Jessica's Point of View

I landed in The Land of Departure, but it looked completely different. The castle looked incomplete and had turned to green, gold, and brown. I didn't understand, but I wondered if Aqua had something to do with it before she disappeared. My thoughts turned back to my situation with my parents. I knew they didn't want me. They made that obvious when they let Master Xehanort take me away so easily. They didn't even protest. Knowing that they didn't want me still didn't stop my heart from breaking. I pushed away my sadness and went inside the castle. On the inside, it was completely white, except for a golden-brown door. I walked up to it. "Jessica," I heard Master Eraqus's voice whisper softly inside my head.

"Wh-who's there? Show yourself!" I demanded. I heard his voice whisper my name inside my head again, and again, and again, getting louder each time. I closed my eyes and screamed. Suddenly, the whispers stopped. I opened my eyes. In my hands were two cards. My body started moving by itself, holding up a card to the door. The card disappeared from my hand, and I opened the door and entered the room before the door closed behind me and disappeared. I was back at the castle in Sunset Kingdom. There were three figures in front of me. Two of them were Mom and Dad. The final one was Master Eraqus. "Master?!" I exclaimed, shocked to see him. Rather than turn my way, he acted like I wasn't there. I ran to him and went to tug at his robe, but my hand passed right through him. That was when I understood. It was all an illusion.

"King Lumaria, Queen Arlene, please. I know it would mean the world to her," Master Eraqus pleaded.

"Look, it's bad enough I had to play the part of Mommy. I don't care what day it is! I'm not going," Mom growled.

"Arlene, it's her birthday. We should do this. If not for her, then at least for Even," Dad persuaded. I was confused, not understanding what Mr. Even had to do with anything.

"Alright, for Even and Miyuu," Mom sighed.

"Alright. We'll do it. You said you would provide a gift?" Dad asked.

"Yes," Master Eraqus answered.

There was another bright light, and I was back in the room I came from. "So then, they never even wanted to come for my birthday. Figures," I sighed. I still had one card left. I stared at it, wondering if it would bring me even more disappointment before using it. Instead of disappearing like the other one, the card stayed in my hand. When I went inside the room, the door disappeared. Like the room I started in, it was completely white.

In the center of the room was Master Eraqus. I assumed he was just another illusion, but he stared right at me and smiled. "Jessica."

"M-Master?! Is it really you?!" I gasped, hoping that he would respond.

"Yes, Jessica. It is me," Master Eraqus answered.

"But- but you were dead! I saw you die with my own two eyes!" I exclaimed.

"No. You didn't see me die. You saw me preserve myself. When Xehanort stabbed me, I knew it was a matter of seconds before I would die. I had to act fast. I became one with this land in order to regenerate," Master Eraqus explained. I gave him a confused look. "In other words, I temporarily made a connection between myself and the Land of Departure and faded into light to restore myself."

"How temporary? It feels like ages since that happened. I know that it hasn't technically been that long, but still," I sighed.

"I would have already returned if it wasn't for one thing. Aqua sealed a lock on the Land of Departure, turning the Land of Departure into what you see now. The only thing I can do is stay in this room. Do you know where she is by any chance?" Master Eraqus wondered. Tears started to pour out of my eyes.

"They're gone. Aqua... Terra... Ven... They're all gone," I sobbed.

"What do you mean? Tell me what has happened," Master Eraqus urged.

I did my best to get my crying under control. "Aqua, Terra, and Ventus had a big battle with Xehanort. Afterward, Ven fell asleep, and Master Yen Sid said he might not wake up. Terra was missing, so Aqua left to find him. Because there was no one who could take care of me, Mickey took me to stay with some friends of his in Radiant Gardens. That night, something didn't feel quite right. I looked out my window and saw what was a merge of Terra and Xehanort. Aqua and this... Terranort, as I sometimes like to think of him, fought. In the end, Aqua won, and Terra almost drowned in a pool of darkness, but then Aqua... Then Aqua jumped into the darkness to save Terranort. In the end, she succeeded in saving Terra, but not in saving herself. I don't know what happened to her. The next morning, one of the apprentices to Mr. Ansem, the man who took me in, found Terranort and brought him to the castle in Radiant Gardens, the place I was staying in. Mr. Ansem took in Terranort. I guess he said that his name was Xehanort because that's what they told me. He also claims to have amnesia. I'm still looking in on that. Master Yen Sid asked me to be keeping tabs on him. I've been doing just that ever since," I said.

Master Eraqus hugged me and allowed me to cry again until I could take control of my emotions once more. When he pulled away, he assessed the situation. "So... Terra, Aqua, and Ventus are currently gone?" I nodded. "And you've been with strangers ever since?" I nodded again. He put his hands on my shoulders. "Jessica, I'm so so sorry. I wish I wasn't forced to leave you like this."

"I missed you so much. Please, let me stay here. I'll do anything. Just let me stay here," I begged.

"Jessica, you can't stay here. We both know you can't. I can't provide for you here. You said that there are people taking care of you in Radiant Gardens. You should go there," He sighed.

I considered telling him what Mr. Even said but decided against it. I didn't want him to worry. "Okay," I agreed. Master Eraqus wiped the tears from my face.

"You can't live here, but you can still visit me anytime with that card. Although, you are the only one who can see, feel, or hear me," He smiled.

"Why is that?" I asked.

"I'll tell you when you're older," He chuckled.

When I went outside, Mickey was there. "Jessica, I'm so glad I found you!" Mickey exclaimed. I braced myself for what I knew Mickey would say. He would ask me to come back. "Come on. Let's go back. Ansem and Even have something important to tell you."

When I didn't make a move, he reached for my hand, but I took a step back. "I don't want to go back," I huffed.

"Please, Jess. I'll tell you what. You come back and listen to Mr. Even and Mr. Ansem's explanation, and I'll get you some ice cream," Mickey tried.

"You actually think bribery will work?" I laughed. Then I thought about his offer. Eternal Friendship ice cream was worth going back for. "Well, maybe it'll work, just a little."

With the next chapter, all readers will either love, hate, or be like, "What the heck was sailorsenshi13 thinking?" with the next chapter. The questions you have about Ansem and his apprentices and their connection to Jessica will be answered.