002 [Action-allllll over the place.]

[nvrstrikestwice]

[Scenario A: Morning]

[Anyone who decides to come into the cafeteria on this fine morning may just find Lightning at a table near the back, an empty plate near a notepad as she jots down notes. Anyone who gets close will see that it's a lesson plan for her classes, but there's a second smaller pad half hidden under it with words like "doubles?"

Comments

A!

[focusedfate]

[Cid's actually been in the cafeteria for some time as well, but he doesn't notice her until he gets up to return his tray and get rid of his trash. After freeing up his hands, he swings by her table and comes to a stop next to her.

His eyes do stray to her notepads briefly, but his gaze has drifted away by the time he greets her.]

Good morning, Sergeant. Have you settled back in?

[nvrstrikestwice]

[To her credit, Lightning doesn't move to hide the smaller pad, and instead just looks up, nodding in greeting to Raines. Morning...certainly fits.]

Mostly. I'm still readjusting to some things.

[focusedfate]

I trust that it has been a smooth transition thus far?

[Aside from the matter of doubles, of course.]

Your friends have surely been trying to help you adjust.

[nvrstrikestwice]

Smooth as I could have expected. Not much has changed around here.

[Other than the double, of course. That was...unexpected and she still doesn't quite know exactly what to think about it.]

They have. We look after one another.

[focusedfate]

[Speaking of that double...]

Have you run into her yet?

[No names mentioned, but hopefully, it's pretty obvious whom Cid is referring to.]

[nvrstrikestwice]

[Oh, it's obvious enough and it causes Lightning to get a look on her face like she swallowed a lemon.]

Yeah, we've met.

[The only good thing is that it hasn't come to blows. Yet.]

[focusedfate]

[So they've met, and both of them still appear to have all their body parts. This is... a bit of a relief, in some strange, bizarre sort of way. Still, judging by the look on Lightning's face, the meeting had been anything but pleasant.]

May I ask what sort of conversation transpired between the two of you?

[nvrstrikestwice]

[Was it ever pleasant to meet your mirror image? Especially one who'd apparently ignored or hurt her family for a long while.]

Wasn't much of a conversation. She told me who she was, got into a small argument with Snow, then walked away.

[All but ran, actually. Not that Light's gonna say it that way.]

[focusedfate]

[...Somehow having Snow in the middle of what must have been a fiasco seems oddly appropriate.

Cid sighs quietly. Had he been hoping for something to come out of the two Farron's meeting? In a way, yes, but he certainly isn't going to voice his thoughts on the matter.]

She has become more volatile since your return, but that is likely to be expected.

[nvrstrikestwice]

[Cid's sigh causes Lightning to shake her head, tapping her pen against the notepads on the table. Claire is probably feeling cornered and outnumbered, but...well...it's not the best way to deal.]

We'll just have to keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn't do anything to someone who can't fight back.

[Because if it comes down to it, the ex-Pulse l'Cie could take her in a fight. Hopefully.]

[focusedfate]

She seems to take little to no interest in doing harm to those not from our own world.

[Cid trusts the l'Cie to be able to handle themselves, even those without the brand anymore, but there is still one with no fighting experience as far as he's concerned.]

Can your sister take care of herself?

[nvrstrikestwice]

[That's a small comfort to Lightning, especially since, well, Cid just hit the nail on the head. Serah's the only one of them who can't fight back to Lightning's standards, which means that if she gets into a fight with Claire...]

We're working on that. But she knows when to run from a fight and find someone to help her.

[focusedfate]

I see. [He nods, understanding.] I can only hope that she never finds a need or reason to strike another, even if she is learning.

[And hopefully Claire has enough sense not to randomly attack people in hallways--she is, after all, still an instructor here.]

[nvrstrikestwice]

So do I. But it's better for her if she knows and never has to use it than if she gets hurt because she couldn't defend herself.

[Lightning would be lying if she said the thought of none of them being there to help Serah hadn't crossed her mind and sent chills down her spine.

Claire, on the other hand, well...Lightning isn't counting on sense or hope to carry that battle, if that's what it comes to. She's not even sure if she could handle Claire, really. So there may be a rather large part of her hoping that it doesn't come to blows, even if she won't admit it.]

[focusedfate]

With yourself and her fiance as her teachers, I do not doubt that she will learn well and learn quickly.

[A pause and then:]

I will keep an eye out for your sister and ask Rygdea to do the same.

[Whether or not she will find any comfort in two Sanctum officers watching out for her sister, Cid isn't entirely sure. Claire's words on his various betrayals resound loudly in his thoughts as he speaks, but he says nothing on the matter.

Additionally, he'd rather that Rygdea did not tangle with Claire either if at all possible. Well-versed in combat or not, the man is still human, and Cid knows all too well what happens when a normal man fights a l'Cie.

Not that this will ever stop the captain from trying, Cid thinks wryly.

[nvrstrikestwice]

[While Lightning nods to that first comment, Cid's second one causes Lightning to frown a bit in thought before she nods. All the help they can get...]

Thanks, Raines.

[It really isn't much of a comfort; to her, the two of them...aren't really family and she can't find herself trusting them with Serah's safety the way she could Fang or Sazh if something happened to her or Snow. But a couple extra pairs of eyes are always helpful, especially in this kind of mess.

As for Rygdea, well, he'd met Claire already, that much Lightning knew. She was just kind of hoping that he had the sense to stay away from pissing her off for now, too.]