Chapter 5: First Meetings
"No! No! No! You can't take Nami 'way!"
Namine's stomach twisted at the distress and tears all over Kairi's face. "She's my Nami!"
Aqua bit her lip. "Kairi..."
"Mr. Allus!" cried out Kairi, "She's gonna take Nami away! Make her go away!"
Aeleus sighed softly from the doorway. "Child, if Namine wishes to go, I cannot make her stay."
Kairi's voice makes Namine ache so much. "Nami... don't go pwease..."
The ache is twofold. One, because she doesn't want to make Kairi sad, and part of her doesn't want to leave. Two... two is the memory of being in a prison of Kairi's unintentional making, of being trapped inside her, and this, in a dark part of her mind, reminds her of that, of being bound to Kairi again. She knows the thought is beyond unfair to her, Kairi is a little girl, she doesn't want to lose her friend, her only friend... because Namine hadn't been blind to notice that not once had Kairi played with any other child here, even if she hasn't figured out why. She is so kind and sweet, so why is Kairi isolated from any other children?
She pushes the thought aside and moves to sit next to Kairi on a couch in the foyer of the Castle. "Kairi..."
She knows better than to mention the World Order, a four year old wont understand nor care about that, but if she used what just happened... "The monsters that attacked us, I'm leaving to get strong enough to stop them and anything like them."
"But... Gamma says yowr all huwrt inside," said Kairi, sniffling, "I wanna keep Nami safe n make you better."
Namine closed her eyes and took in a shaky breath before opening them and moving to wrap her true self in a hug. "You already have, Kairi, you already have."
Namine separated, but held Kairi's hands in her own. "You... you were the first who really showed me people could care about me."
She had set her free from her prison, and sent her here to have her own life. Kairi had known her for what she was, a Nobody, a thing, an abomination, yet still helped... Sora had helped in Castle Oblivion... but he hadn't known all of what she was. Would he still have helped? Maybe... probably... but Kairi was still the first.
Kairi blushed a little. "And Gamma."
Namine giggled, looking at Lady Ame in appreciation, the woman returning a smile. "Yes, you and Gamma."
"I don't wan you to go," whined Kairi.
"She will be able to visit from time to time," offered Aqua quietly.
Kairi glared at her.
"Kairi," said her grandmother softly, "Don't be ru..."
The sound of pounding feet echoed down the hallway. "Aeleus! The refinery is on fire!"
They all turned to the sight of Xaldin, face red with exertion from sprinting, "There are reports of a man and a boy with keys fighting a giant monster."
Aqua suckered in a sharp breath, rushing for the doorway and shoving past the guards. "Terra! Ven!"
More keybearers?
Then she actually registered the words, her face paling with fear. Aqua wasn't alive in her time, did she die here?!
Aeleus and Dilan rushed after Aqua, and Namine only hesitated a moment before going after them, heart pounding in concern and fear.
"Namine, wait!"
Namine doesn't listen to Lady Ame, running down the hallway struggling to keep the guards in her sight. Aqua is already long out of sight by the time she's left the castle huffing and puffing. She's got a long way to go if she ever wants to use a Keyblade if running for a little bit puts her out of breath. She considers herself lucky Aqua and the Guards clear any Unversed in the way, or she'd be a sitting duck. She loses sight of Aqua quickly, wow, she can move fast. By the time she sees the refinery come into view, the smell of smoke is clogging her nose, several nearby buildings are on fire...
Namine yelps and stumbles to her knees when a massive beam of energy blows out of the refinery, clipping a building's roof and blowing part of it away. Namine makes a fearful choking sound. She steels herself and rushes towards the entrance, finding Aeleus and Dilan standing tensely.
"I hate to say it friend," mutters Dilan, "But I don't think we can handle this."
Aeleus nods firmly. "Leave it to the Keybearers, move to support only if absolutely necessary."
"Terra! Ven!" Namine hears Aqua cry out as she rushes in.
Then Namine closes the distance, standing behind the guards, and a choking sound escapes her lips when she sees Xemnas and Roxas fighting a gigantic humanoid Unversed that reminds her of a Guard Armor heartless.
"Namine!" exclaims Aeleus, "What are you doing here?"
She pays them no attention, staring wide eyed at the combatants. Xemnas isn't dressed in his signature cloak, nor is his hair silver, but she recognizes that powerful form, she recognizes that face, the hair is shorter, but still the same shape. Roxas... Roxas is wearing clothes like his birth clothes, but the Keyblade in his hand is completely different... and held backwards? How can he be here? Did... did Sora set him free too? If she reaches out with her powers and examines his Chains of Memories maybe she can figure...
Her eyes widen further. He's not Roxas.
She feels it instantly.
The thing is, she can still feel him, can still touch his Chains of Memories. Whoever he is, he is still connected to Sora, but he looks just like Roxas! Whats going on?
Xemnas glances at Aqua briefly, he's bruised, torched a bit, with a few rips along his clothes. "Good to see you Aqua, mind its fists and watch out for its lasers!"
"Right!" she calls back, rushing into the fight and launching lightning from the tip of her Keyblade at the monster.
Xemnas's voice is... very different oddly enough. Far less deep, full of seriousness, yet kindness. She takes a moment to look him over. Brown hair that went up in a sort of spiky way, but not as much as Sora's. His skin is a little tanned. His chest is covered in a skintight black high-collared shirt. He had a red X over his shirt, almost like suspenders. One of his arms below the elbow is are except for a black wrist band, the other has a kind of extended gauntlet that goes down to his elbow. He has a kind of black sash with some kind of badge as it's connected. The badge is the same somewhat familiar kind that Aqua has, its like a cross but the top part went into another shape. He has a hakama connecting to tan pants covering his lower half. He has armored and pointed boots.
"Ha!" says Not-Roxas, wheezing a bit, "This thing can barely keep up with the two of us, it doesn't stand a chance against all of us together!"
Then the Unversed backhands Not-Roxas with a giant hand and sends him flying.
"Ven!" "Ven!" cry out Xemnas and Aqua.
Namine curls her fists, fingernails digging in out of concern and worry. So his name is Ven? That would make Xemnas... Terra? Wait... Xemnas was the Nobody name of Ansem's amnesiac apprentice Xehanort who stole his name. So Xemnas... Xehanort... was an amnesiac Keybearer named Terra? How had it turned out like it had?
Her thoughts trail off into a sense of awe as she watches the three fight. Aqua tosses Ven a cure, and the three of them pincer the giant Unversed. Terra rains heavy brutal blows, Ven darts in and out with rapid strikes stabs and slashes. Aqua rains magic from afar before cartwheeling in and surging forward wrapped in magic, mixing physical combat with her power. There is a sense of teamwork between the three, covering for one another and casting cure if they fall under the brunt of the monster's focus. Taking advantage of openings created. Its amazing, its powerful... its...
Its inhuman.
Namine swallows and tries to still her fear. She knows she has nothing to fear from them, if those two are Aqua's friends, then they won't hurt her, and Terra isn't Xemnas yet. But... it doesn't ignore how unreal it is to witness a Keybearer, let alone three of them, fight at once. She'd never been able to feel real fear (Maybe? It... felt a lot like the fake fear she thought she'd felt) before she became a real person. If she could re-live the memories of Sora's most intense battles, would she feel that fear directed at him?
The monster had already been wounded, and Namine smiles with relief when it falls apart into pieces... that keep moving! What?
She yelps when Aeleus grabs her, lifts her up, grabs Dilan's arm, and pulls them out of the way as the monster's pieces start bounding around and shooting laser bolts everywhere. He shelters her, heavy arms wrapped protectively as lasers blow past the corner. He doesn't move, doesn't let her free to watch and see if Aqua is alright. The fighting goes on for a few more awful minutes, each cry of pain or explosion of energy sends a spike of absolute terror through her, and she wishes so badly she already knew how to fight so she could help.
Standing aside while someone she cared about was fighting in a life and death situation was awful.
"We did it! HA!" came Ven's tired cheer.
Namine collapses to her knees, a relieved breath escaping her lips.
Aeleus glances down at her for a moment before he shakes his head. "I suppose we should see if we can offer them any after-battle assistance, have any potions on you Dilan?"
"A few."
Aeleus helps her up, and they walk out to see Ven on his knees, huffing and puffing. Terra's hands are on his own knees, bending over to catch his breath. Aqua is wiping off her forehead, late to the fight, but still tired by it. She briefly casts ice and water over the area to put out fires before she walks over to Ven and starts fretting over him, poking at his injuries.
"C'mon Aqua! Really, I'm fine-oww oww oww not there!"
Aqua gives him a dubious look. "And you Terra?"
"I know better than to try to lie to mom," teases Terra.
Aqua huffs and gives him a mock glare.
"We have some potions to offer you and your comrades, Lady Aqua," calls out Dilan.
Aqua turns and then freezes when she sees Namine, fear, and then anger on her face. "Namine?! What are you doing out here! You could have gotten hurt!"
Namine shrinks a bit. "I... I was worried..."
Aqua closes her eyes, stressed. "I've been training to do this all my life Namine."
Terra grins "Made a friend, Aqua?"
At that, Aqua hesitated, face going passive and uncertain. Dilan merely shakes his head, walks over, and distributes the potions. Namine sheepishly walks up to Aqua. "Sorry..."
Aqua sighs and ruffles her hair. "It's alright, but from now on... well... I don't exactly plan for you to be anywhere near anything dangerous until your training is even close to complete."
"Training...?" poses Terra quietly before he takes a step towards Namine, peering down at her closely, his hand starting forward, "I feel..."
Namine takes a reflexive step back, foolish fear overtaking her that she can't help, he's not Xemnas, but he's still...
"Terra," cuts in Aqua quietly, but firmly, hand reaching out to lay on his arm, "She's..."
"Your apprentice," he breaths in surprise, eyes going wide, delight spreading across his face, "I feel it, you chose her! You found an apprentice already?!"
"Woah, no way!" exclaims Ven excitedly, rushing over to them, stopping a little bit away and grinning at Namine, "Hi! I'm Ven!"
"I'm Terra," the man offers with a silly smile.
They're so kind, but so overwhelming, all three Keybeaers to her front, the guards to her back. She tries to respond, but all she gets is a flushed face and unsteady breathing. She feels boxed in. Then their faces turn to concern, and she feels embarrassed. She finds herself frustrated with herself once more, wondering again why its hard to do basic things real people do?
"A bit of space please," ordered Aqua.
"Little shy huh," teased Ven lightly, but took a few steps back all the same, Terra doing the same.
Aqua knelt down in front of Namine and spoke softly, "These are my friends, Terra and Ven, I've known Ven for years, and Terra even longer since I started my own training, I'd trust both of them with my life."
Namine nods shakily. "I... I can tell they're your friends... just..."
"Don't worry, they won't hurt you like... they'd protect you from anyone who would," corrects Aqua before adopting a teasing tone, "They can be a little overwhelming at times though, being boys that like to show off and all."
"Hey!"
Terra laughed a little, but he's giving Namine a more studious look now, a hint of a frown on his face, "Aqua, word please?"
Aqua steeled herself, rising to her feet. "Have you said your goodbyes to your friends here yet, Namine? You should do so before you leave."
She doesn't wait for a response, turning to walk away with Terra. Ven isn't smiling now, a little worried as he looks back and forth between his friends. Namine just stares at the ground, she already can tell what Terra is about to question.
They are a bit away when Terra speaks in a low voice, but Namine's always been good at listening and hearing things she wasn't supposed to from the Organization. "Aqua, whats wrong with her?"
"There's nothing wrong with her," Aqua bites back.
"I didn't mean it like that," said Terra, "But she's far to afraid of us for no reason."
Aqua looked away for a long moment. "Child abuse."
Terra takes in a sharp breath, a soft curse escaping his lips, fists curling, anger on his face. Ven brings a hand up to his mouth, stuttering a bit before glancing at Namine quickly and looking away.
Aeleus tugs gently on Namine's shoulder. "Come Namine, the rest of the guard would like to give their goodies."
He calls over to Aqua, "I will bring Namine to the central square for when your business here is concluded."
Aqua nods at her, eyes lingering protectively over Namine, before turning back to Terra and speaking in low tones. "I'm sorry to leave you to this alone, Terra, but I have to take her back home, her and Ven."
"Hey! I don't want to go back yet, I've been out here helping...," Ven begins to counter before Namine is out of hearing range.
"Is it always going to hang over me?" Namine asks quietly, staring down at the ground as they walk.
Was she always going to have people talking quietly about her 'past' around her?
Aeleus sighed softly. "For a time, it will, but once you've had a chance to find your footing and step into your own path, it is my hope that it will become nothing but a distant unpleasant memory."
He paused to reach down and tilt her chin up. "It is my hope that one day, years from now, when you are trained as your teacher is, you'll return here. I look forward to meeting the woman you become."
Namine flushes a little, but nods. "I'll come back."
She smiles a little despite how her words spark a groundless and foolish fear. "Kairi would probably find a way to come drag me back if I didn't visit."
Aeleus chuckles softly. "I'm sure she would, she is quite fond."
"Look after her?"
"Of course young one. Of course..."
Namine sits on a bench in the central square as Aeleus patrols the area nearby, tearful goodbyes said, feeling drained by it all. Today had been... intense.
"Huh, so you're the new fresh meat then?"
She startles and looks up at... "Riku?"
A boy stands in front of her, in a black and red version of Riku's dark bodysuit. The primary difference being the lack of a heartless-like emblem, and the pitch black helmet the boy has. He is... much more imposing, and Namine can't help but tense around him. She can feel darkness emanating off him.
The boy crosses his arm and leans down at her, Namine can practically feel the sneer. "My name is Vanitas, not Riku! Whoever that loser is."
She shrinks back as much as she can against the bench, and the boy snorts, pulling back. "Just another light-filled weakling. I bet you can't even summon a Keyblade yet."
She flushes a bit. "I... Miss Aqua just barely chose me!"
She had been chosen, wanted, she's not going to let someone demean that!
Vanitas laughs and flicks his wrist, Namine's eyes go wide when a dark silvery and red/black Keyblade appears in his hands. "I could summon mine instantly. Guess you've got a lot of catching up to do, little girl. If you manage to even live that long."
Namine flushes further before she worked up the nerve to glare at him...
Then the teeth of his keyblade are underneath her chin against her neck. "Careful there girly, pissing me off could be the last thing you do."
Black fear pulses through her, and she's so tired of it. Being afraid. She grits her teeth, hopes Aeleus or Aqua is nearby if she's about to get herself killed, and tries to be brave. "You're hardly scary for a guy wearing a skirt."
The Keyblade falls away and he starts sputtering. "H-hey! Its a mini-cape, not a skirt!"
She glances down at it, and then back it him, eyebrow raised.
He huffs. "Skirt or not, I'd wear it better than you would."
"So you admit its a skirt then?"
"That's not what I said!"
"I think it is."
"Shut UP!"
The smile that had been forming falls off and she swallows thickly at the sight of his grip tightening on his keyblade. "You run your mouth for someone I could break in half like a twig."
A snicker escaped his helmet. "Actually, a twig would probably be harder to break than you are."
Namine flushes in frustration. "That's... I..."
"Admit it, you're a weakling."
"At least I'm not mean!"
"Waaaa, waaaa, she called me mean, boo hoo."
There is a fire starting to burn in her chest, and before she thinks twice, she gets up right in his space and stomps on his foot. He glances down at his foot, his helmet almost colliding with her head, then he looks back up, throws his head back, and howls with laughter. "Was that supposed to hurt?"
She yelps when he grabs his arm and throws her to the side, she lands on the pavement and cringes. "Oh, look at the little girl about to bawl."
She scrambles to her feet, but rather than doing the intelligent thing and running, she balls her fists and yells at him, "Why are you being mean? What have I done to you?"
Malice coats his voice. "You exist."
Namine takes a step back, paling.
He flexes his grip on his Keyblade. "The Master says killing the fresh meat should cause a lot of chaos and trouble that he can take advantage of, but personally, I don't care about that. What I care about is how a weakling like you gets chosen out of blue for failing to protect a little girl and getting clobbered, while I..."
He cuts of and snarled, taking a step forward, a black aura coating him. Namine takes a step back in response, feeling the icey-hot rage through the air, a prickle along her skin, in the back of her mind...
Wait...
Her mind?!
She stretches out and is shocked when she feels his Chains of Memories, he's connected to Sora! Except... there's something wrong with his Chain. Its... broken? Corroded? Like there's chunks of it missing... no, not missing, like they were ripped away. What... what is this? She's never felt anything like it. Even when she was working on Sora and Roxas and... and... just those two, it had never felt like that.
"A weak, pathetic, little brat like you, whole, chosen and cherished," he spits out, bitterness coating thickly, "While I get to be incomplete, fighting to be whole while stuck with the master. You don't deserve it!"
He hefts his Keyblade with lethal intent, but black fear for her upcoming death isn't there, its instead incredulousness, rage exploding within her. "Whole? You want to be whole?"
Is he some kind of Nobody? Is that why he feels all weird? "You think being whole is good?"
He hesitates. "What? Of course it is!"
She can't control the emotions erupting inside of her. She can't keep the rage and the pain out of her voice, nor the sneer off her face. "I thought that too, I used to be nothing, a shadow of my true self, then I went back to her, and it was nothing but a prison watching someone else's life trapped within them. You thinking being whole is what you want? You're wrong. How about I show you what it feels like!"
She aims a hand at him, taps into his Chain of Memories, and shoves it down his throat. She forces upon him the isolation, the loneliness, the suffocating sensation of being trapped inside of Kairi unable to move, someone else's emotions smothering her, watching someone else live their life while she was trapped, the sensation of knowing there was no escape until her true self died, the envy and jealousy, the desire to live, the desire to die and be free, all of it she presses upon him.
Vanitas screams.
He screams in horror and fear and denial. "NO! NO NO NO NO!"
He claws at his helmet and throws it off, falling to his knees and taking in deep ragged breaths and...
He looks just like Sora.
He pukes black ichor that fades into the ground before staggering to his feet. "I don't want this!"
He forms a Dark Corridor and bolts through it, leaving Namine suddenly all alone. She stares at the spot her ran through for a very long moment, blinking slowly.
That... had that really just happened?
She slowly walked back over to the bench and sat down, feeling incredibly drained, her head drooping. Her arms are trembling, breathing ragged. She stares aimlessly at the ground for a time. She just wants to go home and sleep. Except shes not going home, shes going with Aqua to... somewhere. Going with a woman she knows next to nothing about, to an unknown location, who could be acting nice for all she knows...
"Namine?"
The voice is gentle, she looks up and see's Aqua staring down at her, nothing but kindness and concern in her eyes. Namine swallows back her mindless fear. "I'm tired..."
Aqua gives her a soft smile. "It's been a big day for you. I'll take you and Ven home, introduce you to my Master, and get you to bed."
"Your Master?"
Aqua pauses to reflect. "I mean... we're both Keyblade Masters, I don't have to call him that anymore, but that would be weird. He's been that for years."
"Is... is he nice?" Namine asked quietly.
"Yeah he is!" comes Ven's voice, peaking around Aqua's side, "He's smart and kind, well, so long as you don't break the rules."
"Then you get chores," said Aqua, giving Ven a pointed look, "Like Ven's going to get for the next year for running off on his own."
Ven winces. "Ah... I was worried about Terra!"
"You can argue you that with Master Eraqus then," Aqua answered smoothly, "Now c'mon, lets go home."
Aqua summons her Keyblade and throws it into the air and...
Namine's eyes go wide as it transforms into a kind of vehicle. "Keyblades can do that?!"
"Yep," said Aqua, grinning, before she slapped a button on her arm armor and, in a flash of light, was surrounded in blue armor. "Woah..."
What... what was all of this? Keyblade Vehicles? Armor transformations? Just how much had Sora been missing? Or perhaps... how much had been lost after these three and their master died? Because none of them except Terra, kind of, existed from when she was from. There was this weird look alike thing with Roxas and Ven, she didn't have an explanation for that, but she knew they weren't the same person. Roxas had come from Sora after all. Its all so confusing...
She wonders briefly if the dark boy had any involvement in it. She's too tired to think on it... and he seemed... like he was lashing out more than anything. Something was wrong with him, hurt and broken in him. So she decided to keep it to herself for now, maybe she could find a way to help. Riku had only needed someone to show him the way back after all, even if he had caused all kinds messes along the way.
Aqua moves to sit on her glider. "Come Namine, I'll keep you in a barrier for the trip so the darkness of the Lanes Between doesn't touch you."
Namine walks over, and Aqua, to her surprise, flicks a finger and levitates Namine onto her lap. It probably would have hurt to be grabbed by armor, her skin isn't toughened at all. That was... thoughtful of Aqua. A translucent barrier surrounds Namine, cushioning her from rubbing against Aqua's armor. She smiles up at Aqua, not quit sure if the woman sees it. She settles her barrier covered back against the armor as Aqua takes to the sky, a brief bright gate appearing that she goes through...
A gasp of wonder escapes Namine's lips as they leave the world. The Lanes Between are... beautiful. So many stars and swirling glowing dust. Closer worlds off in the distance. Her head turns this way and that, drinking in the sight. Ven pulls up next to them on a kind of hoverboard, coated in his own armor, before he gives her a thumbs up. He shoots off, and she starts giggling when he does a hand stand on his board, showing off. Aqua shakes her head, and Namine imagines she's huffing with amusement.
Namine's eyes widen as they approach one world in particular. A marble white and golden castle-like structure floating on clouds, giant chains attaching it to two close mountain peaks. The castle connects to a flat area and to a nearby mountain with a summit. Namine takes it all in as Aqua moves to set down her Keyblade Vehicle along with Ven, dismissing her armor and the barrier around Namine. The doors to the castle open as they touch down, and out of it strides a man.
The was older, Namine wasn't quite a judge of age, but perhaps around Aeleus's age. She has to scramble through her memories to try and identify his clothing. He had a white, red lined haori with a hood over a blue shirt with a white X on it. Connecting the two halves of his clothes was a bit of armor, along with a symbol on it that she recognized from Aqua's clothes, the one that connected her pink stripes. His bottom half was a white, or a very light tanned hakama, his armored boots sticking out from underneath it. His black hair was tied in a short topknot, with one bang hanging close to his eye. And speaking of his black eyes, or rather, eye, he had a scar going over but not hitting his right eye. His face was hardened, a mustache and small patch of hair above his chin.
Namine swallowed a bit, this had to be Master Eraqus, he looked a little intimidating...
Ven slaps his armor and dismisses it as Eraqus approach. "Uh... hey Master..."
Eraqus kneels down, grabs Ven's shoulders, and pulls him into a tight hug. "Ventus, do not ever scare me like that again! You are not yet fully trained, you don't belong in the outside world yet, you could have been grievously injured going off on your own!"
Ven, or well, she guesses that had been short nickname for him, flushes. "Ah c'mon, it wasn't that bad! I figured out how to cast cure pretty quick, and Aqua healed me after that giant monster hit me..."
"Giant what?!" exclaims Eraqus, pulling back and giving Ventus a stern look.
"Uh... Unversed come in big sizes?" he says sheepishly.
A pinched look crossed the man's face, and he squints more at Ventus's clothing, definitely looking over the roughed over cuts. "I see."
"Ventus."
"Y-yes?"
"You are grounded for the next year."
"Ah come on!"
"Do you want it to be two?"
"No..."
Aqua giggled a bit. "Go a bit easy on him Master, he did good out there."
"I'm sure he did," said Eraqus dismissively, "It doesn't ignore..."
"He saved a Princess of Heart whose heart had been stolen."
Eraqus goes immediately silent, staring at Ventus, both eyebrows climbing to the top in astonishment.
Ventus turns beat red. "Well... I... I mean any of us would have!"
A wide and pleased smile crosses Eraqus's face. "Well... I'll have to ask for the circumstances later, but I suppose you can be grounded for half a year then for such exemplary work."
Ventus groaned.
"I can make it back to a full year if you so wish."
"No no no! Half a year is good!"
"I'm pleased you agree."
Namine couldn't help it, she started giggling at that.
Eraqus pauses before his head turns to actually look at Aqua, then at Namine sitting in her lap. Namine's giggle fade, and she goes very uncomfortably still under the intensity of the man's gaze, shrinking a little. Aqua slowly gets up, picking Namine up and setting her down off the vehicle before it vanishes. Aqua grips Namine's hand in her own before she clears her throat in a loud, slow bulb.
"Master Eraqus, I would like to introduce you to my apprentice, Namine."
There is a soft intake of breath from the man, and for a moment, there is an air of disbelieving wonder about him before he stands up, his face slowly turning into a calm, cooled mask, eyes calculating and judging, whatever he had been feeling pushed aside. "It is unexpected for you to find one worthy of the Keyblade so soon after becoming a Master."
There is a tension coming off Aqua all the sudden. It takes Namine a few moments to recognize Eraqus is calling Aqua's judgement into question. At first, it puts fire into Namine's stomach, but... there is no hostility or malice or anything like that in the mans eyes or tone. He's posing the question, and expecting Aqua to defend her choice, to defend Namine. He... he wants her to be able to. Its a test.
"The first action I saw her do was to nearly sacrifice herself to save a young child, despite being weaponless and untrained," said Aqua, pride and challenge in her voice.
There is a brief twitch of Eraqus's mouth, as if he wanted to smile, but held it back. "I see, but one act of valor does not make a Keybearer."
"I asked her a set of questions, per protocol that you taught us," continued Aqua, "And found her answers well said, heartfelt, and becoming of her."
Eraqus hummed. "Which questions were asked?"
"Fear, desire, and importance."
Eraqus nods slowly. "Fear? A strange choice if she had willingly put herself in danger to save another."
Aqua pauses, and her Master's eyes hone in like a hawk, but does not speak, waiting for Aqua to. "The circumstances around her required a more... pointed focus."
That apparently wasn't what he wanted to hear. There is a slight frown to his face, an air of caution about him now. "I see."
Namine swallows, and her hand tightens along Aqua's. Eraqus's eyes trail the motion, but he does not comment on it.
"Taking Namine as my apprentice was the best choice in the situation presented," began Aqua in a careful tone, "And while it solved a... World Order problem, that was only a secondary thing to her worth as a person and a potential Keybearer."
"A World Order problem," repeats Eraqus slowly.
"Master...," begins Ventus uncomfortably.
Eraqus waves him off. "Explain, Master Aqua."
"Namine was... trapped in a... terrible situation," says Aqua, and Namine's shoulders slump once again at the way people skirt around it, "Someone cast her from her world into another to save her from it where she had been taken in by a family. I firmly believe that given time to heal and shine, Namine will become a fine Keybearer."
Eraqus says nothing, his eyes are hard on Aqua's, and Namine feels the sweat in Aqua's hand. The stand off goes on for a very uncomfortable minute before its broken.
Aqua steels herself, and her voice goes harsh. "I do not wish to, but if I must become a Seeker to take her as my apprentice without your approval, I will."
That gets a single raised eyebrow from him. "You are very determined to train her."
"I will train her."
The testing mask fades away into an amused smile. "Far be it from me to try and bar you from training an apprentice, Master Aqua. Though, I am going to ask about the finer details of how you met your apprentice later for record purposes."
Aqua lets out a breach, relaxing. "Of course Master."
Eraqus turned his gaze to Namine and smiled. "A grand-apprentice before I'm fifty. What a pleasant surprise, I'm glad to meet you Namine."
"I um... its nice to meet you too," she said quietly before yawning and then flushing at it.
He chuckles. "A long journey?"
"Its... been a very, very long day for her," said Aqua, "An early turn in to rest would do her good. She can sleep with me for the night until another room is set up."
Eraqus nods. "Agreeable."
He turned to go before pausing. "What of Terra?"
Aqua hesitated. "I... wasn't certain about leaving him out on his own, but..."
"Is there reason for this concern?" posed Eraqus, and despite the criticalness of the question, there is worry.
"I'm not... entirely sure, I've heard about something he potentially did..."
"Oh come on Aqua!" exclaimed Ven, "If you're talking about what the witch said you're being ridiculous! There's no way Terra would take a Princess of Heart's heart, she was lying to mess with us!"
Eraqus tensed. "What?"
"I'm... inclined to agree with you Ven," said Aqua slowly, "A witch by the name of Maleficent..."
They had met Maleficent? Well... her causing problems wasn't anything new.
Eraqus immediately scoffs. "Her? She never learns, does she?"
"You... know her?" asked Aqua, suprised.
"Know is a strong word," said Eraqus with distaste, "I trust her word little and would dismiss them as an attempt to cause strife between allies. Was there anything of actual note to be concerned about?"
Aqua bit her lips for a moment before shaking her head. "Not that I saw. We left Terra a little while ago on our way to come here, I talked with him and... he seemed fine and in good spirits."
Eraqus nodded, satisfied. "Good, good. While leaving him to face this conflict alone is unwise, even if he were a full Master, Terra's strength is in endurance and raw power..."
Well, wasn't THAT true even as Xemnas.
"...I am confident in his abilities. We will give him time to investigate the matter, and periodically set out to check on the situation," continued Eraqus, "Terra knows his limits, if he needs help, I trust he will come back and ask for it. Now come, put Namine to bed and then meet me in the dinning hall to tell me what has transpired in your travels."
"Yes Master," echo both Aqua and Ven.
With that, they departed up the steps to the castle, and Namine eyes them wearily. Aqua took mercy on her, kneeling down to give her a piggyback ride.
Namine's thoughts drifted to the conversation, her heart fluttering and squirming about what Aqua had said, that she would have left all of this behind to train her if Eraqus hadn't wanted her to be trained. She doesn't feel worth of it at all. "Whats a Seeker?"
"A Seeker of Darkness," begins Aqua, not noticing the way Namine briefly freezes at that, "Is a Keybearer unbound to the bastion. One who transverses beyond our home area and assigned worlds to seek out darkness upsetting the balance of the worlds. I've read that it can be a lonely life, years out on your own between trips home."
Namine is briefly dumbstruck. The Heartless Ansem, Seeker of Darkness had been his title. It... it had been a perversion of a role a Keybearer could take? But... but wait, how would Ansem have known that if he hadn't had Terra's memories? Or... had it been something he had only loosely remembered? She shakes it off as unimportant, Ansem Seeker of Darkness wont come to exist if Namine has anything to say about it.
"Assigned worlds?"
"Our line of Keybearers is assigned to protect the Princesses of Heart and the worlds surrounding the ones they live on," explained Aqua.
"Are... are there other lines of Keybearers?"
"Oh yes," said Aqua, "But... the worlds are a huge place, Namine, gigantic beyond belief. It would take years traveling the Lanes Between to even reach the closest Line of Keybearers aside our own. Worlds often come in large clusters, grouped together in a large area. But between these areas are incredible stretches of empty darkness, not a star, not a world within them. There are a few that are closer, but, Keybearers are not a group of large numbers, we haven't had the numbers to watch over all the worlds since the Age of Fairytales."
Aqua sighs and shakes her head. "And Keybearers back then were much different then they are now."
Namine is curious about that, but tries and fails to stifle a yawn. Aqua chuckles. "There will be time for lessons to come, lets get you tucked in."
She doesn't particularly remember the trip to the room, but before she knows it, she's tucked in under a comfortable set of blankets. "Good night, Namine.
"Night Aqua," murmurs Namine sleepily,
She closes her eyes, only stirring briefly sometime later when Aqua climbs into bed and draws her close. Namine nestles in against her and goes back to sleep...
