A/N: Hey, guys. Unfortunately, this chapter is shorter than the recent ones I have been releasing. A meager 12 pages :( This is the one and only Fang/Vanille chapter in Act II also.
The drive to put some emotion in these chapters has been making me go crazy. So I gave up on it. I'm just going to write each chapter how I see fit. I don't really feel anything when I read over my own work. (To be honest, reading the first few chapters kinda bores me, since I already know how the story ends. XD)
Ten points for whoever catches the clothing store reference. xP
Rated T for blood...lot's of blood. Cursing, 'cause Vanille has a dirty mouth in this chapter.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
So, how has the story been going so far? I'm really looking for some constructive criticism. (Besides Grammar, ugh.)
Hmm...I just noticed that a lot of people will be confusing this story with that other story, Awakening, by a first glance at the title...
Awake
Chapter Nine: Quarrel
Oerba Yun Fang found herself deeply entrenched within a cloud of mist. The fog around her was dense, impenetrable to light. She was in an empty, yet truly massive chamber. The area was completely covered in fog, to a point where Fang couldn't tell where the floors, walls, or ceiling was. To be honest, she didn't even remember seeing the layout of the room in the first place.
Everything was just fog, fog, and more fog.
To her surprise, Fang discovered that her sari had returned to her, as well as all her old jewelery. Her spear had disappeared, but for some reason, she didn't really feel like it had mattered. Fang didn't feel...threatened. The mist filled chamber seemed familiar. Yes...she had been here before, right?
Remembering her past visits here wasn't all that important to Fang either.
The whooshing sound was the only constant in the foggy room. It created a slow, steady rhythm. Fang could tell that it wasn't natural. But, it all felt calming to Fang. Soothing perhaps. She felt safe here.
Fang walked for what felt like miles. She made no progress. The environment was simply unchanging.
As she walked, Fang could hear the faint echo of a distant voice. She couldn't discern what the unknown speaker was saying, so Fang ran. She was running, far faster than she had ever felt before. For some reason, she felt light, weightless. Gravity didn't seem to affect her here. The thick, murky fog remained ever present. Fang stopped running when she heard the speaker talk again.
"Fang..."
The voice was quiet, and sounded frightened. Hurt, maybe? She couldn't tell. Fang heard the speaker shriek. Whoever was calling her name sounded like a wounded, dying animal. Before Fang began to walk again, she felt something whizz by her. She felt a sharp, intense pain on her cheek. Raising a finger to the wound on her cheek, Fang could tell the projectile had drawn blood. Casting aside any doubts about what lay beyond, Fang strode towards the speaker. A few moments later, she heard the speaker call her name again.
"Fang..."
This time, the speaker was louder, and Fang could tell it was female. She heard the female moan again, louder this time. The voice still sounded scared. Was she scared of Fang? Did something happen to the speaker and she wanted to talk to Fang? Questions could wait for later, Fang reasoned, and she continued to walk. Another object soared past her, cutting her leg this time. Fang winced and clutched the wound. The injury was tiny, a paper cut at best. Still, the tiny slash drew blood, and produced the same sharp, intense, and burning pain as before.
Fang shook her head. 'Look at me, holding onto my cuts and scrapes like a little baby.'
Resting her hands back at her side, Fang continued her journey. A lightbulb went off in her head, and Fang figured out where she was. She was dreaming, she realized. Looking back at the dreams she was recently experiencing, only one thing came to mind.
Vanille.
"Fang..."
The female, who Fang assumed was now Vanille, called out to Fang again. The voice was louder this time, and Fang felt like she was getting closer. A horrific, terrifying screech blasted into Fang's ears. Worse than all the others, it truly sounded like a dying animal was being tortured to death. The voice didn't sound scared anymore. It sounded...Angry? Fang heard the rustling of papers next.
Another projectile zipped by Fang, cutting her shoulder. The pain was worse than before. Her body was wracked with the sharp, intense, and burning pain just like the last few strikes. It was still a tiny cut that drew blood, but it hurt like a mother fucker. The object didn't vanish like the others this time. The projectile, a simple slip of paper, had landed a few feet away from Fang. Picking up the neatly folded piece of paper, Fang unfolded it, and read the words.
"DIE."
The word was written in blood. Fresh blood, Fang noted seeing half of the word begin to run off the paper. She crumbled the piece of paper and threw it somewhere behind her. Her dreams had taken her along a similar path before...but this dream was of a whole different caliber. Fang looked up, and out of the mist came dozens of the slips of paper. They descended slowly to the ground, like a light feather or snowflakes. The ones that came into contact with Fang didn't hurt. She grabbed another piece of paper that was falling, and read it.
"DIE." Fang crumbled it up and threw it away. She grabbed another, and then another, and then another. After reading dozens of slips of paper falling from the misty ceiling, Fang gave up. They all said the same thing.
"DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE. DIE."
The amount of blood streaming off the papers began to form a tiny puddle. The more papers that fell from the sky, the more blood ran towards the puddle. The tiny pond of blood grew, calling the blood from the papers towards it. A few drops of Fang's blood even swam towards the mass of blood. The lake of sanguine began to bubble and churn, and ceased its constant growing. Clumps of the crimson fluid rose into the air and took shape.
A wooden desk rose out of the blood. Made out of plain old wood, the desk was something one would normally see a teacher use at a school. Dozens of stacks of clean, white paper cluttered the desk. Behind the desk, a comfy leather chair began to form out of the blood. This was the place where the papers were coming from, Fang concluded. Vanille, or someone else Fang desperately wished, was here writing those cryptic notes.
Finally, the mass of churning, bubbling blood produced its final creation. The blood took the form of Vanille, who was sitting comfortably on the chair. Fang was happy, for a moment. Her heart nearly skipped a beat when she saw her friend. But, Fang did a double take, and she realized what was really going on.
Vanille sat motionless on the chair, holding a slip of paper between her fingers. She was clothed in her original gear. Her skin was as white and pale as the papers littering the desk. Tiny streams of blood trickled from both ends of her lips. Crimson cascaded from Vanille's eyes, giving her the appearance that she was crying. Part of her neck was exposed, and Fang could see a large cut. The wound gushed blood, ruining her clothes. Blood also escaped from beneath her fingernails, which allowed Vanille to write on the paper without the use of a pencil or pen. Vanille's bloodshot eyes locked with Fang's dark emerald. Vanille smiled widely, happily showing off her blood stained teeth, while the blood from her mouth flowed in greater amounts.
She was thin, skeletal almost. Vanille's body seemed to twist and contort oddly. Her limbs moved as if someone else was controlling her. As if Vanille was simply a puppet. The younger woman stood up, walked across the desk, and landed next to Fang. Vanille kept the creepy full smile. Fang stood paralyzed, helpless against what was happening. She was utterly stunned.
Vanille cupped Fang's cheek, her other hand running through Fang's raven locks. Vanille caressed Fang...lovingly almost, and for a second, Fang was lost in her own little world. Vanille's lips moved slowly towards Fang's ear. She had to stand on her tip toes, but Vanille could reach. She blew lightly into Fang's ear. Her hot breath sent shivers down Fang's spine. Vanille's fingers gently began to stroke Fang's neck.
"Hi, Fang...Glad you can...make it." Vanille spoke, blowing more of her hot breath into Fang's ear. She was purposely trying to get her own blood onto Fang. Her red tongue gently probed Fang's ear, covering the insides with a healthy coating of blood mixed with Vanille's saliva. Fang felt like Vanille was trying to seduce her, and if it weren't for the blood flowing down her skin, it might have been working.
Still, each touch was electrifying. Vanille's hot breath sent shivers down Fang's spine. Each time her nail lightly grazed Fang's neck felt like little pinpricks of ecstasy. Fang's skin felt hypersensitive. Vanille tightened her hold on Fang, clutching the back of her head and bringing her closer. Fang was spellbound, her body willingly melting into Vanille's embrace. Her mind was torn between disgusted and creeped out, or loving every second of it.
Fang didn't no what to say. Vanille didn't care, she just kept doing what she was doing. Fang felt her sense of right and wrong slipping. In the end, Fang reasoned that it didn't matter at this point. Her body was still paralyzed, entirely submissive to Vanille. The younger woman was in a trance-like state. If she wasn't stroking Fang's neck or running her fingers through Fang's hair, Vanille was probing Fang with her tongue.
Vanille's tongue darted erratically. She would explore Fang's inner ear for a moment, constantly licked and lapping. When it was covered in blood and saliva, Vanille would move on to Fang's shoulder, or her cheek. It only took a few minutes before Fang herself was covered in blood.
Vanille backed away, reviewing her work. A good part of Fang's face was completely covered with fresh blood. Fang was still staring at Vanille, eyes locked and frightened. She looked like a deer caught in the gaze of a headlight. Vanille moved in to plant a kiss on Fang's lips. Fang's mind went blank, her heart stopped beating, and her breathing ceased. She snapped back to reality, when she realized that the ever flowing blood from Vanille's mouth was filling her own. Fang couldn't spit it out. She had to swallow the blood.
"I love you." Vanille whispered, breaking off the kiss.
Vanille's sharp nails dug into the tender flesh of Fang's neck. Her hand moved deeper, and then pulled, ripping a large chunk of Fang's neck into Vanille's palm.
"I love you so much."
Sixteen days after the events of Paddra...(By the way, Chapter Eight was happening during the second part of Chapter Seven. Back to the story!)
Fang's eyes shot open, allowing the bright sunlight to practically blind her. She had trouble breathing, her lungs only allowing shallow ragged gasps. Her heart was pounding, her head was throbbing, and it seemed that the whole world was spinning. To top it off, Fang couldn't shake the copper taste she had on her tongue. Covering her eyes, Fang took a deep breath and remained motionless.
It was only a dream. It was only a dream. It was only a dream.
Fang kept repeating the same sentence over to herself. She let her mind return to normalcy and her body calm itself. She rubbed her eyes and exhaled, feeling back from the brink of death.
Fang opened her eyes and gasped. Vanille was sitting a ways in front of her, perched on a tree stump.
It was only a dream. It was only a dream. It was only a dream.
"Good. It's about time you got up."
Fang shook her head, still a little woozy from sleep. For some odd reason, she couldn't remember if it was daytime or nighttime. Her sleep pattern had gotten so screwed up that the days seemed to blend together. Fang found it hard to tell when one day ended and the next began.
Fang had carried Vanille all the way out of Paddra. For days, Vanille remained unconscious in Fang's arms. Fang fed Vanille the Potion Lightning had given her, its effects working like a charm. Vanille's head wound was healed, and it didn't seem as of she sustained any brain damage. Fang had a few scrapes and bruises, but nothing to cry over. Food hadn't been a problem. Fang was a born hunter, easily able to tackle almost any creature Gran Pulse could throw at her.
Unfortunately, Vanille, was a different story. As the days passed, things were awkward between Fang and Vanille. Fang would typically broach a subject to Vanille, who would rudely shoot it down. She got no answers she hadn't heard from the redhead back in Paddra. Fang's attempts at rescuing Vanille's memories became futile, backing up the theory that Vanille had her memory erased and replaced.
Vanille acted like a completely different person to Fang. She told Fang she was a girl who was raised in Eden, who volunteered to become a Project to serve Cocoon. Fang couldn't tell if Vanille's hunting skills remained, since the younger girl outright refused to search for something to eat. Fang would led it slide. Events of the past few days aside, Fang still loved Vanille, so she'd be willing to do things for her.
Same body, different person, Fang reasoned. She was surprised that she could take all this so well. Especially after what Vanille had said...
"Whoa, I don't swing that way sister..."
Those words hurt Fang worse than any wound she received before. Her heart shattered into thousands of little pieces, left to be stepped on when Vanille would abuse her again. But...Fang still had hope. It wasn't the Vanille she knew and loved, the new Vanille was different. Fang still had hope that she could bring Vanille back to her former self.
"H-huh? Wha...?" Fang mumbled and yawned.
Vanille got to her feet and stormed over to Fang. She was angry again. The last few days were...tense, to say the least. The redhead got annoyed very quickly, and didn't like Fang speaking that much. It had grown to the point where Vanille would get annoyed just by the sound of Fang's voice. Vanille was through with Fang's constant questioning. She felt like she was being interrogated. Eventually, Fang would take the hint and stop talking. It just made Fang feel worse to see what was becoming of Vanille.
"Wake up! You need to get me over the next ridge, remember?" Vanille said, shaking Fang.
Vanille pushed Fang to the ground and continued walking on her own. By losing her memory, Vanille didn't know a thing about Gran Pulse. Without her helmet, she couldn't contact her buddies at PSICOM either. Fang solved that problem by throwing Vanille's helmet into a lake, and stashing her own helmet just in case she ever did need it. Fang had to lead Vanille, and Vanille said she had wanted to meet up with PSICOM at base camp. Fang had simply nodded and began walking at the time. She had lied, leading Vanille completely astray from the base camp. Fang led Vanille out of the Yaschas Massif about a week ago. The two journeyed across the Steppe, and was en route to Oerba, only a day or two away. The closest city before Oerba, New Bodhum, was in sight. Fang hoped, that when Vanille returned to Oerba, all of her memories would return.
But Gran Pulse had changed over the past three years. The land became more civilized, and more urbanized. She reasoned that over the time she had been a crystal, thousands of survivors were leaving Cocoon for Pulse. Those people must have helped rebuilding the old cities, and even creating new ones. Pulse didn't magically become a thriving society. Even with thousands of people out to help, they couldn't build great cities in only three years. During their travels, Fang could see that the people of Pulse had enlisted the help of the fal'Cie. The fal'Cie aided the humans, providing good farmland and and areas away from dangerous animals to build their great bastions. Fang couldn't understand why the fal'Cie were helping the humans now, when five hundred years ago, the only thing the fal'Cie did was make more l'Cie.
"What? You woke up right at the best part of a dream? Well, I don't care. Get off your ass and move." Vanille said bluntly, looking over her shoulder to observe Fang.
Fang growled quietly and stood up, scolding herself for falling asleep in her Project suit. Fang was a apprehensive about getting up and walking, repeating what Vanille told her to herself. Was it a dream? A vision of things to come? Fang didn't know. But more importantly, she was getting a little pissed off Vanille at this point.
Fang cautiously walked towards Vanille, a mildly angry expression on the redheads face. Fang responded with a blank stare, bottling what she wanted to say inside her. That bottle was nearing its breaking point.
Thankfully, they were on the outskirts of a town, or small city. The road was in sight, but the traveling pair couldn't use it. Fang wouldn't allow Vanille to be seen, she had to be safe. Cars would periodically drive by, but no one would could spot Fang and Vanille from so far away. Nearing the city limits, small stores and other buildings could be seen. In the distance, Fang could see one particular store that caught her eye. Steering Vanille in the stores direction, Fang read aloud:
"The Rift, a Unisexual Clothing Store." Vanille nodded slowly and gave Fang a 'so what?' look.
"We're getting clothes. This bulky suit is driving me nuts."
After waiting for a guy on a motorcycle to pass, Fang made her way across the street. Vanille followed, dragged to the other side of the road by Fang. The redhead was resilient and stubborn, insisting on not going into the clothing store. Their time together just made things worse. To Fang, it seemed that Vanille acted really stuck up. Vanille was just annoyed by Fang's mere presence. If Vanille was her former self, Fang probably would have heeded her request, but not this time. It had been three years and and probably two weeks since she last had a bath, and Fang at least wanted some clean clothes to feel like she was sanitary.
Pushing Vanille through the double-doors, Fang walked into the store. The building was small, but the its practical design made up for it. The cashier was in the front, right next to the entrance. The cashier, a tired looking guy with a mop of messy black hair and a muscle shirt, was lazily fingering through a magazine. He didn't pay much attention to his new customers. Fitting rooms were in the back, and from a quick look around, Fang reasoned that the store was void of other customers.
It dawned on her that on Cocoon the people shopped online, and Fang noticed a distinct lack of that judging from the looks of the city. She assumed that the Pulsian survivors simply did not have the functioning technology to reach the level of Cocoon's society. Furthermore, it dawned on Fang that neither of them had any money. PSICOM never gave her any gil, and it wasn't like Fang was scavenging around Paddra for loot. With Vanille in her arms and probably dying, Fang couldn't focus on a few shiny coins.
Vanille groaned, obviously not wanting to be here. With a small wave, she wandered off into an isle to find something decent to wear. Fang went into a different isle, but kept a watchful eye on the younger girl. To her distaste, Fang couldn't find anything she really liked. Oerban fashion had died over five hundred years ago, and it didn't seem like the new inhabitants of Pulse were going to honor her culture.
Grabbing a large pile of clothes, Fang made her way to the fitting room. Clothes would help them blend into society better, since they would easily stick out like a sore thumb with their suits on. The idea of how they were going to leave the store with the clothes without money still haunted Fang, though. With no money, how would they get the clothes?
Fang concluded that she would have to steal the clothes. Shaking that feeling off for later, Fang started trying on different outfits.
A few moments later, Fang checked herself out at the mirror. She decided that a black, sleeveless shirt would work well to cover up her brand. She also put on a black, studded belt around a pair of dark green shorts that reached to her knees. She slipped her feet into some black sandals. Fang frowned at herself through the mirror. Something, she thought, was missing. Throwing a dark green sash over her shoulder, Fang's new outfit was complete.
She felt a little strange, the new clothing making Fang feel out of place. Walking out of the fitting room, she saw Vanille, waiting for her. She stood casually by the wall, resuming her annoyed mood when she noticed Fang had finished. Vanille was wearing a black T-shirt and jeans. Probably guy clothes, Fang assumed. Vanille had a pair of black and white striped sneakers on, and a navy blue cap on her head.
"How do I look?" Vanille asked, not really looking for an answer. After eyeing Fang up and down, she turned and began to walk.
Grabbing her spear she placed by the wall, Fang slung the spear through the sash across her back. She picked up a few pieces of the PSICOM suit she was previously wearing, making sure the helmet was safely hidden from Vanille.
Now Fang had to come face to face with the problem. Should she just run out? Certainly the two of them could escape the cashier. No...he would call the Guardian Corps, or some other police organization that the Pulsians used. The cashier didn't look at her and Vanille, so maybe they could just walk out and claim they hadn't purchased anything. Those ink theft-prevention tags would be a problem though...
Convince him to give them the clothes? That could work, Fang theorized. She could always dish out some of the old feminine charm.
Fang followed Vanille back to the entrance. She kept thinking to herself to play things cool, and nothing bad would happen. Exactly as planned, the two were stopped.
"Hey, uhh...You two need to pay for those clothes." the cashier said, looking up from his magazine.
Fang slowly made her way to the counter. Trying to make the best puppy eyed face she could, which was really, really hard, Fang spoke.
"Oh, come on...My friend and I don't have any money to pay for these clothes. Could you give them to us for free, pweease?" Fang implored, finding it difficult to pout and sound needy.
The cashier raised an eyebrow, slightly covered by his messy black hair. Grabbing the key he had around his wrist, the cashier opened up a drawer behind the counter. Fumbling around inside the drawer, Fang couldn't see what the younger man was up to. Her eyes caught the magazine the kid was reading. The Guy Fantasy Monthly magazine was shoved to the other end of the counter, the cashier obviously not caring who saw it. While the cashier, who was probably only around sixteen or seventeen years old, was doing something Fang couldn't see inside the drawer of the counter. Using the distraction, Fang reached over and grabbed the magazine.
"Sorry, but I can't give you free—Hey! What are you doing with my magazine?" the cashier demanded, his head snapping back to attention after pressing a button beneath the counter.
Fang leaned in close, placing a hand lightly on the kids bicep. She squeezed a little, and rubbed the muscle, grinning at the cashier.
"Come on...My friend and I really need these clothes. Will you please give them to us, you big, strong man?" Fang's lips formed a crooked smile, trying her best to persuade the kid. She hated every second of it.
She held up the magazine, and pointed to the woman on the cover.
"Without these clothes, we'd be running around naked. You wouldn't want that...Unless, you do want to see us naked..." Fang winked at the cashier. She pointed to the woman depicted on the magazine again. Obviously naked, her hands trying to cover up breasts larger than her own head. The kid smiled, finally catching on.
"Hmm...I don't know. Maybe if your friend over there would ask really nicely."
Vanille, who was silently leaning against the wall the entire time, was now at full attention. Her eyes widened and locked on the young cashier. She raised her left arm, uncovering the gauntlet beneath tons of randomly colored bracelets. Fang was happy that Vanille at least kept that trait. A cord of razor wire, with a ball attached on each end shot out of her gauntlet, taking the kid by surprise. The cord wrapped around his neck, digging in and sending him to the ground.
"Go to hell, ya cunt." Vanille laughed, covering up her gauntlet with the mismatched jewelry. She looked at Fang and snarled. Fang, on the hand, was stunned, mouth agape. Vanille clapped her hands together, satisfied.
"Well, that solves that problem. Why didn't you just kill him or knock him out? We could have avoided that whole situation.
Fang scolded herself for her stupidity. She should have just did what she does best: beat the crap out of people. But, knowing her luck, the Guardian Corps would arrive. Looking at the magazine one last time before throwing it away, Fang read the date:
Day Twenty-Two, Month Seven, Year Three. New Bodhum.
Fang nodded slowly to herself, making her way out the door without giving a word to Vanille. They were in New Bodhum, that city Lightning, Snow, and Serah used to live in back on Cocoon, Fang thought to herself. It had been sixteen days since Paddra, so Fang doubted that it wouldn't be long until she ran into Lightning and the others again.
Vanille stopped Fang, pointing down the road.
"Look. There's some flashing lights coming towards us."
Fang scanned the street. Those flashing lights were coming closer and closer. She could see that there were cars heading towards them. Fang grabbed Vanille and ran down an alleyway, barely missing the Guardian Corps cars that passed.
She was right, the Guardian Corps was here. They stopped at the store, and a few soldiers got out to investigate. Fang had to get her and Vanille out of here. She looked around the dirty, disgusting alleyway. There was a dumpster, which they could use to hide, Fang thought. A few trash cans, and a broken pipe were close too. Near the end of the alley Fang saw a wire fence dividing the nearby forest and the city limits.
"Come on," Fang said, grabbing Vanille's arm. "we're hopping the fence."
"What? No!" Vanille responded, stopping dead in her tracks. "We can hide."
Fang shook her head and grabbed Vanille again. "Listen to me, I know what I'm doing."
"No! I know you're wrong! If you weren't such an idiot, you could see that we-"
Fang interrupted Vanille, picking her up and throwing her over the fence by force. Landing beside the redhead, Fang held out a hand to Vanille, trying to help her up. Vanille growled, which Fang previously thought was impossible for Vanille to do, and pushed her hand away. She stood up and started walking.
"I don't need your help, Naga." Vanille said, taking the lead, not looking back to see if Fang was following.
Fang laughed and dusted herself off. She turned her head around, taking one last glance at the alleyway and the shop. They weren't being followed, thank the Maker. She followed after Vanille, who was obviously pissed off.
Fang felt conflicted. She would never try to purposely make Vanille angry, but it seemed by just being around her made the redhead upset. But...Fang wasn't talking to the real Vanille. This Vanille was different: no whimsical charm, no dance in her step or randomly humming. This new Vanille was just...angry. Fang remained steadfast. The Vanille she knew and loved was in there somewhere, and she'd bring her back, no matter the cost. She had no idea how to return her memories to Vanille. If being around her didn't work, knowing their history together, Fang didn't know what would help Vanille. In the mean time, Fang went into overdrive. The new Vanille wasn't accustomed to Pulse, so it was up to Fang to ensure both of them would survive.
"I told you, my name is Fang, and your name-"
"Shut it, Naga. When I scanned you, it said your name was Naga, so that's what I'm calling you. And don't even start with that Vanille crap. My name is Myst." Vanille countered, brushing a few branches and leaves out of her way as she made her way into the forest.
"I know your name is Vanille. You lost your memory, and it was replaced with something PSICOM gave ya, okay?" Fang responded, still trying to remain polite. Vanille stopped walking, her head fuming.
"Will you please shut the fuck up already? Can't you see that I'm not going to buy into your crap? Why does it matter to you who the hell I am? I don't even know you."
It was Fang's turn to be angry. Everything she tried to bottle inside was about to burst. Waving her arms around for emphasis, Fang yelled:
"Why does it matter to me? Why does it matter to me? I'm the one who rescued you from Paddra! You were out cold from that guys attack! And...and...Why is it so hard for you to remember? We both grew up in the orphanage in Oerba, on Pulse. You would crawl into my bed to sleep with me for crying out loud! Don't you remember? We became l'Cie over five hundred years ago! I became Ragnarok, and then we woke up on Cocoon. Don't you remember Lighting? Or Snow? Or even Sazh?"
"The only Lighting I know is the one I need to kill..." Vanille muttered. Fang closed the distance between the two and grabbed Vanille by the shoulders.
"I'm not letting you out of my sight, ya hear?" Fang said, giving Vanille a shake. "Until I get your memories back, you'll be staying with me."
Vanille slipped herself out of Fang's grasp, and turned on her heel. She strode aimlessly deeper into the forest, not even bothering to look back at Fang.
"Oh no you don't! You can't handle yourself out there!" Fang cried out, running after the redhead.
"See? What you just said is how I am so annoyed by you! I can handle myself! I can make my own decisions, and I don't need you taking care of me like I'm a child."
"No you can't. You can't handle yourself on Pulse without me, Vanille. Without your memory, you don't have the fighting skills you need to survive here."
Vanille gave Fang the middle finger and turned around to face her again. She placed her hands on her hips, a vain attempt to look intimidating.
"Memory, memory, memory! Have you ever stopped to think why, after all of your attempts, that your precious Vanille hasn't come back? Hell, maybe she doesn't want to come back! I sure as hell wouldn't after putting up with you. Or maybe, she just wasn't the person you really knew. I'm here now, and that's all you're going to get. Deal with it."
Fang's eye twitched. Doubts flooded her mind. Maybe Vanille really didn't like her? Maybe Vanille is better off gone than having to stay in this wretched, war-torn world. No! Vanille was still in there, somewhere...Fang hoped.
"Now fuck off. I want to be alone." Vanille snapped.
"Oh, real mature! How about you stop acting like a spoiled brat! All you've been doing these past sixteen days was yell at me! I nursed you back to health! I fed you, protected you, and made sure you would be okay. Why? Because I fucking love you!" Fang retorted, trying to feel as angry as she sounded.
"How about you stop acting like my mom? I can handle myself!"
Fang growled. "You don't have a mom! She's dead! You and I are orphans!" Fang countered.
"Just leave me alone!" Vanille yelled, trying to kill Fang with her stare. Fang didn't back down.
"No. If you want to be left alone, you'll have to go through me!" Fang challenged.
What am I doing? I'm not going to hurt Vanille! So why the hell did I just say that?
Vanille called Fang's bluff. She cracked her knuckles, full intention of fighting Fang. With her right arm raised towards Fang, Vanille pressed a button on her right gauntlet. Four, whip-like cords were launched out of the gauntlet. Spikes at the end of the cords were used to imbed themselves inside the target. Despite realizing that it was Vanille who was attacking her, Fang's warrior instincts kicked in. With one swift movement, Fang sidestepped the attack, brandished her spear, and with a spin, cut the cords in midair.
Vanille charged forward, using her left gauntlet to fire two razor wire cords with balls attached on each end. Fang rolled out of the way, and formed a defensive stance. She refused to go on the offensive. She would never physically hurt Vanille. Even if she was different.
Vanille's hand rose, conjuring a blue sphere of water. The orb grew in size, and Vanille threw it at Fang. Drawing energy from her brand, Fang created her Inertial Barrier. The translucent pattern of hexagonal tiles surrounded Fang, blocking the water spell, and leaving Fang unharmed.
Vanille leaped into the air, only a few yards away from Fang at this point. Fang rose her spear horizontally, using it to defend herself against Vanille's next attack. The redhead emitted a strange, bright green glow, matching her eyes. Her body radiated a bright jade, and then disappeared. Along with Vanille's body.
Vanille's body transformed into a mass of swirling mist and fog. To Fang's astonishment, she could see the faint outline of Vanille's falling body. Vanille collided into Fang, the mist-woman now weightless, and passed straight through Fang's body. The fog enveloped Fang for a moment, before Vanille became corporeal again. She was behind Fang now.
Before Fang could completely turn around, Vanille shoved her into a tree. Taking her by surprise, Vanille launched another two razor wire cords at Fang from her left gauntlet. The balls attached to the cords wrapped around Fang's wrists and ankles, cutting the skin. The cords had tied Fang to the tree behind her, and left her arms and legs immobile.
Vanille chuckled silently and clapped her hands together, the rush of adrenaline beginning to fade. She won the fight, not like it was a true fight to begin with. She dusted herself off, and turned to leave.
"Good. I'm glad I could get my point across. I'll be going now, and you'll be staying here. I don't need you. I never needed you. Frankly, I doubt the Vanille you've been talking about all this time didn't need you either, so I guess-"
"Well I needed her!" Fang shouted.
"Don't you remember our promise? We promised to be together forever..." Fang stuttered, her eyes on the verge of tears. She had only cried once in front of Vanille, and vowed that she would never let the girl see herself in such a weak state ever again. But now, it seemed that everything was falling apart.
"I promised I would keep you safe. Even before I...fell in love with you. I promised you, you would never be hurt again."
Vanille turned to give one last time to Fang, looking intently into her dark emerald eyes. Her own stern, light jade eyes were dull at the moment. Vanille was annoyed.
"I told you this at Paddra, but I guess I'll have to tell you again. I. Don't. Swing. That. Way. I'm not into you, and I'm not into girls. I hate you. Get that through her thick skull, bitch." Vanille turned on her heel and kept walking.
The tears were flowing now, and Fang hung her head. Without Vanille, Fang didn't have much of a reason to live.
I'm...pathetic. I'm pathetic to think that I could return Vanille to how she was before. I'm...I'm done.
Fang howled, an animal mourning over its mate or child. She was finished. The will to live was slowly fading.
Vanille didn't make it very far, when a monster had arrived. Drawn to the sounds of the previous fight, a rather large Behemoth roamed into the small clearing where Fang and Vanille were. It sniffed the air, smelling the blood dripping down Fang's wrists and ankles. The Behemoth bypassed Vanille, who didn't seem to care about the Behemoth's presence, and made its way towards Fang.
The raven-haired woman didn't even look up. Fang paid no heed to the advancing Behemoth. Why should she? Her life was hallow now anyways.
The Behemoth stood up onto its hind legs. The beast raised its claws, ready to tear the tree, and Fang, to shreds.
"This way, Fang!" a younger Vanille shouted towards her companion. She scampered through the the fields of white lilies and roses, eager to reach the bottom of the mountain before her friend.
"I'm coming! I'm the one carrying all these mushrooms, ya know!" Fang replied, the baskets of mushrooms weighing much more than Fang had expected.
Fang had pointed out to Vanille that there was a shortcut back to Oerba. All they had to do was head down the mountain and Oerba would be a short swim away. Vanille laughed and turned to Fang, flashing the older girl a smile. She had just reached the top of the mountain, and was looking for the path down.
"Wow! Look, Fang! Look!" Vanille exclaimed, standing completely still at the mountains peak. A few moments later, Fang joined her.
At the top of the mountain, Fang and Vanille could see the entire world of Gran Pulse beneath them. Only the colossal Taejin's Tower, standing intact in all its glory, stood above them.
Fang reached an arm over Vanille's shoulder, who inched closer to Fang's warmth. She always ran a few degrees hotter then everyone else, Vanille thought.
All of Gran Pulse was laid out before them. The long winding rivers, the verdant, sprawling forests, and the wide open plains of the Steppe miles away. The sun showered the two girls in its orange rays. The sky was flushed with the golds and reds of the sunset. Only Cocoon could rival the sun, and the viper's nest floated opposite the star.
Fang smiled, and pulled Vanille onto her lap, continuing to gaze at the wondrous landscape below them while they laid in the grass. Both of them were proud of their home.
Vanille's open hand reached out, and Fang enclosed her hand around Vanille's. Their hands squeezed, and Fang smiled at Vanille. They had only recently escaped an attack by a particularly vicious Behemoth. In an attempt to protect Vanille, Fang pushed her out of the way. The monster had managed to get its claws on Fang's back before the two of them made a run for it. Vanille smiled at Fang.
Vanille leaned closer, and ever so innocently placed her soft lips on Fang's. Her first kiss.
"Thank you."
"Wake up." Vanille instructed, her sneakers tapping against Fang's arm.
Fang's eyes shuddered, trying to adjust to the light of the setting sun. For a moment, she forget where she was, and smiled at Vanille. Then she remembered the Behemoth, and her body snapped into action.
She sat upright, her eyes scanning the surroundings. They were somewhere else now.
Vanille nodded at Fang and sat down at the edge of the mountain, her feet dangling.
She must have taken care of the Behemoth...and brought me here.
Fang looked towards the horizon, and gasped.
They were on the top of the world. The highest point on Gran Pulse. Able to see the land in all its majesty. The last three years had changed Pulse. Oerba, Paddra, Haerri, New Bodhum, and New Nautilus had all been built. Gran Pulse was becoming industrialized.
The long winding rivers that meandered across Gran Pulse had diminished. Most were being used as canals, or to power the nearby cities and small collections of buildings that the Nomads had built randomly.
The verdant, sprawling forests were being cut down. Fang didn't like it, but it was necessary. The humans needed lumber. Still, the once beautiful world Fang lived in was slowly being marred.
The wide open plains of the Steppe remained the same. Most humans didn't build there. The oretoises grazed on the Steppe, and they meant trouble.
"Thanks." Fang mumbled, giving a small nod to Vanille.
Turning to Fang, Vanille flashed a small smile. She eyed Fang up and down, wanting to speak, but hesitating. Vanille looked away, to stare at the toppled Taejin's Tower. Fang went back to gazing down upon the rolling landscape below.
"Why did you save me?" Fang asked, adjusting her position so her legs dangled off the side of the mountain like Vanille's.
"I had a feeling something like this had happened before. A really long time ago." Vanille replied.
The two remained silent. As the minutes passed, they listened to the sound of the wind, and the birds. The setting sun gave Vanille an orange glow.
"She must have been beautiful." Vanille broke the silence, not exactly looking for an answer.
"She still is." Fang replied.
Vanille turned back towards Fang, giving the raven-haired woman another smile. Her light jade eyes sparkled.
"Tell me about her, Fang."