OK, Hello, and welcome To Castle Hearts- my first Kingdom hearts fanfiction. Its a pleasure to meet all of you, and I sincerely hope you enjoy- warnings: I have a lot of OCs in this. For a reason. This is kind of an AU- it follows the storylines of Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2 and everything cannon in the games applies. It is a soul mate AU focusing primarily on Riku and my OC Artemis Kenja, in Artemis' POV- Hence the reason for AU. Reviews are welcome... thanks for giving it a chance.

One more thing, as I can't remember these for crap this is for the whole story: I DON'T OWN KINGDOM HEARTS OR ANY FINAL FANTASY CHARACTERS MENTIONED. I ONLY OWN MY OCS AND PART OF THE PLOT.


Full Summary: It's Not easy trying to find your sister- who may or may not still be herself at this point- it's even more confusing when you find out that your soulmate is in league with the person that has taken over your world after helping Xehanort have his way with it (pun may or may not be intended).

Putting it simply, Artemis Kenja just wants to find her sister, and not worry about her soulmate... But that's just not going to happen, is it? At least, not as long as she keeps meeting him in her dreams...


PART 1

(During the Events of Kingdom Hearts)


Chapter 1

It always started the same way… a pair of brilliant turquoise eyes, a voice that haunted her in her waking hours. Though she knew that she slept, though she knew that there would be no answer, Artemis Kenja could not help but call out, begging the voice for a name.

She'd had the same dream for years, though, as a child, he had been more of an imaginary friend of sorts. Now, though, at fourteen, she could not help but wonder who the boy that she knew vaguely from her dreams was.

However, now was not the time to think of such things as transitory dreams that she wasn't even able to completely remember. She had other commitments to attend to… like finding her older sister, Hestia. And to do that, she had to put such things as imaginary friends behind her. She needed to fight the heartless.

She needed, she thought, to get a friggin' grip.

What was she even doing thinking about her reoccurring dream? And as she was fighting off a heartless- what was this one called, again? A Large Body? Apt name, and annoying as hell… or was it Hades? The Underworld? Whatever one wanted to call it at the present time. For light's sake, what did that lady from Olympus Say it was again?

She hissed and cast Blizzaga at the annoying nobody. It seemed to do the trick. 'note to self, these ones are weak against magic…' Artemis observed, vaulting herself on to the roof of the castle that she had been battling at for the past hour.

She lost her balance as those bright, bright eyes came back into her mind's eye. She cussed, twisting her body as much as she could so that she wouldn't break something. When she did hit, it was not the ground.

She had earned a rather nasty blow from another heartless, as it raked her stomach with its claws, ripping her shirt as well as the skin under it. She parried the soldier's next attack with one of her battle fans, and effectively cut the heartless in half. She was done for now.

She was trying to muster up some of her magic to heal herself, when the brunette woman ran up to her. "Are you all right?" she gasped, her tone worried. Artemis smiled in spite of herself and looked up at the older girl.

"I'm fine. And you?"

"I'm all right. You made sure of that," Belle stated. "Thank you."

"Good." The smaller girl sighed and shook out her short, riotously curly blue-black hair. Her red eyes seemed to be tired, though, Belle noted. "Though, there's no need to thank me."

Belle's brown eyes narrowed. "Nonsense. You... saved me. From what I'm sure would have been a horrible experience.

"And they just keep coming, too," Artemis grumbled as she picked herself up from the ground. "Light, I'm sore." She groaned, stretching out, hissing in pain when a cut that she'd failed to close pulled. Belle gasped. "You're hurt. Let me help."

"Do you have any ethers?" Artemis asked. "Because I could use a pick me up for my magic, and I'm out. I can heal myself pretty well when I have enough mana to do it." Belle nodded and ran off. She didn't notice the large figure until he spoke.

"I thought… you might have been one of them at first." The rumbling, inhuman growl took her by surprise, and she jumped and squeaked. She looked up into a pair of sapphire blue, human eyes set in the face that was not buffalo, lion, boar, or gorilla, but a strange mixture of all three. He had the body of a bear and the tail and legs of a wolf.

She cocked her head to the side and grinned. "The eyes?"

He nodded. She shrugged. "You would be amazed. At least you didn't attack me…" she muttered. "Or try to burn me at a stake…" she shuddered.

The beast's heavy brow rose. "what? He growled, annoyed.

Artemis shrugged. "well, the mantra there was 'burn the witch...'" she muttered. "and it was one that they took rather seriously."

"I try not to judge a person based on their appearance anymore." The beast muttered. Artemis laughed. "For which I am eternally grateful for. But, I figure that you of all people wouldn't."

"You saved her. I would have been too late to do anything. I am in your debt."

Artemis shifted, uncomfortable. "No. You're really not. I just… I couldn't leave anyone to them, and they looked like they really wanted her."

The beast nodded. "They've been coming at us non-stop as of late." He said, eyes narrowing. "I wonder if I should send her away, but…"

"That won't help, in fact, it will probably lead to her getting attacked the second she leaves your protection." The beast nodded, and Artemis sighed.

"Do you have a name? I've been calling you 'Beast' in my head, but it's getting annoying.

He didn't smile- Artemis didn't think that he could- but she got the impression that he was, and he snorted as he shook his head. "I don't mind being called 'Beast'."

"I really don't like it, though. Its rude and I'd hate it if someone did that to me. Like calling me 'witch', for instance. I am capable of doing magic, but I'm not a witch."

"Adam." He stated abruptly. "My name is Adam."

"Okay. Thank you. My name is Artemis." She said.

"Why have you come here in the first place?" Adam asked. She sighed before she started to explain.

"I'm looking for my sister, Hestia Kenja. We were separated after our world was lost to the darkness. I know she wasn't turned into a heartless, so… well, I figured I'd search the world looking for her."

"How long have you been looking for her?" Belle had returned, a bottle of iridescent green liquid in her hand. She handed the bottle to Artemis, who downed the ether before answering. "About nine years."

Of course, this made the couple gape at her. She grinned. "I'm very stubborn," she drawled. "And, honestly, there's a bunch of different worlds out there, so it takes a long time…"

"But nine years!" Belle gasped. "How old are you?" Adam asked, incredulous.

Artemis mocked insult at the question. "Asking a lady her age! Gasp, Adam. That was rather beastly of you…" she giggled as he had the grace to look embarrassed, while Belle laughed with her. Artemis sobered up, first, and told the truth. "I'm Fourteen." She muttered.

"you were five?!" Belle gasped. Artemis laughed dryly.

"As I said before, I'm a really stubborn person." She stated, voice dry as sand. "I needed to do something, so I… bought a gummi ship and set out."

"At five?" Adam groused. "where were your parents?"

To that, Artemis snorted. "My father is- and was- obsessed with getting revenge. He's been… unreachable… since our world was lost. My mother died when I was three. I had no parents, and I sure as heck didn't want to listen to anyone else. I knew my sister was out there, and I needed to find her."

Belle was amazed. The girl's tenacity was hard to find. She looked up to the beast- Adam- she had learned, and back at the fourteen-year-old. "what does your sister look like? Perhaps one of us has seen her." She smiled kindly as the girl perked up, ruby eyes glinting with excitement.

Belle wouldn't lie, those eyes had surprised her at first. But, much like with Adam, she had adjusted quickly. After all, the girl couldn't choose her features.

"She has long blond hair and orange eyes." She stated. "Her skin is pale, and, if I had to guess, I'd say she's about 5'5"." She described her sister. "Though, I could be wrong, it's been nine years, and she's a bit older than me."

Belle frowned, trying to remember such a girl, but sadly, came up blank, as did Adam, and they saw her frown in disappointment as they relayed as much to her. She sighed. "Well, worth a shot. I'll get something eventually…." She muttered. She looked back up at the Beauty and the Beast. "Thank you, so much for trying to help. I appreciate it."

"Stay here for the night. There is plenty of room, and you must be tired after that fight." Belle invited. The beast nodded. "It's the least we can do." He rumbled and noting the frown on her face. "You won't do your sister any good by not getting any sleep." He added.

She sighed and gave in with a wry grin. "Thank you." She said. Belle clapped "Thank goodness. Lumiere will show you to your room, and dinner will be served soon."

At that, Artemis shook her head. "I'll probably be asleep by then. I get really tired after battles, and honestly, not too hungry. I don't quite know why." She yawned. Belle smiled before saying, "In that case, we'll see you for breakfast in the morning."

She bade Artemis good night, as did Adam. In turn, Artemis thanked them for giving her an actual bed to sleep in and followed the talking candelabra up to the room.

She was pleasantly surprised to find a bathtub the size of a small swimming pool in the bathroom that was adjoining with her room. Forget pleasantly surprised, she was ecstatic. It had been so long since she'd cleaned herself in anything remotely considered a bath or shower, usually just going for a rag and soapy water- and the gummi ship's sink to wash her hair. A bath was just what she needed to feel like an actual human again.

In the end, she nearly fell asleep in the tub. She was still sore as she got out of the tub and dragged herself to the king- sized feather bed and collapsed on it. She found that the armoire (that talked as well) was fully stocked with night dresses that fit her. She frowned as she looked at the lacy white thing that she was supposed to put on- where she usually wore plaid pajama pants that were a few sizes too big for her and a large t-shirt, this was a change.

She wasn't sure she liked it. Fighting would be a pain in the ass, should the need arise, though, according to Adam, for some reason, they had no problems during the night time. Which made no sense to Artemis, but, whatever. She wasn't really one to wear nightgowns.

Nevertheless, she had put the thing on.

She was also asleep before she hit the pillows.


She was in a field of flowers. One dark eyebrow rose, as she looked pragmatically around the field. "Really?" she wondered.

It wasn't that she didn't like flowers, so to speak. It was that… she wasn't really a 'field of flowers' type of girl. She was more into oceans and lakes. Water. Instantly, she was there. She yelped. "Dear Light, what the hell?!"

"You wished, your dreams granted."

She screamed this time, spinning around, with her battle fans in hand. "Woah. Hey, it's okay." He had his hands up in the gesture of peace. Turquois eyes sparkled with mischief. He wore a wicked grin. "Long time, no see."

"Who are you?" she hissed. He frowned. "You don't know?"

She rolled her eyes. "If I knew, I wouldn't be asking, would I?" she snapped. He sighed. "Touché," he replied. "But, seriously, I mean you no harm… so, can you put the fans away?"

She put them away, but she kept a wary eye on the boy. Silver hair and turquoise eyes. She had lied. She knew him…. His hair was longer, she realized. He was taller, too. Before, she'd been maybe an inch shorter than him. Now she was a good four inches shorter. Probably five if she didn't count her hair.

She just didn't remember his name. or anything else about him. But she knew him, and that scared her. "So, what are you doing in my dream?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. Here I thought it was my dream…" he grinned. She hissed. "I don't have time for this…"

"You used to." She gaped at him.

"I was younger then. I didn't have anything to worry about."

"Not from what I remember." He drawled.

"That was…." She looked away. "Okay, I did… but-"

"You still have the scars." He pointed out bluntly, looking at her arms- which were bare. She was wearing her usual outfit, a red and black double tank top, blue shorts, red stockings, and black combat boots. She even had the headband scarf keeping her hair back and the little gold hoops in her ears.

But the bandages she wore on her arms were gone. She shrugged. "Yeah. I guess I do. It's not a big deal…"

"It was because of these dreams, right?"

"I don't know what goes on in his twisted mind. I was three."

"I was there, remember? I know."

She did not say a word. How do you tell someone that they aren't actually real? She didn't know, and she didn't want him to leave.

He sighed. "get into your stance." She blinked, and instantly did so. Why it seemed so familiar was a mystery to her. Maybe they'd done this other times. He grinned. "Good. You're learning." She glared at him and attacked.

The lesson went on, and she rolled her eyes. He seemed to not realize that she knew how to fight. "Hey," she interrupted. "I've been running into more heartless. Is there something going on that I don't know?"

He shrugged. "Maleficent said that she needed them for something, but that's all she told me."

Maleficent… she froze. She knew that name. After the explosion of her father's lab, the one that made two of her sister's best friends and her brother disappear, a dark fairy by the name of Maleficent took over Hollow Bastion castle and plunged Radiant Garden into the darkness. She had ended up in Traverse Town, and her sister and father had disappeared.

She looked at the boy in her dreams, her face frozen, red eyes glinting. "You work with Maleficent?" she hissed. He blinked. "Uh, she kind of saved me. Besides, she's not that bad."

Great. Her dream was in league with the evil hag that had cost Artemis her home and what was left of her family. She felt sick. "How could you?" she whispered. "She's… she's evil."

"She knows how to control the darkness."

She gasped, horror taking over as his words sank in. She knows how to control the darkness… She looked at him. Didn't he know what someone trying to control the darkness had done to her? Hadn't he pointed out the marks he'd left on her? She backed up, feeling sick. The one person that she thought she could trust… she turned from him.

She suddenly wanted to wake up. She couldn't speak.

"Hey," he reached out to her, and she shoved his hand away. "Don't touch me…" she whispered.

She didn't see his face, which was suddenly blank, eyes filled with surprise and… hurt. "Look, I… I didn't know what to do. I made a mistake and I have to rely on her now."

"You could go." She hissed. "She took my home away from me." She turned to him. Eyes blazing and glazed over with tears that she refused to shed, even in her dreams.

"I need to learn how to control the dark." He insisted.

"You can't control it. It just is. You cannot change it, you cannot mold it."

"I'm not afraid of the dark." He declared. She screamed in frustration.

Her father had said much the same thing. He would learn about the darkness, no matter what. He wasn't afraid of it. He would learn to control and suppress it. "You cannot control the dark. Not completely. It is not the problem! It is merely the other side of the balance. We need the darkness. Without it there would be no light."

She couldn't lose him, too. Even if she knew that she already had. He frowned at her. "You're making no sense. Is it bad or good to you?"

"It's neither, you idiot!" she screeched, "It simply is. You can't control it!" she tried again.

"You're wrong. I can!"

"Please, please listen to me!" she begged. "If you do this, you will lose yourself to the dark… like my father, like…. Like him!" a pair of royal blue eyes invaded her memory. Funny, she thought, how this boy- no, young man- reminded her of him.

They were alike in many aspects… both had darkness in their hearts- maybe more than most. They followed their own paths… and they both were being coerced by the dark…. declaring that they could control the darkness.

It had not ended well for the other one. He had lost everything, listening to the dark. His friend, his brother, his master… his body, even. She couldn't bare for the same to happen to this boy…. Even if he didn't really exist.

He shook his head. "you don't know what you're talking about." He growled, anger coloring his brilliant ice blue eyes. She screamed in frustration.

"I, of all people know!" she yelled, the tears that she was holding back started dripping down in sheer frustration, stamping her foot in the sand. His pale eyebrow shot up at her childish display. She didn't care.

"Obviously, you don't. I need to do this. To find my friends." He turned and started to walk away.

"It won't work!" she screamed after him. "Please… don't do it…" she sobbed. He disappeared, and she fell to her knees. "Please…"


She woke with tears running down her face, still in the large bed, despair nearly choking her along with the sobs that she barely kept back, still begging someone not to go. She looked around and sighed. Another dream that she didn't remember with the boy that wasn't real. "Bonjour, mademoiselle. It is a beautiful morning!" the candelabra sang joyously. "I 'ope you 'ad pleasant dreams." His charming French accent made her smile a bit through the tears, and she quickly wiped them away before the servant saw.

'No, not really.' She thought, sadness once again taking over, but she smiled wider, all the same. "Yes. Thank you. The room was amazing. She got up, surprised with how sore she still was. She sighed and cast cure on herself. She went to the bathroom to wash her face and dress, and then came back out. The Lumiere was still waiting for her.

If he noticed her overly pale face, he said nothing, for which Artemis was grateful for. She didn't want to explain that she couldn't remember why she'd woken up nearly in tears.

"Now, mademoiselle, it is breakfast time! Follow me!" she grinned, the candelabra's good mood was infectious. She followed him and watched dubiously as he started flirting with one of the feather dusters. He must have been quite the lady's man when he was human. Somehow, she found this to be hilarious. She found herself giggling as she followed him to the dining room

They got to the dining room, a bit late, and by the time they entered, Artemis was laughing like a loon, feeling much better than the melancholic state she had been upon waking up. Belle and Adam were already there, waiting for her. She blinked. Had she overslept?

"Non, mon cher, you didn't oversleep," the candlestick said, reading the look on her face. "We 'ave a 'abbit of waking early."

"Mm, yes, quite right," the clock agreed. Artemis blinked. "Castle chores and all. They can be quite time consuming…"

"Cogsworth! Mon amie, let us not trouble our guest with shop-talk!" Lumiere called, his voice light and airy. "Now, sit, sit." He motioned to an open seat. Artemis took it, almost bewildered at the exuberance that the former human showed.

She wondered how he could stay so cheerful.

Breakfast was a spectacle to say the least, as Lumiere had decided to put on one hell of a show for the young woman before she had to leave. And after the hour- long breakfast (She didn't even know how that had happened), Belle and Adam supplied her with stock for her medical wing on the gummi ship, as well as provisions (much to her embarrassment, as she tried to decline all the food that they gave her, they just weren't having it). She bade her new friends goodbye and got in her gummi ship.

As she took off, she looked back at the enchanted castle. All in all, it had been one of the better places that she'd visited so far.

At least she hadn't turned into an animal herself, like she had in Sherwood Forrest (she'd been turned into a fox with black fur and red eyes, terrifying a small bunny, who had thought that she was working for the spoiled cub of a prince); Or, her stint in the Enchanted Dominion- where Maleficent had been from, where she'd nearly been put into an enchanted sleep, like the rest of the damn castle…

Or, the Dwarf Woodlands, where she'd nearly been killed by an enchanted mirror- and that was after having to deal with an asshole of a dwarf who'd started a fucking mine cave in because he thought she was a thief- which she'd very nearly died in.

Oh, and then there was her favorite (she gagged), a place called La Cité des Cloches, where she'd nearly been burned as a witch by the amazingly creepy Judge Claud Frolo, alongside Esmeralda (and had heard the freaky lunatic proposition the poor gypsy woman…) In her personal opinion (not that the nutcase would care for her opinion), there were easier- nay, better ways of getting the girl… and threatening genocide- or burning down the whole freaking city…. Or turning yourself into a heartless and wreaking havoc on the city- were not good ways of going about it.

She snorted as she reentered the space between worlds and frowned. Where to go next? The galaxy was a hell of a place to travel, and there were literally billions of places that one could go… a bit disheartening when looking for someone. She shrugged. Perhaps it was time to backtrack to Traverse Town.

She grinned dryly. Leon and the rest would be so pissed at her… not that she really cared. She'd already told them all (when she was five) that she was going to find her sister, and nothing they said was going to stop her. She'd paid for the ship that Cid had made- making him swear that he wouldn't tell the others- and had left.

She rolled her eyes and went down to her medical bay/ lab after setting in the coordinates for her destination into the warp drive. She sat at her desk and started on her log. After that was done, she went right back to the notes that she'd managed to save from her father's experiments on the darkness of the heart.

As well as her brother's notes- and the notes of the rest of her father's apprentices. She sighed. It was something to do as she waited, but she didn't want to read it all again. Besides, the most important notes were missing- those of Xehanort, who had used her father's name on his reports. However, she felt as if she should give herself a refresher, and she got down her own notes, and added to them.

After thirty minutes of that, she'd had enough. Her head was spinning, and all she could think of were mathematical equations and the recipes for elixirs. She shook her head, trying to clear it, before going back to the cockpit to see her progress through space.

Even with the warp drive in, she knew that it'd take her a while. Three days, she would have to guess. She sighed. She'd just blown about five and a half hours doing everything that she'd wanted to do. So, she went down the hallway, to the quarters that she used as a library.

One of the best things about traveling was that she could (and did) collect books about literally everything. Fiction and nonfiction, it didn't matter. From the mechanics of beginner's magic to sappy romances. She even had books on martial arts and sword fighting. She yawned and took down one of the fiction books, figuring that she'd burn what was left of the day on reading.

She was unable to concentrate on the book- a random romance that she found completely stupid and unromantic. Actually, she wanted to set the book on fire. Hell, even her husband told the heroin that he didn't give a damn what she did at the end of the book. She wanted to hurl. That was 1,037 pages of wasted time, and she couldn't quite believe that it was considered a classic romance. She ended the book wanting to slap the pretentious, spoiled little brat, and happy that she'd been left alone.

She sighed. The only thing saving that book was the fact that it was a classic… and you have to respect classics. She made a face and went to choose another book from the shelf.

She fell asleep in the chair.


This time, she was in a mansion- much like the one from the book that she'd just finished reading. She looked down and swore as she saw what she was wearing now. A large, heavy hooped skirt and a freaking corset covered her. A fashion that had long since been out of style, with long sleeves, the ball gown was a deep, dark red with dusky gold designs on it. She couldn't breathe, and she felt like she weighed about a thousand pounds.

"Whoever came up with this crap desperately needs to be shot…." She hissed, as she gracelessly descended the staircase- nearly falling on her face about five different times, clinging to the banister for dear life.

She looked down, and… there he was. She gaped. Oh, light no. This was not happening. He stood there, wearing a suit, his hair combed back. She gaped. She didn't know whether he looked funny or dashing, or even attractive. It was a mix of the three. She tried- and failed- to not laugh. He spoke first, pitching his voice over her spluttering snickers, snorts and guffaws.

"However bad you think I look, I can assure you, you look worse. Where the hell are we?"

"I… think we're in a book that I was reading…"

"What book?!" he gaped, "How to Look Like a Looser in Ten Easy Steps?" she couldn't' hold it in anymore, and she roared with laughter as he pulled at the collar of his dress shirt.

"I- I'm sorry!" she laughed. She tried to control her laughter, finally managing to get it down to hiccups and then to finally stop. She sighed and whipped away a tear that had fallen. "Ah… to be honest, I hated the book. So, I don't know why we're even here." She said after she'd calmed down.

He nodded. "Huh. Well, can you think of something else…?" he asked.

She nodded, and they were in a grassy field, wearing their usual clothes. She giggled again. "I'm going to want to remember that…" she snickered.

"Yeah, I get to remember you in that dress, though." He drawled. That stopped her. She looked at him and frowned. She remembered that she was upset with him. He'd started working with the Dark Fairy.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, guarding herself. He frowned. "I don't know." He muttered. "I figured you wanted me here."

"You left last night." She snapped, ruby eyes narrowing. His own eyes narrowed in retaliation. "Because you were being thickheaded."

"Excuse me, Mr. know-it-all, but you started working with the one person that singlehandedly cast my world into darkness! I lost my home because of her!" she snapped. It was funny, she thought in the back of her mind, how he could make her laugh one second, and then yell and scream and cry the next. She glared up at him. He glared down at her. She gritted her teeth.

She hated feeling like she was at a disadvantage. "Hmph, Maleficent was right… people like you are holding me back." He growled.

She gasped. Her chest suddenly hurt. She felt like crying. He'd believe that evil witch over her… She steeled herself. "You're doing that on your own." She snapped. "You're leaving the path in the light for the path immersed in the dark."

"And that's my choice to make." He snapped. "I'll do anything to save Kairi."

And that cinched it. She gaped at him, suddenly feeling awkward. Kairi… another girl. She felt her heart drop into her stomach, and he continued. "Even if he won't. He's too busy playing hero and showing off his new keyblade. Even has new friends…"

She was still stuck the fact that he was trying to save another girl.

And, for the second time in as many nights, she ached to wake up. Wake up so that she could forget. She whispered a small, broken "oh," and backed away from him. Again.

He didn't notice as he continued ranting. She watched in horror and hurt as dark power surrounded his body. The blue, black and purple shadows licked at his skin like flames. She backed away further. She remembered those shadows all too well… severing a connection…

He didn't notice her fear, either, not until he noticed her slowly backing up, ruby eyes wide. He frowned. "What's wrong with you?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Turn it off." She whispered. "you're not controlling it. It is controlling you." He frowned and took a deep breath. The shadows slunk away, leaving only him. He glared at her. "Get a grip. We're going to train." He snapped.

She gaped. He grabbed her arm and dragged her to the middle of the field, and then, he attacked her. No warning was given as he sprang at her. She let out a shriek as she tried to defend, and he had her on her back in ten seconds.

"Not good enough. We'll go slower, but we're doing it again." He snapped. He let her up, and it started again, though, this time, he circled her, poised like a cat, waiting for the right moment, turquoise eyes narrowed.

Though he moved slower, she could still barely make out his movements. She did manage to block him, though, and earn a grunt of satisfaction. A keyblade materialized in his hands as he came at her again.

She rolled gasped, backflipping away from his attack, switching to cartwheels when he kept coming. She thought about her fans, and they materialized as well; she used them to block his blade. He sprang away.

On and on it went, and Artemis never actually won. This was upsetting to the boy, somehow, and he was muttering under his breath, even as he rolled, flopping on his back, off of her.

"We need to work on that…" he informed her. She was too weak to even nod as she tried to get her breath back. "You're too vulnerable to certain attacks." He continued.

"No…really…? I didn't notice." she gasped. He spared her a glance and grinned wryly.

Strange. She thought. They'd been arguing when he'd suddenly wanted to train. He started pointing out her weaknesses. To what end, though? She already fought heartless, and, quite honestly, it wasn't that hard anymore. The tactics that he had started teaching her that night were different. She couldn't figure out what they could possibly be for.

He got up and held out his hand to her. "C'mon. Let me help you up." She took the hand that was offered, noting that his were calloused. She frowned as she wondered why. A suddenly cooling, feeling spread through her, and her ruby eyes shot up to meet his blue ones. It felt like a cooling ocean breeze, and the odor of the sea wafted around her. She felt stronger.

He must have used one of the medical spells on her. "Curaga," he muttered. "Everyone's is different, so I hear." She grinned, knowing this to be true. She also figured that she should repay his use of mana with her own. She cast her own Curaga spell on him.

He frowned, looking down at her. "Warm." He said. She laughed. "My element is fire." She stated. "I don't quite know what yours is."

He shrugged. "I… don't really have one." He muttered. She shook her head. "Bull. Every person alive has an element- even those who don't use magic have an element." He sighed.

"I suppose mine would be earth, then." He spoke slowly. She frowned and cocked her head to the side. "Stubborn as a rock, blunt, too… and yet, your healing spells feel like water…" and his protections spells were Air magic based.

He shrugged. "I don't know."

She was about to open her mouth when he got up. "I need to go." He stated calmly. She froze. Back to Maleficent… she thought. Her heart grew heavy again.

She gave him one last warning. "She's lying." Before he vanished.


She woke once again with a crippling, pitiful sadness weighing on her chest. She sighed. Artemis didn't know what to do about this anymore. She didn't even remember these dreams, and yet they left her desolate or elated, depending on the time. Her head hurt when she tried to remember, and she could only assume what the cause of that was.

She frowned. She remembered every dream of the silver haired boy that she'd ever had- up until she was four. She didn't like waking up feeling like the world was ending. She was not an unhappy person- she wasn't a happy person, but she wasn't one to look on the dark side of things. She was… practical.

She didn't like crying in general… and she got the feeling that she'd been doing a lot of that, lately. She stalked to the galley of the ship, looking for something to eat. The cook from the castle (A stove) had loaded her down with breads and salted meats and other things that had been used long ago for sailors, and she could at least make a sandwich.

She figured that she'd be able to pick up fruit at the next place she came to. She knew that she was almost to traverse town by the heartless ships that the Black Jack had passed. She sighed into her sandwich, knowing that she was going to get one hell of an earful from Leon and the others.

Immediately, she started planning on where she'd go next.

She had an idea… but she didn't like it one bit. She'd go back to the place it all began…. Back to what was left of Radiant Garden. She grit her teeth at the thought. That was all well and good, but she had something to do…. So, she'd go back to her home world. Right after she went to Traverse Town.


And with that, chapter one is complete. Trust me, I will explain everything eventually. Everything will be explained. Read and Review, AOP