Dreaming

Serah switched on the lights in the living room and sighed. "Oh, Claire, not again." Sprawled out on the couch was Lightning and from the looks of things, she hadn't even bothered to get cleaned up after getting back from work.

"I should probably you get you up," Serah said as she walked over to the couch. "You'll get a sore back just like last time if I leave you like that."

However, Serah stopped short when she saw the look on her sister's face. Lightning was smiling, and not the brittle, almost bitter smile she'd had as of late. No, this time, it was a real smile, soft and gentle, and sort of shy. It was Claire's smile.

"I wonder what you're dreaming about," Serah murmured as she went to fetch a blanket. "It must be something really special."

X X X

Fang's lips curved into a smirk. "You know, Light, I think that desk job of yours is making you soft."

Lightning hid her amusement behind a glare. A sparring session with Fang just wouldn't be complete without an insult or two. In fact, she'd have been worried if the other woman didn't tease her. "Say that again, Fang." Lightning let her own lips curve into a ghost of a smile. "Just say that again."

Fang raised one eyebrow and walked over to Lightning, spear held idly in one hand. "Well, well, well now, Light, is that a threat?" She stopped when they were almost chest-to-chest and leaned in to whisper into Lightning's ear. "What I said, Major Farron, is that I think you're getting soft."

For a long moment, neither of them moved. Lightning could feel Fang's breath against her cheek, could almost feel the other woman's body against her own. It made her want to just turn her head a little to the side and…

Her gun blade was in her hand in an instant and she swept the weapon up and forward. Just like she'd expected, Fang was ready for the attack and she had to bite back a grin as their weapons met in a shower of sparks.

"Attacking out of the blue like that, Light. That's not too sporting, is it?" Fang grinned. "Did I get you all riled up?"

Lightning twisted her weapon away from Fang's and spun into another attack. "I like to think of it as improvising, Fang." The two weapons met again and Lightning pulled away for an instant, only to lash out with a series of strikes aimed both high and low. "You're always telling me I need to do more of that."

"Not exactly." Fang smirked and rather than backpedalling to try and gain a bit more distance so that she could put her spear's longer reach to use, she instead locked their weapons again and pressed herself right up against Lightning. "Flexible. I said you should be more flexible."

Fang shoved Lightning back and thrust her spear forward. Rather than move to the side, Lightning bent backward and let the spear pass through the space where her chest had been. As the weapon passed over her, Lightning flipped, kicking up at where she knew Fang's hands would be. To her credit, the emerald-eyed woman kept her hold on the spear, but Lightning knew from the wince on Fang's lips that her hands had to be hurting.

"Okay, Light, now that was just showing off." Fang opened and closed one of her hands to try and get the feeling back into it. "But all that fancy stuff doesn't mean you'll win."

"Is that so?" Lightning circled Fang slowly.

"Yeah." Fang's eyes twinkled. "How about we make this interesting? First person to take a proper hit buys dinner."

Lightning nodded. "That seems reasonable. I just hope you didn't forget to bring your wallet, Fang."

Fang scowled. "I forget my wallet one time, Light, just one time and you never let me hear the end of it." She grinned and twirled her spear over her head. "Besides, it's not like it matters since you'll be the one buying dinner." She put on a mock thoughtful look. "I'm not free till after seven, so I suppose you can pick me up at seven thirty."

Fang would have said more, but Lightning darted forward to attack. Lightning dodged Fang's first attack and the sweeping blow that followed before she struck several times in quick succession, each strike aimed at a different place, each movement carefully executed to give the other woman as little opportunity as possible to counterattack. A small smile formed on her face as Fang blocked each attack and then began to force her back with a number of powerful blows. This, right here, was what both of them lived for.

Half an hour later, the two of them were lying down side-by-side on the grass, an empty bottle of water between them.

"I can't believe you won," Fang grumbled and rolled over to glare at Lightning. "You cheater."

"Cheater?" Lightning smiled lazily. "How exactly did I cheat? Besides, this is what you get for calling me soft."

"Yeah, yeah." Fang rolled onto her back and put one arm over her face to block out the sun. "Seven thirty still work for you?"

"Seven thirty should be fine." Lightning looked over at Fang. "And remember, you're paying this time."

"I know, I know." Fang got back to her feet and stretched. "How about another round, Light? Loser buys dessert." She extended one hand to Lightning.

Lightning took Fang's hand and got back to her feet. "I would have thought that dinner came with dessert."

Fang laughed. "Everyone knows dessert and dinner aren't the same." At Lightning's dubious look, her smile widened. "What, you're not sure you can win again? I can't blame you, after all, you winning the first time was just a fluke."

"It's not that," Lightning replied. "I'm just wondering if you can afford dessert."

Fang's smile turned into a roguish grin. "When it comes to you, Light, I can definitely afford it." She tilted her head to one side. "Although you should be careful. Now that you've got a desk job and all, you might end up putting on some weight if you're not –"

Whack.

"Damn it, Light, we hadn't started yet!" Fang growled. "And that doesn't count!"

X X X

Serah draped the blanket carefully over her sister. "Just keep dreaming a little longer, Claire."

Curled up on the couch, Lightning's lips curved into a smile. And somewhere, amidst the crystal that marked the final resting place of Cocoon, so did Fang's.

X X X

Dreams are the heaven that the heart longs for.

X X X

Author's Notes

First of all, I neither own Final Fantasy, nor am I making any money off this.

So… I wasn't thinking of doing any one-shots, but lately my sister has been playing a lot of Kingdom Hearts: Birth Before Sleep. I ended up watching her play through it (for some strange reason, I find it more interesting to watch than play sometimes) and the line at the end just popped into my head and I knew I had to get it into a story somewhere. The end result isn't something I'm entirely satisfied with, largely because it feels like it needs another part or two, and I'm not sure I'm going to get around to writing them for a while.

On another note, have you guys seen the trailer for FF XIII-2? I am preparing to rage-quit reality (props to my sister for coming up with that phrase) if they end up pairing Lightning with that purple guy. Really…

As always, I appreciate feedback. Reviews and comments are welcome.