Author's Note: A day late because adulthood means working Saturdays sometimes and then being too tired to finish writing a fanfic, but that's not too bad considering my history of taking forever to update. One of the notable additions to the Symphonia remake is of course the bonus costumes, and since taking Zelos' path leads to this scene unlocking costumes for both Zelos and Sheena, it seemed a natural event to include in this fanfiction. It also takes place towards the end of the game, so it would be a fitting time to wrap up plans for our favourite pairing's future.


Rekindled

Chapter 7: Our Future

"And that's the ferris wheel that taught my teenage self that girls lose a lot of their inhibitions when they're alone with super good-looking guy."

Sheena's head drooped forward until her forehead landed on Zelos' back. Somehow she had agreed to a "date" with Tethe'alla's Chosen in the city of Altamira, and found herself clutching to his waist to remain secure on their shared Rheaird as he navigated them around every division of the city and shared eye-rolling experiences he had had there. She didn't like anything about Altamira to begin with, and this Rheaird tour was making it even less appealing.

"Can we maybe go somewhere outside of the city?" Sheena asked, trying to refrain from whining in desperation.

Zelos glanced back. "Whatever you want, hunny. Tonight I am completely at your service."

As though he anticipated the plea for a getaway, Zelos sped the Rheaird up with a sudden acceleration that forced Sheena to cling to him more tightly. She held on so tightly that she wasn't able to process the view of where they were travelling to until the Rheaird slowed down. She loosened her grip and stood upright, looking down as the Rheaird began its descent. The Otherworldly Gate loomed below, no glow shining from the pillars that night, no foliage or wildlife in sight, empty. After they landed, Zelos left the Rheaird powered on so that they had some light to navigate by. With an overdramatic flare, he hurried to the ground and offered Sheena a hand descending as well. She accepted, and they walked together to the cliff that overlooked the ocean.

"Why here?" Sheena wondered aloud, then turned to Zelos. The sight of him brought her away from her wistful pondering and back into the reality of this foolish date. "Why these outfits?!"

The outfits had been assigned by Zelos back in Altamira as soon as Sheena agreed to the date. Zelos had his hair tied back in a low ponytail, and a pair of sunglasses holding his bangs back even though he would have no practical use for them at night. He wore an unbuttoned vest with no shirt underneath, black pants, and brown gloves and boots to complete the ensemble. Sheena had found herself agreeing to wear a matching outfit of a low-cut black top that showed off her stomach, and cropped black pants, brown ankle boots and fingerless gloves. Zelos had called it "biker fashion" and insisted "matching outfits are all the rage" but Sheena suspected it was just a strange fantasy of his.

"Just giving you something else to think about," Zelos answered. "Oh, and I figured there was no way we'd run into other people here. You weren't into my Altamira tour, so this seemed like the best opposite."

Something else to think about. Sheena had been in a melancholic mood that evening, obsessing over the future as they approached the end of their journey. She was anxious to return to Mizuho where her grandfather was reestablishing himself, and a different kind of anxious about her role as successor. Here at the Otherworldly Gate, she was reminded of Kuchinawa's betrayal, and of her own motivation to improve Mizuho so that her old friend would return. They were all very heavy thoughts–and as she and Zelos had flown around Altamira and she had listened to his stupid stories, she had forgotten those thoughts completely. He always had that power over her, whether he was distracting her from a thunderstorm, or drawing out happy memories after Corrine's death, or promising that he could be trusted after seemingly turning his back on their group. He had the power to take away Sheena's dark thoughts and make her feel at ease.

Sheena embraced Zelos and reached up for a kiss. "You're good," she admitted, "but the outfits are a bit much."

"You think?" Zelos slipped an arm around her waist and stroked the bare skin of her back. His gaze ventured down and Sheena tilted his chin up so he had to meet her eyes instead of her cleavage. "I figured Mizuho clothing is so traditional, we won't have many more chances to goof off like this."

She hummed in agreement, then paused. "We?"

Zelos stepped back from her and began wandering towards the ruins. "Well yeah..." he stopped and scratched the back of his neck, kept his focus away from Sheena. She watched him curiously; Zelos always seemed to have an answer ready, so she wasn't used to seeing him think so hard before speaking. "I want to be with you, Sheena," he said at last, not turning around. Sheena stepped forward so she could see Zelos' face as he spoke. He averted his eyes, bringing a hand to his forehead to cover his face more. Was Zelos embarrassed? "Mizuho is your home. I've only learned some of what it means to live there, but...I guess I'm saying I'll do what I gotta do. Wear the clothes, build my own house, not touch your butt in public..."

"I wouldn't let you touch my butt in public now!" Sheena interrupted.

"That's what you took from me spilling my heart out?!"

Sheena laughed as she hopped up onto one of the overturned rocks that made up the ruins. She walked along the monolith then turned to Zelos as she reached its edge. "How have you learned about life in Mizuho anyway?"

Zelos felt quite small, looking up at Sheena from his spot on the ground. He wondered what she would think of what he said next... "Well when you were officially named successor, I couldn't just pretend you weren't going back. And people in the village always talk about Igaguri-style, and Igaguri had just woken up, sooo..."

"You talked to Grandpa without me?!" Sheena was horrified as she considered Zelos interacting with her grandfather without her supervision (which would probably be a lot of her interrupting or kicking him before he could say something humiliating). During the short time she could spend with Chief Igaguri after he had woken up, Sheena had given him a condensed version of her life from when he had been unconscious. She had told him of creating a pact with Corrine in Meltokio, of Sylvarant and her role as the Emissary of Death, of Kuchinawa abandoning the village, and of each one of her companions. She had probably been too careful when she had described Zelos, glossing over meeting him in Meltokio and sort of dismissing how important Tethe'alla's Chosen had been in their successes so far. She had felt that she needed more time to explain who Zelos was to her, and needed more time to brief Zelos on how to behave in the Chief's presence. And somehow Zelos had talked to her grandfather without her.

Zelos pulled himself up onto the stone that Sheena stood on. "I'm trying to become someone who doesn't run away from their fears," he said in defense of himself. "And Igaguri...he's a fear in more way than one." Sheena tilted her head to the side, a silent question that urged Zelos to continue. "He's so rigid and formal. I didn't have any disciplinary figures after my parents died, so it's intimidating. He gave me a picture of life in Mizuho, but man - I feel less pressure talking with the king!" The pause that followed said a lot about how difficult these thoughts were for Zelos to express. He sat down cross-legged on the stone ruin and stared out at the ocean and the stars beyond. Sheena sat down and pulled her knees up. With one arm curled around her knees, she reached the other hand over to Zelos and poked his shoulder with her index finger. He turned to her with a more lighthearted smile. "And scarier than that, he's your family. Meeting a girlfriend's family is this infamous moment of stress!"

All of their actions and this conversation about the future had of course implied it, but Sheena still felt a jump of surprise when Zelos dropped the word 'girlfriend' instead of the usual 'hunny'. "Grandpa is strict on Mizuho's rules, and he held me accountable for those just like everyone else; as a guardian, though, he was gentle and forgiving. He brought me into the village as an outsider, and raised me like I belonged. He taught me Mizuho's traditional games, how to cook, how to tend to the many wounds I got when I trained with the others..." She missed him. She could hardly believe that she would have a family again when all of this was over. She smiled. "I don't think it was just because I was a child. Birthright doesn't mean as much as effort, so I know he'll welcome you." She lowered her head onto Zelos' shoulder and closed her eyes. There was hardly a second before he responded by wrapping his arm around her.

"So I need to put in effort, huh."

"Lots of it. And no biker outfits."

Zelos' shoulders heaved with an exaggerated sigh. "Fine, at least you've humoured me for now."

He had understood a long time ago that his lifestyle would be changing in a dramatic way, from the moment Sheena had asked him if he was coming to Sylvarant with them before they broke the final mana link. He couldn't say that he had been ready for the change in that particular instant, but he was ready for the challenge of adapting to the new way of life that would be waiting for him. At that time he had been expecting the lifestyle of Sylvarant, not Mizuho; in a way that would have been more simple, he thought. The Sylvarant path would have been totally severed from Tethe'alla, so the legacy of the Chosen wouldn't have followed him, and his sister would have been free to live a life without him, and he and Sheena could have become something without the looming judgment of Mizuho's community...

"You're thinking something."

"Hm?" Zelos gave a sideways look to Sheena as she lifted her head and met his stare.

"When you're quiet, you're always thinking about something serious," she said.

Old habits almost made Zelos divert from his actual thoughts with a joke ('Just thinking how this view of the stars doesn't compare to you, hunny!') He had let Sheena get to know him too well for that. "There's still so much to do... I won't be able to just ditch my title and get established in Mizuho." Zelos groaned and fell backwards, stretched out his arms and let his legs hang over the edge of the ruins. "And then there's Seles. What do I do about that girl? How do I–?" Zelos' worries were muffled by Sheena's hand over his mouth.

"We're such overthinkers," Sheena observed. "I thought this date was meant to be a distraction from our thoughts."

When Sheena pulled her hand back, Zelos beamed up at her. "You're right. Maybe this setting is getting stale. Can I buy you a drink at the casino?"

Sheena feigned deliberation for a brief moment. "I might be okay with that," she said, and offered a hand to Zelos. He accepted it and she pulled him back upright. Sheena took the lead to return to the Rheaird, and claimed the driving role before Zelos could object.

The moon had trailed further across the sky during their getaway from Altamira. The night was silent save the Rheaird's engine, and Sheena savoured that quiet while it lasted. Although it was the middle of the night, Altamira would be lively as ever, especially the bar just outside the casino. There would be no room for intrusive thoughts or overly serious conversations in an environment like that, so maybe Zelos once again knew what he was doing when he made the suggestion to go there. Or maybe he just needed a drink to deal with his own burdens.

"Hey Sheena." Zelos' voice was so uncharacteristically reserved that Sheena had to strain to hear him over the hum of the Rheaird, "When all of this over, if we need a go-between for Tethe'alla and Sylvarant...would you accept the role?" He embraced Sheena and burrowed his face in the crook of her neck. "I could accompany you. You know, for security purposes."

"So an excuse for you to spend time with me?" Sheena observed, and felt Zelos' smile against her skin in response. She laughed lowly, at both how reserved Zelos had been when he had asked that, and at her own recognition of how much they needed each other. "I could go along with that."