Chapter 64: Reunion at Disney Castle
Aqua leaped high into the air. Her fingers wrapped tightly around Rainfell, so tightly her knuckles had begun to turn white. The Unversed beneath her had given her a hard chase across this world, but now there was nowhere for it to run. At the apex of her jump Aqua leaned forward and held her Keyblade out before her. With a cry she dived downward, delivering a long, clean strike along the side of the robotic Unversed.
A younger voice cried out from above as Aqua flew toward the glass floor. Aqua glanced over her shoulder just in time to see Terra and Ven jump up, Keyblades gripped with both hands and held above their heads. They came down on the Unversed, momentarily stunned from Aqua's attack, and struck at it together with green and orange streaks crisscrossing with each other.
As soon as her feet made contact with the glass floor, Aqua spun around and prepared to battle once again. At the other end of the reactor, Terra and Ven made landfall just as gracefully. But the Unversed wasn't so graceful; it burst into dark flames and fell to the ground with a loud thunk, its pieces breaking off and clattering to its sides before the entirety of the creature was consumed by the purple and black embers.
Aqua let out a sigh of relief and dismissed her Keyblade. She smiled at her two companions as their own weapons vanished as well, then began to jog over to Ven when she noticed Terra doing the same.
"Got 'im," Terra declared with excitement. He was positively beaming; no doubt he was glad to see Ven was safe, after learning he ran off back at the Castle of Dreams.
Aqua caught up to the two boys. "We make a good team."
Ven, who was still paused to catch his breath, nodded back at her and grinned. "Sure do."
If Terra looked happy, Ven looked positively ecstatic. He kept looking between Aqua and Terra as if he was in a dream and didn't want it to end. Aqua knew he had run off to find Terra, so she supposed that made sense. She had to hide the nervous tick threatening to turn her smile upside down; she hated to crush Ven's hopes, but he had to go home. But as Aqua opened her mouth, Ven's eyes lit up like he remembered something.
"Oh yeah! I got you these tickets." He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a stack of small cards, colored in vibrant colors with the words 'Disney Town Passport' written in yellow on the bottom.
"For what?" Terra asked.
"Lifetime passes to Disney Town," Ven explained as he handed Terra and Aqua theirs. Aqua had never heard of it. A theme park, maybe? "He said to—" Ven frowned and looked down at his own pass. "He said to take two grown-ups."
Aqua and Terra shared a look. "You mean us?" The two of them laughed, but it wasn't at Ven, really. More at his unnecessary concerns. They both knew he hated being the youngest of their group. Even if he didn't say it, it clearly bothered him to be, in his eyes, lesser. Aqua couldn't hide her frown this time as she looked her friend in the eye. "Listen to me, Ven… We need to get you home." He may not have been 'lesser', but he was still inexperienced. Inter-world travel wasn't something he was ready for yet.
For an instant his face fell, and Aqua's heart fell with it. But Ven recovered quickly. "It's okay, Aqua. Trust me, that guy in the mask is history. He'll never bad-mouth Terra again." Aqua's brow furrowed. What guy in a mask? She hadn't heard anything about that.
But Terra seemed to know what Ven was talking about. Suddenly, with a gasp, he gripped Ven's shoulder tightly and stared the younger boy down. "You saw the boy in the mask?"
"Uh…" Ven stammered, clearly hocked by Terra's reaction. Now Aqua was even more concerned. "Y-Yes?"
"Vanitas…" Terra muttered, looking away with a glare. Aqua turned her head to look at him, at his expression. She had never seen Terra look so angry before. Just who was this Vanitas person? "Ven." Terra pulled away from the younger boy. "You let Aqua take you home."
"No way. I wanna go with you guys."
"You can't. We have a dangerous task ahead of us. I don't want you to get hurt."
Aqua pursed her lips. "And what is this 'dangerous task', Terra?" Both boys turned to her, and Aqua stood firm. Terra had been sent out to find Master Xehanort and prove himself worthy of a second shot at the Mark of Mastery. But that anger that Aqua had seen from him… Maleficent's words came to her mind, and Aqua bowed her head. "It doesn't sound like what the Master told you to do."
"It might be a different route," Terra replied, "but I'm fighting the darkness."
Aqua took in a deep breath. "I'm not so sure," she admitted with a heavy heart. "I've been to the same worlds as you, and I've seen what you've done." She hadn't wanted to believe what Maleficent said about Aurora, but that rage just now... Aqua's insides felt like they were twisting up out of worry for him. "You shouldn't put yourself so close to the darkness."
Beside her, Ven stomped his foot. "Listen to yourself, Aqua. Terra would never—"
"You mean you've been spying on me?" It took everything she had not to wince at Terra's ice cold tone. His words hurt her more than any weapon ever could, but she dared not show it. Not right now. "Is that what he said to do? The Master's orders?"
"He was only…" Aqua trailed off and turned away. She didn't look him in the eyes, because she couldn't refute that. She basically was spying on him, following him wherever he went and watching the aftermath of his actions.
"Aqua…" Ven's head was low. The hurt in his voice only made her feel worse.
"I get it," Terra said softly.
As he turned around and walked away, Aqua kept her eyes at her feet. Her shoulders slumped while Ven moved to chase after Terra. "Terra—"
"Just stay put!" Terra shouted. Ven froze mid-step, and Aqua looked up to see his body shaking. He was on the verge of tears. Terra still had his back to the pair. "I'm on my own now, all right?"
He started to walk away again, and Aqua clenched her fists. No, she couldn't let this happen. The three of them were supposed to be friends! They had an unbreakable connection, this wasn't supposed to happen. "Terra, please! Listen! The Master has no reason to distrust you, really! He was just worried."
But Terra kept walking.
Aqua's hands fell to her sides and hung there, limp. She once more found herself head low, eyes on the ground. Ven's footsteps told her he was shuffling, though she didn't look up at him. Even if she had, she would have just averted her gaze once more when Ven spoke.
"You're awful, Aqua."
Until just then, she hadn't thought that anything could hurt more than Terra leaving.
x-x-x
The light was blinding. In fact, maybe she was already blind, because Aqua couldn't see a thing. Her vision was almost completely filled by a field of white, accented by shining, shimmering, golden rays that threatened to burn her eyes out. There was no concept of 'central' or 'outer' vision for her right now, simply a painful, blank canvas that forced her eyes back shut. But even that did little to hold it back, as colors danced beneath her eyelids and she could still feel the burning sensation beyond them.
But, eventually, Aqua began to see again. The light began to fade, going from an endless field to simple streams of sunlight filtering down through the cracks in the curtains of a window. Blinking as her eyes finished adjusting, Aqua watched tiny specs of dust floating through the streams. Why wasn't it dark? Why was light here? Oh—right. She remembered now. The Door to Light…
The Door's warm embrace had taken them like a mother taking her lost child by the hand. Their path through the light led Aqua and her new companions to a world that none of them could identify, but to her it didn't matter. After crashing down into a cool, crystal-clear lake, Aqua had stayed in the water, floating completely still on the surface and simply basking in the sunlight. While the others made had made their way out onto dry land, she had simply continued to lie in the water with her arms stretched out.
It had almost been overwhelming, but not in a bad way. But all the sights, the sounds, the smells—after so long in darkness, Aqua just took it all in while floating there. She had watched as birds and butterflies flew up above, the wind on their wings. That same soft, warm wind rustled her hair and flowed through the leaves. The chirping birds, buzzing bees, and chittering squirrels Aqua had been quite sure were barely noticeable to her new friends, but for her they were a welcome deafening song.
But of course, Aqua had known she couldn't stay there forever. Eventually she did climb ashore and, when the others had determined this world was not the one they wanted to journey to, Aqua's hand had been subconsciously drawn to her shoulder. But of course, she couldn't call on her armor or Keyblade Glider when they were in Radiant Garden—er, Hollow Bastion. But Donald had assured her that was not a problem and radioed someone. An hour or so later, a space ship of all things had arrived to take them away.
Their arrival on this world had already become a blur, it went by in such a rush. Aqua had been beset on all sides by caretakers and worried faces, so many people asking if she was alright, what she needed, and what they could do to help. But one request stood up above them all: 'would you like to see your room?' She…couldn't remember the last time she had slept. As soon as Aqua saw the bed in the guest room, she had almost broken down into tears once again. The rest of the room's luxuries may as well have been nonexistent. Once she had gotten ready to sleep, before her head had even hit the pillow she was out cold.
Now awake after spending hours on it, Aqua could confidently say that the bed was the softest, most comfortable thing that she had ever felt. She wanted to just lay there forever, with her arms and legs stretched out as she sank into the feathery heaven. But she couldn't. Forcing herself to give up the comfy—she could always return later—Aqua pushed herself up to a sitting position. With her legs still under the sheets and her hands in her lap, Aqua looked around the room where she had spent the night, and probably most of the morning as well.
For something that Aqua couldn't imagine got used often, it sure was nice. The sheets and curtains were made of some of the most luxurious silk Aqua had ever seen, with practically no resistance as she rubbed the fabric between two fingers. A large lounge sofa on the other end of the room was covered in a bright red velvet, and a seemingly hand-knitted rug with extravagant diamond-pattern designs rested on the floor between the sofa and her. A chandelier hung from the room, and Aqua could feel the magic radiating from it; it wasn't a hand-lighted one. The entire room—the entire building—was positively inundated with magic, in fact. But that only made sense… Aqua climbed up onto her knees and parted the curtains, the leaned onto the window sill and stared at the bright green courtyard outside.
They were in Disney Castle, after all.
With perhaps a greater show of willpower than even staying alive in the Realm of Darkness had been, Aqua managed to push herself off the bed and on her feet. She straightened out the simple clothes she was wearing, clothes that Queen Minnie had conjured up while walking brooms took away her usual outfit for cleaning, and looked into a mirror on the nearby hair was a mess, but—she smiled as she brushed her bangs away with her fingers—at least she could afford to worry about that kind of thing again. Speaking of which…
Aqua opened a large white door that conjoined the guestroom to a bathroom. Before sleeping last night, she had spent so long in the shower here that she had lost track of time. But even despite that, Aqua couldn't help herself. These were luxuries that she hadn't had for so long, and with everything that was sure to come soon, it was only going to get worse moving forward. Removing her clothes and stepping inside, Aqua tilted her head back as the warm water washed over her. But though Aqua was still as a statue, her thoughts were anything but.
Ven…
Their encounter in Radiant Garden so long ago was still fresh in her mind, second only to when she had left him behind in the Land of Departure… No, not the Land of Departure. Castle Oblivion. That was all it was now; a castle on the edge of the light, completely empty except for one hurting little boy. But Aqua hurt more, knowing that he had been waiting for her and Terra to return for so long. And he wasn't even safe anymore, since his heart was in the middle of all of this regardless of his body's location.
Vanitas was back to his old tricks again, and so was that man Braig who she had fought at the Keyblade Graveyard. Sure Braig had gotten away, but she was so sure Vanitas had been utterly eradicated. Apparently not. Aqua wasn't sure how true it was that Xion would be able to create the χ-blade, even if she was housing Ven's heart, but whether it was or wasn't Vanitas certainly believed it. And because of that, Aqua would do everything in her power to keep Xion safe. Vanitas was a monster, she would perhaps rate him as even worse than Xehanort in terms of psychopathy, and what he had planned was surely more than just hurting Xion. He wanted to break her.
Xion was certainly an interesting person, though. She reminded Aqua so much of Ven, but not in the obvious ways that Sora did. No, she was more subtle about it. It was the way she pouted when she was thinking, or how she brushed her bangs out of her eyes the same way he used to when his hair was wet. Of course, Xion wasn't Ven. She seemed like a sweet, caring girl, but definitely introverted. Aqua could tell that something was bothering Xion, and the younger girl wasn't sharing it with anybody. She just hoped that whatever it was, it didn't come back to hurt them at a pivotal moment.
Sora though, he was so much more like Ven than Xion was. She would assume that was because he had apparently held Ven's hart for so long, but she remembered him being a lot like him when he was a little boy as well. He was always smiling, always laughing, and had even put his hands up behind his head more than once since they escaped the Realm of Darkness. The obvious friendship between him, Xion, Donald, and Goofy reminded Aqua a whole bunch of her, Ven, and Terra.
Terra…
Aqua leaned back against the wall of the shower and remained silent as the water pelted her. It was…difficult…coming to terms with what had happened to Terra. What she had done to Terra. None of this would have ever happened if she had just been stronger back then. Aqua's hands curled into fists at her sides. Xehanort would pay. She couldn't change the past, but she would see Xehanort stopped and Terra saved. Aqua was going to see Terra again, even if he was the last thing she ever saw.
But before they could even start on that, Ven came first.
x-x-x
An hour or so later found Aqua, fully dressed in her freshly cleaned clothes, wandering Disney Castle. She had been surprised, after finally leaving the shower and finding her clothes ready for her, to find that she hadn't actually woken up in the morning. Far from it; it was actually well into the afternoon, with the sun having long since passed the highest point in the sky. She passed by many a worker, primarily magical brooms though occasionally musketeer guards, who simply nodded in her presence. Queen Minnie must have told them they had company.
It was beyond odd adapting to having so many people around, though! Aqua walked the halls with her guard up and her body tensed, as she had for so long. Even though she knew she had no need to and kept trying to relax, it was something that had become second nature to her. Around every corner she would poke her head out first as if she was some thief sneaking through a vault, something she still couldn't shake after being on the lookout for Heartless. Not to mention the deafening noise! The sounds of chatter and footsteps were welcoming, but they almost hurt her ears to listen to. The lack of the Realm of Darkness's muffling effect was extremely noticeable.
One sound in particular caught Aqua's attention from the direction of the castle's central courtyard. Aqua ran her hand along the railing and looked out toward the area as she made her way to it. On the green grass, amidst the carefully-cut hedge sculptures, she spotted Sora kicking a soccer ball around along with a rooster, a cat, and a dog who looked an awful lot like a younger Goofy. The opposing team was composed of four identical parrots who were constantly stealing the ball from Sora's side. But where was Xion? Aqua had been informed of Sora and Xion's situation concerning staying near each other, so she had to be nearby, right?
While looking for the girl in the courtyard, Aqua's eyes hadn't been turned to the corridor. She very nearly tripped over Xion, who was sitting on the ground with her back against the railing. "Oh, sorry, Aqua." She stood up to help Aqua, but Aqua had recovered her balance.
"No, I'm sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going." Aqua glanced over to Sora, who was laughing as the rooster scored a goal and fired off a pair of pistols into the air. Then she focused back at Xion. "Why aren't you playing with them?"
"I just got something on my mind, is all," Xion responded shortly. She turned to gaze out at the game herself, and brought an ice cream bar that Aqua hadn't previously noticed to her lips.
"You like ice cream?"
"Huh?" Xion turned to Aqua once more, then down at the bar. "Uh, yeah. It's sea-salt, my favorite flavor. I used to have it every day, but it's kind of a rare treat now, I guess."
"I see. Mind if I join you?" Xion shrugged and nodded, and so Aqua sat down beside her with a smile. "So, almost every day, huh? And you didn't get sick of it?"
Xion took a bite out of the corner of the bar and shook her head. "Mm-mm. It was a thing I did with my friends Roxas and Axel every day after work, back when I was still in Organization XIII." She hesitated. "We…told you about that, right? About…Xemnas?"
Aqua nodded slowly and draped her arms over her shoulders. "Yeah, you did. And it sounds horrifying; I don't know if Xemnas or 'Ansem' was a worse fate for Terra. But let's not worry about that right now, huh?" She smiled and leaned her neck back, resting her head against the railing and listening to Sora's game. For a moment, when she closed her eyes, it was almost like she was back in the Land of Departure. "So you and your friends like ice cream, huh? For my group it was cake."
Xion stopped just before taking another bite, and lowered her arm while looking over to Aqua. "Cake?"
Aqua nodded. "Yup. Every night after training we would all get a slice of cake and eat it on a cliff's edge while watching the stars. We always had to make one ourselves whenever we ran out. There was a town about an hour away from the castle where we would buy our supplies, but the Master never wanted us to just buy a cake. Ven was always the best chef of us, actually…" Aqua blinked her eyes. She must have still been sleepy, because they were starting to water.
"I wonder if that's where Sora got it from?"
"Sora can cook?"
Xion gave a halfhearted shrug. "He's surprised me once or twice with it. Though," she laughed slightly, "it didn't pass on to me or Roxas, so maybe not."
"'Just something you're born with,' that's what Ven used to say." Aqua twined her fingers together as she thought back to those days in the flour- and egg-covered kitchen, with her hair a mess and Terra's clothes completely ruined. Ven had been so proud to finally have something that he could beat them at, though, and besides that it was just a lot of fun.
"What was he like?"
"Huh?" Aqua turned to Xion, unsure if she heard correctly. The other girl had been so quiet, Aqua wasn't certain she had even said it.
But Xion was looking at her right in the eyes. "Ven. What was he like, Aqua?" As she asked the question, her fingers tightened around the stick of her ice cream. Was her hand trembling?
"Um…" Aqua trailed off, wary. "Well, he was a lot like Sora. He was open and could have fun doing just about anything as long as he wasn't alone. He made friends really easily too, at least from what I could see while chasing him around the worlds. He felt inferior in a lot of ways, though. Jealous of the two of us, even if he had no reason to be. That was why he liked to cook so much, because Terra and I had no talent for it."
"Is that right?" Xion finished off her sea-salt ice cream and stared at the Winner! Written on the stick. Xion's free hand clutched tightly at her shirt and she began to show that same thoughtful pout as Ven's. There was that worrying again, it seemed to happen whenever Ven was brought up.
"Xion, are you…scared of—"
"Hey! Aqua!"
Before the question could be asked, Sora ran over to the two of them and leaned over on his knees, out of breath. "So what...are you guys…talking about?" he asked between heavy pants.
"Catch your breath first, Sora," Aqua said with a chuckle. As he stood up straight and did so, Aqua looked behind him to see the other players of their impromptu soccer match joining them. Well, most; before Aqua's eyes, the four parrots merged into just one, who hung around in the back of the group while spinning an umbrella around his finger. "Who are your friends?"
"Oh, let me introduce you! Xion actually introduced me to them." He turned around and beckoned everyone over. "These is PJ, Max—Goofy's kid—, José Carioca, and, huh, Panchito, um, Romer…?"
"¡Hola señorita!" Before Aqua had even properly processed Sora's introductions, the rooster had charged forward and began shaking her hand with such force that he actually pulled her to her feet. "I am Panchito Romero Miguel Junipero Francisco Quintero González III! Son of a gun, it is so good to meet the famous Master Aqua! We have heard so much about you!"
"From Mickey?"
"That's right. The King told us all about meeting with you and Ventus. I was surprised to hear that he knew you, I have to admit!"
It wasn't Max, PJ, Panchito, or José who had spoken. Rather, from the other direction approached the one and only Queen Minnie. Gasping, Aqua dropped down onto one knee. "Your Majesty, I—"
The Queen giggled lightly. "I told you not to act like that, remember? We're all friends here."
"I… Yes, I do remember that." Aqua stood up straight, blushing slightly, and cleared her throat. "Well, Queen Minnie, it's an honor to see you again. I'm sorry if I was rather out of it last night, but it was so disorienting to be back in the Realm of Light."
"There's no need to apologize," Queen Minnie said with a shake of her head. "You clearly enjoyed yourself if you slept so late into the day! And I hope your clothes are clean?"
"Y-Yes, they are. Thank you for being so accommodating, Your Majesty."
"Well, it's not often we have guests!" Queen Minnie said with a smile. "But I'm afraid catching up with you will have to wait, because you're all wanted in the audience chamber. I sent Daisy to go fetch Donald and Goofy as well."
"The audience chamber?" Sora broke into a wide grin. "So Riku's here?!"
The Queen nodded. "He and Mickey arrived just now, and as soon as I told them that you had found Master Aqua he asked to gather you all up so you can figure out what to do about Ventus. Oh! And before I forget!" She turned to Xion and held a hand up to help her to her feet. "Xion, your friend with the bright red hair arrived last night, after you went to bed. He was resting after getting back so late, but he should be awake now."
"Lea's here too?" Xion looked across the courtyard, to the massive doors on the opposite side that led to the audience chamber.
"They're just waiting on you, dears. You'd best be going if you want to save Ventus!"
Aqua nodded. "Right. Thank you, Your Majesty. We'll get right on that." She moved a few steps down, then turned back and held a hand out to Xion. "Right?"
Xion stared at her hand, then jumped slightly as Sora put a hand on her shoulder. "You okay?"
"..Yeah, don't worry about me! Come on, let's so see everyone."
It was only a minute's walk to the doors that separated the halls from the audience chamber. On approach, Queen Minnie knocked gently on the door one, two, three times. Aqua stepped back, expecting the towering doors to rumble open before them, but to her surprise only a small section swung open right at ground level. Queen Minnie bowed her head and stepped aside, then gestured toward the door and smiled. "Please, the King is waiting."
Following Sora and Xion, Aqua ducked low to pass under the slightly-too-short door. When she raised her head up again, her jaw hung open. Somehow it hadn't registered to her that a massive doorway would lead to an equally massive room, and yet here they were in the ridiculously large audience room. Far at the end, standing in front of his throne, was the familiar figure of Mickey, along with Donald, Goofy, and two young men; one with red hair and one with white.
"Hey there, pipsqueak!" The one with red hair walked over to Xion and wrapped his arm around her shoulder in a half hug. She smiled and pulled away as he ruffled her hair, then he turned to Aqua and ran his gaze up and down. "So you're the famous Aqua? Hey there, name's Lea!"
"Xion's friend?" Aqua asked while shaking his hand.
Lea smirked. "Oh, so she's told you about me? Yeah, best friends. Former member of Organization XIII, same as her. They caught you up on that, right?"
"The group of Nobodies, right?"
"Yeah, but I'm not a Nobody anymore, just so you know. Got it memorized?" He tapped the side of his head, then gave a wordless wave and turned back to Xion to speak with her. Aqua smiled at the two of them for a moment longer before she was nearly tackled by a smaller figure.
"Aqua!" Mickey exclaimed happily, visibly restraining himself from jumping up and giving her a hug. "Gosh, it is such a huge relief to see you! I'm so glad they were able to find you. It was only a hunch, and it if hadn't paid off I don't know what we would have done!"
Aqua crouched down to eye level with the King. "Trust me, I'm just as thankful for it, if not more. It's so wonderful to walk in the light again, and I'm going to do everything in my power to keep it that way for all of us."
"What you said to Lea—so they told you everything that's happened?"
Aqua hesitated. He clearly meant Ven and Terra. "…Yes, they have. And with that…" Standing back up and turning to Mickey's side, Aqua looked at Riku in his startling blue eyes. He was so much taller and mature-looking than Sora was, but still Aqua could tell that this was the same little boy she had met on the islands. She sensed a darkness about him, but it was different than the kind Terra had held in those last days. "I owe you an apology, Riku. I am so, so sorry; everything that happened to you was because of my failure to stop Xehanort, and I understand if you can't forgive me. But still, I'm glad Sora was able to keep his promise."
Riku was silent for a moment, and Aqua was in turn. But he never moved his eyes, and eventually visibly relaxed as his shoulders grew slack. He shook his head. "You have absolutely nothing to be sorry about, Master Aqua. Xehanort's shown himself to have plans inside of plans, and you had no way of knowing what was going to happen."
That caught Aqua off-guard. She stared at him for several long moments before relaxing herself. "Well, thank you, Riku. I'm not sure if I deserve it, but thank you. And please, just call me Aqua."
Sora laughed. "Look at you, Riku, playing the cool guy again!"
"Gawrsh Sora, are ya sayin' Aqua should apologize?" teased Goofy.
"Wha- Of course not!"
Everyone laughed, but it was a nervous, quiet laughter that died down as soon as it had come. Aqua could feel Mickey's gaze lingering on her, even though he tried to hide it. The burning question that he was dying to ask was obvious, so she should put his concerns to rest.
"I know how to find Ventus."
While Sora, Xion, Donald, and Goofy had already heard the news last night, Lea, Riku, and Mickey were immediately at attention and listening intently. More the latter two; Lea eyed her suspiciously, raising an eyebrow and pursing his lips. "You can make it through Castle Oblivion? Looking through every room in that place is impossible."
Aqua nodded, though her confidence had just a tiny twinge of fear making it waver. "I'm rather certain I can, anyway. That's what the Master said."
"Master Eraqus?" Mickey asked.
"Yes. He's the one who taught me how to do it—how to create Castle Oblivion." As soon as she said the words, just as she expected, Riku, Mickey, and Lea broke into a jumbled mess of surprised shouts. Even Sora's group still looked like they couldn't quite get over it. After the shock had calmed down, Aqua explained. "After the incident at the Keyblade Graveyard, when Ven's heart was broken, I had to find him a safe place. He led me to the Land of Departure, and using a trick that the Master taught me I used the Keyblade to seal the world away, to keep Ven safe inside it as he slept. Anyone but me who entered would be lost to oblivion."
"I see…" Mickey murmured, cupping his chin. "So you oughta be able to reverse that trick, or at the very least get through the castle without it tryin' to trap ya!"
"That's the plan, anyway."
"Alright!" Lea slapped down a hand on Aqua's shoulder. "Sounds like we've got a plan then. Aqua, let's get going!"
Aqua stared at Lea in astonishment. "You're coming too?"
Before her eyes, Lea's broad smile vanished and his expression grew serious. "Xemnas had Axel searching high and low for that chamber. I turned that castle upside down on more than one occasion. I don't like loose ends." Smirking, he tapped the side of his head. "Get it memorized, alright? I'm seeing this thing through to the end."
But Donald crossed his arms. "Lea, you should come with us to Traverse Town to rally Leon and the gang."
"Nah, let him go, Donald," Riku said. "Besides, Lea's still got that star shard."
"That I do!" Lea exclaimed, brandishing a blue star-shaped stone. "We'll go get Ventus and then meet you in Traverse Town."
Aqua sighed, but it gave way to a smile. "Well, I'm up for it if everyone else is okay with it. Any objections?" She looked around the room, lingering on Xion who looked just as tense now as she had when mentioning Ven outside. But neither she nor anyone else said anything, so Aqua turned to Lea. "Okay, Lea. Let's get going."
Lea held out the star shard, and Aqua cupped her hand over it. "It'll be a pleasure, Aqua. You may wanna hold on tight, though; this thing can give you one hell of an upset stomach."