A/N Thank you to everyone that reviewed my short prologue! I promised to update this on Monday or Tuesday, so here it is on Tuesday. I'll be posting the info for this story on my profile (I. E. Update times, any kind of delays or hiatus, FAQ; if I get any, and eventually the playlist). Please review and tell me what you think. I'm really nervous, and this honestly is my first fanfiction, so anything would be good for me! Thank you! :) I think that's it...hehe.


Chapter One:

What is the Same and What is Different


I had always enjoyed the way the sun's rays reflected through my window at dawn. When the inviting warmth settled on my brow, seeping through thin sheets to caress my skin, it wasn't long before I abandoned the comforting embrace of my makeshift bed and bolted out towards the cool, sharp morning air to gaze upon the canvass that the dawn and twilight shared. The pair painted with colors so similar, yet both never failed to fade into the deep recesses of its partner. It was because of this beauty I had done my best thinking at the end as well as the beginning of each passing day. Both moments radiated such peaceful, stimulating auras; I couldn't help but be drawn to the places in my mind where I didn't normally tread.

On that day I decided to compare the morning and evening to star-crossed lovers; the same as in one of my favorite stories, Romeo and Juliet. I cast the twilight in the role of the strong woman with a pair of eyes that held uncontrollable, intoxicating obscurity. Dawn I chose to act as the brilliant, blue-eyed male who allowed his light to shine upon all those who took the time to watch his labor. I built a lovely—and somewhat cliché—story off of my fervent imagining. Twilight saw Dawn in a crowded place; his luminosity lifting up the shadows within her heart and soul in the form of a dazzling smile. Fleetingly, Dawn glimpsed at Twilight, her murky hair glossy with slight sliver tints. From that moment on, she'd stolen his heart, and there was no hope of having it freed. He didn't want it to.

But their love was doomed from the very start.

While Dawn touched the Earth, he met with Twilight one once before the unyielding nature forced her to disappear from the world while he glimmered. After long hours—torturous hours—she returned into the arms of her true love, only to be torn away from his radiance as her night took its turn to reign. In their ill-fated sequence, they are allowed to look upon—to interact—their lover twice in one whole day. Dawn waits on tenterhooks through the arduous daylight, whereas Twilight lingers in enduring prayer beside the star-studded nights. Forever they are bound to that torment. Waiting...waiting...waiting... Yet, their adoration for the other continued to remain as bright as the sun and moon themselves.

'If I was the twilight...'

"Lost in your dreams?" A deep voice chuckled behind me.

Acting on instinct, I rose up in a position of self-defense—legs crouched and arms away from my body; prepared to strike. I felt immense relief at the sight of my childhood friend Orochi standing before me with a beam that hinted at his partial coyness. A mild blush tinted his cheeks; I deduced it was from the sight of me in my long, baggy white nightgown. He'd never seen me in anything else but my standard Mizuhoan attire.

"I guess I was, huh?" I laughed softly as well, trying to ignore his flush.

"F-Forgive me, I..." he stuttered, immediately peeling his stare from me. "I suppose I should have—I mean, I had no idea you were-were...indecent—that is to say..."

"It's no big deal!" I laughed harder, acting excessively nonchalant for a purpose. When Orochi let his traditional attitude show, he got exceptionally irritating. One would have thought he'd seen me naked then.

"Yes," he continued his tone unchanging and his features immobile. "But I—"

"Your Chief says it's fine," I kept my face alight, but seriousness laced my voice; if I couldn't best him with dispassion, I would make things official.

"Ah..." Orochi murmured as though he agreed, yet still his gaze did not move from the surrounding forest.

Sighing, I sat back down amongst the trees of the eastern outskirts of my village. Orochi and I had held a stable relationship throughout our long years together; I could definitely call him more than a friend. We were akin to a big brother—he, three years my senior—and a little sister. I could still remember all too clearly the days when we were young children; jumping off the tall rocks—that aren't so tall anymore—into the creek behind his house, picking dandelions for bouquets to give each other, catching fireflies with the stars as our guide and saving them as nightlights so we wouldn't have to sleep in the darkness. He'd been my lone friend through my hardest times; a constant shoulder to cry on. A loyal companion. A keen playmate. My go-to guy. I was forever indebted to his kindness.

Nevertheless, as I got older and matured along with him, something unsettling had begun to fester between us; particularly the way he watched me. That something was something incredibly apparent to everyone who knew us, but that was one thing I couldn't quite grasp. Instead, I choose to not acknowledge that anything was different. I simply didn't want to know.

I'd been too busy within my own little world.

"Orochi..." I mumbled distantly.

"Yes?" was his stern reply.

"Do you...do you think that the dawn and the twilight like each other?"

"Hm?" he finally looked away from the woods.

"Do you think the dawn and the twilight like each other?" I repeated.

"Like each other?"

I rotated to see a veil of perplexity across his face; as though I had spoken a language he wasn't familiar with.

"What do you mean—"do they like each other"?" he hedged.

"Exactly what it sounds like!"

"Sheena..." Orochi said to me affectionately, yet it wasn't in a tender way. It was more along the lines of pity. "The—ah... they are times of the day, so...so..."

I glowered to silence him. He had not produced the answer I had wished to hear.

"Wh-What?" his voice broke.

"...Can't you think about something...you know...'outside the box' for once?"

That's when it happened. Orochi set his warm stare on me, the heat melting his eyes into vats of liquid gold. The quirk of his upper lip, a foolish grin, and the laziness of his stance that was notorious for rigidity...it was alien to me. He had changed so much from the days of our youth; from the days that seemed not so long ago. I hated it. I wanted it to stop. I didn't want him around me when he acted this way.

"Well," he spoke sweetly, but I could tell that he wasn't all there. "One of us needs to be the practical one, don't we?"

I tilted one brow. "Am I not practical?"

His foolish grin widened.

"I suppose I—...what I mean is...realistic."

"So now I'm not realistic? What's with the insults?" I teased, pursing my lips playfully. "Is this your way of complementing your chief?"

I was trying to coax out my best friend and rid myself of this strange man who plagued me with an abnormal stare.

However, it was vain, for it happened once more.

Usually—at least, for the Orochi Azumi that I'd acquainted myself with— he would have easily matched my snarky mouth with a comment of his own that was equal in stature. This new Orochi—this person who watched my so strangely—said nothing of the sort. Topaz orbs tightened their lock on their target—me—and gradually managed to somewhat solidify; he was getting a bit more serious. His bashful characteristics neither grew nor ebbed, but seemed to keep steady; almost as if he was trying to decide whether to take a stance or not even bother trying. In one blink, he was at my side, his intense face a bit too close for my comfort. I felt my stomach churn out of pure apprehension and puzzlement from his close proximity; it took all I had to keep from succumbing to rudeness and pushing him away. I loathed it.

"Sheena..." Orochi murmured.

I couldn't answer him. I just wanted him to back up or go away.

"...You-you have...I have watched you grow—watched you progress through our years together...and—" He broke eye contact, but quickly reconnected—"...you have truly blossomed..."

"...O-Orochi..." was all I could choke out.

"You...you have become a—a beautiful flower..."

Beads of sweat formed at the top of my brow.

'What...What am I supposed to say to that...?'

Then I noticed his face inching forward. Slight movements weren't something unexpected from Orochi—he moved with greater agility then I ever dreamed of doing—but with my sharper vision, his actions had less of an overwhelming impact. On the other hand, there was a significant difference; what went on was not the two of us sparring.

His head was moving closer and closer every second.

And I didn't know what to do.

So I panicked.

"I-I-I need to-to go dress!" I said obnoxiously loud, jumping to my feet in order to hide my colored face.

"Sheena, wait—!" He started to call after me, but I ignored his pleading.

Blood boiled in my veins as I found sanctuary in my small home. I couldn't recall a time when I had been so furious at my good friend—a friend who had never made me feel such indignation and discomfort around him. What could I do when the only person I could count on at this time in my life had betrayed me by acting in a way I chose not to concede, even though I knew the reason? It was at times like this when I longed to return into the open embrace of my close companions I'd held so dearly on our journey of uniting the once two worlds; Sylvarant and Tethe'alla.

I missed Lloyd's resolve; I missed his spirit. I missed the exhilarating courage that he'd managed to provoke inside my cowardly heart. I missed Colette's smile; her will to sacrifice herself for those that truly loved her. I longed for her tender voice to touch my ears as fondly as they had done so many times before. I missed Genis' wit; his magical aura. While his heart had remained hard to those of the human race, his childlike nature had never failed to spark new compassion. I missed Raine's rationale; her enthusiasm. She was the one soul who possessed the power to bring all eight of us back from cloud nine when it was time to grow up; I was grateful for her lending me wisdom. I missed Presea's strength; her relentless desire to become something more than what she was. If I could, I would siphon off some of her fortitude and inject it into me. The way she cast her eyes from the demons of her past with such grace and nerve had me completely envious, yet I was appreciative for her example. I missed Regal's class; the way he carried himself. He truly believed he was a murderer, and he never expected special treatment. I admired that in him; the willingness to atone for a crime that wasn't even intentional. He was a good man at heart.

And, much to my chagrin, I missed that stupid Ex-Chosen.

I had no chance to fight the impending assortment of Zelos memories that flooded the forefront of my mind. The valor that had swelled within him. His awkward laugh; a voice smoother than the finest silk. The faraway orbs of light blue; an alluring wink. Thick, red tresses that fell far past his shoulders, carrying the scent of apple blossom. A taut body shape; slightly rippled muscle. His well-structured face. That sensual smile...

Words couldn't describe how much I despised the way he made me feel.

'Forget it—forget it—forget it. Remember? Just because he got a little bit braver doesn't mean he still isn't the world's biggest philanderer.'

Which he was, of course. But I couldn't help but crave his company. Seeing one of them would have been enough to mitigate my melancholy. Anyone of them at my door step was a vast improvement over Orochi at the time.

Thoughts dancing on the tender memoirs of long ago, I dressed in my all too familiar purple and pink attire; I had chosen the one that I'd worn when I'd caught my first glimpse of Sylvarant, the dying world. I winced when I felt the fragile heart I owned tighten out of lament for the time I could now only recollect on. At a feeble attempt to act positive, I thought aloud to myself.

"What would Lloyd say?" I mumbled, closing my eyes to focus. "What would Zelos say? ...What would Raine say...What would Colette say?"

'To tell the truth...I have no idea what they would say...'

I didn't know, and that made me feel more alone than anyone could ever imagine.

The rays of the sun that had once fully shone through my cracked, dirty window had decreased a great deal as I finished slipping into my clothes. That was my signal to start making my way towards the chief's headquarters; I liked to call it my 'office'. Vice Chief and Grandfather spent the majority of their time there with me; helping me write those vile letters of business as the Emissary of Peace to Iselia and the royal city of Tethe'alla (most of the running about across the world had been taken care of earlier on; now I was just the messenger), as well as assisting me with paper work for our talented information network. Their technique of teaching wasn't difficult to grapple with; I simply had to watch and learn and when they were certain I had a handle on things, they would no longer lend me their aid. My thoughts on the matter of no longer receiving help were undoubtedly split in two. I wanted the independence from them; to experience the rush of confidence that would occur from me working on my own. But if they were to leave...my apprehension of relying solely on my power as chief—achievements and mistakes—would increase significantly. Mixed with Orochi's weirdness and my nostalgia, no matter which way I turned, I was inevitably stuck in one of the most awful ruts I'd faced in a long while.

'Suck it up, Sheena...' I acidly scolded myself. 'It's not something that you can avoid. There's no way out of this one...'

As I stepped outside, I did a rapid, yet thorough search of the area before heading out. Facing Orochi again wasn't on my agenda for today. In fact, I decided that if he did ask to see me, I would politely send a message to him declining his offer; making up an excuse to seal the palpable truth. The instant my reliable ninja instincts triggered that all was clear; I fled north to inner Mizuho. Upon seeing the sliding front door, I had a brief epiphany about how small my village was compared to the others of the world. Our population was steadily decreasing from the lack of children being born alive; there were more and more miscarriages and stillborns due to our lack of professional doctors. That dilemma was one I feared more than most of the others dealing with Mizuho. What could I have done? Encourage procreation when lives were at stake? I chose to leave that choice up to Grandfather. Surely he, with limitless wisdom, could think of a solution.

I also planned to ask him about Orochi's bizarreness as well.

"Grandfather!" I called as I entered. "There's something I need—"

That was when the streamers hit my face.

"SURPRISE!!!!!" A group of familiar voices bombarded my ears.

'...Could it be?!'

Wrestling with the paper covering my hot face, I caught a sight of red that I could never confuse with anyone else.

'Lloyd!!!!'

"Happy Anniversary, Sheena!!!" He cheered, yanking the decorations from my head.

"Everyone—!" I began, eyes wide with shock.

There they were. All eight of them. I was at a loss for words; my brain halted. Each one of them held a beautiful wrapped package, wore gleaming smiles and bubbled over with laughter from my comical confusion as I tore at colored paper.

"Everyone—"

"Are you surprised, Sheena?!" Colette beseeched with sparkling eyes.

"Of course she is!" Genis rolled his eyes with a smirk. "She didn't even know we were here...did she?"

"No, I made sure not to mention anything," My grandfather chortled, positively glowing.

"What are you doing here?!" I shouted, gripping Lloyd in a tight hug.

"You have your grandfather to thank for that," Raine's ever stable tone explained.

"Today's you're one year anniversary as chief of Mizuho, so he invited us to celebrate! How could we say no?" Lloyd returned my hug.

"I-I-I can't...I can't believe it..." I began to tear up. "Grandfather—"

"I'm not all to blame," he spoke in that warm, knowing way I loved. "You have another man to thank for that."

"Who?" I questioned eagerly.

I looked at Lloyd; he rubbed the back of his head as a confession.

"I actually didn't remember until I got the letter...haha..."

I turned my eyes to Genis.

"Nope." Was the simple retort.

Then I switched to Regal.

"I'm afraid this was no mastermind of mine," he replied with a stony face.

The vice chief was next.

He merely shook his head.

There was only one man left in the room, and I honestly thought it might have been some sort of joke, but when the two of us locked eyes and he presented me with that evil wink of his, I knew that my friends told no lies.

"Guilty as charged," Zelos flamboyantly flipped his hair back.

"You did this?!" I sounded more disgusted than I really was.

"Zelos remembered before any of us did," Presea softly smiled; a heavenly gesture.

"Wha—You-you...no way. I don't believe it!"

"Believe it, hun!" his cunning grin widened. "But have no fear; you can repay me generously later on tonight."

"YOU—" I started to reprimand him, but managed to get a grip on my fury.

If had truly organized the celebration, there was no way of knowing if he had done it out of sincerity or out of the desire of seeing me indebted to him. Asking him would be futile, but how could I let his brazen characteristics spoil this perfectly wonderful reunion?

There was no refuting it; I wouldn't stand for it.

So I smiled at Zelos warmly, weaving through Lloyd and Genis to wrap my arms around him in any way that I could.

"Thank you," I told him genuinely, letting a few tears fall. "You have no idea how much this means to me!"

"Whoa! No 'You perverted Chosen' ? No slapping me across the face? And I get a hug?" –He placed a gloved hand over my forehead—"Are you feeling ok, hunny?"

"I'm feeling fine," I said through gritted teeth. "Zelos, don't ruin this or I swear I'll—"

"I've got the memo, hun." he said strangely tender. "Promise. Cross my heart; I'll make this a happy occasion. It is kind of what I had in mind when I got your grandfather to agree..."

"I—wait; you're...you're serious?" I gasped, looking up.

He nodded, his eyes both passionate and glassy.

'...Zelos being sincere...this isn't like him...' my mind became tumultuous.

"I missed you all!" Colette suddenly exclaimed, running to embrace Zelos and me.

But, sadly, she tripped over Lloyd foot, landing on top of Genis, who feel to the floor with a crash, his present for me flying from his arms, only to strike his older sister's forehead; the room was suddenly roaring with laughter.

Some things were going to be different, I could see that now.

But concentrating on that which was the same gave me a bit more strength to face those things that would change.

With a bit of luck, it would be enough.