bold: Vanille speaking

italics: Serah speaking

"Where... am I?"

"Van...nille..."

"...Serah?"

-xiii-

"Serah." The pink haired girl turned around at the deep voice. She beamed a beautiful smile, her cheeks were rosy and glowing. The wind made her hair dance.

Snow Villiers, the Duke kneeled before the blushing Serah. He swallowed. "I'll stay by you, no matter what happens. I'm yours forever. Serah...my one, my only..." He took out a ring from his pocket. "Will you marry me?"

Serah held her hands to her lips, tears forming at her eyes. "Yes!"

"Haha!" Snow stood up and lifted Serah into his arms. "She said yes!" Excited, he lifted Serah in his arms and spun around.

When he finally let her down, she smiled and placed her hand against his cheek. She laughed. "Sis is gonna be in for a surprise." At the mention of her sister, she looked down sadly thinking about her at war.

Snow gently placed his hand on Serah's chin and lifted it so their eyes could meet. "Hey... it's gonna be ok..." He gave her a reassuring smile. "Hey... she's... She's gonna be my sister now!" He laughed. "Oh... I can't wait to see the look on her face."

Serah slapped him playfully and laughed at his childish antics.

"That was... my last moment of happiness."

-xiii-

Arriving home, Serah shouted excitedly at the front door. "Elmyra, I have wonderful news!" Serah pushed open the front door but was greeted by no one. Closing the front door behind her, she ventured around. Not a maid in site. "Hilda?" She paused. "Where is everybody?" As she walked through the hall, she heard the sound of sobbing. When she reached the dining room, she saw Elmyra sitting in the middle with all the maids of the house surrounding her. Elmyra had her face buried in her hands while holding a fur jacket and a letter. "Elmyra..." Her eyes widen in shock. "No..." She ran up to her, the maids cleared a path for their young master. Kneeling before Elmyra, she placed her hands on Elmyra's arms. "Did something happen? Is... Is sis alright? What's going on?" Her eyes started to water as bad thoughts ran through her mind.

Uncovering her face, Elmyra looked at Serah's blue eyes. "Ae- Aer...rith is dead." The older woman sobbed and cried.

"Aerith..." Serah shook her head. "No... I'm... sorry... I'm so sorry..." She threw her arms around Elmyra and held her while they both cried.

The room was filled with sobbing sounds. No one spoke. Not even the talkative Brahne who watched the scene quietly.

-xiii-

"Aerith was like another sister to me. She taught me how to braid my hair... how to flirt with boys. She was... my family. But... to Lightning..."

The image of Lightning at Aerith's deathbed flashed across Serah's mind.

Serah knew that Lightning and Aerith were lovers.

Which was why... Serah knew that Lightning was devastated.

Lightning didn't write anymore. She had cut off all contact with Serah and Elmyra. The only sort of news she had from her was through Lightning's commanding officer Captain Amodar.

After the L'cie attack that left one of the army's stronghold on fire, the troops had retreated back to a closer base camp to heal all the fallen troops and regain their forces. She knew Lightning would probably kill her for this, but Serah had to see her sister somehow. So she wore one of Lightning's old uniforms over her clothes and snuck on to the supply wagon. She was caught of course, but Serah was quick witted and bribed the soldiers for their help. It also helps that her future husband was the Duke.

When Serah finally arrived at camp, she heard a lot of commotion. There was a big gathering of soldiers around one particular area. When she reached the crowd, she could make out from afar two warriors battling each other with their blades. Metal clashed against each other as the soldiers rooted loudly for them. When she finally pushed herself to the front she realized one of the warriors was Lightning.

"Sis!"

Lightning's eyes were an icy blue and had no spark in them. The two soldiers were evenly matched. Where Lightning lacked in strength she made up with speed. Gadot, the flaming haired man was the strongest man in the army, but unfortunately moved a lot slower. At one point, Gadot had managed to push Lightning down and raised his sword to best her.

Serah saw a flash of anger in Lightning's eyes and gasped as Lightning raised her blade against Gadot and made contact with Gadot's arm.

Covering her eyes, she couldn't watch this.

A blood curdling scream was all she heard. "Aaaahhhhh!"

When she finally had the courage to open her eyes, she saw Gadot writhing in pain holding his hand to where his other arm use to be. On the opposite side, there stood Lightning with blood dripping from her sabre. "Sis..."

General Rosch turned to Amodar. "That is enough. I can see that both soldiers are extremely talented in skill and strength." Looking at Gadot's cut off arm. "It is the most unfortunate accident, Gadot, you may take all the time you need to recover."

Gadot nodded as he winced with pain. Field medics rushed to bandage his arm, stopping the bleeding as he walked away strongly.

"Farron, you will become Captain of the Northern Wall stronghold. You may dispatch in the morning."

"Yes Sir." Came a solid reply.

Serah saw the whole thing with disbelief in her eyes. Her sister was cold and remorseless. She wasn't the sister she knew and love.

-xiii-

"Go back home, Serah." Lightning said simply as she packed her stuff.

"Sis..."' Serah started. "What was that back there?"

"Gadot and I were the best of the best. They needed someone to Captain a stronghold in the front lines and I won. Simple as that."

"No. You know that's not what I meant!" Serah stomped the ground, a little habit that she picked up every time her sister frustrated her.

Lightning stopped moving. "That... was an accident."

Serah shook her head and reached a hand out to her sister's shoulder. "Lightning, please just tell me what's wrong."

At the touch, Lightning shoved Serah's hand off and continued to pack. "There's nothing wrong."

"Liar! Aerith is dead." She saw Lightning wince, but she had to continue. She needed to break through to her. "Don't tell me that nothing's wrong because something is. I know you're hurting Lightning. You can tell me these things." She started to tear. "I'm your sister. Just come back and-"

"And what?" Lightning turned around to look at her. "Nothing will bring her back! I can't face you or Elmyra or anybody. I can't face anybody until I have Barthandelus's head on a spit!"

"Sis..." Serah pleaded.

"Just go home Serah." Lightning turned back around, not wanting to see the tears Serah shed. "Just leave me alone."

"It hurt. In that moment, I had lost both Aerith and Lightning. I couldn't bare it... so I left."

-xiii-

"I never made it back home."

Serah remembered taking a horse and riding back to the city. She remembered day light, the sun beating down on her face as she rode. She never saw it coming.

Complete darkness.

Then there was a glimpse. A dream maybe?

A horrifying nightmare more like. Serah saw her sister turn into a monster. A beast that recognized no one and knew only hatred. She saw the beast rip apart the King and destroying the kingdom, killing thousands. The world was left crumbling.

"It was horrifying."

When she woke up, she was in an unfamiliar place. Her body felt heavy and she tried to get up on her own two feet, but something on her left arm burned.

"Ahhh..." She ignored it and pushed herself up. She looked around the dark room. "Where... am I?"

"Welcome, Serah Farron." She heard a voice from up above.

Serah followed the voice and saw a decrepit old man in white and gold on top of a huge throne. "Who are..." She winced, suddenly a shooting pain coming from her arm again. "Ahhh..." Reaching her left arm with her right hand, she gasped, and her lips trembled.

A brand.

"I'm... I'm a L'cie." Serah thought back to her dream. Could that be... could that be her focus?

"Don't worry, soon you will be joined by another." With a wave of his hand he formed a sphere in the middle of the room showing Serah, her sister on horseback.

"Lightning!" She yelled out.

Serah saw in the sphere that monsters parted way for Lightning forming a path for her. It was as if they were inviting her in. No... this was a trap, thought Serah.

"I'll be waiting..." Barthandelus said into the sphere.

Somehow, Lightning seemed to have heard him. Serah saw Lightning look around at the sky. Anger and fear in her eyes. "Don't you dare hurt her!"

Serah ran towards the sphere. "No! Lightning, don't!"

"Insolent girl!" Barthandelus formed a sphere of light and threw it towards her sending Serah back down.

She felt like she was hit with a ton of bricks. She groaned, trying to fight unconsciousness from slipping in. The last thing she heard was the disgusting sound of the Fal'cie's laughter then everything faded to black.

-xiii-

"Serah!"

Struggling, Serah opened her eyes. "Light-ning..." Lightning was here. She was here holding her. No... The dream, the focus, thought Serah.

Examining Serah's arm, Lightning grit her teeth. "Damn it!" She started to panic. "What is your focus, Serah?"

Serah tried to speak, but she felt her mark glow. Looking back at Lightning, she reached for her face. "Lightning... you can fight it. Protect the kingdom..."

"Serah?"

Serah cried, she tried to speak, but something prevented her from doing so. Before she knew it, her body was light as a feather. Her hand held onto Lightning's but then her hand slipped from her sister's grasp. Clasping her hands together, she prayed that Lightning would make it out alive.

Right before Lightning's eyes, Serah turned to crystal.

-xiii-

"There was a moment of pure white... but then... somehow I heard. I heard Lightning scream then I saw it. I saw everything."

Lightning was on the floor, body shaking and convulsing. Her hand gripped her chest.

"I tried to yell out to her but... she couldn't hear me."

Pushing herself up, Lightning grit her teeth and bared through the pain that shot from her chest. "Barthandeulus!" She shouted then fell forward kneeling.

"She did well. Her focus was to bring you to me."

"Shut up!"

Standing from his throne, Fal'cie Barthandelus descended the stairs slowly. Although he looked like a frail old man, the reflection on the floor depicted a horrifying being with a masked face. "Piteous L'cie."

Lightning winced as she looked up at the ominous figure.

Step by step, he came closer to Lightning. "Do you know why I called you here?"

"Like I care!" Spat Lightning.

A pause then Barthandelus looked down at her. "Become my servant, my vessel." He raised his hand towards her. "Become Ragnarok. And I will bring your sister, your lover, anything you desire, back to you."

"What?" Lightning looked up.

"Yes." With a wave of his hand, an illusion of Serah and Aerith formed behind him.

"No... Lightning don't... that's not real."

There was a long pause. Lightning looked at the smiling faces of Serah and Aerith.

"Lightning! Don't! Sis!"

Bowing her head before him she sighed. "Yes... master..."

"Excellent." He bellows out a laugh, a laugh that will forever haunt Lightning.

Then in a flash, Lightning raised her sabre and stabbed him through the throat. Fire burned her chest. She could feel her mark burning through her clothes. "Aahhh!" She screamed as she twisted her blade.

"You... fool..." Barthandelus breathed. The illusion of Serah and Aerith broke away into millions of tiny crystals.

"I rather die then listen to you!" Then she withdrew her blade slashing Barthandelus' head clean off. Lightning dropped her blade and collapsed to her knees again. She held a hand to her burning chest and yelled in pain.

-xiii-

Odin galloped at top speed. There was no time to stop. When Lightning reached the city gate, she had ran past security when they had opened for another carriage. No time to stop, she didn't care if the guards are after her, there was no time.

When she reached the King's hall, she jumped off Odin and pushed open the door.

Whatever noise that went on stopped. There were three people there. The Duke, the King, and General Rosch.

"Farron? What are you doing here away from post?" She heard Rosch say.

She didn't respond, she only started to walk towards them, a bloody bag in one hand and her sabre in the other.

Rosch raised his blade. "Soldier! Stand down."

Her eyes were cold and a dark presence ruled her. The King had an expression of fear reflected on his face.

Snow, the Duke stood in front of the King, ready to guard him with his life. "Light..."

Without a word, Lightning threw the bag down, unveiling the bloody head of Barthandelus.

The three men were speechless. Lightning, a woman, had took down a god. A god wasn't meant to be taken down so easily... not by human at least.

The King swallowed as he thought of what to say, but before he could, Lightning kneeled before him. "All hail the King for... defeating the Fal'cie Barthandelus."

Rosch and Snow looked back at each other in confusion then hurried to kneel before the King. "All hail the King!" They responded.

The hall was quiet. The palace guards had finally rushed in to see the scene that was taking place. Swallowing again, the King spoke to his subjects. "The war is over."

-xiii-

"The war was over... But Lightning wasn't... the same anymore. She alone bares a curse that she must fight every single day. She must fight the beast, Ragnarok from taking over."

At the King's ball, everybody celebrated the end of the war, all except Lightning who stood at a corner leaning against a wall. She saw the crowd around the King. They all congratulated his bravery. Her eyes wandered out the window and looked at the mountain hills from a far. She thought of a promise that she'll never fulfill.

A delicate hand found their way to her shoulder, when she turned to see who it was, she was face to face with a beautiful blonde hair woman. "So you're the famous woman general I heard about." Lightning didn't say anything, just looked back at the bold woman. "My name is Jihl. Jihl Nabaat, Baroness." The woman smiled seductively back at Lightning who stared back with an empty and cold expression.

-xiii-

The door was sealed. Closed. And darkness was all that Serah knew.

Lightning closed the hidden door then proceeded to apply a glue over it, then wallpaper. She moved Serah's bookcase and aligned the books. After she was done, she stood back to look at her handy work.

"I'm sorry... but I can't stand looking at you like that."

"...Claire... please don't go."

Then Lightning shut the door to Serah's room, locked it, and forbid everybody from ever entering that room again... until... Vanille.

-xiii-

"Vanille... This is the truth."

"Serah, what can I do? What can I do to save her?"

"Lightning is in grave danger... Barthandelus... still lives within Lightning."

"That... can't be."

"Lightning has been able to fight becoming Ragnarok because of her strong human will. That is what a Fal'cie lacks. Their true power is manipulation. But... Lightning's will is slowly withering away and her soul is losing to the pain and anger. I am no longer able to connect to her... That is why... you need to save her."

"How?"

"Stay with her. You need to show her there is more than just pain... or Barthandelus will win and Lightning will become a monster. …And destruction will reign."

"No..."

"You must hurry!"

"Serah! Wait!"

"You can do it, Vanille. Save Lightning!"

"Serah!"

-xiii-

Opening her tired green eyes, Vanille realized that she was face to face with Lightning looking down at her with her cold blue eye. Something cushioned her head and Vanille could only assume it was Lightning's right arm who gently cradled her. Blinking slowly, she could feel consciousness slowly kicking back in. She was back... It felt like she was in a time warp experiencing everything that happened to the sisters.

"Do you make a habit of going to places you're not allowed to?" Came her master's voice.

Vanille couldn't move or speak. Her body still felt too weak. She saw the hint of sadness in her master's eye and it almost made her want to cry.

"I should kill you for knowing too much." She saw Lightning raise her other hand towards her. Vanille winced and closed her eyes, but she felt no pain only a hand running down her leg and to her knee. "But there is no point anymore." Vanille couldn't help but shiver to her master's touch and voice. When she opened her eyes, she could see a bright green glow from her master's hand that cupped her knee. A warm heat course through her knee and she finally realized that Lightning was healing her. Her master had the magic of healing. She could feel the cuts disappearing from her knee and feet.

Removing her hand, Lightning's eyes darkened. "Leave."

Vanille looked at her in disbelief.

"Leave." Her master commanded sternly. "If you return, I will kill you."

Vanille slowly lifted herself up from Lightning's arm. Her eyes never left Lightning's.

"I said leave!" Her master was angry, but Vanille was not going to move.

She saw the surprised look on her master's face as she threw her arms around Lightning's neck. "No..." the red head said boldly defying orders then she kissed her. There was a pause and Vanille knew that Lightning was shocked, but that shocked feeling soon dissipated and in return, she could feel the other woman's need. Lightning grabbed at her small body, owning her, and kissing her with full passion.

"Serah. I'll do anything. If it is to save Lightning, I will give my very last breath."

A long awaited chapter. I apologize again but here it is. I hope the whole flash backs and serah/vanille dialogue isnt too confusing. So I hope this chapter basically satisfies everybody's questions and such. BUT STICK AROUND! THERES MORE STUFF!

Ah and to respond to the Snow the cat question. Nope... nothing too significant there. Im just giving the character Snow the cat from FFXIII-2 a cameo. Yep... serah became so distraught that she named her female cat... Snow. Love it. The best line of the whole game.

And thank you kindly for the wondrous reviews, shout outs to you Goobah, HollowPanda, BrokenBone, Kai, icegirl1, and welcome Yunner to the story. And everybody who is reading.

As always, let me know what you think.

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