Next-to-last chapter! (At least, here. The final lemon will be posted elsewhere, as per site rules.)

A few points to make here. First of all, I don't own anything. Second, I've never really experienced this level of drunkenness firsthand, either myself or by being around someone this drunk, and I've never had a hangover. So I don't really know what I'm talking about. Third, if anyone can't understand Zelos, let me know and I'll provide you with a translation. If enough people can't understand him, I'll edit his speech so that he's more comprehensible.

Enjoy the fic!

Colette was worried. She was waiting up late for Zelos to come back to the hotel. He'd left earlier that night, saying something about enjoying Altamira's night life while they were there; it was now sometime after midnight. Lloyd had gone to bed, while Kratos had muttered something about taking a walk about an hour ago, and left her alone there. She sighed, and kept glancing at the door anxiously.

The problems had started, she thought, back when they had visited the Renegades. Up until then, Kratos and Zelos had been getting along great, and she thought there might even be something more forming between them. But after they'd gone to visit Yuan, Zelos had started avoiding Kratos, and Kratos had become more withdrawn as a result. Lately, things had gotten really tense; even Lloyd was starting to notice. And Zelos had been seeming really depressed about something lately. She kept catching him staring at Kratos with a strange expression, and once or twice she'd actually caught Kratos looking at Zelos almost the same way. Something needed to be done about it, she knew, and soon.

Just then, Zelos stumbled in through the door of the hotel. He stood staring dazedly at a potted plant for a moment, before moving further into the lobby, and this gave Colette a chance to study his appearance. She wasn't sure, exactly, since she'd never really seen anyone drunk before, but knowing Zelos and his situation lately, she guessed that he'd had about a dozen too many. Rising from her chair, she walked toward him, noting as she did so the trails of dried tears on his cheeks. "Zelos?" she asked softly, "are you all right?"

Zelos spun wildly to face her, startled, and ended up losing his balance and falling to the floor. He giggled drunkenly at this, seeming to find it quite hilarious. "Hi, C'lette," he managed after a moment, "I think I'm kinna drunk." He giggled some more.

Colette nodded, "Yeah, I think you are. Do you…want me to help you to your room?"

Zelos pondered this idea for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah…don' think I c'd get there 'n my own," he slurred.

Colette nodded, then went over to help him stand up, managing after a few failed attempts (which produced more giggling fits from Zelos) to sling his arm about her shoulders and support his weight. Fortunately, her angelic strength hadn't left her yet, although it had faded a bit since she'd regained her soul, and she still had more than enough strength to carry Zelos' weight. "Here we go, now we need to get you over to the elevator," she said softly, moving them in that direction. Regal had given them the most expensive rooms, on the top floor, free of charge.

"Thanksh, C'lette. Yer sho nishe," Zelos murmured, "Pretty, too. 'Cept no touchy, 'caush yer Lloyd'sh, an' too good f'r me anyhow. An' b'shidsh…" he trailed off, then shook his head, "nope, not thinkin' 'bout him. Not. Nope. Not t'night."

"You love him, don't you?" Colette prodded, as they made their slow way into the elevator, "Kratos, I mean."

"Not thinkin' 'bout that," Zelos muttered, "He'sh nev'r gonna wan' me anyway. Better t' f'rget."

Colette nodded absently as she pushed the elevator button, a plan forming in her mind as they ascended. She wasn't completely certain of how Kratos felt…but she did know that they couldn't go on like this. Surely, surely it would be better if things were out in the open…and she had a feeling that it would all turn out okay, if only they got a little bit of a push.

While Colette considered, the elevator pinged softly, and stopped at their floor. "Here we are," she told Zelos, "Out we go now, your room's right over here." Zelos just nodded quietly as they made their way across the floor.

Finally, Colette found herself faced with the staircase. Zelos' room was just beside it, on the lower level. The rest of the rooms were up on the level above it; Lloyd's was the closest, then her own, then Kratos' was at the end of the hall. Colette paused, biting her lip for a moment. Here was the point of decision. Should she meddle in what wasn't really her business, and hope that it would go away on its own, or should she trust her feelings, and hope that taking action would be helping rather than making things worse?

Zelos, noticing that they'd stopped, looked around blurrily. "Whish one'sh mine, again?" he asked, "Shorry, I guesh I forgot…"

Colette set her jaw. No matter what happened next, it had to be better than the feelings that had reduced Zelos to this state, right? And after all, he'd done so much to help her and Lloyd… "It's up here," she said, guiding him toward the staircase and helping him climb, "The room at the end of the hall. You can rest once you're there, okay? Up we go!"

Kratos sighed as he entered his room, sometime later. He'd taken a walk to try to clear away his worries about Zelos, but it hadn't helped much. He couldn't understand why the younger man kept avoiding him lately. Zelos had said that he was okay with what he'd seen at the Renegade base, but ever since then, things had changed between them, and Kratos had found himself oddly lonesome without his young friend's company. It was ridiculous, really. He'd gone far longer without any companions at all, in the past, and now he was traveling with three; even if one of them wouldn't talk to him for reasons he didn't fully understand, he surely had no cause for loneliness.

Wrapped up in his own thoughts and confused emotions, Kratos had removed his boots and cape before the sound of someone's regular breathing registered on his enhanced senses, and he froze. A confused frown on his face, he made his way over to the bed, and was met with the sight of Zelos sleeping peacefully there.

Kratos refused to think about the deep sense of longing the sight produced in him, instead reaching out to shake Zelos' shoulder roughly, feeling more than a little bewildered, and somewhat put out. "Zelos," he said, "Wake up!" As he leaned in to get better leverage, he could smell the alcohol on Zelos' breath even from the distance he was at.

Zelos' eyes opened blearily after a moment. "Whaat?" he asked, clearly still quite drunk, "Oh. 'Ish you. Whatta ya want? Don' wanna think 'bout you t'night."

"What are you doing in my bed?" Kratos got right to the point.

Zelos looked around confusedly, pondering this for a moment, before looking back up at Kratos. "Shleepin'?" he asked.

Kratos was torn. Part of him wanted to shout at Zelos, part of him wanted to burst out laughing at his expression, and part of him…wanted something he wasn't going to think about right now. This resulted in a blank, almost helpless expression, and he decided to change the subject. "What did you mean, you don't want to think about me tonight?" he asked, then blinked a bit. He wasn't at all sure that was what he'd intended to say…but he couldn't take it back now.

"That," Zelos said, "Don' wanna think about you. Wanna get away, just a little. Don' wanna be in love when y'ain't gonna love me, but can' help that, so wanna get away. An' can' tell you, 'caush I like bein' yer frien'. 'Shept I guesh 'm not doin' such a good job o' that, eith'r, thesh daysh."

Kratos was dumbstruck. Zelos…loved him? Staring down at the younger man, who looked on the verge of passing out again, he was flooded with uncertainty, but also with an odd warmth. What had he ever done to deserve Zelos' love? And yet there it was, freely offered and staring up at him with wide blue eyes…

…Eyes that were still very much clouded with alcohol, which realization brought Kratos to his senses before he even realized he'd been reaching out toward the younger man. He shook his head, and instead of moving to embrace Zelos, Kratos pushed him back down on the bed. "Sleep," he commanded, "We'll talk about this in the morning."

Zelos nodded, and was asleep before his head hit the pillow, leaving Kratos to sit down in the nearby armchair and think. How long had this been going on? How long had he, too, been falling in love? Because he was, and he felt like a supreme idiot for not noticing sooner. To be fair, he hadn't had a whole lot of experience with the emotion, and it was a tricky one, never the same feeling twice, but now that he looked back, he couldn't believe he hadn't noticed before.

What would he do now? He was sure that Zelos wouldn't remember this conversation in the morning, judging by his current state. How could he bring it up, once Zelos was sober again? Would Zelos reject him in the daylight, trying to save face? Questions roiled through his mind, one following hard on the heels of another, and all unanswerable, until another one floated to the surface.

How the hell had Zelos gotten up to his room in that condition? He was in no condition to walk far, let alone manage that many stairs.

There were a few possibilities. One of the hotel's staff might have brought him there by mistake, but it seemed unlikely; they were usually pretty well-informed. Zelos might have made it on his own, with lots of falls, but that didn't seem very plausible either, when his own room was so much more accessible. Or one of the children could have brought him here. And really, there was only one of them who might think to do that.

He rose and left the room, checking the crack under Colette's door. Sure enough, her light was on, and he knocked firmly on the door. "Colette?" he asked, "May I speak with you?"

"Just a minute!" the girl's voice called, and then the door opened, revealing Colette in her white nightgown. "What is it, Kratos?" she asked, her tone just a little too innocent.

"There's something I'm a bit confused about," Kratos told her, "It seems that Zelos has made his way into my bed."

Colette flinched for just a moment, before replying in a slightly shaky voice, "He…did? Why did he do that?"

Kratos shook his head as if in exasperation with a riddle, suppressing a smile. Colette was smarter than she sometimes seemed, but she was still a horrible liar. "It's most puzzling," he admitted, "since he appears to be too drunk to manage the stairs on his own, and especially since his room was so much easier to reach. I've never yet known a drunk to choose the less accessible of two beds."

"That is weird," Colette admitted, refusing to meet his gaze, "B-but why are you asking me about it?"

"Colette," Kratos said, his tone mildly chiding, and she finally looked up at him, her gaze nervous and apologetic. "What did you think you were doing?" he asked evenly.

Colette bit her lip for a moment, looking down, then said in a small voice, "Helping. I…just wanted to help. You were both so sad, and…and I thought maybe you didn't need to be…I'm sorry if I made things worse…"

"Colette, look at me," Kratos told the girl neutrally. When she raised her eyes to meet his, he gazed at her for a moment, then smiled ever-so-slightly. "Thank you," he said softly, "I don't know what will happen now, but for what it's worth…I think you've done us both quite a favor."

Colette's gaze cleared, and she smiled slightly. "I'm glad," she said, "I hated seeing you both like that. I was worried, but…I'm glad that I could help." She yawned a little, covering her mouth politely. "It's really late," she said, "We should both get to bed."

Kratos nodded, "Goodnight, then. …Oh, and could you try to keep Lloyd away from my room in the morning?" At Colette's questioning gaze, he added, "He tends to be loud, and Zelos will be very, very sensitive to noise when he awakens."

Colette nodded, "Okay, sure. Goodnight." She retreated into her room, and Kratos went back into his own. He retrieved some items necessary for treating the massive hangover Zelos was sure to have in the morning, then settled back into the armchair to wait out the night, contemplating this new turn of events.

Zelos rose toward consciousness slowly and reluctantly. The first thing he was aware of was a throbbing pain, which seemed to be triggered by a loud, rhythmic rushing noise in his ears. Whimpering a bit, he flinched as this sound caused a new pain, and just tried to breathe more quietly. This helped a bit, but only a little.

"I see you're awake," a low voice said from somewhere nearby, very quietly.

"Kill me now," Zelos whispered, "I can't take the pain."

Kratos smirked a little, recalling that he and Yuan had both learned this lesson the hard way. As it turned out, angelic hearing did not mix well with hangovers. "I can't do that," he said under his breath, knowing that Zelos would catch every sound, "but I can give you some painkillers, if you think you can hold them down."

The mention of consuming anything brought a new sensation to Zelos' attention, and he quickly clamped his mouth shut, shooting Kratos a desperate look as his face paled, then turned slightly green. Wordlessly, Kratos handed him a bowl, which Zelos accepted, quickly emptying the remaining contents of his stomach into it. Kratos moved over to the bed and carefully pulled his hair back to keep it out of the way, but Zelos was too sick to be properly grateful.

When the last of the dry heaves seemed to have passed, and Zelos sat gasping softly and groaning in pain, Kratos gently pressed a glass of water into his hands. "Drink," he said softly, "You'll feel better."

Zelos took the glass and sipped carefully from it. "Thanks," he whispered eventually, his voice hoarse, "Sorry about all this."

"It's fine," Kratos replied, absently stroking Zelos' hair, "Do you want those painkillers now?"

Zelos nodded, then winced at the motion. "Yeah," he whispered, "Thanks." Kratos moved to fetch them, and handed a few pills to Zelos, who swallowed them carefully. After a few moments, Zelos blinked around at the room. "This…isn't my room," he said slowly.

"No," Kratos agreed quietly, "It's mine. I came back last night to find you here."

Zelos frowned. "I don't remember…anything like that," he admitted.

"I'm not surprised," Kratos replied, "You were very drunk at the time."

"I didn't say anything I shouldn't have, did I?" Zelos asked quickly, "'Cause if I did, I'm sorry…"

"No," Kratos told him with a faint smile, "No, you didn't say anything you shouldn't have said."

Zelos nodded, looking relieved, "Oh, good…"

Still smiling vaguely, Kratos rose. "You should stay here and rest," he said, "I'll let the other two know you're sick, and have them spend the day at the amusement park or something."

Zelos smiled ruefully at him. "Thanks," he said again, "I…really appreciate all this."

"It's fine," Kratos repeated, picking up the bowl that sat on the bed, "Rest. I'll take care of things until you're feeling better." With that, he left.

Zelos stared at the door for a moment in mild confusion. Shouldn't Kratos, like, be angry at him for going out and getting drunk like that? He shrugged after a moment, deciding that he'd figure it out when his head hurt less, and lay back down in the bed to sleep off his hangover.

Late that afternoon, Zelos' headache was nearly gone, and he was dressed and moving about the hotel. He found Kratos standing on a balcony that overlooked the ocean, and moved to stand beside him. "Quite a view," he murmured.

"It is," Kratos responded, "Did you need something?"

"You're so direct," Zelos chuckled, "I just wanted to thank you. For this morning and all. I thought for sure you'd be mad at me for everything."

"I might have been, but I remember the first time I went drinking after I got my wings, and I rather thought any greater punishment than what you were feeling would be unnecessarily cruel," Kratos replied with a slight smirk, "I trust you've learned your lesson?"

Zelos nodded emphatically, then winced a bit; the last edges of his headache were still lingering. "I definitely have," he agreed, "So, uh…what happened last night, anyway? I remember leaving the bar, but after that, it's sort of a blur. Except there's something about Colette, but that can't be right…" He frowned, trying to piece together the fragmented recollections.

"Actually, from what I gather, it is," Kratos replied evenly, "She was the one who helped you into bed."

Zelos considered this for a moment. "But…I was in your bed," he said slowly, trying to make sense of this.

"She had her reasons," Kratos stated in the same tone as before, staring fixedly at the horizon, "Reasons which were borne out by what you said when I found you."

Zelos paled, and he began to feel sick again. "Oh," he said dully, "I-I guess…" He sighed, "I suppose there's no use denying it." He looked away.

"That would be rather counterproductive," Kratos agreed, moving to face him.

Zelos sighed again. "I'm sorry," he said, "I never meant for this to happen. Look, I'll…catch a boat from here back to Meltokio or something. You won't ever have to see me again, I promise, I-" He was cut off by Kratos' lips pressing firmly against his own. He froze in shock for a moment, then slowly began to respond, feeling as though he had been caught in a dream as Kratos' arms wrapped around him. When they finally pulled back for air, he just stared at Kratos wonderingly. "Uh," he said eloquently, "um. I think I missed something here. Since when…?" He trailed off, not quite able to believe it was real.

Kratos shrugged slightly. "I don't know, exactly," he admitted, "I didn't realize it until last night, which was entirely my mistake, but…" he looked deeply into Zelos' eyes, "I love you." Despite everything, there was a slight hesitance in his demeanor as he waited for Zelos' response.

It wasn't long in coming, as Zelos grinned in amazement. "I love you, too," he breathed, "I just never thought…I mean…wow…" He shook his head, then pulled Kratos into a tight embrace. "I love you, too," he whispered again.

Kratos smiled warmly, his arms around Zelos' waist as the other held him close. After a moment, he leaned down and captured Zelos' lips in a searing kiss, to which the other eagerly responded. Moving one hand up to grip Zelos' shoulder, Kratos was about to deepen the kiss, when he heard a shocked voice from the balcony entrance.

"Zelos? Dad!" They froze, then broke away, blushing as both turned to see Lloyd standing there, shocked. Slightly behind him was Colette, who shot them an apologetic glance. They looked at each other, then back at Lloyd, utterly speechless.