she knew it wouldn't last. People worried about their families loved alcohol, even if they didn't ordinarily drink.
"So?" Yuna shrugged. She walked behind the bar, breathing deeply, and doing her damndest to keep herself together. "Would you like another Bloody Mary?"
"Yuna . . . "
"I told you. Life doesn't stop!"
Lulu sat on one of the chairs. "All right. I'll have one. Do you think he will show up? He wanted me to come here, but I--"
"No." Paine answered with the same curt tone she always used. "She's one of the casualties."
"What makes you so sure?" Lulu asked.
"They're not naming the dead," Rikku answered, sounding far less cheerful than usual. "They're not even talking about casualties."
"They just say that there's an attack, like nothing else happened." Yuna sounded angry and rightly so. Lulu knew how the Nedian media behaved, but it wasn't like them to omit any deaths. If anything, they spoke of deaths as a means of increasing ratings.
"It's because of Dr. Lantis," Paine sat beside Lulu, taking a fruit drink Yuna prepared for her. "They can't allow him to know. He is fiercely protective of her, and no telling what would happen if he were to find out."
"You don't know she's dead." Lulu practically gulped down her Bloody Mary. She pointed to the glass. "I'll do this again."
Paine nodded. "Yea, you might as well."
For the next seven days, Lulu wondered about Dr. Lantis, still vividly imagining his piercing green eyes. Even though she never knew Philia, she hoped that the woman was still alive. As she held her newborn son, she hoped that she would never know what it was like to even think of losing a child.
"Lulu!" Wakka burst into the room like a fire fighter. "We have to evacuate!"
"Why?" Lulu demanded. Vidina cried out as if wondering the same thing.
"It's the Lab! There's shields all over it. We have to leave before we're killed!"
"Dr. Lantis . . . "
Wakka frowned. "Ya? What about him?"
"He did it, didn't he? His daughter . . . he found out, didn't he?"
"How would I know? Hurry!" He grabbed bags and began shoving clothing and valuables in them.
She put Vidina in a carrier and quickly did as she was told. She didn't panic. In fact, she felt only disbelief, like this was a dream, but whiff of lavender told her that it wasn't, and that Wakka was right. Staying in Phynal meant certain death. She found herself in a van with Yuna's boyfriend, Tidus, driving. She held Vidina close to her, and could only look at him while Wakka watched from the back seat. She didn't bother looking at Tidus. He drove an automatic. Lulu closed her eyes, wondering why it mattered now.
"Where are we supposed to go?" She asked when Tidus stopped at the bar.
"To the Morphus in the West." He answered as Yuna, Paine, and Rikku climbed into the van with as many items as they could carry.
"Here." Yuna gave Lulu a red bottle. "You should. It's the last of the Bloody Mary."
"It's going to be bloody if we don't get out of here!" Wakka shouted, prompting Tidus to speed off away from the Lab that stood in the middle of Phynal. It looked angry with the red shields surrounding it.
"Do any of you know what happened?" Lulu asked while she rocked a crying Vidina.
"No," Tidus shook his head. "All we know is that the people who got out of the Lab before the shields went up said that Dr. Lantis shot one of his assistants, and told everyone inside that they had ten minutes to get out or he would kill each and every one of them."
Everyone gasped. Lulu just shook her head. She remembered last week, and how he looked at her, how he sat beside her. She remembered his voice, his style, his green eyes. She remembered him driving her home. She remembered him mentioning his daughter. Dr. Gabriel Lantis walked into a bar and met her. He said he was 'taken' and for some reason, Lulu wanted to know who 'took' him.
"He said he was taken," she whispered.
"What?" Wakka asked.
"Dr. Lantis said he was 'taken'. I said something to him, and he said he was 'taken'. I wonder by whom . . . "
"Who the hell cares, ya?" Wakka threw up his hands. "We could die, and you're asking that?"
"He had two boyfriends," Tidus quickly answered, weaving around everyone who also desperately wanted to escape death. "Lucifer and Gabriel."
"Gabriel?" Lulu echoed while noting the ships looming closer. She realized that they'd be leaving by either boat or air.
"NO ONE CARES!" Wakka almost screamed. "This is no time for gossip, ya!?"
"You're right . . . " Lulu nodded and fell silent.
As they finally reached the L'Aqua ships, Lulu wanted to believe that this was all a dream, and that the terrorist attack never happened. Dr. Lantis would walk into the bar and see her again. They'd become friends and discuss Symbology while she smelt his cologne. She'd meet Philia and whoever else was close to Dr. Lantis. She would introduce him to Wakka, Vidina, and her friends. Lulu knew better than to dream such a dream. She always knew that things on Nede would get far worse before ever getting better, and she was right.
She simply never thought it would turn out like this.