Chapter 1

Sweat dripped - no, poured - from Lightning Farron's exhausted body as she swung her blade with all the energy she could muster at the beat-up practice dummy firmly placed in the corner of the room. Daily training is an essential part of being part of the Guardian Corps, and Lightning took her rank as Sergeant very seriously. The tireless hours spent training in her personal dojo was evident from the hardness of Lightning's body - every muscle on her body was toned to perfection - not to a point where it was no longer feminine, but something akin to the paintings of goddesses borne from myths. Lightning felt her muscles burn as she continued her personal regimen she had devised to challenge her rapidly increasing strength and ability. This particular training session gave Lightning a chance to release all the pent up aggression she had bottled up for so long. Thoughts - so twisted and sick had been plaguing her more frequently than usual, and it was killing her. Lightning's thoughts continued to buzz relentlessly in her mind as she tried desperately to shake them off. Lightning's breath grew erratic as thoughts of Serah crept back into her thoughts like a disease she couldn't be cured of. Lightning struck her blade in frustration at the wooden dummy she practiced on. Serah, her baby sister, smiling warmly at her. Another powerful strike at the dummy, and a disgusted groan emitted from Lightning's dry lips. Serah, so beautiful and innocent. Lightning loved her…deeply…more than… "STOP!" Lightning screamed at the top of her lungs as she raised the glinting blade above her head to strike a devastating blow at the wooden dummy with no face - no mind to judge her. The dummy split into pieces and fell onto the floor of the dojo with a muted thud. Lightning's arms drooped to her sides as she released a shaky breath she had been holding. She sighed and sunk to the floor as she stared at the broken wooden figure, now just a pile of wood. She hugged her knees tightly to her chest and sunk into deep thought. Once again, Serah's face appeared in her mind and refused to leave.

Serah had heard a thud coming from the dojo Lightning was training in as she walked past the door onwards to her room. Serah immediately stopped in her tracks and immediately felt concern befall her heart. She quickly walked towards the door to the dojo's entrance and pressed an ear to the lacquered wood, but heard no other sounds. Serah felt her heart beat - frightened that Lightning may have hurt herself in one of her strenuous training sessions. Without hesitation, Serah barged into the dojo and felt her heart drop as soon as she spotted Lightning sitting idly on the floor. "Claire!" Serah shouted worriedly as she ran towards Lightning.

Lightning turned around and was paralyzed with surprise that Serah had entered the dojo she had agreed to never disturb her in. "Wha-" Lightning half finished before Serah threw her arms around her in a tight embrace.

"Claire, are you okay? You're not hurt are you? Do you need me to call for help?" Serah spurted out question after question as she held onto Lightning while surveying her for any evident injuries on her body.

Lightning was taken aback by Serah's sudden entrance and found it hard to respond quickly as Serah's warm body enveloped her own exhausted one. Her mind was hazed over as Serah's sweetly clean scent took over all her senses.

Serah took Lightning's face into her hands to lift her head up in order to get a close look into her eyes. She peered into them and asked, "Claire? Claire, you're okay, right?"

Lightning finally snapped out of her wistful thoughts and nodded. "Yes, yes, I'm fine," she said and got up to brush herself off.

Serah had reluctantly let go of Lightning as she picked herself off from the floor. "You had me worried. I thought you hurt yourself."

"Why would you think that?" Lightning asked, and picked up her blade.

"I heard a loud thud coming from the dojo - what was it then?" Serah said, and looked around until she spotted the remains of the wooden practice dummy. "What happened to it?"

"I hit it of course," Lightning smartly quipped.

"I know that," Serah rebutted, "but why'd you have to hit it so hard until it's nothing but pieces?"

"What's with the third degree?" Lightning was becoming increasingly frustrated as she ran a hand through her tousled, strawberry-blonde hair. "So I broke it - it's no big deal. I'll get another one."

Serah looked on at Lightning with concern. "Is there something you want to talk about, Claire? You know, you can talk to me about anything."

Lightning sighed and forced a small smile on her face. "No, I'm fine Serah, but thank you for being concerned for me - it's sweet." A lie, Lightning knew it was, she was not fine, but she couldn't bear the thought of ever telling Serah how she truly felt. The thought alone made her shudder.

Serah smiled sweetly and gave Lightning a quick hug. "It's my job to worry about you - I am your sister after all."

Lightning felt herself blush as Serah pressed her petite body against her own. Her heart felt as if it would implode at the utter love she felt for the girl before her. Her arms wanted nothing more than to hold her and to never let her go, but her conscience reprimanded her and so she didn't. Lightning only stood limp with her arms at her side as Serah held onto her. It felt like a century before Serah released her so Lightning could finally make her escape from the room. Every touch and every second Serah gave her only made Lighting's forbidden thoughts for her grow stronger and Lightning could not stand it any longer. Without another word, Lightning quickly walked past Serah and out of the dojo in a hurry - running from the truth in which she knew haunted her every thought, dream, and moment of her life.

Serah stood on the spot and looked on as Lightning hurried out of the room. Serah's heart filled with grief as she wondered if Lightning could ever love her more than a sister, but this secret, she'll never know.