Summary: The Mark of Mastery is almost here.
Terra and Aqua have one last mission to complete
before they they are evaluated for all the efforts they put into being Keyblade Masters.
If only they had mastery over their own flourishing emotions.
Terra is 19, Aqua is 18.
Rating: T
A/N: This is based off of holyteapotofrussell 's prompt, "It's three in the morning."
It's been a long, long, LONG time since I updated this fic, and mostly because I just wasn't happy with it.
From that prompt, I imagined the two of them getting out of a fresh fight,
and so that prompt won't be fulfilled until the third (and final installment) of this specific story.
But of course, setting the stage up for a proper fight turned this story into a much bigger story than I had anticipated.
And no one likes to read their OTP fighting(even though it's perfectly natural and realistic for them to? Like, they're human?).
I did really need all of this time to fix what was wrong with it, though. It really challenged my ability to convey them, as well.
If Terra hoped to get a decent night's sleep, the morning sun reminded him that he hoped for nothing. He spent too many hours replaying last night in his mind, and he lost himself in remembering how soft her lips felt before he finally let his dreams take over. Waking up left him in a near panic.
Soon enough, he'd have to talk to her. She was drunk when she leaned forward and kissed him, after all.
But if it went well, he'd have a chance at another one. Desire at this point would be an understatement, it was almost a need.
Even without enough sleep, he leaped off his bunk and quickly washed up. Some of the other stable men were still in bed, but he couldn't imagine that they slept very soundly, what with all the chatter over the Highland games, the archery competition for Merida's hand in marriage, happening today. But his stomach did somersaults, and he couldn't ingest any breakfast.
Tents and archery posts were fully set up by the time the sun had fully risen. It was a sunny day, but with the territory situated so high on the mountains, it was cool and breezy. Terra was allowed to keep his fur, and he chose to fold it and hang it off his green kilt. Crowds of people, both native and from the other clans, huddled together to watch the suitors line up to take their shots. The royal family members sat on their thrones under the shade of their own canvas, flags with their insignia waving in the wind.
Aqua stood near them, wearing her brown maid's dress again, with white cotton bell sleeves. She massaged her temples from the headache that he had no doubt came from an inevitable hangover. Merida, fidgeting in her throne, leaned over to talk to her, and Aqua quickly flashed a smile and nodded, hiding her annoyance and discomfort. It looked like she was trying to encourage the princess about something. The moment Merida was pleased with her answer, Aqua stopped saving face and went back to grimacing.
He shook his leg in anticipation. He couldn't go near her, for his place was within the gossiping crowd, safely away from the royal family and the suitors. He wondered if he should wave to catch her attention. But if he did, he might attract the gaze of the men around him, looking to sneer at whatever he was doing. It was better that they sort this out in the secret passage within the castle, where they could have some privacy.
The competition began. The suitors took their shots, and it didn't take long before the son of Lord Dingwall was announced as Merida's future husband. Enlarged nose, pale, buck teeth, scrawny. But worst of all, he was lost in his head so much that he barely registered that he won. Not very suitable to be a considerate spouse to someone else.
Except that Merida had something to say about that. She proceeded to compete for her own hand, and it didn't surprise him to see see that Aqua kept calm in spite of this announcement. She watched the princess intently, her hand to her heart as if anticipating something. But Merida strode with confidence, disqualifying every single suitor with her expertise, outperforming them so much that their shots seemed feeble and pathetic. The queen however, challenged her daughter, and this resulted in a public blowout between them.
Chaos ensued afterward. The crowds broke off, each clan segregating from each other. The lords were furious, threatening to harm diplomatic relations with the king for such offense. The queen, furious, dragged Merida away, a concerned Aqua following close behind them. The king, helpless, wandered around with no idea over how to handle anything that was going on, sputtering incoherent words which were his best defense at preventing a war. It was too crazy for anyone to notice was Terra was doing, so he slipped away to wait in the secret passage.
He waited at bottom of the stairs that led into the royal ward, where he whistled three short times for her cue. She didn't whistle back. He paced back and forth. He whistled again.
"Terra!"
She ran down to him, her dress dragging on the steps behind her. Her hair bounced, her eyes were bright like the sky. Her lips were pink. In truth, she didn't look like she slept very well either, what with the heavy bags under her eyes. And yet, she looked prettier. He reached out, holding her elbow and leaning toward her more than what was causal. She didn't necessarily welcome it - in fact, she didn't notice it at all, and gripped his shirt in a pleading way.
"I need to stay and distract the queen," she said, her breath heavy and her forehead wrinkled with worry. "Merida ran away. You've got to find her!"
Right, we're on a mission. I should focus.
"Don't worry, I'll get her." Terra nodded as he kept his voice serious.
Aqua's sigh was shaky and she breathed it out, meditating for a moment to keep herself calm. This mission suddenly went south very swiftly, and too close to the Mark of Mastery exam.
"Thanks, Terra." She squeezed his forearm in appreciation before she let go, and ran back up the stairs.
Terra sprinted outside, ducking into the thicket of the forest so that no one would see him summon his glider. He assumed that Merida would take her horse and ride down the main road leading away from the castle, which stretched a distance he did not know, through branches and large trunks of trees so tall that their canopies blocked the sun.
This instinct was right.
Merida, seemingly fallen off her horse, was distressed as she pat her steed. Her fiery curly hair swayed freely, and her dress was ripped. But more important than these details was the fact that her beloved bow wasn't with her. She turned to face him as he approached her, and she placed her foot on the stirrup as though she was trying to run away from him.
"You won't be taking me back there," she said.
"Relax. I'm not here to force you to go anywhere." He held up his arms in surrender.
Her foot slowly found its way back to the ground. "Where is Aqua?" she demanded, her heavy accent adding a vowel to the name.
"She's with your mother." He cleared his throat. The queen was probably not the best subject of conversation to have right now. "You were amazing, by the way. I was very impressed with your skill with the bow and arrow."
Merida hugged herself, flashes of fury and despair passing through her face. "I was only trying to control my future. My mum doesn't understand. I didn't want to be forced to..." She held a gasp.
"If it's worth anything," he said, keeping his voice sweet and understanding, "you have a strong heart, and it knows what is best for you. You should rely on it."
She cocked her head, confused by his disposition. "My dad's right, you know. You're a real softie for a man."
It was aggravating, having to constantly deal with the assumptions over his character, and never living up to their stupid expectations. Especially when he considered that for a softie, he could easily flip her over his shoulder and carry her all the way home.
Pushing his annoyance to the back of his mind, he asked, "what are you going to do now, your Highness?"
"Well stay in the forest, o'course."
"Forever?" He tried to sound teasing. Playful. Less of a threat and more of a friend. It didn't cheer her up. "Why don't you join me, then? It helps me to take walks when I'm upset about something. The mountains are healing that way."
Merida did join him. She led her horse as he walked by her side. They talked about her wishes for the future. She was barely older than Ventus, and she didn't have any defined expectations about her life yet. But she didn't want anything to be done on her behalf. She wished that her mother didn't try to control her every move, every single day, or decide what her future was going to entail. Terra sympathized. She was far too young to get married off to someone. Unfortunately for her, he had no say.
The tone of the conversation changed when she caught sight of something ahead of them. A dancing ball of blue light with the barest of facial features, humming as if beckoning them to come closer. It was, at least, a gentle spirit, playful but gentle. There wasn't a shred of threat that he could sense from it.
"A wisp," Merida said excitedly as she hurried to get closer.
"A what?"
"A will o' the wisp! Faeries. I've seen them before and I've been waiting for them to come back. They lead you to your destiny." For once, Merida actually smiled.
Terra approached the wisp and held out his hand. The light emanating from it was warm, and for a second, it bobbed in place and floated back toward his palm. Like it appreciated the attention. It then hovered away, only to stop as though it was waiting for them to follow. Terra wasn't one to believe that destiny was written out for any one person. It took work and dedication, with each person aiming to actively make something out of their lives. But this mission wasn't about him.
Fates changing for her, was what the Master had said when he sent them off to this mission.
"We should follow it," Merida said, already paces ahead of him.
Some part of him hesitated still, as if he knew it was going to get complicated. But if her fate should change, then who was he to judge the rules of this world? "We should."
The wisp led to them to a solitary cottage, owned by a witch who was apparently - strangely - obsessed with bears. The entire house was adorned with probably a hundred wood carvings of them, some comical, some cute, some whimsical. Terra on some level wasn't certain if asking for a witch's advice was the best solution for a political struggle, having read plenty of books about the deception and cost of magic. Some witches had good intentions, but many acted high on their power to abuse. The witch agreed to concoct something for Merida to help with her situation - with enough badgering and bribery.
But Terra held out his hand to stop Merida from accepting a piece of cake that was laced with a brew from the witch.
"We are here to see how fate is going to change for you, not to poison the queen," he said, mostly to Merida.
"Then why would the wisp bring us here?"
Considering he didn't have such a close relationship with the princess, it seemed that it would be difficult to have her trust his advice. He also didn't have much leverage against the wisp, which is such an omniscient being that was basically regarded like a god, however benevolent it seemed.
"I'm not sure, your Highness, but this isn't even a diplomatic solution."
"I suppose then you need your mother to tell you what to do with your life. Tell you which opportunities to take and which to refuse? Wash your bum for you?" She huffed, flabbergasted that he didn't understand the what a gift she was given. "For a man, you've less spine than a squirrel."
It was clear that she didn't respect his opinion, and that was mainly because he did nothing to earn it from her. With his concerns brushed aside, she took the cake, now itching to return to the castle. And desperate enough to ignore his ongoing pleas to reason with her, unsure of what the witch's potion was going to do.
The castle wasn't exactly a comfortable place to be. The king managed the fury of the lords with spectacular failure in an attempt to stall time - even trying his tired and overused story of how he lost his leg during a fight with the most ferocious bear that existed in this world. Mor'du, a monstrous creature that the people here feared, and the king boasted about his survival when confronting him. It was a story that Terra already heard at least five times during the incredibly short time he spent here.
He therefore avoided the throne room altogether. Merida left him behind, eager to find her mother and try the spell (and completely ignoring the commotion, in which the lords demanded her presence so she would pick a suitor). He crept up the secret passage, sneaking into the maid's ward so that he could speak to Aqua. To warn her about the witch and the spell. To talk to her about the night before. He passed by a large bow that hung decoratively on the wall when he got to the top floor. He inspected it, trying to gauge if the princess was tall enough to wield it. He decided she was capable, and took it down so that he could give it to her as a gift of confidence.
But while sneaking around, he heard crashes and a scream.
He entered the queen's room. Aqua was there, using herself as a barrier to protect a hysterical Merida from a bear in front of them, which was destroying some of the tapestries and the furniture around them.
Aqua turned to him when he entered, a confounded expression on her face as she hugged the princess.
"What did you do?" she asked, the sound of disbelief and anger cutting slices into him.
The witch's cottage was empty. Left behind was a note addressed to Merida, saying how they only had tonight and a day to turn the queen back into a human, or she'd be cursed to wander as a bear for the rest of her life. Her only counsel: to mend what was broken.
Aqua, understandably, was livid. A wreck, really. The Master will probably not allow us to take the exam after this, she had said to Terra. Her tone was condescending. Worried. Angry. Terra knew she was probably feeling a mix of strong emotions, since he felt the same. But he kept his mouth shut. Better for them to stand together than split apart. They still had a day, so there was a chance to remedy this, even if Aqua could not make herself believe it right now.
Or perhaps he was too much in denial over what happened to accept that they were screwed.
The rain beat hard on them, and Terra used logs and twigs to build two small huts for them to take shelter in while Aqua tried to comfort Merida, who was still arguing with the bear, her mother, over the situation. The queen, still expressing human emotions even though she couldn't talk, was also furious. Her rage was directed toward Merida, who outright refused to accept any responsibility over what she did. Terra did his best to ignore them. Aqua must still blame him for everything, and he didn't want to invite any more of her anger.
She had the unenviable job of explaining to the princess and the queen about the magic that they wield, about their powers of protection, about them coming here as guides and warriors. And she was very thorough about it, with everything except mentioning the word "Keyblade." But it disappointed them both to learn that nothing can be done about the queen's condition without following the witch's instructions.
None of their conversations ended with any grace, with the princess and the queen refusing to acknowledge each other as they tried to sleep in their hut.
The rain was cold, and the muddy ground was no comfort either. Terra finished the second shanty, and Aqua quickly sat down next to him to avoid the poor weather, her hands to her head. He wasn't sure if she still had a headache or if she was still processing the disaster that had become their final mission before the most important exam of their lives.
"Aqua," he said to break the silence, "I... Merida wouldn't listen to me."
"And now the queen is a bear." As if he didn't know this. Aqua held her gaze to the ground, as though looking at him would set her off in a rage. "And her husband is an obsessed, bear-hating idiot who'll hunt her down."
"Listen, I know it sounds crazy, but we came across these faeries that the people in this world believed were omens that changed fates. Just like the Master said may happen."
"So you thought it was a good idea to listen to a witch? This isn't one of your bedtime stories."
"I actually didn't want Merida to take the pie." Terra stopped himself from raising his voice. This wasn't how he wanted things to go, at all. He cleared his throat. "We still have time to fix this. We have one more full day, right? We won't miss the exam if that's what you're worried about." He softened his voice further, appealing to her worries. They could hang their heads in shame for failing the mission, and possibly have the exam cancelled on them, but they wouldn't miss the date.
Aqua sighed sharply and held her hands together. "What if we can't?"
"Thinking that way will do us no good." He smiled. She usually was the one to give him the pep talk, but right now she needed to hear her own words.
She sighed slowly as she closed her eyes. "You're right, I'm sorry." she said, finally softening her voice. "I didn't know what else to do when she was complaining about her situation. I told her that no matter what she decided to do, she was going to have to face consequences, and she had the bravery to survive them. It was something the Master would say, so what went wrong?"
"It went like it was supposed to, and now she has to learn to what it all means for her." It didn't comfort her. "You said the right thing. You do well with counseling others, you know."
These words didn't help her either. Aqua wrapped her arms around herself, feebly adjusting to get comfortable among the rocks around her. He loosened the fur on his hip and handed it to her. A peace offering.
"I'm not cold," he said before she could object.
She reluctantly accepted it, but it wasn't enough to cover her entirely. He could wrap his arms around her and keep her warm, and he ached to have her that close. But first he'd have to say something. And yet, what if she regretted what happened last night? Should he ask? Should he stay quiet?
He somehow convinced himself that having certainty was better than none. It was going to be an uncomfortable night anyway, and knowing he could give her the warmth and comfort she needed was agonizing when he couldn't act on it.
"Aqua, I wanted to talk to you about last night," he started, making sure that his voice wasn't shaky.
"What is there to talk about?" An odd question, considering what happened.
He laughed nervously, although most of it was shock. "You... you don't remember what happened?"
She scoffed. "Just that there was an obnoxious guy who wouldn't leave me alone. Why? What was so important about last night?"
A kiss. It felt like a rock forcing a growth in the pit of his chest, the rain patter louder than his breath. He willed himself to stay calm.
"Nothing," he said, though he didn't know if he sounded convincing and was too weak to check himself. That rock sunk to the center of his stomach. "I just wanted to lighten the mood, that's all."
"Well, if it doesn't help our situation, then right now is not the best time," she said in a low voice. "I'd appreciate it if we could take this seriously." She was tired. Anxious. Desperate for a miracle. "We should catch as much rest as possible."
Moving away from her, Terra tried to get comfortable on his own, his arms crossed as he rubbed his own biceps, though he couldn't stay dry. The two friends were as far away from each other as that small hut allowed them to be, their ankles crossing in front of each other. They were still close, and yet he felt completely alone.
The morning left Aqua in a better mood, but it was only so much. Sleeping on the muddy ground left them both groggy, sore, and weary of the stress. So while she wasn't in a constant state of agitation anymore, it didn't mean that she handled their situation with grace and resilience.
In other words, Aqua relied on her habit of disagreeing with Terra on most of his suggestions when brainstorming ideas for helping their cursed queen.
He knew it wasn't about her not trusting him. If anything, she needed him to be there with her. It was more about the fact that when Aqua became anxious or nervous, she liked to be in control, and it was easier to let her have it.
Aqua, though, handled Merida much better than he ever could. The princess took care of most of the hunting, while her mother, who had no idea how to be a proper bear, watched with admiration over how well her daughter can take care of herself. And Merida took these chances to brag about her skills, just so her mother can understand that she wasn't like any other princess and shouldn't be expected to be behave as such.
Which meant that she still didn't take responsibility over the whole ordeal. And they still bickered. A lot.
It was amazing how much patience Aqua offered the princess, who was sympathetic enough, but even then she was getting tested. Since she had the princess' respect, it only took one stern word and Merida listened intently.
Terra hoped that if he had to escort any other princess in the future, it would go smoother.
The plan for now was...well they didn't have much of one. Going back to the castle was completely out of the question, since everyone there was afraid of bears and the king would command a hunt. The only idea Aqua liked was to find some ancient runes to see if any of them had clues about witchcraft, a history of bears in this world, or most importantly, information about wisps.
And like fate, wisps appeared down a dirt road they were traversing, as if to respond to her curiosity. She wondered out loud if they were in league with the witch who created such a mess.
But with Merida's insistence, the queen's desperation to return to normal and Terra's decision to agree with Merida, Aqua had no choice but to blindly follow.
The trek was mostly uphill, with several wisps lining up like a trail that led them up slopes. The view of the valleys and the castle in the horizon was beautiful, and for a moment, Terra was able to let his mind wander. Leaving his immediate fate at the hands of the wisps meant that he was free to think about other things. Like Aqua. The Mark of Mastery exam. Wishing things were back to normal. But most importantly of all, seeing this vast scenery was a reminder of how small he really was, despite the amount of power that he wielded. There were so many other worlds out there, too, and his problems didn't size up.
It was a good reminder, and he was so lost in thought that he completely missed out on the conversations the others were having. He snapped back into reality when they finally arrived at their destination.
Old ruins. Ancient, really. The remains of a castle that had been completely blown in half by war and years of erosion from the rain. He didn't really realize just how far they had walked until Merida mentioned that in all her years, she had never seen this place. Scarier still was that her mother nodded in agreement. The wisps were no longer around, so it was all up to their free will now.
What was left of the castle was a basement, which was littered with rubble.
"Well if they brought us here, we might as well investigate," Merida started, climbing down into the depths.
Aqua sighed heavily, not really liking the idea all that much but this was better than nothing. "I'll go. Terra, stay with the queen."
He was left babysitting the queen, who moaned and growled with worry over her daughter exploring such depths. They lowered deep enough that he couldn't hear either of their words when spoken, but if he didn't know any better, he'd say they were chattering over a conspiracy based on what they found down there.
The queen then sniffed profoundly. Little whelps escaped her nozzle, until she roared in fear. He didn't like the sound of it.
"Aqua!"
He saw her blue hair whip around, seeing him from below, and then notice something behind her. Merida screamed. A roar bellowed from the darkness.
A horrifically large black bear with patches of fur missing and broken spears and arrows lodged onto its back, towered over the two women with a snarl so deep it sounded like a curse. This had to be it: the monster bear from the king's stories, Mor'du.
The princess was quick enough to attack him with her new bow, but that was of little use when it didn't even pierce his skin.
Aqua yelped a warning at her, to get back. She summoned her Keyblade, and produced a barrier to reject a swipe from Mor'du. Merida scrambled back up the castle walls, Terra pulling her to safety.
Mor'du circled around Aqua, studying her movements as she flipped around him, aiming to take strikes at her but failing each time as she reflected them with her magic. There was something about the movements - far too intelligent for a typical animal.
He was about to yell Aqua's name again until he saw that she, too, tried to get back up. She threw pot shots aimed at the floor in front of Mor'du, as opposed to firing them directly at him, just to keep him back.
Her hand in Terra's, he pulled her up, holding her by the waist as though he had nearly lost her until their faces were centimeters apart. She breathed out her adrenaline, and whipped her head back when she heard the bear easily following them.
Terra summoned his Keyblade as well. She conjured a barrier to push the bear back into the castle, and ordered the royal family to get away.
"Keep them safe," she said to Terra.
"What about you?"
She shot him a look, and she didn't need words to express what she was thinking. She was perfectly capable of taking care of herself.
"That's not what I meant," he said in reply. "I can fight with you."
"We are not attacking an animal."
"Aqua, I don't think that's a normal bear." He gritted his teeth.
Terra didn't want to be right about that. Mor'du crept from out of the castle ruins and showed off exactly how giant he was when he stood on his hind legs. One of his eyes was scarred shut. The spears sticking out from his back have blackened from so much exposure to the elements. Which was crazy considering that he probably shouldn't be alive now since bears didn't live that long.
It must have been Merida's screaming that forced Aqua to realize that this thing was otherworldly. The queen lunged herself at Mor'du, trying to attack like a bear would - but she was at least half his size.
Aqua cursed to herself, and faced Terra with intent in her eyes. "I need you. Please protect them for me."
He hesitated. "Be safe."
Merida had thought to make a run for it, crying out to her mother to get away. They waited for Terra, as he used his Earthsaker to strike the ground, creating wide trenches as a block to stall anyone from pursuing them. With the princess on her mother's back, the queen waited for him to be finished before bending her front legs as an invitation for to him to ride her as well.
The last thing he saw of the battlefield as she galloped away was Aqua dancing around Mor'du, using her Keyblade to create a cage around him, sealing it with chains that were normally used to contain darkness.
Merida gripped her mother's fur but she bucked wildly from the unsteadiness of riding a bear's shoulder. Terra leaned over her to keep her secure, with a mount of fur gripped in his own fingers. The queen ran and ran, until they escaped the mountain they were on, and left the cold and the rain behind.
In a valley, they were able to finally rest. They all agreed to wait for Aqua, and Merida even claimed that the best idea for now was to head back to her castle - they finally have the answer in returning her mother back to normal. But Aqua didn't come. An hour passed by, and when they only have until the sunrise to fix the queen, these minutes were precious.
This wasn't normal. She should have been here by now. An image of her alone, injured, and bleeding out waiting for help passed through his mind.
Terra announced that he was going to go back. He said that Merida was smart, resourceful, and courageous enough to handle this from here on out. The princess was reluctant at first but was understanding - not that it was necessary, since they finally heard the buzz of a glider approaching them, with Aqua mounting it. She had a scratch on her arm that she wrapped with a torn hem of her skirt, but otherwise she seemed perfectly fine.
"Is everyone alright?" she asked casually when stepping off. She took a glance over at Terra to see if he was fine, then headed straight for the other two to look for injuries.
Ironically enough, he was probably the one most in pain. He had spent all this time worrying about her so much, did she even spare any thinking about him?
He pushed the thought off of his mind. It wasn't that he was unimportant to her - she trusted him. She assumed he could take care of himself and that he had the power to look after the princess and the queen. Of course she cared about him.
"Are you okay?" he heard her ask him. They were already paces ahead of him and she had turned around to look back, where he was simply standing there by himself. When he didn't answer right away, she briskly closed the gap in between them, holding her hand out to gently hold his forearm. "Where are you hurt?"
Inside his chest, where his heart was pounding so hard it could burst. And it could be remedied, if he made her heart jump like this, too. But if he didn't, then maybe there was no cure for it.
"I'm not hurt." He tried to sound casual, but she knew him too much to believe him. "Really, I'm perfectly alright. Just worried."
She nodded. "I get it, but you don't have to be. We have a solid plan now, and we can fix all of this. You okay to move?"
"Yeah," he breathed.
"Good." She smiled. "We'll both be fine."
She meant for the Mark of Mastery. But he knew he wasn't going to be.
They were able to fix it, all within the nick of time. By the sunrise, the queen was human again, her rift between herself and Merida mended. What it took wasn't a trick or chant, but a compromise - simple enough to say in words, but a terrible mountain to climb when applied to reality. The queen finally admired her daughter for who she was, and Merida owned up to some of the responsibilities that she was burdened with.
Which resulted in the decision not to marry her off to anyone without her own, personal approval.
Not to mention, Mor'du was finally pronounced dead after years of tormenting the people here.
Terra should be feeling accomplished as well, but he couldn't. Seeing the others get what they wanted - including Aqua, who needed to relax after too many days of worrying about this mission - left him in a state of dissatisfaction. He was the only one with an empty bowl. Aqua smiled to him, whispering "we did it" as she wrapped her arm around his, resting her head on his shoulder. He wanted to touch her back, but restrained himself.
They had been awake the entire night, rushing to get the queen back and fighting off the bear that even the king invited them for a celebratory breakfast. But the both of them chose to politely decline the invitation, wishing only for sleep. The irony of the two of them choosing this route meant that Terra had to listen to lewd comments from the others about their bond, even when he went to his bunk alone. But the exhaustion was so demanding that sleep came easy.
It was early afternoon when he finally awoke and bathed himself. He wanted to forget the smell of sheep as soon as possible, so he went ahead to announce to the royal family that he was leaving - without letting her know.
But of course, she would find out, and promptly announced her departure as well. He packed a sack with gifts of appreciation for his service in the castle's secret passage. It was always customary that they bring Ventus a gift from every world they visit, and this time was no exception. He heard her footsteps approaching. They were now both dressed in their uniforms, looking like proper Keyblade wielders.
She was now fresh and awake, her eyes sparkling like usual, and he felt a tiny sense of resentment at seeing how much more beautiful she looked.
"So..." She sat on a crate, opening a jovial conversation with him as if everything was back to normal. It really wasn't. "Mor'du used to be human. He was cursed when he wanted all the power in the world. If only the Master had known about him before."
She stopped a snicker. He knew what she was getting at, considering that he lost count how many lectures he had to endure from the Master about his own pursuit of strength.
"He wouldn't let me forget. Probably tell me that if I didn't watch myself, I'd turn into a dark monster that would haunt all of the worlds, yatta yatta yatta." He forced himself to joke back, and didn't even think that he sounded convincing. "Now he'll write about it in a book and use it to warn all of his future deviant students like me."
Her smile fell. She never liked hearing him talk lowly about himself. "I wanted to apologize, Terra."
"Come again?" A lump formed so high on his throat that he nearly choked on it. He prayed that she wasn't going to admit that she remembered the kiss and regretted it.
"I'm sorry I blamed you for the queen turning into a bear. I knew it wasn't your fault. I'm just... too good with sticking my foot in my mouth, I guess." She gave a small smile.
That was a relief, at least. He nearly retorted with, that's not all you put on your mouth but he bit his tongue.
"You don't have to apologize to me. I've lived with you long enough that I've seen worse. I know how you get." He meant it to sound light-hearted, but didn't have the energy to really convey that.
And since she read him so well, she was sure to hear the tiniest bit of bitterness in his voice. She said nothing. It was likely that she thought he didn't accept her apology.
"Let's just go home," he said, flipping the sack over his shoulder. Without any mission to talk about, he felt bare around her, and needed a distraction.
It was then that Merida and her family bid farewell to the dark-skinned and blue-haired outsiders that graced them with a miracle, and he (finally) got to bask in the vastness of the ocean in between worlds, flying home. He found himself speeding there, unintentionally leaving Aqua lagging behind, even though neither of them were trying to race each other. When she kept up, he went faster.
The Land of Departure was a welcome sight, the splendor of the academy's architecture dangerously hovering above the crevices of the mountains, held together by large chains. Edgy, but comforting. He landed and didn't bother to wait for her to arrive, either. He kept a fast pace as he entered the castle. Most people would find it very lavish - it certainly was in comparison to the medieval style of the place Merida would call home. But seeing it helped him to relax his shoulders and take a deep breath. He passed through the lower halls of the first floor, until he found himself in the closest lounge to the entrance.
Ventus arrived there, too, panting as if he'd been running to greet them. "You're finally back!" His face was a sight for sore eyes.
Terra dropped the sack at a table and pulled out the contents. "A gift for you."
"A skirt?" Ventus looked through the green plaid fabric, and immediately tried it on over his pants. He waved his hips back and forth so it swished around.
"It's called a kilt." He was about to say that it was supposed to be worn with nothing underneath, but when he saw that Ventus brought it high enough to be worn right under the armpits, he decided he'll surprise him about it later.
The soft clack of footsteps meant that Aqua arrived to the room. She giggled. "It looks good on you, Ven."
At this point, Ven shuffled his arms inside so that it hung off his shoulders. "It's nice." He was always appreciative of everything they gave him, even when he didn't understand.
After hugging Ventus, she took her place next to Terra. But he kept himself from looking at her too much. "What should we tell the Master?" she asked.
"Everything," he said in a way to make it sound like it was an obvious answer. He crossed his arms.
"Okay." She rolled her lips inward, sighing. "I just wanted to check in and see what you thought."
"Well... that's what I think."
She nodded, and patted Ventus on the shoulder. "Okay. I'll see you upstairs then."
With that she left.
"Did you guys fight?" Ventus asked, and it was like dropping a porcelain plate in the middle of the quietest dinner party that existed.
"No," Terra said too quickly. "No. It was just a close call."
And to end the conversation before too many questions were asked, he ruffled through Ventus' hair before heading to the second floor of the entrance hall. The stained glass window here was the most impressive, painting part of the floor in brilliant colors. Eraqus waited by the thrones there, and Terra bowed when he stood next to Aqua. They spoke of the mission, both of their successes and of their failures, and how they worked to fix them. The Master found their story amusing, nodding in approval of their work and expressed how proud he was of them both. For all of Aqua's anxiety over it, it proved to be mostly useless considering how well it was received.
But at least they were home, and were able to resume their normal routines. Studying, sparring, spending leisure time alone and together. Though Terra liked some of that better than others. He just couldn't stop thinking about what happened, and found that the best remedy was tossing jokes back and forth with Ventus. If Aqua was involved, he kept more to himself, making sure that he responded minimally to her so that she didn't notice how distressed he was. It was like wearing a mask, where he had to pretend to be a mimic of himself so that she couldn't see what he was really feeling.
It was definitely harder to do when he was alone with her, which he avoided as much as he could. He'd pull out a book to read so that he wouldn't be disturbed. He'd make an excuse to leave the room.
But this evening, in the studio room where they stood barefoot over padded floors, they were sparring. And he didn't have anything to take his eyes off of her. To spar this much when the exam was barely a week away reminded him that he still couldn't catch up to her.
So now he was alone in experiencing that kiss, and he would probably be left behind in the exam, too.
And this made him angry. Seeing her dance and twirl around him, her form perfect as usual and her hair flowing around her face, her waist accentuated by her corset, her legs bare which showed off the silkiness of her skin, thrusting her Keyblade forward whenever he left himself open-
Not remembering anything gave her such an advantage.
It wasn't fair that he was the only one suffering.
She swerved and there was an opening. He took it, swinging his Keyblade so hard so that he hoped it would throw his rage off of him.
"Terra." It came out as a warning, like a plea to stop. She was slumped on the ground, her legs bent close to her as she leaned on her hands. She gripped on her arm, where he saw a trickle of blood from where he just hit her.
It was normal in this line of work to have accidents. They hit each other all the time when sparring, it was still a fight after all. They grew resilient to pain, but it was protocol to let each other know when too much damage was being done. And he didn't mean to hit her this hard or throw her back this much.
"I'm so sorry." He dismissed his Keyblade and crouched to her, inspecting the blow. He touched the area around the open wound, where it began to bruise red and purple. She winched.
"You're very distracted," she said.
"I know, you're right." He stopped for a moment. "Wait a minute, that means you are, too. You wouldn't have allowed such an easy hit."
"Well, yeah, but..."
He hovered his hand over her arm, casting a Cure, begging that the soft aura of green light would take it all away. He wasn't the best at magic, but he knew basic things and this didn't look too bad.
It stopped bleeding, but nothing faded. It wasn't that terrible a lesion, it should have been gone by now.
"It's a war wound like all the others," she said when she saw his face, shrugging. "I'll wear it with pride."
He didn't bother to hide how resentful he sounded. "What does that say about me then?" That he had the power to harm her, but not take care of her.
He stood up and walked away from her, knowing that she was going to follow him.
"I can heal it on my own, it will go away like nothing happened," she said, as if that was the most of his worries.
"But that's exactly the point." He was getting angrier. "I should be able to at least cast a stupid healing spell."
"The Master isn't testing your proficiency of spells."
"I should still be competent enough to be able to-" He whipped around when he said this, looking into her blue eyes, which were worried.
"This is why I was so distracted," she said. "You've been on edge ever since the mission, and you've been pushing me away. What's wrong?"
He tried to steady his breathing but did a poor job of it. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I... have a lot on my mind."
"I'm sure, the anticipation must be insane when it's so close." That was only partly true, and it was so terrifying to correct her. And damn it, she was stunning when she smiled at him. "Do you want to talk about it? We can go to our spot. You're free to speak your mind there."
You kissed me and I really liked it. And I want to do it again.
He didn't have the courage to say it. Here he had his fate in his hands, and he could actually do something to make his life better. Or maybe it would only darken his future, if she were to reject him. He wished he could read her mind so he could cup her face and kiss her without having to say anything. Words right now just didn't make sense, and if they went to the secret spot in the woods they shared together, then he'd be obligated to speak the truth.
"I need time, Aqua."
"Okay." Her gaze fell to the floor. She was disappointed, but if she was frustrated she hid it spectacularly well. The sun had completely set by now, and she held her arm again. "I understand. Good night, Terra. I hope you feel better tomorrow."
He probably wasn't going to feel better tomorrow. How could he, when sleep just wouldn't come?
An hour until midnight.
He rummaged in bed, trying to find a comfortable position, but every muscle was tense. He tried reading, but he found himself going over the same lines again and again without progressing. The moon shining through his window was too bright so he closed his curtains and put his pillows over his face. Maybe if it was dark enough, he'd be lulled to sleep.
Midnight.
His mind was racing. He imagined creeping into her room, right now, and confessing how he felt. She'd be embarrassed but delighted. They would share another kiss, and maybe two more, and she could sleep in his bed tonight. And they'd continue to sneak into each other's rooms in the dead of the night where no one else would have to know. They could practice what to do with their hands and their bodies.
Or she could shut it all down and tell him that they were never to speak about it again.
An hour past midnight. Why did he have to obsess over things?
He sat up and ripped the bed sheets off of him. Maybe a walk would help him calm down.
The quietness of the castle was peaceful and still, and being the only one awake at the time made him feel like he didn't have a life to solve in this moment. And he hoped this feeling would last long.
The stars shone brightly, where the breeze caressed his face. He stared upward as he sat on the stairs leading to the entrance of the castle, noting areas where the sky was darker than the rest. He was so small, his problems so tiny and so nonexistent to the millions of people out there who maybe had it worse. If they could survive their dilemmas, then maybe he could, too.
A squirrel casually strolled on the terrace in front of him, stopping every now and then to gauge its safety in its surroundings. In the dead of night no less, where predators were probably watching it.
This squirrel had more spine than him.
"Some brave warrior I am," he scoffed, running his fingers through his hair.
The squirrel rubbed its face and scurried over, hiding itself behind a bush. Terra was lone again, but he soon realized he really wasn't. He did a double take at the sight ahead of him. There, right before the forest that led to several trails, the training area, and their favorite place to star gaze, glided a soft gold light that fluttered, traveling around like it didn't notice him at all.
He blinked and rubbed his eyes. He had never seen something like this in the Land of Departure, and couldn't fathom what it was. It felt very much like meeting a will o' the wisp for the first time, knowing there were forces outside of his existence who worked their own magic. Was this the same thing?
Unlike a wisp, this entity wasn't friendly, but it wasn't stand-offish either. It was just there, like it was lost.
He approached it, only to find that there were others near it, spreading over the fields that he knew so well, he could practically walk them blind. He pinched himself to make sure he was awake. They were still there.
They started to flutter away, as if they were going to enjoy their time whether he was gaping at them or not. And he could admire them from afar, or follow them and change his fate.
It was probably much healthier for him to stop tormenting himself. So he went after them, wondering if providence was waiting for him wherever they were going to take him.
To be continued...