A/N: In the Paying it Forward universe, Fang and Lightning - alongside Seven and Lasswell - get claimed by two horses and two cats when they go searching for the ideal pets to adopt, with Terra and Fina (FFBE) making an appearance. No Sice in this story. On a personal note, things at work have been keeping me busy as of late, and I'm doing my best to stay physically healthy.

Claimed by Angels

"Ready to go adopting the kitties from the shelter, Lasswell?" Lightning asks her son Lasswell, who Fang would argue that he was far more excited about this than the older Farron by a country mile. It was a few weeks before that Fang and Lightning had a LONG talk about adopting pets into the Yun-Farron household, which both agreed that cats would be the best for the house in the end. When it came to horses, something Seven was nagging both women about, Fang only told the silver haired girl that the horses would depend on the cats, and for a wide variety of reasons. Although the silver haired girl felt sad after that talk, she knew that the cats would help her get that horse she has her eye on for the last few months: Odin. "I sure am, mama. Let's go!" was the reply from one VERY excited Lasswell. Without delay, Lightning and Lasswell made their way to the no kill shelter to adopt two cats.

During the drive, Lightning kept thinking about the talk she had with Fang about the horses. She and Fang made more than enough money to adopt a pair of horses, not to forget the house having space for at least two horses to freely roam around in. Although Fang made the final call about them, Lightning was thinking about gifting Seven Odin for her birthday, as the silver haired girl proved to be quite responsible for her age at home and was also doing very well in school. After all, Seven's 8th birthday is a short time away from now. Lasswell was getting a bit hyper about this adventure with his mum, which one quick look from Lightning had her worried a bit but also had her realise that Lasswell is only 5. Things like this are common for kids his age. A few minutes later, the pair arrived at the no kill shelter to start their quest to adopt two cats for the Yun-Farron household.

Little did they know that they were already claimed from the moment they walked into the shelter.

XXX

The sound of two young cats meowing their hearts out upon seeing a lass with pink hair and a young lad of wild but dark hair was music to the shelter's ears. More specifically, Terra Branford's ears, which Terra owns and operates this particular no kill shelter. Oddly enough, it took the speed of Lightning's namesake for the blonde to get to and greet Lightning and Lasswell to the shelter. "Terra, my son Lasswell and I are looking for two cats to adopt..." Lightning started before the meowing continued, which Lasswell pointed to the cage where the meowing originated from, gesturing both Lightning and Terra to a specific cage as the two cats meowing had Lasswell intrigued to where he wanted to spend some time with them. One look at the cage where the meowing originated and Lightning immediately fell in love with both cats inside said cage. Lasswell couldn't stop smiling at the two cats, who smiled back at them with their eyes.

Bahamut and Y'shtola were the only two surviving cats from their litter and the sign at the front of their cage suggested that they had to be adopted together. It was the fact they're both a Miqo'te, a feline breed Lightning and Serah both grew up having around as kids, that saw the older Farron smile at the pair with her cerulean eyes. When the trio stopped at their cage, Terra let the pair out of their cage to hang out with Lightning and Lasswell for a few minutes. Bahamut darted towards Lasswell, 'demanding' that he be held by the young lad, while Y'shtola was more than content to just lay and purr on Lightning's lap. Bahamut and Y'shtola having different personalities reminded the pinkette of her family... how they work so well as a family despite their differences and quirks. Lightning's chat to Terra somehow got Bahamut's interest, which had the male Miqo'te going back to hugging his human brother upon finding out that Lightning is taking both him and Y'shtola home to their forever home.

Signing off on the paperwork and then paying the needed fees to take both Bahamut and Y'shtola to their forever home saw Lasswell smiling non stop - he's one happy kid with his feline brother, with Y'shtola being the icing on the cake. Y'shtola somehow secured herself on Lighting's shoulder while Bahamut stayed in that hugging position with Lasswell from the moment he was let out of that cage with Y'shtola. Terra bid the two cats a teary eyed farewell, plus made a kind request to the older Farron for photos of the family with the cats when the time was right, which Lightning immediately agreed to. "Thanks for everything, Terra. We'll keep you up to date on these two when we can - and I think Bahamut wants a nap when he gets home..." Lightning said to the blonde while making a note for her son and the male Miqo'te, causing the two new friends to share a laugh upon seeing Lightning's son STILL hugging Bahamut. "Bahamut claimed your son as his human, just like how Y'shtola claimed you as hers..." Terra pointed out to the pinkette.

Two down... and two to go.

A few months later, the week before Seven's 8th birthday

"Seven...where are you... oh, there ya are! Ready to hang out with Odin, kiddo?" Fang asked her and Lightning's daughter, who showed up to the living room a bit quicker than the speed of Lightning's namesake when she was called to the living room. The sincere smile on Seven's face said it all: she was REALLY excited to hang out with Odin at the stables, a bit more so than Lasswell when he and Lightning adopted Bahamut and Y'shtola from the no kill shelter a few months ago. The cats were very low maintenance, and also claimed Fang and Seven as their other two humans. Y'shtola made it her personal duty to protect Seven he while the silver haired girl slept at night, and was in Nap Mode with Bahamut and Fang once a week. It was the hug from Seven that made Fang smile the one smile reserved for only her family. The brunette made the right call by having Seven wait a while with Odin, as the silver haired girl proved herself by being equally responsible with Bahamut and Y'shtola.

It was Seven who took Fang by the arm to the car, which had a secret compartment attached to the rear of the family SUV which is meant to hold something as big as two horses which Fang put together in secret the night before that Seven didn't take note of. The silver haired girl was just too happy to have a chance to really hang out with Odin at the stables. Fang, being Fang, couldn't stop smiling at the scene. The drive to the stables consisted of quiet but happy conversation or singing along to whatever came on the radio. If there was something Lightning LOVED about Fang, it was the brunette's interactions with their daughter and son. Fang made sure to be as involved as she could with both Seven and Lasswell, and kept in touch with them whenever she had an expedition that took her away from her family. The brunette proved to everyone that she is a family person, one who is devoted to her family without any hesitation. It was the singing and conversation that made the long drive to the stables feel quicker than it actually was.

Upon arrival to the stables, it was Fina who was the first to greet the pair. "Mrs. Yun-Farron? Seven? You two are early... either way, thank you for keeping the appointment. Let's go meet Odin, ladies!" Fina greeted the pair with her cheerful tone. Seven couldn't stop smiling. Upon noticing the sack of whatever attached to Fang, Seven couldn't stop smiling... I think Mama's getting Odin for my birthday... I know that I have to be realistic, but I'm so excited. It's been a while since I saw Odin... I hope he takes note of Mama's sack, Seven thought to herself, hoping that the sack contains the gil needed to adopt the horse Seven keeps talking about and he goes with them to his forever home. The two adults talk about varying things, with Fang taking note that there is one other horse which Odin has been helping become more sociable. A few minutes later, the trio arrive at Odin's stable, complete with the other horse Fina mentioned - Kain. The smiles only got wider.

Kain and Odin claimed Fang and Seven on the spot upon their arrival.

XXX

"It seems that Odin and Kain claimed their humans, -..." Fina started before the brunette cut her off, insisting that Fina called her Fang as the Oerban native was annoyed by Fina being polite the entire time. Moments after that, Fang and Seven resumed their time with Odin and Kain, with Seven getting loads of Odin's attention, causing the stable owner to write a few notes in a small notepad she carries on her person, which is hidden from Seven and Fang's view, especially taking note of how Fang's nature saw Kain being more open and friendly towards her and the silver haired girl than before he joined Odin at the stables. The interaction caused both Fang and Seven to release soft but sincere giggles and smiles while the horses were the happiest when those two were present. A good hour or so later, Fang alone approached Fina to talk about something, keeping Seven near the horses.

"Fina... in case you're wondering about the sack... it's the fees needed for both Kain and Odin. Next week is Seven's birthday and I want to gift her Odin, and I don't want to pry Kain from him. Let's just fill out the paperwork so that I can make Seven's birthday a very happy one..." Fang revealed to the stable owner in a small office near the stables. When Fina saw the amount of gil Fang provided, it was more than enough for both horses. When asked why this much gil, the only thing from Fang was that "my wife Lightning wanted to pay you the gil she owed for losing that bet, she didn't forget...", causing both Fina and Fang to laugh their arses off. A few minutes later, the pair returned to where Odin and Kain were in the stables, giving Seven more love and attention than either woman thought possible. Seven was told to get into the car as they had to get going home - only for Kain and Odin to be loaded into the open cargo area attached to the rear of the SUV.

Fang was driving more carefully now than earlier in the day. The only thing Seven could do was nap the entire drive home - the silver haired girl was tired from an exciting time with Odin and Kain. The brunette had to keep her cool which is a bit unlike her in this situation, but the circumstance of bringing home two horses was more than worthy of the reason. Once Fang and Seven got home from the stables, it was Lightning who sneakily took Seven out of the SUV, ahead of the horses that were behaving quite well in the open but secret compartment in the rear of the SUV. The older Farron carried their daughter to Seven's bedroom so that the silver haired girl could continue her nap, while Fang did her work to get the horses into the open land so that they can explore their new surroundings. Oddly enough, the food meant for the horses was near the window that was Seven's bedroom. It gave Odin the perfect opportunity to guard his human sister while eating his food with Kain.

Odin was one happy horse with his human sister, and made sure that Seven has the happiest birthday yet.

Two Months Later

Fina and Terra have a quiet lunch at a café near Neo Oerba. The two friends were talking about how Fang and Lightning helped their businesses improve a great deal by the very animals they adopted. While Terra showed off a few photos of a happily smiling Yun-Farron family with both cats and the two horses, Fina showed the blonde how happy and at peace Kain and Odin are with Seven, complete with a photo of some horseback riding involving Fang, Lightning, Seven and Lasswell where Kain and Odin were on their best behaviour. "You can say that Odin, Bahamut, Kain and Y'Shtola were all claimed by angels, Terra. Don't you think so?" Fina asked her friend. Terra's answer?

They claimed each other. They are all angels, one way or another. The Yun-Farron Family is complete at last, and happy as can be.

As they should be.

FIN

A/N#2: Next tale up is in the Second Time Around universe where Lightning asks Edge and Rydia for advice on how to approach Valentine's Day with Fang, a holiday the brunette is NOT a fan of.