Disclaimer: I don't own FFXII.
A/N: So this is slightly (okay, mostly) AU, in which Lightning came down from Valhalla after the end of FFXIII-2. If you haven't finished that one, there are spoilers. Like, immediately.
It had started after the Chaos was released into the world. Hope nearly lost it as he stood and watched Serah collapse in Noel's arms, knowing that Lightning would deal with her sister's death the way she dealt with all the other misfortune in her life – pushing it aside and ignoring it until it ceased to exist.
Hope flung himself down the ladder towards the hunter, crying out in anguish – she was his friend too, even if they'd only known each other for a short three years before she started to jump through time.
Soft feathers brushed against his arm as a pink-haired figure dashed to the side of the fallen girl. "Serah?" Lightning fell to her knees beside her sister, reaching out to feel the warmth seeping out from her sister's skin as the Chaos took over.
Noel moved as if to allow her to hold Serah's lifeless body, but she flinched away before forcing herself to her feet. "I don't deserve to hold her. It's my fault that she's like this. If I hadn't…if I hadn't – " Lightning broke off before she could finish what she was saying, choosing instead to turn and walk away.
"You're a coward," Noel whispered, "for all the talk of you being the Goddess's champion. And you're weak. You weren't able to beat Caius on your own, so you asked your dear little sister, the one who would do anything to see you again, for help. You knew this would happen!"
Tears streamed from Noel's eyes as he confronted Lightning from his position next to Serah. "There was no way you knew she wouldn't live, not with the "gift" the Goddess gave her. You led Serah to her death and now you're just walking away like nothing happened!"
She turned on her heel and stalked toward Noel, anger and grief written clearly on her face. His chin was caught firmly in her grasp, and Hope knew that no amount of Cures could completely erase the bruises that would be left behind.
"Don't speak of what you do not know, boy. There is nothing, nothing I would not do if it would mean that Serah could live. I am not all-knowing, despite what you might believe." She seemed so much older in that moment, as if she had been alive for millennia instead of just a couple decades. But time ran differently in Valhalla, and a price had to be paid.
Lightning jerked herself away, as if being near Noel burned her, and Hope could only watch as she once again turned and walked away from the scene in front of him. After a moment he stood and ran after her, knowing that Noel needed to be alone with the girl he had come to love.
"Light, Light, stop, or at least slow down! I might be older and have longer legs than before, but that doesn't mean that this is easy for me! I've been a little out of practice, you know."
At first, Hope thought she just hadn't heard him – she'd never deliberately ignored him before, even as an annoying fourteen year old kid – but that thought was soon wiped from his mind as he saw her shoulders shake, as if she was crying silent tears.
"Lightning, please. I want to help. I know how you feel, that helplessness and overwhelming guilt. I've been there, when my mom was killed. You can't solve this all on your own. It just isn't possible, even for you."
Nothing more was said between them – Lightning kept her back to him and Hope respected her space enough not to draw closer, and they both kept that wall of sorrow between them. Eventually though, Lightning turned, though she stubbornly refused to look up at him.
Pulling out her gunblade, she finally turned, but still refused to meet his eyes. "Fight me."
In any other circumstances, he would have downright refused – she could beat him without any doubt. He'd gotten stronger over the years, but Lightning was on a whole different level. But there was something in the way her shoulders were tensed that told him this wasn't a fight for either of them to win. There was something deeper in it, a hidden meaning that he had no hope of finding. So instead he pulled out his Airwing and braced himself for the beating of his life.
Lightning, true to her name, didn't wait for him to put up a guard or ready his magic – she wanted a fight, and attacked accordingly. Yet despite her speed and strength, Hope still put up a good fight. He dodged when she came near, jumping into the trees above their heads before hurling the boomerang towards her.
"Is that all you've got Hope Estheim? After all these years you still aren't able to land a blow on me?" she taunted as she deflected his Airwing, sending it flying far out of his reach.
He smirked as he retreated further up the tree, readying Blizzaga as he climbed. If nothing else it would avert her attention for a moment. He sent the spell to the side, close enough for her to be distracted, but not close enough to hurt her. There was still a deep sadness in her as she fought, though she tried valiantly to hide it from him. But he knew. He always knew when something was wrong with her.
Just as she turned towards the site of his Blizzaga, he jumped from the tree, silently rolling as he pulled her knife from his boot. Lightning looked confused for a moment, wondering why the spell hadn't hit her – the Hope she knew had much better aim than that – but stiffened when she felt the cold metal of a blade at her throat. "You've gotten much better. You never could've snuck up on me before."
Hope smiled as he walked away, flipping the blade closed. "A necessity. I didn't want to get eaten by a behemoth while working in the ruins, and the best way to do that was to sneak by them and pray they didn't notice." He hesitated for a moment before letting out a sigh and stood a ways behind Lightning, waiting for her to make the first move. If he was too forward, she would bolt, even from him, her partner.
Eventually, Lightning took a deep breath and met Hope's eyes for the first time in years, reflecting the anguish she felt. Neither said a word as tears pooled in her pale blue eyes, until the spilled over and trailed down her cheeks.
"Here."
Hope held out his hand and said nothing more, knowing that she would need to close the distance between them. After a few hesitant steps, Lightning broke into a run and threw herself into the waiting arms of her partner, tears streaming down her face and sobs wracking her body.
It was the first time Hope had seen her cry.
It was the first time since her father's death that she cried in front of someone else.
It was the first time in years that she had cried at all.
They never talked about that day, the day Serah died, even though it was always lurking in the back of their minds. Hers was an absence that everyone felt, especially in the stagnant world where nothing truly lived.
Hope was good to Lightning, supporting her as she'd supported him when he was a teenager. It was a new feeling, to be the one protected and provided for, instead of the other way around. It was an odd one, yet not entirely unwelcome.
There were days, however, when Hope was at Academy headquarters researching ways to bring new life to the world and Lightning was home alone that the quiet suffocated her. Never before had she felt that way, always having been one to enjoy the solitude she was so rarely afforded. But without Serah to take care of, nor Hope to find companionship with, Lightning felt… empty. Like there was nothing left of her to hold on to.
In her worst moments, Lightning wondered what it would feel like to just let go. She had heard of people who had nothing left, people who had lost everyone they loved to the Chaos, who had chosen to fade instead of continuing their half-existence. She mourned them, like everyone else did, but there was also a part of her that wished to be released from the never-ending pain that came with being unable to change.
It was during one of these moments that Hope came home from the Academy to find Lightning sitting on the banister of the balcony, her legs intertwined with the thin metal rods. The cold wind whipped rose strands across her face, but she either didn't notice or didn't care enough to move them behind her shoulder.
"Hope, what am I doing here?"
The question didn't surprise him as much as it should have. Years had passed since Serah's death, and Lightning never seemed to have recovered from the loss. Without a concrete enemy, the will to fight had left her completely. Her only enemy was herself, and the guilt and sadness she still carried with her. There was nothing Hope could do to help her, no matter how much he might wish to.
He sighed, pulling off his coat and placing it around her shoulders before sitting on the concrete and letting his legs dangle over the edge. "I don't know. I wish I could tell you that there was some great purpose for all of us, that we all are needed in some way that we can't understand. But honestly Light, I wonder that about myself, too. We've been here so long that the years have started to blend together."
He stopped, waiting for her to respond. When she didn't, he took a breath and continued. "There are times that I tell the people that there's hope, that someday life will go back to how it used to be, but I only feel like I'm feeding them lies. There's no real reason for me to be here anymore. I only play the politics – it's not like I'm doing anything useful."
There was nothing she could say to Hope's confession. It was the most he'd ever told her about how he felt in this stopped world, and she wasn't quite sure how to respond to his words. So instead the two of them sat out on the balcony in a companionable silence, neither of them needing to fill the air with words.
Eventually Lightning turned and slid down the railing, stretching her legs toward their apartment and rested her head on Hope's shoulder.
"I miss her. I don't really know what to do with myself now that she's gone. There's no one to fight for, no one to protect. I need her, and she's just not here anymore."
Hope reached across his chest and stroked her hair, knowing that she needed the comfort but not willing to risk anything more. "I'm here for you. I always have been and I always will."
Eyes started to slide shut as she murmured, "I know."
~Past~
Ever since they were l'Cie, Hope loved Lightning. It was a fact that kept him going while he worked with the Academy, knowing that one day he might find a way to bring her back to him. Just having her by his side was enough now; being able to see her whenever he wanted was something like a miracle to him.
When she first descended from Valhalla, Lightning was determined to survive without the help of anyone – not even him, despite his many offers. It worked for the first couple weeks as she adjusted to life with the Chaos, but eventually she gave up.
On that day, at three in the morning, Hope was jarred awake by an incessant knocking on his apartment door. Rushing out of bed, he threw on some sweatpants and ran to the door, only to open it and find Lightning standing there with a small suitcase.
"I'm going to stay with you for a little bit."
There was no explanation that she gave him, but just the bags under her eyes were enough for him to open his door to her and lead her toward his bedroom. He grabbed a pillow and a blanket from his closet, said goodnight, and slept on the couch.
He woke up to the smell of bacon.
Really, really burnt bacon.
She felt so bad for commandeering his bedroom (she never said anything about the time or her declaration) that she decided to make him breakfast, even though they both knew her culinary skills only covered what was edible over a campfire.
It was the first time in years that he felt the warmth of a family, even if his taste buds were crying the entire time.
Their fight over the couch went on for several months – Hope refused to let the love of his life (not that she knew that) sleep on his couch, and she refused to take the bed of the person she was staying with. One night, Hope woke up to check on Lightning, only to find her curled up on the floor beside his bed.
It was the principle of it all, she claimed the next morning.
In the end, they both knew that they couldn't keep up the current arrangement – Hope's couch was incredibly uncomfortable, and once winter set in the floor would freeze the girl, no matter how many blankets she pulled off the bed. One night, as they were washing the dishes, Hope said, "From a logical perspective, the only solution to this problem is to share the bed."
Lightning chuckled a bit from hearing Hope speak like the scientist he was, but agreed readily. Despite having spent years sleeping on the ground and the firm cots of the barracks during her days as a soldier, she much preferred the softness of an actual mattress.
That first night together was burned into his mind, for that was when he started to realize why Lightning moved in with him.
"No, no, you can't take her!" Lightning screamed in the middle of the night, jarring Hope from his sleep. The breath was forced from her lungs as she took quick, shallow breaths.
"Shh, shh, it'll be alright, Lightning. I'm here. I always will be. I won't let anything hurt you," Hope whispered into her hair as he pulled her into his chest, gently rubbing her back to calm her down.
She shook her head, but didn't say anything as they sat there in the twisted sheets, and it was then that Hope realized how scared Lightning was, and just how alone she truly felt without her sister beside her.
~Present~
The bright light from the sunrise pierced through Hope's eyelids, waking him from one of the best night's sleep he'd had in a while. Granted, his back ached from leaning against the cold iron rods, and his shoulder was numb from where Lightning fell asleep on him, but it was the first time in months that she hadn't woken up screaming.
Lightning stirred as she felt Hope trying to stretch out his back, groaning a little as she shifted positions. His lips lifted a little at the corners as he adjusted his coat around her shoulders before lifting her into his arms and taking her into the bedroom. With a light kiss to her forehead, Hope said goodbye and left for work.
No one commented on Hope's appearance when he walked into Academy headquarters – they were used to seeing their boss come into work in rumpled clothes before taking a shower and freshening up. It wasn't the first time he overslept because of Lightning, and it certainly wouldn't be the last.
~Past~
When Hope finally told the girl he was in love with her, she said nothing, keeping up her soldier mask and choosing instead to turn away from him and walk out the door. It wasn't what he hoped would happen, but he knew it wasn't going to end happily. Even if he was physically older than her now – twenty-four to her twenty-one – there was no way she would see him as anything but the fourteen year old kid she took care of as a l'Cie.
With a sigh, he grabbed his coat and went to the bar, knowing he wouldn't get any sleep in the empty bed that night.
It was three a.m. when Hope stumbled into the apartment, alone and depressed. Lightning never called him, and somewhere inside of him he knew he had screwed everything up. He cursed himself, for he had been happy in their weird not-quite-platonic friendship, even if he wanted more. But all hopes of that followed her out the door.
With a sigh, he trudged through the living room, not even noticing the sleeping figure on the couch. He tore off his tie, throwing it to the side in an effort to mess up the apartment that she always kept impeccably clean.
There was a groan off to the side, about where he had thrown the blasted piece of cloth. "Stupid tie. You always have to complain about something, don't you? 'Oh, I'm too loose, tighten me Hope!' or 'Oh, I'm too tight so I think I'll strangle you until you loosen me,' and then we start all over again." Hope mocked in falsetto. "You just can't be happy, can you?"
The groan sounded again, but was accompanied by the rustling of a blanket. "Hope? Are you drunk right now?"
He giggled and collapsed on the floor. "I must be, if you're here, Light."
Sighing, she stood from the couch and kneeled beside him. "Hope, I am here. And you're clearly drunk, so our conversation will have to wait." Pulling him to his feet and placing his arm around her shoulder, Lightning half carried, half dragged Hope into the bedroom before climbing in next to him.
She ran her fingers through his silver hair with a sad smile on her face. "I'm glad you're back. The apartment is never quite right without you around." Despite the smell of alcohol that permeated the air, Lightning slept with no nightmares for the first time since Serah died.
The following morning, Hope woke up to the rich smell of coffee, which sounded like just what he needed to soften the pounding in his head. He entered the kitchen to find Lightning perched on the edge of the counter, her ankles crossed and a cup of coffee in her hand, but neglected to see the smirk she hid behind her mug.
He immediately went to the coffee pot, with only a mumbled "Mornin'," to Lightning. Pulling a mug down from the shelf, Hope went to fill it with the rich brew, but only a couple drops made their way from the pot.
His eyes grew wide as he turned toward Lightning, whose smirk only widened as she finished the last of her drink. "Sorry. There was only enough left for a couple of cups."
He hung his head. "And let me guess – you drank all of it."
Tilting her head to the side, Lightning let her smile say everything for her.
"Damn it, Lightning. It's seven in the morning and you didn't leave me any coffee!"
Her only response was to lift a shoulder in a half-shrug.
"I really hate you sometimes."
"I know. But you'll be late if you don't start getting ready, Mr. Director."
He groaned and reluctantly trudged back into the bedroom as Lightning scrambled him some eggs – she wasn't totally heartless, after all. After only a slightly burnt breakfast, Hope got his coat and keys. But before he could leave, Lightning grabbed his wrist, stood on her tiptoes, and kissed him on the cheek. "I'll see you when you get home," she said, a deep blush coloring her cheeks.
Hope didn't get any work done that day.
~Present~
Lightning sat in their apartment, wondering where he was. When he left that morning, he hadn't said anything about being late – he'd planned on coming home early, even – nor had he called her to tell her to eat without him.
Not that he would – it was their anniversary, and he knew he would be beaten black and blue if he didn't show up. Not when she'd spent most the day cooking.
It didn't promise to be the best food in the world, and it certainly wasn't as good as his would've been, but every year she made a little fire in the courtyard , despite certain regulations – no one was likely to tell Lightning no – and cooked a couple of behemoth steaks.
But it was nearing midnight, and she still hadn't heard from him, nor had he returned any of her texts. Even though her face didn't show it, Lightning was worried about engagement ring on her finger had rubbed her finger raw where she twisted it around.
She called Alyssa first. As Hope's resident stalker/assistant, Lightning knew she would most likely know where he was. But after she posed her question to the girl, all she got was, "Sorry, I have no idea where he is. He left work about four. Said something about date. I'm assuming he never showed up?" Lightning hung up, not wanting to waste the time explaining when Alyssa didn't know anything anyway.
Even though she wasn't on good terms with any of the others, Lightning systematically called all the teams of researchers Hope had contact with, but came up with the same results every time. Soon she became desperate enough to start calling their old allies, despite not having spoken to them since they split from the Academy.
Snow was the first one she called – he was likely to make her angry enough to make her focus beyond the worry. It rang for so long she was afraid he wouldn't answer. Just as she was getting ready to give up, the call connected. "Lightning. This is a surprise. Never thought I'd see the day you'd contact me again."
"I know. I never thought I would have to. But have you seen or heard anything about Hope today?"
There was silence on the other end as Snow processed the question. "I'm sorry Lightning. I haven't it's been pretty quiet over here. Why? Is something wrong?"
"He's just later than he should be. If you do hear something, let me know, okay?"
After he agreed, she hung up. Her call to Sazh was a little longer, but he gave her the same response. Just as she was getting ready to send a carrier pigeon out to find Noel, the phone rang.
She fumbled with it, hoping it was someone, anyone, with information on where the hell she could find Hope. When she did, she was going to beat him until he apologized on his knees for the next fifty years. At least.
When she finally answered with a shaky hello, an unfamiliar voice replied with, "Hello. Is this Lightning Farron?"
"It is. Who's asking?"
"I'm the head nurse at the hospital downtown. I am calling in regards to Mr. Hope Estheim. He was admitted for – "
Lightning didn't bother to listen to the lady prattle on, choosing to hang up the phone and race out of the apartment instead.
The ground under her feet was wet from the rain the poured from the sky, soaking her thoroughly. It wasn't as if it mattered to her. Taking that extra moment to pull a jacket from the closet would have been a moment sooner she could be with Hope.
Lightning raced through the streets until she reached the subway station, taking the stairs three at a time. She heard the conductor announce that the doors were closing for the express train downtown, and she leaped through the doors, barely making it. A couple of people glared at her for the disturbance, but the train wasn't full at that time of night and she didn't really care what they thought of her. The only thing she could think of was Hope. He was the only one who stayed by her side, the only one who loved her enough to spend the rest of their forever together.
~Past~
The day he proposed to her started off like any other – with a kiss on the cheek as he grabbed his coat and keys as he headed out the door. Years had passed in this way, and they were comfortable, happy together.
There were still times that she wished everything would end, or that she would have the chance to start over, but those thoughts only came when she was alone, on nights Hope didn't come home or after a fight between them. But as soon as he was there, things never seemed as bad as she thought they were.
Just as she was leaving to hunt some of the monsters that skirted the edge of the city – she needed something to do during the day, even if Hope didn't like her going out there alone – a shrill sound shattered the silence.
With a sigh, Lightning closed the door and headed into the kitchen to answer the phone. "Estheim."
A snort made its way to her ear as a smirk found its way onto her face. "How long have you just been saying my name when you answer the phone?"
Lightning shrugged at Hope's question, not really caring if he could see it or not. "When I got too lazy to say my name when every call was for you anyway."
There was silence on the other end, but Lightning knew him well enough to know that he was grinning. The thought made her roll her eyes, but there was a small smile on her face. The years with Hope had softened her a bit, though she would never tell him that.
"I'll be home a little early tonight, and I figured I would grab us some dinner from that noodle place you love so much."
"What did you do this time, Hope? Is anything going to explode if I leave a certain area of the house?"
"No! I just thought it would be nice. We haven't had it in a while, that's all."
Lightning knew he was hiding something, but decided to let him have his secrets. If he was going to pick up noodles for dinner, there was no need to question him.
"Alright. I'll see you when you get home."
Later that night, Lightning returned home bruised and bloodied to a candlelit apartment. Piano music played low in the background, and tea lights lit a path into the kitchen. "Hope? What is this?" she asked in her usual monotone style, but received no response. With a sigh, she hung her gunblade on its peg on the wall and made her way into the kitchen.
Hope sat at the table, turning a small black box in his hands, two cartons of noodles in front of him, along with a bottle of red wine. "Hope?"
At the sound of her voice, Hope jumped out of his chair, sending it crashing into the candleson the floor while simultaneously knocking the wine into the noodles. A well placed chopstick pierced the bottle's neck, shattering the glass and spraying wine over the table, the noodles, and Hope's white dress shirt. The chair smoked a little before flames started to eat the wood.
Lightning and Hope just looked at the disaster, not knowing exactly how any of it happened. Then, with a sigh, Hope said, "I'll go get some water to put out the chair."
The moment he left, Lightning cracked a smile as she went into the bathroom to shower, blowing out candles as she went, hoping to at least be able to get the dried blood and monster slime off of her.
After she was thoroughly scrubbed, she walked out into a brightly lit room – not a single trace left of the candles – to find Hope lying shirtless on the couch. " . I'll make us a couple of sandwiches."
Hope groaned as he stood and followed her into the kitchen. "Tonight was going to be perfect, Light. I was going to have candles and music and your favorite noodles. Then, just as we were finishing our wine I was going to propose and it was going to be perfect. But I ruined it all." He collapsed into the same chair he'd been in – to her surprise it was only lightly singed.
"Well, you did have the candles, the music, the dinner, and the wine. Your plan just went up in flames, that's all. There's always hope for next time."
Hope glared at her, clearly not amused by her puns.
"But the night isn't over. I'm sure you have some sort of backup plan, right?"
Hope snorted. "Of course I do. But it takes place after a dinner we didn't have, after finishing the wine we didn't drink, and having an awkward conversation that I really hoped wouldn't happen."
Lightning said nothing, but finished making the sandwiches and grabbed a bottle of vodka from the cabinet. "It isn't noodles, and it isn't wine, but we've got dinner and alcohol. That's all we really need."
After their surprisingly edible sandwiches – though she was so hungry anything would've done – Hope gently wrapped his fingers around her hand and pulled her onto the balcony. Facing her, he held bother her hands in his and looked into her eyes. There was something soothing about being in his presence when he was clearly nervous, and she found herself smiling a little on the inside.
"We've been through a lot since we met. I don't think I really need to summarize our lives. Once was enough, thank you. But I do remember when I first saw you, how strong and beautiful you looked to me. I knew right then that if I ever got to know you, you would be the only one I would ever want."
Lightning snorted at that and rolled her eyes, making Hope crack a smile too. "Okay, I was fourteen. We both know what I was thinking. But when you took me in and taught me how to grow up, I was more grateful to you than I can ever say. I started to fall in love with you then, even though getting my revenge on Snow was the only thing I could really think about."
"Yeah, and if you'd succeeded, I could've saved myself a lot of punches." She smirked, thinking of her almost brother-in-law.
"But we both know you'd miss him. Even if things aren't the same now. But that's beside the point. These years with you have been everything I could've dreamed of and more. The world might be doomed, and we can't grow as a race, but Light, none of that matters to me. Not when you're here by my side. I love you, and that will never change." He bent down on one knee, pulled out that little black box that miraculously survived the night, and asked, "Will you marry me?"
"That has to be the most depressing proposal speech in existence."
Hope was silent as he knelt on the frozen ground, the cold starting to seep into his skin. After what seemed like a lifetime, Lightning smile a little and nodded. "Of course I will." He stood up a picked her up by the waist, spinning around until they were both dizzy.
"I love you, Light."
"I love you too, Hope."
~Present~
The conductor called out her stop, jolting Lightning from her memories. Dashing through the doors as soon as they opened, she didn't care how many people she shoved out of her way as she ran through the station, up the stairs, and down the street to the hospital.
She nearly slammed into the doors that wouldn't open quickly enough, managing to stop a moment before her nose met with glass. A moment that would have allowed her to take in more than a slice of air, had she calmed herself enough to do so.
"Where is he? Hope. Hope Estheim." Lightning cried out, eyes wild and shoulders heaving with the effort of breathing. The nurse at the front desk, seeming to fear for her life, immediately walked around to a hall on Lightning's left, keeping a brisk pace as she led her toward the ICU.
She tried to compose herself while they walked, knowing that Hope could never know how worried she was about him. Even he wouldn't be privy to that information. She loved him, but he didn't need to know how she felt every moment of the day.
Despite her will to seem calm, Lightning's mind was still to full of worry to process much as the nurse led her through the labyrinth they called a hospital. "They say he was protecting a child who'd wandered out of the wards. It was quite the feat I hear, how he dove in front of the girl just as a behemoth too ka swipe. He's a hero. More so than he was before." The nurse paused in her words, not realizing that Lightning barely heard a sound the nurse uttered. "You should be proud of him, but still. I'm sorry. This is never easy."
They passed door after door, doctors and surgeons, before finally stopping in front a nondescript room. The lady said nothing, merely patting Lightning on the shoulder before walking away. After finally finding him, she didn't want to waste a moment, but something made her stop to compose herself before turning the handle and pushing open the door.
Hope turned his head slightly when he heard the door open, too weak to do much else. "Lightning. You came."
A tear threatened to slide down her face as she pulled a chair up beside his bed. Careful not to jostle any of the numerous wires or bandages, she wrapped her hand around Hope's. "So, Mr. Hero, I hear that you're the talk of the town these days. Saving children, blessing usual."
He chuckled slightly, grimacing in pain as he does so, and tightens his weak grip around her fingers. "I know me. I just had to upstage Snow." He was quiet for a minute, and only the steady sound of the heart monitor reassured her that he was still there. When he finally spoke again, it was so faint and riddled with pain that Lightning had to lean in close to hear him.
"You know, when we became l'Cie, I never thought I would be able to grow up or fall in love. But that didn't stop me from dreaming, Light. About a life I wouldn't have. I was only fourteen, but I had dreams that surprised me even then. And after I had you back, I thought I would finally be able to see them through."
His eyes were dulled by pain, but he still managed to send a shiver down her spine. "We'd have two children, a boy and a girl, who would grow up in a peaceful world, with no need to learn how to fight – though with you as a mom they would be little devils no one could beat – without having to worry about the fal'Cie or monsters we had to deal with.
"We would live in a house surrounded by flowers, on a hill overlooking Academia. But most of all, we were together Lightning. No matter what life threw at us, we were a team." He smiled a bit. "A team, and always." A deep breath made him gasp in pain, but he needed to say just a little more. "I'm sorry I ruined that. I'd like to think that I made you happy, for as long as we were together, but I'm sorry that I couldn't follow through on my promise. I'm so, so sorry Lightning."
Tears streamed from his eyes as he apologized, and Lightning merely reached out to brush a couple strands of hair from his face. "You don't have to be sorry, Hope. You gave me a happiness that I never thought I would have. I'm an army girl. I'm not exactly on the top of any man's list. But you loved me, and made me love you in return. And we'll always be partners, a team like no other."
A thought crossed her mind, and she reached to press a button to call in the nurse. A set of footsteps echoed down the hall as the same lady came rushing in. "Can you get me a minister?"
She nodded and went to make a call down to the church situated in the hospital. In just a few minutes, the nurse led an aging man into the small hospital room. "Will you marry us?"
The man was taken aback by her request – when he was called to the hospital, it was certainly not for a request to marry a couple – but smiled nonetheless. He pulled out a book that was even older than he was a read a few passages from the crumbling pages.
Heavy footsteps thundered down the hallway, and the door to Hope's room was shoved open to reveal a panting Noel and Snow. "Did we make it in time?"
Lightning said nothing, but gave them a small smile. They both sighed in relief and took spots across from Lightning. After a moment of silence, the minister continued speaking.
Just as it was time for their vows, Noel lifted a leather cord off his neck, revealing a set of rings that had been hidden by his clothing. "Every child in my time was given a ring when they turned thirteen, to show that they were full members of the clan. When my parents died, I was given their rings as a sign of respect. I'd like it if you guys wore them."
Lightning smiled as she took the cord and untied the knot that held the necklace closed. "Thanks. Really. I didn't really think this part through." They all chuckled, even Hope, though Lightning was the only one who did so without crying.
After a moment, she let the two rings fall into the palm of her hand. Taking the larger one in her hand and giving the other one to Hope, Lightning finally spoke the words she rehearsed hundreds of times in front of the mirror, though she never thought she would say them to Hope so soon.
"You've been the one to keep my sanity all these years, and you've seen me at both my best and my worst, and somehow you're still here. You're my partner in life and love, and I would never trade that for anything. Nothing will ever change that I want you with me. I love you Hope. Forever and always," she said, slipping the thin silver band around his finger.
They could all hear the slowing of the beeps, serving as a cold reminder that they didn't have long with Hope. "I love you Light. More than I think you know. I'll always love you. Please remember that, even after I'm gone. I love you. Forever and always." His voice was so low, they almost couldn't hear him as he slipped the ring onto her finger. But it didn't matter to them – the only ones who needed to hear those words could.
With the last of his strength, Hope reached up to pull Lightning's lips to his for one last kiss.
"You may kiss the bride," the minister murmured under his breath.
The monitor went flat.
Please read and review, and I promise the conclusion will be up soon!
(And I swear, as much misery as I like to put my characters through, I don't like making them that miserable.)