~Kingdom Hearts 1; Neera's Story, Chapter 2~
Three years went by and I am now eight years old, I have changed very little, my hair is a tad longer and I'm a little taller. But I have not really changed. Squall and the gang has changed a little bit, since they are now three years older.
"Cloud!" I yell as I run to Cloud. "Cloud! Where are you going?" I asked as I caught up to him.
"I've got… some things to take care of." Cloud says with a hushed voice
"I want to go with you!" I say.
"No, Neera." Cloud says calmly.
"Aw, c'mon Cloud! Please, please , please ,pl-" I beg.
"Neera! I said no!" Cloud said accidentally raising his voice. I bow my had as I am now sad that I can't go and Cloud raised his voice. "Neera… I'm sorry. It's just that, it's dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt." He says kneeling down to me.
"I can handle myself!" I say folding my arms.
"I don't think so. Not where I'm going at least." Cloud says shaking his head.
"Well, where are you going, Cloud?" I asked curiously.
"I can't tell you… I don't want to worry you." Cloud says standing up.
"But I'm already worrying about you!" I say almost in tears.
"Neera, I'll be fine." Cloud says with an unconvincing smile. "Here I'll make you a promise! When I come back, when you're older, and stronger. I will then take you with me! Deal?"
"Deal!" I say looking up quickly.
"I'll come back soon. I promise!" Cloud says beginning to walk away.
"Okay…" I say in a long sigh.
"I'll see you soon." Cloud says. I nod looking down with a frown. "You need to back to the others, okay?"
"Okay…" I say beginning to walk away. "See you soon!" I then slowly make my way back home arms hanging low and head bowed down.
~Cloud looked at Neera one more time then left.~
"Are you okay, Neera?" Squall asked as I enter the house.
"Yeah…" I sat having a tear coming out of my eye.
"No you're not, you're crying!" Aerith says walking over and kneeling down next to me quickly. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing is wrong!" I say looking away as Aerith half hugged me.
"What's wrong with, the kiddo?" Cid asked walking in the house. Squall and Aeirth shrugged.
"Hi guy's!" Yuffie said excitedly walking in. "Oh… what's wrong?"
"They don't know. But they'll know in a few minutes, when Neera calms down." Cid said taking a rag and wipes his hands.
"Neera." Squall says now kneeling in front of me. "What's wrong?"
"C-Cloud… he left." I say having tears coming out of my eye's. It hurt me so much to say it.
"I knew this was going to happen." Squall said with a frown.
"Cloud…" Aerith said looking down with a frown.
"Cloud promised me when I'm older I can go with him." I explain. "And when I'm stronger! Squall you're good at fighting! Why don't you train me?"
Squall folded his arms and thought about it. "Hmm… Alright! As long as you listen!" Squall says with a raised eyebrow.
"Okay, I'll listen. Just train me!" I say excitedly.
"We'll start training tomorrow." Squall says getting up.
I wake up early in the morning the next day and had tons of fun training with Squall, we did this everyday in the Plaza or right outside the house. We had our days where we can just do whatever. So, I either go mess around in town, go find Lea to get some ice cream together. And sometimes I'll rarely find Ienzo in the Castle Gardens. Which I'll hang out with him. One day I met this man with him. His name was Ansem, Ansem the wise.
"Hello, dear girl." His voice rings up from behind me and Ienzo.
"Oh… hi." I say hesitant. "Sorry, I'll be going." I go to walk away.
"No, no, no it's quite alright that you are here." He says to me. "I see you have made friends with Ienzo."
"Yeah." I say with a nod.
"Would you like to pick some flowers?" He asks sitting on a bench.
"Um… okay." I say walking to the flower bushes, where Ienzo is next to. I'm unsure of his behavior, but I try to ignore it
"Have you two met before?" He asked. Ienzo nods as he sits by me while I pick a light pink flower. Ienzo is still quiet, but not as much as he use to. He'll answer some of your questions with few words now. "What is that in your pocket?"
I picked a blue flower and handed it to Ienzo. I look down at my pocket to see my key chain is peaking out. "It's mine." I say stuffing it back in.
"I wasn't going to take it." The man says with a chuckle. "Now, I'm not entirely sure you have told me your name."
"Neera." I say straightening up and looking at him. "What's your name?"
"My name is Ansem." Ansem says with a nod. "Some people call me 'Ansem the Wise.'"
"Why?" I asked picking a yellow flower.
"I'm not entirely sure." Ansem admits. "Mm… Ienzo, would you like to get some sea-salt ice cream?"
"Yeah." Ienzo says getting up as Ansem does.
"Would you care to join us, Neera?" Ansem asks. I look at him and back at Ienzo.
"Hmm…" I say thinking.
"Don't worry. I don't bit." Ansem says with a smile.
"Okay… yeah I'll go with you." I say with a nod.
Two years later a tragedy happens to our world. Heartless everywhere, even my passageways were loaded with them. In fear of getting our heart's taken by the darkness. Cid took Aerith, Squall, Yuffie and I to Traverse Town.
I now look different since I am now 10 years old. I sit by the fountain in District 1 playing with the water with my hand. It's been three weeks since we left Radiant Garden, I miss Radiant Garden, and I hope Lea is okay. I have the same looking clothes as I have over the years except my hairstyle is different and is now even taller.
I looked at my reflection in the water. My hair is still as black as ever but now looks different, my hair is now shoulder length hime cut hair with a purple head band that parts the bang and rest of the hair. But that's all that different after that I'm the same old Neera. I hear something behind me and jumps off the fountain.
It was a heartless. "Finally! I was getting really bored." I said happily taking out a weapon.
After I finished off the heartless I felt quite entertained. "Neera, you need to come back to the hotel!" Squall said walking down the staircase.
"Why?" I asked with a little bit of attitude.
"Neera, please, let's just go!" Squall says with a hint of annoyance in his tone.
"Still haven't answered my question." I say folding my arms.
"It's not safe!" Squall says.
"Squall! I just took down a heartless! I'm fine!" I say furiously. "I'm not a little girl anymore."
"Neera, please… just listen to me." Squall says with a sigh.
"… FINE!" I said angrily and followed Squall back to the hotel.
Squall still trains me almost everyday. I know I'm getting better and stronger each time we train. For another four years I train and train, in till I receive something that I've never expected that I would receive.
I was just having a stroll through the Second District back to the hotel in till I get suddenly very sleepy. I fall where I stood, I don't know why but I black out.
I wake in a weird place with stained glass floor and darkness all around.
"You have arrived." Said a voice in a whisper. "I've been waiting for you for quite some time…"
"Who's that?" I asked looking around. "How do I get out of here?"
"Listen to me, you'll find a way." The same voice whispered.
"Okay, what is it that you want me to do?" I asked impatiently.
"First you must tell me… What is most important to you?" The voice whispered.
"Hmm…" I say thinking. "What's important to me? Tough one… Cloud, he's important to me…"
"But, is he the most important to you?" The voice asked.
"Well he is very important to me… I guess you're right, he's not the MOST important to me." I say deep in thought. "Hold on… Keeping the people I am close to safe, is most important."
"What are you afraid of?" The voice asked.
"Losing another home again…" I say looking down.
"What do you seek?" The voice asked. I thought for a few minutes.
"To travel to other worlds, to protect them from the darkness I am afraid of." I explain.
"You are afraid of the darkness?" The voice asked.
"Y-yes…" I answered in shame.
"Use this! Show me your strength!" The voice said and a Keyblade flashed into my hand, I gasped in surprise.
"H-how?" I asked in disbelief. The Keyblade is beautiful, the Keyblade is a bright silver, it has two thick lines, one light blue and one light purple that starts at the handle. Bolt straight up to the tip of the Keyblade and spins into a big circular Light blue crystal. The design of the Keyblade Crystal's shine zigzags on the inside of the Keyblade. Is looks well… like a key!
"Defeat the heartless that are here." The voice says.
"Heartless? What Heartl- well whadaya know." I say seeing heartlesses pop up everywhere. I defeats them all then looks around.
"Turn around. There is a door for you to go through, but you must use your weapon to go through… Do you know how?" The voice said.
"Rrgh… stupid Riddle." I say with a frown. "This is a… Keyblade and it is said it wields the power to unlock things…. so, maybe I try to unlock the door with the Keybalde? But-but how?" I looked at the Keyblade then at the door, I straighten up and pointed the Keyblade straight at the door. As if the Keyblade told me what to do.
A beam of light shone out from the tip of the Keyblade and I hear the door unlock. "Good job, now go through the door. Your challenge awaits your arrival." The voice whispered.
"Do I have a choice to?" I asked.
"Unless you want to stay here forever. You must go through the door to go back home." The voice says.
"Fine, I guess I'll go. This place seems boring anyway." I say walking in through the doors.
"Neera, you must face the darkness that frightens you… but can you do it?" The voice says.
"Of course I can!" I say feeling challenged.
"Then you are ready for your last test…" The voice echo's in a whisper.
"Test? What test?" I asked. I turn around and gasped at the sight. It is a giant heartless darkness around it like fire burning all around it. It crawls everywhere and has a ripped cloak type thing on. I get frightened and accidentally screamed, I then quickly cover my mouth and backs up.
"Don't be afraid, if you are willing to protect the worlds from darkness and return home. You must prove to me that you are strong enough to defeat what you fear." The voice whispered.
"Alright… I can do this." I tell myself.
I fight the Heartless, it is very strong. After what seems like hours I have defeated it. But it's only been a few minutes.
Darkness wraps around the whole room and starts to close in on me. "N-no!" I say in fear as I fall backwards.
"Now… Neera, never be afraid….. You have a weapon that can protect you from what you fear." The voice said. I'm is breathing hard now in fear, but is still able to listen to the voice, it started closing in on her and the ceiling of this darkness dropped. "As long as you have the Keyblade, you will defeat what you fear."
I gasped as I wakes up in the hotel room. "Neera!" Yuffie said in surprise. "Hey guy's! She's okay!" The other's run to my bedside.
"Are you okay?" Leon asked.
"I'm fine Squall…" I say rubbing my head.
"It's Leon." Leon says with the look of agitation.
"Why did you have to go change your name like that?" I asked rubbing my head.
"Why don't you go wash up for dinner?" Aerith said.
"Alright…" I say walking to a bathroom.
I looked at myself in the mirror, I definitely looks a lot different from when I was ten. I've grown a lot, I now have a light muscular tone to my arms, I'm a little tanner, but my eyes and lips remains the same. My hair is a tad longer but very low difference from when I was ten. I looked down at my shirt and it is a purple tank top medium-sized straps, on my stomach area there were two thick black straps like an 'X'. I then straightened my pants, my pants are black capris with a black belt that's in my straps and a same colored belt that's connected to the belt top belt from behind and it wraps around my left leg twice times then stops above my boot. I checked the bottom of my hessian style boots that has a silver line wrap around from the outer part of the boot into the middle of my heel and readjusted my boots a little.
I walk back into the room and everyone stares at me. "What?" I ask awkwardly. "Well, the strangest thing happened to me today."
"Yeah, you fell asleep in the middle of the Second District!" Yuffie says.
"Are you sure you're feeling okay?" Aerith asked.
"Yesss, now please let me finish!" I say annoyed.
"Was it the heartless?" Leon asked.
"Um… no!" I say frustratingly. "This – happened today!" I raised my voice and held out my hand. The Keyblade flashes into my hand, I then sigh with relief and looks at them all. "See?" Leon, Aerith and Yuffie were frozen and awestricken by what they saw. "What?" I asked awkwardly again…
Six months later I was just fighting heartless, they were getting easier and easier everyday. I went to go visit Cid at his shop but shockingly bumps into someone. I was reading a book as I was walking and accidentally bumps into someone. "Oh sorry! I didn't mean t-" I paused I couldn't believe her eye's. This had to be a dream. "C-Cloud?" I stutter.