Be My Hope, Be My Light

A/N: Wow! People not liking what happened last time huh? Cant blame ya guys, I hate myself when I do this to our favorite couple as well but alas, the plot demands drama! This time we also have drama but I hope it ends with everyone here happy. Pretty please!

Disclaimer: I do not own Square Enix or Final Fantasy.

Chapter 22: I Won't Leave You

"Hope?"

She doesn't truly want to be with me.

"Hope?"

She's embarrassed to be with me.

"Hope!" Lightning said aloud and it was enough to cast Hope out of his thoughts.

"Sorry Light, it's just…work..yeah, work has been really stressful." He lied and Lightning knew straight away but she didn't bother to dwell too much on it.

If there was something wrong, he would tell me.

"Don't push yourself too much Director." Lightning added in a slight playful manner, hoping to change the strange atmosphere between them but to no avail.

"I'll try." Hope kept his eyes fixed on the documents in his hands instead of the woman sitting across the desk. They didn't get enough time alone together and just when they do, Hope is trapped in an inner turmoil and Lightning is desperately trying to figure out what's wrong. Feeling that her efforts weren't accomplishing anything today, she decided to leave.

"I'll see you later then, okay?" Hope didn't answer, not only confusing Lightning but also hurting her a bit inside.

I don't get it. What's wrong with him?

"More like what's wrong with you?" The unknown voice mocked her. The unknown was another word for enemy in Lightning's book and so she drew her gunblade and swiftly swung backwards and pointed it at the man's neck. "You aren't a people person huh?"

"Who are you? I wont ask twice." Lightning threatened. The man used his forefinger to turn away the gunblade from his neck and smirked.

"It's a pleasure to meet you ice queen, oh so cold of heart. My name is…" He snapped his fingers and transported the both of them to a place where they could be alone. Lightning recognized the surroundings as identical to the one Death had trapped her in the nightmare not too long ago.

This isn't good.

"I am Pain." He reappeared behind her and whispered in her ear. She swung her blade back but found nothing. He reappeared a safe distance infront of her.

Pain? He must be the one Death talked about. I remember even Death was afraid of him. I need to beat him fast before….

"Before what? I kill your friends?" Pain finished her thoughts. "I really don't get what he sees in you."

"What are you trying to say?"

"Relax honey! Just a bit of a discussion between enemies, no harm, no foul." Lightning sighed and drew back her gunblade but remained cautious.

"Get to the point."

"You do realize that Death, an enemy all your friends combined were barely able to beat was afraid of me and yet…" Pain folded his arms across his chest and tilted his head. "You would rather face me head on rather than go back to your friends for help, isn't that stupid?"

"That's your opinion." Lightning countered.

"Yes, mine and Hope's" Hope's name struck a chord and Pain knew it. "He also thinks that you should rely more on him and the others and yet you cast them aside like trash."

"That is not true!" Lightning shouted.

"Oh really? Face it honey, you have been playing sweet little Hope like a fiddle."

I've been playing him?

"I would never do that."

"But you already have and he doesn't love you anymore, well not as strongly as before." Lightning felt insulted and was going to draw her blade once again but Pain continued. "And you know it." Lightning stopped dead in her tracks.

"You..you don't know anything." Pain laughed maniacally.

"There it is! That hesitation in your words proves me right! Ofcourse I know it! I am Pain! I feel all kinds of pain and I gotta say, its been a while since I felt the pain of heartbreak." Lightning took a few steps back in shock. Pain disappeared and reappeared above Lightning as he floated around. "Oh and now I am feeling the pain of regret from you. How sweet, you don't know what you did but now you know that whatever it was, you hurt him and hurting him hurts you."

"Sh-shut up." Lightning said, barely audible.

"Even as we speak, Hope is crying in the inside. Really pathetic for a grown man to cry but you know something is definitely wrong when a grown man cries." Pain continued to mock her.

"Shut up."

"He is actually considering that he wasted his time on you! Oh this is getting good!" Pain was actually enjoying this. "Let's see, he thinks you don't really love him, Ouch! That has to hurt." Lightning didn't attack Pain because she wanted to listen to what he had to say regarding Hope but more accurately, she felt guilty and felt like Pain's words were her punishment. "Oh boy o boy! Remind me to make him as my next vessel, this guy is a pure gold mine of pain!"

"I will kill you if you even try!" Lightning shouted but Pain laughed.

"That's the spirit! Now run along and find me, seek me out." Pain faded away and the world around Lightning started to disintegrate. "I wont be too far away, just a few miles off what you people pass for a sanctuary these days." Pain's voice continued to echo till Lightning was freed and found herself back in the hallway.

I have to stop him!

Lightning gave one last look at the door to Hope's office before she left.

I'm sorry.

She made her way out of the front gate and told the patrol soldiers that she was out on a mission from the Director. Once she had them fooled, Lightning walked towards a cliff and looked at Bhunivelze Haven from the distance.

Should I have called the others for help?

Lightning didn't want to put the others in danger, especially Serah. She cared about the others but she was never good at showing it.

"Going somewhere?" The voice sent a chill down her spine. Lightning was afraid of facing him right now. She slowly turned around and faced him.

"Hope, what are you doing here?" Hope looked at her with spite.

"Do you enjoy trying to get yourself killed?" Hope spat at her with venom in his words. Lightning was shocked. He knew.

"How did you…" Hope pointed at the base of his collar and though she couldn't see it on Hope, Lightning looked at her own collar and found a small chip. She guessed it was a recorder. "You planted this on me!" Lightning responded in anger."How dare you spy on me! You broke my trust!"

"You of all people don't get to lecture me on trust." Hope countered. Lightning glared but it had no effect. She stomped towards Hope, looked him in the eyes and slapped him across the face. It stung but Hope didn't care. Lightning walked past him but Hope wouldn't let her go that easily. "You really don't like me, do you?" Lightning stopped and let out a sigh.

"We will talk about this later." Hope immediately grabbed her wrist, preventing her escape.

"No! Lets talk now." Hope looked at her with rage, disgust but also sorrow. "Don't you trust us enough to watch your back?"

Don't you trust me?

"It's not like that." Hope tightened his grip as he found the answer unsatisfactory.

"You don't trust me. In fact, you are ashamed of me." Lightning's eyes widened.

How could you even think that?

"You didn't want the others to know about us. Quite frankly, I am doubting you ever wanted 'us'." Hope voiced his thoughts. "That means you are embarrassed to be with me."

"You're being crazy. I don't have time for this!" Lightning pulled away from him by force and turned around. She tried to walk away but a Firaga exploded in front of her.

"You are not going alone!" Hope shouted.

"Why are you being so difficult!" Lightning shouted back.

"You need my help! You cant take him on alone!" Hope tried to reason with her.

"I don't need you!" There was a pregnant silence. Lightning immediately regretted her words when she saw the look on Hope's face. "Hope! I didn't mean that!" Hope averted his face and looked down the ground. His heart was crushed. Her words had left a hole in his heart. Hope looked back at her with fire in his eyes. He would fill the hole with hate. Hope used Thundara and Lightning barely dodged it but the sparks had scraped her legs. Lightning drew her gunblade and looked at Hope with pleading eyes. "Hope, please. Don't do this!" Hope didn't care and used a Blizzaga as a chunk of ice fell upon her but she skillfully got out of the way. She ran towards Hope, hoping to knock him out but he used Stopaga. Time was brought to a standstill but Hope was fine. He walked towards her frozen figure and slapped her across the face. When the effect of Stopaga had worn off, Lightning grabbed her cheek in pain.

"If you want to go and face Pain…." Hope let out a shockwave, forcing Lightning a few feet back. "You will have to go through me." Hope charged his hands with magical aura. His right hand glowed blue with thunder while his left glowed red with fire. Lightning couldn't believe what was happening.

Why did it have to turn out like this?

"Hope, I'm sorry. Please, don't do this." Lightning prepared her weapon.

"Your apologies are worthless! I see now that I cant reason with you. So…" Hope let out a Firaga and Thundaga simultaneously. "I will beat some sense into you!" Lightning dodged the Firaga but there was no way she could avoid the Thundaga however she used her blade as a conductor and absorbed it. "You know what I think?" Hope walked towards her while his hands prepared another spell. "I think you slept with me out of pity." Lightning couldn't believe what she had just heard.

How…how could you say that?

"Hope…how could you?" Lightning clutched her heart, as if his words had wounded it. Hope however looked blankly at her, waiting for her next move. Lightning couldn't fight on after hearing Hope's words. She decided to run away but Hope wouldn't allow it. He used another spell to turn the field into a ring of fire, preventing any escape. Lightning looked back and saw Hope walk through the ring of fire.

"It makes sense doesn't it? My feelings weren't enough! It took five hundred years and a near death experience for you to accept me. It's like you…you felt sorry for me and gave in. How pathetic was I to think you could ever love me!" Hope used Ruinga this time and it met its mark. Lightning fell to the ground while Hope slowly walked closer to her. Lighting pulled herself up from the dirt, ignoring the pain of the spell but not the pain of his words.

"I do love you!" Lightning confessed. She didn't know what else she could say. If Lightning thought her words would calm Hope down, she was gravely mistaken. Hope lunged at her and used his palm in a forward thrust to knock away her weapon and used his other hand to grab her collar.

"Liar!" He pulled Lightning closer so their faces were mere breaths away. "Then why didn't you want the others to know?" Hope demanded. "Why?!" Hope shouted in her face. Uncharacteristic of her, Lightning started to cry and though her tears did make Hope reconsider his actions, they weren't enough. Hope threw her away. "I give up!" Hope threw his hands in the air. "You were a waste of my time." Hope attempted to turn away however he was struck by a punch to the face, knocking him down.

"How dare you!" Lightning screamed. Hope immediately got up and gave a punch of his own as Lightning staggered back.

"What else am I supposed to think?!" Hope shouted back. "That's it!" Hope moved sideways. "I've had it!" He picked up Lightning's gunblade and aimed at his own head. He pulled the trigger but Lightning tackled him to the ground so the gunshot missed him. Lightning was on top of him and used a barrage of punches on his face.

"How could you even do that!" She continued her fury. "How could you even think of leaving me alone like that!"

"What else am I supposed to do!" His tears began to pour out while Lightning's own fell on his face. "Mom…Dad…you…all of my happiness was taken away from me! What else do I have left? I loved you! Damn it! I loved you and all I get is a broken heart." Lightning buried her head in his chest and hugged him tightly.

"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry…I'm…" She continued to apologize while she cried in his chest. "Don't leave me alone."

"Then don't leave me alone by going on a suicide mission!" Hope shouted as he wrapped his own arms around her and held on tightly. "Now you know how it feels! Watching the person you love go and try to risk their own life without a care in the world. What would I do if you died?!" Hope tightened his hold around her. "Use me if you want, treat me like trash…just…just don't go and fight alone." Hope begged.

"I didn't want the others to know because it would change things." Lightning spoke between sobs. "It would change things for everyone. I didn't want Fang, Vanille or anyone else try to steal you away from me so I wanted things to remain as they were. I didn't want to fight with them and I didn't want to lose you." Lightning confessed.

"How could you even think like that!" Hope sounded hurt. "Don't you trust me?"

"I trust you and Serah the most. I just don't trust myself." Hope was confused but allowed Lightning to continue while they lied on the ground. "I screw things up Hope. I don't consider everyone's feelings and end up hurting them, just like you right now. You will hate me like you do now and leave me. Serah will move away with Snow and I would have nothing! I…I would be alone and you…." Hope silenced her with a kiss.

"Now's your chance." Fear emerged from the ground and told Pain as he watched the scene miles away. Pain had witnessed everything that had happened between Hope and Lightning from the beginning. He was looking forward to making Lightning suffer but now he didn't feel like it.

"Let's go." Pain turned around. "I'm not interested anymore."

"That isn't like you." Fear voiced his thoughts. Pain turned around and gave one last glance in the pair's direction.

"Yuko! Don't leave me! Please!" He begged but it was no use.

"Don't leave me alone! I have nothing in this world without you!" He shook her body but there was no response. The girl was left in a pool of her own blood. The man could do nothing but cry.

"Yuko!" The man shouted into the heavens but all he got was rain.

"Yeah whatever." Pain disappeared and Fear followed.

Lightning's eyes widened when Hope sealed his lips with hers. She couldn't believe it. She pulled away from him to break the kiss.

"Hope..why are you…" She couldn't finish as Hope claimed her lips once again. This time Lightning closed her eyes and kissed back. She loved him and that wouldn't change. She was always afraid of getting too close only to be left alone but Hope was always there. He wouldn't leave her. She felt stupid for not realizing it sooner.

"I only have you." Hope confessed as he buried his head in her chest. "Please…don't leave me."

"I won't…Never again." She promised as she wrapped her arms around his head and embraced him.

Lightning realized that Hope had always told her that he wouldn't leave her alone. With every smile, with every kiss, with every embrace…Hope was silently telling her:

You don't have to be afraid anymore.
I won't leave you.
I promise

A/N: Hopefully all of you enjoyed that!...And by that I meant the ending. So now Hope and Lightning have voiced their fears and this will help them as a couple and make their bond stronger. Why? Cuz the almighty writer says so! XD Seriously guys, I love them as a couple and yeah I do bad things to them but its for the plot! All the arguments and fights are merely the foundations for a touching reconciliation. So, will Lightning tell Serah about her relationship with Hope? What's up with Pain? Will Hope get threats from Serah? XD Keep reading to find out! R & R as always.