Disclaimer: Don't own nothin' but the plot…characters, places belong to Squaresoft, Disney, and Buena Vista…

Once upon a time, there was a kingdom, ruled by a just and fair king. This king's name…was Ansem. The people lived happily, business was prospering, and the future looked bright. Until one day, when their sun was obscured by darkness and the hope of that kingdom died. Until the day when the shadows finally consumed the light.

Chapter One: Wet Pants and Market Day

"Cloud! Cloud Cloud Cloud Cloud CLOUD!" screeched a tiny girl with shiny black pigtails and a scowl on her face. Six-year-old Yuffie Kisaragi ran through the halls of the Bastion, searching for a certain someone.

That certain someone was currently involved in conversation with another certain someone, a certain Aerith Gainsborough, as a matter of fact. Cloud Strife groaned in irritation as he heard Yuffie's voice calling him. He'd been working up the nerve all day to just go up and talk to Aerith alone, and of course Yuffie would pick this moment to interrupt.

"Cloud Cloud CLOUD!" hollered Yuffie as she ran into the room and flung herself at Cloud's knees.

"Yuffie…" Cloud muttered, "What is it now?" His face flushed, and the fifteen-year-old desperately hoped he didn't look like a fool in front of Aerith. At this point Yuffie was sobbing into his legs. Cloud noticed that his pant legs were becoming quite wet at this point, and the thought of having to face his peers and his commanding officers with gigantic wet blotches on his pants didn't exactly thrill him.

"Cloud," bawled Yuffie, "Squall…he ha-ha-hates m-m-m-mee!"

Aha. So that was it. Yuffie was most likely following (stalking, really) Cloud's best friend and his girlfriend, Rinoa. Obviously Squall had yelled at her to bug off. For all that Yuffie worshipped Squall, Cloud mused, he didn't seem to have much use for her.

Awkwardly, Cloud patted the kid on her head and wished she'd find someone else's pants to cry on. "There, there…I'm sure, uh, I'm sure he didn't mean it."

Yuffie looked up at him, face all blotchy and messy-looking in a way that is only ever achieved when one has been crying, and said, "You think so?"

"Yeah," Cloud said, hoping this would make her go away and let him be alone with Aerith, who was watching the two of them now with an expression on her face that Cloud couldn't figure out.

His answer seemed to satisfy Yuffie, and she skipped out of the room, but not before she turned to them, winked and said, "Enjoy your DATE!"

She giggled and sprinted down the hall, as Cloud turned tomato-red and Aerith giggled. The boy looked down at his pants and muttered, "I can see why Squall chased her away now."

Later that day, Shera Leonhart made her way through the bustling streets of Bastion Town, clutching a basket in her hand. It was market day for the Leonhart family, and, as usual, Shera was handling that chore. She glanced over the list in her free hand one more time before entering the crowded market square. From behind her, Shera suddenly heard a low whistle.

"Hey hey there, pretty bird!"

Shera turned around, mock-frown on her face, to face a scrawny redheaded kid who was leering up at her.

"Reno Chauncer," she scolded, "Does your mother know you're out here?"

The boy grinned. "Maybe she do, maybe she don't. What's it to ya, toots?"

Shera bit her lip to keep from laughing. "Well I'm not sure my father would approve of a man making those kinds of remarks to me, Mr. Chauncer."

Reno was about to reply when he someone tapped him on the shoulder. Squall Leonhart looked at him suspiciously.

"You just stay away from my sister, Chauncer," Squall growled. "She doesn't need that kind of attention."

Reno gulped and slunk off. Shera hit her brother on the arm. "Squall…"

"What? I thought it was funny."

"It's not nice to bully ten-year-olds. Even if is Reno."

"You so thought it was funny too."

"No, I most certainly did not! Anyway, so long as you're here, could you run down to the butchers and see if they have that roast we ordered yet?"

"Fine. I take it you're going to go and see Cid today?"

Shera took a bottle out of her basket. "I made him that tea he likes so much. I figured I'd go and deliver it."

Squall smirked. "You spoil that guy."

"Maybe I do," Shera mused. "But he's all alone, so if I don't, who will?"

Squall gave his sister a long, hard look. Her logic was faulty, at best, but if she wanted to spend hour upon hour waiting on that gruff engineer, who was he to say she couldn't? He responded to her rhetorical question the best way he knew how, teenage boy that he was.

"Whatever."

The butcher's was calling…

Shera turned the corner to enter the bakery when she collided with a balloon.

All right, so maybe balloon isn't exactly the most polite word…but pretty damn close.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "Excuse me, Lu!"

Lucrecia Valentine smiled gently. "S'all right, no harm done." She patted her bulging stomach. "Seems to me that I should be the one apologizing. This baby's turning into a real traffic hazard!"

Shera grinned at her friend. She and Lucrecia had been close since they were children. Lu was two years older than Shera at nineteen, and she had been married to Vincent, Count of Valentine and the King's cousin, for almost a year.

"So why, pray tell, is the Countess Valentine running her own errands?" Shera asked, grin still on her face. "Surely that husband of yours has people to do that for you."

"Well, you know," Lu responded, putting on a false air and waving her hand about rather grandly, "One does like to keep in touch with the common folk from time to time."

They both laughed at that statement. "No, really," Lu answered, "I could send one of Vin's people out to do that, but the bread never tastes right unless I pick the loaf myself."

"So basically you're telling me that you're out walking the streets of Bastion Town with the future Count Valentine in your belly because you're too picky to just let the servants buy you bread?"

"Well, yes, I suppose you could see it like that."

They both laughed again. Shera picked up a loaf of bread, paid the baker, and took Lucrecia's arm. The two walked out into the street, still chatting.

"So tell me," Shera said as they strolled past people going about their daily business, " 'Baby Vin' is, what…fifth in line to the throne?"

"You know he hates it when you call him 'Vin'," Lu admonished, referring to her husband. "And the baby's going to be third in line, after the Prince and Vincent. Provided the Prince doesn't have any children."

Prince Rufus was Ansem's nephew. Technically, Ansem was only Prince Regent, holding the throne until fourteen-year-old Rufus came of age, however, Rufus's father has only been king for three years before his unfortunate demise, so most people considered Ansem more of a king than his brother had ever been.

"Considered it provided for. Can you imagine anyone wanting to marry his Royal Pain-in-the-Highness?"

Lu gave her best friend a reproving glance. "Now, now," she scolded, "He just needs some time to mature. He's really a good person."

"I'm sure he is," Shera said soothingly. They turned a corner. "Lu, you think you could make it back to the palace yourself? I've got some deliveries to make."

"The engineer again? Shera dearest, you really could spend your time in a more productive manner."

"Your husband seems to think highly enough of him," Shera said, a bit on the defensive side.

"Vincent keeps strange company."

Shera sighed. There was no reasoning with Lu when she was like this. As much as she adored her best friend, she had to admit that Lucrecia could be a bit of a snob sometimes.

"Well, I suppose I'll catch up with you later. Take care of yourself, Lu," Shera said, entering the small building that served as a workshop and home for the Bastion's sole engineering expert.

"I will," Lucrecia said, turning towards the opulent palace in the center of the city.

A/N: Well? So far so good? Don't worry, there'll be more action, love, darkness, Heartless, yadda yadda yadda, as we progress. First few chapters are mainly to introduce characters and settings that are different from their FF counterparts. And yes, KH stuff will feature more prominently in later chapters. But for now, PLEASE review. It makes me so very very happy. This is my first full-length fic EVER ("Years" was my first fic), and I am eager for responses…-Rose