Giggles and laugher filled the air as the two girls walked ahead of the two women behind them. They were on their way to Hope's house in Palempolum. Vanille and Serah had arranged for everyone to meet there; everyone being Lightning, Fang, the two girls themselves, Snow, Hope, and Sazh. They all decided to agree to go because it had been so long since everyone had seen each other.
"Lightning," chimed the younger Farron as she entered the kitchen where Lightning was at the table reading a book. She didn't even peak up from the pages when she acknowledged her sister with a soft hum in question. Serah had explained to Lightning her and Vanille's plan to get everyone together, and to her surprise, Lightning agreed willingly and with little hesitation. It made Serah happy and she skipped off to go call Vanille and tell her the good news.
So now, on their way to the silver-haired boy's house, the wind blew wildly. It was the middle of winter and Lightning did not like it one bit. She hated the cold and tried everything in her power to refrain from feeling the chilling fingers of the biting numbness on her body. She was bundled up with at least 2 thin jackets, a large coat, a scarf, earmuffs, and a pair of sweatpants. Fang thought it amusing how she tried so hard to keep herself warm during this time of year. It always felt like summer in the Farron residence when the weather got cold and Fang would remove her sari as soon as she walked in. Though it was just a way to mess with Lightning, it was comfortable to take it off when things got too warm. Lightning, becoming flustered and angry, was forced to turn down the heat so Fang would redress herself.
Soon, the made it to Hope's house and Vanille rapped excitedly on the door, "Hope~!" She called. No sooner had she called his name did the door open and a smiling Hope welcomed them inside. The guys were already there and immediately, Lightning felt like punching Snow in the face. It was a common feeling of hers whenever the blonde was around. Even though he and Serah had broken it off, she still had that angered and frustrated feeling overcome her. But she held back.
"Well, looks like they beat us to the punch," Fang spoke out, stepping towards the guys. "Look at you, mister high and mighty. What happened to that dew rag ya kept on your head all the time? Because that hair of yours is just awful!" She said as she approached Snow, her usual cocky attitude showing. They proceeded in mindless banter while Vanille and Serah caught up with Hope. Lightning and Sazh stayed to the side, their arms crossed. Sazh let out a sigh and shook his head. "Kids. . ." He mumbled. Lightning gave a small smile along with a light chuckle. "Just like old times, huh?" She said to him.
Sazh stepped to the side and looked at her as if he was shocked that she had cracked a smile. She looked at him, the smile fading. "Whoa," he said. "Was that a smile I saw?" The man joked, adding a laugh to the end of his question. It was true that Lightning had been less tense recently due to having much more free time and being able to relax more often. The smile returned and she looked up at the older man. "Well, I've taken time off to relax." She told him.
"Fang's been hanging around you a lot, too, huh?" He asked as his gaze traveled back to the tanned woman. The ex-soldier also looked at her. She thought about it for a bit and realized that she had been spending a lot of time with the huntress lately. Could that have been another reason she wasn't as irritated as usual? The woman did seem to be the main cause of her irritation as of late but it was never anything she couldn't laugh at a minute later. Her smile widened as Fang continued to tease Snow about his hair and various other things. Chuckling a bit, Sazh walked over to join in on the teasing. Lightning soon followed, placing a hand on Hope's head in passing as she made her way towards Fang. The boy looked up at her and smiled at seeing the sister-like figure again and he followed her. Wanting to continue their conversation, Serah and Vanille followed him, and soon the group was laughing and catching up with one another.
A few hours later, they had all set up pallets in Hope's living room. Fang had claimed a spot nearest to the bathroom. "Never know when ya gotta go," she said with a shrug. It was almost 1 AM when the majority of the group fell asleep. Sazh had fallen asleep at an early hour and Fang and Snow thought it funny to draw on his face. Snow drew a curly mustache on his face, which wasn't too bad, but leave it to Fang to draw vulgar images with a permanent marker on someone's face. She better pray that she never comes within the vicinity of Lightning's face with a marker in her sleep, permanent or not.
Hope was resting peacefully, his head on Lightning's lap as she lay awake, playing with the silver locks atop his head. Fang was also awake, flipping through the channels on the TV like she had been for about 10 minutes now. "There's nothing on," Lightning said without lifting her eyes from the sleeping boy. "Might as well give up, Fang." A sigh was heard from the woman as she nodded.
"Yeah, I know." She said, but she continued flipping through the channels anyway. Lightning glanced over at her, wondering what she was thinking at the moment. Her eyebrows were furrowed and she seemed to be in deep thought. Finally, Fang turned her head to Lightning. "Hey, Light?" She asked.
"Hm?" hummed the woman in reply.
"Where'd ya get the name Lightning?" She asked. Lightning was a bit shocked by the question, for she didn't expect that that was the thought wandering Fang's mind. She was never asked such a question. Not that it was bad or anything but she just never thought about it before. But where had the question come from?
Lightning thought for a second, searching for words. "Well," she began. "I was about 14, I guess." Beneath her hand, Hope turned over in his sleep, moving away from the pinkette. She continued. "It was storming outside and Serah and I were home alone. It was just a day or two after our parents had died. . . I saw a bolt of lightning strike a tree far off in the distance. Sparks flew and the tree, and soon that whole forest, was engulfed in flames. That's when I decided to call myself Lightning from then on. Because it's strong and fast. But now-"
"Yeah, yeah, it only destroys and doesn't protect. I've gotten the speech before." Fang said as she waved her hand. Lightning shot a glare at the huntress, but had no real reason behind it. Her face softened and she stared down at her hands. A sudden chill ran up Lightning's spine and she visibly shivered. It was cold in the young Estheim's house. She wrapped her arms around herself and was about to bury herself within the safety of her blankets when she felt a pair of strong, warm arms wrap around her own and pull her into an even warmer body. Wide eyes blinked before looking up at the woman who had pulled her into the embrace. She was so warm that it sent goosebumps over Lightning's skin and she absentmindedly rested her head on her shoulder. "Why are you so warm?" She asked in a hushed tone, sort of mumbling.
Fang chuckled. "I dunno." She replied. Fang was a bit caught off guard by the way Lightning was being. Normally she would pull away from a hug and fuss at Fang for the involuntary affection she was showing. But Lightning didn't pull away this time. She lay there calmly. Fang wondered if it was from her being cold, if she was just too tired, or both. Either way, Fang daringly placed her chin on Lightning's head and pulled the blanket over them. Lightning was soon fast asleep.
XXXXX
Sunlight flooded through the pinkette's eyelids and awoke her from her dreams. She still felt the warmth over her arms and through her body. She shifted a bit and nuzzled closer to the huntress, seeking more warmth for her cold nose.
A giggle caused the woman's eyes to shoot open. She sat up and looked at the small crowed her and the tanned woman had attracted. They were all standing around them, hiding smiles and suppressing giggles. The sudden jolt awoke Fang. She rubbed her eyes and sat up on an elbow. "What's going on . . .?" She asked in a groggy, still half asleep voice. Lightning was too flustered to speak, her face a bright shade of crimson.
"Lightning looks like a tomato!" Vanille chimed.
"What happened with you two last night?" Snow asked with a wink.
Lightning stood up and Snow immediately embraced for impact, but the soldier just turned her back to them and began combing her fingers through her hair. She was in desperate need of a cup of coffee. "I was cold and she was warming me up. That's all." She said flatly as she continued to catch the knots in her hair.
Fang sat up and grinned, seemingly proud of her accomplishment. "She was lonely," she whispered to them. Lightning spun around and landed a smack to the back of Fang's head. "You know that's not what happened." She said. Then she turned and made her way to the kitchen to start making her coffee. As she rubbed the back of her head, Fang laughed and stood up. Lightning sighed. She would never hear the end of this.