Disclaimer: AAGH!! Not again! I don't own Chrono Trigger! I swear! I don't care what anybody says, I DON'T!! (Hehe...sorry about the insane rant; it's the Mountain Dew talking, not me.)

A/N: Last chapter my muse decided to get drunk and go on vacation, so I left you with a chapter that I couldn't finish. We-ell...he's back now, so here's the rest! Here's what I intended to do before!

Lucca smiled as she spotted a familiar bowlegged figure running up to them when they arrived in the outskirts of Ioka.

"Hey, Kino! How you been?" she called out to him, stepping forward and holding out her hand in a gesture of greeting.

Kino grunted in acknowledgement as he approached, his rugged face breaking out into a smile as he recognized the young purple-haired inventor. "It Lucca! It Lucca!" he exclaimed excitedly. "How you doing? No see you for long time! But where others? They not with you?!" He looked around, getting an anxious look on his face; it was no secret that he was obviously very smitten with Ayla and he worried about her constantly.

"Um, they're not along," Lucca replied, thinking fast (Kino would obviously be unable to comprehend the whole story and that would leave her in an uncomfortable situation), "But they're fine. They're a little busy right now, but they'll be coming later."

Kino nodded. "That good. Me no see Ayla for many suns." He turned around, gesturing for her to follow, but then his eye got caught on Magus, who had stayed out of the exchange and just watched, scowling, going unnoticed until now.

"Lucca have-Lucca have...MAN?!" He scratched his scruffy head questioningly, as if unsure.

Magus seemed extremely irritated at Kino's comment, so Lucca jumped in and prompted, "Go on, Scout, tell him your gender and sexual orientation."

Magus, throwing up his hands, went into a tirade. "But HOW?!" he complained in an exasperated voice. "HOW could they mistake me for something else?! Just because I happen to have a third of the body hair he does-"

"Oh, just shut up and tell him you're male already! What does it matter, anyway, as long as I know the difference-"

"Oh, very well!" Bringing his attention back to Kino, Magus forced a very tight-lipped smile and said in an indignant voice, "Yes, a man. I am a MAN, if you couldn't tell."

Kino stared at Magus like he didn't quite believe him, but he managed to get over it and nodded over towards the Chief's Hut. "Come. We talk. Much happen since you defeat Azala."

As they followed Kino through the center of the village, Lucca wrapped her arm around Magus's waist and chided him, "Relax, will you? They're Ayla's friends."

Magus's scowl deepened. "Oh, great," he snorted, "THAT'S a real comfort. They're Ayla's friends. My worries are dispelled now. Really, that just makes it worse."

Lucca almost laughed but managed to compose herself. "Just try to be nice, buddy. We probably won't be stuck here all that long; you can survive."

"Oh, I can? Well, you could have fooled me."

"Geez, can't you even say it's better than the cave?!"

"No, because in the cave there wasn't the blatant possibility of people picking bugs out of my hair and eating them."

"Oh, shut up!"

Kino ushered them inside the Chief's Hut, indicating for them to sit down around the fire. "You sit. We have party later, so I tell others to make ready." He shuffled off.

"A party?! For us?! Why?!" Magus asked Lucca, a little bewildered.

"Oh, I don't know," she replied, removing her jacket and throwing it on the hut floor. "Guests are a big deal to them, I guess."

"Wonderful, just wonderful. A prehistoric party. I don't even want to know what goes on there."

"Oh, it's not that bad, you dope! It's even kind of fun! Don't be so pessimistic! This is the best place we could be right now."

"And why is that, might I ask?"

"Because Crono and the others haven't apparently even been here yet! That means they should come here looking for us pretty soon! I mean, the Epoch can only go to so many eras, can't it?"

"Good point," Magus said listlessly, stretching out his legs, "but not soon enough, I'm afraid. I'm tired, I'm cranky, and I haven't even bathed for three days. But when they come, well...I don't know. Then it's back to looking at spikehead, and that idiot princess, and that fight-picking amphibian-"

"Someone IS cranky, isn't he?"

"Hmpfh!"

***

"Oh, Ayla's just fine," Lucca reassured Kino yet again. "She's as tough as ever. She's a great help to us."

Night had fallen, and the party was in full swing. Lucca and Kino still sat in the Chief's Hut, nibbling on some pear-like fruits and just generally talking about what had happened since the fall of Tyrano Lair, now roughly about three weeks ago.

Although Kino still looked very much like his proud, burly self, Lucca had subsequently noticed during their conversation that his face seemed a little more stressed and careworn than she had remembered it before. And going by his news, it was probably no small wonder. Problems had erupted ever since Tyrano Lair had been smashed far into the ground and Lavos had arrived. Although the Reptites were gone and Ayla's tribe was no longer in any danger of extinction, other things had started to flare up. For one thing, the weather had grown colder and more rainy (cold and rainy for them, anyway); this caused hunting to be more sparse and the men of the village to be out most of the day just to kill enough for everyone. And then there were the strange beasts that had popped up lately. Hostile, mutated-looking beasts that would attack anything were seen all the time during hunts and even sometimes at night in the outskirts of the village. It took a lot of manpower to fend them off, and women and children now had to be careful even leaving their huts. It was all-in-all NOT a winning situation.

Kino stood up, throwing the core of his fruit into the flames. "I not know what do anymore. I not good Chief. Ayla good Chief. We need Ayla."

"Don't worry, what we're doing will be over soon," Lucca comforted him. "Ayla misses you, but as long as Lavos is alive, everybody's in trouble. She knows this."

"Yes..." Kino trailed off, looking down at the dirt floor of the hut. "But too much bad news!" he exclaimed after a second, perking up. "Now we go party, forget about trouble."

They left the hut together, and out into the night's festivities. It was pretty much like the party Lucca had attended before, with tons of dancing, music, food, and a big bonfire presiding in the middle. She craned her neck, looking around for Magus, who had wandered off sometime in the middle her and Kino's conversation. She finally spotted him by the food-laden table (though there was actually much less food tonight than before), standing in the shadows, looking grumpier than ever.

Lucca, suddenly having an idea, crept around the inside of the feasting area's hedge, slowly coming up behind him. When she was just an arm's length away, she silently reached out...and grabbed his behind!

"AGH!" The moment that ensued was just golden. Magus jumped back about a mile, spilling his drink, looking absolutely outraged. "Who did that?! If I ever get ahold of you-"

"Oh, quit spazzing! It's just me!" Lucca chose that time to jump out of the shadows and reveal herself.

He crossed his arms, smirking at her. "Hm, well, if it wasn't, I wouldn't be too happy right now. Wouldn't put it past those cavewomen..."

Lucca rolled her eyes at him. "Gee, that's nice to know." She turned and surveyed the food that was on the table. "Hmmm, what should we try?..."

"How about nothing?"

"Oh, just eat something, you damn party pooper! It doesn't hurt to try anything new, you know!"

"It might if there's an animal I can't identify in it."

"Shut up and eat!"

"Oh, all right, all right! This looks safe-" He put to his lips a large, shallow bowl filled with a thick gray liquid-

"NO! Don't you DARE!"

Magus rolled his eyes. "What is it, four-eyes?! Honestly, you're insane."

"Anything but that! That's poi! Two bowls of it and you won't even know your own name!"

Magus's lips curled into a nasty grin. "Oh, what, and you know about this? My my, four-eyes all rowdy and drunk! I'd pay to see that!"

"No-you-won't-" gasped Lucca, trying to grab the bowl from his iron grip.

"Did you start dancing on the table, is that it, poindexter?"

"Let-go-"

Magus's smile widened. "Oh, I know! Did you and Crono-"

"SHUT UP!"

"Hit a nerve, didn't I? Hmpfh, it's pretty easy to set YOU off..."

"Put--the--bowl--down--you---moron."

***

The night, wearing on, later found Magus and Lucca sitting near the bonfire, both wrapped in the same huge fur coverlet to help ward off the night air, which was getting increasingly cold. They had long since abandoned the poi bowl; it had ended up shattering when the thing had dropped on Magus's foot (he had been pretty eager to let go of it after Lucca had set it on fire, after all).

Lucca blinked sleepily, her head resting on Magus's shoulder. "Remind me never to drag you to a party for as long as I live."

Magus snorted. "That won't be hard, four-eyes. I never even wanted to be at this one."

"That dancing we did was just awful."

"Good, then I'm not the only one that felt like an ass."

"If you ever see me tapping my toes to the music ever again, then stomp on my feet."

"And if you ever catch me asking you again, tell me to shut the hell up."

"Agreed."

"Agreed. But that won't stop me from making fun of you and telling everyb-"

"You wouldn't DARE!" Lucca shrieked, kicking him under the blanket.

"Oh, yes I would."

"Then I'll just have to tell Frog about YOUR groovy moves!"

"No!"

"Yes!"

"No! I have a reputation to maintain!"

"Well, so do I!"

"Hmpfh!"

"Oh, hmpfh yourself!"

At that moment, Magus decided he was tired of arguing. He leaned in, wrapping his arms around her, and gave it all he got. Lucca moaned in response, gently prying open his mouth, her fingernails digging into his back as their kissing deepened.

They stayed like that until, obviously, they had to breathe. They parted but stayed close, arms still around each other and noses almost touching.

"You know what?" Lucca said to him, her hand reaching up to touch his cheek, which happened to have a lot of peach-fuzz growing on it. "You really need to shave."

"So do you," he shot back, a wicked smile growing on his face.

"Agh, I'm not hairy, you big liar!" she exploded, slapping that same cheek (but half playfully; goodness no, she didn't want to mar that handsome face again!).

"Tch, tch! Afraid of the truth, are we?" He hungrily pressed his lips to hers again, massaging the small of her back in light circles with his fingertips.

SMACK!

"Have you ever considered waxing?" He dove in for the kill a third time, making sure to avoid her vengeful hand.

SMACK!

"Women aren't supposed to have beards, if you didn't know, four-eyes," was his only reaction, as he nibbled on her bottom lip gently.

SMACK!

"Why does this always seem to happen when we're fighting?!" He grabbed the arm that she was using to slap him with and managed to get her in a longer, more serious liplock this time.

"Why? You want to know why?" asked Lucca breathlessly afterwards. "Because you're such an ASS, that's why."

"Hm? Oh really?" he said absently in reply, lightly raining a trail of kisses upon her, beginning on the collarbone and slowly going up to her temple.

They continued on like this for quite awhile, except eventually they cut the banter and got to the good stuff. During this each one tried to outdo the other in terms of getting the upper hand; yes, Magus and Lucca fought even while kissing. Each kiss becoming more fevered than the last, things were starting to heat up more and more (if Lucca's hands slowly creeping down inch by agonizing inch were any indication) when suddenly-

Magus just broke off. For no apparent reason. "What ARE you doing, you dork?!" Lucca asked him angrily, glaring at him.

Magus waved his hand vaguely around. "It's those barbarians," he hissed under his breath. "They keep staring at us!"

Lucca rolled her eyes. "Oh, for crying out loud! We can't go off into a cave EVERY time His Majesty wants a little kissy-poo! Let them stare! I've seen them do worse! And take your gloves off, will you?! Those rough smelly things aren't doing wonders for my skin, you know!"

Magus smirked. Taking off the gloves and revealing his slender white hands, he remarked coolly, "And since when do greasy, oil-spattered little geeks care about their appearances?'

Lucca smirked at him back. "Maybe you haven't noticed before, Maggy, but I am a girl. And if you haven't, well...then that clears up a lot; I was wondering how you were able to kiss me, being as gay as you are and all-"

"Hmpfh! I choose to ignore that comment!"

"Well, try ignoring THIS!" Before Magus could react, Lucca seized him and started to resume the aforementioned activities of that night.

Magus, of course, couldn't say no to this, even if there were a few curious onlookers watching their proceedings. He quickly responded to her, gently massaging her face with his smooth hands; and upon breaking away he promptly sat her on his lap, continuing to kiss her ravenously, allowing his fingers to get tangled in her messy purple locks.

Things were starting to get intense again, albeit even a little more inappropriate than even on Mystic Mountain (but only Magus knew about that little piece). Maybe it was all for the best that something happened during the middle of all this-

"Hey! Why did you throw a party without us?!" a loud, goofy voice suddenly boomed out from the front gate of the feasting area.

Lucca and Magus immediately froze. Magus, of course, was very horrified, but that was nothing compared to how Lucca felt. She recognized that laid-back, amiable tone just as he did, but she wasn't exactly feeling the initial relief she had thought she'd experience upon hearing it...

"EEEP!" She quickly dove under the large blanket that they were both wrapped in, leaving an extremely bewildered Magus to do all the talking.

A/N: Hmmmm...so Lucca's a little afraid about what everyone's gonna think, huh? And what about Magus? Does he want to keep this a secret, too? Or does he even give a damn?! You'll have to figure that out for yourselves...because of my EVIL cliffhanger (heh-heh!).

Thanks to Shannon for that little bit with the slapping! Somehow Lucca slapping Magus just seems appropriate...

Thanks for the great reviews! Honestly, when I first posted this I didn't think I'd do this well. As always, I'm also currently following Sailor Leo's, Rhianwen's, and Dark Creation's great Lu/Mas! You guys all kick ass! And yea, Imania! Go, Imania! I think she's writing a sequel to her last fic...

Anyway, please review me! Anything will do! Just even a word or three on maybe why you liked (or hated) it is fine with me.