"It's cold…"

How useless to say it out loud. In the Land of Darkness, it was always cold. Any source of light soon dimmed into nothingness, and flames didn't soothe so much as engulfed and destroyed whatever they were on. Worse, these sources of light were only around when a world had been recently swallowed by darkness. In its normal state, this Land of Darkness really lived up to its name, and the only glow you saw was, for the most part, from the hungry stare of the dwellers of darkness creeping around every corner.

And yet, Aqua felt cold. More than usual. Over her time there (Weeks? Months? Years?), Aqua's resolve was hardened, her skin thickened and her prowess with the Keyblade grew tenfold, and yet she was still prone to feeling an icy sting on her back and bare shoulders, as well as on the exposed part of her thighs. Her usual friendly hallucions, which were sometimes her only form of finding warmth, didn't come to her as much today. Was she giving up? Certainly not, she thought, before moving on deeper into the darkness, both all around her and brewing within herself.

If only she knew she'd be stuck in this place to save a friend, she'd at least have packed an overcoat.

But then, it happened.

Her priorities eventually shifted, when she saw a world she knew on the horizon, dissolving from its previous beauty to hunks of stone and scraps of European housing. She came to investigate, fighting to clear the path. No big enemies on the way, so her mind and body went on autopilot, using her trained stance, magic and attacks as if by will of a higher power, until there were no enemies left. And it was after one such fight that she found something.

Well, "found" was perhaps not the right word. It was more like she realized she had it all along. And because of that, Aqua reached for it, the same way that she would reach for her Wayfinder. Once she did, her hands now held a headband… with black cat ears adorning it..

Aqua's head tilted. It was black, and yet it wasn't the enemy. It also didn't have yellow eyes. How weird.

Once the surprise worn off, she ran her fingers over the accessory. Warm and fluffy. She must have forgotten that such things existed, just like she forgot she brought this item too. Or did she? Her memories with her friends were strong and intact, and in fact, they were her main drive. But there was no recollection involving this item. Maybe it had nothing to do with her friends, and that's why it was forgotten.

"It's a good thing, too…" she said out loud, speaking her thoughts to no one. "Terra wouldn't let me hear the end of it if I wore it."

Wear it. She didn't remember even doing that much. Or buying it. Was it even hers? But if not, who else would have had it? Certainly not Terra (or else it was she that wouldn't let him hear the end of it). Ventus? He'd look cute with that, but his hair was a bit too unruly to use it. The Master?

The thought made Aqua giggled. So spontaneous, but so weird too. She barely ever smiled anymore, except when her friends were in her mind, so genuine laughter came even more sparingly. But it happened, and she had that small, unlikely accessory to thank for it.

And because of that, Aqua put it on, right on top of her head.

Even with no one looking, or at least no one that'd care, Aqua felt eerily self-conscious. But for now, that was done. How she looked didn't matter as much as knowing why the world she knew was there: and so she pressed on, across a bridge she'd just repaired, to a palace she never really thought she'd see again.

(...)

Little did Aqua know, the cat ears weren't the only thing she forgot having on her.

Shoulder pads, wing bracers, robotic antennas, small wings of different colors, detached sleeves of different patterns… Aqua started to worry about whether her memories were really faulty, or that her old sense of fashion was way more flashy than she ever realized it being. The worst part was the headband with a pair of round ears and a ribbon in the middle. On one hand, it reminded her of Mickey, a friend she wished she knew more about. On the other hand, she never remembered having a thing for him: or anything that'd justify having gotten this piece in the first place.

It's a good thing she found some mirrors to try things on and see herself wearing them. Well, several mirrors, in fact. She got dragged in by her own reflection. Long story. Didn't really matter for now, at least until she found the right combination of accessories that would suit her.. Blue, blue was good. The wings had to be blue. That'd work with the silver sleeves, wouldn't it?

She was distracted by some tapping on the mirror. For a moment, she managed to see through it, into a round, ethereal azure room, and her reflection standing right on it, tapping its feet impatiently and pointing her finger briskly towards her wrist. Getting the message, Aqua raised her palm.

"Just a minute! I'm almost done!"

She barely paid attention when her doppelganger sighed. Blue? Yeah, blue was fine. Oh, one with a gradient of black and blue? How did she not remember that one? That could go perfectly with the rest of the outfit. That was a keeper, to be sure.

But eventually, she did fight. A tough fight too, especially with all these voices, voices like hers, saying things that couldn't possibly be true. About no one wanting to save her. About whether it was even worth continuing. About her looking ugly in black cat ears. As if to show her counterpart wrong, Aqua redoubled her efforts in the fight, and eventually persevered, finding her image to dissolve, hearing a mirror cracking and, quite suddenly, finding herself in a big hall full of mirrors again..

Not a stranger to this place, she trailed a familiar path towards an unbroken mirror, through which she had first gotten into that hall. She saw her reflection, tame and clear again, and now her only regret was not having packed a bulkier shoulder pad. It'd just feel right on the shoulder where her armor used to rest.

(...)

"So. Ready?"

Aqua laughed. Mickey's voice had a perkiness to it that she never heard anywhere else. It was a godsend after this whole time alone. And when would she ever expect him to be here, now, saving her from the void she was about to sink into? She wasn't alone anymore: and that gave her so much hope.

"Ready!" She said, taking his hand and squeezing it hard, as if to confirm it was even there.

It was settled. They would find a way out. They would do it together. And from there, they could go back to their friends. Aqua took her first step, with renewed hope.

"By the way… Aqua?"

"Yes, Mickey?"

"Uh… where did you find that?"

She looked down. He pointed up. Aqua's hand reached above her head, only to find the round, smooth texture of a certain acessory. The ribbon was also there, too. And for the first time in ages, Aqua felt herself actually blushing.

I forgot I was using that one…

"Oh, I just… found it? Weird, isn't it?" Her hand went down to rub her shoulder pad of choice, and her eyes wandered away downwards, not before glancing by her blue sleeve. "It... may have reminded me of you. And I needed all the reminding of my friends that I could get."

That was the best Aqua could make it sound. Mickey had his head tilted, but eventually just nodded energetically.

"Gosh, Aqua, your friends really do get you going!" He spoke, then turned around towards their way forward. "Don't worry. We'll find a way to get to them. Now let's get moving!"

Aqua sighed in relief, and thanked her luck for him having questioned that, and not the fact that the accessory only appeared after their scene together was done. She didn't feel she could properly explain that one.

(...)

And there she was. Alone again.

She brought it upon herself, but it was worth it. The others would be safe. Mickey and Riku fulfilled what they must. If it took leaving Aqua behind to stop the influx of these so-called Heartless from interfering, she'd willingly do so. In fact, she just did.

Sure, it sucked to have been stripped from her only human (or mouse) contact in 10 years, especially when she might or might not have a thing for him (she never cleared that up in her head, did she?). But hey, at least she got to feel like she was helping. Making a real contribution to the Realm of Light. Her efforts were not in vain. And at least through Mickey, people might know of her plight, and the path she'd been walking so far.

In front of her, the demon tower rushed up, down, and all around her, missing narrowly as the scenes dictated. It made a stark contrast to the island she was in, save for the part that might as well be a dark creature's den ripping through the middle of the island. Whatever happened there, anyway? She had no time to think. She could just dodge, until the beast calmed. And when it did, she'd reassume her stance for what felt like the millionth time, and fight until she was victorious.

She had to be victorious. For Mickey and Riku. For Terra and Ven. For Sora, and everyone in the Realm of Light. And even if she was alone again (and who knew how long anyone could go help her without needing help themselves), she had her objective clear. She'd fight. She'd survive, and persevere. She'd wait for them.

And she'd play dress-up while she waited.

She could only hope Sora and Riku had a mirror lying somewhere.