Chapter 1

x.x.x.

"Ven, tell me where she is." Terra said sternly to his best friend. He was trying to keep his composure, but it was slipping. Only hours ago Aqua left him, for good this time. She didn't tell him where she was going. But he was going to find her and demand an answer.

"Okay calm down. Things have happened for a reason, why can't you just accept it?" Ven replied in a much calmer tone than Terra. He could tell Terra was upset, but now he was being rash.

"Ven. I'm not going to ask again. Where. Is. She." He snarled back at the now frightened blonde. Terra grabbed the collar of his shirt and pulled Ven closer so now they were in each other's faces.

"Whoa, like seriously Terra. If you don't calm down now, I am going to kick you out of my house, and I won't tell you anything." Terra's grip loosened on Ven's shirt and they both sat down in the kitchen. An awkward silence was lingering in the air between them. Sitting in this kitchen brought back past memories of he and Aqua making dinner because they were too lazy to go out to a restaurant flashed through his mind. He felt his eyes starting to burn, but he quickly gained his composure back as Ven started talking.

"You're only going to find more heartbreak if you follow her." It was all Ventus said with a hint of sadness in his voice.

"You're the only one she really talks to. She doesn't confide anything in me anymore. Now tell me what is happeni-" That was all Terra managed to say before Eraqus walked through the front door talking angrily to someone on the phone. The two boys became quiet, both wanting to hear the conversation.

"Aqua, I want you on the next train home. Tonight." Eraqus snarled into the phone. As soon as Terra heard her name, he recoiled as if someone had punched him in the stomach. "No, don't you dare say that..." He started saying but then his tone became much softer. "Please don't, don't leave us like your mother did..." It sounded as if he was trying to plead with her to come back.

After hearing what his father said, Ven simply put his hands in his lap and put his head down. The subject regarding their mother was practically untouchable. Terra only once got Aqua to talk about her mother, but when she did she was very guarded about it. And all Aqua told him, was that she had left after Ventus' birth and they never saw her again after that.

Terra knew it was his time to leave. Aqua's actions had shocked them all, but he knew it wasn't his place to say anything regarding her anymore. All he was to this family now, was a friend to Ven. Nothing more.

He walked home to his uncles Ansem's apartment, which he has been staying for four years now. The reason he moved to Twilight Town was to get away from all the family drama back home in Traverse Town. Sadly enough, The University of Traverse Town was the only one to accept him. So he would have to pack his bags soon and go back to all the drama.

Aqua had promised that they would all go to UTT once Terra and Ven had graduated, but Terra guessed that all of it went out the window as soon as she stepped on that train and said goodbye.

"Hey kid! How was your day?" Ansem said in a much more enthusiastic voice than usual, when Terra walked through the front door.

"I don't want to talk about it." He replied flat out walking towards his room, closing the door loudly behind him.

Terra had locked himself in his room for the rest of the night, not even exchanging a single word to his very confused uncle. All he could think about was Aqua. The day before she left to come home, she had called him. She sounded so excited and she couldn't wait to see her family, especially Terra. She showered him in a chorus of 'I miss you's' and 'I love you's' before finally hanging up twenty minutes after attempting to say goodbye. He would have never guessed their next goodbye would have been so heartbreaking. But why would she leave so suddenly? Nothing made sense to him.

He looked over at his alarm clock to find that it was now 1:53 and he couldn't keep his mind off of her. It was over, finished. But there was nothing left for him here, so he might as well go back home. Because anywhere is better than here, which this town will only plague him with memories that were no longer welcome.

"Where were you heading off to? Ah never mind. That doesn't matter right now; there is someone on the phone for you." Ansem said holding the phone out to Terra. Thinking and hoping it was Aqua, he snatched the phone and eagerly answered it.

"Terra?" A deep familiar voice, and said voice was the last one he wanted to hear.

"Hey dad," He tried to keep his cool. The last time he talked to his father Xehanort, was when they got into a fight, which resulted in Terra coming to live with his uncle Ansem. "What's up?" He said in a voice that was lost of all the previous enthusiasm that was all in hope of Aqua being on the other line.

"Your brother is sick; I need you to come home immediately." Xehanort was to the point and spoke in a matter-of-fact tone. Terra could honestly care less about his older brother; Vanitas was always the 'perfect' child. Terra was from a different father altogether when their mother decided to cheat on Xehanort. So in the eyes of his family he was a disgrace. But he had never known who his father really was, so in that absence he had to call Xehanort 'father' in front of other family members so that the 'dirty little secret' Terra was wouldn't get out.

"Okay, I was heading back home anyways." Terra replied in a monotone voice. "What's so wrong with Vanitas that you want me back home so badly?"

"I will tell you the details when you arrive." He said sternly before hanging up the phone. Aghast as his father's rudeness, after all that was the first time they've spoken in four years it could have been worse but that was just rude.

"So what's up with them?" Ansem said; he never had a strong liking towards his younger brother Xehanort. So he welcomed Terra with open arms. Ansem was the only one that Terra considered family other than his mother, who sadly died from cancer ten years ago.

"Vanitas is sick, Xehanort won't tell me anything until I'm home." Terra said almost amused. Xehanort must be furious that his 'perfect' son is sick, and he must be really sick since Xehanort wanted him back at home immediately.

Ansem saw Terra off, he was finally heading home.

x.x.x.

Five days earlier...

x.x.x.

Aqua was sitting impatiently at the train station; she has Terra's overdue birthday present in hand while waiting for her train to come. She hadn't seen her family in months and she had missed Terra so badly over the course of these long gruelling months. She had only been able to talk to him over the phone whenever she could spare. She was living on her own and trying to manage school, homework, and work all at once was very hard. She hardly had any time for herself anymore.

Things would change starting next year, Terra Ven and she would all be going to UTT and everything would be perfect. She had her whole life planned, and she hoped those two would always be a part of it.

She was holding a letter that Terra had sent her a week ago. She ran her fingers over his chicken scratch writing, which over the years she managed to learn how to read. He told her about how school was going, how much he missed her, and how he wanted to go visit her.

A breeze blew by her and the letter was lifted from her hand, she quickly ran after it and thankfully it landed only meters ahead of her. She bent down to pick it up and when she stood back up, she came face-to-face with a woman her height. Aqua felt tears well up in her eyes as she realized who this familiar stranger was.

"Mom?" She sobbed.