Blossom Hearts

Chapter 1

Weird thoughts lately...is any of this for real, or not...?

She fell through the sky, and then water, and landed in the midst of doves, flying away into nothingness. The stained glass she stood beneath gave her rose colored dress a blue tinge. Where was she?

The brown haired girl flexed her hand- a nervous habit. She walked forward, and then the glass shattered beneath her. She fell into darkness, with no time to scream. Her basket of flowers tipped, and petals swirled around her.

She floated to another stained glass island, and there lay before her three staffs- a light purple, a sapphire blue, a deep red. She reached forward and grabbed one.

Aerith...is power what you want?

Her green eyes flashed, and she immediately let go of the deep red staff. The purple one...

Aerith...do you want to protect those close to your heart?

She held this staff, and pondered a moment. But what was the blue one?

Aerith...magic is a dangerous and useful thing.

The flower girl looked between the two, purple and blue, and finally grasped the lavender purple staff. With her next choice, blue. The glass shattered again, and this time Aerith was okay.

There was a large cream-colored door on the next stain glass platform. Golden flowers were carved on it, winding around the outside. Aerith opened it and arrived in a new place.

With the next stained glass island, her spine tingled, and every inch of her was on end. A creeping coldness swept through...the shadows arrived. She struck them all with her staff, and watched in horror as they dissolved into oblivion, dark swirls around her feet. She backed up, avoiding the dark spots, until she reached the edge and almost lost her balance. She turned and watched as a light beam descended and gratefully jogged towards it.

The closer you are to the light, the greater your shadow becomes...

Aerith turned and watched in horror as her shadow rose from the ground and took on gruesome form before her eyes. And then it attacked.

She swung at its fist- the only part within reach for the slender flower girl- with her staff, ceasing only to administer a potion to herself. The shadows grew around her, and her blows grew more and more exhausted until finally, with a finishing move, the shadows dissolved. All but the giant. Aerith's shadow monster simply punched the ground, shaking the entire stained glass island, everything seeping with the darkness...

And Aerith couldn't escape...

But don't be afraid. And don't forget-

Her arms flailed, staff lost, and her fingers felt the brush of flower petals falling all around...

You hold the mightiest weapon of all

Flowers spiraling into darkness...

You are the one who will open the door

Green-eyed girl drowning...

"Aerith!"

The flower girl gasped as she opened her eyes, startled by the large blond spikes blocking her vision, and the glowing blue eyes. She didn't mind the view, but it surprised her and she sat up suddenly, much to her companion's quiet amusement. The dream was over; she was back on Midgar Islands.

"Cloud, you startled me, " she said with a giggle.

"What were you dreaming about?" he asked in reply. His hair was tousled by the constant winds, and he turned his eyes from the sparkling ocean to her emerald eyes. "I'd been trying to wake you for a few minutes before you actually came to."

Aerith cocked her head to one side, looking past him to watch the waves lap against the sands. She tucked one of her brown bangs away from her face and sighed. "I have no clue. It was so real though...and so...significant..."

You're giving me too many things

Lately, you're all I need (all I want)

Cloud gave her a curious look. "Aerith?"

She waved off her darkly clothed companion and said, "I'm being silly." Cloud laughed slightly, and Aerith laughed because he laughed- Cloud was a serious person, and the flower girl cherished every chuckle she got from him.

"Cloud...do you remember where you were before you came here?" she asked tentatively.

Cloud shook his head. "Why do you ask?"

"...I don't know." They looked at each other silently; wind brushed past and made their hair wave. "Do you ever want to go back?"

"Maybe. I'm...happy...here with you- with everyone..." He fell silent and looked away.

You smiled at me and said

Don't get me wrong I love you

But does that mean I have to meet your father?

"Aren't you guys forgetting about moi?" asked a newer, more confident voice. Tifa, in her white tank top and mini skirt, tossed a plank of wood over by Cloud, narrowly missing his head. Aerith laughed.

"Of course, Cloud just woke me up to help with the raft."

Tifa sprawled herself out on the sands beside Cloud, flicking her dark locks. She glanced at Aerith. "We still need some food supplies, and a couple more logs. I sent some others for the wood."

Aerith nodded and stood, brushing off her dress. She smiled. "Race you."

Tifa immediately stood and got into a running position, grinning. "I'll kick your butt."

"Go," said Cloud suddenly.

When we are older you'll understand

What I meant when I said no

I don't think life is quite that simple

The two girls stood for a moment, and then Aerith let out a quick 'ah!' while flashing a smile at the blond. Both girls ran, kicking up the white sand, as Cloud stood, watching them and shaking his head.

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Where's the King? Where's Riku?

Sora, it'll be alright...

But this is serious, Kai!

Look, he left us a note...

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"Let's see...mushrooms..." Aerith got down on the ground beside the stone cave art, digging for anything she could find. She finally knelt down by a particular drawing on the wall.

Her and Cloud. Aerith smiled as she remembered- the stone was so smooth in Cloud's hands, even when they were young. His drawing was almost perfect. She laughed softly when she ran her hand over her own drawing, roughly scratched on there- her hands were smaller and held the slate awkwardly. But now she was a slightly better artist...soon there was a picture of a star shape, held out towards Cloud. Aerith smiled wistfully-

A loose pebble fell on her head. "Ouch!" She looked up, searching for the source of the loosened rock, and instead saw a deep mahogany door, outlined in gold, with an odd design across the center, swirling around and around. The designresembled an abstract rose.

That door hadn't been there before...

"I've come to see the blossom at the heart of this world."

Aerith jumped into the air, dropping her basket of mushrooms. There was a brown-cloaked person in the corner. The shadows hid their face, and they stood behind the roots. "Where did you come from?"

"The worlds are being connected. The flowers at their centers are opening. They will be open to the darkness." It sounded like a woman's voice.

"What are you talking about? Show your face." Aerith fervently wished for Cloud to be there, with his large sword. It was the size of the wielder and could cause as many bruises as he chose to bestow. The mysterious voice continued.

"So very much left for you to learn, little Flower Girl. You understand so little."

Aerith tried to put on a brave face, trembling on the inside. "I can learn," she said calmly.

"A meaningless effort. One who knows nothing can understand nothing."

And then she was gone.

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The sunset was always beautiful from the beach. There was a small island off the main part, with a low branch perfect for leaning against. Aerith swung her legs, deep in thought about her dream, and hooded figures, and about the raft, about adventure, about bright blue eyes. Tifa was sitting beside her, daintily but with an air of strength. Cloud leaned against the trunk, gazing out into the sparkling ocean, with those eyes-

"The raft will be ready tomorrow," said Tifa, breaking the silence. "...Are we gonna be ready for it?"

"Yeah, of course!" Aerith said cheerfully. "Cloud?"

Cloud uncrossed his arms. "Yeah."

Tifa leapt off the tree trunk and struck a pose, one fist raised in the air. "If there are any other worlds out there, we'll find 'em!"

"Are we meant to?"

Both girls turned to look at Cloud. He ran a hand through his hair, creating an even spikier mess. Aerith gave a small smile when she noticed this.

"If, like Tifa says, there are other worlds out there, why are we on this one? Did we have a purpose, a reason, to be here?"

"Ours is just a piece of something greater..." Aerith said softly.

They were deep questions, hard to answer. Tifa stood silent a moment. "I think that we need to find our purpose out there, Cloud. And we can't stop, until we find what we're looking for, until we accomplish the goal, and just, succeed." She turned and looked back at them. "I'm not afraid."

Cloud gave a small nod, and then walked away. Aerith watched as he leapt off the bridge, going towards the pier. Tifa turned back to her and blinked. "Did I offend him...? I don't think he's afraid," she said quickly. "I think...he's brave..." Aerith gently slid from her place on the tree.

"No worries, Tif. Cloud's just like that sometimes, I think." She smiled. "I'm going to go down and join him."

"Don't you think he'd rather be alone?"

Aerith smiled kindly and, reaching down, plucked a flower from the base of the tree, twirling it in her fingers. "Maybe I can convince him to buy this while he's distracted with his thoughts. I could use the extra munny." She laughed, and so did Tifa. The dark haired girl reached up and pulled a star shaped fruit from the tree.

"Maybe you should bring this along with you too," she giggled, and tossed the papou fruit at Aerith.

When you walk away

You don't hear me say

Please, oh baby, don't go

A papou fruit- love's symbol. If two people split it, their destinies became forever intertwined. They'd find each other no matter what...sharing one with Cloud sounded...Aerith thought of the drawing on the cave.

She glanced back at Tifa, who seemed to be gauging her reaction with interest. Aerith immediately tossed the fruit away with a nonchalant smile. "Q-quit joking around Tifa. Are you coming with me or not?"

Tifa shook her head, and so Aerith with flower in hand walked down to the pier where Cloud was.

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"Want to buy a flower? They're only a munny..."

Cloud, standing at the edge of the pier, didn't turn, but with a small exhale of breath that sounded to Aerith like a whispered laugh, acknowledged her presence. The flower girl laughed in return, and tossed her flower into the water, watching the ripples fan out and disappear. "It was worth a try; I need some cash," she giggled. Cloud turned his head slightly, bangs fluffing, and then flitted his gaze back to the water.

"Where's Tifa?"

"She thought she might've offended you. Said you might want to be alone. I disagree." Aerith smiled and sat down, dangling her feet over the water. "The ocean breeze is so nice..."

"Yeah." There were a couple moments of silence, and Aerith retained her peaceful closed smile. This kind of silence, with her and Cloud, was comfortable. She never felt so safe anywhere else but with him, just taking part in his meditations, hoping maybe someday he'd speak his thoughts aloud, and they'd line up with hers exactly, like they were meant to be shared...

Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight

It's hard to let it go

"Tifa's very determined now. She seems a bit..." Cloud searched for the right follow up word. "...Changed."

"How so? She's always been confident."

"I guess..."

"Cloud, are you okay?"

Suddenly, Cloud reached down and grabbed Aerith's hand, looking closely at her. "Aer...maybe just the two of us can go, tonight."

Hold me

Whatever lies beyond this morning

Is a little later on

I will go anywhere if you look at me like that again. "Cloud," Aerith said, turning to hide the blush as he released her hand and stepped back. "I think maybe you're the changing one." Cloud was silent for a short moment.

"Tifa might have been right before, saying I was afraid. But I think..." Aerith listened closer to Cloud's words. "No matter where we go, we can come back here."

Aerith nodded her head fervently. "Always," she replied with passion. Cloud looked down at her with his glowing eyes.

"Don't change, Aerith." He reached down and placed an object in her hand.

"Wha...?"

Cloud gave that small smile of his. "It'll be great to set sail..."

Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all

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Sora, Kairi-

Sorry I left without a proper goodbye. I don't blame you if you're mad. There's some trouble coming soon, I can feel it. Stars have been blinking out, closing up, however you want to refer to it. I've got to see what's going on. I hated to leave, but I need you guys to check into this. Go to Traverse Town; find Cid and Tidus. They'll tell you more about the situation. And be on the lookout for someone special, someone with an important weapon-look for the Bloomstaff. And stay safe. Sora, take care of her like you always do. Kairi, you let him protect you. This is going to be big.

-Riku

PS. I really am sorry.

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Cloud's words echoed in Aerith's head, with a few of Tifa's thoughts scattered in there. She stared down at the piece of munny Cloud had placed into her hand before he'd left.

It'll be great to set sail...

If there are any other worlds out there, we'll find them!

Aerith, let's go...just the two of us-

A large clap of thunder jolted the brunette out of her thoughts. "A storm..." She gasped. "The raft!"

The trip to the island was hard, with all the wind and simply a small rowboat. Surprisingly, it hadn't rained, although there was thunder and lighting frequently. She docked her rowboat and noticed two other boats as well- Cloud's, and Tifa's.

Palm branches blew everywhere, and the wood on the dock was splintering beneath Aerith's feet. Everything was flowing up into the large sphere of darkness above the island, as though it were an intense magnet. Dodging the flying pieces of island, Aerith searched for either one of her two companions.

A familiar shiver went down her spine.

"On no!" She gasped- the feeling was familiar, and she turned to face the shadowlike monsters. "The creatures from the dream..." She had no weapon.

Out of the corner of her eye, Aerith saw Tifa, standing on the small island, separate from the main part. She ran forward, tripping on her boots, and over shadows, finally arriving at the shack. She took the stair two at a time, breathing heavily, adrenaline coming fast.

"Tifa! Tifa!" Aerith almost collapsed in front of the other girl. "Where's Cloud?"

Tifa shrugged.

"I thought he was with you!" Aerith shouted accusingly. "We need to find him- these things, th-they're dangerous!"

It was as though Tifa hadn't heard her. "The flower's bloomed, and the door has opened, Aerith." She gave a small smile that made Aerith shiver. "You always liked flowers."

"What are you talking about? Where's Cloud? We need to find him!"

"Cloud's coming with us!" Tifa snapped. "Listen- once we step through, we might not be able to return. There's no turning back. But this may be our only chance and we can't let fear stop us! I'm not afraid of the darkness!"

Aerith watched in horror as more of the black mist engulfed her friend. "Tifa!"

Tifa slowly held out her hand, beckoning with her bold eyes. Aerith reached forward slowly...but...it wasn't right- the darkness wasn't the way-

A bright flash of light, and Aerith reappeared on the small island by herself. In her hand was a staff. It was a forest green, with odd vines twirling around it, and some short, sharp spikes on it as well; thorns. There was a smooth section in the center for Aerith to hold it by. The vines wound around, seemingly without end, and small rose flowers decorated various vines. There was a button on the center part. If Aerith pressed it, the thorns would suck in, making the staff safe to hold from anywhere.

Bloomstaff...Bloomstaff...

Something in Aerith jumped and she ran back towards the secret spot. With a weapon to fight, she hacked the shadowy creatures out of her way until they dissolved, and she had finally reached her goal.

"What is this door?"

Instead of the stony hollow that they normally crawled through to get in, there was a large ivory door at the entrance to the secret cave. It was exactly like the one in her dream, tall and carved with many blossoms. She opened that one without hesitation, and ran into the heart of the secret place.

Cloud was fighting more of the shadow things with his sword.

"Cloud!"

He looked up quickly, and slashed the last of the shadow in half, panting and looking exhausted. He started to run towards her.

"Aerith, you need to get out of here!" he breathed.

"No, Cloud-"

The door suddenly banged open, and a strong gust of wind blew them both back. Cloud turned to her. "Aerith..."

Aerith watched as the wind blew him towards her quickly. She planted her feet and stretched her arms, shutting her watering eyes from the wind. Tifa may have been gone, but she could catch Cloud...

Aerith's eyes opened in terror as Cloud faded right through her.

"No-" the wind blew her out too before she could think to do anything...and next thing she knew, she was holding on for dear life to an edge of the ruined raft, feeling her grip slowly weaken as the gusts pulled her up towards the darkness in the sky, thrusting her into destiny...

Nothing's like before

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Sora...a star's gone out...

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And there is the first, very loooong chapter! I will be trying to do a world for every chapter, so all of them will be long. You can review and tell me if you'd rather I split them up.I will probably skip describing some boss fights unless they are in some way important to the plot.  Anyways, this is obviously an AU Kingdom Hearts, and Cloud and Aerith are (also obviously) the main couple. I don't have anything against Tifa; she's just a better "Riku" in the story- and Cloud and Aerith are cuter together in my opinion, no offence. Additionally, you can see with all the flower references a main theme in this story- a warning: it will get corny and girly. Anyways, on to the next chapter!