AN - I went ring shopping today and that made it real and now that it's only three and a bit weeks away here's a chapter while I go scream into a couch cushion.
It would be a few days later before anyone actually ran into Fang again, the shifter hiding out on the campus somewhere avoiding everyone and climbing into her window of a night to sleep. The first person to come into contact with her was Lightning.
The elemental on an early morning jog through the nearby forest that was on the land Sazh owned. Lost in her own thoughts about the recent altercation, Lightning scowled at the trail in front of her as she went over the fight in her head repeatedly. She was deliberately keeping her pace slow- well what was deemed slow for her anyway- to drag out the morning. Taking a break and leaning against a tree, Lightning stared off into the distance and huffed. "Fang saw right through my training and had me on the ground in seconds… I'm not that obvious am I?" She grumbled to herself, displeased at the notion that she wasn't as well trained as she thought.
"As obvious as lightning strikin' a tree, darlin'."
Lightning's eyes darted up to find Fang lazing up in the branches above her and pushed herself away from the trunk. The shifter swung her legs over and leapt off the limb, landing effortlessly on the ground. They squared off against one another for a moment, both curious and wary of the other's next actions.
"So this is where you've been hiding." Lightning surmised, trying not to show the uneasiness at the realisation that she was alone in a forest with Fang, who seemed to know far more about her abilities than she was comfortable with. Despite the open forest surrounding them, Lightning couldn't have felt any more trapped. Still, Fang's posture was relaxed, almost lazy in appearance. Lightning knew that this meant nothing for a shifter with incredible reflexes, but it helped settle her a little. Fang looked back towards the mansion where the elemental had come from and shrugged.
"More or less. It's peaceful out here. No Sazh to lecture me about personal responsibility and the bigger picture of peace, no sappy team bonding exercises. Here," Fang paused, reaching into her backpack she'd brought with her. She pulled out a bottle of water and chucked it towards the pinkette, who caught it with a nervous fumble. Fang saw the twitchy demeanour and sat down on grass at the base of the tree.
While pleased with herself to have affected the elemental so, there was a tiny gnawing of guilt at the edges of her mind. Here she was in the middle of a forest, with the sister of her friend and the friend of her sister. And instead of trying to make nice for their sakes, she'd instead got the pinkette off side and made her incredibly skittish in her presence.
"Relax, I'm not gonna hurt you. Both Serah and my sister would have me strung from the rafters. The water ain't poisoned, I promise."
"Well you sounded like you meant… Business the other day on the field." Lightning shot back, feeling defensive and prickly around the shifter. She kept glancing back at the trail to see if there was a way to put some distance between them before the shifter made a move.
Fang shrugged with a soft laugh, pulling out a flask and taking a swig. She ignored the look of concern that flashed across the elemental's face and shook her head. "I wanted to pull you down a couple of pegs, sweetheart. Teach you a little bit of damned humility. If you enter into a fight with that constant cocky attitude you'll slip up and get yourself killed. You bloody elementals are all the same…" She trailed off, staring into the deeper parts of the forest.
If she focused her senses she could hear running water in the distance, possibly a stream or even a waterfall. It relaxed her, kept her calm. Fang smiled and glanced back over at the pinkette who was still looking like she was ready to bolt. "Sazh talks a fine game when it comes to the pacifist attitude, but you don't strike me as one who likes to… Sit still. Tell me. What are you like during storms?" She asked, finding herself admiring the scowl that appeared on Lightning's face.
"What's that supposed to mean?" She retorted a little too quickly, giving Fang all the information she needed to know.
"Because, all. You. Elementals. Are. The same." Fang said with a knowing smile on her face. She patted the ground next to her in an attempt to get Lightning to sit down. When the elemental didn't move, Fang sighed and threw a wrapped sandwich at her in a peace offering. After pulling out a sandwich of her own and taking a bite, she looked thoughtful and swallowed, pointing the triangular slice at the pinkette.
"There was another that was with me and Caius in the beginning, Gadot is his human name. Goes by Ifrit these days. Fire elemental. Couldn't keep him near a campfire in the early stages, you'd lose him to a trance for hours before he'd blow the grounds half to hell from getting too into feeling the flames. You types of L'cie are known for getting far too involved, almost addicted to the feeling of your elements." Fang paused to munch on her sandwich some more, and Lightning's expression grew pensive as she toyed with the plastic on the offered food in her hands. Incredibly uncomfortable with the notion that the shifter seemed to know more about the elemental L'cie than she did, she remained silent in the hopes that Fang would continue.
"Sazh tells me you were a bit of a lightning rod in the beginning. What did it feel like?"
Considering the question threw the pinkette into her memories. In the early stages of Lightning's awakening as a L'cie it was intoxicating to her. To be so connected to the chaos of the storm, to revel it... Every strike of lightning was like her opening herself up and leaving herself raw to the elements. It was addictive. She became too used to the feeling. She had become arrogant. Cocky. Overconfident in her abilities so began letting her guard down. It was what got her caught by her mother in the first place, and what had her slammed into the ground on the field the other day by the very dangerous woman that stood before her.
She couldn't find fault in Fang's words or even her methods, though the beating her pride took still annoyed her. Lightning contemplated whether honesty was the best policy in this case. She assessed no threat from the woman in front of her, so answered the question as she remembered those storm-ridden nights in the fields.
"The electricity seemed to come and go at first, I'd have to go out to an open field away from the town during storms because I'd attract all the lightning... But gods it felt amazing. I felt like I was able to touch the sky."
Fang took in the easy smile that had slowly crossed Lightning's face, clearly lost in her thoughts. She counted the seconds before the pinkette remembered who she was talking to. Fang got to five before Lightning visibly shook herself and folded her arms defensively. "Why are you interested? Looking for another way to end me?"
"Nah. I've got enough of that, gorgeous. It just doesn't surprise me that Sazh doesn't go into the downsides or the nitty gritty details of bein' a L'cie. You know, aside from the soul-crushing discrimination, isolation and fear of constant danger from the outside world or your own abilities of course. He always seems to want to suppress powers, rather than let them flourish." Fang replied with a wry chuckle, slowly standing and dusting off the back of her jeans.
She paused to give the elemental a once over and decided there was something there that she could chip away at. This woman wasn't like the others of Sazh's ilk. "Sometimes they don't need to be controlled, but honed. Built upon. You're a goddamn storm, you shouldn't be held back." She swung her backpack back over her shoulder and began to walk away, to leave Lightning be.
"Where are you going?" The elemental called out, Fang not slowing in her step.
"Gotta find somewhere else to hide now that you've caught me. Shame, that bough was pretty damned comfortable."
Some of Fang's words cut Lightning deep. She longed to go back to the fields again and remind herself that she was still able to feel. Sazh banned her from being out and about during storms because it always caused problems at the mansion. Not that she entirely believed the shifter's intentions, but Fang's behaviour yesterday seemed to be less along the lines of trying to kill her but rather to teach her a lesson. If she couldn't trust Fang's words, she could at least trust the reality that both their sister's would take action if anything happened.
Against Lightning's better judgement, she scuffed the dirt with her shoes and tightened her jaw. "You don't… You don't have to hide. I can tell Sazh to back off with his speeches, if you prefer to be left alone. There's plenty of places in the mansion where you could... I'm just saying you don't have to be out here if you don't want to."
Silence was all that Lightning received, before she heard the drawling accent float back to her on the breeze. "I'll think about it."
The cushions shifted with a bounce as Serah flopped down on the couch in the living room. "Hey stranger, how you been?" Fang asked, wrapping an arm around the pinkette's shoulder. There was a part of her that was worried that she'd just been playing the part of the placeholder until Serah was reunited with her sister.
It was a concern that Serah seemed to share as she snuggled into Fang. Neither had seen each other for nearly a week after Fang's self-imposed exile and while it had given her time to bond with Hex and the others, she found herself missing her shifter companion that she had gotten so close to over the last while. She had the closeness already there that she had been trying to rebuild with Claire, but it was slow going with the elder Farron. The perpetual guilt was exhausting at times, and she was beginning to suspect Fang and her sister had far too much in common on that front. Serah wasn't at all oblivious to the strange disconnect between the respective siblings, and tried not to be jealous at the level of closeness Lightning seemed to share with Hex.
"I've been ok. This place is nice. I'm making friends, and Sazh even has an education system in place so I can continue my last year of school."
"That's real good to hear, little one. I know your education is real important to you. But what's this scent I'm picking up on here?" Fang asked, rapping Serah on the head with her knuckles. "Oooh. You're getting up close and personal with the snow cone, eh?"
"Fang!" Serah exclaimed, smacking the Pulsian on the arm. "A little louder why don't you? I don't think my sister is homicidal enough? Besides nothing's happened... We just like hanging out, that's all."
"Alright alright. Just make sure you're safe, and you talk everything through. If you're open and honest and set appropriate boundaries, you will be less likely to get hurt if things do progress. And if he doesn't respect your boundaries, explode him. He seems pretty cool... For an iceberg, anyway."
A groan came from the young pinkette, burying her head in Fang's shoulder from the terrible jokes at Snow's expense. But she was grateful for the calm but wise words the shifter offered; Lightning would probably have electrocuted him by now just for looking at her. "What about you, Fang? What are you going to do now that you're here?" Serah asked, tilting her head up so she could see her properly. Fang's eyes darted away, her lips curling in distaste.
"I don't know, Serah. This place makes me uncomfortable. You know my feelings on the Haven. I'd feel like the world's biggest hypocrite if I stayed."
"And you'd be the world's biggest dick if you left your sister again. She is happy here, why not try to find some happiness here for yourself? Even C... um, I mean, Lightning found a place here, and she's as freaking stubborn as you are."
Serah untangled herself and stood, eyeing her friend's blue, plated arms and realised this was the longest time she'd seen them looking… Less than human. Possibly a defence mechanism, a way of making herself feel safe in an unknown environment. A potentially hostile environment, if the daggers shooting from her own sister's eyes on a regular basis were any indication of threat level for the Pulsian.
"Just think about it, Fang. I know you have some... Differences of opinion about what this place represents, but maybe try to look at Haven for what it really is. A safe place where you don't have to keep running, don't have to keep fighting, and just... You know, just be."
Once she'd made her point, Serah left Fang alone to her thoughts. The Pulsian sighed and stared at the television absently, the decision to stay or go weighing heavy on her mind. She felt like a sitting duck, a stationary target. Whether Caius was going to rock up on the doorstep, or the new added complication of Sanctum sniffing around, the longer Fang would stay here the more unsafe she felt. Aside from Lightning, she hadn't seen any of the capabilities of the other L'cie, so couldn't -and didn't- expect them to have her back when the chips were down. Nor did she expect for the elemental to protect her, given that her behaviour towards Lightning couldn't exactly be described as amicable in any sense.
"She's right, you know."
Fang jumped in her seat, too immersed in her thoughts to register anyone else in the room. She turned with a scowl to find Lightning standing in the doorway, observing the Pulsian closely.
"Serah told me... About how you risked everything to get her out of Valhalla, away from Caius when you realised how he was going to use her. It's... unexpected. I thought your loyalties lay with him."
There was a noticeable shiver as Fang stood, rolling her shoulders to stop any further transition. The anger had flared almost instantly, her need to defend Caius and her choice to side with him sparking the need to become the beast on instinct alone. Expecting another fight about Caius and his "Terrorist L'cie", Fang took a couple of deep breaths before turning to face the pinkette by the door.
"I'm sure you've got reports a mile high about the things I've done over the years in the name of freedom from the tyranny of human kind. The deaths I have caused by my own hand of those wretched Sanctum bastards. But that is by my actions, my own choices. I wouldn't allow Serah to be used so blatantly for what would be a suicide mission. Especially when it isn't what she wants. Those things aren't her choices. I wouldn't have that life for her any more than you would."
Lightning stepped closer, narrowing her eyes as she considered the new addition to their home. There was a vulnerability behind the fierce jade irises that if Lightning hadn't have overheard the tail end of the conversation with Serah and seen how they were together, she wouldn't have been looking for it. It looked like sorrow. But to Lightning, it also looked like hope. Hope that maybe there was something behind the tough and brutish exterior that was worth saving. "I want to show you something." She turned and walked down the hall, glaring expectantly when Fang didn't immediately follow. The Pulsian sighed and threw herself from the couch, loping after her.
The elemental led Fang into a games room, where she found their respective sisters playing a table soccer game with another of the L'cie. It was Serah and the ice-man versus Hex and her many arms, and they appeared to be losing. Badly. Much to the redhead's glee. They were talking with a small youth that had similar skin to her own shifted form, who read a book while they played next to him. They all seemed to be having fun in what they were doing, and Fang bit her lip as she watched her sister laugh. It was like the scars weren't there at all for the young redhead as she paid them no mind.
"Hex spoke of you often. Apparently even guessed that you'd gone by the name of Fang. Said it was from one of those old Pulsian Mythos comics you would obsess over as a teen." Lightning explained, scratching absently at the palm of her own hand and tracing a thumb over a faint scar there. "What little of your past I do know is that you were fiercely loyal and protective of her, and that you've likely torn yourself up every night since what happened when your abilities awakened. I know she doesn't fault you for what happened."
Fang sighed and folded her arms defensively, mindful of the claws. "Why would you care? Aren't we meant to be mortal enemies or some shit?"
Sazh had made his point clear in his office, that Lightning had to understand her enemy to overcome them, and communication could cause longer lasting change than a weapon ever could. Besides, as reluctant as she was to admit it, the two of them had vastly more in common with each other than they differed. Even despite how simultaneously aggravating and terrifying the woman could be.
Lightning thought that perhaps she would be the one to extend the bridge and shatter what appeared to be signs of mild brainwashing with the ideologies of Valhalla. If Fang had been by Caius' side from a young age, it was a very long time to be exposed to dangerous ideas and conditioned to devoutly follow him without question. She moved into Fang's line of sight and pinned her with a stern gaze.
"Because I've seen how you flinch every time Hex comes near you. Like she is paper you're afraid of cutting. That hurts her just as much as your absence. If you really feared your ability to lose control you would work on it and learn to harness your abilities, rather than allowing Caius to call you a mindless beast and perpetuating the idea. Serah told me about the things he says to you. You don't seem like the type who would allow yourself to be gaslit."
A frown crossed Fang's face, knitting her brow together in confusion. "Gaslit? What's a stove got to do with anythin'?" Lightning covered her mouth with her hand to hide the chuckle at the unintended joke.
"It's when you're made to question yourself, your sanity, your world around you. Being told constantly by Caius that your abilities make you a danger to others makes you doubt yourself. Your capabilities. Your strength. When you haven't even been taught to control them properly keeps you on a leash. On his leash."
Watching Hex laughing with Serah and the other L'cie brought a smile to both their respective siblings' faces. The redhead turned and gave a brilliant grin toward her older sister, two of her arms on the left side reaching up in a wave. Lightning watched the Pulsian carefully before choosing her next words.
"Caius seeks to go to war. The likes of you and I would be fine, we are both more than capable of defending ourselves. Them however? Not so much. Look at them and tell me how such a strike on Sanctum would benefit our kind?" Her question was firm, but voice soft.
Fang clenched her jaw and looked away. "It wouldn't." She replied simply, not wanting to elaborate. She walked out of the room in silence, both Lightning and Hex watching her leave.