AN: So, I had the idea for this story a couple of days ago and the idea would not leave me alone. I have been writing a bucketload of Dragon Age and Once Upon a Time fics and I thought it was high time to bring a FF one to the table. So, here is chapter one of my original Final Fantasy story!
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy whatsoever. Square Enix does.
"When you forgive, you in no way change the past - but you sure do change the future."
Bernard Meltzer
Claaang! The sound of metal grating against metal echoed around the vast courtyard; a deeper thud sounded a heartbeat later. There was a pause from the onlookers as they watched the sole fighter standing motionless before the unconscious body of the other knight. After the brief pause, the victor slowly sheathed her silver blade; a hiss from the blade against the sheath made a soft noise until a click signaled that is was properly situated. The crowd erupted into loud and raucous cheers at a battle well fought and executed.
"Ladies and gents, it seems we have our winner! The winner of this year's Knight Games is…Ser Lightning Farron!" Applause ricocheted from the crowd back to the tall warrior still standing inside the ring. Her expression gave nothing away; neither approval nor disapproval marred her pale, alabaster face. For the second consecutive year, Lightning had taken home the gold. She was widely considered the best of the best, made even more impressive considering she was incredibly young, and a woman. The twenty-one year old had been crowned an official knight of Cocoon, one of the few women to gain that sacred honor. Females had been allowed to become knights for a number of years, but few were up to the test. Other than a beautiful brunette named Tifa Lockhart and a serious woman named Paine, Lightning was the only female knight on the record.
Lightning was renowned for not only her prowess with a blade and her finesse on the battlefield, but for her devastatingly good looks and cold personality. Many men had tried to woo her, but one glare from those ice-blue eyes cause them to rethink their decision. She was a general in the army, one of six and the only woman to boot. In fact, she was the first female to ever be granted the prestigious title. Her past was shrouded in tragedy; her parents had been murdered by a band of Pulsians when she was just fourteen. The young Farron had to step up to the plate to care for her little sister, Serah, who was two years her junior. So, the older Farron bottled up her grief and before you knew it, the once carefree girl had become the cold, emotionally distant woman that she was today.
The younger Lightning had refused help, working hard doing odd jobs. She made a promise to herself; become a knight, the greatest of them all in order to support her sister and avenge her parents. So when she was not working, she was acclimating herself to a sword. Her father, long before he had married their mother and had the two sisters, commanded the army as the Commander. However, he left the high status and life of a knight behind in order to be there for his young family. He had put his armor and sword up in storage, sometimes pulling the outfit out and reminiscing over the glory days. It was this ensemble that young Lightning donned, beginning her training to be a knight. When she turned sixteen, she sent in a request to join the young shields (knights in training, as they were called) in order to achieve her goal.
The trainer, Ser Cid, was intrigued by the girl. He had battled alongside Farron Sr, and had felt great sorrow at his and his wife's untimely passing. He recognized the kindred spirit in Farron's eldest daughter; she was a fighter, born and bred. So, despite the other trainers' protests, he accepted the girl under his wing and she started the path that would shape her future. Lightning trained for two long, arduous years. She performed spectacularly, defeating every opponent and decimating all the tasks that came her way. When it came time for the knighting, she was the top of her class. At age eighteen, Lightning had become a glorified knight.
The rest, as they say, is history. She fought her way up the ladder and became the general she know was. Her sister, now nineteen, was a beautiful young woman destined for life as a housewife. She possessed all the abilities a young lady should; ones her sister greatly lacked. She was an extraordinary cook, polite little thing and could charm the armor off of the young knights that swooned over her. One such man, named Snow, was smitten by the youngest Farron. Which was a whole other problem for Lightning to deal with…
Lightning finally exited the battle site, largely ignoring the shouts of praise and congratulations shot her way. She did not even pay any heed to the poor opponent she had so soundly beaten; he was being helped up by some of his young students. She took long strides, passing by her fellow knights that were standing unsurprised at the outcome. Shouts behind her caused her to momentarily pause, her ears detecting the difference in this voice than the others. Her head turned, long pink hair blowing softly behind her on the cool breeze. "Lightning! Liiightning!" The voice belonged to none other than her little sister, Serah. The smaller pinkette came to a stop when she was in front of her sister, gasping for breath from her impromptu run. "Great job out there, Light!" came the breathless compliment from the still heaving girl. Even though she honestly did not care about her win, Lightning cracked a smile at her beloved sibling. Her sister was too adorable sometimes, even for a cold soldier like her.
"Are you alright, Serah? Maybe you should quit cooking all those foods you love so much; I'm worried you are fixing to fall over from exertion." If anybody had heard the teasing, fond words from the stern knight, they themselves would have had a heart attack. Serah squawked in indignation at the joke. "Light! Are you insinuating that I am fat? If so, then you can just forget about me fixing that meal you love so much!" The general chuckled softly to herself, knowing her sister would do no such thing. Her little sister adored her; they were all they had left in the world. Lightning was always afraid that something would come in and snatch up the last person in the world she cared for. It was the reason she scared off all the potential suitors. Nobody could care and protect her little sister like she would.
"Well, since it is later in the day, why don't we go somewhere to eat? We can meet up with Lockhart, Fair and Strife?" Serah's eyes lit up. The only female that inspired admiration in Serah other than Lightning was Tifa Lockhart. The woman was a triple threat; smart, gorgeous and perfectly capable of kicking testosterone-fueled butts. She was also fond of Generals Zack Fair and Cloud Strife. "Yeah! That sounds great!" Lightning led her sister away, heading in the direction of her fellow generals. Unfortunately before they could meet the others, a hulking form placed himself in their way. The huge mass was none other than Snow, the man who was pursuing Serah. The older Farron did not like him; at all. Her scowl could have melted ice, and normally reduced cadets to shivering masses. Snow apparently did not possess the same self-preservation senses that the rest had. He ignored the irate general and focused his dopey grin and blue eyes towards the object of his affections. "Hey, Serah! How are you doing today, besides being the most beautiful girl here?" The words made Serah blush and giggle prettily. Her sister just glared. "Oh, Snow, stop! You are making me blush!" Snow winked, causing the senior pinkette to gag. "That is why I do it; your blush just makes you even prettier. Anyway, I came by to ask if you wanted to accompany me down to the market, ya know, just to hang out. I like..spending time with you." Snow awkwardly scratched the back of his head, his shaggy blonde hair mussing up as he did so. Serah brightened up and looked on the verge of accepting the tentative proposal when Lightning decided to intervene. "Sorry, Villiers. Serah and I are on our way to eat lunch with Fair, Lockhart, and Strife. Maybe some other time." Her words brooked no argument. Serah reluctantly nodded her acquiescence. "I'm sorry, we had already made these plans or I would go…but maybe, tomorrow?" Snow smiled, agreeing immediately with the idea. "That sounds great! I will meet you tomorrow, then. See you later?" Serah returned the smile with her own special one. "I would love nothing more. Goodbye, Snow."
Light watched the lumbering idiot walk away, seething inside. He was blatantly obvious about his intentions with her little sister, and to make matters worse it looked like Serah was falling for him as well. She could not let that happen. If that fool whisked Serah away…she would be alone. That was her biggest fear; being alone for the rest of her life. She was not looking for romance or love, but she could not lose her sister. Serah was the one thing holding Light back from the crippling pain that thinking of her parents brought. Revenge was not even possible. The Pulsian that killed them had been caught; mocked the Cocoonians and showed no remorse for what he had done. The man had killed them because he did not want peace with the people of Cocoon, and the Farrons had been huge advocates of peace and harmony. Sadly, before he could be brought to justice the man slit his own throat, dying with a smirk at his eternal escape.
Prince Noctis, the ruler of Cocoon, wanted to bring the two civilizations together, just like his father wanted. Lightning greatly respected the prince and his counsel, but she would never be friends with the disgusting people. She would never forgive the Pulsians for her loss, even though the people were composed of many different individual tribes and not everyone shared the murderer's views. It mattered not. As long as there were Pulsians, her pain would never ease and forgiveness would never come.
