Snow ducked through the door, moving to stand beside the bars. "Good morning, Caius."

A low growl rumbled from atop a pile of blankets; the cell's occupant was laying with his back to Snow.

"I want to try and help you speak again." Snow closed his eyes, and he took a deep breath. "When I first managed it... I was thinking about talking with my girlfriend." He opened his eyes to press his hands against the bars. "Is there anyone you want to talk to?"

A pair of orange eyes met his own, and Snow exhaled.

"Just try to think about them." Snow shifted his face to smile, but he quickly moved the carapace back upon agitating his companion.

"Sorry, I forgot how the smell is, at first..." Snow shook his head. "You'll get used to it, after a while."

Another set of hands touched against the bars, but they were accompanied with a snarl.

Snow looked him in the eye. "Just think of someone important."

The snarling quieted, and the pair of eyes fell shut.

Lightning drifted awake with a sigh, enveloped by a sense warmth as strong arms wrapped around her back. She opened a single eye, as the other was pressed against Fang's chest. Lightning sighed, letting out a quiet purr as she reached up to tangle a hand in Fang's hair.

Fang purred as well when a pleasing scent reached her nose, and she twitched, opening her eyes. "Breakfast, eh?"

Lightning inhaled. "Smells like it."

Fang groaned as she closed her eyes. "I had some freaky dreams last-" She paused, sitting up straight.

Lightning sat up as well. "What's wrong?"

Fang's eyes widened. "I know the scent; that PSICOM woman, Jihl..." She met Lightning's gaze. "She had a partner, before all of this." Fang gestured at herself.

Lightning kept silent for a moment. "The partner was Adam?"

Fang nodded. "I think so, at least... Their scent is identical."

Lightning let out a low growl. "Adam is PSICOM as well, then."

Fang clenched her teeth. "They got kicked out; Adam objected to what she was doing, and Jihl just... Threw them away." She concentrated for a moment. "I think 'Adam' might be a woman; the voice sounded feminine."

Lightning shook her head. "Whoever they are, they were still involved." She stood up, pacing the room. "Do we bring this to the Cavalry?"

Fang thought for a moment. "No... I want answers, and it sounds like Adam has them." She watched as Lightning paced up to the window. "We haven't caught so much as a whiff of PSICOM; I don't think they're as much of a threat as the Cavalry makes them out to be."

Lightning gave a short laugh. "Or the Cavalry's doing a good job at keeping them away."

Fang narrowed her eyes. "The Cavalry's running around in your backyard, Light."

Lightning nodded. "I know, but think of how much they've helped us..." She stopped pacing to meet Fang's gaze. "They aren't the kind of people to make enemies out of."

Fang nodded as well. "Let's just watch our step, then... See what Adam has to say, but keep it quiet for now."

"Agreed." Lightning tipped her head back, testing the air. "That actually smells good..."

Fang shifted her mouth back, grinning. "Let's go?"

Lightning nodded, and Fang followed after her as she left to walk downstairs.

Six growled as he concentrated on his neck. He looked over at his teacher, the same one who had caged him once again; Six almost let out a snarl, but he scolded himself. If this is my key to sanity, it doesn't matter who gives it to me.

"Just breathe." His teacher leaned back, having sat down upon the floor after a bit of instruction. "It's gonna hurt at first, but it feels better the longer you practice."

Six coughed, choking on his own throat.

"Give it a rest, if you need to." His teacher sat up to press his hands against the bars. "Your brother really helped us out."

Six's breath caught, and he looked at his feet.

"We wouldn't have had anywhere to stay, without him." He paused for a moment. "Noel also helped my girlfriend, Serah, find us; I wasn't even sure if I'd see her, again..."

Six closed his eyes, turning away.

"Hey, what's wrong?" His teacher slumped, resting his head against the bars. "Did I say something wrong?"

Six exhaled, and he shook his head.

"Then just keep trying so you can tell me."

Six glared at him, but he concentrated once more.

Serah looked up from the table when her phone rang out from the counter. She walked over to get it, before sitting down once more to answer it.

"Serah!"

Serah narrowed her eyes. "Noel? We're in the middle of breakfast; are you alright?"

"Better than alright..." Noel said, "I don't even care if this line is tapped; Adam sent me something called a regenerative... And I put it into my leg."

Serah froze. "And what happened?"

Noel laughed. "The muscle grew back; it's not by much, but there's more than there was last night..."

Serah couldn't help but grin as she recited the news to everyone at the table.

Lightning tensed. "Regeneratives?" She looked over at Serah, her eyes wide. "Is he seeing any side-effects?"

Serah relayed the question, before shaking her head. Lightning shared a glance with Fang, but she waited until Serah had ended the call before speaking again.

"He said it was from Adam?" Lightning asked, "Fang remembered something..."

Fang explained the memory, and Vanille's eyes went wide.

"I knew it!" Vanille hopped up from her chair, nearly spilling orange juice all over the table. "That's where I smelled it; she talked to me before you woke up!"

"Adam is a she..." Fang looked over at Vanille. "What did she tell you?"

Vanille sat back down, thinking for a moment. "That she was going to try and help us, but she didn't know how much she could do..." Vanille frowned. "I'd nearly forgotten about her..."

Fang shook her head. "Our memories were scrambled; it's not your fault."

Hope spoke up, having listened in silence to the ordeal. "You two were taken together, right?"

Fang nodded as she shifted her mouth to grin. "I may not remember much, but I doubt I could ever forget Van."

Vanille grinned back. "I'm starting to remember bits of Gran Pulse."

Fang froze. "That was..."

Vanille hopped down from the chair to sit beside Fang on the floor. "Back when we were kids."

Images of rainforest flashed through Fang's mind, memories of wild, exotic terrain that stretched for miles on end.

Vanille frowned. "Are you alright?"

Fang tried to steady her breath, her heart racing. "Yeah, just dizzy." She sat in silence for a moment, before rising to her feet. "I'm gonna go lay down for a bit..."

Although she almost stumbled to the ground on her way, Fang managed to drag herself upstairs, before collapsing upon her blankets.

Memories flickered within her mind; she walked down trails, stood upon countless mountains, swam winding rivers, running for longer than she could keep track of. Fang could hear the sounds, the chattering of birds, the rain pattering upon the forest floor, as well as upon her skin, soft, and human. She remembered her spear, having pierced the hides of a hundred beasts, feeding her people for months.

Her people. Fang remembered the scattered tribe, wandering between settlements without a home of their own. She remembered Vanille, without a family, living with an adoptive tribe. They'd clicked immediately, and Fang had begged to bring her along... Fang's brow creased, and she hugged herself against the blankets.

They were alone. Living off the land, hunting whatever they could catch. Memories of hunger and sickness clung to Fang's mind, but she pushed them away; she needed to know what happened after.

An ambassador, visiting the wildlands, who spoke of a land called Cocoon, far to the north. A new life, he'd promised, a place to start over. Fang gave a wry smile at the memory. A new start, indeed.

Living in a shelter for years, saving up scraps for their own house... A nearly impossible dream, but they'd no way to travel back at that point. Fang put on a brave face, and Vanille did the same, until they had carved out a home for themselves.

Fang's hand curled into fists as she remembered the job offer. Menial labor, but it was nothing they hadn't done before. Fang closed her eyes in attempt to block out the sinking feeling, the cold rush when they finally realized... There was no going back.

Fang exhaled, pressing her face against the pillow. She nearly startled when something sat on the bed beside her, but she relaxed when a hand rested upon her shoulder.

Lightning waited in silence, until Fang rose, drawing her close.

"Hey..." Fang whispered against Lightning's hair, nuzzling against her. "Sorry for running out."

Lightning kept quiet for a moment. "Are you alright?"

Fang nodded. "Just... Memories."

Lightning closed her eyes, leaning back. "Memories can hurt."

Fang exhaled, and she closed her eyes as well.

Snow watched as his companion ate, having already finished half of his own meal. "Have you tried regular food yet?"

Snow received only a growl, so he slowly held out a quarter of his sandwich to push it through the bars, before returning to eat the rest of it.

Six tore apart the section of meat, stripping it away until only the bone remained. He cracked it over his knee and moved on to the marrow.

"The sandwich might taste better..." Snow sighed. "But you might have the same thing as Lightning."

Six froze as a feral bark rippled in his throat.

Snow tilted his head to the side, before his eyes widened. "You met her, didn't you? She mentioned the number six..." He leaned back after a moment. "She's Serah's sister, but she doesn't like me very much."

Six snarled as he began to pick at the marrow again.

Snow slumped against the wall. "We just never got along, even from day one... I don't really know why."

The room was nearly silent until Six had finished, tossing the bone away. He looked over at Snow, and narrowed his eyes at the sandwich.

Snow laughed under his breath. "It's there if you want it."

Six reached over to take the food in his hand, before holding it up to inspect it. Six inhaled, and he took a bite.

Snow would have smiled, had his mouth been shifted. "Good, isn't it?"

Six kept silent, before he closed his eyes to concentrate once more, his neck distending beneath the carapace.

"There you go..." Snow moved beside the bars, placing his hands along the metal. "Just focus."

Six coughed as short bursts of sound escaped his throat, his muscles seething within his neck. He choked, and a low growl rumbled through the gasps.

"Relax," Snow said, "you only need the voice box for now."

Opening his mouth with a soft snarl, all was quiet for a long moment, until a rasping, hushed voice broke the silence. "Lightning... We fought, once."

Snow narrowed his eyes. "Why, Caius?"

Six gave a hoarse laugh. "Caius?" He nearly slumped against the ground. "You keep calling me that..."

"That's what your brother called you..." Snow paused. "I thought that was your name."

"Six..." He clutched at his throat. "Six is all that I am."

Snow grit his teeth. "You aren't just a number..." He stood up to push his claws through the bars. "They called me Two, but my name is Snow."

"Snow..." He exhaled, gasping for breath. "And you want to call me Caius?"

Snow nodded.

Caius looked at the floor, before slowly opening his mouth to speak. "Then Caius I'll be..." He coughed as his neck shuddered, twisting back into place.

Lightning stepped out into the living room, walking over to sit beside Serah on the couch.

Serah smiled at her, looking up from her laptop. "Hey Light... Is Fang doing okay?"

"Memories, she says." Lightning exhaled. "She's sleeping now; I told her I'd wake her up, come noon."

Serah checked the time. "That's not too far off, actually..."

Lightning tilted her head. "How long were we up there?"

Serah chuckled. "Since breakfast; it's been hours, at least." She narrowed her eyes a bit. "What were you doing?"

Lightning froze, silently thankful that her carapace couldn't blush.

"Light?"

"Just helping her get to sleep." Lightning averted her gaze. "You said it's almost noon? Do you want me to help you with lunch?"

Serah smiled to herself. "Yeah, but can you manage with your claws?"

Lightning rose to her feet. "I can try."

Serah gave her a look; her eyes were still narrowed, but she stood up and made her way into the kitchen. "What aren't you telling me?"

Lightning exhaled, silent for a moment. "We were..." She struggled for the right word. "Cuddling."

Serah paused with a knowing smirk on her face. "It's not everyday you hear that..." She giggled and poked at Lightning's shoulder. "Sounds adorable, through."

Lightning would have flushed had she'd been capable. "Alright, alright..." She moved to lean against the counter, shaking her head.

Serah continued to laugh as she scoured the refrigerator. "I'll need to order groceries again, soon." She returned with a package of sliced turkey, lettuce, and tomatoes. "Grab some bread for me?"

Lightning moved to the breadbox, before placing a loaf on the counter.

Serah began to cut a tomato into slices. "So... Tell me about this 'cuddling' you do with Fang."

Lightning hissed through her teeth, and Serah grinned at her, giggling once more.

"You don't have to be embarrassed;" Serah said, "it's good to have someone like that."

Lightning quieted. "It is nice."

"She makes you happy?"

Lightning nodded.

Serah smiled. "That's all that matters."

Serah suddenly jumped, yanking her hand back with a hiss; a tiny cut lay upon her fingertip.

Lightning's pupils dilated.