Jake Hallows: Thanks, always a pleasure to hear from you, too!

Wings of Avalon: Yeah, Even is definitely...mmm, let's go with creepy. And yeah, there will definitely be some stuff with Ansem the Wise to sort out later.

coolmegan123: Literally my entire writing process is...very general outline of ideas with a couple of particular scenes that I've thought out to death, make the rest up as I go. That's one of the main reasons that I don't start posting until I'm completely done, I never can tell how much the plot is going to change along the way. I'm not even sure that Saix kidnapping Meli was originally part of the plot of Sorrow's Promise! haha

I had to have my girls dressed in their dance costumes with hair and makeup done and at a theatre half an hour away by 9:30 this morning for their recital dress rehearsal. I am not a morning person. That's very early for me. :P

I'm actually prepping this Friday afternoon so that I can post it after I get home, so here's hoping I actually remember to do so.

Chapter 9

Perspective – Riku

We ended up staying the night in Radiant Garden before saying our goodbyes to the Restoration Committee.

"Don't forget, you promised." Yuffie socked Kaj on the arm, and he winced, rubbing the spot.

"Yeah, yeah. I won't forget. I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Remember that you can always come to us for anything you might need," Aerith added, giving out final hugs to all four of us.

"Thanks, guys." Sora beamed at each of them. "And thanks for stocking us up on food for the trip."

Leon spoke up from his spot at the wall. "We'll make sure to keep our ears open for any news of Meli."

"And our eyes, too!" Yuffie chimed in. "You never know, if she still remembers how to make corridors or whatever you call them, she could show up here at any time."

I groaned inwardly. My mind had been so focused on what world she might have woekn up in that the possibility of her traveling between worlds hadn't occurred to me yet. "Right. We appreciate it."

Soon we were aboard the Gummiship, and everyone was strapped in and ready to go. That's where activity ceased. "So, um...where are we headed?" Sora asked, arms crossed nonchalantly but clearly cutting his eyes over to me.

I sighed heavily. "I...hadn't really decided yet."

Silence fell over the ship for a minute, everyone lost in thought, before Kairi spoke. "Well...since we're kind going to visit everyone already, we could try the Land of Departure...? I mean, it wouldn't hurt to let them know what's going on, and check if she's there..."

Sora brightened. "Yeah, that's a good idea! I'd like to see how those guys are settling in, and Meli definitely could have ended up there. I mean, it's a world she's never been to."

I nodded and leaned forward to turn on the navigation. "Alright. Land of Departure it is." I wasn't necessarily looking forward to facing Aqua and Terra again, but it certainly wasn't as nerve-wracking as the trip to Twilight Town.

Once our course was set and we were on our way, Kaj cleared his throat. "So, where is it we're going exactly?"

"Oh yeah! Sorry, Kaj." Sora spun around in his chair to face him. "Land of Departure is where Ven, Aqua, and Terra live. You know, from the battle?"

"Oh." He rubbed the back of his head. "I don't think I ever actually caught everybody's names. Is Aqua the one with blue hair?"

"Yep, that's her! And Ven is the one with spiky blond hair...or, one of the ones with spiky blond hair, I should say."

"Did we ever find out why he and Roxas look, like, exactly alike?" Kairi questioned.

Out of the corner of my eye I could see Sora's face scrunch up in thought. "Well, according to Yen Sid and the King, it's probably because Ven's heart was sleeping inside of mine this whole time. So when I, you know, died that time, and Roxas was born, the way he looked somehow got influenced by Ven's heart."

"Oh, that makes sense," Kairi replied.

Kaj shook his head and slumped further into his seat. "If you say so. This place is so weird."

"What do you mean?" Sora almost sounded offended.

I huffed a laugh. "Well for starters, Sora, I'm guessing it might have something to do with you casually referring to 'that time you died'."

He smirked. "Oh. Yeah. Guess that isn't quite normal for most people. But hey, at least I haven't died twice, like Axel and the other Nobodies."

Based on the silence that followed, I assumed that I wasn't the only one who had suddenly turned somber. That assumption was proven a moment later when Kairi murmured, "You guys realize that in order to recomplete her we're going to have to...you know..."

"Yeah." I swallowed down the lump that was causing my voice to catch in my throat. "Yeah, I know."

"I...hadn't thought about it until now." Sora's voice sounded abnormally small.

"We'll just...we'll deal with that when it comes, okay?" I tried my best to sound more confident than I felt. "Let's just focus on finding her right now."

The trip to Land of Departure was another long one, though not quite as long as the one to Disney Castle from Twilight Town had been. Sora took over driving about halfway through, and even attempted to teach Kaj and Kairi some of the basics of flying, though I made a mental note to go back and re-teach them a few things later. The guy was a skilled pilot, sure, but he had made up way too many shortcuts and alternate methods over the last couple of years than I was comfortable letting beginners try out.

It was afternoon when we arrived, and Aqua, Terra, and Ven were waiting to greet us on the doorsteps of their castle. Sora had told me how Castle Oblivion had been completely transformed, but it still didn't prepare me for how different it and the whole area were going to be. What once had been dark, dreary, and nearly greyscale was now golden, sparkling, and full of life. I was grateful for the change, of course. Castle Oblivion had not held the happiest memories for me.

Ven waved excitedly over his head as we disembarked, and Aqua clasped her hands in front of her. "Welcome!" she called. "We're so happy to have you."

Introductions were made for Kaj's sake, then we were taken on a grand tour of the castle, much to Kairi and Sora's delight. We ended up in a living room of sorts, all gathered around on various couches and chairs, with the youngest three still chattering about everything we had seen.

"So, how are you guys settling in?" Kairi asked.

Aqua glanced at her friends and gave a sad smile. "As well as can be expected, I suppose. It's good to be back, of course...but also strange, at the same time. So many things have changed. We've changed. And Master Eraqus's absence is...more obvious than ever."

Terra nodded in agreement. "It's been such a long time since we left. For me, especially."

"Yeah, I was kinda asleep the whole time, so it doesn't seem like that long to me." Ven sirked, but there was obviously no real mirth behind the expression.

"In short, we all have our individual issues to deal with, and sometimes that bleeds over into issues with one another, but we're doing our best to take it step by step and help each other along the way," Aqua concluded, more cheerily than was probably called for.

"That's good," Sora smiled. "Having good friends to help you through the tough times is the most important thing. Right, Riku?"

I returned his smile with a small one of my own. "Yeah. Right." And it was true, if it had not been for Sora and Kairi pulling me out of my head and pushing me to move out into the world, who knows how long I would have stayed holed up in the shadows, hiding from everyone.

Small talk was made for a while, slightly awkward at first but eventually relaxing into something more familiar. Then Aqua announced that she was going to make dinner, and Kairi volunteered to help. I smiled a little as I watched them leave, figuring it would be good for them to get to know each other better. The next thing I knew, Ven was dragging Sora and Kaj outside to show them their training grounds, which was, again, a good thing for them. But that left me with Terra, and I wasn't sure whether that was a good thing or not.

He fiddled with the corner of a throw pillow, and I tried my best not to do the same with my fingers. This was the main thing about this trip that I had been nervous about.

"So, um...we never really got the chance to talk, after everything was over."

I stopped pretending that the arm of the chair was the most interesting thing I had seen all day and looked up at him for the briefest of seconds. "Uh, no. I don't...guess we did."

Another heavy pause. "Do you...remember...?"

Nodding quickly, I made eye contact again and this time held it a bit longer. "Yeah. I remember. I didn't...know it was you, for sure, until I saw you at the Keyblade Graveyard. But I remember." A fleeting smile crossed my lips. "You were the main reason that I became obsessed with traveling to other worlds."

He huffed out a laugh. "Yeah, I guess I didn't do too well with the whole 'world order' thing." Smiling, he leaned back onto the sofa, seeming more comfortable now than at the start of the conversation. "It's crazy to see you and Sora all grown up now. Makes me feel old. But it's so...I don't know, rewarding, I guess, to know that you became a Keyblade Master."

And this was the reason that this part of the trip had made me nervous. Swallowing back the lump in my throat, I ducked my head to try and hide my reddening cheeks. "I'm not...you don't need to be proud of me. It's...I'm really not worth it."

I could hear the frown in his voice when he spoke again. "What do you mean? Master Yen Sid denoted you a Master. That means you must be skilled enough to have earned it. That's plenty to be proud of."

"But..." I trailed off, unsure what I wanted to say.

"As soon as I met you, I sensed a great light within you. I knew that you were meant to wield a Keyblade, and I hoped that someday you would become as accomplished as you are."

"Yeah, well, that didn't last," I snapped, then gritted my teeth together in an attempt to control my frustration. "The whole 'great light' thing. I threw that, and my initial chance at wielding, away as soon as I got my first glimpse of darkness." I was still staring down at my clasped hands, unable to see Terra's expression, and since he didn't say anything, I figured I might as well continue. He deserved to know what a failure his supposed prodigy had actually been.

"The Keyblade that you tried to give me bypassed me. It went to Sora instead, because he actually deserved it. And I dove headfirst into the darkness, let it drive me, corrupt me, make me jealous of my very best friend for no good reason at all. I allied myself with Maleficent. I kidnapped innocent girls for her plan. But even with all the power she gave me, it wasn't enough for me. Not until I let Xehanort's Heartless take over...not until he was using my body to try to kill Sora.

"And even after I was back in control, I still struggled with the darkness for a long time. I was still struggling with it even when my Keyblade finally appeared...I still don't know why it showed up when it did." I heaved a sigh, trying to reorder my racing thoughts. "Anyway...the point is, I"m not some perfect Keyblade bearer that trained his whole life and followed all the rules and worked his way up to Master the way he should have. I'm not even...I'm not even Sora, who didn't get all the training, but still always did everything right and hasn't ever strayed."

I stopped, swallowed, dropped my chin further down toward my chest. "You don't need to be proud of me. I'm really not worth being proud of."

Silence fell. After a moment that seemed to stretch on for ages, Terra shifted on the sofa, scooting forward to match my position, leaning his elbows on his knees. "Riku. Do you know my story? How I ended up...where I was?"

I rubbed the back of my neck and shook my head, still not looking at him. "Not...really."

He sighed. "I let the darkness tempt me. Master Eraqus knew that I had darkness in my heart, and he always warned me against it, but I couldn't fully control it. Never really was taught...never really figured out how." His hesitation to blame his late Master was obvious. "It came out in my Mark of Mastery exam, and cost me the title. Left me anxious, and second-guessing myself. Right after that I went off in search of Mas–...of Xehanort, and things just got worse. Maleficent used me, and made me even more afraid of myself, of what was inside of me. And Xehanort exploited that. He used my darkness – and my lack of knowledge of how to handle it – against me, and he...he took over my body."

He huffed again, this time without humor. "I guess...I don't have to tell you what that was like. That's how I lived for the next...however many years, until Xehanort decided to start calling himself Ansem and give up his own heart. After that...things are a bit spotty in my memory."

Shifting again, he cleared his throat. "So, I guess what I'm saying is...we're not all that different. And...I understand. I get what you've been through, because I've been there, too. Which means I'm the last person in the universe to judge you for it."

I let his words sink in. Obviously I had known that something had gone wrong in Terra's life to land him with the Organization, but I had never actually heard the whole story, and had never stopped to think about how he, too, might be struggling with darkness. It really did make me feel better. I had accepted my darkness, had finally come to terms with it being a part of me forever, and was no longer afraid of it. But I had been afraid of what he would think of me, this man who had taken a chance on me and passed on something so precious and important, only for me to prove myself unworthy of it for such a long time.

"I'm proud of you, Riku."

The words caught my attention enough that I finally looked up. Terra was watching me with a gentle smile that grew when he caught my gaze. "I'm not just saying that, I really am. You struggled, and you overcame. That's even more reason to be proud than if you had taken a smooth, easy path to get to where you are now. And no matter what path you took, where you are now is the most important thing. You're a Keyblade Master. You're surrounded by friends who obviously love you. You helped defeat Xehanort and bring peace back to the worlds."

He paused, as if making sure I was taking everything in. "I don't know how much my opinion actually means...I wasn't here for you, like I should have been after passing on the Keyblade. You're not obligated to...to try to please me. But...for whatever it's worth...I'm proud of you."

Those cursed tears that just wouldn't leave me alone lately were back, burning at my eyelids, but I blinked and swallowed them back forcefully. "It...it means a lot," I whispered hoarsely. "I...thank you."

"Of course." He beamed. "You know, I'm pretty sure you have a lot more control over your darkness at this point than I do. Seeing as how I have...basically none. I know technically I was supposed to be the one teaching you, but since you're a Master now and I'm still not...maybe you could help me out sometime?"

My jaw dropped, and I blinked stupidly at him for a few seconds before regaining my composure. "Oh. Um...sure? I guess? I mean, if you really want me to, I'd be happy to help. Sometime. You know, after...after the whole looking for Meli thing."

He nodded quickly. "Yeah, of course. I certainly don't want to take precedence over that. Just...if you want to...whenever you're ready."

It was at that moment that Sora and Ven came bursting breathlessly back into the room, with Kaj trailing slightly behind. "Riku! Oh my gosh they have the coolest training grounds ever! We have to get some of that stuff for the play island!"

Shaking away the last of the heaviness from our conversation, I sat back and took in Sora's flushed, grinning face. "Okay. Sure."

His expression changed to one of surprise. "Wha–...really? That was easy." As if I'm his dad or something.

I smirked. "You're actually excited about training. Who am I to pass up such an opportunity?"

Before Sora could react, Terra broke in. "You guys have been using the rings as a playground, haven't you?"

I cut my eyes from him back over to the younger two, catching nearly identical sheepish faces. "Aha. That explains it."

"Okay, but we could use it for training and for playing. Right? The best of both worlds?"

Over his shoulder, I could see Aqua and Kairi returning to the room. I waved my hand at him dismissively. "Go ask your mother."

Sora's face crinkled into predictable confusion, but Kairi didn't miss a beat. "What am I being asked about?"

"Kairi!" Lighting up once more, he spun around to face her. "They have the awesomest training grounds with these big golden rings, and when you're not training with them you can like, swing from them, and spin on them, and Ven used Aeroga and spun me so fast I fell off! It was so much fun!"

"Ooh! I wanna see!" She clasped onto his hand and bounced up and down. "Dinner's in the oven. Take me, take me!"

With a clatter of footsteps the three were gone again. Groaning good-naturedly, I dropped my head back onto the top of the chair. "Sometimes I forget I'm a single father."

Both Aqua and Terra laughed as the former settled down onto the sofa, Kaj resuming his seat in the chair flanking mine.

"But you wouldn't trade those two for anything," Aqua teased.

I smiled up at the ornate ceiling. "Nope. I wouldn't."

A/N: Another installment of Riku having conversations that he and we deserve. Yes, I'm aware that this conversation technically happened in canon. However, I had already written this and I like it better than the canon version. lol