The Way Things Are
("Hold on, you said 'whenever I think about you.' So, that must mean you think about me a lot." ZackAqua :3)
A/N: My first attempt at ZackAqua. This is dedicated to Alacquiene who got me hooked on this pairing because of her awesome fics (If you haven't read them yet, check out the All It Takes series), which were pivotal in getting me out of my slump. XD Thank you Alacquiene! If I could, I'd start a wave just for you. XD
Almost all of the Zaqua I've read were set in the Birth By Sleep universe. So I thought "Wouldn't it be cool if Aqua was in Midgar?" Therefore, this is in the Crisis Core universe. :)
Sitting in the Dark Margin by herself, sometimes Aqua couldn't help but be envious of Ven. He had Mickey's, Aqua's, and probably, hopefully Terra's "lights" (as Master Yen Sid called them) to follow. He had these people to guide him back to the Realm of Light. They were waiting for him. She knew it was wrong to think that way, and it's unfair to Ven, but sometimes she believed no one was waiting for her, no one was looking for her.
As she contemplated this, she watched the moon seem to wiggle. She blinked once to clear her eyes. It was probably just her tears.
But it started to move towards her. She jumped to her feet and slowly backed away from the beach. Has she finally gone insane?
From her standing height, she found the moon firmly still in its spot. She closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. Is this what darkness does to you? No wonder Master Xehanort's crazy.
She opened her eyes again, and was startled at the sight of two moons in the horizon. Then the one on the left wiggled and came closer. It touched the tip of her nose. Apparently, it was just a tiny light speck. It felt warm too.
… Wait… Light…?
Suddenly, the tiny speck exploded in front of her. It opened into a corridor of light.
When you've been in the Realm of Darkness for so long, you take any opportunity you can. So, without even thinking where this could lead her, Aqua unquestioningly stepped in.
"Aqua, right? Hey, I'm Zack. Your opponent in the final."
Aqua found herself staring into the bluest blue eyes she's ever seen.
Blank.
And with four words, the boy named Zack did something no one has ever done before: embarrass Aqua, the epitome of calm and cool.
"Besides, I still have so much training to do…" she reasoned weakly.
"Fair enough. And I'm still a work in progress, after all." he conceded… but not quite.
"Well, how 'bout this—I become a hero, then we go on a date." But this time, he decided he wouldn't listen to Aqua's argument.
He, scampering away like a happy little puppy, left her very much confused, awkward yet, somehow, delighted. She knew this boy had left an indelible imprint on her.
Blank.
The first thing that registered to Aqua was the sweet scent of flowers. She tried to open her eyes but they couldn't take the brightness yet. When you've been in the dark for so long, this tends to happen. She lied there for a while, taking in the fragrant blossoms, and letting her eyes get used to the light penetrating her eyelids.
After a couple of minutes, she sat up and opened her eyes albeit slowly. Looking around, she found that she was in the middle of a flowerbed inside a dilapidated church.
Peculiar place for flowers to grow in, she thought.
Upon closer inspection of the flowers, Aqua thought she's seen them before. With a nostalgic smile, she remembered them from Master Eraqus' greenhouse. It housed plants from different worlds. Next to the summit, it was Aqua's favorite place in their homeworld. These particular flowers she found herself amidst, if she recalled correctly, were called irises.
She picked one and fiddled with it. She hasn't seen this much color in a while. Suddenly, a noise from outside broke her peace. She reflexively took on a defensive stance. But no attacker came. She allowed herself to relax and her pounding heart to calm. That was when she realized it was only laughter; children's laughter. Been a while since she's heard those too.
Flowers, laughing children. This world seemed safe, peaceful. Well, even if it wasn't, Aqua's not going to complain. Even if she appeared in the middle of a battlefield, she'd still be thankful. At least she was out of the Realm of Darkness.
She decided to go out and explore. Without her Keyblade and armor, she had no means of leaving. There was a big probability that this might be her home. Better get to know it.
When she stepped out of the church, the first thing she noticed was the heaps of rubbish. Well, that was very anticlimactic.
Then she saw the source of the noise that initially scared her. There was a group of children playing nearby. One boy was carrying a wooden sword that reminded Aqua of Ven.
"Back off monsters!" the boy yelled proudly at his playmates, "SOLDIER First Class Zack on the job!"
Aqua started at the name. She couldn't help smiling as the image of the adorable Zack she knew flashed in her mind. She wanted to ask the boy about the "Zack" he was talking about, but she decided against it. Maybe "Zack" was a popular name in this world.
She navigated her way around the rubbish away from the church.
"Sector 5 Market" the sign above the big doors read.
A market. Maybe I can ask around in there, Aqua thought.
But before she could go in, she heard a creepy hissing sound. She turned around and found herself face to face with a weird toad thing and something that resembled a snake. They don't look very tough. Maybe Fire is enough for the both of them. But Aqua was still a bit weak. The darkness sapped so much out of her. Even conjuring a basic spell tired her out. She was brought to her knees without even doing anything. When the snake thing pounced, she had nothing but her arms to shield her. She closed her eyes and waited for the pain…
… But it didn't come. Instead, she heard slashes and slices and the sound of dying creatures.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Aqua put her arms down and looked at her savior. She found herself staring into the bluest blue eyes she's ever seen. She saw them widen.
Her focus panned out to see the whole face. There was something vaguely familiar about it.
Then it spoke. "Aqua?"
This man knew her. Wait, this man knew her? "Who…"
His face broke into a grin that took the years off it. Then she knew.
"Zack!" she felt herself grin too.
"Aqua, it is you." He helped her up. "What's up with that? You would've trashed those things easy."
"Well, I haven't had any practice lately."
Partly because he was the first friendly face she's seen, and partly (mostly) because she missed him, Aqua wanted so much to hug Zack. But she fought the urge to do so. She let herself hold his face instead. This caused his cheeks to turn several shades of red.
"Look at you. You've grown so much. I barely recognized you." He was much taller than her now. When she let go, he took the chance for payback. He touched her face.
Once again, Zack has done the almost impossible. He made Aqua blush. Again. "Well, you're as beautiful as ever."
Embarrassed (again), she removed his hand. "S-stop that."
Instead of being offended, he laughed it off. And this further reddened Aqua's already beet red face.
Trying to recollect her composure, she changed the subject. "W-well, anyway, I haven't seen you in a while. Are you anywhere near being a hero yet?"
He stopped laughing and looked at her squarely. Then he smiled again. "More than a hero." he stood straighter, "I'm a SOLDIER First Class."
And she imagined the younger Zack doing this. She couldn't help giggling.
"Hey, what?"
"Nothing." she beamed. "Well, Mr. SOLDIER First Class, whatever that is, I believe you owe me a date then."
He smiled the most adorable smile, it made Aqua want to stop time just to stare at it. "Right. That I do." He offered his arm. "Shall we?"
She took it happily and he led her inside the Sector 5 Market.
He took her around, dragging her to this and that shop.
They talked. A lot. Aqua chatted more than she's ever chatted in her life. And she didn't feel the least bit uncomfortable. There's just something about Zack.
Apparently, after not being able to become Phil's apprentice, Zack decided to come back to Gaia, which was what this world was called, and pursue his dreams here. This city was called Midgar, but he came from a village called Gongaga.
In turn, Aqua talked about growing up in the Land of Departure; her childhood with Terra, meeting Ventus, among other things.
When they came to an accessory shop, he offered to buy something for her.
"There's no need." she replied.
"Aw, c'mon Aqua. You're gonna make me look like a lousy date."
She laughed. "Don't worry, you're not. But you don't have to get me anything."
"Yes, I do." He sighed "Fine. If you won't pick anything, then I'll pick for you." He took a cheap-looking seashell necklace.
"What? No! That's too tacky." she protested.
"Hey!" the store-owner piped.
"Then you pick." Zack insisted.
"All right, all right." Aqua scanned the merchandise. One pair caught her eye. She picked them up and showed them to her date. "Can I have these?" They were star-shaped hair-clips studded with rhinestones.
"Are you sure?" to Zack, the clips seemed too bland. He wouldn't have noticed them if she hadn't pointed them out.
"Yes, I'm sure." She teasingly made a face at him. "You asked me what I wanted. Now you refuse to buy it."
"No! It's not that. It's just that, well, compared to the other pretty stuff…"
"Well, I like stars."
And that was enough. Zack bought the star-clips for Aqua at the price of five gil. She let him place it in her hair. She can't help but be amused at how he used that to discreetly stroke her face.
As they walked away from the shop, she told him the legend of the paopu.
"You know, somewhere far away, there's this tree with star-shaped fruit."
He chuckled. "That must've been cute."
She smiled. "Yes, they are, actually. Anyway," she continued, "the fruit symbolizes an unbreakable connection. People make charms in its shape and give them to friends and loved ones. It's supposed to be a reassurance that, no matter how far apart you get, you'll find a way back to each other."
"Wow. That's cool." he said thoughtfully.
"The charms are called Wayfinders." she showed him hers. "Terra, Ven, and I have one each. I made them."
He saw a flicker of sadness in Aqua's eyes as she said that, and he understood.
"All right then," he said in an effort to cheer her up, "consider yourself Wayfinded."
She couldn't help but laugh at the term. "What?"
"Those hair-clips, they're our Wayfinders. Now, if we get separated, I'll be sure to find you."
And her irresistible smile appeared again. "And I'll be sure to find you."
The Keyblade Master who once traveled the worlds is now fatigued by an hour's walk. She found a nearby stack of crates and sat on them. "Zack, I'm kind of tired."
He raised an eyebrow at her. "You, Aqua, tired?"
She shot him a look and he backed off. "Okay, okay. But don't sit there." And he proceeded to carry her, much to her surprise.
"W-what are you doing?"
"You said you were tired."
"Zack," she reprimanded, "people are staring."
"Of course they are. You're that pretty." he said it as casually as you would describe a book. But this only further disconcerted Aqua. In a good way.
He took her to what looked like a playground. Despite the toys, it matched the dreary backdrop, what with the faded, peeling paint and all that rust. He set her down on a swing and he took his place on the one beside it.
"How's that?"
In spite of the embarrassment, what he did was such a sweet gesture that she can't help but laugh. "Better. Thank you." And it just occurred to her, this was the most she's laughed in a day since, well, she can't even remember.
They sat in silence for a while. Aqua found herself staring at Zack. He's grown so handsome. If she knew what a crush meant, that was how she would've described what she felt.
"Don't do that. I just might melt in your eyes." he teased as he turned to face her.
She flicked his nose lightly. "Stop assuming." she joked. Then she took on a more thoughtful tone. "I still can't believe you're the same Zack. Whenever I think about you, I always see the eager little boy with the cheeky smile. Now, look at you. You've grown into a fine, strong young man."
Her words caught him off-guard and brushed a tinge of pink on his good-looking face. Then he smiled, "Hold on, you said 'whenever I think about you.' So, that must mean you think about me a lot."
This caused Aqua to flick his nose once again. "I may not look like I aged a year, but you still have a lot of catching-up to do, little man." she taunted.
"Fine, I'll keep running if I have to." he retorted.
He stood up and walked a little distance before facing her again. "I always knew I'd see you again, Aqua. I always believed you'd come back."
At those words, something dawned on Aqua. She remembered what Master Yen Sid said and the promise she made to Ven. She remembered the corridor of light that brought her here. She got so excited, she couldn't control herself. She jumped from her seat and, in a second, her arms were around the SOLDIER. "Oh, Zack, I mean this from the bottom of my heart, thank you!"
Her action caught him unawares. For a few seconds, he stood there frozen, before he returned the embrace. And it felt to him like this was where they both really belonged.
After a while, she let go. But this made him hold her closer. "Aqua…"
They found themselves staring into the other's eyes. Before she realized what he was doing, Zack slowly closed the gap between them. Aqua barely had any time to react when his lips found their mark. Her heart was beating in record-speed. Before she could decide if that was good or bad, he seemed to react from her lack of reaction and pulled away.
No, this is good, she concluded.
"Wait…" she said breathlessly and brought him back.
It was in that moment where she wanted to spend forever.
"Zack?" a girl's voice harshly dropped them back to reality.
Aqua found herself looking at the most beautiful girl she's ever seen. She thought this must be how an angel looked like.
Zack quickly removed his arms from her, and she saw the pained expression on his face. She felt something pierce her heart as she realized that she had trespassed into dangerous territory and, worse, he let her.
"Aerith…" he said her name as if it burned in his mouth.
The girl named Aerith looked at Zack, then Aqua, then back to Zack. Her eyes welled with tears. "Zack…"
Aqua felt like she might cry too. She looked at Zack and he looked at her. His eyes pleaded. Hers could only show a miserable rage. He opened his mouth, but she would have none of it. She quickly shifted her attention to Aerith. It was her turn to plead.
"I am so sorry." her voice shook with guilt, wretchedness, and anger. Then she stormed away.
She broke into a jog, then a run, then she sprinted, as fast as she could, away from them. Away from him. She ignored the fire in her lungs. She barely noticed one of her star-clips fall from her hair. She just ran aimlessly.
She wasn't mad because Zack had an Aerith. She was mad because Zack had an Aerith, and still said and did those things to Aqua. He not only made her a plaything, but he also used her as a tool to hurt the poor girl. This knowledge not only broke her heart, but it crushed it, shattered it, burned it. She felt fit to burst. But she also felt hollow.
She had to get away from here. She'll keep running if she has too.
After Aqua left, everything else went into a blur. Zack barely even felt the slap on his face. It seemed time was going fast and slow at the same time. But he knew he needed to catch her.
When he got to the church's facade, he noticed something glitter on the ground. He saw it was the hair-clip he bought Aqua. He cradled it in his hand as though it was made of diamonds. He scanned the place, hoping this meant she was close. Unfortunately, that was not the case.
He looked at the accessory he had christened their Wayfinder and couldn't help but shed tears.
He held it to his chest and sought comfort in the star's promise. "I'll be sure to find you."
Well, this ended up longer than I intended it to be. XD I guess it's cuz I tend to overdescribe (is that even a word?).
And, yes, I know, the lanes between should be kept secret and, yes, Aqua and Zack did talk about that in this fic, but, please bear with me. Sorry. :)
Anyway, leave a review, 'kay?
Thank you!