Set in the Lanes Between and the Keyblade Graveyard.

A heart cookie! Wow! I love cookies!
Can't say the same about chocolate, though. Hahaha! I know, I'm weird, so I've been told.

Hmm...
I know I haven't written much of Aqua's thoughts.
I've been reluctantly doing that on purpose. Extremely reluctantly.
There were many scenes in her point of view that I decided to remove.
Reason is, Aqua is slightly more in tune with her feelings. Slightly. And I felt like those scenes revealed too much too soon.
But you'll get inside her head - and heart - soon enough.

By the way...
Good(?) News! Hahaha!
I am promising you two more Chapters after this.
I know, just yesterday I rambled on about not knowing what to do next. You can smack me on the head, if you want. Hahaha!
They're not written yet, but I promise to get them done and posted as soon as I can, okay?

Also, beginning with this Chapter, I am heading down a new direction. The ending I had in mind...changed.
I don't know if I can stitch it up smoothly enough with what I've already written...
So if something seems off... Let me know?
I don't know what I can do about it, though. Hahaha!

DISCLAIMER [I do not own Kingdom Hearts] DISCLAIMER

ESCAPE

A way to break free from destiny…

Aqua left the Mysterious Tower with a heavy heart. Terra… He would never, could never… But Master Yen Sid would not lie about something like that. He simply told her what the stars told him. And, what, should she blame the stars? She shook her head. There had to be some explanation. Terra must have had a reason for doing the things he did.

But what could justify… hurting our Master?

She slowed her Glider, her heart aching to a point that left her breathless. She knows Terra would never succumb to the darkness. She knows he would rise above it. No matter what he has done, he was still her friend and she believed in him. She would forgive him.

"Even if he were a friend… Could you not forgive him?"

Her heart skipped a beat. Why was it that Van always found his way into her thoughts? But it comforted her to remember him, and she felt the corners of her lips rise to form a small smile. She could imagine him ruffling his hair – which he did when he was annoyed or feeling rather cranky. He would probably shove aside her worries with a look that clearly said, "Stop being stupid."

Sighing, she propelled her Glider forward. She missed Van already. He was the only one who bothered to indulge her girly moments, something neither Terra nor Ven would have willingly done. And there was something in the way he looked at her, something that was not typical of a young boy. His expressive golden eyes, they had that expectant, wanting, needing look…

Aqua fought down the strange thrill that seemed to rise within her heart. Why was she feeling this way whenever that boy came to mind? She breathed deeply, clearing her mind of him. Terra and Ven, they needed her. That was all she should be thinking about.

But her heart still wanted the last word.

When all this is over, I'll see you again, Van. I promise.

The dry air of the Keyblade Graveyard seemed strangely cold, as if it could sense that something dark was about to occur, as if it could still remember the great war that once ravaged its lands long ago. Vanitas was standing atop one of the many cliffs. He clawed impatiently at his arm, his suit still annoying him, as he watched the trio of Keyblade Wielders from a safe distance. Or, rather, he was watching the blue-haired one…

He whipped his head around, though, when he heard a snort beside him. "What are you laughing at?" he hissed.

Braig smirked. "You and her? As if. Even I have a better chance than you."

Vanitas summoned his Keyblade, gritting his teeth. "I'm not…"

"Not what? Looking at her like a lost little puppy? Keep your mask on, kiddo, because without it you're easier to read than a book."

Vanitas snarled at Braig and lunged forward, his Keyblade held ready. But Master Xehanort grabbed him roughly by the arm and pulled him back. "Control yourself, Vanitas, and do not waste your energy over such a trivial squabble," the Master said. "This will all be over soon."

The apprentice breathed deeply once, regaining his composure. Braig chuckled. "Yeah, little puppy, you'll be with her soon. One way or another…"

Vanitas could only clench his fists in anger.

"The time has come," Master Xehanort said, his eyes glinting in anticipation. He turned to Braig. "You know what to do."

Braig nodded. "You got it."

Then the Master faced Vanitas. "Come."

Without waiting, Xehanort made his way down the cliff. Vanitas bent down to pick up his mask, which he had set on the ground earlier. But before putting it on, he faced Braig with a sinister glare. "Not that I think you have half a chance of hurting her at all," he muttered darkly. "But she had better be in mint condition when I come for her…"

Braig had his gaze on Aqua, his expression disturbingly corrupt, and he was smirking. "Sorry, kiddo, I can't make any promises."

And he felt a sharp pain on the side of his head. "What the hell?" he roared, seeing the rock that had hit him fall to the ground. He scowled where Vanitas should be but the boy had already gone.

"Damn that stupid kid and his stupid crush…" Braig muttered, rubbing his head.

Vanitas walked beside Master Xehanort and approached the three Keybearers, who looked at them with a medley of different emotions.

Ventus, much to Vanitas' amusement, was both fearful and angry, a combination that would only give Master Xehanort an advantage. Terra looked positively pissed and there was a dark determination in his eyes. His eagerness for battle made Vanitas wish for a moment that he was to fight Terra, but no. The eldest apprentice was for his Master.

And, finally, there was Aqua. She was a little harder to read, perhaps because she was a girl, and girls have the emotional range of… Well, the emotional range of an entire universe compressed into a single heart.

Her brows were creased; she was worried, apprehensive, and he was sure her concern was for her friends. Her lips formed a harsh frown; she was furious, clearly at him and at Master Xehanort. Her fists were clenched; she was struggling to keep herself under control. Her eyes… Vanitas felt his heart constrict. She was in pain…

He was vaguely aware that Master Xehanort was addressing Ventus, but whatever the old man had to say was of no importance to him. He wanted to know why Aqua was hurting. And a voice in his head told him that he wanted to know because he wanted to exploit it. His heart begged to differ, saying he wanted to destroy whatever it was that caused her agony. He gritted his teeth, his consciousness telling both of them to shut the hell up.

Every decision he ever made, every step he ever took, led down to this moment. It was the climax of his very existence, and he was not about to let the arguments between his snooty mind and his unruly heart interfere.

He stared at Aqua, and he wondered briefly what emotions she would see in him if he had not been wearing his mask.

"Not what? Looking at her like a lost little puppy?"

He wondered if there was truth in what Braig said. Did he really look at her that way; lost and needy? He had no time to ponder further, because all three Keybearers suddenly activated their armor. He felt a momentary jolt of disappointment at no longer seeing Aqua's face, but he was quickly distracted by Terra making the first move. Clad in red and gold armor and holding his Keyblade ready, the eldest apprentice rushed at them. Vanitas tensed as his Master caused the earth in front of them to shift, stopping Terra. Then, he raised the ground they stood on, creating a brand new cliff.

Vanitas smirked as he leapt down, shocking Terra with a burst of Thunder, eager that the end has finally begun.

"Terra!" Aqua called fearfully, seeing Vanitas shock him. She hissed through clenched teeth, her wrath growing as she looked at the masked apprentice.

He faced her. His mask concealed his face, but Aqua was sure the eyes hidden behind the visor were looking right into hers. She could feel the weight of his stare.

This was neither the time nor place for a staring contest, though. Aqua felt the manipulative power of magic before Ventus did and she hastily ran forward just as the earth beneath their feet quaked. It rose quickly, but she managed to leap down before it reached dangerous heights and Ventus – following her example – was right behind her. They ran past Terra, who was recovering from the attack, and Aqua ran straight for Vanitas. Ventus kept pace with her, and they both prepared themselves to fight the masked boy.

Vanitas was a blur of black and red, half-running and half-teleporting, as if to say, "Catch me if you can."

Ven, who was much faster than Aqua, caught him first and struck him. Vanitas blocked the blow with his own Keyblade and leapt back as Aqua sent a flurry of ice in his direction.

Around them, the sky darkened, and Aqua suddenly took a sharp intake of breath. She felt the shimmer of magic in the air once more and gasped at seeing the lifeless Keyblades around them begin to tremble. They suddenly rose skyward and her eyes widened, seeing a hail of Keyblades soar through the air towards her.

"Ven!" she shouted, warning the youngest apprentice as she ran.

Vanitas, who seemed to somehow beat the speed of wind, was suddenly right behind her, riding the Keyblades. He fired shards of ice at Aqua and Ventus, and they barely managed to run fast enough to dodge his attacks. Then Ven suddenly got caught by the onslaught of Keyblades and he was flung upwards before falling on the ground, flat on his back.

Aqua stopped in her tracks, spun on her heel and leapt to attack Vanitas before he could take advantage of Ven's moment of weakness. He was quick to respond, blocking each of her strikes with his Keyblade and she unleashed a bolt of lightning at him. It clipped him, but barely, as the Keyblades sped up and carried him away from her.

She frowned; annoyed at the obvious disadvantage she and friends were forced to deal with. She kept her gaze to the skies, searching for Vanitas, but instead she caught sight of Terra just as the eldest apprentice was falling off the edge of the cliff. She gasped, frozen in place. Terra would not survive such a fall. She tightened her grip on her Keyblade, searching her mind for a way to help him, but before she could act, she felt the ground beneath her shudder. And as she looked down, a rush of dead Keyblades rose up from beneath the earth.

They knocked all the air out of her and she was suddenly overcome by an intense rush of pain as they struck her chest, her throat, her chin. Her head spun painfully and she saw the visor of her helmet crack, unable to withstand the force of a thousand steel shafts ramming against it. Her grip on her Keyblade involuntarily slackened as she was catapulted into the air only to have gravity drag her back down.

Aqua fell face-first onto the earth, the impact further aggravating the bruises she had already received. Her Keyblade clattered right beside her and she heard Ven rush to her side. "Aqua!" he said, his voice ringing with concern, but it only served to make her head spin faster. She gritted her teeth, trying to focus.

Terra… She could still see images of him falling off the cliff playing through her mind. Grasping her Keyblade, she pointed it to the side, in the direction she had seen Terra, and quickly called up a barrier. As a true testament to her proficiency in magic, her spell found its mark, even without her visually aiming for it.

The barrier surrounded Terra and withstood the barrage of Keyblades. And, knowing he was safe for now, Aqua paused to catch her breath and allow her body to adjust to the pain that was coursing through it. Ven, at seeing that Aqua could hold her own, ran off to help Terra just as the eldest apprentice tumbled onto the cliff top.

Aqua struggled to get up, her knees shaking. Her head throbbed as if a storm was raging in her mind and her vision was blurry. It seemed the harsh pounding that her head received, coupled with the effects of colliding head-first against solid ground, had driven knives through her skull that were trying to steer her mind into chaos. She pressed her fist against her chest, eyes shut tight, and she summoned a healing spell.

She felt its warmth rush through her, numbing the pain to tolerable levels, and she finally managed to bring herself to her feet. She looked up towards the cliff where her friends were, and shock rippled through her system. Her vision tunneled and the beats of her heart were as loud as explosions in her ears. Xehanort was holding Ven by his neck, his visor cracked, his hand reaching hopelessly out for her.

"Ven!" she screamed, terrified, as Xehanort froze the boy.

But it was when the sinister Master allowed Ventus to fall frozen from that incredible height that Aqua truly felt fear. She could not breathe, or scream, or think; she simply ran. If he fell… She did not dare finish that thought.

Every muscle in her body protested at the sudden exertion as she begged, just this once, to be faster than Ventus. She had no idea if she would make it in time and only hope propelled her forward. When she saw him near the ground, she dove for him. In midair, she twisted so that her back would be against the ground and Ventus would fall into her arms.

Three things happened when she felt his weight against her and her back scraped against the harsh, dry earth. Her entire body screamed in agony, her armor was more a burden than help against this kind of punishment. Then it was as though her throat had been ripped open as all the air left her lungs in one sudden rush. And, finally, she trembled with relief, brought almost to the point of tears, at having caught him in time.

She hastily corrected her position so that she could see if Ven was alright. The relief strengthened when she saw his eyes move, his lips shiver with breath.

Ventus… If anything had happened to you… She could not speak; her chest was still heaving, forcing her to breathe raggedly for the air it had lost.

Just then, she noticed that their surroundings had taken on a bluish aura and she looked up. Far above them, the black clouds parted. They revealed what appeared to be a brilliant blue moon in the shape of a heart.

She felt Ven move in her arms and she turned her attention back to him. His brows had creased and he was clearly trying to break free of the ice. She opened her mouth to speak, but someone spoke ahead of her.

"How 'bout you leave the little popsicle with me, so you can go have your little fight with Terra."

She looked up to see a man with an eye patch, smirking at her. He looked up at the cliff and the sky, saying, "You can't be too happy about him deep-sixing your Master."

Her frowned deepened when he chuckled darkly. Who was this man? How did he know about that? "Who are you?" she asked, voicing her thoughts.

He did not answer. He only smirked once more, looking at her with a sharp glint in his eye. Aqua felt a shudder course through her. It was as if he knew something else; a secret that amused him. But she had no time to wonder what that might be, because he said, "You think you two have got some grand role to play. As if. You're only here so that when I finish you off… Terra will succumb to the darkness."

Aqua felt Ven's struggling intensify.

"So…" the man continued, "who wants to go first?"

"Shut up!" Ven yelled, surprising Aqua.

"Oh," the stranger said in a mocking tone, "so this kiddo thinks he's a full-fledged Keyblade Wielder? He's got the angry look down."

That remark sparked a flame in Ventus and he struggled even harder, almost growling. Aqua scowled at the man. "Go ahead if you want to waste your time. Keep trying to drive us apart with your mind games. It'll never work!"

She laid Ven on the ground, gently, and stood up. She glared with all the intensity of her rage at the man and she summoned her Keyblade. "Terra will prove to you he's stronger!"

Thank You

~Alacquiene~