Phew, that last chapter was pretty intense. Some of the stuff stretched out longer than I planned it to go, so some of the stuff I had originally intended to be in the last chapter are gonna be here instead. This one won't have as much action as the last one, but I hope you like it anyway.

I'm glad you guys liked the fight scene, I was definitely trying to make it easy to understand. I read R.A. Salvatore's Drizzt books, and it's hard to follow some of the fights he writes…I still don't know what the hell happened with Entreri and Berginyon in Servant of the Shard…

I also finally figured out that the shift 8 asterick thing doesn't show up when the document gets translated to the site, so I'm gonna edit in some X's instead to divide up the different scenes in the chapters.

Characters courtesy of squenix of course

Chapter 5

"You're sure everything is okay, right?" Hope asked Lightning for the fourth time as they continued walking towards her home, leaving behind the carnage of the previous battle.

"Yes, Hope, I'm fine," Lightning assured him yet again, an aggravated tone creeping into her voice. "You don't have to keep asking me."

"I know…it's just…you were really banged up back there," he said, glancing over at her with a pained expression on his face. "At first I didn't think you were gonna make it…"

Lightning went over the battle in her mind, wincing inwardly as she realized how injured she truly had been, and how much strength it must have taken for Hope to heal her so thoroughly. As she walked with him, she couldn't help but be impressed at how strong he still was after all this time. She knew he was always very proficient with magic during their travels all those years ago, but to be able to wield it as well as he did today right after regaining it…

She thought back to right before she had passed out. He had saved her in the knick of time. Remembering how she had felt before he arrived, when she thought she was about to die…she was ashamed of how weak she had been. She wasn't used to depending on others like that…I'm getting soft she thought to herself.

But she had only ended up in that condition because she had shielded the soldiers from that l'Cie's last attack. She hadn't even thought it through, she had just reacted. Self-sacrifice isn't really like me she found herself thinking. And I didn't even know any of those soldiers…at that thought she had a sudden flashback of herself standing over similar soldiers in the Gapra Whitewood. She and Hope had stumbled across several dead soldiers on their way through. The young Hope had showed concern about their fates, but she had callously told him to forget them, they were dead and they didn't matter anymore. Was I really like that? she asked herself as she returned to the present. Through that whole fight, that bastard had me all riled up, I was making mistakes. He knew I would try to protect the soldiers…how did I change so much over the years? Back then I wouldn't have given those soldiers a second thought after he killed them…

Her gaze wandered onto Hope, who was walking a few feet in front of her. It all started with him she thought. While we traveled together I started to open up to him little by little. I guess I saw myself in him…just lost his parent, having to grow up to adjust to a harsh and cruel world…I failed Serah when she came to me for help, and I tried to seek forgiveness through helping Hope, to be there for him. I knew what he was going through, knew what it was like to go through it alone. And I eventually let the others in too…even that idiot Snow. And now I'm too soft…an image of the mysterious l'Cie she had just fought sprung into her mind. How could I let a bastard like him jerk me around so much?

She bawled her fists in anger at her sides. How could she have let this happen to herself? Worst of all was that when she looked at Hope, she knew he never lost his cool in the fight. He probably wouldn't have been shaken as much by that guy as I was, if he had been the one fighting him since the beginning instead of me…he may be emotional sometimes, but he knows what he's fighting for. He has conviction that I lack…she thought back to the times during the fight when she had thought of her friends, the people who had become a family to her. Family. They used to say that back then too, but…I don't know if I ever really felt it. Back then I didn't fight for them, or even Serah, no matter what I told myself. I fought for the sake of fighting…I fought to break the chains of fate that had bound us all to each other and to a destiny we didn't choose. Now that I lack that motivation…what is it that I fight for? She thought again of her friends and how happy all of them were with their lives since the fall of Cocoon. Sure it had been hard at first, but they had gotten what they wanted, they had been able to return to their normal lives. I tried to do that too, but…I guess the problem was I didn't really have much in my 'normal life' worth returning to. Even though Serah had said she forgave me for the way I acted when I found out she was a l'Cie…there was always a nagging thought in the back of my head telling my that she hated me for it, that my stubbornness had ruined the relationship between us. She was the reason I became a soldier in the first place…after our parents died, I had to toughen up and take care of her alone. A part of me was jealous of her. My childhood was over after that, and I sacrificed it so that she could enjoy hers. That resentment made me cold towards her…I was the only one she had back then and I buried myself in my new identity as a soldier…as 'Lightning.' Now that she has her 'hero' why the hell would she need a sister like me for?

So what can I honestly say that I have that's worth fighting for? Flashes of the soldiers being killed by the invading l'Cie popped up in her mind. I couldn't do anything for them…they were fighting to protect their families and their homes and they gave their lives to do so. Images of her friends flashed through her mind yet again. I don't know if I can say I fight for them. "Lightning can't protect anything, only destroy," she muttered to herself under her breath.

Then that's what I'll do she decided to herself after a while. I'll destroy scum like that l'Cie and make the world a better place for them. Their reasons to fight can become my reason to fight. She glanced up at Hope again, and felt a sudden surge of guilt. He got dragged back into all of this with me…if I had been stronger he wouldn't have had to fight. Whoever or whatever gave us our brands back must have known I wouldn't be able to handle whatever it is we have to do myself…it's my fault that he got dragged back into this l'Cie bullshit.

"You shouldn't have gone alone, you know," Hope said suddenly, snapping Lightning back to reality. "We both got our brands back for a reason…we're in this together Light."

She sighed. "I didn't want you to get involved in all this again. You have a life now, you have a future. He stopped in his tracks, and she nearly bumped into him. He turned to her with a confused look on his face.

"And you don't? What about your sister and your friends? They don't mean anything to you?" he asked her, as she had just asked herself.

"Of course they mean something to me, but….they don't need me. Fighting is all I know how to do, so that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to fight whatever it is we got these brands back to fight so none of you get sucked into this shit again. And the farther you all are from me, there's less of a chance of that happening. I'll complete our new focus to keep you all safe…that's all I can do," she walked past Hope and stopped. "Lightning can't protect, only destroy," she repeated to him.

Hope grabbed her shoulder and spun her around to face him, drawing a startled look from Lightning. "Don't give me that. You may be Lightning to everyone else, but you told me to call you 'Light', and Light can protect people. You did a hell of a lot more than just protect me all those years ago, you saved me from myself. If it wasn't for you, I would have lost myself in regret and anger and despair…." Hope trailed off and took a deep breath, as if searching for what to say next. He raised his left arm and removed his glove, exposing his blue-white l'Cie brand to her. "I'm already involved, like it or not, Light. Do you honestly think I can just ignore this? That I can get on that train later and go back to my life while you face whatever this is alone?"

Lightning looked away from Hope's intense gaze, unable to look into his eyes, which were alight with the same passion she had seen during the previous fight. "L-let's just go home…okay? We'll figure things out there," she stammered out lamely. She set into a brisk pace and continued on. Hope stood rooted to the spot for a few moments, lost in thought, but eventually came to, and jogged after her.

XXXXX

When they finally arrived back at Lightning's house, night had nearly fallen. As they entered, Lightning realized how exhausted she was, but the first thing she did was take a long, hot shower to wash the grime of battle from her body. While she was scrubbing the sweat and blood from herself, she kept thinking about what Hope had said to her. He had said that she had saved him, but she couldn't shake the thought that even that had been for her own selfish reasons. He had just been something convenient to cling to in the midst of all the chaos back then. He probably would have been much better off going with the others than following her on her quest….to what? Get revenge on the sanctum? What the hell had she expected to accomplish with such a ridiculous plan? It had taken the insight of Hope to show her what a fool she had been, that her absurd mission was just something she had created to keep herself from having to deal with what she was really feeling, something to distract her from reality.

Lightning stood in the shower, her hand against the wall underneath the shower head. She looked down at the water running past her feet and watched as the last of the blood and grime swirled down the drain. She thought back to the last few days since Hope had arrived for the reunion. All that seemed so long ago…She remembered the night Hope had arrived, and how happy she had been to see him, and the days after that they had spent talking and laughing with their friends. She remembered all the talks that she and Hope had when they were at her house together… I've been distant with Serah since she awoke from her crystal stasis…Hope was the only person left that I could really talk to without reservation…

She glanced down at the brand pulsing softly on her chest and a dark expression crossed her face. Now I've ruined that too…he took time away from his normal life to come here to spend time with his normal friends…but I'm still a train wreck and because of that, he got dragged down with me. I couldn't defeat that l'Cie by myself, and now he feels sorry for me, feels obligated to help me complete whatever stupid focus we got stuck with…Because of me, he's literally branded as an outcast, unable to return to his normal life…How can he not hate me? Lightning soon lost track of how long she had been standing there, lost in her thoughts. If it hadn't been for the deluge of the shower she was still under, she would have noticed the tears sliding down her face for the second time that day.

XXXXX

Hope was on the couch in Lightning's living room, hands behind his head staring at the ceiling and half listening to the evening news. He had originally been listening intently to what the various reporters were saying, but after a few boring reports he had no interest in, he had let his attention wander. The military was apparently still keeping the details of what happened earlier that day under wraps. They probably don't even know what happened themselves Hope thought, after he recognized the ending jingle associated with the news program he had been watching. He turned the vid screen off, not wanting to be distracted by whatever program followed the news. He continued staring at the ceiling in silence.

I hope she's alright he thought to himself. As soon as they had arrived back at the house, Lightning had announced her intention of taking a shower and a finding a fresh set of non-charred clothes, and disappeared upstairs. She had been up there for over an hour already, and Hope was starting to think she had just gone straight to sleep. He was confident that his healing spells had been successful, so he wasn't concerned about her physical well being too much, but after what she had said on the way home, he was seriously worried about her emotional well being. He wracked his brain for some sign over the past few days that he might have missed, some hint he should have picked up on that would have made it clear how much she was still going through.

Maybe she didn't know herself he thought after a while. She seemed perfectly fine yesterday, but from what she said to me before, it's obvious that she has been dealing with whatever she's dealing with for a long time…I guess staring death in the face like she was back there was what it took to finally break down her wall of stoicism. An image of the few moments he had looked at her before she had passed out from her injuries broke into his mind. He hadn't mentioned it to her, but he had seen the tear tracks on her face. All I can do now is try to give her some space, let her sort through whatever might have broken out when her walls crumbled. He sighed heavily and lay down on the couch and closed his eyes. But with how stubborn she is, we'll be Cieth by the time she does…

XXXXX

Hope awoke suddenly sometime later. Shit…I must have fallen asleep he said to himself as he sat up and rubbed his eyes. A quick glance at the clock in the room told him that he had been sleeping for only a bit longer than half an hour. He looked around to see what had woken him, and immediately saw that it was Lightning, who had finally come downstairs. She was standing at the foot of the staircase wearing sweat pants and a tank top. Her expression was unreadable.

"Sorry," she said quietly as she noticed him stirring. "I tried not to wake you, but the stairs creak…" she trailed off. Though he could barely hear her, hope noticed that she sounded depressed.

"Don't worry about it, I just dozed off for a little bit," he said with a smile, hoping to cheer her up. Sounds like she's still trying to sort things out he thought. He watched as she walked across the room and took a seat on the cough opposite him, studying her, trying to pick up anything in her expression or body language that might help him understand what was tormenting her. They sat in silence for several minutes, Lightning staring transfixed at the floor, oblivious to Hope's searching gaze. When he could discern nothing, he decided to simply ask her, figuring that he might be able to glean something from her reaction.

"Light…are you okay?" he asked softly, looking over at her with a concerned expression.

"I'm fine, I already told you, you're healing spells worked great," she murmured without looking up at him. Hope noticed a lack of emotion in her answer. She wasn't even annoyed at the question like she had been before.

"I know they worked," Hope replied, "That's not what I meant. I saw you before you passed out, and after when I was healing you…you obviously went through some heavy stuff. What happened?"

Lightning continued staring at the floor for several minutes. Hope was just about to ask her again when she began speaking.

"He slaughtered them," she said finally, not looking up. A pained expression crossed her face as she sifted through the memories of what had happened. "He slaughtered them and he laughed."

"Who?" Hope asked her.

"The soldiers who were there before me…they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time when he attacked and…they never stood a chance. More came in carriers…he killed them to. I couldn't do a thing to stop him."

Hope got up and crossed the room to sit next to her. "Light…" he said, putting his hand on her shoulder.

She continued speaking, making no indication that she noticed his touch. "I got so angry…I couldn't control myself. I tried to attack him with magic, but it didn't work. He told me it was because I was letting my anger control me. I managed to get control of myself, and I summoned Odin. We attacked him, and eventually hit him with zantetsuken…I was sure he was dead but he got back up…he conjured this massive fireball, and I gathered the strength I had left to finish him but..."

Lightning went silent, her gaze still fixed on the same spot. Hope removed his hand from her shoulder and stayed silent, allowing her to gather her thoughts. After another minute, she continued speaking.

"More soldiers came from the next street, and he aimed at them instead. I…jumped in front of them and tried to block the attack. The next thing I knew, Odin was gone and I was in a huge crater. My legs wouldn't move, so I had to drag myself out of it. When I got to the top, he was there, laughing at me. He readied his attack and…I was sure I was about to die…then you showed up," she finished, looking up at him at last.

"Light…it wasn't your fault," Hope said quietly, trying to reassure her. He put his hand on her shoulder again, and she offered him a small smile. She sighed and looked back down at the floor.

"Then why does it feel like it was? I know there wasn't anything I could have done, but…" she looked back up at him, a forlorn expression on her face. "They were just more people that I couldn't protect."

"But Light…" Hope started, but Lightning interrupted him.

"Hope…I think you should go home," she said in a dull tone. "The last train to Palumpolum leaves soon, we can make it if we leave now…"

"I thought I already told you I wasn't going anywhere, Light. Remember what you said to me in the original Palumpolum? You told me that you'd keep me safe and I…I told you that I'd watch out for you too. I won't sit back while you do this by yourself. Can you honestly look me in the face and tell me to go home while you take of everything by yourself?" Hope shouted at her angrily. He could tell Lightning was taken aback by his uncharacteristic display of anger, towards her of all people, but he didn't care. She still thinks I'm child he thought to himself, struggling to calm down. Lightning seemed at a loss for words, and a terse silence filled the room.

"It doesn't matter anyway," Hope said finally, lowering his voice and looking embarrassed for his outburst. "All the trains in the area aren't gonna be running for the next few days. We're right next to the Nautilus district, so most of them are being diverted to help repair the damage over there. That was about the only detail about this morning that the military has released on the news so far," he finished, unable to keep an icy edge out of his tone.

Lightning stood up and ran her hand through her hair, a frustrated look on her face. "Fine. We'll figure this out tomorrow. I'm going to bed." She turned and walked back up the stairs, leaving Hope alone with his anger.

XXXXX

Lightning crawled into bed, trying to push the tumult of thoughts and images from her head. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't erase them from her mind. The soldiers screaming in agony, the heat of the fire on her face, the street littered with charred corpses, and the incessant mocking laughter of the monstrous l'Cie that had almost killed her…

XXXXX

Lightning was running through a dark corridor, panting hard, sweat dripping down her face. She turned her head to look behind her. A raging inferno filled the hallway and was closing in on her fast. She continued running, putting on a burst of speed to escape the blistering flames hot on her heels.

The corridor abruptly ended, and Lightning found herself in dimly lit room. She looked behind her, but the fire that had been pursuing her was gone. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she realized that she was standing in the room within the Pulse fal'Cie where she and the others had first become l'Cie. As she looked around, the room became filled with a soft glow that became stronger and stronger until she had to shield her eyes from the light. As the glow subsided, she opened her eyes and saw that it had been emitted from a large dome on the other side of the room. The dome shifted and opened, and Lightning dropped into a fighting stance, ready to face the core of the fal'Cie that had cursed her.

She was surprised, however, when the dome opened to reveal several people inside. After a moment, she realized that they were her friends. Serah, Snow, Sazh, Fang, Vanille, and Hope all looked up as they noticed her before them, and began shouting her name. Lightning took a few steps towards them, but a line of fire burst out of the ground, forming a barrier separating her from her friends. She watched in horror as the fire closed in on the people she cared about, who began frantically calling for help.

"Lightning!" Serah called, falling backwards as the fire inched closer to the group from all sides. "Help us!"

"I-I can't," she called back to them, as she fell to her knees before the inferno in her way. The fire closed in on her friends, and Lightning screamed. As it began to consume the group huddling together trying to escape it, Lightning's scream was drowned out by crazed laughter. She covered her ears to try and shut it out, but it seemed to be coming from inside her skull. Unable to escape the sound, she curled into a ball and clutched at the sides of her head, and everything went dark around her.

Lightning opened her eyes when she could no longer hear the insane laughter. She lay on a cold stone floor, and as she looked around, she was unable to see anything beyond the circle of light illuminating the spot that she laid in. She began to hear a soft twinkling melody from somewhere above her, followed by the growing rumble of some large machine. Before she could remember where she had heard the music before, the circle of light grew to reveal that she was encircled by several large horned statues holding swords. A single word resounded through the chamber, the force of it making Lightning's teeth chatter.

"Come…"

XXXXX

Lightning woke with a start, sitting upright in her bed. The moonlight shining in through her window told her it was still the middle of the night, and she realized she was drenched in sweat. She got up and walked over to the window, gazing up at the star filled sky, trying to make sense of what she had just seen.

XXXXX

"The mysterious disturbance yesterday morning has left the entire western section of the Nautilus district in a state of ruin. The assailant or assailants unknown entered through the western gate of New Eden around nine o'clock in the morning and proceeded to attack civilians indiscriminately. Though the intruder was eventually stopped, the current death toll is estimated to be over five hundred military personnel and soldiers, while the property damage is estimated to be over 1.5 billion gil."

Hope pressed a button on the remote in his hand, and the vid screen went blank. He tossed the remote onto the couch where he was sitting. "Guess that's all they are gonna say," he said to himself. "Probably don't want to worry everyone with stories of l'Cie terrorists….Or l'Cie defenders," he finished bitterly. He looked up as he heard a creak from across the room.

Lightning was coming down the stairs, and as Hope watched her, he was surprised to see her looking so untidy, as opposed to her usually immaculate appearance. Her hair was disheveled and matted to the side of her head, and her eyes had visible bags.

"You okay?" he asked her, concerned.

"Didn't get much sleep," she replied groggily.

"Bad dreams?"

"Something like that."

An awkward silence fell over the two, reminiscent of their conversation from the previous night. Hope knew that she, like him, was remembering the not-so-friendly manner in which they had parted. Both were spared from breaking the silence, however, when the phone rang. Lightning walked into the kitchen and picked it up.

"Hello?" she said wearily.

"Claire! Finally, I've been worried sick! Where were you yesterday? I was calling all afternoon trying to get a hold of you. There was something on the news about some kind of disturbance over in Nautilus yesterday morning, and this morning they said we were attacked by something. What the hell is going on? Are you okay?" Serah said all this very quickly in a voice mixed with a combination of concern, annoyance, and relief.

"Serah, calm down, everything is fine," Lightning replied.

"Don't give me that crap, Claire, I know you know what happened yesterday, and we're all worried about you and Hope."

"Alright, alright," Lightning said, taken off guard by Serah's anger and the use of her real name. "I'll tell you but…not over the phone. We'll be there soon."

"Fine," Serah said, some of the anger leaving her voice. "But if you're not here in an hour, we're coming there," she said fiercely, and hung up.

Lightning put the phone back on the receiver and sighed heavily. She didn't want to get any of them involved in this; she hadn't even planned on telling them about the brands that she and Hope once again sported.

"We should tell them," Hope spoke up from the living room, as if he had read her mind. "They deserve to know."

"I don't want to worry them," Lightning answered, walking into the living room and turning to him.

"They're already worried, Light," came his response. "You can't just shut them out."

"The more we tell them, the more danger they are in," she pressed on stubbornly.

Hope stood up and looked at her intently. "So what are you gonna do, Light, just run away again? Because that worked out great last time." His voice lacked the anger he had shown the previous night, but the accusatory tone that replaced it was just as unexpected to Lightning.

"I don't know, okay!" she shouted at him. She looked away, unable to bare his reproachful gaze. She sat down on the couch, her head in her hands. "I don't know what to do…"

Hope sat down next to her and put a hand on her back. "We have to tell them, Light. Even if you don't believe it, they care about you. They'd want to know."

A few moments passed in silence. Hope said nothing, but allowed his words to sink in. Finally, Lightning looked up.

"My velocycle was destroyed yesterday…" she said, with a small smile.

"Guess we're walking then," Hope said, returning the expression.

XXXXX

Half an hour later, after Lightning had cleaned herself up a bit, she and Hope were walking down the street, Hope leading the way.

"We're lucky they live close enough to walk," Hope said, turning to look at her. "We're almost there."

Lightning nodded, but a thought occurred to her. "Hope," she started, drawing his attention. "How did you get to me yesterday?"

"What do you mean?" he asked with confusion.

"I mean that velocycle was the only vehicle I had, it would have taken you hours to get there on foot, and I doubt a taxi would have taken you over there, given the circumstances."

Hope scratched the back of his head, a guilty expression on his face. "Yeah…about that….well I kinda…stole your neighbor's car…"

Lightning's eyes widened in surprise. "What?"

"Well, I didn't really have any options…so I jump started it with a thunder spell. I drove towards the Nautilus district as fast as the thing would go. Eventually, I could feel the energy you were giving off, so I didn't have any trouble finding you."

"What happened to it?" Lightning asked, genuinely curious about Hope's law breaking.

"Well after I healed you enough to be sure you weren't gonna die, I went back for it. I wanted to take you home to finish the healing before the military showed up, but I guess the first spell fried the damn thing; it wouldn't start. So I finished healing you there instead. We got lucky that more soldiers didn't get there until after we left, they would have asked awkward questions."

"I'm having a bad influence on you, Hope," Lightning said, chuckling softly.

XXXXX

"Claire!" Serah called, wrapping her sister in a tight hug as she and Hope entered the house. Hope could tell that Lightning was looking uncomfortable.

"Hey guys," Hope said, looking around at the group assembled around him. Serah, Snow, and Sazh had been sitting in the living room when they had arrived, clearly waiting anxiously for them to show up.

They all exchanged greetings and settled in, Hope and Lightning sitting on a couch facing the rest of them, who were impatiently waiting to be let in on whatever had happened the previous day.

"So, you gonna tell us or what, Sis?" Snow asked. Lightning shot him an annoyed look, but said nothing. She looked nervously at Hope, who nodded and took over.

"Before we tell you, there's something we should probably show you," he said. He held his left arm out to them and pulled off his glove, revealing the blue-white brand on his wrist.

As he had expected, they all gasped, which was quickly followed by a rush of questions, none of which he could make out over their combined frantic shouting. Hope held his non branded arm up to silence them.

"We don't know any more than you guys do. We woke up yesterday morning, and our brands were back," he told them calmly.

"Claire's too?" Serah asked, looking at her sister with concern. Lightning held her hand up to her chest, and her brand glowed in response, saving her from having to unbutton her shirt to show them.

Hope continued speaking. "The person who attacked us yesterday was also a l'Cie," he told them, drawing more gasps, though they forestalled the frantic questioning this time. "Though his brand was a lot bigger than ours, and he was really strong. We don't know where he came from, and he's not up to answering any questions anymore." In their disbelief at the situation, no one but Lightning noticed the hardness that crept into Hope's voice as he talked about the l'Cie he had recently killed.

"What happened?" Serah asked them as Hope fell silent.

Hope glanced sideways at Lightning and gave her a small nod. She felt a rush of gratitude towards him when she realized he was letting her tell them about the fight, so that she could decide whether or not to discuss the gorier details of what happened.

"We heard the soldiers calling for backup over my radio," Lightning spoke up, drawing all eyes to her. We decided to check it out. When we showed up, we found this guy burning everything around him, people, buildings, anything he could reach. After he slaughtered all the soldiers, he turned on us. We fought, and we noticed he had a huge l'Cie brand across his chest. We knew it couldn't be a coincidence that the morning our brands returned, the city gets attacked by some strange l'Cie. Eventually, with the help of our eidolons, we killed him."

As she finished, Hope looked at her with concern. He wouldn't reveal to the rest of them what had actually happened, but he was worried that Lightning was going to try and repress what had happened instead of dealing with it. He remained silent as the others plowed Lightning with further questions, most of which she gave short simple answers, many of which were blatant lies. After about ten minutes of this, Lightning had apparently had enough and stood up.

"We don't know enough about how or why any of this happened to do anything about it now," she told them.

"That didn't stop you last time," Sazh said to her.

"Please, Claire, don't do anything stupid, I know you too well to think that you're just gonna wait for something else to happen," Serah said with concern.

"Yea, Sis," Snow continued, "we can help you deal with this."

"No," Lightning said sharply. She was determined to keep them from getting involved. "You guys don't have your brands anymore….you wouldn't stand a chance against whatever else may come," she said, walking towards the door.

"Heroes don't sit on the sidelines when…" Snow began, but Lightning cut him off.

"Heroes don't abandon their family to rush into a fight that isn't any of their concern," she said coldly, opening the door and not turning around. A stiff silence filled the room as she exited the house.

Hope got up and looked apologetically around at them. Snow wore a stunned expression, Serah trying to comfort him, but wearing a look of incredulity as well. Sazh had his arms folded, apparently lost in though. Hope couldn't think of anything to say to them, so he walked to the door to follow Lightning. Before he could leave however, a hand caught his arm. He turned around to find himself face to face with Serah, who was giving him a pleading look.

"Hope," she said, clearly on the verge of tears. "Take care of Claire…" Hope said nothing, but gave her an assuring nod, and left the house to find Lightning.

XXXXX

Hope found Lightning on the next street, walking at a brisk pace. He broke into a quick jog to catch up with her. She stopped as she heard him approach.

"I know you don't want them to get involved," he said to her as she turned to face him. "But you don't have to treat them like that."

"It's better this way. If they followed us, they would just be liabilities…they don't have their l'Cie powers anymore, they wouldn't be able to stand up to monsters like that bastard from yesterday," she replied.

"I know but…" Hope started, but he trailed off, unable to come up with a retort.

"There's no use arguing over it," she said to him. "Let's just go home for now."

"I'll meet you there later," Hope said to her. "I need to take care of a few things first."

She looked at him curiously, but didn't press for details. "Okay, I'll see you later then," she said, as she continued walking away. Hope watched her go, not moving from the spot. When she turned the corner and walked out of sight, he gave a heavy sigh and started down a different street.

XXXXX

Bartholomew Estheim walked slowly down a hallway, cleaning his glasses on his shirt and looking worried. He was on his way to a council meeting, no doubt called to discuss the disturbance that had occurred the previous day. Knowing some of the details already, he knew this would be an unpleasant meeting.

He entered the chamber and looked around. The twelve other members of the council were already assembled, and looked around expectantly at him as he walked in and sat down. After they all settled in, a man at the end of the table stood up to speak.

"As I'm sure you are all aware, New Eden was attacked yesterday morning by an unknown assailant. The Nautilus District where the attack took place has suffered heavy damage, and the civilians in the area and military personnel who went to investigate suffered extreme casualties," he said, looking grimly around at them. He looked towards a plump bearded man down the table. "Heidegar, as you are the councilman representing the Nautilus district, we will let you give us further details of this attack."

The man called Heidegar rose, a stack of papers in his hand, and began to read off damage and casualty reports. Despite the situation, Bartholomew couldn't keep down a feeling of distaste as the man spoke; he wasn't very fond of the outspoken and aggressive Heidegar.

As he finished, another man spoke up. "That's all very interesting I'm sure, but do we have any details about the attacker? For god's sake, whoever he was, he managed to break down the reinforce adamantium door on the west gate. I doubt someone or something capable of that wouldn't have been defeated by the paltry forces that were sent over there." As he spoke, several other council members nodded in agreement, looking around at each other. Heidegar looked annoyed at the ignoring of his reports, but he sat down and looked around as well, his curiosity overcoming his anger.

After another moment, a wiry man stood up on the other end of the table. "I believe I may be able to provide some answers to that," the man said in an oily voice. "I have here several reports from surviving soldiers and civilians who witnessed parts of the event, and I would share the conclusions I have drawn with the rest of you."

"Well, let's hear it, Rufus," Heidegar said impatiently. Bartholomew was once again unable to contain a feeling of distaste; Rufus was a conniving bastard, and the only member of the council he disliked more than Heidegar.

"Several of the reports are disjointed and unclear; the ones who gave them were clearly still traumatized from the event, and almost all of them were injured," Rufus began, looking around at the council. "But the thing many of them had in common was that the attacker was using an extremely powerful form of fire magic. Considering the extent of the damage done, it is highly unlikely he was using a mana drive."

"So what are you saying?" piped up a woman sitting next to him.

"I believe that we were attacked by a l'Cie yesterday," Rufus said gravely. At his words, murmurs began to ripple across the chamber. When Rufus started speaking again, they quickly subsided.

"Even more interesting, it seems, is how the attacker was defeated. Several of the soldiers to arrive at the scene later have claimed they saw a woman wearing military officer rank markings fighting the assailant with magic of a similar power to that of the enemy's." This news stirred up more excited murmurs among the council.

"If you all remember," Rufus continued, "One of the l'Cie involved in the events six years ago surrounding the fall of Cocoon was a woman in the military with a rank identical to that reported by the soldiers. I suggest that we bring her and the rest of the people involved in that event in for interrogation."

Bartholomew spoke at this not unexpected suggestion. "Don't you think that you're jumping to conclusions?" he said angrily, drawing all eyes to him. "None of those people are l'Cie any longer, and you all know it."

"Yes, but it seems too much of a coincidence, don't you think Bartholomew?" Rufus said to him, clearly having expected his protests to the idea.

"Even if it was one of them, from what you said they obviously saved us. If that madman had been allowed to roam unchecked, the damage to the city would have been catastrophic! We should be bringing them in to thank them, not interrogate them!" he finished, slamming his fist on the table dramatically.

"Pfft save it, Estheim," Heidegar interjected. "We all know why you defend that pack of freaks so much. We know your son is one of them."

"How dare you…" Bartholomew started, but Rufus interrupted them.

"Gentlemen please," Rufus said, silencing the two men. "Let us decide this in a civilized manner. All in favor of bringing these…former l'Cie in for questioning, please raise your hand now."

Bartholomew looked around helplessly as every other councilman besides himself raised their hand.

XXXXX

Later that night, Lightning lay in her bed staring up at her ceiling, going over the events of the day in her head. Telling the rest of her friends about her and Hope's brands had been the last thing she had wanted to do, but it had gone as well as she could have expected. After she returned home, she had sat in silence for an hour and a half before Hope had returned, a bag slung over his shoulder. She hadn't questioned him about it, hadn't said much of anything to him for the rest of the day. She was trying to prepare herself to do what she knew she had to.

After a time, she got out of bed, still fully attired in her military gear. Without turning on the light, she inspected herself to make sure she had all the things that she needed and crept silently out of the room. She walked carefully through the hallway towards the stairs, stopping for a moment in front of the door to Hope's room. She wanted more than anything to knock, to wake him up and take him with her, but she knew what she had to do. Silently sighing to herself, she crept down the stairs, dodging the creaky ones and making as little noise as possible.

She was almost to the front door, when the light flicked on, startling her. Her hand was at the hilt of her gunblade when she heard a familiar voice.

"You're an idiot," it said, and she relaxed her grip, realizing it was Hope. She looked over to see him standing next to the light switch, his arms crossed and an angry look on his face.

"Hope…"she started slowly, but he interrupted her.

"You had the dream to, didn't you?" he said. Lightning's eyes widened. "You had the dream with the music and the statues, telling you to go to Taejin's Tower."

"H-how…" she stammered out, but Hope interrupted her again.

"I knew it. The night before we woke up with our brands, I had a similar dream. Vanille was talking me, telling me she was sorry, that she was giving me something to help me do what had to be done." He raised his branded arm to her, and it pulsed softly. "This," he said. "You had that dream too, didn't you?"

She looked down, remembering well the dream she had that night. "It was Fang in mine," she said quietly.

"What?" Hope asked curiously.

"It was Fang talking to me in my dream, not Vanille," She answered.

"They knew what was going to happen," Hope said. "They knew, and somehow they gave our power back to us. To BOTH of us, Light. They knew we wouldn't be able to face this alone."

"Hope…" she said again.

"Stop. We already went over this. I'm going with you, and there's nothing you can say or do to change my mind." He reached into the bag she had seen him bring home earlier that day and pulled out a thick cloak, throwing it over himself. He pulled out a second identical one and threw it to her. "Here, take this. It's cold out there. I picked up some traveling supplies for us today. It should be enough to get us to the tower without having to stop to hunt for anything."

Lightning caught the cloak, but didn't put it on. It wasn't supposed to be like this, it wasn't going as she had planned, but she was nevertheless cheered up considerably by this turn of events. She hadn't had the strength to confess to Hope that she knew she couldn't do it alone, that she knew she would need his help, but he had figured it out on his own. She felt more grateful to him for that than for anything else.

"Are you coming?" he asked her, opening the front door and turning to look at her.

She threw the cloak over herself and nodded. "Hope…," she started, looking for the right words to express her gratitude. He looked at her curiously. "Thanks," she said finally. He gave her a quick smile, and the two of them stepped into the cold Pulse night, ready to face whatever destiny had in store for them together.

XXXXX

Damn, this one took me a lot longer to write than I thought it would. I spent a long time staring at the computer screen trying to get the interactions between Lightning and Hope just the way I wanted them.

I'm looking forward to continuing the story. I've thought out the direction I want to take it, and I feel good about what I came up with. I hope you guys are having as much fun reading this as I am writing it.