Author's Note: Hey, so, I took a lot of creative liberty with this. This is going to be a very long fanfiction. It starts off as a funny slice-of-life, but then the drama and action picks up in later chapters. Enjoy!

One calm afternoon, Master Eraqus was sweeping the floor of the palace in which he lived. All of a sudden, he stopped. He looked to his left. He looked to his right. He threw the broom on the floor. With a frown, he asked himself, "Why am I doing this? Yen Sid has a student to do all of his chores. Xehanort does too. I'll get a few students of my own."

He immediately went to his office and opened up his laptop. He logged onto the Keyblade Master's Guild website and posted an opening to accept three students under his wing. Leaning back in his swivel chair, he nodded to himself. "Yes, yes, this is definitely a good idea." Right as he said that, the back legs of the chair rolled too far, and Master Eraqus fell backwards and bonked his head. "Dammit!" he swore. "Stupid chair."

A few days later, five hopeful teenage students showed up at his doorstep. He took each of them inside to the throne room. Upon a stage he paced back and forth, lecturing them. "Hello, chosen young ones. I am Master Eraqus, Guardian of the Land of Departure. My entire life has been devoted to following the path of the keyblade. I am glad to see that you answered that same call. It is a unique and special gift to be able to wield its power. Yet, even fewer still are able to bear the Mark of Mastery. You are standing in the same room that will one day be used to carry out your mastery exam." He paused dramatically. The students were focused on his words.

He continued, "Though five of you answered, only three of you may earn the chance to study under me, a keyblade master. I shall put you through a series of harsh trials to determine which of you is worthy."

One young man raised his hand. He seemed like a pretty dorky kid. He had thick glasses and dark brown hair in the shape of a bowl cut. He wore an orange argyle sweater vest that was tucked into his high-waisted khaki trousers. "Excuse me, um, is the Mark of Mastery a physical mark? Like the one you have on your cheek?"

"No. And that's a dumb question."

"Let me ask a follow up," continued the hopeful student. "So, what's the job market looking like for a keyblade master nowadays? Are we talking six figures?"

Since the Master had always made a living by investing in the stock market and collecting disability checks, he didn't quite know. Therefore, he answered, "Nothing is guaranteed in life, but I can tell you from my own experience that this life is full of adventure, responsibility and fulfilment."

"Final question. Does being a keyblade master look good on a medical school application?"

Eraqus snapped his fingers. "Enough! Be gone!"

"But—"

"Do not let the door hit you on the way out."

So that kid left.

Eraqus told the remaining four candidates, "The rest of you, please introduce yourselves."

The first candidate was a brown-skinned, silver-haired, and red-eyed young man who seemed to be a no-nonsense type. He wore a white tank-top underneath a black leather jacket. His pants were black, his shoes were black, and he wore red fingerless gloves. "I'm Jerome of the house of Skyview," he answered. "I have sixteen years of age. I come from a war-torn world called Ivalice. I journeyed here to become a keyblade master and fulfill my destiny."

Next was a beautiful, blue-haired, blue-eyed, fair-skinned girl. She wore thigh-high boots, short black volleyball shorts, and a midriff navy-blue, tube top shirt. She seemed to radiate an aura of confidence and grace. "I'm Aqua. I'm fifteen. I believe that there is a greater purpose to my life, so I want to use the keyblade to do good in the worlds."

But Master wasn't paying attention to her words. "Hot damn, Aqua," Master blurted out. Luckily, Eraqus wasn't the only one who said that. Standing beside Aqua was a dude in a tight black shirt and grey cargo pants. His brown, spikey hair was held back in a ponytail. He was covering his gaping mouth and raising his eyebrows as he ogled her. "Hot damn, Aqua!" he had exclaimed at the same time.

Aqua took a step back, and rolled her eyes at the guy beside her. "Do you like what you see, creep?" she asked sarcastically.

"Like it? Whoa, girl, take me to McRonalds cuz ba-duh-duh-duh-duh, I'm loving it."

She burst into laughter so hard that she doubled over and grabbed her belly. "Wow, that was the worst pick up line I have ever heard in my life!"

Master, feeling very, very, very ashamed that he himself had initially reacted in the same way, and also very, very, very relieved that she hadn't noticed, said, "Focus, you two."

The young man, blushing, faced Master and bowed his head. "Sorry about that. My name is Terra Smith. I come from Traverse Town. I'm seventeen. My dream is to become a keyblade master."

Master Eraqus rolled his eyes. Finally, he turned to the last potential student. This guy was wearing a varsity football jacket and blue jeans. His hair was spiky and blonde. His eyes were light blue. And he was chewing bubblegum. "I'm Notus." He blew a bubble and popped it. "Notus Johnson. Seventeen years old. I'm from Twilight Town. I want to become a keyblade master so that I can travel throughout the worlds and search for my little brother." Notus smiled. "I know he's out there somewhere. His light is faint but it calls to me."

Master nodded. "All very noble reasons. Welcome, all of you, to the Land of Departure." He paced back and forth. "The keyblade is a powerful weapon. There are many styles to fighting with it. Yet the basics remain the same. Wielding a keyblade is very similar to wielding a broom. Starting from this building, and moving toward the student bedrooms and then toward my office, show me your skills with a broom. I want the area spotless. The brooms are over by the back wall. I shall be monitoring your progress."

The students looked at each other, confused. "This is a test!" Master shouted. So the students raced to get their brooms. With lightning speed, they swept the entire palace clean. Eraqus clapped his hands. "Interesting. It seems that all of you are capable of working together as a team. But, being a keyblade master also involves individual discipline and the ability to follow instructions. Accordingly, I will give each of you a task to complete. Right now you are in the Palace. This will be your home if you pass my tests. Further down the mountain is a busy town, filled with many people who reside in the light. The light that we keyblade wielders aim to protect. First of all, I have a task for you, Terra."

Terra stood at attention. "Yes Master!"

Master handed a list to him. "Go to the store and pick up those items on the list. Jerome, I'll need you to take this paper work to city hall." Master handed Jerome a binder filled with papers. "Aqua, go retrieve a package for me at the post office. And Notus, you'll need to declutter my office."

Jerome raised an eyebrow. "Um, wait, why are we doing chores?"

The Master began to walk away, saying, "Patience young one. Your questions will be answered. Now, each of you, off to your tasks. Notus, follow me." So Notus followed Master. Jerome turned to Terra and Aqua, asking, "Is this guy legitimate?"

Aqua replied, "I looked him up. He's definitely certified by the board—although his certification is set to expire next month." She took the paperwork from Jerome. "I bet these papers are the renewal forms." Glancing through the first few pages, she nodded. "Yup. I thought so. Hahaha."

But Jerome didn't find it quite so funny. "So he is making us do chores?"

Terra mumbled, "And she's smart too. Damn, she's got the whole package."

Aqua playfully nudged Terra with her elbow. "Easy there, lover boy. Keep your thoughts to yourself." To Jerome, she concluded, "This guy's definitely the real deal. So cheer up. Let's get these simple little tasks done." With that, she left to find the post office. Jerome sighed. Terra covered his face with his hands while saying, "Wow, this girl is amazing."

Jerome rolled his eyes and mumbled, "Wow, this idiot isn't serious," as he left to do his chore.