nauticalreverie: Don't worry, I never give up on writing these things. Sometimes, the inspiration just takes a little while to find me. :3

-Rachel


"I can't believe you're leaving already!" Serah pouted, she hated the idea of Lightning not staying a moment longer. Had it been a week, already? It seemed like Lightning had only been there a few hours, let alone seven days. A week was just far too short for a 'visit' especially when you hadn't seen your sister in a few years.

Lightning couldn't resist a small smile and laugh, "I'll be back in a month, and you know you can video call me whenever you want- within reason." she quickly added in the last part, so Serah wouldn't end up calling her in the middle of the night. Now when Serah called should Hope stay out of the background and vice-versa so Snow/Serah wouldn't catch on? Would it really seem 'suspicious' given their history and close friendship? Plus, if need be the cover story on that could be Hope was helping her to find a new job. It was simple, and believable.

"Don't worry sis, we will." Snow grinned, wrapping his arm around Lightning and Serah's shoulders, looking from one Farron girl to the other.

Reflexively, Lightning almost said 'I'm not your sister' for old time sake, but now didn't seem the time- it'd only end up ruining the moment. Truth be told, that old sentiment didn't fit their relationship dynamic anymore- Snow actually felt like family, and there was absolutely no one else Lightning would ever hand Serah over to. "Serah, would you mind giving up a second?" Lightning asked.

"Uh, sure..." Serah gave an almost blank look, gazing from Snow to Lightning before walking out of the room.

"Something the matter?" Snow asked, a questioning look on his face.

"Not really." Lightning shook her head, looking up at the taller man, pausing for what seemed like an eternity. "I know that a very long time ago, I was temperamental when it came down to you calling me 'sis' or 'sister'...but I want you to know, that I'm fine with it, now." maybe it was one of those things that 'went without saying' but she wasn't actually sure. Snow always had a strong personality and tended to do whatever he wanted, regardless of how people reacted, and that may have been why all those centuries ago they butted heads so often.

Snow had been really quiet after hearing Lightning's words, his silence was honestly making her uncomfortable. Willing him to say or do anything, she just wanted the awkward moment/tension to be gone. "This is really it, huh, us becoming a family?" Snow asked, smiling at Lightning, inwardly wondering if he should hug her or not.

"I guess so." Lightning nodded, "What do you...want me to call you?" she averted her eyes for a moment, the subject wasn't one she was particularly fond of, but Snow did deserve a say in what she called him from now on. It wasn't that she didn't include him as family, or that she hadn't thought about the notion of calling him 'brother'- in fact, it made her proud to have someone like him joining their family. Even if it meant Serah would no longer be a 'Farron', maybe it was time they let go of their past. Their parents would have loved to have been here for this day, and it was a shame that they'd never be able to see Serah's special day.

"Alright, come here." Snow pulled Lightning in for a hug, stepping back from the gesture, he laughed a bit. "Call me whatever you want. You don't have to call me 'brother' you can just say 'Snow' if you want." scratching the back of his head, he grinned at Lightning a bit. She wasn't one to enjoy physical contact and in the heat of the moment Snow had completely forgotten that fact.

Decidedly, Lightning knew that Snow would love to hear her call him 'brother', and maybe she'd test it out right now. "You take care of her, you hear me?"

"Hey, it's not like I plan to do anything else!" Snow's grin didn't fade at all.

He was still so cocky. "No brother of mine is going to be a deadbeat."

That word didn't seem to register with Snow at first, but once it did, Lightning swore she'd never seen him like this before. Maybe when she'd given her blessing on Pulse for Serah and him to be married, but even then it didn't seem to come close. "Don't worry sis, I've got this."

"I believe you." Lightning smiled, "Now how about you take me to the airport? I have a plane to catch."

"Sure. We just gotta get Serah and then we'll be on our way." Snow exited the room for a moment, returning with the younger Farron sister.

"Just what were you two talking about?" Serah asked, wondering what could possibly have been so important that she had to exit the room altogether. Knowing Lightning, it could range from almost quite literally anything.

"That if he ever hurt you or made you cry I'd beat him all the way from here to Pulse." Lightning spoke in a completely serious manner.

"Oh." Serah completely believed her sister, it seemed like a Lightning thing to do.

Snow couldn't resist a small laugh at Serah believing Lightning, "Not that I'd ever let such a thing happen."

"You better not. Don't think I'll be too embarrassed to hit you in front of a whole wedding party, either." Lightning chided him, though the two of them were making it seem completely believable to Serah, they were in fact kidding. Ruin her sister's wedding day? Lightning would never resort to that. It had after all been an occasion she'd wanted to see for over a thousand years.

Serah shook her head, sighing softly but still smiling at Snow and Lightning. "Oh! Don't we have to get going?" she glanced at the clock, seeing they were running out of time.

"You're right." Lightning needed to be at the airport to endure more lost time for flight protocols and things she didn't really care enough about to understand.

"Let's get to it." Snow led the sisters from the house to the car, letting the two of them banter through the ride. He enjoyed listening to Serah and Lightning speak about her at home life. Serah honestly just couldn't get enough details on her big sister, and how she lived back at home. Lightning explained that she wanted to find a job that suited her needs, and didn't feel like a means of survival. Truth be told, it was like Cocoon all over again, Guardian Core.

It felt like no time had passed in those situations, that she was still that angry twenty one year old, fighting and taking her anger out on Snow. It wasn't because he deserved it, but because she needed an outlet for her anger, and he gave Serah things that she couldn't in that time- support, love, faith, and everything in between. Lightning didn't want to go back to her old ways, of shutting down and not saying how she really felt, just going along with what was convenient. She didn't have the luxury of another thousand years if she went under, like before. That's how long it took, for her to shed a single tear. Lumina helped her to see the light, along with the false Serah.

"Lightning." Serah tried to call to her sister, to let her know that they were at the airport, but it seemed like she was stuck in her thoughts.

"I think she's zoned out." Snow chuckled, "Hang on, I'll snap her out of it." climbing out of the drivers seat he walked over to Lightning's door and opened it, "Ready?" he asked.

"What are you plotting?" Serah asked skeptically.

"I shout her name from this end, and you do it from that one." Snow grinned.

"Snow, I don't think-" but Serah couldn't convince him otherwise.

"3...2...1... go! Lightning!" Snow shouted her name, causing the older Farron to instantly punch him in the throat.

"Snow!" Serah called out his name, full of concern when she saw the blonde male fall to the ground.

Lightning blinked, seeing him fall. "What were you doing!? Are you okay!?" a person couldn't just decide to sneak up on someone with military training. Serah and Lightning helped him up, while Snow regained his breath.

"Definitely...not...gonna...do that...again." Snow wheezed out.

"Are you alright?" Lightning asked, seeing him slowly nod and wince, she didn't completely believe him.

"It serves you right- you shouldn't have done that." Serah said pointedly, frowning at Snow.

"Sorry." Snow apologized to both women.

"Me too- I mean, I'm sorry, too." Lightning explained, "But I have to get going, I'm late- and you two need to get planning. I'll call you as soon as I get home, alright?" she looked from Snow to Serah, smiling before hugging her sister and brother-to-be.

"Come back soon." Serah already didn't want Lightning to leave.

"I'll be back in a month. You won't even know that I'm gone." Lightning promised, smiling at her sister as she pulled out of the hug. "Goodbye, Serah." she took her luggage inside the airport, waved to Snow and Serah from the doors and couldn't have felt happier. Feeling the buzzing of her phone, Lightning answered it, "Hey, Hope."

"Hey, Light! How's it going?" Hope sounded absolutely chipper, maybe because the seven days that she was gone were up, and returning home within a few hours.

"I'm glad to hear you're happy enough for the both of us." Lightning commented, going through security checks and making her way to the seats people tended to wait in for their flights. Letting loose a sigh, she wasn't up for this. Why couldn't Hope and she have lived closer to Snow and Serah? Maybe she should have asked him to come along, that way she wouldn't have to go through all of this alone.

"I take it the return trip is something you've absolutely been dreading?" Hope asked, a tad bit concerned.

"It is." Lightning couldn't resist another long sigh, "If only there was some way I could skip all of the time this would take and be home right now. At least then I could be with you."

"It won't be long now, and I can't wait until you comeback. It feels like far too long." Hope was trying to keep her spirits up, he didn't want Lightning to be down when she came back, or angry because of yet another terrible flight home.

"Yeah." Lightning agreed, "What are you doing right now? Are you at work?"

"Yes, but I have plenty of free time. I'm currently in my office, grading papers. Plus, my TA is helping me to grade some, so I have spare time to speak with you. Occasionally a student or two may end up dropping by asking for some one on one time, but I can manage to both talk to you and help them. Hypothetically speaking, of course."

"You really like to keep a full schedule." Lightning enjoyed hearing him speak every so often in the background to his TA. Speaking out scientific formulas and correcting a few papers.

"I like to think that you're worth it." Hope didn't mind setting aside time for Lightning, in fact, it was one of the best parts of his day. He always looked forward to speaking with her, even before all of this had started. Not that he'd ever said it aloud, but she made every aspect of his day better, somehow. Scientifically, he could explain every aspect of it, but knowing the mechanics of something as opposed to actually going through it was completely different.

"Alright, now I can't wait to get home." Lightning honestly couldn't think of anything better. But impatience right now wasn't going to help anything, especially when she boarded the plane and ended up trapped in a nightmare.

"I'll try to have everything done before you get home." Hope promised, "It's only a few hours, right?"

"Trade places with me, it'll make the ten centuries we've been alive seem like a cake-walk."

"Is it really that bad?"

"In a month, you'll find out."

"At least we'll be on the same flight, that's gotta be a plus, right?"

"Definitely. From now on, I'm not taking anymore flights unless you're with me."

"It's a promise." even though they both knew his schedule was absolutely hectic, they never really took flights to begin with. And, despite it all, they could barely make it through a week without the other.

"Good."

Lightning and Hope chatted for the entire remainder of her wait time, even up to the moment she had to shut off her phone. She did her best to not come off as obnoxious, but Hope had been her only form of reprieve and savoring every last second she had to speak with him was hard. Watching the in-flight movie wasn't in her best interest, nor was listening to the engines of the plane. Thankfully, she was tired and had the window seat, so she did her best to try and fall asleep. Occasionally the plane would hit a little turbulence and cause her head to bounce on the side a little. At least it was a problem easily solved by placing a pillow underneath her head.

Willing sleep to take her, she tried for what felt like hours.

Opening her eyes, she frowned in annoyance. To her surprise, the captain came on and explained that everyone should make sure their seatbelts were buckled and to all calmly wait their turn to get off the plane. It was confusing, she felt like she hadn't gotten any sleep at all. If this was a dream, she was about to get extremely annoyed. Waiting patiently, she got off at the earliest she could possibly manage. Making her way through the airport, she was surprised to see Hope.

The moment his eyes fell upon her, a big smile spread across his face. "Lightning!" he called and waved to her, striding over to the woman.

Lightning swore she'd never seen him move so fast in her entire life. Despite how silly the two of them may have looked, she rushed over to him. She wasn't sure who started the hug, but it was clear that both of them had really missed one another. "I'm back."

"You're home." Hope corrected her, smiling down at the pink haired woman.

"Speaking of- I need to get over to the baggage claim." Lightning didn't want to stay in the airport for a moment more then she had to.

"Let's go." Hope walked side by side with Lightning, the two eventually holding hands. It was already so great to have Lightning back home. Watching the rotating bags until Lightning's showed up, he was honestly just happy to be by her side again.

"There it is!" Lightning couldn't believe how excited she was over something so trivial and small like a suitcase. But it got her out of this airport, and even that thought was exciting. A month more, and then she'd be doing this again- thankfully, with Hope. Letting go of his hand, she walked over and grabbed her bag, "Let's go."

Hope smiled and nodded, "Okay." leading her through the crowds of people, the two eventually made it to the main front doors. "The car's right over there." he pointed in its direction, walking with Lightning. "Let me get that." Hope grabbed her bag and put it in the back, opening her door for her as well.

"Thanks." Lightning climbed in the car, shutting the door for herself. It was nice to be back.

"No problem." Hope started the car and began to drive them home, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel while they waited behind more eager travelers leaving the airport. Eventually, he did side glance over at Lightning, "What is it, Light?" he asked, unsure why she had been staring at him for so long.

"I'm just...glad to be home." Lightning admitted, "It's not that I didn't enjoy my time with Serah and Snow- but the whole time I couldn't help but think I should be here, that somehow, it felt more like my place." she didn't know how to rephrase it, so she didn't come off as ungrateful for her visit. Serah was in good hands with Snow, and, it seemed like she didn't have a place anymore, staying with the two of them. Her sister needed to live her life, and like Snow said, Lightning had to move forward in her own, have some happiness that she was due in life. Though Serah had offered for Lightning to live with them, she had to turn down that offer. Snow insisted that it was perfectly fine with him, she didn't want to intrude upon the newly married couple, and, she had a life here, with Hope.

"I'm glad." Hope smiled, "Don't get me wrong, Light- I don't mean that I feel relief at the notion that you disliked your time with Serah and Snow to a certain degree. But I like that you enjoy being back here...with me." part of him thought she may actually end up liking her stay with those two, and think of relocating. Maybe it was a childish thing, to want to monopolize all of her time, even if they were dating- it wasn't a feasible assumption to believe all of her time to be his.

"Somehow, I find that I can't ever really be away from you, for long." not even on Cocoon, Pulse, Valhalla, or Nova Chrysallia- she always eventually found her way back to Hope. To be absolutely honest, she never thought that fourteen year old boy she ran into, almost got killed by her Eidolon Odin, would ever end up being the one person she decided to share her life with. It was strange how fate played with your life like that. However, knowing all of the 'coincidences' in her life were all brought on by the Goddess, Etro, she felt a great amount of gratitude toward the deceased Goddess. Were it not for her, she never would have met Hope, and, maybe, she would have ended up another casualty in the war against l'Cie. Maybe she would have killed Fang, and Vanille. Lightning didn't want to think of that dystopian time where she never went through all of those experiences that she did with the chosen six.

Bound by fate, one singular brand that would forever have them all considered a 'family'.

"I never like being away from you either, Light." Hope didn't know how to explain it to her. "Actually, I never knew how lonely I was, until you entered my life. And I don't just mean on this world, either. On Cocoon I was contented being the smart kid in class, even if that comes off completely as me seeming callous- I was different. Kids would abstain from being my friend, due to the fact that I focused on grades as opposed to social obligations. I felt isolated, and save for my mother, I felt completely alone. My father worked alot, and I mistook it as neglect. When I met you for the first time, Light, you gave me a purpose. Even if it was just a falsified grudge against Snow so that I could go on, you made it so that I could continue living. And all of those centuries later, I found a job in science, studying all the varying ways to save Fang, Vanille, you and...looking for ways to save my mother."

Seeing his grip around the wheel tighten a bit, Lightning placed her hand over his, not knowing any other way to comfort him. "We made each other better, that's what counts, Hope. We're partners, remember?" she smiled and did her best to make light of the situation. It was clear that there was still some unsettled feelings, as Hope wanted to talk about these kinds of things. And, if need be, then she'd absolutely discuss every detail that he wanted to. Preferably at home, when they weren't on the road and when Hope didn't need to focus on more than one task. By now, Lightning knew that he could effectively multi-task, but she still didn't want to risk any real chance of them running off the road because they decided to bring up the past.

"You're right..." Hope laughed lightly, smiling softly. His grip relaxed on the wheel, and a few minutes of silence lingered in the air before they were both back home. Popping the trunk, he retrieved her luggage for her.

Lightning climbed out of the car and followed Hope inside. Inspecting the place upon her entry, she was pleasantly surprised. "No mess. You really did make good on that promise you made to me."

"You could have at least a little faith in me, Light!" Hope did enjoy her praise, it made him feel as if he had done something right.

"You're right." Lightning pat him on the head, "Good job."

"Thank you." although he didn't admit it out loud, he had enjoyed that small display of affection. "It's getting late, do you want to turn in?"

"I think that'd be best." despite not yet eating dinner, Lightning didn't feel hungry. "I'm going to have a quick shower, and then I think I'll be going to bed."

"Okay." Hope nodded, "There's clean towels in the bathroom."

"Alright, I'm impressed." Lightning teased him lightly, walking into the bathroom. Hearing Hope laugh as she shut the door, she couldn't resist a smile. Running the water, she waited for it to be just the right temperature, and stepped in. Being able to use your own bathroom from within your own home felt indescribably amazing. Somehow, it just felt completely unnatural use someone elses. Maybe she was crazy for feeling like that, but she couldn't help it.

Hope waited on the couch, for Lightning to finish. He'd already brought her suitcase in the bedroom, so there was nothing else to do on his end- not that he could think of. A few minutes went by, but he was patient. Hearing the door open, he looked over, to find Lightning in just a towel. Averting his eyes, trying to seem like he wasn't peeking at her, he looked out the sliding glass doors, finding anything to draw his attention. Lightning made her way to the living room and stood in front of Hope, staring down at him. "L-Light?" Hope again looked away, he didn't want her to think he was some sort of pervert.

"Alright, it's your turn." Lightning said in a very serious manner.

"What do you mean...my turn?" Hope asked, staring blankly up at her. "If you mean a shower- then I already had one..."

Lightning shook her head, "Remember I did something for you, before I left?"

"I don't-" Hope was drawing a blank, until it hit him. "Y-you want me to..." instantly finding himself embarrassed at that notion, he felt his cheeks getting hot. His ears had also started burning, and he wasn't sure how to refuse in this situation.

"I'm kidding." Lightning laughed, "It was a joke. But I'm going to bed. Are you coming?"

"Sure..." Hope felt a tad bit gullible, letting her easily get to him, like that.

"Come on." Lightning grabbed his hands and made him follow her to the bedroom. It was refreshing to be around him, again, seeing him do everything in his power to try and not look at her. "I don't mind, you know." she pointed out, "Believe me, if I hated you staring, then I would have made it very clear from the get go."

"Even if you say that..." Hope still felt uneasy.

"It's fine." Lightning assured him. Deciding to try and put him at ease, and also point out that it was, in fact, okay, she dropped her towel to the floor. Despite her intentions, Hope had turned his head away. "I wait a week to come back, and you won't even look at me." she decided to feign being hurt, a tactic that Serah said she could use at her disposal.

"But-" Hope tried to argue, though he found it all to be in vain.

Lightning sighed softly to herself, it was clear that she couldn't change his mind on the matter. Taking one of his shirts to wear, she put on underwear and walked over to the bed. "All finished. See?" she showed him the baggy shirt, waving her arms for the added effect.

"Uh...yeah." Hope nodded, looking up at Lightning. Her hair was still a little damp, the shirt was more like a dress from how it dangled down to her mid-thighs, the sleeves slinking beneath her shoulders. Lightning wearing his clothes was something Hope never really thought of, before. She looked beautiful in anything she wore, regardless of if she thought so.

"What? Do I look strange?" Lightning asked, looking down, "It's your shirt, you know?" she pointed out, putting her hands on her hips.

"You look beautiful."

"Alright, you asked for it." Lightning pushed him back on the bed, climbing on top of him, and kissing Hope chastely. "I missed you."

"Me too...I mean, I missed you, too." Hope corrected himself.

"Well, how about...we make up for our lost week?" Lightning asked.

It was embarrassing to say aloud, so Hope nodded to Lightning's request. If his mother knew that they couldn't even last a whole seven days being apart, Nora would start teasing Hope about 'wedding bells' and the fact that 'Lightning's a keeper'. Not to mention she brought up the fact that she wanted grandchildren on a daily basis, having met Lightning. He didn't know what their future was, or how things would turn out- but it didn't matter. So long as he and Lightning could be together, then nothing else seemed important.