Hey loyal readers and reviewers,

This is it, the final part to my first and super long Colloyd fic—Starlit Wings. *sniffle* It's a little sad… *sniffle* Well, you can be sure this won't be the end of my Colloyd works though. I plan to make many more in the future, real one-shots this time though. Still, this is my first and it holds a special place in my heart.

One note on this final part is that I made Izoold seem a little bigger than the game portrays it to be, if only to make it seem more realistic a town. I do know what it looks like in the game, just so everyone knows. XD

Disclaimer is on the first part. Spoilers are the same as they have been, there really isn't any.

So, prepare for tons of plotless and pointless fluff of the cuteness that is Colloyd. I had so many ways I could have done this, but either way it is still overly fluffy and such. If you don't like such things, I'd not read it. I'm too much a romantic.

Here we go, Part IV - Final: Starlight's Magic

Lloyd groaned as he rolled over on his stomach, sinking face first into his pillow as he grumpily gripped the blanket now haphazardly spread over him. He couldn't stand it. No matter how hard he'd tried to relax since laying down all he'd managed to do was drift in and out of being half asleep and half awake. It wasn't a mystery as to why this was of course.

With a yawn the swordsmen sat up using one arm as a crutch, mumbling something incoherently as he swung his half-lidded gaze around the room and located a wall clock. He had to strain to focus his vision since that part of the room wasn't allied with the moonlight, but still managed to snatch the time anyway.

"One o'clock AM," he thought with a small sigh, "Man, what am I doing?"

He ran a hand over his face dejectedly. Regardless of being unspeakably tired, sleep just would not lend him sympathy and settle over him. Lloyd blamed nerves as much as certain other personal feelings. Though dozing off to a faint sleep had been fairly quick on his part after his talk with Genis—who unlike him was peacefully snoring away—thoughts still shifted so that no matter where his mind went it would bring him back to Colette.

How lonely she might be. How much she continued to hold in. How her hurt had gone unhealed and thus stolen her smile. It kept him all too aware, out of the realm of dreams.

"This is hopeless. I need to clear my head or I'll never sleep…" Lloyd slung his legs over the side of the bed, reaching down to pull over his boots. "Maybe a short walk will do me some good…"

He honestly wasn't sure anything would be able to ease his troubles. He supposed it wouldn't hurt to try. It wasn't as if he was making any progress just moping here in bed awake.

After tugging on the edging of his boots to snugly secure them on his feet he grabbed his jacket from his bag. He threw it on fast and proceeded to engage in the irritable task of buttoning it up. He was doing alright until he noticed that he'd mismatched one of the buttons with its proper hole near the beginning. He growled out a strangled oath in his frustration as he hastily started over again, this time getting it right. He didn't bother with his gloves or swords. It was just a walk after all.

Lloyd carefully crossed the room so he wouldn't wake Genis, turning the knob of their door and sneaking through it before clicking it closed slowly behind him. He turned around and took a step only to bite his tongue in realization, freezing up.

"Dammit. I forgot about Kratos!"

He peeked over to the bed the magic knight had taken to with the utmost care, repeatedly trying to convince himself to blend into the shadows somehow. Kratos had propped up pillows against the wall his bed was against, his back sunk into them as he supposedly slept with crossed arms. It wasn't unexpected that he'd chosen to sleep sitting up or anything. It was, however, suspicious in general.

The mercenary was unfortunately the lightest sleeper Lloyd had ever met in his life. He hadn't once ever seen Kratos really resting, even when they shared the same room. How he could fight so well on such little hours of sleep baffled Lloyd to no end. This wasn't the time for that though.

He took a single stride forward, creeping towards his goal with a look on his face that just screamed cautious. He pleaded that nothing classic like stepping on a loose floorboard jinxed him.

"Quiet… Quiet… Almost there," he told himself, the front door feeling more like the gate to some safe haven with each inch he hedged closer to it.

At last he reached it. It made tiny voices sing in his head at his triumph. Lloyd couldn't help himself to a small victory pose, moving his hand in front of his face with an overconfident grin while making an "L" shape with his fingers.

"Don't stay out too late, Lloyd…"

The young dual-swordsman almost yelped, slapping a hand over his mouth to help muffle it. He spun his head around, only to find Kratos, awake, giving him a one of his usual glares. He nervously dropped his hand, tittering. Kratos was one thing but if he'd woken Raine up there'd be hell to pay.

"Y-yeah, I won't. Don't worry," Lloyd promised. He gave Kratos a wave, the man only heaving a noise akin to a 'humph' in reply, and then practically leapt through the exit of the inn without hesitation. When he was positive the door was shut he gasped, shaking himself off. "Phew, that was close…"

He trudged away from the building, the fresh air doing some good for his lungs. He'd really needed this walk after all. Lloyd folded his hands behind his neck, gazing up at the stars. Izoold wasn't the most glamorous place in Sylvarant but shared the same starry sky as Iselia. It was also wonderfully balmy. The wind carried that distinctive hint of the sea that never seemed to fail at intoxicating the sense of smell.

All in all, perfect night for a walk.

Lloyd indulged in some nostalgia as he defined some familiar constellations, picking up that memory of his father again. His rumination was shattered however when he bumped into something relatively big and furry.

The warrior stumbled back. "What the heck...?"

"Aaarrruuu…"

He'd know that whining anywhere.

"Noishe?" he said curiously, "What are you doing out here? I thought Genis put you in your pen for the night."

It was Noishe. The green and white furred creature was standing in front of him, too edgy to acknowledge his question, only whining again as his large ears flicked back and forth in a trademark manner. Lloyd rubbed his chin questioningly, virtually falling over when his pet took his sleeve between his teeth and attempted to drag him.

"W-whoa, boy, hey!" Lloyd yanked his arm out of his companion's mouth. "What's gotten into you?"

Noishe barked a few times, tail swishing in concern. His black eyes shimmered, wishing for his master to understand. Sadly it was quite impossible for Lloyd to do so. He didn't speak canine, or whatever dialect Noishe used.

"Uh, do you want me to go some place?" he guessed jokingly.

To his shock Noishe yipped, rushing around behind him and pushing him towards where he wanted him to go by incessantly pressing his head into the small of his back. "Okay, okay, I get it! You want to show me something. Just be gentler with the shoving."

Noishe complied, directing his master more kindly as they made progress. Lloyd was still bemused whilst he went along with this. What could be so important that Noishe would force himself out of his pen? Better yet, he wanted to show him his discovery? It couldn't be something small. Noishe was a very intelligent dog after all.

At first anything around was either pathway or some kind of residence. After a time though, the sound of waves became more audible, a slope leading to a beach coming into view. It was probably the small beach Lloyd had seen much earlier while in the midst of recruiting Max. It was the closest shore from the inn so he probably wasn't wrong. At least, he hoped not.

When Lloyd came close enough to offer the shoreline a full scrutiny Noishe stopped pushing him. The swordsmen quirked an eyebrow to which the Arshis gestured at the area again with a nudge of his head. Relenting, Lloyd looked ahead of him, preparing for nothing that spectacular. That was a dumb move, for he was caught off guard.

There, standing in the very shallow section of the ocean ahead of his line of sight stood Colette.

Normally— even in the moonlight— it would be impossible to spot her, let alone recognize her due to how dark it was at this time of night. On the other hand this wasn't the usual circumstance, for she had her wings out. The angelic limbs naturally casted that distinctive calming lavender glow he'd come to appreciate, making her very easy to pick out.

Lloyd stared softly. It wasn't a rude action or a suggestive one. Rather, it was one of adoration. Those wings were so amazing to him. Every time he saw them he got so fixated on every aspect of them. The way they glimmered and fluttered in different ways with Colette's own emotions was so, dare he admit, endearing. He felt himself blush. He knew he should tear his eyes away from her, even if he meant no harm by it. It was just hard to. She was so…

"A-ah…um, Noishe," Lloyd sheepishly whispered, "Go back to your pen and get some sleep, alright? I'll talk to her."

Noishe nodded, giving his master a small nuzzle and then obeying the command by trotting away around a corner of a nearby building where Lloyd could only assume the pens were. He'd have to remember to thank him later for this. It was such a pure stroke of luck.

He started going down the path again, studying Colette some more while trying inexplicably not to be entranced by her. She seemed incredibly deep in thought. More than that, her wings were indeed out which lead him to believe she was still stuck on what happened after all. Why come here though? Questions only led to more questions.

When he finished walking down the slope he reached the border between grass and sand. When his boot met sand Colette stiffened, her wings evaporating hurriedly as she whirled around startled.

The angel tangibly loosed up when she realized who it was. "O-oh, Lloyd… What are you doing out here?"

Lloyd blinked with wide brown eyes. He was still pretty far away from her. "Wow, you could hear me walking from all the way back here?"

She scuffled her feet, rubbing her hands together. "Um…I…"

"Eh, it doesn't matter." The swordsmen shooed the observation away, closing the major distance between them. "I was taking a walk. What are you doing at this time of night? You've obviously been here longer than me."

"Well," she began nervously, "I fell asleep for awhile and then woke up unable to go back to sleep. So…I snuck out to look at the ocean."

Lloyd tilted his head. "With your wings out?"

She flinched as if his words had cut through her with a knife. "I was just…relaxing and…"

"Colette…" he nearly scolded, knowing that tone she was using.

She sighed profoundly and sat herself down, absentmindedly tracing little circles in the sand. She couldn't lie to Lloyd. Frankly, she didn't want to either.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," he assured her, smiling a very Lloyd-like smile.

Colette shook her head. "N-no, I…" She glanced up, seeing the sincerity in his expression. As much as she wanted to let it all out, discussing her feelings was difficult. People expected only the best of their Chosen after all. But this was Lloyd. They were alone—even if by accident. He was the one person she could talk to no matter what.

"…I was looking at my reflection in the water," she finally admitted.

Lloyd sat next to her, trying to draw her gaze up to his own. "Your reflection?"

"…Yeah."

That confused him. "Why?"

She thought for a second, trying to form her words properly. "I guess…I wanted to see if I'm scary as an angel or something… I've haven't really had a good look at my wings so...maybe they do make me come across like some sort of monster."

The dual-wielder immediately shook his head, astounded. She was so embarrassed by her wings that she actually had to see for herself how she appeared with them? It killed him. Those people in town had been such prejudging idiots. His hand formed a fist in the sand. Wings or not, Colette was anything but scary—quite the opposite in his eyes in fact.

"You shouldn't let what those people said about you chew on your heartstrings like this, Colette," he said gently, "Their opinions don't even matter. It's all the fault of "Chosen One" rumors and assumptions they've been fed."

She seemed to take that to heart, though continued to avert her gaze. "I want to think that, really... I don't know why it's so hard for me to move on from it. It's just, after seeing all those people's reactions and hearing Genis say what he did even though I know it wasn't intended to insult me, I feel so horrible… I don't want to scare people…"

"You don't scare people." Lloyd put a hand on her shoulder. "You're just hurt. Everyone feels hurt sometimes."

Colette sadly raised one corner of her mouth, shrugging. "I'm…not like everyone else."

It was as if someone had applied Lloyd's demeanor with a sledge hammer after that small statement left her lips. He was beginning to dislike the whole Chosen system more and more each day, and he'd already despised it during his childhood at times. He still thought her Angel Transformation could be cool but he could see what she was afraid of too. If this is how people are going to treat her with wings, what happens if the next seal really did grant her more physical changes? How would people treat her then? Of course Colette would still do whatever possible to regenerate the world, with a smile on her face all the while no less. However, it was unfair on so many levels how much she had to put up with sometimes.

They were both quiet for awhile, watching the sea breathe in and out as it remained indifferent to the world. Colette flicked her eyes to Lloyd occasionally since he hadn't given her a response yet. She hugged her knees. Maybe she'd said too much, pushed too much of her troubles on him.

"Lloyd… I'm sor—"

"—Show them to me…"

Colette tipped her head, giving the swordsmen her undivided attention. "Huh?"

Lloyd directed his own attention straight into her eyes, taking her hand in his own. "Stand up and show me your wings… Please?"

The angel instantly blushed, embarrassed. She shyly caught glimpse of their hands. He'd held her hand plenty of times when they had been young, but it had been a long time since then. She'd almost forgotten how pleasant the simple gesture was. Even so, she wasn't sure how comfortable she was showing her wings up close to someone as beloved to her as Lloyd.

"Please Colette. I want to see them," he urged, squeezing her hand.

Colette mulled the request over. She could trust him, right? He wouldn't be offended like the others had been. He had seen them plenty of times before anyway. What could it hurt?

She stood up, taking him with her, and released his hand awkwardly. "Okay…"

Her Cruxis Crystal flashed for millisecond, purple feathers abundantly forming from the ground up around her before her wings rematerialized. They flapped once so Colette could reestablish her connection to them. It was always odd to suddenly have feeling in new limbs that could at the same time be nonexistent.

"Hmmm…" Lloyd crossed his arms as he inspected her, his façade similar to how Raine appeared when analyzing a grave situation. He circled around her multiple times, the blonde trying to furl her wings away from his intense gaze. He abruptly stopped when in front of her again, pointing up a finger. "I've finished my examination of the angel known as Colette Brunel, Chosen of Regeneration…. Overall, I have come to one conclusion…"

She was very puzzled by this little act he was putting on as she intriguingly awaited his so-called conclusion. She felt her heart pick up. What if it was something bad? What if looking her closely like this really was unnerving to him? The Chosen clamped her eyes, fear creeping over her.

That fear was smashed apart when she felt something tap her forehead. Her blue eyes fluttered open to find Lloyd grinning, a close fist resting where he'd gently bumped her.

"My conclusion is the same as it's always been," Lloyd said finally, "What do I always tell you?"

Colette's brow uplifted, the irises of her eyes trembling as she dug up a smile, putting both of her hands over his fist. "Not to apologize and that I'm a dork?"

The swordsmen chuckled, shaking his head. "Well, yes, but I mean the other thing I always tell you."

She made a small noise that expressed that she couldn't remember, though continued to think with an all too stern determination. He laughed again. Colette could be so accidentally cute without really trying. "Alright, I'll tell you again."

He opened his fist up, brushing her soft bangs away from her eyes with his fingers. "No matter what you look like… No matter what your title tells about you… No matter what people expect of you... You're still you. That will never change for me or Genis or the Professor... You're Colette first, and the Chosen second."

Her cerulean eyes broadened, glistening in devotion at his statement. He did say that to her often, didn't he? The angel felt so childish now for her hours of upset. He was right. No one's opinion should define who she was. It was only his opinion that ultimately mattered to her anyway. Leave it to Lloyd to say just the right thing.

She beamed brightly. "Lloyd…"

Lloyd reddened at her now idyllic features and took his hand back, opening his arms welcomingly. Colette didn't hesitate and just about jumped into his embrace, him having to spin her around once due to the force of it. They both burst out laughing at the silly hug, holding on to each other even more dearly.

"Thank you," the angel murmured, her wings unfurling in a most lovely way as she bent them forward and curled them around them both.

His breath caught in his throat at the sensation of this particular type of hug. An angel's embrace, maybe? It felt so mystifyingly perfect. It was if they were shielded away from the rest of the world. No worries. No doubts.

Then again, hugging her always felt this way to him wings or not. The privilege of being able to do so alone made him so unbelievably happy. Perhaps it was because it wasn't something he could do often anymore. He bent his head on top of hers, her memorable scent relaxing him. Colette was officially back to normal, for certain. He couldn't have felt more on top of the world if he tried.

"You don't have to thank me, you dork," he teased affectionately. "You can come talk to me whenever you want— on one condition."

Her angelic limbs retreated back behind her as she pulled away from him slightly. He answered her unspoken question whilst one hand floated from its spot around her waist to where one of her wings protruded. "I get to see your wings whenever I want."

Colette flushed, suppressing a mild shutter when Lloyd trailed his hand gently down the wing he'd moved his hand to. She didn't realize how sensitive her wings actually were to being touched. Obviously they'd never been touched until now though. His movements as he brushed his fingers through the feathers felt so indescribably good that she couldn't reply to him vocally, only nodding in a slight daze.

He stopped what he was doing; embarrassed at the fact that he hadn't even asked her if he could touch them. "A-ah, sorry… Should I stop?"

"No, please continue. It feels really nice," she mumbled sleepily, putting most of her weight on his chest as she leaned into him again.

Lloyd tinted red again at the request, going back to his tending of her wings. "You know Colette," he admitted whist going about his task. "I don't think these wings are something that Remiel forced you to have. There's a reason they look so different from normal angel wings."

"Mm…Think so?"

"Yeah… Everything from their color to how they feel. I'm positive that they were born from your own likeness." He mustered up some courage as he fought to push the rest of his thoughts out to her. "Your wings themselves—down to each individual feather— radiate a special kind of warmth so strong that they literally glow. They're soft too, more than normal feathers.'

"They're also beautiful," he added in his mind, not saying it aloud for obvious reasons. His blush flared a little when she pushed her wings up into his hand in a silent reply, part of his brain kicking himself for being so sentimental. He was being a hypocrite for disliking the 7th Dwarven Vow when he right now was practically dripping in its essence.

Lloyd's hand snagged on a loose feather and he stilled his movements, rescuing it before it fell out on its own. He ended his embrace with Colette, twirling the glowing purple feather between his thumb and pointer finger. A light bulb went off in his head.

"Say, can I keep this?" he asked her, presenting the feather.

Colette nodded inquiringly. "Sure. I don't know if it'll last that long though. Any reason you want it?"

Lloyd tucked the feather away in one of the pockets of his pants, making sure the delicate object was positioned properly so nothing could break it. "I think I'm going to make a charm with it for myself."

"A charm…?"

"Maybe I can find some way to preserve the feather before it disappears and put it on a small chain or something. Angel feathers are probably good luck."

The Chosen giggled. "Carrying around one of my feathers will probably just make you clumsy."

The swordsmen shrugged. "I won't know until I make it! Maybe it'll give me a pair of my own wings someday. Then I can see how it feels to fly too!"

The angel suddenly lit up. "Do you want to see now? I can show you something neat!"

Lloyd stared at her in surprise. "W-what?"

He couldn't get another word in. Colette jogged behind him faster than he could comprehend the meaning of her question, hooking her arms underneath his own and flapping her wings as hard as she could. "Just hold still for a minute, okay?"

"Aaahhh, Colette!" He stammered, almost flailing as he felt himself lift off the ground. How she had the strength to carry him in the air at all was beyond him.

They weren't that high up, but the view was enough so he could see around the entirety of the whole town, including the docks. He wondered where he was being whisked to, and when she put him down on the roof of an empty fishing shed a ways away from the beach he pondered what could be so amazing about showing him a rooftop.

That is, until he peered directly ahead of him.

The night sky was so clear and vivid that the ocean parallel to it mirrored the image of the twinkling heavens upon its watery surface in the most remarkable exhibition. The waving water was dotted with the reflections of seemingly every star above, sparkling like freshly polished glass in multiple shades of color.

"Isn't it pretty?" Colette said, maneuvering out from behind Lloyd's stunned form.

Lloyd turned to her, noting the way the starlight glinted through her wings and cast a kaleidoscope of lilac light over them. He stared into her eyes, grinning. "You were right! This view is incredible! It's like looking at a sea of stars!"

The angel ecstatically clasped her hands. She took a step to stand next to her friend but yelped, her heel slipping on a loose tile. Her heart hammered wildly, so sure she would plummet as she fell backwards. Luckily Lloyd was used to this kind of thing and hoisted her back up by wrapping his arms around her waist, pressing her back into his chest. He was mindful not to crush her wings between them.

"Geez, you're such a klutz, Colette! Maybe carrying around your feather isn't a good idea. I thought only good things were supposed to happen when you trip," Lloyd breathed, curving his head over her shoulder to check if she was alright.

Colette exhaled, mentally reprimanding herself for such a typical and cliché incident. She slanted her head to answer with a smile, blushing again. "Something good did happen…" She placed her arms over his for emphasis.

When he caught the message, which took a minute with his moderate denseness, he only grinned with a chuckle, his heart inwardly swelling in contentment.

"Lloyd… Thank you for following me," she whispered, referring to the letter she'd written for him after she'd left Iselia.

The dual-wielder tightened his hold. "I'd follow you no matter where you go. It's my job to protect you, even if you don't want me to."

Colette's blush deepened, and she backed up further into his arms, enjoying how warm he was in comparison to the chilly air.

"You know," Lloyd reminded her despondently as recognition reared its ugly head, "It's really late. We should probably go back to bed. Kratos is up and I don't really want him coming out here in the middle of this. I might get punished if they catch me 'clinging to the Chosen'."

The blonde curled her fingers around his hands shyly. "Can we stay out here for just a little longer? Please?"

He chortled at how innocently straightforward her question was. She should know by now that convincing him of anything wasn't too hard. That was just one of those things he loved about her, he supposed.

"Alright, alright… Just a few more minutes though. I'm not taking the blame if you fall asleep on the ship tomorrow and fall overboard."

"Thank you!" she chirped, nestling the top of her head under Lloyd's chin. She sighed happily, the starlit ocean seeming like an earthly sky to the mortal eye. It made an old story her grandmother had told her come to mind.

"You know…they say when an angel earns its wings, a new star is born into the Sylvarant sky…"

"Really? That's amazing."

"I wonder if all those stars represent the wings of all the past Chosen's," Colette mused quietly. "Do you think my wings added a star up there too, Lloyd?"

Lloyd only smiled, closing his eyes. "I think that your wings are pretty enough for at least ten stars…"

Colette heavily flushed, her insides melting under the tender statement. She felt her stomach spawn butterflies. While there wouldn't be an opportunity to have a nice time like this with Lloyd again, she was so thankful he would be here for her. His support was irreplaceable.

What they were doing went against so many of her teachings, especially since she was in the middle of her journey. She wasn't to favor anyone. She wasn't supposed to love anyone. Although that, she thought longingly, was the one rule she'd broken so many years ago that it was meaningless anyway. Acting selfish just this once, for this single moment, was fair, right?

Starlight's magic graced very little souls in a lifetime. When it reached out for the few worthy, strange things are said to happen.

Miracles… Impossibilities… Blessings…

The feather Lloyd had taken that night, the memento he'd obtained bathed in starlight, would be the one feather that would never fade away forgotten, and instead remain cherished for years to come.

There's the end of Starlit Wings, everyone! I hope you all enjoyed its entirety. I enjoyed writing it for my first real fanfiction. I know it's probably not the best piece ever but I did my best to entertain you all.

Thank you so much to those who reviewed whether it was once or multiple times. Your support really helped me get this done to my liking. I hope you'll stay tuned to fics I write in the future. ^_^

I apologize for any errors, as usual. If I catch them I'll fix it up.

Ja ne for now, minna! As always, I'd like reviews—so please do so~

~Kazea