Chapter 10: The Strength of True Love
(Shorter than usual, but I hope you all accept this early update to make up for my long absence)
Shortly after Maleficent fled, James looked to Aqua, "Are you sure that true love was the deciding factor?" He asks.
Aqua turns to him and nods with a smile, "Of course. It's the only way to break the curse she placed on the Princess." She then looks up at the castle fondly, "It's so strong and beautiful, that it can overcome anything."
James hangs his head, "Not in my experience…" He mumbles grimly.
Aqua raises an eyebrow, "Hm? What did you say Jim?" She asks curiously.
James turns away, "It's nothing. I just… I guess I don't get the whole 'True Love conquers all' thing."
Aqua smirks teasingly, "Does that mean you've never had a girlfriend? Or even gone on a date?"
James whips his head to face Aqua, "Wh-what the heck does that have to do with anything!?" He asks with a light blush on his face.
Aqua laughs, "Oh come on, I'm just kidding!" She tells him.
Before their banter can continue any longer, the three good fairies fly towards them with smiles on their faces, "It worked!" Fauna rejoices.
"The spell is broken and Aurora is safe!" Merriweather cheers.
Flora curtseys to James and Aqua, "We can't thank you enough for the part you played in saving our dear Aurora."
Aqua smiles, "It's fine. We're just glad we could help!"
James hummed, "One thing we never solved was, what was with the Heart we saw flying away from Maleficent's castle?"
Aqua nodded, "Yeah… if I remember right, it was flying in this direction."
Fauna flew slightly closer, "That must have been Aurora's Heart!" She exclaims.
Flora nodded, "Yes. Just after Ventus freed it from Maleficent's wicked grasp."
Aqua and James gasped, "You know Ven?" He asks.
"Do you know where he is now?" Aqua inquires.
Merriweather shook her head, "No. We got separated by Maleficent." Aqua became slightly disheartened.
James sighed, "Alright, time to bite the bullet, do you three know if a man named Terra came through here? Maleficent claims he helped her."
Flora nodded, "Yes, we heard the same from Maleficent. And I fear it must be true." She says solemnly.
Aqua glares at the fairies, "You're wrong!" She yells, startling the four others around her, "Terra would never do that! I know him! I've known him my whole life! He never has, and never will hurt anyone!"
James approached Aqua and slapped Aqua across the face, "Get a damn grip Aqua!" He shouts, stunning Aqua silent, "We both know that Terra's struggling with the darkness in his heart. And Maleficent is clearly a master of manipulation. She was able to get both of us to act out of rage with her words alone. She could easily have exploited the darkness in Terra and forced him to do it against his will."
Aqua simply continued to stare at her friend, "I agree. In his right mind, Terra would never imprison another's Heart! But that doesn't change the fact that only a Keyblade can do that! We arrived after the fact, Ventus freed the heart, and never saw Terra here. For all we know, whether we like it or not, he's the only suspect."
Aqua rubbed her cheek that was slapped, "You're right." She says, "I don't want to believe it, but he's the only person we know that doesn't have an alibi." She looks up to James, "Thanks Jim. And I'm sorry for yelling, I wasn't in my right mind."
James smiles back at her, "I know the feeling. All too well, in fact."
Flora approached the two of them, "I'm sorry we couldn't be of more help. But I hope you find your friends well." And with that, the three fairies disappeared.
Aqua grips her Wayfinder, "Terra… You better stay strong for me."
James looks up to the sky, "I know this is a bad time…. but we gotta acknowledge the Pink Elephant in the room here. She was working with Xehanort."
(A/N: That's it for this chapter! Thanks to InfernoKnightmare for your Chirithy theory about the Entity. It's clearly well thought out and I found the concept intriguing. I won't say whether you're right or not, because I want to keep it a surprise. Anyways, like it? Hate it? Somewhere in the middle? Lemme know in a review so I can make this story better for you guys. Thank you so much for being patient with me, and I hope the next chapter will be up quickly. I'm excited for it, really. Also, I'd like your opinion; do you wanna see more of the Entity or less? Lemme know and I'll make it happen.)
