I do not own FFVII or FFXIII-2
The first thing that strikes me is her eyes.
The pupil is a barren darkness,
But somewhere in that darkness, power rests in her waiting to burst forth.
It's as if the sea rages inside her irises,
Occasionally calming to still crystal blue waters as that heart stopping smile graces her face.
Her hair shines with the luminosity of a diamond in the summer sun.
On one side, her hair falls down her shoulder like a waterfall of pink silk,
And on the other, it spikes out much like her electric personality.
Her hair frames her face like rock does rose quartz.
The silver sheen of her armour makes dots of light dance around the temple,
Golden elements adorn her armour and a train of white feathers fall down her right hip.
A silver shield is attached to her left forearm and a elegant silver gunblade rests in her right hand.
She is a beautiful goddess of war, always on guard and ready to strike down her opponents.
Lightning... The name of the soldier of the storm.
She doesn't know I exist,
I'm just another spirit aimlessly wandering her Valhalla.
Whenever she passes by,
My body paralyses and I can do nothing but stare at her exotic beauty.
I know it's wrong, I know I shouldn't pay her any attention,
But she's captured my heart's strings and torn them in two.
But, she's with him.
The one who sent me to the Lifestream and eventually Valhalla.
Cloud Strife...
My blood boils when I hear his name,
My body wants to rip his throat out when I see him,
But my heart breaks when I see him with her.
He's only a puppet, how can he be capable of love?
That's what I keep telling myself.
I want to believe my words, I want to think of him as nothing more than a disturbed child.
But nothing works, nothing eases my pain.
I can see them now.
She hides her inner emotions from him as if she doesn't completely trust him.
He takes her face in his hands and presses his lips up against hers,
A torrent of sorrow washes over me as his hands caress her body.
Their lips part and her head rests on his shoulder.
He tells her about Gaia and the people he left behind.
Her barriers seem to be crumbling as a hint of sorrow escapes her eyes.
My hurt turns to anger,
He's torturing her with stories of his loved ones,
Making her miss her own loved ones.
I can't do anything here,
I'm only a spirit.
But if I wasn't dead,
That weak minded puppet will die a slow and painful death.
Cloud looks down at Lightning, tears slowly trickling down her face,
He lifts her chin and his bright blue eyes search hers.
She turns away and stands on the balcony of the temple,
Her eyes wander the dark horizon as other spirits go about their business.
Her beautiful eyes looked almost lifeless as hers eyes rested on the grave of her enemy.
I looked down at the grave to my right.
Sitting atop the marble was a dark stone dragon roaring in agony as the waters of death swept around the stone and retreated.
I looked up at the goddess again,
Cloud had his arm wrapped around her comfortingly.
I couldn't help myself,
My body faded into darkness and formed again in the temple just behind the couple.
"Why is he the one?" I asked the goddess with great sorrow.
She didn't respond,
She was too absorbed in the man caressing her.
I sighed deeply and stared at the throne levitating in the centre of the room.
The blue and green stone that made up the throne was surrounded by floating white feathers, slowly falling down to the open darkness below.
The darkness beckoned to me,
I stepped towards the darkness and stood at the edge.
Looking back at the sadness painted on Lightning's face,
It made me wonder if Cloud really was the one for her.
"You wanted this... Didn't you Cloud?" I asked the blonde swordsman.
Of course there was no reply,
I am a spirit speaking to the living.
I felt like falling into the darkness,
Maybe that would soften the claws of agony ripping through my heart.
Suddenly, a loud smack filled the air.
I turned to find Cloud on the ground and Lightning's hand clenched into a fist,
Her expression flared up much like the fires of hell as Cloud looked at her, stunned.
She turned her back on him and walked towards me.
I held my hand out to her,
but she walked straight through me.
She teetered on the edge of the tiles and closed her eyes.
I wrapped my arms around her waist and they went straight through her body,
A sigh of sorrow escaped my lips as I stood on the ledge next to her.
She stared into the darkness,
It seemed to reach out to her and offer a hand of comfort.
Cloud left the temple and returned to Gaia,
His expression showing no signs of regret.
I wanted to take him out there and then,
But I had to stop the goddess from hurting herself.
I couldn't believe that I was about to do this,
But I closed my eyes and prayed to the former goddess, Etro.
Her soft voice echoed through my mind.
She offered me a chance to save her,
For a life imprisoned in the darkness below us.
I accepted.
Lightning stepped onto the darkness and fell into the pit of shadows.
The wing of black feathers showed itself as I dived in after her,
I grasped her waist and flew up into the light.
I let her set her feet onto the marble tiles of the temple,
She let out a sigh of relief and looked around the temple.
My hands wound themselves around her waist and my lips touched her soft cheek,
"I love you." I whispered into her ear before pressing my lips up against her cheek once more.
The darkness wrapped its hand around my ankle and pulled me into the shadows.
The darkness took hold of my limbs and held me down on the dusty ground.
I looked up at the speck of light that was the temple and watched the goddess leave.
Her words echoed through the unseen walls of this hidden dungeon,
"I have to find Cloud and tell him I love him."
My heart sank and the darkness took hold of my cracking heart,
I bowed my head and stared at the dark ground beneath me.
I let the darkness's haunted song of silence lull me into an eternal slumber.
Those last few words killed the last of me as I asked myself a question,
Why is he the one?