((AN: So far this is going to be a one shot. If I get more ideas and if I get a decent amount of feed back, who knows! I might write more to it. It is my new fave pairing EVER, topping even my love for Draco/Hermione. I hope you enjoy it!))
Oerba Dia Vanille looked up at the sky filled with pink clouds and a red, setting sun. She was lying on her back in a large grassy field, thinking about the recent kidnap attempt the Psicom made against her. Being a citizen of Pulse and a l'cie gave her a lot of popularity, both good and bad. The only good thing that had come out of the constant running and being chased was meeting the members of Team Nora. Meeting Lebreau, Snow, Sazh, Maqui, Gadot… and Lightning... she paused as she thought about Lightning. She wasn't quite sure what it was about the stern, pink haired woman that made her stomach feel as though it was being wrung out like a wash cloth. Vanille felt the constant need to gain Lightning's approval… and her disapproval almost simultaneously. Since meeting Lightning, Vanille had taken her love of causing mischief to an entirely new level just for the thrill she felt when Lightning scolded her. It was even better when she forgave her again. Vanille had been travelling with Team Nora for a while now and had become very close to everyone. Snow, Maqui and Gadot were like the brothers she never had. Sazh became a sort of paternal figure and Lebreau had become a great friend, good for crazy antics. And Lightning. Vanille was constantly on the ropes about how she felt about Lightning. Out of the group, Lightning was the only one who refused to join in on the crazy parties, the spontaneous, albeit useless but FUN, adventures. She rarely smiled and tended to look annoyed at just about everything. She was the opposite to everything Vanille loved about life… at yet she was the only one who could make Vanille feel as though she had no legs to stand on.
Vanille had been with multiple men after drunken nights at inns. She could seduce the pants off of just about every guy she had ever met. She was confident in everything she did… except when she talked to Lightning. She was constantly second guessing herself in Lightning's presence. As she lay in the grass, watching the first stars begin to appear in the dusky sky, she wrinkled her nose at herself. She has always been completely confident with herself until she met Lightning. It just wasn't fair. Why was she so different from anyone else?
"Vanille… Are you still out there?" Vanille's heart leapt as Lightning called her from the pathway that led to the Inn. She stretched and sat up.
"I'm here! Just watching the sun go down. Be there in a sec!" She leaned forward and grabbed her feet, stretching her back, before pushing herself to her feet. She skipped over to the impatient Lightning who was standing with her arms crossed, as always. "Sorry to keep ya waiting, L. I was just having a quiet ponder." She grinned at the stern woman. Lightning raised an eyebrow at her.
"I suppose it is better than you getting drunk at the inn and bringing some dirty man back to the room again." Was there a bitter note to Lightning's voice? Or had Vanille just imagined it in a fit of wishful thinking?
"Can't have fun every night!" Vanille replied with a wink, throwing her arm around Lightning's shoulder. Her stomach jerked and her heart thumped but she forced herself to ignore it as they walked toward the Inn.
"Do you have to put your arm around me every time we go anywhere?" Lightning asked, annoyed as usual, though she didn't attempt to remove Vanille's arm.
"Maybe I do! Got a problem with that?" Vanille moved her arm down to around Lightning's waist, which was much more comfortable as she was much shorter than Lightning. Lightning slowed her typical, hasty gait to a stop and turned to face Vanille. A sudden wind blew up behind Lightning, making her turn all the more dramatic. Vanille glanced up and saw dark clouds begin to roll in. Her clear night sky was gone and it looked as though it might rain. She looked back at Lightning as the wind got stronger.
"Vanille…" Lightning began. Her annoyed look had a tint of frustration. She put one hand on the back of her neck, thinking hard. Suddenly, she reached out and grabbed Vanille's arm. "I want…" She seemed unable to decide how she wanted to word her next phrase. Vanille cocked her head to the side, concerned. Lightning was always blunt and certain when she spoke. "I want you to know… That I am going to protect you." It was getting dark and fat rain drops were beginning to fall but neither girl moved. Vanille smiled.
"I know that silly. That's the job of Team Nora isn't it?"
"That's not what I meant…" At that moment there was a flash of lightning in the sky and Vanille could have sworn she saw a blush in Lightning's cheeks. Lightning began to drop her hand from Vanille's arm and turn away but Vanille stopped her by taking her hand.
"What did you mean?" She looked up into Lightning's eyes, trying not to hope. Lightning tried to turn away again. The two girls were both very good at running away when situations were not to their liking but Vanille held Lightning's hand tightly, stopping her.
"I don't want anything to happen to you. I am going to be the one to protect you. I am going to keep you safe." Lightning's words were stilted and awkward. It was clear that she was not used to expressing her feelings at all. Vanille's smile grew and she threw her arms around Lightning. Lightning stood very stiffly in Vanille's embrace as the rain began to pour and the thunder began to crash. Tentatively, Vanille pulled back and looked into Lightning's eyes again. She slowly raised her hand up to Lightning's face and gently wiped the drenched locks of hair from her eyes, letting her hand linger on Lightning's cheek. Deciding to be bold and impulsive, Vanille steeled herself for rejection and leaned in to kiss Lightning softly on the lips. It was a brief admission of Vanille's feelings toward Lightning. She took a step back and looked at the ground, embarrassed. She expected a reprimanding at any moment. If tears fell down her face at all, it was impossible to tell with the rain. Lightning reached out and gently tilted Vanille's face back up so that their eyes could meet again. Vanille was surprised to see that Lightning was smiling. She brought Vanille's face to hers and returned the kiss. Vanille started to laugh, she was so happy. She wrapped her arms around Lightning and buried her face in her shoulder. Lightning gently kissed the top of her head. They stood there in each other's arms without a word.
Vanille shivered in the rain and the wind. Lightning noticed and put her arm around Vanille's shoulder, breaking the long kept embrace to turn Vanille toward the Inn.
"In order to protect you… I have to make sure you don't get sick." Lightning let out a rare laugh. Vanille nodded and allowed herself to be steered back to the Inn. Everything was as it should be.
Lightning crackled in the sky as they entered the Inn and the sweet smell of baking wafted out of the Inn's kitchen, into the wind. The sweet scent of vanilla was blown out into the trees.