Chapter Seventeen: Dragons and Demons It was one week after Corin left Lightning and Caius Uses

for Dragon Fragments that they found themselves in a completely new time period and place. Well, at least it was new for their journey together. The location and the time were intimately familiar to Lightning, whether she liked it or not. And for the most part, she did not. The year was 1 BF, before the fall of Cocoon. The location: Bodhum. Specifically, Lightning's home. Sadly, this was the place where the book led them. The passage that convinced them to come here was something engraved in her mind permanently. "Dragons are very powerful creatures. So powerful that when they are killed by somebody stronger than they are, they leave behind a fragmenta piece of their strength that they grant to the person who defeats them. It is a sign of respect for that person, for although they killed the dragon, their strength was respectable even to those who died at the blades of that person. "So, what does one do with these pieces of strength? Simply holding onto them does not grant the wielder any strength. One of the most popular uses of dragon fragments is to crush them into a fine powder and scatter it over a weapon. That increases the weapon's power tenfold, along with granting various other abilities. The wielder of the weapon attributes abilities from that dragon. An example is that if one were to kill an ice dragon and spread that fragment over their weapon, they would excel in ice magic. "Yet there are more powerful uses for the fragments than to turn them into powder. Crushing it actually does weaken the original power of the gems since much of the powder floats away. Melting the fragments, however, does not weaken the gems. Some have tried to melt the gems and pour the liquid right over their weapon. But that itself is also risky. The weapon actually becomes fragile with such a strong outside but a weaker core. No, there is only one way to truly harness a power great enough to kill absolutely any foe: Turning the fragments into projectiles." And that was what Lightning and Caius were doing now. They followed the instructions of the book to melt down the fragments. That alone took three days. Then they poured the melted gems into the molds Lightning stole from the empty Guardian Corps base. They were molds for bullets. Bullets for Lightning's gunblade. They had enough to make five bullets. Only five. But with the power that they harnessed, hopefully the five bullets would help them destroy Etro. Now, all there is to do is wait, Lightning thought as she laid on her old bed. They had to leave the bullets in the molds for another day to make sure that they truly were hardened and unbreakable. That was actually alright. Her old home made a good safe house despite the memories connected to it. She had a security system set up so that not even one of

Etro's warriors could get inside undetected. No, this past week had been very peaceful for both Caius and Lightning. Except for the nightmares of course. Caius still sent Lightning to a dream world every night so that she wouldn't have to hear only screams all night. The dreams were unpleasant, but not as maddening as the screams. Still, she was trying to fight off sleep at that very moment because of the dreams. She hadn't slept in nearly two days and the exhaustion was caught up with her now. She needed sleep, whether she was going to admit it or not. "Caius," Lightning mumbled to the man who stood on the other side of the room. She was going to pass out, and if he didn't cast his spell before she was knocked out, it would be a night of torment. She needed him. While she was lying on her side on her bed, she heard Caius's soft footsteps approaching her. His feelings were becoming more and more apparent now that they actually had a time of peace and were able to reflect more on everything. Though they had an argument about it before, Lightning had to admit to herself that Caius really did make her feel special. Beautiful. Even loved. Caius sat down on the bed behind Lightning, lifting his hand to her bare shoulder and automatically running a finger over it. "Before I do," he started quietly, "I have a request." "Hm?" "Allow me to enter the dream as well," Caius requested. "I'll face the demons with you." "You can do that?" she muttered in surprise, glancing over her shoulder to see his sincere eyes. He nodded. "Yes." Lightning studied him for a few more moments, not because she doubted that he was telling the truth. She was doubting that he was prepared for what was going on inside her head. Did she really want him seeing what she saw every night? It was like exposing her entire soul to him Not that she didn't trust him. She did. But opening up entirely to any one person was something that Lightning simply did not do. Ever. Yet tonight, she would. She nodded faintly to him, turning her head on the pillow so she was facing away from him as she shut her eyes. "Do it," she said softly. For a few moments, there was only silence as her response. Caius must have been just as shocked as she was about letting him in. Yet after a few seconds, he recovered. Lightning felt Caius's hand move from her shoulder to her face as his fingertips ran down from her temple, to her cheek, and then to her jaw. That wasn't necessary for the spell. If he really wanted to put her to sleep, he could have just put his hand on her head. But he didn't,

because he was bolder in showing his feelings now. And Lightning was more willing to accept themAnd show a few of her own. Drowsiness began to kick in, the same as always. She peeked her heavy eyes open just one more time to see the room begin to blur before she lost consciousness and entered the dream world. ****** Caius took up residence in Lightning's dream soon after she fell asleep. He shut his eyes and laid down on the bed behind her while keeping one of her hands in his as he drifted into slumber. The dream world certainly was not what he expected it to be. Lightning had told him that she experienced nightmares every night because the screaming was not tuned out completely. Yet there was noise that was far more prominent than the soft cry of Serah and Lightning's other lost loved ones. The sound of laughter penetrated Caius's ears. Confused, he looked around the area that he was in. He was along the shores of Bodhum, at an empty part of the beach. But it was not completely empty. Two little girls with pink hair ran past him, laughing with joy as they ran towards another figure. Their father. "I'm seven years old." Caius grunted, looking over to the side when he heard the familiar voice. Lightning suddenly stood beside him, staring at the two girls as they glomped their father on the sandy shores of the beach. "Seven," Lightning repeated. "Serah was four. We used to come to the beach to play with our father every once in a while. " So, your dreams are reliving your life? Caius thought to himself, looking back to the two children as they finally got off their father and continued giggling with mirth. But you stated that your dreams are nightmares. This seems pleasant enough. "I'm a bit confused," he said to Lightning. She didn't bother responding to him. She only kept her eyes on the three that were several feet in front of them and unaware of their presence. Caius, along with the two young girls, quickly became aware of something else. Something was wrong. Lightning's father was sitting upright on the ground, coughing harshly because he was unable to catch his breath. "Dad," the young Lightning whispered, alarmed as she and Serah stood within half a foot of their father. Still he continued to cough. And cough. And cough. When Lightning saw her sister's fright, she stepped closer to Serah and turned her around so that she was facing

the other direction. Lightning then put a hand on her father's shoulder. She was trying so hard to be brave and strong, but the fear showed in her eyes as she continued staring at her father. "We went to the beach with my dad only once a year, if we were fortunate," Lightning continued as the scene unfolded. "Because he was sick. He was rarely well enough to have play days with me and Serah. While my mom worked full time to support him and his medical bills, I tried my best to care for him." Caius gave her a startled look. "You were seven." Only seven. "Yeah," she said apathetically. "I was." "What was he sick with?" She shook her head. "We never knew." The scene before them changed. While they stood still, darkness closed in and swallowed the beach. Caius knew this wasn't an occurrence of the day; this was only a part of the dream. Lightning's mind was jumping to another memory. And that memory was another one Caius didn't expect. He had believed Lightning's words would lead to a sadder memory, one of death. But this one was of life. The two of them stood in a hospital room, surrounding a mother and her newborn child. Lightning's mother, also donning the Farron pink hair and blue eyes, was sitting upright in a hospital bed with a quiet child in her arms. "She's so pwetty, Mom!" Serah cried with joy as she leaned onto the bed and stared at the infant with wide eyes. Beside her, the eight year old Lightning nodded in agreement. The small smile that she wore was one that showed her happiness was not hindered by any tragedies of her past. She was genuinely happy and content at that moment. Lightning's mother smiled to Serah before she looked at her husband standing on the other side of the bed. "She has your eyes, sweetheart," she said quietly. The words brought a smile out of her husband, and if Caius was a more sensitive person, he would have smiled too. But he had a feeling that this scene wasn't a completely happy one, for the same reasons as before. The Lightning beside him only confirmed his thoughts as the scene before them dissolved into darkness yet again. "It was a happy day," she said. "Rose's birth. We took her home for only a day before my Dad suddenly got sicker than he ever did before. So we came back to the hospital. And three days later, he died." Reflecting this, the images of Lightning's memory created a new scene around them. The funeral of her father. A cold and rainy day, with the sky devoid of any signs of light. As

they lowered her father's casket into the grave, Lightning's mother remained standing off to the side alone while Lightning had the burden of holding onto baby Rose, who was upset at the tension in the air and the fact that her mother refused to hold her. "Rose looked so much like my Dad," Lightning said. "It was hard on all of us to have a living reminder of somebody who was dead. Especially for my mother." As she explained, the scene changed to show exactly what she was saying. "For weeks after the funeral, my mother couldn't even look at Rose. Rose needed her, but all that she had was me. I was the one who was tasked with feeding her, changing her, and staying up all night with her. I skipped school for weeks to take care of her, and during that time, I hated my mom. She wasn't giving me a chance to grieve like I needed to. I shoved my emotions away and became the adult of the family at the age of eight." That'shorrible, Caius thought. "And Serah?" he asked curiously. "I forced Serah to go back to kindergarten only a day or two after the funeral. I didn't want her being forced into the same position I was in. She didn't need the weight of the household on her shoulders. She couldn't handle it anyway. She was too young." "Did you ever stop hating your mother?" "The hatred died down over time," Lightning responded quietly. "Within two months of the funeral, she was finally functioning again. She took care of Rose and started being a mother to me and Serah again. I wasn't happy with her for being neglectful but I put on a mask so I wouldn't cause anymore grief in the family." "Always the mask," Caius muttered as he shook his head faintly. He knew she utilized masks often. Now he knew why. "Yeah, well, life had to continue eventually. And it did. I returned to school and my mom stayed home with Rose for a long time. We didn't have family to help us, but we had enough money to get by on our own. It helped that I did everything I could to help with finances. " "Such as?" She shrugged. "Clipping coupons. Buying the cheapest food. Doing chores for teachers at school for a little extra cash. Everything was fine for a few years after that, other than the obvious missing my dad and still feeling like the adult of the family." "So what changed?" he asked her. When Lightning didn't respond right away, he looked away from the scene of the happier home and gazed at the woman beside him instead. Her expression was sad. "Too much," she nearly whispered. "Too much changed, too quickly. RoseInherited the mysterious disease that my father had."

Again a new scene appeared. Another funeral. "That quickly?" Caius grunted in surprise. No build up or anything? Rose justdied? "She showed signs of being sick only two weeks," Lightning said in a voice that was uncharacteristically weak. "We took her to the hospital, but she was only five years old at the time. She wasn't strong enough to survive as long as my dad did, or beat the illness." "I'm sorry-" "Don't apologize," she snapped without looking over. "I hate it when people apologize for their deaths. 'Sorry' means you regret something you did. You couldn't do anything for my family. Nobody could." He wasn't sure what to say at Lightning's outburst, but he did know what not to say. It was time for him to ask another question, instead of saying the lines that hundreds must have said to her when she lost her little sister and her father. "What happened after that?" he asked more gently. "Life went on. Again," Lightning said in a tone that was still tense but calmer than before. "By this point, I was fourteen and Serah was eleven. My mother had been working a job the past few years to support the family but resigned after taking a leave of absence to grieve for Rose. She was never the same after that." Lightning was quiet for a few moments. Only darkness surrounded them, and she continued to stare into it with a somber expression. Caius realized in the back of his mind that Lightning had yet to gaze at him since he entered the dream world with her. She hardly acknowledged him accept to answer his questions. He wondered if she even realized he was there. "Lightning?" he tried, lifting a hand and putting it on her shoulder. He was surprised when she really was there, and not just a figment of his imagination. Still she didn't look over at him. But she did acknowledge him. "Look," she said. He followed Lightning's instruction, and easily so, since a scene was appearing before them. Shock filled his heart and forced him to release a grunt. "Her too?" he asked, for right in front of him, he saw another funeral. Lightning nodded, her somber expression also betraying sadness. "It was about half a year after Rose's death." "But why?" he asked. "The disease was on your father's side, was it not?" What caused the death of her mother? "It was," she confirmed. "She didn't die from a disease, despite what any papers out there say. She really diedfrom a broken heart."

Caius's eyes softened as he gazed at the funeral. The casket was lowered into the ground by now, and most people disappeared from the scene. It was only Lightning and Serah for a few moments, but then Serah faded away. As soon as Lightning was alone, her body began to shake with the sobs of remorse and sorrow. His heart broke for hers, though he couldn't see her face. He was gazing at her from behind, witnessing her shaking body as she tried to control herself so she didn't break down completely. The reason for that was obvious: if she lowered the mask for too long, it would be harder to put it back on. He witnessed as much when Lightning was coping with Serah's death. "So this is your life," he said quietly. "Not all of it," Lightning said in a hard but sad tone. Though Caius was confused for a moment, he quickly figured out that he wouldn't need to ask what else had happened to her. For the funeral memories disappeared and a new one appeared. "Just watch, Caius," she said as she finally spoke his name. "You'll understand." The two of them now stood as invisible spectators inside a school building. It was a nearly deserted hallway, with the lights dull like school lights normally wore in unused parts of the building. Yet this hallway was not completely useless; some students used it to get from class to class when they were stalling and avoiding the class. On this day, the fifteen year old Lightning was walking through this hallway to her chemistry class. She took this route because she didn't want to arrive to class early and face some of her harsh classmates. There were three boys in her grade who seemed to get their delight in making her suffer. If Lightning arrived to class and sat there with them for a few minutes before the teacher, she would hear them mocking her. Even for a few minutes, it would have been bad. This was only a few days after her mother's funeral after all. Her first day back in school. "Well, look who's back!" a voice sneered. Lightning looked down the hall, and her heart dropped when she saw the three bullies approaching her. Apparently they wanted to be late to chemistry as well. "Claire's back!" Taylor, the blond haired bully stated with a smirk. He and the other two, Jeff and Harry, approached the girl who decided to remain where she was and glare at them. Walking away would encourage them to chase her. But remaining where she was allowed them to force her against the wall even if a few feet separated them. "Where have you been Claire?" Jeff asked. Claire didn't respond.

"Oh yeah!" Harry cried as if just remembering. "You were at your dead mom's funeral! What a sorry excuse to miss school. It's just another funeral to you, isn't it?" Still she didn't say a word, but she was gritting her teeth to fight the urge to growl. "You don't have to act so angry," Harry laughed. "Be yourself with us, Claire. We already know you've been to at least two other funerals in your lifeYour dad's and your little sister's. You gotta be apathetic to all the death surrounding you." "Yeah," Claire finally said lowly. "I do." She did have to be apathetic to it, because she really was the only one left now who could take care Serah. She wasn't allowed to have emotion anymore. Only strength that seemed so far out of her reach. "Oh-ho, you agree then!" Taylor exclaimed. "That's nice. Glad you can be honest with us, Claire." "Why do you keep saying my name?" she muttered in frustration and anger. Her name was her mother's middle name. It ticked her off that they were using it every other sentence. "Because it gets under your skin," he shrugged. "Why else? Seeing you tick is what we enjoy most." "Claire. Orphan Claire!"Jeff laughed. "Hey, that's your new nickname! "Orphan Claire!" "Orphan Claire!" the other two repeated. "No parents left to take care of Orphan Claire now." "Nobody to put food on the table," one added. "Nobody to give you a home" "No one to love Orphan Claire but Serah." "And no one to keep Serah from going into foster care!" Harry finished with a laugh. "Orphan Claire, all alone." "Orphan Claire. Orphan Claire. Orphan Claire" They kept repeating it. Over and over. Claire was obviously trying to keep it together, but the words just kept wringing in her ears. Orphan Claire. She really was an orphan now. With nobody to look out for her. Serah wouldn't do it; she wouldn't let her. Which meant that she had to do it. Starting now.

As the three boys laughed, something within Claire snapped. Before she even recognized what she was doing, her fist was flying. Fast as lightning, she slugged Jeff with enough force to knock him back several feet into the next wall. That got the boys to stop laughing at her. Claire steamed, glaring at them as the two still standing stared at her in absolute shock. But even in the fury of her anger, she knew what she just did was serious. Punching another student inside of the school was no light matter. Gotta go, she thought to herself. So she left the scene. She left the school and went home. When Serah got there, the two of them had a talk. "Claire?" Serah called as she entered the front door. As Serah walked further into the house, she found Claire sitting on the couch in the living room. "Why weren't you on the bus?" "I quit school." "What?" She nodded. "And I just filled out the paperwork online. Starting tomorrow, you're starting cyber school." "Why? I like school!" "Because," she said evenly. "That's how it is now." The twelve year old Serah, ever the kind sister, didn't lash out at Lightning though she didn't like the situation. "What happened, Claire?" "Lightning." "Lightning? It's not storming outside" "No," she said. "From now on, I want you to call me Lightning." Now Serah was hopelessly confused. "I don't understand." "I know you don't." "And you can't explain" "No." She couldn't explain what caused this name change. Serah wouldn't understand anyway.

But at least she understood enough to drop the topic. "Okay," she said as she looked down at the ground. She was humoring "Lightning". "I start cyber school tomorrow. What are you going to do?" "Cyber school," Lightning said with a nod. "Whenever I have free time." "What else do you have in mind?" "I'm going to get a job tomorrow." "Where?" Where became clear when the memory jumped to the next occasion. The scene changed from Lightning's home to the outdoors of Bodhum, right outside a government building where four men and the fifteen year old girl stood. "You want to join the Guardian Corps?" Officer Carson laughed. "Is this a joke?" "It's not," Lightning said in all seriousness. "We don't accept fifteen year old girls," Lieutenant Jackson said as he tried to keep his composure. "I'm sorry, little lady." "We do accept them into the training program though," a kinder official named Amador said. "Amador, the sap as always. Look at her! She's puny!" "Not all soldiers need to be as well built as you, Sanders," he said as he gave the overweight man a look. "Besides, don't you see that fire in her eye? This girl's a fighter. Isn't that right, uh?" "Lightning," she said as she offered her name. "And yes, sir, I am a fighter." "I wanna see what you got, Lightning. You know anything about fighting?" "Yeah. I'm really good at it." Carson and Sanders snickered at each other. "What's your weapon, Lightning?" Jackson asked in a mocking tone. "A sweet smile to scare off offenders?" "I'm not sweet. And I don't have a weapon of preference."

That probably wasn't the wisest thing to admit, but Lieutenant Amador still showed kindness towards her. "Well then," he said. "Why don't you come with me to the shed? We'll pick something out for you and pair you up in a fight against one of our trainees. Sound good?" "Yes sir," she said. The only reason she gave him proper respect was because he was respecting her. It was hard for her at the time to keep her anger within her with these men mocking her, but she managed because at least one person was giving her a chance. An hour later, the fight was over. It only took Lightning ten minutes to fight the student (who was chosen because it was believed that he would easily defeat her) and prove to all the officers that she really Guardian Corps material. All that was shown in the memory was the end of the fight, with the poor soldier down on the ground with the tip of a gunblade at his throat. "I'll admit that I'm impressed," Carson said. "But there's still no place in the GC for a fifteen year old girl." "Not with you maybe," Amador inserted. "There is with me though." "Where?" the other three officers asked in surprise. He only shrugged. "I'll find some place for her." And he did. He spoke to Lightning often when he brought her in to work, mentoring her and teaching her that though she worked at the bottom now, she would someday rise to be better than all of the officers who put her down. "I wouldn't have gotten through my teenage years without Lieutenant Amador," Lightning confessed, speaking for the first time in a while. "He didn't take the place of my parents, but he was somebody who gave me an outlet for a lot of the grief I experienced. We didn't talk about it muchHe just had me fight against some of the other trainees when he could tell I was having a bad day. It meantA lot to me." "It's about time somebody was able to help you," Caius agreed. She nodded, then continued filling in details of her life. "I worked doing whatever Lieutenant Amador wanted me to do, while I also received training on the side so I could join the Corps. They had a rule that you could join as soon as you graduated high school. So on top of working a full time job, helping Serah with schoolwork, and taking care of all the affairs parents normally had to do, I took almost two years of classes in one year. I managed to graduate right before my seventeenth birthday. From there, I joined the Corps and managed to rise to the position of sergeant and was nearly an officer, but then the Purge happened."

"I know the story from there," he said with a nod of his own. Serah was originally branded a l'cie, and Lightning volunteered for the Purge to try and retrieve Serah. In the end, Serah turned to crystal and Lightning became a l'cie. She completed her focusin a strange sort of way. Etro freed her from her crystal stasis and forced her into being her servant. That was the rest of it. "Yeah, you do." Yet another memory churned before them, even if the story was apparently complete. Blackness surrounded them but a lone figure was appearing out of the nothingness to stand before them. Serah. "Lightning," Serah said in a heartbroken voice. At this, her sister finally squeezed her eyes shut. "Lightning" "It's not Serah," she said through her teeth to Caius. "Only a memory." "Are you certain?" he asked. "Why did you do this to me, Lightning?" Serah asked in the same tone. "I'm sure," Lightning said to Caius. "The real Serah wouldn't make me feel guilty like this." "I wanted to see you, so badly," Serah whispered. "I set off on my journey to find you, but you made me change my journey so that it was about saving the timeline and not getting to you. That detour cost me my life" "It was your choice to die," Caius growled defensively. "You knew what would happen!" "Stop." He grunted, looking over at the girl beside him at the quiet order. "Lightning?" "It's not her," she repeated. "She won't transform what she's saying to make it gentler. She's only a manifestation created by Etro to haunt me. That's all" Caius turned his head and studied Lightning, who looked like she was in physical pain again. The rest of her past, she had some type of closure on. But this was a fresh wound. Serah's words, true or not, were killing her spirit. "We need to wake up," he realized. This part of the dream needed to end immediately. Lightning's suffering needed to come to a close. "No," Lightning said quietly. "I still need the sleep. I'm exhausted. And if I'm going to be stuck here, I'm glad I'm not alone."

"You don't always have to be so strong, you know," he said gently. "I'm only being rational. Do I look strong to you right now?" "Yes," he said evenly. "You do. And that isn't necessarily a good thing." "Well now isn't the time to discuss it," she said. Serah's whimpering was in the background, and she winced at it. "Are you sure conversation won't drown it out until you awaken?" "I'm sure. Especially with the way that this conversation is going. It'll only make things worse and bring me closer to being broken." "Healing begins from brokenness." "And so does weakness," Lightning responded without looking over at Caius. "I can't afford weakness right now, not with Etro breathing down our necks. Healing can come later." "Emotions aren't weakness Lightning," Caius said firmly. He stepped over in front of Lightning, standing between her and Serah as he sternly put his hands on her shoulders. "Emotions give purpose to action. You're hunting Etro because you're angry and sorrowful. Emotions drive you. For that reason, they are perhaps the strongest thing within a person." "Then if I released those emotions, I'd be too strong. It's too much to release, Caius" Finally, Lightning looked up at Caius. He was shocked to see that her eyes were moist. She really was accepting her emotions, because she couldn't ignore then any longer. Caius knew one thing: He wasn't going to ignore them either. For the first time, he slid his hands onto Lightning's back and pulled her into his chest in an embrace. Shock was her first obvious response. Caius Ballad was a man driven by emotion, but he was strong. Inside of her head, he could tell that she was considering whether to have the same strength that he didstrength that allowed emotions to be honest, blunt, and always present. When she reached her conclusion, he knew it. For she tentatively wrapped her arms around his lower waist in response and turned her cheek against his chest. She accepted her emotions. And she accepted him. All the signs were present that she did accept him even before this. He stayed closer to her than he would have had to if he did not have feelings for her. He was gentle and tender with sparing her from the curse of Etro's Ears every night. He protected her life and her emotions. And sheThe tough, stoic soldier who never truly let anyone protect her in the past, allowed him to do exactly as he wanted to do. Not just recently, but in this reality as well.

So for an extremely long time, Caius only held Lightning in his arms. He stood as a barrier between her and the false Serah as the latter continued crying out to Lightning. She placed the blame on her, screamed for her to listen to what she had to say, and just plain cried to try and get through to Lightning. But so long as Caius was there, Lightning would know for sure that she wasn't alone. "Serah" eventually gave up and left them in the cold silence. That was where they remained until Caius sensed that the sun had risen in the real world. "Lightning," he called quietly to the young woman still standing in his embrace. When she nodded against his chest, he knew that it was alright to lift the sleeping charm off the two of them. Caius held her closely and shut his eyes, lowering his head closer to hers as the two of them arose out of their slumber to the rising of a new day.