Her Master
Author's Note: This a response to The Masked Wanderer's "Redder and Bluer" Challenge for Aqua and Kairi. Kairi/Aqua.
Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts is the intellectual property of Disney and Square Enix. The Masked Wanderer provided the prompts and the challenge.
Pairings: Kairi/Aqua, some Sora/Kairi
1. Dream
The nightmares were common after arriving at the islands, broken up by a flash of blue hair, determined eyes and a warm pink smile. Kairi sleeps better on those nights, protected by the memory of her kind and strong lady knight and her mouse sidekick. Sora thinks that sounds weird when she tells him and Riku about it, so she punches him in the arm. Riku laughs.
2. Wish
She wanted to make her dream come true, bring the people she loved home. As Riku carried the unconscious body of her Master through the door of light, she realized it wasn't just Sora and Riku she wanted with her.
3. Love
It was an icebreaker, a way to get to know Aqua better. From the way her eyes widened, though, maybe "Have you ever been in love?" wasn't the best way to start. There was a guilty look on her Master's face as Aqua thought of a lonely young woman destined for a prince, and not a Keyblade Master.
4. Pride
Her Master is firm but fair, teaching but never berating, always tolerant of her errors and working to correct them. And those few times she performs perfectly, the look of pride in Aqua's eyes makes her chest fill with so much happiness it almost hurts.
5. First Dance
It's her first school dance and Sora is on a mission for the King, Wakka and Tidus are eating everything, Selphie is dancing with the boy in the cowboy hat and Kairi is standing alone... until a soft hand on her shoulder makes her turn to her Master/chaperone for the evening. "May I have this dance?"
6. Flowers
Flowers are a tradition from their first meeting. Kairi giving flowers is expected, but the first time she receives any from Aqua is when she completes her Mark of Mastery exam. "You are no longer my apprentice, but I willl always be there for you." The kiss on the forehead is not traditional, but Kairi hopes it will be in the future.
7. Texting
Cellphones are new for Aqua and she doesn't understand the strange abbreviations the island girls use, though she does enjoy receiving texts from Kairi during her lunch period, even if it's just about Sora being a "dumE" and Selphie "OMG flirting w/Riku! :0"
8. First Kiss
She's not the first, an eight-year-old Riku had that honor and Sora many times after, but after an argument about avoiding each other since the Exam Kairi finds herself kissing her former Master deeply. It's far from their last.
9. Cry.
Kairi does not cry when she is sad, her tears only come when she is happy. Master Aqua missing in action does not move her to tears. Master Aqua torn, bloodied but alive reduces her to sobbing into her teacher and friend's shoulder.
10. Promise
Kair swears to be the best student her Master has ever taught. Ventus points out Kairi will be the only student Aqua has taught and they laugh. Aqua is confused at the joke, but pleased at the vow.
11. Feelings
Friendship is something she cherishes and it is no mystery how she feels about her friends. But then her apprentice huddles closer to her to stay warm on the cool Pridelands night, she knows it's entirely different when Ventus does the same thing.
12. Moment
Her Master of more than a year is standing on the edge of the pier with the sun blazing on the waves and when she looks back, Kairi feels something that only Sora caused to stir within her. At the moment, Kairi realizes that a heart can hold many people and Olette's ideas of "one true love" are so much Chocobo crap.
13. Pictures
Her apprentice loves taking photos, Aqua discovers this quickly. Her friends, nature, "selfies," selfies with Selphie, her Keyblade, those make sense but the ones of Aqua walking, Aqua training, Aqua sleeping... it does not make sense to the Master that so many photos are of her.
14. Intimate
Aqua is not the most social creature, not given to public displays of affection or being comfortable in large groups. Still, her arm in Kairi's as they stroll along the crowded beach makes it feel like they are the only ones around for miles.
15. Dawn
The Master is a morning person, the Apprentice is not. A sterner teacher would have woken their student at first light, but Aqua just smiles as Kairi buries her head in her arms to escape the hated dawn.
16. Gone
Barsoom is a giant desert, slowly dying and populated by hostile natives and strange beings of incredible power. John Carter and Princess Dejah tell her this, but Aqua only knows one thing: her apprentice is gone and she will not stop until she is found.
17. Watching
She is unaware of Kairi's eyes on her as she speaks to Cinderella about old times and how beautiful the princess has become. A slightly uncomfortable Cinderella wonders how an intelligent sorceress like Aqua could be that clueless.
18. Winter
She finds the unnatural snow that covers Arendelle is beautiful, but nowhere near as breath-taking as the lovely creature that created it. A smitten Aqua tries to talk of control over the magic within and how she struggled as well, while Kairi despairs without knowing why.
19. Spring
Escorting Snow White to visit her dwarven friends is hardly a challenging duty, so Kairi makes a crown of fresh flowers to pass the time. Aqua thinks it will look lovely on her apprentice, only to have it placed upon her head to Snow White's amusement and her own secret delight.
20. Summer
Summer on the Destiny Islands is almost unbearably humid, so their sparring matches are conducted with a minimal amount of clothing. Aqua often wonders why Kairi performs so poorly during those months and chalks it up to dehydration. Poor thing can't even look her in the face.
21. Fall
Halloweentown has the climate of an eternal autumn, leaves dying as soon as they grew on the branches and falling into piles at the base of the trunk. Aqua finds this depressing until her supposedly loyal apprentice pushes her into the largest pile of leaves. This means war.
22. Textbooks
They're both "geeks" as Tidus and Wakka dub anyone interested learning or books. Kairi doesn't mind and is happy to have something in common with her Master, forget those neanderthals, they can go crazy over her new textbooks if they want to.
23. Tired
Endurance is something they'll need to work, Aqua says as she carries an exhausted Kairi on her back. Ventus informs her that her insane training regiment is the real cause and Kairi chuckles in her ear.
24. Silly
Even after saving the Worlds and becoming an apprentice to the most amazing woman Kairi has ever met, she still feels like a silly little girl when her master heals her burned knee. Aqua patiently explains that this also happened with her first Fission Firaga, which only makes her feel sillier.
25. Victory
Kairi is stunned when Master Aqua collapses at her feet, smiling up at her apprentice and congratulates her on her first win. For the first time Kairi feels almost like an equal to her and the thought is... intoxicating?
26. Sadness
She knew it was against her Master's orders, but she did it anyway. Even if it worked, the hard look of those ice-blue eyes tore her heart apart like the claws of a Neoshadow.
27. Insanity
She had to be losing her mind, because she should not have had that dream, her Master would never do those strangely pleasant things to her, her hand should no... she hopes she has lost her mind.
28. Hair
Kairi loves it when her Master brushes her hair and would return the favor if she could. She's content to pin it up for Aqua on special occasions, cherishing the feel of the blue locks as it runs through her fingers.
29. Chance
It was more than chance that they met, Aqua is certain. The Princess of Heart had run instinctively toward a protector she didn't know was there and became her apprentice without Aqua's consent or knowledge. Sometimes, Aqua muses, fate is kind.
30. Luck
That's all it was, Kairi actually knocking Aqua off her feet in sparring. Aqua only smiles and politely disagrees.
31. Island
The Apprentice usually goes to the Master, but Aqua makes an exception. The Destiny Islands spoke to her during her first visit and she chooses to make her home on Xehanort's "prison." Also, she could not bear to separate Kairi from yet another place she loves.
32. Beach
Tidus lays panting in the sand, an embarrassed Aqua glancing between him and his laughing friends. Kairi teases him about challenging a Keyblade Master and Tidus concedes that, yes, Aqua is permitted to use "his" beach.
33. Water
Part of her decision to stay on Destiny Islands is the ocean. Master Erasqus named her after her love of the element and she would spend hours swimming through the waves when Kairi was at school. It helped to pass the time that crawled like a Stopga spell until her apprentice's return.
34. Parents
The mayor and his wife are wonderful people and very understanding, but not perfect. When they ask how long the two girls had been "seeing" each other, Kairi buries her face in her hands and Aqua quickly explains that "Master and Apprentice" is not what the kids are calling it these days.
35. Calculactor
Aqua adores the gift Kairi gives her for her birthday to replace the "abacus" Aqua lost at Castle Oblivion. Kairi apologizes because it's not the best model and all she could buy with her saved Munny, but Aqua won't hear of it. It quickly becomes her most prized possession and she nearly thrashes Terra when he almost breaks it.
36. Mirror
When Kairi asks why Aqua avoids mirrors as she is obviously very pretty, she tells her how she was once trapped in a magic mirror. Kairi starts to avoid mirrors as well, but she still thinks Master Aqua is pretty.
37. Pillows
Kairi makes sure that Aqua has plenty of support, fluffing her pillows and seeing that she is well taken care of. Aqua is bemused since it's only a turned ankle.
38. Silk
The Moogle assures her that is the finest silk in all the Worlds. Aqua is sure it will combine with the Mark of Mastery amulet she constructed to make the perfect graduation gift for Kairi's ascension to Keyblade Master. She doesn't hear the Moogle add that a gift of this silk is also considered a betrothal gift.
39. Blood
Kairi watches with morbid fascination as Aqua squeezes a drop of blood from her cut finger into the vial. Even if it allows Aqua to track her to other Worlds, the idea of her Master keeping a portion of her lifeblood sounds like some weird romantic gesture Selphie or Olette would think of.
40. Butterflies
The old cliché was true, Kairi realized, as dozens of Heartless butterflies materialized in her stomach as she walked down the carpet to the altar, the sight of Aqua in her suit being the catalyst for the tingling. The smile doesn't help. Damn stomach Heartless.
41. Trees
Tarzan is too far away to reach the falling Kairi... then her Master swings in on a vine and catches her with an arm around the waist like something out of an old adventure movie. A heartfelt "My hero," slips out before Kairi can stop it.
42. Lake
The cool mountain water felt great as they dipped their sore feet into the lake. The search for the disturbance on this world could wait, Kairi said, while they "cooled their heels." Aqua groaned at the most recent example of Kairi's obsession with puns.
43. Time
The first time Kairi sees a Stopza spell it seems to freeze the whole world until only she and Aqua are still moving. In her amazement she fumbles for Aqua's hand and wishes the spell would keep them separate from the world, forever.
44. Space
The Lanes Between are not outer space, Kairi reminds herself, and her armor will protect her, but she still stays close to Master Aqua's Keyblade Glider as they soar between the worlds.
45. Clock
The little hand feels like it's mocking her, refusing to signal the end of the hour and the school day. Selphie is amused at the change in the perfect student, though she can't fault Kairi for rushing off to meet up with the exotic Keyblade Mistress.
46. Angel
During art class Kairi drew a picture of a cerulean-haired warrior woman with a halo of light. When asked by Riku who it was, Kairi would smile and say it was her guardian angel. Sora thought that sounded corny, so she punched him in the arm. Riku still laughs.
47. Blessing
It isn't the girl herself that the recently awaken Aqua recognizes from all those years, but the simple necklace that she placed the protective charm on. Only then does she realize how long she stumbled in the dark, just before the girl embraces her and says, "Master!"
48. Lust
It takes months to whittle down her resistances, but in the end Kairi breaks down her girlfriend's objections by letting Selphie drag into her to the store that Wakka's crush works at. The belts are awkwardly placed and the fur itches, but the hungry look in Aqua's eyes makes it worth it.
49. Heartbreak
It's an honor and he never really adjusted back to life on the islands, so Kairi is happy that Sora will be the Goofy's replacement as Captain of the Guard. She does not cry when Aqua holds her for hours in her cottage on the island, but her Master weeps for her.
50. Nightmare
Ten years lost in darkness attacks her in her dreams, night terrors that can't be fought with Keyblades or magic. Only her beloved's arms and whispered kisses can push back the pain and return her to peaceful slumber. "Goodnight, Master..." she whispers, even though she is no longer the apprentice, it shows who has always had her heart and always will.
Author's Note: Not sure if I made the first "selfie/Selphie" joke, but I do not apologize for it. Thanks for reading one of my first drabbles, hope it wasn't too painful. Thanks to The Masked Wanderer for the challenge and as always R&R please!