Hi Guys and Girls. Here is the third chapter.

As always I do not own anything from Final Fantasy XIII and if you find any grammar mistake please report it.

To Madam Midday: thanks for your drift on the grammar and I hope you will enjoy this chapter.

The party

The ceremony was held in a little church and the guest were already all seated waiting for the ceremony to begin. Hope, who was on the first row of the seats with Sazh, Dajh and the team NORA, was looking at the building with a satisfied smile.

Thinking back, Snow erected the church with the help of team NORA and of course of Hope, who directed the construction, since none of them knew anything about engineering. The church was in fact one of the first permanent building of the colony. After the Ragnarock, the survivors established themselves at the base of the giant pillar, which was sustaining the two worlds. At the beginning it was pretty difficult for the survivors because the wild monster were many and the already slim force of the army was not enough to keep them all safe. Lightning and her companions, who retained their power as l-cie and their Eidolon, became a great asset on battles against big monsters such as King-Behemots, and they soon gained the loved of the people. Sazh presented idea. Calling a campaign to built a good image, since, even thou the wrongs and lies of the Sanctum were already exposed; many people were still scared of them because of their powers and especially their Eidolons.

The music of the organ caught Hope by surprise and jerked his head to look on the opposite direction, at the far end of the church. There Serah was standing with a smile on her face and with Lightning on her left, who took her hand lifting it at the height of her chest, they began o walk towards Snow, who was able to calm down, and the priest.

The ceremony did not take long but Hope will not remember much of what the priest said since his eyes were glued on the maid of honor. He did made some effort to pay attention but it was simply impossible. He tried to focus on the couple that should have been in the center of his attention, since all the work done and the ceremony were made for them, but the blue dress ended always to catch his eyes.

Xxxxx

"Ah, Hope here you are" said Sazh walking towards him with Dajh. "What are you doing here, alone?"

"Oh, nothing. I was just watching Snow and Serah dancing" answered Hope after noticing them when they were already near him. He was seated alone at a table and was playing with a strawberry ice-cake.

At the end of the ceremony the couple decided to let all the curious inside the garden of the church. Hope recalled Snow saying that it would be more fun with more people but this change of plan did not amused Lightning who gave him a look that said "There will be words later" and at witch Snow answered with a grin that said "oh I am so in trouble"

It was now night, the feast was at its climax with many people dancing around the fire. Until now the party went smoothly save for a little accident where one of the many, who asked Lightning to dance and had too much wine, grabbed her wrist. This caused a reaction where a very annoyed Lightning kicked the butt of a very unlucky man who chose the wrong day for bravery. After this everybody kept their distance from the woman even Hope seeing the dark humor of the friend.

"You should go and dance too. There are many cute girls near the open bar and I think some of them are eyeing you in this exact moment" said Sazh while gesturing him to look towards the open bar.

Hope followed Sazh gesture and met the eyes of a young girl, perhaps the same age as him, that waved a hand to him when she noticed that he was looking at her. She was wearing a yellow dress, high hills and some jewelry green jewelry.

"I don't know Sazh, I don't know her. I don't even know…" began to say Hope but Sazh interrupted him immediately.

"Come on man, today is a day to celebrate. It is a party and you are young, you should be ecstatic and thrilled. Come on I will call her for you" Hope wanted to disagree with Sazh but he was already waving a hand to call the girl, which while giving a look of understanding with her friends, came in front of Hope.

"This young man told me that he would like to have a dance with you but was too shy to ask you so I took the liberty to voice for him" said Sazh with a smile while using the right hand, with the palms up, to introduce Hope.

"It would be my pleasure to have a dance with you" said the young girl. Hope was confused and was at loss of word, which the girl took it for a yes and took his left hand and pulled him towards the crowd of people dancing.

Hope looked back at Sazh with eyes that pleaded for help. Sazh on the other hand just looked at the pair immerging in the mob with a grin. Then he looked back towards his son who was intent on eating an ice-cake, which was probably what Hope ordered and did not have a chance to taste it, and giving glances towards an empty table with two chairs. At that moment Sazh swear to have seen one of the chair leaning a little back as if someone was sitting on it and laughing.

Xxxx

'What a pain they are' thought Lightning who was sitting, with a nee over the other, at a table alone, with a deadly aura that was floating around her, while her eyes were unconsciously wandering around the party like looking for someone. After the episode with the unlucky man, no one asked her to dance, which gave her more space to scan, but she could still feel their gaze on her which she would cut them with one of her "Look at me and you are dead" glare.

While scanning the group of dancers for the tenth time her attention was caught by girl, with a fancy yellow dress, walking towards a table, which she did not notice until now since it was hidden before by many dancers, where the someone that her eyes were looking for was seated with a guy with afro hair and a child.

After some few words exchanged between Sazh, the girl and the mute response of Hope, the girl in yellow dress took Hope for a hand and pulled him in the dance floor.

Seeing Hope with the girl (Again: with a yellow dress) made her gaze deadly. She felt really annoyed seeing the scene, even more than when the previous pig head tried to ask her for a dance, and found herself still gazing and cursing the young girl.

"What happened, Claire?" asked Serah, who was next to Lightning, with a smile on her pretty face a little red for the alcohol.

"Wh… what? Oh nothing. Just some dogs in heat that don't know how to behave in spring" answered Lightning, looking at her and immediately returning to look at the young girl, after putting herself together from the surprise since she did not notice Serah coming.

Following the glare of Lightning, Serah chuckled and said, "They look cute together, isn't it?"

"Hmpf, she's just another one who cannot control herself in spring" answered Lightning with an angry tone but noticing what she just said she hastily corrected herself. "I mean… I think that he could find better than that" concluded with an emphasis on the last word.

"Mm, I don't know. It seems to me that the girl knows what she wants" rebutted Serah with a grin and looking at her sister.

"Yeah, and he should be more careful. I thought that I taught him well but it seems that he doesn't know that there are more then one kind of predator" said Lightning without knowing why she was now so pissed off to Hope.

"Then you should dance with him" said Serah, with a tone of one who knows much.

"What? Why?" asked Lightning with her brows that were showing her confusion.

"Well didn't you said that you would protect him from any danger?" answered Serah to Lightning with another question.

"Yes…" began to answer Lightning with an unsteady voice.

"Then go" said Serah while pulling her sister on her feet and pushing her towards the dance floor. Lightning looked back at her sister once more. Then, with resolution and firm footing she walked towards Hope. While doing this the same unlucky guy, who was in front of the couple walked towards her and with a grin, he tried ask her for a dance. He received a kick in his groin as an answerer and the guys that were looking at her reached theirs and made painful expressions on their faces.