I've been doing a series of short drabbles that follow Lightning's thoughts as she watches the timeline from Valhalla in XIII-2. This is the first of them.

Disclaimer: I do not own FFXIII or its characters.

Chapter 1

The first moment she chose to observe from Valhalla was the moment after Cocoon's crystallization.

The sensation of receiving a vision was something she was still unused to, having only experienced it once before. She stood still and tried to visualise the flow of time – a series of interweaving threads, some broken and dull, others glowing with a faint light. And amidst them, a single thread glowed brighter than the rest. It symbolised the timeline that humanity now followed. Lightning tried to concentrate and soon found herself closing in on a single moment in time.

When she opened her eyes, she felt as though she was looking through a frosted window. Her friends stood before the crystallised Cocoon, gathered in a circle. Serah and Dajh had found their way to the group, and the air was filled with conflicting emotions as they rejoiced at their freedom from crystal stasis, while also mourning Fang and Vanille.

Then, Hope handed something to Serah. With a start, Lightning realised that it was her survival knife – the one that her sister had lovingly gifted to her on her birthday, and the one she had lent to Hope in the Gapra Whitewood.

"It's her knife. I found it near the base of the pillar," she heard Hope say. She saw the sorrow in his eyes and the realisation in her friends' faces. 'Why? What does it mean?'

"Serah, I'm sorry," Snow began, turning to face the crystal pillar. "She must be inside the pillar. Lightning's holding up Cocoon, along with Vanille and Fang."

Lightning's eyes widened. 'No! I'm here!' she wanted to say, but she held back, knowing her words were of no use. 'I was standing there with them, but they don't remember…'

"Wait, what are you talking about? She was right here a second ago!"

Serah. With a start, Lightning looked at her sister. The desperation in her gaze as she looked at Snow was heartbreaking. 'She remembers.'

"I saw her…we talked…she gave us her blessing…"

Serah began to cry. She held the knife to her chest and fell to the ground on her knees. The others gathered around her, her sorrow reflected on their faces. Snow wrapped an arm around her as Sazh, Dajh and Hope looked on helplessly.

She could not watch any more. Lightning closed her eyes and forced the vision out of her mind. Only now did she grasp the full extent of what had happened to her. Not only had she been transported to the Unseen Realm; she had been erased from existence, and only her sister remembered a time when they had all been together.

It was very likely that her companions would consider Serah's memory flawed due to her long crystal sleep. Eventually, they would probably forget that Lightning had ever existed. There was a time when that would not have mattered to her – however, the thought now filled her with fear. The few people she had put her trust in during their journey would now never remember her. Maybe one day, Serah would also forget. She was doomed to a life of isolation, and for the first time ever, Lightning was afraid to be alone.

'I…don't want to be left behind.'

That day, at the foot of Etro's throne, Lightning cried for the life that could have been, and that she would never have again.