This story is going to be a little bit of a side project for me. Until Inner Conflicts is finished, I'll only be updating this every now and then. This idea popped into my mind randomly, and, I'm just warning, I screw around with all the characters, and make up my own plot. Like I've said before, though not here, I'm a new author, so I have no idea where this will go. You have been warned, brave readers! 8D

Side note: I use Hope and Lightning as the two main characters, because I want them to be the main protagonists, sort of like a video game.


"Where is he? Bring me that Estheim!"

Commanding cries and shouts, mingled with the chaotic echoes of footsteps, rang through the stone hallways of the castle. Soldiers in heavy armor tramped past flustered nobles and curious children, unknowing of the fact that the one they sought was watching them, high above.

Sitting on a ledge, high above the commotion, was a man, dressed in a white, loose V-neck shirt, and black pants. He leaned casually against a glass-paned window, sitting upon the ledge that jutted out of the wall, his black boots dangling below the ledge. He smirked as the knights shouted his name below him, and bided his time. It took awhile, but soon the hallway cleared out. He was in the South Wing, after all, of the castle located in Eden, whose rulers lorded over all of Cocoon. This was where the library, music rooms, and everything else in that category were. Because of this, it was quieter and less populated than the other sections of the castle.

The man, his silver hair shining in the sunlight that poured through the window behind him, grinned as a knight came in his direction. His emerald eyes gleamed in anticipation. Perfect timing.

He swung down from his perch and came crashing down upon the knight's back. Instantly knocked out, the man in the heavy suit of armor fell hard upon the ground. It caused quite a racket, and the wanted man was wary for a moment, checking around to see if anyone had noticed.

No one rounded the corners of the long hallway, though, and the tall, silver-haired person inwardly declared it was safe to continue on his mission. He hauled the unconscious man to an empty room and stripped him of his armor. Donning the metal suit, the attacker silently commended the troops for being able to walk at all in such a hindrance. As he put on the helmet, though, Hope decided he wouldn't be able to wear this for more than two minutes. It was put aside.

I suppose I'll just take a big chance and… Slip out the door.

He poked his head out of the door and looked around. First right, then left… There was no one in sight. All clear! He stepped out of the room and began traversing down the hallway, boots barely making a sound as the mysterious man continued in the library's direction.

"…I-I've found you now, Estheim!"

The man froze in his tracks, then slowly turned his head. A few yards down the long corridor, a woman stood, panting, her long blond hair hanging over her face and falling to her thighs. He grinned, and the woman scowled as her face turned red.

"Heh. Hey, Jihl."

"You… You will return the Princess now!"

"Hm? What are you talking about? Which princess do you mean? It's not like I have a princess in my bag." He turned and casually held up a brown satchel.

Jihl Nabaat took a step forward, her hand rising to her side. "Th-That bag…"

The man's silver hair waved gently as he approached the woman. The closer he got, the redder Jihl's face became, and she took two steps back. "St-Stay where you are, or I'll call the guards!"

"Aw, Jihl, you wouldn't do that, would you…?" The man lifted a hand to the woman's chin, brushing it gently.

"I-I-I-I'm warning you, E-Estheim!"

"C'mon, don't be such a stranger… Why don't you call me Hope?"

They were interrupted by the sounds of footsteps, and Hope Estheim grinned at the still blushing Jihl. "Bye bye, Officer Nabaat." He quickly ran away, sprinting down the halls as the shouts of soldiers seemed to chase him. It was fortunate that the female officer had fallen for him long ago, making it quite easy for him to slip away.

Reaching the large, polished, wooden doors of the library, he glanced this way and that before entering and pulling the door shut behind him.

The interior of the library was quiet and elegant. Tall bookshelves lined every available space along the wall and stood in tall rows in the room. A large window, fitted with stained-glass panes, shot rainbow colors over the rows of tables, giving the library a very holy feel. Hope only had a moment to appreciate the beautiful scene before he remembered that he was currently running from a group of soldiers that were part of a large army, under the command of a few officials who wanted his head on a gold platter.

Hope dived behind a few bookshelves and rolled into a corner. Looking up, he saw that he had not rolled into a corner, but a door. It had a plaque on it that read "Private" in large, bold letters. The perfect hiding spot. No one would look hard in that room, even if they thought to look in there, at all. Hope wrenched the door open and slid in, making sure to close the door behind him.

As the door shut with a click, a small squeak sounded from behind Hope's back. He whipped around and flicked out a knife, the blade pointing at a… girl. Her pink hair was done up in an elegant pun, held up by several pearl pins. She was young and slender, wearing a beautiful cream-colored dress. A gloved hand was held up to her mouth as she stared at Hope with fearful eyes.

Slowly, Hope lowered the knife. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to startle you… You are the younger Princess, are you not? The princess 'with the silken hair,' as they say."

She did not speak, but nodded timidly.

"I apologize. I would never hurt such a beautiful young lady."

Finally, the princess spoke. "Y-You are… Hope Estheim. T-The thief and rogue of Cocoon."

Hope bowed. "I am honored that such a wonderful girl remembers my name, especially one of such nobility."

Gaining confidence, the young girl stepped forward. Suddenly, rapid knocking on the door shattered her concentration, and she gasped, stumbling back a little. Hope cursed. A voice asked, "Princess? Is everything alright in there?"

Hope was about to run forward and cover her mouth, when the girl surprised him by replying, "Yes, everything is fine! Is something the matter?"

"N-No, Princess, everything is all right. Excuse me for disturbing." Heavy footsteps grew fainter as the knight trooped away.

Hope breathed a sigh of relief. "Th-Thanks… Why would you do that?"

"I… I have a request. No one will disturb us… This is my private reading chamber." The Princess curtsied. "My name is Claire Farron, as you know. I am, indeed, the younger princess of the kingdom. No doubt you have heard… My elder sister, Serah Farron, has gone missing."

"Yeah, I've heard. So, that's what Jihl meant. I haven't stolen your sister, if that's what you mean."

"N-No… Please. Will you take me to find my sister?"

Hope looked at her with a shocked expression, aghast. "What?"

Claire squeezed her eyes shut, her hands clasped together. "Please! Only one as experienced and strong as you can possibly aid me in finding her!"

"Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. You're a princess. I am… Well, to be blunt, I'm a wanted guy. A criminal, though I honestly don't like that word. Do you even know the first place to look for your sister?"

"Please! I need to! I'm so worried, and everyone's giving up hope… I found this on her table." Claire handed a slip of paper to Hope. On it, a few words were scribbled.

"On the tallest point of the tower, moonlight douses the precious stone and reveals the point of no return."

Hope raised an eyebrow. "That's a pretty cryptic note."

"Y-Yes. The part about 'no return' bothers me, though. I'm also wondering why my sister would have that… Also, Snow…"

Hope's gaze suddenly sharpened, and he hissed, "You know Snow?"

Claire started. "Y-Y-Yes, I do… He was a guard of my sister, and disappeared along with her."

The man was silent for a moment, before sighing. "So Snow went with Serah…You're a little young to run away from home. Aren't you just fourteen?"

"A-And twenty-one is a young age to be a criminal."

"Hah, touché." Hope tilted his head back, staring at the ceiling, where a circular window rained sunlight into the room. "…Alright. Fine. I will take you. But, it's gonna be tough. You stick out in that outfit."

"I have a change of clothes in my bedroom! Please, wait here!" Without giving Hope a chance to respond, Claire had left the room, her quick, light footsteps fading quickly.

"…Man, what a naïve girl." Even though he said that, Hope couldn't bring himself to escape, even if it was the perfect time. He sighed. What was the matter with him now? He didn't have a problem conning that Jihl. Sitting in a plush armchair, Hope waited for the princess to return.


A few minutes later, the princess re-entered the room. She had changed from her beautiful dress to a plain white halter-top, and a pink, plaid skirt. She had white boots on her feet, and had allowed her hair to fall to its full length, all the way down to her hips. "I-Is this plain enough?"

Hope stared at her for a moment, before shrugging. "Well… I suppose you do fit in better, now… But, your hair kind of… gives you away."

"Oh, yes… M-May I borrow your knife, please?"

"Huh?" Hope caught on. "Are you okay with cutting it off by yourself?"

"Yes. It is necessary." Claire took the knife gingerly and gathered her hair in one hand. With the other, she ripped through most of it, so that the hair fell to her shoulders. Hope quickly lunged forward to grab the falling, shorn hair. He didn't really want to leave any evidence behind. He stuffed it into the same brown satchel Jihl had reacted to earlier.

"B-Better?"

Hope nodded approvingly. "Much. It's very comely."

Claire blushed. "Th-Thank you very much…"

"Now then. Shall we go now, Princess? Actually, you should probably think of a name to go with your disguise."

"Yes… Umm… I will be called…"

"Hey, no rush. Let's get going." The two snuck out of the room. Thankfully, the library was still rather quiet, though a few people had entered. They were absorbed in their books, and it was simple to leave the library.

In the hallway, though, Hope gasped as a horrid sight met his eyes. What must have been at least half the soldiers in the castle were standing about in the halls of the South Wing. It wasn't long before they were spotted. "It's Estheim! And… who is that?"

"They can't recognize you, or else everything's going to be ruined! Back in the library!" Hope hissed, pushing Claire back into the book-filled room.

Those reading their books looked up in alarm as armored men burst into the library, following Hope and Claire. Hope had hauled Claire onto his back, sprinting as fast as he could back to the Princess' private reading chamber. Bursting through the door, he leapt onto the table and set Claire down. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small disk and hurled it at the window in the ceiling so that it shattered into glass pieces. As Claire cried out, Hope launched himself out of the window, gripping the sharp edges and pulling himself out of the room. He winced as the edges of the remaining glass sliced into his hands, but ignored it, even as blood dripped from his wounds.

He reached through the hole for Claire just as a blade of electricity blasted the door of the room down, drawing the girl's attention. "Hurry, Claire, they've brought their mages!"

The girl turned and looked at him, but didn't give him her hand. Her eyes had a sense of revelation in them. "…Hope, I-I will be called… Lightning. Is that okay?"

Hope blinked, and then grinned. "…If that's what you wanna be called, I won't stop you. I gotta say, though…" He pulled the girl through the ceiling after she clasped his hand with her own. "Nice choice."

Lightning nodded, a happy smile spreading on her face. The reality of the situation was blasted back into their minds, though, as fireballs shot through the hole just below them. "Make a run for it!" Hope yelled, pulling Lightning along.

"B-But where to?" The two were running on the roof of the castle, nearly slipping. It was lucky that the small window had led to a flat surface on the great building, but that would soon give way to a huge dome, sloping and slippery.

Hope looked around, trying to calm himself. He would've tried to climb down using the numerous flagpoles, but Lightning wouldn't be able to keep up… "This way!" He dragged the girl across the roof and kicked in another window. Jumping through, the two landed heavily on top of a piano, breaking the poor instrument, which lamented its own death with a melancholy bong. They sprinted out of the room, emerging into the hallway much further down from the library. They had a few precious seconds before they would be pursued, and Hope intended to take full advantage of that sparse time.

Hope was surprised, though, when Lightning suddenly took the lead. "Hurry!" She whispered as she ran towards the stone staircase. They flew down the stairs, listening with growing panic to the commotion behind them. Still, they ran, until they had reached the first floor of the castle. "What are you doing?" Hope cried, "The entrances have been sealed, ever since they first saw me here!"

"The kitchen!" Lightning replied, dashing around a corner and down another flight of stairs. She burst into the kitchen, and shut the door behind Hope and herself. Panting, they leaned against it. No soldiers followed them. Hope looked up from where he had been bending to catch his breath, and saw half a dozen cooks and kitchen girls staring at the two. "Oh, shit." He muttered.

"Princess Claire! This is the person you have found to aid you?" Asked a burly cook, tone layered with uncertainty.

"Huh?" Hope asked, looking at the younger girl, who was smiling.

"It's all right, Hope. These people are helping me."

"You let this many people know you were leaving…? That's a little risky."

"These people have taken care of me all my life. Now come, please… While we can, let's escape." Lightning ran to a pantry and opened it, pushing aside boxes and barrels until she uncovered a small door.

"Nice!" Hope grinned, holding up his hand for a high five.

"Wh-What is that…?" Lightning asked, taken aback. "Why are you… waving to me?"

"No, no, Light. This is a high five! It means good job. You hit my hand with yours, see?" He reached over and raised her hand, slapping the two together lightly.

"'Light'…?" Lightning gazed at Hope, before smiling, pleased. "Okay!" She turned to the kitchen hands as Hope opened the secret door. "Please… take care of yourselves. I will be back, with my sister, before you know it."

"Take care, Princess! Be safe!" A young servant girl called. Lightning nodded, and allowed herself to be pulled away by Hope.

They emerged in a small corner of the garden that weaved itself all around the castle, surrounding its stone walls. When Hope finally fought his way free of several branches, he was panting slightly and leaves coated his hair. He turned and helped Lightning out of the small exit, closing the door behind her and rearranging the vines and roots of several different plants to conceal its location. Once he straightened, he faced Lightning and found she was staring at him with a peculiar expression on her face. Hope raised an eyebrow and waited for a while, but when she didn't speak, he finally asked.

"What?"

Light blushed. "E-Excuse me… But, that bag…" She pointed at the brown satchel that rested on Hope's hip. "Is that…?"

"Hm?" Hope looked down. "Oh, this. Sorry… I guess this sort of means I stole from you, huh?" He pulled the strap of the satchel over his head and tossed the bag to the princess, who caught it with a small gasp of surprise.

"But… You stole it, so… Why would you give it back to me?"

Hope scratched his head, looking at the blue, cloudless sky for a moment before answering. "Well… We're going to be traveling together from now on, won't we? So, you know…" He chuckled sheepishly. "I'll just take it back once we're done."

Lightning tilted her head, clearly confused. "Hm…? But... This… You took it, and then gave it back to me. But you'll take it back, later? I don't really understand."

Hope sighed. "Nothing, nothing. Now then, we should probably get to solving that riddle. 'On the tallest point of the tower,' huh? The tallest point… There are so many towers here, though."

"Um… Hope?"

"Hmm… Yeah, Lightning?"

"I probably should've mentioned this earlier, but the tallest tower in Eden is the Observatory. Which is… back in the castle."

Hope stared at the girl for a long moment, before sighing and placing the palm of his hand onto his forehead. The shy princess began apologizing profusely, and he waved them away to calm her down. "Light, Light. It's fine… But, yeah, you should've told me earlier.

"Well, I suppose there's only one place to go. Back into the castle." Hope sighed, as he turned back to the hidden passageway. Even from the garden, the man could hear his name still being called from the interior of the palace. You have got to be kidding me…


It's super weird, I know.

So, what do you think? Should I continue this twisted tale? If so, whose alter ego do you want to see next?