Cosmic Love

by ElusiveIllusions

Ven had been left alone to deal with Terra's death; no one understood him or the pain he was going through. Since the man's death had been his fault, there was only one way to see the love of his life again. How does his new lookout on life effect those who still want him in theirs? Maybe Ven has to find the light all on his own, without Terra's help. M for safety, AU, TerraVen.

Cosmic Love

Disclaimer: I do not own Birth by Sleep, Kingdom Hearts, Disney or Square Enix. If I did, TerraVen would be absolute canon, no questions asked.

***Cosmic Love**

Bright blue eyes looked around the darkness, hands out as if to protect himself from any obstacles as he continued forward. He shifted uneasily in the absolute void of colour, starting to panic as he tried to find out where he was. Hadn't he just been home? Was he dreaming?

Suddenly, there was a flash ahead, and the teen quickly glanced up to catch it. It was a bright yellow light, falling from the sky. He watched the star descend from the black heavens above, frowning as he heard his own heart beat get louder.

As the shard of light fell, he could see it light up the stars as it passed, and for a moment the moon. Then the light was growing brighter, and he realised it was heading straight towards him in its decent. His entire body was illuminated by the pale yellow and white glow as it fell, his eyes washed of their colour from the falling star. The boy's eyes tightened shut to block the blinding brightness, arms flying up to defend himself as he found his feet unable to move.

***Cosmic Love***

Slowly, bright blue eyes opened once more and Ventus found himself in his room, safe and sound. The blond quickly jumped up, running to the hall to see if he wasn't dreaming. He could see the bathroom door closed and more likely locked, steam coming out of it as older sister Aqua took her shower. His little brother's door was opened, meaning he was probably out playing with his friend. Yeah, everything seemed just fine.

Ven let out a small sigh of relief, his heart slowing to a normal pace. Turning back to his room, the sixteen year old shut the door and dressed quickly into his customary brown cargo pants, black shirt, and white and red jacket. The checkered 'good luck band' his friend had left for him went around his wrist before he started out into the house again.

"Where are you off to?" The blond jumped as he saw Aqua looking over him, already dressed for the day.

"Oh! I… I was just going out to think actually. I've been… having these weird dreams lately…" the blond trailed off, watching the sad, knowing smile etched on the twenty four year old's face.

"Ven… Going there every day isn't healthy. He wouldn't want that."

"I'm not going every day! Besides, I just need to think, okay?" the blond said bitterly, turning to the stairs and hurrying out of the house, not giving the two young boys in the front yard a second glance.

Through the small woods not far from the house, down a hill and situated in what once was a beautiful meadow was the town's cemetery. The place itself was open, dawn to dusk, so the gates were already thrown wide for him.

Ven frowned as he pulled his hoodie closer, zipping it up to prevent any chills the cold October wind would bring. Fallen leaves crunched under his converse as he wandered through the rows of tombstones. Blue eyes closed as he paused in front of an all too familiar set names, Phillip and Aurora. He attempted a smile for his parents, just as he always did when he passed them. Still, after the pause he continued further back where the newest deceased of Radiant Garden slept.

The young man jumped, realising there was already a person in front of his selected grave, and he quickly hid behind another in retreat. Cerulean eyes peeked over the large angel, heart throbbing in pain as he saw Eraqus. The man put a hand on top of the simple rectangle stone, letting out a sigh.

"… It isn't fair." The dark haired man snapped up out of his moment of reflection, looking over at the teen who had spoken.

"Ventus, when did you get here?" he smiled gently.

The blond didn't say anything as he moved closer, standing next to the father of the deceased, eyebrows furrowed as he held his sadness back. "Terra…"

"It's been nearly a month Ventus; you shouldn't still be holding such bitterness." Eraqus softly reprimanded as he shook his head slowly, patting the young man's shoulder. "I don't think Terra would find that fair at all."

"It's not fair." He answered bitterly. "It was all my fault…"

"Now Ven, you know that isn't true."

"I should have known better then to trust Xehanort, I should have known…"

***Cosmic Love***

Eraqus soon left the blond to be alone with his departed friend; Ven sat down against the side of the slab of stone, leaning against it as if it were Terra himself. A part of him knew that, yes, it wasn't his fault, but Xehanort's.

The elderly man had seemed harmless when Ventus had been little, though his parents had always said to beware of strangers. Xehanort would watch the blond when he and Aqua walked home, and his watching only grew more intent as he got older. Still, he had always offered snacks, or had small chats with Ven on his way home. A week after Sora had been born, Phillip and Aurora had been killed in a violent crash, and Xehanort had been there to console Ven, along with the family friends of Eraqus and Terra. That was the day Terra had given Ven his lucky wristband.

When Terra started hanging around more, Xehanort had always seemed uneasy. Then Ven had turned sixteen last month, and Xehanort had promised him a special gift that he couldn't move out of his home very well. Sneaking away from his own party in anticipation, Ventus followed the elderly man.

He had found out that despite his age, the dark toned man had a lot of strength; and found himself locked in the neighbour's basement, submitted to beatings and kicked until he was nearly unconscious. He had just laid there like a broken toy until the pervert started to undress him; giving up on hopes of freedom when he saw the gun in the old man's hands…

It had been Terra that had broken into Xehanort's house… It had been Terra that forced the basement door open and took the bald man head on with one good punch. It had been Terra that had taken the bullet for Ven when they were running through the woods to hurry back to the safety of the party at Ven's house…

How Terra had even known he was in trouble still eluded him-but he thought just maybe it was because they were so close. And that made it hurt all the more.

"I'm so sorry…" the blond whispered, his eyes tearing up as he leaned his head back against the strong stone; against the strong back of Terra. "It's entirely my fault…"

***Cosmic Love***

Ven opened his eyes, feeling the star that had impacted against his chest. He looked over himself, seeing a radiating glow the stardust had left on him. He looked completely washed out, pale of all colour, but before long the stardust faded and he was hardly glowing a dying orange. Once the light was gone completely, the blond knew it was time to keep going forward.

He still didn't fully understand where he was, or why, but he knew that somehow this was just as real as the world he would eventually awaken in. He could hear his own heartbeat again, loud and banging, echoing around him.

"Ven." The blond snapped up as he heard his name, recognising the voice. His heartbeat grew louder, grew faster as he started to race towards the voice. But silence fell, and he froze, realising he wasn't going to hear it again.

"Terra! Terra!" he cupped his hands around his mouth, attempting to throw his voice farther. "Terra, please answer me!"

Eyes slowly adjusted as he realised the darkness around him was slightly lighter, as if twilight had just settled onto the world. Any trace of the moon, stars, or even the sun was still absent, but instead of facing a pitch black sky, Ventus noticed the deep blues and purples on the horizon.

He took in his surroundings, noticing and recognising the woods that existed around his home. If he kept going, would he find his house? What about the graveyard?

"Ventus." He turned towards the voice, startled that he didn't recognise this one. The figure was leaning against a tree, watching him intently. He wasn't familiar with this person either, though he was hardly more than a shaped shadow.

"…Who are you?" he asked carefully, taking a step forward.

"Me? I am you." The darkened figure smirked. "Well, sort of."

"I don't… I don't understand." He took another step forward, trying to inspect the figure. He was nicely built; a lot stronger and with more muscle then Ven would ever think himself to actually get. He was taller too, his hair wild, and if he squinted hard enough he could tell his skin was dark like his little brother's. When he opened his eyes Ven swore he saw golden sparks.

"You don't need to understand." He held his hand out. "I'm here to help."

Something about that smirk seemed familiar, and something about it just screamed for the teen to run. However, this was just another him, wasn't it? He could trust this person, right? After all, he created him.

Ventus put his hand out to shake the strangers. "My name is Ventus."

"I know." The figure's grin grew wider, uncomfortably so. "My name's Vanitas."

The taller grabbed his hand, pulling Ven closer. "Nice to meet you."

Ven flinched back, wincing inwardly at the amount of pain the simple handshake had given him; a bolt of electricity running up his arm. What had that been all about?

"Aw, not feeling well?" the other was gruff and taunting, a chuckle in his voice. "Sorry to hear, kid. C'mon, I've got something to show you." Vanitas grabbed his wrist and pulled him close again. The quick and sharp tug had him against the dark figure, leaving Ven grunting in pain that the contact caused.

The entire man's body felt like it was electrically charged, dangerous and life threatening. Ven felt like his body was going to collapse in on itself; his knees felt weak, his energy drained, and he was sure he was going to be sick any second. "V-Vanitas…"

When blue eyes glanced up to meet the golden flames, Ven knew that the stranger didn't care. Rather, he was sneered, pleased that he was causing such pain to the young boy. He'd been too naïve again. Why was he so trusting, why did he always get himself in these situations!

"Vanitas!" The darker figure flinched back, letting go of the blond. Ven knew he recognised the voice, but he fell to the ground, feeling the wet grass take him as he succumbed to the darkness.

***Cosmic Love***

Ventus felt his shoulder shake and cracked his eyes open. Big blue pools framed by dark brown hair stared down at him. Stubbornly, he turned on his side to face the wall, ignoring the pouting face.

"Come on Ven, you promised!" Sora whined, poking at his older brother. "Please? Please please please please?"

"Sora, shut up." The blond growled. "Go away."

"Ven, Aqua says you gotta!" the small brunet huffed. "You promised you'd take us to the fair! Riku's dad said he'll pay for it!"

"Then ask him to take you!"

"He can't!"

The blond sat up, blue eyes cold as he glared at his little brother. He took the pillow he'd been laying on and hit the five year old with a growl. "Sora, go away!"

The small child stood there, stricken and unsure what to do. At first the teen was just happy he'd finally shut up, but he froze when he saw how watery the younger's eyes were.

"… You're just mean!" the small child burst suddenly, trying to hide the sob that had fought its way out. "You're angry all the time! You're no fun! You're not my brother!"

Ven didn't get a chance to retort, awareness of what had just happened hitting him as the younger form ran out of the room crying.

The blond sighed heavily, hearing the door down the hall slam. He didn't even know why he'd done any of that. Usually Ven was a great older brother; he even took Riku out so the kid had someone his age to be around. As much 'teenager' as the middle child was, he wasn't 'the average moody pain in the ass'.

Guilt weighed the sixteen year old down as he sluggishly forced himself out of bed and got dressed. Running fingers through his messy hair and slipping his wallet in his pocket, Ven crept into the hall and slowly pushed his brother's door open. Sora was sprawled on his bed, face buried in his pillow.

'Man, this kid's just as bad as Aqua after a breakup.' He thought with a small smile. "Sora?" he called.

"Go away!" the five year old cried, shoulders shaking.

"Come on Sora…" Ven slipped into the room, just thankful their sister was at work. He didn't want a lecture about taking his anger out on the kid. "Look, I'm really sorry about yelling at you…"

"I don't care!" The blond winced at the harsh words, moving to sit next to the youngest of the family. Gently, he moved a hand to the shaking back and started to rub it. Sora had been so little when their parents died, so Aqua and Ven were the only parents he'd ever really had; and Terra for some time, and Eraqus would always be 'grandpa!'. Still, raising the kid had helped him learn some tricks, and Ven knew just how to coax the little guy out of being upset.

As expected, it didn't take long for Sora to stop crying. The child let out a small sigh and looked up at Ven, still with a pout.

"Why don't you go wash your face, then you and I can go get Riku? Then all three of us can go to the fair. Sound good to you?"

"…Okay!" The child let out a toothy grin and jumped off the bed to hurry to the bathroom.

"Easy as pie." Ven smiled, shaking his head.

***Cosmic Love***

"Wait, Sora!" Ven's grasp on the five year old obviously wasn't strong enough, as the brunet and silver haired kid had broken free and were gone, somewhere amongst the crowed. "Shit…!"

The blond started to weave his way through the crowed, eyes scanning through the mass of people for the kids. "Honestly, why do they pull this every time?"

Last year at the Halloween Fair, Terra and Ven had teamed up; Ven keeping a tight hold on Sora, and Terra on Riku. If the two even slacked their grip a little, the excited children would try and run off. Usually Riku took charge, being a year older, and made sure they didn't get into too much trouble; it's not like that prevented them from trying to see everything the stands and rides had to offer.

Ven sighed as he thought about the tall brunet, looking down at the crumpled leaves in a moment of depression. "Come on Ven… you're at a fair, try and have fun." He huffed, frowning at his own horrible imitation of the comforting voice.

It was the scared squeal that snapped the blond out of it. Quickly, he started off, shoving people aside to try and find the source of the familiar cry. "Sora!"

"Ven!" Blue eyes snapped around to see Riku running towards him. The six year old grabbed his hand and started pulling with no explanation. Riku had always been a rather serious kid while staying playful, but when he was like this he was all business, and it worried the current babysitter.

"Leave me alone! Give me those back!" The teen pulled his hand back as he caught sight of his little brother, anger apparent in his expression as he hurried to meet him, Lea and Isa.

Ven was never really sure why, but as civil as the younger teens' conversations could be with Ven himself, he always caught the red head kid always messing with his brother and Riku. It was pathetic to bully little kids, but it didn't seem to matter Lea.

"Just c'mon and get 'em then!" Lea snickered, holding Sora's tickets high out of the small brunets reach. "C'mon! Jump for 'em."

"What the hell is going on?" Ventus growled, moving closer to the fifteen year olds. "Give them back Lea."

"Jeez, this is stupid Lea, let's just go." Isa sighed, trying to get his friend's attention.

"No way!" Lea laughed, tuning his attention to the blonde, "What are you gonna do about it Ventus?" The flame haired kid challenged, cockier than before now that he knew Terra wasn't around.

Still, Ven wasn't going to have any of it either. He attempted to be just as scary, moving Sora out of the way and towards Riku to stand in his place. "Seriously Lea, give them back!" Hey, he had paid for all three of them since Riku's dad had conveniently lost his wallet, and money wasn't easy to earn.

"You wan' 'em, come and get 'em." Lea continued to taunt, holding the tickets in front of his own face, waving them like a fan.

By now, Terra would have just picked the kid up and taken the tickets. Ven was about the others height, and not nearly as strong. That didn't mean he was going to take this stupid shit. He could feel the anger boiling in him, a new experience for Ven completely, and he ran forward. Lea assumed he was going straight for the brightly coloured pieces of paper, and pulled them back over his head. What he didn't expect was the fist that slammed right into his jaw.

"I said give them back!" Ven growled in a voice more demanding than he ever recalled using even once in his life before. "Now hand them over!"

Lea had been knocked down, not expecting the punch. One hand was supporting him as he moved to get up, the other cradling his jaw. "What the fuck…"

"I'll kick your ass if I have to!" Ven threatened his fists up and ready to strike again. Wide green eyes stared in disbelief before putting his hands up in defeat, tossing the tickets at him.

"Now get out of my sight!" Lea jumped a bit at the tone before grabbing Isa's hand and pulling him away, probably still in shock that Ventus of all people had hit him; the guy that had to tell Terra that arguing was bad for any type of relationship, the kid who lectured Sora and Riku that violence was for losers, and the pain in the neck who would tell Lea he was an idiot for starting fights. Ven hardly believed it himself.

Sora slowly moved up next to his brother, blue eyes wide to see such a confused look on his face. Ven knew everything, right? So why was he just staring at his fist like it had just been cut off? "…Ven…?"

The five year olds voice snapped him out of his trance, the older's own blue eyes glanced down at him. "Yeah Sora?"

"…Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." He nodded, handing the tickets to the child. "… Sora, don't ever get in a fight, okay? If something happens, you find me."

"I know… cause fighting's bad. You told me." The brunet smiled. "…Thank you."

"No problem kiddo. Why don't you and Riku go on the roller coaster, and I'll go get us something to drink, alright? If you get off before I come back, you stay near the ticket taker for the ride, got it?"

"I got it." Sora nodded again, going over to Riku. Ven watched as the teal eyed child took his brothers hand and led him to the line for the ride. Riku was probably going to be Sora's Terra. He noticed how the silver hair's fists had been clenched until Lea and Isa had disappeared; if he had been bigger and older, he probably wouldn't have gone and gotten Ven and would have taken care of it himself. He looked after Sora and took care of him because sometimes that kid was just too nice or too oblivious to do it himself. Yeah, Riku would be Sora's Terra…

Ven looked around for a vender, trying to push the bitter thought away. Sora would always have Riku, but Ven had already lost Terra. How could he be so jealous of his five year old brother?

***Cosmic Love***

Ven yawned loudly as he locked the door to the house behind him. Riku's parents had been nice enough to offer to let Sora stay the night at their home all weekend to give him and Aqua a break. He stretched, walking towards the stairs to pass out.

"Ventus." Shit. Aqua was home, and he knew that voice. "Come here."

The blond groaned and headed into the living room, not surprised to see Zack there. "What?" he said bitterly, already annoyed that he was sure he knew the issue.

"Lea's dad called." She crossed her arms and her usual gentle blue eyes were like daggers. "Fighting Ven? Really, what's gotten into you?"

"Reno will believe anything that brat tells him!" He snapped, ignoring the surprised looks on both their faces. "He was picking on Sora, he deserved to get hit!"

"Ventus!"

"Aqua!" he interrupted her. "You know it too! All he ever does is torment the kid, and I just wish I had gotten more than one hit in! You know you'd love to kick his ass too!"

"But I don't, because it's not the adult thing to do."

"No, you can't because you're over 18, and you'd get arrested!" Ven growled. "I'm so sick of this, you can't talk to me like I did something wrong, I finally stood up to that guy!"

"Ven, what's wrong with you? You've been acting up lately, you're hardly eating, you left school, and now fights? I'm worried…"

"Oh shut up Aqua, you're not mom!" The blond had taken the cake, and he realised it too late. Looking between a broken Aqua and a surprised Zack, Ven turned and hurried up the stairs, slamming his door shut and just collapsing on his bed.

It only took a few minutes until he heard knocking at the door. "Hey, Ven…" Oh great, Zack, what did that guy want? "Come on Ven, maybe we should just talk for a minute…"

He was trying too hard. Ven didn't want to talk to his sister's boyfriend because he thought they could bond; he didn't want to talk to anyone! "Piss off!"

The silence was reassuring for a moment, but once he was alone again, Ven really knew he had messed up. He really had been acting up lately, and today he truly noticed it. He was just angry, couldn't they see that? If so, then why didn't they just leave him alone? He didn't want to deal with any of this!

***Cosmic Love***

He could hear the taunting laugh before he could see the man. This had to be the fifth night in a row he'd locked himself in his room after fighting with some, after hurting those he had kept close… and it was the fifth night he'd seen that once-stranger from before.

"What did you do to me…?" Ventus asked quietly, looking at the dark figure watching him.

"Me? I'm merely helping you get your anger out." He smirked. "I'm actually not doing a thing. It's all you."

"I don't believe you!" the blond snapped. Orange-yellow eyes glowed with amusement, and Ven knew he should have been afraid. Somehow though, he just wasn't. "Tell me!"

"I did tell you. Don't you believe me?" Vanitas pointed to his own glowing eyes before motioning Ven closer. "Take a look."

He knew he shouldn't trust this man, but he had to know what he meant. Slowly, he followed the direction the black haired man pointed to, seeing a small pool of water that was catching the faintest of light from the twilight sky. It was hard to see at first, but once he understood what he was looking at, Ven nearly fell back.

His eyes, blue and bright and kind in the waking world, were now a glowing umber yellow, dark and full of anger. He was the same as Vanitas.

When he turned to demand what was going on, Vanitas was just grinning, and it made him uneasy. "You wanna know what's going on, Ventus?"

Sadly, he did. He needed to know. So, he nodded.

"You're helping me. I'm nothing but a personified version of all the depression, all the anger that you've held back your entire life. I am your darkness, and I'm going to be running this show soon. I really should thank your friend Terra though, without him I don't think I'd ever have had enough to work with. Him dying was the best thing to happen to me here."

"I… I don't understand!"

"You're slipping, Ventus." The man smirked again, smiled like the devil himself. "Soon, you'll either give into anger, or you'll just fall through the cracks completely."

***Cosmic Love***

Ven woke up feeling sick to his stomach. Eyes travelled to the clock on the nightstand, reading '8:30 a.m.'. Aqua would already be at work, and Sora would be at school … What was today? Thursday; that meant Zack would pick Sora and Riku up. It was still foggy and dark out, but he knew where he wanted to go.

The usual routine went fast; pants, shirt, jacket, socks, shoes, house key, wrist band. Locking the house behind him, blue eyes looked over at the woods and he started his way in on his path. The day was dark, early November already attracting December clouds. His breath showed in a haze in front of him, and his feet trampled on dead leaves beneath him.

Ven could have sworn he heard voices coming from ahead, but he certainly couldn't see anyone as he entered the grave site. Blindly, he passed his parents stones without a glance, feet moving quicker as he got closer to Terra's grave and the voices – rather, the snickering – grew louder.

Blue eyes widened and the blond froze as he saw the defaced tombstone. Graffiti flames and 'Burning in Hell!' were all over the slab, and it was hard to make any of the information out. The spray paint cans were still next to the grave, and Ven knew he heard the snickering behind him. At first, he couldn't do anything. He just felt frozen, heartbroken, and sad.

"Whoops, surprise!" Lea's voice rang in his ear and he recognised Lumaria and Arlene's cruel snickering. "I was gonna wait until after school, but looks like you came early."

"Lea, you forgot!" Lumaria's smirk could be felt as Ven felt a shiver run down his back. "Ventus hasn't gone to school since Terra died. Over a month, poor thing must be devastated!"

"Jeez, look at him just stand there! What's the matter Venny, gonna cry?" Arlene's voice was colder then the wind and sharp as ice. It pierced his heart, and Ven just collapsed to his knees in front of Terra's grave. The action must have been hilarious, because it didn't bring on any sympathy from the trio, just a lot more laughter.

'How could they…? Terra… Terra, I'm so sorry…' He could feel himself tearing up, and it drove him crazy. Why was he so weak? He knew he wouldn't be able to fight all three of them. He'd gotten lucky last time because Lea hadn't expected it and he had been with Isa. Lea was actually pretty strong and threw a fast hit; Lumaria may be the president of the fashion club at school but there was a reason no one made fun of him; and Arlene may be a girl but she had taken karate and kendo since she was five. He was out matched and outnumbered… Unless he surprised them again.

Ven stood up slowly, turning to face the laughing group. He felt some pride as he saw the bruise on Lea's jaw; at least he'd left a mark. That's all he wanted to do this time too; leave a mark and run. He knew he was faster than Lumaria and Lea; he'd only have to hope Arlene wouldn't chase him.

"Aw, what's the matter Venny?" he ignored the taunt, staring at them, blood boiling hotter every second.

"… How could you?" he asked, wincing as he heard how pathetic he sounded. "How could you do that to him?"

His actions only got more laughter, something he counted on. The blond hurried forward while the group had their fit and threw the first punch. Again, Lea was knocked back, falling off of the smaller tombstone he'd been sitting on. Next was Lumaria, a punch in the gut that made the older teen stagger, but he wasn't down yet. Ven was thinking of maybe another hit, but he was caught off guard. Arlene yanked him back to the ground, hands around his neck. Ven hardly noticed she'd gotten a hold of him before he felt short of breath.

"Out of the way!" Lea shouted, glaring down at the blond. Arlene shifted to his side, hands still pressed against the blonds neck as the red head loomed over him. "You little bitch…"

Ven let out a sharp groan, feeling the shoe do its best to slam through his stomach. He wanted to throw up, but he knew he wouldn't be able to in Arlene's stranglehold. He could feel tears falling loose as Lea's foot rose only to slam down again. Blue eyes shut tightly as he saw the younger move to do it again, only daring to peek open when he didn't feel the blow.

Lumaria had moved Lea out of the way, the older teen grinning as he met his gaze. "Nighty-night, Ventus."

He felt the stronger pick him up with little trouble, and he was carried little ways away. He was being propped up against something; Ven struggled to keep his eyes opened until he saw the pink hair's grasp move to the sides of his head. In a swift movement, the younger's head was slammed back against Terra's vandalised stone, quickly and quietly knocking him out.

"..You didn't kill him, did ya?" Arlene leaned back, frowning at the unconscious body.

"I was not nearly harsh enough to kill him. His head may be bruised, but he'll be fine." Lumaria nodded, wiping his hands on his jeans.

"Lets jus' get out of here." Lea said, stretching his arms above his head. "Let 'em wake up when he's ready."

***Cosmic Love***

Ven glanced up at the sky; watching stars suddenly brighten, dim out, and then fall out of their spots. Pale blue eyes reflected the falling lights as they created dying trails.

He let out a shaky breath, remembering the meteor shower he had seen once with Terra just last year. They had lain in the grass, side by side, watching the flames dance across the sky. At some point, Ven's hand had lashed out and held onto the brunet's tightly, fearful as he saw one meteor plummet in a way that seemed as if it would hit them, the bright light blinding him for a moment.

Now, however, there was no moon and the stars were dancing across the sky as they died, their lights forever blown out. Terra was also nowhere in sight, leaving Ven in the dark, alone.

No, now Ven was forgotten in the darkness, in the shadow of Terra's thoughts and heart and far out of reach. After all, Terra was gone now, why would he even care about what happened to Ventus? The thought was bitter and it stung at his eyes to angered tears. Why would he ever think of such a thing about the man who saved him?

Suddenly he heard the thumping again, that sound of a calm heartbeat. He knew by now that it wasn't his; his own heart was rather frantic as he tried to hold his crying back. Slowly, the blond stood up, blue eyes scanning the twilight-lit woods. Whenever Vanitas was around, he'd never really hear the heartbeat, only when the man started to flee to let him wake. A part of him yearned for what he thought the sound was from, and he begged that it really was…

Yet, he couldn't find the source. He only managed to bury himself deeper in the woods, and the darkness was creeping closer to him. He knew what came next. Ven heard the taunting chuckles and a shiver ran up his spine as Vanitas appeared from the darkness in front of him.

"It's good to see you again, Ventus." He greeted, knowing the boy was weaker this time around. His dominant voice struck a chord in the teen, knowing Vanitas was aware of his physically beaten state. A part of him was just worried if he would be alive when he woke up. "And how are we?"

"…I'm fine." He lied, watching the man laugh again.

"Oh, I bet you are. Come here, Ventus." The blond followed hopelessly, watching Vanitas put a hand to his forehead, palm flat and making contact. Ven looked up and watched his reflection in the bright eyes until his own were just as yellow. "Just give in already."

***Cosmic Love***

Aqua brushed the light blond hair out of the boys face, a sad frown on her face. "Oh Ven… I'm sorry…" She said softly, kissing her younger brother's forehead. The tall woman stood slowly, eyes on her sleeping sibling until she left the room to collapse in Zack's comforting arms.

"They're doing everything they can…" he promised."… He'll be fine."

"It isn't right Zack… I shouldn't have been so hard on him…"

"It's not your fault Aqua… It's no one's fault." Okay, that was a lie. Whoever had done this to Ventus, he was… Well, he couldn't kick their ass himself as a rookie cop, but he could at least get them thrown into jail. If he was lucky, when they found the bastard, or bastards, they'd resist and then Cloud could rough them up a bit.

"I swear when I find out…" her nails dug into her palms angrily.

"… Do you want me to explain to Sora?" Zack attempted to try and ground her; she still had another brother to look after.

"No. No, I… I'll talk to him." She promised. Blue eyes went to the window that peeked into the hospital room, eyes going to the monitor, willing it to keep beeping. "… Come on Ven… Don't give up now."

***Cosmic Love***

Ventus was huddled up in the darkness of the thick woods, tears falling freely now that he was alone. He didn't know where Vanitas was, but he knew he was in trouble. He was sure he'd been asleep far too long, and he recalled Lumaria slamming his head into the tombstone. Was he in a coma?

He didn't like being alone in the pitch, inky blackness. What was even more terrifying was seeing his own golden eyes cause just a bit of light when he got too close to a tree or a branch or even the ground; just two pale glowing rings… What was happening to him?

"Ven…" The blond's sobs grew louder, trying to drown out the comforting voice in his head. He had to just be hearing things after all, there was no way he was actually hearing Terra.

Then came the sound, the heartbeat. "Ven…"

The voice was nothing more than a far-away whisper, but he knew, somehow, that it was Terra. It had always been Terra, this whole time. That heart beat belonged to him, he just knew it. It was stupid to deny it, he'd know that voice anywhere!

"Ventus, get up…" The blond quickly wiped away his tears, and though he struggled to stop the sobs one still snuck into his breath as he looked around.

"T-Terra…?"

"Hush…" Ven nodded, calming himself down. It really was Terra! "Ven… your eyes…"

"My… my eyes?" he questioned the far away voice, his hand going to touch the lid of one of his faintly glowing orbs.

"Your eyes Ven… they hold the stars…"

Ven nearly jumped back as he saw the pale and faint outline of Terra. After all, in the darkness he was practically glowing a dull white and was almost transparent. A ghost? No… as the figure came closer he seemed more solid, more life-like…

"Don't be afraid, Ven…" Terra smiled lightly, standing in front of the other. "Hold your hands up to your eyes…"

Ven quickly did as instructed, covering his eyes like he were playing peek-a-boo with a much younger Sora. For a moment, the cupped area glowed just as if he were cupping a flame.

"In front of you now… Ven, lay your hands in front of you." He was glad to see Terra's smiling face again as he brought his hands in front of him and spread them out like he were holding a tray table.

Hovering above his hands was a giant ball of what seemed like glimmering and illuminating stardust. It turned slowly and vibrated like it was its own kind of living organism.

"Ventus… Once you let the star go, follow its light… You'll wake up." Terra touched the younger's head affectionately before ruffling the blond locks.

"No... Terra, no, I can't…" Ven refused, eyes kept on the taller male. He could hear the young man's heart beat, trapped in the darkness just like Ven currently was. "I… I can't leave you!"

"Ven… You don't belong here…" Terra shook his head, but even Ven could see that the brunet was holding back.

"Please Terra!" Ven dropped the ball of stardust, watching it scatter and fly back upwards into the sky where it belonged, leaving a bright trail of light. Ven ignored it though, wrapping his arms around Terra's chest and his head against his heart. The heart beat was strong; a part of Terra that wasn't truly dead…

"Ven…If you don't leave now… what about your family? What about Aqua and Sora? You… you can't stay here for me…"

"I want to… I need to… Terra, I can't do it without you, I just… I love you so much! I can hear your heart beating, you're in the darkness too!" he buried his tear-stained face into the strong torso. "… I'll stay here in the darkness with you…"

***Cosmic Love***

Aqua was clutching her youngest brother tightly, rocking back and forth on the seat as she cried into the brown hair. Poor little Sora was letting his tears free against her shoulder.

In the next room, Eraqus was on the phone talking to Tifa about arranging a funeral. He had to work around the memorial service the school was holding for their second loss this year. He was also worried… aged eyes glanced out the window to the pacing member seen there.

Zack was on his cell phone, striding around the house outside in anger as he spoke to Cloud. Apparently, for now, there wasn't enough proof to place the three delinquents at the scene of the crime at the time Ventus had gotten beaten up, only that they were the ones who had their fingerprints all over the spray paint cans. Even if they could get the three to confess to hazing the kid, there wasn't any current evidence to say that's what caused Ven's death. After all, he had passed a week after the jumping, and he had seemed to be getting better. For whatever reason he just… didn't return to them, and that morning it was as if his body decided to stop fighting. It wasn't a good enough answer. Zack knew those three were to blame!

***Cosmic Love***

"Ven, look." The blond had been relaxing against Terra, and he drowsily turned his attention up to the sky. The stardust had taken some time before spreading out into the sky, and now it seemed to be lighting up spots in the sky where other stars had fallen from. The dark inky blackness was slowly being lightened up again by brand new stars. Soon, the last fleck of stardust reached the spot where the dark moon sat, all of it lighting up in a bright yellow circle.

"It's beautiful…" Wide blue eyes turned to the dark toned man, amazed. "Terra… why wasn't any of that here before?"

"… I don't know Ven. The stars and moon had already been blown out when I had arrived. I was left in the dark… No dawn, no day. It was just this constant twilight, until that shadowed man showed up. Then it only got darker…"

Ven frowned at the trouble Vanitas had caused. For now, the man was nowhere to be seen, but he still tried to puzzle out what the entity was. Hadn't he called himself the shadow of hearts on one of his visits? Was he the shadow in all hearts then? The evil in all people? If that were the case, maybe he had had a higher influence in some people such as Xehanort; and in Ven's last living moments, Lea, Arlene and Lumaria.

"Do you think he goes after everyone?" Ven thought aloud, glancing at Terra to see him nod.

"I'm sure he does… he went after me after I died… I don't know why he waited so long, but he did."

"That's weird. What harm could you do after you'd already died?"

"… His influence on me… was what was hurting you…" Terra turned to face Ven, completely on his side and using his arm as a pillow. "The reason you couldn't get over me, the reason you kept thinking of me… was because Vanitas managed to call me into the darkness."

"Terra… was I selfish?" Ven whispered; a frown on his face as he thought about his family. "Do you think he'll go after Aqua, Zack, or Sora now?"

"…We should go to your funeral."

***Cosmic Love***

Ventus watched sadly as his sapphire eyes took in the amount of people at his funeral. Terra had led him to the darkest part of the woods in the previously fully darkened world, and ironically it let them walk amongst those at the graveyard.

Ven realised then how many lives he had touched while alive. Eraqus, Aqua, Zack, Riku and his family; almost everyone at the police department including Cloud and Leon; he could see Isa and Ienzo; his teachers Ansem, Briag, Aeleus, Dilan and Even, and so many others just from the community. As they each approached his casket, one by one, he started to remember every moment he had shared with these people, and he could hear his heart beat painfully. He could hear the whispers they shared with him, even though his current self was so far away from his body.

To his surprise, he saw a few flashes of really bright colours, and deep orbs followed as Reno led Lea, Lumaria and Arlene to the casket. He could only glance at Terra for strength as he heard the three teens apologies', and in a way he wished he could assure them that his actual death wasn't all of their doing.

Ven watched as slowly people left the gathering after giving strong words of love to Aqua. Ven even watched as Reno led the three teens to Cloud and the chief of the department Sephiroth. He could imagine they were giving their confession by the older men's reactions. The five left soon after, leaving Zack to deal with Reno to find out what he'd known. They left in a different squad car after Zack confirmed with Aqua he'd see her later.

Riku's family offered to take Sora for a few days to help out, but Aqua was determined to keep the little bit of her family left close to her; so instead the parents caved into Sora who begged for Riku to stay close to him at his house. Terra was smiling lightly at the small scene, and Ven knew that the tall brunet thought as he had; they'd be another them.

Eraqus was the last to leave, offering a helping hand to the young woman and getting a warm welcome into the home. Both Terra and Ven agreed inwardly that it wasn't a bad idea for the aging man to live with the family in need of stable help. Eraqus had been a great father to all of them already, so why not? The man took Riku and Sora home, letting Aqua to stay until the casket was completely underground and buried.

"… I feel awful…" Ven said quietly, afraid if he spoke too loud, Aqua would hear him and turn around. She was finally leaving the graveyard; he didn't want her to come back until she was ready.

"… I tried to warn you Ven…" Terra sighed.

"I don't regret it." The blond looked up at him. "I wish I did, but I don't, and that's why I feel awful. Whether it was because of Vanitas or not, I just couldn't move on from you… I know I wasn't eating right, and my sleeping was always disturbed… I was weak; there was no way I was going to come out of that coma any better. I still need you…"

"…Go say good-bye." Terra suggested, grabbing Ven's hand and leading him through the woods to the home.

***Cosmic Love***

The household was exhausted. By the time they had reached it, Aqua had already crawled into her bed and passed out from crying, Eraqus was tiredly watching Riku comfort Sora, and Sora was just barely awake from his own tiring cry.

Ven smiled lightly at the five and six year old, whispering his good-bye to the two of them and told them to be good for everyone else and to stay close to one another. When he turned to Eraqus, he saw Terra kissing his father's forehead as he wished for him to smile again. Ven couldn't top that, and he simply thanked the man for all he'd done to the family and for bringing Terra to him.

The entity slipped into Aqua's room and kissed her forehead. "Thank you for always looking after us." Ven said quietly. "…Thank you for everything, actually. For working so hard… and please stay strong… And look after Zack… He loves you."

***Cosmic Love***

It's true what they say, that everyone is a bit selfish when it comes to love. Everyone wants to be with those they truly care about, and sometimes one's list is different from another's. Sometimes a mother will be at the top, and on another, a lover.

We are all tempted by darkness though, and when that darkness wins a fight, it's the ones we love that always get hurt. Take good care of those you love, and take good care of yourself. Live a healthy life. Treat others as you would as if they were those you loved, for really every stranger is friend you just haven't met yet.

***Cosmic Love**

Ventus leaned against Terra, eyes glued to the horizon. For the first time in a long time, the sun was actually rising.

"What do you think it means?" Ven dared to break the silence, his voice hardly more than a whisper.

"…I think it means we're moving on." Terra stood slowly, helping his friend up.

"Moving on?" Ventus glanced up at the taller, a bit nervously. "Moving on to where?"

The sun was rising even faster, flooding the woods with brilliant lively light. It was warm and safe and everything either had ever felt in the embrace of their loved ones, of each other.

"…I don't know." Terra admitted, smiling lightly. "Just… Just moving on."

Ventus reached out and grabbed the man's hand, holding on tightly in wonder and fear as they moved towards the horizon. It was light, it was brilliant, and the darkness around them was fading fast, washed away by the sun.

"Scared?" Terra teased lightly, kissing the younger's forehead.

"I'll follow you anywhere." Ventus said boldly, staying at the taller's side.

***Cosmic Love***

Authors Note:

Well, first off, can we just say wow? Up to the end, this entire 'one-shot' as I put it, is twenty-eight pages and eight thousand, thirty-three words.

I never meant for it to be that long, and I also never intended that to be the story. You see, this story had a completely different plot that Ven was just meeting some mystery man in his dreams that he never met before, fell in love with him, got caught by the dream-villain Vanitas, the mystery dream man saved him, and then Ven chose his dream world over reality. And, if any of you know about Trusty Bell, you know that if you chose to live in a dream world, you die in reality.

Now, no one steal that idea because I may or may not still write that. However, as you can tell, that's not the story plot I used here as I intended. Whoops, right? It kind of changed… only a lot.

Still, I like to think this story teaches some sort of a lesson, but if not I can live with that. Just please be sure to leave a review, even if it's on anon! I would just like to think this was a good idea. Please don't fav and run, I never do that… Even if your review is just asking me to post my other story idea instead, any kind of review is appreciated, especially after all this work. If you have a review you absolutely want me to get back to, or you have a question, just put 'pm me!' somewhere in your review, I have time to talk to you guys and I don't bite. Unless you want me to.

Also, the song that really inspired me is actually called 'Cosmic Love' and it's by Florence and the Machine.

-ErinTheSaixPuppy and AaronTheFireStarter are my co-writers on this. Co-writers as in they each went over this to make sure there weren't spelling errors and they helped me get through the story with some interesting ideas. For example, the Somebodies making an appearance and their roles were their ideas! I was going to have Seifer be the bully, but I guess this makes more sense since Ventus is not Roxas. Also, those aren't their fanfiction account names, their just my fellow roleplay and cosplayers since I do Roxas and they do Saix and Axel. Not to mention, a lot of more 'American Terms' were Aaron's ideas, and both of them helped change my story from my original idea to this, so there may be some plot holes, confusion, etc because it had three different authors.

The thing about Erin and Aaron is, they're just as bad at their grammar writing skills as I am, so my other beta's are going to take a look at this as soon as possible. I'll update this noting that they did once they do.

Update: 7/2/13

-Vivacia18 and spiritmind675 both found and offered their help to me at the same time, and really I think it's good to have two betas. They both went over this recently and returned it with some very different changes. I took the most preferred of each and splashed it together again so it all flowed smoothly. Thank you very much to both of you.