Forever Strong

A/N: I'm pretty sure there's a 'ban' thingie on reviewer responses, so if you want me to respond to your reviews, just leave a little 'RR' at the bottom of your review and make sure your email address is available.

That aside, as you could tell the closer school gets to starting, the slower the chapters will come. Summer's end is crawling near, and I am sooo not ready. X-X

Upon reaching the lively village of Iselia, the two had, though inadvertently, both had planned their route of temporary escape. Good intentions circled their proposed method however, the never ending plot twist tailed them relentlessly.

"Alright, I have to see the mayor about the peace treaty and whatnot, so could I meet you back at the Inn about an hour from now?" Sheena suggested fidgeting with the document she held.

Zelos nodded, "An hour? Sounds good."

She hesitated before asking, "Out of curiosity, what will you do in the meantime?"

"Oh, nothing really…"

"…Well, wit' the materials provided, 'n the overall work teh be done—"

The red head smiled deviously, "I got the payment in the bag, and a little extra tip for you to keep this on the down low, no worries sir."

"Tha's good teh hear, bu' wha' I was gonna say is tha' the job'll take two days, but I assume you knew tha', Mr. Zelos?"

He choked, "Th-that includes today… right? …No, it doesn't, does it? It's just my luck. My plans have been spited since I can remember." He sighed as he picked up his bag and headed towards the door. "Well, you've got your job, so do it well, Dirk."

Door shut and no one to hear him but himself, Zelos chuckled, "When life screws you over, screw back twice as hard! Hehehe…"

As he traveled closer and closer to the village, his mind remained steadfast on his goal for the next two days: stall, delay, and by all means possible hold up any and all of Sheena's plans regarding leaving Iselia. Despite the fact he was still unsure as to what she had arranged for after this escapade, he was confident that whatever it be, he could keep her from doing it…

…unless it was with him.

"…So, how'd it go with the discriminatin' hard head?"

"If you mean the mayor," Sheena rolled her eyes as she senselessly stirred her water with a straw. "everything went fine, I suppose. He accepted and all, spreading the word to Palmacosta and such…"

Zelos leaned back into his chair, putting his arms behind his head in a relaxed gesture. "And so, the world is safe for another day."

"I guess you could say that," she took a sip of her water. "So what did you end up doing for the hour?"

He snickered as he absentmindedly flicked tiny pieces of balled up paper at other tables, "Well, let's just say don't look up when you enter the Inn."

"Yeah, speaking of that…" Sheena stuttered; Zelos cocked his head in confusion, his eyes prying for an explanation. "I have to leave… well, after this… alone."

"What…for?"

She unhappily sighed, "I have to work undercover for the M.I.N., meaning I pretty much have to abandon this life. It's not going to be easy, but I have to."

"Not necessarily—"

"Actually, I must. Since I was an orphan, it was assigned to me since I didn't have any direct parents to influence my career path. It's just… this long, complicated, overly long and drawn out custom strictly enforced by Chief Jiguri. Life in Mizuho is far different from life anywhere else, Zelos."

He paused, "Chief Jiguri? He's not in charge now, is he? If he isn't, then why would you have to obey it when it's practically been vetoed?"

"No, he's not in charge now. He was in charge when I was born until I was fourteen, and if a law is in tact when you become of age, thirteen, it is one you have to follow for the rest of your life, regardless if it becomes banned or not in the future."

"So it's absolute, you mean?" He said in a terribly miserable voice.

In sheer hopes to lift his spirits she blurted, "Well, not in all cases!" he piqued up and she realized she was too far in to try and escape now. "You see, you can avoid those things under a few circumstances, some rare, some not. Being thrown out of the village, being disowned by your family or losing a limb are some of the more rare circumstances. The more common ones are ones such as fulfilling overruling assignments, similar to my assignment of assassinating Colette, or simply marrying into a family not of Mizuho."

Zelos nodded understandingly, contrary to his statement, "But what if you just don't want to?"

Sheena rested her head on her hand in frustration, "Answer me this: did you want to be the Chosen of Tethe'alla?"

"Are you kidding me? Of course not!"

"My point exactly!"

He opened his mouth to respond, but found no words to support his argument. Not quite defeated, he placed his chin in his hand, and stared down the wooden table, tapping his fingers in an irritated manner. After a while, he shrugged, and closed his eyes. "…Just don't, then."

"Wait, what? What are you on?" she gave him a look akin to the mother non-verbally chiding her unruly toddler across the room.

His gaze bore into her. "Just don't go. What are they gonna do, hunt you down? Even if they did they still couldn't make you do it if you didn't want to. Not to mention, I won' let 'em." He smirked assertively.

She smiled, in spite of herself. "You are one hopeless romantic, optimist and idealist, you know that? But I guess that's what I love about you."

"So is that a yes, or a no?"

"More of a 'what am I getting myself into'…"

Zelos rolled his eyes playfully, "C'mon, Sheena. You want to live life on the edge, call no man 'sir', right? To do that, you gotta break a few rules first. Stay with me, won't you? I promise you any life you want, whether it's a home somewhere or wondering around the world."

She looked away from him, considering her options openly and in all aspects. The silence between them seemed indefinite and clawing at the inside of both of them.

She looked back at him, and smiled. "…Alright, I'm with you, I'm in your hands. Help me get outta this mess and I'm yours."

Dear Corrine,

Though I'm normally not the most optimistic person, now that I'm with Zelos and I know he'll help me no matter what, I feel like I could take on the world! Not to mention I feel pretty over confident beyond that.

Speak of the devil, doesn't this sound exactly like the first symptom of my former opinion on love?

However I'm at a natural high, I suppose, best not think of those things. Must only look forward, must only look forward, must only look forward…