I'm special. [There's a ring of sarcasm there as she follows, catching up to Fang easily.] So I've heard.
[If only the answer was that easy, though, or else she'd have fewer questions about the whys and hows. She's learned to stop asking them to herself for now, and to take advantage of the temporary time she does have to help out the people who need it instead. Taking out nasty Shades is a better outlet for her frustration anyway.
Someone's gotta do it.
A snort of laughter comes from beside Fang.]
Too bad I didn't come through a mirror this time. They broken or something?
[If her sigh were any bigger, Lightning would completely deflate like a balloon.]
You ever hear about people turning up in bodies of water?
[That's a better way of putting "a puddle on the side of the road", she thinks. Less embarrassing, although she wonders where the closest body of water is that she could have woken up in. Saying a pool isn't any better.
... Actually, there is no not-embarrassing way of putting this, is there? Probably not.]
[Lightning's gaze shoots away to stare at her feet as she tries to continue walking with purpose. Somehow, Fang managed to make this worse for Lightning to explain without meaning to, but she's not about to leave an old friend in the dark.
It's not like she's very good at hiding it, anyway, and she knows it.]
Wonder if it rained the night I got here. There was a puddle on the side of the road.
[Fang's eyebrows rose a little, but this time, she kept her laugh to herself.]
Let's hope so, [she chirps, and instead of letting Lightning dwell too long on the implications, stepped up to a little stall-like thing where someone was cooking skewers over a grill. Vegetables, two different kinds of local fish, and "meat" skewers that was decidedly non-specific.]
Order your fill. I'll cover you.
[Fang seemed unbothered by the vague labeling of the meat skewers as she ordered two.]
[Whatever it was, it was gross and cold and dirty and something she never, ever wants to experience again. Which is why she's grateful for Fang leaving it at that – waking up sputtering and coughing up water and walking through the dark streets of the city was not Lightning's greatest moment and she'd rather not talk about it in detail.
She redirects her focus to the stand, leaning over the sizzling skewers to get a better look at what they have. The smoke and the smell make her stomach rumble; all that fighting, and she never realized how hungry she was.]
One of each.
[The attendant does some showy things with his hands as he picks them up off the grill and slides the three to her with a napkin. She chooses the fish first.]
[Fang never carries much in the way of cunes on her, but she has more than enough to cover their meal. She saunters over to a bench that thankfully isn't too sun toasted to sit on.]
Heard you were in the lot with all the others surgin' into the city. Not sure if we can call you Mirrorbound if you didn't come through the mirrors.
[She shrugs, not finding the thought worth dwelling on.] A perk of not bein' human anymore is I can follow scents. Not as well as a wolf or anything, but I get by. [She smirks, waving her skewer briefly at her friend.] And turns out, you're more than a little distinctive, Light. Even when you're not droppin' in with the weird arrivals.
Lotta nerve you have, vanishing for four months like that.
[Lightning bops her skewer against the one that Fang waves around at her before going for another small bite, and there's a silence that follows while she finishes it off.]
Yeah, sorry. Had a fal'Cie to take care of.
[And, idly, she wonders to herself if Fang even knows about it: the sacrifice she's about to make to save all of them, and Cocoon. Had they had that conversation when she was here last? Her memories are still fuzzy that she can't remember all of the smaller details, but if they had, it's something she thinks she'd be able to easily recall...
[Fang's flick briefly over at Lightning before returning to her own food. A fal'Cie, huh? A melancholy and excitement buzz at the back of her mind for two completely different reasons.]
[Then her mouth twist wryly, and Fang shrugs.] Eh, probably for the best you didn't. Things got rough around here for a while. Lucky you missed it. Fal'Cie's more important, anyway.
[She slumps back, resting against the bench, and she spins the skewer between her fingers. Ursula had told her what happened while she'd been gone, and on one hand, sure, she could consider herself lucky that she missed it but on the other, she wishes she had been here to do something about it. She had left Fang here, and if Lightning had been there at her side, would things have been different?
Another thought she isn't going to dwell on, but it does make give her smile a more sad feel to it.
[Fang smiles around the next bite of her skewer. Orphan. That felt like a lifetime ago--and not long enough, at the same time. Such a brief respite before the next shitstorm. ]
Don't know what's gonna happen next, but I guess we'll just have to wait and see when I get back.
[She's sure that they'll succeed. The last thing she remembers was Cocoon had begun to fall, and they'd completed their focus, but everything after that remains to be seen, and is nothing more than a ball of anxiety in her gut for now.
But it isn't like she's going to be here forever. That much she does know.]
They said this time is really temporary... being here. Don't know when that'll be.
[Or, counterpoint: Lightning could live here the rest of her life, no one breaks time, Serah lives, and they can all live happily ever after without the shitshow that follows.]
[The thought never even comes close to leaving Fang's head, and she idly toys with her skewer all the while. It's for the best that she doesn't know. With Fang's luck, it'll do something screwy to the time here, or something worse back home, if she goes and blathers about that stuff.]
[She scoffs, flicking away her skewer and picking up the next.]
Skippin' out already? [She drawls, only somewhat sarcastically.] Nice of you to come and visit a friend, at least. Wish you had the decency to take me with you.
[Fang says it jokingly, like she isn't falling apart at the seams with desperation. All evidence points to being able to return when she left, but... the nagging doubt, that what if she didn't never stopped tearing at her.]
Could try stuffing you through the next mirror we find, but I doubt that'd work.
[If it did, Lightning would have done that a long time ago and she would have gladly taken Fang along with her... if she'd known when it was going to happen. The difference now is that she's been made aware of the fact that the stay is much less permanent than the last, but no one could give her an answer of when she'll be leaving again.
Of course they wouldn't know – they don't know anything.
She takes the final bite of her skewer and picks out the veggie one next. Something fresher to cleanse her palate.]
[Fang smile turns wry again. She didn't blame Light in the least for not wanting to be here, but even with all the people that come and go, there were a number of them from the first wave of Mirrorbound that seemed to be cursed to stay here.]
[It was beginning to feel like she'd abandoned everyone, without any say in the matter.]
Yeah, well, it's nice to see a familiar face for a bit. Been a long year and change out here.
[It's been so much longer than that, really, but that wasn't relevant to Lightning-the-soldier.]
[Lightning chews off a piece of her skewer through a laugh, and she relaxes, somewhat content to be here in spite of their surroundings. She'd been looking forward to seeing Fang since she realized where she was, and this is much nicer than having her see Lightning at her lowest point while trying to dry herself off.]
Guess it could've been worse. What would you have done if it were Snow who showed up instead?
[She absolutely did. Fang hooks an arm over the back of the bench and tilts her head back in both genuine and feigned exasperation.]
["Treasure him." Especially if it was Lightning's Snow and not the one that's all but dead inside, waiting for his focus to consume him.] I'd make the best of the situation and tell Lady Luck she owes me one.
[Her voice could scarcely be drier, but not unkind for its gentle ribbing.]
[Lady Luck is a stingy bitch who owes Fang a hundred of whatever it is she has to offer. Especially after everything that's happened or will happen back on Cocoon. Lightning's been keeping track and she's run out of fingers to count them on.
She waves her finished veggie skewer at Fang, swallowing the last bite before moving on to her next one.]
I'm gonna owe you too, if I'm not careful. [There's a beat where Lightning laughs to herself, her fond gaze fixed on her food rather than her friend.] Thanks, by the way.
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no subject
[If only the answer was that easy, though, or else she'd have fewer questions about the whys and hows. She's learned to stop asking them to herself for now, and to take advantage of the temporary time she does have to help out the people who need it instead. Taking out nasty Shades is a better outlet for her frustration anyway.
Someone's gotta do it.
A snort of laughter comes from beside Fang.]
Too bad I didn't come through a mirror this time. They broken or something?
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[A shrug. ]
Not far as I know. They always said it was bad if they broke.
[Fang glances over. ] Just how did you wind back up here, anyway? You know some secret to comin' and goin' that I don't?
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You ever hear about people turning up in bodies of water?
[That's a better way of putting "a puddle on the side of the road", she thinks. Less embarrassing, although she wonders where the closest body of water is that she could have woken up in. Saying a pool isn't any better.
... Actually, there is no not-embarrassing way of putting this, is there? Probably not.]
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What, it spit you out in the bloody harbor? That'd be a first.
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[Lightning's gaze shoots away to stare at her feet as she tries to continue walking with purpose. Somehow, Fang managed to make this worse for Lightning to explain without meaning to, but she's not about to leave an old friend in the dark.
It's not like she's very good at hiding it, anyway, and she knows it.]
Wonder if it rained the night I got here. There was a puddle on the side of the road.
no subject
Let's hope so, [she chirps, and instead of letting Lightning dwell too long on the implications, stepped up to a little stall-like thing where someone was cooking skewers over a grill. Vegetables, two different kinds of local fish, and "meat" skewers that was decidedly non-specific.]
Order your fill. I'll cover you.
[Fang seemed unbothered by the vague labeling of the meat skewers as she ordered two.]
no subject
She redirects her focus to the stand, leaning over the sizzling skewers to get a better look at what they have. The smoke and the smell make her stomach rumble; all that fighting, and she never realized how hungry she was.]
One of each.
[The attendant does some showy things with his hands as he picks them up off the grill and slides the three to her with a napkin. She chooses the fish first.]
So how'd you know I was out there?
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Heard you were in the lot with all the others surgin' into the city. Not sure if we can call you Mirrorbound if you didn't come through the mirrors.
[She shrugs, not finding the thought worth dwelling on.] A perk of not bein' human anymore is I can follow scents. Not as well as a wolf or anything, but I get by. [She smirks, waving her skewer briefly at her friend.] And turns out, you're more than a little distinctive, Light. Even when you're not droppin' in with the weird arrivals.
Lotta nerve you have, vanishing for four months like that.
no subject
Yeah, sorry. Had a fal'Cie to take care of.
[And, idly, she wonders to herself if Fang even knows about it: the sacrifice she's about to make to save all of them, and Cocoon. Had they had that conversation when she was here last? Her memories are still fuzzy that she can't remember all of the smaller details, but if they had, it's something she thinks she'd be able to easily recall...
Oh well. Best not to dwell on that right now.]
Bet they wish I'd have stayed a little longer.
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[Fang's flick briefly over at Lightning before returning to her own food. A fal'Cie, huh? A melancholy and excitement buzz at the back of her mind for two completely different reasons.]
[Then her mouth twist wryly, and Fang shrugs.] Eh, probably for the best you didn't. Things got rough around here for a while. Lucky you missed it. Fal'Cie's more important, anyway.
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Another thought she isn't going to dwell on, but it does make give her smile a more sad feel to it.
Maybe it's better to talk about something else.]
We did it, you know. Orphan, our focus...
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Yeah. Sure did. Bastard had it coming.
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[She's sure that they'll succeed. The last thing she remembers was Cocoon had begun to fall, and they'd completed their focus, but everything after that remains to be seen, and is nothing more than a ball of anxiety in her gut for now.
But it isn't like she's going to be here forever. That much she does know.]
They said this time is really temporary... being here. Don't know when that'll be.
Everything Is Fine
[The thought never even comes close to leaving Fang's head, and she idly toys with her skewer all the while. It's for the best that she doesn't know. With Fang's luck, it'll do something screwy to the time here, or something worse back home, if she goes and blathers about that stuff.]
[She scoffs, flicking away her skewer and picking up the next.]
Skippin' out already? [She drawls, only somewhat sarcastically.] Nice of you to come and visit a friend, at least. Wish you had the decency to take me with you.
[Fang says it jokingly, like she isn't falling apart at the seams with desperation. All evidence points to being able to return when she left, but... the nagging doubt, that what if she didn't never stopped tearing at her.]
Re: Everything Is Fine
[If it did, Lightning would have done that a long time ago and she would have gladly taken Fang along with her... if she'd known when it was going to happen. The difference now is that she's been made aware of the fact that the stay is much less permanent than the last, but no one could give her an answer of when she'll be leaving again.
Of course they wouldn't know – they don't know anything.
She takes the final bite of her skewer and picks out the veggie one next. Something fresher to cleanse her palate.]
Really wish I could stay longer.
[There's no hiding her sarcasm there.]
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[It was beginning to feel like she'd abandoned everyone, without any say in the matter.]
Yeah, well, it's nice to see a familiar face for a bit. Been a long year and change out here.
[It's been so much longer than that, really, but that wasn't relevant to Lightning-the-soldier.]
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[Lightning chews off a piece of her skewer through a laugh, and she relaxes, somewhat content to be here in spite of their surroundings. She'd been looking forward to seeing Fang since she realized where she was, and this is much nicer than having her see Lightning at her lowest point while trying to dry herself off.]
Guess it could've been worse. What would you have done if it were Snow who showed up instead?
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[She absolutely did. Fang hooks an arm over the back of the bench and tilts her head back in both genuine and feigned exasperation.]
["Treasure him." Especially if it was Lightning's Snow and not the one that's all but dead inside, waiting for his focus to consume him.] I'd make the best of the situation and tell Lady Luck she owes me one.
[Her voice could scarcely be drier, but not unkind for its gentle ribbing.]
no subject
[Lady Luck is a stingy bitch who owes Fang a hundred of whatever it is she has to offer. Especially after everything that's happened or will happen back on Cocoon. Lightning's been keeping track and she's run out of fingers to count them on.
She waves her finished veggie skewer at Fang, swallowing the last bite before moving on to her next one.]
I'm gonna owe you too, if I'm not careful. [There's a beat where Lightning laughs to herself, her fond gaze fixed on her food rather than her friend.] Thanks, by the way.