Time didn't stop. With one day as pretty as the last one and no real meteorological change of seasons in Bodhum, it was only Lightning's growing secret that really told her how much time had and the progress in her relationship with Sephiroth and the growing pile of clothes and other things she'd brought from home accumulating in his beachhouse.
She was spending almost every night at his place now. Almost every night with him. Woke up beside him almost every morning, shared most of her meals with him, was spending most of her freetime with him and of course the weekends.
And it wasn't even half as bad as she'd have thought.
Living with the silver haired first class had turned out a pleasant series of peaceful mornings with hearty breakfasts, followed by shared chores, of long quiet walks on the beach, of shortlived superficial conflicts, readily resolved, and of passionate make ups following shortly after. A sweet succession of loving kisses and caring hugs and intense nights. A chronology of pretty pleasant days, one more beautiful than the other. A sequence of shared moments, bonding them, making the two of them slowly grow together.
All in all thigns couldn't have turned out any better.
Lightning was happy. Relieved really. Never had she expected things to work out this way and all by themselves. The worst of her pregnancy symptoms had passed too and she was feeling at peace, felt secure.
The beasts that had ravaged Bodhom for so many days in a row had not been seen again in weeks. The small coastal town stood as stable and proud as ever. Her job at the guardian corps had gone back to filling out files and pacing the promenades. And Sephiroth and her were getting along beautifully, even at the station.
But none of those things, as nice as they were, were stopping her food gravings or the crushing tiredness that would overcome her every now and then. Wasn´t keeping her breasts from growing sore, or her skin from stretching tightly above her ever growing belly.
Noone had noticed yet really. The subtle changes that had befallen her body. The growing secret she was carrying insde. Or secrets, rather. And she still hadn´t told anyone else yet. But still. After all this time it wasn´t her dirty tiny secret anymore. It was now their happy little secret. Their´s. Her´s and Sephiroth´s. Something the two of them shared together.
Sure, she would have to tell all the others sooner or later, she was aware. But she was in no hurry. Everything was good as it was. For once after such a long time she felt happy. Felt relaxed. Felt good exactly where she was. Just felt right.
They lay curled up on the couch together watching the last few rays of the autumn sun through the beach house's glass fronts as it sank beneath the gold glowing horizon.
She was lying half on top of him. With her hand on his chest and his face burried into her neck where his lips trailed tiny fluttery kisses on her pale soft skin.
They'd been spending a lot of time like that recently. Just spending time in each other's presence, just cuddling, lying close together, feeling each other's skin, listening to each other's heartbeat, letting their jenova cells connect.
It was a pleasant feeling, bliss.
Somehow Lightning could not get enough of it.
Her hand finding it's way into his hair, pensively working through the shiny strands, tugging at a loose knot, it made the man beneath her look up at her.
'I love you.' Lightning suddenly told him. Ice blue eyes sincere.
It was the first time that she'd said it and the words still felt unfamiliar on her lips.
Unfamiliar and new.
Still, she was certain it was true. Had never felt more sure about anything else in her entire life.
It made the silver haired first class stare at her in amazement.
He was opening his lips to speak, but Lightning silenced him with one slender index finger.
'I've been in love with you for quite some time now. Long before you came to Bodhum actually.' she admitted carefully.
'I never had the guts to tell you.'
The man beneath her looking up at her in awe, it made her heart flutter crazily.
'I love you and I want to be with you.' she repeated somewhat shyly, tasting those words on her lips again.
They felt unknwon, felt so new. Felt so good. So right. So beautiful.
'I'm so sorry I couldn't say it earlier.'
It was true. She had been in love with him for quite some time now. A ruthless fiery kind of love, one she couldn't have escaped, even if she wanted.
She had made some serious attempts, hadn't she?
She had.
Still. Somehow fate had always pulled her back, back to him.
Maybe she shouldn't have let him wait so long, maybe she should not have tried to push him away all the time.
He definitely hadn't deserved it. Any of it.
Well... Maybe a tiny little bit.
'I love you too.' the silver ahired first class whispered against her lips as he leaned forward for a gentle kiss.
It made her shiver pleasantly, made her skin erupt in goosebumps, as it always did when she felt his breath on her, his lips.
They pulled away just slightly to come down and touch her skin again at the corner of her mouth, her cheek, her jaw, making her hand come up into his hair again.
'It was you who sent me that flower right? Back in Midgar when I was in hospital?' Claire Farron began carefully as she nestled her face close to his.
It made the general pull slightly away again, so he could look into her eyes.
Big green mako eyes looking at her in surprise, Lightning couldn't help but let herself get lost in them.
'I thought you abandoned me. I thought you didn't care. You didn't even came to check on me. Not even once. I was hurt.' she whispered somewhat confusedly.
It was true, it made no sense.
He had send her that rose. He had saved her from impeding doom by submitting her to Hojo's experiments. He had been in love with her, he'd told her. Still. He'd never come to visit, not even on her brithday party.
'I sat with you every day in deepground. Every night. I came to watch you when you slept sometimes when you were in hospital, to make sure you were okay.' the silver haired man lying beneath her confessed.
It was Lightning's turn to look surprised now.
'Why didn't you ever speak up?' she asked, eyes full of surprise, full of confusion.
'I was scared.' the general admitted as he lifted one of his hands to tug away one of her stray bangs that had fallen into her face.
It left his pink haired female stare completely baffled.
Never would she have imagined the almighty general Sephiorth Crescent to be scared, least of all of something like this. And never would she have thought he would admit it. Not in a gazillion years.
Well... It turned out there were a lot of things about him that she would never have imagined. They seeemed to accumulate now, seemed to emerge more often.
It was one of the things she loved about him most.
That he wasn't like she would have thought at all. That beneath the cold composed killer mask, there was a man. A living breathing human being with a very fragile heart.
'I was scard to look into your eyes. Scared I would have to tell you the truth about what happened to you. Scared that you would hate me.' he continued in his low but gentle voice.
It made Claire Farron extend her staring contest.
Suddenly she felt perplex, felt bewildered.
Had he really felt that way, even back then? Him of all people?
Lightning almost could not believe it.
'It was my fault you were submitted to that treatment, to all those experiments. I'd thought you'd hate me for it. I definitely hated myself for it.' Sephiroth explained.
'I was stupid then. And proud. Too proud to admit I'd made a mistake. Lots of them actually.'
Silencing him with a single understanding gaze, the woman on top of him carefully reached up to touch his face.
She'd heard enough.
Sephiroth had loved her then. Had felt remorse, for things he had had only very little control over, for things that had been born of good intention, felt it still, and somehow she couldn't bear to see him suffer, not even a tiny little bit.
'You were always so cold so distanced.' she told him somewhat pensively as she let her fingers trace the soft line of his jaw.
'I am a differnet person now.' he promised, looking at her somewhat pleadingly.
'I know.' Lightning said as she leaned forward to kiss his forehead, his cheek, the corner of his lips.
I'd never thought you'd understand. I never thought you could forgive me.' the silver haired first class whispered, unable to believe his luck.
'Neither did I.' Lightning said sincerely.
'But I did.'
It was true. Incredible as it sounded, somewhere, over the past few weeks, those months, spend in Bodhum, miraculously, she had managed to forgive him, had managed to overcome her disappointment, her anger, and her hate, had managed to let go of her resentment, to feel grateful even.
Because, yes. All the things that had happened, all the things she had had to endure, all those horrors, they had led up to this exact point in time, where the two of them lay there together, legs entwined, staring into each other's eyes. They had let to her to still be alive, had led to Serah leading a happy normal life, had let to all of them living peacefully in Bodhum, had led to the two of them to be together. Had led to them being happy. And at the end of the day this was really all that counted. Wasn't it?
'I can't imainge a universe where things have turned out differently. I do not even want to.' Claire Farron uttered somewhat pensively.
'I can't imagine being with anybody else, or being without you.' she confessed as she looked into her lover's eyes.
'You won't need to.' the general assured her as he pulled her closer, pulled her into another kiss.
'I will always be here with you.'
It was the night of Bodhum´s famous fireworks displays. They´d gotten a table on the beach infront of the neighbourhood watch's clubhouse somewhere in the very front rows, where they sat now with Serah and Snow, Zack and Lebreau, all of them together picknicking on the food Lebreau had brought from work, while all the other's were busy watching the preperations for the big display from the small floating wooden jetty that extended a few meters into the sea, and they´d all watched with huge shining eyes when finally the first fiery sparks erupted in the sky.
They were pink and golden and red and green, shooting sparks of fire in the sky and they reminded Lightning of her time at Midgar, of the New Year's Eve fireworks displays, of that one time she'd watched them with Sephiroth alone on the top of that mountain from a far distance away.
You were supposed to make a wish, Lightning remembered. But she couldn´t think of anything she wanted next to all the things she already had.
Somehow, miraculously and against all odds, all her dreams had already become reality.
Her left tigh pressed against Sephiroth´s right underneath the table, she felt his fingers there as well, drawing soothing patterns onto the sensitive skin of her leg.
It was reaching downwards that she captured his hand in her's making him look up.
The evening had been filled with eyecontact and burning stares all over dinner until Zack and Lebreau had gotten up to watch the fireworks a little more privately and the silver haired man had had the opportunity sit right next to her.
It had been all secret touches to her belly, to her arms, her tighs beneath the tabletop from there. And it wasn´t until Serah and Snow got off to join Zack and Lebreau at the front that finally they were alone.
Genesis, Cloud, Fang and some guys from the neighbourhood watch were busy getting themselves drunk and Angeal Hewley was nowhere to be seen, leaving the two of them to cuddle at the bench in private.
'You are supposed to make a wish you know, when you watch the fireworks.' Lightning said, leaning closer to the man beside her, her lips brushing his earlobe and making his body shiver in return.
'So...What do you wish for?' the silver haired first class asked, raising his brows curiously as he turned to look towards her.
Claire Farron only smiled.
'One is not supposed to tell.' she whispered, icy blue eyes shining at him innocently.
'Or it might not come true.' she added somewhat sheepishly.
Leaning a little closer still, she was about to kiss his cheek when suddenly Angeal Hewley appeared right next to them.
'There´s business at the station.' the burly first class informed out of nowhere, bringing the pink haired woman back to reality.
'There was another dogster sighting reported somewhere near the port.'
It made the both of them get up on their feet, ready to engage in battle, firework wishes all forgotten.
'What?! Where?!' Claire Farron exclaimed aghast while the man beside her only stared at her with concern, hand holding on to her's a little tighter, maybe a tiny bit too tight.
'Not entirely sure yet. Some residents called in a few minutes ago. Said they'd seen some beasts, on their way to watch the fireworks.' Angeal provided in a grave voice, his eyes travelling up to the silver haired girst class genereal.
'Someone's gotta investigate...'
Looking back at Lightning, General Sephiroth Crescent gave one long defeated sigh.
They had promised to watch the fireworks together. Had been looking forward to the feast all week. The two of them together. Another opportunity to do something together, another opportunity to practice the whole being together thing out in public, another opportunity to just spend some more time relaxing with friends and family.
Well... It looked like fate didn't grant them another night of it. Not this night at the very least.
Bodhum's safety had priority. Duty had priority.
To all the people gathered that fact was clear as day.
'It's okay. I'm coming with you.' the pink haired woman offered instantly as she turned back from Angeal and over to her former mentor.
'No... You stay with the other's.' the silver haired first class told her warningly, eyes boring into her's with finality.
Please just stay put and don't do anything stupid. Don't do anything to endanger our children. His gaze said. It made Claire Farron backpedal instantly.
'Well, you go then.' she said in a somewhat small voice.
The silver haired man looked at her somewhat hesitantly.
This was not how the evening had been supposed to play out.
No. Not at all.
'It´s fine. I´ll just stay with Serah, Zack and Snow.' she assured the father of her unborn children.
'Really. It´s fine. Go.'
Gettin up from her seat she slowly stepped away from him, turned towards the fireworks and made to join the others at the very front of the display, on the gently swaying wooden jetty.
Looking back over her shoulder she gave her former superior a loving smile.
'Are you coming man?' Angeal asked somewhat impatiently.
The silver haired first class just stood there rooted to the spot. Watching. Contemplating.
The woman of his dreams had just reached the small wooden landing stage and the company oft the others, was sqeezing herself into the space between Zack and her sister Serah, ready to watch the remainder of the fireworks with them, just as she had said she would.
'Sephiroth, we gotta go.' Angeal warned.
'Just give me a minute.' the first class general said, before he made toward the tiny landing place, made up onto it to follow Lightning, coming to stand right behind to her.
She turned around and looked up to him somewhat questioningly, reached out to touch his arm.
'Is something wrong?' she asked somewhat confusedly.
'No... It's fine...' He said as he leant close so she would hear him over the noise of the firework, his hands coming up to her sides as he pulled her closer.
'It's just... I'm sorry. I know that probably isn't what you wished for at the fireworks. But... I really got to investigate this.' he muttered as some kind of explanation.
It left Lightning only more confused.
'Sure.' she said giving him a crazy stare.
She had understood the first time it had come up. The fact that he'd come over all the way to tell her this again, made her eyebrows ride up.
He was stalling, she realized then.
It just so wasn't him.
And there was something else about him too.
There was something in his eyes, something she hadn´t seen before.
A weird mix of emotions she found she couldn't quite place.
The spirit of adventure. Boldness. Daring.
But also worry. Fear. Nervousness.
It was kind of upsetting really. To see him look at her like this.
'Are you okay?' she asked somewhat concernedly as she looked up into his eyes, held on to his arm a little bit more firmly than would have bene necessary.
'Yes... I'm sorry... It's nothing...' the silver haire man stuttered.
It left Lightning more confused than she had felt before.
'See you later?' he finally said as he looked down on her again.
Claire Farron only nodded. She was too perplexed to speak.
'Have a good time.'
It was the last thing the silver haired man said before he leaned down to kiss her lips.
Cloud and Genesis, Zack Snow and the NORA people staring at their public display of affection, it were Serah, Fang, Lebrau and Angeal who could have been caught smiling at the two of them.
Lightnign found she didn't care.
The silver haired first class pulling away, there it was, that trademark killer smirk, painted across his face again.
Maybe she needed more.
'Forgive me.' he whispered in that low sweet husky voice.
'Forgive you what?!' Lightning said somewhat taken aback and a moment later the man infront of her was down on his knees.
One of her hands clasped tightly in his own, he was looking up at her with determined mako eyes.
'Claire Farron... Lightning. Will you marry me?'