Chapter 16 - Love
Friends? Family? Love?
Can you show me?
You don't know what they are?
I know what apathy is.
Why?
Why?
Why are you always so cold?
Cold?
Talk. Express. Let it out.
Why?
Doesn't it hurt?
I'm fine.
Then why—
I don't need anyone…
—why are you crying?
…
"Éclair, you need to calm down, and listen to me very carefully."
I was very calm.
She blinked.
In the middle of class, she was sent to the headmaster's office. A couple of classmates told her in whispers that she had 'done it again', but she didn't beat up any bullies lately, so the order made her curious. Instead of meeting the headmaster, however, when she entered the office, she was greeted solemnly by tall, muscular, unfamiliar men, dressed in strange, combat-like armour. Her initial thought: it didn't feel good.
I believed them.
"W-what's the problem…?" She tried her best to keep her voice straight.
They all looked hesitant, but one of those men eventually made a move and knelt down, meeting the girl's height. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder, and started in a calm voice, "Twelve hours ago, an accident broke out on the Fifth Arc."
What?
"It was caused by the Pulsians."
I'll kill them.
"Your mother and father were working there at that time,"
I'll kill them all.
"I'm sorry—"
They're the enemies.
"—they didn't make it—"
They took my parents away.
…
Don't cry.
"… Onee-chan, they're back today, right?"
Don't cry.
"… Onee-chan, why aren't you talking…?"
Don't cry.
"… Onee-chan, why are you crying…?"
Don't you dare.
…
Grow up.
"… You got into the Guardian Corps? That's great news!"
Grow up.
"What's that? I-is that… is that a gunblade? Wow! Only the top and most skilled soldiers get to use this!"
Grow up.
"Congratulations, Sergeant Lightning Farron."
Grow up faster.
…
Lies.
"Pulsians? Accident?" The soldier laughed. "It was no accident. It was a massacre—"
Lies.
"— done by the PSICOM."
Lies.
"Blaming everything on the Pulsians… they're not half-dumb."
LIES.
…
All along, I've been blaming the wrong people…
It's not your fault.
What should I do?
Talk. Express. Let it out.
There's no point.
Stop hiding.
Nobody cares anyway.
You still have—
I don't want her to worry.
Why are you tormenting yourself?
Nobody cares.
…
Don't.
"… Onee-chan, stop it. Stop sleeping with people you don't even know—"
Don't.
"… Is something bothering you? You can always talk to me. I'm your sister."
Don't.
"Onee-chan, you never talk, you never listen, you're always so selfish… how exactly do I understand you!"
Don't show any weakness.
…
Nobody cares. Nobody cares about me.
…
"Hello!" She greeted cheerfully.
Who are you?
"Ne, onee-san, are you certain that it is alright for me to stay here?"
Why do I even care?
"… They held me down." Her fingers dug deep into her thighs, clawing at her white flesh, "I couldn't move."
Who exactly are you?
"Pinky swear! I promise you that if I ever have those… erm, panic attacks again, I'll come to you straight away, whether you like it or not."
Who are you to me?
"Onee-san, you…" She whispered nervously, "… did you just kiss me?"
Apathy…?
"… Really? So… I'm technically your… first?"
Love…?
"You caught me already, onee-san, when we first met."
I think I—
"No, I meant… you caught my heart."
—might be in love—
"… Please, onee-san, don't come any closer…!"
—with an enemy.
"Do you even know where I came from, how I got here, what I'm doing here, and who I am?"
I love you.
"Onee-san – what are you doing…!"
I love you.
"Don't be like this…"
I love you.
"It hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts it hurts—"
Pain.
The entire thing. She could see it.
Pain.
She could see how those bastards tied her up and touched her; she could see them ripping away her clothes, and she could hear her screaming, begging for them to stop, but they simply laughed, ignored, and continued. No matter how hard she struggled, how hard she protested, how hard she cried, they didn't stop.
"Please stop it…!"
Death? Not even close.
Exposed—
"Vanille…" Lightning's eyes moved rapidly under her lids.
—raped.
The men hit her when she disobeyed – they didn't give a shit. She could see her giving up—
"I let them do it."
—in exchange for her friends' lives, she was giving up, and – those sick bastards – they forcefully pushed her legs apart, and then they—
"Don't…!" Lightning wanted to kill them. She clenched – clawed – at the sheets wildly as her feet kicked at the end of the bed.
Vanille closed her eyes. The tears rolled freely down her cheeks.
…
You love her, don't you?
"Oneeeeee-san!" Vanille sang happily. She spun around, revealing a beaming smile that spread from one ear to the other.
What is it?
She ran up to her and threw her arms around the woman's neck. Tiptoeing, Vanille whispered into her ear, "Do you like me?"
You love her, don't you?
Smile.
With all my heart.
"Onee-san…"
Tears streamed down her face. The droplets soaked into the fabric of the soft pillow she was sleeping on.
Vanille was on the ground. Naked. Ruined. Sullied. She was a doll – a filthy, disgusting, tainted doll – touched by liars and murderers. Scars and bruises were left all over her body. Sweat and blood and cum and—
"… would you still want someone this dirty to stay with you…? To… to hold you…?"
Her head was spinning madly. She couldn't breathe – she had never felt this horrible in her life. It was almost like she was trapped in a void, floating in nothingness – in a pitch-black dimension, and the only thing she could see was the one thing she did not want to see.
"Onee-san… please don't look at me…" The broken doll cried weakly.
They were back. The men took hold of her arms again, tying them up, binding her down, leaving her completely helpless, weak—
"Please, stop…! Don't look at me…!"
Her lungs burned in her ribcage. She could see it – she could see everything—
Move. Help her. Move. Help her. MOVE.
Their hands were all over her delicate body – feeling, touching, violating.
HELP HER.
"… onee-san, don't…!"
I can't move I can't move I can't move I CAN'T MOVE—
One of them held onto her hips firmly, locking her in place, and then he smirked. Briefly, even just for a second, Lightning could see that repulsive stare he gave her. He was mocking her, because there wasn't a thing she could do – she was pathetic. He smirked. Disgusting. He thrust forward—
"Vanille!"
—Vanille screamed in terror.
…
You love her, don't you?
…
Lightning's upper body sprung up in an instant. Where was she? Plain darkness. It was suffocating in here. What was going on?
"Don't look at me!"
Vanille.
"Vanille!" She had to help her, she had to help her now – Vanille was hurting, she was crying… "Don't touch her…" Lightning got off the bed and stood up clumsily. She had forgotten how weak her current state was, so when her jelly-legs were about to give in, Lightning quickly stumbled across the room to the door before she tumbled over. She ran out of the room, not giving a damn about her blurry vision, aching lungs, burning headache, sore body, and the darkness that surrounded her. Hell, she didn't even care where she was; all she knew was that she needed to find Vanille right now. Lightning made her way across the hallway, to the only source of light – which was peaking underneath the closed door of, she recognized, the bathroom.
"I don't want you to see me like this…!"
"Go away!"
"Don't look!"
Screams.
All Lightning could hear were her screams – so those bastards must be torturing her inside. They were here, there were hurting her. Desperate, the soldier burst into the room, eyes searching frantically for the girl.
What was that? Vanille thought she heard something. Pulling the curtains back slightly, she poked her head out. Sure enough, through the steam of the room, she found Lightning leaning on the sink with one hand, head sunk low, looking lost and out of breath. "Onee-san…?" She called.
Lightning's head snapped towards her, revealing the flushed cheeks and that anxious expression.
"W-what's wrong…?" Still somewhat shocked, the girl didn't know what else to say. It wasn't like her at all to just come in without permission like that…
The soldier didn't make a sound. She ignored the uncomfortable and heavy feelings within, and stood up straight before making her way towards the girl in the shower.
"… Onee-san, what are you doing…?" Vanille couldn't help it but to feel some sort of hostility from her, just like that time in the alley. Was she going to hurt her again? But… but this was what she wanted this morning, right? Yes – no? Yes. She wanted this, she wanted Lightning since this morning, but… right now, at this moment, she felt as though she wasn't ready again. She couldn't do this – there was no way. The girl backed up until she couldn't go any further, and she watched as the woman's silhouette behind the curtain approach – the figure getting bigger and bigger—
Lightning drew back the curtains completely, and she stared at the girl. She observed her from head to toe; thankfully, there were no bruises nor was there any blood, but the running water washing over the faint scars that the girl gave herself reminded the soldier of the day she almost hurt Vanille like those men did.
Unacceptable.
Vanille swallowed. This was getting embarrassing. While Lightning was at least wearing her sleeping attire, she was naked and exposed to her. With subtlety, Vanille moved her arms up to cover herself. This was Lightning's first time seeing her completely uncovered, after all. Was the woman's fever getting to her? Why was she suddenly like this…? "O-onee-san… you s-shouldn't be out of bed…" The girl stuttered.
Lightning stayed quiet.
Vanille is fine.
Vanille was fine, she tried to convince herself, but a part of her didn't believe it. Unnecessary explanations were not needed. Lightning stepped into the shower, completely neglecting the fact that she still had clothes on, and let the water from the showerhead soak her from head to toe. She didn't mind the feeling of wet clothes sticking on her skin; Lightning only wanted to hold the girl – that was all that mattered.
Vanille gasped when the woman's arms circled around her. She was stunned for a second, but when she felt the soldier shaking unstably, she returned the embrace. Was… was Lightning crying?
Buried in the crook of her neck, she tried not to let those vivid – violent – images of her being tortured get to her. She tried to swallow them down, she tried not to think about it, but her screams—
"Stop stop stop stop—"
No. Nothing could hurt her.
Lightning would never allow it. "You're here…" She said softly.
The girl heard her. "Of course I am…" She answered. "Onee-san, y-you're going to get even more sick at this rate—"
"I had a dream."
Vanille paused. "Dream…?"
"You…" Lightning breathed. She closed her eyes to prevent the water from running into them.
Remind her of the PSICOM?
No.
No. She had to lie. "You… you went out… and never came back…"
"I… wha…?" First, 'I missed you' and now this? What strange things a fever could do to Lightning Farron. Vanille giggled. "Onee-san, I'm not going anywhere."
You don't understand.
Lightning didn't talk; she continued to hug the girl, afraid that she might actually get taken away. "Vanille…"
She turned to kiss the woman on the cheek. "I'm here, onee-san,"
Lightning pulled away. Gazing at the girl through her soaking pink bangs, she leaned in to rest against her forehead.
Vanille could see; the woman's eyes were red and puffy. She had indeed been crying.
She didn't care anymore. It didn't matter if her body ached, nor did it matter if she couldn't breathe; Lightning dropped her eyelids and moved in. Tilting her head to the side, she captured the girl's lips fully, gently caressing the lower flesh with her teeth, almost as if pleading Vanille to part them.
Vanille closed her eyes as well and obliged to Lightning's silent request. Right away, she felt the woman's warm muscle meeting her own – the temperature matching the water's that was hitting her head and trickling down her naked body. Vanille moved her elbows up to rest on Lightning's shoulders; her hands pulling her head close to deepen the kiss.
Her head was pounding; she was on the verge of passing out, and she knew she couldn't go too far – actually, she wasn't even planning on doing anything more, she only kissed her because she wanted to.
Vanille looked into the soldier's dreary eyes, and was reminded that she was still sick. Moving a hand up to cup the woman's cheek, her other hand brushed away the wet pink bangs that covered her brilliant azure eyes, only to have them drop back down again thanks to the shower. Vanille smiled. It was so cute of her to get so worked up just because she wanted to see her. Lightning was so much like a kid. "Let's get dried up, okay?" She said.
Lightning simply moved and returned to the embrace they were locked in moments ago.
"It took me a lot of effort to change you into your pyjamas, you know?" Vanille jokingly said as she helped dry the woman's hair with a towel. "Good thing you were able to do it on your own this time,"
Lightning didn't respond. She was sitting cross-legged on the bed, directly in front of the girl, head down.
She sighed. "Onee-san… can you let go of me? It's really hard to dry your hair with one hand…"
The soldier didn't listen. As a matter of fact, upon hearing that, she tightened her grasp on the girl's hand. "Hey," She muttered.
"… Yes?"
Lightning raised her head, finally looking Vanille in the eye. The white towel draping on her head slipped and hung over her neck. There was a strange moment of silence as the girl waited for her to continue, and Lightning herself didn't really know what she wanted to say. She moved closer to Vanille, resting her forehead on the latter's shoulder.
"Onee… san…?"
"When I get better," Started she all of a sudden.
"…"
"Let's get out of here."
She blinked. What did she just…? "Onee-san, sorry, what did you say?"
Lightning pulled away to smile.
Grow up faster. Don't show any weakness. Don't let her see. Don't let her know.
"Vacation." She stated, "Let's go on a vacation together."
"Eh…?" It was incredibly difficult to take her seriously. After all, Vanille had no idea whether she was saying this because she really meant it or it was because of the fever.
"Tell me," Lightning said, leaning back into the girl, this time resting in her bosom, "Where would you like to go?"
The moment she moved in, Vanille felt a warm pinkness creeping up her neck, to her cheeks. Lightning was being… strangely needy – not that she disliked this, of course. Having the stoic soldier behave like a puppy every once in a while was a cute thing. Vanille's slender fingers combed through the strawberry-blonde's damp hair as she thought of an answer. "Hmm…" She hummed, "Asking me like that suddenly, I don't really know. Actually, I don't know any place here on Cocoon, so…"
She closed her eyes, indulging herself into the girl's warm touch. "What would you like to see?" She tried again.
"See…?" Vanille repeated. Now, that was easy. She wanted to see her friends, her home, and her world. But how she could possibly wish to see such things that no longer existed? Maybe the less significant things would work. "I… I want to see trees, flowers, waterfalls, and… well, just a pretty, nature scenery."
"Nature?"
"Yep!"
"…" She tried to picture the things that were said. Then, it hit her. "Was… Pulse like that?"
Vanille didn't reply right away. Instead, she looked down at the woman with wonder, surprised that she was able to guess so accurately. Her dry throat ached when she swallowed. "Mm…" the girl nodded, "A lot of places were like that on Gran Pulse."
Lightning breathed into the girl's shirt, taking in her sweet scent. "You miss it, don't you?"
She smiled. Her fingers continued to run through the soldier's hair. "I'd be lying if I said no." Vanille mused. "But I like it here, too. I like any place as long as onee-san is around,"
Lightning smirked. Why did she have the feeling that Vanille was going to say that since the beginning? "What do you miss about Pulse?"
Vanille chuckled. "You're uncharacteristically talkative when you're sick, aren't you? Just like when you're drunk." By now, she was practically cuddling the soldier's head in her arms like she was a baby. It was odd; Vanille had some sort of unexplainable need to protect her, to be with her. It was like she would crumble into pieces of she didn't.
Beneath that bitterness, all there was within Lightning Farron was innocence.
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." The soldier said softly.
She shook her head. "No, I've been wanting to tell you for a while now. I just thought you wouldn't want to listen, so I never said anything." When Lightning opened her eyes slightly, Vanille greeted her sight with a smile. "I miss… my friends, mostly. I miss laughing with them, I miss playing pranks with them, I miss talking with them, I miss… being together with all of them." She paused to chuckle, "I could go on forever, onee-san, are you sure you want to listen?"
Lightning simply stared at the beautiful girl above. "I want to know more of you."
Her expression softened. "More of me?" She laughed.
"Everything." The soldier said more specifically. "Even if I know it already, tell me everything."
Vanille could only smile. "Well…" She looked up at the ceiling and tried to recall everything. "I grew up at an orphanage. There were kids everywhere, all the time. One of my friends, my closest one, Fang, she told me that all the boys there had a crush on me, but I never believed her," she giggled.
"It's believable," Lightning smiled with her eyes closed. She could imagine a miniature Vanille being surrounded by young boys who were offering her flowers and gifts and whatnot. "Did you like any of them back?"
"No, of course not," The girl said, "We all grew up together; everyone was practically family!"
"Hmm? Really?"
"Yeah!" Vanille reassured her. "Are you worried that I might be lying…?"
Snickering, Lightning shook her head lightly. "No," she half-whispered, "It's nothing like that."
"Then… is something bothering you?"
She opened her eyes again. For a moment, neither of them talked, but when Lightning reached up to stroke the girl's cheek, Vanille felt a strange chill run up her spine.
"Onee-san…?"
"Have you…" The woman's fingers traced her lips, "… ever thought about starting your own family?"
What! Vanille literally dropped her jaw. "I-I… s-s-start – start…!" The girl was beyond bewildered – why, of course. Who wouldn't be, after hearing that from Lightning?
The soldier broke into a soft laughter. "Neither have I," she stated.
Vanille blushed. Whether Lightning was being serious or not, she had to tell her. "Really, I've never thought about it…" she murmured shyly, "I mean… I'm fine with just the two of us… being together, so…"
"Hey,"
"Y-yeah?"
"I was thinking the same thing,"
"Eh?"
"Just the two of us… that's enough for me." Lightning said, "I don't need anyone else."
She was touched, no doubt. Vanille giggled softly to show her happiness.
Hearing her laughter, the smile on the soldier's face widened. Her hand on Vanille's lips pulled away, and she pointed her pinky finger out. "Vanille,"
"Hmm?"
Lightning sat up; her head was still spinning like mad, but she wanted to get this out of her mind. Kneeling in front of the girl, she looked at her. Their gentle gaze touched and if she wasn't feeling so damn dizzy right now, she would try to kiss her again. "Grow…" Lightning swallowed down her unwanted hesitation, "… grow old with me."
Vanille blinked. She knew what she meant by that, but… she couldn't be sure…
Lightning figured as much. She decided to try again, in a more specific manner. "I… want you to… go through life with me, together."
… Okay, she was sure now. Lightning was most definitely more ill than she thought – or maybe she was the one who was ill, and was hearing things? Vanille coughed to bring herself back to reality. This was, if not directly, a proposal… was it not? Now, it was the girl's turn to have trouble breathing. Her chest rose and dropped steadily but with speed, and she could feel blood gushing up to her head like gravity was going backwards.
Seeing her astounded expression, Lightning believed that she was wording things correctly this time. She went on, "Don't… freak out…" she said nervously, "This is already hard enough for me…"
Her jaw hung loose. Vanille tried to dig out the appropriate words. "Onee-san, y-you're—"
"I'm sick, but I'm fully aware of what I'm saying," She interrupted. Lightning took her hand and gripped on it gently; throughout all of this, their gaze never broke apart. "I'm sorry I don't have a ring or anything to… to bind this moment, nor can I do anything to prove… anything, but I just want you to know that I…"
She could hear her heartbeat hammering against her chest. The sound was probably thundering in the room, but she didn't care; Vanille wanted to listen on.
"… I would kill anyone who tries to take your position in my life."
"…"
Silence.
"…"
Chortle.
"…"
Yes, Vanille chortled. She thought she was going to break into tears or something, but no, she chortled. Then, she finally reached to loop her pinky over Lightning's, ultimately sealing the 'promise' – if it was appropriate to call it that. "Do you think I'd let people take this 'position' away from me that easily, onee-san?"
She huffed with amusement.
Likewise, Vanille heaved a sigh of relief. This time, she leaned in to rest on Lightning's shoulder. Comfortable, she started, "I don't need rings or anything."
The woman smiled tenderly as she held her close.
Vanille went on, "But… I do want to hear three words from you."
Lightning choked.
She pulled back to grin gingerly at the woman. "Just three!"
"Uhh…"
"Come on, you've said cheesier things! What's wrong with three little words?"
Looking to the corner of the room, she quickly thought of an excuse. "I… only say it when I think it's special, don't you remember?"
The girl sulked. "You're proposing to me right now, isn't that special?"
Lightning frowned. "Can I just kiss you?"
"No!" Vanille said, "The engagement 'thing' I want from you is just three words. Three words – and you save a few thousands of gils. Isn't that easy?"
"You said you don't need a ring! So what 'few thousands of gils' do I have to save up…?"
"Onee-san…" She whined, pouting.
"Ugh," Lightning grunted. She moved in to peck the girl lightly on the lips, and then she fell backwards to lie on the bed, pulling the covers over herself along the way. "Okay, there. Good night."
Vanille huffed angrily. "Y-you didn't say anything!"
"It means the same thing," Lightning persisted. "I'm feeling really sick. I should rest."
"No, you're not!" She got on top of the soldier. "And you can't rest yet even if you wanted to; your hair's still wet!" Vanille tried to pull her up, "Come on, come on! Get up!"
"Noooo…" Lightning dragged on her answer – it sounded like she was whining.
"Okay, fine, you don't need to say anything – just let me dry your hair!"
"I'm really tired…"
Vanille grunted. "Onee-san, if you're going to sleep like this, you'll get a massive headache tomorrow morning. Plus, your fever will probably get worse, and then we'll never get to go on the vacation you talked about…"
Lightning instantly sat back up, looking defeated. "Fine." She grumbled. This was no time to be stubborn and childish. She wasn't dying to go on a vacation; it was necessary to go on one. She had to get well as soon as possible, and then she had to tell Amodar that she wanted a break, and then getting the tickets – all of this would only take two days maximum if she organized well enough—
"So, where are we going to go?" Vanille asked as she grabbed onto the towel that somehow fell off the bed through their silly struggling.
The soldier closed her eyes and smiled. "You'll see."
She liked to play mysterious – and Vanille didn't mind that at all. Actually, she found that rather amusing; and it wasn't like she didn't like surprises – they were pleasant, after all. At least, most of the time they were. She loosened up. "Well, as long as you're there, it doesn't matter where we go," Vanille said happily.
Normally, there would be no way Lightning would agree to this, but she was in a hurry to recover; the PSICOM was coming in less than five days, and although her fever had gone down, somehow, her head still spun madly every time she tried to move too quickly. The girl told her it was because she wouldn't dry her hair before she went to sleep, but Lightning believed that it was because of her fear of the impending danger. It was getting more than stressful; she wanted to leave Bodhum as soon as possible, but there was no way she could convince Vanille to leave with her at her current state. In the end, she agreed to go to the doctor's – just for a check-up and to pick up any medication if needed.
"I have no idea how I talked you into this, onee-san." Vanille said proudly as they walked, "But it seems to me like you're really afraid of going to the doctor!"
She sighed. Excuse… excuse… excuse… "I… haven't gone to one since I was a kid. Since I was seven, actually."
"Oh, so… you don't get sick often? Or is it because you're actually afraid of the doctor?" Vanille teased.
Lightning growled lowly. "I honestly can't remember the last time I got sick."
The girl grinned. "Okay, okay, I get it. What amuses me, though, is that you're still bringing your gunblade out – you usually don't do it when you're not on duty, let alone day-offs, so why—"
"Out of habit," She lied. It was obvious that she was paranoid about attackers, early arrivals of the PSICOM, or whatever; bringing her weapon out here was only done out of safety. "It's either that, or my headache's getting to me. When we were heading out, I thought I was going to work, so I just grabbed it."
Vanille nodded in understanding, giggling softly at her lover's silliness.
Lightning let out a breath of relief – she wasn't that bad of a liar, the soldier decided. Why did Vanille say that she was before? "Come on, let's get this over with." She urged the girl to walk faster by pulling onto her hand, "I want to go home and sleep."
She smiled smugly. "Always in a hurry aren't you?" Vanille looped her arm around Lightning's to stand closer to her. "We're already walking through the emptiest route!"
"Emptiest? More like the longest. Why go all the way around when we can go through? I don't understand why we couldn't just go through the market."
Vanille sulked. "At this time? It's well into the afternoon, and you were the one who told me that it'd be filled with people. I wouldn't want them bumping into you, knocking you out, y'know? It'd be hard for me to carry you home…"
"Oh, come on, I'm not made of toothpicks; it's not like I'm going to collapse simply from getting bumped by people…"
She frowned, their pace never changing. "That's not the point, onee-san. Of course you're not going to collapse by bumping against others; I'm more concerned with the noise. Loud noises can build up headaches, right?"
Lightning rolled her eyes. Fine. She gave in; Vanille was right.
But… yeah, perhaps taking this route was the right choice. Walking quietly together felt nice, the woman thought. The weather was nice – there was a blue sky, a few clouds, and the bright sun above their heads; it made the air smell fresh. The scenery was also pleasant. They were strolling along the path a few feet above the sea, so they could smell the salty seawater and hear the gentle tides that hit the wall below.
"Too bad it's high tide today. People have no beach to play on." Vanille said, breaking the silence.
She was thinking exactly the same thing. "They can always go on the west side," Lightning commented. "Just that it'd be more crowded."
"Hmm, come to think of it, onee-san, we've never gone to the beach together before."
She arched a brow. Looking down at the shorter girl, she talked back, "Do you not remember that night…? You fell asleep there…"
Vanille laughed. "No, silly, I mean, like…" She gulped shyly, "G-go to the beach when it's bright… so we can swim in b-bikinis and everything…"
"Oh?" She smirked. "You just want to check me out, don't you?" Lightning teased.
The girl cocked her head up, "I-I…! No! Onee-san…! What are you talking about?" Crap, Lightning saw through her. That was exactly what she wanted. Vanille realized that she was trying futilely to hide her nervousness – it only made her sound more suspicious – not that Lightning didn't know what she was thinking about already.
The woman prolonged her smirk. "Don't be shy… we both know what you want…"
"S-stop it!" She blushed. "You're… you're only teasing me because you want to check me out!"
Lightning chuckled. "What are you talking about? Why would I need to do that? I've seen all of you already."
Steam was coming out of her head, she could picture it. "Onee-san!" Vanille scolded, "H-how could you say it so… so c-casually…!"
She laughed and walked on. "Don't worry, you have a nice body, and I really like it." Lightning turned around to find Vanille huffing angrily like a child with her arms crossed. The sight was hilarious – adorable, even, and the woman would totally run up and hug her if she didn't fear for her safety. After all, the cute redhead right now looked like she was going to attack her (painlessly) if she approached. Might as well give in, Lightning decided. "Okay, I'm sorry. Should we get going?"
"Hmph!" Vanille looked away and walked forward, pushing past the woman's arm with force.
"Ow, hey!" Before she could say anything more, the girl was already a few feet ahead. Lightning sighed. Well, perhaps she had gone a bit too far, but it wouldn't be hard, comforting her. A kiss or something would definitely work.
About to turn and chase her, Lightning stopped when she spotted a figure coming up from the direction they came from. He was a man for sure, based on his body shape. The soldier couldn't identify who he was, however, but she was certain that she had never seen him before. The man had an afro – that was for sure – he was also wearing an olive-coloured uniform, and, seeing two pistol holsters strapped to his thighs, Lightning knew that he was definitely armed. She couldn't see, but it looked like he had a badge on his shoulder, so he must be working for some sort of organization – it could possibly be the PSICOM.
Her heart was pounding. Have they arrived already? Backing up, Lightning observed his actions cautiously as he became even more suspicious to her when he abruptly halted his movements.
Why did he suddenly stop? She quickly came down to two conclusions when she saw that: one, he was tailing them. Two, he was turning away because she looked so damn intimidating. The latter assumption was obviously absurd, so Lightning could only cling onto the first one. For whatever reason he was tailing them for, Lightning didn't care; her top priority was to protect Vanille. She had established that long ago.
No longer feeling her headache (or, at least, ignoring it for now), Lightning turned and ran up to Vanille, who was a good few yards ahead. Finally caught up, she stood close and whispered into her, "Don't ask, just run with me."
"Wha… what?" She was taken back.
Grabbing onto her hand, she dragged her and ran. Lightning knew Vanille could run as fast as she could, so she didn't slow down at all – she ran at full speed.
"O-onee-san, y-you're not supposed to be moving so fast…!"
She ignored her and continued to run.
"Onee-san! Are you listening?" Vanille panted.
Lightning ran off the path that followed the seawall, past the empty field, ignored a couple of stares, and eventually reached a bunch of tall trees. She released the girl and pushed her against one that was large enough to hide their bodies, pinning her against it with her own body to keep her still.
Finally, Vanille was able to ask, "What…" She breathed desperately, "… what are you doing…?"
The soldier took a quick glance behind the tree to see if they were still followed by that man. Her breath heavy, Lightning tried to respond as calmly as possible, "Someone—"
No.
"…"
Don't tell her.
She couldn't let her know. "Nothing," Lightning lied, "I just… wanted to find somewhere private so I could kiss you."
Oh great, nice one.
"Onee… san…" Vanille panted.
But – what luck – she actually fell for it. But, of course, how could she not fall for her sweet talk? Lightning completed the lie by pressing her lips against the girl's. She captured her soft flesh completely, savouring the sweet taste of her cherry lip gloss with delight.
Vanille's arms moved up to circle around the woman's waist. They eventually travelled higher up, all the way to the back of her shoulders, and she began to claw at her thin hoodie with excitement. She could feel it – their noses that were nuzzling against each other were covered with a thin layer of sweat, but she didn't mind it; all that she cared about was Lightning's soft tongue dancing with hers inside—
Lightning pulled away abruptly. Her chest was still heaving steadily as she tried to catch her breath. She smiled, as well as she could, caught Vanille's lips briefly one more time, "Stay here, and don't move. I'll be right back," And she ran back towards the way they came from.
It was convenient, really; Lightning mentally noted that she had to thank whoever designed this park. How could there randomly be trees in one spot, and a plain grassy field in another? The point was, Lightning reached behind her to the handle of her gunblade – she was thankful for all these trees; they were perfect for cover.
Her hand gripped firmly onto her weapon, Lightning was prepared for him. She knew that he had followed them into these trees. There was no way that she was concerned about losing – no, she never lost. She was incredibly confident in winning, in fact; the only thing that worried her was Vanille showing up. What if that man was with the PSICOM? If she saw him, those memories, voices, everything they worked so hard of putting aside would resurface – Lightning did not want that.
"Come out," She said quietly. "I don't want to play games,"
Sure enough, the said man she saw earlier came out of hiding behind a tree. He walked slowly towards the woman. "Whoa, there, nee-chan. Don't shoot, I mean no harm,"
Lightning's brows furrowed; she hated unnecessary gentleness. Swiftly, she drew her weapon out of its holster and pointed it at the man in question. "What do you want?" She demanded.
"Are you…" He raised his empty hands in the air, "… are you affiliated with that girl?"
"I don't know what you're talking about." She replied cockily. "Now tell me who you are, before my finger loses its patience." Her index finger moved closer and closer to the trigger.
"Hey, hey, hey!" He bickered, "I said I mean no harm! I just want to know—"
"Don't make me repeat myself, old man,"
"Nee-chan, I want to help—"
"Shut up." Lightning thrust her weapon higher to aim at the man's forehead.
He jumped. This woman was not playing around. "Okay, okay! I'm—"
"Onee-san?"
Both Lightning and the man turned to the voice. Damn it. She thought for sure she could drive him away before she saw, but—
"Vanille!"
Surprised, the soldier jerked her head back to the suspicious man. She glared at him – how did he know her name…?
Vanille blinked. She was only paying attention to Lightning, but upon hearing her name from a voice that wasn't the soldier's, she looked towards the sound. And when she found the owner of the voice, her eyes widened with delight.
"S-Sazh…!"
Wow, did Asakami just update twice within a week?
Yes, yes she did. Thank Tokyo's weather, you guys. I've spent the last three days working on this chapter. It's so hot/humid/cloudy/rainy outside, I can't do anything fun ヽ(`Д´)ﾉ. PLUS, my parents won't let me turn on the AC 24/7, so I can't game all day at home without feeling uncomfortable. Right now, I'm just being cheap and enjoying the AC and WIFI at a Starbucks in Shibuya. What fun.
Anyway, thanks for your opinions – I'm glad that all of you like the direction and everything of this fic. Please continue to support L/V! Review pleeeeeeeeeeease :P