
Her time in Valhalla and recognition of her past "sins" has made her more somber. She has learned to trust others and ask them for help, and expresses her emotions rather than keeping them bottled up inside her. In Final Fantasy XIII-2, Lightning has almost become a new woman due to the experiences and emotions she has endured. Ultimately, she becomes the leader and, to a degree, protector of the other Pulse l'Cie as they journey to challenge their fate. As she journeys with Hope Estheim and takes him under her wing, Lightning begins to show compassion and trust others, and sees the errors in her approach. Much of her motivation is fueled from what she perceives as failing to protect Serah leading her to lash out at those she believes are responsible for that and her l'Cie fate: namely, the Sanctum, its fal'Cie and, to a point, Snow Villiers, due to his relationship with Serah and his failure to protect her as he promised. She only looks out for herself and doesn't care if others are left behind. Initially, she is cold and standoffish, distancing herself from her companions.

Lightning is determined, concentrated and independent. The game's logo appears on her outfit a number of times: on her chest, her sword and her shield. The Night Lotus shield on her left arm and the Crimson Blitz sword in her right hand, similar to Noel's Flame Fossil dual swords, are in homage to her Eidolon Odin. Her default outfit, Equilibrium, is similar to what she wore in Final Fantasy XIII-2. She no longer has the navel piercing she did in Final Fantasy XIII.ĭuring Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Lightning has a number of different costumes. She has a new gunblade more closely resembling a traditional doubled-edged sword, which has Etro script on it. In Final Fantasy XIII-2, Lightning wears a silver and gold Valkyrie-like suit of armor with a shield on her left arm (though in her CG render it appears on the right arm). She has a navel piercing, although it can be difficult to spot.

Her l'Cie brand is located slightly above her left breast. She carries her gunblade in a black case which hangs off her belt, and wears a necklace with a lightning bolt pendant. The green metallic pauldron over her left shoulder bearing yellow stripes denotes her previous rank as a sergeant. In Final Fantasy XIII, she wears a variation of the standard Guardian Corps uniform. Lightning's eye color has been officially noted to be blue, though in the FMVs and promotional art they often appear green due to green aspects around the pupil. Lightning is a young woman with wavy rose colored hair, and pale aqua eyes.
