They've changed since the fall of Cocoon. Serah was never so wise nor Snow prone to introspection. And Hope… Sometimes, when she looks at him, she swears she sees another person looking back.

It's been two years since the soul migration. Waking in the new world alone, Lightning makes little attempt to find the others. Learning that Hope sent a reporter looking for her she finally decided to see him.

Prequel to Coalescence. Born anew, Lightning wants nothing more than a normal life with a dash of companionship. Hope is all too happy to oblige, but she hasn't accounted for the aftereffects of his and her past traumas – and the fact that he'd carried a millennium-long torch for her. Older Hope/Lightning. Post-LR. Multi-chapter, ongoing.

Oneshot, slight AU. He's not the kid he used to be, and she's starting to see that now.