Hey guys!
Serah and Lightning's past always held my interest, especially how their relationship grew to be what we see in the game. I wanted to shed a different light on how the two sisters came to be. It's unbeta-ed so please excuse the inevitable roughness, it's just a simple oneshot character exploration of the lovable Farron sisters. :)
Enjoy!
Fang clucked her tongue as she watched Serah Farron move about in the kitchen, drumming her fingers on the table. A month already flew by since she and Vanille reawoke and Fang still reeled in shock on how much the Cocoonians managed in five years. Meeting Serah alone was enough, Fang always had an idea that the two sisters would be completely different but it didn't hit her until she saw them together. Serah paused in her cheerful humming, turning to face Fang,
"Hey Fang, can you stir this for me?" Serah asked as she set the mixing bowl in front of Fang, who looked at the contents, eyebrows raised.
"Well sure, but... what is this?" She lifted the spoon, watching the pale gloop drip off. Serah chuckled as she started chopping vegetables.
"It's cupcake batter. Didn't you have things like that back in your time?" Serah's lighthearted teasing made Fang smirk. She dunked a pinky finger in the mix and tasted it, eyebrows raising again at the sweetness.
"Nope, can't say we had anything this sweet. Wow." Fang shook her head and began her appointed task, "I guess we all were too busy fighting and stirring up trouble to bother with stuff like this."
Serah giggled, shaking her head, "I guess so. I need you to get all those lumps smoothed out, my arm gets tired too quick."
"Aye aye, don't worry little Farron." Fang mock saluted causing Serah to giggle again, rolling her eyes. A comfortable silence fell over them as they focused on their seperate tasks. It was the day of rest unofficially established by the new Pulsians, and the old gang always gathered to eat dinner on this day. The two could hear the others outside busy setting up the table, Lightning's distinctive voice was suddenly heard as she scolded Snow for starting a chair fight with Hope.
Fang smiled as she listened to the typical interaction between Lightning and Snow. Some things just never change. Her thoughts now mulling over Lightning, Fang decided to ask Serah a few questions that nagged at her,
"Has she always been that way?"
Serah blinked, jolted out of her thoughts as she looked at Fang for clarification, "Who, Lightning?"
Fang nodded, crushing another lump against the side of the bowl. Serah let out a small sigh as a wistful smile crept on her lips, "Not entirely. She wasn't bad as she is now but it was always there, you know?"
Scraping the chopped up vegetables into the frying pan, Serah continued, "Claire was a natural boss. Mom told me that she even had our dad wrapped around her finger. After our father's death Claire was wounded but she remained confident, lively and sure of herself." Fang stopped her attack on the batter to give Serah her full attention, hungry to hear what she was saying, "In elementary she would even boss other kids around, no one fought or picked on each other lest they faced Claire's wrath. She was really popular. Teachers were always a bit concerned with the ease my sister had in getting kids to do what she wanted. I was proud to be her sister, a bit arrogant even."
Serah's soft smile ceased a bit, "When she left to a bigger school for junior high though, she started to change. It was around this time Mom began to fall ill, and I think Claire was bullied for a time. She would come home with bruises and scrapes and slowly she stopped playing the silly games we used to play. Puberty probably didn't help at all. She would get snarky and impatient with me and we fought quite a lot. I didn't understand at the time what was going on. I was only ten." Serah shook her head, "After her first horrid year passed things got better for a bit, she found a new niche in track and field. She was the star athlete and won gold in every race she ran."
"Gold? Is that first place or something?" Fang cut in, confused but at the same time feeling oddly proud of Lightning.
"Yeah. She was also really good in music class. Was the lead pianist in the school band. I rarely saw my sister even then, she was so busy practicing for both."
Fang let out a low whistle, "So even itty bitty Farron was a hardass? Who knew."
Serah grinned and pretended to glare at Fang, "Hey! She isn't a hardass, she's just... dedicated. Anyways, despite all that Claire stunk at school." Serah's eyes widened in shock and she glanced to the open window in panic, hoping Lightning didn't somehow hear her slip of the tongue. Fang roared in mirth, caught off guard by such admission.
"Shhh!" Serah hissed, throwing a piece of celery at Fang to get her to shut up. It bounced unceremoniously off Fang's shoulder and into the batter. Fang stopped laughing out loud but her body still shook,
"Seriously? Light sucked at school?" Fang said after she regained some control, fishing for the offending celery. Serah massaged her forehead, knowing that Lightning will roast her alive when she finds out. Not if, when.
"Yeah. She did. English, social studies, math, science... you name it. She hated abstract stuff the most. I remember her ranting every night at the study table. Claire only cared about concrete stuff. Things that she can touch and see. So she didn't do too bad at some stuff in science and geography but the rest? Forget it."
"Ahhh it all makes sense now." Fang said, tapping her chin.
"Hmm?" Serah tilted her head, waiting for Fang to explain. The old Pulsian chuckled, finally getting a hold on the celery and promptly ate it. Serah wrinkled her nose at that.
"Back during our L'cie days, when we first arrived on Gran Pulse Light surprised me and Vanille with her ease in navigating the new land but when Short-stuff asked her whether the War of Transgression took place on Gran Pulse or Cocoon she just stared at him." They chuckled together at that, Serah motioned for Fang to continue smoothing the batter out,
"I'm not too surprised to hear about that, in our school system they don't go into depth about the war until high school. Claire never went to high school."
"Eh? Why?" Fang blinked when Serah face fell into a frown, studying the frying pan as the painful memories came back.
"Our mom passed away after Claire graduated from grade nine. Our world shattered, like someone slammed a rock into a peaceful pond. The shock was too much for Claire. Now all was left was just me and her but she was only fifteen." Serah swallowed at the growing lump in her throat, "You could say Lightning was born that summer but Lightning was always a part of Claire. Claire was just pushed aside to let Lightning take over. Lightning was Claire's strong, bossy part. The part that could cope with Mom's death and manipulate the courts into letting her take custody of me. Lightning was the one that could raise an emotionally torn twelve year old."
Fang watched Serah wipe a tear away, feeling unsure of what she should do. Serah however continued before Fang had a chance to comfort her.
"It didn't really hurt as much, to lose Claire. Maybe it would if it happened when we were in elementary, but since I was ten the distance was slowly growing between us. As much as I wanted Claire, it was reassuring to have the secure comfort of Lightning. The world seemed less dark, less scary with Lightning. She joined the military that summer to prove she could provide for us. At first she was still there for me, we would have dinner together; go to the park. I didn't want to go back to school but she forced me, even tried to help me with homework but I was resentful." Serah turned the burner off and move the pan off the stove and joined Fang at the table, her voice twinged with regret,
"As much as I found comfort in Lightning taking charge, I hated her controlling me. She wasn't my mom so she had no right. Tension between us grew, our fights growing more and more nasty. Both of us were hurting really bad from the lost. When I hit high school everything boiled over. I never saw my sister anymore, she was getting more busy with overtime and taking more nightshifts. One night she came home with a vicious injury and I flipped. It was the ugliest fight we ever had." Serah shook her head, dipping a finger into the batter and licked it clean,
"A lot of words were said that never should have been said. We just tore into each other. I hated Lightning for never being around, for not being my sister. She was furious at my lack of understanding for what she was doing for me. What she was sacrificing everyday. Lightning had turned eighteen that year and finally joined the military full time with a higher pay. I didn't think that she really wanted to be home with me."
Fang let Serah take the neglected bowl from her, her mind a hurricane with all the information about Lightning's past. A shout of delight from outside interrupted the temporary silence, Serah continued,
"After that fight Lightning grew emotionally distant from me. Before we could talk about everything and anything under Phoenix, no one else but me knew what was on that stoic soldier's mind. I blew it though. The only person she had in the whole world broke her trust and hurt her. For all of Lightning's glaring and huffing, she really is fragile. That's why she keeps everyone out." Fang smirked at that, that was one aspect of Lightning she knew all too well.
"My guilt was huge but I was too stubborn to say sorry. We just pushed each other away, and that's when I found Snow. I felt like the worst person in the world that I had someone to turn to while Lightning had no one, but since she hid it so well I never knew how deep her pain went. Things stayed in that stalemate until I became L'cie, I told Snow first. My sister was a stranger to me now, I didn't know how she would react. He convinced me to tell her. The rest... I'm sure you know." Serah let out a long sigh, stirring the cupcake mix slowly.
Fang remained silent as her mind burned to process the new information. She wasn't expecting Serah to tell her of Lightning's past, but she's not complaining. Fang finally had some light on why Lightning ticked the way she does. Fang mentally chuckled at the unintentional pun.
"I ah... I'm sorry to dump all that on you," Serah smiled awkwardly, threading her fingers together, "I just never really told anyone; it just flooded out." She wiped away another tear, sniffling softly.
"Hey, hey now!" Fang chided, reaching over and pulling the pink-haired girl into a hug, "It's okay. Everyone's gotta vent every now and then." She rubbed Serah's back like she would whenever Vanille had a melt down.
"I'm the worst sister in the world." Serah sobbed, clinging onto Fang with surprising strength. Fang tapped her on the head,
"Don't say such silly nonsense," She pulled Serah away and brushed the tears away, "Everyone makes mistakes, and I know Light doesn't think you are at all. Etro, she would be the one insisting she's the worst, you know. Crazy Farron sisters."
Fang grinned at Serah's watery smile, she gave another sniff, "Thanks Fang, I know I'm being silly. It's just that whenever I think how mean I was to her... I don't deserve her."
Fang tsked at that, chucking under Serah's chin, "Kiddo, you more than deserve to have such a sister, and Light deserves to have you. Don't let anyone let alone yourself think otherwise."
Serah grabbed Fang into another hug, burying her face into the Pulsian's sari. Fang held her, feeling the sobs slowly grow gentle. Her heart felt warm at how small Serah felt in her arms. She never thought she would ever be comforting the centre of Lightning's world. The universe sure worked in crazy ways, Fang thought as she rested her chin on Serah's pink head.
They remained in the embrace for a moment, then Serah pulled away, "Thank you again, Fang." She said shyly, brushing another tear away, "You really are a great person. I guess I can see why Lightning cares for you."
Fang sat there, stunned at Serah's words. What did she just say? Serah didn't seem to notice as she picked up the now smoothed out batter and put it in the refrigerator for later. Lightning decided at that moment to enter the kitchen,
"The table is all set, although I can't say it went smoothly." She stopped when she saw Fang sitting at the table still shell-shocked and Serah's red puffy eyes. What was going on?
"Claire!" Serah cried out and attacked her bemused sister with a hug.
"Serah? What's wrong?" Lightning raised her eyebrows in alarm, but she returned the hug all the same. Serah squeezed harder,
"I'm so sorry! For everything!" Poor Lightning looked even more lost, she looked to Fang for any sort of explanation. The warrior gave her a half-hearted shrug, not in any state of mind to explain why Serah was apologizing. Lightning patted her sister on the head,
"It's okay, I forgive you... for whatever it is." She said uncertainly, perplexed at the situation going on. As quick as it happened, the hug ended. Serah beamed up at her,
"I'm going to go put this on the table!" She announced as she dumped the pan-fried vegetables into a serving bowl and was gone out the door. Fang was still completely distracted mulling over what Serah could possibly mean by Lightning caring for her. Surely not in that way? No, it couldn't be. She jumped in alarm when Lightning spoke again,
"Fang, what is going on?" Lightning cocked an eyebrow at Fang's start, something weird was up. Fang stood up and stretched, trying to play it cool, embarrassed for zoning out in front of Lightning,
"You're going to have to ask little Farron if you want to know that," Fang smirked that trademark grin that irritated Lightning for no definable reason. The soldier tched in her usual manner, crossing her arms,
"Fine. Be that way." Fang walked up and threw an arm over her shoulders, ignoring the grunt from Lightning,
"Don't know how to be any other way, Lightbug," She began to steer both of them to the door leading to the backyard, "Now, let us join the others, I'm starving enough to eat an entire lobo."
Fang chuckled as she patted her tummy, Lightning sighed but a quiet smile was on her lips.