Final Fantasy XIII is owned by Square-Enix.

(I love them but I do hope they go bankrupt and have to sell off the intellectual property to BioWare. That way we can have good Final Fantasy games again!)

Sorry to disappoint you if your looking for fluffy Light/Hope because this is not it. This isn't a story about love but abuse. It's dark because it's getting closer to Valentine's Day and nothing put's me in a darker mood then Valentine's Day. Even those Valentine vampires make me anger Vincent, Keith, Joachim and Hilda. (I bet you know who the first Valentine is but do you know the other three?)

Need me and Love me.

By Slazyer.

It started almost as an accident but not an innocent one.

Hope had been slow to follow Lightning's order to change to a Medic role and heal her. Because of that she got hurt badly in a battle. That wasn't the accident or how things got so twisted but it was the start. After the battle was over and Lightning was fully healed she pulled Hope aside from everyone else to give him a talking to.

It was only suppose to be a lecture. A verbal warring not to let anything like that happen again. Lightning wanted Hope to know how angry she was with him because he had almost gotten her knocked out of the battle. It was in the middle of that heated speech that Lightning did something that would change her and Hope's relationship forever.

Lightning slapped Hope once across his face.

It wasn't a small slap ether. That blow was a enough that it would have stagger even Snow for a moment. Lightning's callused rough hand was left stinging from the force as Hope's soft white cheek bruised red.

Hope was stunned that Lightning would hit him like that. Was she really so angry that he had screwed up? What could he do to make her forgive him? Did she even still care about him anymore?

It was those thoughts more then the pain that brought Hope to tears. He broke down sobbing helplessly. Lightning couldn't believe it happened either, she wasn't planing on hitting Hope but it just happened out of her anger reflex. She moved closer to Hope hoping apologize to him in some way.

Lightning brushed aside Hope's sliver feathery bangs and looked into his eyes. Those lovely teal green eyes of his that were so deep Lightning thought you could almost go skinny dipping in them. To see those angelic eyes flooded with tears and yet silently begging for her forgiveness was the most amazing sight. "I'm sorry Light! I'll never let it happen again, I swear."

Hope was apologizing to Lightning when she was the one who hit him. In that moment she could have asked anything of Hope and he'd do it, the fear of losing her was greater then even the fear of death. Lightning felt the power she had over Hope rush through her as his raw naked need for her approval shone in his tearful eyes.

Lightning had never felt much love in her life. Unlike her sister Lightning remember when their parents walking out on them as children. She knew how it felt to live your life without love. The look that Hope was giving her wasn't love but it felt close enough as far as Lightning was concerned. In someways it was better then love. Unlike love she could make this feeling of desperate need that Hope had for her last forever.

'Hope won't leave alone like my parents or Serah. I won't let him.' Lightning thought with a smile.

Lightning ran a hand over Hope's injured cheek making him wince in pain at her touch. "If your truly sorry then you won't make me hurt like this to you anymore will you Hope?" Lightning asked as she cast a cure spell on Hope's cheek.

Hope's trembling hands clucked Lightning's wrist and held on afraid to let go of her. "I won't make anymore mistakes and I'll do whatever you say. Just don't leave me."

Lightning's fingers slipped through Hope's soft hair like it was silk before she took a fistful of his sliver locks and pulled tightly. She pulled so hard that Hope had to get right up next to her and stand on his tiptoes to keep her from ripping his hair out.

Feeling every muscle in Hope's young body tighten as he pushed himself up against her made Lightning tingle. She doubted any man could ever make her feel as good or as satisfied as Hope was making her feel right now.

"You may make me hurt you Hope but I'll never leave you." With that said and still holding Hope painfully by his hair Lightning then kissed him. Lightning's tongue pushed past Hope's trembling lips as she violated his mouth.

That kiss changed everything for Hope. As bad as this felt it wasn't Lightning punishing him or hurting him. This is how it felt when she loved him. The poor boy had been though to much pain and loss to know that this was wrong. Because in that moment it felt right to him. Whatever painful or hurtful things Lightning would do to Hope after this would be out of her love for him and he'd be forever grateful for it.

It was love after a fashion.

Lightning's feeling for Hope were like an addict's love of their drug of choice. For her it drug called Hope and she would abuse him for her fix whenever she could. It wouldn't be long before this abuse would become darker, more perverse and sexual.

Hope would be helpless against it. He was as much a victim of his own fears and needs as much as Lightning's treatment of him. It all felt the same to him when Lightning hurt and then healed the wounds she herself caused. Worst of all Hope thought it was love when Lightning would force herself on him time and again. Hope didn't know that this was wrong because there was no one around to tell him otherwise. He knew nothing about sex so how could he know it was rape?

None of the others would find out about this. They wouldn't know that Lightning and Hope had stopped being protector and hero only to become abuser and victim.

Hope and Lightning didn't even feel like this sickness was wrong. Because to them it wasn't abuse.

To them it was just Love.

-End-

Well that's the darkest thing I've ever written. I liked the idea of using Hope and Lightning to examine the dynamic between abuser and victim. I lightly touched on things that are complex parts of the subject of abuse.

Abuse is often a learned behavior, mostly from parents by abuse or neglect. Victims may not feel like their victims and believe the abuse is their fault. That for both victim and abuser the relationship can be hard to sever by themselves. While the majority of abuse victims are woman there are plenty men who are also victims of abuse.

I'm not trying to generalize anything because like the people in them all relationships are unique, even the abusive ones. So it is very complex and difficult subject to try to sum up in few lines of text.

I know this was short and maybe even a little hard to read but tell me what you thought.