AN - I finally sorted out what I'm wearing to the wedding. Wardrobe crisis over, we can all go about our business. Here's a friggin huge chapter.

"Thanks for the tip, I'll rendezvous at the location and see if I can pick him up before Sanctum takes the kid to a blackout site."

Lightning clipped her device closed, pocketing it with a frown. One of her contacts had gotten in touch with a lead on a newly awakened L'cie with potentially dangerous powers. But Sazh was away on a business trip, and hadn't authorised any away missions in his absence. Besides, she was already in enough trouble for her last "rescue mission" to pick up Serah.

Fang rounded the corner and almost bumped into the elemental, causing Lightning's scowl to deepen. "Woah, sorry there lightbulb," Fang apologised, slipping in her favourite hobby of calling Lightning anything but her name to get a rise out of her. The duo had found some common ground between their respective siblings, and had been convening in the gym room over the last few weeks. There was slow progress, while still both wary of each other conversations became less stilted as time pressed on. Still, at this point their amicable nature was strained thin at best, so Fang decided to tread carefully. Almost. "Hey. Why do you look like someone's given you a blackout?"

"Really? A blackout. You been working on that long?" Lightning quipped with a roll of her eyes.

With a shrug of dismissiveness, Fang folded her arms and leant against the wall. "Long enough, gotta keep my material fresh. So, what's with the storm clouds hoverin' on your face?"

A million different reasons flew through Lightning's mind as to why she should keep her mouth shut around a Valhalla devout that specialised in this exact issue. There was a list a mile long of L'cie that Fang had gotten to before the Haven had even gotten wind of their existence. She suspected they had a psychic or seer in Valhalla's ranks, but couldn't prove it. When Fang wasn't being an aggressive bastard, Lightning found in moments when the shifter let her guard down she was eloquent, intelligent and dare she admit it, strangely charming. No wonder there were so many that flocked to Valhalla's message when she was their deliverer.

Given that Sazh wasn't there, Lightning had nobody else to talk to about her frustrations. If Fang was lending an ear, she'd take it. "There's… Been a complication with a newly awakened L'cie. Another elemental. They caused a bit of damage, flooded a shopping mall. Sanctum is closing in on them as we speak and the youth will be in custody by nightfall. They'll keep him at a holding facility deep in the forest about four hours from here until the morning then seek to move him to a hidden site off continent, never to be seen again."

Incredulous, the Pulsian stared at Lightning like she'd grown a second head. "Aaaaand you're standing around here letting him get taken, why exactly?"

"There's no missions approved without Sazh's go ahead."

Fang huffed and looked around. There was nobody else but them in the corridor so had no issues raising her voice. "So you're just gonna sit on your hands and do nothing because daddy didn't say go? Fuck that, if you won't go, give me the address and I'll go rescue him myself."

Knowing the line she walked and the truce she seemed to have with the elemental was tenuous at best, Fang was careful in her movements and softened her expression. She stepped closer and nudged the pinkette with her hip, giving her most charming grin she could manage. "Come on, Light. Since when have you ever shied away from a fight?"

That was new. Fang not trying to push Lightning's buttons, and even called her by her name. Albeit a short-hand version but at this point she'd take what she could get. She flinched as Fang swung a casual arm around her and ignored how much tension ran through her own body at the contact. When Lightning glanced up at Fang she was met with a brilliant, albeit tactical smile. The Pulsian gave her a squeeze and leant in close. "We could go together. You and me. Rescue the kid and be back by breakfast in the morning. Sazh would never have to know, we can just bribe the kid to say he rocked up while the chicken wing was away."

There it was. Lightning wasn't stupid. She knew this was Fang's charm dialled up to eleven- that same smile she'd use to convince L'cie to do just about anything. Problem was, she wasn't finding herself immune to it. Before her common sense could prevail, she felt herself smiling at the brunette and nudged her with her elbow. "Alright then, let's go be heroes."

Fang grinned wider and grabbed Lightning by the wrist, dragging her off to the garage. Worrying her lip with her teeth, Lightning wondered just how much trouble she could have gotten into as a kid if she had someone like Fang by her side. Someone that with that disarming grin could likely have convinced Lightning to get into all sorts of trouble. She remembered she did have a friend like her, and they did get into trouble. Far too much trouble for their parents' liking.

Letting go of Lightning's hand, Fang slid over the bonnet of the nearest car, clearly showing off. Priding herself on being a woman of action, right now Fang was going to act. Even if that action was going to get her into a whole heap of trouble from Sazh, especially considering she was about to hot wire one of his cars. But this was something she could do. Right now she felt alive. More awake and aware and ready to go than she had in a month or more. This was something that wasn't sitting around moping about her general existence.

As she began to fiddle with the wiring, Fang caught the disparaging glare she was receiving and rolled her eyes. "What? Just because you can get across town in the blink of an eye doesn't mean the rest of us are as light on our feet. Ask for forgiveness, not permission, sweetheart. You'll get more done that way."

Pursing her lips, Lightning zipped back to her room and grabbed two masks and got changed into her tactical gear in a hurry. The sleek black conductive material helped Lightning's speed and didn't overload her powers, so was a safer option should they wind up in trouble out in the world. If Fang ever decided to stick around, she might look into getting her a "uniform" of sorts.

Appearing back in the garage, Lightning slipped into the open door with a shrug and threw the mask at Fang. "If we're doing this, we need to at least handle our anonymity. I'm not rescuing this L'cie only to have you taken in his place, Hex would kill me."

With a spark from Lightning's fingertips the car suddenly purred to life, rendering Fang's work obsolete. Instead of being annoyed, the Pulsian leant back and gave her a wink. "Nice work, Sunshine. We might make a real L'cie out of you yet." Fang hit the accelerator and drove out of the garage, speeding up as soon as they hit the road. Lightning cast an uneasy glance back at the mansion as they left, knowing full well the consequences if they failed. Or hell, even if they succeeded. Sazh was probably going to have her head for this.

They drove in silence for a time, neither seemingly able to start a conversation, until the shifter got the courage to speak up. "Hey, listen." Fang said quietly once they had been driving for a while, breaking the silence. "I'm... Sorry that I keep giving the Haven's ideologies shit. I... never agreed with the pacifist mentality when I was here briefly as a kid, so I jumped at the chance to go with Caius when he preferred the more... Proactive approach. I'm just grateful that V...Hex has had someone to look out for her being here. And I'm sorry for that shit I pulled on you in the field that day. I probably could have found a less confrontational way to make a point."

Of all possible smart-ass comments she could have made, Lightning definitely wasn't prepared for an apology. Then again, she couldn't exactly fault Fang's position. Not entirely, given that they were more than taking a proactive approach off their own initiative. She took a breath and stared straight ahead at the road. "You make it sound like I agree with him on everything we do at the Haven."

"Well don't you?"

"I'm here with you now, aren't I?"

"Hm. Valid point."

Lightning remained quiet, feeling Fang gazing at her curiously. She turned her head and the two made eye contact, before Fang turned away with a smile. "Well, if I'm gonna have someone with me on this rescue run, I'm glad it's someone that can go toe to toe with me."

"Toe to toe? Haven't I handed you your ass on more than one occasion? Regardless of your alleged information gathering?"

"Let's call it a draw."

"Right..." Lightning replied with a chuckle. She relaxed a little in the seat and leant her head against her hand, watching the Pulsian with interest. The fact that they were doing something potentially dangerous… Definitely rebellious and likely stupid, seemed to lighten Fang's mood considerably. Lightning smiled to herself as she thought about how this was the most animated she'd seen her since the shifter had arrived. "But to answer your question, no. I don't agree with everything he says."

Fang inclined her head, tilting it to the side as her jade eyes grew brighter at the words. If Lightning didn't find the shifter so grating, she might have spared a thought that Fang was actually cute when she shut up. The Pulsian didn't say anything and gestured for her to continue.

"Caius is what happens when ideologies become extremism, but Sazh sitting in his mansion sprouting philosophy of peace isn't saving the L'cie that are in the outside world, suffering. I was one, after all. My father is a Sanctum supporter, a Purist. Thinks L'cies are abominations. I was terrified when he found out, so I ran. Spent three years on the streets after my powers manifested. Who knows," Lightning paused with a low chuckle, "maybe I'd have been by your side if Caius had have gotten to me first."

Fang laughed and tapped her claws along the steering wheel. "I... Actually think I would have liked that. You're a pain in the arse, Lightning. But you're one of the more capable L'cie I've come across. Would have been cool to see what kind of hell we could have raised together."

"We're in a car together to infiltrate a Sanctum facility. I think you're about to find out."

"True that."

The brunette parked the truck in the forest, far away from the makeshift camp and killed the engine. Fang took a breath and turned to the elemental in the darkness. "Hey, whatever happens, get the kid then zip them back here. Don't wait for me." Her exit from the truck was halted by a firm and warm hand on her shoulder.

"We're in the deep end together here, Fang. We're all getting out or not at all."

With a hard swallow Fang nodded slowly, watching the pinkette carefully. Brave words from a L'cie who meant to sever her head from her shoulders with a bolt of electricity not too long ago. Fang shrugged to herself, taking it as a victory of sorts. They had to trust each other if they were going to survive and get this L'cie out alive. The two women got out of the truck together and crept towards the facility. When the camp came into view, Lightning sucked in a breath at the sheer amount of military presence and cursed.

"Goddess, how are we meant to get through all of that? Where would we even begin to find this L'cie?" A bitter, wry chuckle came from next to her and she turned to find Fang with a set jaw and the blue skin etching slowly up her neck to her face. "Fang?"

"Huh. Sorry. I uh... I've got good reason to take issue with Sanctum and everything they represent. You may well see evidence for why I... Disagree with Sazh's philosophy when you witness what they do here. We had infiltrated a facility like this a few years ago to rescue a kid that had the ability to absorb radiation, redirect it. In retrospect I can see now that he was likely gonna wind up as Caius' new weapon. He fixed up Valhalla then got kidnapped by these Sanctum bastards, so we had to come after him."

"Did you... Find him?"

"We gave what was left of him a proper burial."

Lightning fell silent, the horror-filled realization making her sick to her stomach. No wonder Fang was so passionate about freedom for all L'cie when she was out here seeing the worst of humanity time and time again. No wonder she was so aggressive about the Haven sitting safely in their mansion. It made her uncomfortable to see the other side of the argument and find it plausible. Lightning reached over and clasped Fang's wrist. "We won't let it happen again." She said resolutely, and with a determined nod from the shifter they set off on their self-imposed mission.

Donning the masks and Lightning drawing the hoods over her head, they crept towards the small compound, busy with activity from the troops. Fang expertly sliced a hole in the chain link fence on the outer perimeter, careful not to set off any proximity alarms with a strategically placed electrical discharge from Lightning. They stalked through the shadows searching out the containment barracks.

Fang gave a cheeky grin beneath the mask and held up a single claw as she slid underneath a large military vehicle, prying open the armour plating and cutting the fuel line. Diesel splashed out onto the ground, Fang shuffling back quickly to avoid being soaked. She slid out from under the vehicle expecting a chastising glare but instead found a twinkle of mischievous intent in those bright cerulean eyes.

"Nice. Good idea. Let's take a moment to incapacitate the rest of the vehicles, as many as we can. It'll make our escape easier when the alarms inevitably sound." Lightning whispered with a smile. The two worked in tandem, Lightning shorting out spark plugs while Fang crawled under the APCs and cut brake lines, fuel pumps, whatever she could to slow Sanctum down.

"Lightning, over there. Hangar. If they get anything in the air they'll be able to track us." Fang hissed, moving towards it as silently as she could. The pinkette followed and with a quiet click of her fingers shorted out the electrics in the cockpit. Fang pulled her mask down and grinned, an expression that Lightning couldn't help but mirror. The shifter was enjoying herself. It was the first time since they'd met that Lightning had ever seen her smile. Inwardly, she decided she liked it. If she had to risk her life every now and again just to see it, she was happy for the adrenaline rush.

"Think we've done enough damage to crash this party?" Fang asked, pulling the mask back onto her face and drawing the hood over her head. Lightning shook her head and motioned for Fang to duck. Bringing her hands forward she called forth a massive amount of electricity and it lit up her eyes like neon.

"Get ready to run for the barracks."

Shunting her arms forward, Lightning let off a flurry of electricity, causing a huge explosive crack to sound out through the compound. The facility was suddenly plunged into darkness and voices started shouting out from outside. Lightning let a little electricity dance around her arms to light their surroundings but Fang clamped her hand around it, snuffing it out with a quiet grunt.

"Don't. Unless you need it to see. My vision's fine in the dar- Look out!" Fang darted forward and blocked a baton swing with her arm, grabbing at the Sanctum troopers wrist and pulling it back behind him. With a snarl she whipped around behind him and put him into a headlock, ready to snap his neck.

"Stop! Don't, Fang. No fatalities." Lightning hissed, her eyes darting between hers and the panicked eyes of the Sanctum soldier. Her gaze softened and she took a few slow steps forward, reaching out gently. "Please. I know how much they have wronged us, but kill him and it proves them all right about us. It'll prove Caius right about you."

Fang growled though the sound was more contemplative than aggressive, before she moved her hand around with a sigh and clamped it over the man's nose and mouth. After a brief moment of struggling he fell unconscious, Fang dropping him unceremoniously to the floor. "You win this round, Lightning."

"Thank you, and call me Light." The elemental replied, pleased she'd managed to get through. For once. "I'll be back in a second." She flashed away in a crackling of electricity, returning seconds later with a blue-haired boy in her arms, unconscious.

At this point, the scurrying of soldiers could be heard heading in their direction, and the two women spared a glance at one another. "Go, I'll hold them off, get him out of here." Fang snapped, Lightning shaking her head in protest. The door blew open and the first of the troops barged in, immediately opening fire. The shifter tackled Lightning out of the way with a snarl, her face fully changing into her bestial form. "I said go! There's no time!"

Lightning ground her teeth in her head but turned away. She sprinted from the hangar with the teenager in tow, careful with his neck so as not to snap it from the speed she was running at. Emerging from the forest to find the car still intact and hidden, Lightning placed him carefully in the passenger seat.

Without any further hesitation, she zipped back into the compound, skidding to a halt in the underbrush when she found Fang surrounded by Sanctum soldiers. True to the brunette's word, Lightning couldn't see any fatalities, just a lot of injured troops and a lot of guns trained on the fully shifted form of Fang. Her breath hitched when she realised that Sanctum wasn't looking like they were going to take her in.

"Well, L'cie, we won't waste our time processing you, especially after your escapades at the diner. We're just going to put you down now instead. Any last words?" A silver-haired man sneered as he paced around in front of her.

While she expected some feeling of dread at his words, Fang could only feel relief. Maybe now she could stop fighting, stop running, and be at peace. She chuckled and spat blood from her mouth, looking him dead in the eyes.

"Sure I do. Come Day of Wrath, O Pulse L'Cie. Make of this day a brave epoch. It's a fancy and long winded way of sayin' you can all go fu-"

Her brazen words were cut short by an electrical discharge lighting up the compound, blinding everyone in the vicinity. Suddenly she was dashing forward into the forest at an impossible speed, being carried by Lightning. The quick escape had dislocated her shoulder but considering she didn't have any bullets in her skull, it was naturally a step up from how Fang thought her evening was going to go. She struggled to keep her stomach settled as they came to an abrupt stop, the whole world spinning.

"Etro… I'm gonna be sick…" Fang complained as she staggered and fell to her knees, crawling over to a nearby tree.

"Fang… Your shoulder…" Lightning warned, getting a weakly held finger to silence her.

"Just give me… A sec… Will ya?" The shifter panted, before straightening up long enough to slam her shoulder hard into the tree. With a sickening click the bone popped back into place, Fang gritting her teeth and stifling any pained screams that would give away their position. Lightning rushed over to help her up, before Fang just grabbed her by her good arm and pulled her onto the ground, breathing heavily.

The Pulsian wrapped her arms around her, trying to calm her racing heart. She came so close to death, and once again even welcomed it. Yet when she was being pulled out of the fire by the elemental, there was a spark of hope that reignited her cold heart. Now all she felt was adrenaline, fear, relief and wonder all mixed in and vying for her attention, and all she could do was hang onto Lightning like a lifeline. Perhaps she wanted to stick around after all. Fang had to admit, they made a good team.

The pair started to laugh suddenly, the adrenaline making them both manic. Lightning stilled as she was held tight by the shaking Pulsian. There was something warm, safe and familiar about being in Fang's arms and Lightning blushed, gently pushing herself off of Fang before she could get too used to the feeling. Green eyes sparkled with intensity as they looked up at her, Fang grinning wildly. "Damn, Sunshine. Now that was a way to work the kinks out of my system. What a rush. You alright, Light?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine." Lightning replied, suddenly feeling distant and strange. The excitement was wearing off and now all she could think of was the sheer amount of trouble they were going to be in if there were any fatalities. All she could think of was the blood all over Fang's face from the beating received while she had ran off with the teenager to get him to safety. All she could think of was the guns held to Fang's head, and that if she was a few seconds slower the shifter would be dead.

They hid in the bushes for a while, until they were certain they weren't followed as far out as they were. Fang grew quiet as she helped the pinkette up and into the cab, placing the young L'cie in between them. They drove in silence through the night, Lightning napping on occasion from the exhaustion. Her system was tapped out from the amount of exertion with her abilities. She woke as she felt the shifter brush a gentle claw along her arm to get her attention.

"Sorry. We're about back to the mansion. Figured we both need to be awake to smuggle the kid in. Hey, Light. You were… Real amazin' back there." Fang said as they approached the mansion in the grey dawn.

"Thanks for helping, I couldn't have done it without you."

"Sure you could have," Fang chuckled as she pulled the car into the garage and killed the engine. "You probably would have been back in time for dinner too and…. Aw fuck."

Lightning's eyes tracked up to see what has silenced Fang in such a profane manner and winced. Sazh was standing in the garage, wings flared and looking royally pissed. The others were standing around, awake and nervously fidgeting. "Lightnin'? Are we in trouble?"

"Yep."

They silently got out of the car, Fang carrying the young L'cie over to Snow. He took the teen down to the medical bay with Hex, who was constantly looking over her shoulder repeatedly at her sister's wounds as they left the garage. Meanwhile, Serah frowned at the two women, trying to figure out if she should be mad that they went off on their own on what appeared to be a dangerous mission. Or, relieved that they were getting along. Or, terrified that they were getting along. She hadn't quite figured it out yet. She decided to tactfully retreat, quickly following Hex to the lab.

"My office. Now." Sazh snapped, pointing at the doorway. Lightning and Fang meandered through the doorway, looking thoroughly chastised. He at least had the decency to shut and lock the door behind them before whirling on them both.

"Are. You. Kidding me? What the hell possessed you both to run off and play hero? You know you're not meant to be going off base unsanctioned, think of the damage you could have caused!"

"And think about the damage to that boy that would have happened if we didn't?" Fang retorted, angry that Sazh could try to take the highroad on this. "You know what Sanctum is capable of, you've seen it with the others. I wasn't about to sit back here and let another kid get turned to paste for the sake of science while you were out playing business trip!"

Sazh glared and twitched his wings in anger. "Fang, I allowed you to stay here so you could find safety and security with your sister. Not to put the lives of fellow students at risk, or corrupt the others with Caius' brash ideologies."

His words hurt Lightning and she looked away, devastated that she had somehow managed to disappoint her mentor when she had only been trying to do the right thing. His words also riled Fang, who bared her teeth at him in anger.

"Hey, I haven't corrupted shit. Lightning is a grown-arse woman who is more than capable of thinking for herself. She did the right thing, even if things got a little out of hand. We saved that kid from a fate worse than death at the hands of the Sanctum. She gave the orders, knew when to stop, knew when to hustle. We saved that kid with no fatalities on either side, and a couple of beatings to the face is a price I will gladly pay again and again if one more life is saved."

The two squared off against one another in silence. She spared a quick glance at Lightning, finding the pinkette staring sadly at the floor. Fang's eyes narrowed as she caught his scent on the air. Surprisingly, what she picked up was fear. Was he afraid of her? Of bringing the wrath of the Sanctum to their doorstep? Or maybe what he really feared… Was that he was terrified of losing Lightning. He really had wound up as the father figure for all the kids in the Haven after all. Fang's gaze softened and she gave the elemental a small, encouraging smile.

"I won't speak for Lightning, any more than I am capable of corrupting her. But even if she doesn't see it that way, I know we did the right thing, and I'd happily do it again. I did it for her sister, I did it for this kid, I've done it for plenty of other lost souls that are just like u. And if you have a problem with it, I'll take my leave and you can explain my departure to my sister."

Fang finished her piece, staring blatantly at Sazh in outright defiance. His nostrils flared in anger as he exhaled start from his nose. "Two weeks. That's how long you're both losing phone, email and television privileges for." Sazh said finally after letting them both stew in silence for a few minutes. "You're both going to mop the entire length of this building by hand, no powers. Then you're polishing the bannisters on the stairs. And that's the last I want to hear about this. Next time you come to me. Do you understand?"

Lightning nodded silently while Fang just gave a lazy salute with a roll of her eyes. The shifter raised an eyebrow and glared at the winged L'cie, incredulous. "Wait, you mean now? You want us to clean right now? But we've been driving half the night and-"

"Your enemies don't wait for you to take a nap, Fang. I remember what Caius teaches. Maybe this will help you think twice about going off on your own again. Get started now and you'll be finished before lunch. Whatever you do for the rest of the day isn't my concern. Now outta my office, I need to lie down. I flew half the night from Luxerion back here when Hex called me to say you two were missing."

Fang narrowed her eyes and hissed at him through her teeth as the two women departed the room. They both left the office and made their way to the laundry, where all the cleaning equipment was kept. "Why the chores as punishment? Didn't realise I was bloody thirteen again and being grounded for sneaking out to see my best mate." She complained, making her way to the sink to wipe some of the blood off her skin.

There was a quiet laugh from next to her as Lightning reached into a cupboard to grab the first aid kit, motioning for Fang to sit on the bench. She pulled out the antiseptic and cloth and gently dabbed the blood from the shifter's face. "He says it gives us time to think, when we can't use our powers. The first time I was made to polish the stairs I thought I'd be a smartass and get it done in a matter of seconds. I... misjudged my abilities and ended up accidentally stripping the wood down to splinters from moving too fast. Everything had to be resurfaced."

"Nice. Bet that ruffled his damn feathers."

"You could certainly say that." Lightning replied quietly, realising she was standing between Fang's legs as the brunette sat on the bench. Focusing on tending to the wounds, Lightning remained silent as she put a few small lines of surgical tape across the cut above Fang's eyebrow. "Thanks for sticking up for me in there." She added as she finished up, freezing as Fang leant forward and gripped her by the shoulders.

"I meant every word of it, Light. We saved that kid's life today. You did the right thing. Even if sometimes the right thing doesn't feel right."

They packed up the med kit and then broke out the cleaning equipment to begin their punishment of chores. The duo worked tirelessly throughout the day, occasionally stealing glances at each other when they thought the other wasn't looking. Lightning was finding she had to shelve many of her previous misconceptions about the Pulsian, especially in the wake of what she had learnt from Serah's time with her. Even her own time with Fang.

The shifter was brash, aggressive, crude, violent and extraordinarily dangerous... But she was fiercely loyal to her fellow L'cie. Fang didn't want to risk her life to save that teen for glory, merely because she believed in keeping him safe from anyone who would seek him harm. Lightning was finding she had to re-evaluate a lot of things regarding this woman.

When the two reconvened in the early afternoon, both were exhausted and ready for bed. Fang found Lightning in the kitchen, sipping a tea with a contemplative expression. The Pulsian moved to the bench to boil the kettle to make her own, keeping Lightning in the corner of her vision. She too found she had to push back on the idea that The Haven was filled with pacifists, a conclusion she should have come to the first time she was fried by the cranky elemental out in the field. If she got past their rough start, Lightning wasn't all that bad. Maybe in another life they could have been friends. Maybe in this life she could work her way towards that.

"Listen Light... I... Thanks." Fang muttered quietly, waiting for the kettle to boil with folded arms. Lightning glanced up from her own tea and frowned.

"For what?"

There was no response for a moment, Fang staring at the doorway absently in silence. Lightning had all but given up on a response when the Pulsian cleared her throat and looked over.

"For lookin' after my sister... when I wasn't able to."

Lightning smiled and walked over to her, placing a reassuring hand on Fang's shoulder. It was a small gesture, but enough.

"Likewise, Fang."

The two stared at each other for a few moments before Fang scrunched her nose, looking worried as she felt the tiny hairs on the back of her neck raised. She tapped a claw against the bench and grimaced. "Light, did you ground before we got back? You know, ditch the excess build up?"

The elemental's face dropped and they both winced. There was a fizzle from the lights in the room before the mansion was plunged into darkness.

"... Shit."