Vanille was sure their screams could be heard throughout all of Pulse, Oerba for sure. She sat helplessly as Lightning and Fang argued below her in the streets of Oerba. She felt her eyes become wet, she knew Fang had never felt at home with the group and tended to pull Vanille away from them.
"Fang! You can't try and take control like this! We're a group, a team, no one here is the leader. We work together!" Lightning screamed, the rain was pouring by this point.
"We don't have a leader? You're joking right? You're obviously the leader. Or at least you want to think you are. You always take point and boss the rest of us around!" Fang spat back.
Vanille felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned around to see Snow.
"They'll be fine, they always are."
She put her arms around the large man, burying her face in his soft blue shirt. He patted her head, "Come on, you don't need to watch this. It's time to get some rest." He lifted her up, taking her back inside the house.
Snow set her down, but as soon as he left the room, she ran over to the window. She could still make out the two distinct voices.
"If you hate it so much Fang, why don't you just leave? We were fine before you, and we'll be fine without you."
"Fine!" Fang grabbed her lance off the ground, charging off into the Pulse wilderness.
Vanille's eyes widened as she ran out into the rain barefoot. She ran into Lightning who looked down at her.
"Where's Fang, Lightning? I have to talk to her!"
Lightning shook her head, "She's gone. Get back in the house before you catch a cold."
The older woman was surprised when the orange haired girl pushed her out of the way, racing down the steps. Lightning screamed after her, "Vanille! Vanille get back here!"
She ignored the cries from her friends as she ran into Pulse with no shoes, no weapons, but she didn't even want to consider the thought of living without Fang.
The Pulsian grass was soaking as Vanille curled up into it. She had been running for what seemed like hours, but she had found no sign of Fang. Her cries were soft, inaudible below the pouring rain. She felt footsteps close to her. She saw two tanned arms reach down, picking her up.
"F-Fang?" She shivered.
Fang nodded, shushing her.
The two sat around a campfire as Vanille rested her head in Fang's lap. Slowly but surely warmth was returning to the girl's body. Outside the cave the rain still poured.
Vanille sat up, "W-Why would you leave?"
"Don't worry. We're all each other needs. I can fix this. I'll make sure you don't go Cie'th."
Vanille stood up, "F-Fang-"
The older woman cut her off, "You're my family, Vanille. I'm going to make you safe again."
Vanille shook her head, "F….Fang, I love you. You know that. You're my family…"
"But what?" Fang stood up.
"But we can't leave them."
Fang felt her anger rise up, "Vanille, we have to think about ourselves."
"Fang, you don't understand-"
"I don't understand? Vanille we're running out of time, and we wasted most of it with those people we can't trust!"
"I trust them!"
The cave fell silent.
"Then why don't you just go back? Fine, as much as it will hurt me, go back. Turn Cie'th."
Vanille whimpered as Fang repeated what Lightning had said just hours ago.
"I was fine before you, and I'll be fine after you."
"Fang… I can't. You're my family."
"Then stay."
Vanille shook her head, "I have a new family, Fang. I love them. I'm not going to leave them there to die. We have to go back. You're my family, you know that… but so are they. And they would be yours too, if you would just let them in."
Fang sighed, hugging Vanille, "You're right… You're always right."
As the two entered the camp, Lightning was the first one they encountered. Everything seemed warmer than when they left. The sun was high in the sky, and the rays seemed to make everything more inviting.
Fang approached Lightning, and the pink haired woman spoke up, "Fang-"
The Oerban woman shook her head, wrapping her arms around Lightning.
"I'm sorry, Sunshine. It was stupid of me to run away, I thought I was protecting my family, when I realized I was running away from them."
She pulled back and Lightning seemed frozen, "T….Thank you."
Snow came running, hugging Vanille, "There you are! I thought you two were gone!"
The hulking man threw her up in the air, laughing.
"Put her down, Snow. You'll kill her."
"Oh I'm just having fun, sis!"
Lightning began to walk back into town with Fang by her side, "I'm not your sister."
Snow laughed as sat Vanille down, patting her back as they walked behind them. Vanille lurched forward and Snow caught her, "Guess I forget my own strength sometimes."
Vanille giggled, "You were right, they're fine. Just like they always are."