A.N. I've had the idea for this fanfic for some time now, though originally with Kairi, but I never got around to writing anything because she never quite fit what I needed her to be. Then I discovered SoraxRoxas, and we all know what happened after that. This is going to be a LONG story spanning five or six years (not counting the prologue) and I'm probably going to break it in half at some point into two separate fics. I want this fic to be some of my best writing, so bear with me if updates take a while, okay? Till then, enjoy.

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From the Depths

by: Cedarleaf

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Prologue

There couldn't have been a more perfect day to be at sea. The sun was bright and high, the clouds filtering its strong beams into gentle rays. The wind was a soft breeze, cool and salty.

And to the small boy perched atop the barrels beside the rail of the ship, this day was heaven. He loved the sea and in his opinion, the only thing better than sailing on it was swimming in it.

A gentle hand on his shoulder brought him out of his thoughts. He twisted around to see his mother standing beside him. "Have you seen any yet?" she asked, smiling down at her son.

The boy cocked his head slightly. Seen what? She glanced down at the ocean. Oh, that's right! He'd promised to find lots of dolphins earlier, hadn't he? He'd declared to the whole crew that he'd find the marine mammals for his mother. The sailors had chuckled kindheartedly at this, amused by the child's enthusiasm. His father had also smiled, going so far as to ruffle the boy's spiky blond hair. "He'll make a fine researcher someday," he had said. His older brother had grunted, but not much else. It was fine, though. The boy knew his brother only liked to pretend he wasn't interested in anything the younger boy did, though the younger didn't understand why the elder even bothered pretending

So, the boy had clamored up on top of some barrels near the bow to watch for the creatures. He'd been watching for hours already, giving an update to anyone who asked and sometimes even told the crew which way the elusive animals might be. They even humored him once or twice, changing course to the boy's directions. This was a pleasure outing and there was no need to worry about any sort of schedule as long as they made it back to the harbor by sunset, which was still hours away.

Unfortunately, the boy's efforts were for naught, as not a single dolphin had yet to make an appearance.

Of course, he was never one to be discouraged, so the boy continued to wait… and wait… and wait…

Eventually his search degenerated into him just staring off into the endless blue, but he didn't mind. He liked the sea.

In response to his mother's question, he simply shook his head. "Well then, my little explorer, perhaps you'd best take a break?"

"Just ten more minutes, Mother? Please?"

"Five more, because that's how much longer until lunch will be ready. Come and join us then. We can't discover the mysteries of the universe on an empty stomach, now can we?" She poked him lightly in the tummy.

He smiled. Oh how he loved his mother. "Yes, ma'am."

"Good. Don't be late now," she said, turning towards the cabin-

Only to have the deck slide out from under her as a rather large wave caught the starboard side causing it to tilt dangerously how to the left, so low water splashed onto the deck from the port side. "What is the name of Yevon-?"

"The winds've changed directions, m'lady. Comin' from the East now." The man who had spoken ran a hand through his straw colored hair anxiously. "Means storms this time of year. Perhaps we should return to port?"

"Yes," the woman replied, standing up shakily. "I think we have had enough adventure for today. Thank you, Captain."

"What has happened?" a deep, male voice asked from back by the stern.

"Winds have shifted, sir," the captain said. "To the East."

The newcomer nodded solemnly. "Head back to port."

"Already on our way, sir."

"Good man," he told the captain, placing an arm around his wife to steady her as the ship was still a bit rocky. "Are you alright, darling?" he asked her.

"Yes, though I do feel a bit wobbly still," she said, straightening her dress.

"Come inside and sit down, then. We'll be ashore again soon enough."

They began to walk back to the cabin when the woman turned to call her son, "Sweetheart, would-"

The barrels were rolling freely across the deck, having been pushed over by the water spilling over the side. The port side. The side her son had been sitting on. Her son that was no longer on deck.

"ROXAS!"

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Roxas struggled against the ropes that entangled his legs. He'd seen them on top of the barrel before he'd climbed on but thought nothing of them. They were spare ropes and he sat on them, no big deal, right?

Except now they were a huge deal. When he'd been washed overboard, the ropes had come with him, somehow twisting around his legs, rendering them all but immobile.

And when you're in water so deep you can't see the bottom, that's really, really bad.

Roxas knew he was in trouble. The more he tried to unwrap the ropes, the tighter they seemed to become and the more he struggled, the more he seemed to sink and he was running out of air and-

And he was going to drown.

Then something flashed before his eyes, but it sure wasn't his life.

It was a face. A small, round, and slightly chubby face. Odd, what would a face be doing twenty feet beneath the surface?

Another face appeared besides the first one but larger and slightly elongated.

Then the rest of his brain caught up with the part that was water logged and confirmed that yes, there were two people floating next to him in the water, two brown haired people.

Then his lungs reminded him that he needed air. Now. Instinct won over curiosity and Roxas began his struggle anew to get back to the surface, the burning pain in his chest almost choking him. But before he got very far, he felt a hand on his back, and his lungs stopped screaming.

:Breathe; a gentle voice commanded him.

Reflexively, Roxas obeyed. But strangely, he did not drown. Oxygen rushed back into his lungs instead of water. Uncertain it was really happening, he took a few more breaths.

One of the faces was still staring at him. Now free of his panic, Roxas was able to take a better look at his company.

The first face belonged to a boy with spiky brown hair (though it was hard to tell underwater) and luminous blue eyes. He couldn't be a day older than Roxas himself. But what really caught his attention was the other boy's lower half.

He had a tail.

Roxas blinked to make sure he wasn't seeing things.

He wasn't. Instead of two legs, from the waist down, the boy had blue fins.

'He's a mermaid…' Roxas realized with no small amount of awe.

A flash of something caught the corner of his eye. Another mermaid tail, a pink one, danced in and out of his vision. Roxas supposed he found where the second face went and why there was a hand on his back; whomever the tail belonged to was standing behind him. Or swimming, rather.

While he was observing all this, the blue-tailed merboy in front of him had been working to untangle the ropes from around his legs, his tongue poking out from between plump lips in concentration. Roxas watched him do it, starting a little when the last of the bindings fell away into the depths below them. The other boy smiled at him, obviously pleased with his handiwork. It was the brightest smile Roxas had ever seen, even brighter than his mother's. Roxas began smiling a little himself, the other boy's was so contagious. It made him feel special.

The hand on his back, which Roxas had forgotten about for the moment, pushed him gently upward and Roxas felt himself rising towards the surface. He looked up quickly to see the underside of the waves. With the hand gone, the burning in his lungs had returned. Just before he broke the surface, he glanced back down again to see the merboy looking up at him with a slight pout on his round face. Then the pink mermaid took his hand and pulled him down with her, her long braid trailing behind her like a ribbon as they disappeared into the depths.

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The last thing his parents expected when his brother finally managed to haul Roxas aboard was the biggest smile of his they had ever seen on him.

"Mother! Father! You're not going to believe this!" he said the moment his feet hit wood. Roxas was all but bouncing with glee, completely unfazed by the experience of almost being lost at sea. Having believed for one heart-stopping moment that his younger brother had perished, jumping overboard to save said sibling from Davie Jones' locker, and the boy actually fighting him to stay in the water, his brother was in considerably lower spirits.

"Yes, do tell why you insisted on almost drowning."

"Did not!" Roxas snapped back. "I was trying to wave goodbye to the mermaids!"

His statement was met with silence for a moment, before his brother snorted. "Knew he'd swallow too much sea water someday."

"Did not! I really saw them!"

Their father chose that moment to chide them and ordered a complete halt of discussion until both his children were dry and properly fed. As his mother gently shooed him into the cabin, Roxas stole one last glance at the blue water, thinking of the strange and wondrous beings that lived there.

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