There was this thing about fear, Demyx realized, that was utterly enthralling. Obviously only to a void-being like himself, who could only exist in nothing and darkness – anyone truly living wouldn't find that cloying fear appealing.

But a musician with no heart did – Demyx drowned out the rush of the world-sea with the soft plinking of a blindingly blue sitar, not particularly caring for the encroaching shadows making their way to him.

Or the blue-haired girl – a spot of milder color and a saddened smile – cart-wheeling into action, all flame and life and courage. Demyx stuttered over the melody, caught up in the fear and phantom desires of just running away…

But a dead man can choose to, just this one time, face his fears. Demyx just won't, when said fear is the key-like blade poised in her hand. He escapes into the darkness, disregarding the maiden's calls.

But that was a good way to play at emotions – no, he always had them – again.


Aqua wants to understand why that boy with fears and music keeps escaping from her. If he'd seen her before, he'd know better than to run. And a keyblade was pretty much shorthand for a nice person… once upon a time, insofar as Aqua remembered.

No, and now as well – she'd caught enough glimpses of the boys of the future-now, and knew that her mental stereotype still matched up quite nicely…

And that it was like her two boys all over again. Three, if Aqua manages to catch fear-boy, music-boy.

Aqua thinks that she could help him as well.

She does it, this one time, when she snuck back down to her particular shore to find a shadow perched plucking sounds out of the sole spark of blue Aqua can see.

Aqua catches shadow-boy, weaponless and all; Aqua scares shadow-boy into muttering smiles and series of nonsensical apologies and long trilling speeches.


Demyx's story takes time to narrate, and Aqua feels like she still didn't get it all…

And despite Demyx's void nature, she had seen it once before. With her best friends to boot…

Aqua believes that maybe, just maybe, she can bail Demyx out of his fears and out of this dark sea shore. They have both shared the same fear, at times – even if for him it was just make-believe panic:

They had both feared losing it all, once. They had both seen all collapse once.

They both had all and nothing to fear now – and water could be torrential as well as calm.