I don't own anything associated with Kingdom Hearts. It belongs to Square Enix/Disney.

The Beginning

Master Eraqus sat at his desk, sipping a cup of his favourite brand of tea. It was a beautiful, spring day with the sun shining and a few fluffy clouds lazily making their way across the sky. He turned his head away from his papers for a second, staring through the room's wide window at the green fields and lovely flowers outside, and then returned to his work with a smile. It was one of those rare times where he was the only person present in the castle, and he was taking the time to get some work done.

He dipped his quill in the inkwell and began to write. Report 12, his quill traced out. I have sent my apprentices here today with the intention of mapping out some of the world beyond its signature port. Though I have yet to witness any for myself, I have heard rumours from the other Masters that there are many hidden, magical secrets located on this world. Between the three of them, I hope that my apprentices will be able to bring news of a few of them. Every artefact that we uncover will help us understand this mysterious world of magic.

He finished with a flourish, dropping his quill into the inkwell where it would stay. He picked the report up, neatly depositing it in the back of the folder labelled 'Plumbers' Base', and placed that onto the bookcase that was arranged alphabetically. He adjusted the folder, making sure it fit in neatly with the others. Ah, yes, symmetry. That was always good.

Tucking his chair back into his desk, he smoothed down his clothes and left the room. It was time, he decided, for a snack. Terra was on kitchen duty and he was a good cook, but today, Ven was supposed to help him . . . he shuddered. Best to eat beforehand so he didn't have to put himself through that much pain later.

Once in the kitchen, he naturally gravitated towards the platter of cookies Aqua had left out. True, she had told everyone not to touch them, but he was only taking one. She wouldn't miss it.

Besides, it was a well-known fact that Aqua always blamed Terra.

He returned to his desk and tea, cookie and a plate with a few other pastries in hand. He put down the plate in front of him, taking a seat afterwards. With one hand, he picked up his teacup, and with the other, he grabbed the cookie and raised it to his mouth . . .

There was the distant sound of a door slamming.

Groaning, Eraqus put the teacup back on his desk and held his forehead instead. One, two . . .

"Master! Maaaaaster!"

He quickly devoured Aqua's cookie and said, "Come in, Ventus."

The door almost exploded from the force Ven used to push it open. His hair seemed to be sticking up even more than usual, and he ran right up to Eraqus' desk, hands slamming down on it. Ven stared up at him, panting.

Eraqus quirked a brow. "Yes?"

Ven winced as he said, "Master, we have a bit of a problem."

"Is anyone injured?" Eraqus asked.

"No, but . . ."

"Did you all return safely?"

"Yes, but . . ."

"Then it is probably not as severe a problem as you are making it out to be."

"Actually . . ." Ven said that slowly, as if buying time to figure out his next words. "I think it is."

"Is it now?" Eraqus said, completely unconvinced. "Well, then summon Aqua and Terra to help you explain."

Ven nodded, and then looked over his shoulder. "Okay guys, you can come in."

Folding one hand over the other, Eraqus leaned back and waited patiently. Ven had a tendency to . . . exaggerate things, but Aqua and Terra were sure to give him a much clearer picture of what was going on.

He waited patiently, and then blinked when two figures that were much too short to be his students appeared in the doorway.

"Ventus, why are there children here?" he asked.

Ven buried his head in his hands. "Look closer," he mumbled.

Eraqus did so. He saw a young boy and girl, neither of which could have been older than seven. The boy was the larger one, with brown hair and blue eyes, while the girl had both blue hair and eyes. An odd combination. Aqua was the only person he knew to even have blue hair.

Oh.

His eyes widened.

The young, child-sized version of Terra stomped his foot and cried, "I blame Ven for this!"

Poor Eraqus. That's the last relaxing day he's going to have for a while. Anyways, thought I'd start writing this now to balance out all the misery from the Shrouded Path and another upcoming story. Two points I want to make though:

1) Unlike my other stories, I have no plot planned out for this. This means that there's no set update schedule, but for once, I'm able to accommodate requests if there are any (Just note that I don't do OCs).

2) Yes, I do intend to include Vanitas. There's a poll on my profile where you can vote for what role he plays.

Hope you guys like this!