As promised, here is chapter 2 in full.
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After giving Sazh the silent treatment, he finally dropped the sobering Lightning off at her apartment. Each step closer to her door felt heavier than the next. When she finally made it to her door, she paused, hesitating to enter her apartment alone. She reached for her key in her pocket and thumbed the pattern of it in her pocket before finally pulling it out. But before she could get her hands on the doorknob--it turned. In a second, a million thoughts entered her mind.
Fang? Who's in my apartment? Did I lock the door? Is it possible she's back? How would she get in? Probably through a window. Wait, no, I lock those too. Who else has keys to my apartment? If it's Snow, I'm going to punch him so har-
Her thoughts were interrupted as the door swung open and she saw her. Why was she here? Why now?
How did she get here...? Oh that's right. I gave her a key.
Serah stood in the doorframe, looking at her sister with a sad but curious expression. "Claire...?" She said quietly.
Lightning winced at the sound of her old name, "How many people are going to call me that tonight?" she asked irritably as she stepped inside, shutting the door behind her. She walked over to her couch, Serah following closely enough to grab her hand. She sat, and her sister sat with her, still holding her hand.
Lightning was in no mood to talk. Sazh couldn't get anything out of her, and neither would Serah. Her business would always remain her business. She made the mistake of letting others get involved with her and it almost took their lives.
Actually, it took two.
"Light..." Serah started again. The older sister kept her eyes forward and she flipped on the TV with the nearby remote. Serah quickly reached for it and turned it back off. "Talk to me," she urged, tugging at her sister's hand.
How would she get out of a situation like this?
I walk steady on my feet
I talk
my voice obeys me
"Alright, let's talk," Lightning said, turning her attention to her sister with feigned interest, "How's Snow?"
Terrible cover. I'm no good at this.
Serah gave her a blank stare for a moment, then realized what she was trying to do. She shook her head, "Lightning, that's not what I want to talk about."
What else can I say?
"You're not pregnant... are you?" Lightning asked tenatively. The thought of her sister being pregnant with that meathead's child made her cringe.
This time Serah rolled her eyes, "You can't keep this up."
Dammit.
So she settled for silence. But the silence was making her sleepy. Lightning had almost forgotten about the amount of alcohol she'd ingested. Serah wasn't settling for silence though, and she certainly wasn't going to let her sister sleep.
"I'm not going just sit by and let you get... like this!" Serah said, throwing her sister's hand down on the couch. Lightning looked at her sister once again and then back to the TV, "I'm fine."
Serah's frown deepened, "Look me in the eyes and say that."
Lightning knew she couldn't look her sister in the eyes and lie. So instead, she left. She rose from the couch and wordlessly made her way to her bedroom, closing the locking the door behind her before Serah had the chance to catch up.
Her sister angrily banged on the door for a few moments, demanding Lightning come back out. When it became obvious she wasn't going to get through to her sister that night, she left her with a few simple words.
"I promised myself I wouldn't let us grow apart, Lightning. Not after what happened last time."
Lightning cringed at the harsh words and sat down on her bed. "Lock the door on your way out," she said, and her response was met with the sound of feet slowly stepping away from the door, and finally the sound of the heavy apartment door closing.
When she was certain she was alone, Light kicked off her boots and laid down in her bed, not bothering to change out of her clothes or pull the blanket over her.
I go out at night
sleep without the lights
-----
Palumpolum, Esthiem Residence
-----
Shortly after things had calmed down in Palumpolum, Lightning had asked to be alone for a while. Hope and his father were quick to comply, offering Nora and Bartholomew's room as a refuge for Lightning and her thoughts--as well as a sleeping Snow. She leaned against the couple's vanity for some time, trying to absorb everything as she kept an eye on Snow. Since the Hanging Edge--since they had become l'Cie... since she found the person who was responsible for her sister's state, there had been no time to just think. Every moment spent not moving forward, was a moment closer to becoming a Cie'th. Becoming a Cie'th was not an option for Lightning, not until her sister was safe. The others? Lightning cared little for them. They had gotten themselves involved and it wasn't her job to save them, much less guide them.
Hope on the other hand, had proven useful. A part of her wished that at least he would make it through the journey to have a chance to experience life. He'd been through a lot so far, and she firmly believed he would develop into a great man someday. He just needed a little direction was all. Apart from that though, Lightning was beginning to wish she was alone on this. Alone to conquer her Focus, or die trying. If she couldn't be alone for her journey, then at least for these few minutes of peace, she would make sure she had some solitude.
But a certain Pulsian woman would have none of that.
Fang knocked softly on the door, letting her knuckles rest on the door and her head hung a bit as she waited for a response. When there was none, she slowly eased the door open. Lightning stood across the room, her focus on Snow. Fang entered slowly, "Feeling any better?" She asked tentatively. She was being ignored, but Oerba Yun Fang wasn't going to leave without having her say.
"Listen.. uh... Light... I wanted to talk to y-"
"Don't say another word," the soldier interrupted. Her eyes were set firmly away from the other woman, she was determined not to look Fang in the face.
"Ah... I see you're still... Yeah."
"Please just leave," Lightning said with a soft but firm tone.
"I'm not leaving until--"
"Please leave, Fang," Lightning said with a twinge of irritation.
Fang hesitated, trying to form the words in her head. Finally, she just stepped inside and closed the door. "I said I'm not leaving," she said softly while crossing her arms. Lightning glared at her out of the corner of her eye for a moment before returning her gaze to Snow. "I asked nicely once. I won't do it again," she warned.
Fang shook her head as she approached the soldier. She sat down on the small green stool and could visibly see Light tense up. The Pulsian was determined to make amends somehow.
"I'm not asking you to forgive me. Not yet anyways," Fang began. Lightning crossed her arms and looked down at the ground. She wasn't quite looking at Fang yet, but it was close enough for now.
"I wanted to protect Vanille... your sister getting caught up in that mess..." Fang stood and paced to the right a little, "I never, ever would have wanted something like that to happen." She paced a back towards the chair and looked up at Lightning, "If I were in your shoes, and the same thing had happened to Vanille... I..." Fang struggled once again for the right words. "I would have done something terrible to the one responsible."
Lightning looked up at Fang, not glaring, but not exactly looking happy, "There isn't time to discuss this. I haven't decided how to react to all of this yet."
Fang smiled sadly a bit, "There hasn't been much time to do anything, has there?"
Lightning glared at the floor, rather than directly at Fang, "And who's fault do you think that is?" she muttered.
The words rang true in Fang's ears, but that made it no easier for her to take them, "Yeah," she said softly, scratching the back of her neck, "When all of this is over," she looked back up at Lightning, smiling hopefully, "Let me make all this up to you."
The soldier brushed past Fang and stepped closer to the bed where Snow lay recovering, "Let's just see if we can survive this first."
-----
Present
-----
Being a soldier, you become more conscious of things. Even in her sleep, Lightning could hear the soft footfalls on the carpet outside her bedroom door. Her eyes shot open and she sat up, her clothing felt remarkably restricting compared to her normal bedclothes. She then realized she hadn't changed from the night before. She was slightly grateful, in cause there was an intruder in her home.
Goddammit, Serah. I told you to lock the door, Lightning thought.
She threw the blankets off her, grabbed her survival knife from her nightstand and approached the door slowly and quietly. She them opened the door, but what she saw surprised her. Hope had stopped midstep with a tray full of fresh cooked breakfast food, and a few hushed voices could be heard in the other room.
"What the hell is going on?" Lightning asked as she stepped around Hope. As she rounded the hallway, she saw Serah and Snow standing in the kitchen, cooking and being a typical couple; Sazh and Dajh sat at her dining room table, both talking quietly to the small Chocobo, referring to it as "Vang", like the bird was some form of homage to the two who gave their lives for Cocoon.
"What are you people doing in my home?" Lightning asked, the annoyance clear in her tone.
They all turned to see the sleepy, annoyed and slightly hung over Light staring at them. "Mornin' sis!" Snow greeted, leaving Serah to cook so he could force the soldier into an unwanted bear hug, lifting her several inches from the ground.
"Let me go, you lummox," Light demanded in an unamused tone. Snow complied, keeping his usual cheerful demeanor despite Light's irritation. But the annoyance melted away as she looked at her friends. They had all come to see her. To make her feel better.
"Um.. Lightning?" Hope grabbed at her sleeve from behind and looked down at the ground, "You're not... You're not mad that we're here, are you?" he asked quietly. Everyone looked to Lightning for her response.
The soldier shook her head at the boy and smiled softly at her friends, "No. I'm not mad."
Serah finished plating the food and wiped her hands on the apron she borrowed from Lightning's kitchen. She approached her sister and clasped her hands in her own, "I told you I wouldn't leave you like this." She looked behind her at the others who had come to see her sister, "None of us will."
But when I think I'll be alright
I am always wrong
because
She takes her place at the head of the table with Sazh to her left next to Dajh and Hope. Serah and Snow take their places to Light's left. Two places remain empty. The spot next to Serah, and opposite of Lightning at the other end of the table. In her mind, Lightning can't help herself but imagine the Pulsians sitting with them, enjoying the meal, talking, laughing, loving, reminiscing,
and living.
My hands
don't wanna start again
My hands
No
They don't wanna understand
My hands
they shake and try to break
whatever peace I may find
I have to admit. Writing this chapter was a bit heart wrenching for me, personally. I really hope I didn't disappoint anyone. And I also hope you're wanting more, because I plan on adding more chapters in the near future.
Thank you for reading!
Anya
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