A.N. Here's the epilogue. Enjoy

Salvation

Epilogue: Hope

After a short, dreamless sleep Hope slowly regained consciousness. „Wake up.", said a voice, which he knew all too well. A voice that could sound cold but warm at once. A voice that he'd learned to love in the last months. Lightning's voice. A few seconds later, Hope was fully conscious and he could feel that the cool crystal disappeared again. He took a deep breath and opened his eyes. He was back on Gran Pulse. And then he saw it. Cocoon was surrounded by a crystal sheath and stood on a crystal pillar. Then he remembered what happened before he became crystal.

Lightning turned into Ragnarok. She'd saved the world. Lightning was a heroine! „She did it. She saved the world.", muttered Hope to himself and stared at the crystallized Cocoon. „No, she gave us a new one.", said a high girlish voice. Hope turned around and looked at Vanille and Fang. „That's one gift I'll forgive her for not wrapping.", said Fang with a grin. Hope chuckled at this remark. „Yeah." But something wasn't right...Where was...? Hope looked around frantically, but she wasn't here. „She's inside the pillar.", said Vanille sadly. Apparently, she knew exactly who he was looking for.

Immediately, he looked back at Cocoon. Lightning was in the pillar? She held up Cocoon? Hope couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe that Lightning was really gone. She'd promised Serah to come back...She'd promised him to protect him! Hope looked down and realized that tears gathered in his eyes, but he tried everything to hold them back. He shouldn't cry! He should be strong! Lightning wouldn't want him to cry. He could already imagine what Lightning would've done if she would see him like that. She would poke his forehead and tell him with a smile on her face, that he shouldn't cry, that everything will be alright again. Then he suddenly found himself in a hug. Vanille hugged him and stroked his hair gently. And now he remembered the last two times, where Lightning hugged him.

It just wasn't the same...He couldn't believe that he won't see the pink-haired soldier ever again. That she was gone forever...Hope clenched his fists as the first tear fell. He had to pull himself together! „Hey!", called someone from far away. The three turned around and saw Serah, Sazh and Snow riding on Chocobo's towards them. Hope wiped the tears away, when they arrived. „Looks like you did it!", said Snow, who got off the Chocobo. „Cocoon's seen better days, that's for sure. And I'd say that qualifies as a demolition. Focus complete.", said Sazh and grinned. „Hmph, whatever you want to believe.", heard Hope a voice say. The silver-haired boy looked around frantically, looking for the source of the voice. Did he just hear Lightning?

Or was it just his imagination? „What is it, Hope?", asked Serah and looked at him with concern. „Did you hear that?" When everyone looked at him confused, he knew that only he heard it. Or it was really just him imagination. „Forget it. I just thought I heard something.", he said. Now also Serah looked around. She seemed to have noticed that Lightning wasn't here. „Where's Lightning?" The three l'Cie looked at each other to vote who should tell her the news. „You know, Light is inside the crystal pillar and holds up Cocoon.", said Fang.

„S-she's in there?", muttered Serah and looked at the pillar in shock. Then she looked to Snow and Hope saw clearly that she was on the verge of tears. „I'm sorry, Serah.", he sighed and looked very sad too. „B-but we'll see her again, right? She'll wake up again, right?" No one said a word. Nobody knew if she'll ever return. Then Serah began to cry bitterly. The others immediately came to her, to comfort her. And Hope felt lousy. He'd promised Lightning to take care of her, too. But he knew he couldn't have done anything to stop her. Once Lightning set her mind on something, she had to complete this job no matter what. However...He'd thought that they could stay together in the future. He'd hoped that...well...He wanted to become a man, who's worthy of her and tell her about his feelings for her.

If he ever gained the courage of course...Hope bit his lower lip to prevent himself from crying. He always knew that she was special, since the first time he saw her. She was so strong, so brave and not to mention graceful and absolutely beautiful. And she was seven years older than him. But that didn't stop him from falling in love with her.

Since Lightning treated him nicely — after her fight against Odin — he began to feel more for her. Since then, he began to think about her more often. And in the Gapra Whitewood he couldn't get her out of his mind anymore. She wasn't just a mentor, or a mother figure to him. Not even like a big sister. She was his best friend.

And when they finally reached Palumpolum he realized that maybe there was more behind it than friendship. He didn't even know how it happened...or when it happened. Maybe it started much earlier, when she saved him, his mother, Sazh and Dajh from the purge. Was it maybe love at first sight?
No, that was nonsense! But no matter when it started and how it happened, it didn't change the fact that he fell in love with Lightning Farron head over heels. But Lightning had no idea of his feelings for her and always misunderstood him. And that was partly a good thing. She saw him only as a child and would never take him seriously if he'd confessed to her during their journey.

That's why he wanted to wait until he's older so that Lightning will finally see him as a man. But now it would never happen. She was trapped in the crystal pillar and will probably never wake up again. He wanted to convince himself that his feelings for the pink-haired soldier were just a childish crush and that he'll get over it soon. But he knew better. He had a crush before and he knew that his feelings for Lightning were stronger. Much stronger. When he was near her he felt safe, even if they're surrounded by countless Behemoth's. He had this overwhelming will to want to protect her from all evil, even if he knew that she could take care of herself.

All he wanted was to embrace her tightly and never let her go. He wanted her to be happy, even if he wasn't the one who could be by her side to make her happy. He would give up everything for her. Hell, he would even sell his own soul for her! So that's how it felt like, huh? True love. His mother had told him about it often, he was sure that he really loved Lightning with all his might. If only he had something that reminded him of her...Then he remembered that he still had her survival knife that she actually wanted back.

But he couldn't keep it. Hope pulled himself together and fought back the tears. Then he slowly went over to Serah and took the knife out of his pocket. „Uh...Serah?" Serah had calmed down by now and looked at him. „Yes, Hope?" Hope's grip on the knife tightened briefly, before he handed it to Serah. He'd like to keep it, but Serah was her sister. He had to do the right thing. He had to give Serah the knife. „It's her knife...I..."

Hope gulped down the heavy lump in his throat and looked for the right words. „She gave me this to protect me...but I think you should keep it. Being her sister and all...", he mumbled the last part. He didn't know what to say next. Serah looked at him and then at the knife, while Hope was waiting for her, to take the only memento of Lightning from him. Serah smiled and closed his hand around the knife with hers and squeezed it lightly. „Lightning gave this to you to protect you, Hope. You should keep it.", said the pink haired woman. „But...", began Hope but went silent, as Serah shook her head. „Keep it. And when Lightning returns you can give it back to her yourself."

„You mean she'll come back?"

„All we can do is not to give up hope." Not give up hope, huh?, he thought and looked at the others, who agreed. „She's right, kid. All we can do is to believe that Lightning will come back and maybe she really will.", said Sazh, smiled encouragingly at him and put a hand on his shoulder. „That's right! Sis doesn't give up so easily!", agreed Snow and grinned broadly.

Hope nodded and pressed the knife to his heart. He vowed that he'll try harder to make Lightning proud of him. To protect her. And when she comes back he'll confess his love to her! „Do you think Hope's parents and Dajh come here?", asked Serah the group. „Sure, why not? The whole Cocoon will be evacuated to Gran Pulse.", replied Fang and pointed to the airships that landed near the pillar to evacuate the citizens of Cocoon. How ironic. A few months ago they all wanted to get rid of the people and now Gran Pulse was the last place of refuge.

And hopefully they were now on their side...„We should go and look.", said Snow. „And what about the soldiers? Ain't they gonna attack 'em, 'cause they're l'Cie?", asked Sazh and pointed to the three l'Cie. Sazh was right. After all that happened, they still had no place in the world...

Hope looked thoughtfully at his wrist and saw that his brand was gone. „My brand! It's gone!", said Hope joyfully to the others. Then everyone noticed that Fang's white brand was gone, too. Fang knelt down immediately and lifted Vanille's skirt slightly. Hope looked away immediately and wondered what she's doing. „Vanille, your brand's gone, too!", said Fang happily and hugged her. It looked like that more than one miracle happened. Now Lightning should appear out of nowhere to make this day perfect. But that wouldn't happen. At least not in the next few months...or years...And now he felt miserable once again. This empty feeling about Lightning's loss came back. Funny. He met Lightning a few months ago and now he couldn't imagine his life without her.

A few hours later the last airship landed and Hope's parents and Dajh were in there. The PSICOM soldiers didn't attack them when they saw them. No, they now knew the truth that the Primarch was a fal'Cie, and that they saved Cocoon. But they warned them that there are still some people who were afraid of them. But this would change over time. The families finally reunited. Of course if you don't count Lightning in...

When the three arrived and got out of the airship Dajh and Sazh hugged each other and were, of course, more than happy to be reunited again. Even though Hope didn't jump into his parents arms as Dajh did, he hugged them both, when they were close enough. He was glad they're okay. He was afraid that something happened to them. „There's our world savior.", said his mother and hugged him tightly. „Mom, you can let go of me now.", he said, while trying desperately to free himself from Nora's bone-breaking hug. Finally, she let go of him and he could breathe again. Even his father was proud of him and called him the savior of the world. But that wasn't true.

„Where's Lightning?", asked Bartholomew as he and Nora noticed that she was the only one that was missing. „Well...", began Hope and looked back to the crystal pillar. „She's in the crystal pillar...and holds up Cocoon. She is the heroine, she's saved Cocoon, not me.", said the silver-haired boy sadly and then looked down. „She's in crystal stasis and no one knows if she'll ever wake up again..."

Nora hugged him again, but this time more gentle and Bartholomew patted him on his head. He knew his father wasn't good at comforting, but he appreciated that he tried it at least. „What if she never wakes up?", he murmured, almost clutching onto Nora. He actually didn't want to...be like that. After everything that happened, after everything Lightning had taught him, he wanted to be strong, but now he just needed someone to comfort him.

„You really like her, don't you?", asked Nora in a soft voice. She meant as a friend, right? She couldn't know that he felt more than friendship for Lightning. „As a friend, yeah." When Nora giggled, Hope finally looked up. „That's not what I meant.", she said and smiled at him sadly. „What...?"
„You loved her, right?" Hope's eyes widened and his face heated up within seconds, so much so that he thought he would melt. „Uh...I..." He didn't know what to say to justify himself. She knew she was right. How could she figure him out like this?

„Don't even try to make excuses that you don't like her this way, Hope. I've seen it.", said Nora and smiled. „It was very obvious how you behave towards her.", agreed Bartholomew. They both had seen through him? And he'd tried so hard to keep it a secret. „You...don't think it's weird?", asked Hope and looked confused at his parents. It was weird to be in love with someone who's seven years older, right? At least for a fourteen year old kid. „What's weird about being in love with someone?", asked Nora. „You can't control who you fall in love with.", said Bartholomew then. To say Hope was surprised was an understatement. They understood him. And they'd even give him their blessing if he'd get together with Lightning. But that was of course not possible. She'll never wake up again. And again tears gathered in his eyes, but tried to hold them back.

„Hope." When he heard his name, he looked up at his parents. „It's okay to cry.", said Nora, but Hope shook his head and looked down. It wasn't okay. He had to be strong. Lightning never cried. „Hope, haven't I told that crying isn't a sign of weakness? It's okay.", she said, while patting his head gently. „It's okay to grieve for the loved one you've lost." Bartholomew agreed with a nod. Nora had already said everything that should be said. And somehow they're right. Then he didn't care anymore and began to cry. His mother hugged him immediately and his father tried his best to comfort him as well. He was really happy to have them now.

As Hope calmed down a few minutes later, the little family went back to the others. Hope felt much better and got new hope that someday Lightning will wake up. The group discussed what they could do from now on. Some of them had already a firm goal in mind. Sazh will continue to work as a pilot and Dajh will be with him as often as possible. Snow suggested that they'll build a new home here. That was typical Snow, but the idea wasn't so bad. And Serah...„I was thinking of becoming a teacher. At such times, it's very important to teach the children everything they must know. And also about the l'Cie and our adventure." That was a really good idea and everyone agreed with her. It was about time that something changed and it's the best to start with the next generations.

„This is an excellent idea, Serah.", said Nora. „Yeah, I think so too.", agreed Fang and grinned at her. „And what are you going to do?", asked Snow Hope and his family. „We'll support you with your idea.", answered Bartholomew. „Great!" Hope also thought that this was great. This meant they'll stay together. At least with Snow and Serah. Sazh will certainly have too much to do and can rarely visit them.

„We'll help you too.", said Fang then. „Jap", agreed Vanille. „We actually wanted to go back to Oerba, but we decided to stay with our new family."
„Don't forget that we're all a big family on Gran Pulse.", reminded Fang. She was right. They were a family. „Hope, what's wrong with you?", asked Serah suddenly and looked at him concerned. Hope was so sad and happy at the same time that he didn't notice that a tear glided down his cheek. He was so happy to have a great family, but he was sad that Lightning couldn't be with them.

Hope wiped the tear away and smiled at Serah. „I'm fine, Serah. I'm just glad that we all stay together.", he replied, and then had to look back to the crystal pillar. Suddenly he found himself in a hug again. Why do they all wanted to hug him? Did he look so helpless? Then the hug evolved into a group hug. „Just don't give up hope. If we all believe in it, Lightning will come back, right?", asked Serah and Hope could clearly hear that she was on the verge of tears again. „Of course.", assured Snow. For the first time Snow was right. Hope looked up at the crystal pillar again, even if the view was obstructed by his new family. Lightning wasn't physically with them, but he she would always stay with them spiritually. She would remain in their hearts forever.

Especially in his.

The End

A.N. So, that's it. The last chappy. Thanks for reading guys, though I'm not pleased with the result -.- according to the number of reviews, this was the worst XIII story I've ever wrote. And I really hoped that you guys like this story like "Salvation" v.v For once the Germans wrote more reviews than you xD

But whatever...As I mentioned before I've wrote a sequel to this story. Since I don't have many reviews here, I have NO IDEA if you even liked the story and if you want a sequel. This is your last chance to write reviews. So, if you want me to upload the sequel, then PLEASE tell me! I can't read minds, don't forget. Oh and one more thing: If no one tells me to upload that sequel, then I won't. It tells me that you don't like this story (or maybe just a bit), but it's enough and you don't want a sequel. But I really hope to see you guys in the sequel, I'm really proud of this one (maybe except for the ending...). Bye^^