Haven't written for this fandom in a long, long, long time. to the point I've forgotten my original account's password.
Chapter 1:
The smell of ash and the sounds of screaming that carried with it was the same deafening silence that had hit her. It had never seemed to be the same since. The tears that stung her eyes as the small girl she was meant to protect getting pulled from her.
All the pain and suffering she went through seemed to have been met with the only voice that had helped her through it. Through all the suffering and anguish to get back to her home, with her sister and parents.
That was when she supposed the voice started to make itself known to the pink haired woman. The way the voice had persisted ever since that fateful time nearly a decade ago. The way the voice had just been screaming at her to an annoying degree.
To the point that it was only nearly dwarfed by the sound of an alarm blaring in her ear. Snapping her eyes open, the cerulean eyes stared at the small black box reading five in the morning. Shooting her hand out to snap out and slam onto the off button.
Sitting up, the woman couldn't help but feel the sleep leaving fairly quickly as her feet pressed into the cold concrete that lined her room. Right now her only goal was to merely make sure the breakfast was ready, and then getting back to her room. That was all that was going to fuel her for the beginning stretch before her world seemingly shifted back to hell like it always did the second he was up.
'Are you positive that you can't just pour any on a long list of deadly household items into his morning meal of puppies?'
As if on queue there was the voice. The main reason the hell seemed all that much worse given everything. The constant nagging voice that never seemed to give her a moment's rest. Something that just seemed to compact the problem more and more.
Running her hand through the strawberry blonde hair, the woman couldn't help but feel the anger grow. 'Shut up. And leave me alone.' The woman thought as she freed her hands from her hair as she started to climb the basement stairs. Glad that her loving sister was finally able to convince her father that stairs would be better.
It was probably the only thing that made the hell decent at this point. Being able to not have to climb up a ladder every morning.
Opening the door, she couldn't help but look around at the pristine house that she was meant to keep. Taking a deep breath, she knew that with her current goal she had to fulfil. If she could then she'd be able to slink back into her room and just let this day ride itself out. Something that she felt like she needed, just so she could have at least a single day without actually debating to take up anything that the same nagging voice said.
'You know you can't silence me. All the screaming in your head does is irks you. What is it that you kids say these days? You are only hurting yourself. Why do you keep hurting yourself Light? Why? It is tearing this family apart.'
Stopping at the fridge, she could just feel the voice increase it's tone two fold as if in some hope for the woman to finally snap. Any and all gains would be short lived if at all. 'Just shut up. Let me do this and then you can do your normal annoying crap. Serah needs a proper breakfast.' Light thought as she started to pull the parts for her to do her job.
'Why? Why should she be treated so special? While you suffered? Personally I say she should be punished just like your parents. So why should we not listen to me?' The voice continued as the pink haired woman started to crack eggs into a bowl. Already knowing that it wouldn't be long before her sister would be up and just ruin what she had going for her at this moment.
She knew that ignoring the voice's comments would just make them come back three times as strong. And a lot more graphic in its descriptions, but she had to. It was best for everyone really if she would just accept that tirade that will befall her.
Walking over to the stove, Light poured in the eggs into the closest pan as she reached to pull slabs of the bacon and smiled at the smell that wafted up. The way the smell just seemed to drown out the voice as she started to flip the chunks of meat was a pleasant feeling.
'DON'T IGNORE ME LIGHTNING! DON'T IGNORE THE ONLY ONE THAT HAS BEEN WITH YOU THROUGH EVERYTHING!' The voice continued to yell as Lightning just took a deep breath. She couldn't stand this. Not this early.
Stepping back away from the pans, she started to run her hands through her hair. She could almost feel her ears ringing from the berating tone the voice had taken with her. Knowing that at this rate she wasn't even going to get the few minutes she needed to finish this simple thing. The way everything was going she'd be lucky if she was even able to finish this at all today instead of the time she had before everyone was up.
It was actually making it seem a lot harder by the almost very physical pain she was in. Pulling a hand free from her hair. Walking quickly over towards the knife block, Lightning wrapped her hands around the handle.
Pulling it free from the block, Lightning took a deep breath as she knew of one certain way to silence the voice even if it was temporarily. Holding her arm out she started to aim carefully. She didn't want to risk causing any lasting damages. Raising the sharp blade above her head she was about to bring it down when she felt soft hands catching her arm.
The rage just seemingly bubbling as she followed the offending hands. As she came to their owner she could see some tears starting to stream a little down her sister's face. She knew that she could easily over power her younger sister. It would have been an easy thing too given how she must have been exhausted and Lightning had been up for a while clearly.
"Claire. Put the knife down. Please. For me." The small pink haired teen said through the tears as she could feel the fight in her sister's arm starting to die down. Something that made her feel a little bit better. She knew that there was something at least that she could help with.
Sliding the knife back into the block, Lightning smiled at the fact her sister had relented on holding her arms back. It was probably the closest thing that she could have for a victory that day. If not month. She felt like she needed this simple thing.
"I need to get back to cooking." Lightning said as she took a deep breath trying to push past her sister. Getting stopped by arms wrapping around her trying to pull her back.
"I can do that Claire. Just sit down."
'Just tell her to shut up! She is using nothing but honeyed words. The second she helps you, she'll abandon you all the while leaving you to suffer again. You should have just smacked her and drove the knife into your arm like you wanted to you pathetic bitch!'
"No Serah. I've got it. That was nothing more than a lapse of judgement." Lightning said as she almost shoved her sister out of the way. Praying that the pans weren't going to burn. Smiling as she could see however long her and her sister were standing like they were that nothing had been ruined. She could still save everything.
"Claire... you never have lapses in judgement. Bouts of barely controlled anger towards Snow... a bit too frequently for my liking but yeah it happens. But never a lapse in judgement. And this makes the fifth one that involved bodily harm. Is someone bullying you? If someone is bullying you in school let me know so I can help." Serah continued as Lightning quickly turned the stove off and turned to face her sister.
"No one is bullying me. That fight where I broke portions of Snow's ribcage was from him being a jackass. The suspension will be lifted in a week's time. So sit down." Lightning stated as she turned towards her sister and could see an almost shocking look on her sister's face. The sight of her not buying that simple statement.
"Claire, I know something is up. And we both know I will figure out what. It would go a lot easier if you just told me." Serah continued as Lightning just shook her head.
It wasn't that she had doubt in what her sister would or wouldn't do when it came to something like this. But it was just a lot easier to keep the guise going. She had to for not only Serah's sake but her own as well.
"Everything is fine. Now drop it or else."
"Or what? The one time you hit me since we were children you broke your own arm afterwards. What can you do to me that you won't dish out to yourself tenfold?" Serah asked stepping closer to her sister. Cerulean meeting cerulean in a challenge over who would back down first.
Looking away, Lightning knew it might have looked like her sister had won, but she couldn't let something like that stop her. "Your right, but your boyfriend and myself are fair game. Both people we know you care about more than you should."
'I stand corrected... you do know how to have a pair of lady balls when dealing with your sister. So now just punch her like she deserves for questioning you. It is all she deserves Light.'
'Shut up. I will never not hit Serah again.' Lightning thought as she could finally see her sister relenting as she stormed over to the table. Accepting her fate it would seem. Something that made her feel a lot better in the fact that Serah didn't call her bluff.
She would gladly beat her sister's boyfriend into another trip to the hospital. But since there last meeting he had stayed his distance to her thankfully. Which would leave her hurting herself and the one thing she didn't want was her family to think she was crazy. It would be probably the hardest thing to convince her sister to think of the alternative. No matter how much the voice in her head would have her believe just about anything.
'But Light, you are right. We are not crazy. Our reality is just different than theirs. Meanwhile the more you ignore me the more determined I'll get for a reaction. And we both know how well that went last time. Or did you forget the great window smashing rampage?'
"Breakfast is done. You just need to put it on the plates. I'm heading back to my room." Lightning said as she started to walk off getting caught by the soft caring hands of her sister once again. Almost like it was going to be able to pull her away from her new goal.
"Promise me you'll tell me what is on your mind Claire. Or I will tell Auron and we both know he could get the answers from you." Serah pleaded as Lightning took a deep breath and looked towards her the timid and yet terrifying teen. "Promise me now Claire."
"I promise if there is a problem. As of right now, there is nothing. What you saw earlier was a lapse in judgement. It happens to everyone. Myself included. I'm just having a rough time sleeping for obvious reasons." Lightning said hoping her sister would read into it and come to a conclusion that meant that she didn't need to come up with some lie.
Before she could see what Serah would get she felt the smaller teen quickly hug her as tight as she possibly could. Trying to fight the constraints holding her, she could just feel her sister's eyes starting to well up once again dampening her shirt.
"You've been back five years Claire...Dysley is paying... the purge won't happen again. I can't imagine what you went through. But you need to talk about it if it is troubling you this much."
Returning the hug as best as she could, Lightning couldn't help but take a deep breath. "I'm fine Serah." Lightning said softly as she could see her sister pulling back to stare at her. "Now can I go? I don't want to have a screaming match this early in the day and we both know that is exactly what would happen if I stayed up here."
"Sure Claire."
Happy that she accepted the answer, Lightning started to nearly run towards the solace of her room. The comfort that she needed was going to be there. It always was probably the only pleasant thing for her at that moment. Being able to not run the risk of harming anyone except herself.
It was what she deserved really. Opening the door, she started to walk down the stairs into the darkness. The darkness that just seemed like it was fitting given her current state of mind. She knew that there was probably something poetic about it, but it didn't matter.
Reaching the base of the stairs she quickly reached to turn the light on smiling as the dull yellow filled the room, just because at least her eyes weren't in any pain from being blinded. That was until she could hear the distinct cracking sound that always came before the bulb would blow. Just sighing as she made her way over to the beaten pink desk that was a hand me down from her sister.
As she took the seat, she could hear the bulb fizzle out before a loud crack filling her room with darkness once again. 'Poor Light... now we are all alone in the darkness once again. It seems that no matter how hard you try to leave... you always find your way back to this place. But I forgive you. I'll always accept you back. I'd even give you a hug every time if I had arms.'
"Just shut up." Lightning seethed in the silence as she opened her eyes, glad that they had adjusted to the darkness fully as she turned on the small desk lamp on. "Please, just leave me alone. I don't want to hurt anyone." Lightning continued in a near silent manner as she pulled one of the drawers open. Reaching into it she pulled out a small notebook and a pen.
'Don't you dare take the cowards way out! You are so much stronger than that. I mean so what if you hear a voice.'
"Don't be insane. He'd like that too much. Just living up to the promise I made to Serah. She never said how I was meant to tell her or when." Lightning seethed under her breath as she could hear a second set of footsteps just above her. It meant one of her parents was up as well.
Sulking a bit further as she tried to follow the footsteps as she wrote down the one sentence before tossing the notebook into the drawer, and sparing a glance over her shoulder to see who the new intruder was. Frowning at the sight of the sight of ginger haired woman walking down the stairs.
'Oooohhhh... do you think Serah did what she always does? Namely hurt you? Because I think she did by totally telling your spineless mother something.'
"Light? Are you down here?" She could hear her mother ask causing her to just take a deep breath. She really didn't want to have to deal with the woman but knew that she didn't really have a choice. She had to do it much to her chagrin. "If so, why are you sitting in the dark? It is bad for your eyes."
'Huh... did you know she could speak? I thought your mother was a mute. This is probably the most she has ever talked to you.'
Ignoring the voice again Lightning just turned around and faced her mother fully. "Yes, I am down here. The bulb just burned out. And I just haven't changed it. That is something I'll do later." Lightning said as her mother just seemed to smile as she got to the bottom of the stairs.
"Why don't you come up for breakfast. It is the most important meal of the day after all." The elder Farron said as Lightning just took a deep breath. Already knowing that it wouldn't be difficult to lie to the woman, but it would be difficult to ignore the barating to come.
"I had some while I was cooking. I just want to be left alone for now."
'Liar liar pants on fire.'
'Shut. Up. They don't need to know nor do they care.' Lightning thought as she could see her mother just smiling saying a simple 'okay' as she turned and started to walk towards the light and warmth of the house.
'I'm sure they do care Light. I mean how can they hurt you more if they don't think you are already hurt? But not me. I just don't like this lying Light. It is hurting the both of us. And one of us needs to care about you.'
"Just shut up." Lightning whispered as she stood up from the seat and walked towards her small bed. "I'm going back to sleep. Maybe you'll be less annoying with a proper rest."
'Doubt it. I am you after all. But you've got to try now don't you. Put up or shut up after all. And we both know how you like a challenge.'
'That I do. So shut up long enough for me to sleep, and give me a fighting chance.'
'Fine. Fine. Don't let the bedbugs bite Light.'
Author's Note:
Fun fact until recently I haven't even looked at the original of this in years… but I stumbled across it and had to fix the embarrassment that it was. still up though because of the aforementioned forgetting of the password but it is also a lesson in how much I've grown since then.