010 AF

It's my last night here. Noel and I are leaving tomorrow. It's time to leave and start my journey to find my sister. I don't feel whole without her. There's something missing and I've been searching for that missing piece for the past three years.

I lay next to Hope, with his arms wrapped around me and his head resting in the crook of my neck. I feel his breath on my skin.

"We're going to solve the paradox," I begin. "If we can change the future, we might be able to create a better past."

Hope doesn't say anything for a moment, making me wonder whether he fell asleep.

"I'm going to help you, too," says Hope suddenly. "I'm going to help you find Lightning. And I'm going to get Hope and Vanille back . . ."

I smile. I wish that things could go back to the way things were—the way things were right after Cocoon turned to crystal. If only . . . Except, I wouldn't have ended up with Hope. And I never would've met Noel.

If you'd asked me about time travel a couple of months ago, I probably would've said that it's impossible. But here I am, traveling through time with Noel Kreiss, a young man from the future. Even though no one in New Bodhum believed his story and his purpose, I did. I didn't doubt him.

I know what it's like to be doubted. You feel dumb, hopeless, and alone. You feel like your voice means nothing . . .

"Serah?"

I turn over on my side so that I can face him. "Yeah?"

"Do you think that I'll see you again?"

I nod. "Of course . . ."

"What if I don't remember that we met? What if I don't remember our first kiss?"

I press my lips to his. "Then I'll just have to remind you . . ."

"Serah," he says slowly, taking my hand in his. Even in the dim light, I can see his green eyes shimmer. "I think I'm falling in love with you . . ."

His words make my heart flutter. "I am too."

"I won't hurt you," he says. "I promise."

NOEL

I've been thinking a lot about my past. I've been thinking about my future, too.

After we find Lightning, if we can find her, what's going to happen then? Serah will have what she was looking for. But what will I have? I suppose I'd feel good, with helping her and all, but what is my future going to be like? Will Serah forget about me once she has her sister back? Will she need me anymore? Will she want me as a friend?

My worst fear is loneliness. Growing up, I lost everyone that I've ever cared about. My parents . . . My friends . . . My grandparents. Everyone I'd come to know and care for was taken from me. The world I grew up in was dead. Hundreds of years into the future, the world was dead. I don't want to lose anyone else, especially not Serah.

Serah is my only friend in this world. If I lose her, I lose everything. Without a friend, without a person to talk to, I'll lose my sense of purpose.

I picture Yeul in my head. She was so young . . . so gentle. She hadn't had a chance to live her life. I'd do anything just to see my friend again. I'd do anything to hear her laugh . . . to see her smile.

On this journey, I hope to find Lightning. And on this journey, I can only hope that we can change the future.

I turn around as Serah gives Hope one last hug. A pang of jealousy hits my heart, but I ignore it. I can't let my feelings for Serah get in the way of things.

She comes up behind me, nudging me in the side. "Ready?"

I nod. "Yeah . . . To Valhalla!" I step through the gate without looking back. I feel Serah behind me as we're thrown into the void of time. Serah and I float through the timeline, waiting to see where time takes us. I wonder where we'll end up. Hopefully, we'll end up in Valhalla and we can save Lightning from her fate.

I close my eyes. I feel my feet hit the ground and the world around me slowly begins to materialize.

Immediately, my heart drops. We're in my world—the Dying World. I'm not sure what year it is. I'm not sure if anyone has started dying yet. My legs begin moving, almost involuntarily, and I start running toward the village.

"Noel," calls Serah, "Wait!"

Mog says, "Wait for me, kupo!"

I don't stop running. I can't. I have to know. Is anyone alive? Yeul? Caius? My parents? I think again. Was I born yet? Is this a time before I was born? Is it after everyone died? A time after 700 AF?

In the distance, I see people walking. I can feel a smile breaking out across my face. It's been so long since I've seen people here. A tear of overwhelming joy escapes my eyes.

I stop in my tracks and take it all in. It's midday and the sun hangs high in the sky. A group of children run past me. None of them look very familiar.

Serah and Mog finally catch up with me. "Where are we?"

"The Dying World," I reply.

She raises her eyebrows. "Is this where you lived?"

I nod. "I think it's a different time. The past . . ." A girl walks past me and she catches my eye. "Hey!"

The girl turns to me. She looks around nine or ten years old. She's pretty tall for her age, I think. She smiles. "Hi . . ."

"What's your name?"

"Maia," she replies. My eyes widen. I'm talking to my mother. I'm at a loss for words. I can't look her in the eyes now. They're the same as my own. She comes a little closer to me and puts her hand on my arm. "Are you okay?"

I nod. "What year is it?"

"674 AF. Are you sure you're okay? Are you traveling?"

"Yeah." I turn to Serah. "We're traveling."

She points to the town square. "The market is over there if you have stuff to sell." She smiles and tilts her head to the side. "You look familiar. Have you been here before?"

I nod, trying my best to hold in my emotions. "I have . . ."

She laughs. "You look like we could be my brother . . ." I'm from the future. I'm your son . . .

A little boy who appears close to her age, maybe a little older, taps her shoulder. "Maia! We gotta go now!"

"I'll be right there, Kaden!" she calls after him as he begins walking off. She turns to me. "Well, I gotta get back to school. I hope you make a lot of money!" She waves to us before running after her friend. My father . . .

Again, I can't speak. If I do speak, what do I say? I just met my parents in the past. Serah speaks up, reminding me that she's still here. "Noel, what's wrong?"

"That was my mother," I say, "and my father."

"We're in the past . . ."

I nod. "Before everyone started dying . . ."

My memories of my parents begin to resurface. I vaguely remember my childhood years. Birthday parties, going to school, my friends , learning how to hunt with my father, and gathering with my mother. It was all taken from me too soon. I was only fifteen when they died. My mother was first to go, then my dad. A few months after living with my grandmother, she died too.

Everyone I knew was dead by the time I turned seventeen. I'd been living on my own since then. There was no one to talk to. Every day was a struggle to find purpose. Every day I wondered why I should live on. With no people, there wasn't anyone who would miss me. There wasn't anyone to notice that I was gone.

I have to go to my grandmother's house. I have to see her. What does she look like? Is my grandfather still alive? There's so much I want to know.

I turn to Serah. "I want to see my grandparent's house."

"I'll wait here for you," Serah replies, kicking a rock with her boot.

I shake my head. "Would you mind coming with me?" I could use a friend.

Serah smiles. "Of course."

I start toward my grandparents' house. It's still there, looking how it always has, with the crooked front door and the reed mat in front of it. The door opens and the woman I assume to be my grandmother comes out, with a basket of handmade things. I remember her selling scarves, bracelets, and hats at the market when I was younger.

My grandmother is so young, probably in her early thirties. She has long black hair that's braided and blue eyes. Even though my mother doesn't have may of her features, I can still see the resemblance. I watch the house for a moment, hoping to see my grandfather.

Like clockwork, he walks toward the house and opens the door with a bag used for hunting. He's just caught dinner, I suppose. I recall the memories of going hunting with my father. It's the little things that count and I'd do anything to have it all back.

I stare at the man. I don't have many memories of him since he was one of the first people to die of the sickness, but his face does look familiar.

"Are you okay?" Serah asks when the door shuts behind him.

I nod. "I'm okay . . ." Then I start walking around some more. I'm not looking for anything in particular. I just walk because there are so many people living here compared to when I was growing up.

In my peripheral vision, I see familiar blue hair. I turn quickly and Yeul is staring directly at me. I freeze as she walks slowly toward me, as if she sees nothing else except for me.

I finally find some words. "Yeul . . ."

She says, "I am not the Yeul you know." She stands right before me, a much younger version of Yeul, maybe thirteen years old. I know in my heart that there are many Yeuls born again and again but I still want to reach for her and hug her and tell her that I've missed her. Seeing her again makes me want to cry. She was one of the last people I knew to die. "You must stop."

"What?" Serah asks.

Yeul turns to Serah. "You must stop altering the timeline." She pushes her hair back. "If you change the future, you change the past."

"What do you mean?" I ask. "Has the past been changed?"

Yeul just gives me a small smile before walking away and vanishing into thin air.

Now I feel as lost as ever. If you change the future, you change the past. What did she mean by that? Did she mean that we've already changed things? Is it a good thing or a bad thing? Honestly, I'm not sure I want to know the answer.