He tried so hard to protect her, but the Fal'cie was no help in the end. The days on the warm, sandy beaches of Bodhum were long gone now. All that was left was a war-ravaged Cocoon, and an impending Purge to Pulse. With so much to look forward to, Snow fell to his knees, then onto his back as he lost himself in more peaceful times…the hours he spent doing nothing at all…the days he didn't have to do anything to feel content…all the time he got to spend with Serah.
~o+o~
"Snow! Snow, Snow, Snow!"
The man turned around, his usual trench coat still hanging from his body even through the heat of the beach. His eyes lit up when he looked over the balcony of the little café that he and his followers used to fund their resistance group, and fell upon his beautiful girlfriend.
"Serah! Hey, you!"
Snow jumped over the little railing, disregarding the snickers his friends gave to his little display and grabbed the small girl around the waist, twirling her around as she let out a loud bout of laughter.
When he finally calmed down enough to put Serah on her feet, Snow kept his smile on as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
"You need to get taller! I can barely see you down there," he said playfully, squeezing the arm around her gently.
Serah put on a mock-pout as she looked up to her boyfriend.
"Maybe you're just tall!" she exclaimed, raising onto her toes and extending her arm to poke him in the forehead.
Snow let out a would-be dying cry and fell backwards onto the warm sand, eyes closing and laying still.
"I think you got 'im, Serah!" came a shout. The pink haired girl looked back over to the little café, smiling and waving to Gadot and Yuj.
"Don't tell me you guys are making Lebreau do all the work again!" she shouted, ignoring Snow's supposedly dead body next to her.
"Are you kidding?" called Yuj back to her, twirling a finger in his long blue hair. "An apron? On me? Maybe if I wanted to look like a complete loser. See these threads? I went all the way to Eden to get them. Not even Palumpolum has this brand."
Serah laughed again, waving them off as she looked back down to her comatose boyfriend.
"Snoooooow…"
He remained unmoving.
"Snooow…wake up, silly."
He mumbled something incoherent, causing Serah to furrow her eyebrows and lean closer to him.
"What?"
Snow suddenly leaned up and caught her in a lingering kiss, one of his gloved hands rising to cup the back of her head. When they parted, Snow smiled, though his eyes remained closed as his head fell back and hit the sand with a dull thud.
"I said, maybe I need a kiss from my princess."
Serah's face was blank with surprise for a moment, before a smile graced her lips.
"I thought that was the prince's job," she said softly, looking down and meeting Snow's ice blue gaze.
Snow's smile widened. "Wanna be my prince?"
Serah made a face while grabbing a fistful of sand and throwing it into the man's face.
Snow sputtered and shook his head quickly to get rid of the offending particles. He looked over to Serah, only to find the place she had been sitting in suddenly vacant. He looked around and spotted her running away, giggling as she did so.
"Hey! Serah!" he yelled, jumping up and giving chase to her, his smile never faltering. "My mouth was open and everything! You can't outrun me!"
~o+o~
Snow's eyes rested on the sky, watching the lights of the outer rim of Cocoon sparkle and shine, winking at him in their supreme gaze. Snow let out a deep sigh, and looked over to the crystal encasing the last remaining part of Serah…her crystallized form, the 'reward' she got for fulfilling her focus.
Snow sat up, looking away from her and to the remains of Lake Bresha. The Pulsian Fal'cie that had turned their whole group, as well as Serah into L'cie had died and transformed the entire lake with its last power leaving it. Why? Why would something from Pulse make something so beautiful?
~o+o~
"Will we always be together?"
Snow turned his head, looking with slight concern over to his girlfriend.
The two lay on the still-warm sand of Bodhum, though the Fal'cie for light had long since dimmed to make way for the night. The sea washed up in tiny waves around their feet as they lay back in the soft sand, staring at the lights from the outer rim.
"'Course we will. The only time I'd ever leave you is if you send me away. Then I'll still follow you from a distance, to make sure you're safe," Snow replied quietly, looking at Serah, who was still staring up at the sky.
She smiled as her eyes closed, her hand squeezing the larger one in her grip.
"Don't make me get a restraining order, stalker."
Snow's smile only softened.
~o+o~
The crystal was almost indestructible. Snow had been working for hours upon hours, trying to free Serah from her beautiful prison. He got to his knees in front of her still form, and grasped her forever outstretched hands in his.
"Looks like…Lightning was right. I couldn't protect you. The one hope I had to save you didn't care…now it's dead."
Snow's head rose suddenly from its bowed position to provoke the sky.
"Are you happy now, Cocoon? Have you taken everything away from me yet?" he yelled, waiting stiffly for a reply.
When he received none, he slumped against Serah's crystal once more.
"I'm sorry, Serah. Looks like…your hero turned out to be a farce."
~o+o~
-…oh…-
Snow looked up, seeing his crystallized girlfriend and blinking.
-…Snow…-
Snow sat up more quickly than he could ever remember doing so in the past, looking directly into Serah's face.
"Serah…Serah, is that you?"
-…don't give…don't give up…give up, Snow…-
Snow's brow crinkled in understanding, listening to Serah's echoing voice run through his head.
"Serah, Serah, wait! Don't go yet!"
There was no response.
~o+o~
Snow woke with a start, looking up in the same position as in his dream. Only this time, there was no voice to comfort him.
"It's a sign," he said to himself, looking down at his clenched fist.
He looked to Serah once again.
"I won't give up. I'll save you…and Cocoon. I'll sacrifice myself and everything else if I have to," he growled, his whole body shaking with determination.
The love he felt for Serah would never shake. Even though the world was against them, Snow still resolved to make things right.
Their relationship was halted, depressing now, with an uncertain end waiting around every corner; a beautiful, disgusting turn of fate.
A catastrophe.
~o+o~
A/N: Don'tcha just love tragic romance?
Anyway, love for Snow x Serah- my favorite pairing of FFXIII thus far. D': I haven't finished the game yet, but I just got to the cutscene of Day…12? I think? The part where they're trying to escape the Purge. Well, that really tugged on my heart. I had to write something…
D': I hope Serah comes back.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. It all belongs to Squeenix~