For Love

Reality 16 - Sunday, May 3

Elena awkwardly hoisted herself through Ventus's second-story bedroom window. "Ven, there has got to be a better way," she remarked as she slid the window shut. Turning around, she found the younger blond sitting amidst a small pile of clothes and games and the small duffle bag he had borrowed from her.

"I can't do this. This isn't working," he muttered.

Elena sighed. She had lost count of how many times that day Ventus had changed his mind about going to see Terra and Aqua. Instead of saying anything, she sat down on the edge of his bed and watched him pick through clothing.

"They're gonna hate me. I can't go see them."

Elena held in a groan and laid back so she could stare at the ceiling. 'Why am I here? Why do I care so much? I feel so useless just sitting here…'

Memories of the day before, when she could do nothing to help her friends fight Vexen, flooded her mind. She growled and rolled over on her side. 'I will find a way to get stronger. I have to.'

"Elena?"

She rolled over onto her other side to face him. "Yeah?"

"Do you think… do you think they like dogs?" Ventus asked.

"Dogs?" Elena repeated, surprised. "I don't know. I haven't talked to them outside of battle. They keep promising to visit and give Cloud and Zexion information though." She paused a moment. "They mention you a lot. They've been looking for you for a long time. Ever since they remembered."

"Oh…" Ventus sounded upset.

Elena reached down and picked up one of the Game Boy Color cartridges on the floor. It was a game based off a popular animated film about one-hundred dogs saving themselves from bumbling bad guys. She smiled and set it back down. "I'm sure they like dogs. Who doesn't?"

Ventus appeared to relax a little at those words. "Yeah. You're right. Lots of people like dogs. And Aqua loves cute things."

Elena smiled. "Want some help packing?"

Ventus shook his head. "I've got it."

Selphie waved goodbye to Zell as they split up at the usual intersection. "See ya tomorrow, Zell!" She cheerfully called after him, a smile firmly in place. She waited until he waved back before she turned around, her cheer evaporating faster than water on a hot stove. She started walking away, her eyes downcast.

'Damn you, Seifer. Why'd you go and--' She brutally kicked a rock, but didn't bother checking to see where it went. 'This sucks. Squall's alternating between being pissed and sitting around moping-and that's on a good day-and Cloud's totally not helping things.' She sighed. 'I wish Quistis was here. She'd know what to do.'

Selphie slowly made her way to headquarters, completely lost in thought. She moved as if in a fog and barely noticed when she opened the door and slipped off her shoes. It wasn't until Zexion said something that she realized she had made it to her destination.

"You're here early."

Selphie jumped in surprise. "Prince! I, um, well, I just wanted to drop by and see if Squall wants to hang out, y'know?" She laughed nervously. "Silly idea, I know. But it's worth a try!"

Zexion stared at her and crossed his arms over his chest. "Something is wrong. What is it?"

Selphie's painted-on smile faltered for a brief second. "I don't know what you mean. Everything's fine!"

"I'm young, but I'm no fool, Selphie," said Zexion. "Ever since you and Squall returned, something has not been right. What happened over there to make things change so dramatically? And why did Seifer not return with you?"

Selphie flinched. "I don't want to talk about it."

"It needs to be talked about."

"It doesn't concern you!" Selphie yelled, shoving past him to go hunt down her fellow Balamb Soldier. She felt a pain of regret when she saw the fleeting hurt expression on Zexion's face, but she quickly pushed it aside.

She jogged up the stairs and found Squall at his usual place on the couch. "Squall?" She asked, knocking softly on the doorframe.

The brunet didn't look up.

Selphie grimaced. It was one of those days.

"Squall?" She repeated, cautiously walking over to him and sitting down on the edge of the couch. "Please, Squall. You're the leader of the Balamb forces! The Trabia forces as well! You can't sit here like this! I miss him too, but--"

"You don't know," Squall interrupted. "We were always together. When all of you left… he was still there. He's always been there. Even when I didn't want him to be." He clenched his fists. "And then he goes off and…" He stopped himself from saying anything else.

"S-say it."

"No."

Selphie's green eyes darkened in color. "Squall, you have to say it. I have to say it. We can't keep pretending like it never happened."

"He's not gone…"

Selphie inhaled deeply, steeling herself for Squall's reaction to her next few words. "S-Seifer's dead, Squall. He's not coming back."

Getting together a study group to prepare for final exams had sounded like a great idea. A brilliant idea, even. And it was so simple! All they needed was a place to study at, a couple of people willing to study, and plenty of snacks and drinks.

Naturally, something had to go wrong.

Firstly, they were at Tidus's house. And they weren't the only ones there.

Tidus slammed his bedroom door shut and stomped over to the table the others were gathered around. Grumbling about how much he hated his father, he all but dropped the tray of food and drinks on the table. Then he sat down between Kairi and Sora.

"You shouldn't let him get to you so bad, ya know," Wakka remarked, watching as Naminé reached for a sandwich without looking up from her notes.

"Gah!" Tidus ruffled his hair in anger. "I can't stand him! And Lenne and mom are crazy about him! It drives me nuts!"

Momentarily distracted by his ranting, Kairi looked up from the book she was reading. "Wakka's right. Just ignore him when he starts getting to you."

"But I can't, that's the problem!" Tidus exclaimed. "He says these things just to get to me and piss me off! Like 'Ha! You'll never be able to do the Jeckt Shot!'" He mimicked his father's voice. "Or 'I can't believe you're even trying to play blitzball!'" He jumped up and punched a fist into the air. "I'll show you, old man! Just you wait! I'll be the best damn Blitzball player in the world! Way better than him!"

Naminé finally looked up, but when she did her eyes were frigid blue. "I would appreciate it if you would be quiet and study, which is the reason we are here today."

The others shivered. Even Olette, who was used to Naminé's slight temper, was affected by the chill.

Tidus sat back down and reached for a sandwich while Naminé went back to reviewing her notes.

Sora leaned back, balancing a pencil on his nose in boredom. "Why can't we study outside in the sun? It feels nice out there."

"Because then you're even more distracted," Kairi replied. "Shouldn't you be studying science?"

"But I already know all of that. And so do you guys!" He complained. "I don't get why we're in here studying things we already know."

"Some of us want to do more than just pass our classes and you're the only one in this room who has never had to study. For anything," Kairi said bitterly.

"I'll go outside with you," Tidus volunteered.

Olette worriedly eyed Naminé as the blonde began tapping her pencil against the table. "I think it'd be best if we keep studying inside. And maybe in a bit more of a quiet way."

Naminé turned to the next page.

Tidus huffed and poked his Literature book.

"Lu gave me some practice tests to do," Wakka said, trying to break the tension. "We could try a couple of 'em, ya?"

"I'll take one." Kairi closed her book and set it to the side.

Wakka handed one to her, Sora, and Tidus and together the four of them quietly worked through questions for a short period of time.

Then Tidus got restless, which made Sora begin to fidget and not want to work anymore.

"You know, I heard somewhere that too much studying has an adverse reaction," Tidus remarked. "I say we head outside for a bit while there's still some sun. We could go get ice cream and then come right back here."

"Yeah!" Sora eagerly agreed.

"No." Kairi carefully marked her answer and moved onto the next one. "You haven't even completed one practice test yet."

"But, Kairi, I already know all of this stuff! And so do you!"

"Finish the test and we'll take a break."

That was the second problem. Sora's unwillingness or inability to sit still for more than a few minutes at a time had always proved to be a huge distraction. The fact that Tidus was agitated before they even began studying wasn't helping matters.

Plus, all of the interruptions were beginning to annoy Naminé, who began projecting an ominous aura whenever someone spoke. It made getting any actual studying done a very tense and unwelcoming affair.

"You should care more about your grades. Maybe then you would be accepted at a higher grade college," Naminé coolly said, snapping her notebook shut. Without another word, she reached around Olette and retrieved her trigonometry textbook and began working problems.

Sora opened his mouth to say something, but shut it when Olette warningly shook her head. He tapped his pencil on the table for a moment, then grabbed a sandwich and munched on it while marking a few answers. He repeated the process for the remainder of the practice test.

Tidus's process of going through the test was quite a bit different. First, he'd read over the question. Then he'd read it again, that time with a frown marring his face. He'd run his hand through his hair in frustration and finally mark down on answer, frown some more, furiously erase the mark, chew on his pencil, then mark his answer again and move on.

Kairi and Wakka used roughly the same method. Each of them would read over the question a few times, think about it for a while or work it out on paper, then mark the answer and go to the next question.

Naminé continued working various problems in her text book, while Olette calmly sat nearby writing an essay for class. Every now and then she'd tap her pencil and anxiously look over at Naminé.

"Ah, done at last!" Sora said, dropping his pencil and falling back on the floor. "If exams are that easy, I'll be out of school in no time!"

"The question is, how many did you get right," Kairi pointed out. "Give us a while to finish and we can grade each others."

"I'll grade it," Olette volunteered, holding out her hand.

Sora sat up and handed over his practice test while Wakka, after digging around in his bag, gave her the answer sheets.

Olette carefully looked it over, her brow rising with each page she checked. She reached the end without marking a single question. Somberly, she closed the book and looked over at Sora, who was once again laying down. "Sora…" She cautiously began, her voice tinged with wonder. "Do you know how many of these you got right?"

"Dunno. I probably missed a couple here and there," Sora said, unconcerned.

"You got every single question right."

Silence reigned in the room.

A smile split across Sora's face. "So who's up for going out and getting ice cream?"

Ventus nervously stood at the front door of Aqua and Terra's beach house with his suitcase resting beside him. He glanced back a moment, checking to see if Elena was out of sight. When he saw that she was, he took a deep breath and rang the doorbell.

Without realizing it, he held his breath when he heard footsteps. Then the door opened and he heard a feminine gasp of surprise before being enveloped in a hug.

"Ventus!" Aqua sobbed, pulling him closer. "Ven!"

For a moment, Ventus stood there rigidly, having grown unused to being hugged. Slowly, he lifted his hands and hesitantly wrapped them around her. When she didn't react badly to his touch, he let out the breath he'd been holding in a whisper. "Aqua…" He shakily exhaled and repeated her name a little louder in relief. "Aqua!"

"I'm so glad you're safe," Aqua said, pulling back to look at him. She smiled with tears glistening in her eyes and gently caressed his bruised cheek. "We've been looking for you all this time, but you've found us instead!" She laughed and ran her fingers over his hair.

"I-I had some help." He glanced back to see Elena peering around the corner.

Aqua smiled when Elena ducked back out of sight. "I'm glad she brought you." She wrapped an arm around his shoulders and steered him into the house. "Come in! Are those your bags? Bring those in too! Terra's been fixing up your room for weeks! I can't tell you how many times he's changed his mind about the layout."

Back on the sidewalk, Elena began walking away, feeling that everything would be okay between the three of them for some time. 'Now I just have to deal with this Kairi and Yuffie mess. And figure out all of the Soldier bullshit going on.'

Hooking her fingers through the belt loops of her jeans, she began thinking about everything that was happening and how to go about fixing it.

'First thing's first, I've got to fix this thing with Kairi and Yuffie first. They were an amazing team in the past. Then I can worry about the Soldier thing.' She sighed and looked up to the cloudless sky. 'If only things were more simple.'

Selphie fell to the floor when Squall stood suddenly, his eyes burning icily.

"S-Squall," she stammered when he fluidly walked around her towards the door. She could feel the temperature plummeting drastically and was beginning to see her breath forming in the air. She shivered and tried to move. "S-Squall!" She repeated.

He glanced coldly down at her and then left the room. A few minutes later the front door slammed shut.

Selphie slowly breathed in and out, rubbing her arms to coax some heat back into them. In the end, she settled on holding out her hands and calling forth a small fireball to heat up the room.

"What happened?"

The fireball flickered in Selphie's hands as she looked over to the doorway and saw Zexion standing there. She shook her head and fed the fire more energy. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it."

Zexion crossed his arms over his chest. "Squall just went storming out of the house leaving a trail of ice behind. Cloud ran after him. And you are telling me 'it's nothing'?" He raised an eyebrow. "Explain this to me, Selphie. That's an order."

The copper-haired girl flinched, wanting to fight against him with all of her being. "It's of no concern to you or your kingdom, prince."

"It affects those under my rule, therefore it is of concern to me." Zexion uncrossed his arms and walked into the room to kneel down beside her. "More than that, you are a friend who I wish to help. However, I cannot do that unless you explain what is going on."

Selphie allowed the fireball to fade and let out a tired sigh. "I guess it's more of a burden not knowing…" Casually, she reached up and pulled down the collar of her shirt and dress to reveal a jagged scar from the base of her collar bone and disappearing down beneath the rest of her clothing. "There's a reason why Trabia, Galbadia, and Balamb combine forces to fight a sorceress. It's dangerous work. And this time we had less firepower than usual, even with the help of other Knights and Soldiers." She released her shirt and folded her hands in her lap.

"So that's why you've been wearing shirts under your dresses," Zexion mused.

Selphie nodded. "Squall's are worse. And it's best not to ask him about the one across his neck and back."

"What happened?"

Selphie hesitated. "It's… difficult to say… See, the sorceress… she was someone we knew. Someone who we respected. Especially… especially Seifer."

Understanding dawned on Zexion. "So he went to her."

"Not without her manipulating him from the beginning," Selphie defended her friend. "But… him fighting for her… that's how Squall got that scar. They were fighting and… and…" She stopped to rub her eyes and take a ragged breath. "I've never been more scared. I thought Squall was going to die! There was so much blood…!"

Even when Selphie sobbed, Zexion said nothing and made no move to comfort her.

"They've always fought! Always! But not… not like that! It wasn't right making them fight each other like that! Damn it!" She slammed her hands into the ground, crying freely. "And now Seifer's gone! He's gone! And there's nothing I can do! It's not fucking fair! It's not! I-I haven't seen Squall smile even once since then! What am I suppose to do, huh?"

"Live on," Zexion said simply. "Live on to fight and protect Squall and all of your friends. It's all we can do in the face of lost comrades. Give Squall some more time, but continue to remind him that you are still here for him."

Selphie hiccupped. "I know."

Zexion sighed and sat down, stretching his legs out in front of him as scooted closer and awkwardly wrapped his arms around her shoulders in a comforting gesture. "Loosing your partner is devastating even for the strongest of fighters. It is the reason many Soldiers went insane in the past."

Selphie's watery eyes widened as she looked up at him. "They did?"

Zexion nodded gravely. "Indeed. The lifestyles of the Soldiers before us were vastly different, or so Cloud has informed me. They tended to keep to themselves and only came together under extreme circumstances. When Soldiers first appeared, there were only three."

"Only three…" Selphie whispered, beginning to calm down as her curiosity took over. "What happened to them?"

"No one is certain. The records concerning them were destroyed many years before I was born as Ienzo. Though I know the gist of it." He paused a moment. "One went insane, dragging down another with him. The remaining one survived, but slowly went insane as time passed. He went into seclusion in hopes of avoiding harming anyone, but that left the worlds unprotected. New fighters arose, though they used machines and swords, which were not as powerful as magic."

"But then we were born, right?" Selphie asked.

"Not quite." Zexion shifted in surprise when her head fell on his shoulder. "After a few years, the Soldier was found by a boy who wandered out into the mountains and got lost. However, by that time the Soldier's mind had degraded so far that he was unable to contain himself and nearly killed the boy before coming to his senses. Horrified by what he had done, he forced himself to go to a nearby town and begged a doctor to save the boy. However, in order to save the boy the doctor borrowed from the life-force of the Soldier, which bound the two tightly together. The act saved the boy and helped the Soldier overcome his insanity, but the boy was changed in the bonding. With the Soldier's powers constantly washing over him, his entire being was changed. He became stronger, faster--almost like a Soldier--but he lacked the elemental powers. In time, he learned to control metals and gained his own colossal weapon. He was, in a way, the very first Knight to have been born."

"But Axel and Demyx and the others were the first, right?" Selphie asked.

Zexion shook his head. "There were others before them, though there numbers were few. Fire Cross was the first to be united with his Soldier at a young age, therefore he is considered the very first Knight. It also helped them establish a strong bond, which you have no doubt witnessed many times."

Selphie nodded. "Even back then we were raised in an orphanage. All of up 'cept Ambition."

"As I was saying, the Soldier and first Knight went off into seclusion to train and cement their bond before being asked to help protect the planets once more. They agreed and it wasn't but a few years before new Soldiers arose to help them. They, however, had no Knights and were quickly lost to insanity. All but one. He found his future Knight, though he didn't know it at the time, and stole him away. Unfortunately for him, the boy had a brother who was extraordinarily protective of him. I'm not sure if this part is entirely accurate, but the young Soldier's powers somehow became split into three. The two brothers gained part of the young Soldier's powers that day, binding the three of them together. Furthermore, according to the tale, those bound to the two Soldiers, as well as the Soldiers, were essentially immortal from that time on."

Selphie frowned. "So, wait, what you're saying is that all five of them are still around today?"

"Only if they haven't been killed," Zexion said. "Though the odds of that are, as Riku put it, slim to none."

"So… Riku told you all of this?"

"Cloud did. Riku came in towards the end. Of course, that was years and years ago when Radiant Garden stood strong and proud."

"Wow." Selphie leaned against him for a moment longer before moving away. "That's, um, a lot to think about. Thanks." She stood up and brushed off her dress. She began to walk away, but thought of something to ask. "There's more, right?"

Zexion nodded. Sensing her fatigue, he said, "The rest can wait for some other time if you still want to hear it. Though I must admit, Cloud tells the tale better than I."

Selphie offered a sad smile. "I think you tell it just fine," she said before ghosting out of the room and then out of the house.

Once outside, she fished her cell phone from her purse ad went through her contacts until she came across the number she wanted. She hit send and held it up to her ear. "Elena? I have something important to tell you. Can you meet me at the ice cream shop?"

"Sure. I've got something I need your help with." Elena replied.

"Okay. See you there!"

Sora happily bounded through the doors of the ice cream shop, loudly proclaiming his love for the frozen treat. Tidus and Wakka walked in after him, laughing over a joke. Kairi was behind them, shaking her head at Sora's antics. Olette and Naminé brought up the rear, quietly discussing the math notes held in the blonde's hand.

"Oh, it's Zack!" Sora exclaimed. "Hey, Zack! Aerith!"

The couple looked over and Zack jumped up as though he'd been shocked. "Hey guys! Sorry to run, but I've got a ton of stuff to do! I'll catch you later!"

Aerith reached out to him as he practically ran out of the shop, ice cream in hand. She stood up with a sigh, her own cone lightly grasped by her right hand. "Hello, everyone."

"Hey, what's up with Zack?" Sora asked. "I've never seen him leave this place so quickly."

"He's been putting off something at work for quite a while now." Aerith explained. "He's been rather jumpy about it all day, so please don't feel offended." She picked up something from the table and slid it into her pocket, her silver bracelets clinking together. "Zack left his phone behind again, so I'm going to go try and catch up to him. I'll talk to you all later, okay?"

"Bye, 'rith!" Sora stepped forward and gave her a quick hug.

Laughing, the brunette patted him on the head. "Tell Cloud that Zack would appreciate one of his homemade dinner one day this week. And also that I will happily help him buy ingredients and cook."

Sora nodded. "Okay. I'll tell him."

"Bye, everyone." Aerith waved before leaving the shop, her longer skirt flowing around her legs in rippling blue waves.

Naminé and Olette slid into the abandoned booth and resumed their conversation about math. Wakka sat across from them, trying to find a place to jump into the discussion while waving off Tidus's offer to buy him ice cream.

Kairi got dragged to the counter by Sora, though she was rather willing to go up and buy something.

"Oh, ice cream, what would I do without you?" Tidus remarked as he joined them in line. "I think I'm feeling that triple chocolate brownie explosion thing today."

Sora was too busy ordering to give a reaction, but gave was surprised enough for the both of them.

She gaped at him. "But that thing's huge! How are you not fat?"

"Blitzball, Kai. Blitzball." He patted her on the shoulder. "Gotta stay active if you wanna eat like I do!"

"No thanks. Just looking at the picture is enough to make me feel sick." Kairi made a face. "I'll stick to my milkshakes and ice cream cones."

"Bo-ring!" Sora chimed, proudly taking his quadruple scoop ice cream cone, topped with hardened chocolate and caramel. "Now this is ice cream, am I right?"

Tidus nodded in agreement and then cut in front of Kairi to ordered his ice cream next.

The redhead stood back to examine the menu screen with Sora beside her, munching on his food.

"So whatcha gonna get?" Sora asked.

"Just a milkshake, I think." Kairi replied. "A cookies and cream one."

Sora sighed. "But that's so simple."

"It's what I like." She took one look at the monstrous bowl of ice cream being prepared for Tidus and promptly looked away from it. "Jeez. I feel like I gained three pounds just looking at that thing."

"You're exaggerating." Sora was silent for a moment, too busy chowing down on his frozen treat to say anything. Looking around, he spotted something interesting. "Hey, isn't that Elena? I thought she was spending today convincing Sky Soldier to move in with Earth and Ocean. Man, I hope she succeeded. Every time I bump into one of them they mention how they're redesigning a room for them.

"Check it out!" Tidus proudly help up his humongous ice cream dish. "Is this not the most beautiful thing in the world?"

"I thought Yuna was the most beautiful thing in the world." Kairi teased, walking past him to order her milkshake.

Tidus blushed. "Y-yeah, well--"

"Tidus and Yuna sittin' in a tree! K-I-S-S-I--" Sora laughed and avoided Tidus's swat of annoyance. "You make it too easy." He sat down next to Olette, casually peering at the problem scribbled at the bottom of the page. "The answer is x equals negative two-x to the fourth over seven-x to the fifth multiplied by three x cubed minus two."

Naminé blinked in surprise and quickly worked out the problem. "How…? How did you do that? You just looked at it!"

Sora shrugged. "I'm good at math. Roxas is better at Literature. We're kind of opposites like that."

Kairi and Tidus soon joined them, sliding in next to Wakka.

"You're still doing homework?" Tidus asked, aghast. "We're supposed to be out here for a break!"

Sora kicked Kairi under the table, eliciting a hissed "ow, Sora!" from the redhead. He nodded in the direction of the doors in hopes she would get his hint to turn around and look.

While Tidus and Wakka were distracted by a brief argument over studying, Kairi glanced back just in time to see Elena take a seat in a corner booth which was mostly hidden.

'Odd. I wonder what's going on.'

"I just don't see the point," Tidus grumbled, scooping up a large spoonful of ice cream and shoving it in his mouth. Seconds later his expression turned to one of pain and he let out a low moan while clutching his head.

Naminé's icy demeanor shattered when she started giggling, her blue eyes lightening. "I'm so glad we're friends now, Tidus. You know just how to make me laugh!"

Wakka clapped Tidus on the back. "Y'hear that, man? You made a girl happy!"

"Shut up," Tidus muttered, wishing his head would hurry up and defrost. "Aaaagh… Damn."

"You should be more careful," Kairi said.

Tidus was too busy fighting off the pounding in his head to reply.

"I'm sorry," Naminé apologized once she stopped giggling. "The look on your face was priceless!"

"S'kay. It's going away now." He stared at his ice cream, poking at it with the spoon.

"If you don't want it, I do," Sora spoke up.

Tidus pulled his bowl close, brain freeze forgotten. "No way! I'm going to finish eating it!"

Kairi rolled her eyes and sat back as her friends gave into idle chatter. As nice as it was to sit around and have normal conversations about school and summer vacation, it didn't feel right. There weren't even any mentions of the mysterious warriors who'd been spotted fighting around town!

She subtly glanced back to where Elena was sitting, wondering who the blonde was waiting for. 'Maybe she has a date.' Even as the thought crossed her mind, she knew it wasn't true.

The more she sat there wondering, the more curious she got.

"We really should go back and study more," Naminé mentioned. "Our exams start tomorrow."

"Can we go for five minutes without talking about school?" Tidus asked. "I mean, we're there five days a week and sometimes extra days for activities. Isn't that enough? I came here to enjoy my ice cream and not do more work!"

"But exams--"

"If we're not prepared for them by now, we'll never be," Tidus interrupted. "Look, I know you're worried, but all of this studying can't be very good. You know, I read somewhere once that the best way to study is for short periods of time because you only really remember the first and last things you read."

Olette nodded in agreement. "He's right. I've heard that before too. I think our 'College Success Skills' teacher mentioned it once."

Kairi suddenly stood, pushing her milkshake towards Olette and Naminé. "Here. I'll be right back." Aware of her friends' curious stares, she walked away from the table. She headed towards the bathroom, but ducked into Elena's booth at the last minute, coming face-to-face with the surprised blonde.

"Kairi?" Elena questioned, sitting up straight. "What are you doing here? Did Selphie call you too?"

Kairi shook her head. "No. I'm here with Sora and the others. We needed a break from studying and came here for ice cream. Why're you meeting Selphie here?"

"She said she had something to tell me." Elena shrugged and brushed her long hair back over her shoulder. "And I wanted her help with something."

"Help with what?"

Elena placed a finger over her lips, her mouth curving up in a hint of a smile. "That's a secret." She glanced over in the direction Kairi came from and slowly leaned across the table. "Can you do me a favor? I don't want Sora coming over here and sneaking up on us while we're talking. Can you go back over there and keep an eye on him? Maybe give us some kind of warning if he tries to come over?"

Kairi thought it over for a few seconds and then nodded. "Sure. I can do that."

Elena sat back, satisfied with the answer. "Thank you."

Kairi slid to the end of the booth and then paused. "Did you get Ventus to visit Aqua and Terra?"

"I think he's officially moved in by now," Elena said.

'That's good.' Kairi got up and discretely waved goodbye as she walked back to her table to rejoin her study group. 'At least one good thing happened today.'

Terra sneezed as he opened the front door, his blue eyes welling up with tears of agitation. 'Damned pollen. I hate spring.' He shut the door and looked around for Aqua, frowning when he didn't see her in either of her usual spots. Thinking she was in the kitchen fixing a snack, he headed in that direction.

"Aqua?" He called out as he walked into the spotless room. He took in the wooden cabinets and crushed-shell countertops, the shining metal of the sink, the beige refrigerator and dish washer, and the dark wooden floors and found nothing out of place. Everything was where it was supposed to be. There wasn't a sign of the blue-haired girl anywhere.

Terra frowned and backed out of the room to walk back through the plain white living room. He paused in the middle of the room for a moment. "Aqua?" He called again, starting to wonder if she was even in the house. 'Maybe she went for a walk? She likes the beach.'

As he started towards the back door, he heard a sound coming from upstairs. Pausing, he raised his blue eyes to the ceiling. 'Why is she upstairs?' With that question repeating in his mind, he changed his course to the stairs.

Laughter greeted his ears once he reached the top, as well as a distinctly unfeminine voice mumbling something.

Terra's mouth creased into a frown as he walked down the hall. He passed by Aqua's room first and glanced into to see nothing but blue. From the ceiling, to the walls, to the carpet, everything was colored a shade of blue. Even the fish tank against the wall was tinted blue! It was like living in the middle of the ocean.

"Aqua, this is dumb."

"Don't be silly. You were having fun at first!"

"Yeah, but what if he comes home early?"

"He never does."

Terra continued down the hall to his own room. The door was cracked open--definitely not the way he left it. He never had time to clean, so his room typically remained in a constant state of chaotic messiness. He knew it bugged Aqua, so he kept the door closed.

But there she was, in the middle of the mess talking to some stranger.

Terra clenched a hand into a fist and pushed open the door. "What are you doing in he--" He stopped talking.

His room was spotless. For the first time in ages he could see the plush, green carpet. His old, brown recliner was completely uncovered and pulled away from the wall. Every drawer of his hardwood dresser was closed without a sign of clothing hanging outside. His brown and green bedcovers were pulled smooth, partially covering the matching pillows. The brown mini-blinds and green curtains had been pulled open to allow sunlight to stream into the room, highlighting the reds in the brown paint of his walls.

And there in the middle of the floor sat Aqua in a blue sundress with a confused blond boy wearing a baseball cap and holding a baseball bat. Sharpie markers were scattered around them, except for the pink on in Aqua's hands, which she was using to draw flowers all over the baseball bat.

The blue-haired girl stopped when the door was shoved open, but rather than look surprised she smiled more brightly than she had in years and capped the marker. "Welcome home, Terra!"

Terra's eyes remained focused on the small boy, taking in the spikes of his hair and the suddenly frightened light blue eyes looking back at him. He slowly walked forward, masking his emotions. Once he reached then, he kneeled down and gently rested a hand on the boy's head.

"Welcome home, Ventus."

End Chapter

I don't know what happened with this chapter. I honestly didn't think I had so much to write about. But then Zexion decided he wanted to explain a little about the origin of Soldiers and Terra demanded a place in being reuinted with Ventus.

And so, this chapter is nearly 6000 words and is 10 pages long, in size 11 Times New Roman font.

I'm glad I finally finished it. I'm sorry it took so long to write! I hit a little writers block once I got to the ice cream shop and wasn't sure how to end it. And once Kairi mentioned Ventus, I knew I'd have to go back and do another scene, one with Terra. I'm glad I did.

Gah, I can't wait to play Birth By Sleep! Then I'll be able to include some of Ven, Terra, and Aqua's actual personalities in this. (hopefully) For now I'm assigning quirks to them based on their elements. Actually, I do that for everyone. Particularly Squall and Namine and their relation to their element of ice.

Terra, with the element of earth, is a stable figure able to control his emotions fairly well, which is why his reuinion with Ven wasn't as emotional as Aqua's.

Aqua, being the Soldier of the ocean, can change her mood pretty quickly. One minute she's calm and the next not.

And poor Ventus gets the element of air, which gives him an overactive imagination. And since he's human, his imagination typically comes up with the worst-case scenario.

At least, that's how I see it.

Next chapter - Reality 17

(since I didn't include the scene from Past 3's next chapter preview, I'll reuse it here.)

"Sora, I don't know what to do anymore."

"All I can tell you is... follow your heart. Don't just rely on memories and feelings of the past. Sometimes they can lead us wrong."

"What do you mean?"

"What was once meant to be may not be meant to be forever."