Author Note: Thanks goes to both Heart2Chain for beta-ing and xLauraKx for critiquing.

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy XIII or its characters. They are the property of Square Enix.

"Keep your eyes on your target," The ex-Sergeant said calmly observing her "student".

Vanille remained in her fighting stance with her eyes locked on her "target", a tree stump. It wasn't unusual that the other party members would ask Lightning for little tips along the way, especially since she'd been in the military for so long. Lightning's thoughts ceased just as quickly as they had come when she noticed where Vanille's eyes were.

"Your 'target' is the tree, not me Vanille," Lightning said to her firmly.

This isn't the first time she has noticed Vanille's eyes on her. Ever since Vanille had chased after her in the Vile peaks she had been watching her. Not that Lightning minded much. Except now. Now was not the time for that. Now was the time for training and Lightning couldn't help but be in full military mode.

"Right," Vanille answered enthusiastically clutching her binding rod. With little effort she released it and four hooks were sent soaring in the air towards the tree. With her right hand above her left she pulled on her weapon causing the hooks to deal a flurry of blows on the tree. The sound of wood splitting could be heard even from a distance as pieces were cut from the tree. Soon a pile of wood chips lay about the ground and more were added to those.

"How am I doin'," Vanille asked continuing her attack. The Sergeant next to her had her arms folded across her chest as she took a couple steps forward.

"You're doing just fine, but don't stop. The only way you'll be able to increase the amount of hits you can do is by pushing past your limit, both mental and physical-" an audible sigh could be heard from the other girl, "Don't stop Vanille," commanded the ex-sergeant. Vanille had certainly improved since they started "training" together and Lightning was still somewhat surprised when she was approached by her.

A few more chips were sent flying as Vanille had finished her attack on the tree. Vanille slowed her attacks down when she wasn't able to see any of the trunk remaining. With a proud smile she folded her Wyrmfang up and put it away. Tucking a few loose strands of hair behind her ear she turned around to face Lightning expectantly. Lightning walked past her to observe the tree more closely. The tree trunk was decimated. Vanille's attacks had worn the tree down to the ground leaving only a few of the roots remaining. 'Impressive,' Lightning thought to herself. 'These sessions are paying off.'

"Well done Vanille," Lightning said to her while still crouched on the ground. "You've definitely improved since last week. It didn't take you as long this time around."

"It's because of all the help you've given me. Now I can show them who's boss," Vanille said with a proud smile and her shoulders back.

"Fang better look out!" The red head then did something that Lightning wasn't expecting. She reached down and picked up one of the fallen tree branches and struck a pose. Lightning's battle stance. The soldier's eyes went wide in shock and amusement as Vanille stood there just as she would. Her left foot was raised slightly and her weight was shifted to her right leg. The branch in her right hand almost touched the ground mimicking the stance the sergeant takes during battle. There was only one minor mistake that Lightning noticed and she was going to rectify that.

Standing up she casually strolled behind Vanille taking the girl's left arm and folding it halfway over her chest. "Your left arm. It should be raised and never resting at its side," remarked the soldier. Impersonating a superior was an offense at Guardian Corps and offenders would be reprimanded for disrespect. Being the soldier she was, she didn't have any problem dealing with lower ranking soldiers that felt they were "funny". What surprised her was that she didn't feel upset by Vanille doing this. Perhaps it was because it was Vanille and also, for some reason, she felt quite flattered. It brought an unusual warmth to her cheeks knowing that Vanille paid enough attention to know how she fought in battle. Her stance, her movements, and even the way she eyed her "targets". Cute.

"You sure are strong Lightning," Vanille flushed while noticing the woman's biceps.

"Thanks and just call me Light," she said softly correcting her. "Also, that comes from years of training and hours in the gym."

Vanille's eyes shown with genuine interest about the soldier's history, and Vanille being herself, had no problem asking.

"So what did you do when you were a soldier?"

"I mostly did peace keeping and acted as a security guard when necessary."

"Really? Was it hard?" Vanille asked raising her voice in excitement. Her youthful eyes watched Lightning as her eyebrows would occasionally furrow at some questions and while relaxing at others. It was obvious to Vanille that Lightning wasn't used to being asked this many questions. The last time she had experienced anything close to this was when she first joined the military. To the Guardian Corps it was Standard Procedure, but Lightning knew it was something different when it came to Vanille. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she could tell and she didn't mind one bit. Sergeant Farron was going to take full advantage of this opportunity.

"So what does the red piece of cloth on your back mean? Does it symbolize the amount of victories you've had? I know you've probably had many of those!"

Lightning smirked before giving her an answer.

"My cape signifies that I am a gunblade user and it is considered an honor to wear one. I had to work hard for it, but it was worth it."

Lightning was damn proud of her accomplishment, especially since there are so few holding this title in the Corps. She still remembers calling her sister Serah on her portable after her superior had called her into his office to congratulate her. Lightning couldn't contain her excitement and she simply had to share it with Serah who was equally as excited as she was. "I'm so happy for you Claire! We have to celebrate!" That evening she was treated to a tasty T-bone steak with mash potatoes cooked to perfection. Serah..

Lightning stepped away from Vanille while subtly urging her to follow after her. Although it wasn't dark yet on Gran Pulse she didn't like to be separated from the main group too long. Not because the group would worry. They knew the two of them could handle many of the creatures out here together. However, if Lightning didn't return to camp soon she would have to deal with a force worse than Titan. A pissed off Oerba Yun Fang and so far she was the only woman with a temper to rival that of her own.

"Are there a lot of female soldiers in the Guardian Corps?"

"There are some, but we are outnumbered by the male soldiers."

At the mention of the female soldiers being outnumbered, Vanille reminisced fondly of her time back in Oerba. There were more males in her home village than there were females and that fact was even more obvious when it came time for the tribes to go hunting. The hunting parties consisted of the village's strongest men and one woman. With her bright red lance in hand, the wild Huntress would charge after her prey and become a highly regarded member of those hunting parties. When the men and woman returned with the fruits of their labor, Vanille would be there waiting at the town square with other other villagers that had stayed behind. Nothing made Vanille more proud than to see her partner walking side by side with the other hunters bringing back the day's hunt. Their bodies were exhausted and some of their clothes were caked with blood from the beasts they brought back, but none of them seemed to mind.

Those were the days...

"Vanille," a gentle voice questioned bringing her back to reality.

"Yes," the shorter woman answered.

"You did well today," Lightning stated somewhat quietly.

"Thank you. These training sessions are really paying off. It's all thanks to you though," Vanille said trailing off.