AN: All right. In the absence of any requests, you all get Genis and Zelos.

Also, since this takes place in Zelos' mansion, I had to figure out what the decor in Zelos' bedroom would look like (it's very tasteful and not at all what you'd expect) and came to the conclusion that, despite the well-lit, pastel nature of the areas you see in-game, the mansion should be absolutely terrifying at night. Enjoy!


Some Advice

Genis stood in the darkened hallway, staring at the huge set of double doors looming in front of him with a growing sense of dread. He didn't want to knock, didn't want to initiate this humiliating exchange. It was late at night, Genis knew everyone else would either be in their rooms or already asleep. No one would see him, no one would know; but his pride still screamed at him to run, run back to his room while he still could and not come out until morning.

He would have loved to obey, but behind that door was advice that, though he hated to admit it, he desperately needed. Quashing the little, dignity-preserving voice of reason, Genis gulped and rapped twice on the chamber doors. There was silence from the other side, then a shuffling and one of the doors swung open. It was now or never. Genis swallowed the last dregs of his pride, hung his head, and spit out the horrible words.

"Zelos, I... I need your help." Genis kept his eyes glued to the floor, disgusted with himself, so he missed the Chosen's surprise and the mischievous grin that followed; but he wasn't spared from the satisfied chuckle that accompanied it.

"It's about time." Zelos gloated. "I'm glad you finally realize the genius of the Great Zelos Wilder." The little half-elf's ears tinged red and he clenched his fists.

"Sh-shut up." He ground out, still sullenly refusing to meet Zelos's eyes.

"Now, now... You're asking for a favor, aren't you? Be nice." Zelos leaned back against the doorframe and crossed his arms, briefly entertaining the idea of making the brat apologize and ask for his help again, maybe with a 'please, Great Mr. Zelos, sir' this time, but quickly dismissed it. Even if the kid was a little snot, it was obviously taking everything Genis had to stand there and ask at all. It wouldn't hurt to give the kid a break just this once. He stepped back from the door and motioned for Genis to follow. "Come on in, twerp. Tell me what's on your mind."

- X -

"You're sure that'll work?" Genis sat across from Zelos on the plush rug in front of the master bedroom's enormous slate fireplace. The crushing sense of defeat and gnawing anxiety he felt in the hall was still present, only muted slightly by curiosity and Zelos' unexpected, relatively kind treatment.

"Listen brat, I know girls. That's why you came to me, right?" Genis sighed and nodded, prompting Zelos to continue. "Trust me. If you want things to go well with Presea, forget she's a cute girl and just hang out with her." He steepled his fingers and thought for a moment. "Here's what you should do: Presea's going to have errands to run tomorrow since we're here in the city. Ask if you can go with her. Then the next time we're in Altamira, ask if she wants to get something to eat. Nothing romantic, just find ways to spend time together and really get to know her. Think you can do that?"

"Yeah, sure. But..." Zelos raised an eyebrow, silently asking 'But what?' "I don't get it. Why're you being so nice? I thought you would just make fun of me, but you're actually being helpful. It's weird..."

Zelos laughed. It was the same darkly gloating laugh from before in the hall, but this time Genis saw the evil grin that lurked behind it. Together they promised a future of indescribable torment.

"Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm going to tease you about this for the rest of your life." Zelos chuckled again and waited for Genis' consternation to die down into irked resignation. "Actually, I'm being so incredibly generous with my expert advice for Presea's sake. She just got her emotions back and I don't want her first relationship to end up being a painful experience, got it? If you're going to go after my Little Rosebud, you'd better treat her right!"

"What?" This time Genis jumped to his feet, hands balled into tiny fists, and glared indignantly across the rug at Zelos. "I'd never do anything to hurt Presea!"

"Maybe not on purpose, but face it twerp, you've got no experience dealing with girls. You don't know what hurts, and if you mess up and do the wrong thing on accident, that's it. So," Zelos sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, a gesture that reminded Genis of Kratos whenever Lloyd's training took an unexpected, and often exasperating, turn. "If you have any questions or need more advice, come back and ask before you do something dumb. I'll help you out."

Silence filled the room, broken only by the crackle of flames and an occasional pop from the logs in the fireplace, as the two tried to come to terms with what Zelos had just offered. Fully aware that he'd left his mouth hanging wide open in shock, Genis closed it, gulped, and started to speak, but was interrupted by Zelos before he could get the words out.

"Don't ask me why. I haven't got a clue either. Let's just say it's for Presea and leave it at that, okay?"

"Yeah, that probably makes more sense..." The permission to pick Zelos' philandering brain at his caprice... It wasn't at all what Genis had expected and, while he hated to put himself more in the Chosen's debt, to have a resource like that at his disposal... "Zelos... Thanks."

Zelos smiled- Well, smirked- And waved it off, his 'What am I doing? I'm going to hate myself for this later' expression lightening considerably.

"Yeah, yeah. Now go get some sleep. Little kids shouldn't be up this late, especially when they've got errands to run tomorrow. After all, it's rude to pass out in the middle of a date."

Zelos had a point. He needed to be well-rested if he was going to keep up with Presea , but...

"It's not a date! Presea and I are just hanging out." Genis turned and headed for the doors before he could notice Zelos' smile widen.

'That's the spirit. Good luck, twerp!'


AN: (Takes a deep, calming breath) I'm not breaking my rules. Really, I'm not. Genis' crush on Presea is canon. It's canon and secondary. Totally not a pairing. Pure canon...