She stood for several moments collecting her thoughts, trying to control the emotions that threatened to consume her. She took one long breath and turned the handle slowly, being greeted by fluorescent lights that bounced off of the gray walls and she could smell mold. She swallowed quietly and approached the front desk.
"May I help you?" the woman asked in a sunny tone despite the sorrow that radiated throughout the building.
"Is there anyone here under the name of Farron?"
"Farron? Let me check…" The woman glanced down at a paper with a list of names on it. "I'm sorry, but there doesn't appear to be anyone under that name."
"What about Villiers?"
The woman checked once more before turning her cheerful eyes towards her. "Yes, yes there is. Claire?"
Lightning gasped. "How do you-?" she started softly.
"She should be upstairs in the last room on your left. If she's not there, check around back on the playground. Can I help you with anything else?"
"Um, no thank you." Lightning said before heading for the stairs. Her gentle footsteps echoing down the hall told her that her niece was most likely not there. She followed the instructions and came to the room that she was supposed to be in. The door stood ajar and Lightning peeked inside. It seemed cold and bare. The only items that appeared to be the little girl's were a few stuffed animals sitting on the short bed. Lightning stood for a minute, preparing herself to look in the playground. She had never met her niece before and she felt that these were terrible reasons to meet each other now.
Both Serah and Snow had died in a recent car crash. It added to Lightning's guilt that she couldn't remember the last visit she had made to them. Lightning remembered the morning that she had received the email that was sent to her from one of Serah's closest friends saying that the two had been killed and the funeral was one week away. It was the first time that Lightning was utterly speechless. She cried uncontrollably for the next few days and stayed home from work. When the crying passed, she was numb from head to toe. It wasn't until the day of the funeral that it sank in that they were gone. Forever. She felt remorse for losing touch with her sister. She couldn't stop thinking of all the rude and mean things she had ever done to Serah. It crushed her.
Lightning took a deep breath and made her way outside. She followed the handmade stone path behind the dull building and she could hear the voices of young children. She rounded the corner and approached the nearest adult. "Uh," Lightning said shakily, "Is there a Villiers child here somewhere?"
"Yes, she's playing with the others. She's not hard to pick out. She has your hair. Are you a relative?"
"Yes." Lightning answered. She left before she could be asked anymore questions. She walked over to the fence that kept the children from running away and peered inside at them, seeking out her niece. Lightning spotted the rosy hair from where she stood and strained her eyes to focus more on her. She was running at the head of a pack of kids with a smile on her face. Lightning fought her tears. The girl looked almost exactly like Serah when she was young. This child was the last of her blood relatives.
It was at the funeral that Lightning had found out about the little girl. She was approached by a friend of the couple's and had been informed of the girl's existence. Lightning felt that she was now her responsibility. It was the least she could do for her sister and she thought that it might be able to ease some of her guilt.
That was what brought her here to the orphanage. To take the little girl into her custody. Lightning steadied herself and went inside of the fence to fetch the girl. She was fast. She had inherited the athletic abilities of the family along with the recognizable hair. Lightning moved toward the girl at a slow pace, not wanting to scare her. She realized that she had no idea what her niece's name was and turned around to ask one of the adults.
She walked up to the one closest to the fence and spoke quickly. "What is the first name of the Villiers child?"
"Whoa. You two have the same hair. A relative, I take it?" he asked. Lightning didn't answer. "Her name is Claire."
Lightning gasped. Serah had named her the same name that Lightning once had. It added to the immense guilt. "Thanks." she mumbled and walked toward the girl once more. She jogged to where Claire was and called out her name. The girl stopped and looked, full of curiosity. "Hello… Claire." The name felt odd in her mouth. "Do you know who I am?"
The little girl shook her head. "No. But you look a lot like mommy. Are you my auntie?"
Lightning was surprised at how observant she was and the intelligent tone in her voice. "Yes. I'm your aunt."
"Auntie Lightning?"
Lightning gave a small smile. "Yes. I'm here to take you to my home. I'll take care of you now, I'll keep you safe." she promised.
The girl smiled. "Okay."
Lightning filled out the adoption forms while Claire went upstairs to pack up. "Thank you so much. It's nice to know that another child will be going into a good home." the woman at the front desk said. "You are a relative then?"
"Yes. Sister of the mother."
"I heard about what happened and I am truly sorry. I can't imagine how horrible that must feel." she said. Lightning looked down, wanting to hide the pain that showed clearly on her face. The woman changed the subject. "We like to see relatives taking children home because we know that, most likely, they can be trusted to keep them safe and away from harm. We deeply appreciate what you've done and I'm sure that Claire does too."
Lightning nodded and went upstairs to find Claire. She found her sitting on her bed, looking sadly at the floor. "Claire?" Lightning carefully called. "What's wrong?" she asked, sitting on the bed next to the girl.
"I'll miss everyone here. They've all been so nice to me." she said with a sniffle. Claire leaned against Lightning making the woman tense, but after a short pause Lightning put a comforting arm around her niece.
"It's okay. I'm sure you'll see them again. You'll probably see the other kids at school." Lightning said doubtfully. She lived in a completely different part of town and the kids there all went to a different school then the kids in this area. "And if not, you'll make new friends. It'll be okay." Lightning concluded.
Claire looked up at her aunt with hopeful eyes. "Really?"
Lightning smiled. "I'm sure of it." she encouraged. They exited the room a few minutes afterwards with all of Claire's belongings. Everything was able to fit into a small garbage bag. She had two stuffed animals and three changes of clothes. Lightning buckled Claire into her car and told her she'd be right back. She made her way back up to the front desk. "Does Claire have any more belongings then the ones in her room?" she asked, knowing that Serah probably spoiled the girl.
"Ah, yes. They're in the back. I'll get them for you." the woman said before going through a door near the stairs. Lightning wondered why Claire couldn't have all of her belongings with her in her room. The woman appeared. "Here are some other things and here's the key to the storage unit with the rest of her belongings in the city. The government decided to leave it there and let her next guardian decide what to do with it. And if she had turned eighteen before she had a new guardian, she would get to decide what to do with it. But that's not important. Here you go and thank you so much for what you have done."
Lightning said her quick goodbyes and left the building, going to her car. She packed it up and drove away with her last family member in the back who was waving to the children that were left at the orphanage. They drove quietly. Lightning lost in her own guilt-filled thoughts and Claire gazing out of the window.
Lightning and Claire were going home.
A/N - Sorry to all of you Snow and Serah fans, but I don't plan on having them come back to life. They'll probably be in Lightning's thoughts a lot and she'll probably have flashbacks and what not so they'll still be in the story. Don't forget to leave a review and tell me what you think.