I do not own any character except for Theena/Xanethe. All rights belong to Square Enix and Disney.
The sun was slowly setting in Radiant Garden, setting the sky ablaze with oranges, reds, yellows, pinks, and purples. Three kids sat on the ledge of a fountain in the center of town, taking in the beautiful sight.
"I can't believe you didn't want to come see this Isa," a boy with spiky, fiery hair and turquoise eyes said with a small chuckle. Isa, a boy with spiked, yet neatly kempt sky blue hair and marine eyes, glanced at his friend.
"You're just lucky Theena convinced me to come. You know I have other things I need to do Lea." The girl that sat between them let out a laugh. She had powder blue hair kept in a messy ponytail and violet eyes.
"All you do is sit in your room and read Isa, you don't have anything you need to do," she said, teasing her brother. Isa just crossed his arms and returned his focus to the sky. "I'm glad you suggested doing this every evening Lea." He shrugged.
"Well, you like watching the sunrise from the fountain, so I figured we could do the same with the sunset. Now I don't have to get up so early to enjoy it with you," he laughed. She gave him a small shove.
"At least Isa watches the sunrise with me."
"You just make too much noise getting up in the morning." With that statement, the three of them burst into genuine laughter. Though they watched the sun sink out of sight in silence, their thoughts were the same. They wanted these carefree days with each other to go on forever.
Theena woke early in the morning, well before the sun. As she sat up in her bed, she glanced out the window and noticed something strange. Her brow furrowed as she watched the ground writhe, and wriggle. It was dark, so she couldn't tell if perhaps there was a thin layer of mist dancing on the ground, or if her eyes were still weary with sleep. She left her room and headed next door to Isa's.
"Isa," she whispered, shaking the sleeping form of her brother. "Isa, wake up." His eyelids fluttered open to see his sister's concerned face.
"What is it?" he mumbled.
"Look outside." With a grunt, he sat up, and was immediately puzzled by what he saw out his window.
"Is the ground...moving?"
"Weird huh? I wonder what it is…" Isa stared for a moment, not sure what to say.
"Maybe we should go get Lea and see what he thinks of it." Theena nodded in agreement. They got up and ready. They stood in the doorway of their home, neither one wanting to take that first step on to the mysteriously moving ground. They looked at one another. Isa, wanting to be protective of his sister, took a tentative step out of the doorway. Theena followed him. They found that the ground itself wasn't actually moving. Rather, it seemed that thousands of small shadows were running across the ground, though there was nothing to cast them. Isa and Theena glanced at each other once more, now even more thoroughly confused. They moved forward cautiously, the strange shadows unaffected by their presence. They reached Lea's home and knocked on his window. A few moments later, a dazed Lea with shaggy cowlicked hair sat up and stared at them blankly, blinking his groggy eyes a couple of times. They motioned him to join them outside. After a few minutes it clicked with him, and he disappeared from the window. Within moments, he was outside.
"What's going on guys?" he questioned, stretching and yawning. The two of them crossed their arms and motioned at the ground. Lea looked down and jumped, letting out a yelp. "What the hell?"
"We're not sure what's going on. I woke up and saw the ground moving, and now Isa and I are trying to figure it out," Theena explained.
"You think something could be going on in the center of town?" Lea suggested. Isa shrugged.
"It's worth a shot to check it out," he agreed. The three of them made their way to the fountain plaza, treading carefully, avoiding the shadows as much as possible. Once they reached the plaza, the sight awaiting them left them in shock. The fountain, which usually runs with clear fresh water, the symbol of the beauty and life of Radiant Garden, was now running with black, smoke like water from which the shadows seemed to be flowing. "What's going on here?" Isa murmured. Theena made her way down the steps, towards the fountain.
"Thee, wait!" Lea warned, waiting at the top of the steps with Isa. She ignored her friend, continuing towards the fountain. Slowly, she lifted her hand to brush the water. The moment the tips of her fingers grazed the strange substance, she heard a yelp. She whipped around and saw that the shadows were rising out of the ground, forming into small black creatures with nothing but tiny yellow eyes. Her eyes widened.
"What are these?"
"Theena get out of there!" Isa demanded. She tried to move through the sea of creatures towards the boys, but as soon as she did, they were upon her. She shrieked as they grabbed onto her legs and tried to climb up her. She did her best to shake them off, but there were too many. She struggled forward, holding her hand out.
"Isa, Lea!" she cried desperately. Isa reached forward to grab his sister from the creatures, but pulled back as more of the things arose from the ground. He looked around, horrified as he saw them rising all around them.
"Hold on Theena, I'm coming!" Lea yelled, ready to charge in.
"No Lea, we have to go. Now!" Isa ordered. Lea looked at him, baffled.
"No way!" Lea held out his hand, but Isa grabbed his arm and began to pull him away. "Theena! Isa stop! Theena!" Lea thrashed and struggled, but Isa's grip remained firm as he began to make a run for it.
"Lea please!" Theena begged, holding her hand out in vain, tears flowing from her eyes as she was almost completely enveloped by the monsters. Lea could only watch as his dear friend was swallowed by the swelling, squirming darkness.
"Theena!"
"Come on Lea!" Isa shouted, dragging him from the plaza. Lea finally turned and began running alongside Isa. They ran through the town, noticing that the shadows were rising from the ground everywhere they turned. They ran, batting away any creature that tried to grab them. They ran until they reached the outskirts of town, where they could do nothing as their home drowned in darkness. Lea turned and glared at Isa.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" he yelled, shoving his friend.
"Did you want me to let you get captured?" Isa asked coolly.
"If it meant that I could have done something for Theena, then yes!" He looked at the ground, fists clenched. "She was your sister…" he muttered. "She was your sister!" he repeated, his voice rising. "You didn't even try to save her!"
"There was nothing we could have done." Lea began to walk away, back to Isa. "Where are you going?" Isa demanded.
"I'm going to get her back. I don't leave my friends behind," he replied, back still turned. With that he continued towards the town. Isa stared after him for a moment.
"Lea, wait!" The redhead stopped. " You can't do it alone." Lea turned and grinned.
"Then what are you waiting for? Let's go get Thee!"
