A Treasure Hunt!

An: This is what happens when a weird kid is watching too much "Adventure Time" and "One Piece", and playing too much "Final Fantasy XIII". I was going to make this a FFXIII-2 story...but I wanted to use little Hope. :B I love Older Hope but...Little Hope is more adorkable. But I also love Noel and wanted him in it! So voila!

Warnings: Slight Randomness, Kind of an AU (or a different spin after FFXIII), slightly crazy Noel, An overly stupid Snow (Slightly) AND SAZH AWESOMENESS. Because he isn't in FFXIII-2 and I wuv him so much! (That just might be it, he is there. That is the awesome part.)

If you read all that...I'm so sorry. Here's the story!

"Where are we supposed to go now?" Serah asked one of her companions.

"Look here." Snow raised his large arm and pointed ahead of the group towards a huge and bulky grave, that had several weird tribal patterns engraved across the front. The grave looked cracked and slowly collapsing. "This thing looks really, really old."

"How old?" Sazh asked with a snort as he walked beside the burly man. "As in me old or as in hundreds and hundreds of years old."

"Isn't that like the same thing." Snow joked placing his arms behind his head with a grin on his face.

Sazh narrowed his eyes at him. "Hey, watch your mouth, boy!" He warned, though he had a kidding grin plastered on his own.

"This must be like a thousand years old!" Serah said in awe. "So amazing! It must be some sort of historical landmark in Pulse. I've read all about these graves in the pulsian history books." Her eyes widened as if she was a little girl in a candy shop. She absolutely loved history. "Wah! Just imagine how many stories there is surrounded around this one shrine. This isn't just some little stone, This person must be great. Like-like a hero or something!"

"Think how much this is worth. Ouch!" Snow flinched at Serah's slap on his arm. Not like it hurt that much, not compared to her sister's punches, but still.

His fiance' had an unamused expression on her face. "It's not about the money! This is somebody's grave for crying out loud!"

"If not the grave," Hope decided to intervene, "then there must be lots of treasures. I mean, if this person was so great then maybe the pulsians offered or something."

"You may be right, kid." Sazh agreed. "That was the whole reason we came all this way."

"Your kidding right?" Lightning said with a quirked eyebrow as she placed her hand on her hip with a bored expression. "This couldn't have been the only reason we came all this way. For money? Snow could just get a job."

"Why are you picking on me, sis!"

"I'm not your sister."

"Not yet."

"Claire, Snow!" Serah cried, ignoring the way her sister cringed at the mention of her real name. "You promised me you two will get along for now on."

"I'm more then willing!" Snow argued while Lightning rolled her eyes.

"So are we going in or what?" Lightning asked.

"Go where?" Sazh asked.

"Into the grave."

"You know how far a jump that is Light?" Hope asked with wide eyes as he scanned the river below the cliff they were on. The high cliff with the river way below. With loads of jagged and sharp rocks poking out Hope couldn't help but add.

"We can make the jump." Lightning responded already making a run and leaping over the "canyon".

"We can't!" Sazh called out to her.

The graceful woman landed swiftly on her feet after practically sailing across the gorge, not even getting tangled in the wild trees that were reaching out towards her like long slender arms. She turned around to face her party as they stared at her as if to say "Seriously, Lightning?"

"Well, are you coming or not?" Lightning asked as she shifted her weight onto her right foot.

"We're doing this for the money." Snow replied taking a few steps back. Serah quickly latched onto Snow's jacket sleeve.

"Are you crazy, Snow you can't make that jump."

"I can try."

"Go ahead." Noel dared walking in the opposite direction. "You won't die."

"I won't?" Snow asked hopeful.

"No, you'll just shatter into little tiny pieces. Then Serah will be heartbroken and-I'll-be-the-only-man-to-comfort-her..." He muttered the last part to himself.

"Geez man, you could have just said no!" Snow wailed, throwing his arms up in exasperation.

Lightning gave up on waiting for the group and decided to scout ahead until one of them grew the balls (Except for Serah) to get themselves across.

Or instead of wasting their time figuring out a way across they could have easily just gone around the entire gorge, since they want to make things complicated, as always.

Or better yet give up on this foolishness. I cannot believe I even agreed to this. What's in it for me! Money would be nice if we found anything but I don't absolutely need it enough to go on a expedition with them. Why didn't I call the Guardian Corp for this.

Why do I do anything anymore, I just question myself in the end.

It was only yesterday when Noel sent an "anonymous" letter to her using various letters from magazine articles. Though it was kind of pointless since at the end of the letter he put his name. He needs to stop hanging around Snow and his NORA gang.

He might as well have called, but she remembered Serah telling her at one point that he doesn't own a phone, or any source of technology. She actually found that quite amusing.

She wasn't going to go, until that boy came over and gave her those eyes.

Serah's puppy pout was strong. But it didn't compare to that boy's.

Lightning was so disgusted with herself for even falling for Hope, er...that's boy's sparkling green eyes- as in the puppy pout not in a romantic, not at all in a romantic way, that will be wrong-

Lightning stopped in her tracks.

"What was I thinking about again?"

"We can use this!" Noel said proudly as he grabbed a vine from a nearby tree, luckily one that was near the canyon.

"Is it stable though?" Sazh asked concerned as he took the vine from the young man's hand and tugged on it a few times. "It won't, you know snap?"

"It's strong enough to even hold Snow." Noel stated proudly.

"Good." Snow sighed. "I was afraid I was gonna have to walk."

Noel took the vine back from the dark skinned pilot and took several steps back, getting ready for the ultimate swing. "AH-AHOHA-HA!" He hollered like a jungle man and he was flying across the gorge, his loud voice echoing throughout the Wilds.

He landed on his feet and swung the vine back over to the other side. "That's how it's done!"

"Hey, man, why are you stealing my phrases!" Snow complained as Serah grabbed hold of the vine. One look and she quickly handed it over to Hope.

"You can go ahead." She said.

"You can go Serah," Hope offered, "It's better if-"

"No, it's okay!" She practically shoved the vine into his grip, even nudged him over.

"A-alright." He replied. He tentatively peeked over the ledge. The rocks were just so sharp. What if he fell. The young teenager pictured his bloody corpse...he shook his head. Now's not the time to be scared.

"Just do what I did Hope." Noel called over.

"What are you guys doing?" Lightning asked as she came up behind the young man.

"We're vine swinging." The brown haired man said proudly.

"Vine swinging!" Who's brilliant idea was that! Are they trying to push my sister to her death. How is a vine going to hold-Oh my God Snow is a giant. He will absolutely-

"Here I go!"

H-HOPE!

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" The pair on the other side could hear the teenager' high pitched wail.

"WHA-"

A blur of silver rushed past Noel and Lightning as Hope stumbled a few paces and land in a heap near a group of shrubs, his head barely grazing the side of the grave. Noel quickly caught the vine and threw it to the other side as Lightning was already making her way toward him.

"Hope!" Lightning asked worriedly.

His eyes snapped open and he quickly sat up. "I'm okay!" He said a little to happily giving them a thumbs up."

Lightning almost sighed in relief, but it came out as a growl. "Who's friggin' idea was it to swing on a vine. This is no Saturday morning cartoon!"

"It was Snow's I swear." Noel lied, shifting his eyes over to the teenager that was still on the ground. He nodded.

"OH CRAAAAAAAAAAP!" Sazh's voice bellowed almost making the trees shake.

The three rushed over as the man clambered onto Lightning. She flipped him over involuntarily. "Agh! I didn't mean it I swear!" He almost whimpered in her grip.

"Sorry." Lightning responded coldly. "Where's Serah? Where's my sister! If that idiot comes flying in without her, I swear to God-"

"Whoa, grumpy, calm down." Sazh said as he pushed aside the curtain of leaves revealing the couple too engaged in their converastion to notice while Mog (Now you didn't forget about him did you?") was floating along beside his wielder. "Hey, sweetheart, you can come over now. Your sister is ready to tear her hair out." Smack! "Ow!"

"Come on, Serah." Snow pleaded. "If they can do it, so can you."

"A-alright." She took the vine from her fiance' and leaned over the gorge, watching as the rushing water smashes against the rocks. "So high..."

"If you want I can carry you over-"

"Are you an idiot!" Snow winced at the sound of the soldier's voice. Why i she so on edge today? "If my sister dies, you will too! I'll make sure of it."

"Alright!" Serah cried, "I'm going." She took a few steps back getting ready to run. I can do this, I can do this...

"Don't let go, Serah!" Hope warned, "or you'll get yourself k-" Smack! "Ow, Light that hurt!"

"Thanks kid, you sure have a way with words." Sazh said crossing his arms.

"I'm coming!" Serah said with full determination. "I can do this by myself!" She ran...and jumped.

"!" Serah squealed as she sailed across the gorge with her vine...and landed on Noel.

"Oof!" The brown haired man fell onto his back with Serah on top of him.

"I'm so sorry, Noel." Serah apologized her face tinging pink.

"Oh...it's no problem at all." Noel tried to fight of his own blush as Serah climbed off of him.

"TO INFINITY..."

"What the hell is that boy...?" Sazh began but his voice trailed off.

"AND BEYOND!"

"AGHWAH!"

"Noel!"

...

Everything grew silent as Snow's huge frame landed on Noel's body. He quickly got up and the group surrounded him.

"Oh my God Snow you killed him!" Hope cried, tears pricking his eyes.

"Somebody do something!" Serah cried as she leaned down over Noel's body propping his head onto her lap. "I don't think he's breathing."

"Don't worry." Snow said pumping his fist up (How can he be so cheerful at this point?) "Your hero is here to save the day."

"Well, 'hero'," Sazh put air quotes around the term. "What are you planning on doing?"

"I am going to give him CPR-"

"HELL NO!" Noel scooted a good five feet away. "Get away from me!"

Lightning shook her head as she continued walking ahead. Why were these six in the Middle of the Pulse Wilds.

Because they are on a treasure hunt.

AN: That's the first chapter. I hope you found humor in it. :)