A/N: This compilation is so I can post all of the little Aqua shorts that I've written over the years. KH hasn't had my attention so much lately, so once I've finished posting my old things, expect this fic to go silent for some time. And sorry in advance for some awkward cliffhangers; some of these are fragments of bigger stories I never got to writing, and others are blurbs meant to accompany a specific fan art.
Shout out to Romy350, whose fanfic ideas inspired this chapter!
Kingdom Hearts belongs to both Disney and Square Enix. It does not belong to me, and will forever remain out of my reach.
Aqua fell back hard against a tree, her mind in too much disarray to even attempt to ease her quivering body against it. She surveyed her gloved hand, which appeared just as mundane as ever; a tiny victory in a losing battle.
Perhaps what she did—or had almost done—had been inevitable. Fear, anger, and loneliness were just a fraction of the feelings she found her heart suffering under the weight of, and not just her own, but some of Terra's as well.
It should have been obvious then, that Vanitas had simply been toying with her. He hounded her, inviting battle after battle with cruel reminders of how lonely she was. Every encounter would become ever more tainted with her anger as her pain became that much heavier. In the end, what could those feelings have become but darkness?
It had only been for an instant, but it was enough to shake her with the reality that she had almost succumbed to it. She felt lost, ashamed, and the only thing she could think to do was run to avoid further conflict. It was the most temporary of solutions, but Aqua needed time to grasp her own actions.
Terra, Ven, she called silently, knowing that it would never reach them.
It was for the better, as it would not do them any favors to know about this. And Terra never had, or ever would have, given her permission to carry his burden. She knew what he would say, if he could ever find out, and it was not what she wanted to hear, but in that moment, hearing anything from her friends would only be a comfort to her. But for both Terra and Ventus to be safe, they could no longer know about the Keyblade, their journey, or even each other. Every time that reality sank in, Aqua felt herself die just a little more on the inside, and that alone made her struggle against the darkness that much greater.
"How much longer are you going to keep running?"
Aqua startled, following Vanitas' voice to find him standing in the branches above her. By reflex she threw her hand back to call her Keyblade, but made a fist instead.
"Ventus wouldn't fight, either," he said as he watched her movements closely. "That idiot refused its power for a broken friendship."
"It's not broken!" she lashed before quickly trying to steady herself. "We'll always be connected. Not that you'd understand," she finished before turning away and starting in the opposite direction.
"Is that what friends do? Forget all about each other as if they never existed in the first place?" he taunted. "Not that they had a choice. Ventus, Terra... they were supposed to be a team, right? Now who went and messed that up?" Aqua froze in her steps, feeling as though Vanitas had just pierced his Keyblade through her heart. He hopped down from the tree as he continued, "You chose to wander down this path alone, and I want to see you reach the end." Aqua assumed a defensive stance, but remained unarmed. "I'd call my Keyblade if I were you," he warned as he summoned his own. "Right now." Aqua shifted, but kept her empty hand at her side, prompting Vanitas to let out a barking laugh. "It doesn't matter whether you fight or not, your suffering will do just fine."
