Yellow
Rank 96

DISCLAIMER: I do not, and will never own Final Fantasy 12, or the characters and places in it. I also don't own Coldplay or their song Yellow. I do, however, wish that I owned Vaan... and that he had a sexy voice like the lead singer of Coldplay.
A girl can dream.

I T STARTED WITH A SONG…

he can't sing, but he'll do anything to see her smile

"Penelo!?" Silence filled the air, creating no gaps in its painful grasp. He looked at her, biting his lip as she turned her head. Her eyes were slanted and watery. Yet she didn't cling to him for comfort as she normally would have. It was the opposite.

"Go away, Vaan," she commanded, her voice cold and sharp. So… un-Penelo-y.

Eyes wide, he shook his head once and made a noise. It wasn't sad, it wasn't defiant, it wasn't happy. It was just a noise. A note in a scale that didn't seem to register.

So he took a few steps back, and watched her walk on alone. He tried to put this into as many different phrases as he could with every step she took. Alone, without me, not with me, not by my side, on her own… not together.

He turned and began to jog quickly away.

Penelo's brothers were dead now, both of them. She didn't think he understood, but he understood all too well. Hadn't he had a family he'd lost? His parents… Reks… How could he not understand?

Taking a deep breath, he paused in a small alley by Amal's Weaponry and closed his eyes.

When his parents had died… what had Penelo done for him to make him smile again? She had talked to him… she had been herself. She had reminded him that at least, through this, the two of them would always be the same. She did the same thing when Reks was reported dead.

But Penelo didn't want to talk… She didn't even seem to want to see him.

But he wanted to see her… Vaan wanted to see her smile again. He didn't like how she looked at him when they exchanged words. It was so cold compared to the usual yellow warmth she emitted.

Yellow…

Didn't Reks know a song like that? He used to hum it whenever he took Vaan hunting with him. Sometimes he even sang it to Vaan when he was down.

"This should work," Vaan said, smiling to himself. He wasn't a singer, but he'd sing for her smile.

----------------------- -(I wrote a song for you, and all the things you do. And it was called yellow)-----------------------------

So there he was. He knew that… if this worked, she'd give him hell for even trying to sing to her. But he wanted her normal. He wanted her smile.

"Penelo!" he shouted. He was standing inside of their home in Lowtown, in front of the door that led to her room. He could hear her in there, sniffling softly to herself. She wouldn't allow herself to cry. Penelo was trying to be strong. He wasn't sure who for though.

Did she really have anyone left but him?

"Penelo!" he tried again, this time knocking on her door. No answer, just more sniffling.

Vaan sighed and decided he'd just go for it. Maybe his voice would give her a giggle or two.

"Look at the stars,
Look how they shine for you,
And everything you do,
Yeah they were all yellow."

Vaan smiled to himself as he took a few breaths. He didn't hear anymore sniffling. He wasn't sure if that was good or bad. He continued on, his voice off key and changing pitches every so often. He was horrible, but Vaan hoped it would do her good.

"I came along
I wrote a song for you
And all the things you do
And it was called yellow."

Footsteps padded softly, then louder and louder as they neared. He heard something press against the door. Maybe it was her ear, listening. Maybe she was trying to keep him from entering the room. He shrugged it off, and continued on.

"So then I took my turn
Oh all the things I've done
And it was all yellow."

Finally, the door creaked open, and there was Penelo. Her face was red in a mixture between grief and glee and her hair was tousled and messy. She gave him a weird look, and whispered in a creaky voice, "Vaan?"

He smiled and nodded. But he wanted to get the chorus. He wanted her to smile still… His cheeks were red and hot, yet he knew he would reach his goal.

" Your skin
Oh yeah your skin and bones
Turn into something beautiful
D'you know you know I love-"

Before Vaan could finish the line, Penelo, grinning and laughing, had bounded into his arms.

"Vaan," she said into his shoulder. She was shaking slightly now. "You really can't sing."

"Yeah, I know. But it worked, didn't it?" Vaan queried, stepping back and looking at her.

"It worked."

…AND ENDED WITH A SMILE.

(owari)

A/N: This is going to be a one-shot series. They'll all be Vaanelo. Why? I adore the pairing, okay? And there is sooooo not enough of it around here. I love this two cuties together. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Its the namesake of the series. And also, I'm being kind today, and uploading another with it. Enjoy!