Winter Games
The first time that Oerba Yun Fang laid eyes on Lightning Farron, she didn't even know her name. That didn't stop her from falling in love.
It happened on a Thursday, the first Thursday of the Winter Olympics. Fang had just finished qualifying for the semi-finals of the snowboarding half-pipe when Vanille decided to drag her around the Olympic village. Filled with the familiar thrill of victory, Fang saw no reason not to humour her little sister. Besides, it was kind of hard to refuse someone who carried a curling broom everywhere.
They grabbed something quick to eat and drink, and then Vanille was dragging her from one end of the Olympic village to the next. It was bewildering how many people stopped to say hello. Had Vanille already managed to make friends with everybody? It wouldn't have surprised Fang – Vanille was just good at that sort of thing.
It was only when Vanille tugged her toward one of the slopes that Fang began to worry.
"Vanille, this better not be another case of you wanting to see me do cool stuff while you film everything." Fang pinched her sister's cheek. "The semi-finals are the day after tomorrow."
"You make it sound like all I do is watch other people compete." Vanille brandished her curling broom in impressive fashion. "But don't forget, you're looking at the four-time curling world champion."
How Vanille had ever managed that, Fang would never know. But somehow the redhead had. And not only did she carry that damn broom everywhere but she was also not afraid to use it. In fact, she seemed to look for excuses to whack people with it. She'd already received one warning from an official, and she probably would have received another if Fang hadn't managed to grab her before she could whack him too.
"Yeah, yeah. Look, where are we going?"
Vanille's eyes gleamed. That was not a good sign. "Oh, I got a tip from a little princess that I'd get to see something really cool if I came here today."
"Something cool, huh? And what exactly would that be?"
A few minutes later, Fang found out what that something was. And as much as it killed her to admit it, Vanille was absolutely right. It was really cool.
There was someone practicing aerial skiing tricks on the slope, a woman, by the looks of it. Fang had always thought that skiing was boring – snowboarding was where all the fun was – but there was nothing boring about what she was seeing.
It was awe-inspiring.
The woman started off at the top of the slope and then sped downhill toward a ramp before being launched high into the air. Then she'd pull off what seemed like a million twists and turns before she landed on the slanted slope below. Fang had caught some serious air on the half-pipe, but nothing quite like that. It was incredible.
"Who is that?" Fang whispered. "She's awesome."
Vanille was about to answer when her phone rang. She pressed the phone to her ear and then let out shriek. "What? Seriously?" She bounced up and down, waving her curling broom around. "Are you serious? Is she really going to try it?"
Fang ducked under Vanille's curling broom. "What is she going to try?"
Vanille put her phone away and shook her head. "A quadruple twisting quadruple back. Is she crazy?"
"That sounds pretty hard."
"It is – it's four back somersaults with four twists." Vanille pursed her lips. "There's maybe a handful of people in the world that are good enough to even think of trying one. I don't think I've ever seen anyone land it at the Olympics."
Fang's interest was now very much more than piqued. "That sounds dangerous, and she's going to try that now?"
"Yes." Vanille frowned. "She doesn't just want to win, Fang. She wants to crush everyone. You know how that feels, right?"
Fang did. She'd pushed herself harder than anyone to get where she was. She couldn't count the number of times she'd fallen or gotten injured. She didn't want to be the best female snowboarder or the best snowboarder in Gran Pulse – she wanted to be the best in the entire world, bar none.
She grinned. "I do. Believe me, I do."
The woman at the top of the slope took a moment to steady herself, and then she began her descent. Fang's breath caught. Vanille shifted her weight from one foot to the other, babbling an uninterrupted stream of technical jargon.
Up… up… up…
Crunch.
The woman had missed her landing. Fang hissed, and Vanille screamed. The woman hit her head – hard – and slid through the snow, coming to a rest dozens of yards later. For a moment, she was completely still – far, far too still – and members of her team at the base of the slope rushed up to help her. They reached her and then hung back, afraid to move her.
The stillness didn't last long. The woman lurched to her feet and tore off her helmet. It came apart in her hands, broken cleanly in two. Fang's eyes widened. Pink hair? She hadn't expected that. Then the woman was shouting, gesturing furiously for another helmet as she stomped back toward the lift to the top of the slope. The others trailed after her, seemingly arguing for her to rest, but the pink-haired woman refused to back down.
"Wow." Fang didn't realise she was smiling. "She's something, all right."
An alarm went off on Vanille's phone.
"What is that? Oh! Come on, Fang, we have to go! My semi-final is coming up." Vanille grabbed Fang's arm with one hand and used her other to twirl around her curling broom. "Come on!"
"Wait!" Fang stared up at the top of the slope to where the woman was once again getting ready. "Who is that?"
Vanille tugged Fang along. "Lightning Farron. The women's aerials final is tomorrow. We can watch her then."
Vanille and her team won their semi-final in dominant fashion. Regardless of how immature she could act, Vanille really was a giant in the noble and ancient sport of curling. Fang had no doubt whatsoever that they'd win gold.
But in truth, what Fang was really waiting for was the final of the women's aerial. Vanille had managed to secure them excellent spots at the event courtesy of a friend of a friend of a friend. They might both be from Gran Pulse, but there was no question as to whom Vanille supported. Like many of the people in the crowd, she was waving around a 'Go Farron!' flag.
The competition was ferocious. The first set of jumps passed by with only a handful of points separating the top five competitors. The last jump belonged to Lightning, the defending world champion. The previous jump had come from the defending Olympic champion, and her score meant that Lightning needed an enormously high score to win gold.
A tense hush settled over the spectators, all of them wondering what Lightning could do to claw back the gold medal. Fang found herself grabbing onto Vanille's hand. Their eyes met. They both knew what Lightning was going to try.
Then it was time.
Lightning set off down the slope and then arced up, up, up into the air. For a moment, time seemed to stand still. A thousand cameras flashed, but Fang had eyes only for Lightning. The other woman shot through the air, twisting and turning and flipping. Lightning was silhouetted against the evening sky, her lithe form alongside the moon before gravity took hold and she began her descent.
The landing was flawless, and the roar that came from the crowd shook the whole mountain to its foundations. Fang found herself swept up in it, ears ringing, body shaking as cheers erupted all along the mountain.
"Farron! Farron! Farron!"
Lightning eased to a stop at the bottom of the slope and just stood there, perhaps not quite realising that she'd managed to land her quadruple twisting quadruple back. She tugged off her helmet and stared, blue eye unreadable, back up to the top of the mountain. And then she was tumbling to the ground, crash-tackled by a pair of her competitors and a pink-haired woman that had to be her sister.
Finally, the judge's scores came back – Lightning had won.
Vanille giggled and grabbed Fang's arm. "Not too shabby for someone on skis, huh?"
"Oh, shut up." Fang laughed. "You know what I think about skiing, but she's an exception to the rule." She paused, remembering that Vanille had known when Lightning would be practicing. "Hey, do you know her?"
"Oh? Do you want to meet her or something, Fang?" Vanille's smile turned crafty. "As a matter of fact, I know her sister. Would you like me to introduce you?"
"I think so." Fang bit back a smile as Lightning tried to push her sister off, but the younger woman was too busy hugging her to be dislodged.
"Good, because we're meeting them for dinner."
Wait… "What?"
X X X
Fang was unexpectedly nervous as she walked into the restaurant with Vanille. She wanted to meet Lightning, but being thrown into the deep end like this was not something she was ready for. She needed time to think and plan, time to make sure she didn't come across as some kind of idiot.
The already miniscule amount of time she had to mentally prepare herself shrank to virtually nothing when Vanille hauled her over to one of the tables. They weren't the only ones there. There was the young pink-haired woman they'd seen hugging Lightning, a young blonde man, an older dark-skinned man and a boy who had to be his son, and another blonde, probably the biggest man that Fang had ever met.
Vanille greeted the pink-haired woman with a squeal, throwing her arms around her. "Serah!"
The other woman responded in kind, drawing a wince from the dark-skinned man beside her. "Vanille!"
"Lightning was so awesome today." Vanille grabbed Serah's hands. "I was a little worried, but I knew she'd nail that last jump." She let go of Serah and shoved Fang forward. "Oh, and this is my older sister, Fang. You know, the one I've been telling you about. Please forgive her if she's a little quiet today – she's normally really friendly. She can be weird sometimes though."
"Hey –" Fang didn't want to be called weird by someone who'd brought a curling broom into a restaurant.
"It's nice to meet you." Serah hugged Fang. "And don't worry – my sister can be a little weird too." She smiled. "By the way, I saw your qualifying round on the TV. You're very good."
Fang smirked. "Well, I am sort of the gold medal favourite."
Serah giggled. "You definitely sound like my sister." She waved at the people around the table. "That's Sazh – he's one of the Cocoon team's officials, and that's his son Dajh. That big guy over there is Snow, and the other guy is Hope."
"Snow and Hope, huh?" Fang waved back. "Are you guys athletes too?"
"I'm here for the snowboarding," Hope said. "Half-pipe and slope style. I'm hoping to at least make the finals in both."
"Ice hockey." Snow chuckled. "But you probably guessed that already."
"I was thinking along those lines." Fang gave Snow another look. Yep, the guy could definitely do some damage on the skating rink. "So, where is the lady of the day?" She looked back at Serah. "And I notice that you didn't say what you're here for."
"Figure skating and moral support." Serah turned, looking toward the bathrooms. "And my sister is just freshening up. She should be back any second – ah, there she is."
Fang watched as Lightning walked over to the table. She was a little tired, but there was no mistaking the natural ease in her gait. Not even the cut over one eye that must have come from her broken helmet could detract form her appeal. If anything, it only served to draw attention to her eyes, which were a sharp, piercing blue.
Well aware of the fact that she was staring, Fang continued her perusal. Lightning's full lips were curved up ever so slightly into a ghost of a smile, and the warm lighting of the restaurant illuminated features that held a stern but classical beauty. Her t-shirt and jeans covered a fit, toned body with legs that Fang was having a very hard time looking away from.
"You must be Fang." Lightning stopped a few feet away, and Fang's pulse quickened. What a voice! "Vanille and Serah talk about you all the time, which means I've heard a lot about you too." Lightning extended one hand. "It's nice to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too." Fang took Lightning's hand. The skin was a curious mix of feminine softness and calluses that could only have come from hard training. "Little sisters, huh? You can't live with them and…"
"You can't live without them." Lightning's lips twitched. "That's about right."
"Well, now that you two are acquainted, how about we sit down and eat?" Vanille made a show of patting her stomach. "Watching all those people flipping through the air has made me hungry."
There were no arguments about that, and it wasn't long before the food began to arrive. Fang was surprised by how well she got along with the others. They'd only just met, and within a few minutes, she was joking with them like she'd known them her whole life.
"So, you're a team official, Sazh?" Fang raised one eyebrow. "Not competing in any of the events?"
"Not a chance." Sazh chuckled and passed some of his leftover French fries to Dajh. "These old bones of mine prefer nice, solid ground. I'm just here to make sure none of our athletes run into trouble – we've got a few young ones like Hope this year, and it can be tough on them. I can ice skate though."
Dajh laughed. "Serah is way better at skating than you, daddy."
"That's because she's a figure skater."
"And so is Snow."
"And that's because he plays ice hockey."
Dajh's smile widened. "Then why am I better at ice skating than you, daddy?"
"Because you take after your mother – and because I'm hopeless." Sazh ruffled Dajh's hair. "So, Fang, how was the half-pipe? I've heard a few complaints, but I don't know enough about the sport to know if they're true or not."
Fang shrugged. "It's not the best, let's just put it that way. But you make do." She looked across the table at Lightning. "I saw you practicing. You took quite a fall."
Lightning reached up to run one finger along the cut above her eye. "It's how things are – competing is dangerous, but you can't win without taking risks." She smiled. "The half-pipe can be dangerous too – I've seen what you lot get up to."
"Fair enough." Fang snickered. "The first time I broke my arm, they had to pull Vanille off me. She was trying to beat me to death with her curling broom for being so stupid."
"Well, you were being stupid." Vanille scowled playfully. "And I wasn't trying to beat you all the way to death – maybe half to death."
"Serah was the same." Lightning took a sip of her wine, her gaze meeting Fang's. "The first time I knocked myself unconscious trying a trick, I woke up to her screaming at me. She wanted me to quit."
"It was scary." Serah folded her arms over her chest. "But you loved it too much to quit. And then when I knocked myself out skating… yeah."
"You couldn't exactly tell her off anymore?" Fang laughed. "Well, Vanille should be safe. Curling isn't exactly the most dangerous sport in the world."
That drew a chuckle from the others, and a good-natured frown from Vanille.
"I'll have you know that I tripped over on the ice yesterday and bruised my elbow." Vanille pulled her sleeve up to reveal the smallest, most pathetic-looking bruise in the world. "I'm lucky they didn't have to amputate my arm."
"If you want to see a bruise, I'll show you one." Snow tugged up his shirt to reveal an impressively muscled body along with a huge bruise. "I got that from Kimahri. That guy is a beast."
Dajh stared with wide eyes. "That bruise is bigger than me."
"And that's why you're never playing ice hockey." Sazh patted Dajh on the shoulder. "You're going to become a world champion curler like Vanille."
"What about you, Hope? Have you got any injuries to share?" Fang asked.
The young man shook his head. He seemed to be the shyest out of the group. "I've been lucky so far. I am a little worried about the half-pipe though. A few of the others in my heat took a tumble."
"You'll be fine," Lightning said firmly. "You've done well to get this far at your age, and I'm sure you'll make the final."
"Thanks." Hope beamed. "I wasn't sure I'd even make it to the Olympics, so this is kind of a dream."
"That's the spirit." Fang reached over to pat him on the back. "Don't worry about what the others are doing. Go out and do your best – that's all that matters."
"You say that, but you're kind of obsessed with winning." Vanille hid her smile behind another glass of wine. "I remember when you came second at that tournament over in Mt Nibel – you got so annoyed."
"Hey! I should have won that. It wasn't my fault that the judges were blind –" Fang laughed. "Okay, fine, maybe I did get a little annoyed, but sometimes you can't help it."
"That's true." Lightning set her fork down at the edge of her plate. "It's hard not to be frustrated when you've done your best and the judges seem to disagree. That's why sometimes it's better to do something that no judge could possibly disagree with."
"I can get behind that." Fang nodded at Lightning. "And you definitely did that today."
As the evening went on, the others excused themselves one by one. Sazh had to put Dajh to bed, and both Hope and Snow had early starts the following morning. Not too much later, Vanille dragged Serah off to explain some of the intricacies of curling, which left Fang and Lightning on their own. Fang would definitely have to thank Vanille later.
"You've been staring at me a lot," Lightning murmured. They'd both had wine – not enough to be truly drunk, but their tongues were a little looser than they should be. It gave Lightning's cheeks an alluring flush, and Fang wondered what else she could do to put that flush there. "I want to know why."
Fang met Lightning's gaze over the table. The other woman's eyes were very blue. She didn't seem angry either, so much as curious. "Why not? It's hard not to look at you. I bet you get a lot of attention all the time."
"Maybe." Lightning leaned forward ever so slightly. "But I don't always like the attention that I get. In fact, most of the time I hate it." She laughed softly, setting her wing glass down and fiddling with her napkin. "The only reason I put up with it at first was because Serah and I needed the money. Apparently, the sponsors love me."
"I'm sure they do." Fang could see why. Lightning had the sort of cool beauty that was just perfect for winter sports. Then, of course, there was her tendency to win. She hadn't been ready to compete in the last Olympics, but she'd won the past three world championships. Now that she held the Olympic title, the world was her oyster, so to speak.
"The sponsors must love you too, Fang." Lightning gave Fang a frank, appraising look, and Fang shivered. There was nothing cool and clinical about that gaze. "Two-time world champion, gold medal favourite, and good looking to boot."
"You think I'm good looking?"
"Don't fish for compliments." Lightning smiled faintly. "You know exactly how attractive you are."
"You're not so bad yourself." Fang smiled back. "We're pretty similar, actually. Vanille and I… we really needed the money. Don't get me wrong – I absolutely love snowboarding – but I probably would have quit by now if I wasn't earning the money I am. I loved doing it, but Vanille comes first. She always has."
"Being a world champion curler doesn't pay that well?"
"You'd be surprised, actually. It's gotten a lot more popular since the last Olympics. She can probably live off the sponsorship money she gets now. But before that, she used to help by filming me and handling all the promotion stuff. She still does. Sure, she can be a little childish sometimes, but she's good at that kind of thing. I have a whole clothing line in the works – Vanille was the one who pushed for that. She might have threatened an executive or two with that curling broom of hers too, while she was at it."
"I can imagine." Lightning took another sip of her wine. "That's how she and Serah first met, actually."
"Oh?"
"Serah saw Vanille wandering around with a camera during one of her practice sessions. At first she was worried that Vanille was a spy for one of the other skaters, but they kind of hit it off."
"That's typical Vanille, all right." Fang chuckled. "You know, when I saw you take that fall, I wasn't sure you'd get back up. It was a heck of fall. And I don't know many people who would've gotten back up and then tried again so quickly, especially after breaking their helmet."
"You would have, wouldn't you?" Lightning caught Fang's gaze again and held it. Fang found herself unable to look away.
"I think so. But that's when I first started wondering about you." Fang shrugged. "I've never been a big fan of skiing – I think snowboarding is better – but after seeing you, I think I might make an exception. That jump you did at the finals… it was beautiful."
"Thank you." Lightning smiled. "It's different when you're up there, Fang. When you're up there, the jump is the only thing that matters. The rest of the world just fades away. For a few seconds, you're absolutely free."
"I know how you feel." Fang grinned. "And then you hit the ground."
"And then you hit the ground." Lightning grinned back. "And sometimes you land on your head. I've seen you too, on the television. Serah made me watch."
"And what did you think?"
"You're good. But it's not just a technical thing. You belong out there, if you understand what I mean. It's like… you were meant to be there." Lightning flushed. "I wonder if I've drunk too much. I don't normally talk this much."
"Is that so? Well, I don't mind. I like talking to you." Fang glanced at the clock on the wall. She had her semi-final coming up tomorrow afternoon, but she didn't want to leave yet. "I…"
"Your semi-final is tomorrow afternoon." Lightning sighed. "Serah mentioned it to me earlier. I guess you need to go and get some sleep."
"I do." Fang hesitated, not wanting to be too forward, but wanting to make her intentions clear as well. "I… would you mind it if I walked you back to your room? Like you said, you've had a bit to drink, and I'd hate it if something happened to you."
"You aren't going to take advantage of me, are you?" The words were spoken playfully, but there was an undercurrent of something more in there as well.
"I'd never take advantage of you," Fang replied. Her lips curved up into a smirk. "But maybe when you're completely sober, we could talk about it again."
The walk back to Lightning's room went by far too quickly for Fang's taste. They talked about all the little things on the way back, from their favourite brand of cereal to what it was like sharing a room with their little sister.
"I had a great time tonight," Fang said, knocking on the door for Lightning.
"So did I." Lightning fidgeted, looking from the door to Fang. "I…"
"I'd like it if you could come watch me tomorrow," Fang said. "If you're not busy."
"I could do that."
"Are you in any of the other events?"
"I'm in the downhill as well." Lightning bit her lip. "The heats start in three days."
"I'll be sure to watch you." The door opened, and Serah gave Fang a smile.
"Oh, you've come to return my sister." Serah smiled and reached back to pull Vanille into view. "I'll trade you then. Yours for mine."
"Hey, Fang." Vanille yawned. "Serah's bed is comfy."
That got Fang's attention, all right, and Lightning's.
"Serah?" Lightning turned to her sister. "What is she talking about?"
The younger Farron blushed. "It's not like that! We were just talking, but Vanille felt sleepy, so I thought I'd let her have a nap."
"Ah, well, it's been a long day." Fang hefted Vanille up onto her shoulder. "I can carry her back to our room. She's light as a feather."
"Don't forget my curling broom!" Vanille waved one arm in the direction of the room. "I need that for… stuff." Then she was out, snoring softly as the others stared at her in a mix of awe and disbelief.
"Wow." Lightning stepped inside her room and then turned back to Fang. "I… I guess I'll see you tomorrow."
"I guess so."
Then the door closed, and Fang set off down the corridor with Vanille draped over her shoulder.
"The things I do for you." Fang gave Vanille an affectionate pat. "But I don't mind. Besides, you did introduce me to Lightning." She laughed softly, fighting the urge to skip down the corridor. "Maybe I should buy you an ice cream or something when you wake up."
X X X
Fang wasn't normally one to show off too much during a semi-final – she liked to have a trick or two up her sleeve for the final – but when she saw a shock of pink hair amongst the crowd, she couldn't help herself. Lightning had put on quite a show, how could she do any less?
She stomped both her runs, throwing the gauntlet down to the other competitors. Even the commentators were surprised by how aggressive she was. She qualified for the final with the highest score and then ran off to get something to eat with a certain pink-haired spectator.
"That was quite a show you put on." Lightning said. They were sitting on a bench overlooking one of the slopes. "I was under the impression that you normally hold back a bit during the semi-finals."
"Usually, but I didn't want you to come all this way for nothing." Fang grinned. "I always perform better when I've got an audience."
"You always have an audience."
"Yeah, but it's different when I know the people who are watching me." Fang sipped her hot chocolate.
"And you know me?"
"Well, I'd like to." Fang bit back a laugh at the blush that provoked. "I mean I want to get to know you. You're interesting, and I like you." She paused. "You know, I'm usually better at talking to people than this. Seriously, I must sound like a teenager."
"I don't mind. And it's not like I'm much better." Lightning fiddled with her jacket. "I was actually worried that I might distract you."
"Distract me?" Fang grinned. "You're wonderful and all, but isn't that a little much?"
"That wasn't what I meant." Lightning scowled playfully. "It's just, most athletes have a routine – I know I do – and changing that doesn't always work out well. You might have noticed when you watched me. I always take a few seconds to focus and study the slope before I go."
"I was just kidding. But you're right. I do have a routine. Still, those scores were the highest I've posted in months. Maybe I should add you to my routine." Fang waggled her eyebrows. "Maybe you're my good luck charm."
Lightning looked away. "I could say the same. I never did land that jump in practice. The final was the first time I landed it."
"Well, I'll just have to go to all of your events from now on," Fang said.
Lightning froze for a moment. "Are you serious?"
"I wouldn't mind. But you'd have to go to all of mine too. Fair is fair."
"I see." Lightning nodded slowly and leaned back onto the bench. "I guess I could do that."
They fell into a companionable silence after that. Fang considered it a major victory when she snuck one arm around Lightning and the other woman didn't pull away.
X X X
As it turned out, Fang was right. Lightning was her lucky charm. She won both her events in dominating fashion, setting a new record in the half-pipe with a run that left the crowd in silent awe before they broke into thunderous cheering and applause.
Fang gained a new appreciation for skiing as she watched Lightning fight her way through to the finals of the downhill. The event was marked by several crashes, and Lightning was a hair's breadth from disaster on several occasions, but the risk-taking paid off. Lightning won the event by the thinnest of margins.
X X X
The games came to an end far faster than Fang would have liked. She and the others had gone out together almost every night, and she'd spent as much of her free time with Lightning as she could. It had gotten to the point where some members of the press had begun to speculate on it. Fang didn't care what they thought, what she cared about was the fact that she and Lightning would soon be going their separate ways.
"So, you're heading home tomorrow." They were sitting on a bench again, drinking hot chocolate.
Lightning nodded. She was quieter than usual today. "Yes, the Cocoon team leaves tomorrow. It's been a good games for us."
"It has." Serah had won gold as had Snow's hockey team. Hope had impressed everyone by managing to win bronze in a stacked men's half-pipe final. "The Gran Pulse team leaves tomorrow as well."
"Oh." Lightning looked into her hot chocolate. "You have my phone number, so you can call me if you want…"
"Yeah, I will. And you've got my number too." Fang's hand tightened around her hot chocolate. Why did this have to be so damn awkward? She knew what she wanted to ask but… oh hell, she'd just go for it. "How about you come visit me?"
Lightning turned and stared.
"It's winter in the Yun mountains right now," Fang said, the words coming out in a rush. "And I've been told that it's great skiing there although I wouldn't know since I snowboard. But Vanille and I have a place up there, and I'd love it if you could come. You could teach me how to ski, and I could teach you how to snowboard, and –"
Lightning put one finger on Fang's lips. "I'd love to. I'll have to go back to Bodhum to handle a few things, but… in a week maybe?"
"A week?" Fang nodded quickly. "Yeah, a week would be fine." She reached out to take Lightning's hand. "I've really enjoyed the past two weeks, Lightning. I… I like you a lot."
"I like you a lot too." Lightning flushed. "Uh…"
She leaned forward, and Fang's pulse quickened. Was Lightning going to…
She was.
Their lips met. It wasn't the most romantic kiss – the cold had left their lips slightly chapped and none-too-soft, but it was Lightning, and that was all that matter. They parted a moment later, and Fang was certain that the rosy blush on Lightning's cheeks was mirrored on her own.
"I… I haven't had too much practice with that," Lightning confessed.
"We can always work on that." Fang smiled. "You know what they say, practice makes perfect."
Lightning laughed and got to her feet. "Come on, the team bus leaves in fifteen minutes. Want to walk me over there?"
"I'd be happy to." Fang put one arm around Lightning. She'd won two gold medals, but she had a feeling that meeting Lightning would turn out to be far more precious.
X X X
Omake: The Ultimate Endorsement
Do you need a broom that never quits?
Do you need a broom so tough that it can even sweep ice?
Then buy Hecatoncheir Brooms – the Broom of Champions.
Officially endorsed by Oerba Dia Vanille, four-time curling world champion.
X X X
Author's Notes
As always, I neither own Final Fantasy, nor am I making any money off of this.
This chapter isn't based on a specific prompt. Instead, it's more of a nod at the Winter Olympics-themed prompts that have been filtering in over the past few weeks.
This chapter was a little funny to work with for two reasons. I'll discuss one of those now before getting onto the other one a little later. Most of my chapters are written with at least a vague plan or structure in mind. This chapter was written without any real sort of plan. I just knew that I wanted it to involve the Winter Olympics, and I let myself just go from there, typing whatever came to mind.
As a result, I think it's a little rougher than some of my previous chapters, but I also think it's a bit more free-flowing as well. The conversations, I think, have the slight awkwardness to them that so often occurs when two people are attracted to one another but are still getting to know each other.
The choice of events was something that just came to mind. I didn't have a hard time at all imagining Lightning in the aerials and the downhill, and Fang with a snowboard just seemed to fit. Serah as a figure skater was another easy choice, as was Snow as an ice hockey player. Hope and Sazh were the most difficult to place, but I think they worked out all right. And Vanille… yeah, as much as I joked about it in this chapter, I really do think curling is awesome. And having Vanille as a world champion? Even better.
So, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.
I would also like to mention something fairly big that happened to me this week (more details can be found in my profile). On Tuesday, I blew out my right knee and had to go to hospital. This isn't the first time I've been hospitalised because of my right knee, but I wasn't doing anything remarkable at the time. I simply crouched down and then tried to stand up when my knee decided to do its thing.
For those of you wondering if it hurt – yes it did. I've broken an arm, a hand, blown out my right knee before, and done a host of other things that have resulted in my being in a lot of pain. But blowing my knee out this time hurt far worse than any of those things. I almost passed out before getting back into my house (I was outside) and calling an ambulance. They injected morphine into a vein before trying to move me, and I still almost passed out from the pain – and I'm not normally one to complain. I've got an MRI scheduled for Sunday and a Thursday appointment with a specialist. I'm currently on crutches and painkillers.
Like I said, this isn't the first knee injury I've had. This same knee has sent me to hospital before, and it took me years to get to a point where I felt the knee was feeling really good again. And then this happened. So, I guess I'll just have to rebuild it again.
As a result of my injury, things are going to be very awkward. Having a bath and going to the toilet are now the very opposite of convenient. Somewhat hilariously, one of the few positions my leg is even moderately comfortable in is one I like to write in. Is this a coincidence or a not so subtle hint from above? You decide.
But that's enough of my injury woes. I just thought I'd let you guys know in case you're wondering why my schedule is falling apart.
Finally, if you like my writing, you might want to take a few moments to check out my original fiction. You can find links and previews to all of it in my profile. If you enjoy fantasy with a healthy dose of action, you might want to check out The Last Huntress Series. There are three stories in that: The Last Huntress, The Lord of Dark Waters, and The Fire Upon the Mountain. Here is the blurb for The Last Huntress:
Scarlett is the last of her line – a huntress sworn to kill all monsters.
Rose is a girl searching for the power to take back her homeland.
In the icy forests of the north, on the trail of the only werewolf to escape her, Scarlett will teach Rose what it means to be a huntress. There can be no room for softness in a huntress's heart, no room for weakness. And a huntress must be willing to kill anything – and anyone – that poses a threat to the innocent.
Please note that this Sunday 16th February (Pacific Standard Time), The Last Huntress will be available on Amazon for free! So, if you're not sure you'll like it, wait till then and give it a try! I'll have a link in my profile (there's one already there, but I'll make it easier to see).
If high fantasy is more your style, then you might want to check out The Burning Mountains, and if you're in the mood for a paranormal Western, then give The Gunslinger and the Necromancer a go. Give me a chance – you won't be disappointed.
As always, I appreciate feedback. Reviews and comments are welcome.
