Author's Note: The initial pairing in this chapter is a means to an end so please be patient and keep an open mind. This fic will be endgame Fangrai/Flight.

Claire couldn't remember being this anxious in a very long time. She didn't consider herself to be very good with people that she knew, let alone with a person she had never met before. She definitely wasn't a social butterfly and silently cursed Gerard for convincing her to go on the blind date she was currently getting ready for. Claire held up a sky blue blouse in front of herself in the full length mirror attached to the back of her walk-in closet door. It brought out the color of her eyes, but she tossed it aside and onto her bed, deciding it was too formal for the casual get-together she would be having with her mystery woman that night. How her co-worker guessed she even liked women to begin with was beyond her. Was she really that obvious?

Claire stepped back into the closet to rummage through her clothing rack some more. She had an entire section of about twenty different men's style collared women's shirts, tailored to fit her body in all of the right places in various colors, textures and patterns. She had a particular style and she liked to stick to it, even if it did seem a little uniform from an outside perspective. There was something comforting to her about that. She selected one in soft beige with light blue vertical stripes to wear along with some dark brown suede pants. Yes, Claire was the type of person who actually folded and hung up every single pair of her pants so that they wouldn't wrinkle. She even ordered them by style and from darkest to lightest. Her closet, just like everything else in her life, was very organized.

As soon as she finished picking out her outfit for the evening, she started having second thoughts about the ensemble. 'I can't just wear what I wear every day to meet her. I should at least attempt to make this date a little special'. Claire furrowed her perfectly shaped pink eyebrows in thought. 'But I shouldn't go overboard either. It's just a casual date. Don't over think it.' She held up the chosen outfit and nodded in approval. 'I'll wear high heels. That should be enough to make this outfit casual blind date worthy and at least I won't look too butch.' She considered. She glanced at the neon blue letters of her bedside clock and noted that she still had a decent amount of time to get ready.

Claire shimmied into her skin tight pants then buttoned up her collared shirt, leaving the top couple of buttons undone. Next up would be makeup and hair. One of the first things she learned at the start of her career was to always do wardrobe before makeup and hair. This way clothing doesn't end up with unfortunate makeup smears and other stain nightmares around the neck. Claire stared herself in the eyes as she applied a subtle line of brown eyeliner to her lower lid. She ran a brush through her asymmetric pink locks and as usual it had no effect. The long side remained wavy while the short side remained spiky. There was very little she could do about it. Hair product didn't even seem to work after more than an hour after application.

As soon as she pressed her lips together after applying strawberry lip gloss, her phone rang. She looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Gerard calling to check up on her and make sure she doesn't bail at the last minute no doubt. She raised her eyebrow and answered the phone.

"You don't have to check up on me you know." She said into the phone.

"Hey I just wanted to make sure you actually show up to this one. This girl is too sweet to stand up."

"You know I wouldn't do that. I've already committed to this…"

"And you don't back out of your commitments" Gerard finished for her.

"Exactly" Claire said in a no-nonsense manner.

"Okay. Okay. I just had to check and make sure. I know you'll love this girl. She's adorable in a school-teacher-y sort of way."

"Tch. Isn't that because she is a school teacher?"

"Oh Claire, honey you know what I mean. You'll thank me later I know it. I have a good feeling about this one."

"I hope so after the other disasters you set me up with."

"Sweetie, it's not my fault if you've got it going on so much that a girl can't get enough of all that."

"That's a polite way to refer to stalking."

"So the last couple got a little clingy. This one will be different. I promise."

"I sure hope so. Getting a restraining order takes a lot of unnecessary effort."

"It won't be that bad. This one passed the Riley test. She's a good one."

"That cat hates everyone. How you fell in love with that miserable creature is beyond me."

"Riley loves you too."

The pink haired woman held the phone between her ear and shoulder as she clipped her watch on around her wrist, glancing at the time.

"Tch. Crap. I've got to go. I'm going to be late."

"Okay. Good luck Claire! Knock'r dead. Just… you know, not literally."

"Ha. Ha."

Claire glared at her phone and shoved it into her back pocket, grabbed her keys and wallet and walked out the door.

Rain spattered against the windshield of Claire's champagne colored Jeep Wrangler.

"Layft on Turner Lane", her GPS resounded through the noisy interior of the sports utility vehicle. Her old Wrangler certainly made a lot of noise and street sounds could easily be heard through the thin canvas covering of the top portion of the vehicle, hence the need for a nice booming volume.

"Turn Roight on Sybil Ayvenue in one quarter miles", the device said in a female voice with a strong Australian accent." Claire had a serious thing for Australian accents.

"Approaching destination on right."

Claire passed at least twenty cars before finding a decent parking spot on the side of the road, which was actually quite fortunate considering how horrible parking usually was in the city. Peach light from sunset clouds reflected off of the rain soaked pavement Claire's high heels clacked against as she walked to the bistro she would be meeting her date at. The rain had settled down to a feather light drizzle that barely registered to the pink haired woman, who's mind was currently buzzing with worried thoughts and imagining a thousand ways the date could go horribly wrong. Claire worried her lip and patted the front pocket of her shirt, which held the red rose she would be using as an identifier for the blind date.

Before she knew it she was standing in front of the bistro. She saw a beautiful young woman with pink hair a couple shades darker than her own standing in front of the restaurant. Claire looked down to see that the woman had a white rose in her hand as well, letting her know that this was her blind date. Claire's gaze took in her date's sensible flat dress shoes, glanced up smooth pale legs that met with a mid-thigh length cream colored skirt, to a sleeveless floral blouse and finally to the kindest blue eyes she had ever looked into. The eye contact brought a shocking and sudden familiarity that Claire had trouble explaining since she was certain she had never met this woman before, and against her usual nature, she instantly liked and trusted this woman. This brought a warm subtle smile to her face as she said,

"You must be Serah." Claire plucked the rose from her pocket and held it out for Serah to take.

"Oh" Serah said and smiled again. "Thank you. You must be Claire. It's so nice to finally meet you."

"It's nice to meet you too, Serah." Claire felt softness brush her finger tips and she tore her gaze away from Serah's gentle eyes to notice she was being handed the other woman's white rose. This brought another small smile to her lips. "Thank you. Should we go inside now?"

Serah nodded and Claire held the door open for her. Smells of freshly baked bread and cooked meats increased tenfold as the two walked into the quaint little restaurant.

"Reservations for Claire", the host said shortly after the two women walked in and a waiter seated the two in a warmly lit corner booth with dark brown leather seats.

"Cozy.", Serah said appreciatively after sitting down.

"I'll be right back for your drink order" The waiter said before rushing off to seat the next customers.

"Very." Claire said as she opened up the menu to peruse the drink selection.

The two didn't have to wait long before the tall blond waiter with a shaggy haircut rushed back. The restaurant wasn't that crowded. "Are you both ready to order?"

"Yes. I'll have iced tea and betteraves to share." Claire said.

"I'll take ginger ale and a glass of rose wine, please." Serah said.

The waiter filled their two glasses with iced water from a pitcher and left.

Claire took a moment to look around the restaurant. The place had a good level of lighting. It wasn't too bright or too dark. Varying styles of paintings hung on the upper half of the honey brown painted walls. The bottom half was separated by a strip of molded mahogany and was painted a darker brown than the top half within the same color range. The painting next to their booth was a colorful scene of a couple walking down a tree lined street during autumn in thick vibrant brush strokes. Booths lined the walls and square tables with white table cloths and white napkins filled the center of the space.

Claire turned her gaze back towards Serah who was also looking around while placing a strand of pink hair behind her ear. She decided to start a conversation before things could get awkward, even though she wasn't terribly worried about it considering she felt so comfortable in the other woman's presence already. That actually unsettled her a little bit, but only just a little bit.

"So how did you meet Gerard, Serah?"

"Oh he's actually my neighbor, but we didn't actually meet until I rescued his cat from the garbage collector."

"That animal is a demon."

"Oh, but he was such an angel when I took the poor soaking wet little guy out of the bin after some of the neighborhood kids put him in there, though Gerard did mention that he's usually very prickly."

"That's an understatement. I'm glad you were there to rescue him before he ended up in the compactor at least. You know, Gerard named him Riley because he 'gets all riled up'" Claire said.

"That's the corniest thing I've ever heard" Serah giggled.

"Yeah... southern humor." Claire smirked.

The two went back to looking at the menus to decide what they wanted for dinner.

"Claire… I hope this doesn't sound weird, but you seem really familiar. Have we… met before?"

"You seem really familiar to me too. I was actually wondering the same thing, except I definitely would have remembered meeting you".

Pink tinted Serah's cheeks. "Yeah… I would have remembered meeting you too." The warm smile didn't leave Serah's face as she looked down at her menu again.

A few more silent minutes passed before the waiter came back with their drinks.

"It'll be just a few more minutes for the betteraves. Have you decided what you want to order yet?"

"I have, have you?" Serah asked Claire, to which the older woman nodded.

"I'll have moules marinière" Serah said in a flawless accent.

"And I'll have the hanger steak", Claire ordered. There was no way she was going to go out to a nice restaurant and miss out on an opportunity to have a good steak.

"Will that be all?" The waiter asked.

Serah and Claire exchanged a nod. "That should be it.", said Claire.

The waiter bowed his head and walked off towards the kitchens.

"That was a very impressive accent. Do you speak French?" The older of the two asked.

"I studied for four years in university while I was getting my teaching degree. I've been fascinated by the romantic era of the French culture since I was a little girl." Serah replied.

"Have you ever been to France before?" Claire asked.

Serah took a quick sip of her ginger ale before responding. "I have. My parents paid for a vacation there as a graduation gift when I finished university. It was everything I ever dreamed of. Have you ever been before?"

Claire turned her glass of iced tea between her thumb and forefinger on the table. "I've traveled to a lot of different places because of my job and being in the military, but I've never been to France. What was it like?"

"Well the museums were lovely. I didn't spend too much time at the Louvre because it was so crowded, but the other museums were nice. My favorite was Musée Rodin because it has such a beautiful garden. There were gardens and parks everywhere. It's a very green country. There were plenty of café's as you would expect, with outdoor seating so you could just sit back with a nice coffee and crepe and people watch for as long as you like. I ended up finding a nice little bistro tucked away in the city that mostly only locals went to. I ended up visiting it several times and they kind of adopted me there. The fresh markets were amazing. They are a lot like the farmers markets we have here, except with a much broader selection and they were everywhere."

Claire nodded, and took a sip of her tea as she listened intently. The waiter finally arrived with their betteraves, a basket of warm sliced baguette, and two salads as well as Serah's rose wine. They thanked him and he left without further interruption.

"Help yourself." Claire said, referring to the betteraves.

"Thank you" Serah said with a smile and began scooping the roasted beets, goat cheese, and orange segments onto her small plate. "So you said that you traveled a lot for your job. What is it that you do exactly, if you don't mind me asking?"

Claire finished chewing her small mouthful of baguette before answering. "I'm a production coordinator for a small film company. I have to travel with the whole crew to whatever location we happen to be shooting at in order to make sure things run smoothly and everyone has everything that they need."

Serah looked at Claire in awe. "That's amazing. How did you get into that line of work?" the younger woman asked.

"The company I work for now was filming a military action drama on my base when I was a sergeant and I ended up getting assigned to help out with the filming process to make sure they stayed out of everyone's way essentially. I somehow ended up with the task of coordinating their filming schedule with our exercise schedules and impressed my current boss enough to where they wanted to hire me when I transferred from active duty to reserves."

"I'm surprised they hired you as a production coordinator and not as an actress. You're too beautiful to be behind the camera and not in front of it." Serah paused and looked startled, realizing what she just said out loud. "I'm so sorry. I hope that wasn't too forward."

"You're fine. That was actually really sweet. You're… you're very beautiful too." Claire said with a half smile. Her cheeks were uncharacteristically warm. Something about Serah just warmed her heart. "So you're a teacher right? Which grade do you teach?"

"I teach kindergarten."

"What's your favorite part about your job?"

"Well I love the kids, but that's obvious. I just love watching how their little minds work. Children have such a different perspective of the world than adults do. Everything is just so new and full of magic for them. I know I'm not supposed to pick favorites, but there is this set of twins in my new class that are just hilarious. Whenever the kids play cowboys and Indians, the girl twin always makes the boy twin be the cow. Not even a horse, but a cow, and he never complains."

"Heh. That is pretty cute." Claire said with a smirk. Imagining Serah running around chasing a bunch of children was a very endearing thought.

"Yeah, she really has him wrapped around her little finger."

"Do you have any siblings, Serah?"

"No, I'm an only child, but I always wanted an older sister growing up. What about you, Claire?"

"I'm an only child too. That's probably a good thing though because I would definitely end up being the cow."

"You would make a really cute cow"

"I'm not sure that's really a compliment", Claire chuckled good-naturedly. Serah gave a dazzling smile in response and continued eating her salad. They both enjoyed each others company so much that before they knew it, the main course had arrived.

Serah looked up from her plate of mussels just in time to see the look of pure rapture on Claire's face as she took a bite of her juicy steak.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd swear you were just here for the steak." Serah said with a wry smile.

"Well the steak is good, but your company is better." Claire responded with complete honesty. Serah reached across the table and took Claire's hand in her own, rubbing the back gently with her thumb.

"You are a charmer." the younger woman proclaimed.

Butterflies fluttered in Claire's stomach from the contact combined with the look Serah was giving her. She bit her bottom lip subconsciously and stroked the sensitive underside of Serah's palm with her own thumb in response. Serah held Claire's hand for a few more moments before giving it a small squeeze and letting it go to return to eating her meal. Claire went back to enjoying her steak and wondered why Serah had such a strong effect on her when they had only just met. 'Who is Serah deep down? Maybe if I ask her…'

"This might seem like a strange question, but what's your greatest treasure?" Claire asked and took a sip of her tea.

"That's actually a very interesting question, but I'm not sure how to answer it." Serah looked down in thought with her pointer finger on her bottom lip. "I guess it would be the kids I teach, but more specifically that I get to provide a learning environment that broadens their view of the world, but also feeds their curiosity and sense of wonderment while at the same time getting a glimpse of what it was like to be that innocent again. That experience itself is very precious to me. Don't get me wrong though, I enjoy being not so innocent too." Serah said with a smirk and rubbed her foot up Claire's ankle under the table. Claire's cheeks warmed again. 'This one is going to be a handful and I sure as hell don't mind.'

"What's yours?" Serah asked

"I feel like it has to be out there but I just haven't found it yet." said Claire.

"I have a feeling that you'll find it when you least expect it. That's how these things seem to happen." Serah said reassuringly.

Most of the rest of dinner was spent simply eating and enjoying the food. Claire couldn't help finding the way Serah's nose scrunched up as she chewed her food sometimes to be really adorable and the feeling in her heart just grew even more. The server came with the bill and after a small bit of negotiating with Serah, Claire finally won out on being able to pay for their date.

"Let me walk you to your car." Claire said.

"I took a cab here so don't worry about it."

"There's no way I'm letting you pay for a cab. Let me take you home."

"I would like that"

"Then it's settled. Come on, I parked over this way."

The two walked to Clair's Jeep and Claire held the door to the vehicle for Serah and helped her into it. The opening of the Jeep was so far off of the ground and difficult to get into if one wasn't used to it.

"You said you lived in the same complex as Gerard, right?"

"That's right."

"Okay, I know where that is."

If Claire could see Serah's face in the darkened SUV, she would have noticed that she looked slightly hesitant about something. Making up her mind, Serah placed her hand on Claire's thigh. Claire let in a sharp intake of breath as a jolt of electric surprise rushed through her at the contact. She smiled and took Serah's hand in her own, stroking the back of it gently with her thumb, only letting go when she needed to change gears and always returning it once the gear shift was complete.

It didn't take very long for them to reach Serah's apartment and Claire parked in an empty spot on the curb.

"Let me walk you to your door"

Serah squeezed Claire's thigh and said "Okay".

Claire came around to help Serah out of the SUV and slid her hand into Serah's as they walked to Serah's place.

They stopped in front of Serah's door and Claire bent down to give Serah a kiss on the cheek. Claire felt Serah smile against her lips.

"Well, good-"

Serah pulled Claire down by her collar and planted a languid kiss on her mouth. Initially shocked, Claire didn't take long to recover and deepened the kiss in return. Serah's tongue slipped from her mouth to lick Claire's lower lip to which the elder granted access. Claire stroked Serah's tongue with her own. Serah moaned into her mouth and passionately returned the gesture.

Images of a younger, smiling Serah lit by a bright summer sun on a beach filled Claire's mind and she was hit by a wave of unexplainable nostalgia.

Claire gave Serah another leisurely kiss before breaking away in a huff of breath. Serah leaned in at the loss of contact.

"I feel this pull with you, Claire. I can't explain it." Serah said, a bit breathless.

"I know what you mean. I feel it too, Serah."

"Come inside with me."

Claire leaned down to give Serah another slow, sweet kiss as Serah fumbled with the door behind her and pulled Claire in as they continued to share their kiss."

It didn't take long for them to find their way to Serah's bedroom where Claire lead the both of them to lie on Serah's bed, all the while never breaking contact from the kiss.

Claire's hand trailed from Serah's neck down her front where she slowly, accidentally brushed the back of her hand against the younger woman's nipple before sliding her thumb down Serah's sensitive side. Taking this as encouragement, Serah ran her hand smoothly against the older woman's back, and gave Claire's butt a firm squeeze, pulling her flush against her front. Claire bit and sucked on Serah's lower lip and pulled her closer. Warmth radiated from her stomach, down to her core and she just couldn't get close enough to Serah. These clothes would need to go soon.

Claire rolled on top of Serah, automatically placing her thigh between the younger woman's legs. Serah squeezed the older woman's ass again and brought her possessively closer, pressing her own thigh against Claire's center. Claire moaned into the kiss and reached up to rub Serah's nipple between her pointer and middle finger as she gently grasped the younger woman's smaller breast. Serah rocked underneath Claire, causing sweet friction between their legs. Claire gasped and reached under Serah's shirt to play with the younger woman's nipple while licking sensually at her lower lip.

Serah had enough of this and hurriedly began unbuttoning the elder's collared shirt, tossing it to the side and rocked her hips upward in an ever increasing rhythm. Claire broke the kiss to take off Serah's floral blouse and twin blue eyes momentarily locked. A spark of emotion ran between the two and Claire's stomach did a pleasant flip as her heart filled with unbridled adoration. 'Is this what love at first sight feels like?' She crashed their lips together with renewed ardor. Their bras quickly followed their shirts to who knows where around the room and Serah began the task of helping Claire shimmy out of her difficult sued pants. The older woman slid Serah's skirt down her soft legs along with her black lace underwear and placed her hand hesitantly on her stomach above her mound.

Serah dragged the back of her nails delicately up Claire's stomach towards her chest and slid her hand over her breast and grasped lightly, running a thumb over a hardened nipple. She could feel Claire's wetness against her thigh and it was doing all kinds of wonderful things to her body. She sucked and bit a trail down the side of Claire's neck. The older woman let out a sexy moan. She noticed Claire's hesitation and stopped suckling her neck.

"Touch me, Claire."

Serah said breathily and let out a gasp as she felt fingers slide through her wetness and suddenly fill her. Claire reveled in the slick warmth and pressed her own moist center against Serah's smooth leg. Serah hummed in pleasure before giving the elder's nipple on last gentle pinch and sliding her own hand down Claire's toned abs and through soft pink curls. Claire gasped as she felt Serah stroke gently down her clitoris. She younger woman smiled into their kiss and slid her fingers into succulent warmth. Claire rubbed Serah's sensitive nub with her thumb while plunging in and out of her depths as she was filled repeatedly by the younger's pumping digits. Pressure built at the ever increasing speed and their passion sored to new heights as they rocked against each other's palms. Pleasure amplified with each churning pass and Claire felt her walls contract. Heat ran through her entire being as her climax coursed through her in an electrical explosion and her inner walls pulsed against Serah's thrusting fingers.

"Serah!" She cried out breathily as her orgasm slammed into her. She recovered quickly and continued plunging in and out of Serah, while circling her extremely aroused nub with her thumb. Serah clung onto her for dear life as she panted into Claire's ear. She let out a cry of ecstasy and her back arched against the bed as she came hard around Claire's fingers.

Claire held her as she came down from the adrenaline rush of their love making, kissed the top of her sweat damp brow and ran a hand through her hair. The gesture was only a momentary respite though because Claire had more planned for the younger woman. Claire shifted on top of Serah once again and looked into her gentle eyes.

"Let me love you, Serah."

Serah's eyes shone with love as she smiled and nodded her consent.

Claire gave an indulgent kiss to Serah's lips and then nuzzled her nose into her neck only to leave a trail of sweet kisses down the column of her throat, down towards her petite breasts. A stream of breath exhaled from the older woman's nose tickled Serah's pert nipples and she let out a small giggle at the sensation. Claire smiled and took the bud into her mouth and gently bit and sucked. Serah gasped as Claire rolled her tongue over the hardened peak as she suckled. She gave the hardened nipple a final lick before moving on to the next one, which she lavished with just as much attention while continuing to roll her thumb over the first to keep it stimulated. Claire rubbed her cheek against the peak of Serah's breast before making her way down Serah's flat stomach. The long side of the older woman's hair left another ticklish trail down Serah's stomach as she peppered kisses down her abdomen. Claire paused at the juncture of Serah's pelvis and thigh, gently biting and sucking the sensitive area. Serah wriggled in pleasure as Claire left her mark on porcelain skin.

Finally Claire reached the apex between Serah's thighs. Her breath alone was enough to arouse her most sensitive area. Claire paused and looked up, locking eyes with Serah. Seeing Claire's beautiful face between her thighs sent a jolt of pleasure and excitement through her body and seeing the combined look of love and lust on her face melted her entire being. Claire closed her eyes and lapped at Serah's delicate folds, running her tongue upward to lick at the sensitive nub before moving back down and delving into her sex. She gently thrust the muscle in and out of Serah's hot wetness and greedily drank in her essence.

The behemoth changed to bipedal form and swung its heavy club at Claire's midsection, missing by a hair's breadth as she narrowly dodged backwards. She landed in a roll and pulled her fallen gunblade out of the ground where the creature had knocked it out of her gasp in a prior attack.

'Why am I thinking about these childhood dreams now? Now isn't the time for this. I just want to think about Serah.'

Claire shook the images from her mind to concentrate on the task at hand; showing Serah how much she loved her. By now she was sure of her feelings. She had never once felt this at ease or this close to another soul in her lifetime, or felt so much warmth and devotion in her heart that it was set to burst at any moment. Normally this type of feeling would frighten her. She might even try to shut it off and stow it away behind impenetrable walls, but she was so swept away in it, so taken by Serah that she couldn't find the will to; even if she wanted to and she surely didn't want to. Something about Serah just opened her up like no other and shined a light and warmth on her heart that she never felt before until now. The closer she got to Serah, the farther she fell. Yes, tonight would be about loving Serah and she would do her best to show it. 'Come for me, Serah.'

Claire felt silken walls tighten around her fingers. Her fingers pumped against the added pressure, stroking harder against the spongy part of Serah's upper wall. Serah's breathing became heavier and shallower. Little moans escaped with every breath. It was music to Claire's ears. Claire thrust herself deeper as she sucked and licked on Serah's swollen clit.

"Claire!" Serah half breathed, half screamed as her walls first loosened, then pulsed rhythmically around Claire's pumping fingers. Claire slowed her pace, delving even deeper into Serah as she came completely undone under the elder's touch.

Claire wiped her mouth and climbed up to give Serah a tender kiss. Serah rested her head against Claire's naked breast and the two drifted to sleep in each others embrace.

That night Claire dreamed of Serah smiling in the kitchen while cooking food and caught a glimpses of her growing from a small child into a young woman in a beach side town called Bodhum. She remembered training rigorously in the military and the feeling of pride at being able to wear her sergeant's pauldron for the first time. She remembered the feel of her red cape fluttering in the wind while trekking across Gran Pulse with her group of l'cei friends as they fought against their fates, countless foes and damnable odds. She remembered being transformed in Valhalla to fight endless battles for a sleeping goddess and the final fight against a deceitful and angry god. She remembered the dawning of a new universe and the birth of a new life with new hope.

Claire awoke with a start, suddenly feeling the weight of two complete lifetimes, one of which that had lasted for over half a millennia. She looked down at the naked woman in her arms with a mixture of elated relief and dread. The younger woman stirred in her sleep and slowly opened her eyes, sleepily focusing on the older woman holding her. A look of confusion flitted across her features.

"Lightning?"