It was nighttime as the kids retreated back to their rooms for the night.

"So this is what it's like to live in a mansion huh?" Aqua asked as she and Marina walked down the hall to Marina's room.

"Yeah but it's not as good as you might think. I mean Mom and Dad are really keen on keeping our living here a secret, something about tax evasion, and so we can't brag about the fact we live in a mansion." Marina sighed.

"That and you could get lost in this place." Aqua added as Marina shrugged.

"It's only happened once." Marina said as they reached her room.

"Nice digs." Aqua said as they entered.

"Thanks" Marina replied as she crawled into bed.

"What was mom like at my age? You are her mom so you should know." Marina asked as Aqua froze.

"Should know but don't." Aqua sighed.

"Really?" Marina asked confused.

"It's a long story…one that lasts about ten, twenty years give or take." Aqua replied as she sat down on a backwards facing chair.

"I've got time." Marina said as she coyly added, "Come on grandma tell me a story."

Aqua gave her a look and mumbled something along the lines of "Am I like this?"

"Ok…Sherman set the way-back machine to oh say…twenty years ago. The place is the Destiny Islands. There's this single blue haired mother, with a ripper body, and-""MOM!" Kairi interrupted from the door as Aqua didn't bat an eyelash.

"Three minutes, twenty seconds…your father owes me a dime." Aqua said as she slowly turned back to her daughter.

"Can I have a word with you in private Mom?" Kairi said with her hands on her hips as the woman shrugged and followed her daughter into the hall, but not before closing the door behind them. They continued down the hall and into Sora & Kairi's room before Kairi stopped and turned around to face her mother.

"Let me guess…they don't know the truth." Aqua asked with her arms crossed as Kairi sighed.

"No…we haven't told them exactly because we don't want them having the childhood we had. Where they get thrust into life-threatening peril and adventure." Kairi said as Aqua furrowed her brow.

"You mean to tell me…that your life between my departure and your first adventure, when you didn't even know I existed; you would rather not have them live that life?" Aqua asked.

"You're twisting my words mom…I want them to be safe and happy. Not be put into peril like I was." Kairi replied as Aqua just stood there with her arms crossed.

"So essentially what you're saying is that you don't trust your own children with the truth." Aqua annoyed.

"What? No I-""Then why haven't you told them the truth Kairi?!" Aqua asked.

"We have though!" Kairi replied.

"Oh really? Well then why did you stop me?" Aqua asked.

"They know of the adventures…they just don't know that it's us." Kairi replied as Aqua furrowed her brow.

"Oh come on, how can they not know it's you?" Aqua asked.

"We changed the names. They think the adventures involve three kids named Sky-boy, Lando, and Aqua-girl." Kairi replied as Aqua gave her an exasperated look.

"You know something. I'm going to have to take up a suggestion that I heard years ago, that we write out the details of out adventures for all the worlds to see. And boy will we name names and then there will be no denying it Kairi." Aqua said as Kairi did something that no one expected.

Kairi stretched out her hand and summoned the flowered Keyblade she hadn't wielded in ten years.

"I can't let you do that mom." Kairi said as Aqua looked at her in disbelief.

"You have indeed lost the light in your heart Kairi. Are you so gung-ho to keep this fallacy and deception alive that you're willing to go up against your own mother to do it? You forget Kairi that you are far outmatched. I am the Knight of the Seas and you are an ex-princess of heart, it's an uphill battle Kairi…one that you would undoubtedly lose." Aqua said as Kairi stood her ground.

"I will not have my children going and facing the same dangers as I did." Kairi said as Aqua swiftly backhanded her, sending her to the ground.

"Wake up Kairi! They already have been facing those same dangers and without you to deny anything! Look at yourself; you can't even trust your own children with the truth. Granted it's a dangerous truth but that doesn't mean you're children aren't entitled to the truth." Aqua said as Kairi sat on the floor in surprise.

"You hit me." Kairi said as Aqua nodded.

"That's right and you're lucky all I did was backhand you. I'm currently resisting the urge to put you over my knee…and with your father's belt!" Aqua added as she stepped over her daughter and stormed out and down the hall and then down the stairs.

Kairi dismissed the Keyblade and adjusted herself on the floor as she sat with her knees to her chest in thought.


In the ballroom…

"I have ask Sora…how did you get this mansion? It had to have cost a fortune." Ven said as Sora turned to Roxas.

"Actually it's technically my mansion. I have the deed to it." Roxas replied as Mune nodded.

"Yes I remember that little adventure." Mune said with a smirk.

"I must confess that I had a few reservations about entering this place, what with the old legends about this place and all." Mrs. Lulu said as Mune caught a whiff of something.

"Is someone boiling water?" Mune asked.

"I think it might be something left over from Demyx's work in the kitchen." Sora said as Ven scrunched up his nose as he smelled the same thing.

"Phew, I recognize that smell. It's the same smell Aqua gets when she's…mad." Ven said as Mune walked out into the foyer.

"Reminds me about how Zack can detect when Riku's angry by his smell." Terra said as Riku shrugged.

"Has Rikujou stopped bouncing off the walls about his dad's cousin being his hero yet?" Aerith asked as Riku laughed.

"Nope, he hasn't stopped vibrating since he got all the SOLDIERs to autograph the holographic trading cards of them. He's looking to buy a wall safe and weather resistant plastic card sleeves with his allowance now." Riku replied.

"Rikujou's a tough kid. He's also smart. He knows more about SOLDIER than I do." Lucrecia said as a tattered red cloak dropped down from the roof.

"Curious." Vincent said as he retook human form and Lucrecia groaned.

"Oh goddess I thought that was just a pile of dirty laundry." She grumbled.

"Why are you two so estranged?" Namine asked as Lucrecia glared at her.

"HELLO!!! He's always sleeping and leaving me with mommy dearest all the time. Plus I have all these cursed powers, not to mention that everyone assumes I'm going to become some almighty SOLDIER or hero like both of these two." Lucrecia said as Vincent sighed and Paine narrowed her eyes at her daughter.

"Oh…the pressures of having famous parents…is that all?" Roxas asked as Paine sighed.

"No. It's because she views herself as an accident or lab experiment." Paine replied.

"I don't follow." Riku said.

"Years ago. Vincent and I were on a mission where we rescued Zack's daughter from a bunch of terrorists who had kidnapped him and afterwards Vincent was musing about what he might be like as a father. So I decide to give him an opportunity." Paine said as Lucrecia furrowed her brow.

"That's not what you told me before." Lucrecia replied.

"Because you were too young to understand then. Now you're almost a simulated fifteen years old and rather mature for your age." Paine said as Vincent nodded.

"So…you guys really don't care if I don't want to be a SOLDIER?" Lucrecia asked as Jennifer walked in and spotted her.

"YOU!!!" She growled as Lucrecia confused towards her.

"Have we met?" Lucrecia asked as Jennifer drew her sword, causing Lucrecia's eyes to widen in realization.

"Argento the Silver?!" Lucrecia asked confused as Jennifer nodded.

"Used to be." Jennifer said as Lucrecia drew her pistol and sword. But just before either of them could strike, they were stopped by Sora and Paine, Sora with the Kingdom Key and Paine with her buster sword.

"Back off you two. Let bygones be bygones and stay the heck away from each other." Sora said as the two backed down.

"Bro, this chick is the one who knocked me out with those darts." Jennifer said as Lucrecia arched an eyebrow.

"Bro? He's your brother?" Lucrecia asked, "Him? The Keyblade master?"

"That's him." Jennifer said with her arms crossed.

"It would explain your skill." Lucrecia replied.

"Damn right! You owe me a rematch!" Jennifer said as Lucrecia smirked.

"Bring it on Tsvitet!" Lucrecia said eagerly as Sora and Paine stood their ground between the two.

"Not in the house! If you wish to brawl…save it for something less destructive like a DDR or a video game." Sora said as the two glared at each other.

"Where's your DDR?" Lucrecia asked.

"Den. My house, My song." Jennifer said as Lucrecia gave an eager nod and the two raced out of the room.

"We'll make sure they don't destroy anything." Vincent said as he and Paine walked out of the room, passing Mune as he walked somberly inside.

"Where's Aqua?" Ven asked.

"She's in the Library fuming." Mune replied as he sat down on the couch.

"What about?" Terra asked confused.

"Apparently the kids don't know thing one about their parent's or our own pasts. They know the stories true but it's as if they've been carried out by people known as Sky-boy, Aqua-girl, and Lando." Mune replied.

"Why did you all do that?" Ven asked as Sora sighed.

"Because if they knew our past, chances are that they would want to go off on their own and experience the same things we did." Sora replied.

"Besides, didn't you keep your own past from Sora?" Roxas asked Lulu who nodded.

"Guilty as charged. I did keep my past and the past of your father a secret from you Sora…But I wanted to protect you and your friends from the darkness." Lulu replied.

"Exactly the same reasoning we used. We didn't want them to run off and get into danger. We wanted them to be safe, but at the same time we did want them to know of our past. So we changed the names." Riku said as Mune nodded.

"I assumed as such. Aqua took your disappearance the hardest. She couldn't so much as walk past Kairi's old room without shedding a tear." Mune said with a sigh, "I believe she's probably the more emotionally fragile than any of us. She has had to endure the most heartache after all. First I disappear, then when we meet again I can hardly control the darkness inside and attack her, then I get killed, then she has to spend ten years trapped in her armor with only the nobody of her greatest foe for occasional company."

Everyone nodded in somber agreement.

"Then fast forward to ten years ago. Things finally start looking up for her. She's freed of her ethereal prison, and I come back. Then Kairi gets pregnant, and runs away from home for ten years. Then finally when we're all reunited again, her own grandchildren don't even know she exists." Mune said as Ven sighed.

"I wouldn't be surprised if she did something crazy on us." Ven said.

"Wow…I never knew Mrs. Aqua had been through so much." Cissnei said as Luxa entered.

"I should know." Luxa said with a solemn nod.

"You would. You are her nobody after all." Roxas said as Luxa stepped aside revealing Aqua standing behind her.

"How long have you been standing there?" Ven asked.

"Since Mune came back in here. I heard your reasons for keeping the secret from the kids. I didn't think it out completely." Aqua said mournfully, "But that doesn't excuse Kairi from pulling her Keyblade on me!"

"She did WHAT?!" Sora asked alarmed.

"You heard me. She pulled her Keyblade on me when I threatened to tell the kids of your past." Aqua said as Sora bolted out the door.

"Your response?" Terra asked as Aqua crossed her arms.

"She got what was coming to her. I backhanded her so quick it made my ancestors dizzy." Aqua replied.

"Kairi's kinda been the most fanatical about keeping the secret. Fuu and I are kinda to the point where we don't care if they find out or not. I for one would prefer it if they found out." Riku said as Roxas nodded.

"I'm with him." Roxas said as Namine nodded in agreement.

"What about you two?" Aqua asked Luxa and Cissnei who looked at each other and shrugged.

"We tend to go by majority vote." Cissnei replied.

"So I guess we're in agreement…we tell them." Aqua said as everyone nodded.

"I guess so." A dejected voice said from behind as Sora escorted a somber Kairi with a red handprint across her cheek into the main hall.

"You agree?" Riku asked.

"She's the only one left on that side of the argument." Sora said as Roxas looked at him surprised.

"I thought you two were the strictest about it." Roxas said as Sora shrugged.

"Correction, I said that we shouldn't tell them until the time is right…well…here we are." Sora said as the others nodded. Suddenly they heard a girl screaming from upstairs.

"That's Lulu!!!" Namine exclaimed as they bolted up into the hallways and into Lulu's room to find no one inside.

"Quick! Check the kid's rooms!" Sora ordered as they ran room to room and again found no one in them…not even the robots.

"Where could they have gone?!" Kairi asked in a panic as they started looking around frantically until they heard a strange tinkling noise from inside Sora and Kairi's room. They entered to find the old music box sitting on their dresser had been opened and was playing. The carved figures of a man in a tuxedo dancing with a ballerina spun around.

"How did this get turned on?" Kairi asked as she got closer, only to pause as she noticed something wedged between the figures. It was a letter.

Kairi picked it up and opened it as she read aloud.

"Fear not young ones…those to whom your hearts belong will return to you. But you must first seek them out. Their adventure is far from over…as is yours."

"Even if the morrow is barren of promises
Nothing shall forestall my return."

Kairi lowered the letter confused.

"Who wrote this?" Kairi asked as Roxas, Terra, and Aerith smiled.

"Why…a mutual friend of us all." Roxas replied.

"Minerva…the goddess." Terra said with a smile as he looked out the window towards the heavens, then arched an eyebrow.

"Uh…where's the Fahrenheit?" Terra asked confused.

"It's right out…side?" Sora said as he looked out the window, only to see the large empty space where the Fahrenheit once sat.

"Ok…I guess we're back to square one." Ven said with a shrug.

"True but there's one reassurance." Aerith said with a smile, "They're in the greatest hands in the universe."


End Chapter 29.

Like Aerith said…they're in good hands.