Peanut

Serah silently shook her head in her knees. She didn't know what Riku was doing here--he should have been with Lightning. She was in terrible pain, and that was partly Serah's fault. She should have come clean to Riku sooner, then she wouldn't have seen Lightning in that condition. She didn't even recognize her...What happened to her strong older sister? The world around her was collapsing.

Serah didn't know it, but Lightning was passed out within minutes. She, on the other hand, was in the bedroom she stayed in all of one night. The rest of the nights at the castle, she stayed with Lightning and Riku in their room. She and her sister shared a bed and Riku slept individually. They all needed each other because they were all prone to having nightmares about the same person: Cedric. Her father. Serah pulled up her legs as she sat in the chair, hiding her face in her knees. She couldn't be upset about him right now; she had to be strong for Lightning. Lightning would do the same for her...

Though she wanted to fight, Light couldn't withstand the pressure on her shoulder. She fell down onto her side and as soon as she did, her head collapsed into the pillow. Her eyelids grew heavy, her urge to fight becoming less strong. "...Take care of her," she requested in an exhausted murmur. If she couldn't take care of Serah, Riku had to.

Lightning stayed where she was, propped up with one arm. When it came to Serah, she was stubborn. "Serah needs me," she winced. That was her sister who just ran out of the room in tears. Though the medicine didn't help with the pain yet, Lightning was at least able to focus now.

Even as Riku ushered Lightning back down to be how she was before, she reached out and grabbed his arm. She understood what just happened. "Serah," she said quietly. "Serah's..." Serah's in pain. Just because of that, she stopped herself from laying down completely, though her expression was still pained because the potion didn't take effect yet.

"Sorry," Serah added, wiping another tear from her eye. She rose, shaking her head as she kept her back to Riku. She made a mistake. She made Lightning hurt worse, and because of that...she couldn't face her or Riku right now. She started out of the room, trusting that Riku would stay with Lightning as she recovered.

Serah breathed a quiet breath of relief. "Maybe now she can sleep," she said quietly. "The pain's been keeping her up..." That was something else that both the Farron girls kept from Riku to keep him from worrying. Now Serah saw what a stupid move that was.

Light shut her eyes, feeling the hand run over her hair. Though the potion didn't help with the pain immediately, she somehow felt reassured. Even if she wasn't comprehending Riku's words at the time, she was deciphering those words now. Riku promised the potion would help...and so it would. She leaned her head towards the hand, obviously exhausted. Serah wiped at her eyes, relieved to see Lightning accept the potion and drink it all. She gently stole it from her grasp before she lifted her gaze to Riku. "Was that really it?" she asked quietly. "Will she get better now?"

Lightning slowly lifted a hand, fighting the slight tremble that came from pain. It's a liquid. Drink it. The cap was already off, so Lightning lifted it to her lips and took a sip, the potion immediately relieving the dryness of her throat. It was flavorless, like water. She took a few more sips before she finished it off, the girl lowering her hand and the vial to her lap. She did as she was asked and finished it.

Lightning sat up with assistance, hissing in pain because of the movement. She momentarily squeezed her eyes shut, but she heard a logical voice inside her head. You're sitting up for a reason. Focus and figure out why. She opened her eyes and looked to her one side and saw a worried Serah. On the other, Riku.

"Lightning," Serah called, Her sister wasn't facing her, so she didn't expect her to twist her head to see her. "We'll sit you up, okay?" She reached for Lightning's arm, thankful when she didn't resist. Before when Serah tried to get close, she instinctively tried to push her away. Go away, Serah wished of the pain. Go away and give me my sister back...

Lightning. Please... Light blinked slowly, the hand that softly stroked her cheek waking her. It was the opposite of pain: it was comfort. Focus. Focus. She blinked again, her eyes wandering until she found the hand that touched her face.

Lightning opened her eyes, not registering the item in her hand or the voice that spoke to her. She was aware that she didn't feel good at all--the pain of her legs spread up from her lower legs to her thighs over the past few days. She tried eating and drinking but felt terrible whenever she did, so she stopped doing it. All she wanted to do was sleep, but the pain was keeping her awake. She only loosened her hand to release the vial before she curled it again, her legs also curling up to be closer to her body.

Serah released Riku's arm, stepping out of his hold as she approached the bed. She sat down by Lightning's feet and dared to set a hand on her leg, though not even that got a response. That was even more terrifying; Lightning's legs were in a lot of pain and she normally cringed whenever her legs were touched. When she didn't cringe, that meant that the pain was bad enough that she didn't notice the extra weight of Serah's hand on it.

Serah's eyes widened at the sensation of teleportation, something that she only experienced once before. She set her free hand on Riku's arm to balance herself out, doing a double-take when she realized that they were suddenly in Lightning's room. And she and her bed were in front of her. "Lightning?" she called in worry, looking at the girl who had her eyes squeezed shut. She looked awful...

"Yeah," Serah nodded. She frowned, spilling secrets to Riku in her nervousness. "She didn't want to worry you, but the pain's been getting worse since we came back from Neverland. She's only left the room once since then and she hasn't been eating any of the meals I brought her..." She finally confided today that the pain made her feel sick too, so she didn't think she could stomach any food. I should have told Riku earlier. I shouldn't have kept her true condition a secret... Lightning put on a brave face for him when he came to see her to keep the truth from him. Serah knew but didn't tell him the truth.

Serah walked with Riku, partly keeping up because of his grip on his arm. "Bad," she said as they walked down the hall. "...Riku I couldn't get her eyes to focus on me." She left her alone for a little and came back, but Lightning didn't respond to her attempts to talk. She was in that much pain...

"Lightning," Serah said, approaching Riku's table. She set her hands down on it, dipping her head slightly as she caught her breath. "She's...the pain is..." It was so bad that Lightning couldn't hide it anymore. She hinted it kept getting worse, but to think it was working up to being this bad. She was almost throwing up, that was how bad the pain was. Serah was scared.

A Few Days Later "Gotta find him," Serah panted as she sprinted down the hallway. "Gotta find him..." She was looking for Riku, naturally. The two of them struck up a conversation a few days ago (the day after they came back from Neverland) about Lightning's condition. Serah told him boldly that she didn't think Lightning's pain was in her head. Lightning was so strong psychologically that it didn't make sense for the pain to be in her head. So Riku started searching for a cure in the library's books, keeping it a secret from Lightning so they didn't get her hopes up. Riku still spent plenty of time with Lightning, but when he wasn't with her, he was in the library. That must have been where he was now... "Riku!" she cried, shoving the doors open as she burst into the library. There he was, at one of the tables.

Roxas's cheeks grew redder with every compliment Namine gave him. He did all that? When? How? But instead of asking her for further clarification, he nodded his head softly. "You're welcome," he said quietly. He was glad to make her feel happy and safe and worthy, even if he was a lousy protector.

"Everything?" Roxas repeated in confusion. What else did he do that warranted such a thanks? He tried to think, but he could hardly compose a logical thought with Namine standing so close and looking at him like that.

Roxas blushed at the kiss, and Namine's hand on his cheek while she did it. "That for a necklace, huh?" he inquired, giving a slight chuckle out of nervousness. He wasn't used to feeling so shy. It was so different when you were on the receiving end of the kiss--It was more intense to know somebody cared enough to give you a kiss.

Roxas kept his eyes on Namine, hers having locked onto his since the moment he turned around to meet her. What is she...? he thought, though he felt like he already knew the answer. The way that she was coming at him with the slight nervousness but confidence at the same time...it reminded him of himself and an act that he did in the past.

Roxas gladly stopped at Namine's voice, the blond turning himself around to look at her. "What's up?" he asked casually. He didn't have a clue why she would be stopping him, but he certainly didn't mind being graced by her presence for a few more seconds.

Roxas smiled slightly, nodding to Namine's gratitude. He turned away after a second, putting his hands in his pockets as he started up the stairs. He guessed that was it, then. It was a long day, so it was time to rest up, though he doubted he would get much rest again just because of Namine's smile.