XXI. Twelve

I couldn't save you.

Tenko's greatest pride was unmistakable for anyone who knew her. Though she was incredibly intelligent and had a wonderfully handsome husband, her most prized possession was not a possession-it was her daughter.

Tenko had married young, but not intentionally. In fact, in her mind she had never pictured herself married at all. She wanted to be an inventor, a scientist, an independent woman. The day she met her husband was a day of disappointment. It was an arranged marriage, for the sake of her in-laws, and while Tenko could never turn down a soul in need, the marriage intruded on her freedom.

However, in only a few months, Tenko had fallen for Raphael, and soon she wondered why she had ever opposed the idea of being together in the first place. A lot of people were surprised to learn that their marriage had initially been one arranged, since the two were practically inseparable.

Because she was so young, and so frail, nobody expected Tenko to be able to carry a child full term. The day Aurae was born, people thought Tenko would die. But both of them lived, and both were in good health. At first, Tenko had despised the idea of having a child-why change anything if she was happy as she was? But after Aurae came, Tenko couldn't imagine a life without her.

Aurae, like Tenko, was a small child, but her eyes held wisdom that impressed even her parents. Her small size inspired Tenko's inventions on a daily basis-all of them were meant to help her daughter with whatever she might need or face in the future. Aurae often watched her mother, and Tenko enjoyed every moment of it.

Unlike most children, Aurae grew up quickly and had started calling Tenko "mother" by the time she was eight. Also around this time, Aurae began to wander off on her own. Neither Raphael or Tenko understood it, but every so often, Aurae would leave the house at night. She didn't go far, only to the front yard, but she would stand and look up at the stars.

The day Aurae summoned her keyblade for the first time, everything changed.

She was only nine years old when it happened. Tenko wasn't witness to the first summoning, but literally seconds after, she went outside to check on Aurae, and the blade was in her hand.

"I'm not sure what it is, Mother," Aurae said before Tenko could even let out a scream. "It doesn't hurt, though. Don't worry."

Aurae's powers were kept suppressed for as long as possible. She was the first of her kind, and there was no one else they knew who'd had that type of experience. Tenko sought help quietly, but there was no one who understood her powers for a long time, until one day, by chance, she met Yensid.

At that time, Yensid was the only person in the universe who had mastered interspace travel, and the fact that he ran into Tenko and Aurae one day was mostly by chance, and somewhat by fate.

"You're not from around here," the eleven-year old Aurae had said, and Yensid had nodded. When he explained who he was, Tenko jumped at the opportunity. From that point on, things changed forever.

Aurae's gift was a special one, but it was also loaded with great responsibility. She would have to learn to wield it, in order to protect herself in times of danger. Tenko, concerned about these so-called battles, urged Yensid into revealing what he could.

"You will know when that time comes, the time to fight," he replied. Tenko's heart sank as she looked at her daughter, who sat straight up in her chair, as if proud and unafraid. Her childhood had been cut terribly short, but Aurae seemed ready.

"I will do what I can," Aurae declared, sounding like someone twice her age. Tenko grimaced. "If it is my job, then I will do it."

"How can I help?" Tenko blurted out before she could stop herself. But the words had already been said, so she continued. "I feel so helpless, but I really must do something to help. Don't you see, Sir Yensid? This is my daughter, my only child. I would do anything for her. Can I not take the blade in her stead?"

"The keyblade has already chosen her," Yensid answered. "She cannot go back now. It is impossible to escape one's fate."

With a burst of energy, Tenko stood up, her height not adding much, but the fierce glow in her eyes was enough.

"If we cannot avoid fate, then I will change fate!" she exclaimed, her resolution building. "Even if I have to change it all by myself!"

From that day forward, Tenko committed herself to her inventions. Every day was spent trying to protect Aurae from anything that might come her way, and with each invention, Tenko felt more at ease. Though they were little things, it all was still helpful, and Tenko thought that if she kept such a pace, by the time Aurae would have to be put into danger, she would be well protected.

Her predictions were incorrect.

Only a year later, Aurae awoke in the middle of the night, feeling an urge to leave her home. Tenko was still awake at this point, and she did her best to comfort Aurae, but the child insisted that she be taken to Yensid. Tenko immediately obliged.

Upon arriving, Tenko and Aurae were greeted by Yensid and one other person. His name was Jiro, and he was another keyblade wielder. Standing tall at seventeen, Jiro's face was firm and brave, much like Aurae's. Neither person seemed surprised to see the twelve-year-old there.

"Much has happened tonight," Yensid said, frowning. "The time for battle has come upon us suddenly."

"Battle?" Tenko echoed. "But…she is just a child. What in the worlds has happened?"

"There is another wielder," Jiro replied. "But he is not like us. He wishes something terrible for the worlds. If he succeeds, he will strip all light and hope from the lands."

"Fighting…over the light?"

"That is correct," Yensid said, nodding once. "Aurae, you and Jiro are the only ones who can stop Hiko now. Do you accept this?"

"I cannot escape from my fate," Aurae answered solemnly, sounding years beyond her actual age. "If fate wills me to fight, then I must. Especially for the sake of those I want to protect."

"Aurae," Tenko interrupted. "Do you really mean this? Do you understand what you are agreeing to?"

"Yes, Mother. I do not mean to hurt you, but this is how I must protect you and Father."

We don't need to be protected! Ten wanted to shout, but something stopped her. Deep down, she knew that no matter what she said, Aurae would not change her mind.

And so it was. Both Aurae and Jiro engaged Hiko in battle upon arriving at the Keyblade Graveyard, but neither were even close to his strength and skill level. Hiko was the same age as Jiro, but he had been the first of the three to receive the keyblade; in other words, he was the first Keyblade wielder of all time. But his heart had become warped, and instead of relying on the light around him, he allowed darkness to be bred in his heart.

Without telling Aurae or Yensid, Ten had also travelled to the Keyblade Graveyard in hopes to save her daughter. But by the time she had arrived, Hiko had already killed Jiro, and Aurae's strength was all but lost.

"You are just a child," Hiko told Aurae, who was knelt on the ground, defeated. "You have no hope of defeating me, or even preventing darkness from entering the worlds."

"Maybe not," Aurae said quietly, looking up at her opponent for what she knew would be the last time. "But even if I cannot defeat you, someone will one day eliminate you. This I know for certain."

Hiko simply laughed, and without any further conversation, he drove his keyblade through Aurae's chest just as Tenko arrived on the scene. Startled by Tenko's scream, Hiko immediately withdrew his blade and escaped into darkness.

Yensid eventually caught on to Tenko's venture, and in the end, he brought both Aurae's lifeless body and the emotionally distraught Tenko back to Twilight Town where Raphael had been waiting. Upon seeing his daughter, the young man broke down as well; the next day, he too was lifeless. In a matter of hours, Tenko had lost the two most important people in her life.

Aurae, I failed you, Tenko thought as she wept alone her now empty home. I am your mother, I was supposed to protect you. But I couldn't. I couldn't save you. Even though I loved you more than anything or anyone. What am I even good for, if I can't help anyone!

Letting out a heartfelt cry, Tenko rushed into the kitchen and grabbed a knife from the drawer.

I couldn't save you. It's a crime I must atone for, she told herself as she drove the knife into her chest.

Tenko wasn't sure what death was supposed to be like, but she knew that with a knife in her chest, she should have at least felt pain. But there wasn't any pain, none at all, nor was there any blood. She was able to pull the knife cleanly out of her chest, and the stab wound was nonexistent.

From that moment on, Tenko changed. She had become cursed by her own obsession to help those who could not be helped. For the rest of her life, she was destined to help every keyblade wielder to come until satisfied. Countless generations had already passed, and yet Ten remained stuck in her youth with no sign of change approaching.