Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or the 3rd one would be out by now and Sora would learn a bit of fashion sense and stop wearing parachute pants (come on Sora! Those were popular for maybe a month in the 70's! Get with the times!) There is some minor language ahead and Xehanort is just generally weird and his beard scares me in my dreams. Oh and if you haven't watched the movie in Kingdom Hearts 2.8 it doesn't play a big part in my story but there is a brief mentions of Lady Vulpes and it may be confusing. It is all just speculation and theory so just know that Lady Vulpes was one of the 5 2nd Gen Keyblade Masters assigned to training the 3rd Gen. On with the story.

When Vanitas awoke is was to the piercing golden eyes of his Master looming over him, he glanced at the untouched door to confirm that Xehenort had indeed walked completely through it. He gazed back up at his maker and recognized the sadistic cruelty that resided there. This was going to be painful, he knew it, but he would only keep it as fuel for when he himself murdered his torturer. After a few moments of eye contact, confirming that both knew exactly what was coming, Xehenort grabbed Vanitas by the collar and yanked him up to stand on the squishy rug.

"Ventus told me what you said to him," Xehenort rasped, "Not very nice to your brother are you?"

Vanitas didn't answer, it was only a trap to begin the beatings, he'd get beaten no matter what but he didn't want to make it any easier for the sadistic asshole.

Xehenort grabbed his wrist and began pulling him towards the door, "I am proud that you have come to understand your situation, and now that you know, I want you to see something..."

Vanitas actually felt curious, and followed dumbly behind Xehenort as he was pulled upstairs and to a door that was always kept locked. Inside was another staircase to the West Wing where he and Ven were forbidden to go. What could possibly be here? A torture chamber where he was about to know pain he had never known before? Or maybe a weapon stash where he could get a keyblade strong enough to get the upper hand on Ventus? Maybe just some dumb library with a bunch of books the Xehenort would expect him to find impressive or interesting. Whatever it was, each stair filled Vanitas with just a bit more curiosity and a bit more fear.

But the stairs did not end, and as the sun had gone down and no light was shining through the small windows, Vanitas could not see an end. It took a while before Vanitas noticed that it was a spiral staircase, and that there did seem to be some doors they passed but they were not entering them. Therefore they must be in one of the castles many towers and Xehenort was taking him to the top. Was his Master going to push him off? God, that would be awful, surely Van would break bones and not be able to fight for months.

They finally came out on a flat in the room of the tower, Xehenort whispered, "Fira," and all the candles in the room were lit. It was a modest room, all brick and stone with a rug in the middle. Vanitas noticed a shelf with a few spell books and one opened on a small round table. On the other side was a table with 2 chairs and a chess board set up on it. Next to that was a ladder presumably to the roof, and next to that, closest to them, was a painting. Vanitas stepped forward to get a better look at it and felt something in his throat catch. It was a very handsome young man with silver hair and golden eyes, he was dressed in an open black coat over a white undershirt unbuttoned partially to reveal part of his chest. Vanitas admired the muscles in his arms and chest, and the face looked so soft despite the fire in those eyes. Vanitas felt his stomach churn a little when he stared into those eyes-

"Handsome, isn't he?" Xehenort actually smiled, not smirked, not a threatening sadistic smile, but more like he was reminiscing.

"Was he your son?" Vanitas asked, a little hopeful. Maybe that's what awaited him in the west wing.

Xehenort only laughed, Vanitas flinched at it a moment before feeling a certain warmth from it. "No," Xehenort chuckled, "That was me when I was your age, some 40 years ago."

"Really?!" Vanitas looked from his master and back to the painting, when had those eyes replaced cunning for plotting, clever for vengeful, and strong for cruel? He could see the resemblance though, if he imagined the painting boy with no hair.

"Yes, I used to be quite the ladies man, before I injured my back and lost all my hair," Xehenort lightly touched the edge of the painting, "But that's not why I brought you here, go up the ladder."

Hesitantly, Vanitas did as he was told and went up the ladder to the balcony, gazing up at the full moon. Xehenort came up beside him and walked around to the other side, so Vani followed him.

"There, look, what do you see?" Xehenort pointed of into the desert behind the castle, where Vanitas had never gone. Vanitas squinted a little, trying to see better, but all he saw was sand and... sticks? Maybe some trees in the distance?

"Um... an oasis with trees?" Vanitas said uncertainly.

"Those are not trees my child," Vanitas shuddered at being called 'my child' by his psychopathic creator. "Those are the keyblades of fallen warriors, fighting over the light in the great Keyblade war, only one man survived, an apprentice of Lady Vulpes who was against the war... he taught me and Master Eraqus, who have trained keyblade masters in our turn as well. Terra and Aqua will undoubtedly pass the keyblade to apprentices in their wake, as is their destiny. But your destiny is different, as you have realized. But what do you really think your destiny is? Because you are wrong that I do not care who wins... that is like saying I care not whether Light prevails over Darkness, when really that is what this is all about."

Vanitas thought a moment, "So... you do want me to kill Ventus?"

"Precisely, my entire plan depends on it, you will kill Ventus to create the X-blade, and I will rejuvinate myself by turning Terra over to the darkness, then I will hand over every light being I can find over to the darkness as well until everything in in darkness."

"But why? The Darkness isn't even a force, it's a state of being, it can't reward you for handing it the world?"

"There you are wrong, the Darkness IS a force, a force to be collected as the Lux was the force of Light before the Keyblade War. But now both the darkness and the light reside only in people's hearts, so I must turn their hearts to the darkness and collect them, to form Kingdom Hearts and gain the ultimate power! And why, you ask? Because that is my destiny, it was prophesied long ago how all of this would play out, I am simply playing my role. And when it is complete, I will rule over the fear stricken people lost in the darkness, that is my goal. But what about you, now that you know where your story ends, the rest is unwritten. What would you do after you kill Ventus?"

"I... I would..." Vanitas couldn't say "Kill you" but that was the only thing he knew of. What did he want to do once he was free? He had never thought past killing Xehenort. "I would explore the worlds... I want to see something better than this desert..."

Xehenort laughed, "Well I suppose I can't expect high ambitions from someone who hasn't experienced the world yet. But I do expect for you to form higher hopes than that before you kill Ventus. Just as you must become physically stronger, you must find something stronger to fight for, only then can you win." Xehenort nodded knowingly, and Vanitas imagined him thinking something dumb like 'That was good, yes... I should write that down.' Vanitas held in a laugh at that image, and simply gazed up at the moon, he rarely saw it since there were no windows in his basement. Once he was free, he wanted to have a nice room with windows everywhere, and a nice comfy bed, and take a bath in his own tub.

"May I leave now, Sir?" Vanitas asked, hesitantly, he felt the moment was over, and really he just wanted to go to sleep and get away from the high balcony he still slightly feared he was going to be pushed off of.

"Yes... be ready to fight Ventus tomorrow," Xehenort just stared at the battlefield in the distance, not looking at Vanitas.

Vanitas climbed back down the ladder and looked at the handsome painting one last time before going down the stairs two at a time. He reached the door and opened it, he felt weird being in this room, he had never not seen Ven in here, so this room had always made him angry. But as he looked around the empty foyer, everything looked so welcoming and comfy. No wonder Ven was always in such a good mood, he never had to sleep on a lumpy couch or eat scraps... Vanitas almost felt pity for Ventus, they were both just clay shaped by Xehenort, Ven had just as much choice being spoiled rotten as Vanitas did being abused... maybe they were on the same side... but Vanitas knew that without the X-blade, he could never take out Xehenort, and so no matter what side anyone was on, he and Ventus would still have to fight.

A/N: Well this was a bit of a detour from where this is going but I felt it needed to be done, also I wasn't in the mood for Vani getting beaten black and blue. But this will play into the story later so I felt it was important. It was a nice little break for Vanitas and he may jack off thinking about that painting... poor guy has never even seen the glory of breasts... but I'm a fujoshi so I would make him gay no matter how many breasts he'd seen! Muahahaha! Thanks for reading and stay tuned.