A/N: And the story continues! Based on the reviews I've received thus far, (thank you so much for those by the way), you guys seem really enthusiastic about Sora/Aqua, which makes me super happy because I am really starting to like the idea of this pair. I'm also really happy that you guys seemed to enjoy the first chapter! I hope you will enjoy this one as well.

Disclaimer: (Because I totally forgot to write one last time) I do not own Kingdom Hearts. It is the property of Disney, Square Enix, and Tetsuya Nomura...a guy who has continuously played with our emotions, like seriously man! WHY DID YOU DO THIS TO US!?

Additional note: As stated in the previous chapter, this story contains spoilers for Kingdom Hearts 3. Additionally, every chapter will have a song title. Reason: Well, good music needs to be shared. Some titles will be Kingdom Hearts tracks you guys will be familiar with that tie into the general theme of the chapter while others are songs that either tie in to the chapter lyrically, inspired my work for a particular chapter based on the title/music, or is a just a great sounding song with a cool title that I want to share with all of you. I'll be sure to specify the non-Kingdom Hearts titled chapters so you can look up the songs at your leisure.

Hope you all enjoy the chapter!

Always On My Mind

"Aqua! Oh, Aqua! You gonna wake up anytime soon?"

The young woman in question moaned, her body sore from laying on the hard ground all night.

"Aqua!"

"I'm...awake," Aqua mumbled, somewhat groggily. By slow degrees, she opened her eyes though she had to shield them a bit when the bright light of the sun invaded her senses.

"Good morning!" came Ventus' enthusiastic wail. Aqua's response was to yawn before gently twisting her gaze to the blonde boy sitting next to her. His mischievous grin was an instant mood lifter and Aqua couldn't help but giggle whenever he looked at her like that. He was definitely in the mood for games, which Aqua was happy to oblige him in any time he wanted. These days, Ven was often followed by a grey, cat-like creature named Chirithy. The little thing reminded her of the plush toys she used to collect before her keyblade training began. Despite the silliness of it, she reached out to the creature and lifted him off the ground.

"Waaaaah!"

"Aqua! What are you doing?" Ventus asked, blinking in confusion as she began rubbing her cheek against Chirithy's face.

"His fur is so soft and he's just so cute," she answered, practically cooing out the words she spoke, which somehow blocked the muffled shouting Chirithy was still doing. "Brings me back to my childhood."

Ventus coughed to hide the laugh that wanted to spill out. "Um... as happy as I am to see you carefree like this, Chirithy doesn't seem to be enjoying it."

"Hmm?" Aqua suddenly noticed how the grey creature was getting red in the face from yelling so much. "Oh! I'm sorry."

With gentle movements, she set him back on the ground. He didn't look very pleased.

"Good morning to you too, Master Aqua," Chirithy muttered with an indignant grunt.

Aqua cringed a little upon hearing her title. "There's really no need to be so formal, Chirithy. We're friends."

"Hard to believe that when you're attacking me with your FACE!"

Ventus burst into wild hysterics at that. Aqua joined him seconds later, unable to help herself despite feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Hey!" Chirithy cried out, looking especially hurt once Ventus fell back against the grass, cackling like a mad hatter. "It's not funny! It's not funny at all! I was assaulted just now! Assaulted I say! Where's the justice!?"

The blonde only laughed harder.

Aqua ceased in her giggling long enough to extend a final apology to Chirithy. He seemed to calm down a little after that, though he made sure to stick close to Ventus' side in case she got the notion to pick him up again without his permission.

Eventually Ventus' laughter subsided as a thoughtful expression overtook his features. Perplexed by this, Aqua followed his gaze to the radiantly blue sky above. A few clouds dotted those skies, though not enough to indicate an oncoming storm.

"It's weird."

Aqua, shaken out of her thoughts, shifted her attention back to Ventus. "What's weird?"

"Just...well, when I was asleep for all those years," he began, "I dreamed about Sora's adventures. I got to experience them with him and felt a lot of what he felt...being part of his heart and all. But now...when I sleep now it's just nothingness. And...a lot of the time I don't even want to sleep because...I worry about not waking up again."

Aqua tensed at Ventus' words, but otherwise said nothing. Words weren't necessary. Ventus was just venting some of his feelings, as he often did when they spent time alone together. It was strange how introspective he'd become despite still having a child-like spirit that often made him seem younger than he actually was.

Even while asleep, Ventus had changed too.

Perhaps Sora was the reason for that.

"You doing okay, Aqua?"

The sudden question surprised her. "What do you mean? I'm great."

"Come on, Aqua." He diverted his attention from the sky to look her in the eye. "Don't lie. You wake up screaming almost every night."

"They're just nightmares..."

"I wanted to see you last night," he cut in, determined to get what he needed to say out. "But Terra told me he'd handle it and that you'd be okay. So...are you okay? Honestly?"

Aqua smiled weakly at him, unable to give him a concrete answer. The truth is that she didn't know.

To make up for that, she merely muttered, "They're only nightmares, Ven. They'll go away...eventually."

She'd mumbled the words, so Ventus didn't quite catch all of them. Aqua knew this based on the look of confusion he was giving her, almost as if he were saying, "Could you repeat that? Not sure if I heard you clearly."

But Aqua wasn't going to repeat herself.

Once more, her words are lost to the void.

Upon not receiving the answer he wanted, Ventus sat up, scowling. "We made a promise, Aqua."

She nodded, reaching out beside her to pat his head. Though irritated with her silence, Ventus didn't pull away from her touch.

"Come on," he whispered dejectedly after a minute had gone by and Aqua still hadn't said so much as a word. "Just talk to me or at least talk to Ter..."

Before Ventus could finish speaking, Terra's voice broke through the silence. Aqua rose quickly, a grim frown overtaking her features. Ventus was quick on the uptake, breaking into a run after exchanging a quick glance with her that said, "Guess we'll talk about this later."

The two of them bolted over the hill and toward the main courtyard where Terra was standing, shouting out their names. His back was to them, so Ventus was quick to call out to him. Terra turned, his eyes bright as he caught sight of the boy and Aqua trailing closely behind.

"Where's the fire?" Ventus asked after he'd stopped running. He stood in front of Terra with his hands on his knees, panting a bit from overexertion. His ten year stasis dramatically reduced his stamina and endurance. Though still in relatively good shape, he had a tendency to use too much energy too quickly. His body often couldn't keep up.

Terra chuckled a bit as Aqua joined them, her gaze on the blonde as he continued panting. "No fire. Just a letter."

"From who?" she asked, happy to have a distraction from Ventus' probing questions and reminders of promises she wanted to keep but simply couldn't. When Terra didn't answer right away though, she shifted her attention to the envelope. The second she noted Mickey's lucky emblem she shuddered internally.

"No...there can't be another threat to the worlds already..."

"Oh wow! A letter from Mickey!" Ventus brushed past her, his excitement about the letter outweighing his exhaustion for the moment. Chirithy skittered about alongside him, sharing in his excitement as Terra held the envelope above his head in a teasing manner.

"It's addressed to all of us," he answered, a jovial sound to his voice as well. He held the envelope out to Aqua. "Would you like to do the honors?"

She took a light step back. "Oh...no let Ven do it. He's clearly the most excited..."

"Yeah, Terra, let me!"

Terra raised the letter above his head again when Ventus tried to reach for it. "You'll have to catch me first, Ven." In seconds he was off, racing around the courtyard and up the hill.

"What! Oh, come on, Terra!" Ventus took off in a sprint after him but stopped briefly to glance back at Aqua. "You coming?"

"Yeah...I'm right behind you..."

Satisfied with her answer, Ventus ran on ahead, but Aqua stayed back feeling a little apprehensive. Given Terra's playful attitude, he'd already read the letter and determined it was nothing serious, otherwise he wouldn't be playing keep away with it to begin with. Still...

She brought one of her hands to her chest and closed her eyes. Feeling her heart beat beneath her palm helped keep her nerves from escalating. There was a time when she couldn't feel the organ beating at all...when she was in the depths...sinking deeper and deeper into nothingness...

"No," she whispered, shaking her head in an almost violent manner. "That's over now. I never have to go back there..."

"Master Aqua, who are you talking to?"

Aqua jumped a bit, her gaze drifting to Chirithy. He stared up at her inquisitively and despite her better judgment, she decided to just be honest.

"Myself...I thought you were with Ven."

Chirithy didn't seem bothered by her admission. "You've been through a lot, Master Aqua."

Aqua turned away from him, opting to hurry along before Ventus and Terra became concerned and circled back. "Please don't call me that. Just Aqua is fine."

"But you're a keyblade master," Chirithy stated. "It's a title to wear with pride, is it not?"

Clenching her fists, Aqua continued forward without answering his question. "Just Aqua is fine."

"Okay, Just Aqua."

The blue-haired woman almost groaned in response but decided not to make a big deal of it. There were more important things to deal with at present.

She eventually caught up with Terra and Ventus, both of which were still playing around. Ventus had the letter now, but Terra had knocked him to the ground and was tickling his sides relentlessly.

"Give it back, Ven, or it's gonna get worse."

"Noooooo! Hahahahaha! Stop it! Hahahaha! Please stop!"

Aqua, giggling while rolling her eyes, gently plucked the letter from Ventus' hands. "Looks like I'll be doing the honors after all."

"You came to his rescue too soon," Terra joked while Ventus tried to catch his breath from laughing so hard. "I almost got him to snort."

"Did not!"

"Did so."

"Not!"

"Uh huh."

"Nuh uh!"

Aqua glanced between her two boys as the banter continued. Terra had Ventus in a light choke hold and was having a great time messing up his hair. The younger boy stuck out his tongue and struggled to get away, but was having absolutely no luck in doing so. It was a cute sight that warmed Aqua's heart enough to take the plunge and open the seemingly harmless letter.

Just as she'd suspected, Terra had already broken the seal, so she read it to herself while the other two keyblade wielders wrestled and joked around.

To Terra, Aqua, and Ventus,

I hope things are going well for you all. We're meeting up at Destiny Islands for a party tonight! With Sora taking off right after the fighting ended, well, we didn't get a chance to celebrate Xehanort's defeat. I know things won't be the same without Sora and Kairi with us, but Riku suggested we all get together and celebrate anyway since the two of them wouldn't want us to be moping around when we should be enjoying ourselves. After all, Sora said he and Kairi would both return home, so we have to trust and believe that he will, no matter how long it might take. After all, he's never let us down before. I'm sure he'll be back soon.

Anyway, feel free to come by if you want. All of our other friends will be there too. I'm sure Ventus would like to talk with Roxas some more since they were both in Sora's heart for a good long while. In a way they're like brothers, don't you think?

Hope to see you all tonight!

~Mickey

"A party, huh?" Aqua whispered, not entirely sure how she felt about the prospect. However, before she could really think about what to do, Ventus pried the letter out of her hand and began reading with vigor. In seconds his eyes lit up and in that moment, Aqua knew they were going to the gathering on Destiny Islands...whether she wanted to or not.

"Can we go!" he asked, peering between his two older friends. "Please!"

Aqua and Terra exchanged glances. Terra's eyes seemed to ask if she was up for going and though the blue-haired wielder really wasn't sure at the moment, she nodded.

"Of course, Ven," he said, smiling brightly.

"Awesome! This is going to be so fun!"

Terra glanced at Aqua then back at Ventus. "Say Ven, while we're preparing for departure, why don't you get some light training in."

Ventus paused in his celebrating to look between the two of them. In seconds a devious smirk worked its way on to his face.

"Are you just trying to get me out of your hair so you two can have some special alone time again?"

"Wh-what?" Terra stuttered, blushing furiously while Aqua stood stock still, not giving a reaction one way or the other. Given her current emotional state, she wasn't sure what her relationship with Terra even was. Clearly he wanted to talk to her about their conversation last night but had been avoiding it up until now.

"I'm totally right, aren't I?" Ventus pointed at Terra's face. "Look at how red your face is."

Terra audibly grumbled, turning away from the both of them.

Aqua gave a halfhearted smile before answering Ventus. "We have some things to talk about, Ven. It won't take long."

Ventus just kept smiling that knowing smile. "Alright. Fine." He turned away. I'm going to go see where Chirithy ran off to. Let's meet back in the main courtyard in an hour."

"Sure," Aqua answered, waving at the younger boy as he darted off to find his little friend. "See you in a little while."

Once Ventus was gone, Aqua crossed her arms over her chest. The tension in the air was palpable, not to mention awkward.

"Why do I get the feeling I'm about to be interrogated?"

Without missing a beat, Terra broke the silence, saying, "Ven's worried about you too, you know."

Aqua nodded, allowing her arms to fall back to her sides while fighting against the urge to roll her eyes in annoyance. "He told me as much, but I'm honestly fine..."

"I'm not sure if that's true," Terra interrupted, turning around to look her in the eye now. "You wake up nearly every night screaming or crying, and every time either of us try to help, you push us away."

"Ever consider the idea that maybe I don't want your help?"

The words in her head were fleeting, but true. Her lips pressed into a thin line while her hands involuntarily molded into tight fists. She hated feeling this way. Why couldn't she be the person she was before?

Terra noted the subtle changes in Aqua's stance as she pivoted a bit on her heels. Try as she might to hide it, there was a hostile edge within her seemingly indifferent expression. And once her back was to him, the hostility became even more apparent. His words weren't words she wanted to hear. He knew that. He knew Aqua's mannerisms and quirks better than his own, or at least he had, but...

Choosing not to think about it, Terra took a few steps toward her.

"Aqua...we made a promise..."

"To always be honest with each other," Aqua finished, her gaze drifting to the blue sky above them as a certain missing keyblade wielder came to mind. "I remember, Terra. We promised not to hide things or push each other away."

"Aqua..."

His voice trailed off for a moment. Once again, she felt his hands on her shoulders.

It sent a chill through her. Her body instantly tensed at the contact.

Terra wasn't in control of himself back then, but Aqua could still remember the feel of his hands around her neck as he tried to choke the life out of her. Despite the decade that had passed, it was something she remembered with extreme clarity, even more so because of her time drifting in a place where she couldn't breathe at all.

That feeling...the inability to draw breath truly frightened her.

"Aqua?"

She tried to relax her shoulders a little. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt Terra's feelings. She wasn't like this because of him. It wasn't his fault.

She chose it.

"I'm just...adjusting to this life again," she breathed, not sure if that was the truth or not. "I'm not pushing you or Ven away. I love you both so much...I'd never..."

A knot formed in her throat as she turned in his arms, staring at the crimson X crossing over his chest. She raised her hand unconsciously, placing her palm against the spot where his heart rested beneath muscle and bone.

That sense of breathlessness filled her again.

Terra's grip barely tightened on her shoulders. "You and Ven...the two of you are everything to me." His hands gently drifted toward her face. "I couldn't bear losing either of you again. So please..."

He was barely touching her, but as he cupped her face in his hands, Aqua felt as if she were choking again. Hoping to put such dark thoughts out of her mind, she stared deeply into Terra's eyes and was overwhelmed by the adoration she saw in his weary gaze.

Even so, she couldn't escape the terror freezing the blood in her veins. She stood paralyzed, powerless, unable to think clearly or breathe properly.

This was the feeling she despised most. She felt so weak like this...

Terra said something else then. Perhaps it was a plea. Perhaps it was just her name. Either way, Aqua didn't hear his voice, only felt his grip tighten before he leaned towards her, pressing his lips to hers for the second time since they were first reunited.

The feeling of disgust at the sensation returned with a vengeance.

This should have felt perfect. She had wanted this so badly for so long.

The desire to love Terra the same way he loved her was there. It may have been wrong to do so, but Aqua couldn't stop herself from responding to his heart's most earnest wish. So, with great reluctance, she kissed him back and hated herself for as long as their lips remained in contact.

After what felt like an eternity, Terra drew back and looked into her eyes once more. They clouded over with an emotion Aqua was unable to place, and at that particular moment she wasn't all that concerned. She just wanted it to stop, but instead Terra closed in again, his lips making contact in a way that was a rougher than before, more demanding.

This time she didn't kiss him back. She couldn't bring herself to do it again.

When he pulled away, he pressed his forehead against hers, his breath ghosting along her cheek. She could feel his heart racing beneath her hand.

"I love you, Aqua."

She didn't say a word. She couldn't say anything at all.

A long moment of silence passed and Aqua wondered if he was waiting for her to return the words.

She loved him. She did. Just...not like this. Not anymore.

A fierce wind broke through the trees surrounding them, alerting them both to the passage of time.

Slowly, Terra released her, a sadness in his expression as he took careful steps back. "I'm sorry. It's just...I feel like I'm losing you, Aqua."

"That's because you're looking for the old me," she thought, forcing herself look him square in the eye. "You won't lose me. You can never lose me, Terra."

Why did that feel like a lie?

He smiled, seemingly reassured. "I just need you to know that I can be strong for you, Aqua. You don't have to shoulder everything alone anymore. That's over now."

Aqua gave a simple nod of acknowledgement. "I'm fine. Really, Terra. You and Ven don't need to worry about me. As long as you two are okay, I'm okay too."

Terra searched her expression for anything hinting to the contrary, but after a few seconds he resigned to let the matter go for now. He stroked her cheek lovingly with his thumb then placed a chaste kiss against her forehead.

"I'm going to see what Ven is up to," he announced once he'd put distance between them again. "We'll take things slow."

Again, Aqua merely nodded her acknowledgement.

Terra left after that, clearly unsure of whether things had gone well or if he'd made things even more awkward between them. Once he was out of earshot, Aqua chuckled darkly to herself, musing on how he didn't have the slightest idea how she was really feeling. Right now...she didn't even know what she was feeling.

A war waged inside her heart. The sunshine, the scents of flowers carried in the crisp breeze, and normal human interaction couldn't erase the effects of the frigid, inky depths she'd been trapped in for so long. Even outside the realm of darkness, the isolation, fear, and breathlessness accompanied her wherever she went.

But regardless of this, she still had to live on. She had to function for the sake of Terra and Ventus. Terra had been through quite the ordeal himself after all. Aqua knew that. He struggled against darkness for the same amount of time, just in a different way.

As another soft breeze passed through the Land of Departure, Aqua once again lifted her gaze to the sky.

"Destiny Islands." The words came out in an whisper she barely heard herself say. "Someday..."

Once more she brought her hand to her chest, closing her eyes as Sora's face came to mind. At the same time, she felt her heartbeat quicken in a way almost unnoticeable. Like the subtle fluttering of a butterfly's wings or the distant roar of the ocean inside a seashell, it was something easily ignored or forgotten.

But after a decade of near nothingness surrounding her, the little things held more meaning than ever before.

She would never allow herself to lose sight of even the smallest of blessings.

Whatever her feelings toward Sora were, Aqua cherished them.

"Someday you'll find your way home too."

A/N: Next chapter we're off to Destiny Islands! And it is there that things will start picking up! I'm genuinely excited to get the ball rolling. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter because it was a fun one to write, especially the interactions between Aqua, Ventus, and Chirithy. Btw, haven't played Union X, so if Chirithy's characterization is off well...it's off. In my head, I picture this particular Chirithy as being a helpful friend yet extremely sassy. Chirithy won't be part of the story much anyway, so if the characterization is off severely...let's just not worry about it. I'll fix it at another time. Now on the other hand, if Ventus, Terra, or Aqua are off in ways they ultimately shouldn't be, don't hesitate to tell me so, especially when it comes to Ventus and Terra right now. While they won't be in this story much either, when they are here I want to get them as close to their game counterparts as possible while enhancing them in ways that make them (Terra) more interesting.

Fun fact I just want to rant about: So, I struggled between choosing a title for this chapter. It came down to a choice between Always On My Mind and Don't Think Twice. It was difficult because many of the lyrics of Don't Think Twice fit into this chapter narratively. Aqua is saying and acting in ways that don't reflect what's truly going on inside of her, and that song places special emphasis on things like this. However, Always On My Mind ultimately tied into the theme of the chapter more because there are three main things that are constantly on Aqua's mind in one form or another: The realm of darkness, her past memories of Terra and Ventus, and Sora. Ultimately, the title fit with the theme of the chapter better and this chapter has a softer tone overall, so the fact that Always On My Mind is an instrumental track with traces of the iconic Dearly Beloved theme mixed in made this the best title choice. But boy did I struggle! Haha! Alright. I'm done ranting now. See you next time!